Repost: Timesword - Introduction
Robert B. Marks
Towards the end of 1997, I came to an important decision: I
decided to write my last piece of fan fiction (chapter I of
_Timewar_) and begin to work on solely professional work.
However, the group of writers here has managed to trap me quite
efficiently, and I couldn't bring myself to leave them entirely.
So, when the opportunity to work with the wonderful talent
in alt.drwho.creative on an editorial basis arose, I grasped it
immediately. After all, I would be editing, but I wouldn't be
writing, correct?
The best laid plans of mice and men...
As usually happens, something went wrong. One of the best
authors in Season 1 decided to retire as I had to work on his
original writing, leaving a hole in the schedule that had to be
filled, and nobody else could fill it in time.
And so I found myself writing some Who fiction once more,
trying to find a plot that hadn't been rehashed umpteen times (a
dangerous trap in fan fiction), and my mind came to rest on two
things: _Timewar_ and King Arthur.
I have never been fully satisfied with the way _Timewar_
ended up. It could have been a great work of fantasy, but at
least one other writer wanted nothing to do with that style of
writing, and the story failed. And nothing was ever done with
the Timesword: it became a tool, and nothing more.
This was a great disappointment to me. I had based the idea
of the Timesword off of the great blades in fantasy and myth,
such as Michael Moorcock's Stormbringer, which gives its bearer
great power at the cost of the people around him, and Gram, which
is not only a symbol of the great destiny of the Volsungs, but is
also a symbol of their horrible curse as well. The Timesword,
cruelly ignored in favour of the greater story, remained only a
sword.
And so I decided to examine it more carefully. The Timewar
had already been fought, the Dark One had been defeated, and I
certainly didn't want to end up writing some piece of crap where
the Dark One manages to survive being broken into his component
parts to once again wreak havoc on the universe. But, my mind
kept returning to the Timesword, a thing made in the very first
universe, surrounded by fate, and, more importantly, STILL
AROUND.
And, as I thought about it, I thought about the Arthurian
Legends.
Recently, a miniseries called _Merlin_ came on to North
American television, and presented one of the most complete
(while painfully optimistic: Merlin actually manages to gain
fulfillment at the end) retellings of the Arthurian legends
available. I was very impressed: not only was King Arthur
explored, but so was Uther, his father, and how his line came to
the throne in the first place. It is a tragic story, and I began
to wonder at what role a sword of power would play in it.
And so _Timesword_ was born. I looked back at the original
Arthurian legends, at how Uther and Fortager met in battle, and
Uther won, only to lose Excalibur once again. And as I thought,
the ideas began to flow. Ideas of how Excalibur itself, the
Timesword, would change the people around it, and create the
horrible tragedy that would follow.
I only needed to put it into a historical context. Often,
we make the mistake of placing early Britannic history into a
Christian context, but this is not the case. The Angles, Saxons
and Jutes were not Christians, and worshipped gods such as Wodan
and Thor. The Celts on the island tended to remain with their
druidic religion. The days of Arthur were days of invasions from
migrating tribes, and it is thought that the historical King
Arthur was a Welsh warlord. It would be a century or two before
Christianity would mean anything to the Anglo-Saxons.
This does not match the legends involved, though. Uther is
an invader, which would make him a Saxon rather than a Celt, and
also probably a worshipper of Wodan or whatever other tribal gods
he had. At least, for this story, that is my interpretation (I
have written another story, _The Dark Tower_, where Arthur is
quite firmly Celtic). Fortager is also an invader, but from
another Germanic tribe. And Merlin is among them both.
Merlin is one of the chief difficulties. He is reputed to
be many things: he lives his life backwards in time (his future
is his past, etc.), he was born through a mortal mother and a
demonic father, he is the personification of the old ways and the
druids. To me, he seemed perfect to attach to both the Irish
Tuatha de Danaan and the god Wodan, who would be looking at the
coming Christianity and seeing the old ways perish as it came.
And so the story developed.
You see, this is a story about fate and power. It is a
story about magic and the price of protecting a status quo. It
is a story of Uther, Fortager and Merlin. But, it isn't a story
about the Doctor. Oh, he is a character, but in the greater
scheme of things, only a minor one.
And, for this story, that is exactly as it should be.
Robert B. Marks
--
The future has not been written, / The past is set in stone,
And I am but a lonely wanderer, / With time my only home.
-- From Magus Draconum
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