- For the cultist assassin, see White-Luck Warrior.
The White-Luck Warrior is the second novel in the Aspect-Emperor trilogy and the fifth in The Second Apocalypse series. It was published in 2011.[1]
Publisher’s Summary[]
The Aspect-Emperor trilogy follows on from the acclaimed Prince of Nothing saga, and The White-Luck Warrior is the chilling second book in the new series.
Ruler Anasûrimbor Kellhus and his Great Ordeal march ever farther into the Ancient North, as his consort Esmenet finds herself at war. Exiled wizard Achamian, meanwhile, leads his own ragtag mission to the legendary ruins of Sauglish. Into this tumult walks the White-Luck Warrior, assassin and messiah both.
In this ambitious volume, Bakker delves even further into his richly imagined universe of myth, violence, and sorcery.
Front matter[]
Dedication[]
To Roger Eichorn
Acknowledgements[]
The Second Apocalypse has grown to such an extent that I’m beginning to feel the need to thank everybody who helped along the way. The myriad agents, editors, illustrators, and translators across the globe. The web reviewers and moderators. Most of all, I want to thank you, the reader, for placing your trust in what must have seemed a mad experiment back when it was all new. Things are starting to get big…
Otherwise, I need to thank all the habitual offenders: Darren Nash at Orbit UK (I already miss you, Dude!) Adrienne Kerr and David Ross at Penguin Canada. Aaron Schlechter at Overlook. And last but not least, my agent, Chris Lotts.
I also need to thank my brother, Bryan Bakker, and Todd Kuhn. My deepest debt of gratitude I owe to my wife, Sharron, and to our breathtaking little girl, Ruby.
Maps[]
Plot Summary[]
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The following section contains significant plot details about The White-Luck Warrior |
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| Table of contents | |
|---|---|
| Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 |
| Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 |
| Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 |
| Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 |
| Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 |
| Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 |
| Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 |
| Chapter 15 | |
| Interlude | |
The heavens, the sun, the whole of nature is a corpse. Nature is given over to the spiritual, and indeed to spiritual subjectivity; thus the course of nature is everywhere broken in upon by miracles.
Hegel, Lectures on the History of Philosophy III
Chapter 1[]
The Skin Eaters continue their journey, all are visibly damaged, of all their wounds, those of the soul were the worst. Cleric now shared the Qirri with the Scalpoi every night, offering sermons to the yearning ears of the men. Achamian regrets having led with his lies to the death of so many men. Achamian dreams again this time in the Library of Sauglish, being Seswatha going to store the map of Ishuäl in the Coffers. His dream is interrupted by the vision of a blue and gray baby rising towards the door of the Coffers, which were soon destroyed by the coming of the No-God.
The Skin Eaters arrive at the Long Side, the Mop frontier opened up before them in a vast jungle. Mimara refuses to tell the magician how she managed to confront and defeat the wraith of Cil-Aujas. But she doesn't really know either, only that the God of Gods was somehow involved. After a couple of days the dwindling Scalpoi Company manages to recover from the horrors of Cil-Aujas and continues its march, this time into the green darkness.
Chapter 2[]
Sorweel lament his new situation, in the Pavilion corresponding to the Scions, the next morning the Great Ordeal departed from Sakarpus. The first days only the desolation of the plains accompanied the Holy War, the craving for battle is restrained by Kellhus, a day will come when men will long for the calm they were passing through.
After a day of rest and consultation, rumors of discord in the Three Seas reach the Ordeal, the lack of water begins to become a growing problem.
After more days the supply lines had reached their limit and were far behind the limits of civilization. Now the Holy War had to stand on its own, they would separate. Proyas meets with Kellhus in his pavilion, there Kellhus orders him to look into the Seeing-Flame and Proyas sees a group of Ordealmen discussing the lack of supplies. Kelhus reminds him that the contrite hearts of the armies are known to him, rather than supplies it was the shaky foundations of the empire and the homes of the men in it that worried the Ordealmen. The new Empire would not survive without Kellhus, the world the Ordealmen sought to protect from the return of the No-God would inevitably crumble at their backs.
Kellhus forbids all long-distance sorcerous communication with the New Empire, including himself. They could no longer cling to what they left behind.
At the Eleventh meeting of the Council of the Great Ordeal, Kellhus declares the Breaking of the Great Ordeal. The Four Armies are born. The Army of the Middle North (under Anasûrimbor Kayûtas), the Army of the Ketyai-of-the-East (under Nersei Proyas), the Army of the Ketyai-of-the-West (under Coithus Saubon), and the Army of the Ketyai-of-the-South (under Coithus Saubon). The Great Ordeal took a whole day to reorganize itself, the next day it began its new march, four tentacles of shining men were crossing the Istyuli singing. Thus began the most arduous and deadly stage of the Great Ordeal.
Chapter 3[]
Achamian tells Mimara how little he knows about the Judging Eye, that it only involves pregnant women and they only give birth to stillborns, the God of Gods sees through her. Their conversation is interrupted with a shout from Sutadra. The Scalpoi raise the alarm, sorcerous cries reveal the attacker as a member of the Stone Hags. The sorcerer is chased away by Cleric.
Lord Kosoter slays Sutadra, the wounded are not welcome in the Slog.
The Skin Eaters are led by Xonghis away from the site of the attack, the company identifies the sorcerer who attacked them as Pafaras, the leader of a company of Scalpers, the Stone Hags, who were engaged in the business of attacking other companies of Scalpers.
Mimara cries next to Achmian, just before the murder of Sutadra she managed to see his damnation with the Judging Eye.
The company arrives at The Stump. A clearing in the jungle where a gigantic oak tree lay felled, all Scalpers companies knew that place. They rest awake there.
Achamian is awakened by the sobs of Hameron, the most broken Scalper after Cil-Aujas. Hameron is soon killed by Lord Kosoter, there is no sobbing in the Slog. The next morning they resumed their march, Pokwas and Galian made veiled allusions of treachery against Lord Kosoter and his crazy ways of disciplining Achamian and Mimara. Achamian again lies to them about the riches awaiting them in the Coffers.
At a certain point in the day they heard distant shouts, Achamian rose above the leafy trees and glimpsed Scalpers fleeing through the undergrowth, they were being pursued by Sranc. Even the wizard Pafaras was shot down.
Achmian and Cleric warn the Skin Eaters that the Sranc would also soon be upon them, Lord Kosoter proposes to march to FatWall. The company goes on an insane run, by nightfall the dispensation of Qirri relieved some of their weariness. In an aside Kosoter reveals to Achamian that he is aware that the men talk behind his back, but he does not mind them talking as long as they do not cry.
The next day Somandutta approaches Mimara, he tries to ingratiate himself with her, Cleric interrupts shortly after, a man emerges from the undergrowth, the Stone Hags, they have found them in their flight, the Sranc arrive hot on their heels. To the astonishment of Mimara, Somandutta defends her with a strength that she recognizes as inhuman.
Lord Kosoter interrogates the wounded Pafaras, there were four Sranc clans behind them, Lord Kosoter kills Pafaras with his Chorae. The Stone Hags join the dwindling Skin Eaters.
The renewed company resumes their race throughout the night, at dawn in the distance they manage to see smoke, Aenku Maimor known as FatWall goes up in flames and smoke. Upon inspecting the fortress Xonghis reveals that it was destroyed and abandoned by the Imperials stationed there.
Mimara reveals to Achamian his suspicions that Somandutta is a Skin-Spy, Achamian then tries to attack the Scalper but he flees through the ruins. At nightfall Cleric delivers another sermon to the weary Scalpoi, interrupted by shrieks from Sranc the company prepares for the assault. The night swallows Aenku Maimor.
Entrenched the Scalpers await the arrival of the inhumans, Achamian and Cleric stationed at the top of the fortress saw the arrival of the inhuman flood and began dispensing their sourcerous and deadly revelations.
Chapter 4[]
Chapter 5[]
Chapter 6[]
Chapter 7[]
Chapter 8[]
Chapter 9[]
Chapter 10[]
Chapter 11[]
Chapter 12[]
Chapter 13[]
Chapter 14[]
Chapter 15[]
Interlude[]
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Here ends the section of Spoilers |
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Point of View Characters[]
- Anasûrimbor Kelmomas
- Drusas Achamian
- Esmenet
- Malowebi
- Mimara
- Nersei Proyas
- Omniscient
- Psatma Nannaferi
- The-Thing-Called-Soma (Tsuör)
- Varalt Sorweel
- White-Luck Warrior
- Yatwer
Cover gallery[]
Trivia[]
This book was initially named 'The Shortest Path' but the original title was discarted by Bakker; "I was never quite happy with The Shortest Path, and I always liked The White-Luck Warrior, more so once the structural parallels to The Warrior-Prophet became increasingly apparent. I love blurs, the way repetitions, twisted through the lens of changing contexts, create resonances and ambiguities."[2]