Lady Silence

## In The Show

She is first seen in episode 2 when Sgt. David Bryant accidentally shoots her father whom he mistook for a polar bear. She is distressed by the incident and tries to get Bryant and members of his party away from her father. However she becomes concerned and begins searching for a creature called the Tuunbaq which kills the party's leader Lieutenant Graham Gore in retaliation.

She appears later in the episode when the party has returned to *Erebus* and Doctor Henry Goodsir tries to remove the musket ball from her father's body which she refuses but Captain Francis Crozier speaks to her in Netsilik that they are her friends and wishes to help her. Goodsir tries his best but is unable to extract the projectile. She begs her father not to leave as she claims the Tuunbaq will not obey her and states he must die outside on the ice and not inside the ship. He passes away regardless where she mourns over his body. She is later seen with Thomas Blanky, Dr. Alexander McDonald, and Crozier where they attempt to converse with her. She only states the British must leave and if they don't they will all go to "huk-kah-hoi" which Blanky translates as disappear.

In the next episode members of the expedition are gathering her father's personal belongings which are delivered to her by Thomas "Tom" Hartnell. She wishes to know where some of her father's charms kept inside his hood are but Hartnell does not have them as they were left inside without his knowledge. Lieutenant George Henry Hodgson states she talked up a storm before her father's death but now she's all silence. Hartnell offers his condolences and dubs her "Lady Silence". She is later seen making a foundation for a new igloo not far from the ships. She is not seen again until the end of the episode when the Tuunbaq appears outside her igloo and gives her a seal carcass to eat.

In episode 4, she is kidnapped by Hartnell, Cornelius Hickey, Magnus Manson, and Thomas Armitage and brought back to *Terror.* Her arrival creates hysteria and Robert Golding suggests cutting her in half to avenge the deaths of William Strong and Thomas Evans who were killed in a similar fashion by the Tuunbaq. Crozier restores order and she is escorted to *Erebus* by Captain James Fitzjames and Blanky. Hickey claims when they found her she was trying to interact with the creature but it ran off before she could. All her kidnappers are later lashed as punishment with the exception of Armitage who manages to stay undetected. She is later greeted by Goodsir who brought her some food and introduces himself and explains to her the reason why the British are in the Arctic.

By episode 5, a month had gone by and she and Goodsir are starting to converse. The men on board *Erebus* become increasingly superstitious of her and begin leaving her trinkets and charms which Fitzjames orders removed every morning and promises punishment for leaving them. Lieutenant Edward Little is sent to retrieve and bring her back to *Terror*. Goodsir volunteers to come along and she is later brought to Crozier and Blanky for questioning. Crozier asks what is hunting them to which she replies "Tuunbaq". Little asks Blanky if he is familiar with the word and he states it's similar to a Yupik word he knows from Russian America meaning "a spirit that dresses as an animal". She states the Tuunbaq is bound to no one now and that she hasn't tried to speak with it. Goodsir volunteers to try a lighter approach and when that fails Crozier tries to get forceful asking her how to kill it. Goodsir points out she has made no attempt at escaping and Blanky believes she's afraid of the creature as well. When she refuses to cooperate Crozier threatens to throw her out but she taunts Crozier about his inability to do anything and asks why he wishes to die. Shortly after, the Tuunbaq attacks the ship and she manages to escape in the commotion. Afterwards Goodsir goes to her room and discovers various drawings she made in addition to bits of lead she found inside the canned foods.

In episode 6, she first appears cutting open a dead seal which she eats. Afterwards she begins singing and after some time goes by, the Tuunbaq arrives. She asks the creature to accept her in her father's place and begins to cut off her own tongue. She later appears at the carnivale thrown by Fitzjames bloodied and injured shocking the men. Goodsir asks what happened but she is unable to speak. A fire is soon started by Dr. Stephen Samuel Stanley which burns the carnivale down but she manages to survive.

In episode 7, the order is given to abandon both ships and begin an 800 mile overland journey south to safety. She accompanies them and one morning while waiting in line to get some canned food, Goodsir dissuades her which raises the suspicion of Hickey. Later one evening, John Morfin is screaming in pain throughout camp begging to be killed. Goodsir tries to help him but Morfin is killed regardless which she witnesses. Morfin's death significantly distresses Goodsir in which he lies into his tent shaking and sobbing but she soon arrives to comfort him.

In the next episode, Hickey claims that Lieutenant John Irving and Thomas R. Farr were murdered by Netsilik while out on a hunting trip earlier. Crozier has her examine Irving's mutilated corpse and asks if that is how her people kill enemies which she denies. Skeptical of Hickey's claims, Crozier heads off to the alleged murder site and she accompanies him along with Goodsir, Thomas Jopson Blanky, Hartnell, Hickey, and Private William Pilkington. When she sees the bodies of other Netsilik who were killed in retaliation, she falls to her knees. Goodsir asks if she knew them, and she gestures they were not her family, but friends. Upon returning to the camp, Fitzjames reports the armory had been opened up and paranoia has reached extreme levels. He recommends letting her go as it's too dangerous to allow her back inside and Crozier agrees. Fitzjames hands over her personal belongings and Crozier bids her farewell. Goodsir tells her he wishes she could see England herself and that people are good there. She assures him and bid each other farewell. Unknown to both of them, this would be the last time they see each other alive.

In episode 9, she meets with the Netsilik Hunter and he speaks of how the land has become barren due to the arrival of the Europeans. He states they will call for another shaman and how she will help him and the Tuunbaq restore balance again as the creature is still bound to her and she cannot walk away. Later she is seen carving a new charm similar to what her father had but in the form of a woman. The hunter then tells her that a man, presumably the new shaman has arrived.

In the final episode, she first appears walking with the new shaman who stops and walks off after realizing the Tuunbaq has been killed. She goes to find the creature and along the way encounters a dying Charles Frederick Des Voeux whom she refuses to help. Upon finding the Tuunbaq's corpse, she gently blows on its face and puts some water into its mouth. She finds an unconscious and shackled Crozier that she tries to free. Not knowing how to unlock his restraints and unable to wake him up, she severs his left hand and takes him with her. Not long after, she comes across the naked and partially eaten corpse of Goodsir which brings her to the verge of tears. Over time she nurses Crozier back to health and he travels with her finding remnants of his men along the way.

She takes Crozier to her village where the Netsilik hunter reveals to him her name is Silna. The hunter allows Crozier to remain at their encampment throughout the winter but Silna leaves during the night. Crozier asks the hunter where she went and he states that because the Tuunbaq was killed while it was bound to her, she must now be banished and Crozier must accept this. Crozier tries to ask around where she went but nobody responds and Silna is never seen again.

## Trivia

the actress that plays Lady Silence is also the lead singer of the band : Nieve Nielsen and the Deer Children