Last time, Bitterblue! Her life sucks and she’s cold.

Now, Katsa plots.

Bitterblue was right. Leck had to die. Katsa knew it, but she didn’t like to think of it. For she was a killer, and the murder should be hers; but it was plain that Po would have to be the one to do it. Po kill a king guarded by an army of soldiers. By himself, and without her help.

You know, maybe the problem here is that Katsa is normally so overpowered she can’t handle risk. I mean, last chapter she was panicking about those twenty guys because what if they start talking and she gets confused and so on, and she and Metaleyes murdered them all without getting a scratch.

Leck isn’t all-powerful. Like right this instance, for example, he’s walking around relatively unprotected, and he isn’t spending every second talking. Late, he’ll go to sleep somewhere, and he certainly won’t be talking. The sleeping will probably coincide with it being night, and Katsa has proven she can run around in pitch darkness while Metaleyes could sense where Leck and the guards were at any point. There are pretty good odds she can kill Leck before he gets a word out – I mean, she managed it with five men when she didn’t have a chance to prepare, surely she can handle one with planning?

Yes, if Leck starts talking first she’ll have trouble. But if he doesn’t she kills him. I would go so far as to put the odds in Katsa’s favor here, since his grace doesn’t seem to be able to force people to do anything – considering the whole mother-protecting-child thing Katsa brought up, presumably Ashen could resist his grace because it can’t make you harm someone you care about or whatever, so presumably Leck can’t just order her to murder Metaleyes, which means that Leck speaking first isn’t even an instawin for him, it’s just a heavy advantage, while Katsa winning the first move is an instawin.

So in sum, I would say it’s more likely that Katsa would win the initial engagement, and if not, Katsa might get a second chance (or third chance, even, since she’s already gotten away fine once), while Leck will be too dead for a do-over if he screws up.

The book, though, thinks Leck is unbeatable, and it’s irritating.

You know what would help here? If it was straight up telepathy. Katsa can’t get within X area of Leck without getting controlled. It’s clear we’re supposed to view this as a situation Katsa’s grace can’t handle, and that’d actually accomplish it.

Bitterblue sat quietly before her. She had stiffened when Po came near

So, was Bitterblue abused by Leck? I’m not going to complain much since at least this book looks like it’s anti-childrape, and events have shown that we can’t expect that level of not being an abominable human being from everyone, but it’s still ground that I don’t really feel that enthusiastic about. Child abuse is one of those overused shock plots these days.

They go to make camp. Bitterblue’s starving and they’re low on food, so someone needs to hunt.

“I’ll climb down to the gully and find us some meat,” Katsa said. “The sun will set soon. I’ll take a knife, Po, if you’ll keep a lookout for me.”
Po slid a knife from his boot and tossed it to her. “If you hear the sound of an owl hooting, run. Two hoots, run south. Three hoots, run back up here to the camp.”

Of course, if Metaleyes left, she could tell him whatever she saw just by thinking it at him, he could be able to sense wherever prey animals were as well as any edible plants, and he wouldn’t be in so much danger of being found in the first place, since he can sense the soldiers and he’s immune to the grace their words have. And Katsa could stay with Bitterblue and maybe calm her down, since she’s still terrified of Metaleyes.

Not so terrified she doesn’t manage to pass out before Katsa’s done hunting, though.

She’s got her fingers wrapped around that knife. And she’s still scared of me-I get the feeling she’s not used to men showing her kindness.”

I just realized that Metaleyes’ know-people’s-thoughts grace means he should know exactly what she thinks he’ll do to her and presumably he’s just being vague for Katsa’s sake. I’m not sure if that occurred to the book, or even if I’m supposed to be assuming Bitterblue is expecting particular abuse instead of just nebulous unease around men. But I find it hard to believe she’s this terrified of people based on gender without having a concrete reason.

“She’ll make for an awfully young queen.”
“Yes, I’ve thought of that, too. But there’s no helping it.”

Uh, yes, there is.

First, there’s the fact monarchs are not actually God’s chosen ruling method – something you really should have figured out just on the basis you guys don’t even seem to have religion. Second, even granting that you guys can’t grasp the concept that they’re not mandatory, Metaleyes at least lives in a kingdom chill enough about inheritance that a guy can duck out of succession and have it pass on to his son. She can abdicate for someone else if she likes. Third, if you actually give a fuck about bloodline = rulership rights, there’s the fact Leck isn’t the king’s kid and there’s no way the whole adoption/heir thing is legitimate if it was mindcontrol, so the rightful heir to the throne is some relative of the original king and queen. I’m sure the relevant lineages are still on the books somewhere, and if they’re not, then you guys don’t care about bloodline, so just point at whatever noble has the most land or something and say he’s king.

Yet another thing ASoIaF did better. Actual conflicts regarding who legally would inherit vs who was going to inherit vs who would not be an utterly shitty king if he inherited (Not you, Stannis. Sorry!). If Ned were here he’d start going on about how first, they need track down the nearest relative of the original king and queen and get their help in retaking their kingdom, and then there’d be trouble because they’d want Bitterblue dead to make sure she couldn’t challenge their claim…

We’ll talk about it when Bitterblue wakes. I expect she’ll be able to help.”
Help to plot the murder of her father. Yes, she probably would help, if she could. For such was the madness that rode the air of this kingdom as they sat in their rocky camp at the edge of the Monsean mountains.

Katsa, will you stop going on about how crazy it is for the kid to help you? It’s really not half as confusing or odd as you’re acting.

Bitterblue wakes up and we get some faux empowerment as Katsa tells her she’ll help her learn to use the knife and Metaleyes says the lady’s the better fighter of the two. Yes, but only because grace.

“I would like to have a Grace,” she said, “that allowed me to protect myself”

An even worse attitude. Not only can you learn to fight on your own merit, but fighting isn’t the only way to handle things. A healthier goal would be to aim for being in situations where you don’t need to be constantly ready to stab someone to death for your own survival.

We then get Leck’s grace explained again. Sadly, this isn’t in the sense of adding new information to address the discrepancy between what we see happening and what Metaleyes described.

She told me he can manipulate people’s minds with his words, so that they believe whatever he says. Even if they hear it from someone else’s mouth; even if it’s a rumor he started that’s spread far beyond him. His power weakens as it spreads, but it does not disappear.”

Except that also, his power affects all your related memories to rewrite them to be more convenient, even when nothing he says has to do with that.

“She told me he’s the wrong kind of man to have been born with a Grace like this. He makes toys of small and weak people. He likes to cause pain.”

Unlike all the other people who would be just fine with it. As long as you don’t cut up innocent animals for fun, mindrape powers are totally fine! I was going to say more 8ut then Vriska possessed me to tell you all she is totally the right sort of person and would never a8use her powers!!!!!!!! :::;)

Apparently the mom kept figuring this out and then getting confused about it until finally Leck started paying attention to Bitterblue, which was the final straw.

I can’t say what he wants me for, exactly.

…then why are you so scared of men? It’s already a bit of a jump when you seem to only be scared of your father and to be having trouble even remembering why that is.

He’s always been… fond of the company of girls. And he has some strange habits my mother and I came to understand. He cuts animals, with knives. He tortures them and keeps them alive for a long time, then he kills them.” She cleared her throat. “I don’t think it’s only animals he does this to.”

Well, not actual childrape then? Maybe? Let’s hope so. I mean, it’s not like cutting them up is so much better, it’s just ground I’m sick of seeing.

Her whole life she’d believed Leck’s reputation for beneficence. Did he convince his victims, too, that he was doing them a kindness, even while he cut them with his knives?

As extremely creepy as that is, I’m not really getting why it’s worse than not convincing them. If anything I’d think the sadistic choice would be letting them know exactly what he was doing to them.

Ashen refuses to let him take Bitterblue to his little zoo, so he hits her, and the bruising on her mom’s face keeps reminding Bitterblue’s to refuse as well. Katsa guesses that’s what’s up with all the court deaths (…that were never mentioned before now), they’re the result of abuse building up until his grace doesn’t work right.

So because they’re refusing he kidnaps Teaprince saying he’ll torture the guy until Ashen says yes.

The book attempts to address the plot hole here.

“He could have just taken me,” Bitterblue said, her voice breaking with sudden shrillness. “He has an entire army that would never defy him. But he didn’t. He has this… sick patience. It didn’t interest him to force us. He wanted to hear us say yes.”

Except, as she explains, the only reason they manage to keep refusing is that they keep reminding each other, so if he’d separated them he could have gotten his yes from both.

Because it was more satisfying to him that way, Katsa thought.

It isn’t explained why Katsa suddenly has such insight into how people think. It’s not even like she’s trying to draw a comparison to Pandaman, she’s just suddenly an expert on abusive psychopaths.

Then he starts sending them injured animals to freak them out.

one day the girl who brought our food had cuts on her face, three lines on each cheek, bleeding freely. And other injuries, too, that we couldn’t see. She wasn’t walking well. When we asked her what happened, she said she couldn’t remember. She was a girl my age.

So Ashen decides they’re better off making a run for it.

…you know, what I feel like the book is missing is that those other girls are still there.

I mean, there’s not much they could do about it, but still, the focus is all on how horrible it would be if that happens to Bitterblue, not the fact horrible things are currently happening to a bunch of people.

And there’s something, well, convenient about Bitterblue being spared. It’s very common for female characters to be threatened with things that only to actually happen to throwaway characters. It’s most obvious when it’s rape, which, with the walking bit, we may well be back to. The female character will say it was threatened, she’ll say it happened to lots of the other girls, but she just barely avoided it. She’s still undamaged.

It doesn’t particularly make sense for Bitterblue. If resistance is caused by being hurt, it would have been far more likely for her mother and Bitterblue to only start resisting after the abuse began rather than miraculously managing from the first.

Anyway, so, they escape but her mom twists an ankle so she sends Bitterblue on.

Metaleyes explains he’s going to kill the king and gives a shoddy bullshit explanation for how he’s resistant and probably people vary in resistance or something hey look a bird! Right so as he was saying he and not Katsa will have to do it.

“He’ll have his personal guard with him. They are all Graced. I’ll tell you what you’ll be facing.”

Ridiculousness is what.

The king had an inner guard, made up of five Graced sword fighters. These men were little threat to Po; they always stood beside the king, and Po expected never to step within their range. It was the king’s outer guard that Po must be prepared to encounter. These were ten men who would be positioned in a broad circle around Leck, some distance from him and from each other, but surrounding the king as he moved through the forest. They were all Graced, some fighters, a couple crack shots with a bow. One Graced with speed on foot; one enormously strong; one who climbed trees and jumped from branch to branch like a squirrel. One with extraordinary sight and hearing.

Now, my first thought was that Leck has been deliberately collecting the graced

But why? Why is he obsessed with having people around to protect him when he’s basically untouchable? It can’t be that he just happens to be crazy paranoid, because he wasn’t behind a wall of people when they met him, he was riding right in front, and he didn’t order anyone to protect him when he saw Katsa was armed, he fell back on his grace to stop her instead. There’s no reason for him to have more than the most minimal of guards. This is obviously just so the characters will have trouble fighting him despite Metaleyes’ immunity.

More, even if he wanted to, graced people aren’t free agents. It doesn’t matter how much Leck wants graced people, or how persuasive he’d be in getting them to join him, they’re owned by kings and the other kingdoms would notice someone poaching.

Consider Pandaman. Pandaman has Katsa, a few graced swordfighters, no graced archers, and then a couple people with no fighting ability whatsoever but some other useful skill, like horse doctoring. Maybe a dozen total. If a kid is born with a grace, it’s sent to him, and he only lets the kid go if he decides he doesn’t want the grace. I mean, it’s possible the tree climbing might get rejected, since that’s an example Katsa gives of a useless grace because people in this universe are generally morons, but I think the rest even the idiots of this universe would always recognize as useful, which means they’d already be employed by the local king who’d notice if they went missing.

Huh.

Wait.

First chapter. There’s an extremely limited number of graced people and the king system means they should all be accounted for. There are no rogue gracelings, just ones with similar appearances or ones deliberately hidden. A slim graced fighter appearing means it’s Katsa or one of the other known gracelings with that body type. It’s not just that no one should assume a slim fighter must be male, it’s that no one should need to see the eyes to identify a graceling. Basic appearance + grace should be more than enough. I imagine smart kingdoms would try to hide away some gracelings or give cover stories for known kids about how their grace turned out to be something innocuous, but it doesn’t look like anyone in the current setting is bright enough to try that.

But I digress. Katsa wants to go help, saying she could just attack the fighters and then leave again. While that’s a terrible idea and I agree with Metaleyes shooting it down, what she could do is act as bait. Be out of range of Leck’s voice, so he sends them ahead to slow her down while he tries to get into range. Or she could try to attacking thing as a distraction. While the fighters try to defend themselves and Leck busies himself talking down the obvious threat, Metaleyes snipes him from behind. As long as the plan doesn’t rely on Katsa remaining lucid for any length of time, it’s fine. It’s not like Metaleyes can afford a drawn out battle against graced fighters anyway, this would have to be a quick affair no matter what.

You know, it occurs to me that after the first chapter, no one seems to be making any effort at strategy. Then, Katsa was sneaking about using a memorized map and carrying knockout pills to keep people unconscious and working on a tight schedule where she had to clear the way before other people got there to do their part of the plan.