Medea (The Icemark Chronicles)
Encyclopedia
Medea Clytemnestra Strong-In-The-Arm Lindenshield is a fictional character
and the chief antagonist
from Stuart Hill
's fantasy
trilogy of books called The Icemark Chronicles
. She appears in a major role in both Blade Of Fire
and Last Battle Of The Icemark
. She does not appear in The Cry Of The Icemark
as it is set 20 years previously to the other novels.
Medea is the second youngest child (youngest daughter) of Queen Thirrin and Oskan Witchfather. Her full name is Medea Clytemnestra Strong-In-The-Arm Lindenshield. She is 15 years old. She has an elder sister - Crown Princess Cressida, 17, A pair of elder Twin Brothers - Cerdic & Eodred, 16, and a younger brother - Charlemagne,14. She is part of the Royal family of the Icemark and is a princess
. She is a descendant of the Wise Ones (the fallen immortal spirits and angels banished from the spirit realms to the Darkness).
Blade of Fire
Medea is looking out of her window from her tower room and brooding over the fact that her parents, who are marching home from The Ice Troll Wars will greet the rest of the family before her. She has a memory about how when she was sharing a nursery with Sharley when she was younger Sharley had broken a toy horse. She had fixed it for him, using magic, before making him tearfully watch as she broke it again. Throughout the cause of the book it is revealed that she is deeply jealous of her younger brother because of the attention and love his get as he got a withered leg when he suffered polio.
Medea tries to get Sharley killed by magically having a Greyling Bear attack him as he attempts to hunt
Oskan passes on his magic abilities by teaching Medea, as she is the only inheritor of his gifts. But Oskan is worried that Medea is drawn to The Circle Of Dark, the most dangerous plain of the Spirit Realms. Medea tries to kill Sharley by creating a magical storm when he sent away from The Icemark.
Oskan takes Medea on a diplomatic mission to The Land-of-the-Ghosts. While there Oskan reveals the true evil nature of the Dark to Medea and that his father lives in the realm. Medea is disappointed when she discovers that she can't access the Dark through the Vampiric Majesties.
Back home Medea spells the minds of the Icemarks' command and starts poisoning the family from within so they walk into a trap by The Polypontian forces. She does this in retaliation for her brother Cerdic being mean to her. Cerdic dies in the battle. This is when Medea decides to become evil and walk the paths of The Dark.
Cressida tries to get Medea to help with the war but to no avail. This is when she discovers Cressida is immune to magic so she cannot harm her.
When Sharley returns to the Icemark with an army to help her invaded country she tries to kill him by possessing Mekhmet but is defeated with the help of the Blessed Women. Then she tries to kill him with magically drawn lightning from the sky. Oskan deflects this back at her and banishes her to The Circle Of Dark.
Last Battle of the Icemark
Medea returns two years later where she has survived the torments of the Darkness and joins forces with Cronus, the Arc-Adept of The Darkness.
In order to obtain her right to be considered part of the Dark realm Medea has to do battle with the six adepts were banished from Paradise
with Cronus
(a Character based on Lucifer
). Medea defeats them in a magical battle.
Medea lures Sharley, Kirimin and Mekhmet into The Plain Of Desolation. While they are trapped there she tries to kill them numerous times using methods such as Elephantas, Trolls on bridges and ghosts. She has a battle with her father in spirit form there.
Oskan confronts Medea in The Darkness and they have a magical battle. Just as Oskan is about to destroy Medea's powers, Orla distracts Oskan allowing Medea to burn Oskan to the bone. Cressida comes and manages to wound Medea because she is immune to magic
. With Medea wounded Oskan then rescues Sharley, Mekhmet and Kirimin from The Plain Of Desolation.
Medea casts aside her physical form and becomes a being of pure spirit and literally immortal
.
While The Icemark is distracted with battle with Erinor and her Hordes in Romula, Medea and Cronus along with an army of Ice Demons invade the Icemark. The Vampire Queen and her army hold them at bay until Oskan and the witches transport the allied forced of The Icemark and Polypopntus back. While the allies defeat the Ice Demons. Oskan battles Medea and Cronus. Oskan is killed by the two of them but because there is a loophole that if one adept kills another they love they must pay the appointed cost and so they suffer dissolution.
. She is detached from everyone, and feels no compassion for anyone or anything. She has no friends and never wishes to socialise with her family. She prefers to spend her time locked in her tower room where she feels safest. When she does join her family she is locked in a deep and brooding silence. She blames her family for her loneliness. She has great trouble communicating her needs and her feelings. She choses to become evil rather then good as those with magical ability inherited from the Old Ones must make that choice. She thinks that she is misunderstood and blames others for her own evil nature.
from Greek mythology
who was a cunning, evil sorceress.
Her middle name of Clytemnestra
, as with her forename is based on another character from a Greek tragedy. It also bears a heavy resemblance to Thirrin's late aunt Elemnestra.
Her surname Lindenshield is named after a Viking shield
made of wood.
Medea has the ability to manipulate matter and create lifeforms from it.
Medea is a talented weather witch. She can create storm and draw lightning from the skies. She counters the lightning so it doesn't burn her with a blood-freezing arctic cold.
She also has a far-seeing
ability allowing her to see across the ocean though it is limited. Her Far-seeing is a lot stronger than her fathers that can barely make it to the eaves of the forest.
She has Mind-shielding ability that is secondto none.
She also has the power of possession
and the ability to travel in the Spirit Realm in spirit form.
In Last Battle Of The Icemark her abilities are almost limitless. The most notable addition to her armoury is the ability to shapeshift. She does this three times; once into Cronus, once into a Fire Wraith and once into a giant eagle. She also has acquired the ability to freeze time.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and the chief antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
from Stuart Hill
Stuart Hill (Author)
Stuart Hill is a British author. He was born in Leicester, where he still lives. He has written three books in The Icemark Chronicles: The Cry of the Icemark, Blade of Fire and Last Battle of the Icemark. He studied English, Classics and Ancient History at Newcastle University.On July 25 2011 ...
's fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
trilogy of books called The Icemark Chronicles
The Icemark Chronicles
The Icemark Chronicles is a series of books consisting of The Cry of the Icemark, followed by Blade of Fire, and Last Battle of the Icemark and the upcoming prequel called Redrought. The books were written by Stuart Hill from Leicester. Fox 2000 Pictures optioned the film rights to the book...
. She appears in a major role in both Blade Of Fire
Blade of Fire
Blade of Fire is the second novel in Stuart Hill's fantasy series, the Icemark Chronicles.-Plot summary:Blade of Fire takes place 20 years after the first novel. The story follows Thirrin's and Oskan's new efforts to repel the imposing threat of Imperial invasion, yet again at the hands of Scipio...
and Last Battle Of The Icemark
Last Battle of the Icemark
Last Battle Of The Icemark is the Third and presumably final book in the Icemark Chronicles by English author Stuart Hill. It was released on the 7 July 2008 in the UK and was released on 15 April 2009 in the US. It is currently out of print in the United Kingdom.-Plot summary:Two years have passed...
. She does not appear in The Cry Of The Icemark
The Cry of the Icemark
The Cry Of The Icemark is the first book in the Icemark Chronicles by English author Stuart Hill. The plot revolves around thirteen year old princess Thirrin Freer Strong-in-the-Arm Lindenshield, as she must fight to save her small home, the Icemark, from the invading Polypontian Empire.The novel...
as it is set 20 years previously to the other novels.
Plot
OverviewMedea is the second youngest child (youngest daughter) of Queen Thirrin and Oskan Witchfather. Her full name is Medea Clytemnestra Strong-In-The-Arm Lindenshield. She is 15 years old. She has an elder sister - Crown Princess Cressida, 17, A pair of elder Twin Brothers - Cerdic & Eodred, 16, and a younger brother - Charlemagne,14. She is part of the Royal family of the Icemark and is a princess
Princess
Princess is the feminine form of prince . Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or his daughters....
. She is a descendant of the Wise Ones (the fallen immortal spirits and angels banished from the spirit realms to the Darkness).
Blade of Fire
Medea is looking out of her window from her tower room and brooding over the fact that her parents, who are marching home from The Ice Troll Wars will greet the rest of the family before her. She has a memory about how when she was sharing a nursery with Sharley when she was younger Sharley had broken a toy horse. She had fixed it for him, using magic, before making him tearfully watch as she broke it again. Throughout the cause of the book it is revealed that she is deeply jealous of her younger brother because of the attention and love his get as he got a withered leg when he suffered polio.
Medea tries to get Sharley killed by magically having a Greyling Bear attack him as he attempts to hunt
Oskan passes on his magic abilities by teaching Medea, as she is the only inheritor of his gifts. But Oskan is worried that Medea is drawn to The Circle Of Dark, the most dangerous plain of the Spirit Realms. Medea tries to kill Sharley by creating a magical storm when he sent away from The Icemark.
Oskan takes Medea on a diplomatic mission to The Land-of-the-Ghosts. While there Oskan reveals the true evil nature of the Dark to Medea and that his father lives in the realm. Medea is disappointed when she discovers that she can't access the Dark through the Vampiric Majesties.
Back home Medea spells the minds of the Icemarks' command and starts poisoning the family from within so they walk into a trap by The Polypontian forces. She does this in retaliation for her brother Cerdic being mean to her. Cerdic dies in the battle. This is when Medea decides to become evil and walk the paths of The Dark.
Cressida tries to get Medea to help with the war but to no avail. This is when she discovers Cressida is immune to magic so she cannot harm her.
When Sharley returns to the Icemark with an army to help her invaded country she tries to kill him by possessing Mekhmet but is defeated with the help of the Blessed Women. Then she tries to kill him with magically drawn lightning from the sky. Oskan deflects this back at her and banishes her to The Circle Of Dark.
Last Battle of the Icemark
Medea returns two years later where she has survived the torments of the Darkness and joins forces with Cronus, the Arc-Adept of The Darkness.
In order to obtain her right to be considered part of the Dark realm Medea has to do battle with the six adepts were banished from Paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
with Cronus
Cronus
In Greek mythology, Cronus or Kronos was the leader and the youngest of the first generation of Titans, divine descendants of Gaia, the earth, and Uranus, the sky...
(a Character based on Lucifer
Lucifer
Traditionally, Lucifer is a name that in English generally refers to the devil or Satan before being cast from Heaven, although this is not the original meaning of the term. In Latin, from which the English word is derived, Lucifer means "light-bearer"...
). Medea defeats them in a magical battle.
Medea lures Sharley, Kirimin and Mekhmet into The Plain Of Desolation. While they are trapped there she tries to kill them numerous times using methods such as Elephantas, Trolls on bridges and ghosts. She has a battle with her father in spirit form there.
Oskan confronts Medea in The Darkness and they have a magical battle. Just as Oskan is about to destroy Medea's powers, Orla distracts Oskan allowing Medea to burn Oskan to the bone. Cressida comes and manages to wound Medea because she is immune to magic
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
. With Medea wounded Oskan then rescues Sharley, Mekhmet and Kirimin from The Plain Of Desolation.
Medea casts aside her physical form and becomes a being of pure spirit and literally immortal
Immortality
Immortality is the ability to live forever. It is unknown whether human physical immortality is an achievable condition. Biological forms have inherent limitations which may or may not be able to be overcome through medical interventions or engineering...
.
While The Icemark is distracted with battle with Erinor and her Hordes in Romula, Medea and Cronus along with an army of Ice Demons invade the Icemark. The Vampire Queen and her army hold them at bay until Oskan and the witches transport the allied forced of The Icemark and Polypopntus back. While the allies defeat the Ice Demons. Oskan battles Medea and Cronus. Oskan is killed by the two of them but because there is a loophole that if one adept kills another they love they must pay the appointed cost and so they suffer dissolution.
Appearance
Medea is described as small and slender. She is portrayed as beautiful. She has long black hair, deathly pale skin and black pupilless eyes. She wears long sleeved dresses.Personality
Medea has an odd personality. Medea is a vindictive, selfish girl who resents her siblings, and sees them as having more of her parents love then herself. She is dark, cold-hearted and mysterious. She is mainly quiet but is intelligent and cunningCunning
Cunning can also mean slip past or sneaky.Cunning can refer to the following:*A Japanese comedy group known as Cunning *The Cunning folk, a type of folk magic user...
. She is detached from everyone, and feels no compassion for anyone or anything. She has no friends and never wishes to socialise with her family. She prefers to spend her time locked in her tower room where she feels safest. When she does join her family she is locked in a deep and brooding silence. She blames her family for her loneliness. She has great trouble communicating her needs and her feelings. She choses to become evil rather then good as those with magical ability inherited from the Old Ones must make that choice. She thinks that she is misunderstood and blames others for her own evil nature.
Character Origins
As with a lot of Stuart Hill characters, Medea is based upon a character from history. She is based upon MedeaMedea
Medea is a woman in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, niece of Circe, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and later wife to the hero Jason, with whom she had two children, Mermeros and Pheres. In Euripides's play Medea, Jason leaves Medea when Creon, king of...
from Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
who was a cunning, evil sorceress.
Her middle name of Clytemnestra
Clytemnestra
Clytemnestra or Clytaemnestra , in ancient Greek legend, was the wife of Agamemnon, king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Mycenae or Argos. In the Oresteia by Aeschylus, she was a femme fatale who murdered her husband, Agamemnon – said by Euripides to be her second husband – and the Trojan princess...
, as with her forename is based on another character from a Greek tragedy. It also bears a heavy resemblance to Thirrin's late aunt Elemnestra.
Her surname Lindenshield is named after a Viking shield
Linden
Linden is one of three English names for the tree genus Tilia . Several of the common names for species within the Tilia genus have Linden in their names...
made of wood.
Abilities
Medea's magical ability is first discovered when she is a child. It is weak at first and merely consists of predicting what they will have for dinner and making a mouse materialise across her bed but by 14 her powers have grown strong.Medea has the ability to manipulate matter and create lifeforms from it.
Medea is a talented weather witch. She can create storm and draw lightning from the skies. She counters the lightning so it doesn't burn her with a blood-freezing arctic cold.
She also has a far-seeing
Far-Seer
Far-Seer is a novel written by Canadian science fiction author, Robert J. Sawyer. It is the first book of the Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy, and is followed by two sequels: Fossil Hunter, and Foreigner...
ability allowing her to see across the ocean though it is limited. Her Far-seeing is a lot stronger than her fathers that can barely make it to the eaves of the forest.
She has Mind-shielding ability that is secondto none.
She also has the power of possession
Possession
In law, possession is the control a person intentionally exercises toward a thing. In all cases, to possess something, a person must have an intention to possess it. A person may be in possession of some property...
and the ability to travel in the Spirit Realm in spirit form.
In Last Battle Of The Icemark her abilities are almost limitless. The most notable addition to her armoury is the ability to shapeshift. She does this three times; once into Cronus, once into a Fire Wraith and once into a giant eagle. She also has acquired the ability to freeze time.