#its a fruit amry despite the white

[ssevencaptain]

the sternritters really are fruity and juhabach is also fruity

[thebibliomancer]

Tides of the Dark Crystal liveblog pt 10

Tides of the Dark Crystal by J.M. Lee because will Detective Pirate skekSa’s scientific know-how save Tae? I sure hope so!

Last times on book: Amri and co have gone to Cera-Na on a quest to unify all the Gelfling clans but Sifa Maudra Ethri doesn’t seem that into what they’re pitching. Since it rains when it pours, it turns out that someone poisoned their guide Tae, Madura Ethri is scheming something, and skekSa the Mariner is in town. skekSa takes the assorted characters in this little drama to her ship, A GIANT SEA MONSTER.

Chapter 10

Emergency medical treatment on board the sea monster, Amri does a goof.

Amri did not want to board the ship.

It wasn’t even a ship. It was a living, breathing, heaving, groaning onster. But he didn’t have a choice.

Damn right you don’t, get in the sea monster young gelf.

So when you make a living creature a vessel, you have two to two and a half options. Option half is that you just ride it. I dispute this because it is riding. Option 1 is that you construct some vehicular framework around the creature. Like the giant sea turtles of Warcraft II. The gerblins built a water-tight structure on the back of the turtle and drove them around. The space British people of that one Doctor Who episode built an entire spaceship around a space whale, using the whale basically as the engine, in space.

Option 1 is generally less messy but more tentative than option 2. Option 2 is that you hollow out a giant creature somewhat and build whatever you need inside. In terms of living vehicles, you also see this more when the people using these vessels are kinda dicks? See also the Brood and building ships inside some different space whales.

Long story short, skekSa pushes aside a scale to reveal a door into the sea monster.

Welp.

The passageway inside was a slope reinforced with metal and shell, and Amri committed the path to memory in case they needed to escape. The flesh that made up the artery twitched and spasmed underfoot and all around, circulating the fluids in the wall and giving off the occasional draft of tepid, thick air smelling of fish and blood.

Okay. Not loving this. Not the biggest fan of the womb level trope.

They also find a giant worm lying dying in the passage and skekSa waves it off as the cleaners not having reached this far up the corridor but they don’t encounter any crew at all, cleaners or otherwise, on their trek.

skekSa reached a widening in the tunnel and blew a series of chirps on her whistle. The flesh in the wall trembled, scales folding back and spines retracting to reveal a chamber.

“Welcome to my laboratory.”

Cool but also ew.

And hey she’s a pirate captain detective scientist!

Most of the Skeksis just get to do one thing but skekSa is having it all.

They must have been deep under the behemoth’s shell, for the ceiling was high and structured with beams and rods and poles. A large chandelier of the golden lamps glowing with a fireless light hung from the center of the ceiling, illuminating a long row of shelves stacked with bottles and jars and flasks, and on the other end an expansive library of books. Crystals, looking glasses, lenses, and other objects littered every surface.

Cool pad, skekSa!

She sweeps a table clear, dramatically, and has Tae laid down. The Sifa is barely breathing by this point and has gone nearly white.

Amri points out that zandir shouldn’t cause this, its just a truth dust. And neither should nectarwine.

“Astute, my little Grottan apothecary. However, the zandir flower, known to unlock the mind, is less commonly known to be a distant relative to the sogflower. When taken together, the fruit of the sogflower is awakened by the zandir pollen. It results in a spore that causes the worst effects of both plants: dehydration, loss of blood pressure. And of unlocking the mind, yes -- to a degree most severe. Had Staya known this, surely he wouldn’t have given both to Tae in one cup.”

Ah, so its an adverse reaction. Its like they say, don’t take medicine with alcohol. Although I’m amused at how much Staya has borked up a simple attempt to pump Tae for information by having niche taste in booze.

skekSa shoos out everyone except Amri and Naia. Naia for her healing magic and Amri for knowing him some drugs. While she and Naia get to healing, skekSa has Amri fill up a basin with warm water and grind up some soothing salts into it. “Figure it out yourself, I’ve got to help your friend now.”

Amri has trouble deciding what to choose from skekSa’s extensive inventory.

skekSa asks Naia whether she trained under Maudra Laesid, which Naia confirms.

“The Blue Stone Healer. Her name is well-known. I heard from Lord skekZok  that she had twins, one a son who went to serve my kin at the Castle of the Crystal, one a daughter who inherited her abilities with healing vliyaya. Oh, what I’d give to meet the two of them. Twins being so rare among Gelfling and all.”

OH SHI-

Amri starts to panic about being trapped in a Skeksis’ lab in a Skeksis’ sea monster and that skekSa is going to disappear them.

Tavra tells Amri to be cool, that the only play is to wait and play along and hope an opportunity to escape comes up.

Which calms Amri for a time but he starts thinking about all the songs glorifying the Skeksis and how they’re all lies and how the Grottan way had failed them and their clan was the first to fall.

Now here he was, doing as skekSa told him without protesting. Despite the lies the Skeksis had told them all, despite how the Lords of the Castle had begun plucking from the Gelfling as he was about to pluck from the scented salts. He would never become a hero if he kept doing things the Grottan way. Alone and hiding in the dark.

So this time, Amri asked himself what a daylighter would do.

As skekSa and Naia focused on healing Tae, Amri draws his sword.

Amri no!

Tavra pinched him, hissing in his ear, “Amri, no. Don’t be a fool!”

Listen to Tavra for once!

“There are only so many Skeksis,” he whispered. “After tonight there could be one less.”

“She’ll kill you. She’ll kill us all!”

AMRI!

Tavra bites him several times, finally taking control of his body and forcing him to stop mid-swing. Spider powerrrrrrs.

Naia and skekSa notice Amri standing there with his sword raised and skekSa snatches the blade away. Then she grabs Tavra spider from Amri’s neck and traps her under a bottle.

“Interesting,” skekSa said. She turned away from him as if nothing had happened. “Ah, there she is. Good evening, my dear.”

Consumed by his attempt to kill the Mariner, Amri had failed to notice that Tae was awake. Naia grabbed her shoulder and helped steady her as she sat up.

Naia stares at Amri but he doesn’t really know what to say so he doesn’t say anything, just holds his bleeding neck and feels angry at himself and at Tavra for stopping him.

The Mariner stood back, pulling a lace handkerchief from her coat. She handed it to Amri and gestured.

“For your neck,” she said. “Now fetch that water, will you? Then we’ll discuss your little spider problem.”

You’re pretty chill, skekSa.

I think everyone else in the room is screaming internally.