Harrow the Ninth

Harrow has killed 12 planets and is working on the 13th with Mercy’s help. Harrow has been coerced into wearing the customary cavalier rapier on her hip despite always carrying the two-hander with her. When Harrow causes a cascade of thanergy explosions throughout the planet, she and Mercy enter the River to chase the planet’s soul. They must kill it so it does not become a Resurrection Beast millennia from now. After a brief fight, Harrow emerges victorious. The Body watches, and Harrow notes that the Body is always present at the precise moment she destroys a planet’s soul.

When Harrow emerges from the River, she finds herself lying on the ground; Mercy’s body is standing and at the ready. When a regular Lyctor like Mercy leaves her body, the soul-battery that remains of their former cavalier takes over to defend the body. Harrow, however, has no soul-battery cavalier to defend hers (due to severing her connection from Gideon). Harrow is completely defenseless while in the River.

Harrow finds herself in Ianthe’s rooms lamenting that she is “not a normal Lyctor” (138). While Ianthe is a “normal Lyctor,” she cannot use her replacement arm, impacting her swordplay.