Kevin's Watch

• The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself;
  to be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile.
  -- Plato

If the Viles are to play any part of the Final Chronicles - if they are not merely academic curiosities - then it would help to understand them. For Donaldson is always true to his characters, and what the Viles do will come in large part from who, or what, the Viles are.

In the First and Second Chronicles, very little was revealed about the viles. In fact, only three things: first, that the Viles were a "high and lofty race" that created the Demondim; second, that they lived in the time before the King and Queen of the Land fell into war; and third, that High Lord Loric was named "Vilesilencer" for defeating the Demondim.

In The Runes of the Earth, much more is revealed, but seemingly only to make them more mysterious rather than less.

"It was said by some... that the Viles were creatures of miasma, evanescent and dire, arising from ancient banes buried within Mount Thunder as mist arises from tainted waters. Others claimed that they were specters and ghouls, the tormented spirits of those who had fallen victim to Corruption's evil. And yet others proclaimed that they were fragments of the One Forest's lost soul, remnants of spirit rent by the slaughter of the trees, and ravenous for harm."

"On three things, however, the tales agreed. First, the Viles appeared where they willed, elusive as swamp lights, wreaking mortification and horror. Next, their lore, which they had gained from the buried banes of the Earth, was black and ruinous, delving into matters which the old Lords could not penetrate. And last, the evil of the Viles was inspired by their loathing of themselves.

"Still the Viles were a bane upon the Land. For that reason, High Lord Loric took up the challenge of silencing their evil. And in this he prevailed, though at great cost. Because their lore was a mystery to him, beyond his conception, he enlisted the aid of the Demondim against their makers. There he learned dismay, and could never again be truly whole, for he did not know that Corruption had been at work among the Demondim, sending his Ravers to teach them self-Despite, the same abhorrence of themselves which had long tormented the Viles.

"Because they had been swayed, the Demondim became the foes of the forests. For the same reason, they returned to the breeding dens of the Viles in order to begin the making of the ur-viles. And for that same reason, the aid which the Demondim granted to Loric Vilesilencer was Despite in another form, for it arose from their self-loathing. They turned against their makers because Corruption is cunning, and because they saw no value in their own creation.

"Thus was High Lord Loric's victory over evil made possible by Corruption. So were planted the seeds of doubt and chagrin which later blossomed in Kevin Landwaster and the Ritual of Desecration."

The self-loathing of the Viles seems to be one of their most significant characteristics.

They hated themselves, although it is unclear at this point exactly why. They do not appear (yet) to be led into self-despite, as the Demondim were, by Foul or his Ravers. There is no indication that these beings were not part of the natural order of things, as set forth by the Creator, a natural order of which the ur-viles and Waynhim were not a part, and from which originated their own self-loathing. Would the Creator have made them this way? Could Lord Foul have had a hand in their existence?

Such creatures would probably exterminate themselves eventually, for what can live that so hates itself? However, they were "a bane upon the Land" - no one could afford to wait for them to exterminate themselves. And so it fell to Loric to silcence them.

In a strange twist of fate that is too significant to ignore, Corruption, in the guise of the Ravers, twisted the Demondim into helping destroy their makers. The Lords could not have done it on their own, they lacked the knowledge of the Viles dark powers. And the Demondim would not have helped them, except that they were seduced into being self-despisers of their own. The Ravers taught them to hate themselves, hate the forests, and to hate the Viles which sired them.

And so now we know where the appellation "Vilesilencer" arises. Loric was able to defeat the Viles, and thereby make the Land a nicer place. But at an expensive price. For the Demondim only rose to take the Viles place as an enemy of the people of the Land. And the Lords were inflicted with self-doubt, for Corruption had aided their conquest.

Did Loric and the Lords know that Lord Foul was at work among the Demondim? They must have known at some point, during or soon after, or else how could they begin to doubt their achievement? Donaldson hints that Foul's motive in corrupting the Demondim may have had this in mind all along, as part of a deeper plot leading to Kevin's Ritual.

The physical attributes of the Viles seem to be a logical extension of those of the Demondim. They are more spirit, and less substance. They are darker and more obscure, and more inherently evil. There are hints that they are immortal: spirits, disembodied souls. They are more like the Dead than they are the living. It is hard to imagine how they could be considered "high and lofty" by any meaning of those words, unless it is to mean that their nature transcended anything that the mortal Lords could understand.

And Donaldson cannot say remnants of spirit rent without raising a tocsin for any reader of White Gold Weilder.

In Fatal Revenant, Esmer, with a gift as precious as friendship, filled in some of the details for us, explained some of their apparent mystery.

"Do you not know that the Viles, those beings of terrible and matchless lore, were once a lofty and admirable race? Though they roamed the Land widely, they inhabited the Lost Deep in caverns as ornate and majestic as castles. There they devoted their vast power and knowledge to the making of beauty and wonder, and all of their works were filled with loveliness. For an age of the Earth, they spurned the heinous evils buried among the roots of Gravin Threndor, and even in the time of Berek Lord-Fatherer no ill was known of them."

So the Viles were indeed once "high and lofty". The were not evil, in fact they turned away from evil. They may not have been friends of the lords, but they were not considered to be ill in any way, and were known masters of beauty and wonder.

We are left to wonder why anyone called them "Viles"?

It was, in fact, their highness and their loftiness that was their Achille's Heel. For Ravers convinced them that their contemplative, inward-turned existance made them worthless.

"Yet a shadow had already fallen upon them ... like and unlike the shadow upon the hearts of the Elohim. The corruption of the Viles, and of their makings, the Demondim, transpired thus."

"[The Despiser] gathered the Ravers to his service when the Colossus began to wane. And with his guidance, they together, or some among them, began cunningly to twist the hearts of the sovereign and isolate Viles. Forbidden still by the Colossus, the Ravers could not enter the Lost Deep. Instead they met with Viles that roamed east of Landsdrop, exploring the many facets of the Land. With whispers and subtle blandishments, and by slow increments, the Ravers obliquely taught the Viles to loathe their own forms.

"Being Ravers, the brothers doubtless began by sharing their mistrust and contempt toward the surviving mind of the One Forest, and toward the Forestals. From that beginning, however, the Viles were readily led to despise themselves, for all contempt turns upon the contemptuous, as it must."

So, as with the ur-viles, and with the Demondim, so it was with the Viles. Foul, through his Ravers, reached them, corrupted them, and led them to Despite: they became self-loathers. They were conquered by themselves.

Esmer does not say how or why, but somehow in their self-loathing they must have turned away from beauty and wonder, and embraced horror and harm. They must have forgone the loveliness of the Lost Deep to become banes upon the Land. But we are left to wonder, was the harm and horror intentional? Could it be that the Viles were misunderstood as they were left to loath themselves, and that their atrocities could be attributed to ignorance and misunderstandings? Were they causing harm to what was beneath them because their eyes were looking inward?

Surely, though, when we enter the Lost Deep -- and we will, for that is where Jeremiah will be -- when we enter the Lost Deep, we should be prepared to find, amid the horrors and darkness, that which is as ornate and majestic as castles. Traces of all the stages of the Viles existence might remain.

In the midst of their self-loathing, the Viles created the Demondim. But, surprise:

"And the Viles were too wise to labor foolishly, or in ignorance. They did not seek to renew their own loathing, but rather to render it impotent. Therefore the Demondim were spawned free of their creators' stain. Though they lacked some portion of the Viles' majesty and lore, they were not ruled by contempt. Instead they were a stern race, holding themselves apart from the Viles in renunciation."

The Demondim were first created without taint, so much so that they renounced their makers. The Despiser needed to strike again before he could bring the Demondim over to his side. Of course, when he did, they worked with Lord Loric to wipe out the Viles. Thus, the Viles were betrayed by their own creations, although they endeavored to keep them free of despite. The Despiser turned the Viles' achievements against them, as he always does, for it is the bitterest of losses always.

That which appears evil need not have been so from the beginning, and need not remain so until the end. That is Esmer's real message. The Viles, as the Demondim, are his examples. But his proposition begs to be applied to more than the legacy of the Viles.

Later in Fatal Revenent, we meet the Viles and, through Linden, experience them first hand. Fortunately, all of the earlier revelations above help us to understand them. For, in and of themselves, they are very confusing.

We meet the Viles "on the cusp of learning to despise themselves". It is the time of Berek's ascension to Lord Fatherer. The war between the King and Queen is almost over. Lord Foul dwells in Rijeck Thome, unknown to the people of the Land. The Ravers have emerged from the Sarangrave, and have just begun to cunningly twist the hearts of the Viles. The Ravers have "advised" the Viles that the forest despises them, and the Viles have come to learn exactly why. The Ravers have intended for this encounter to breed enmity between the Viles and the forest, which will in time encourage the Viles to despise themselves further.

Even before we see them, we feel their power. For they interfere with Roger and Jeremiah's teleportation, separating Linden from her companions. Indeed, she is not seperated merely by space, for she is brought to some sort of other-dimension in close contact with, but separated from, the Land. She can hear Roger and Jeremiah faintly, as if through the interstices of dimension. (Which resembles nothing less than the movie Poltergeist, or the Twilight Zone.)

We could conclude that this otherly dimension was created at that moment as a trap for Linden. But it's possible that we have been brought to a plane that is closer to where the Viles ultimately dwell. For it is here that Linden hears the Viles speak, and she can be heard by them. But it is an alien dimension, confounding the senses. Linden experiences synaesthesia, where she can see sounds and experience other sensory confusions. It is no wonder that the Viles are isolate from the other people of the Land, if they live in such a contorted space.

Linden never actually sees the Viles, who may not even have a corporeal form. But she sees their voices.

At the same time, however, she felt crepuscular ropey streamers coalesce into deeper darkness: she saw them speak. They had only one voice, but they were many. They said many things. She saw one of them - or saw several of them one at a time.

Limned in condensation and grue, the voice announced, Her.

Amidst the confusion of speaking to the Viles, one cannot help but notice, They had only one voice, but they were many. A characteristic which the Viles share with the Elohim. Indeed, Esmer told us of the aloofness of the Viles, and the beauty of their Lost Deep, invoking comparasons to Elemesnedene. He even declares that the "shadow" on the Viles is similar to the darkness at the heart of the Elohim. And, finally, like the Elohim, the Viles express only disdain for the insufficiency of humans: "Ignorance and falsehood guide her kind. It was ever so. They are a pestilence which the Earth endures solely because their lives are brief."

Is this an accidental repitition? Has Donaldson run out of unique ideas? Both seem unlikely. Are we to conclude that the Viles and the Elohim are connected in significant ways? Possibly. However, the best theory is: any sufficiently advanced race is indistinguishable from angels. Advanced intellects inevitably become aloof and contemplative, strive to create beauty, look down on their inferiors, and merge their individual identities into oneness, a godhead. So any similarity between the Viles and the Elohim need arise only from the shared trait of their superiority to mortal humans.

As the Viles speak, they reveal more specifically the nature of their self-loathing.

We were informed without chicane that we are self-absorbed spectres, affectless and wasted. The loveliness we devise and adore is without meaning or purpose. Our lore is great, and our strength dire, yet we are but playthings for ourselves. This is sooth. We have acknowledged it.

The Ravers have twisted the Vile's perception of theirselves. Their isolation was recharacterized as self-absorbtion. Their incorporeal forms came to mean affectlessness. The worth of beauty was devalued, and so the Viles' works became worthless. That which they were, that which they loved, was used against them. Like only Foul could.

They may have one voice, but at this time that voice is conflicted, arguing with itself. The Viles cannot resolve to either slay Linden or release her, nor can they understand her insistence that they have been misled by Ravers. In an act that can only be described as insecure, they have come to Garrotting Deep to ask the mind of the forest, "Why don't you like us?" As a race, they are falling apart. They will fall into conflict with the forest, and in their confusion will strive to harm it, the first step on the road to becoming a bane upon the land.

Even now, they call themselves Viles. Despicable; wretched; offensive. No small sign of problems in a race of beings.

It is hard to imagine how beings reportedly so capable could be so easily dismantled. For if there is any single thing which was known of the Viles more than any other, it was that they were lore-wise. Terrible and matchless lore. The penetrate the purposes of Roger and Jeremiah with ease. They see into Linden's heart with greater clarity than she herself. But, dismantled, they are bested by Roger's chicanery, and they cannot overcome their internal conflicts before Linden escapes. Eventually, they must have returned to their Lost Deep, delved for banes, and turned their lore "black and ruinous". When they subsequently create the Demondim, their own creations will repudiate them.

But one cannot help but wonder what role their vaunted lore will play as the Final Chronicles concludes. That which appears evil need not remain so until the end. Will they help Linden, or thwart her? Will they serve Foul? Will they participate in the end of all things? These are questions we are left to ponder.

Addendum: Proposed Vile Timeline

• In the beginning, the Viles lived in the Lost Deep under Mount Thunder, making it a place of beauty. They roamed in the Land, but were neither friends nor foes of the people of the Land.
  ---------------------
  During the time of the King and Queen, Foul, dwelling in his Creche, sent his Ravers to the Viles (meeting them east of Landsdrop, as they were still forbidden by the Collusus) to currupt them, even as he was corrupting the King of the Land. He began to teach the Viles to loath themselves.
  ---------------------
  Just as Berek was learning of Earthpower and finishing up with the war, the Ravers tricked the Viles into open conflict with the mind of the Forest.
  ---------------------
  During the days of High Lord Berek, the Viles turned to darker lore, and made the Lost Deep into a terrible place. They became fearsome enemies of the people of the Land, and could not be stopped.
  ---------------------
  During High Lord Damelon's time, the Viles continued to be an enemy of the Land. Foul, through his Ravers, revealed banes buried under Mount Thunder which increased the Viles' dark lore.
  ---------------------
  Near the end of Damelon's reign, the Viles created the Demondim. The Demondim were free of Foul's influence and they renounced their makers, the Viles.
  ---------------------
  During the reign of High Lord Loric, the Viles became a larger menace, and they needed to be destroyed. The Demondim were corrupted by Lord Foul, through his Ravers, and their hatred of the Viles grew stronger.
  ---------------------
  During the reign of High Lord Loric, Loric creates the krill as a weapon against the Viles and their kind (perhaps with the aid of the Demondim's lore).Loric allies with the corrupted Demondim to wipe out all of the Viles. The Demondim inherit the Lost Deep and the Vile's breeding pits.

SRD doesn't include a race or character he has used without using them later.

But the section when Linden interacted with the Viles may be only a passing note. Something that fills in as a part of history. Or is a ramp for the question/qwest of the Forrestal.

I can't remember if in the first chronicles, if SRD tells what happened to the Viles. If the were destroyed by the Demondim or chose to become extinct. I believe it was Loric who used the krill to kill a loremaster (Demondim or Vile) but it laster the Viles disappeared from knowledge.

It would be a bit hard to explain how they existed all this time with what has transpired. Being a powerful race, they would have involved themselves with the High Lords and could have tried to stop Kevin from the RoD. The harachuai have no memory of them, nor have they had an contact with them. So it would be hard to explain their sudden appearance.

Firstly, epic post, Wayfriend. I'm impressed.

I like the connection you draw between the Viles and the Elohim. I see it clearly, and it makes sense. I will ponder that some more...

But I couldn't help but wonder, as I was reading, that there seems to be a connection between these Viles and the jheherrin, or rather their legend of the pure one. In "The Corrupt" in TPTP, the legend is told thusly:

It tells that the distant forbearers of the jheherrin, the Un-Maker made, were themselves Makers. But they were not seedless as he is--as we are. They were not driven to breed upon the flesh of others. From their bodies came forth young who grew and in turn made young. Thus the world was constantly renewed, in firmness and replenishment. Such things cannot be imagined.
But the Makers were flawed. Some were weak, some blind, others incautious. Among them the Maker was born, seedless and bitter, and they did not see or fear what they had done."

The Maker to these mud creatures is clearly implied to be Lord Foul. But that can't be, because everything we know about him says that he was on the Earth from its creation.

I'm not saying that these Un-Maker made were the Viles. It just seems strangely relevant to this talk about Makers and pure ones. While reading this last night, I couldn't help but think of the Viles.

Just who were the jheherring referring to if not the Viles or Demondim?

Agreed, great post WF.

I need to get my copies of 1st Chronicles back - Earthbrah, are you sure that in the text you quoted above, if you read further it isn't made clear that the Maker is Foul?

Yes, it is clear that the Maker is Foul to the jheherrin. However, they also spoke of Un-Maker-made Makers. It is these beings who I think might have a connection to the Viles. It's likely that I'm wrong here, but it just occured to me, so I thought I'd throw it out there.

There's a difference: Makers and Maker; plural vs. singular.

The implication (as I see it) of the Un-Maker made is that Foul did not create them. We know that Foul did not create the Viles, so on that point we can agree (I think ).

And these Un-Maker made were themselved Makers. Again, we know that the Viles spawned (made) the Demondim. So far, so good.

But these Un-Maker-made Makers (who were not made by Foul), did not breed on the flesh of others. The Viles were a lofty race, who made beautiful things with a lore that surpassed comprehension.

From their bodies came forth young who grew and in turn made young(that is, the Demondim made ur-viles and waynhim in their turn). But they were weak, blind, incautious (OR, spoiled/made corrupt by Foul/Ravers). Theory still intact.

But it falls apart at the next statement, that the Maker (Foul) was created by these Un-Maker-made beings. Or, it falls into paradox, for how could beings who were not made by Foul (and who has been around since the Earth's inception) make him?

I'm not even advocating this theory, mind you. I was just ruminating and sharing. The above is more or less what I was thinking. If I'm wrong, I eagerly await to be called down on it.

Until then, I shall continue to

The only thing I can think of is... That it's even more confusing! I'm def. willing to write off the idea that the Ur-Viles created Foul, though we do know that they have (to our ken) created Vain and these new-fangled Manacles..

Perhaps they made something that was like 'the voice of Foul' to the jeherrin, something big and scary, but not Foul himself..

Who knows what they've created over the centuries...

But these Un-Maker-made Makers (who were not made by Foul), did not breed on the flesh of others. The Viles were a lofty race, who made beautiful things with a lore that surpassed comprehension.

From their bodies came forth young who grew and in turn made young(that is, the Demondim made ur-viles and waynhim in their turn). But they were weak, blind, incautious (OR, spoiled/made corrupt by Foul/Ravers). Theory still intact.

I don't think that this works. The Jheherrin are speaknig here of natural reproduction, producing offspring from their own flesh. Whereas the Viles did not do this, and instead made the Demondim with Lore. The Jheherrin paralleled the Waynhim, in that they were rejects from Foul's experiments just as the Waynhim were from the ur-viles', and their story is of a longing to be like the natural creatures that reproduce. The Demondim and the ur-viles were no more natural than the Jheherrin, so they can't be what was spoken of in the Jheherrin's story.

It's most likely that SRD made the deliberate parallels of Waynhim-Jheherrin in the First Chrons, and that because the parallels were there to begin with, as he continues to expand upon the way the Vile-spawn came about the similarities just get picked up on more.

I've amended the initial post with a timeline I thought was useful. If anyone has any additions or criticisms, pass them on.

I didn't realize I was starting a thread about the jheherrin.

I think that the story of the Maker falls into the category of Creation Myths. And, like all such myths, it conveys the same basic truth, but with a narrative that is unique to the people who constructed the myth.

I don't think that the jheherrin were talking about the Viles or the Demondim, but of Foul and the Creator. I do see a slight connection, but only in that the Viles attempted to create the Demondim unblemished. I'd like to hear about other connections, though.

I think the connections with the Elohim, and with the Insequent, are much stronger.

Ur-Dead, what I am thinking is that the history of the Viles will be important when we enter the Lost Deep, and possibly also the lore of the Viles. The way in which they recognized that Linden had no lore to go with her power leads me to believe that they may have some part to play in the grand resolution of things.

That's a good call there. The Staff was not finished until it had its runes--Linden is not ready until she can combine her power with Lore (Likewise the New Lords had passion but had to abandon Kevin's Lore to find new Lore, and were corrupted in the process. It's all about knowing what you're doing with your power, and avoiding Despair and Corruption). The introduction of the Insequent follows this growing theme on Lore versus innate power, as does the increased prominence of the Viles and Vile-spawn. It will be interesting when the Lost Deep comes into things (and I'm thinking there's going to be a Lost Deep/Last Dark connection, there).

My only minor tweak, depending on if I understood the text correctly, is that Foul never sent the Ravers to the Viles.
The Ravers at that time weren't even permitted in the Upperland.
Now perhaps they had limited access to the tunnels below Mt Thunder but I seem to remember reading that Viles found the Ravers through their explorations of the Land.

Great post Wayfriend.
As all your TC posts are!

The Ravers made it to the upper land during this time. They, or rather one of them, possessed Berek's King.

Murrin wrote: I don't think that this works. The Jheherrin are speaknig here of natural reproduction, producing offspring from their own flesh. Whereas the Viles did not do this, and instead made the Demondim with Lore. The Jheherrin paralleled the Waynhim, in that they were rejects from Foul's experiments just as the Waynhim were from the ur-viles', and their story is of a longing to be like the natural creatures that reproduce. The Demondim and the ur-viles were no more natural than the Jheherrin, so they can't be what was spoken of in the Jheherrin's story.

Some more nitpicking.

I thought it went like this:

Demondim created the ur-Viles and the Waynhim
The Demondim were destroyed.
The ur-viles continued their makers work and in the process created more Waynhim and ur-Viles.

I was going to go on and say that even the Jheherrin were by-products of the ur-Viles but they actually migrated West in the the Swamp after they were created right?
I was thinking they came from the refuse washed out from under Mt Thunder.

FAP wrote:The Ravers made it to the upper land during this time. They, or rather one of them, possessed Berek's King.

Do we know that?
Was the King ever in the Land?
Berek might have killed him back in Doriendor Corishev, which lay outside the Forest's influence.
I thought of that when in FR we heard that Berek was fighting only those still loyal to the King who were left in charge.

When did the Ravers gain access to the Upper Land?

High Lord Tolkien wrote:I was going to go on and say that even the Jheherrin were by-products of the ur-Viles but they actually migrated West in the the Swamp after they were created right?
I was thinking they came from the refuse washed out from under Mt Thunder.

They came out of Foul's experiments under Foul's Creche, and took refuge in the Shattered Hills(?). Very similar origins, but distinct.

Edit:
The Raver who possessed the king did indeed do so outside the Forest (and thus Collossus') influence, in the south. It was partly through the king that the forest was weakened, but there's no real way to know when exactly the Ravers were finally able to enter the Land. You're right in that the Ravers met the Viles who wandered east, rather than going into the Lost Deep.

I amended the timeline to show that the Ravers met the Viles east of Landsdrop. As Esmer indicates in the second passage of his that I quoted.

As for the Ravers influencing the King, Esmer said that "samadhi bypassed the Interdict by passing beyond the Southron range to taint the people who gave birth to Berek." I guess this means that the body of the people of the Land, at that time, dwelt to the south of the area Interdicted by the Collossus -- which would be the area of Doriendor Corishev, and would become the Southron Wastes after the forest was further weakened.

Donaldson seems to be cross-checking himself so far...

Agreed on the viles lore WF.. It may be the lore of the viles that plays an important part.

Then again, the ur viles created manacles..
I think I'll reopt my idea on those. We really havn't seen them yet..
Could it be that the ur viles, using the old vile's lore, are the one's who rebind the skurg?

Along with Anele, rebinding the skrug using manacles. Also it leads me to believe that alot of things Anele said in Runes that this is a possibility. They made Anele remember. Remember what? This was before Linden translated to the land. Anele feared them in Runes. He doesn't fear them in FR. Not too many clues yet or uncovered.
Donnelson does give you all you need to know on what will happen in the next books. You just got to read the book.

An interesting idea, connecting the ur-viles making Anele remember something with manacles. I'm not sure what Anele might remember, but if anything it is from his original time I bet. What would Anele know of skurj, or Joan, or Kastenessen, or Longwrath, or Esmer, or anyone else the Manacles might be for? What might he remember about making them?

Did Caer Caveral plant something in Anele's mind, as he did Covenant's?

The question about Anele's relationship with the Ur-Viles is complex.. In his original time, he feared them, and he said that they made him remember... Stuff he obviously didn't want to remember..

But now, in Stave's timethe Ur-Viles are working with their kin, with Linden and Anele in the defence of the Land.. Now he says he no longer fears them. Now, apparently, they don't try and make him remember..

Are we to assume that there is more reasons for Anele to have escaped into insanity than his guilt and shame for not being able to accompolish what his parents did, for allowing the Durance to be broken, and for losing the Staff?

Doesn't Liand's orcrest give Anele the power to regain sanity and remember? That's the way i understand it..

And that's why I doubt the Manacles have anything to do with Anele.. It still seems that the Ravers, Roger and Lord Foul are the prime candidates for the Manacles... Unless the Manacles have some kind of power against the Croyels too..

What an interesting thread.
I am thinking, if the manacles are indeed some kind of Chain, well, what are "manacles."
When you fight someone "mano y mano," it's hand to hand.
The root there is "man", latin for hand.
Writ of mandemus, I believe, means "hand over."
Who, of all people, has HAND issues?
And check out the two online definitions I came across --

A device for confining the hands, usually consisting of a set of two metal rings that are fastened about the wrists and joined by a metal chain.


Something that confines or restrains.

Because he has a HAND issue and sneers at it, i think there is a strong hint that the manacles are for Roger. Perhaps Roger and Kastenessan.

It is the plural, afterall

Perhaps all the halfhands will be cuffed together.

But also "something that confines or restrains."

Wow. There's a bunch of peoplein need of restraint here.

Could the ur-viles have coem up with tsoemthing that binds Foul?

Wow.

Also, I don't know how long Anele said he had been tormented by the black ones that make him remember things, but I think the ur-viles who did it are generally within Stave's general timeframe. And they were searching for the Staff, were they not?

Oh, forgot to add, initially. Manacle is also a VERB. Cool word, and in that sense, it could mean cuffed, bound. But possibly to constrain, etc.