The Heroes, Scene #4: Calder and Dow Get Hot and Heavy (p. 36-47)

The stable doors shut with a bang like a headsman's axe, and it took all of Calder's famous arrogance not to jump clean in the air.

...

He strode between the grinning Carls and out into the evening, all the while thinking about how he was going to kill Black Dow, and take back what was stolen from his father. 

When we left Calder, a one-eyed sociopath with authority issues was bringing him to Dow, probably for milk and cookies.

Calder + Dow = BFF

We're reminded of this in the very first line; the chapter doesn't start with some lame-ass description of the weather, but rather the war meeting -- "Three of Dow's five War Chiefs were in attendance ... the three that liked him least." 

Scene Summary

• Calder attends the War Meeting, led by Black Dow, attended by War Chiefs Glama Golden, Cairm Ironhead, and Brodd Tenways, as well as Dow's Second, Splitfoot.
• They throw some exposition at us regarding recent battles
• We meet Stranger-Come-Knocking, a funny, slightly schizophrenic nine-foot-tall-ish warrior and new ally
• Shivers is sent to play messenger-boy, ala Bremer. He seems similarly thrilled about it.
• Calder isn't given an assignment -- he suggests he'll go help his father-in-law recruit, and Dow says "Sure, whatever." 
• Dow reminds Calder that he's got Calder's wife, Seff under his thumb. A moment later, Calder is past that, back to plotting revenge.

As always, I'll start with the scene question -- the plan is, at novel's end, to chain these puppies together for each character. Should be interesting to see how many scenes each character has, and what each arc looks like. 

Scene Question:

What the hell does Dow want/will Calder survive? 

Answer to our Scene Question: 

Just to remind Calder he's under his (Dow's) thumb/Yes

Dow demonstrates that he's fine (for now) with leaving Calder alone, as long as Calder doesn't fuck up, "dig my roots from under me".  For most folks, that'd be a nice plus. However, the scene ends with Dow warning Calder that if he messes around, he'll hurt Calder's wife, Seff. Nonetheless, Calder walks out plotting about how he is going to kill Dow, and "take back what was stolen from his father."

Thus, this is more apt:

Answer to our Scene Question: 

Just to remind Calder he's under his (Dow's) thumb, and Yes, but Calder is committed to action that will risk his life and his wife's life anyway.

Character Description

I noticed that Abercrombie does a bit of what I've seen in Elmore Leonard with regard to ending description with a bit of judgment. For instance, consider the war chiefs:

Glama Golden looked the hero from his scalp to his toes, big-knuckle brawny and heavy-jaw handsome, his long hair, his bristling mustache ... fistful of rings on his thick fingers, every part of him buffed to a pretty shine with bluster and self-love.

Cairm Ironhead was a very different prospect. His scar-crossed face was a fortress of frown you could've blunted an axe on ... chain mail glinting under a cloak of black bear-fur. The rumour was he'd strangled that bear. Probably for looking at him wrong.  

Not bad.
 

Sense Check Scene #4

       Sound ("Doors shut with a bang" -- first line)

Touch (None directly -- first 1.5 pages are mostly observation)

Smell ("smell of old hay and old horses, but far stronger was the reek of ready violence, think as the stink in a marsh" -- 1.5 pages in.)

     Taste (Nope)

Rough beat/tag count, Scene #4 (p. 38-41)

Beats: 29

Nothing: 13

Said: 12

Said + adverb: 0
Grunted: 1
Sneered: 2
Growled: 2
Hissed: 1 
Asked: 1 
Chimed: 1
Muttered: 1 

-- I figured Abercrombie couldn't keep up the "never use 'said' in a Calder scene" pattern, but c'est la vie. Interesting that well over half the dialogue has no tags of any kind -- either beats, or nothing. Also interesting that nobody is nodding,  or shaking their head, and there's only one shrug in there -- I see that a lot of those actions in the fiction of a writer that shall remain nameless.  

Finally ... the dialogue between Stanger-Come-Knocking, the 9-foot tall giant,and Dow is some of the best in the book -- no mean feat: 

At Yeweald I fought the Dog Tribe and was pierced with seven arrows." He pointed out some pink blobs scattered across his ribs with his club of a forefinger. "But I fought on, and made a hill of their dead, and made their land my land, and their women and children my people." 

Dow sighed, as if had a half-naked giant at most of his war meetings and was getting tired of it. "Maybe it's time to think about a shield."

"They are for cowards to hide behind. My wounds tell the story of my strength." The giant jerked his thumb at a star-shaped mass that covered one shoulder, and his back, and half his left arm with flesh lumped and mottled as oak-bark. "The dreaded witch Vanian sprayed me with a liquid fire, and I carried her to the lake and drowned her while I burned."

Dow picked a fingernail. "Reckon I'd have tried to put it out first." 

.... and after he leaves:

"He seems a good sort," said Calder, brightly. "Nice of him not to show off the scars on his cock."