/lit/ - Literature

Does this shit get better after the awful prologue?

>"The Hegemony Consul sat on the balcony of his ebony spaceship and played
Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C-sharp Minor on an ancient but
well-maintained Steinway while great, green, saurian things surged and
bellowed in the swamps below."

Is he gonna play Chopin Prelude in E minor next? Maybe Moonlight sonata?

>"The Consul concentrated on a
difficult section of the Prelude and ignored the approach of storm and
nightfall."

We got it the first time, you listen to youtube classical piano compilations. Really moody environment you got going on here

>"The fatline chimed again. 'Damn,' said the Consul and went in to answer it."

Got to have an epic opening line for the cool guy

>"the Consul poured himself a glass of Scotch."

Of course, he wouldn't drink anything else

>"'You and six others have been selected by the Church of the Shrike and
confirmed by the All Thing,' "

Don't hide your Dune influence so well, we might not notice it

>"The Consul stood motionless in the pit, his back to the flickering
transmission codes. Without turning, he raised his glass and drained
the last of the Scotch."

Chugging whiskey with his back to a pretty hologram woman, this guy clearly fucks

>"The Consul nodded and absently raised the Scotch to his lips. "

Jesus, can this be the end of the damn Scotch?

>"'The Templars are sending their treeship
Yggdrasil!,'"

Really unique name there, uncommon to see norse mythology referenced in scifi-fantasy

>"The Consul walked through the holo of Meina Gladstone, retrieved his
glass, and went to pour another Scotch. "

God damnit

>"The Consul's smile faded and he drank his Scotch. "

This is exhausting

>"The Consul's frown deepened. He stared at the cloud of digits
flickering like dust motes around the old woman's image."

He's such a serious man

>"'We need your help,' said Meina Gladstone... The fate of the
Hegemony may depend upon it."

Wait, have I seen this trope before?

>"The transmission ended except for the pulse of rendezvous coordinates.
'Response?" asked the ship's computer.... 'No,' said the Consul and went outside to lean on the balcony railing."

"Do you want another opportunity to cheaply force your cool nature on the audience?"

>"he thought about
morning, about setting out in the Vikken EMV at first light, about
spending the day in sunshine, about hunting big game in the fern forests
to the south and then returning to the ship in the evening for a good
steak and a cold beer."

HAHA did he get the country music industry to write this one for him?

>"He listened as the fury of the storm blended with the
violence of Wagner's 'Flight of the Valkyries.'... Wagner is good only for thunderstorms, he thought."

Another pop culture classical reference, couldn't forget.

Did I get baited into reading this?