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| Garion discovers a spot in the Mrin Codex that's more cryptic than usual: "But behold, the stone which lies at the center of the light shall…", a blot, then, "…and this meeting will come to pass in a place which is no more, and there will the choice be made." Beginning of one sentence, end of another, and Garion can't figure out what's in the middle. Belgarath declines to help him–Garion discovered it, he can figure it out. (GW 260-262) |
| Garion, while pouring over scrolls of assorted madness which occasionally contain genuine prophecy, gets a visitation from the Purpose. He learns two things from his intermittent visitor. First, he can just scan the books he's been laboriously wading through, and the parts that are prophecy will be apparent to him. Second, the blot he found in the Mrin Codex is important–and that the words there can be read in the proper kind of light. Eventually, at Ce'Nedra's suggestion, he goes in search of the original copy of the Mrin Codex. According to the Rivan Deacon, it's kept in the shrine that was erected on the site where the Mrin Prophet was kept chained. (GW 263-270) |
| Before Garion leaves for Drasnia, he awakens in the night to find that Ce'Nedra isn't in bed with him. Instead, she's in the next room, acting under the influence of another mind to smother her son. Poledra stops her, and tells Garion that he really does need to see the original copy of the Mrin Codex–and that he should take the Orb with him when he goes. (GW 271-275) |
| Garion encounters Tupik and Poppi (two fenlings… you may remember them), who inform him that Vordai is now dead, but left a message for him–what moves against him has many faces which do not always agree, but has a common source. After that encounter, he continues up the Mrin river to the shrine. (GW 276-278) |
| Garion arrives at the shrine and gains access to the original scroll of the Mrin Codex… only to find the same #^@$#^ blot! As it turns out, the Dark Prophecy, through one of its agents, is deliberately trying to prevent Garion from finding out what's written there; it nearly succeeds, until Garion accidentally brushes the Orb and realizes that that's what Poledra was trying to tell him. The instructions under the blot turn out to be fairly important: they tell Garion and Belgarath what they need to do to finish the whole thing. Garion immediately heads for Belgarath's tower in the Vale of Aldur. Belgarath is initially (and uncharacteristically) hostile, until Garion forces him to read the "hidden" text by the light of the Orb. (GW 276-292) |
| Brand is murdered. Garion immediately returns to Riva, calling an emergency session of the Alorn Council. It turns out that the assassins were Chereks; they were admitted to the Citadel because they had a letter from Anheg. All but one of the assassins were killed; the sole survivor is only barely alive. (GW 293-304) |
| The Alorn monarchs (and Fulrach of Sendaria) arrive; Porenn brings Javelin along. Korodullin sends Lelldorin and Mandorallen (he himself is too ill to travel). Anheg arrives two days later aboard Barak's ship. Brand's funeral is held the following day, and the assorted notables gather to exonerate Anheg afterward. Greldik arrives after lunch the day after the funeral, bearing news that the inhabitants of Jarviksholm (primarily Bear-cultists) appear to be on the verge of going to war with their king–they tried to sink Greldik, and they're building a large fleet. The day after that, Belgarath finally manages to prove that the letter that admitted the assassins was a forgery. Porenn points out that this may have been an attempt to start a war between Riva and Cherek. (GW 305-322) |
| Silk returns from Rheon with a report on the Bear-cult. It seems that they have a new and very unusual leader by the name of Ulfgar. Ulfgar does not seem to be a priest of Belar, and his center of power is at Rheon in Drasnia, rather than somewhere in Cherek. He's also resurrected a means of identification among the cult–a stylized representation of a bear paw is branded on every cult member's heel, up to and including the surviving assassin. Plans are made to attack Jarviksholm, then Rheon. (GW 323-325) |
| The attack on Jarviksholm is spectacularly successful. Under cover of darkness, forces under General Brendig climb the cliffs near Jarviksholm and take about half of the cultists' catapults, then use them to destroy the other half. The other group up the cliff is under Garion and Barak, and they attack the city gates. (Garion uses his own peculiar type of battering ram; thanks to the Orb's "help", he hits the gates so hard with his will that chunks of the gate are later found up to five miles away. He also caves in most of the back wall of the city.) At the same time, Anheg takes the fleet up the Jarviksholm inlet and burns out the shipyards. The attack also offers an opportunity to get a spy into the cult–Javelin actually crucifies his own niece to create a martyr/heroine. (GW 335-343) |
| During the attack on Jarviksholm, someone kidnaps Geran. (GW 343) |
| Garion, Belgarath, Polgara, and Durnik fly back to Riva. Ce'Nedra is hysterical, so Kail (Brand's second son and the new Rivan Warder) has taken charge, sealing the port and blockading the Isle's coast. The Citadel has been searched, and a house-to-house search is underway in the city. The Orb short-circuits the search–it seems that the Orb can follow Geran's trail, which leads to a cove on the western side of the Isle. After springing an ambush set by Bear-cultists, Garion and company learn that Geran was abducted on the orders of Ulfgar, who intends to raise Geran within the cult. The cultist they question also claims that Ulfgar is a sorceror. (GW 344-359) |
| The Alorn Kings move against the cult stronghold at Rheon. Anheg sets his soldiers to searching Cherek's western coast (on the off-chance that the kidnapper didn't know about what happened to Jarviksholm). Belgarath begins searching for the various prophecies he's supposed to look for; he gets Anheg's copy of the Ashabine Oracles at Val Alorn, then heads for Mar Terrin to look at their copy of the Mallorean Gospels. Rivan troops head directly for Rheon; the Drasnian forces under General Haldar are to follow shortly. (Haldar, incidentally, seems surprised that Geran was abducted, not killed.) When Beldin arrives, he informs Garion and the others that the Drasnian forces are not following–they have set up a fortified encampment at the shallows of the Mrin, where they can keep the Sendarian forces from ever landing. (GW 360-377) |
| With the help of some Nadraks, the Rivans thwart the cult's attempt to set up an ambush, then lay siege to Rheon. Beldin and Polgara keep the Drasnian forces from being used at the siege by bogging them down (literally). Meanwhile, Javelin points out that they'd better get inside the city where they can fortify their position against both the cult and the pikemen–just in case. Silk makes a foray into the city to get Liselle out; Liselle states that Geran does not appear to be in the city, and Ulfgar didn't really expect this attack. She also knows that Ulfgar is not an Alorn, and that the city's defenses are actually fairly flimsy–the north wall in particular. (GW 381-404) |
| Garion and Durnik crack open the rock layer below the city, allowing water to wash out the dirt under the city walls. When the process is complete, the Nadraks use their grappling hooks to pull the walls down. The besieging forces take a part of the city and fortify, waiting for the Sendars and Algars. (GW 406-418) |
| The Sendars, Algars, and Belgarath all arrive at Rheon within a day of each other. Belgarath has gotten nowhere–Torak altered the Ashabine Oracles, and the copy of the Mallorean Gospels at Mar Terrin was right under a leak in the library's roof. Kail, Verdan, Brin, and Joran arrive from Riva–they found the ship the cultists arrived on the island in. They also found a shepherd who saw a Nyissan ship sail into the same cove where the ambush was, and also saw someone carrying something wrapped in a blanket board the ship. (GW 419-425) |
| Garion's army retakes Rheon. Garion and Durnik capture Ulfgar… who turns out to be a very unusual character. According to Errand's unusual mind-reading ability, Ulfgar had absolutely nothing to do with Geran's abduction–in fact, he was under orders to have Geran killed. Ulfgar believes that Zandramas was responsible for Geran's abduction. Beldin recognizes Ulfgar as Harakan, one of Urvon's "dogs" (former Hounds of Torak), and pursues Harakan when he escapes (and Harakan does escape). (GW 426-440) |
| Cyradis, the Seeress of Kell, and her guide Toth arrive at Rheon to give the Companions their instructions. The next meeting between the Child of Light and the Child of Dark (not Garion and Zandramas) will be the last. It will take place "In the presence of the Sardion–in the place which is no more." Geran should be killed if there's no other way to prevent Zandramas from reaching the Sardion with him. Garion is to be accompanied by Belgarath, Polgara, Errand, Ce'Nedra, Silk, Durnik, and Toth (the Silent Man); he will be joined later by the Huntress, the Man Who Is No Man, the Empty One, and the Woman Who Watches. They are to stop at Prolgu, since something very important is going to happen there. (GW 441-453) |
| The Companions arrive at Prolgu. The second day they're there, Errand vanishes, evidently going exploring. Polgara sends Garion to look for him; Garion finds Errand (now Eriond) calmly speaking with UL. Garion learns that Geran is safe… for now. (KM 11-30) |
| Some Ulgos guides the Companions through the caves to Arendia. They manage to get below the snowline before stopping for the night. The "Dragon" (read: Zandramas) decides to pay them a visit that night; Eriond offers her the chance to leave without a fight, but when she refuses he turns Garion loose on her. If he wanted it, Garion could have had one hell of a souvenir: about four feet of dragon-tail that he lopped off with his sword. (Which also makes you wonder just what Zandramas lost…) Zandramas flees with what's left of her tail between her legs. (KM 36-50) |
| "It's what I do. Any time there's something so ridiculously dangerous that no rational human being would even consider trying it, they send for me." –Garion's answer to his own question, "Why me?" (KM 52) |
| Silk encounters Delvor at the Arendish Fair. According to Delvor, an Angarak merchant has been asking questions about the Companions. Whomever he is claims to be a Nadrak, but is more likely a Mallorean. He does have a distinguishing characteristic, however–his eyes are all white. Delvor also says that someone has been supplying weapons to the Arendish serfs (who, perhaps for the first time in history, have a widespread degree of basic military training…). When Beldin shows up (again), he and Delvor concoct a scheme that sends the Angarak "merchant" Naradas (who is actually a Mallorean Grolim) scurrying off to the north. (KM 58-69) |
| At the Tolnedran customs station on the Great West Road, the inspector reveals that it was Naradas who was behind the Vordue family's abortive secession attempt. (KM 71-74) |
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