Mappo Runt

Mappo Runt
Fan art by Tsabo6
Biographical information
Race	Trell
Gender	Male
Appearance	Massive canines
Social information
Affiliation	Nameless Ones
Occupation(s)	Companion to Icarium

Interpretation of Mappo Runt by Yapattack

Interpretation of Mappo by Corporal Nobbs

Mappo Runt [map-ō] was a full-blooded Trell and Icarium's companion. He was big even for a Trell, with broad shoulders, sinewy muscled long arms, and a mane of black hair braided and studded with fetishes. He had deep, warm brown skin, and eyes the color of sand, set deep in a robustly boned, pallid face. His massive sharp canines became exposed whenever he grinned, and his fingers were blunt and wrinkled. He possessed the ability to see in the dark.

Mappo's homeland was on the other side of the Jhag Odhan (as stated from the location of the temple of Tesem).

He wore leather armour, though his natural hide was thicker, and moccasins.

Mappo carried a large leather saddlebag over his shoulder presented to him by his Clan's witches. It contained a small, private Warren giving it a basically unlimited carrying capacity. Within the bag he kept his cooking utensils, bedding, tents, healing elixirs, and the occasional irritating person. It also stored a massive petrified bone club ensorcelled by seven Trell witches. The club was half again as long as his arm and had once been the thigh bone of a powerful prehistoric beast. It was hard as iron and golden in lustre. Its tip was ringed by thumb-sized spike-shaped teeth.

In Deadhouse Gates

Spoiler warning: The following section contains significant plot details about Mappo Runt.

Mappo was one of many companions to Icarium over the millennia, charged by the Nameless Ones to lead the amnesiac Jhag on a purposely endless search for answers, making sure he did not remember what had happened to him and keeping his rage in check. After two hundred years of companionship, he was able to sense when Icarium was near.

Icarium and Mappo traveled to the Pan'potsun Odhan on Seven Cities ostensibly in search of Icarium's ever elusive past. There the two stumbled upon the dangerous convergence of Soletaken and D'ivers known as the Path of Hands. They narrowly avoided a confrontation with Ryllandaras before encountering the Trell's old friend Messremb.

By accident they discovered the gate sought by the shape-shifters within Tesem, a temple of Shadow occupied by High Priest Iskaral Pust. Pust schemed to keep the gate hidden and he manipulated the two into serving as powerful guardians. They were soon joined at the temple by Fiddler, Apsalar, and Crokus. Mappo and Icarium helped Apsalar reunite with her father Rellock and accompanied the newcomers to the Azath House Tremorlor. With the aid of the Hounds of Shadow, they fought their way through hordes of Soletaken and D'ivers. All the while Mappo struggled to keep Icarium from raging or from becoming imprisoned by the House. During this time, Mappo revealed to Icarium his history of destructive rages.

After entering the house and passing into the Azath Warren, Mappo and Icarium were separated from the others. They found themselves near the village of Balahn on the Aren Way, and Mappo used his healing elixirs to save the lives of two dogs, Bent and Roach. Icarium no longer remembered the events of the last few days or Mappo's admission, and so they headed westward into the Jhag Odhan on their never-ending search for answers.

In House of Chains

Interpretation of Mappo by Zsosy

As Karsa Orlong traveled through the mountains on the western edge of Raraku he was hunted by a score of Ryllandaras' wolf forms. The D'ivers eventually gave up the chase, but warned the Teblor of two men further up the trail. It noted that if Karsa were to come to blows with one of them, the world would regret it.

Karsa soon came upon Icarium and Mappo at the site of an ancient city built on the side of a mesa. Mappo invited Karsa to eat by the fire while Icarium picked through the rubble that partially buried the city. The Trell noted the spirits of Bairoth Gild and Delum Thord that followed in Karsa's wake. He also spoke of Convergences while preparing for the inevitable clash between Icarium and Karsa. Icarium recognised Karsa as one of the fallen Teblor then apologised to Mappo for what the Trell was about to witness and drew his sword.

Icarium shattered Karsa's Ironwood blade at the hilt, causing the furious Teblor to knock out the Jhag with a punch to the face. Mappo ended the battle by striking the Teblor in the back of the head with his mace. As both combatants still lived, Mappo was pleased with the results. When Karsa awoke, he discovered that Mappo had placed the pieces of his broken sword at his side along with a bouquet of desert flowers.

In The Bonehunters

Mappo Runt by Dejan Delic

Mappo and Icarium explored the western shore of the new inland sea now covering Raraku. The Trell had grown tired of the charade, lying and misdirecting his friend. Even worse, he had broken his vow to the Nameless Ones when he had told Icarium the truth at Tremorlor, although the Jhag had quickly forgotten. Mappo had initially revealed the truth out of friendship, but in his heart he came to attribute it to his own selfish self-interest. Guilt gnawed at him. Deciding on their next destination, Mappo had to reluctantly reveal that many of the cities Icarium recalled in the region had long since turned to dust.

Icarium and Mappo inside the skykeep by Slaine69

Later in their travels, they discovered a vast chasm that had recently been exposed by a shifting of the sand. The two explorers climbed to the chasm's bottom where they found a K'Chain Nah'ruk mechanism, still containing the corpse of its pilot, within a pool of melting Omtose Phellack ice. Mappo realised they had found the entrance to a K'Chain Nah'ruk Skykeep that had mistakenly travelled through a gate into solid bedrock. The Trell found the skykeep's entrance and the pair explored the alien structure. In the skykeep's immense hollow centre, was a fortress floating in space, reached only by a single stone span. Inside the fortress they found the crucified remains of Sorrit, the Eleint aspected to Serc. Mappo saw this as evidence that the pantheon was under siege.

Interpretation of Icarium and Mappo by slaine69

Mappo's betrayal of the Nameless Ones led the cult to seek his replacement. They freed the fearsome T'rolbarahl, Dejim Nebrahl, to hunt and kill the Trell. After being ambushed, Mappo managed to kill two of the D'ivers' seven forms before driving off the T'rolbarahl and seemingly falling from a cliff to his own death. The Nameless Ones' handpicked replacement, Taralack Veed, nursed the gravely wounded Icarium back to health and took Mappo's place with the amnesiac Icarium none the wiser. Shadowthrone sent Iskaral Pust to find Mappo. The High Priest sent Dejim Nebrahl running then pulled Mappo's body from the crevice where he had been pinned for several days. The Trell's legs were broken, his ribs crushed, his flesh rotting, and his blood poisoned. Mogora interceded in Pust's ministrations to perform a healing ritual that shrouded Mappo's body in spider silk.

While still unconscious, Mappo was visited by a vision of Ardata, who was not pleased that Mogora had granted the Trell a favour in her name. She revealed that the Nameless Ones had replaced him with another guardian for Icarium. Mappo was also surprised to learn from Ardata that it was the Nameless Ones who had originally made Icarium so terrible in power and that they intended to use the Jhag for some unknown purpose. Ardata concluded that countering the Nameless Ones must be why Shadowthrone showed interest in Mappo. When the Trell awoke, his skin was covered in lines and creases—the price of the spiders' healing.

Interpretation of Mappo and Icarium by Jeanfverreault

Cotillion and the Hounds of Shadow came to visit the recuperating Trell. The god told Mappo that he and Shadowthrone had studied the Azath and learned they were repositories for the Lost Elementals in addition to prisons—and the Azath's control was failing. He suspected the Nameless Ones knew this and their action against Mappo was a sign of their desperation. Therefore both Cotillion and Shadowthrone sought to aid Mappo and Icarium to counter the Nameless Ones from committing an act that would further pitch the Azath towards chaos and dissolution. They had rescued Mappo and now put him on the path to curing Icarium's condition to foil the cult's plans to turn the Jhag into a weapon. He told the Trell the gods were marching toward a convergence beyond comprehension, but not to give up hope.

Mappo and Iskaral Pust set out to find Icarium, but the High Priest seemed more hindrance than help, delaying their passage by choosing a dubious path through a marsh. When the Trell finally decided to turn around, they encountered a woman who introduced herself as Spite. She admitted to having worked with the Nameless Ones to free Dejim Nebrahl, but had since been outlawed by them and was relieved the T'rolbarahl had failed. She offered up her knowledge of the Nameless One's plans to help the Trell, and brought them to her ship saying they must cross half the world to find Icarium.

Crossing the Otataral Sea, Mappo observed Spite speaking to the Eres'al, although he did not know who the savannah spirit was. He also noted the ship was crawling with spiders, indicating Mogora's presence. When a dozen suns fell from the sky raining debris upon them, Spite suddenly veered into an Eleint to rescue the passengers of a ship sinking nearby. Mappo immediately recognised Crokus among those Spite brought on board and admitted to him he had lost Icarium. Crokus put his hand on the Trell's shoulder and offered his sympathy and Mappo broke down and wept.

In Toll the Hounds

Mappo, having arrived in Darujhistan, Genabackis, hired a Trygalle Trade Guild caravan, led by Master Quell, to take him to the continent of Lether, where Mappo hoped to be reunited with Icarium. Mappo thus travelled with Master Quell's experienced Trygalle Trade Guild shareholders: Faint; Reccanto Ilk; Glanno Tarp; Sweetest Sufferance – as well as four new shareholders: Jula Bole; Amby Bole; Precious Thimble; and Gruntle.

While with the Trygalle Trade Guild caravan, Mappo had a series of 'interesting' adventures: in Hood’s realm, seeing all of the dead on the march; on a tropical island (where it was realized that the Trygalle Guild equipage had inadvertently picked up the undead Cartographer); through Mael's realm; in 'Reach of Woe', a community of wreckers, (and two Jaghuts); passing through the sword Dragnipur; and onward through Warrens to the Trygalle carriage's final stop in the Wastelands of Lether to deliver Mappo, who expressed satisfaction (and some surprise) at reaching his destination.

In Dust of Dreams

Master Quell's Trygalle Trade Guild caravan transporting Mappo Runt was destroyed upon arriving in the Wastelands of the continent of Lether. Mappo and the surviving Trygalle Guild shareholders were soon found by Setoc of the Wolves, the twins Stavi and Storii, their half-brother, Absi, and an undead Ay named 'Baaljagg' - the two groups deciding to join forces, they all started walking eastward, where, along the way, they were joined by Torrent (and his horse).

In The Crippled God

Mappo vs Calm by Shadaan

Mappo and Gruntle were still travelling with the surviving members of the Trygalle Trade Guild, Precious Thimble, Faint, Sweetest Sufferance and Amby Bole as well as Setoc, Torrent and the children Stavi, Storii and Absi. Also the individual known as Cartographer. Olar Ethil appeared and laid claim to Absi. To avoid opposition, she made deals with the adults. She promised Mappo to reveal Icarium's location as long as he let her take Absi. Mappo agreed to her terms when Torrent promised to guard the children against her, and left the company of the group to search for his friend.

After days and nights of travel, Mappo finally found Icarium trapped and unconscious in the hands of Sister Calm, a Forkrul Assail Pure. The two fought for Icarium, only for Mappo to be defeated and killed next to his friend. Ublala Pung, who had been travelling nearby, interceded, ambushing the Assail as Mappo lay dying, crushing the skull of Sister Calm with his dragon mace, remarking "That wasn't very nice."

Mappo was buried by Icarium, who did not remember who Mappo was, only that he fought for him, and resumed his travels with Ublala as his new companion. As the two started off, Icarium found a piece of smashed pottery that Mappo had saved years ago when Icarium sacked an entire city, then forgot the act. Icarium had tried to save the shards of pottery to rebuild them, and seeing the broken shard again began to stir his memories.

History

Mappo Runt by Luztheren

Mappo had been born over a thousand years ago in a Trell settlement west of the Jhag Odhan on Seven Cities. In his youth he had rejected his people's turn towards a sedentary life, and departed his family to seek a life of endless war and battle in the company of an adopted clan that followed the old ways. This lasted for hundreds of years and may have been the period in which he fought in the Battle of Bayen Eckar under Elder Trynigarr. Two hundred years before the events of Deadhouse Gates he returned to his village to find it had been destroyed and all fifteen thousand slain. The Nameless Ones told him the village's destruction was the act of Icarium. They convinced the Trell to serve as the Jhag's guardian to make sure such an event never happened again. To aid his task, they gifted him with longevity as well as immunity to disease and poison. Unknown to Mappo, the Nameless Ones had been desperate to find a new guardian for Icarium after the last took his own life. The cult had destroyed Mappo's village and falsely blamed Icarium in order to secure the Trell's service.

Significant plot details end here.

Quotes

Icarium: "It is no exaggeration that you know my mind better than I. Would that you were a woman."

Mappo: "Were I a woman, Icarium, I would have serious concerns about your taste in women."

―Mappo and Icarium, on the edge of a large crevasse

Master Quell: "And, er, did [Icarium] face that emperor, Mappo? In ritual combat?"

Mappo: "I do not think so."

Master Quell: "Why?"

Mappo: "I believe I would have…sensed such a thing—"

Master Quell: "The end of the world, you mean."

―Master Quell and Mappo on combat between Rhulad Sengar and Icarium

Notes and references

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