The Waste Lands
The Waste Lands is book III of the Dark Tower series by Stephen King. The original limited edition hardcover featuring full-color illustrations by Ned Dameron was published in 1991 by Donald M. Grant, Publisher. The book was reissued in 2003 to coincide with the publication of .
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2 The Rose 3 External link |
The Twelve Guardians are explained to guard the Twelve Portals. Each Guardian matches up with a Guardian on the other end of the Beam which they guard, and at the point where all the Beams meet is the Dark Tower. The Guardians are revealed in several scenes, the first is when Roland is explaining to Eddie and Susannah Dean what Shardik was and his understanding of the Beams, another is when Eddie and Susannah approach the Cradle of Lud, and the last, Bird and Hare, are revealed in the poem Roland and Susan Delgado (his lover) recite to each other occationally: 'Bird and Bear and Hare and Fish . . .' The only pairs identified are by Susannah and Eddie while at the Cradle of Lud.
Shardik was created by North Central Positronics, Limited which may be connected to the mysterious Sombra Corp.
The pairings we can be sure of are:
The Twelve Portals and Guardians
The Rose
The rose is thought to be the manifestation of the Dark Tower in Jake's where and when. It should be noted that while both Eddie and Susannah appear to be from the same where, such appearances can be deceiving. Much like the Ages of Myst, within the infinity of worlds linked by the Tower, anything is possible.
For the poem by T.S. Eliot see The Waste Land.