Who is telling Covenant to restrain himself?

[Mighara Sovmadhi]

(This is based on the TLD trailer.) Of course, it might be Linden for some whiny-seeming reason (I say "seeming" because I just realized that I've never really looked at Covenant or Linden as really whiny), but I think she's as much done with restraint as Covenant. The Masters might be of a mind to caution Covenant somehow, but about what? And would they really tell their hero to lay off his heroics? For them, he's the one man who's one-on-one taken down the Despiser.

The Ranyhyn (spoken for by one of the Ramen)? I don't think Covenant would sound so pissed at them. The Elohim? They seem the most likely candidates, since they're always worried about Covenant's power spiraling out of control.

The reason I'm fixating upon this question enough to make a thread about it is that I think something--however hazy--might be inferred from the answer. If the Elohim want Covenant to temper himself during some conversation about planning, it would likely be because Covenant's plan involves white gold. "You don't say?"--I know, I know, it seems obvious that wild magic is integral to any feasible salvation for the Land. But many people have conjectured that its role will be via Jeremiah's construction ability, whereas restraint relative hereto would indicate a more "traditional" exercise of Covenant's signature power being under consideration.

[Vraith]

I agree the Elo seem the most likely.

The Masters possibly in a situation where they want him to save it for a different place/circumstance/goal. [Some Har., I think, sometime/where/place has told him to restrain before...I can't recall where or why.]

Heh...also, I can see LF doing it: "Restrain yourself, Leper, lest you destroy all you love in your paltry and mistaken desire to oppose me." Or somesuch...but that would happen way near the end, and I doubt a trailer would point at something like that.

[Krilly]

I immediately imagined this conversation happening after TC is reunited with the rest of the company... so someone from that group, I suppose?

A Giant or Mahrtiir could be good candidates too.

Or maybe even Roger? Tom still needs to deal with the other half of his family.

Looking at the trailer again I'm also curious about the "helped" in the destroying a Raver line. So who did he help? The Humbled? The Lurker?

[Vraith]

Looking at the trailer again I'm also curious about the "helped" in the destroying a Raver line. So who helped did he help? The Humbled? The Lurker?

Longwrath. Others maybe as well...the Feroce, the Lurker itself resisting possession. But definitely, Longwrath.

[High Lord Tolkien]

TC's use of power has always been about restraint.
In the final confrontation with Foul at the end of the 1st he held back at the end. Pulled back his WM and let the Lord and Foamfollower beat Foul.

The 2nd Chronicles was ALL about restraint.
The venom was constantly pushing him out of control.
And then once he was blended with the venom he had to not use his power at all.

Now in the 3rd TC is finally going to kick some ass!!!!!

[Akasri]

There is wild magic graven in every rock,
contained for white gold to unleash or control-

Unleash!! Unleash!!!

[Prover of Life]

I see his restraint up till now being not waking the worm. However, since the worm is awake, the pressure of restraint is lessened. Except for the Arch of Time. It could be riven should purely unrestrained wild magic is let loose.

A thought: IF Linden were to be able to somehow merge/combine with Covenant, then the restraint could be directed; compared to unrestrained/non-directional unleashing of wild magic.

Does not the song say: "He who wields the white, wild-magic gold"? Should there somehow be a Covenant/Linden {likened to the Doctor/Donna} who "wields" white-gold Covenant, then the Earth could be saved or damned.

just a thought.

[DrPaul]

That quote seemed to be the sort of thing that Covenant would say to somebody that he respected enough to feel that they had a right to some explanation or justification of his intentions. The elohim almost certainly don't fall into this category.

NB: I use the word "respect" in the sense of respect for someone's moral qualities, integrity, loyalty, etc., rather than respect for powers.

[earthbrah]

Covenant has been telling himself to restrain himself. It's self-imposed, always has been.

I think this issue goes all the way back to his initial reaction to the Land in LFB. He had trained himself as a leper to not accept power over his fate, over his life. He had to restrain the belief that he could heal from his disease and reclaim the life that he had. So when he experienced nerve regeneration in the Land, something impossible for a leper, his immediate reaction was unbelief, or rather restraint on the belief in the reality of the experience.

That inner restraint for TC has always been at the center of his use of power. It is still present from origin, and I can see how the story would cause or necessitate him to transform his attitude about restraining himself. I can maybe even see how any redemption for the earth might be dependent on TC unrestraining himself. It at least seems significant considering the way it was emphasized on the trailer...

[Vraith]

Covenant has been telling himself to restrain himself. It's self-imposed, always has been.

I think this issue goes all the way back to his initial reaction to the Land in LFB. He had trained himself as a leper to not accept power over his fate, over his life. He had to restrain the belief that he could heal from his disease and reclaim the life that he had. So when he experienced nerve regeneration in the Land, something impossible for a leper, his immediate reaction was unbelief, or rather restraint on the belief in the reality of the experience.

That inner restraint for TC has always been at the center of his use of power. It is still present from origin, and I can see how the story would cause or necessitate him to transform his attitude about restraining himself. I can maybe even see how any redemption for the earth might be dependent on TC unrestraining himself. It at least seems significant considering the way it was emphasized on the trailer...

I suspect that that isn't the entirety of the issue/meaning...but also think you're definitely on to something.
In the first he had to impose self-restraint [believed he did, anyway] to protect his own sanity/identity.
In the second he had to do so to protect the world [rousing the Worm the most obvious part of it].
In the third, at the beginning, [especially before re-embodied] he had to restrain cuz he knew to much, and revealing it might make the happening of the "unexpected" impossible...and the unexpected was necessary.
Now, though...in many ways he FINALLY "is what he IS".
Z brings up authenticity fairly regularly...this may be a key moment of TC's arrival/stepping into it.