ts the lack of detail that suprised me on reading that too. Maybe IC didn't want to dwell on their deaths, but i think there's more to it than that
*nods* It's kind of like Elspeth's saying it in a way that says 'they're dead. You'll have to take my word for it, don't ask questions, let's just move on'
Hmmm... I have done this writing my books too... used tricky language to make you assume certain characters are dead when they're not really...
Wanderer Ward
15 years ago
Wanderer Ward
Rebel
*dredges up old thread after linkage following*
So... I always read theories threads and everything I've thought has already been discussed; But here for once it hasn't!
So I was thinking back to all this and making up fanfiction in my head on the bus last year just after re-reading all the old books and reading TSK. Well this fanfiction idea just came back to me and seemed more plausible strangely once I saw some of the stuff mentioned.
Ok - to the point - You know how Rushton supposedly has no powers but can be a conduit - well thats not exactly all is it as he can speak to other minds via other people using him as a conduit. Therefore is it at all possible that he could sort of channel OTHER powers? Elspeth in Obernewtyn was new to her powers in some ways and was in a lot of pain during the point after Vega died etc. Is it at all possible she thought she was no longer linked to Rushton but in fact still was? What if Rushton used her powers through himself to kill Alexi? That would surely have massive implications for the both of them...
Kind of like the mindlink in...erm....was it Ashling?
Oooh, I like it, Maz! Rushton channeling Elspeth's powers, that is. That makes more sense than him being (recently fainted/tied to a chair) able to muster the energy in the heat of battle to slay Alexi, or capturing and imprisoning Alexi and later killing him in cold blood.
I like so many of these ideas, but just gotta add my own- Rushton killed him by hitting him with the chair while he was tied to it.
Alexi wasnt exactly a strong guy and Rushton would have been pretty buff with all the farm work. Its possibe that he could have crushed Alexi against somethin.
Actually I think it was probably either Alad or Domick that did it. It had to be done and either of them would have the practicality of nature to do it without regrets later. Probably was Domick- you see his ability to kill when necessary later. Im not saying that it wouldnt have bothered them, but that they could do it.
Aren't we all forgetting something?....Destroyer Pig! Who wants to reach the weaponmachines before any of his rivals (including Alexi) aaand for Alexi's daring ambition to hurt Destroyer Pig's beloved Rushton :D
LOL @ Destroyer Pig ;D
If it was Alad or Domick, why does it specifically say "...where Rushton slew his half-brother Alexi"? And I agree that Alexi would have been weaker / Rushton stronger from farmwork. But he'd been tied to a chair, had fainted due to the Zebkrahn's force on his mind (channeling it for Elspeth) - this would weaken him. I think in this state its plausible that if a connection was already there between Elspeth + Rushton, she was drawing power/strength/energy from him, there's no reason he couldn't do the same.
But...if he's done this, I don't know if he's conscious of it. He would fear Elf's talents even more if he knew of the killing power. Unless he didn't think it came from her...maybe he thinks its his own? :-/ so many questions.
well what if there was a backlash or some of Elspeth's killing power leaked over the place? she could've been in so much pain after killing Vega that nobody noticed if she dropped her shield because of it and subconsciously killed Alexi?
...it made sense to me |:|
im not sure.... while it says that Ruston killed Alexi i dont think he would have had the energy to do anything after helping Elspeth with the whole pain thing.
I think maybe Arien/Sian are on the right track.... i mean getting Elspeth and Ruston away would have been their frist priority. However i've always thought that while they were trying to save Ruston and Elf Vega and Alexi got in the way and Ruston's Friends killed them at that point in time.
But then again the unknown-ness might mean something. Maybe Alexi and Vega only got burnt slightly and ended up getting away
but hey... speculations plus
Out of interest, and I don't have the books on hand to check, has Elspeth looked at Rushton through spirit eyes ? Just we know Elf's "aura" is tainted by the life she took, and that Kella was suffering from her estrangement with domick, did she ever see or comment on Rushton's or was he in captured at the time she did all the dreamtrails travelling ?
(Sorry if this is off topic) I just thought, he should also bear a mark if he killed Alexi.
I have no idea but I have always wondered at what Rushton's aura looks like. what does Elf's look like?
Maybe Rushton through Elspeth damaged Alexi's mind and after a time it shut down or had some "key" to unlock a mind "poison" in the mind ...just a thought.
Yeah, Rushton was absent when Elspeth started her (controlled) dream-travelling; in fact, I think the only auras she's actually seen are Miky's, Angina's, Dragon's, and her own. I've always wanted to know what Rushton's looks like, too (glowing spirit connection with the pig, anyone? :P), but I'm sure she's never actually looked at it. It'd probably be pretty crazy to look at now even if she did try, after the whole mental decline he went through in TSK. Even though he's healed, I imagine scars or bruises would still show up in his aura...actually, that's an interesting thought. I wonder what it does look like now?
Anyway, regarding who killed Alexi. Before this, I'd always just assumed that he was a fatality in the mass confusion of Obernewtyn's takeover...but as was dicsussed on the first page, when you actually think about it - what confusion was there? Alexi, Vega, and Ariel against captive Rushton and Elspeth and a small group of Rushton's followers - and a few drugged Councilmen in a storeroom somewhere. :P There never really was a battle, was there? Which makes my vague impression of Alexi being accidentally knocked over the head by some random in the struggle pretty useless.
I'd still go with the idea of one of Rushton's friends doing it, though. The lack of detail is suspicious, and could be read as deliberately repelling any curiosity, but I also think it could be seen as simply dismissing something relatively unimportant to the story. Quite a lot of plot points and characters that were played up in the first book were swept under the carpet in the sequels. In some cases, it was so they could be extra surprising when they leaped up out of nowhere in later books, but in many cases I think they really were unimportant. Some sort of conspiracy over who killed Alexi is tempting, but at this stage I don't get the impression it's going to happen.
The quote from the old Farseekers introduction is interesting, but I agree with Sian - I'm not sure it's the most reliable source. I think they just wrote up, or had IC write up, a quick summary of previous books in the first editions to remind readers of what was going on. Even if IC did write them, I think they're meant as recap and nothing more - so they might gloss over things. And (as Sian pointed out) Alexi wasn't Rushton's step-uncle, so the information doesn't seem to be consistent with the books anyway.
That said, I like Maz's idea of Rushton channeling Elf's killing power - could this be possible under other circumstances, I wonder? It might be another reason why Rushton's head-storeroom of latent power (that's the best description I can come up with right now :P) is important. And why her mind-melding with him whenever possible is crucial to her quest, and not just fuel for the Rushton-shippers. :P
LOL [act]applauds[/act]. Firefall, you're SO a closet Dameon supporter :P
Despite so many factors pointing to one of Rushton's supporters killing Alexi, I still rely on the fact that it's in print that Rushton slay'd (slew?) him.
They can't print that outright, and then say it's not true (and...if it's not true, then can we take anything that's happened in the books so far as unchangeable?). She (Isobelle) has said she's had the major plot points sorted out from the start, so I would tend to rely more on the earlier prints, than the later editions, when they had time to go through it and make it more 'mysterious', changing 'he' to 'the other', and such (referring to the description of the Destroyer by Atthis at the end of Farseekers there).
And I think if something was deliberately being hidden, the fact would have been glossed over more in the summary. Something like 'in which Rushton's insane step-uncle Alexi was killed', as opposed to 'in which Rushton had slain his insane step-uncle'.
14 years ago
Wed May 20 2009, 08:05pm
No, don't say that! Every time a Dameon supporter is born, Rushton's aura gets another bruise! :P
They changed "he" to "the other" in later editions of Farseekers? 8-| Either I missed that completely or my memory's failing me. I knew there were some inconsistencies between editions (inevitable with a series that's been around so long and gone through so many reprints, I guess), but I had no idea they'd changed something as significant as that. With that in mind, I have to agree that I'd trust the earlier versions more; and you do have a point about the murderer being glossed over more if they were trying to be deceptive.
Arrgh, now I don't know what to think! I need to reread TSK - it'll help me decide if it feels like Alexi's going to resurface in the future, or his death's going to suddenly become important. If there is some sort of conspiracy going on, it might explain the sudden (apparent) revelation of his being Ariel's father, since why bring that up out of nowhere when Alexi hasn't even been central to the plot since book one?
(I'm assuming TSK's been out long enough that I don't have to put that in spoiler tags, btw. Apologies if I'm wrong.)
That's so weird! I have - and first read the series in - the orange-spine 1997 editions, so I've always known the single-he version. I feel so betrayed! :P I suppose the new editions must keep the change, too. [act]vows to check next time she's at the bookstore, just in case[/act] Interesting that they'd keep one, though - you'd think if they were trying to be really mysterious they'd avoid gender distinctions altogether. I wonder who made the decision to alter it, IC or an editor?
[act]claps hands frantically[/act] All together, everybody! I do believe in Rushtons, I do believe in Rushtons! :P
RP!Rushton: [act]pops up[/act] Somebody called?
Everybody: No, not you! [act]continue clapping[/act]
Ashlings' guildleader
14 years ago
Ashlings' guildleader
Dreamscape Artist
Hmmm...maybe Ariel killed him? I'm not sure why....but that could be a good reason for IC to not tell us who did...
Great theory Sian! Ariel was in the cavern with Vega and Alexi, and we all know how psycho he is - and I'll bet that when it looks like the chips are down he'd do anything to cover his tracks and get outta there!
Mystic Ward
14 years ago
Mystic Ward
Twentyfamilies Gypsy
I really can't imagine (don't read if you have not read TSK)
Ariel killing his father at that point.
Though I could be wrong.
Paperwings, Alexi's eyes have been described differently on different occasions and one of them was yellow.
Yeah, I agree that Ariel wouldn't kill him if he was really his father. But remember, Elspeth and the other Misfits all thought Ariel made it up so it wouldn't look suspicious to the Herders that he used to live at Obernewtyn. But honestly, considering how insane Alexi and Ariel are/were, I wouldn't be surprised if they were related!
Ashlings' guildleader
14 years ago
Ashlings' guildleader
Dreamscape Artist
However, Vega did say that Ariel came there as a misfit. Besides, I always thought Alexi was a bit too young to be the father of a 12 year old, but the herders wouldn't have known that.