Pond

Biography

Recruitment and service to the Inverted Tree

Pond meets Saul as the smiling, white-haired dean of Bayton Academy and tries to draw the newly arrived wizard into the institution's work. His deeper loyalty belongs to Bethstana and the Inverted Tree. When Saul returns as a Third Rank Wizard, Pond uses the tree's branches to bind him, hoping borrowed power can compensate for the difference in rank. Saul corrodes the restraints, destroys Pond's confidence, and kills him with a soul tentacle before proceeding into the tree. (Chapters 465–498, 732–738)

Appearance and personality

Pond is a white-haired old man with an approachable smile. Polite and persuasive as a dean, he becomes fearful once the Inverted Tree's apparent advantage fails.

Abilities

He is a Second Rank Wizard and can command the Inverted Tree's branches and roots strongly enough to restrain a Third Rank opponent temporarily.

Relationships

• Bethstana: Pond serves Bethstana and derives his final battlefield control from her Inverted Tree.
• Saul: He first recruits Saul, then opposes him directly and dies when Saul overwhelms the tree's pollution.