Sorry about last week. Busy, Busy. This month, that’s all I had time to share. Let’s move on to this month’s subject.
The Maelstrom
The Maelstrom makes his first appearance in the story late in the (second) book. He presents himself both as a guide and an arbiter, helping to assure the peace the Tyberian Empire exists under, and ensure all parties to the agreement both follow through with the requirements and not undermine the peace they asked for.
This section of the series brings to light the similarities the Tyberian Empire has to Earth, in that various factions are at times working for (or, usually, against) a common goal of peace and harmony with their neighbors. While it can seem that war on Earth is the goal to some, often war is usually to settle a matter so that there can be peace. Rather than get into the legitimacy of a given war(s), it can be agreed that war is rarely sought for amusement. The cost (both in lives and in supposed economic impact) history has shown it is never worth starting a conflict for ‘fun.’
The people of the Tyberian home world agree with this sentiment. Thus, they sought mediation. Which came with stipulations Tess shares with Joe:
Tess steps forward to Richard’s console. Joe follows her, but stares at Richard’s door as it closes. “What just happened?” he asks in a high-pitched tone.
Joe and Tess
Tess looks up at him. “As part of the conditions of their peace accord, the Maelstrom would make periodic visits,” she says, smiling while she raises her hands, gesturing quotation marks with her fingers, “‘as they deem necessary.’”
Peace for the three houses is not secure. I mentioned a little about this in this blog, but the book makes clear by this point that this ‘peace’ requires a lot of work. A LOT of work. It also requires buy-in by all parties, and this is also a problem that the Maelstrom even brings up in addressing Richard’s commitment to peace:
“The Maelstrom realizes you have experienced a lot of changes in the past few weeks, but you have obstacles that will require maturity to handle.” The being points a shriveled digit at Richard. “You will have to grow up faster if you hope to survive this confrontation.”
The Maelstrom
But, Richard is not the only problem with keeping the peace. Or even the biggest problem as the Maelstrom will relate:
“Her parents’ marriage was arranged, much like yours… However, their families did not seek to make the best of their situation. Instead, they were scheming to kill one another. This left the now collasping Maxian government in a state of systemic compromise.”
The Maelstrom
All of this is important because of one of the conditions mentioned in the first book for the peace to last:
“The head of a mediation family known only as the Maelstrom was called in to direct the peace talks.” He looks up to Richard. “With their suspected mastery of time, this race devotes their efforts to finding peace for warring planets.” He turns again to the scroll. “After a few months, we had put down arms against one another. But the Maelstrom said in order for the peace to be complete and to last, our families must unite.
King Mordecai Tyberius
“Obviously, we did not. Then, about twelve hundred years ago, The Maelstrom checked up on us. When they saw we were still separated and animosity had built up between us, they warned us of the doom we faced by not respecting their wishes. They said that within twelve hundred years’ time, our worlds would be destroyed because of this…
This then will affect how this peace is maintained. Two things we will look at this month:
- What the Maelstrom says they can do to maintain peace
- What they say they can’t do
I’m not sure whether to start with the positive or the negative, so I decided to write about what they can do first. Hopefully, it will reflect on why the Maelstrom can do what they do. See you then.
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In written form 