Ismay

Ismay, the principal town of the island of Iffish in the East Reach, is the home of the wizard Vetch and the site of Ged's most significant respite before the final hunt for the shadow. It is a place of warm hearths, strong community, and the only true friendship Ged has ever known, standing in stark contrast to the cold, lonely seas and hostile lands he has traversed. Here, Ged is not a celebrated hero or a hunted fugitive, but a friend welcomed into a home, and it is from this haven that he gathers the strength and clarity to turn and face his enemy.

Location and Character

Ismay is a town of slate roofs and winding streets, set among low blue hills that brighten in the winter sunlight. The smoke of hearthfires lingers over the town, a sign of settled, domestic life. The inn called The Harrekki offers firelight, ale, and roast ribs of mutton, and the townsfolk are described as alert and sedate, not rough or timid like the fisher-folk of the Hands. The town is fortunate enough to have its own accomplished wizard, trained at the School on Roke, who dwells in his ancestral home within Ismay itself. This wizard is Vetch, Ged's oldest and most loyal friend.

Ged's Arrival and Reception

Ged arrives in Ismay in the golden winter evening, following a fishing fleet into port. He is weary from his long voyage and the constant dread of the shadow. At the inn, he is given a blunt but polite dismissal by the innkeeper, who informs him that the town already has a wizard and has no need of another practitioner of the High Arts. Ged understands that the townsfolk sense the doom he carries, that he is like a cold wind blowing through the firelit room, and he accepts that he must move on quickly. He decides to spend only one night in Ismay, but the next day, he lingers, watching the ordinary life of the town—children playing, gossips chatting, women at their looms—from the outside, feeling his own isolation acutely.

Reunion with Vetch

As night falls, Ged hears a familiar voice in the street and follows it. He finds Vetch walking with his sister, Yarrow. Vetch, however, does not recognize him at first and raises his staff as a barrier, mistaking him for a ghost or a trick of the shadow. The moment of hesitation cuts Ged deeply, but Vetch quickly realizes his error and embraces his friend. Vetch explains that three days earlier, he had seen a presentment of Ged—a figure that looked exactly like him—in the village of Quor, which had vanished without a trace. This confirms that the shadow is now taking on Ged's own shape, a sign of its growing power and their deepening connection. Vetch takes Ged home to his house, a spacious and strong-beamed home filled with homely wealth, where Yarrow serves them supper. Ged looks around the firelit room and sighs, saying, "This is how a man should live."

Counsel and Departure

Over the firepit, Ged tells Vetch the full story of his journey since they last parted. Vetch listens and then declares his intention to go with Ged on his quest. Ged refuses, insisting the task is his alone, but Vetch argues that if the quest fails, someone must bear warning to the Archipelago, and if it succeeds, someone must tell the tale. Ged cannot deny his friend. Vetch also reveals that Jasper, their old rival, never won his staff and left Roke to become a sorcerer in the Lord's household on O Island. Before they leave, Ged spends two days in Vetch's home, enjoying the peace and the company of Yarrow and her brother Murre. Yarrow, a clever and curious girl, asks Ged many questions about wizardry, and he speaks to her of Equilibrium and the nature of power. On the morning of their departure, Yarrow stands on the dock and watches them go, as sailors' wives and sisters do on all the shores of Earthsea, standing still in her hooded cloak as the boat grows small on the water. From Ismay, Ged and Vetch sail eastward into the Open Sea, toward the final confrontation with the shadow.