‘There is no dragon,’ Bendir spoke slowly, with great finality. ‘Whatever was in there died long ago. It was probably mad before it died. All that is left of it are its memories. It is no more alive than liveships are truly alive. The planks absorb memories, and retain them. That is all. If it weren’t true, we wouldn’t be able to cut up a log and allow Bingtowners to store fresh memories in them. Anyone who talks to a liveship is really talking to himself, mingled with the family memories stored in the wood. That is all. When you talk to that log, you hear your own thoughts, as interpreted by
...more
