The Black Gryphon

The Black Gryphon

First edition
Author Mercedes Lackey & Larry Dixon
Cover artist Jody Lee
Country United States
Language English
Series Mage Wars
Genre Fantasy novel
Publisher DAW Books
Publication date
1994
Media type Print (Hardcover & Paperback)
Pages 319
ISBN 0-88677-577-9
OCLC 31828700
Followed by The White Gryphon

The Black Gryphon is a high fantasy novel by Mercedes Lackey, published in 1994. It is the first novel in the chronological timeline of the Valdemar Saga.[1][2]

Plot summary

The book begins with the title character, the gryphon Skandranon Rashkae ("Skan"), creeping into an enemy encampment on a mission to acquire a new, magical weapon instrumental in the fall and capture of a key defensive garrison. Though successful, he is pursued by makaar, creatures created by the antagonist Ma'ar to match Urtho's gryphons, and eventually crashlands in friendly territory. Meanwhile, in Urtho's camp, Amberdrake and Gesten are waiting for the return of their friend Skan along with two fellow healers, Tamsin and Cinnabar. Amberdrake is sitting in the surgery tent in the area where the Healers live and work when a badly wounded Skan is carried in.

While Skan is recovering in the Healer's tent, he meets Zhaneel, a timid and shy female gryphon who distinguished herself by slaying three makaar using unorthodox falcon-like diving tactics; Skan suggests that she spend her reward token on Amberdrake's services to overcome her apparent shyness -- actually the result of a bullied childhood; having been orphaned at a young age, other gryphons taunted her falcon-like appearance as being "misborn" and a "cull".

Skan also becomes furious with a healer named Winterhart, whose job is to care for Urtho's non-human creatures (such as the gryphons) but who shows no emotional investment in any of them, viewing and treating them as simple beasts -- a feeling shared by the leaders of the Sixth Wing division, General Shaiknam and Commander Garber. Despite being the son of Urtho's most distinguished general, Shaiknam shows no actual competence in military strategy or issuing sound orders.

After a therapy session with Amberdrake, Zhaneel is encouraged to put her unique skills to use and gradually assembles a training course in her off-duty time, which begins to grow in size and popularity. When Shaiknam hears of this he attempts to stop it by sending Winterhart with a reprimand, but Zhaneel stands up for herself, her supporters stand with her, and Skandranon defends her as well; Winterhart is the one reprimanded instead. She is shaken by this turn of events, and later sent to Amberdrake to treat a back injury that never healed properly.

While Skandranon rants about Shaiknam's incompetence, a mage named Vikteren similarly rants about Shaiknam's treatment of the other troops under his command, particularly one mage unit that he worked to magical exhaustion, resulting in their demise. After an uneasy mages' meeting occurs that evening (with the mages protesting Shaiknam specifically), organizational changes are made, with Shaiknam no longer allowed to command non-human or mage troops. He is later placed on leave while another, more competent, commander is assigned to the Sixth Wing instead.

Meanwhile, upon mentioning how only Urtho knows the secret to gryphon fertility, Amberdrake suggests that Skandranon steal the knowledge for possible use in bargaining with Urtho; they consult Urtho's library with Tamsin and Cinnabar, acquiring the secret notes, and discovering that the "secret" is easy to accomplish, with the majority of effort spent simply maintaining its secretive nature. Skan also discovers a strange, childlike gryphon named Kechara locked in an isolated room of the library, but realizes that Urtho has kept this "misborn" Kechara safe from the harassment that haunted Zhaneel's childhood.

Through her treatments with Amberdrake, Winterhart begins to treat the gryphons more as persons than animals, starts to become friends with Amberdrake, and in turn begins to question her superficial relationship with a mercenary mage named Conn Levas. She is also revealed to have formerly been a member of the neighboring Leodhan kingdom before Ma'ar's agents caused it to fall. Meanwhile, Skan begins to fall in love with Zhaneel as they fly combat missions together, though the missions are a mix of victories and retreats.

When the Sixth Wing commander is killed by an explosion in his command tent, Shaiknam resumes command of the Sixth Wing -- much to the gryphons' dismay -- and Skan volunteers to lead the Sixth Wing as they stage a formal protest of Shaiknam's latest orders. Skan then meets with Urtho privately to discuss Shaiknam. In doing so, Skan reveals they have acquired Urtho's secret knowledge and are therefore free to leave Urtho's service if they choose -- but they would rather stay, out of loyalty and love for their creator; Urtho is shocked at first, but ultimately approves. Urtho also reveals that Ma'ar's forces have been advancing quickly, have occupied the nearby Leodhan Palace, and are almost able to launch a direct assault on the Tower itself; Urtho has been secretly organizing gradual evacuations of all nonessential personnel. Shaiknam is appointed to hold the defensive line while the nonhuman and mage troops of the Sixth Wing are dissolved into other divisions outside his command.

As the evacuations escalate, a gryphon named Aubri discovers General Shaiknam has brokered a deal with Ma'ar, simply allowing them to pass through to advance upon Urtho's tower, while also hiring the mercenary Conn Levas to assassinate Urtho. Although successful in poisoning Urtho, Conn Levas is killed by Skandranon, and the dying Urtho gives Skan a device to be used against Ma'ar specifically, similar to a prototype Zhaneel field-tested earlier (to great effect). Skandranon arrives at the Leodhan Palace in time to rescue a captured Kechara and Aubri, activate the device against Ma'ar, and escape through a Gate before the device detonates. Ma'ar appears to take his own life while claiming that he and his empire will last forever.

Upon Urtho's death, his tower explodes in a massive surge of energy, while mages at the evacuation sites ready magical shielding for the approaching blast wave. The site's Gate activates, with Kechara and Aubri the first to arrive, but the Gate begins to break down before Skandranon can follow; the mage Vikteren, with the help of the others, is able to hold the Gate together long enough to pull Skandranon through safely, though his signature coat of black feathers has been bleached white from the force of the blast. Although unable to establish any magical contact with the other evacuees, they are thankful to be alive and safe.

Characters

References

  1. Mercedes Lackey, Official Timeline for the Heralds of Valdemar Series—Sequence of events by Valdemar reckoning
  2. isfdb
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.