Amber and Iron
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| Author | Margaret Weis |
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| Cover artist | Matthew Stawiki |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Dark Disciple Trilogy, Dragonlance book series |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Released | February 1, 2006 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 376 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-7869-3796-3 (first edition, hardback) |
| Preceded by | Amber and Ashes (2004) |
| Followed by | Amber and Blood |
Amber and Iron is a fantasy novel in the Dragonlance book series and is the second of a trilogy based around the character Mina. It is authored by Margaret Weis, who was a co-founder of the Dragonlance series, along with Tracy Hickman. This is her fifteenth novel in the series.
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[edit] Plot introduction
The novel begins with where Amber and Ashes leaves off. Former Majere monk Rhys Mason is trying to escape the clutches of the death knight Auseric Krell after Rhys has the kender Nightshade, in the guise of a Khas piece, recover the imprisoned soul of Ariakan for his mother, the god Zeboim.
[edit] Explanation of the novel's title
The amber mainly refers to the color of Mina's eyes, which many followers of her specify as amber in hue. The iron refers to the mounting resolve Mina and Rhys both have in completing their tasks laid before them.
[edit] Plot summary
Rhys Mason, former monk of Majere, begins the novel trying to escape death knight Auseric Krell. Rhys, having retrieved the soul of the Dark Knight Ariakan imprisoned by Chemosh in a khas piece, hands the piece over to Zeboim. She sends Rhys and Nightshade back to Solace. Once there, the sheriff, Gerard, seeks others for counsel about the mounting Beloved situation. Rhys agrees with Gerard to stay in Solace and help in anyway possible.
After an encouner with a Beloved, Rhys, Nightshade, and Atta (Rhys' dog) head after the creature, eventually ending up in New Port. Here, Rhys finally finds his brother Lleu, a Beloved introduced in the first Dark Disciple novel, who he has been tracking ever since. Elsewhere, Mina has been imprisoned in a new tower of magic in Istar, at the bottom of the Blood Sea. It has been newly erected by the dark god of magic, Nuitari. At a Conclave of Wizards meeting, Nuitari reveals to his cousins about his tower. The three agree to erect three Towers of High Sorcery again, one for each of them. Back in the Tower, Mina begins her task set before her by Chemosh of searching for the Solia Febalas (Hall of the Gods). Once she has found it, she is unable to take anything for Chemosh because she becomes so overwhelmed by the god-presence in the Hall. Finally, Nuitari returns and gives Mina over to Zeboim who had begun an assault upon the Tower.
Zeboim takes Mina first to New Port where Rhys and his brother are at to have them meet. While there, Mina has a vision of Rhys and insists he knows the truth about her. Rhys' brother also pleads with Mina to take his life as a Beloved because he wishes it no longer. Before Mina can answer, Zeboim gives her back to Chemosh, who is irate with Mina for not getting any artifacts for him. He has been growing increasingly agitated that the Beloved will only follow her command and resist any by him or Krell. Rhys again tails his brother and finally confronts him again along with New Port authority when his brother tries to kill a woman. The woman's child attacks the Beloved on behalf of his mother and the Beloved is instantly destroyed, leaving the child in a coma-like state. Krell decides it would be in Chemosh's best interest if Krell would kill Mina, who is now being imprisoned by Chemosh. As he tries to follow through with his plan, Mina does something extraordinary; she makes him a human again. Then, because she believes Chemosh would want it, she pulls the Tower of Istar from the sea bottom and places it on top on an island in the middle of the ocean. Passing out from such excertion, the novel ends with all of the major and minor gods showing up and pondering over the nature of the unconscious Mina. Majere finally reveals that Mina is in fact a god like them, one of light, who was swayed and corrupted somehow by the Dark Queen Takhisis when Takhisis stole the world away from them and waged the War of Souls. Further explanation of this is likely to come in the next novel, Amber and Blood.
[edit] Characters in "Amber and Iron"
[edit] Mortals
- Mina – former right-hand loyalist of the One God (revealed to be the Queen of Darkness Takhisis). Mina showed up in Krynn years after the Chaos War and was taken to Goldmoon's sanctuary in the New Sea. Upon leaving there, she became the mortal emissary of the One God and performed miracles throughout the realm while using an army to conquer Silvanesti and contend with the power of the dragon overlords. Finally, when Takhisis' is killed through the sacrifice of Paladine, Mina went into seclusion to mourn here queen. In Amber and Ashes, Chemosh gave her a new purpose; to lead his Beloved, a group of vampire-like undead humans, and Mina agreed. Mina has done everything in her power to please her new master and it is through this devotion that she performs god-like feats. It is finally revealed, through Majere, that she is indeed a god of light that was swayed by Takhisis when she stole the world away. Where she was before the Chaos War and why none of the other gods know of her is not revealed in the book.
- Rhys Mason – former monk of Majere, Rhys had become a devotee of the sea god Zeboim in order to find and defeat his brother who became a Beloved of Chemosh. Before the end of the novel, he forsakes Zeboim in order to return to his original master, Majere.
- Nightshade – a kender with supernatural abilities. As a nightstalker, he is able to communicate with spirits. He has joined Rhys on his mission since encountering the Beloved, who he is able to descern.
- Atta – Rhys' dog from the monastery of Majere. Was given into the keeping of Gerard of Solace in Amber and Ashes, but once Rhys returns to Solace, she again follows Rhys.
- Gerard – Sheriff of Solace. He helped to play a pivotal role in the War of Souls, befriending the now mayor of Solace, Palin Majere. Has steadily became friends with Rhys and helps him contact help about the Beloved.
- Lleu Mason – Rhys Masons' brother. Became a Beloved of Chemosh directly through Mina and killed his and Rhys' parents as well as the monks of Majere at Rhys' monastery in Amber and Ashes. By this novel, he has forgotten all of his human memories except for a yearning for Mina. He is finally defeated by the touch of an innocent child, which leaves the child in a coma-like state.
- Dominique Helmsman – Ergothian Holy Warrior of Kiri-Jolith. One of the emmasaries sent to Solace to contend with the Beloved found there. His holy weapons have no effect of the creature and returns to Ergoth, dejected, to inform his superiors.
- Jenna – Head of the Conclave of Wizards. Red-robed wizard; follower of the goddess of neutral magic, Lunitari. Second emmasary sent to Solace to contend with the Beloved there. Her most powerful magics are also no match for the creature. Upon return to the Conclave and hearing the news of the weakness of the Beloved, she insists that is within the best interest of the land to use children against the creatures.
[edit] Gods
- Chemosh – evil god of the dead. Lord of Death. Sits at the throne of the Hall of Souls' Passing. With the power struggle going on after the exile of Paladine to the mortal realm and Tahkisis' mortal death, Chemosh has devised a plan to create a new, undead army; the Beloved. He now is enthralled with the woman named Mina, whom the deceased Tahkisis had used during the War of Souls. He currently resides in Castle Beloved on the Somber Coast, which lines the Blood Sea.
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- Ausric Krell – death knight that was confined to an island because of the wrath of Zeboim. He held her son, Ariakan, captive in a Khas piece until it was stolen by Rhys Mason. He then joined Chemosh and Mina at Castle Beloved where he tried to kill Mina, thinking it was in Chemosh's best interest. Before he could do so, Mina turned him human again.
- The Beloved – undead, vampire-like creature. Upon being kissed on the breast, the human will begin to lose all memory and hunger to bring new humans into the darkness. Unlike vampires, sunlight can not harm them and, for the most part, they appear like any other human. They can not be killed by magics or holy weapons; only the touch of an innocent child may destroy them. Lleu Mason, Rhys Mason's brother, was the first Beloved to be created and also the first Beloved to perish. Though Chemosh created the creatures through his power, they only listen to the commands of Mina, which angers the Lord of Death.
- Zeboim – evil god of the sea. Upon returning to the world, she makes it her goal first to get her son's soul back from Krell. With this task completed by Rhys, she begins to ponder the true nature of Mina, though she is deviated when she hears that her twin brother, Nuitari, has created a tower of sorcery in her own realm.
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- Ariakan – once a soldier in the army of Tahkisis, he was imprisoned in a Khas piece by the Lord of Death and given into the keeping of Ausric Krell. Upon being returned to Zeboim, he seems to protest being turned back to his old form. After this, he his mentioned sparingly in the rest of the novel.
- Nuitari – god of evil magic; represented by the black moon. He has erected a new tower of high sorcery in the Blood Sea of Istar. Here, he holds Mina captive in the beginning of the book before turning her over to Zeboim, who had found out about her twin brothers' secrecy.
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- Caele & Basalt – evil wizards, a half-elf and a dark dwarf, respectively, under Nuitari's command. The first and only mortals so far in the new Tower of the Blood Sea. They both try to kill Mina, believing it to be in the best interest of their master.
- Midori – an eons old sea dragon who guards the Solias Febalas for Nuitari beneath the Tower of Istar. She asked Mina do questions that highly confused her and from her the other gods. These questions are "Where did "you" come from?" and "Where have you been?".
- Majere – good god of discipline. Originally brought to Krynn to be counselor to Paladine and the other gods of good. It is he who breaks the silence on the subject of Mina and her god-status.
[edit] Major themes
- Confronting the Beloved and finding a way to stop them.
- The power plays taking place between the gods.
- The true origins of Mina and her powers.
[edit] Allusions to other events
- The War of Souls
- The Summer of Chaos
[edit] Other books that refer to Amber and Iron
Amber and Blood
