[Waybound] The Man Who Knew Everything

I wanted to give my view on Makiel's final role in the series because now that I've finished Waybound it's the moment I've been thinking about the most.

At the end of Dreadgod I felt a slight dissatisfaction with where I thought Makiel was going, down the path of typical villain who simply wanted power. To be fair, Dreadgod goes out of its way to paint him in this light but then again the Mad King is hardly a reliable observer. Anyways I thought that this was an abrupt change from what we had gotten to see from him in the series thus far. From what I'd seen Makiel was a man who did his duty, did what he thought best for the most people, and who made mistakes, and in the end that's exactly who he was.

In Waybound we learn what Makiel views as the problems that the Abidan must be rid of. The first is the Mad King, the second is Ozriel, and the final one is himself. This is the moment that helped clarify my views on Makiel after Dreadgod.

"When I am done, the sources of infection will be gone. All three of us."

Makiel was not a hypocrite running the consequences of his actions, trying to hold onto his power, but a man who took matters into his own hands to fix what needed to be fixed. Makiel is trying to take reasonability for his actions and clean up his mess.

What makes this so much more impactful is how much it mirrors Eithan's own thoughts and actions. Eithan ended up taking matters into his hands in an attempt to make things better. He asks Suriel at the start of the book to let him clean up his mess. And Makiel was determined to do the same.

But at the end of the day Makiel's blind spot was himself. This is an obvious flaw, yet one that has more depth to it the more I think about it and connects to something else about Makiel that made him unique even among Judges. The fact that he had never perfected his physical form after ascending. This inability to change what works combined with his absolute belief in his ideals and ability. It fits so well with the conflict that he and Ozriel and trapped in. Why change what already works? His greatest flaw, his blind spot, was reflected in his own appearance.

I think there were several factors that finally allowed Makiel to change: The way that Makiel views himself as an infection that needs to be removed, the revelation that the Scythe he scoured all of creation for was hidden right beneath his feet, the fact that Ozriel changed and lent Suriel his Scythe, Suriel pointing out his flaw yet choosing to believe in him anyway.

In the end I don't think Makiel sacrificing is life to revive Ozriel is out of character. He did it because he believed it would be the best choice for the future and thus his duty as the Hound, like all his actions before. The moment he joined Ozriel in battle against the Mad King he accepted that Ozriel was an asset rather than an infection. Combined with the fact that he could be replaced and that Ozriel was irreplaceable it was the only action that made sense.

He died only after he finished cleaning up his mess.