“ | There was nothing to be gained by losing his temper. There was never anything to be gained by that. | ” |
Nobody's Dog is the thirty-seventh chapter in The Blade Itself.
Chapter Summary[]
Collem West seems to be the lone voice of sanity in the Union military. Running from place to place, solving problems for the Lord Marshall.1 First, West arrives at the gate of the Agriont to find a dispute in progress. The guards are refusing entry to a savage looking woman and an old man, despite proper paperwork, unless they give up their arms; none other than Ferro Maljinn and Yulwei. With a cool head, West mollifies the situation, convincing Ferro to give up her knife and allowing them entry.
Next, West finds that blacksmiths have stopped working for the day, having already met their quota. West asks Major Vallimir to re-light the forges to provide more equipment for the Midderland levies heading off to war in the North. Vallimir refuses to take orders from a jumped-up commoner, and finally goes too far with a snide comment about West’s sister. West loses his temper and intimidates the Master of the King’s Armouries into relenting.
Wallowing in his lot in life, West goes home for a rest. Approaching his door, he hears Ardee inside, having let herself in. West knocks on his own door before entering, and finds Ardee, with a glass of wine in hand, trying to act casual. West finds a letter on the desk from her inviting Jezal to a rendezvous that evening. Unable to suppress his rage, West beats her.2 Unbowed, Ardee hits West with some home truths: he really only cares how her actions will affect his standing in society; and is now no different from their abusive father. Reeling from the truth in her words, West’s apologies fall on deaf ears as Ardee leaves to meet Jezal anyway.
Characters[]
Introduced | Appeared | Mentioned |
---|---|---|
Major Vallimir | Collem West | Lord Marshall Burr |
Ferro Maljinn | Jezal dan Luthar | |
Yulwei | ||
Ardee West |
Locations and Terms[]
Adua | The Union | Union Army | Agriont | Midderland | The North |
References[]
- It's so rare in military fantasy that authors are willing to discuss the more mundane nature of army bureaucracy.
- West has seemed the classic fantasy character; a war-hero who was the first through the breach; the commoner rising through the ranks on merit; and he gave money to that poor farmer. Basically, the character we most wanted to love. The author seems to be saying, we all have our flaws, and the ones who would try to appear most righteous are often the worst of all.