Gunth Mach

Gunth Mach was a young K'Chain Che'Malle Drone, who served as Redmask's bodyguard along with the K'ell Hunter, Sag'Churok.Reaper's Gale, Dramatis Personae As a drone, she was in the process of growing into a female.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 2, US HC p.69-70 Her skin was dark in hue, she stood perfectly balanced on two massive hind legs, and her forelegs sported deadly talons.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 12, US HC p.336 She was capable of running at an astonishing pace. 
Both K'Chain Che'Malle had prodigious appetites and often spent their time hunting prey. When Sag'Churok killed Bhederin, he yielded the carcass to Gunth Mach until she took her fill.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 4, US HC p.94 Rhinazan that had followed her from Lether's eastern Wastelands alit on her back to pluck the ticks from her hide and lick the blood and gore of her opponents from her scales.
==In Reaper's Gale==
Gunth Mach and Sag'Churok accompanied Redmask back to the Awl'dan when the exile launched his war on the Letherii Empire for their subjugation of the Awl. When Redmask raided the Drene Garrison for intelligence on his enemy, the two K'Chain Che'Malle ambushed and slew the mounted soldiers who followed him in pursuit.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 2, US HC p.69 They slaughtered an entire camp of drovers and their families so that Redmask could take possession of their stolen herds of Rodara and Myrid.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 4, US HC p.109-115 They also joined Redmask when he confronted War Leader Hadralt for control of the Ganetok clan. The two K'Chain Che'Malle kept Hadralt's loyal Copperfaces at bay so Redmask could challenge Hadralt without interference.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 6, US HC p.145
Toc Anaster asked how Redmask had come to know their names, but the war leader refused to answer. The Malazan observed that K'ell Hunters normally served as the elite guard of K'Chain Che'Malle Matrons and wondered if Gunth Mach was a Queen in the making.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 10, US HC p.266
At the Battle of Bast Fulmar, Gunth Mach tore into the retreating Artisan Battalion with her talons before dismembering their mage like a straw doll. Only Atri-Preda Bivatt's intervention to direct the surviving soldiers and their mages in a coordinated defense proved capable of driving K'Chain Che'Malle off.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 12, US HC p.336-337 The two K'Chain Che'Malle employed similar stealth tactics at the Battle of Pradegar, bursting from the tall grasses amongst the Awl war dogs and into Overseer Brohl Handar's Edur forces. The Overseer thought Gunth Mach more savage than her larger companion. To his eyes it seemed she took great delight in the violent mayhem. It took the overwhelming number of Edur spears and swords to drive them off.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 16, US HC p.478
During the final battle against the Letherii at Q'uson Tapi, Gunth Mach and Sag'Churok lay burrowed beneath the mud of the battlefield for hours, bursting out at the battle's start to slay the last two remaining Letherii mages amidst their bodyguards. During the mud-slugged fighting that followed the two K'Chain Che'Malle moved against the weaker Letherii flanks, but the constant barrage of arrows and spears kept them on the move. Gunth Mach took a deeply driven spear into her left thigh that left her with a limp. As the tide inevitably turned against the outnumbered Awl, Redmask made plans to seek out and kill Bivatt on his own. The two K'Chain Che'Malle seemed to join him for this task, but turned on Redmask and killed him. Sag'Churok hacked apart Redmask's horse before cutting off the warleader's legs above the knee. Gunth Mach crushed Redmask's chest under her foot then tossed him into the air for Sag'Churok to chop off his right arm. As the two K'Chain Che'Malle departed the battlefield, Toc Anaster mused that their mysterious alliance had ended once Redmask had failed them.Reaper's Gale, Chapter 22, US HC p.680-681/696-697/699-700
==In Dust of Dreams==
She was the One Daughter of the Acyl nest of K'Chain Che'Malle, meaning that she was bred to ultimately become a Matron. Her mother was Gunth'an Acyl. Later she was among the K'Chain Che'Malle guarding Kalyth. She was sent by her mother to search the world of humans for some way to allow her species to survive. She found Kalyth as Destriant, Stormy as Shield Anvil, and Gesler as Mortal Sword. The humans led the K'Chain Che'Malle in a victorious battle against the K'Chain Nah'ruk. She was capable of transforming her body to accommodate a rider.
==In The Crippled God==
In the aftermath of the battle with the K'Chain Nah'ruk, Gunth'an Acyl had sacrificed herself, leaving Gunth Mach, now Gunt Wanderer, in charge of Acyl nest.
Deciding to help the humans fight their mutual enemy, the Forkrul Assail, Gunth Mach allowed her nest to accompany the Letherii, Grey Swords, and Bolkando armies to Kolanse.
==Notes and references==
Category:Bodyguards
Category:Females
Category:K'Chain Che'Malle
Category:Matrons