names
Union, Wisdom, and Despair
No one sees the roaches for quite some time, aside from a vis delivery, and Calvus’ rare attempts at conversation.
Calvus attempts to untransform Minkho, after several attempts to work with transforming wild animals. All pigs in the area are transformed into dogs for the day; he breaks until after the Day of Ascension. His second attempt also has a broadcast effect, but the third time’s the charm. Minkho is now a dog once more, but one of the sows is pregnant; she will give birth to a litter of puppies in a few months.
Waakimbala’s wife ran off; his two children were left behind, and his village is only too glad to turn the children over to representatives of the covenant.
Manu Tenére needs a new Cristoférian (to be played by Kim).
Gi gets a full night’s sleep. (He also has a full night not sleeping with some of the whores.)
Nil, and Jerry, both catch nasty flus. —Gi and Nil will be studying intellego for the next season. Nil is playing games with the Chalycidican children. Receptrix and Gi take an uneventful tour of the Voscii lands. Nil will be interviewing villagers.
Gi continues his sword lessons with Calvus. Calvus trains Ndapé in something.
Sonata trains Cameron in corpus. Sonata has Cameron stand naked with one foot in a bucket of ice water and one foot in a bucket of hot water. (Hoopoe whispers in Cameron’s ear that the warm water? It’s all his. Oh, yes.) This is to make him more familiar with his body.
Ishkin returns, and the roof on the castle is completed. Perdix and Ilba head to the capital to secure the raw materials for the shrinking spell. Perdix is preparing to install the permanent version of the shrinking spell. They sleep in the castle; Ilba doesn’t sleep alone. Her hands are cold. They successfully cast the shrinking spell on the room, dismantling the trunk in the process, and settle in to teach Cholæic theory to Ilba and noting the possibilities for working wards into gardens. Ishkin delivers most of their meals, and Ilba doesn’t want to leave; they spend most of their time in what will be the Great Hall/library, lying on couches, reading and talking about magic theory.
Tully can’t find an ally in his plan to exile or murder Perdix’ apprentice. Ilba doesn’t appear to have Monkey-taint, but Tully doesn’t want a potential gate for Monkey hanging around the covenant, nor does he trust Perdix not to do anything rash or self-destructive.
The servants continue to work with their dolls. Tully “borrows” the doll that holds what’s left of the splinter of an idea of Twitchy that came from Sonata’s Monkey-possession; it doesn’t say much beyond “Proxy!” and “Marzipan!”
Sonata runs into Perdix in the halls toward the end of the season and berates them for locking Ilba away from human contact. Perdix has no problem with Cameron coming to visit, and Sonata insists Cameron do so with some frequency.
Sonata meets with Nil to assist in writing down what she can of her Monkey researches.
Gi and Nil and Ishta go out drinking frequently to the capital city. (Nil’s cold gets worse.) Nil notices that Gi visits boy-brothels from time to time.
Gieron’s producing his own beer in regular batches, now. He approaches the brothers who own the Scarecrow King and proposes co-ownership. The benefit of having him join is he won’t start up another bar in competition, inflaming the local Brewer priests against them. Ishta’s backing the Scarecrow King, so it wouldn’t be impossible, but it would be onerous. Gieron insists on a quarter share, but two-fifths votes. After some alacritous discussion, it’s agreed.
Gi writes the book Emily already wrote about him having written. Gi also heads out to fetch the monkeys into the covenant walls. There’s only twelve; one got eaten by the Big Pig. They want leaves. Are there leaves?
Receptrix leaves the covenant toward the end of the season; she’s up south in the null zone surrounding the Gætani throne.
Nil’s games with the water-children get more elaborate, taking up a spare room with buckets of water making intricate, random patterns, tracking dust motes whirling through the threads of water, being as silent as possible.
The Pickler builds a proper pickling lodge. Memorabilis makes an appearance or two, but nobody remembers what happened.
Foha agrees to marry the youngest of the brothers running the Scarecrow King.
Perdix remembers Nil’s red box and brushes off the dust and opens it up and there’s a lot more paper in there than it looks like there should be. They’re fascinated.
In Despair, Calvus, Ndapé, Circumsessor, and Circumsessor’s favorite student head to Ne Interire, and let them know about the “presents” on the way; then they head on to Leo Compulsus for the Gauntlet on the Day of Dissipation. They meet up with a couple of Savacions that will be heading to Gætan, and Calvus hooks Ndapé up with Æstus’ Picardian apprentice.
In Despair, Cameron (who’s been cutting words from the Books of Lem into his skin) is joined by Nishoba in visiting the castle. Ilba shows some sparks of life at Nishoba’s appearance; he visits by himself, too. Ilba leaves the castle for the first time in a couple of months to go to the Dissipation bonfire with Nishoba.
Symmetry, Isolation, Justice
The Savacions return.
Itti starts dropping her little brother off at the Weaver hut. A few days later, it’s discovered her grandfather’s been dead for several days.
The new blacksmiths arrive.
Taloowa’s coming due. Ishkish starts hanging around her more and more. Heshe’s been keeping her in salves and ointments.
meta
“We’re teaching by example!”
