Hyacinth; Kypris; Pas and more

Wow. Oodles of speculation recently. Everyone must have rested up over the weekend. Maybe even two oodles. [Hyacinth] I haven't seen any indication that Hyacinth was possessed by Kypris, much less "99% of the time." We rarely see her when she isn't acting, and Horn emphasizes this point in his Apologia. He says that nice as she was to Silk, she was nasty to everyone else around her. (Not that she was always nice to Silk either, of course). Her behavior fits very well with the interpretation that she's either (a) that rarely seen fictional character, the whore with the heart of brass, or (b) a spy/courtesan working for Trivigaunte. Or both. I'd be interested in seeing some specific instances when Kypris is in possession of Hyacinth. (Not to be picky or anything...) One additional mystery; why does Auk/Tartaros abduct Hyacinth? If she's really possessed by Kypris most of the time, it makes no sense; Tartaros and Kypris are on the same side. Could it be that Tartaros wants her kept away from Silk, knowing (as I and others have speculated) that she is a spy from Trivigaunte? [Silk as Kypris's Son] Here's the dialog when Silk meets his parents during his NDE: The other woman [Silk's biological mother] did not speak, but her eyes spoke truth. "You were my mother," he said. "I understand." He looked down at his own beautiful mother. "You will always be my mother. Always." It's a bit hard to tell, but I think "his own beautiful mother" in the last paragraph is his adoptive mother. What he "understands" is that the woman he thought was his mother wasn't ("truth"), but he still loves her as though she had been. I don't see any indication that Kypris (whose original, after all, was the kept mistress of a rather bad-tempered tyrant) would have conceived an embryo by someone else to place on the Whorl. [Pas is Dead] I think Pas was killed after the Whorl reached the Blue/Green system. We never get anything specific about why Echidna et al. revolted, but to me it's compelling that they coexist fairly happily for hundreds of years, then revolt. Why? Pure malice, as per Remora's answer about the cobra? No. They revolted because Pas wanted the voyage to end, wanted the Cargo to depart, wanted the Whorl to be depopulated. Some of the other gods wanted to keep on being gods, I think. If Pas was a construct of Kypris and Tartaros, why were they trying to reassemble his scattered elements, such as the one Jerboa carried? The construct seemed to be working okay. Remember that all the gods are just "manifestations of Mainframe"; in other words, they are computer programs. I find it easy to believe the scenario of Pas stashing backups or parts of backups here and there, and a partially restored Pas being able to put on a fairly convincing theophany. [Pike's Ghost] Oliver Stone's opinions aside, I still think it was Quetzal... [Appreciation] I agree strongly with mantis that Long Sun grows on you. I recall when Nightside came out, I found it rather disappointing; probably I expected something more like New Sun. Each time a new volume came out, I reread the preceding ones and got more out of them. Now, thanks to the indefatigable crew here on Whorl, I've reread the whole series twice in the last month, and I like it better each time. This is generally the case with anything by Wolfe (with his name he'd fit right in on the Whorl), but this series seems different. New Sun was like a spaceship covered in a rotting tapestry; pull it off and almost everything is revealed. Long Sun is like layer after layer of overpainting on an old master; it takes time and effort to reveal what's underneath. Dave Lebling (david_lebling at avid.com) Dave Lebling (david_lebling at avid.com) Questions or problems to whorl-owner at lists.best.com

I seem to be sharing a wavelength with Dave Lebling, as I agree strongly with just about everything in his last message. To wit: 1.) I agree that Silk's biological parents are the tall blue-eyed man and the woman "whose eyes spoke truth." 2.) I share the interpretation of the Whorl having been in the Blue-Green system for some time; Pas wants the Whorl's exodus (his original plan) while Echidna and others have rebelled for selfish reasons. (I'm also inclined to buy the theory that Quetzal and perhaps other inhumi boarded the Whorl when it was in or near the Blue-Green system.) 3.) I continue to adhere to the theory that Pike's ghost (followed by the flitting-out-the-window shape) must of been Quetzal. However, I don't understand why he was shape-shifting in Silk's room when as Prolocutor he could have walked right up to Silk at any time. 4.) I too find that the Long Sun books grow better with each rereading. Actually I loved "Nightside" from the get-go. I especially liked the slow pace (for Wolfe) and clarity of the Silk-solving-Blood's-villa scenes. My first reading of "Lake" and of "Calde" did leave me with the slightest whiff of disappointment; I think I was craving more strangeness (if you know what I mean), while it seemed there was a lot of chaotic running around in tunnels. But I thought "Exodus" delivered the goods in a big, big way. And upon rereading the whole set I've come to appreciate the middle two books more and more. I can now say that I actually like the Long Sun story even better than the New Sun story--which is saying a lot! 5.) One minor disagreement with Dave, perhaps. I ought to go back and check (and I will, soon), but I do think Kypris told Silk that she "played" with Hyacinth. My impression is that Kypris occasionally possessed Hy through the glass at Blood's villa. What effect this had on Hy, and how it fits into the political picture (with Kypris being pro-Silk and Hy being a Trivigaunte spy), I'm not certain. Finally, my thanks to mantis for the useful list of theophanies and possessions! I've downloaded that posting as a reference tool. --Henry Rathvon Questions or problems to whorl-owner at lists.best.com