David has answered the questions below, but more p.r. ideation is possible: On Wed, 14 Jan 2004, Jeffrey Kiok wrote: > > I'm positing a rather more Machiavellian Sethra than portrayed > > elsewhere > > (well, _Taltos_ supports me). > > But if Sethra were truly a Machiavellian person, she would try to seize > power for herself, or through someone she could control. I think FHA > clearly demonstrates that Adron isn't too easily constrained. Sethra has no need to control the Orb given her crazy skillz. Adron would agree on her about most points anyway - she's doing his daughter, she works for the god he provides special services to... > > In my version of events, Sethra sees > > Adron's spell, realizes it may destroy the Orb, and decides that since > > Adron would anyway make a better emperor (as would any breathing > > Dragon) > > Why would it be more beneficial to have a Dragon on the throne in > Sethra's eyes? If Sethra's mission or purpose is really to protect the > empire from the Jenoine (I'm pretty Issola more or less explicitly says > that) then what advantage is there to have a Dragon on the throne > trying to conquer more land in the east? That would spread resources > thin, wouldn't you think? And thus make it harder for her to protect. Adron is a particularly powerful Dragon - one could imagine him crafting Elder Sorcery to use against the J. I doubt he would launch an expedition against the East (though some possibly non-canonical stuff in _Yendi_ might suggest he wouldn't oppose one). Note also that as far as we know (to the best of my recollection, and I'm too lazy to check Alexx's timeline), the J hadn't stirred in ages, and their activity in Vlad's time is a result of being stirred up by the Disaster. Anyway, Tortaalik was in and of himself a disaster, and Sethra would have been happy to have seen a Teckla on the throne. > > (and since it would make Aliera really happy and grateful) she might as > > well save a lot of bloodshed by taking out Tortaalik. She arranges > > with > > Khaavren to do it, perhaps with Aliera's help. > > It seems as if through the entire Khaavren and Piro series that > Khaavren was entirely devoted to his duty of protecting the emperor. Remember, up is down, black is white - get with the times. > Isn't a bit of a stretch that Khaavren helped to assasinate the man he > worked for five hundred years? Wouldn't he have had a better chance by > then? K didn't have cause until then, nor the knowledge. If you prefer, the whole theory works exactly the same with a Paarfian K and Sethra setting up an actual Mario to make the first futile attack on T.