The Dresden Files > DF Spoilers

Master of the Future? The Fugitive...

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Mira:

  Interesting, good to see Cowl again, he has a title is seems, "Master of the Future."  I take that to mean in the BAT this is who Harry will be fighting, among others.  It also looks like he is trying to take Harry out while he is emotionally and somewhat physically vulnerable.  He also has serious connections if he can spring a monster from Hades. Also an interesting tidbit, Cowl says there are four powers in Chicago who could take the Nemean Lion out, wonder if meant himself as well?  Apparently Mouse is one of them, at least he managed to kick Cowl's ass.. Harry, yes, when he is fully himself again. Lara? No doubt, and that may be why Mab wants that marriage so badly.. And though Michael is retired, the Holy Knights, i.e. Butters also lives there. 

Back to Cowl, no real light was shed on who he is, clearly though he is from the future or is a "Master of the Future," he is mortal, or has the same vulnerabilities of an ordinary man, after Mouse shattered his staff, he nearly bit his arm off...  Mouse and Cerberus, very good dogs indeed..

LostInTime:
But, he also doesn't have Kumori with him. Maybe she actually is dead? Seems like it would be an anticlimax. I'd rather it be a dangling plot thread.

Mira:

--- Quote from: LostInTime on March 07, 2023, 10:59:43 PM ---But, he also doesn't have Kumori with him. Maybe she actually is dead? Seems like it would be an anticlimax. I'd rather it be a dangling plot thread.

--- End quote ---

He didn't have Kumori with him the last time we saw him, in the Depths of the Rath estate in White Night.. He retreated into the Nevernever that time also.

g33k:

--- Quote from: Mira on March 07, 2023, 11:04:28 PM ---He didn't have Kumori with him the last time we saw him, in the Depths of the Rath estate in White Night.. He retreated into the Nevernever that time also.
--- End quote ---
n.b. he had a different sidekick, Vito.

Kumori was doing necromantic stuff, and evidently it was a passion of hers.  That was when Cowl had a Kemmlerite-facing plan.

Vito was his sidekick for his Whamp-politicking plan.

He may have multiple such, but keep them largely "silo'ed" for their appropriate tasks, until/unless he sees an advantage in some sort of "cross-pollination."

Maybe each of them died in their respective climactic fights (Vito seems likely to have died... but Cowl could have saved him, if he chose to).

But (q.v. various "Who is Kumori" WAGging) I'm guessing she (at least) survived.

Conspiracy Theorist:
Cowl shows a degree of familarity with Harry here not previously shown and his scheme here is petty and personal, he isn’t advancing his long-term schemes to sow chaos and disorder in the supernatural world, he is kicking Harry when he is down.

This would indicate that Cowl has recently been thwarted personally by Harry and he is getting his revenge.
The timing would indicate it is around the time of The Law, Harry had thwarted Nameless embarrassing him professionally before Marcone and Mab and the rest of the World and used his ‘pet’ Laplander to do so. Nameless has the power to raise the Lion, (his Otso was misused by Laplander) 

“There are at least four wielders of Power in Chicago who might have banished you. Continue questioning me and I will do so myself.”

Harry and Mort have the power and will, Mouse did, the fourth? Nameless and Laplander could but wouldn’t, Nameless is either Cowl or would enjoy the discord, and Laplander is under his control in either event. Molly could but would the restrictions and duties of Winter prevent her? Marcone/Namshiel could but does Cowl know about them? Butters might do worse than banish with the sword of Faith in its current form.

“Master of the Future” doesn’t necessarily imply that Cowl is from the future, it can imply that Ash is aware of plans by Cowl to assume control of reality. We are aware that Cowl has sought to become a god via the Darkhallow (and Nameless worked with Kemmler) but what if his ultimate plan is to become God, to usurp or replace the White God? He has worked with Fallen and Outsiders, both enemies of the White God. If you are going to be the villain of the series, you had better think big.

I am doing a complete read through and there are many apparent instances of Cowl working behind the scenes principally disrupting the Accords and seeking to undermine Mab who we know later as protector of the Outer Gates. He is likely the one who summoned Outsiders in Proven Guilty, Cold Days and Peace Talks, suggesting he is mortal human enough to do so (Nameless is half mortal human, a scion), he trained the sorcerers in Storm Front, Grave Peril and Blood Rites as disposable flunkies (abduct the puppies). He gave the FBI the wolf skin belts in Fool Moon.

Cowl would have had to have some involvement in every one of Harry’s major cases to some degree, either directly or indirectly. In the Law we learn of Nameless links to Kemmler and his suspected role in the attack on Arctis Tor. Suddenly we have a character who has links to the Cowl arc AND the Maeve arc, creating a possible connection and adding a potential Cowl involvement to the likes of Summer Knight (Nameless was part of Winter at this time, and in a position to manipulate both Maeve and Lloyd Slate as a member of Maeve’s Court). All the issues involving Winter can be laid at Cowls door, the nemfection of Lea, Cat Sith and Maeve, the distrust engendered in Lily of Winter and the Fae courts dispute effect on the White Council/Red Court war, the attack on Demonreach by Maeve.

An argument that I have raised about Nameless is that following The Law he dare not risk Mab’s wrath by embarrasing Winter, so no attacks on the WK, his company car and the Castle, now an outpost of Winter, is a barracks for Winter Troops. Maggie is protected as well as the daughter of her Vassal. His friends? The Alphas live with Butters and the Carpenters are under the White God’s protection. Mac? Former Angel with a Placard working at Accorded Neutral Territory. Thomas? Safely in Demonreach, Eb ? If he knows he might not want to take on the Blackstaff. Max? Or his clienThat would immediately signal Nameless was responsible.

That leaves Harry’s pets for a revenge attack. Mouse is with Maggie all the time which rules out revenge on Mouse, but Mister ? Mister rambles outside the Castle and is fair game. Guess what, the lion hit Mister just after he got out again. Both Nameless and Cowl have the same limited options for revenge against Harry at the moment.

How Nameless must chafe under Winter Law.

By having Mouse as the point of view Jim was able to bring Cowl directly into the narrative without communicating this fact to Harry, and this is the first time Mouse has met Cowl (he has never met Nameless)  he didn’t identify a scent so Cowl is someone Mouse has not previously met, and he has been to the White Council with Harry which eliminates a whole slew of potential Cowls as being a current wizard of the White Council. If Mouse meets Nameless he should be able to identify whether of not he is Cowl.

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