Kevin's Watch

croyel: mysterious creatures which bargain for power.

That's the Glossary's definition of croyel, but is there more to them than just that? I must have an undue fascination with these weird little beasties since, at least to me, two of most intriguing inventions of the Second Chronicles are The Kemper and the arghuleh. They attach themselves as a succumbus to the back of their hosts-forming a smaller "dead" version of the host and magnify the host's powers-at a dire cost.

"Listen to me!" she flamed as if she knew he could hardly hear her, could not see anything except the blood he he left on the rock. "It's like the Kemper! Like Kasreyn!" Back and forth she heaved at him, trying to wrestle him into focus on her. "Like his son! The arghuleh have something like his son!

At that clarity struck Covenant so hard he nealy fell.

The Kemper's son, Oh my God.

The croyel.

Before the thought was finished, he had broken Linden's grasp and was running toward the Giants.

The croyel!--the succumbus from the dark places of the Earth which Kasreyn had borne on his back, and with which he had bargained for his arts and his preternaturally prolonged life. And out there was an arghule which looked like one ice-beast crouched on another. The creature had contracted with the croyel for power to unite its kind and wage winter wherever it willed.

Just what in hellfire are these things? More banes? And if so were they dug up and then planted by Foul, long ago, to expand his sphere beyond the Land (or to where the Sunbane could not reach) ? The Kemper is supposed to have "come form the west across the sea" did Foul somehow infect a random person of the Land with a croyel? Did an arghule wander too far south at one point? Or are they just random nasties that naturally sprang out of the Earth? If so what caused it?

The Giants and the Waynhim seem to know about croyels but how? Did a dromond pick up Kasreyn at sea and the Giants were overcome by his wiles? Did ur-viles discover them and that's how the Waynhim know? Will they pop up when least expected in the Final Chronicles?

The croyel could well be one of those "back doors" that SRD deliberately left open when he was writing the Second Chronicles. I'd definitely like to learn more about these creatures. It's pretty impressive that they can give near-eternal life to someone like Kasreyn or provide knowledge of organization to something like the arghuleh.

Would the croyel really ambush someone? My impression was that they and their host "agreed" on the partnership before the creature jumped on its host's back.

My understanding of the creation story (well, the first creation story) is that anything in the Earth that wasn't put there by the Creator would have been put there by Foul, during that interval where he was creating mischief in the Creation but not yet discovered at it.

If you ignore the possibility that perhaps the Creator wanted to have these things in his Earth, this simple explanation is adequate enough that I don't think it's worth looking for a more complex one.

Is this a back door to the Final Chronicles? I sincerely hope not! I'm going to trust that SRD won't have to leverage such unlikely candidates to squeeze in another story, especially since he had every chance for something more likely.

(P.S. I also am going to trust that the basis for the Final Chronicles is not going to be something as "cheap" (for a lack of a better word) as time travel, or multiple time threads, or the like. SRD has always been original. I have a feeling that 'corruption' has to do with meddling with the relationship of cause and effect. ... oh, look, I'm way off topic, I'd better go before thud crash

I always viewed the croyels as leeches. In order to survive and preserve their power they suck out the lifeforce and life energy of those they "leech" onto.

Great question Danlo!!!

Matrixman wrote:My impression was that they and their host "agreed" on the partnership before the creature jumped on its host's back

For some reason that congers up a very funny image of some poor disgruntled descendant of an Unfettered working at his "smithy" in a ravine somewhere east of Durning Stonedown. He's trying, quite unsucsessfully, to combine lead and iron into a new alloy when suddenly a little green skrest-gnome comes buzzing up to him in a mini-dust devil (ala Taz of Looney Tunes fame).

"Blick, black, phsssssst, razz! Hiyya, how ya doing!? I'm a croyel! I was having such a nice eon-long sleep under the last rock you removed from your little mine over there ...but, hey, I'll tell you what...want expertise in metallurgy, magics, immortality and the power of the cyclone?...well rub my belly three times counterclockwise and I'll hop on board! "

I think its as Matrixman says. They are bargained for.

Remember Findall said " Those who bargain thus for life or might with the croyel are damned beyond redemption."

What exactly do the Elohim know about the croyel? Findail, aside from the above, says little to nothing about them...

Okay, stupid analogy (and not exactly original): if the Elohim are the angels of that world, then the croyel are the demons? Hmm, both names are italicized. (I think it was Mystikan who pointed out the significance of italics in the Chronicles.)

There is certainly no question of who is the more powerful: Kasreyn and his croyel posed no challenge whatsoever to Findail. He knew how to terminate the croyel in the simplest manner. So the Elohim must know the croyel at a deep level. The croyel may be at home in the "dark places" of the earth, but they can't hide from the Elohim's all-seeing sight no matter how deep they dig. You just can't win at hide-and-seek with those Elohim. (Unless you're Lord Foul, I guess.)

Since the world of the Land is populated by freethinking creatures I have to assume that due to the chaos generated by free will, the Croyels could have been a natural part of the Creator's plan. I'm not trying to defend Lord Foul or excuse him of any evil thought or action but given the volatile nature of creatures like the Elohim it is possible the Croyels behave just the way the Creator intended without interference from Foul. But then again I could be wrong.

Or maybe the Creator just shared Kasreyn's view: there is no perfection without imperfection...

Wow, the croyel's existence owing to the condition of free will in that world? Could be, TOM C.

Amani's suggestion is interesting, too. So not even the Creator is capable of creating perfection?

Btw, my analogy really was stupid. The Ravers are a better example of demons than the croyel if I'm making a comparison with the Elohim, since the Ravers are closer to the ethereal nature of the Elohim. I'm in step with Furls Fire's picture of the croyel as these big, ugly leeches. Freaky!

Matrixman wrote:if the Elohim are the angels of that world, then the croyel are the demons? Hmm, both names are italicized. (I think it was Mystikan who pointed out the significance of italics in the Chronicles.)

If I remember Mystikan's post right, capitalization as well as italics has ontological [excuse me, I love that word!] significance. I was wondering why croyel was lowercased, but suddenly it made sense in the light of your argument: the croyel, for all their power and malice, aren't a match for the Elohim; they're lesser beings.

Elohim/croyel form a curious refraction of angels/demons: the croyel seem more like the traditional picture of demons (granting various powers in exchange for invited possession, Faust-wise) than the Elohim resemble traditional angels. The croyel are invasively effective in their malice; the Elohim tend to be standoffishly ineffectual in their alleged benevolence. In the midst of arbitrary amounts of power, they prefer to admire it in themselves instead of use it on behalf of others. It took an ultimatum to get Findail to destroy Kasreyn's possessor.