Holution Team Team itibaren Półsieraków, Polonya
pretty boring and weary actually. inkspell was way better
I thought this was a funny look at how easy it is to get caught up in debt and how one women thought outside the box.
500 years since Hawk has led the remnants (humans, elves, spiders, lizards) into the mountains, and established a magical barrier to protect the environment from the nuclear fallout and the desperate. Only two Word staffs survive - one elven, one human... but the elven goes mad with power, and we are led to believe he and his staff are destroyed (or were they?). Sider Ament is the current weilder of the staff, its magic, and with the responsibility of maintaining the barrier and to prepare the people. Panterra and Prue are human trackers, with a touch of magic. Phyrne is the elven princess. Tasha and Tenerife are elven brothers/trackers. The five follow Sider's lead to determine if the barrier is down (and it is), and Pan and Prue get caught by Lizards/Trolls. Panterra is released to set up a meet, Prue is held hostage. They return to their side with a troll Arik sorn, who represented himself as enemy of the Troll leader when in fact he is the son. He knows their language. the humans are separated into many townships, no central government - and many are followers of Skeale Eile, who preaches that the Hawk will return to lead them out of the valley - he weilds much power and influence, and tries to stop Pan & Prue from telling others that the barrier is down. Sider makes friends with Deladian Inch, a warrior/mercenary on the otherside. He knows how to maintain and use many of the weapons and explosives of old. But upon Panterra and Phyrne's return, the elves begin to prepart for the invasion. Skeale makes a turn around, and agrees that walls need to be put up to stop the Lizards. Phryne's father (the elf king), though a good king took to wife a young woman, not of nobility. Phryne and her grandmother (mother's mother) don't like her, and are aware that she is caring on with other men, including the prime minister. And at the end, Phyne's grandmother shows her the elven stones, and though Phryne doesn't want to use them, thinking they belong to her father, she is entranced with the little magic she draws from them. The stones come with a commitment to keep up the use of magic by the elves - something even back here they failed to do. and we delve into Sider's memories - of Aislinne whom he loved in his teens but gave up when the staff passed to him and how he still thinks of her and regrets what he gave up, of the fight between his mentor and the elf staff bearer, of the need to pass on the staff to Panterra, whom he judges to have a good heart. The cliffhanger... Deladion Inch rescues Prue (at Sider's request), but they are tracked - he sends her to his safe caves, and injured he hunkers down to hold them off (will he die or not?); Skeale wants to be supreme ruler over the whole valley, and connives with the elven queen to kill her husband and blame it on Phryne (will the people believe the set up? will Phryne run? will it take to the end of the next book for the stepmother/queen to get her comeupance?); Arik Sarn and Taureq Siq's Trolls are ready to attack, and Arik Sarn has finished his reconnoisence and he meets up with some trolls and big dogs at the human pass where Pan is helping build up; Pan realizes the significance and leads those there in holding the pass and not allowing the Trolls to join up with their people and come through this way - Sider gets to the pass too late, all humans except Pan are dead and Arik Sarn is dead - but Arik Sarn shoots poison darts at Sider - then turns back into the valley (will he get to his people to lead them to this pass? to tell them of the strengths and weakensses of those defending the valley?); and as he is dying, Sider gives a reluctant Pan the staff (how will Pan be able to use the staff since he hasn't had any training?) The story ends with Sider remembering his first moments with the staff after his mentor died - his fears, his excitement, his questions... hmmmm