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Mai’rinnen Tearza was the warrior queen of Speer who—supposedly—sold out Speer to the Red Emperor, allowing Nikan to annex Speer and subjugate the Speerlies. She died in the process, and it’s unclear whether she killed herself or died some other way. There are numerous stories surrounding what happened, the most common of which being that Tearza fell in love with the Red Emperor and sold out Speer for love. However, Qara and Tearza herself (Tearza, as the Woman, regularly haunts Rin when Rin goes to the spirit world and tries to keep Rin from accessing the Phoenix) suggests that Tearza actually believed that the Phoenix asked too much of her, and she didn’t think giving in to its violent and destructive demands was worth it to save her people. While Qara finds this explanation morally suspect, Tearza warns Rin that the Phoenix will never be satisfied—and that calling it will result in tragedy.
Mai’rinnen Tearza (The Woman) Quotes in The Poppy War
The The Poppy War quotes below are all either spoken by Mai’rinnen Tearza (The Woman) or refer to Mai’rinnen Tearza (The Woman). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 14
Quotes
“I think Tearza was wise. And I think that she was a bad ruler. Shamans should know when to resist the power of the gods. That is wisdom. But rulers should do everything in their power to save their country. That is responsibility. If you hold the fate of the country in your hands, if you have accepted your obligation to your people, then your life ceases to be your own. Once you accept the title of ruler, your choices are made for you. In those days, to rule Speer meant serving the Phoenix. Speer used to be a proud race. A free people. when Tearza killed herself, the Speerlies became little more than the Emperor’s mad dogs. Tearza has the blood of Speer on her hands. Tearza deserved what she got.”
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Chapter 20
Quotes
“That boy is beyond redemption,” said the Woman. “That boy is broken like the rest. But you, you are still pure. You can still be saved.”
“I don’t want to be saved!” Rin shrieked. “I want power! I want Altan’s power! I want to be the most powerful shaman there ever was, so that there is no one I can’t save!”
“That power can burn down the world,” the woman said sadly. “That power will destroy everything you’ve ever loved. You will defeat your enemy, and the victory will turn to ashes in your mouth.”
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Mai’rinnen Tearza (The Woman) Character Timeline in The Poppy War
The timeline below shows where the character Mai’rinnen Tearza (The Woman) appears in The Poppy War. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 4
...Speer was bombed. Nezha insists that the queen at the time of Speer’s annexation, Mai’rinnen Tearza, was in love with the Emperor and sold out her people before killing herself. Yim...
(full context)
Chapter 9
Rin continues to meditate and finds herself in a small, tiled room. There’s a Woman there, with sad, red eyes, who says that Rin will be offered immense power—and the...
(full context)
...whole life learning, as Jiang suggests she must. She doesn’t tell Jiang about the “Speerly Woman’s admonitions” during her vision.
(full context)
Chapter 11
...and begins to choke her. She finds herself in a tunnel and she sees the Woman ahead, but the Woman complies when Rin screeches for her to get out of the...
(full context)
Chapter 14
They discuss Tearza’s suicide, and Qara notes that it’s a lie that Tearza killed herself for love: that’s...
(full context)
Chapter 16
...she remembers all of Jiang’s warnings, and every time Rin meditates, she sees the Speerly Woman warning her not to give in to “what it’s planned.” Though Rin argues that gods...
(full context)
Chapter 20
...help: she needs him to help her access the gods and get rid of the woman “blocking” her, so she can be like Altan. He agrees, so he pulls out a...
(full context)
The Woman appears at the Pantheon’s gate, but now she looks like a burnt corpse. The Woman...
(full context)
...on, but not to the Pantheon—to a Divinatory, where they can ask questions about the Woman. Rin is confused about their location and wants to know if it’s “real,” but Chaghan...
(full context)
Chapter 22
...to control “those people in the mountain” and suggests that Altan just wants revenge for Speer—Tearza was the only smart Speerly. Altan tells Chaghan to obey him or leave.
(full context)
Chapter 24
...if it will ultimately kill her. Rin insists that they aren’t cowardly like Jiang or Tearza. They can’t abandon the Speerlies’ memory, and they can’t let the Cike end up in...
(full context)
...and runs away toward the research facility. He calls the Phoenix. Rin hears it laugh. Tearza weeps and cries out that “the fire takes, and takes, and takes.” Altan sends fire...
(full context)
Chapter 25
...She hallucinates his voice, and the Phoenix tells her to bring it her pain. The Woman tells Rin to stay away, but Rin insists on pushing forward. Rin sees visions of...
(full context)
...spirit world when she looks in the carving’s eye. But once again, she encounters Mai’rinnen Tearza’s ghost, and Tearza begs Rin not to continue. She explains that embracing the Phoenix would’ve...
(full context)
Rin calls the fire, dissolving Tearza’s ghost, and appears before the Phoenix. The Phoenix insists that Altan was weak and that...
(full context)
