The Songbird and the Heart of Stone

“In times of great darkness, humans crawl to light like flies to the gleaming silver of a spider’s silk. These are the souls that gods feast upon. No one loves you more than someone who has no one else.”

Atroxus’s point of view in the Prologue, as he regards Mische and her sister Saescha, clearly reveals The Dangers of Unquestioning Loyalty. While Mische views Atroxus as the benevolent savior who blessed her with a gift and provided her home and love, Atroxus’s perspective reveals that to him, she is only a source of gratification for his ego. The narrative uses a metaphor to compare this ego-gratification to a feast, implying that Atroxus’s relationship to his human devotees is predatory.

“She was, in their eyes, not the type who was worthy of salvation.”

This passage from the Prologue foreshadows Mische false belief that she is not worthy of salvation, or redemption. By the time the novel opens, Mische has been struggling with this belief for decades, introducing the theme of Self-Destruction in Pursuit of Redemption.

“Even he could not describe what he found so charming about the child, but what did it matter? She would be another chosen one to add to his collection, happy to receive his attention when it suited him and easy to put aside when it didn’t. She would follow him until the end of it all, just as all the others had.”

This passage introduces The Dangers of Unquestioning Loyalty. Atroxus clearly does not care much for his devoted acolytes, even those on whom he supposedly bestows his affections. Therefore, placing unquestioning faith and loyalty into the sun god, believing he will care enough to protect them, poses a risk to every acolyte.