Darksword

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The Darksword series consists of the initial three books of The Darksword Trilogy, a supplemental role-playing volume, and a single-volume sequel. It was written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman with cover art by Larry Elmore. It is the story of a young man, born without magic in a society where magic is life, who has been prophesied to destroy the world. The books are published by Bantam Spectra, the science fiction division of Random House.^[1] Each book of the trilogy reached the New York Times best seller list.

Overview[]

The Darksword Trilogy consists of Forging the Darksword (December 1, 1987),^[2] Doom of the Darksword (May 1988), and Triumph of the Darksword (September 1988). A fourth book is a sequel, Legacy of the Darksword (June 1998). The role-playing game is Darksword Adventures (December 1988).

Characters[]

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Main characters[]

Joram

The son of the Emperor and Empress of Merilon, and heir to the throne, Joram was born completely Dead (devoid of magical power) in a society where magic is considered life. He is left to die but a distraught woman named Anja finds him and takes him to replace her own stillborn child.

Anja teaches Joram sleight-of-hand tricks and non-magical illusions to conceal the fact that he has no magic of his own. Joram's lack of magical ability is discovered and he flees to the Outland while Anja dies trying to protect him. In the wilds of the Outland, Joram joins the outlawed Technologists who are practicing the long-forbidden Mystery of Death, Technology.

There he plans to forge the Darksword, a blade capable of absorbing magic. However, his plans are delayed because forging such a sword requires a Catalyst (special magicians that have little personal magic but are necessary to enhance the magic powers of all the others). Saryon is sent by Bishop Vanya, ostensibly to capture Joram. The two are opposed to the tyranny displayed by Blachloch, and Joram convinces Saryon to help him forge the Darksword. Then, together with Simkin and Mosiah, they leave the village for Merilon so Joram can claim his heritage.

Joram and Gwendolyn live "Beyond" - the technological Planet Earth - for ten years (but only one year in Thimhallan time), and Gwendolyn goes mad. Joram meets Menju, a mage from Thimhallan. Simkin changed into a copy of the Darksword and placed by Joram on Merlyn's tomb. Merlyn's spirit was awakened and transported mankind and the Magic to a new world, so men could make a new start.

With this, Joram fulfilled the prophecy: He was born Dead and lived, died by Smythe's poison and resurrected by Simkin, and held his hand into the destruction of the world (by the Hch'nyv) or its salvation (by awakening Merlin who saved mankind).

Father Saryon

Saryon is a scholarly catalyst with a natural talent for mathematics. A transgression in his youth, as well as the traumatizing experience of performing the tests that proved the Empress's son to be Dead, led him to question the tenets of his faith more than others of his order. He is sent by Bishop Vanya to track down Joram in the Technologists' village so that Joram can be captured. However, Saryon ends up siding with Joram, and becomes something of a father figure to the younger man. When Joram had to undergo the Turning (being turned into stone while still living, thus experiencing eternal suffering), Saryon took his place allowing Joram to escape. After Joram releases the magic from Thimhallan, Saryon leaves for Earth with the other survivors.

Mosiah

Mosiah is a field magus who grew up with Joram in the village of Walren. He befriended Joram despite the other's taciturn nature, and proves to be a trustworthy friend and ally of Joram's. Mosiah is naturally gifted at magic, though he was never formally trained in its use. He became one of the Duuk-tsarith on Earth under the charge of King Garald

Simkin

Simkin is one of Joram's companions, a powerful magus who seemingly has no morals or regard for human life. He is well known in all the royal courts in Thimhallan and often regales his friends with scandalous tales and gossip about the nobility. As many characters in the novels remark, Simkin has a game of his own to play, though he chooses to not reveal his true motivations to anyone, preferring to put people in various alarming situations in order to see how they react.

Not much is known about Simkin's age, he could be 100 years old or as old as time itself. Simkin, however, can look anything from 14 to 75 years old. In Legacy of the Darksword, Simkin reveals that he truly is "Magic".

Villains[]

Bishop Vanya

As the Bishop of the realm, he is one of the only people apart from the Duuk-tsarith who is aware of the Prophecy. He fears that Joram will bring the Prophecy to fruition, and does all that he can to ensure that Joram is captured—though whether this is out of concern for the good of the realm, or in order to protect his own political power, is debatable.

Blachloch

Blachloch is a Duuk-tsarith spy in the Technologist Village. He overthrew the real leader Andon by claiming he left the order of the Duuk-tsarith and rallying the technologists into fighting Merilon, thus making himself more popular than the pacifist Andon. He even went as far as making an alliance with Sharakan. His true plan was to start a war between Sharakan and Merilon, helping Merilon behind the scenes. Before he could make his plan reality, he was killed by Joram and Saryon who had just finished the Darksword. When he ordered Saryon to channel magic to him for use to attack Joram, Saryon did the illegal and drain magic from him instead, making him helpless. After that, it was revealed he was working for Vanya instead of being a renegade.

Prince/Emperor Xavier

Xavier is Joram's uncle and second in line to the throne of Merilon. (Joram being the first.) He is a D'karn-Duuk (a warmaster). The right to rule in Thimhallan is determined by the family of the queen, thus if the queen dies, her closest family member takes over the throne, in this case Xavier. His only problem was that because the Emperor kept his wife 'alive' by using illusions, Xavier could not do anything but wait until the people realized the truth. But when the truth arose, and Joram was sentenced to the Turning, Xavier quickly took the chance and crowned himself emperor. Garald challenged him to war, which he gladly took. However, when both armies clashed, a third army came, which consisted of Dead people using Iron Creatures and people with Iron skin (which were in fact tanks and infantry of future earth). Because he could not defeat this threat, he became mentally unstable and was later killed by a shot from one of the tanks.

Kevon Smythe

Kevon Smythe is the leader of the Technomancers in Legacy of the Darksword. Smythe is trying to get a hold of the second darksword forged by Joram in order to trade it to an alien race known as the Hch'nyv. The Hch'nyv are an extremely violent alien race bent upon the destruction of all human life. The diviners of the Hch'nyv have prophesied that the dark sword could be their great undoing. Smythe agrees to deliver them the darksword and allow them to take over Earth if the Hch'nyv will allow him and his people to take over Thimhallan. The Hch'nyv agree to this but they have no intention of keeping their bargain.

Plot[]

The Prophecy[]

In the chaotic times after the Iron Wars (in which the Technologists attempted to take over the world), the Bishop of the Realm decided to attempt a vision of the future, in order to calm the fears of the populace. In the month leading up to the attempt, he secluded himself in a small room and fasted, in order to purify himself.

The spell succeeded, but the strain was too much for the Bishop's weakened body. He died before the Prophecy was given in full, and the theurgist assisting him was rendered catatonic. Since the theurgist was the last of his profession in the world, no further attempts to see the future could be undertaken.

The Prophecy begins "There will be born to the Royal House one who is Dead yet will live, who will die again and live again. And when he returns, he will hold in his hand the destruction of the world--"

It is revealed in Triumph of the Darksword that the broken-off sentence would have ended with "or its salvation". It is also revealed that The Prophecy was only supposed to be a warning.

The Nine Mysteries[]

Fire

After the testing, a magus who is powerful in the mystery of fire is taken to a place known only as the Mountain to begin training as one of the Duuk-tsarith (warlocks and witches). Those who show greater potential are kept for three additional years of training to become a 'DKarn-duuk (warmaster).

Water

Those born to the mystery of water are called druids. There are three types of druid:

• Field druids, Fihanish, who help the field magi clear the land for farming.
• Druids of minor healing, Mannanish, who deal with cuts and scrapes.
• Druids of major healing, Theldara, who deal with broken bones.

Earth

Those born to the mystery of earth are born either:

• Mon-alban, the alchemists, who change metals into more useful metals.
• Quin-alban, the conjurers, who use Life as the only material in their work.
• Pron-alban, the shapers, who can alter materials and produce chairs from a single piece of wood or a fort from a mountain.
• Albanara, the noble magi born to rule, who possess skills in all parts of the earth mystery.

Air

Any magus born to this mystery is either a Kan-hanar, a gate keeper, or a Sif-hanar, a weather changer. It is the Sif-hanar that keep the city of Merilon in perpetual spring; when most of the Sif-hanar were killed in the battle on the Field of Glory, Merilon passed from spring to winter, much to the horror of the city's inhabitants.

Shadow

This mystery's practitioners are called illusionists. Illusionists are the artists of Thimhallan. They use Life to create plays, music, and images of dragons and other creatures.

Life

The rare magi born to this mystery are known as catalysts or thaumaturgists. A catalyst does not possess magic in great measure himself; however, he possesses the unique ability to channel Life. A catalyst takes magical energy from his surroundings and, by assimilating it within his own body, is able to enhance it and transfer it to magi who can wield it. Catalysts are recruited into the clergy of Thimhallan.

Spirit

This mystery allows magi to communicate with the dead, but its practitioners were allegedly wiped out during the Iron Wars, and have been suppressed by the Church ever since. Devotees of this mystery are called necromancers. Also born to this mystery are enchanters, who change the desires of people, and theurgists, who can communicate directly with the Almin (God).

Time

This mystery deals with the future and the past. The magi of Time, known as Diviners, also created the Corridors, holes in time and space that take a person from one place to another. The Corridors became the main form of transportation for all magi. When the Diviners were wiped out during the Iron Wars, the Corridors were maintained by the Kan-hanar's Life while the church took control of the use of the Corridors. It is stated in Darksword Adventures that for a person to be a Diviner, one parent must also be a Diviner.

Death (Technology)

This mystery is believed to have been banished from the world. This mystery gives Life to that which is Dead, an unforgivable sin. The magi of Death are known as Sorcerers, and they make and use magical devices (wands, scrolls, potions, and similar items).

These nine mysteries were known as the Mysteries of Light. Prior to the Great Passage from Earth to Thimhallan, there were four Mysteries of Darkness that were cast out, since its members wanted revenge against the Mundanes for the persecution they suffered. These mysteries were the negative aspects of Earth, Air, Fire and Water: War, Famine, Pestilence and Spirit-Death.

Reception[]

Forging the Darksword reached 15 on the New York Times bestseller list on December 27, 1987.^[3]

Doom of the Darksword reached 9 on the New York Times bestseller list on May 1, 1988.^[4]

Triumph of the Darksword reached 12 on the New York Times bestseller list on August 21, 1988.^[5]

References[]