The Magus's Botanist-Friend

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

Okay, I have some thoughts on this infamous, much-discussed scene from QoA, the discussion Eddis, Gen, and the Magus have during their picnic in the valley:

"Yes, I didn't know you had an interest in botany," said Eddis.

"I don't really. I have a friend who does. He isn't well enough to travel and relies on acquaintances to send him samples and drawings. And how is your war progressing?" he asked, declining to be sidetracked by scholarly inquiry.

So, like most of you, my first thought was that he was referring to Sophos. Sophos is smart, Sophos was shoved off on that island at the time, Sophos likes botanical classification. Sure! That works. But, when reading ACoK, I didn't see any reference that would definitively solve the question for us in this direction, and when I reread QoA this time, I was struck by a new thought:

What if his correspondent is the Emperor of the Medes? Sorry, his name is escaping me at the moment, but hey: he is (apart from Eugenides) the only character that we know of who has been mentioned prominently as being persistently ill throughout the books - he of the Tethys' Lesions. He lives far enough away that the samples and drawings have to be sent to him, not brought personally by the magus. We already know that national loyalties don't mean a whole lot to the magus - he cultivates friends and allies from many different countries. We don't know much about the Emperor personally, we don't know if he's of a scholarly bent, but... it's a thought. Of course, the ramifications  are immense, and I'm inclined to look askance at my beloved Magus and his political alignment because of this.

Any thoughts?

(And if anyone's already theorised on this before, sorry, not trying to steal your thunder! I looked through all the relevant tags and didn't see it in any of the discussions on the topic. Just want to know what you guys think!)

Comments

[tiegirl.livejournal.com]

Ooooooh. That's a...thought. I'm not sure if I like that thought. It's a good one, but I don't have to like it. :)

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

Oh, believe me, I don't particularly like it either! D:

[earthstar-moon.livejournal.com]

Hmm...I don't think it would be the Emperor, while it would be a surprise twist, I just can't see that happening. However, it could be some noble or scholar from the Mede empire. I can't believe that every single person in the Mede Empire are dead set on conquering other countries and think that all cultures are inferior when compared to their own. That's just my thought though.

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

Totally fair! And I would like to see that, to see more of the intellectual culture within the Mede Empire at some point.

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

I think that's brilliant. I have no idea if it will turn out to be true, but it would be a heck of a one-two punch if it were.

I do think it would be consistent with the Magus's character for him to revile the Medes' plans while liking the Mede emperor. I think there might be a bit of that with Gen in the last book -- it seems he likes Gen as a person, but it is rather wary of him as a ruler. However, that seems to be the general opinion of Gen among the people who care for him. The Magus could also use their correspondence (between him and the emperor) to gather political information, however indirectly.

I could also see the Mede emperor as a semi-puppet ruler because of his illness, though. So there could be nothing to risk, as the Mede emperor has no real power.

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

Exactly - you seem thinking along the same lines as I am :D From what I've taken away from the books, the Emperor himself isn't a huge political danger: it's the people around him who are needling the conflict with the three countries into fruition, he seems to be largely removed from direct action in this area. So he might not even be a big threat, like you've said, and he might actually be pretty benign. On the other hand... well, it could make some problems for our heroes down the road, if it were true.

[tiegirl.livejournal.com]

These are all good points. Hmmmm.........................................

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

Yes to the people around the emperor being the danger. I am deeply suspicious of oiled beard boy from the second book and his brother. Deeply. No wrath like that of a woman scorned? Try again!

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

I must say, I am really looking forward to the inevitable return of Nahuseresh. He was so delightfully evil.

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

I found him delightfully stupid and cocksure. Which means when he comes back, he's going to have a huge grudge against anyone and everyone.

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

And, hopefully, then make a perfect idiot of himself at the hands of our awesome characters and go limping back home. Again. Oh, Nahuseresh.

[ninedaysaqueen.livejournal.com]

I'm hoping TG's prophecy holds fruition, and he meets a bitter end by elephant!

[earthstar-moon.livejournal.com]

Hmm...you made a fair point there. Who knows, maybe the emperor is the one that warned the Magus that the Mede (as in the people around him) would try to pressure him into conquering Sounis.

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

That could be a possibility!

[drashizu.livejournal.com]

What a wonderful theory! You know, it had never occurred to me that the friend might be Sophos, *or* the Mede Emperor. (Ghazhnuvidas or something like that.)

Hmm. I don't know if I really see the magus as cultivating a friendship with the emperor of a nation that he dreads taking over his own---he's expressed a pretty overt dislike for anything Mede since The Thief. Plus, the emperor's close to death, and the magus is a practical guy. Why bother befriending someone who will shortly die? If anything, I think he'd be sucking up to the emperor's heir.

That said, it's a fascinating theory because, as you said, there is only the barest trace of information anywhere else that seems relevant to this excerpt, and that's the mention of the emperor's illness. Although it's weak evidence, it's stronger than the evidence for any other characters. Way to make a connection! I would never have thought of that.

[spellcoats.livejournal.com]

Can't be Sophos because he was confined to Letnos at the time, and I seriously, seriously doubt it's the Mede Emperor.

[agh-4.livejournal.com]

Yup, as Drashizu said, he's Ghaznuvidas. Best. Name. Ever.

This is an extremely interesting and quite awesome theory, whether it turns out to be true or not. But I wonder how the samples would be sent ... come to that, is there any trade between S,E,A, and Medea?

[ninedaysaqueen.livejournal.com]

S.E.A.

That one took me a second, but I must say that is the COOLEST THING EVER!

Some Sounisians went to S.E.A., S.E.A., S.E.A.
To see what they could see, see, see
But all that they could see, see, see
Was a Nahuserfish at the big blue bottom of the sea, sea, sea
See?

Oh... Wait... Wrong fandom.

[tiegirl.livejournal.com]

LOL

[vega-ofthe-lyre.livejournal.com]

You know, I am really wondering about that. At one point in QoA when she's at Ephrata, Attolia refers to liking the aesthetic of that megaron to the Medean style of decoration, and, sure, she could have seen illustrations or imitations or something that ilk but the way it was phrased made it seem like she had seen it personally. I just wonder how very lively the travel and trade is between their nations.

[drashizu.livejournal.com]

Guinivere, from Merlin? I love that show!

[agh-4.livejournal.com]

Yes, how far away are they, anyway? There seems to be an ease of communication, definitely.

[filkferengi]

Great new theory! No one's post[ulat]ed that one before.

You know, if mwt is ever stuck for plot, all she has to do is read this comm.

;)