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| A Utauk camp |
In Kevin J. Anderson’s novel Spine of the Dragon, the
mainland is controlled by the Commonwealth, which is made up of three separate
kingdoms. But more people inhabit the Commonwealth than just the citizens of
Norterra, Suderra, and Osterra. Two groups in particular live within
Commonwealth borders, but outside Konag Conndur’s control.
First there are the Bravas, who send their members to
protect civic and business leaders. Bravas can channel magic via their mixed
Human and Wreth bloodline. They utilize this magic to protect those they serve.
But this power comes with a price. Each Brava lives by a strict code. Fall short
of it, and not only does the Brava community cast you out, but they strip you
of your ability to ever wield power again.
The Utauks, a nomadic people who live within and yet apart
from the Commonwealth, support their communities by facilitating trade between
the Commonwealth and the island kingdom of Ishara. As with the Brava, the inner workings of their
communities largely remain a mystery to outsiders.
Yet their members also lay claim to their own forms of
magic. One kind is the heartlink that reptilian birds called Skas can form with
Utauk women. King Adan Starfall is aware of this, as his wife Penda has a Ska
named Xar. Another is the way they can usually channel the unpredictable rules
of chance to their own ends. But there are other mysteries, deeper magics and
sources of strength, which the Utauks hide from outsiders.
After the Sandwreths return, his wife Queen Penda and his
father-in-law Hale Orr agree that the stakes are sufficiently high to share
this treasured lore with King Adan Starfall. They take him on a long journey,
until they reach a Utauk camp in a verdant valley. There they introduce him to
Shella din Orr, Penda’s great-grandmother. Aware of the threat posed by the
return of the Wreths, she reveals vast resources of knowledge, and shows Adan
ways by which the Utauks serve as stewards of the land and its peoples. Exactly
how he can use that knowledge to protect his kingdom against the Wreths, and
rely on those who have always remained apart from the Commonwealth, is a
mystery he will have to discover on his own.
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| Utauk Matriarch Shella din Orr |
Each new book carries with it shades and flavors of every
book the author has previously written. In Spine of the Dragon, an
obvious source of comparison is the Fremen people, desert nomads originally
created by Frank Herbert, that Kevin and Frank Herbert’s son Brian have
utilized in their Dune novels. Both
the Brava and the Utauk bear similarities to the Fremen. Yet due to the way
Kevin builds up these two communities, they form their own unique cultural
identities.
In addition to inviting comparison with the author's previous novels, each new book carries with it points of comparison
with every book other authors have written. In Spine of the Dragon we meet
two Utauk women, Queen Penda and the orphan Glik. Both have formed a Heartlink
with flying reptilian creatures called Skas. In Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos series, a few people are fortunately to have formed a psychic link with reptilian
birds called Jheregs. Vlad and his Jhereg-friend Loiosh converse
psychically, and each knows he can rely on the other.
While the Skas in Spine of the Dragon form an
emotional bond with their Human companions, the ways they interact with each
other are different from that of Vlad and Loiosh. Instead of humorous banter, the Skas
communicate visually with their Human counterparts. Utauk women like Penda and
Glik can see through the Ska’s eyes. They also see visions
in a way reminiscent of legendary Greek oracles.
In Spine of the Dragon, Kevin J. Anderson has
introduced us to the Commonwealth and Ishara, two communities we can readily
understand. He has also crafted two more mysterious communities, the Bravas and
the Utauks. He has summoned up each community with all the magic of a seasoned
author, and left me wanting to know more about these two, unique peoples. I can
only hope that this level of character development and worldbuilding carries
over into subsequent installments of his Wake The Dragon series.
Dragon Dave
