ccstat he/him Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 (edited) Two of Paalm's minions have gotten me thinking about the misdirection at work in the story. These are fairly disparate points, some about plot details, others about Realmatics and behind-the scenes cosmere stuff. I’d be grateful for your thoughts on any of them. 1. What happened to the waiter? (Minor plot confusion) I have reread the party and chase scenes a few times, and it still isn't clear to me what happened to the waiter who jumps out the window. Here is the scenario I came up with—I would appreciate any input on how you understood the scene and if there are any details I missed. What we know: At the party, Paalm is wearing Innate (the governor), but has arranged with the Set to distract Waxillium. For their part, the Set intend to lure Wax into a trap and kill him. The server that Wax thinks is Bleeder is actually a Set minion. When confronted, he leaps out the window, but he is metalborn with a talent that lets him escape and hide. (Most probable options are coinshot, lurcher, or skimmer). When Wax gives chase, MeLaan follows Wax and Innate conveniently disappears so that Paalm can wear a different body for her bloody visit to the church. Wax follows a cab, and the driver claims his charge jumped out at a certain corner, which sends Wax straight to the ambush. Speculation: the server never actually gets in the cab. The cab driver, also a Set minion, drives away and sends Wax towards the trap. While it is also possible that the server actually reaches the ground and gets in a normal cab, it seems more likely to me that the Set would not risk having Wax accidentally catch up to the bait and skip the trap altogether. -------- 2. Who is talking to the suborned guard? (Realmatic mysteries and hemalurgic speculation, plus some possible Trell identity clues) At the governor’s first speech, Marasi notices the would-be assassin because he is shuffling in front of her, in a way that she specifically thinks would be deliberate except that the guard can't see her. Was Paalm (who appears to have been sending the “kill him, kill him!” telepathy) trying to get Marasi’s attention specifically? I suspect not, since it seems unlikely that Paalm (wearing Innate) could see her either, but it is worth considering. On the other hand, what if Marasi had gotten her bubble up earlier? More than just deflecting bullets, we know that time bubbles “interfere with almost all forms of investiture.” Would the barrier of a time bubble have blocked Paalm’s ability to speak to the spiked guard? (Beyond the simple difference in speed, that is.) Is hiding in a time bubble a valid way to avoid Shardic (or lesser) telepathy via spikes? Does that mean that Harmony can’t read Wax’s thoughts while he’s inside one of Wayne’s bubbles while wearing his earring? It seems from the guard's grimace and muttering that he is struggling against the compulsion to shoot, which I assumed to be active communication from Paalm, given his conversation with Wax: “She said you’d come talk to me,” Rian said softly.“She?” Waxillium said. “God.” “Harmony?” “No. She said I had to kill the governor. Had to attack him. I tried not to listen….” Waxillium narrowed his eyes. “You met her? What did she look like? What face was she wearing?” “You can’t save him,” Rian whispered. “She’s going to kill him. She promised me freedom, but here I am, bound. Oh, Ruin.” He took a deep breath. “There is something for you. In my arm.” However, even at the police station, both before and after his meeting with Wax, Rian continues to mutter and act unhinged. The hemalurgic piercing (found in the skin of his chest) is evidently still sending him messages, since he calms once it is removed. I find it highly unlikely that Paalm sat outside the interrogation room the whole time sending him creepy vibes, so I posit that this was another mystery metal spike, and the entity Bleeder speaks with later in the book (presumably Trell?) is the one communicating here. This seems more likely in light of the apparently controlled actions of the howlers/chimeras in the Homeland, which I believe were being directed by that same entity. As an aside, it is interesting to note that if the assassin couldn't distinguish Paalm's voice from that of this other entity, we either have a case of Shardic impersonation, (for which there is precedent, like when Ruin pretended to be Reen or Kelsier), or we have circumstantial evidence that "Trell" may in fact be female. I would find it amusing if Harmony’s caution against assuming everyone dangerous is male in fact applies to the various theories here on 17S attributing the mystery metal to Bavadin, Rayse, or Kelsier. (I recognize, of course, that the assassin could also just be crazy and not in a position to differentiate the voices in his head.) Either way, who is Rian referring to when he says “You can’t save him.”? On the surface it is obviously the governor, but the “I haven’t even killed your father yet” misdirection makes me question the messages Paalm is obviously sending. Is this perhaps an indication that “Trell” is going to (try to) kill Harmony? And is Rian's exclamation of “Oh, Ruin” a simple curse, or is it more of a clue about the identity of “God.” If the latter, then the theories about Harmony’s excess Ruin acting autonomously gain strength. (Though for the record I still have a hard time believing that excess Ruin would generate a mystery metal rather than simply atium and its alloys.) To summarize, my questions are basically What happened to the waiter? How much fine control was Paalm exerting on the guard, and was she expecting Marasi specifically to interfere? Who was talking to Rian while he was in custody? If Trell, are there clues to his/her identity? Do speed bubbles block hemalurgic telepathy? What about aluminum hats/rooms, etc? Edited November 2, 2015 by ccstat 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParadoxicalZen he/him Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 I think assuming Trell to be male mainly comes the lack of extremely prolific/notable female options (as most have a concrete alibi or aren't around any more) unless it is a female that we don't know of yet (The autonomous Ruin may even have a female personality, depending on what exactly happens when sapience occurs). We know that whoever controls any number of Haemalurgic constructs has to be incredibly powerful (or is part of a large group) as Vin could do so with a Duralumin burst where Elend could do so naturally I believe, and a group of Soothers/Rioters during TFE time could do so together. Given how diluted the bloodlines and how much weaker Allomantic strength is circa Era 2, the only candidates i can think of with the strength/resources to be able to control so many of the Haemalurgic chimeras at once would either be the Set (possible but highly unlikely), Harmony (nigh impossible) or the extra bit of Ruin (it would have the master knowledge of Haemalurgy and the strength to do so). But as for your questions 1. I think we might see the waiter again in BoM, give he is a minion of the Set, and the blurb of BoM says we'll see more of their plans then but he could just be one of those characters who have a minor appearance *shrugs* 2. As for Paalm's skill with Haemalurgic techniques, we weren't given much info as to how much she knows (Ruin was more Shout but Ati was pretty much consumed by his Intent at this point so he could have been defter earlier on) so i don't think she had the softest touch when talking to the guard. Do we even know if Paalm knew of Marasi's cadmium bubble? It isn't a broadcasted thing and we don't know if Harmony would have told the Kandra about his plans for all his pawns. 3. I didn't really think about this, but I'm a big fan of the Autonomous Ruin theory anyway, so i'd say that is who it is. (I think this Ruin created a Lerasium-Atium Alloy/Harmonium. As for why Harmony can't recognise it, I can list possible reasons but that's for another topic/pm) 4. This would make sense, or at least provide resistance to the telepathy. Not sure about the hats though; similar to the way you can't pull/push on a metal that is embedded in you but the telepathy could work similarly to Soothing/Rioting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killersquirrel59 he/him Posted November 3, 2015 Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 3. I didn't really think about this, but I'm a big fan of the Autonomous Ruin theory anyway, so i'd say that is who it is. (I think this Ruin created a Lerasium-Atium Alloy/Harmonium. As for why Harmony can't recognise it, I can list possible reasons but that's for another topic/pm) Wouldn't it be Sazedium, rather than Harmonium? Both Atium and Lerasium come from the Shardholder's names (Ati and Leras) not from their Shardic identities. Therefore, Sazed's should come from his real name as well. Off-topic I know, but just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natc Posted November 3, 2015 Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 I believe WoB is that Sazed himself felt that Sazedium sounds terrible. Or something. I forgot. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParadoxicalZen he/him Posted November 3, 2015 Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 Wouldn't it be Sazedium, rather than Harmonium? Both Atium and Lerasium come from the Shardholder's names (Ati and Leras) not from their Shardic identities. Therefore, Sazed's should come from his real name as well. Off-topic I know, but just a thought. If I remember Weiry's response correctly, it was just Brandon not really liking the sound of Sazedium/sazium 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sovereign Posted November 3, 2015 Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 (edited) If I remember Weiry's response correctly, it was just Brandon not really liking the sound of Sazedium/sazium Correct: Relevent WoB: Reddit AMA: Brandon Sanderson: Sazed didn't like the sound of Sazedium. Edited November 3, 2015 by Iron Eyes 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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