The Void Trilogy reread: The Dreaming Void part four

Welcome back to The Void Trilogy reread! So, here we are. Staring into the Void as the first book in the trilogy comes to a close.

Welcome back to The Void Trilogy reread! So, here we are. Staring into the Void as the first book in the trilogy comes to a close. I hope everyone has enjoyed reading together , it has been great revisiting the worlds and mind of Peter F Hamilton. We left off last time waiting to see what occurred within the sixth dream of Inigo’s and whether we’d get any answers to questions posed so early on.

Inigo’s Sixth Dream:

We’re back in Makkathran as Edeard and his fellow constables are graduating from their trainee roles. In a typically extravagant event each of the trainees is welcomed to the stage and congratulated, only Salrana sits in the audience for Edeard. As the ceremony draws to a close, the crowd begin to mingle and Salrana forces Edeard to talk to the mayor. It is here that Edeard gets a look at the politics that run Makkathran, before meeting the Pythia (the mother of the religion within Makkathran) who takes a great deal of interest in Edeard. Of course, as with these sections of the book, a little light is brought in with the re-appearance of Mistress Florell. She begins to chide Edeard, but he is told to ignore her – she believes she wields more power than she truly does.

Edeard and Salrana are invited to dinner at Rakas restaurant within Macsen’s family, most notably his soon to be step father, Dybal. It is during this dinner that some of the traditions of Makkathran are plotted out for Edeard and us by extension. There appears to be some jealousy from Edeard as Salrana openly flirts and chats with Macsen. After they leave the restaurant and Salrana has headed home, we see a kindling romance between Edeard and Kanseen, but she refuses to become involved with him as she can see he is in love with Salrana.

On patrol the next day, Edeard’s ge-eagle spots a suspicious man lurking around a district. It seems that he is connected with others and they plan to rob a storage warehouse within a shopping area. Using longtalk, Edeard quickly comes up with a plan to catch the thieves in action, he places his squad members in areas to intercept the thieves. It is here where our hero discovers another of his unique powers. Using his third hand, he is able to move through the walls and floors of Makkathran by connecting directly with the organic city itself. In doing this, Edeard moves underground and appears in the storeroom behind the thieves. At this surprise, the thieves flee leaving an explosive fireball behind them, but of course, they run into the constables outside.

A courtroom scene opens next and we see the thieves in the dock. There’s a smug air to Arminel. The leader of the small group, and his men. It becomes justified as they are let off the charges due to insignificant evidence. A stare down occurs between Edeard and Arminel and a rivalry is born.

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CHAPTER 7

Back in the Commonwealth, Troblum is frantically trying to set up a meeting with Paula Myo through ANA, in order for him to divulge details about the accelerator faction. The next scene is opened with Marius running towards Troblum’s room in the research facility in an attempt to halt Troblum from giving any information out. Of course, he is too late. Troblum has used decoys in order to escape unnoticed and he is on his way to Sholapur to meet with Paula.

Meanwhile, Oscar is prepping his mission to find the second dreamer with the Knight’s Guardian. They flesh out a plan that will see them capture the dreamer from underneath the noses of Living Dream.

In distant corner of the galaxy, Aaron and Corrie-Lyn are slowly making their way out to the final place where Inigo could be hiding, as they travel by ground crawler they discuss the future of Inigo and whether he will return to the Commonwealth planets, where he is needed. Inigo was in hiding for some time, but Aaron and Corrie-Lyn find him easily within the last outpost. As they are talking and Inigo states he won’t return home, Aaron is contacted by the staff of the facility and asked if the sudden appearance of a starship has anything to do with him. Suddenly the planet itself is hit with an M-Sink and everything begins to fold in on itself. The base goes into evacuation mode and Aaron looks for a way off of the planet. Inigo hints that he may have a starship stashed away in case of emergency.

From the sudden chaos of Hanko, we find Araminta back with Mr Bovey. They discuss their future together and of course this leads to their favourite pastime – sex. As Araminta uses the program given to her by Likan and she comes down from the high of her orgasm, she utters the word “hello” and a reply comes from the Skylord.

As Araminta begins to converse with the Skylord, meaning she is the second dreamer, Justine Burnelli lands at Centurion Station in an attempt to find Inigo or prevent the pilgrimage in some way. During the inevitable party that welcomes all aboard to the station, the Void suddenly begins to expand and enters a devourment phase which tears at the fabric of the station.

Conservator Ethan is desperately trying to talk to the second dreamer as destruction begins to slowly surge through the galaxy. The Skylord is seen to be welcoming the humans, but the second dreamer (Araminta) is scared of this realisation of power and once again refuses the welcome of the Skylord. This is what is causing the expansion phase of the Void, time is running out for the galaxy and Living Dream are given a go-ahead to invade Ellezelin to find the second dreamer.

Inigo’s Seventh Dream:

Edeard wakes with a hangover, even though his squad his a plan for the day ahead. The idea is that they catch a gang who has been exhorting businesses out of money for “protection”. The constables head out into the city with a firm plan and several members in undercover positions. The gang arrives, but something is going wrong with the plan – it’s a trap. The constables are ambushed by Arminel and his cronies and a chase ensues. Dinlay, wanting to save the day, heads up the chase and is shot by Arminel in the process. Edeard is quickly on the scene to protect his friend from nay more shots. Arminel continues to fire but the bullets are deflected by Edeard’s shield. The gang of thieves begin to push at the two constables with their third hands and they are shoved into the nearby canal.

Dinlay quickly begins to sink in the water because of his injury, but Edeard fights against the water to save his friend and bring him to the surface. They’re dragged from the water by the remaining constables and enjoy a very brief respite to catch their breath. But Edeard spots that Arminel and his gang are escaping, yet again, via a barge. With anger coursing through him, Edeard declares enough is enough and instinctively uses his third hand to steady the canal water. He steps from the dock onto the water and begins a frantic run towards the escaping barge. Knowing he needs hard evidence, he gifts his sight to the city and they watch as he runs across the surface of the water towards the barge. As Arminel spots Edeard, shock takes over him and his fellow criminals. Arminel stands and fires his revolver at Edeard screaming for him to “fucking die”.

Edeard summons his third hand and the bullet stops just six inches from his face, as Arminel and the city look on in stunned silence. Edeard grasps the bullet with his third hand and forces it in a return direction towards Arminel. As the gang are apprehended once again, Edeard returns to shore and is greeted by excited faces and applause. He looks around at the people of Makkathran noting that he has made a difference while they chant repeatedly, “Waterwalker, Waterwalker, Waterwalker”.

And Peter F Hamilton once again leaves us hanging from the cliff to find out what happens next. Thankfully we all have book two, The Temporal Void, awaiting our grubby mitts. So, we say goodbye to the first book in the trilogy. I’ve had great fun rereading it and I hope you have too. There are still lots of questions that need answering in the next part and we’ll be getting to those very soon.

To find out more about Peter F. Hamilton visit his official Facebook page.