Axies the Herald?

[Oudeis]

I searched but couldn't find this topic elsewhere... I'm sure someone is about to point me to the WoB saying yea or nay, or a previous conversation but...

 

Is Axies a Herald?

 

Isn't he really old and doesn't death mean nothing to him? And he seems fascinated with Spren?

[marianmi]

Axies is not human.

I think all heralds are humans.

[Oudeis]

Do you have citation for that?

[marianmi]

No.

But many theories put the Heralds coming to Roshar from another planet (other planet in the Roshar system or even Yolen), whereas aimians and parsh look to be Roshar natives.

I initially thought one of them is Parsh (based on their pictures) but since then reconsidered this. I am not sure you have Parsh surgebinders. If not Parsh, then probably not aimians as well.

you also don't have kandra or koloss mistings or mistborns.

[Oudeis]

Mistborn spoilers.

 

Are you certain there are no Mistkoloss? Marsh still had his native Seeking when he was made an Inquisitor. Presumably, Rashek wouldn't have wasted a powerful allomancer just to make a Koloss, but it's still a theoretical possibility.

 

Also, mistwraiths and koloss, as compared to humans, are poor examples of why the humans on Roshar are different from Aimians and Parshendi. Mistwraiths were once human, mutated into their current race by direct Shardic involvement; from a purely "ancestry" perspective, traced back far enough they're the same. Every individual koloss was born human, then changed via hemalurgy. The relationship is nothing at all like that between Parshendi and Alethi, who might very well be from different planets (though that isn't proven), and quite likely do not have a common ancestor. Though who knows, maybe they do, and direct Shardic involvement is the reason here, too.

[Takeshi]

 

JamesW

Are there non-human races on Roshar, or non-humanoid races that are sentient?

Brandon Sanderson

The Parshendi are not human, but you probably already knew that. The two races of Aimians are not human either. There are many races of sentient spren. From there, it depends if you call something like Ryshadium sentient or not.

 

It'd be kind of weird for Brandon to have a POV from a Herald but not make it obvious it's a Herald.  I wouldn't put it past him though.

[Yados]

 

 

It'd be kind of weird for Brandon to have a POV from a Herald but not make it obvious it's a Herald.  I wouldn't put it past him though.

 

 

Gaz had a pov. Just saying.

 

There's no evidence that Gaz is Jezrien. None whatsoever.

[Gloom]

Do you have citation for that?

 

As far as I can tell, Brandon has never been asked if the Heralds were human. He has been asked this...

 

 

JamesW

Are all of the orders of Knights Radiant human?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

 

which is probably what marianmi was remembering. I almost misremembered that myself. I still find it difficult to believe that they aren't all human though, and I don't believe that we had a POV from any Heralds in TWoKs.

[makromag]

I think Axies is a Dicean Amian (I hope I spelled that correctly) and we hear Hoid/Wit talking about them to Dalinar. He says something to the respect of "Can you do that to a man? dissect him and put him back together into something different, like a Dicean Amian?"

So I'm thinking, that Axies is a little like a Kandra, being able to controll and manipulate his body in a way no human can, allowing him to survive wounds that would normaly be lethal.

[Oudeis]

Dysian; though your point is well-made. Although in Axies's interlude, he strongly implies he's the other kind.

 

Perhaps he drew stares because of his blue nails and crystalline deep blue eyes. Aimians - even Siah Aimians - were rare.

 

I'm not certain it isn't a bit of a leap to assume that "taken apart and put back together" means an entire race of people cannot be killed and don't age. He claims that he's followed by the "Curse of Kind." What might that be? He seems to expect himself to survive several more centuries in order to catalogue every possible type of spren. And not just surviving age; he gets beaten, "killed", and incarcerated on the regular, and seems not to fear death. I suppose it's possible there's a race of literally immortal people out there, I just don't personally buy it.

 

Re-reading the interlude... oddly enough, a crazy man flat-out asks him, "Are you a void-bringer or a herald?" and he does answer "voidbringer." I put it to you that he's undercover.

 

Sidenote: Roshar seems to be on the planet's southern hemisphere? They do mention that the north is warmer than the south several times. For what it's worth.

[Shardlet]

It seemed to me that the "curse of kind" was the reverse shadow.

[WeiryWriter]

Sidenote: Roshar seems to be on the planet's southern hemisphere? They do mention that the north is warmer than the south several times. For what it's worth.

 

The supercontinent is in the southern hemisphere, the Reshi sea is to the north and has a tropical climate (as well as one of the northern oceans being named the "Steamwater") and the "Frostlands" is located in south Roshar.

[Oudeis]

It seemed to me that the "curse of kind" was the reverse shadow.

 

Based on....?

[Shardlet]

If I recall, he used the term in in conjunction with thinking about his reverse shadow.

Edited December 4, 2013 by Shardlet

[Oudeis]

Just re-read the section... he listed a number of traits associated with being an Aimian (his nails, hair, and shadow among them), and then starts talking about his various incarcerations, and then discusses the Curse. I suppose your theory is technically grammatically possible but it feels like a bit of a stretch to me. Perhaps one day we'll learn something that would give us a clue as to why a "reversed shadow" could be called the Curse of Kind.

[Shardlet]

I just read it again as well.  The curse of Kind could well refer to the whole package.  But, the impression that I got was that the shadow was the most unsettling feature to people.  The other outwardly apparent traits could be chalked up to racial characteristics.  But, a shaodw that extends towards the light rather than away from it is physically impossible.  Such a feature could well lead to such distrust and enmity among the other peoples that Aimians could well be desirably 'scoured' from existence.

[Oudeis]

Plausible, but it feels like Alendi and the Hero of Ages... like the descriptions and circumstances are being chosen to fit the theory, rather than letting the theory grow naturally, organically, from the circumstances. Any of that is possible. Is it likely? Why are Aimians not uncommon, then? Why was the xenocide unsuccessful? If his people can obviously be killed, why is he not worried that some magistrate will finish what was started at the scouring?

[hoser]

It's very interesting that we can all carefully read the same selections and come up with such different interpretations.

It seemed to me that the "curse of kind" was the reverse shadow.

I thought that the "curse of kind" was the bad luck.  When he leaves the begger, he says that he didn't want to bring any bad luck on him.  He says that the curse of kind helps one be philosophical.  The urchins stealing his wrap seems unlucky.  The law being present seems even more unlucky. 

[Shardlet]

Plausible, but it feels like Alendi and the Hero of Ages... like the descriptions and circumstances are being chosen to fit the theory, rather than letting the theory grow naturally, organically, from the circumstances. Any of that is possible. Is it likely? Why are Aimians not uncommon, then? Why was the xenocide unsuccessful? If his people can obviously be killed, why is he not worried that some magistrate will finish what was started at the scouring?

 

I don't know that I am picking and choosing which evidence I accept and which I ignore or write off.  I am just stating my overall impression and the rationale behind that impression. 

 

I recall Axies saying that even Siah Aimians were rare, thus suggesting that Dysian Aimians are more rare and all Aimians, by extension, are rare.  Without more info on the scouring and its participants, it is hard to say.  We also have little info on current attitudes towards the scouring.  It is clear that Aimians are distrusted and that they are afforded few rights wherever they go.  But those things are not mutually exclusive with a distaste for xenocide.

[marianmi]

It's very interesting that we can all carefully read the same selections and come up with such different interpretations.

I thought that the "curse of kind" was the bad luck.  When he leaves the begger, he says that he didn't want to bring any bad luck on him.  He says that the curse of kind helps one be philosophical.  The urchins stealing his wrap seems unlucky.  The law being present seems even more unlucky. 

 

What he said.

[18th Shard]

I always thought the Curse of Kind referred to his being Aimian in general, not anything special, but that by being Aimian, people mistrusted and feared  him.