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Chapters 5 through 8 of Birthright do a lot of establishing of Albtraum as his own person and lays the groundwork for his identity apart from Lucifurius. We’ll see a lot of his doubts begin to take root as he finds himself in a new environment that’s very different to the harsh wilderness that he’s been enduring along with Lucifurius. We’ll also explore a few other characters’ perspectives and see that there’s a lot going on in the world beyond Albtraum.

Chapter 5—Reawakening

Albtraum wakes up in the streets of a kingdom we come to learn is Sylva and in a lot of ways this signals his rebirth. Sylva as a kingdom is a place of salvation and second chances and many of the characters we’ll meet here were in similar circumstances to Albtraum when they first arrived. Albtraum’s mask is also shattered, the symbol of the death that he has carried for Lucifurius is now taken from him and further he’s forced to show his face. Albtraum now must put himself into the world with people of Sylva seeing him as a person rather than Lucifurius’ puppet.

This is also where we meet Mianna, the queen of Sylva who has tended to Albtraum’s wounds while he was unconscious. As we spend more time here we’ll see a lot of Mianna being set up as a leader who is loved in a very machiavellian contrast to Lucifurius who is the leader who is feared. Put the reference to Machiavelli in your back pocket, we’ll need it later.

Mianna and her guard take Albtraum into custody, but take him to the infirmary to see his wounds tended to rather than the prison or execution that he’s expecting. Our boy gets to learn what mercy is. While in the infirmary we see Albtraum for the first time stand in direct opposition to Lucifurius as he prevents Lucifurius from speaking through him in order to further learn about Sylva. We’ve seen Albtraum be disobedient before, but this is the first time we see him act out of his own interest in direct contrast to what Lucifurius wants. 

Lucifurius told Albtraum he reminded him of Septimus, a vessel he controlled with the promise of knowledge but here we see that Albtraum’s thirst for knowledge puts him in contrast to Septimus.

The chapter ends with Albtraum sleeping in a guest room—albeit a guarded one—as Mianna makes him a guest of Sylva rather than a prisoner, seeing him as the pawn that he is in Lucifurius’ game of conquest and extending him the olive branch to become a person over a puppet.

Chapter 6—Humanity

Albtraum wakes up in comfort, which Lucifurius immediately pushes him to reject. He’s escorted by Brunhart—another immortal and Sylva’s captain of the guard—to meet with Mianna again. In that meeting Mianna tips her hand to him a bit, introducing him to the Order of Azoth, the modern day equivalent to Ishtar and Septimus’ order that we’ve seen in Albtraum’s dreams. Mianna also offers Albtraum a chance to be independent of Lucifurius, an offer that Albtraum doesn’t understand, unable to imagine life beyond Lucifurious but an offer he’ll come to consider as we see him develop more of his independent identity as Sylva forces him to be human.

The explorations into humanity continue as Albtraum eats for the first time. Up to this point he’s been ‘fed’ as an extension of Lucifurius’ power but in Sylva he’s fed by humanity, and he’s fed human food. Or he would be if Ismaire didn’t jump him. Ismaire is the immortal that Albtraum has been fighting in previous chapters and she’s not quite ready to see him as a person, to her he’s still the deamon who’s killed hundreds and while Mianna’s interest in Albtraum may be political, she’s not willing to live with him.

As Albtraum is, once again, taken to the infirmary he realizes how exhausted injuries make him. He doesn’t have to react to injury with a hunt in order to be empowered by Lucifurius once again. Instead, his injury is met with care, his body screams at him to rest—and he does, but not before he finally eats.

Because in Sylva, Albtraum is not a tool or a puppet, he’s a child.

Chapter 7—Second Chances

Chapter 7 starts with Ismaire’s perspective, and we see her outright anger at the notion of Albtraum being allowed within the castle, let alone as a guest. As Mianna confronts Ismaire about attacking Albtraum despite her direct instructions not to, and we learn that Ismaire is here under the same conditions as Albtraum, as a ward of Mianna. She’s allowed to be a part of the kingdom but she’s here receiving a second chance for her past, in which she sold people into slavery. Sylva is Ismaire’s salvation just as it is Albtraum’s. 

We return to Albtraum as he is given a puppy by Brunhart—a test to see of Albtraum’s nature as well as a chance for him to form a bond with something beyond himself and beyond Lucifurius. Albtraum then asks to be fed again, and Lucifurius meets this with contempt. His power to sustain Albtraum is being eroded as Albtraum not only discovers another way to sustain himself independently of Lucifurius but also seems to enjoy it.

Albtraum promptly eats an entire raw onion. When he’s given proper food Albtraum learns that he dislikes potatoes and his identity takes further form. Not only is he eating outside of what Lucifurius provides but he’s beginning to form opinions about what he eats, more and more Albtraum becomes a person beyond Lucifurius. 

The puppet that was tainted by doubt is losing its strings.

Chapter 8—The World is Moving

This is our first look at Mianna’s perspective where she is investigating the murder of three Sylvan guards. This chapter sets our stage for what’s going on within the Order of Azoth—one of Mianna’s supposed allies seems to be responsible for the murder of these guards. However the Order is composed of immortals, the fact that only three guards have been killed is little more than a jab. Mianna’s defenses are being tested and she needs to be ready to deal with the next blow.

We also see Mianna take a moment to reflect, reading herself for whatever is to come but feeling the weight of her choices bearing down on her. As an immortal queen, Mianna has had to put her humanity on the pyre for the good of her kingdom, for the good of the mortals that look up to her. She relates to Albtraum in a way, having her personhood taken from her for a greater purpose, but the Order is beginning to fight within itself and it seems a bit more of her humanity may have to be sacrificed.