Matter *SPOILERS*

I'll say it again:
*SPOILERS*






















I'm surprised there's not been much (any?) discussion of Matter here.
Here goes, anyway...

I mostly really enjoyed the book. The 'mostly' qualifier is a result
of the pacing going utterly bananas towards the end and the fact that
the majority of the questions I was dying to know the answers to were
not answered. Or, if the questions were answered, they were answered
in ways much too subtle and clever to be spotted by me.

Can anyone shed any light on the following?

How did the Oct know that there was something interesting to dig for?
(It seems they must have known prior to transporting the Deldeyn to
the Ninth. Also, it seems likely someone else knew since the level had
been declared No Access.) What made them think that what they were
digging for was Veil?

How did the Aultridia (assuming it was they who communicated with
Oramen) know that the Oct were wrong? And how did they know the Oct
would dig up something dangerous?

The Deldeyn were reluctant diggers (possibly because of information
from the Aultridia), so they recruited the Sarl as their new proxies.
The Sarl were in a position to defeat the Deldeyn because they'd been
set down the path of superior military technology and tactics by the
Culture agent Hyrlis. Was this a long-term Oct/Culture plan? If so,
why did the Culture want to 'help' the Oct? If not was the Culture's
only motive to recruit a Shellworld native for SC (again, why?!)?

And...
Why did the Iln/Iln-Device restrain the Xinthian rather than just nuke
it since it didn't seem to be above vulgar and unnecessary displays of
power? I suspect that if there *is* an answer to this question it must
be somehow tied into the answers to the previous questions and the
origins of the Aultridia.

I keep trying to find a perspective that will make everything make
sense when seen as a big plot to ingratiate the Culture to the
Morthanveld ('Yay! We saved your Shellworld! Now love us.'), but the
callousness of such a plan in terms of likely - or even possible -
casualties seems to me to make it a bit far-fetched.

I nailed everything that was going on in Excession on the re-read, but
I don't think a second go is going to help me much with Matter.

Anyone have any answers, or even up for a discussion on the book?

Those are all excellent questions. I've read the book twice now and I
can't say I have any solid theories, although it's obvious that
there's some plan or plans afoot behind the scenes. Who knew what
when?

If the Culture wanted a Shellworlder in SC because they suspected the
Iln possibility, why weren't they watching Sursamen? Why is Hyrlis ex-
Culture? Is the Za's Revenge a reference to "Player of Games" and a
hint that the Peace Faction guy is SC?