Motif · Book 8, A Parade of Horribles

The Parade of Horribles

The eleventh floor: ninety minutes to build a float, five groups in five themes — Resolution, Decision, Betrayal, Destruction, Vengeance — a three-kilometre yellow-brick road lined with thousands of masked dead Primals from the Eulogist's memory, a judging stand of bound elites, a mandatory audience of every screen in the galaxy, and an arena at the end. In the old histories, the name of the second attack.

Segment appearances

• Chapter 23 — Plenty of Plenty; Zev reads the script; a note from C&W&U
• Chapter 67 — Half a prayer, half a song; one flower
• Chapter 78 — Damien's announcement; under a thousand
• Chapter 88 — Interlude: Quasar; the eleventh floor — twenty-three crawlers; Chaco's parade
• Chapter 90 — The Vengeance float; Carl leaves the party
• Chapter 92 — Chaco on Lamashtu; the AI's history in four parts; Vengeance
• Chapter 93 — The arena: 'I choose Scolopendra'
• Chapter 96 — Emberus explodes
• Chapter 98 — W-W-W-Winner; Mark of the Damned; the wrong biscuit
• Epilogue — Epilogue: Sydnee Iglacia, Prime Minister Victory, Louis Santiago 2

Progression

'A celebration […] a coming-out party for the ages' (ch. 23); three hours (ch. 68); a float in ninety minutes (ch. 78); five themes (ch. 88); the road on every screen (ch. 89); the horribles (ch. 91); the floats, the history, the speech (ch. 92); the second attack's name (epilogue).