In the tenth chapter of A Wizard of Mars, Kit’s test gets REAL weird. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to read Young Wizards.Â
I UNDERSTAND SOME THINGS NOW. I absolutely do not understand other things. This is a really dense chapter, so I’m gonna break this up into minute parts as I try to work through it, so BEAR WITH ME.
- The opening of chapter ten is straightforward enough: Nita finally makes it to where Kit just was, but misses him by a few minutes. So, they can just rendezvous with him, right? EVERYTHING IS EASY, NO COMPLICATIONS, FOR ONCE IT’S ALL SMOOTH.
- Just kidding, this is A Wizard of Mars, where nothing goes right ever, and actually, multiple things go wrong all at the same time.
- Now, I expected that Darryl and Ronan were actually going to tell Nita that maybe Kit should be left alone for the time being. What I didn’t expect was for the wizardry at the Burroughs site to more or less lock anyone else out of it. That seemed extreme, right?
- OH, I HAD NO IDEA.
- N O N E.
- If that wasn’t bad enough, then the complication of Helena’s early revival made this so much worse. In another circumstance, I believe that Nita would have let the wizardry play itself out. But this was non-negotiable! Kit had to go home.
- (I do love that Duane constantly re-asserts “normal†life within the lives of these kids. It makes this feel a lot more believable.)
- So, while the three wizards head to Kit, Duane cuts over to Kit’s point of view, where she RUINS ME. I still find it hilarious that Nita got the information on the Shamask and Eilith people in a relatively easy manner, while Kit has to basically role play as some important Eilith figure in order to get the wizardry to reveal everything for him. I felt kinda bad.
- But I’m also selfish and this was fascinating so NOT FEELING BAD ANYMORE.
- So, let’s get into the details. In this wizardry, the “soul†of the wizard Khretef latches on to Kit’s body and slowly begins to exist in the conscious mind, while Kit quietly moves into the background. Initially, though, Khretef isn’t there at all, so this just ended up being immensely confusing. Who were these people? Why was Aurilelde so certain she knew who Kit was?
- THEN I FIND OUT THEY’RE FROM OPPOSING SIDES OF THIS EPIC WAR AND IT’S LIKE A LESS ANGSTY VERSION OF ROMEO AND JULIET. Oh my god they love one another? And Khretef went out to find this thing to save the Shamask people, and it’s called the Nascene, and it is very important, and y’all.
- Y’all.
- In the midst of giving us all this information, Duane also does an impressive job worldbuilding. Structures that are clear! The clothing! The jewelry! There is so much information on the culture of the Shamask people, and it’s packed in right alongside Kit’s attempt to discover why Khetref is so important.
- Rorsik is an asshole, and probably someone the Lone One likes a lot. SEE, I UNDERSTOOD SOME THINGS, DIDN’T I.
- THE SATHAK. OH MY GOD, I GET IT. I GET WHY NITA GOT DOWN ON ONE KNEE AND WHY THAT WORKED AND HELPED HER PASS THAT TEST. They’re pets! That’s how you greet them! OH MY GOD, THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PLOT TWISTS IN THE WHOLE SERIES.
- What’s fun about the extended sequence within the Throne room is that the reader has information Kit does not. There are a lot of things here – like references to the Darkness and to the Eilith hiding stuff from the Shamask – that make sense to us, yet are puzzling to Kit. Oh, y’all, I’m so excited to officially meet Helena, but I’m even more eager to get to these wizards exchanging the information they have.
- Of course, Duane then throws the leader for a loop when Kit, as Khretef, says that Nascene cannot be accessed “until the New World’s soul is found and mated to it. And this we cannot do without the help of the wizards of the Blue Star.â€
- what in the goddamn hell are you talking about
- What mythology??? What tales??? This is news to me!
- And then Aurilelde blows my mind as she then refers to Darryl, Nita, Ronan, and Kit and the superegg, WHICH IS THE NASCENCE, and this makes no sense to me. Everything up to that point has been what I thought was a flashback or an interactive recording of sorts. This was what happened long ago! So how the hell could they suddenly be jumping to the present time?
- WE DON’T GET TO FIND OUT BECAUSE AURILELDE BASICALLY BREAKS THIS WIZARDRY’S FOURTH WALL AND BEGS KIT TO LEAVE BEFORE HIS FRIENDS BREAK THROUGH BECAUSE THE WHOLE THING WILL FALL APART IF THEY DO. Oh my god!!! What does this all mean? Is this wizardry not what anyone thought it was? I’m so lost, y’all. What happened to these people? Why did they come to Mars??? Why did they die off?
- WHAT’S HAPPENING.
https://youtu.be/5VXBd1LMmK4
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