[Re-Introduction] Titus Awakened, or Search without End
The young man with the smoke-colored eyes has traveled many paths, since he awakened in the boat which took him away from the boundaries of Gormenghast, the Mansion and his death there a jumble of images that soon find themselves competing with the strange sights he finds on the journey that follows. His feet have trod roads winding across deserts and through mountain passes; he has walked the pavement of a glittering industrial metropolis, marveling at its towers of glass and steel, and he has slogged through the muddy tracks of the Underriver. He has near frozen to death in snowy mountains, found solace among simple village folk and crossed a narrow sea in a small boat of his own making. He has been held captive by a mad heiress, been the kept man of socialites twice and even three times his age, been imprisoned for vagrancy and held as a prisoner of a war he barely comprehended.
He has been the companion of eccentrics and dilletantes, has modeled for artists and listened with boredom to the gushings of would-be poets. He has fallen afoul of bandits, traveled in the company of hoboes, and fallen in with rebels whose only cause was boredom. He has had friends and lovers whom he cherished, and yet whom he has kept at a distance, lest the ties challenge his need for freedom. And yet, he has wondered if in doing so, he has enslaved his heart to his own ideals.
And he has seen a man cut down by madness who was raised up again through the power of love; and so he has been travelling to the island where that man and his family dwell in peace.
Just as a boat took him away from Gormenghast, so now he is travelling again by boat, sitting on a bench on the deck of a ferry, the sun warm on his head and the salt spray from the track of the vessel tanging his lips. He closes his eyes, leaning back against the wheelhouse, taking comfort in the certainty of his destination. And so he lets himself drift off to sleep, warmed by the sun and rocked by the waves...
But when he awakens, it is not by the shipmaster nudging his arm: cold air jolts him into full consciousness, and he awakens in darkness, feeling only a nest of plastic bags under his naked body. He feels about him, but he appears to be lying in a coffin with slippery walls. He bangs about for a moment, till he finds that the lid has some give to it and so he heaves against it valiantly, managing to get some light and air into the cramped space.
What is going wrong now?!
Name: Titus Groan
Fandom: Gormenghast
Media: TV series, with the last two books, "Titus Alone" and "Titus Awakes" tacked on after the ending
Typist: matrixrefugee
Other relevant info: And yes, Titus returns, in one of the large, chest-style freezers in Muraki's lab, where Jacquel had been storing his fragmented remains. The Mansion can't seem to let go of its butt-monkey. He's arriving from toward the end of "Titus Awakes", when he's on his way to the island, to meet up the mysterious artist and his family. He's about ten years older than when he first arrived at the Mansion, and while he'll be a bit sadder and wiser, he's still quite young-looking. Looking for old faces and new! He'll be a bit baffled, since the Mansion is a dim memory to him, but refreshing his memory will happen quickly.
The first commenter acts as a welcoming committee. All following interactions are deemed later in the day, when the character is settled.
He has been the companion of eccentrics and dilletantes, has modeled for artists and listened with boredom to the gushings of would-be poets. He has fallen afoul of bandits, traveled in the company of hoboes, and fallen in with rebels whose only cause was boredom. He has had friends and lovers whom he cherished, and yet whom he has kept at a distance, lest the ties challenge his need for freedom. And yet, he has wondered if in doing so, he has enslaved his heart to his own ideals.
And he has seen a man cut down by madness who was raised up again through the power of love; and so he has been travelling to the island where that man and his family dwell in peace.
Just as a boat took him away from Gormenghast, so now he is travelling again by boat, sitting on a bench on the deck of a ferry, the sun warm on his head and the salt spray from the track of the vessel tanging his lips. He closes his eyes, leaning back against the wheelhouse, taking comfort in the certainty of his destination. And so he lets himself drift off to sleep, warmed by the sun and rocked by the waves...
But when he awakens, it is not by the shipmaster nudging his arm: cold air jolts him into full consciousness, and he awakens in darkness, feeling only a nest of plastic bags under his naked body. He feels about him, but he appears to be lying in a coffin with slippery walls. He bangs about for a moment, till he finds that the lid has some give to it and so he heaves against it valiantly, managing to get some light and air into the cramped space.
What is going wrong now?!
Name: Titus Groan
Fandom: Gormenghast
Media: TV series, with the last two books, "Titus Alone" and "Titus Awakes" tacked on after the ending
Typist: matrixrefugee
Other relevant info: And yes, Titus returns, in one of the large, chest-style freezers in Muraki's lab, where Jacquel had been storing his fragmented remains. The Mansion can't seem to let go of its butt-monkey. He's arriving from toward the end of "Titus Awakes", when he's on his way to the island, to meet up the mysterious artist and his family. He's about ten years older than when he first arrived at the Mansion, and while he'll be a bit sadder and wiser, he's still quite young-looking. Looking for old faces and new! He'll be a bit baffled, since the Mansion is a dim memory to him, but refreshing his memory will happen quickly.
The first commenter acts as a welcoming committee. All following interactions are deemed later in the day, when the character is settled.