The One Tree
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Cover of The One Tree |
|
| Author | Stephen R. Donaldson |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Del Rey |
| Released | 1982 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 496 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-345-34869-9 (USA paperback) |
| Preceded by | The Wounded Land |
| Followed by | White Gold Wielder |
The One Tree is the second book of the second trilogy of The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever fantasy series written by Stephen R. Donaldson. It is followed by White Gold Wielder.
[edit] Plot summary
This book differs from the others in the First and Second Chronicles, in that the story takes place outside of the Land, but still in the same world.
Following the vision he received in the prior novel, Thomas Covenant has resolved to find a solution to the problem of the destruction of the Staff of Law, the result of which has been the corruption of the Land's natural beauty by the curse of the Sunbane. He is accompanied by Linden Avery, a woman from his own "real" world, and four Haruchai bodyguards. Their means of travel from the Land is a ship crewed by the Giants, a benevolent, sea-faring people from a distant region of the Earth.
From the Land, the Giant-ship sails to the home of the Elohim, a race of beings who are known to possess supreme wisdom. Linden, who is endowed with a kind of clairvoyance, perceives that the Elohim are in fact the embodiment of Earthpower, the energy field which binds this universe together. Despite their seeming omnipotence, the Elohim are bound by a strange code of behavior, and provide no direct help to the quest, other than showing the Giants the location of the One Tree, from which the Staff of Law was fashioned. This knowledge was hidden in Covenant's mind by the Forestal Caer-Caveral (Hile Troy), but Covenant lacked the means to reveal it. In the course of rendering this service, the Elohim cause Covenant to go into a catatonic state - "don't touch me" is all he can say.
Leaving the Elohim, the travellers find that one of the Elohim, named Findail, has joined them aboard the Giants' ship, for purposes which he declines to reveal. The group is not pleased at this uninvited companion but are powerless to make him leave. After suffering severe damage in a storm, in which Findail refuses to help, the ship arrives at the port city of the Bhrathair, a militaristic - but also wealthy and civilized - people living at the edge of a great desert.
The ship is repaired, but two of the Haruchai guards lose their lives at the hands of a Sandgorgon, a monster indigenous to the desert. Linden is able to break Covenant's catatonia to thwart an attempt to take his ring from him. The ship narrowly escapes from the port, and further travel eventually brings the group to the island where the One Tree is located. Brinn, Covenant's Haruchai bodyguard, sacrifices himself in a duel with the Tree's Guardian Ak Haru Kenaustin Ardenol (himself a figure from Haruchai mythology who represents their idea of the perfect warrior), and is then regenerated as the new Guardian and leads the party to the Tree itself.
However, when Covenant attempts to take a piece of The One Tree using his power of wild magic, he is stopped by Cable Seadreamer, the mute giant. When Seadreamer makes the attempt himself, he is killed, activating the "aura" which serves the Tree as a defense mechanism. This aura triggers Covenant's power to an exponential degree. As Covenant attempts to overwhelm the aura with his power, Findail warns Linden that the Arch of Time cannot contain the struggle between the two powers and the world will be destroyed if it continues. Linden is able to stop Covenant, but at the price of the island of the One Tree sinking forever beneath the ocean. Thus, the quest ends in failure.
[edit] External links
| The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever |
|---|
| Novels |
| The First Chronicles: Lord Foul's Bane | The Illearth War | The Power that Preserves |
| The Second Chronicles: The Wounded Land | The One Tree | White Gold Wielder |
| The Last Chronicles: The Runes of the Earth | Fatal Revenant | Against All Things Ending | The Last Dark |
