Andrew Q. Gordon

There are a number of characters who have an impact on the story whom we never meet. Meglar is one of those. Although we will meet him at some point in the story—I can’t even imagine the hate mail I’d get if I tried to resolve the final conflict between Farrell and Meglar in any fashion other than a face-to-face fight—in The Last Grand Master and The Eye and the Arm, Meglar doesn’t appear personally. That lack of face time does not, however, diminish his importance.

In First Love we learn about Meglar from Queen Zenora, something we can’t do in The Last Grand Master or The Eye and the Arm because she died before the book opens. Yar-del and Zargon had been bitter enemies almost since the two kingdoms were founded three thousand years before the story takes place. In an attempt to end the centuries of on again off again warfare, King Falon of Zargon approached King Bren of Yar-del and suggested the two heirs, Prince Meglar and Princess Zenora, join (what marriage is called on Nendor) and unite the two kingdoms.

King Bren didn’t agree to the idea, but he allowed Meglar to court his daughter and if she was interested, he would agree. We learn in First Love that others warned Bren and Zenora not to be swayed by Meglar’s good looks and charm and look deeper, but we know that didn’t happen. For personal and political reasons, Zenora agreed to the proposal. When they had a son, Halloran, there was hope that both kingdoms would view the child as one of theirs. Lasting peace, though maybe a generation away, seemed at hand.

Meglar’s deception changed all of that. It is not clear if King Falon knew of his son’s true purpose, but as Meglar’s first action upon returning to Zargon was to kill his father, it appears Falon wasn’t privy to what his son had planned. Still, it’s hard to believe Meglar acted alone given how elaborate nature of his scheme. That is something that will be explored in the rest of the series.

As is suggested in the prequel, prior to stealing Yar-del’s Source, Meglar was handsome and charming. Given his status as crown prince of Zargon, he was one of the Seven Kingdom’s most eligible bachelors. This image is in stark contrast to dark, vicious wizard-king we meet throughout the series. One of the side goals of First Love was to try to put into context what appears to be a baffling decision by Queen Zenora to join with Meglar in the first place.

Meglar’s face was badly disfigured during his fight with Bren and Zenora when he tried to flee with the Yar-del Source. The scars never fully disappear despite Meglar’s access to healers whose skills bordered on magical. Though his injuries were the result of his malicious acts toward his wife and her family, they are thought to have played a small role in his future actions. He vowed revenge on Zenora for what she did to him, though it is hard to believe he didn’t have plans to conquer Yar-del when he plotted to steal the Source.

In addition, once he returned to Zargon, Meglar reinstated worship to Neldin. That more than anything sums up what happened to him. Neldin’s original attempt to subjugate the world was thwarted by Kel, who founded Yar-del. Conquering the symbol of the man who defeated his god was Meglar’s way of sending a message to the world that not even Kel’s heir could stop him.

Fortunately for Nendor, Farrell is not just Kel’s heir.