Bret
asked
Peter A. Flannery:
This question contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[What was your inspiration for Falco's great decision at the climax of Battle Mage? The theme of self-sacrifice is so pervasive in epic fantasy, and I found the subversion of this theme not only interesting, but rather inspiring. (hide spoiler)]
Peter A. Flannery
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[Hi Bret
What an excellent question! This strikes at the very heart of Battle Mage, and the inspirations for this are varied and many, but essentially, it all comes down to faith. Not faith in a religious sense, but rather the ability to hope when all seems hopeless. Let me give you just a few examples of scenes or concepts from other stories that contributed to this scene in Battle Mage:
The original Salem's Lot, when the priest faces the vampire and the James Mason character says, "Face the master. Faith against faith." It's not the cross that holds back the evil it's the faith of the person holding it.
Master of the Five Magics by Lyndon Hardy. In this book he has a concept called the "Imp of the Perverse". This is basically the idea that you will not be cowed by hardship or misfortune. Something bad happens and you can either submit or you can say f*ck it! Do your worst!
Then there's the old hostage situation, where someone you don't trust says put down the gun or I will kill your entire family. And you know that if you put down the gun, the bad guy will still kill your family and now you along with them.
I also drew upon stories of those incredible individuals in real life who suffer terribly yet refuse to give up.
But in the end it came down to a simple choice... to surrender and give evil what it wanted or to defy evil even if the consequences were awful. So, Falco chooses defiance, because a battle mage does not know how to despair. They have faith... they hope... even when everything seems hopeless.
There's a line in a song from The Crow sound track (It can't rain all the time by Jane Siberry). It's a gorgeous song and this part always resonated with me...
"Do you have faith
In what you believe?
The truest test is when we cannot
When we cannot see."
Falco could not see a solution to the choice he faced. In the end, the only thing he could do was hope.
"But this was not a question of courage, it was a question of faith. Did he have the strength to keep faith even if it condemned his friends to eternal damnation?
Even if it condemned the world?"
Well there you go Bret. There are lots of other things that fed into this scene, but I hope that gives you some insight into my thinking.
Thanks again for the question
Peter
(hide spoiler)]
What an excellent question! This strikes at the very heart of Battle Mage, and the inspirations for this are varied and many, but essentially, it all comes down to faith. Not faith in a religious sense, but rather the ability to hope when all seems hopeless. Let me give you just a few examples of scenes or concepts from other stories that contributed to this scene in Battle Mage:
The original Salem's Lot, when the priest faces the vampire and the James Mason character says, "Face the master. Faith against faith." It's not the cross that holds back the evil it's the faith of the person holding it.
Master of the Five Magics by Lyndon Hardy. In this book he has a concept called the "Imp of the Perverse". This is basically the idea that you will not be cowed by hardship or misfortune. Something bad happens and you can either submit or you can say f*ck it! Do your worst!
Then there's the old hostage situation, where someone you don't trust says put down the gun or I will kill your entire family. And you know that if you put down the gun, the bad guy will still kill your family and now you along with them.
I also drew upon stories of those incredible individuals in real life who suffer terribly yet refuse to give up.
But in the end it came down to a simple choice... to surrender and give evil what it wanted or to defy evil even if the consequences were awful. So, Falco chooses defiance, because a battle mage does not know how to despair. They have faith... they hope... even when everything seems hopeless.
There's a line in a song from The Crow sound track (It can't rain all the time by Jane Siberry). It's a gorgeous song and this part always resonated with me...
"Do you have faith
In what you believe?
The truest test is when we cannot
When we cannot see."
Falco could not see a solution to the choice he faced. In the end, the only thing he could do was hope.
"But this was not a question of courage, it was a question of faith. Did he have the strength to keep faith even if it condemned his friends to eternal damnation?
Even if it condemned the world?"
Well there you go Bret. There are lots of other things that fed into this scene, but I hope that gives you some insight into my thinking.
Thanks again for the question
Peter
(hide spoiler)]
More Answered Questions
Karley Carter
asked
Peter A. Flannery:
Hello Mr. Flannery! I hope this question finds you well. I recently finished Battlemage, which is now my favorite book ever! I also bought and read both Decimus Fate books, which I also enjoyed :) I was wondering if it was possible to get a signed copy of Battlemage?
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