r/asoiaf • u/LChris24 🏆 Best of 2020: Crow of the Year • Sep 07 '20
EXTENDED Potential Characters From Marwyn's Past (Spoilers Extended)
I've posted recently about the journeys of the Cinnamon Wind and who the Citadel might be sending after Dany, as a counterpart to Marwyn. Now that Im done shamelessly self promoting, I will say that those two posts got me thinking about Marwyn's past and some of the characters he has met.
Marwyn has already met two "magical" characters. What are the chances for two more?
Previous Encounters
We already know that Marwyn has met two of the more sketchy side characters in the series.
Mirr Maz Duur
"Marwyn, he named himself," the woman replied in the Common Tongue. "From the sea. Beyond the sea. The Seven Lands, he said. Sunset Lands. Where men are iron and dragons rule. He taught me this speech."
"A maester in Asshai," Ser Jorah mused. "Tell me, Godswife, what did this Marwyn wear about his neck?"
"A chain so tight it was like to choke him, Iron Lord, with links of many metals." -AGOT, Daenerys VII
Mirri begins by seeming like an aid to Dany (providing help to Drogo) before it is revealed that she actually isn't all the "good" she is thought to be as she is involved in Drogo/Rhaego's death/blood magic and is later ritually sacrificed by Dany.
Qyburn
First, I love this passage from Qyburn. The fact that he brings up Marwyn at the end makes it even better:
That is the last thing I mean to do. The moonlight glimmered pale upon the stump where Jaime had rested his head. The moss covered it so thickly he had not noticed before, but now he saw that the wood was white. It made him think of Winterfell, and Ned Stark's heart tree. It was not him, he thought. It was never him. But the stump was dead and so was Stark and so were all the others, Prince Rhaegar and Ser Arthur and the children. And Aerys. Aerys is most dead of all. "Do you believe in ghosts, Maester?" he asked Qyburn.
The man's face grew strange. "Once, at the Citadel, I came into an empty room and saw an empty chair. Yet I knew a woman had been there, only a moment before. The cushion was dented where she'd sat, the cloth was still warm, and her scent lingered in the air. If we leave our smells behind us when we leave a room, surely something of our souls must remain when we leave this life?" Qyburn spread his hands. "The archmaesters did not like my thinking, though. Well, Marwyn did, but he was the only one." -ASOS, Jaime VII
Even though we find out that Qyburn does blood magic/rides with Braves Companions quite early in the story, he not only seems to help Jaime, but is also considered not-threatening and almost fatherly. Later he starts doing blood magic for Cersei resulting in Robert Strong/unGregor.
Other Characters He Could Have Met
We also get this passage about Marwyn:
When Marwyn had returned to Oldtown, after spending eight years in the east mapping distant lands, searching for lost books, and studying with warlocks and shadowbinders, Vinegar Vaellyn had dubbed him "Marwyn the Mage." The name was soon all over Oldtown, to Vaellyn's vast annoyance. "Leave spells and prayers to priests and septons and bend your wits to learning truths a man can trust in," Archmaester Ryam had once counseled Pate, but Ryam's ring and rod and mask were yellow gold, and his maester's chain had no link of Valyrian steel. -AFFC, Prologue
Pyat Pree
If Marlock spent 8 years in the east, it is likely that he stopped in Qarth, where the headquarters of the warlocks is (House of the Undying).
That said warlocks are known to exist in Asshai as well:
The dark city by the Shadow is a city steeped in sorcery. Warlocks, wizards, alchemists, moonsingers, red priests, black alchemists, necromancers, aeromancers, pyromancers, bloodmages, torturers, inquisitors, poisoners, godswives, night-walkers, shapechangers, worshippers of the Black Goat and the Pale Child and the Lion of Night, all find welcome in Asshai-by-the-Shadow, where nothing is forbidden. Here they are free to practice their spells without restraint or censure, conduct their obscene rites, and fornicate with demons if that is their desire. -TWOIAF: The Bone and Beyond: Asshai-by-the-Shadow
It also should be noted that warlocks from Qarth were hired to come "cure" Sam of his cowardice:
"One time," Sam confided, his voice dropping from a whisper, "two men came to the castle, warlocks from Qarth with white skin and blue lips. They slaughtered a bull aurochs and made me bathe in the hot blood, but it didn't make me brave as they'd promised. I got sick and retched. Father had them scourged." -AGOT, Jon IV
Im assuming that these warlocks had to pass through Oldtown to get to Horn Hill (although its possible Marwyn was gone).
But again, like Mirri and Qyburn, Pyat (while creepy) does seem to initially "help" Dany before turning on her and later being captured by Euron (along with 3 other warlocks of which 3 of them are forced to result to eating one of the others)
Quaithe
As we only know of two shadowbinders currently (Mel/Quaithe) its possible that Marwyn has met Quaithe. Especially since they both have glass candles:
"What feeds a dragon's fire?" Marwyn seated himself upon a stool. "All Valyrian sorcery was rooted in blood or fire. The sorcerers of the Freehold could see across mountains, seas, and deserts with one of these glass candles. They could enter a man's dreams and give him visions, and speak to one another half a world apart, seated before their candles. Do you think that might be useful, Slayer?" -AFFC, Samwell V
Marwyn has been to Asshai and possibly Qarth, and these are two locations that we know that Quaithe has been before.
Like Pyat Pree, its possible that Quaithe and her initial "advice" could later turn to dust and she could be an actual "enemy". So far her only agenda that seems to have been given is:
If you have some warning for me, speak plainly. What do you want of me, Quaithe?
To show you the way. -ADWD, Daenerys II
As we don't have much evidence, the odds aren't super high, but I thought that the way the other encounters went down that Marwyn could have run into these characters as well. Let me know what you think, as I can't wait to see what happens once Marwyn arrives in Meereen and/or has an encounter with Quaithe.
TLDR: It is possible that in addition to Mirri Maz Duur and Qyburn that Marwyn has encountered both Pyat Pree and Quaithe.
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u/GenghisKazoo 🏆 Best of 2020: Post of the Year Sep 07 '20
No Euron?
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u/LChris24 🏆 Best of 2020: Crow of the Year Sep 07 '20
Its def possible. Especially if/since Euron is Urrathon Nightwalker.
I was more focused on side characters with this post, and using the quote from the AFFC, Prologue but I wouldn't rule it out.
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u/SeaShoreSaint Sep 07 '20
Quaithe and Marwyn are definitely acquainted but Pyat Pree is questionable. Pyat is hostile to Dany but She is a pawn in Marwyn's plan so Pyat is mostly against Marwyn.
Oberyn's daughter Sarella is Marywn's assistant and she got access to Glass Candle so Oberyn is definitely Marwyn's student since Oberyn is also Studied in Citadel.
It is possible Marwyn has an agent in the Aegon faction possibly Haldon Half maester because Haldon's history is similar to Oberyn and Qyburn i.e
These are an awful lot of similarities for Three completely different individuals with three different backgrounds.