#anastasia and alecto said god is something you carry with you.

[visenyaism]

those girls were literally reinventing god in the salt water pool……

[multifunctionalnitroglycerin]

The locked Tomb Series Names and Symbolism #2

Apparently I am going to do more of these... So, today's subject; Anastasia and Samael. Bear with me, for this is going to be a long one.

I will admit that Anastasia and Samel are two of the characters that have most piqued my interest, alongside Cassiopeia, so it's needless to say that I am looking forward to seeing more of them in Alecto, as well as getting some answers. For now, however I would like to comment a bit on my own take for the symbolism Muir might or might not be trying to bring forth with these characters.

We are going to start with Samael first in this post, mostly cause I don't have a lot to say about him. There are only few things I know off the top of my head and they do not really seem relevant but let's do out best, shall we?

We are going to turn to Hebrew lore for this one, and I admit I am not the most well-versed when it comes to this, so feel free to correct me if I have gotten sth wrong. The gist of it is that Samael (meaning Venom of God - thanks wikipedia) is an archangel considered the accuser or adversary, seducer and destroyer. One of his most prominent roles in Jewish lore is that of the Angel of Death, meant to take the soul of Moses, and head of satans. He condones the sin of man, while remaining still a servant of God. In the Greek Apocalypse of Baruch, he is said to have planted the tree of knowledge, thus leading to his banishment. It is also mentioned that he is responsible for tempting Adam and Eve with a snake.

There is probably a lot more going on, but please bear with me. From what we can get from this one however, alongside the scant mentions of Samael in the books (as Anastasia's cavalier, whom John had to kill because sth went wrong, and someone Alecto carries some grief/guilt over "I am so sorry about Samael") I think we can assume that to some degree at least, Samael opposed what John stood for, with or without actively standing against him. A safe assumption to make considering that he risked partaking in Anastasia's new formula of ascension (which also speaks of the immense amount of trust he placed in his necromancer). I do think however, that he was a bit more vocal about his distaste in John's Method of achieving Lyctorhood, possibly even campaigning in favor of Anastasia and Cassiopeia's research. Or he would have supported it, seducing more people into it, had he lived. I would also like to address the "planted the tree of knowledge" bit, here. Because it would be awfully fitting, if said tree of knowledge was the fruits of Anastasia and Cassiopeia's labor. If said tree of knowledge was that necromancers didn't have to kill and consume their cavaliers in order to ascend, or proof that John's way was not the only way. That of course plays into the narrative that John is in fact a pathetic little man that is spectacular at manipulating events and rewriting history the way he wants it to be written, while still being a pathetic little man. (I swear he is so good at making you forget just how much grief he has caused, just how vindictive he can be.) So much like God banishing Samael, John kills Anastasia's cavalier during the haze of ascension claiming that something went wrong and he had to at least save Anastasia. (I am not entirely convinced that all of this is a lie, and I have a theory that Alecto could have played a role in something actually going wrong, unknowingly aiding John's goal)

One more thing I want to say about Samael that perhaps contradicts what I have so far written, is that note in the lore that he condones the sin of Man while remaining a servant of God. And I think that if we translate this in our case, TLT Samael, probably loved and respected John as his God, while campaigning and promoting the sin of man, which in this case, is lyctorhood without sacrifice. And that makes his death, if he was ignorant of what happened during it, all the more tragic and all the more beautiful.

Now to the Angel of death and leader of the satans thing. We all remember those demons that appeared in the end of NtN right? Now, this might be ridiculously far-fetched because to our knowledge Samael is dead right? (Who tells us this I wonder, and how do they learn of it?How accurate of a narrator are they? How reliable their source?) BUT what if, in John's killing Samael while within the eight fold world something went wrong? Something no one could anticipate? And Samael is not quite as dead as we think he is? Could he be the leader of these Demons in Antioch, sworn to destroy God for what he forced upon him and his necromancer and so many others before and after them? Does he retain cognition of who he once was? Does he not? Is he altered to really resemble a demon as we know them in lore? Or is he really dead and the echo of that disruption of the Eight- Fold word spawns those demons?

I don't know about you people but I am looking forward to unearthing some truths in Alecto.

Anastasia will be in a separate post, because this would end up being huge otherwise. Have a merry little Christmas people and take care of yourselves!

[fauxdoc]

Theory: Alecto is the resurrection beast of Earth

Resurrection Beats(RBs) are a big deal in HTN and there are only 9 in existence, one for each planet that was killed in the solar system. But in the book we only get specific details on 6 of the 9, which feels like a red flag with how big of a deal they are supposed to be. We have no info on the 3rd, 5th, and 9th beasts.

I don't think the RBs are numbered by when they were discovered because the only info we have on the 2nd is it was found and killed shortly after the Resurrection. Earth is the 3rd planet from the sun and conveniently one of the RBs we don't have info on.

Lyctors power come from their cavalier's soul, which acts as a battery for them. So John "the man who became god" was just your average Joe at some point. John and Alecto did the true form of the lyctor process, meaning Alecto is John's battery to resurrect a solar system and sustain it. The weird other worldly eyes John has been sporting turns out to Alecto's, and with the facts she's described as monstrous and never really adjusting to being human, implys she was something else along.

When John was asked to kill Alecto he said he "made her as dead as I can" implying he either can't afford to kill her(because he'd lose his power) or he's unable to kill her because of what she is(a RB)

Here are some clips from the book:

John says "In a way you are all AL's children" in a conversation about lyctors. I don't think this is referring to Alecto being part of the first Lyctorship leading to the rest. Everyone is actually her children because she's our home planet.

"I understand why cavaliers carry their house titles, it makes sense. But it is a corruption of the original." -John Gaius

Gaius: name meaning of the land/earth

HtN, chapter 35, teacher is rambling truths about lyctors and their cavaliers that seem like a string of nonsense. He says, "Reverend Daughter, you whole house treads on a knives edge as keepers of such a zoo"

If Alecto is an RB and Teacher believes her body is actually in the locked tomb of the ninth, this could be why he calls it a zoo. The story we're given is that Anastasia was sent to guard the locked tomb, not be buried. Teacher could believe the same.

In Teachers ramblings, he also refers to Alecto as a devil and "salt water creature" which could indicate she is/was earth. Canaan house, the house of God, is now a mostly water planet. With his first resurrection being Alecto, and if she was earth, it would make sense for him to make earth his seat/house.

[thunderon]

O knowledgeable one, as someone who isn't Christian and is not at all interested in God and has zero understanding of biblical references why is the name Wake significant?

*looks around* who, ME??? i don't know about "knowledgeable" but i do have fifteen years of bible school under my belt and dated a catholic girl for like 3 years so i'll give it a go. im hardly the first person to do analysis on wake's name, but i have yet to see someone specifically talk about “wake” and “the sleeper” and all the biblical implications behind it so i guess i'll do it. i personally made a few extraneous connections that i haven’t seen examined anywhere so im going to hit on those right now. this isn’t so much a theory post as it is filling you in on some background of specifically the biblical significance of wake’s name.

buckle up anon because you are about to see the result of what happens when you ask a lesbian who was put through 15 years of church about the Bible.

  first things first. 

as it’s been previously pointed out: Awake These Valiant Dead is a Shakespeare reference from Henry V, but that’s only one line. i think people are missing the biblical reference from Henry V.you can read the full page here if you are so inclined (x)

but before line 138, where Wake's name is from, we get this excerpt starting on line 121:

“For in the Book of Numbers is it writ:

“When the man dies, let the inheritance

Descend unto the daughter.” 

Gracious lord,

Stand for your own, unwind your bloody flag,

Look back into your mighty ancestors.

Go, my dread lord, to your great-grandsire’s tomb”

this has some major implications, so let's unpack it.

as a non-christian, you are probably asking: what is up with the Book of Numbers and why do you think it's important?

basically, the Israelites were held as slaves in Egypt and were liberated by this guy named Moses.  Moses is tasked with taking the Israelites to the Promised Land (which is basically a paradise where God said the Israelites can go and live). the book of numbers is recounting this journey to the Promise Land. in the bible, the Israelites find the Promised Land, which is called Canaan (hmmm where have we heard that name before?).  the Israelites send 12 spies to scout the land and the spies come back and report that it’s “overflowing with milk and honey” (i bet you’ve probably heard that phrase) but there’s also these giants living there. the Israelites get too scared to take the land, which pisses off God and he goes “fine. y’all can die in the wilderness then. this land will be for your next generation since u guys wanna pussy out”. okay that’s not verbatim but it’s the gist. the book of numbers eventually ends with the Israelites needing the cross the Jordan River and the Promised Land is left for the next generation to inherit. obviously muir draws on these aspects from canaan house and the river in her books. now back to the quote  i pulled from Henry V and Wake's name:

“For in the Book of Numbers is it writ:

“When the man dies, let the inheritance Descend unto the daughter.”

this i think the daughter is referencing gideon (the daughter of both God and Wake). as to what exactly her “inheritance” is... i think we’ll have to see. but the closing line:

“Go, my dread lord, to your great-grandsire’s tomb”

well, all im saying is that tombs have kinda been a bit of a big deal with these books.

side detour (im going somewhere with this so bear with me)the book of Numbers immediately followed by the book of Deuteronomy. now why is that relevant? Deuteronomy and my gal, Judith Deuteros.

The book of Deuteronomy is basically a shit ton of laws for Christians. which Judith is the exact personification of. she literally spends all of her appearances in gideon the ninth arguing for order, the following of Imperial Law, etc etc. now in the book of Dueteronomy, an interesting order is given. starting in Deuteronomy 12:29, the worship of Canaanite gods is forbidden and the order is given to destroy their altars and to execute the Canaanites living in Canaan. this parallels Judith in Canaan House killing teacher and wrecking the place. i think Muir foreshadows that Judith will play a pivotal role in AtN. in the bible, there is actually a woman named judith, who i think is the namesake of our judith. the actual Biblical Judith  kills an invading commander via beheading him. originally i assumed this was meant to be Teacher, but from Judith’s defiance of BoE in AtN, im not so sure. and at the end of AtN, Marta says “she’ll give them hell” which i think really means something. but i could go on about that but i’ll stop here.

now back to your original question about wake. an interesting additional name for wake that i think carries additional implications is when ortus dubs her “the sleeper”. biblically, the relevant quote is Ephesians 5:14:

“Awake, sleeper,

And arise from the dead.”

this is just so in your face ya know? commander awake, the sleeper, rising from the dead. im sure you get where im going with that. now. with that being said i’ll talk a little about the non-biblical stuff. i was a massive Edgar Allen Poe fan growing up and so i immediately picked up on Muir's references to Annabel Lee, The Sleeper, etc in HtN. the closing lines from The Sleeper are as follows:

“Some sepulchre, remote, alone,

 Against whose portals she hath thrown, 

In childhood, many an idle stone— 

Some tomb from out whose sounding door 

She ne’er shall force an echo more, 

Thrilling to think, poor child of sin!

 It was the dead who groaned within.”

now. that is the second quote about wake that references a tomb and now we have the mention of a sepulchre. THAT has some motherfucking implications. especially because in the poem “Annabel Lee” she's famously said of having a “sepulchre by the sea”. John refers to Alecto as Annabel Lee and harrow describes the tomb on the ninth as follows

“Beyond the doors there’s just the rock,” she said. “The rock and the tomb surrounded by water...The water’s salt, and it’s deep, and it moves with a tide that shouldn’t exist. The sepulchre itself is small, and the tomb...”

again. IMPLICATIONS. i know there’s also the argument that this is all a decoy and Anastasia is the body on the first etc etc. i still don’t know what to think. these are just all pieces of a puzzle ive been holding onto and think are neat so im sharing them with you. i know this is just a hot mess of everything but that’s how i operate sorry. feel free to ask more questions and i would LOVE to answer anything for you :)

[theskyexists]

SPOILERS

Notes & apparent inconsistencies & questions on Harrow the Ninth

Apparent inconsistencies:

Ianthe is telling Harrow something very important in the first few pages - but Harrow doesn't register AT ALL that she's saying that Harrow has a choice in this - the ability to let go and become a full Lyctor - she never responds to this and responds uncharacteristically hostilely to Ianthe by that point in their relationship

How could and why would Commander Wake be trying to possess Harrow's body and Cytherea's at the same time? is that even possible?

Is there an implication that Wake is also somehow multiple people? Like with all those names.

Why wouldn't Ianthe have been able to use the bone scaffolding that Harrow made and grow her own flesh? Or is it impossible to make endlessly regrowing flesh? Or is she just not good enough for that?

Things I feel might have been contrived:

Ianthe needing Harrow to do her arm for her when there were at least two people around who could have fixed it for her

God not checking out Harrow's temporal lobe more thoroughly

Harrow insisting on staying out of God's secured room/God not forcing her to stay with him in his secured room

Notes:

That was definitely a rug pull with GideonOrtus NOT being Gideon's dad after all - but still involved with her mother. That red hair bait and switch sure was confusing for a bit there. I of course made it worse by assuming Anastasia was more important than she was.

Rereading a bit - it seems that they wanted to breach to Alecto to confirm their theory that God had lied to them.

I counted seven memes? I think.

A lot of things are smoothed over when you realise that God lies a lot

When Harrow saved GideonOrtus from the incinerator she was saving Pyrrha. 

Harrow had to check Ianthe's jaw and tongue because she needed the curse she put on them to hold.

I was so goddamn confused over Anastasia and the commander for so long goddamn. But Anastasia simply died a regular old death on the Ninth I guess.

God knew Augustine - the person - before the resurrection? And Augustine became different person after. Were they a team of scientists or what?

In some places 'Cytherea' and 'Wake' are in red.

Questions:

Is it true that Gideon's mother's spirit ran from the calls of Ninth necros but returned as a revenant to haunt ....Harrow? She was stuck on her bones and then SOMEHOW and inexplicably the sword...yes?

Why would letter!Harrow insist on second!Harrow carrying around the sword like that? What was so important about it according to her??? Why bathe it in arterial blood? Why the fuck let it never be taken? Why not let it pierce living flesh? Don't get those instructions in retrospect.

Why would Gideon's mum try and kill GideonOrtus? (I.e. her lover)

Why would Gideon's mum save Gideon in Harrow's body (from Mercy?) - but not kill Mercy?

Why did Wake in Cytherea's body want to be killed?

Is the two-hander significant? Was it Gideon's mum's? Nothing is said about that in book 1 I don't think? Why did Haz-suit/the sleeper have it on her? But then in the final confrontation she did not. 

Why did the narrator which at the time was Gideon - talk about Pal seeing 'me' in the river bubble - in a similar haz suit?

Why did Harrow the Ninth say that her manipulations of her temporal lobe etc. would kill her? Oh I can answer that one, she meant for it to be permanent and she's dramatic.

Why did the sleeper in Harrow's bubble so conveniently get rid of only those Lyctor candidates that were just dolls? 

Was all the talk about time and mastering time a fucking red herring???

How did Alecto help the Lyctors become Lyctors?

Am I right in concluding that God killed ten billion people with a bomb to absorb them and resurrect humanity again? A bit like Teacher but better? Wake implies this but???

If you go into the river do you become a mad ghost for sure????? Or do you just swim across to get to the other side?

How did Cytherea's corpse get the hell around the ship? How was Wake implanted in the corpse?

IF we assume that Gideon's sword held the thanergetic link that Wake used - and a transferral took place between the sword and Cytherea's corpse - why did Harrow in her sleep facilitate that transferral by stabbing the corpse? Why did original Harrow warn against that exact thing? Are we assuming that Harrow regained ALL her memories and there wasn't more to Harrow's instructions and letters and ' fail state' language?

Why did Pyrrha kill Wake immediately?

How come Gideon only surfaced the last time Harrow went into the river during unconsciousness??

Was Gideon's appearance during the first book what pushed Cytherea to simply start murdering everyone ?

I still don't understand why Gideon did not die to the gassing as a baby???

Why did Pyrrha think that Harrow was Wake when Cytherea was wake and GideonOrtus (??) seemed to know that well enough that he made out with her?????

Why did God think that having them kill their cavaliers would be easier??? Was that simple carelessness and callousness? Underestimation of how much that love and guilt would weigh on them? (Which seems in character)

WHY???? Was it necessary to become Lyctors at all?? Like - was that really fuckin worthwhile at the time?? I can see how God might push them because he knew the RB's were coming for him and he could throw Lyctors at them....

Why would God throw his Lyctors at RB's if they can't even kill him? Why not fucking wrestle them himself?