Christopher Holm's childhood female Ythrian friend is called Eyath, which means "Third Star." (VI, p. 506) Vodan, betrothed to Eyath, paints three golden stars on the side of his torpedo launcher space boat, which is comparable to a Terran Meteor. (ibid.) During the Terran attack on Avalon, Philippe Rochefort, commanding the Meteor Hooting Star, sees an enemy craft with three golden stars shining on its side. (VIII, p. 529)
Poul Anderson, having introduced two sets of sympathetic characters, is about to show them in combat. An author has to be merciless to his characters. In this case, what happens confounds any expectations on the part of the reader.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I agree, any author worth his salt, has to be merciless to at least some of the characters he creates.
Sean
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