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Book 7

Page history last edited by Tim 15 years, 11 months ago

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The Elemenstor Cycle, Book 7: The Trial at Elddim's Peak

Dust Jacket Notes

Little did the denizens of the quiet village of Valedaleglenhill know that their plans to dig a new well through the abandoned mines that intersected a Dyemon burial ground would have dark and dangerous consequences. With the Tentacled Ancient Beast Yamshothog awoken, their only hope was to send three foolish children on a dangerous journey to Elddim's Peak through the dreaded Lands of Va, ruled by the dark NightLairds, to beg the Elemenstors for help. What would the Elemenstors ask in return? And would help arrive in time?

Three Foolish Children

The three foolish children selected for the perilous journey actually prove to be quite clever and resourceful.

  • Isaac Purcheron, 15, the leader, with a gift for communicating with animals.
  • Ark Riven, 13, his parents were both killed at the site of the new well when Yamshothog emerged.
  • Raven Darkblood, 10, of the race of Zonardian half-man interbred with white dragons. She is the youngest of the group.

Misc Notes

Due to a printer's error, this book was originally published as being written by "John Aquaman", with the title "How to Boil an Egg". It was widely reviled as an obvious, not-very-good Elemenstor knockoff, until the error was corrected and it came out under its own name. The original printing is considered a collector's item, since most of the run was burned by fans angry at the perceived rip-off.

It is also notable for the fairly short but achingly beautiful passage featuring the Plain Plains Plane, memorable only for its precision of language. This has driven some fans insane as they search for significance in it. Most of the fan base insists that the pages simply don't exist, or are just what they appear to be.

This book was also the first sign of the author's playful fascination with the mechanics of language, involving an extended scene across three chapters in the dungeons of the NightLairds' sanctuary in which the three children converse only in verbs lest they linguistically anger their captors, as shown in the short extract below from the second of these chapters, collectively termed the Action Sequence by some corners of fandom:

"Fight?" whispered Ark feverishly, a madness growing in his eyes.

"Negate! Disallow!" Isaac was stern.

Raven, meanwhile, stared mournfully at the world. "Die..." she hushedly whimpered, "End..."

Suddenly, Isaac leapt up, his brow a-shining with invention. "Confer! Devise! Escape!"

Ark was intrigued. "Plan?" he asked, the madness draining as pus from a lanced boil.

"Scheme," agreed Raven.

"Trick? Lure, batter, disguise?" suggested Ark.

"Consider," decided Raven.

"Write, defenestrate. Await?" put forward Ark tentatively.

"Dismiss," declared Raven.

Isaac's eyes lit up as a plan formed. It was the perfect plan. There was no possible way it could fail. He spoke one blinding word.

"Weave!"

Chapter 8

Interestingly, Chapter 8 (parts I, II, and III) is actually an aside that takes place during the Vampyric Wars which tells of the Vampyre Lord Vhadxi's crossing of Portund and invention of Ithbarg II.

Vhadxi shook the mud off his blackened cape and stomped through the door of The Fancy Fisherman.

The Bartender, Sailor Steve, lifted a glass of ale in greetings.

"Yar, matey!" he cried. "Welcome to The Fancy Fisherman! What can I do you for?"

The ghastly pallor of a man approached the bartender, and with leering menace, placed his hands atop the counter. "I, Vhadxi, Dark and Evil Vampyre Lord Supreme, ruler of Blackest Minathok, require the use of a donkey."

"A donkey, eh? I keep a cup of blood in the back, if you want it."

"Foolish mortal! I didn't come here for a 'cup o' donkey!' Find me a steed to ride, posthaste, and you shall be handsomely rewarded."

"A donkey, eh? I suppose you could talk to Markuel of Markuel over there, and he could fill you in a thing or two."

"Over where?" And as Vhadxi turned to look, he slipped on the floor, plummeted backward, and landed on the ground with a prodigious thump.

"You okay, son? Sometimes we leave things on the floor."

Vhadxi got up, and brushed himself off. His hair was mussed, and -- were it not for his excessive blinking -- appeared extremely agitated. "That man over there?"

"You're pointing to a wall. I meant the man over there."

"Right. Thanks ... mortal." ~(Chapter 8 "Fireside Tales, and Hilarity")

The cadre of vampyres approached cautiously, holding the freshly slaughtered puppy meat out in front of them in plain sight. Approaching in single file, they each laid their portion of puppy meat at Vhadxi's feet.

"Yesss." hissed Vhadxi. "This will go well on my vampyre pyre of puppy meat."

The great hall began to echo with the sinister laughs of vampyres.

"Muwahahaha!" laughed Vhadxi

"Muwahahahahaha!" replied the black cadre.

Vhadxi threw his head back and let forth a monstrous bellow,

"Muwahahahahahaha!!"

The vampyre cadre's laughter diminished into a mere dark giggle here and there, yet Vhadxi continued to laugh with increasingly epic sinisterness. The surrounding vampyres became uncomfortable because they felt the laughter had gone on for too long. If they laughed now, it would only be to protect Vhadxi's feelings. ~(Chapter 8, Part II "More Fireside Tales, Or: Why Everyone Isn't Asleep Yet")

See Also: The Fancy Fisherman. Book 6. Portund. Grimfleur. Evan. Ambrisoleir. Unresolved Threads. Bag of Holding. children of Valedaleglenhill. The Elemenstor Cycle. The Council of Elders. Kordish Butter. Felthar. Other ELotH:TES Animation. Ickthorn the Unpopular. The Heirarch Wars: The Hidden And Very Dangerous Wars. Availability. Moppet. Excerpts from the cycle that are recounted here. Canon or non-canon. Revolp Darkblood. The Eyuda. Literary Criticism. iron fist. Sw'ftfl'w River. Omg. Stream. Council of Elders and Betters. Quotable Quotes. Isaac Purcheron. Doctor Raven Darktalon Blood. Plain Plains Plane. Attack of the Bacon Golems. Wutel. Valedaleglenhill. The Parchment Cylinder. Dark Hoovers. The Holy Hoagie. The High Speech Of The Low-Elves. Lands of Va. Book 8. Book 1. Lame. The Hat-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named. Elemenstor Cycle Timeline. Ablongox the Particularly Unusually Long Lived. Linuxium. Action Sequence. Wand of Wand Wands. Ch'Hooty Sack. Limpobo Trees. NightLairds.

 

Discussion

Does anybody have a copy of the CG animated direct to video feature The Adventures of Isaac and Raven that expand on the adventures of two of the Foolish Children in their late teens? -Tim
There seems to be some confusion regarding Raven's sex. Yes, in the CG, Raven's voice is done by a girl, but in the book, Raven Darkblood is repeatedly referred to as a "he"
I've heard that said before, but I'm pretty sure Raven is a she (which seems to hold up in the excerpt above.)

 

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