Monday, June 1, 2015

Portent XI of Awakening: a riddle in rhyme

In the novel Awakening, there are 23 portents fortelling the events of the unfolding saga.

Start with Portent I here.

These and other riddles in rhyme are gathered in the Portents Directory for you to explore.

Enjoy!



By golem's work that has no end
Forgotten fog, remembered friend
The wayward son breaks thus his chains
What master lost, now master gains

What loosed the Nine Hells black and deep
Let Mother's mourn, let freedom weep
From servitude is freed at last
The portal still, the knowledge fast

He casts his bones for freedom's waves
For master's keep, for countless graves
And witness sole to master's grief
His word unveils unwelcome thief.


Can you decode the future Tales of the Known World?

Share your interpretation!
Comment below with your take on this portent.


Lines from this prophesy open the first scene of Awakening. Said on the same day as that opening scene, this prophesy comes to pass in the later chapters of Book 2.

I'm so proud of the lines broken by commas, and the jerky feel it adds to the meter. What do you think the golem's work is? And who's the one that casts his bones for freedom's waves?



Download the Prophesy Appendix:

The merfolk culture is built on the prophetic Gift. Nearly all men produce a portent every twenty days, and they devote their lives to interpretation. For more about the role and inner workings of prophesy, check out the Prophesy Appendix above.



Alongside every prophesy is an attribution block. This block contains a byline giving the name of the person who said the prophesy, and a dateline giving the day the prophesy was first said. Here is the attribution for this portent:
Kodyeh Njarwn Gusya XIII
1:2:4:4/5, III:IX
The portent attributed here has not yet been interpreted. It was said recently, and it will be repeated every twenty days until either it is correctly interpreted, or it comes to pass.


That's it for this post! Up Next: The wretched now cannot defend...

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