Tinkering in the pool; “I don’t know,” says Sonata, coolly; muttering about Marzipan; fetching ledgers from Perdix; the whole telling-his-boyfriend-about-the-Eleanoréan-books thing; the messenger service is inaugurated; Nipi’s orrery; Lætitia’s quest; the various possible Eleanoréanisms; “Who do you suspect?”; Perdix’ editorial comments; Lhimpat’s teeth; the conspiracy deepens; ideas as ideas; Murry retires; the Red Moon intendent; Nipi’s pregnant; the Dragon-priest is inaugurated; twilight continues; Vergil, missing.
names
Imalhkaniyachi (“to make forget”), the new name of Naapiisachi;
Desire
Calvus heads down into the Pool-room. He finds his boar on one of the pillars. It’s starting to glow. Calvus hates this place. There’s something in the water, glowing. Sonata’s there; her symbol is glowing, too. (A swift.) —The place where Ishta’s ought to be is empty. Calvus asks, why us. Our apprentices were the ones involved, says Sonata. Calvus reaches into the pool to try and see what’s glowing. Sonata’s tracing Ishta’s symbol on her pillar. Or maybe she should trace her own. Is this a double-bladed axe down here? snaps Calvus. I don’t know, says Sonata, coolly. I haven’t looked under the water. I suppose it makes sense, if they carved the symbols for the Houses when Sol Media Nox was here. But why is it glowing now? Is Ishta performing Eleanoréan magic? I can’t imagine her doing so, says Sonata. —Illuminata and Insomnium look at the new lens that’s appeared in her hand: a boar. Sonata says Calvus should draw his symbol over where she’s drawn hers. Calvus does, but it’s not quite—enough? Hmm. Sonata draws the Touccian symbol; the Touccian symbol on the wall glows. Must we inscribe on this area every symbol she has a connection to? says Calvus. I don’t know, says Sonata. —Ishta’s blowing new glass symbols quickly. Slowly, says Sonata. That last one burned my fingers.
Gi tries to destroy the Jasper symbol whenever he goes down there.
Calvus and Ndapé discuss the spell and the Pool-room and he chews Ndapé out and grills him about possible Eleanoréanism. Ndapé’s worried: he still wants to leave and go to Picardia when he graduates. Is he tied to Gætan now? He’s tried to find the linkage for the spell and can’t.
The magi mutter about Marzipan. Tully insists nothing can be done while his creator is in Twilight. Palpebra suggests sending Marzipan over the border into the Kingdom. Gi points out pushing our problems away never works. He’d raise an army and come back and attack us! So let’s take away his power, suggests Palpebra. Tully refuses to admit any of the magi have any power to do anything about Marzipan, who did more than any other magus but the wimpy guy in the flying bathtub. —Sonata, Gi, Nil, Palpebra, and Calvus meet sans Tully to discuss. (Ishta and Perdix are still in Twilight.) Nil ascertains that Marzipan has life. Sonata wants Calvus authorized to destroy it. Calvus wants the magical powers removed and Marzipan be deactivated until Ishta’s returned; Tully refuses, and anyway, Marzipan can’t be deactivated. Gi and Calvus insist on the rings being removed. Tully wants to know if Marzipan has attacked anyone in Nemus Animæ. He isn’t in the military, says Gi. How closely is the council to monitor our every little experiment? says Tully. When they destroy villages, very closely, says Palpebra. So just do it. Let’s start with a duel, says Tully. No duels! says Sonata. We don’t settle things with a duel in this covenant. —Some heated discussion of the destruction of Naapiisachi. Tully says it would have happened whether Marzipan was there or not. It has nothing to do with him. It has everything to do with him! yells Gi. Did you tell him to kill the villagers or not? No, says Tully. So you’re not in control! says Gi. He’s six months old! We have to wait fifteen years! Is it the sense of the council that I’m being requested to disarm him? Yes, say the magi. Well. I shall think on the council’s polite request and give the council my response in a timely fashion. Until that time, Marzipan will not leave my chambers. That seems sufficient.
Sonata takes the time to remind the other magi that Perdix was recalled by the order of the council.
Nil needs ledgers from Perdix’ accounting for the covenant. Nil tries to go into the castle to find them, but the memory-palace interferes with his spectacles, so hey, Gi, could you? Gi heads into Perdix’ castle, and walks through the calendar ante-chamber, then into the ballroom, stumbling through the alphabet-dancers and off to the right, where he finds the library. Chittery’s there, chewing on a seed-cake left by a servant. The next room, there’s Perdix and Ilba, sitting on the floor, playing with dolls carved to look like Gætani villagers. Oh, says Perdix. You should come downstairs! says Gi. And tell everyone you’re okay! Oh, says Perdix. How long has it been? Four or five days, says Gi. Ah, says Perdix. We should probably eat something. They put the dolls away. The eyes of the Pickler-doll glint.
Gi confronts Sonata about the whole telling-his-boyfriend-about-the-Eleanoréan-books thing.
When Palpebra’s healed, he gets his messenger-service up and running. It rapidly becomes vital in the restoration of normal life, post-invasion.
Nipi shows Nishoba her orrery. He agrees it’s lovely.
Lætitia goes questing with Phrederick the hippo and Maximus Manlius. Lætitia face-palms the spunky girl who’d need rescuing a lot. There’s also Morgan the Magical Negro and an Ambiguously Gay Druid with stylish hair. How do you do that with your hair? asks Lætitia. Druid secret, says the Ambiguously Gay Druid. I don’t know you well enough. —Morgan dies protecting Lætitia; Phrederick dies opening the gates; Maximus betrays her, and dies. Pherderick comes back. Lætitia insists Somnex tell her what happens if she dies. Don’t die, says Somnex.
Calvus asks Gi if magi at the covenant could be performing Eleanoréan magic. Possibly, says Gi. He points out the ritual in the Pool-room was somewhat Eleanoréan. —Some discussion of the glowing symbols. Gi rattles off all the various possible Eleanoréanisms: the creation of Andrew; his communication with the Here—that’s not Eleanoréanism, that’s færie magic, says Calvus. Well, says Gi, there’s very little pure Cholæic magic lately. Who do you suspect? I don’t know, says Calvus. The only person for me to suspect is Illuminata, which doesn’t make much sense, unless there was something Eleanoréan left at Sol Media Nox.
Perdix passes a note to Nil: Needs work, it says, and sketches a few lines, a mentem charm that all participants in the suggestum should cast before taking part. All participants? (Nil meets with Perdix later, in a parlor.) Anyone who could cast it should, says Perdix. They are all willing, conscious participants, right? Nil asks for his notes back; Perdix reveals they’ve memorized it. Not the incantations; just the theory and structure. So it won’t go off in their head. Could you maybe wear a parma every now and then? Since you’ve got my book in your head? Perdix says nothing. All right then, says Nil.
Nil asks Nishoba to craft some simple metal-work. It’s for Lhimpat. He has Lhimpat bite down on some wax to get an impression of her teeth.
Fidelity
Nil’s finished the first book. He gets to borrow the breath book. Sonata reveals to Gi what Gratuitus gave her: the fleshy lump. They’re slowly starting to arrange actual meetings. Sonata speaks with Gi later, expressing her concern: Nil has some of the same problems in approaching Eleanoréan texts as Gratuitus: too enamored of the ideas as ideas. —Nil points out that these ideas might be used not only against the Eleanoréan Conspiracy, but there are theoretical elements that could be extrapolated to use against the Moon-priests. Oh, don’t give me that look. When Gi isn’t present, Sonata’s much more interested in thoroughly researching the books. —Some discussion as to how best to find the missing books. Sonata explains how she found hers.
Calvus works at Naapiisachi as he promised, felling trees and working on an irrigation system. The people are outwardly grateful, but glare.
Murry tells Calvus he wants to retire as head of the military. He’s still interested in protecting Nemus Animæ, as something of a hero-person, but he’s lost his original purpose. He was never really a soldier before. His job is to be a hero. He has a desk now. Having a desk is not good. Calvus suggests he head over the hills and see what’s up in the Kingdom.
Nipi, learning of Murry’s retirement, suggests the brother of the Brewer-priest from Yanalli: a good soldier in the Prince’s forces (who just happens to be the Red Moon intendent). Calvus, who knows the guy, is in favor. He fought with him years ago. He also know the guy’s a Red Moon intendent, which Nipi doesn’t know.
Nipi’s period is late. She asks her husband to ask Perdix to look her over, as she’s feeling unwell. Okay, says her husband. He goes to Perdix’ room, and heads to the castle; Ilba leads him through the alphabet dancers and up to Perdix’ study. Niceties concluded, he asks Perdix to look over his wife, as they’re family; okay, says Perdix. —Nipi comes for her appointment, and brittlely demands Perdix investigate her; Perdix gently prods until she reveals her concern; Perdix confirms she is, indeed, pregnant, and divines the fetus will miscarry. He misreads her concern, and offers to dissolve the condition; she’s offended, and declares her intention to keep the baby, and storms off.
Symbols appear and form a tunnel in the space where Ishta and Insomnium are stuck; there’s a pool, and Ishta strips down and bathes. Insomnium jumps in and splashes around. Ishta hops out. She’s a bit demure around him. —Insomnium looks through Ishta’s telescope with Gi’s lens in place and Gi, sleeping appears. Ishta’s flustered. Real Gi? Gi snatches his lens from the telescope. Give me that! —Insomnium introduces himself. —Gi ends up in the Pool-room, naked, before Sonata. Hmm, says Insomnium, peering through the telescope.
Gi goes to speak with Inokhanglo, who’s returned. Inokhanglo’s eating from a jar of pickles. Things have happened, says Inokhanglo, and I felt compelled to return to see the mess you’ve made of my lands. I have a new purpose. What is this purpose? New, says Inokhanglo, and I’ve returned. I think the approach I took in the past was wrong. Inokhanglo says he’s to become a Dragon-priest. What? says Gi. Then, what’s a Dragon-priest? I don’t think we should talk about that now, says Inokhanglo. I want to talk to your Thing. Your Thing calls to me, and I wish to speak with it. Thing? says Gi. Your dragon, says Inokhanglo. I don’t have a dragon, says Gi. Something changed, says Inokhanglo, and I need to be part of it. It calls to me. It says, you are no longer the Wolf-priest. Come here, be my priest. How are the bugs? I don’t know, says Gi. They’ve kept the truce. And the boar? We haven’t been troubled by the boar, says Gi. We’ve been troubled by the Judge. The Judge isn’t important, says Inokhanglo. How is the bird-woman? She’s no longer possessed, says Gi. Good, says Inokhanglo. Gi’s pinging for Calvus. Calvus shows; Calvus! cries Inokhanglo, who hugs Calvus, and then falls flat on his face. Inokhanglo has a new arm, long and dragony. —We should talk, says Gi. They disguise Inokhanglo as a loaf of bread and carry him into a private room. He ends up in the cavern near the Pool-room, where the Here wanted him to be.
Lalli continues to flirt with Cameron, trying to find out what happened. Cameron’s told her most of what he can, which isn’t much. They start hanging out in her family’s shed, doing shrooms. Cameron explains his attempt to destroy Marzipan, and the Day the Dolls Attacked the Lightbulbs. They discuss Gætani marriage-customs, and sex in the Order. Lemmites, says Cameron, are more disposed to writing pornography. Do you write pornography? says Lalli. Me? Personally? Not lately. I prefer knowledge by inference, not observation.
Gi tells Nil about having a Dragon-priest.
Business with Insomnium and Ishta’s Twilight; the telescope and the slides; Nishoba and Ilba and Perdix; Ishta and Insomnium end up in Lætitia’s dream-quest, and Phrederick comes back to Ishta’s Twilight with Ishta and Insomnium. Perdix breaks down Ishta’s door in an attempt to rescue Ilba and beat back Insomnium; they end up under attack by Tully’s boots and unable to reach Ishta’s Twilight. When they fall asleep in an attempt to go in more directly, they lose track entirely, but Okakmi’ wakes up and looks out into Ishta’s lab through Perdix’ eyes.
Constancy
Virgil goes missing toward the end of the month. Murry sends a couple of Wolves out to find him.
meta
Some discussion of repercussions: Okakmi’ coming back as a ghost, perhaps. Jake wants the lies to come back and bite the magi in the ass. Marzipan is a possible focus for priestly rage (and magical rage). —Okakmi’ returns as the Pickler-doll in Perdix’ memory-palace.
