The Wounded Land Ch. 14 Pursuit

[Dromond]

'Pursuit' picks up where 'Demondim-Spawn' left us, TC in the middle of Stonemight Woodhelvin, freed of his restraints by the enigmatic Vain.
The Stonedowners are stunned by Vain's killing of their Graveler, and they are only now coming around, blinking their eyes, glancing at each other as Covenant strides away north, followed by Vain.

Covenant is now two days behind the captured Linden, Sunder and Hollian.

Bourne on the back of a courser, Linden and the two Stonedowners might easily reach Revelstone ten days before him. He could conceive of no way to catch up with them in time to do them any good. But leprosy was also a form of despair for which there was no earthly cure; and he had learned to endure it, to make a life for himself in spite of it, by stationing himself in the eye of the paradox, affirming the acceptable humanity of all the contradictions-and by locking his soul in the most rigid possible discipline. The same resources enabled him to face the futile pursuit of his friends

I find interesting SRD's saying no earthly cure, as the Creator offered TC a cure at the end of TPTP, which was refused.

As TC and Vain escape north along a ravine, shouts of pursuit can be heard- the Stonedown has come around and are chasing them.

The Stonedown's anger at the loss of their Graveler has them in a frenzy more powerful than their fear of Vain.

Apprehension knotted his shoulders. To ease himself, he attempted a bluff. "Vain!" he shouted without turning his head. "Kill the first one who tries to get past you!" His words danced between the walls like a threat of murder.

The next instant, one of them screamed hideously.

Covenant's command, "Nekhrimah,Vain! Save me!" is not fulfilled yet and Vain is butchering the pursuers. With mere hand gestures from several paces away, Vain is crushing heads, ripping open hearts, killing any who approach. Covenant is horrified to see a surging crowd of Stonedowners in the distance, all coming at him. Having no doubt that Vain can and will kill them all, he flees, hoping to escape and spare as much life as possible. Vain follows.

Covenant runs until he comes to the dry riverbed of the Mithil. He listens and the chase seems to be over, then wheels on Vain.

"Listen to me," he spat. "I don't care how bad it gets. If you ever do something like that again, I swear to God I'll take you back where I found you, and you and your whole bloody purpose can just rot!"

But the Demondim-spawn looked as blank as stone. He stood with his elbows slightly bent, his eyes unfocused, and betrayed no awareness of Covenant's existence.

"Sonofabitch," Covenant muttered.

Climbing the riverbank, Covenant looks out at the land under the desert sun:

The river was dry. He had noticed that fact without pausing to consider it. But he considered it now. As far as he could see, grass as high as houses, shrubs the size of hillocks, forests of bracken, trees that pierced the sky- all had already been reduced to a necrotic gray sludge lying thigh-deep over every contour of the terrain.

The brown-clad sun melted every form of plant fiber, desiccated every drop of sap or juice, sublimated everything that grew. Every wood and green and fertile thing simply ran down itself like spilth, making one turgid puddle which the Sunbane sucked away as if the air were inhaling sludge. When he stepped into the muck in order to find out whether or not he could travel under these conditions, he was able to see the level of the viscid slop declining. It left a dead gray stain on his pants.

The muck sickened him. Involuntarily, he delayed. To clear his throat, he drank some of the metheglin, then chewed slowly at half a loaf of unleavened bread as he watched the sludge evaporate. But the pressure in him would not let him wait long. As the slop sank to the middle of his shins, he took a final swig of metheglin, stopped the pouch, and began slogging northwestward toward Revelstone, elevenscore leagues distant.

The heat was tremendous. By midmorning the ground was bare and turning arid; the horizons had begun to shimmer, collapsing in on Covenant as if the desert sun shrank the world. Now there was nothing to hinder his progress across the waste of the Center Plains-nothing except light as eviscerating as fire, and air which seemed to wrench the moisture from his flesh, and giddy heatwaves, and Sunbane.

And so Covenant walks toward revelstone under the desert sun, and of course it's not long before it becomes just too much.
The Sunbane hammering, hammering at him is sapping his strength and addling his mind. In a moment of clear thinking, TC shifts direction slightly and heads northeast, seeking escape back into Andelain.
Bitter at his weakness and the delay it's causing, he feels no comfort when re-entering the natural lushness of Andelain at dusk. But with aliantha again available, and the vitality of Andelain, some strength returns and Covenant eschews sleep, continuing northward throughout the night, keeping his eyes westward, hoping against hope to see a fire, a sign of the rider who took his companions.

But he could not make himself immune from exaustion. In spite of aliantha and clear spring water,bounteous grass and air as vital as an elixer, his exertions eroded him like leprosy. He had passed his limits, and traveled now on borrowed endurance-stamina wrested by plain intransigence from the ruinous usury of time.

Instead of resting, he begins to run. Using aliantha at every opportunity, he runs throughout the day. And Vain followed:

matching stride for stride with his own invulnerability the exhaustion which crumbled covenant.

And then:

Shortly after dark, Covenant broke. He missed his footing, fell, and could not rise. His lungs shuddered for air, but he was not aware of them. Everything in his chest seemed numb, beyond help. He lay stunned until his pulse slowed to a limp and his lungs stopped shivering. Then he slept.

Covenant is dying. And his dead respond. Unlike his first encounter, Where his dead seemed to be waiting for him, and pleased by the encounter with him, there is a sense of an unwanted intrusion about this encounter.

He was awakened near midnight by the touch of a cold hand on his soul. A chill that resembled regret more than fear ran through him. He jerked up his head.
Three silver forms like distilled moonlight stood before him. When he had squeezed the blur of prostration from his sight, he recognized them.
Lena, the woman he had raped.
Atiaran and Trell, her parents.

Three people whom Covenant had hurt beyond repair.

Trell, Atiaran,Lena. In each of their faces, he read a reproach as profound as human pain could make it. But when Lena spoke, she did not derogate him. "Thomas Covenant, you have stressed yourself beyond the ability of your body. If you sleep further, it may be that Andelain will spare you from death, but you will not awaken until a day has been lost. Perhaps your spirit has no bounds. Still you are not wise to punish yourself so. Arise! You must eat and move about, lest your flesh fail you."
"It is truth," Atiaran added severely. "You punish yourself for the plight of your companions. But such castigation is a doom which achieves itself. Appaling yourself thus, you ensure that you will fail to redeem your companions. And failure demonstrates your unworth. In punishing yourself, you come to merit punishment. This is Despite, Unbeliever. Arise and eat."
Trell did not speak. But his mute stare was unarguable. Humbly, because of who they were, and because he recognized what they said, Covenant obeyed. His body wept in every joint and thew; but he could not refuse his dead. Tears ran down his face as he understood that these three-people who in life had more cause to hate him than anyone else-had come to him here in order to help him.

TC gets up and does what is demanded of him, he walks. At first, the pain torments him, but soon he sees the wisdom in moving about, and grows steadier and stronger. His dead walk silently with him through the night, to see he does not falter.
Then:

Before dawn, they left him- turned abruptly away toward the center of Andelain without allowing him an opportunity to thank them. This he understood; perhaps no gall would have been as bitter to them as the thanks of the Unbeliever. So he said nothing of his gratitude. He stood facing their departure like a salute, murmuring promises in his heart. When their silver had faded, he continued along the path of his purpose.

That evening, a stronger Covenant sees what he had been hoping for:

The first blink of fire snatched him instantly to his feet.

Though far in the distance, he feels hopeful of what he may find, and strides toward the fire as quickly as possible, followed (of course) by Vain.
As he nears, he sees not a campfire, but a blaze, with, apparently, no one tending it. Closer inspection shows a stake, with a living creature tied to it.
Sensing a trap, but remembering Mhoram's words: It boots nothing to avoid his snares- Covenant comes up to the bonfire and sees:

The creature bound to the stake was one of the Waynhim.

As products of the Demondim, the Waynhim were lorewise and cunning. But, unlike their black kindred, they had broken with lord Foul after the Ritual of Desecration. Covenant had heard that the Waynhim as a race served the Land according to their private standards; but he had seen nothing more of them since his last stay at Revelstone, when a Waynhim had escaped from Foul's Creche to bring the Council word of Lord Foul's power.

It's not said here that the escaped Waynhim was allowed to escape after being tortured and broken and was instumental in the decision by the Lords to summon Covenant.
This Waynhim tied to the stake was also tortured and in excruciating pain. Covenant tries to rescue it, when the blind creature senses TC's companion. In it's guttural tongue it begins talking avidly; Covenant understands none of it except one word spoken again and again:"Nekhrimah!"
Chills go up TC's back when he realizes the Waynhim is trying to command Vain!
Covenant frees the creature, who tries to pull him away from the fire, conveying the need to head southward. Covenant points north, saying 'Revelstone' at which the Waynhim lets out a cry and flees south.
Sure of only one thing and that is to leave as guickly as possible, TC turns and freezes:

A man stood on the other side of the fire.
He had a ragged beard and frenzied eyes. In contrast, his lips wore a shy smile. "Let it be," he said, nodding after the Waynhim."We have no more need of it." He moved slowly around the fire, drawing closer to Covenant and Vain. For all its surface nonchalance, his voice was edged with hysteria.

It is obvious from the total corruption of his body that the man is a victim of the Sunbane, caught unprotected from the sun's first touch.
He approaches Covenant with cupped hands, promising a precious gift. In opening his hands, a spider jumps on TC's neck, biting him.
Venom sets in at once, and he's helpless as he's tied to the stake.A look around and Covenant sees Vain Watching him.

"Vain!" Covenant gasped as if he were choking on blood. "Help me!"
In response Vain bared his teeth in a black grin.
At the sight, Covenant snapped. A white streak of fury exploded from his chest. And with his shriek came a flame of deflagration that destroyed the night.

With this ending of chapter 14, we see an almost instant burst of White Gold. It comes quicker with each venom attack.

[danlo]

Astounding! Dromond! Thank you!

[Seafoam Understone]

Agreed, an excellent dissection. Stone and Sea! I learn more with each passing chapter about dissection and TCTC.

He could not refuse his dead.
That statement makes me shudder in ways that is personal and one that I cannot speak about. But going with that one statement it is clear that TC is paying for his past "sins". Lena, Atairan, the Wraiths, Trell and everyone else he's brought misery to since his first appearance to the Land. Now 4000 years later his past still haunts him and in their own way demand retribution for what he's done to them.
But it seems to me that the retribution they want is for their souls to be redeemed by the healing of the Land that, seemingly only Covenant can provide...

Spoiler

but there is another...and that is the reason she is there.

We learn more about Vain as this chapter unfolds but still are clueless as to the purpose of his existence. We find out his power by the destruction of the stonedowners without his even touching them. A mere gesture brings horrifying ends to his "targets". That he would've killed them all is without question had not TC decided that the best way to prevent it is to keep running.
But again we see TC's continuing intense dislike in killing with his threat to Vain of leaving him where he found him. It was clear to me in my first and subsquent repeated readings that TC had hoped that the Stonedowner's fear of the unknown would respond to halting their chase from his command. But people with their blood up are hard to stop regardless of personal consenquences.

I'm looking forward to the next chapter that will introduce a sadly brief written character that is also one of my favorite in the entire series

Spoiler

Hamako

[Furls Fire]

Awesome Dromond!!

Dead Atarian, Trell and Lena coming to his aide made my heart skip a beat. After all he had done to them, after all his presence in the Land had cost them, they still knew the Land's need and that he was the answer to it. His reaction to seeing them again broke my heart...

He was awakened near midnight by the touch of a cold hand on his soul. A chill that resembled regret more than fear ran through him. He jerked up his head.

Three silver forms like distilled moonlight stood before him. When he had squeezed the blur of prostration from his sight, he recognized them.

Lena, the woman he had raped.

Atiaran and Trell, her parents.

Trell-tall, bluff, mighty Trell-had been deeply hurt by the harm Covenant had done to Lena and by the damage Atiaran had inflicted on herself in her efforts to serve the Land by saving her daughter's rapist. But the crowning anguish of his life, the pain which had finally unbalanced his mind, had been dealt him by the love Elena Lena-daughter bore for Covenant.

Atiaran had sacrificed all her instincts, all her hard-won sense of rectitude, for Covenant's sake; she had believed him necessary to the Land's survival. But the implications of that self-injury had cost her her life in the end.

And Lena-ah, Lena! She had lived on for almost fifty years, serene in the mad belief that Covenant would return and marry her. And when he had returned-when she had learned that he was responsible for the death of Elena, that he was the cause of the immense torment of the Ranyhyn she adored-she had yet chosen to sacrifice herself in an attempt to save his life.

She did not appear before him in the loveliness of youth, but rather in the brittle caducity of age; and his worn heart cried out to her. He had paid every price he could find in an extravagant effort to rectify his wrongs; but he had never learned to shed the burden of remorse.

He could not refuse his Dead...

At first, every step was a torment. But slowly he came to feel the wisdom of what his Dead required him to do. His heart grew gradually steadier; the ache of his breathing receded as his muscles loosened. None of the three spectres spoke again, and he had neither the temerity nor the stamina to address them. In silence, the meager procession wound its argent, ghostly way along the border of Andelain. For a long time after his weeping stopped, Covenant went on shedding grief inwardly because his ills were irrevocable, and he could never redeem the misery he had given Trell, Atiaran, and Lena. Never.

I could just see this, as I read, I could see Covenant, surrounded by glowing specters of Lena, Atarian and Trell, shambling along the borderland of Andelain. Finding no joy in Andelain now, just raw purpose...I could see them flanking him, ready to admonish him again if he faltered, but just their absolute presence around him kept him from faltering that night.

And then this...

Before dawn, they left him-turned abruptly away toward the center of Andelain without allowing him an opportunity to thank them. This he understood; perhaps no gall would have been as bitter to them as the thanks of the Unbeliever. So he said nothing of his gratitude. He stood facing their departure like a salute, murmuring promises in his heart. When their silver had faded, he continued along the path of his purpose.

I remember thinking, "but you are beyond unbelief now, can't you at least tell them that?" But, that too would have been bitter to them. And all he could offer them now were the murmured promises he uttered silently as they disappeared. Gods, this book is heartbreaking

[dlbpharmd]

Great job Dromond!

It never ceases to amaze me how the rape of Lena keeps turning up in TC's life - it's an act for which he never truly receives any form of forgiveness.

[TRC]

Quote:
Apprehension knotted his shoulders. To ease himself, he attempted a bluff. "Vain!" he shouted without turning his head. "Kill the first one who tries to get past you!" His words danced between the walls like a threat of murder.

Quote:
The next instant, one of them screamed hideously.

Covenant's command, "Nekhrimah,Vain! Save me!" is not fulfilled yet and Vain is butchering the pursuers. With mere hand gestures from several paces away, Vain is crushing heads, ripping open hearts, killing any who approach. Covenant is horrified to see a surging crowd of Stonedowners in the distance, all coming at him. Having no doubt that Vain can and will kill them all, he flees, hoping to escape and spare as much life as possible. Vain follows.

This is always something that has perplexed me. Foamfollower said In Andelain

",the ur-viles have formed him in such a way that he may be commanded once.Once Only but I pray it May suffice."

Okay he commanded Vain to save him, Vain complied , and yet when he tells him to

kill the first one that tries to get past you.

Vain obeys again, but almost within the same breath Covenant tells him to stop and yet he doesn't. What actually constitutes the command and what signals the fullfillment of it ?

[dlbpharmd]

I believe that TC unintentionally gave Vain a very vague commandment - "Save me" entailed much more than "stop the Graveler, untie me." Vain's interpretation of the command necessitated further bloodshed until TC was safely away and out of danger. I believe that Vain would have slaughtered the entire village if necessary to save TC's life.

[Dromond]

agreed.

[kastenessen]

TRC wrote:

What actually constitute the command and what signal is the fulfillment of it?

I see it like this: After the command TC gave Vain, the dangerous situation is still active when they are attacked in the ravine. They left the village in haste and were chased almost instantly. And you could say that the command was fulfilled when TC started running and Vain followed, not killing any more...

The encounter in the ravine with the woodhelvennin where Vain kill many of them in horrifying ways, crushing hearts with a thought, is again a moment in the chrons where TC's actions takes an ugly turning. Something happens of which he have no control over and people die, adding to his guilt...it was shocking to read:

The next instant, one of them screamed hideously. The others scrambled to a halt.
Covenant whirled.
Vain stood facing the woodhelvennin-five of them, the nearest still five paces away. The man knelt with his back arched and straining, black agony in his face. Vain clenched his fist towards the man. With a wrench, he burst the man's heart.
"Vain!" Covenant yelled."Don't-!I didn't mean it!"
The next woodhelvennin was fifteen paces away. Vain made a clawing gesture. The man's face, the whole front of his skull, tore open, spilling brains and gore across the stone.
"Vain!"

...like something out of a horror story...

[kastenessen]

I believe that TC unintentionally gave Vain a very vague commandment - "Save me" entailed much more than "stop the Graveler, untie me." Vain's interpretation of the command necessitated further bloodshed until TC was safely away and out of danger. I believe that Vain would have slaughtered the entire village if necessary to save TC's life.

Exactly my point too...

kast

[duchess of malfi]

I agree with all of you...that command was pretty open ended, and Vain interpreted it as getting him clear out of town...how does Vain kill these people without touching them? What power is he using?????

just some quotes that I sort of like:

He could concieve of no way to catch up with them in time to do them any good. But leprosy was also a form of despair for which there was no earthly cure; and he had learned to endure it, to make a life for himself in spite of it, by stationing himself in the eye of the paradox, affirming the acceptable humanity of all the contradictions - and by locking his soul in the most rigid possible discipline. The same resources enabled him to face the futile pursuit of his friends.

For a long time after his weeping stopped, Covenant went on shedding grief inwardly because his ills were irrevocable, and he could never redeem the misery he had given Trell, Atiaran, and Lena. Never.

Someone or something was tied to a stake. Tied alive. The indistinct figure was struggling.
Hell and blood! Covenant instinctively recognized a trap. For a moment, he was paralyzed. He could not depart, leave that bound figure to burn. And he could not approach closer. An abominable purpose was at work here, malice designed to snare him - or someone else equally vulnerable. Someone else? That question had no answer. Bur as he gritted himself. trying to squeeze a decision out of his paralysis, he rememebred Mhoram's words:It boots nothing to avoid his snares-

And this chilling scene, which reminds me of Joan's fire in the beginning of the story, where even the children were participants:

The bowl was full of figures dancing like flames. They capered around the space like ghouls. Cries of blood-lust sprang off the walls of the escarpment; voices shrill with cannabalism battered his ears. Men with chatoyant eyes and prehensile noses leered at him. Women with adder-breats, fingers lined by fangs, flared past him like fragments of insanity, cackling for his life. Children with hideous facial deformities and tiger maws in their belllies puked frogs and obscenities.

In this case, however, the wrong in the people is much more visible -- but all of the people at both fires were victims of Lord Foul.

[birdandbear]

Wow, I got way behind.....trying to catch up now...

Great lead-in Dromond!!

And excellent dissection everyone! I usually have a ridiculous amount of stuff going on at any given time in RL, and I have a tendency to slip behind in the group read, and not participate as much as I'd like to, (and I haven't yet jumped in on the MN read ) but I just want to say that I think the dissections are THE best thing about the Watch. I love knowing that even if I can't keep up, I can jump in at any time and have my mind blown away by all these people who work so hard posting insights I never dreamed of into books I LOVE.

You are all fabulous! Thank you so much for making this place what it is.

And now on to my

The next instant, one of them screamed hideously. The others scrambled to a halt.
Covenant whirled.
Vain stood facing the woodhelvennin-five of them, the nearest still five paces away. The man knelt with his back arched and straining, black agony in his face. Vain clenched his fist towards the man. With a wrench, he burst the man's heart.
"Vain!" Covenant yelled."Don't-!I didn't mean it!"
The next woodhelvennin was fifteen paces away. Vain made a clawing gesture. The man's face, the whole front of his skull, tore open, spilling brains and gore across the stone.
"Vain!"

...like something out of a horror story...

yeah...

The bowl was full of figures dancing like flames. They capered around the space like ghouls. Cries of blood-lust sprang off the walls of the escarpment; voices shrill with cannabalism battered his ears. Men with chatoyant eyes and prehensile noses leered at him. Women with adder-breats, fingers lined by fangs, flared past him like fragments of insanity, cackling for his life. Children with hideous facial deformities and tiger maws in their belllies puked frogs and obscenities.

He could certainly give Stephen King a run for his money! He's done fantasy, sci-fi, mysteries......it could happen....

Also: add prehensile and chatoyant to the vocabulary list.

Before dawn, they left farm-turned abruptly away...

Is this a typo in the e-book? Mine says the same thing.....does this mean anything to anyone?


And darn it, I can't find it now, but someone said something in an earlier post that made me wonder for the first time why Triock wasn't with Trell, Atiaran and Lena in Andelain....
The tone of that passage is so somber, and we are flat out told that these people still suffer from the harm Covenant dealt them.....and lead to believe that they are no closer to forgiving him that he is to forgiving himself......
But wouldn't you think that Triock also belongs with this little Ka-tet?
Does his absence mean that he alone of the Mithil Stonedown gang has been able to accept Covenant's excoriation, and forgive him for all he did?

As he nears, he sees not a campfire, but a blaze, with, apparently, no one tending it. Closer inspection shows a stake, with a living creature tied to it.
Sensing a trap, but remembering Mhoram's words: It boots nothing to avoid his snares- Covenant comes up to the bonfire and sees:

The creature bound to the stake was one of the Waynhim.

And here's my hero again. Snares or no snares, it would simply not be possible for Covenant to walk away and let any living creature burn to death. If Mhoram had said "Avoid his snares at all costs," I think my hero would have thought "balls to that," and gone right on ahead and gotten his rear in a sling, just like he always has....

[Furls Fire]

Before dawn, they left farm-turned abruptly away...

Is this a typo in the e-book? Mine says the same thing.....does this mean anything to anyone?

Yep, it's a typo from the e-book. I try to catch and fix them when I see them, guess I missed that one...

I fixed it in my post