A Beautiful Accident

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This is an intriguing and well-developed short story.

Vendanj is a Sheason and Seelia is a Mal. Sheason and Mal seem to be two regions of the world they inhabit. The Mals seem to be masochists who have made the acceptance of pain part of their cultural values. The Sheasons seems to have some kind of ability to heal themselves and others through their will. Vendanj is undergoing the three-stage “excruciations” of the ritual of the Talenfoier. He is seeking honor within the Mal system in order to recover some kind of steel that the Mals have taken.

The story explores the Mal ideology, through Vendanj's submission to torture and through his relationship with Seelia. The story is a sketch that does a fair job of outlining a different culture. I was put in mind of Donald Kingsbury's Courtship Rites.