Kevin's Watch

Haven't had time to pull up page numbers, but was thinking about how all the people with access to Linden's black staff die soon after. Mahdoubt is shown the staff in Garrotting Deep, and then succumbs to the Harrow soon after. Harrow gets Linden's staff to enter the Deep and then gets sucker punched to death by Roger. Liand holds the staff and gets his head all 'asploded. Coincidence?

Sepp..Coincidence?, I think not. TC ponders each of these 3 character's doom in chapter one,,and,,also tells Linden,,she is the only one who can do this. So, I'm saying,,perhaps the Staff is the Means,,and in anybody elses hands..it is Failure. Only in her hands, could it be ..or could it lead to,,make possible..or offer up the opportunity, for Linden to be successful. The question then is..successful at what? IMHO the answer seems to be..related to self identity,,her humanity,,who she really is. The Staff has been very instrumental in Linden being the Healer.

I don't think it's coincidence, but I think it's more to do with narrative necessities than the Staff actually being cursed. The Harrow was screwed as soon as he baragined the Staff from Linden- not because of a curse, but because Donaldson needs that Staff in her possession.

Liand's death is more related to the Sunstone than to the Staff- Anele needed it to pass his Earthpower on to Jeremiah.

This actually raises a thought that rather interests me. We've heard about Linden's staff blowing out black fire for a good while now, which is a bad omen in our culture. But in the Land, it's actually that sickly or 'acid' green that means bad juju. Vain was pitch black and turned out to be a crucial part of the staff of law.

bossk wrote:This actually raises a thought that rather interests me. We've heard about Linden's staff blowing out black fire for a good while now, which is a bad omen in our culture. But in the Land, it's actually that sickly or 'acid' green that means bad juju. Vain was pitch black and turned out to be a crucial part of the staff of law.

Yeah, but I'd hesitate to jump from that to declaring the blackness a positive omen. I'd guess Vain was black because the ur-Viles' lore seems to create, well, black stuff

I think rather than Vain, the parallel is with TC's black wild magic as he storms Revelstone. TC's magic was black because of Lord Foul's venom- Linden's fire is black because of her despair. She seems pretty adamant the blackness is a part of her rather than a taint on Earthpower. TC managed to find an answer to his venom- I have no doubt Linden will find an answer to her black flames (and, I hope, those damned grass stained jeans!) So more morally ambiguous than a curse or a good omen, I think.

Cambo wrote:

bossk wrote:This actually raises a thought that rather interests me. We've heard about Linden's staff blowing out black fire for a good while now, which is a bad omen in our culture. But in the Land, it's actually that sickly or 'acid' green that means bad juju. Vain was pitch black and turned out to be a crucial part of the staff of law.

Yeah, but I'd hesitate to jump from that to declaring the blackness a positive omen. I'd guess Vain was black because the ur-Viles' lore seems to create, well, black stuff

I think rather than Vain, the parallel is with TC's black wild magic as he storms Revelstone. TC's magic was black because of Lord Foul's venom- Linden's fire is black because of her despair. She seems pretty adamant the blackness is a part of her rather than a taint on Earthpower. TC managed to find an answer to his venom- I have no doubt Linden will find an answer to her black flames (and, I hope, those damned grass stained jeans!) So more morally ambiguous than a curse or a good omen, I think.

I do believe you're right, but I was interested in the color choices in the book. I had actually forgotten the black venom fire. I wish I had time to re-read more often.