Backup: A Story of the Dresden Files
Encyclopedia
Backup: A Story of the Dresden Files is a novelette set in The Dresden Files
universe, Jim Butcher
's continuing series about wizard detective Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. This book is unique in that the story is told from the of view of Thomas Raith, Dresden's older half-brother. Harry Dresden appears briefly as a minor character.
After lunch, Thomas goes to meet the courier. The courier is Justine. The message is the Ladies of the Dark River, aka The Stygian Sisterhood, are in town. While Thomas was dithering around at the salon, a Stygian took a child. Then, she used the kidnapping to dupe the one person in Chicago who could hinder their cause, Harry Dresden. He doesn't know that his client is using him to bring one of their Old Demon-Goddesses into this plane of existence. The deity of the Stygians gains power from the knowledge and belief in its existence. The more people who know about the deity, the greater its power. Part of Thomas’ duties as a Venator is to obliterate all knowledge and talk of the Old Gods and Demons. Thomas cannot tell Justine and Dresden about the Oblivion War. But, Thomas can help Dresden from the shadows and give him some backup.
Using a tracking spell, Thomas locates Dresden near the Pavilion in Millennium Park
. It's an ambush. The Stygian has a glamor, making her look and track like Dresden. She and two ghouls attack Thomas. Instead of killing Thomas, the Stygian casts an illusion to change Thomas' appearance. Thomas kills the ghouls, but the Stygian escapes. Thomas has been careless and reckless; she could have just as easily cast a killing spell. For some reason, she wants Thomas alive.
In over his head, Thomas goes to Dresden's apartment to consult Bob and have the illusion removed. Thomas asks for Bob's help, but he cannot reveal the true identity of Dresden’s client. Bob refuses to help. If Thomas will divulge the whole truth about the danger Dresden is facing, Bob will reconsider. Thomas makes a bargain. He will tell everything, but Bob can only tell Dresden - or anyone else - if it will not endanger Dresden’s life. Thomas relates the perilous knowledge about the Old Gods and Demons. At a certain level of human awareness, these Old Gods and Demons can return to the mortal world. Dresden’s client is a member of one of the many factions working to restore that awareness.
Dresden is being set up. When he finds the kidnapped child, he will also find a grimoire, the Lexicon Malos. As a warden, Dresden is honor bound to give the book to the White Council. The Council will publish the grimoire, believing that the mass dissemination will weaken the rituals. This is how they dealt with the prior incident. By publishing the Necronomicon
, its summoning rituals became diffused and weakened. The Lexicon poses a different danger. The publication would raise the human awareness to the point where the Old Ones could re-enter the world. In one night, Dresden’s involvement and the aftermath could help the Stygians win the Oblivion War. If Dresden finds out about this plot, the Stygians will kill him. If Dresden tries to give the grimoire to the White Council, the Venatori will kill him. Either way, Dresden will die. If Thomas can find the grimoire before Dresden, he can save Dresden's life - but only with Bob's help. Bound by his word, Bob must help Thomas save Dresden while never revealing the true identities and motivations of the factions.
Bob speculates that the Stygian didn't kill Thomas because Dresden would sense Thomas' death in her aura. Thomas realizes that she cast the illusion on him, hoping that Dresden would mistake him for the kidnapper and kill him. Clever, actually. Thomas decides to use this illusion to his own advantage. Bob helps Thomas locate the real Dresden. He and the Stygian have staked out an abandoned warehouse guarded by ghouls. At 4 AM, Dresden makes his move. He takes out the ghouls and breaks into the warehouse.
Thomas uses the diversion to get into the warehouse ahead of Dresden. He finds the Lexicon and puts it in his backpack. He could leave, but the Stygian has messed with his little half-brother. Payback time! Thomas jumps into the role of a bloodthirsty cultist just as Dresden bursts through the door with the Stygian in tow. Disguised by the Stygian's illusion, Thomas threatens to harm the child tied to the altar. The Stygian is surprised. Dresden hits Thomas the cultist with a blast that blows him across the room.
Thomas kills the lights and goes after the Stygian. Able to see in the darkness, the Stygian slashes Thomas with a poisoned dagger. Thomas leaves with the grimoire before Dresden or the Stygian can do any more damage to him. By poisoning Thomas, the Stygian awakened his Hunger. To overcome the poison, Thomas must feed very deeply - fatally. He stalks the Stygian until she is alone. In her hotel room, Thomas gives in to his Hunger. The Stygian never has a chance.
When the sun rises, the illusion melts. Thomas looks like himself again. After a long cleansing shower, he visits Dresden's office. Dresden relates the events of the past night. The rescued boy ran home to his real parents. The real parents want the police to arrest Dresden. His client skipped out without paying. Thomas commiserates and offers to buy him breakfast. After all, it's a terrible thing to be unappreciated.
.
The Dresden Files
The Dresden Files is a series of contemporary fantasy/mystery novels written by Jim Butcher.He provides a first person narrative of each story from the point of view of the main character, private investigator and wizard Harry Dresden, as he recounts investigations into supernatural disturbances in...
universe, Jim Butcher
Jim Butcher
Jim Butcher is a New York Times Best Selling author most known for his contemporary fantasy book series The Dresden Files. He also wrote the Codex Alera series. Butcher grew up as the only son of his parents, and has two older sisters. He currently lives in Independence with his wife, Shannon K...
's continuing series about wizard detective Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. This book is unique in that the story is told from the of view of Thomas Raith, Dresden's older half-brother. Harry Dresden appears briefly as a minor character.
Plot summary
Thomas Raith discovers that his younger half-brother, Harry Dresden, has taken a case that could cost him his life. Lara tells Thomas to meet a courier with the latest intel on the Oblivion War. Lara and Thomas are the only Venatori, Oblivion combatants, in the White Court. But first, he feeds on Michelle Marion - a vampire has to eat. Thomas obtains his nourishment by feeding on the clients in his hair salon. During the shampoo phase, his Hunger feeds upon Michelle’s life energy. Thomas feeds lightly, holding his Hunger in check by sheer force of will. Without this restraint, Thomas' Hunger would control him, which would be fatal for Michelle.After lunch, Thomas goes to meet the courier. The courier is Justine. The message is the Ladies of the Dark River, aka The Stygian Sisterhood, are in town. While Thomas was dithering around at the salon, a Stygian took a child. Then, she used the kidnapping to dupe the one person in Chicago who could hinder their cause, Harry Dresden. He doesn't know that his client is using him to bring one of their Old Demon-Goddesses into this plane of existence. The deity of the Stygians gains power from the knowledge and belief in its existence. The more people who know about the deity, the greater its power. Part of Thomas’ duties as a Venator is to obliterate all knowledge and talk of the Old Gods and Demons. Thomas cannot tell Justine and Dresden about the Oblivion War. But, Thomas can help Dresden from the shadows and give him some backup.
Using a tracking spell, Thomas locates Dresden near the Pavilion in Millennium Park
Millennium Park
Millennium Park is a public park located in the Loop community area of Chicago in Illinois, USA and originally intended to celebrate the millennium. It is a prominent civic center near the city's Lake Michigan shoreline that covers a section of northwestern Grant Park. The area was previously...
. It's an ambush. The Stygian has a glamor, making her look and track like Dresden. She and two ghouls attack Thomas. Instead of killing Thomas, the Stygian casts an illusion to change Thomas' appearance. Thomas kills the ghouls, but the Stygian escapes. Thomas has been careless and reckless; she could have just as easily cast a killing spell. For some reason, she wants Thomas alive.
In over his head, Thomas goes to Dresden's apartment to consult Bob and have the illusion removed. Thomas asks for Bob's help, but he cannot reveal the true identity of Dresden’s client. Bob refuses to help. If Thomas will divulge the whole truth about the danger Dresden is facing, Bob will reconsider. Thomas makes a bargain. He will tell everything, but Bob can only tell Dresden - or anyone else - if it will not endanger Dresden’s life. Thomas relates the perilous knowledge about the Old Gods and Demons. At a certain level of human awareness, these Old Gods and Demons can return to the mortal world. Dresden’s client is a member of one of the many factions working to restore that awareness.
Dresden is being set up. When he finds the kidnapped child, he will also find a grimoire, the Lexicon Malos. As a warden, Dresden is honor bound to give the book to the White Council. The Council will publish the grimoire, believing that the mass dissemination will weaken the rituals. This is how they dealt with the prior incident. By publishing the Necronomicon
Necronomicon
The Necronomicon is a fictional grimoire appearing in the stories by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft and his followers. It was first mentioned in Lovecraft's 1924 short story "The Hound", written in 1922, though its purported author, the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, had been quoted a year earlier in...
, its summoning rituals became diffused and weakened. The Lexicon poses a different danger. The publication would raise the human awareness to the point where the Old Ones could re-enter the world. In one night, Dresden’s involvement and the aftermath could help the Stygians win the Oblivion War. If Dresden finds out about this plot, the Stygians will kill him. If Dresden tries to give the grimoire to the White Council, the Venatori will kill him. Either way, Dresden will die. If Thomas can find the grimoire before Dresden, he can save Dresden's life - but only with Bob's help. Bound by his word, Bob must help Thomas save Dresden while never revealing the true identities and motivations of the factions.
Bob speculates that the Stygian didn't kill Thomas because Dresden would sense Thomas' death in her aura. Thomas realizes that she cast the illusion on him, hoping that Dresden would mistake him for the kidnapper and kill him. Clever, actually. Thomas decides to use this illusion to his own advantage. Bob helps Thomas locate the real Dresden. He and the Stygian have staked out an abandoned warehouse guarded by ghouls. At 4 AM, Dresden makes his move. He takes out the ghouls and breaks into the warehouse.
Thomas uses the diversion to get into the warehouse ahead of Dresden. He finds the Lexicon and puts it in his backpack. He could leave, but the Stygian has messed with his little half-brother. Payback time! Thomas jumps into the role of a bloodthirsty cultist just as Dresden bursts through the door with the Stygian in tow. Disguised by the Stygian's illusion, Thomas threatens to harm the child tied to the altar. The Stygian is surprised. Dresden hits Thomas the cultist with a blast that blows him across the room.
Thomas kills the lights and goes after the Stygian. Able to see in the darkness, the Stygian slashes Thomas with a poisoned dagger. Thomas leaves with the grimoire before Dresden or the Stygian can do any more damage to him. By poisoning Thomas, the Stygian awakened his Hunger. To overcome the poison, Thomas must feed very deeply - fatally. He stalks the Stygian until she is alone. In her hotel room, Thomas gives in to his Hunger. The Stygian never has a chance.
When the sun rises, the illusion melts. Thomas looks like himself again. After a long cleansing shower, he visits Dresden's office. Dresden relates the events of the past night. The rescued boy ran home to his real parents. The real parents want the police to arrest Dresden. His client skipped out without paying. Thomas commiserates and offers to buy him breakfast. After all, it's a terrible thing to be unappreciated.
Plot points introduced
- Oblivion War: It is "an ages-old silent war" (p. 25) being waged for the memory of mankind. Thirsting for power, many arcane factions are trying to rekindle mankind's awareness of the Old Gods and Demons. The Venatori oppose all the factions working for the return of the Old Ones. They are actively trying to keep humans from remembering those malicious beings. The Old Gods and Demons gain power from mankind’s knowledge of and belief in their existence. The more people who know about them, the greater their power. At a certain level of awareness, the Old Gods and Demons can return to the mortal world. For over five thousand years, the Venatori strategy has been to obliterate all knowledge and talk about the Old Gods and Demons, thereby consigning the Old Ones to oblivion.
- Venatori: (Latin: hunters; single: Venator) An ancient organization waging the Oblivion War on behalf of mankind. They fight to ensure that the Old Gods and Demons are forgotten, so they cannot re-enter the mortal world.
- Venatori Umbrorum: an ancient society of about two thousand magic practitioners dedicated to fighting evil. They were founded by the original Venatori as an information gathering unit and a smokescreen for the genuine Venatori activities.
- The Stygian Sisterhood: aka The Ladies of the Dark River. One of the enemies of the Venatori in the Oblivion War. They are human women who accepted supernatural psychic enhancements to acquire arcane and physical powers. They want to bring back various Demon-Goddesses via the publication of a ritual guide called the Lexicon Malos.
- The Prosthanos Society: They are humans, living in the Baltic area, who accepted supernatural physical enhancements to acquire arcane and physical powers.
- Ghouls: They are the cheap muscle for hire of the supernatural world. They are strong, fast, vicious, and hard to kill. A ghoul is killed by shattering the spine or destroying the head.
Returning characters
- Thomas RaithThomas RaithThomas Raith is introduced as a vampire of the White Court in Grave Peril of the contemporary fantasy series The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. It is revealed in Blood Rites that Thomas is the half brother of Harry Dresden, the protagonist of the series, and, until Changes, Harry's only known...
: The protagonist, an incubus, a White Court vampire, the disowned child of the White King and Dresden's older half-brother. - Lara Raith: A succubus, a White Court vampire, the eldest daughter of the White King, Thomas' older sister, and the power behind the throne.
- Justine: A human, Thomas’ love interest, and Lara Raith’s Executive Assistant.
- Harry DresdenHarry DresdenHarry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden is a fictional detective and wizard. He was created by Jim Butcher and is the protagonist of the contemporary fantasy series The Dresden Files. The series blends magic and hardboiled detective fiction...
: A professional wizard and Thomas' younger half-brother. - Bob: An intelligent air spirit who resides within a skull in Dresden's sub-basement laboratory.
- Mouse: Dresden's Tibetan Temple Dog. He has the uncanny ability to sense evil before it strikes.
Characters introduced in this novel
- Michelle Marion: A regular salon customer, the daughter of Illinois Senator Marion, and Thomas’ lunch.
- The Stygian: a member of the Stygian Sisterhood whose mission is to make sure that Dresden finds the Lexicon Malos.
Backup in other media
Backup is included in the anthology book Side JobsSide Jobs (novel)
Side Jobs is an anthology book set in Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files series, an ongoing series about wizard detective Harry Dresden. It contains the following short stories:...
.