I was rereading it, and it occurred to me that the poor svartalven wizard is going to be punished rather severely.

Not because raiding outside settlements is illegal in Svartalfheim (because it isn't), but because being caught raiding outside settlements is illegal.

Am I off-base?

Also, now that I'm thinking about Svartalfheim, has Gryphon thought at all about Anthy's maternal grandmother?

>Not because raiding outside settlements is illegal in Svartalfheim
>(because it isn't), but because being caught raiding outside
>settlements is illegal.
>
>Am I off-base?

Not necessarily, but it'll be a long time before the svartelven authorities have anything to say about the matter, so he's not likely to need to worry about it any time soon.

>Also, now that I'm thinking about Svartalfheim, has Gryphon thought at
>all about Anthy's maternal grandmother?

In what context?

--G.
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Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
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>In what context?

Well, whether she's alive, whether she knows about her grandchild, whether she'd be at all friendly to Anthy and her family, that sort of thing.

(Though it's probably unlikely that'll come up, since Anthy's mother vanished from Svartalfheim a long time ago, and probably no one living could figure out, "Oh, she looks like my granddaughter." Still, I've been surprised before...)

>Well, whether she's alive, whether she knows about her grandchild,
>whether she'd be at all friendly to Anthy and her family, that sort of
>thing.

It's entirely possible she's still alive; svartelves aren't technically immortal, but they are a very long-lived people. It's even possible, given the height of the Trinity's profile in celestial circles recently, that she's heard of Anthy (though she may not be aware they're related; the fact that Anthy's mother was a svartelf is known to a few intimates but isn't on the public record).

However, given that Anthy's late mother was an exile - was, in fact, executed, as far as the svartelven authorities were aware at the time - that lady's mother is unlikely to be too kindly disposed toward her descendants. It may say something about the way svartelven families work that Anthy's mother was (er, if you'll pardon the expression) the black sheep, and not her sister Hild, despite the fact that Hild's the one who had an illegitimate daughter with no less a figure than Odin.

The materfamilias, if indeed she is still living, would be more likely to be proud of Akio. A grandson who became a demon prince, now, that's something worth bragging about in Svartalfheim...

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

>However, given that Anthy's late mother was an exile - was, in fact,
>executed, as far as the svartelven authorities were aware at
>the time -

Is this method of punishment still in use? If it is, it explains a little about Anaximandra Drax...

Peter Eng
--
Insert humorous comment here.

I was about to say, but Anaximandra fell onto the dueling floor, while Anthy's mother came from the north, near Ryu Zan Paku, last time I read.

However, this could probably just be explained by something like Cephiro's rotation relative to Svartalfheim.

>>However, given that Anthy's late mother was an exile - was, in fact,
>>executed, as far as the svartelven authorities were aware at
>>the time -
>
>Is this method of punishment still in use? If it is, it explains a
>little about Anaximandra Drax...

Yes, yes it is. Those who transgress against a particular bit of the svartelven code are thrown into what is commonly believed to be a bottomless pit at one of the lowest levels. The vast majority are never seen or heard from again, but a few seem to find their way through cracks in the cosmic fundament and wind up in unexpected places.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

LAST EDITED ON Apr-07-14 AT 07:10 PM (EDT) by Gryphon (admin)
 
[I can't stand it. I know you planned it. --G.]

>The materfamilias, if indeed she is still living, would be more likely
>to be proud of Akio. A grandson who became a demon prince, now,
>that's something worth bragging about in Svartalfheim...

True, but let's not forget that Anthy stabbed her brother in the back en route to becoming one of three people wielding ultimate cosmic power in the Tenth World. That seems like it would be respectable in its own right to svartelves, and also that the sheer depth and scope of Anthy's contacts means she'd probably be considered a resource worth cultivating by whatever clan she happens to be descended from.

Anthy of course would realize that that was exactly what they were doing if they made contact, but cultivating resources works both ways, and better that she gets an in in Svartalfheim than her brother. Although knowing Akio, he may have gotten there ahead of her; dude knows how to network.

Oh, tangentially but somewhat related: the comic series Thor: God of Thunder recently concluded a storyline that was all about Svartalfheim, its people, its culture, its politics, etc. It was quite good. In fact, Thor: God of Thunder is an exceptionally good comic to begin with; among other things, it's managed to go nearly two years without requiring any knowledge whatsoever about things happening elsewhere in the Marvel Universe or requiring more knowledge about previous Thor-related adventures than can be delivered succinctly in a one-page summary.

-Merc
Keep Rat

>True, but let's not forget that Anthy stabbed her brother in the back
>en route to becoming one of three people wielding ultimate cosmic
>power in the Tenth World.

Technically, Utena stabbed him in the chest; Anthy just pushed him off a very high place. :)

("Haven't we got enough problems without shooting each other in the back?!"

"Actually, I shot him in the face."

- a thing Gin Shepard said that isn't in Mass Effect)

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.