Post # 6: Summary of Chapters 21-25

Chapter 21: Of the Coming of the Beast

In this chapter, the people of the village evacuate and the men begin to prepare for the killing of the beast. At last, the beast comes and the soldiers shoot at it until it breaches the walls of village. At this point, all evacuate except for Roland and David. The beast follows David and is led to the centre of the village where the church is. Here, Roland and David climb to the top of the church and get ready to set the village on fire, but stop when the beast begins to struggle for no apparent reason. In a matter of minutes, they realize that the beast is actually female, and it is giving birth to hundreds of little beasts. Roland quickly shoots a flaming arrow and lights the village on fire and all of the babies, as well as the original beast, burn until they are all dead.

Chapter 22: Of the Crooked Man and the Sowing of Doubt

In this chapter, David and Roland leave the village as the villagers return and begin to rebuild their homes. The two ride for a while, and stop to rest for a while when they get tired. Roland reveals that he used to be a knight, but his father disproved of the way he lived his life, so he was sent away. They also talk a bit more about the wonders of David's world and the king who David is headed to see. David is then left alone and the crooked man pulls him under the snow and tells him that Roland and Raphael were lovers. He also tells David that he saved his life by killing the scout, and asks him to say Georgie's name out loud. David refuses, and just in time, Roland pulls him up out of the snow. David does not tell Roland what happened; he just sits and cries.

Chapter 23: Of the March of the Wolves

In this chapter, David tells Roland what happened under the snow and there is an awkwardness to their relationship now that David knows Roland's secret. The wolves reach the community where the two travellers recently departed from and Fletcher stands up to Leroi, but the wolves do not attack.

Chapter 24: Of the Fortress of Thorns

In this chapter, David and Roland mend their relationship and reach the Fortress of Thorns. There are many deads knights that can be seen around the castle, but none of them are
Raphael, so Roland enters the castle at nightfall (this is when the thorns open up) after they see a woman in the top window of the castle. Roland tells David to wait for him with Scylla, but David disobeys and follows shortly after when he hears his mother's voice calling to him from inside the castle. The crooked man watches all of this from up in a nearby tree, furious that David is putting himself in danger yet again.

Chapter 25: Of the Enchantress and What Became of Raphael and Roland

In this chapter, David is inside the castle. He sees a great feast, but the food is poisoned. There are also many weird rooms, in one of which he can see he father, Rose, and Georgie dancing and happy without him. This is the room in which he hears his mother's voice. Then he sees his father, mother and himself happy without Rose or Georgie. A cloud of dust swirls around the room as this image disappears and he backs out in the hallway, only to find that all of the doors close and the lights start going out. He runs towards the far room and eventually gets there in the darkness. In this room, a woman lays up on a shrine and David notices Roland and Raphael dead to his right. Right before Roland dies, he tells David to be careful of the woman. David hears his mother's voice in the woman and she tells him to kiss her. When he does she comes alive and is not longer David's mother at all, but a woman that looks like Rose and is evil. She comes after him and he outsmarts her just in time and she flies into one of the giant thorns in the room and dies. David puts Roland and Raphael up on the shrine and then departs from the castle.

My Thoughts/Questions:

-is the beast a symbol for something?
-is David going to give up Georgie?
-why didn't he talk to Roland about what happened?
-interesting that the Loups did not attack, probably planning something
-is the Crooked man behind the floating castle/David's mother?