Deltora Is Not About to Forget Its History
Last night, I dreamed I was writing a oneshot detailing my headcanon regarding how things in Deltora went down after the end of the series (I'm talking about the books here). I'm not sure I'll do this, as I plan on covering it in Shadows of Deltora, but I'm going to explain myself below.
A few months ago, I read the Deltora Quest page on TVTropes. (If you didn't heed my warning and are looking under the cut anyways despite not having finished the series, don't increase your chances of having all the fun bits spoiled for you by following the link-unless, of course, you don't mind being served tons of spoilers.) I'm quoting this entry because it really bugged me in the dream, and I wanted to prove the writer wrong.
Downer Ending: Yay the series ended, the belt was completed, the prisoners got freed from the Shadowlands, they've found dragons of all 7 tribes and woken them up, the land isn't dying anymore, everyone's getting married and having babies! They have new festivals and there are fireworks and trade is happening and everything turned out great! Except hey remember that guy, the Shadow Lord? The guy who we've been told for the entire series is obsessed with taking over Deltora, and who we've repeatedly been informed has an anger and a jealousy that makes waiting 1000 years the same as acting now? The one who has endless plots and plans and whose main character trait other than being evil seems to be an absolute refusal to give up on his goals? That guy? Yeah, he's still around. Moreover he still has 2 of his Ak-Baba to breed and refine further, his grade 3 Ols are perfected, his conversion project is perfected, and he knows what went wrong last time. The series doesn't have a happy end where it tied up all of the knots and ensured a happily ever after - the only thing that all 15 books managed is to hit the reset button. Deltora was effectively restored to the way it was in Adin's time - now all the Shadow Lord has to do is sit back and wait again, until the Kings start to get careless. And once they do... well, like I said. The Shadow Lord knows what it did wrong, last time. It will make things even more impossible for round 2.
I've also finally finished Tales of Deltora, thanks to the library actually producing what I wanted them to for once (but they had gotten permission from Emily Rodda ages ago, so that's not surprising). So I know the Shadow Lord will keep plotting and planning and perfecting.
But here's the thing. Adin didn't have the historical stuff to back him up. He'd never heard the Tenna Birdsong tales before he left Del on his quest, and although he had them recorded in the Deltora Annals, he didn't recognise the significance of many of them. He died without knowing all of what the Shadow Lord was capable of.
But Lief is another story altogether. He learned a lot during all three of his quests, and I am certain he and Jasmine would not neglect to hammer that knowledge into their childrens' heads. I can practically see Lief reading The Belt of Deltora to his kids before they're old enough to learn how to read, telling them about the powers of the gems and how they saved his life in this or that situation. I am sure he read Tales of Deltora and Secrets of Deltora to his kids, and encouraged them to read those books themselves when they were older and had learned how. Lief would not let those lessons die. The Torans-who have been stated to share all the knowledge they gain with one another like some benign magical Borg Collective-would not let those lessons die. The tribes would remain in close contact because the past would not be allowed to skip a generation and be forgotten.
I am also firm in the belief that, when his kids are older and can be trusted to keep secrets, Lief will take them to the Pirran caverns, and introduce them to the three tribes down there (I seriously doubt he'd never visit them, but he would take extreme care that no-one who doesn't already know finds out). That will be a sort of coming-of-age thing for all the descendants of the kings and queens of Deltora thereafter (of which I am certain there will be many, as Lief would encourage his daughter to have as many children as she saw fit).
Lief would also instate a tradition for appointing any servants, regardless of their position. Every new applicant must have a private meeting with the king or queen, with guards outside the door just in case, and the reigning monarch must look down at the belt in their presence. If the person is evil, the gems will show it immediately. This won't be a foolproof prevention of infiltration, but it'll drastically lower the chances of such a thing occurring.
And as for what that second poster said, if fireworks exist, gunpowder exists! It's needed for fireworks to even work! Any outlying problems solved! :)
In Shadows of Deltora, I have my own plans for the Shadow Lord, but for now, I'll keep those under wraps. No major spoilers for my fics here. :D
A few months ago, I read the Deltora Quest page on TVTropes. (If you didn't heed my warning and are looking under the cut anyways despite not having finished the series, don't increase your chances of having all the fun bits spoiled for you by following the link-unless, of course, you don't mind being served tons of spoilers.) I'm quoting this entry because it really bugged me in the dream, and I wanted to prove the writer wrong.
Downer Ending: Yay the series ended, the belt was completed, the prisoners got freed from the Shadowlands, they've found dragons of all 7 tribes and woken them up, the land isn't dying anymore, everyone's getting married and having babies! They have new festivals and there are fireworks and trade is happening and everything turned out great! Except hey remember that guy, the Shadow Lord? The guy who we've been told for the entire series is obsessed with taking over Deltora, and who we've repeatedly been informed has an anger and a jealousy that makes waiting 1000 years the same as acting now? The one who has endless plots and plans and whose main character trait other than being evil seems to be an absolute refusal to give up on his goals? That guy? Yeah, he's still around. Moreover he still has 2 of his Ak-Baba to breed and refine further, his grade 3 Ols are perfected, his conversion project is perfected, and he knows what went wrong last time. The series doesn't have a happy end where it tied up all of the knots and ensured a happily ever after - the only thing that all 15 books managed is to hit the reset button. Deltora was effectively restored to the way it was in Adin's time - now all the Shadow Lord has to do is sit back and wait again, until the Kings start to get careless. And once they do... well, like I said. The Shadow Lord knows what it did wrong, last time. It will make things even more impossible for round 2.
- Unless Deltora can pull a Muggles Do It Better and develop, for example, gunpowder. They already have one-way glass...
I've also finally finished Tales of Deltora, thanks to the library actually producing what I wanted them to for once (but they had gotten permission from Emily Rodda ages ago, so that's not surprising). So I know the Shadow Lord will keep plotting and planning and perfecting.
But here's the thing. Adin didn't have the historical stuff to back him up. He'd never heard the Tenna Birdsong tales before he left Del on his quest, and although he had them recorded in the Deltora Annals, he didn't recognise the significance of many of them. He died without knowing all of what the Shadow Lord was capable of.
But Lief is another story altogether. He learned a lot during all three of his quests, and I am certain he and Jasmine would not neglect to hammer that knowledge into their childrens' heads. I can practically see Lief reading The Belt of Deltora to his kids before they're old enough to learn how to read, telling them about the powers of the gems and how they saved his life in this or that situation. I am sure he read Tales of Deltora and Secrets of Deltora to his kids, and encouraged them to read those books themselves when they were older and had learned how. Lief would not let those lessons die. The Torans-who have been stated to share all the knowledge they gain with one another like some benign magical Borg Collective-would not let those lessons die. The tribes would remain in close contact because the past would not be allowed to skip a generation and be forgotten.
I am also firm in the belief that, when his kids are older and can be trusted to keep secrets, Lief will take them to the Pirran caverns, and introduce them to the three tribes down there (I seriously doubt he'd never visit them, but he would take extreme care that no-one who doesn't already know finds out). That will be a sort of coming-of-age thing for all the descendants of the kings and queens of Deltora thereafter (of which I am certain there will be many, as Lief would encourage his daughter to have as many children as she saw fit).
Lief would also instate a tradition for appointing any servants, regardless of their position. Every new applicant must have a private meeting with the king or queen, with guards outside the door just in case, and the reigning monarch must look down at the belt in their presence. If the person is evil, the gems will show it immediately. This won't be a foolproof prevention of infiltration, but it'll drastically lower the chances of such a thing occurring.
And as for what that second poster said, if fireworks exist, gunpowder exists! It's needed for fireworks to even work! Any outlying problems solved! :)
In Shadows of Deltora, I have my own plans for the Shadow Lord, but for now, I'll keep those under wraps. No major spoilers for my fics here. :D