Ep 1 Heat of the Everflame: Chapters 1-14

Summary

Fantasy Fangirls Podcast Summary: Episode 1 - "Heat of the Everflame: Chapters 1-14"

Release Date: July 28, 2025

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Introduction

In the inaugural episode of Fantasy Fangirls, sisters Nicole (Alix) and Lexi embark on a deep dive into "Heat of the Everflame" by Penn Cole, covering chapters 1 through 14 of the third installment in the Kindred's Curse Saga. The sisters provide comprehensive chapter summaries, insightful analyses, and engage in lively discussions about lore, character development, and unfolding theories.

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Chapter Summaries

Chapters 1-14 Overview: The initial chapters introduce Diem (DM), the Crown of Lumnos, who finds herself forcibly taken to Arboros by the Guardians following an explosion on Kuriel Island. Struggling with captivity, DM confronts past betrayals and uncovers deeper conflicts within the Guardians' ranks.

• Chapter 1-3: DM wakes up in Arboros, discovers her mother Cordelia is the leader of the Guardians, and learns about the failed attack on Kuriel.

• Chapter 4-6: DM endures harsh treatment, learns about the Guardians' motives, and faces internal strife as Vance seeks to extract information and blood.

• Chapter 7-8: Cordelia unexpectedly aids DM's escape plan, revealing subtle alliances within the Guardians.

• Chapter 9-14: Luther, DM's love interest, arrives to rescue her. Amidst battles and strategic maneuvers, DM grapples with her powers and the moral complexities of her actions, leading to a tumultuous reunion and further conflicts with Vance.

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Key Characters Discussed

• Diem (DM): The protagonist struggling between her roles as Crown and captive. Her journey is marked by self-discovery and moral dilemmas.

• Luther Courbois: DM's steadfast protector whose loyalty and love for her drive pivotal plot developments.

• Cordelia (Mother Del): The empathetic leader of the Arboros Guardians, offering a nuanced perspective on the ongoing conflict.

• Vance: An antagonistic Guardian whose extremist views and actions escalate tensions, embodying the internal divisions within the Guardians.

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Themes and Analysis

**1. World-Building Masterclass: Nicole praises "Heat of the Everflame" as a stellar example of intricate world-building, highlighting the expansion into realms like Arboros and the introduction of complex political dynamics.

**2. Moral Complexity and Compassion: A recurring theme is DM's struggle to balance compassion with survival. Lexi emphasizes the dedication to portraying nuanced characters who defy black-and-white morality, especially through DM's reluctance to harm mortals despite dire circumstances.

**3. Factional Divisions: The Guardians are depicted as fractured, with factions led by Cordelia advocating for empathy and cooperation, while Vance's group pushes for ruthless actions against the Descended. This split underscores the saga's exploration of leadership and ideological conflicts.

**4. Power and Responsibility: DM's evolving understanding of her powers and responsibilities as Crown highlights the theme of personal growth and the burden of leadership.

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Foreshadowing and Theories

**1. Heartstone Significance: The introduction of the Heartstone suggests its pivotal role in the coming conflicts, possibly linked to Ophiuchai's ambitions and the overall magical fabric of Omarion.

**2. Vance's True Intentions: Speculations arise about Vance's ulterior motives, particularly his obsession with DM's blood to unlock palace secrets, hinting at future confrontations.

**3. Cordelia's Allegiances: Cordelia's subtle support for DM indicates deeper alliances that may influence the Guardians' future strategies and the overarching war narrative.

**4. Breck's Loyalty: Discussions about Breck's true allegiance and his past with DM raise questions about his role in the unfolding events, potentially positioning him as a key ally or a tragic figure caught between factions.

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Notable Quotes

• "The hottest fires forge the strongest swords."
  (Timestamp 04:16)
  Lexi reflects on the dedication of the book's dedication, paralleling DM's resilience through her challenges.

• "Better hurry up, Vance. Wouldn't want Mother Cordelia showing up and putting you back in your place."
  (Timestamp 78:38)
  DM asserts her authority, emphasizing the looming presence of Cordelia as a counter to Vance's aggression.

• "D' Am Bellator, don't you dare mistake compassion for a lack of courage."
  (Timestamp 84:07)
  Luther encourages DM to embrace compassion as strength, reinforcing the show's central theme.

• "I had killed a mortal to save a descendant."
  (Timestamp 95:50)
  DM grapples with the consequences of her unintended actions, highlighting her internal conflict.

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Conclusions

Fantasy Fangirls effectively captures the intricate plotting and character dynamics of "Heat of the Everflame", offering listeners a nuanced understanding of the saga's complexities. Nicole and Lexi's passionate discourse not only elucidates key plot points but also delves into the moral and emotional underpinnings of the characters, setting the stage for intense developments in subsequent chapters.

Listeners are encouraged to engage deeply with the content to appreciate the multifaceted storytelling and to anticipate the unfolding of the Kindred's Curse Saga.

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Stay Connected

To continue following the Fantasy Fangirls journey, ensure you're subscribed to their podcast on your preferred platform. New episodes drop every Monday, each offering fresh insights and thorough analyses of beloved fantasy tales.

Note: This summary is spoiler-heavy for the Kindred's Curse Saga. Proceed with caution if you haven't read the books.

Transcript

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[Lexi]

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[Nicole]

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[Lexi]

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[Alix]

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[Alix]

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[Alix]

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[Carvana]

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[Lexi]

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[Alix]

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[Carvana]

Welcome welcome welcome to the Fantasy Fangirls podcast where two sisters dive deep into beloved fantasy lore, character themes, theories and more.

[Lexi]

I'm Lexi, older sister and Fantasy lore nerd.

[Alix]

And I'm Nicole, younger sister and romantic at heart.

[Lexi]

And today is our first episode, deep Diving Heat of the Everflame by Pen Cole where we are covering chapters one through 14.

[Carvana]

Buckle up everybody.

[Lexi]

If you did not catch our five episodes for Spark of the Everflame or seven episodes for Glow of the Everflame. That's okay friends, it's not necessary to listen to them before you start today's episode, but these discussions do build off of our analysis of Spark and Glow, so we recommend tuning into them at some point. If you like these episodes, you will absolutely love those episodes too. And also, before we begin this Heat episode one, please listen closely to our spoiler warning because all of these episodes includes spoilers for all of Heat of the Everflame, the third book in the Kindred's Curse saga. Yes, that includes the ending, so if.

[Alix]

You don't know why Luther is acting mighty funny, then please go finish the series. We will be here when you're done.

[Lexi]

Next, we have Fantasy Fangirls are adults who say adult things about adult books. In other words, friends, this podcast is.

[Carvana]

Rated R. Luther strips DM down he fought. Never mind he just changed clothes. But I will be taking every opportunity because this is why we love a slow burn friends. So with that said, please be mindful of those little listening ears.

[Lexi]

Additionally, we are so excited to see you at upcoming live events. We will be featured guests at Enchanticon in St. Louis, Missouri August 15th through 17th.

[Alix]

Then we will be at the Everflame Ball along with Pen Cole for the first ever Kindred's Curse Saga Ball on August 30th in Castle Rock College.

[Lexi]

We're interviewing Rebecca Ross, author of Divine Rivals and the upcoming release wild reverence on September 5th in Denver, Colorado.

[Alix]

We will also be back at the Dragon Gauntlet in Boyne City, Michigan September 12th through 13th.

[Lexi]

Then Romanecy Bookcon in Orlando, Florida October 23rd through 25th where we are interviewing Rebecca Yarros again at Disney world. And on March 6th through 8th in Dallas, Texas, we will be podcast partners at Dreamers and Readers Festival.

[Alix]

Check out our website or the links below for more information to all of these events, plus discount codes for some of them as well.

[Lexi]

Last thing before we jump into this heat of The Everflame Episode 1 if you love fantasy fangirls and want more events, more content, more community and so much more, please check out Fantasy Fan Club.

[Alix]

We have three membership tiers that you can join. Number one, the Descended, which includes access to our Boppin Discord live Q&As from Lexi and me, a book club, exclusive author interviews, community events like trivia, promo codes for live events, plus exclusive designs and 20% off all merch. That is for $6 a month. Or you can join the Royal Family which includes everything from the Descended level, plus early access to ad free episodes, our full episode outlines and special voting privileges. That is for $10 a month. And last but not least, we have the Crowns Council which includes everything from the previous two tiers plus behind the scenes content, a welcome gift, giveaways, a private Discord channel, your name shouted out on the podcast, that is for $25 a month.

[Lexi]

Join the party at fantasyfangirls.com fanclub. The link is also in the show notes and as always, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting us as we've turned this podcast into our livelihood. It's a dream come true and it's all because of you.

[Alix]

And now it is time to escape the Guardians clutches.

[Carvana]

Dun dun dun.

[Lexi]

So like we do with every new book, let's open today's conversation with where this book ranks in the series and how we like it.

[Alix]

For me, Heat of the Everflame is what I consider a masterclass of world building. It's answering questions, giving us hundreds more to stress over.

[Carvana]

I know, right? That's exactly how I feel.

[Alix]

And I do feel that while I love this book as a whole, I really do mean that the first half moves a little slower to me than the exhilaratingness of the second half. And because of that reason, it always feels like it's a little bit more difficult to get through. I love Luther. I love him so much.

[Carvana]

Our boy's gonna get some elf in this first episode. Oh boy.

[Alix]

And while I'm really excited to analyze DM in this book, this is also where I struggle the most with her choices. However, I'm really hoping that through this deep dive, honestly even just through writing outline for episode one, I was able to see things more from her perspective and it eased that sense of girl, come on. And I'm also keeping my fingers crossed that that happens to orally for me because I really struggle with some of her things.

[Carvana]

Like I was debating seriously getting an aurally hat for the second half of.

[Alix]

This deep dive, but to be honest, we will cross that bridge when we break her out of prison. Speaking of when we break her out of prison, there is a second half of this book and the Luther and Diem romance that is just oh my favorite. I love it so much. Everything in Sophos is what I love in a romance book coming to life. So all of this to say, this book almost feels like it has two different ratings for me, so I'm actually going to split it in half and rank it that way. Glow is still overall my favorite of the series and that is where DM comes on her own. It's where we get the found family, it's where we get the foot massage. All the things I love. Then it's the second half of Heat of the Everflame where we get Omnos and Ophiuchai and the Ursula message with taking the Rosebane. It's all just so good. Then it's Spark because for me that is the foundation that is this entire series. And then it's the first half of.

[Lexi]

Heat we feel very similarly. I've been pretty open and consistent about how hard it is to give Heat an overall rating because I'm the exact same way. The first half and the second half feel like two different books to me. While I do love the first half's world building expansion with going to Arboros and Igneous and such and the Guardians plot Getting to know new and old characters. I really struggled with Luther's behavior and the pacing. It just isn't my favorite. And then we get to the second half of Heat, which is where this ranks the highest of the whole series for me. So I know that you have Glow as your number one. The second half of Heat is my number one. I love the twist with Omnos as the youngest kindred brother. Like, wow, that was so unexpected. And it set me spiraling with theories in the best way possible. Oh, feokai's introduction answers so many questions. But like you said, Nicole, this book is masterful at then creating lots of new questions. The second half of this book brought it from a great Romanasy series to top tier. We need to deepen this series, right? Yes. Like I mentioned, with the world building expansion, I love how we go to so many new realms and get to know some of the crowns. I miss some of our favorite characters, you know, like Teller and Eleanor. But of course it makes sense for the story and instead we get to explore how complicated Orly is. I like how we spend a little bit more time with Elix and get to know her character more. I love every beat of Sophos and every part of Umbro's, you know, minus Luther plot. I also love how we meet Zaleric and his whole relationship with Taran is just the best. Okay, now I'm just gushing. I love this book so much, even with a few flaws. I am so excited to deep dive this book, especially again that second half of it. And I will admit I'm a little intimidated. I think this is the thickest book that we've ever deep dived.

[Alix]

Right? Yeah, it is.

[Carvana]

More ways than one.

[Lexi]

It is longer than silver flames. So this is.

[Carvana]

Yeah, it is. Hey, don't you dare say that about my boy, Cathy.

[Lexi]

And what I'm trying to say is this is going to be a good challenge for us to do in Jesse's eight episodes. And I'm really excited to see how this will be for us as fantasy fan girls and how we do move forward with how we do our deep dives. And this is a really good again challenge for us for that. All right now, Nicole, as always, is going to do us the honor of summarizing this stretch of chapters. So gather round as we consult with our royal advisors to discuss what happens in these first 14 chapters. Oh my goodness. Have fun with this. Nicole of Heat of The Everflame Chapter 1.

[Alix]

After being woken up by being force fed flameroot, DM notices that she's not in Kansas anymore, but she's instead in Arboros, surrounded by Mother Cordelia and her merry band of Guardians. DM tries to use the fact that she too is a Guardian to prove that she means them no harm. And that doesn't work. So DM changes the subject, wanting to instead get any info she can about her mother. And boy oh boy, does she RLE went after DM after she was knocked unconscious from the explosion on the island and her mother is now locked in a cell.

[Carvana]

Oh, and she's also the leader of the Guardians. Oh, look.

[Alix]

Another secret she kept from DM. Chapter 2 the guardians drag diem past the woods tree line, where she spots a figure chained to a tree with a glowing crown of flowers hovering over her head. The Guardians have captured the Queen of Arboros, but the two queens don't get long to talk before the Arboros queen is dragged away kicking and screaming. Desperate to save another queen, DM does her best Mr. Incredible impression and pulls the tree out.

[Carvana]

Of the ground until a club boops.

[Alix]

Her on the head. Chapter 3 Waking up with the headache from hell, DM finds herself chained to a bigger tree in the middle of a large meadow. And the Guardians did a much better job this time. Out of the shadows, Breck saunters up to dm, giving her the tldr on all things Henry. He's alive and well, but he may or may not have known about the attack and her capture.

[Carvana]

Bad luck for Henry.

[Alix]

Breck is also willing to spill the tea on all the Guardians plans for Kirill.

[Carvana]

Long story short, their own plans went.

[Alix]

To hell and they had to go with plan C. Plan C? This might as well be Ferrari at any grand prix ever. Chapter 4 Hanging out chained to a tree, DM is biding her time. Every night she disposes of the flameroot, laced water and food, playing a game of chicken between her magic and her death. But Vance and his troops have different plans for DM. Today, under the guise of taking her potty, Vance instructs his men to hold down dm. Without her strength from a lack of food or water, DM is helpless to do anything to stop him. Vance slices her palm open and places vials under her hands, collecting her blood. But before they can take too much blood, a horn sounds.

[Carvana]

Gryburn. Incoming. Chapter five It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Sarai.

[Alix]

But she's not the only one. Perched on her back, sword at the ready, is the one, the only my.

[Carvana]

Number one book boyfriend, Luther Courbois.

[Alix]

But Cordelia is one step ahead of him and readies the ballista with two Godstone bolts. One of them, Diem makes go poof.

[Carvana]

Hey, that one was an antique.

[Alix]

Not wanting more bloodshed, DM tells the Guardians to run, to which all but Vance heed her warning.

[Carvana]

And look where that got him.

[Alix]

When Sarai lands, Luther is prepared to risk it all, rushing toward DM with only a shield to protect himself from the onslaught of Godstone arrows. But needing to save Luther from himself, DM commands Sarai to take Luther to Lumnos and not come back. Chapter 6 After her magic show, it's back to being force fed flameroot. DM asks Cordelia the burning question on her mind. Did Sarai and Luther make it out alive? Yes, the Bold missed them and they flew off into the sunset. But since she got an answer, she has to give one too. Giving Cordelia the rundown on everything between DM and Vance and a look into her own perspective on the guardians mission. Chapter 7 It's time for the Guardians to move camp, and one night DM gets a welcome surprise when Breck and a new Guardian take over the night watch. Claiming that she's stinking up the whole camp, Breck and Herkin take DM to wash up in the river, but it's a bad day to be Herkin with a blow to the back of a head, he's out cold. Circling around the camp, DM and Breck come face to face with Cordelia. But it's okay because she's here to help, giving her a boat and some supplies. Diem is out of here, ready to head back to lumnos. Chapter 8 as the shore fades away behind her, DM wishes for some wind to help guide her sail. And boy, oh boy, does she get it. Guiding her right back to the shore again and again and again. And to top it all off, the magic spiteful wind knocks over her boat, leaving DM supplyless, wet and and stuck on land.

[Carvana]

It says stay.

[Alix]

DM Sneaking back into camp, DM forms a new plan. Steal a horse and get the fuck out. But there's only one tiny problem. Luther's here and he's ready to burn the whole camp down to find her.

[Carvana]

Yeah, he is.

[Alix]

Chapter 9 Whipping around, DM finds herself face to face with Taran. Who totally has a plan to get Luther out, right?

[Carvana]

Right?

[Alix]

Nope. He's running full speed ahead with just winging it. But don't worry, Taryn. Your Queenie has a plan. She'll distract them with a bomb and you just stand there and look pretty. Sneaking around camp, DM makes her way closer to the fire, but not without a little help from Luther. After getting a flame, DM rushes to the bombs, grabbing two at random. Setting off the bigger one wasn't as effective as DM hoped. So with one more chance, DM lights the last bomb and chucks it into the trees before getting the fuck out of there. Chapter 10 Flying into Luther's arms, DM is reminded that maybe now is not the time to be making out in a war zone. Fighting their way through the throngs of mortals, dm, Luthor and the Leaks find themselves face to face with Del and quickly surrounded.

[Carvana]

Where's Tam Karen during all of this?

[Alix]

Oh, you know, just collecting a couple more bombs and chucking them into the nearby fire. Making their way to the edge of camp, the four bloodied companions push their bodies to the limit. An unknown amount of time later, the four of them find themselves hiding in a tree, waiting to see if the Wild Hunt is finally over. Chapter 11 after determining they're safe for the night, the four set up camp. But DM is freezing cold and Luther clocks it immediately. Not wanting his girl to freeze to death, Luther does what any good, whatever he is to diem does and and peels DM out of her wet clothes.

[Carvana]

And they fuck.

[Alix]

That'll warm you up. Just kidding. He slips her into his own clothes, making sure she's warm and safe and content. Chapter 12 Enjoying their morning cuddles and the sounds of Taran annoying leaks, DM and Luther take a second to just have a moment alone together. And using this moment alone, Luther finally spills beans about his history with Aurelie and how she might cut off Luther's balls when she finds out about him and DM's little relationship. But DM spills a secret of her own.

[Carvana]

She's helped the Guardians plot twist.

[Alix]

Luther already knew. After discussing their options, the group decides to stay put for the day. And DM walks the three big bad descendants through the steps to their own wilderness badges, foraging food, fish, hunting and lighting fires. Without magic, of course. You know basic survival skills. Chapter 13 Several hours later, after the crew is full from their fire roasted meal, Dean finally asks the question that's been bugging how are things back in the realm I'm ruling? And it turns out things in Lumnos are good. The Crowns lied about the attack and no one suspects a thing. While Taran is busy putting his foot in his mouth, DM feels a comforting presence.

[Carvana]

Luther's Magic is back, baby.

[Alix]

And then it's gone again. But the happiness doesn't last long before Taryn opens his big mouth again, exposing one massive secret. Luther used the compass to find Diem. What compass? You asked. Oh, the one that just leads you to whatever your heart most desires. Yep, that compass. But it's okay, Luther, because her heart desires you too.

[Carvana]

And they strip naked and fornicate on the grass.

[Alix]

Except they don't, because Vance emerges from the Shadow. Chapter 14. Stepping in Front of Diem, Luthor starts removing his weapons as ordered by party pooper Vance, who goes off on an evil villain monologue. And since he never knows when to shut up, Taryn taunts Vance and his men by calling out to start with him. And they oblige, stabbing Taran with a Godstone blade.

[Carvana]

No Taran.

[Alix]

All hell breaks loose.

[Carvana]

People are moving, blades are swinging, arrows are flying.

[Alix]

And what perfect timing for Elix's magic to come back. Kinda sneaking away. DM and Alix take their chance to get the fuck out of there. They run and run and run and run until the trees give way to sand. And welcome to Igneous.

[Carvana]

Good job, Nicole. That was a lot.

[Lexi]

All right, friends, it is now time to reach for our foraging magic and unravel key insights, character analysis, lore, foreshadowing theories, and oh, so much more. Let's start with the dedication, because Pen has done it again with a beautiful dedication to that speaks to the readers and DMs journey in this third book of the Kindred Curse saga. The dedication is for all those caught in the flames. Remember that the hottest fires forge the strongest swords. It's a message that when we go through our hardest challenges, when we feel caught in the flames of the hottest fires, that is when we come out stronger. It's about surviving the most difficult times and rising up like a phoenix. And that does look different for all of us. For Diem, in the story, she faces problems from every direction. And even with these challenges, she gains confidence in herself and how she handles herself around other crones and on a political level. Think how far she's come from the first time she met the Courbois family to when she confronts Sophos at the end of this book. And instead of delusionally denying who she is, she is embracing her power and owning who and what she is, which she did struggle with a lot last book, and of course, how DM grows with her relationships, specifically with Luther. They have been through so much together and they are coming out of these hottest fires as the strongest swords together. But we all know this isn't just about dm. This dedication is for us readers who struggle through tough times and we survive because we have to find the inner strength to do so. We come out of challenges stronger than before, no matter how messy it is because we get through it. We dig deep. We learn about ourselves in order to get to the next day and the day after and the day after that until we see the light again. We strongest swords are forged in the hottest fires. And as hard as it can be when we are in those hottest fires and it's like, oh my God, I need a flipping break here it is that light at the end of the tunnel and knowing that you find that inner strength to keep going and it makes us stronger. Ultimately because of that, Summer is always.

[Alix]

The season when I start to get a wardrobe revamp itch. That's where Nordstrom comes in. The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale is a once a year opportunity to shop new arrivals on sale for a limited time. You can save up to 33% on new arrivals from top brands like New Ballot, Madewell, Sam Edelman and more. Plus save on beauty exclusives from Charlotte Tilbury and more. The sale starts on July 12 and ends on August 3, which means prices go up August 4.

[Lexi]

I am all for a good sale and one that gets you discounts on new arrivals is even better. For instance, my husband loves Travis Matthews so we are definitely keeping an eye on that brand for the sale. I love Viori. Obviously I live in activewear so those are my brands that I love.

[Carvana]

Vyori is so soft. I love it.

[Alix]

Nordstrom makes it easy. You can shop the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale with free help from their stylists to help you make sure you're walking out with pieces you love. I'm also so excited for all the fun anniversary events they have going on like in store promotions and glam up days.

[Lexi]

Obviously we can't wait for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. Make the most of your summer closet restock with Nordstrom. We hope to see you there. Summer is unfortunately winding down before too long. Our days by the pool and hanging out on the patio will be no more. But while summer might be coming to a my family is really looking forward to getting back into a regular routine. And as we head into the second half of the year, there's no better time for an office refresh by Wayfair.

[Alix]

Get back into a routine you love with Wayfair. From bedding and linens to storage solutions for every room in the house. Wayfair is your one stop shop. Refresh your workspace with desks, bookcases and office chairs for way less or make weeknight dinners a fun thing again with quality cookware that makes meal time a breeze.

[Lexi]

You all I finally have my green velvet chair in my office. I am looking at it right now and it has been absolutely wonderful for this whole week. In fact, my husband comes and sits down in it, my kids love to hang out in it while I do my work and it's been so nice to have in my office. I absolutely love it so much and it's so pretty to look at. It just makes me feel so warm and cozy when they come into my office.

[Alix]

There's something for every style and every home. No matter your space or budget. Wayfair makes it easy to tackle your home goals with endless inspiration.

[Lexi]

Get organized, refresh and back to routine for way less. Head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. That's W-A-Y-F-A-I-R.com Wayfair Every style, every Home.

[Alix]

Okay everybody, the end of pool reading season is in sight, which means we.

[Carvana]

Have to get serious about our summer TBR stat rather than being distracted by the latest social media book sensation.

[Alix]

But there's no better way to lock in your sunny summer reads than getting a new pair of glasses.

[Lexi]

Glasses from Pear no matter what you're reading, Pear has tons of budget friendly shapes and styles that don't compromise on quality or style. Plus you get 15% off by going to pear eyewear.com FFG I personally love my glasses. They are the Kirby style in pink clear and they are so versatile and I get complimented on them all the time and I just really love them.

[Alix]

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[Lexi]

Slay your summer reading look. Go to pair eyewear.com FFG for 15 off your first pair. And please support the show by mentioning that fantasy fan club girls sent you in your post checkout survey that is p a I r I wear.com ffg.

[Warby Parker]

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[Carvana]

Thanks for selling your car to Carvana.

[Warby Parker]

Here's your check.

[Carvana]

Whoa.

[Lexi]

When did I get here?

[Carvana]

What do you mean?

[Lexi]

I swear it was just moments ago that I accepted a great offer from Carvana online.

[Nicole]

I must have time traveled to the future.

[Carvana]

It was just moments ago.

[Lexi]

We do same day pickup.

[Warby Parker]

Here's your check for that great offer offer.

[Lexi]

It is the future. It's.

[Carvana]

It's the present. And just the convenience of Carvana.

[Warby Parker]

Sorry to blow your mind.

[Lexi]

It's all good.

[Alix]

Happens all the time.

[Carvana]

Sell your car the convenient way to Carvana. Pick up.

[Warby Parker]

Times may vary and fees may apply.

[Nicole]

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[Lexi]

As we head into heat of the Everflame, which begins an unknown amount of hours or even a few days after the explosion on Kuriel, let's first play catch up to what else is going on elsewhere in Omarion. Following that crazy cliffhanger in Glow. Aurelie was captured when she tried to save DM and is now locked in a prison cell in Fortos. Things are not looking good for her now that she is a known Guardian leader. We know that the Lumnos Crown DM and the Arboros Crown Murell have been captured by the Guardians during the chaos of the explosion and they are currently being held captive for leverage. The Montius Crown was unfortunately killed during the explosion and the rest of the Crowns are in their realms. Luthor made it off the island untouched, minus Aurelie slashing his heels. That quickly healed at least. And the Crowns put out an official statement that declares the Guardian attack a failed attempt. And they are claiming that the Guardians evolved are imprisoned or dead. Dead. Which means back in Lumnos, things are largely unchanged after DMs show during the challenging. Everyone is scared of provoking her temper. And the 20 houses are operating as they did under Ulther. I think it's believed that she's just laying low as well right now. Like in Lumnos, it's not common knowledge that she's been captured. Fortos sent troops to every realm to discourage further violence. Guardians are feeling really good and bolstered right now, and there are an increasing amount of attacks throughout the realms. But interestingly, there are extra soldiers in Lumnos compared to the other realms. Realms. So we've got our eye on you, Remus. What are you up to? The Guardians are in a precarious position. They plan to take down the Kindreds temple on Kuril, but since that didn't work, they are now attempting to hold their ground for as long as possible before the descended eventually do take back the island. All the Lumnos Guardians that were present on the island for the attack rushed back to the mainland in an effort to not raise suspicions and to avoid getting caught. And the Arboros Guardians are working with their allies in Fortos to plan a heist to break Aurelie out of her cell, while trying not to get everyone killed in the process. They do have a Plan A. This is like plan B that they've.

[Alix]

In their back pocket.

[Lexi]

During the attack, Aurelie had instructed the other Guardians to only save the Lumnos crown if and only if, it was a man with dark hair and a scar.

[Carvana]

Luther.

[Lexi]

But since DM ended up being the Crown instead, she was the only crown to be spared. And Vance got DM to safety.

[Carvana]

Ish.

[Alix]

Dm, however, is quite groggy as she wakes up feeling like she's drowning. But the big question is, where the fuck is she? Arboros, that's where. She knows absolutely nothing of everything Lexi just said. Surrounded by thick tree trunks covered in vines of lush ferns, this is most definitely the realm of root and thorn. The plant realm. The realm at the five o' clock position. And for reference, Lumnos is at the 9 o'.

[Lexi]

Clock.

[Carvana]

This is terrible. Lumnos is at the 9 o' clock position. What is this? I have a map behind me.

[Alix]

After the attack, DM was knocked unconscious and Vance took her on the boat to Arboros, which Leaves DM with a million questions other than the fact of why did Vance save me? Where is her mother? Was anyone else injured on the island? Where is Luther? Is he even alive?

[Carvana]

And how the heck is she going.

[Alix]

To get herself out of this mess? Because using the Guardian's secret greeting that she learned back back in Spark when she attended her first meeting, sure did.

[Carvana]

Not soften them up to her.

[Lexi]

This is a big theme in this episode. DM has one foot in each world and she's trying to show the mortals she's not so different from them. She's the only person in this world who can be like, I'm one of you.

[Carvana]

Hello.

[Lexi]

Later on she'll even ask a mortal why there can't be good and bad descended, just like there are good and bad mortals. And even though that'll briefly give him pause as a whole, all the Guardians see here is a descended crown and that is their number one enemy. So when a crown is like I'm a sister of the ever flame, they're like fuck no. You're not part of this family. You are not one of us. Descended have toxic blood. It is literally in their DNA to be selfish and evil. And as desperate as DM is to open their minds to a new perspective of the descended, she also admits that she used to think like these guardians. She can't even be mad at them for how they're treating her. Because it's the same line of thinking she had only a month ago.

[Alix]

There is a woman towering over her holding a godstone blade to her face.

[Carvana]

Face.

[Alix]

For years the descended have held their own power over the mortals heads to say in the slightest. And now the mortals finally have the playing field switched. They just rid a crown of magic by force feeding her flame root. They have numerous blades that could end her life instantly. And numerous blades that could poison her to a very slow and painful death. Despite being practically powerless though, DM is not afraid of demanding answers or threatened to fight with only weapons.

[Carvana]

Damn. This right here is such a badass.

[Alix]

I love it. Why can't she use her powers though? Ah yes, because the Guardians are force feeding her flame root. Quick question. How the hell did they get this much flame root?

[Carvana]

Because they are not giving her a normal amount.

[Lexi]

I figured it's a given that they just brought some back with them when they came back from the island.

[Alix]

Well, we know that Henry was loading bags that Aurelie left near the Lumnos port. But that was onto the Lumnos royal boat.

[Carvana]

Correct.

[Lexi]

And then Luther caught him and I'm assuming that did not get onto the boat. Ultimately, we know that Orly didn't, like, leave stash there for Arboros, but who's to say that a few of them didn't come in and like, just grab some flowers and stuff them in a satchel and then do that?

[Alix]

Or they also might have been stealing some like we assumed Arlie was doing for the first 10 years of DM's life. They might have been stealing and stockpiling over the years as well.

[Lexi]

This might be part of them preparing themselves for what's to come here with this war that has started.

[Alix]

I think you're right.

[Lexi]

One of the Guardians say that Orly's instructions only call for one spoonful. Perfect overdose. So if Orly had to tell the Guardians how to use flame root, I'm guessing she somehow passed this information to the Arboro cell before she left for Koreel. Like, this would not have been something that she said on Korel because she was a little preoccupied and she didn't see any of the Guardians from Arboros before she got captured herself. I'll be honest, how they have so much flame root. I think this might be one of the situations that we're just not supposed to look much into. Back to DM being forced to take the flame route as a hostage of the Guard Guardians. While Orly said only one spoonful is enough, this Guardian gives her triple the dose to be on the safe side, you know, because DMs a crown, therefore she has more magic to be nullified. This is such a show, don't tell way of illustrating the mortals fear of DMs magic. And especially with her being the most powerful descendant in Lumnos, hence her crown, they're scared of what she might do. So instead of following the instructions, they triple the dose to really make sure this crown doesn't have any magic.

[Carvana]

I'll be honest, if my husband was in this situation, he would be having a fit. Like, he is the kind of person who follows rules to a T. And this like, I can almost hear him just having a field day at the Guardians with this dose change, this is.

[Lexi]

The only way that the Guardians can truly feel confident in keeping DM under their control. But even with three spoonfuls of flame root, the mortals are visibly afraid of dm when they have to get too close to her to the point where she even wants to spook one later on and say boo at one point, which is just hilarious. I love that little bit of comedy right there.

[Carvana]

It's Also, so DM to be tied up, drugged, beat to hell, and she'd go, boo. Yeah. God, I love that. It is time to settle into life.

[Alix]

As a prisoner at the Arboros Guardian cell camp. Like the Lumnosel, the Arboros cell is angry. They're ready for action. Their prejudice against the Descendant is loud and clear. They're treating Diem like a wild animal rather than a person. But as we will learn from some of the mortals who are chaining up dm, they believe that all descended are selfish at heart, and it is embedded in their DNA and their blood. This does make me wonder how many Guardians know that the Arboros queen is half descended and half mortal? Like, does that soften them to her more? Because. I don't think so.

[Lexi]

I wondered that too. But then there's what a few of the guards say while DM is, you know, sleeping. They say it's bad enough that they have to play nice with two false queens. One is Diem, and we can strongly assume the other one is Arboros. This could be another way that they. Vance is poisoning people against Del and her leadership style. Del works with the descended. Vance is here to bring justice to them. Oh, I'm gonna have some words for that man soon.

[Alix]

The Guardian cell in Arboros. Their beliefs might be similar to Lumnos, but their livelihood is very much different. While Lumnos Guardians have lives outside of the Cause, they have homes and families to go home to outside of the meetings and missions the Arboro self, they eat, sleep and breathe the Guardian camp.

[Lexi]

Well, I will say we don't know if this is all of the Arboro. I'm sure that this is only one subset of them, and there are plenty more in, you know, Mortal City, or maybe even Arboro City. We don't know how it is here in Arboros.

[Alix]

The fact that they even have this to begin with is different than Lumnos, because Lumnos does not have this. Absolutely.

[Lexi]

And it comes back to there's not nearly as much restrictions here as there are in Lumnose. If Lumnos ghost tried to do this, the Descended would find and do things to them.

[Alix]

I can only imagine families with children and elderly live among the tents, showing us that their whole lives are moving concurrently with the Guardians in whatever campsite they have for the night. While I'm sure this makes them a very, very close group, DM points out that it is also incredibly dangerous. If anyone discovered anyone who lived in this camp, it wouldn't just be their own necks on the line. If they're like part of the Guardians, it would be their whole families. If they were caught, every last one of them would be doomed. Now, I do wonder if part of the danger is minimized by the Arboros Queen working with them, or at least protecting them as best as she can, while also not, you know, outing herself to the other Crowns. Because she would be dead within a heartbeat. Absolutely.

[Lexi]

That's my understanding. Later, Orly will say that the Arboros Queen lets the Guardians openly do their own thing. So I think that's the big piece of information that DM does not have at this time. She does not know that the Arboros Queen is in support of this. And so she's like, what are they doing?

[Carvana]

This is really dangerous.

[Lexi]

When really it's not as dangerous because she has the Luminos mindset.

[Alix]

Well, then I'll also. I'm gonna throw out a theory for burn, because we know that there's going to be a big meeting between the descended Crowns and the Guardians. Or at least that they've been invited to one, based off the first three chapters that we have from Luther's pov.

[Carvana]

Because it's an invitation. I would be shocked if they don't.

[Alix]

Actually go and we don't see it on the page.

[Carvana]

Like I'm feral for a good political meeting. Oh my God, I'm so excited. Hi, Lord's meeting. I know. That's exactly what I was thinking.

[Alix]

Yes, But I could see Mirelle, the Arboros Queen, getting outed at that meeting. And that witch hunt is going to be directed immediately at her. And I could see her dying and DM getting the Arboros crown. We know that the Arboros Guardian cell has quite the stash of weapons, starting with a lot of explosives, which DM notes. She still does not know how to make these bombs. And I do. You hear almost an element of foreshadowing for her figuring it out. Or even a leaks or Teller learning how to make some.

[Lexi]

I could see that. Or maybe we'll see Henry make one.

[Carvana]

But who would he be making them for, is the big question. Not dm. Let's just say that. I don't know. I don't know. I could. I'm scared to say it.

[Alix]

I'm not gonna say it.

[Carvana]

Then there's only episode one.

[Lexi]

Don't worry.

[Carvana]

I'm not ready to put my Henry Redemption ocean hat on in one way or another.

[Alix]

There's also a lot of Fortosian steel blades. Yes, many of them. Blades from the armory explosion back in Spark, that Vance and his band of men, manly men, took from the Armory Explosion. The irony is kind of rich here that DM is the one who gave them plans to blow up the Armory, and now she's being held by the same people she armed.

[Lexi]

How very interesting that Vance declined to provide that bit of very good information to these guards.

[Alix]

It's almost like he's choosing which bits of info he's sharing that, you know, align with his own narrative. And lastly, we know that they have Godstone blades as well as arrows, as well as giant arrows for the Gryverns. We learn from Cordelia that centuries of Guardians have been slowly collecting these types of blades since the Blood War. I do want to know how this has gone down, but I don't think.

[Carvana]

That'S a prequel we're getting.

[Lexi]

So we are introduced to the Guardians Arboro cell leader Cordelia, also known as Mother Del. She's kind of leader DM imagined the Guardians to have. And we do find out that Dell and Orly are friends. They're two women dedicated to the cause and lead with intention and firmness. Del is strategic and she's thoughtful. She's down to earth. She's scary as hell, but not out for blood. And she does have empathy. She takes protecting her people seriously. But she also sees DM as a human, not descended scum like so many of the other mortals here think. But as a fellow person, I love DM's exchange with her about being a leader and having people loyal beyond what reason? Because in Del, we see more humanity in the Guardians, and with her and dm, we see two sides of the same coin. Ultimately, they have the same goals as DM insists, but they're on opposite sides. So Indel and Embrek here shortly too. It's so cool to see how the mortals and descended can work well together toward their shared mission of equality for mortals. It also reminds me a lot of Luther and or. They had the same goal, but they didn't necessarily like each other very much. But they did respect one another.

[Carvana]

So low key. Cordelia is one of my favorite side characters in the entire series. She's such a mom, like Mother Del. Yes, ma'.

[Lexi]

Am.

[Carvana]

I know, right?

[Alix]

Well, and we already know from the first three chapters of Burn, which, by the way, the link to get those is in the show notes. We are going to Guardian camp with Luther, and based off the interaction with Aurelie and the Arboros Queen and Cordelia in that scene, I think we're going to get a lot of her. In Burn, Cordelia is very level headed. She wishes to hear something from every side of the story rather than just instantly listening to the loudest voice in the room. Cough cough. Looking at you Vance. She's definitely not afraid to put herself in harm's way for the sake of her people. We see this when she purposefully burns herself to test out Diem's herbal remedy that she shares with her before putting it on the rest of her guardians who did get burned from Sarai's attack. She also doesn't automatically trust Diem dm, but she's also smart enough to understand that if needed, she can take advice from someone else, even a descended queen, because she senses that her values are very much in alignment with hers. She also can note that DM is a descended queen. She's not afraid to admit that and how powerful that can be for the guardian side. She could be an ally and it's not worth just killing her just because she has descended blood. I keep going back to what Alix said last episode with Eleanor, that she's the correct leader because she knows who to go to for help and she's humble enough to listen to them. And Del doesn't believe herself. This all knowing God like Vance. Most importantly though, Del has patience. She's even lecturing DM on having some as well. I do agree with that. She knows when it's time to strike and she knows she needs to look at the long term repercussions before acting.

[Lexi]

There's just so much foreshadowing for the Queen of Arbreos being their ally. I love that on a reread.

[Alix]

And then, then there's Vance, who's here in our Boros, much to Cordelia's and our annoyment. He is calling himself Father despite being in another realm and not being the leader of this Guardian cell. He's fighting Cordelia on her leadership decisions because he believes he has a right to. He is reminding me a lot of Remus right now, doing whatever it takes to hold onto power. But rather than what Remus does where it's always trying to save save his own life, I believe here it's trying to hold on to power because Vance believes with every bone in his body that his type of destructive leadership will lead the way to victory. To which patient long term thinking, Cordelia has no problem putting this egotistical ass in his place.

[Lexi]

Thank God we're beginning to see a divide between the Guardians with Vance at the helm of the violent down with all the descended group as he'll say in chapter 14. The leaders of this other group, Del and Orly, are weak because they're not strong enough to do what must be done in this war. But Vance and his men will. Ah, yes, men. Vance attracts burly and aggressive men who are out for blood. With the Descendant, Vance sees himself as a martyr. We'll see that clearly when he refuses to take cover. When there's an incoming Gryvern, he is willing to sacrifice himself for the mortals. He will do the dirty work for his people. And with that said, his goal is not the same as Guardians. Like Del, and certainly not with dm. Vance won't be content until all Descended are gone from this Earth. The only answer to this war is taking back their homeland and eliminating the other side.

[Alix]

And he believes himself superior for having this kind of extremism thinking. Exactly.

[Lexi]

Even before DM got the Crown, Vance labeled her as an enemy because she was not under his control and went to save the very Descendant they just attacked. He views everything in black and white, like we talked so much about in our Spark coverage. Then, of course, DM became the Crown. She forced the Guardians away from the Ascension Ball, where they had the opportunity to attack. They were ready to attack and die for the cause. DM threw Henry in a dungeon, for crying out loud. She blindfolded Vance and tried to keep him under control when heading to the underground canal. So when Vance shares information about DM to the other Guardians, he has quite the perspective of her literally announcing his arrival to her by saying she's no friend to the Guardians. He wants to be sure these other Guardians do not view her as anything but the enemy that she is. She might say she wants to help the Guardians, but when push comes to shove, she protects the Descendant instead. So this all means he's withholding a lot of information about DM's contribution to the Guardians missions or her involvement in the Guardians whatsoever. Del cannot believe Vance did not tell her DM was part of the Lumnose Cell. He says it's because, you know, she was part of the Guardians for such a brief time that he barely remembered her. But hey, she's been useful. He did say that, right? Vance has not brought her up because he wants them all to think of her as Other. This has absolutely nothing to do with her being part of the Guardians for such a short time that he forgot bul hear Vance. He failed to mention she assisted in the plans for the armory attack. Which is why so many of these Guardians have finally made Descended weapons. And Vance didn't bring up that she helped the Lumnos Guardians get to the island to help with the attack.

[Carvana]

Oof.

[Lexi]

I'll say this, these points about DM's participation is both her best bet at convincing them she's on their side and her biggest mistakes that truly haunt her.

[Carvana]

She's like, ah, that's kind of semantics.

[Lexi]

And it's like demo.

[Alix]

When DM reminds him that it was her who gave him access to the royal boat, he shoots back. Quote. Was that loyalty or was it a woman desperate to win back her betrothed after she betrayed him and locked him in her dungeon? I get so angry at Vance because at the end of the day I feel like he's constantly just trying to make her seem like a lovesick girl rather than a fucking crown.

[Lexi]

I agree. And there it is. He's not far off from the reasoning that DM did have to take them to the boat.

[Carvana]

That's beside the point.

[Lexi]

I do not agree with Vance as a whole.

[Carvana]

Please, please know that I'm simply saying he's not far off. In this one instance, there is a moment, I love this where he gets so annoyed that they had to wait.

[Alix]

Eight months to strike the island. I want to highlight this because again, this is Vance's need for action. Action now versus that patience that I was just talking about with Cordelia and also that Aurelie has.

[Lexi]

Well, and how short sighted Del thinks he was with the armory attack. Yes, Vance needed action now and by doing that he very well might have jeopardized the bigger mission. Plus, on a separate note, Vance is pissed at Orly for having a half descended daughter in the first place. Because that means the person who he has been working with for decades, who has been leading the Guardians for the past 10 years years turned out to be just another woman who loves to send a dick.

[Carvana]

God I hate him.

[Lexi]

Oh yeah. And about Orly. DM finally finds out that her mom is the leader of the Guardians. We fantasy fangirls have been talking about this since Spark Episode one, but only when Cordelia mentions to Vance about how he's only the Lumnos Guardian's father. Until Orly resumes her position as leader. DM has known that the Guardians were run by a woman. Woman, as Henry himself told her.

[Carvana]

But her mom. Her own mom, who slept with a.

[Lexi]

Descendant that resulted in DM who worked as a healer for the descended, who sent her son to a descended school so he would grow up around them. Everything DM has cherished about her mother is suddenly warped, which my heart breaks for her so much what were her mother's real motives? Did she really break her sacred vow as a healer? Which we discuss at length in our Spark coverage, as the secrets about Orly starting to come out, and how DM really struggled with that possibility, that her mother, who truly ingrained the sacred vow into dm, that she's like, oh, my God, could my mom have possibly broken this? DM is realizing she hardly knows her mom at all. In fact, the mother she knows is the opposite of who this woman is turning out to be. And DM is the last to find out about any of it. She has so many questions about her life, and the only person who can answer them is in big, big trouble in the Fortress prison.

[Alix]

But hold up here one moment, because it turns out that DM is not the only prisoner in the Guardian camp. The Queen of Arboros is here as well. Yes, the Queen of the realm they're currently inhabiting. Now, in this moment, this looks bad. Like, oh, shit, they have two Crowns. This is a huge advantage for the Guardians. Bad. They're trying to gain leverage on the descendant. And by having the Temple, two crowns, and a ton of weapons that can harm the Descended, the odds are looking pretty ever in their favor. And while we know she is indeed working with them, Murelle is working with them. It is quite interesting that they have her tied up here, especially if she's a Crown and they drive her away.

[Carvana]

That's because it's all a ruse.

[Lexi]

The Queen of Arboros is actually working with the Guardians. She's half mortal herself, and she promised her mortal father, who she was very close with on his deathbed, that she would do everything she could to protect the mortals.

[Carvana]

But this is a big secret.

[Lexi]

Obviously, none of the other Crowns or realms can know that the Arborist Queen is with the Guardians. So she is tied up and looking like she's about to be killed because they need to cover up her involvement in the attack. It needs to look like the Guardians are holding her prisoner and that she's a victim of this attack versus the one who help the Guardians on and off the island. I love how when DM is first talking with Del about the Guardians, she thinks how a Descended Crown having intimate knowledge of the forbidden rebel network should have been cause for alarm. But no, it's not, because she's not the only Descended Crown with such knowledge. Orly will assume the idea with the Arboros Queen being tied up is to convince DM that the Arboros Queen is in major trouble. Which, yep, does work. And that DM will Tell the other crowns and descended, and that'll throw off suspicion. But when DM sees the Queen again for the second attempt of the Rite of Coronation, the Queen of Arbor will cut DM off to avoid any mention about being in the Guardian's clutches. I guess after they lead her away here, she'll quietly sneak back to where she lives and pretend she was never a prisoner. So I have a feeling that her being tied up here and all of that, like, it's kind of just one of their plans, and they just cover one of their bases. And as plans are really changing and everything's all just chaotic, she's able to be like, nope, I was here all along.

[Alix]

That's so real. But it's so interesting, because how she reacts to DM at the camp, she's like, Lumnos. Like, oh, my gosh. Like, it sounds like she's trying to help her.

[Carvana]

She's a good actor. I'll tell her. Right side note, as this is happening.

[Alix]

DM is attempting to get to the Queen of Arboros, who is at this point being dragged away.

[Carvana]

And DM almost uproots an entire fucking tree.

[Alix]

Now she's on flame root. So we know this isn't Arboros magic at work here. I don't even know if that is a part of Arboros magic, but she does mention multiple times, that it was strength she didn't know she had as a descendant.

[Carvana]

I need to know, was this just.

[Alix]

Descended super strength, or was this a.

[Carvana]

New kind of strength? Like maybe some kindred element of strength? Kindred strength.

[Lexi]

Kindred strength. Because even the Arborist Queen stares at her in disbelief. This is insane strength that the Arboros Queen, who is the most powerful descendant in her own realm, she has never seen anything like this. I think it's a nod to a Ophiuchai, too, because DM thinks we're all descended this strong and this difficult to contain. Ophiuchai was very difficult to contain. He was in an underground Godsto chamber on a remote island where he has no magic. I don't think it gets more containable than that. Or is DM's strength because she's a direct descendant of the tenth kindred, instead of, you know, generations apart, like all of these other descended. Because Sofos seems to think that because there are only two descendants of the Omnos, that's why they are both so powerful.

[Alix]

Okay, so I was. This was driving me insane, and I.

[Carvana]

Decided this was a phone, a pen moment.

[Alix]

So here is what Pen said in regards to where the strength Came from.

[Lexi]

Bonjour, ladies.

[F]

I'm back in France and so excited to be answering your phone append questions this time on Heat of the Everflame. Your first question this week is when DM was tied to the tree in Arboros and uprooted it with her strength. Was this just her descended strength or was this something more? I can say it was just her descended strength. At the end of Glow, we see DM fully embrace her, the side of her that comes from the Kindred. And she is really accepts her magic and everything that comes with it for the first time. And so this is really DM beginning to flex the other parts of her that are just descended. And so we see her use her magic intentionally for the first time at the very end of Glow, which was at the challenging. And then here in the Guardians camp in Arboros, she's saying, okay, well, I can't use my magic because of the Flame Root. Are there other parts of me that are descended that I can use to get out of this situation? So this is really just more of her embracing that side of herself and figuring out what her body can do now that she knows she's more than just immortal.

[Lexi]

Well, I guess that puts me in my place.

[Carvana]

Thank you for that information, Pen.

[Alix]

Okay, I will give it this though I love that it's DM tapping into this whole new side of her, because it's like she never knew that she had this in her because she was suppressing herself in her own glass ceiling. And now that glass ceiling has completely shattered.

[Carvana]

And so I like it for that reason, but it still seems like there's something else there. God damn it, Ben.

[Alix]

Nighttime rolls around, and with DM chained up with a new, much thicker tree. Nice. That is at the center of a clearing. And the Guardians are beyond her line of sight, minus a few lingering in the tree to watch her, we get some footsteps that start approaching.

[Carvana]

Welcome back, Brek, to our story. I missed this guy.

[Alix]

The last time we saw Brek was at the Guardians meeting back in Spark, which was 2ish months ago. We knew he was in the Fortos Guardian cell, but he was working undercover in the Amarian army as a master blacksmith. He was not only able to redirect weapons to the Guardians whenever he possibly could, but he would also be shipping weapons to where he knew the army would be moving, where there would be a bigger battalion. So this was really helpful information to pass on to the Guardians. So either that camp would be able to intercept the shipment or clear out of camps before the armies Arrived. Then at the end of last book, when DM asked the Fortos King about Breck Holdren, the Fortos King informs Diem that Breath Breck has mysteriously disappeared from the armory earlier that week, along with a very important stash of weapons. However, we still don't know why he left that position, since he doesn't really answer it.

[Lexi]

When DM asked, I assumed it was for the mission.

[Alix]

I assume it was too, because this was such a huge mission that would change the course of the Guardians and the war for as long as it was.

[Lexi]

Exactly. So it was like Brett knew it was his time dealing with it was now over.

[Alix]

It's safe to say that a lot has changed. Changed since Breck and DM last saw each other. Now, as far as Breck knows, DM is still with Henry, still working with.

[Carvana]

The Guardians, but she's also just Queen now.

[Lexi]

So I'm guessing he must have talked to Henry. Soon after, Henry ran into DM at the palace, and, you know, they became officially engaged. And that's when Henry told Breck, dude, you'll never guess what happened. And he explained that DMs now the crown, they're engaged, and he going to be king.

[Carvana]

Okay, wait, hold on. I.

[Alix]

So I do wonder if Breck then was at the palace during the Ascension Ball and he. If he was a part of the attack, because they would have probably called in people from Fortos, and I think they did.

[Lexi]

I actually think that they did. Yeah.

[Alix]

And I feel like he would have.

[Lexi]

Been part of that, especially because he was our. You know, he had just been in town because he was the one who dropped off their father's letter of. With the having to go back to the army. But. But that was several days before that. So I don't know if he'd still be in Luminos or have a chance to go back to Lumnose.

[Alix]

So I will throw this little wrench in there. If he was a part of the possible Ascension Ball attack, what happened the following day?

[Lexi]

I do not think that Breck is responsible for Andre's murder.

[Alix]

Are we making our first official bet for Burn?

[Lexi]

I guess we're in heat now. We probably do need to start doing this.

[Carvana]

Okay. I. Because I think he.

[Alix]

He was responsible. And that's going to be what his. His favor is that he calls in from DM is to spare him. Okay.

[Lexi]

Do you want to make that beneficially right now? Because I have proof later this episode that might say otherwise.

[Carvana]

No. Now I don't. You shouldn't have had that in there. Okay. I'm going to hold my tongue and later when you bring up this information.

[Alix]

Then we will make the official bet if it makes sense. If you don't confirm, convince me.

[Lexi]

Sounds good.

[Alix]

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[Carvana]

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[Alix]

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[Lexi]

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[Carvana]

Huzzah.

[Lexi]

And with Olive and June's affordable prices it breaks down to just $2amanicure.

[Alix]

I have been using Olive and June for almost three years now. I believe when my sister in law gave me an Olive and June kit for my bridal shower and I have been obsessed with them ever since. I literally painted my toes with them last night. I adore their pedicure kit. It's my absolute favorite. I love their nail polish remover which I know sounds super weird but it's my favorite nail polish remover and they also have cuticle cream creams and nail strengtheners.

[Carvana]

I just I love Olive and June.

[Alix]

And the colors are so pretty.

[Lexi]

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[Alix]

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[Lexi]

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[Alix]

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[Lexi]

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[Alix]

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[Lexi]

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[Nicole]

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[Carvana]

Hey.

[Nicole]

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[Lexi]

Russell.

[Nicole]

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[Lexi]

I can only imagine how nice it is here for DM to see a familiar face and what's more, have that familiar face, be nice and welcoming, treat you like the person you are versus what you are. Breq doesn't see her as other or think of her as an evil monster like the rest of the mortals. Now I will say you know, Del is not quite treating her like this, but she is still a prisoner and Breck is just treating her more like a friend who happens to be a prisoner. Because guess what? Breck is the only one here who knew DM before she was a guardian. Then when she just joined, he's the only one at the this camp who knew DM as a guardian. More importantly, he knew Diem before she realized she was descended. He knows Henry well and trusts him and got to know Diem through him. If Henry vouched for Diem and with everything else Breck knew of Diem, yeah, he believes that she didn't know and so he is the only one here who has seen her live in both of these worlds.

[Alix]

Brett came over to DM for a reason though, to give her some answers and flameroot laced food. Breck tells DM like we mentioned that he talked with Henry before the attack, sharing that D truly did not know that she was descended. And despite that all that happened between these two exes, Henry asked Breck to keep an eye out on her once the attack began. The bar is so low.

[Carvana]

Points for Henry I guess. But wait, this means that Henry was.

[Alix]

Actually on the island.

[Carvana]

So minus points any points that he got immediately go away because oh boy, it gets worse. Breck also shares that Henry is alive and well.

[Alix]

He, along with the other Lumnos guardians rushed home major air quotes there to avoid raising suspicion, leaving only Vance behind. Now in our phone a pen Last episode with some extra context that Luther shares later in this chapter stretch, we know that there's a little more to the story because Luther ran into Henry on the Royal boat when Henry was trying to stash the flame root and other supplies that our elite had hidden near the Luno stock. Luther confronted Henry, demanding him to share where Diem is where she had been taken. She had already been taken by Vance at this point, and she was on her way via Vance's clutches to the Arboros dock. But Henry refused to tell him, and things, quote, became heated. We know from Pen that she wants to eventually write a bonus chapter or a bonus scene on this because, A.

[Carvana]

Any good Luther confrontation with Henry is just delicious.

[Alix]

And B, she said, quote, the guardians didn't check out that boat for no reason. Reason.

[Carvana]

What does that mean?

[Lexi]

I'm thinking that the Guardians planned to bring back some of the godstone from the Kindreds temple, because, remember, the plan A was to blow up the temple. So I bet that then they were going to take some of the chunks that they expected to blow up and bring those back, as well as some of the flame root.

[Alix]

I. I think there's something else to the story.

[Carvana]

Oh, I think so too.

[Lexi]

Yeah.

[Carvana]

Okay.

[Alix]

While Luther didn't hurt Henry necessarily, he did put him. Him and some of the other mortals.

[Carvana]

Back onto the boat to Lumnose. I just see him scooping them up and, like, putting them away and, like, sail away. Come sail away. Oh, my gosh.

[Lexi]

I thought of him having Henry, like, over his shoulder, and Henry's like, no.

[Carvana]

Give me the flame root.

[Lexi]

And Luther's just like, oh, my God.

[Carvana]

I want to kill you so badly, but I can't. Well, that does bring us to it, because Luther did definitely want to throttle these groups.

[Alix]

Group of people, but he knew his queen would not want it. So like we said, he just put.

[Carvana]

Them back on a boat and sailed back to. Can you imagine that boat ride back to Lunos? Like, that must have been so awkward. I bet Luther's like, nobody talk. We're not talking. The only thing anyone is allowed to.

[Lexi]

Say here is where DM is. Because Henry's refusing to tell him where DM is.

[Carvana]

Yeah, that's. And Luther's like, okay, well, he's not.

[Lexi]

Going to share this with me, so I guess I'll just get them all on the boat.

[Carvana]

Them all? I could see him doing that, like, gagging them all on the boat. Can you imagine? Just all these people, especially if they're on this rowboat that you think they're. Okay, I have a new theory here. Are you like, a ski boat? No, it's not a speedboat.

[Lexi]

No, it is like a ski boat. It is a ski boat.

[Carvana]

That is closer to what I'm thinking. I'm still thinking yacht style, because this is. No. No boat.

[Lexi]

No, I don't care. It is a. It is like A ski boat.

[Carvana]

We need PEN to answer this question because this might be what tears us apart. I swear to God.

[Lexi]

According to Brett here, as he's talking to dm, he believes that the Lumnos Guardians went back to their realm. You know, except for Vance, just not to raise suspicion. Which is true too. The plan was to return to Lumnose. I'm just assuming they didn't go back with anything because of Luther.

[Carvana]

I'm assuming Luther, like threw it all.

[Alix]

Into the sacred sea.

[Carvana]

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. When DM asks Breck if Henry knew Vance's plan to capture her and keep her as prisoner, Breck tries to skirt the question.

[Alix]

Answering with Vance and Cordelia planned it. Everyone else just does as they're told. And when DM pushes back on this, he's silent. Which is basically confirmation that yes, Henry did in fact know.

[Lexi]

Later we'll learn from DM's confrontation with Henry that quote we, I'm assuming him, the other Luminous Guardians on the the island made sure DM would not get hurt during the explosions. That's quite interesting. But Vance did keep his word and get DM to safety. I'm convinced it's for his own gains. He still needs her blood. And of course, knowing that they need to use her as leverage.

[Carvana]

But dm, what's a little hostage taking between future spouses? That'll be a great story for the wedding after all. Which, yep, Breck still thinks they're engaged.

[Lexi]

The fact that Breck is like, aw, don't say that. You two will work that through this. It's such a oh, honey moment. He explains Henry is doing this for his and DMs future so that they can live a better life together.

[Carvana]

Henry's doing this for love.

[Lexi]

He's looking at this as the greater good. I just don't even know what to say about that. I do think that Henry says something along these lines to Breck, especially if they were already talking about DM and how he's head over heels for her. So you can give Breck a hard time, but he does not have all of this extra context here. I also wondering if Henry shared this reasoning to stop the choice challenging from happening in the first place. Henry did say, well, you know, we can stop the challenging from happening in the first place. Like this is all for you and for our future and all of that, when really he's just repeatedly choosing the Guardians over his love. More specifically, he's choosing Vance over dm. But I think Breck has heard some of this from Henry. Where it's like I am doing this for my future with her. We're going to get married. I'm going to be king. We're not even going to have to have a challenging. Like this is a good thing, right? And we talked a lot about Henry's mindset with all of that last book, but I love how this is a moment for DM early in this book to openly be like, no, there will not be a wedding. Yes, thank you. She might not have been able to get the closure she needs with Henry himself. At least not yet. But at least DM can say it out loud to a mortal connected to Henry. And I guess Breck just doesn't know about Lana either, by the way. Also, while we are on the topic of weddings, I have to wonder if this mention of there being a wedding with one hello. The guest list is forced to foreshadowing for the wedding Pen has told us will be in Bern. We don't know whose wedding, but I'm still leaning toward Henry and Lana's wedding.

[Alix]

I'm still leaning towards Taryn and Zellary's wedding, mainly because I don't want to.

[Carvana]

Watch Henry get married to Lana.

[Lexi]

But doesn't Pen say something about how things don't go right or there?

[Carvana]

She said there's going to be a.

[Lexi]

Lot of chaos at this wedding. And so I hope it's not Taren and Zeller, because I want them to have a happy, good wedding and Henry and Lana, they can see this is.

[Alix]

This is my sad theory that I have is that it is Taryn and Zellary's wedding, but it's that it's a failed mating match.

[Lexi]

I know, and I don't want that.

[Carvana]

So I'm gonna say Atlanta.

[Alix]

All right, Breck, it's time to back yourself out of this hole of your own creation. Let's move to safer waters.

[Carvana]

Like, what the hell were the Guardians planning to attack on Kuriel?

[Alix]

The Guardians plan of attack all started with Aurelie going to Kuriel and smuggling a few bombs on the boat with her and Luther on Forging Day eight months ago. And then at the Rite of Coronation when it began. The plan was for Arleigh to place her bombs at the north shore as a diversion to attract the army boats so the rest of the Guardians could enter through the Arboros dock at the south. With the rest of the bombs set at the Kindred's temple, a small group of Guardians were able to make it onto the land just before the attack to help light the fuse.

[Carvana]

How?

[Alix]

Or from Which Dock Breck? Can't say which why?

[Lexi]

I figured it had something to do with the Arboros Queen and how she was able to get a small group of Guardians in. That would mean Brech knows about the Arborist Queen, which would actually kind of surprise me. But I guess it's just more common knowledge than maybe we thought among this Guardian group here, but you never know.

[Alix]

So, with bombs planted around the Kindred Temple, the original plan was for the Guardians to bring down the entire Kindred Temple. Which wouldn't that mean that all the crowns would have been inside, but according.

[Lexi]

To or the intention was not to kill? I think it's more because of the rumor we learn in Glow Quote the temple was the source of all descended magic and that just destroying it would end their reign over mortals for good. Plan A is to just bomb the source of their power. I don't think that they intentionally meant for the crowns to have to be in there, but that is obviously what's happening.

[Carvana]

That Plan A is looking a little sus there.

[Alix]

I have to call it to attention. I do wonder if a little bit of that is aurally being that same kind of naivete that we give to dm.

[Lexi]

Or lying, lying, projecting to her daughter. It's like, no, it wasn't nearly as bad as he thought it was going to be.

[Alix]

I genuinely hope it's not that, because.

[Carvana]

I don't need more reasons to not like aurally. Yeah, I want to know.

[Alix]

I want to be able to fight for her later when the time comes. And if it's stuff like that, I'm.

[Carvana]

Going to have a real hard time fighting for her.

[Alix]

But when the Guardians underestimated the strength of the Godstone Temple, when the bombs went off and it didn't even crack from the bomb blast, they had to switch tactics. So it's time for plan B, which was to physically take the Heartstone. Which, by the way, how the hell did they know about the Hearthstone?

[Lexi]

That's a good question. Orally, I suppose, I guess. Actually, no, they don't know about the Hearthstone. They just called the big rock in the middle.

[Carvana]

Oh, that's true. Yeah.

[Lexi]

Yeah.

[Carvana]

Like they just.

[Lexi]

They're like, this is somehow very important because it's at the center of all of this. So we need this.

[Carvana]

Honestly, that's a fair point.

[Alix]

But the Guardians were not aware that the Heartstone couldn't be moved or touched, that is, without their hands literally burning.

[Lexi]

Well, remember that this did happen to Orly in Spark's epilogue quote, Red Welts had already Formed where her skin had made contact. And she watched in horror as they swelled and blistered to an unnatural shade of gray. An unnatural shade of gray, you say?

[Carvana]

Whoa.

[Lexi]

What if this gray is the same color as Ophiuchai and the reason he is gray is somehow tied to the Heartstone's curse?

[Alix]

Magic?

[Lexi]

Maybe.

[Alix]

But then all of the Kindred are gray. Like, they had gray.

[Lexi]

They had gray eyes and such. But Ophiuchai is like, his skin is.

[Alix]

Gray and like his hair and all that kind of.

[Lexi]

Yeah, like the color has been drained from him. And while we don't know any other descriptions with the Kindred, I'm assuming his, like, weird pallor of grace skin is not for all of the Kindred. And I do wonder if it has to do with this, where it's like, almost like magic has been drained out of him. And so I wonder if, as we see him come into his own later with taking magic from people as they do their attacks, if he starts to.

[Alix]

Get less gray skin, like, and more color back in his body.

[Lexi]

Yes, because he's literally stealing that magic from people. Maybe. Oh, my God.

[Carvana]

Well, all of this to say plan.

[Alix]

B did not work. Take the Heartstone.

[Carvana]

So it's time for them to. To move on to plan C. Commandeer the entire temple.

[Alix]

Since the descended cannot use their magic on the island, the mortals have the upper hand in this attack. With their explosives and their Godstone weapons and their Photosian steel blades, the mortals are now attempting to hold the crowns off for as long as they can, and especially long enough for the foraging spell to break down.

[Lexi]

So the descended have three months until Foraging Day, when they absolutely must get back to the island of Kurile to perform their ritual. Or else the magic woven into Omarion will crumble. Therefore. Right. The Guardians have to ensure they can hold down the island for the next three months. By the way, I think Foraging Day is going to be like the climax of the series. And Burn.

[Alix]

Oh, okay, wait, hold on. Because it's about. Heat of the Everflame is about a month, right?

[Lexi]

Something like that. Yeah.

[Alix]

And then we know that the next book starts a month after the end of Heat of the Everflame.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Alix]

So probably Burn's gonna take place over the course of a month. Yep. Fuck, you're brilliant. I love it. The Guardian's goal is to get the crown. So desperate for their island back to the point where they need to make a deal with the. The Guardians, which, honestly, I. I have.

[Carvana]

Very complicated feelings about the Guardians. That's pretty smart. For that being plan C, that's actually a very smart plan.

[Lexi]

I think that it's the best plan because it's like, I mean, you know, besides for the initial explosion and poor Monteos, I'm not forgetting about him, it is pretty safe as far as non violent, you know, they are taking the island. There is no other disaster descended here. It is the place that is the most important to the descended. And now the mortals are able to negotiate with the descended which is absolutely crucial for them.

[Alix]

But then there's also the Heartstone which the guardians have placed a ring of explosives around it thinking it was the initial blast that caused the crack in it rather than DM's blood being put on it at the end of last book. And with the ring of explosives around it they are able to threaten the crowns if should they try to take the island back by force. Now this did get me thinking. I wonder if the guardians are going to know the importance of the Heartstone next book specifically when it comes to Ophiuchai because he's with them and he'll, he might be able to tell them.

[Lexi]

I'll even go a step further and they find out that DM is the key to it. So what if Ophiuchai comes back to Kuril and there's something he needs for her to do with the Heartstone and you know like because remember he rambled to Orly about ruling over all of Marion. What if he still needs a little piece of the Heartstone to, to do that or to like make Amarian with the magic and all of that kind of like his territory, his reign. And he needs DM to do that.

[Alix]

Oh, I could totally see that. Well taking him like overpowering with the hearthstone and everything like that out of it. We do know that he for a while is trying to get DM on his side because he believes the two of them together would be unstoppable. So I could absolutely see him coming to the island and like offering her up a deal being like I'll get you off the island, but you have to come with me. Obviously she wouldn't take that deal. But I could absolutely see him coming to the island for that reason especially.

[Lexi]

She doesn't heat pretty much deny him and is like I don't want anything to do with you.

[Alix]

And he's like bears his mark so he can find her.

[Lexi]

But does it so work with Koreel?

[Alix]

I'm assuming so since it's Omno's magic and it's so other.

[Lexi]

But that would mean that she has her magic too and she doesn't. So that magic magic still does apply to Kreeel.

[Alix]

Okay, that's true. Maybe because he can't feel it. He knows she's on Kreeel.

[Lexi]

Then I don't think it'd be hard for him to figure out that she's on Koreel. To be honest, I feel like all.

[Alix]

The Guardians would be just like boasting about the fact that she's there. Especially Vance.

[Carvana]

Vance would be the first to out where she is. I do not think highly of this guy. Well, neither do I.

[Lexi]

Also, the Guardians are specifically holding Diem hostage in hopes of giving her back to the crowns in exchange for Aurelie. The descended need all nine crowns to complete the foraging spirit spell ritual. And while the Guardians won't negotiate access to the island in exchange for Aurelie. Sorry, she's just one person and not important enough. The Guardians are willing to negotiate Diem to trade for Aurelie. It is very interesting how the Arborist queen is not mentioned in this conversation about how they need all nine crowns. It is a little nod to not having to worry about her. She'll be at the ritual after several days of being chained up to this big tree and hiding that she's not eating the flame root laced food and drink. DM has some not so welcome visitors. Vance is back.

[Carvana]

Boo.

[Lexi]

And he's here with a group of men all armed with Godstone weapons. You know how I've been saying Vance wants to take advantage of the fact that DM is still alive?

[Carvana]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

Well back in Glow she told him vital information. The hidden entrance into the palace from the underground Canal unlocks with DM's blood. What he does not know is that the blood must be willingly given.

[Alix]

Has sex to suck fans.

[Lexi]

And I did go back through and check check that part. And it is not mentioned that blood has to willingly be given here.

[Alix]

Since he doesn't know this yet.

[Lexi]

This asshole is on a mission to get DM's blood so he can unlock the entrance into the palace and lead an attack from inside. This is a rogue plan of Vances. Del does not know about it. We sure as hell no orally doesn't know about it. He needs action now. And if these women are not going to lead them into war, then he sure as hell will.

[Alix]

They may be telling DM some BS story about how they're going to take her potty, but she is smarter than to fall for the idea that ten grown Guardian men, one of them a leader of a Different cell. They would not be in charge of a task like that. So our girl fights back. Only one problem. After DM's first day and realizing flame root was in her food and her water, she stopped eating and drinking. She's been burying her food in the ground and she's been pouring out all her liquids.

[Carvana]

This is so smart of her.

[Alix]

And I totally agree with this Videl. It absolutely sounds like aurally would like, do something like this. While she wants to fight back in this moment, she knows that one good yank from Vance or one of the men would have her just tumbling down. But she still stands her ground. She's the Queen of Lumnos, after all. And she will be controlled by no man.

[Carvana]

Go. Damn.

[Alix]

She tells them that if they want to kill her, they will have to do it right here in this clearing where everyone, including the guardians who follow Queen Cordelia, can see. So she goes one step further. Quote, better hurry up, Vance. Wouldn't want Mother Cordelia showing up and putting you back in your place.

[Carvana]

That'll do, Donkey.

[Lexi]

Huzzah for dm. I love how a guy like Vance.

[Alix]

Does not intimidate her.

[Carvana]

I feel like it's the opposite. She's almost fueled by proving his misogynistic nature wrong. And I fucking love it. Vance is wild and he's a bull in a child.

[Alix]

And he's also really easy to manipulate because of his male ego. Here.

[Carvana]

What a shock. What a shock.

[Alix]

As all of the men rush to surround her, pulling at her feet, holding down her arms, her waist. Which, yes, again, this is very easy for them to do because she's weak and she's malnourished and they start taking her blood. But then a voice echoes in her mind.

[Carvana]

Fight. Yeah. The voice is back, baby.

[Alix]

All those days of heart holding off.

[Carvana]

Food and water are paying off. So, dm, it's time to use your magic. Right? Right, dm.

[Lexi]

No, we can't hurt them for a few reasons.

[Carvana]

Stop.

[Lexi]

Nicole, these are actually very good.

[Carvana]

No, they're valid reasons. I will say why I'm a little peeved in a moment.

[Lexi]

Number one, there are too many mortals with too many Godstone weapons pointed at her. She does not know how much power she has or how it will react. And one wrong move could get her killed. So she doesn't want to preemptively show her hand. And two, yeah, she doesn't want them dead because she understands the hatred they feel toward her. That's where I'm kind of nodding my head along with you here, Nicole. And while it's not set on the page. I think DM is scared about the poof magic she is capable of using. She doesn't really have control over it, and it's terrifying. But, yeah, as much as DM is willing to defend herself, she is not taking their anger and hatred personally. And she's able to empathize with them and their desire for revenge against all the mortal oppressions. And because of that, DM does not want to use her magic against them for their feelings. She doesn't want to punish them for having these very natural feelings.

[Alix]

You bring up really good points. And it definitely simmered down my. My, my rage. And I'm gonna hold two things true right now is, yes, all of this makes sense, and it's very in character for dm. I'm not dissing character. Her as a character. And I'm also going back to Andre's number one lesson, which is survive at all costs. Any. I'm going to lean more towards women just because I can speak to that. Any woman can instantly understand how terrifying the situation would be. And what DM is holding true here is such a hard balance. And I also just keep going back to someone holding you down. And your survival is very much. She doesn't know that Vance is trying to keep her alive. She thinks they're trying to kill her. So that's where it goes back to that survival at all costs. Yes.

[Lexi]

And she does not know how to use her magic. And that's when she refers back to her training, which she will put into use here.

[Alix]

Yeah, exactly. She's not laying down lamely and letting them.

[Lexi]

Exactly.

[Alix]

Exactly. She is kicking and screaming. She's fighting back. She's screaming for Del. You're. You're so right.

[Carvana]

Okay, yeah.

[Alix]

You have convinced me.

[Lexi]

And I will say this too. Not giving into her magic right now will save Sarai's life with poofing the Godstone bolt. So I can't really complain about it. She knows that she needs to save her magic and use it for when she really does need it. I think that if these men were very actively trying to kill her and not just pin her down and try to take her blood, that might be a different story here.

[Alix]

Okay. Yeah.

[Lexi]

We do get a mention that if her father's killer was standing in front of her, she is not sure she could hold herself back from taking revenge. Vance is standing right here in front of her.

[Carvana]

Is that foreshadowing? Yes. I do not think that was an accident. That was masterful writing on Pen's Part.

[Alix]

Because saying how the situation that Vance is in and then bringing that up is not. It cannot be an accident.

[Lexi]

And I don't think that's the only time something like that will come up either. I am so convinced that Vance killed her father at this point. This is not even the only time during this episode. I will bring something like this up.

[Carvana]

With more proof that it could be Vance. Yes, yes, yes.

[Alix]

Okay. But I do have a question for you. Because in this moment, there is a boy who's getting a vial of blood from diem and a bit of it spills onto his own skin and he violently recoils and jerks back as if her blood had burned him. So I guess my question is, did it? Especially because she immediately brings up the heart stone which people cannot touch. So I. I don't know if that's again, that same thing that we were just talking about with Vance and then bringing up her father's murderer. But then also, if this would be the case, it would have to be with mortals only. She's touched blood with Eleanor, Remus and other people. Now. I'm going to flip it though. Or is this a show don't tell for us how afraid the guardians and just mortals are of the descendant because they believe their blood is basically poison.

[Lexi]

That is what I'm leaning toward. But I really did go back and forth too, because it does does seem like it could actually be hurting him. You know, could this be her kindred blood protecting her even? Like, I think it is ultimately just this boy being scared to get descended blood on him. There are just too many other contextual references about descended blood equals like literally toxins. And the next guy does just kind of ram those vials in there and collect her blood. So if this happened to more than one person, then I would really be suspicious. But I think it's only like this young boy and he's just like, I am so in over my head right now.

[Alix]

Well, and it shows. It's a show don't tell of how manipulated all of their brains are to believe the collective mission and the collective hive mind of this is descended are evil. So much so that their blood will hurt you.

[Lexi]

Yep.

[Alix]

Like, oh my God, make someone other. Why don't you like that? Yeah, exactly. With DM basically pinned to the ground, Vance cutting into into her cheek, getting a scream out of diem. A voice comes through the clearing.

[Carvana]

What the fuck is going on here? Cordelia, thank God.

[Alix]

DM calls out for help while guilty.

[Carvana]

Vance with a knife in one hand and a vial of blood in the other is like nothing to say here, Mother Dell.

[Alix]

While Cordelia tells him that DM is her prisoner. I love the wording that she uses here. She says, quote, is that the Bellator girl? First of all, using her name that they associate with Andre and or that is huge. Also they say girl, not crown, not descended, not scum, girl. With that one word, it is showing just how much Cordelia views her as a fellow human, not this crazy other. And shock of shocks, Vance is not having it with his knee in DM's chest to stop her from seeing, saying or screaming anything more to Cordelia. He tells Del, quote, I need her blood for a mission in Lumnos. When I'm done collecting it, you can do whatever you like with her. Oh, I'm going to have a lot of problems with this dude Vance here. But an L is not even. It's not even enough.

[Carvana]

An L is a child's play. Vance is.

[Alix]

He's passionate. He believes that the current leadership, like Arlie and Del, they're too soft, they're too slow to take action, too empathetic. Raise your hand if you've heard this before. And we cannot leave out the elephant in the room. All of his missions that he leads are always filled with very well informed men. And two women are the leaders telling him what to do, orders that he decides he does not need to follow. Insert scream here.

[Carvana]

Now a smiting. L still doesn't feel like enough in this situation.

[Alix]

Just because you, Vance, feel like you are too big and too strong of a man and your posse, your man posse has all the reasons to steal DM's blood, to execute mass bloodshed in the palace, which by the way, would go over terribly like that is not well thought out, does not mean that you can surpass all the rules and go rogue. And then when Del gives him a.

[Carvana]

Direct order to put DM back because.

[Alix]

There'S a fucking attack because coming in something that they've been waiting patiently for this exact moment and more on this in a second. Vance will say, quote, I'm almost done here. I'll chain her up when I'm finished. Again, showing that he believes his priorities are more important than following the chain.

[Carvana]

Of command, I will say this brava to Pencole, because she knows how to.

[Alix]

Without specifically explicitly saying it on the page, put me in a feminine rage.

[Carvana]

Oh my God, I love it.

[Lexi]

Through the chaos of the the Guardians preparing for the incoming Gryvern, DM recognizes the familiar rhythm of wings going thump thump. That goes deeper Than memory. Oh, first of all, I love that little line. It is Sarai approaching, but she doesn't come alone. On her back is DMs knight in shadowy armor, Luther Korbois. Knowing that Sarai could sense DM through the bond, Luther took the chance and hopped on Sarai. And then they followed them before eventually they finding signs of her. Seeing a Luther alive and well means everything to dm. She wasn't sure before if he was hurt or among the dead. Luther has come for dm. And while DM has little faith in gods or men, she believes in the fearsome dedication of Luther Kurbois, always coming with every fiber of her being.

[Carvana]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

He has proved to her that he will give anything, even his, his own life to protect her. And that's just what DM needs right now. Everything else around her is so unpredictable, and knowing that she has Luther to lean on helps ground her. She knows that even surrounded by men with weapons that could very well kill him, he will do everything he can to save her. And, oh, Luther is pissed to see his poor queen in rags and bleeding from literally the head where Vance cut her.

[Carvana]

I can picture this so vividly, like Luther on the.

[Alix]

The back of Sarai, looking down in a clearing and seeing the woman he loves just like, covered in blood, surrounded by men. Oh, and then the wrath, the fiery.

[Carvana]

Inferno of wrath in his eyes. Oh, I love it.

[Lexi]

I really need Luther to kill Vance at some point.

[Carvana]

I know we're preaching about empathy and all that kind of stuff. Vance is a couch. Right. Okay.

[Alix]

It's later that later. Luther says, like, there are some people who cannot be changed.

[Carvana]

Yes.

[Alix]

And I think that Vance's hatred runs so deeply, him having a redemption arc, I think, is long off the table.

[Carvana]

Oh, no, no, no, no, no.

[Lexi]

I will reserve that for Eamon and Henry and maybe a little bit of Remus.

[Carvana]

I. I agree. I think. I agree with that.

[Alix]

I think Gareth is in the camp with Vance, where it's like some people.

[Carvana]

Are just too far gone. Too far gone. Something is quite off, though, because the Guardians are not running away. Screaming and yelling from the descendant and.

[Alix]

The gryvern Coming in like DM would expect them to. They are running to their battle stations. This is not some accidental attack. They have been planning for this. That's why they chained DM to a tree in a clearing that is easily visible for someone to, though, I don't know, come out and swoop out of the sky and try to save their queen. The Guardians have godstone blades and Fortosian Steel that can kill descended. But most importantly, they have two giant crossbolts, AKA ballistas. Loaded with their only two giant godstone bolts.

[Carvana]

The only two Godstone bolts they have.

[Alix]

So aim carefully. Back at the Blood War, when the guardians used the crossbow just like this. They put an arrow through the Fortos Gryverns wing, deeply injuring it. It was so weakened that it touched ground on Kuriel, which is how it died instantly. In this battle, we learn they have to hit Sarai through the heart to kill her instantly. And this was their plan. Get the Gryvern in a clearing so large that it could touch ground. Making it easier for them to pierce it through the heart and hitting true. Why would they want to kill Porceri? You asked.

[Carvana]

I'm sorry.

[Alix]

So glad we're talking about this. Because while Sarai is right now under DM's demands, she can act of her own free will. So long as it means protecting her crown. We see this play out in this battle. Her burning multiple mortals in order to try and save dm. It's embedded in her blood. Literally.

[Carvana]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

DM saying that Sarai won't hurt anyone, the crown doesn't command. Might not have been the most thoughtful thing she has said. We love Sarai with all our hearts. You all know that. We all love her. And it is in her DNA with that bond to the crown to protect them at all costs. Which does not bode well for the guardians who might, you know, want to eliminate the crowns.

[Alix]

Also, Sarai could easily be passed to another crown who could inflict great horror upon the guardians because they will it. Hence why they see this as their best bet to take another big player, a gryvern, off the board.

[Lexi]

When Luther arrives, Diem is confused as to why he's not using his magic. Until she remembers that a normal descended anyone who is not a crown, cannot use their magic outside the borders of their terramere, AKA the realm their magic is from. So in Luther's case, he cannot use his light and shadow magic outside of Lumnos. Only crowns can access and use their magic in other realms. I assume that is because of their own connections to the foraging magic. So this is why Luther is not able to use his magic. Or at least he's not supposed to be able to use on his magic. More on all that later. Without his magic to protect him, Luther is nearly as defenseless as an ordinary mortal. Having to rely on the mortal way of fighting. With a good old fashioned sword in one hand and a Fortosian steel shield in the other, which sure does come in handy as the arrows rain down on him.

[Alix]

With the Guardians at their battle stations.

[Carvana]

It'S time for a battle walkthrough.

[Alix]

The Guardians have loaded the ballista, AKA the massive crossbow, and set their sights on Seraphim. Vance moves to get the chains back on DM and attach her to the tree. Most of the other Guardians now have run out of the clearing. It's just DM and Vance left.

[Carvana]

Huh.

[Lexi]

Maybe you should have, you know, chained her up a little earlier when Del told you to, huh, Vance?

[Carvana]

Huh? Yeah.

[Lexi]

That women leader was actually right. Sarai breathes fire down on a horde of mortals and several of them do get burned dead to a crisp. There is now more blood on DM's hands. As she thinks with an ache.

[Alix]

Vance is hanging out in the clearing.

[Carvana]

A little too long. Still, despite dm, even DM is like, run, Vance, run. Get out of the way before Sarai.

[Alix]

Makes you a crispy chicken wing. But he's not a coward.

[Carvana]

He won't run again.

[Lexi]

It goes back to him thinking himself a martyr. He's proud to die for the cause. He needs to get these chains back on Diem.

[Alix]

And it's too late. Sarai's blue dragon Dragon fire swallows the clearing, but DM feels no burns, only a comforting warmth.

[Carvana]

Ah, gorgeous.

[Lexi]

I love that. Her Gryvern's dragon fire cannot burn her, although it does burn her clothes. So now she naked, it just feels so Daenerys Targaryen.

[Alix]

DM just keeps on ending up naked.

[Carvana]

In this entire series. And honestly, I'm kind of here for it.

[Alix]

When the fire clears, it is utter mayhem. Blue flames and scorched earth surround her. Luckily there's no crispy chicken wing charred bodies. Everyone has escaped because they ran when DM told them to. All except egomaniac Vance, who is laying several feet away clutching his arm. Or what used to be his arm.

[Carvana]

This is her opportunity to escape.

[Lexi]

When Sarai lands, Luther slides off her back and forth. Barely has a moment to look at DM before Cordelia calls the archers to attack. Luther raises his shield to his chest and the next moment an arrow collides into it. Arrow after arrow hits his shield, pushing Luther back, leaving a path of dull gray for tozing steel and dun dun dun, the glassy black of Godstone.

[Carvana]

Fuck.

[Lexi]

Godstone is coming at him. Each Godstone arrow is slowly chipping away at Luther's shield, some even even leaving holes behind, making him more and more at risk of Godstone poisoning if one is to even scratch his skin.

[Carvana]

The foreshadowing. So I will say this.

[Lexi]

I originally wondered if this is when Luther got hit with a godstone that almost results in his death. But then Nicole reminded me that Luther acts very normal with DM between the first fight and the last fight with Vance before they go into igneous. He doesn't get shifty until after that Vance attack later on.

[Alix]

Well, and also he. It dresses DM and his clothes in the tree, leaving his body very, very exposed. And as we'll see after the fight, when they start going to igneous and all this kind of stuff, Luther refuses to even go shirtless around them. Feeling DM's worry for Luther seeping through their bond, Sarai flares her wings out in a protective stance over Luther, sending more dragon fire into the trees.

[Carvana]

Oh, good, Gryvan.

[Alix]

And while it does take out a few archers in the process, this move does open Sarai up for the perfect shot at her chest. And Cordelia takes it, launching the ballista right at Sarai's heart.

[Carvana]

No, Sarai.

[Lexi]

DM doesn't even think. She doesn't have time to think of the moral highs and lows of spilling mortal blood right now. No chance to weigh the cost of.

[Carvana]

Using the teeny, tiny last spark of.

[Lexi]

Magic she's gotten back since, you know, the flame root started wearing off. And just. Just as she thinks the bolt is going to pierce the heart of her beloved Gryvern, her magic calls for her to fight.

[Carvana]

Fight for Sarai.

[Lexi]

Just like the knight with the wolf back in spark and Ranki slaying in the challenging, it takes DM a whisper of a thought to access her magic. A flare of silvery light shoots out, and poof. The bolt is gone, leaving only a cloud of ash floating away on the winter breeze. So, quick pause here, because this. First of all, she just exploded Godstone. Godstone is not supposed to be able to be destroyed, and she just destroyed that. And when she has done this. Poof. Like, for instance, with the wolf, she created Godstone. But this time, she is eliminating Godstone. So does that mean that this is not like powder of Godstone? Yes, Nicole.

[Alix]

I think this is foreshadowing for her. Making the Godstone palace on Korea go poof.

[Lexi]

Me too. Oh, absolutely. Me too.

[Carvana]

Me too.

[Lexi]

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. But using up the tiny little bit of magic she has leaves DM dragon drained. She's still feeling the effects of flameroot. And she is so weak from days without food or water. She just fought off a group of men who are stealing her blood. So she fights right now to stay conscious after using up all of her.

[Alix]

Magic and energy, seeing that she's completely wiped of magic after the crossbow explosion. With a second crossbow on its way to being loaded, DM will make the hard choice to send Sarai and Luther away now. Pause. I can understand why people have a lot of issues with this decision from dm. But to be honest, of all the the things that we're going to debate about DM in this book, this is not at least not one of them for me. Because this makes so much sense. First, with the weakness state that she's in, she is a liability. She knows that Luther will try to protect her at all cost, but if she can't even stand, that will put him in major harm's way just by trying to save her and fight off at the same time. Number two, there's Godstone everywhere. The longer they are here, the more opportunities to have have Luther get scratched with it which would lead to his death. Again, this will happen like this. It's a very real fear. Or Sarai will get a bolt to the chest which will kill her or even just injure her wing and she'll be grounded. And if she's grounded or injured, it will be highly probable that Luther will be killed too. Lastly, number three, she may be a prisoner, but the more death and bloodshed on either side is the last thing she wants. Especially mortal bloodshed at the hands of the deceased descended. These guardians are already being torn apart. Like I think she's not actively saying it, but it's there. She can see it. And they do not need more of this narrative with descended murdering mortals to feed that narrative and put more people on the vance side of the guardians. She wants to be a queen with a higher purpose who leads with compassion, not carnage. And if mortals deaths by Sarai or Luther's hands are the price for her freedom, it is not worth it. So silently down the bond, Diem orders Sarai to take Luther away and to not return no matter how hard Sarai.

[Carvana]

Tries to fight it.

[Alix]

Oh, she obeys.

[Lexi]

I definitely agree with you that I understand DM's point of view in doing this to save Luther and Sarai as well as to prevent further death here. It's very noble and again, I admire that. And I also can't help but think of what Henry told DM and Spark and it's really challenging all of us readers here. DM is naive to think that there won't be death in this fight for mortal rights. And just, just a few Moments ago, she was so thankful for Luther and Serai to come here to save her. And it made DM briefly have rose colored glasses on. Her prince won't harm anyone. Sarai is so sweet, she wouldn't hurt a fly if DM tells her not to. But these two saviors do put DMs life first and foremost, no matter the cost. Especially with the condition she's in. In chapter 10, we'll hear what Luther thinks of DM sending him away back to Lumnos. She worries that he might have died if she didn't like to, Nicole was saying. But Luther really doesn't care about that because he values her life and her safety more than he himself being in danger.

[Alix]

Later that night, now that she's fully drugged up on flame root again, Cordelia shares the Guardians side of the battle. First, the Guardians are pretty furious. They didn't have a chance to kill Sarai and that the crown destroyed a weapon that was a huge advantage to them. They didn't also have the chance to destroy a very powerful dispute descended who is a big, big, big player in the war. They want revenge on the beast that has killed now brothers and sisters. And with DM being the only descendant in the camp, she's target number one for them to take all their anger out on. Hence why no dm, you cannot go heal anyone who was burned in the fire. Because if some chance you end up losing someone, even if it's not your fault, you tried to save them, but they ended up dying, dying anyway. They will rip her to shreds.

[Lexi]

It goes back to that theme of DM trying to help, trying to show the mortals that she is like them because just a month ago she used to be one of them. Sort of. She's like, why don't you see that? And Cordelia is like, I do see that. And you have to understand our perspective about why I cannot let that happen.

[Alix]

Well, and she's so good at looking at other people's perspective, except when it comes to this. Let me do the right thing. Yep, I feel like that's really the blind spot there. In the battle, they lost eight guardians from Sarai's fire and another 20 have serious burns. All thanks to Sarai, Luther and Diem, according to Cordelia. Now, Cordelia is not wanting to admit that her own actions and the way that she pushed forward towards the battle despite DM saying don't do this, like let's stop. That is also part of the cause of their deaths and the injuries. And DM reminds her that she tried to stop the attack multiple, multiple times. But Cordelia's not really having that mirror shoved in her face. When DM asks about Sarai and Luther, Cordelia is at first hesitant. She's angry at dm. She doesn't want to give DM this, you know, solace information, but she ultimately does give in, telling DM that Sarai and Luther got away unscathed. Thank goodness.

[Lexi]

We also learn more about Vance and Orly's history here. Vance and Orly have both been in the Guardians for about the same as amount of time. While I don't know exactly how long that is, we do know that Orly was in the army working as a spy for many years before DM was born, which was 20 years ago. She was recruited when she was very young, so I'm going to guess even as early as 14 when mortals come of age. But at least when Orly was like in her mid teens is when she was recruited. That's my interpretation of very young there. Later on while she was spying on the Guardians, she ended up switching sides to the Guardians. So my guess is she, she and of course Vance have been part of the Guardians for at least 25 years, with her being the leader for the past 10 years due to his strong loyalty to the cause. Orly chose Vance to be her second and the two work closely as Delkil colleagues, but while they've been close, they have not ever really been friends. Orly believes that there are good people among the descended, but Vance has other ideas and this frequently causes issues between them. He is always pushing for more bloodshed and with others who also think this way, it's made it hard for Orly to lead them and their differing ideals. Vance might be loyal to the Guardians, but he never would have had this kind of power for so long if Orly knew this is how things were going to turn out with her being gone for so long. Where Vance has been reckless in his approach and putting the mortals even more in the crossfire, Orly has had a desire for peace. Vance honestly doesn't really care if he is putting the mortals in the crossfire because for him it it's worth the payout, right? It is worth to kill some mortals for the descended to be destroyed. Aurelie does not think that way whatsoever. Vance is loud in his movements and plans with the Guardians. Orly goes about them differently. She's a lot more sneaky and subtle. If she had lighting attack on the armory, she would have done it quietly with no bombs and little bloodshed the goal of this armory attack was to get the weapons and Vance made a whole ordeal out of it. And it just fan the flames, no pun intended. Even more according to Mother Del, Orly would have framed a Descended, leaving them pointing fingers at each other.

[Carvana]

Pause.

[Lexi]

What if the Guardians, like Vance, actually does use this tactic and frame the Descendant in say, Audrey's murder?

[Alix]

I feel like there's a lot of foreshadowing here.

[Carvana]

Uh huh. Yeah, we're aligned on that for sure. Now pause again.

[Alix]

Because there's a moment where Cordelia says Vance and Orly were dedicated colleagues, but. But then she stops herself and DM sees that there's more that Cordelia wants to say, even though she doesn't say it. This drove me crazy needing to know what was the subtext here behind Cordelia's eyes. So we asked Pen and here's what she said.

[F]

While at the Guardians camp, Cordelia is talking to DM about Vance and Arleigh, and she seems like she wants to say more, but doesn't. And you want to know why this is? As we see over the course of Heat and definitely more in book four, there is a schism in the middle of the Guardians and they've really begun to split into two factions. And I think it's fair to say it's kind of Arlie's faction that is working with many of the decisions Descended and doesn't necessarily demonize them as a group, but certainly is focusing on targeting the ones who have power and have done bad things. And then there's Vance's side and they truly want to see all of the Descended rounded up and let's just say, eliminated in whatever way, whatever way they can. And when all Marley goes to the island and Vance is kind of elevated ahead of the Lumnos Guardians, he really starts taking the Guardians in a very different direction. And now we have Vance with Cordelia and we don't exactly know what side of that divide Cordelia is on, or maybe she really hasn't decided what side she's on yet. But I think Cordelia knows that there is this deep divide between, between the two sides of the Guardians and maybe she just doesn't trust Diem enough yet to be so open about that with who she sees as a Descended Crown, who she really doesn't believe is trustworthy. And so I think she's, she has learned from many years as a Guardian to really keep her cards close to her vest and not share these details on the Guardian's weaknesses, especially not with a Descended crown.

[Carvana]

Honestly, I was thinking it was going to be something so much more nefarious, but that makes so much sense to me. Yes. I'm like, that makes sense why you'd.

[Lexi]

Hide that after the Guardians move east to a new camp? Because they know Luther is going to come back with reinforcements. Breck is here to Dismiss the prisoner, DMs two guards, and then make sure, you know, she takes a bath.

[Carvana]

She's taking up the whole camp.

[Lexi]

All this seems very suspicious, especially with the cruel way Breck is acting. Acting toward her. This isn't like him.

[Carvana]

What the heck is going on?

[Lexi]

It's an escape mission. I'm not surprised at all that Breck is part of this. He's the nicest to her here. Even if he is, you know, having to withhold information.

[Carvana]

I do want to point out that DMs like, is this Henry's doing? And Breck's like, no, don't tell him I'm doing this. So much worse. Like, that is such a bad look for Henry that first and foremost she thought it was him and it wasn't even crossing his mind. But then second, that Henry would have been pissed if she did escape. Like, that's so bad.

[Lexi]

That is absolutely saying right there that Henry is in favor of keeping DM imprisoned.

[Carvana]

You know, for their future though, right? Speaking of prison, you know the whole reason that they're keeping dm, it was.

[Alix]

So that they could use her as a bartering chip to get Arlie out of of Fortos prison. Well, they heard back from Fortos this morning with a note that says, quote, do with her what you will. All those who are guilty will face.

[Carvana]

Their consequences in due course. AKA go ahead and kill dm. So the crones, so the crowns don't.

[Alix]

Have to do it. And they don't have to worry about her after the disastrous coronation that clearly she's not the real Crown of Lumnos. Yada yada. And also they now know that her mother is a Guardian. I do not blame them for thinking that she of course, had something to to do with the attack on the island. They are now happy to have her die. And they're even happier to not have to do it themselves. They're happy that the Guardians, who are all too ready to rip her to shreds, would be the first to raise their hands to do so.

[Lexi]

Which brings us to Cordelia being in on this escape plan too.

[Alix]

So why, in the dead of night is Cordelia now helping Diem escape when she just as easily could have turned her over? To get shredded by the Guardians first. DM could be an ally to them again, like what we were saying earlier. Cordelia is smart. She is someone who's going to look ahead. She knows that having another crown on their side, it's just smart planning.

[Lexi]

Like Del said to the Guardian who didn't want to give DM food. DM is a descended queen who can give the Guardians safe harbor in her realm. And by being allies it can help to save the lives of her people. What a different take from Vance that is. Also Cordelia essentially vouching for dm, saying like oh well, she's going to take the Guardians into her realm and protect them. Putting that pressure on DM right then and there to essentially make her do it.

[Alix]

Exactly. Which she would have done anyway. But yeah, you're super right. Cordelia also trusts that DM is going to do everything in her power to get her mother out of prison, thus getting them their leader back. Under Aurelie's leadership, the Guardians were unified, they were purposeful, they were smart and patient. And Cordelia fears that without her they're becoming lost. It's what Pen was just talking about. With them having that divide now they don't have a unified leader anymore and they need her back. Also if DM does it, they don't.

[Carvana]

Have to do it themselves. Like they're able to kind of take.

[Alix]

That pressure and that bloodshed off of the Guardians which would absolutely happen if they tried to break Arlie out of prison. It's much easier for a crowd like that's just point blank. Number three, DM also reminds her of Aurelie having another aurally type leader who is strategic and versus whatever the hell Vance is. But having her on the descended side would be huge for the Guardians. And also number four, if DM is back in Loom notes, she can keep Vance in check, which Cordelia wants because she fears what he is capable of. And number five, she sees DM's heart and her desperate wish to have no bloodshed on either side.

[Lexi]

She takes DM at her word when DM tells Mother Del that she'd take her duty to protect all of her people seriously.

[Alix]

Now, while she does admire diem for her wish for peace, Cordelia is also worried that DM doesn't quite understand the sacrifice and what WARB will demand of her. First and foremost. This sounds a lot like what Henry said for first book. And also there's that word again. Sacrifice.

[Lexi]

So much foreshadowing for the conversation with Yersel and the kindred that DM is descended from being a sacrifice himself. Oh my God. What if she has to be the new Omnos sacrifice and that's how the world is somehow righted?

[Alix]

So you're saying trapped or dead or something? Like, kind of.

[Lexi]

I mean, I guess that's kind of what they think is happening right now. In its own way. Not really. Like, you mean they're still like, we still need to fix this whole thing with Ophi, but you DM your problem, so now you're not a problem anymore.

[Carvana]

Which DM's gonna say hold my beer for that, but I just don't know. Wow.

[Lexi]

Plus, there's a bunch of Amarian army soldiers in Lumnos these days. Because a missing queen means a power void. It must always be filled by someone. And DM better get back to her realm and begin her reign before someone else, like Remus does instead.

[Alix]

But also, Cordelia does have to be secret about letting DM out and letting DM escape. Because if the Guardians found out that Cordelia was letting a crown loose, she would have been been outed so fast. Especially under Vance's thirsty pal. Like, he would have gotten so many more recruits the second that word got out.

[Lexi]

See, that's why I don't think that Cordelia would ever actually side with that side.

[Alix]

I agree. Okay. That's fair. That's super fair. The thing that I worry about is the reason that she does kind of waver under Orly is because Orly is so worried about getting DM off the island that she's forgetting about the mission. And Cordelia is like, wait, hold on. Wait. What about this? So if anything, I feel like Cordelia is going to step into Aurelie's role.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Alix]

And it'll be Cordelia versus Vance, and Aurelie will be off on her own.

[Lexi]

I absolutely agree with you on that. Because I think that that will be Orly really trying to make up for.

[Carvana]

How shitty she's been.

[Lexi]

She has always put the mission before her family. And even though she says that's not the case and things like that. Her husband ended up dead.

[Alix]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

Her child ended up as a crown. And this whole shit show has happened. I won't say necessarily a little bit because of her. And now she. It's like she's finally realizing that the Guardians cannot come first. Her family has to come first. And that is a very personal struggle that Orly will have to go through with. And the Guardians are not just going to sit around and wait for her.

[Carvana]

To figure her out, you know?

[Alix]

Exactly. Exactly.

[Lexi]

With a bit of food, water, a few weapons, another big dose of flame root in her, and a hell a of a lot of trust in Del and Breck, DM set sail for Lumnos in a small one person dinghy. @ least we all can agree on this.

[Carvana]

It's just the royal boats that we cannot figure out here. Hold on. You all have to know how much of the boat argument was on the cutting room floor. There was like a 15 minute boat argument between Lexi and I that Hayden just deleted lovingly. Because like three of those.

[Lexi]

As Hayden's says, he's like, sorry, girls, I massacred the boat.

[Carvana]

Like, he's probably for the best. It was definitely for the best. You know this is probably gonna get cut too, right?

[Lexi]

But hey, this is good. DM has fresh water, food for the journey, and weapons should she need them. Thanks, Cordelia and Breck. Not wanting to risk getting lost in open waters, DM sets her course to follow the shoreline north. But with her magic nullify by the Flame route, DM has nothing to rely on but herself. Which our girl can totally do, because she's only consciously been able to use her magic for a few days. Really 24 hours, where it wasn't nullified. I mean, think about this. Like for the whole 30 days leading up to the challenging, she could not tap into her magic. She was able to do a few explosions, but like, you know what I mean, right? She was able to use her magic like she should have been able to. Then she has a challenging.

[Carvana]

Huzzah.

[Lexi]

That's great. And then the next, next day, she had the coronation and she's been on flame route ever since. Then basically her life is now in the hands of her sailing skills and her heart full of the overwhelming desire to be home.

[Carvana]

DM hopes for a strong wind to come along and catch her sail so she can sail away to Lumnos. And she's in luck.

[Alix]

With the beginnings of a breeze kissing her cheeks, DM calls upon her father's sailing lessons and put her rusty sailing skills to the work. Pulling on the ropes, DM catches that breeze and Arboros fades away behind her. But then suddenly, the wind shifts, sails.

[Carvana]

Flapping about, and the boat rotates, circling back towards the shore. This is impossible.

[Alix]

DM notes that while the wind is.

[Carvana]

Shifting, it's common for winds to change. This is extreme and abrupt.

[Alix]

How strange. DM scrambles to fix her course, but by the time she gets everything back.

[Carvana]

In its place, she's basically back on Arboros. Fuck.

[Alix]

Then that same gust of breeze slows down before stilling altogether.

[Carvana]

Double fuck.

[Alix]

It's not just the wind now. The water goes still and glassy, and her little dinghy is bobbing in its place, unmoving. So DM switches tactics, reaching for the rose. DM doesn't even lay a finger on.

[Carvana]

One before the wind picks back up again.

[Alix]

Again. Damn. Wrestling with these ropes.

[Carvana]

And I would just be cursing under.

[Alix]

My breath like crazy. She sets the boat back towards the deep waters. But before she could finish, the wind switches again, sending the boom straight to her head.

[Carvana]

As someone who has been slapped in the face with a boom before. This shit hurts. By the time she's recovered, her boat.

[Alix]

Has completely gone back to the shore.

[Carvana]

Which should have been impossible, considering the.

[Alix]

Water was still just moments ago. So. So with one final attempt, DM tries.

[Carvana]

To row sideways out of this weird current that's pushing her back towards the shore.

[Alix]

But after uncomfortable effort, DM barely moves.

[Carvana]

And without warning, the dinghy tips over.

[Alix]

Sending DM and all of her supplies.

[Carvana]

Into the freezing water. So what the hell happened here?

[Lexi]

DM has Flameroot in her system right now. This cannot be her own wind or water magic, which she has from Miros accidentally being used. I am convinced this is divine intervention to get her back toward Luther and co. Luthor is walking right into danger, and DM can't sail away when he, Taryn and Elix are arriving at the mortal camp to rescue her. So this is the Kindred moving the waters and the wind to ensure she gets back to shore and can save them and be reunited with them. There's even a line where DM thinks nature seemed to have pitted itself against me. It was almost as if some supernatural force was telling me to. And then she's cut off. Which, if she's cut off, then we know that she's onto something later on, when she's telling the story to Luther and her friends, Luther even looks up and it's like he's like, offering up a prayer to Lumnos. I think that he knows exactly what is happening here, and he's like, oh, thank you so much for bringing her back to us. With all that said, what happened here with DM in the boat is a big question in the fandom. It's one that we've gotten a whole lot more from readers.

[Alix]

While I totally agree with you, I think that they're absolutely in the Kindred's conference room. She's projected on Zoom.

[Carvana]

And I will say, for the longest time, I thought there was some mirrors in the sea just being like, go that way. Go that way. Yeah. I'll be honest, when you're like, we.

[Lexi]

Need to ask Pen this question, I.

[Carvana]

Was like, we do. We do. Because why not? All of the questions for Pen this.

[Lexi]

Week was from Nicole.

[Carvana]

I'm just gonna say that the only one that I had, we did not ask her because Nicole said it was too obvious. Throw me in the dinghy and capsize me, why don't you? Wow. Yeah. Let's phone a pen.

[F]

When DM is on the getaway boat from Arboros and the wind mysteriously changes direction, does that come from magic or just coincidence or something else? So it's certainly open to interpretation, but in my mind, there are, let's say, some divine beings who have a certain plan in mind for DM and a certain fate that they believe that she is needs to fulfill. And they are pushing her back towards our bros because they know that her fate goes that direction and they want to make sure she fulfills it.

[Carvana]

With no supplies because.

[Alix]

Because it's now swimming with the fishies, DM is going to need to figure out another way to yeet out of Arboros and back to Lumnos. Walking is out of the question because that would take way too long and that's way too dangerous. But she remembers that there were horses back on the outskirts of the Guardian camp. And good news, the Guardians are all distracted because they're now looking for Diem, who they realize has escaped. It's time for a horse. Enticed. I love that there's no one in sight. And she thinks, quote, perhaps the gods were looking out for me after all. I think this is exactly what we were just saying. It's exactly what Pen was saying. It's the Kindred. They're in the conference room. They're carving the path for her, all that kind of stuff. Sneaking into a few vacant tents that are again, on the outskirts of the Guardian camp, DM steals a long woolen cape to conceal her hair and her face and a abandoned sword. And that's when a voice rings through the camp. Quote, where is she?

[Carvana]

Luther, you're back, buddy. That's whose voice it is.

[Lexi]

But wait, we should not be celebrating this. Because while we love Luther's voice, we should absolutely, positively not be hearing it here at the Guardians camp. Especially with him surrounded by mortals and Godstone blades pointed right at him. So, obviously, DM's plans have now changed. Scratch escaping.

[Carvana]

We need to save Luther. I'd be like, God damn it. I'd be like, yass.

[Lexi]

Thankfully, he did not Come alone. As we learn of being reunited with Taran, he and the leaks are staying hidden. And the plan was for Luther to walk right out to the camp to turn himself in. The hope was that he would then be chained up next to DM and the other two would figure out how to get them out. Okay, you three, I love you, but that plan is like a B minus at best.

[Carvana]

I would probably call it a little.

[Lexi]

Bit more like a C, maybe a C plus. I'm not saying I have a better one, but there's a lot of faith in Luther and DM being chained up together.

[Carvana]

And I'm sorry, if I was immortal, I would not do that. No. Or the three of them.

[Lexi]

You know, Luther, Taran and Elix could go figure out where DM is chained up.

[Carvana]

Instead of just two of them having to figure it out.

[Alix]

With Luther held at Godstone knife point and Taran not knowing how to get him out, DM has a rika moment. Why not use the Guardians own tricks against them? And by tricks, I mean bombs. So if they set off one and disorient the Guardians with the distraction, they then can sneak Luther out.

[Carvana]

This is a plan. This is a plan. But there's one tiny problem.

[Alix]

They need a way to light the fuse with DM's magic still trapped behind the fog of Flameroot. And you know, Taran not having magic, or at least not supposed to be having magic, since he's an Arboros, DM offers offers to get a flame from one of the fire pits. In particular, she chooses the giant bonfire.

[Carvana]

Behind Cordelia in the middle of the Guardian camp.

[Alix]

So she sends Taryn to go hang out with the horses while she goes to sneak behind Cordelia and get the fire. Sneaking around the camp, DM tries her best to blend in with the crowd with her cloak on and all that stuff, as she slowly makes her way closer to the bonfire. Slowly though exposing herself the closer she gets.

[Lexi]

While D is making her way to the the fire, Luther spots her and can tell she's going to need a distraction so she doesn't get caught. So he does what any reasonable man would do.

[Carvana]

Throwing his head back, Luther roars into.

[Lexi]

The night, causing the Guardians around him.

[Carvana]

To freeze and some to even stumble away in fear. Run away. Run away.

[Lexi]

This is exactly what DM needs to flee with her makeshift torch in hand. I love this so much. Let it loosen Luther. Do what you have to to save your girl. And Hatim's like, oh, I can't wait to tease.

[Carvana]

Like, I know this is meant to.

[Alix]

Be like, you know, one of those like guttural yells or something like that. But all I can picture is him roaring like a lion or even like howling like a wolf in the middle of the night. And that does make me giggle. DM is almost in the clear. But as she goes to pass the last guard before the bomb stack, the Guardian guard turns around and his attention.

[Carvana]

Is no longer unlocked.

[Alix]

Luther, but solely on dm, who has an open flame.

[Carvana]

Walking towards the bombs, DM tries to play dumb, claiming that she just wanted to help in the search.

[Alix]

But there's just enough light for him to pull her hood back and see the white snowy braid. And he starts calling out, the Queen is here.

[Carvana]

The Queen is here.

[Alix]

But think the flames. Taryn is here to drag him off into the night, which.

[Carvana]

Oh dear, probably it's just not conscious. He's fine. Sure.

[Lexi]

Seizing the moment, DM rushes toward the bombs. She finds containers of all shapes and sizes. Oh yeah, the mortals definitely do know how to make bombs. Grabbing two bombs at random, DM sprints for the tree line, not wanting to risk setting them off near the tents. There might be children there after all.

[Alix]

Seriously.

[Lexi]

No, that was very kind, dm. DM lights the fuse of the first bomb and gently sets it down while people are screaming that she's got a bomb. Before she runs like hell and tells.

[Carvana]

Everyone to take cover, trying to blend.

[Lexi]

In with the others. But she doesn't get far before the bomb goes off.

[Carvana]

Boom.

[Lexi]

Sending DM face first into the dirt. Time for the second one. Getting away from a poor woman just trying to help before she realizes that's the Queen with the bomb. DM grabs the second bomb and lights it. She locks eyes with Cordelia, who is most definitely regretting letting DM go now and then. DM chucks the bomb into the tree line and runs towards Luther.

[Carvana]

Just before the second explosion, Luther throws himself on top of Diem, protecting her from the fiery debris, because of course he does.

[Alix]

And the moment the flying rubble subsides, Diem wiggles herself free, grabs the ropes around Luther's wrists and cuts him free with Taryn's blade.

[Carvana]

Luther wastes no time as he pulls DM into his arms, kissing her like.

[Alix]

There'S not a battle happening around them.

[Carvana]

Yay, your reckless dangerous kisses. I love it.

[Alix]

Luther has been losing his mind trying to find dm, which we will be learning about more shortly. This kiss is equal amounts of relief.

[Carvana]

And also a little bit of fury.

[Alix]

Obviously fury for those who took her from him. And he's a little peeved at DM herself, who sent him away. And right now none of that matters. They're reunited in the midst of this chaos. And as much as I want to agree with the. You know, perhaps the reunion can wait. Statement of a leaks.

[Lexi]

I don't care.

[Carvana]

Have your moment, you two. But back to the fighting.

[Lexi]

I'm with the leaks.

[Carvana]

I'm sorry, I know you are. Of course you are. I don't care. I think it's. I think it's romantic again.

[Lexi]

DM is insistent that they don't kill the mortals. And for the same reasons as refusing to use her magic against Vance and his group.

[Carvana]

They're just angry.

[Lexi]

They don't realize. While Elite leaks is like, yeah, okay, but we have to defend ourselves or we die. This is DM feeling torn and trying to make a win win situation when it just doesn't exist. And I'm not faulting her for not wanting to kill anyone. And goes back to her being naive, shouting that they're not enemies when she just made two bombs explode. The mortals don't care that it wasn't near the tents. They are not looking at her semantics here and they are not willing to because she is a descendant and she is acting like the enemy right now. Plus, Del's not going to or is able to call off her people. It's gone too far. By this point, the mortals have the upper hand. Del can't give that up without a mutiny against her. Just give up DM before someone does something they'll regret, which is somebody kills somebody on the other side here. But nope, DM can't let her descended family get imprisoned by these mortals. The only reason Diem is still alive is because she's needed for leverage. Her friends here are disposable.

[Alix]

With the mortals seeing Luther as their biggest threat of them all, they begin attacking three mortal men, taking him on one, hitting him in the hip with a club. Still not his hip injury from Godstone, though. Then a fourth man tears through the crowd, a glittering black sword raised above his head.

[Carvana]

Oh no. Luther's gonna die.

[Alix]

Diem doesn't think. She runs, hurling her body towards the man with the Godstone blade. They tumble together through the soil until finally the mortal man collapses on top of DM with Diem's own broadsword embedded in his gut. I love how this whole section is written, because there's no like. And then I reach for my blade, embedding it in his side. She just acts and then realizes what's happened. It's almost like either she blacked out and then like instinct fully took over her to save Luther. Or and. I'll even throw an and. Or it was a complete accident. And it's just how the direction that her blade took in the tumble. And while, yes, she did not think twice before acting, the end result is still the same. Luther and DM are alive and the mortal is not.

[Lexi]

Quote, I had killed a mortal to save a descendant. Oof, this is such a weighted line. Yes, it was an accident. DM did not purposefully launch herself into the mortal with the intention to kill. All she was trying to do was protect Luther from getting murdered and it led to the mortal's death instead. If DM knew that what she was about to do would result in killing a mortal, would she have still done it to save Luther? I don't think even she knows that answer. I don't think that she could possibly answer that because consciously she can't make that decision unconscious. Consciously she can make that decision. She just did. Here. Even if she did not intend to kill the mortal, her heart is so torn and determined to save everyone. And there are going to be those moments where she can't think and she just has to do. She can almost get analysis paralysis, which is exactly what Henry was saying last book, where it's like, you're not willing to do anything here because you're just trying to help everybody. And by trying to help everybody, you're not helping anybody. Yes, both the descended and mortals are decent people. She will tell Vance that the mortals are her priority. And yet DM is caught with one foot in each world, both sides ready to take up arms against her.

[Alix]

Well, in the way that this is written, it's her initial shock. She says, quote, I had spilled the blood of my people for them. It goes back to that us versus them that we've been talking about since the first episode. It's like in this moment of pure shock, she suddenly transported back to the narrative that she's told herself for years. Descended are evil and I am immortal. Before our story began, DM hated the descended. They were always a them to her. She's. We're taking Luther, we're taking all of that context out of the last months or two months off the table. Now that old narrative is launching itself to the forefront, even if it is short lived. The fact that them is in italics here is so notable.

[Lexi]

And look at this chaos that is has come of it. DM Set off bombs, 8 mortals are dead and many more injured from the previous attack with Sarai they're fighting off mortals right now. DM doesn't want this violence on her behalf. It's the same reasoning she sent Luther and Sarai away before. This blood and death is not worth her rescue. One of her worst nightmares is playing out in real time. And she'll feel the weight of all this blood on her hands, quite literally. When it comes to this dead mortal. DM is trying her hardest in a really difficult position to protect all the people. But when the people are against each other, including about to kill her loved ones, where does that leave her? That is one of the biggest questions of this series and there isn't a right answer. And that is what is so fascinating about deep diving. It is as we do look at all these different angles, we do criticize dm and we are looking at this from every angle because. Because there are so many different angles to look at this from. DM is horrified that she failed to protect a mortal who by her own definition is her priority. And it'll send her spiraling as she feels torn apart from the inside with these conflicting goals of protecting all her people from the mortals to Luther.

[Alix]

Later in the tree, Luther will talk to dm, allowing her to voice her sadness and feelings around the attack and the dead mortal that she truly believes is her fault. And he will offer up a different perspective. While DM is blaming herself as the reasons all of these people are dead or burned by Sarai or one of the bombs. Luther says that Mor would be dead if it weren't for her. And he is right. If she didn't have the heart that she does and she was fine with bloodshed, our trio and her would have cut down the world to escape. Because honestly, the three Corps Bois, they already saw those people as guilty because they took their queen Serrano in her desperation to get Diem. If DM was okay with bloodshed, she would burn the whole camp down to get to her queen. And as Luther says, the battles in this war have already begun. People are going to die because they are fighting for what they believe in. And that includes people dying because of Diem. She is a crown. She commands armies. People will either die because they are fighting for her or because they are fighting against her. And some might even be at her own hands because of self preservation. But that doesn't stop her from being allowed to mourn them. In fact, mourning them is the right thing to do. But there's a difference between mourning and carrying their deaths on her shoulders that will do nothing but eat her alive. Luther would know that same guilt and sorrow were eating him alive around the half mortal children, and he cannot watch the woman he loves go through the same torment.

[Lexi]

Jumping ahead to chapter 14, when Vance confronts DM and co again, he knows how to play her both by turning his own men more against her, especially as she actively tries to talk sense into them and from his perspective, how to catch DM in her lies. Sure, DM keeps saying she cares about the mortals, but when push comes to shove, she prioritizes the descended, as she literally did by saving Luther and killing his mortal attacker. And yes, DM could very well be viewed this way, even by readers. If we're looking at things completely black and white. Of course Vance is not going to consider the nuances that it was an accident. Should we consider the nuance that it was an accident? Or that Luther means more to DM than anything in this world? She, for one, always says that her life is not more valuable than another. Who is she to say that Luther's life is more valuable than this mortals here? And Vance is happily throwing this in her face to turn her own words against her and I think to be smug about how yep, he's been right about DM all along. And everyone else has been fooled by her insistence that she is trustworthy and on the mortal side. Of course we believe DM because we are in her head. We know that is her intention. And again, it's that gray area of what is right, what is wrong, who is right, who is wrong. Back to the commotion. After Taryn sends explosives into the campfire, which then is like fireworks 101. You don't do. Oh my gosh.

[Carvana]

Like, I know he's trying to get a message along, but it didn't have to have that big of a boom.

[Lexi]

Because a lot of people die from that. Taryn. Now DM is reunited with her found family. She will not let them get separated again. Dm, Luther, Taran and Elixe run through the Arboros forest, and they are closely followed by the mortals chasing after them. But as they continue running, running, running, eventually the mortals fall behind.

[Carvana]

Phew.

[Lexi]

Thank goodness for that descended warrior endurance. Unable to keep going, our crew finds a massive tree with roots. Roots 10ft tall in all directions. It's like a root encasement at the.

[Alix]

Base of the tree.

[Lexi]

They make their way into the tree, and while it's cramped, it keeps them concealed. So our descended friends wait for the mortals to come through. This way, no one comes. The mortals are probably going to wait until morning, then keep up with the search. Which, yes, at least some of the men, specifically Vance, they will do this. But I do think, as a whole, the mortals know that they can't keep up with the descended. And the descended are now gone. And maybe, see, Del does not insist that they keep searching because she knows that DM is on her way back to Lumnos. Getting DM to Lumnos is why Dell helped her escape in the first place, after all. Okay, Nicole, I'm back to this here. I have one more little thing that I have to point out as DM asks Luther if he was hurt by Godstone. When they're all, you know, like, checking to make sure each other's okay, he hesitates and admits he took a few cuts, but then assures DM none of them were from Godstone. Is he lying here? Because yes, he will touch DM and be half naked in front of her and act 95% normal. But maybe that's because it is so fresh. So the worst of the Godstone wound is not showing yet. I'm still keeping a close eye on how Luther acts through this stretch quote.

[Carvana]

From chapter 39, How I Choked.

[Alix]

The only word I could get out in our boros When Vance found us after you and I. He stopped just after Taran was hurt.

[Carvana]

With Taran and Elix outside of the root tree thing, it's finally time for.

[Alix]

Diem and Luther to have a moment. Moment alone after two weeks of separation.

[Carvana]

But first, dm, you're freezing.

[Alix]

Remember, DM is still in wet clothes and wet hair from when she was tossed into the sacred sea by the wind, saying, fuck you, you ain't going anywhere. Then when the mortal died, he bled on her clothes too. And she's freezing. Don't worry, dm, Luther will keep you warm.

[Carvana]

Undressing her quickly in the dark.

[Alix]

Yeah, buddy. She's standing there naked as he uses his hair hands to unbraid her hair.

[Carvana]

That's right, keep going, my guy. And then he puts his own sweater over her head. That's not how this works.

[Alix]

Luther quickly rids himself of his own clothes and dresses Diem in their soft, warm comfort.

[Carvana]

Jokes aside, this does make me very, very happy.

[Alix]

While they're falling asleep in a cloak draped over the two of them, she notes how she's warm and cozy for the first time in weeks.

[Carvana]

Huzzah.

[Alix]

But now it's the next morning. They still have some time alone. So Luther pulls DM still dressed head to toe in his clothes into his naked except for his own boxer's lap. I can see this so clearly. And they decide it is time for the secrets to come clean.

[Lexi]

Yes, because it is finally time for Luther to share the whole story about his and Orly's relationship and what he knows about her mother. No more secrets. No more covering up for Orlie. She's not here to give DM all the information that DM deserves to know and needs to know. So Luther is going to provide. Story time, everybody. The first time Luther and Aurelie met was when she became the palace healer. Since he had been watching the guardians for a while at that point, he already knew that she was their leader. So he let her work, but kept a close eye on her. One day, Luther went to Mortal City for a half mortal child who had been gravely wounded. He took her to Orly and begged her to save the the girl's life. And while she did, she noticed that the girl was indeed a half mortal child. Knowing Luther was the keeper of the laws, but suspecting what he was doing, Orly wanted to help him. She knew ways to transport people out of sight of the descended and Luther took her up on it. From there, they worked together. She helped him with the children and he helped her with conditions in Mortal City. Food and medicine for poor families or supplies for the healers. Whatever she requested. They were never friends though. Or even friends Lee. But together they saved many lives. I think I've said this before, but just saying again how much I love this unlikely duo dynamic. They don't really get along, but they work well together because they have a common goal. Kind of reminds me of what DM is going to have to do with these two sides. People who don't necessarily like each other will have to come together to achieve their shared bigger purpose. Like her and Del, for instance.

[Alix]

Well, and as Del said, Arlene knew working with the I'll call them, like good descended needed to happen in order to get shit done.

[Lexi]

Exactly. As Luther started to trust Orly, he gave her more freedom to move around the palace unescorted. But that was a mistake because Orly took advantage of this shocking spying on the Corpois, including Luther. When he discovered this, Luther confronted her.

[Carvana]

And was like, what the fuck? I thought we were on the same team here.

[Lexi]

Aurelie admitted she overheard Luther admit he is a half mortal while he was arguing with her. Remus. Which by the way, that is like the biggest secret ever to overhear. Anyone else could have overheard that too. Like how deep in the palace was Orly sneaking to to overhear a very secret conversation like that. In any case, she Used this information as blackmail against Luther to ensure he'd never get in her way. These two might have a common goal, like I was just saying, and that trust in each other to an extent, but they're still always wary of each other. Being a mortal guardian and a descended prince, I think again, that is going to be really prevalent as these two sides do have to come together for humanity's greater goal. Once when we get to burn.

[Alix]

I want to pause and just put ourselves in DM's shoes in this moment. Because imagine having this mother who was always on this internal pedestal, your entire life being the epitome of good and right. And here she is spying on her patients and her allies, let alone being a spy basically in the first place. Now she doesn't know what to call greed.

[Carvana]

That spy was.

[Alix]

We'll learn that later. But as DM says here, the mother that she knew is only half the story. And that's what she's realizing. And that that sucks.

[Lexi]

But Luther hasn't entirely objected to what Orly is doing. Under her leadership, the Guardians weren't as violent. And they did things like steal food from the palace that the palace could afford to replace. And while they would ruin shipments of silk, it was to make a point.

[Carvana]

I want to just pause for a.

[Alix]

Moment because we just do not know this, but this is entirely my headcanon. Last book. In the Hanover meeting, there is an agreement between Marthe and Remus that they would appoint one of the Hanovers to the council they requested if they accept the Courboise terms on the silk shipments. So is the Hanovers in charge of the silk shipments?

[Carvana]

And if so, that means the Guardians stole from the Hanovers. And that just makes me happy. That makes me happy too.

[Alix]

Yes.

[Lexi]

The guardians would also help mortals accused of petty crimes and they would sneak them out of Lumnos before the charges could be brought. So the way that Luther saw it, there wasn't anything Luther really wanted to interfere with. The Guardians weren't harming anyone. They were just wanting to make their voices heard and they wanted to save mortals. Ah yes. But this is precisely why some guardians are going against orally now with Vance leading the divisive charge. What they were doing before was not moving the needle. As I would say in my corporate language. They need to make themselves louder to the descended and show them that they are going to take back their homeland and they're not going to work in the shadows anymore. They will do whatever it takes to destroy the descended. And that was not how Orly was operating whatsoever. Luther never told any of his inner circle what he was doing because he wanted to keep his family and friends as far from everything as possible, just in case he got caught. That way, they would not get into trouble, too. So when Luther discovered what Orly was doing and how it was similar to his own mission to help save mortals and half mortals as best he could, he realized he wasn't alone in this anymore. So Luther gave in to Orly's demands. Sometimes she told him what she was up to. Other times she didn't. Like when she put Teller in the descended school. I'm curious how that all worked, because that was a deal that she had with Luther, and I guess she didn't tell Luther about. Oh, like, the actual reason why is why. I think that he agreed to let her son in just because he's a good guy and is like, yeah, your son should have a good education.

[Alix]

I think he wants mortals to be educated. He would. He would want that. And Arly, Really?

[Carvana]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Lexi]

There was only one time Orly mentioned DM to Luther. It was when she told him that if he went anywhere near her daughter or even looked into her or had her followed, Orly would have him destroyed. AKA tell everyone he's a half mortal. That. That is some mama bear energy if I've ever heard it. Luther thinks it's because or was worried that DM would find Luther attractive and want to sleep with him. I mean, the mother's instinct is not wrong there. But I also think it was more so to keep any suspicion of who DM really is away. Luther would have been able to figure out that she's half mortal. And even though he was helping them, Orly wanted DM completely off his and anyone else's radar. Oh, this is such good foreshadowing for when Orly finds out about DM and Luther in the most awkward way ever. Oh, my gosh. Like that'll be interesting when we get to that part of the deep dive. Because DM does wonder, right here in this moment when Luther is telling the story, what her mother would think of with her giving hurt to Luther. Spoiler alert. Not good at first, dm.

[Carvana]

Not good at all.

[Lexi]

But then she'll come around. I promise. When it came to getting Orly on the island of Kuril, King, Ulther was too sick to attend the Forging Day ritual. And someone like Luther needed to bring the crowns a vial of Ulther's blood for the ceremony. So when Orly found out, she demanded Luther take her with him, claiming she needed to harvest a rare medicinal plant only available on the island. And she needed time to harvest a large supply. Since Luther didn't know about Flameroot and.

[Carvana]

He was like, sure, that sounds like.

[Lexi]

A good moral thing to do. He agreed. Orly believed Ulther would die way sooner than seven months. And she planned to return at Luther's coronation. Even though it was not a guarantee guaranteed that Luther was going to be the next king, Orly was willing to risk it. She really did assume, like everybody else, that it would be him.

[Alix]

With Luther sharing about his and Orly's allyship.

[Carvana]

Sure.

[Alix]

And her involvement with the Guardians, it is time for DM to come clean about some things too. DM is. Slash, maybe was a Guardian. And while Luther didn't know what Arleigh was planning with the Guardians, Deam says that she. She did, kind of.

[Lexi]

What she means is she didn't trust her gut because she knew better than to give such access and information to Vance.

[Alix]

She's referring to the royal boat. That's how she helped and aided the cause.

[Carvana]

Which she's not wrong.

[Alix]

But I think she's taking on a lot more guilt than she needs to for this.

[Lexi]

I think, yes, I agree. And she is guilty because she should have listened to her gut.

[Alix]

DM may not have known about the armory attack or. Or even the Kuril attack or their plans or any of the details, but she believes by helping them even get a step further, their mission and the repercussions of it are all on her shoulders as well. DM believed that joining the Guardians would be a way for her to help people. She never knew how far the Guardians were willing to go until she saw.

[Carvana]

It multiple times and still told herself that it was just gathering information. But that's fine for one, he knows.

[Lexi]

Her heart and how. How much she cares for the mortals. It does not surprise him in the slightest that she agrees with their overarching mission and would be with them. Second, he literally saw her enter meetings. Remember that shadow, which was Luther, that Nicole pointed out in Spark when DM went into a meeting? Ah, I love a good Easter egg like that. Third, DM has a terrible poker face, and she'd get this guilty expression every time the Guardians come up in conversation. I love that he noticed that. Fourth, Luther suspected from the very start that DM was taking over her mother's Guardian role at the palace, as in a spy. Though obviously that ended up not being true. But when DM first came on to be a palace healer, he automatically had that assumption about her. The Fact that Luther knows is groundbreaking information to dm. She has been carrying this weight of withholding this news from Luther for weeks. She was afraid he would think differently of her if he knew the truth. And yet he already knew. He's loyal to her anyway. He loves her anyway. The fact that fact that she was is a guardian is irrelevant to his feelings and devotion for dm. Our girl needed to hear that so badly and get that reassurance. I mean, of course, because it's Luther. But that was her biggest secret from him. And he already knew and didn't care. He kept her secret for her and.

[Alix]

It made no difference with the discussion of the Guardians. It's natural that some bad eggs come up too, like Vance, who Luther admits that he's all too happy to kill. And Diem winces, unsure, genuinely unsure as to if she wants him dead or not. She wants to when her temper flares. But when the moment of truth comes up, she does not believe that she is strong enough or that she has the courage to act through to which Luther says, quote d' Am Bellator, don't you dare mistake compassion for a lack of courage. We need to talk about this line because we are going to keep coming back to it and and this lesson time and time again. In heat of the Ever Flame, in a world that is quick to slaughter their enemies and where hate is the easiest emotion to reach for because the black and white nature of it allows for people to believe they're fighting for something and that it is right. It is compassion that is the most courageous, compassion that brings humanity back into the conversation. Compassion that is the most difficult option to reach for for because it stands in the middle of the battlefield in the line of fire, allowing for both sides to be heard. But in a world of so much division and hate, it is compassion that brings people back together and saves lives. It is compassion that unifies and heals. And it is compassion that redirects the conversation from you're the problem to how can we, the people, we, the United States people, fix the problem? DM's gut instinct telling her to reach for that compassion. It is not a weakness. It is what makes her the queen we all need and we can all take advice from.

[Lexi]

DM here snaps for that. Absolutely. And this message is exactly what Pen challenges the reader, like she explained in our intro to the Kendra's Curse episode. And it is this message of uniting two together that, oh my gosh, it is so important to get that out of the story.

[Alix]

Our crew decides to stay in their Tree hollow.

[Carvana]

What did you call it?

[Alix]

Tree building. The tree root building for the day.

[Lexi]

The encasement. That's what I ended up calling it.

[Carvana]

The Tree Container Store. The tree hollow for the day.

[Alix]

To continue to stay out of sight and allow for them to eat and rest before they sneak away in the COVID of darkness. Back to their horses that they left in Arboro City. Which I'm assuming they left their horses in like the descended section of town. Kind of like how Lumnose City is the descended part of Lumnos. Arboro City would be one of the descended parts of Arboros.

[Lexi]

I think it would mostly be descended. But I do wonder if there are some mortals in our Boros City because it is one of the more mortal friendly realms, so I just assume that there is more integration as a whole.

[Alix]

That would make sense, yeah. Yeah. As they are gorging themselves on fish and mushrooms that they caught from their daily bounty, DM feels something.

[Carvana]

Luther's magic. Wait, what?

[Alix]

They're in Arboros.

[Carvana]

None of them should have their magic.

[Lexi]

Okay, Nicole, I know that you literally quoted this, but I'm still going to pull out my evidence here. DM thinks that something about Luther's aura feels stunted, almost unfinished.

[Alix]

So?

[Lexi]

So is that because he's in a different realm? So his magic can't be complete because he's not in luminous?

[Carvana]

Yes, I know that's the right thing.

[Lexi]

Now, but just let me have this moment.

[Carvana]

Or is it because of the Godstone wound? The non existent Godstone wound? Is this what you feel like when I bring up certain theories that I will die on the hill for in Empyrean that you do not believe in? No, because this has proof. I have receipts with this one, receipts with mine. They're just maybe not as thorough. I don't know. I think me quoting literally later in the book when Luther admits after they are killed.

[Lexi]

I'm just saying there are plenty of other moments that we could wonder if he got that Godstone wound there.

[Carvana]

I think it's because they're in Arboros and he's not supposed to have his magic. And it's still muffled by the forging stone. Yo, that.

[Lexi]

I mentioned that too.

[Carvana]

Then Alik mentions that hers came back last night. Was it stunted? Lexi? I don't think so. The Terran also mentions that his came back for a moment while they were traveling from Phonos to Arboros. But how is this happening?

[Alix]

As we discussed earlier, the Descendant only only have access to their magic in their home realm. But when the Coronation was unable to be completed because the heartstone was literally broken in half because of dm, these borders trapping their descended magic in their own realm started to break down which. Pause. I don't think that this is part of the curse necessarily. Instead I think that this is a way that the gods or the kindred they're wanting to happen. They saw how division of the realms that they created it was causing more strength strife over time. And they believe that it is time for that unity. So starting with there not being a border but instead one Omarion as a whole. Hence that one to rise in Montiose's letter.

[Lexi]

I absolutely agree. It all has to break down in order to form anew. And it may look different than before.

[Alix]

Absolutely. But hearing that his cousins had sputters of their own magic come to life on the their journey, this surprises Luther.

[Carvana]

To hear why the heck didn't they tell him?

[Lexi]

Well, the trip to find DM didn't.

[Alix]

Exactly include a level headed Luther. Shocking.

[Lexi]

Poor guy was completely lost and didn't know what to do with DM missing. He was on the warpath to get to DM after he returned to Lumnos when she sent him and Zerai away. So back in Lumnos, Luther went to see the Guardians and he threatened them. Got a few to break because they they didn't know anything useful. I could just imagine him with his shadow magic be like where is she?

[Carvana]

Where is she? I could totally see that. Oh my God.

[Lexi]

Like you think Lana broke?

[Carvana]

I bet Lana broke. You know who I could totally see is, you know that spongebob meme where spongebob's like the caveman, like looking around like this. That was Luther.

[Lexi]

Luther, absolutely. They didn't know anything. Anything useful. So eventually Luther turned to the magic compass DM received from mirrors at her Ascension ball. And since it pointed him to what his heart desired most, it guided him, Taran and Alix to the Arboros camp via horseback.

[Carvana]

Clippity clop.

[Alix]

But one part of Taran divulging of Luther's state the last two weeks, it really hangs in the air for dm because he says the woman he loves.

[Carvana]

God damn it, Taran let a dude say it first.

[Alix]

With these words ringing through DM's ears. And as we discussed in Spark, DM is someone who views relationships as very practical. It's the reason her and Henry stayed together for so long. Henry was the practical choice. He was the safe choice. Ergo, she should love him, right? Tell that to the skin eroding comment. But the truth is she did love him in like a I love you as your best friend kind of way. And then luther came into DM's life life and he was the wild burning flames to match hers. Their attraction on paper did not make sense, especially to her. She was drawn to him regardless though. And they have had half a day of the, you know, post the challenging when they got together, then the boat ride of her coronation, and then this very morning to chat. That is the total time of them being together. Like a day and a half.

[Carvana]

That is not very long.

[Alix]

Yes, they were flirting and they were gay. A friendship prior to that for months. But they are still very much in the we just started dating phase.

[Carvana]

So I don't blame Luther for snapping at Taryn, for outing his feelings in the slightest. I would be furious if a friend did that to me.

[Alix]

But this realization does get DM thinking all of the questions about her and Henry's relationship like, you know, the type of questions that really test a relationship. For instance, did he truly understand understand her? Could she be the woman he wanted? And could he be the man she needed? Did they share the same dreams? The same goals? Were they walking even the same path or even in the same direction? All those questions she ran from with Henry so that she didn't have to answer them. But with Luther, she is not running. She is learning in real time what it's like to be loved and understood and already enough in every sense of the word from Luther. And with that, her feelings on love and relationships are changing from something she avoided because it felt like a trap to now something that feels like soaring. And while they may not say I love you right now, they do admit that their hearts desire one another.

[Carvana]

Go dm.

[Alix]

And her emotional availability. I'm so proud of you. Unsurprisingly, this leads to a kiss of all kisses. Her in his arms, her legs wrapped around his waist. And then a twig snaps. Uh oh.

[Carvana]

Fucking Vance is back. Back again.

[Lexi]

Vance is back.

[Carvana]

I'm not even.

[Lexi]

I like Eminem too much for that.

[Carvana]

And his man have Tarant captured. Oh no.

[Lexi]

Godstone spears pointed directly at him in warning. Luckily Alix is hiding and her magic apparently came back at the right moment because she is able to camouflage herself so she is now not in the mortals clutches and really not on their radar right now. Turns out the Mortals were continuing to look for our crew.

[Carvana]

Here's the thing.

[Lexi]

Vance is rogue right now. It does not seem like Cordelia knows that he and his men are out searching for them, knowing what we know about Del, how she helped DM escape earlier, and Del's mistrust in Vance. It seems safe to say she did not send him and these men out to go find them. But Vance still has his own agenda with dm. He needs her alive so he can use her blood to unlock the underground entrance to the Alumnos Palace. He also probably needs her out of the way so that he can go to the Lumnos palace and her not warn anybody ahead of time.

[Alix]

Well, and also he's all too happy to kill two. At least that he thinks.

[Lexi]

Oh, yeah, that's an excuse at that point.

[Alix]

Exactly. Vance, unsurprisingly, is using every opportunity in the scene to his advantage, most specifically to drive a wedge between DM and Luther, who were just sucking face with each other, and also to get DM really pissed off. Remember one of Andre's most important lessons, especially for dm, quote, giving into your emotions is the fastest way to lose a battle. Your temper has always been your weakness. But what angle does he take? Oh, yeah, Slut shaming dm. Fuck, I hate you, Vance. At every opportunity, he brings up Henry, who he assumes is still Diem's betrothed.

[Lexi]

Even though he's been the one turning Henry against dm.

[Carvana]

Yeah.

[Alix]

Oh, he's. He's lying out of his ass right now. He's tutting that he warned Henry that DM would spread her legs for a descended man the moment she had the chance, and that Henry defended her, saying.

[Carvana]

That she would never do that and that Henry stood by her side and insisted on it. That's debatable.

[Alix]

Pause was because. Do you think that that really happened? Do you think that Vance told Henry, like, don't trust her. She's gonna, you know, she's gonna fuck a descended guy, all that kind of stuff. Do you think that really happened, or is Vance lying and that.

[Carvana]

Oh, and that Henry defended her. That's the important asterisk that I didn't include in that.

[Lexi]

Yes, I do actually think that a version of this conversation did happen. And I actually don't think that Vance, in his perspective, is lying here. He really does truly think this about dm, and this is his belief system. So even though for us it's like, what the hell? He's lying from his perspective, I don't think he is.

[Alix]

Well, and he's already so angry. So seeing a half mortal who loved a mortal man immediately jump on a descended man, it just feeds that same narrative. Yep. Absolutely.

[Lexi]

Absolutely. And DM struggled with that herself last book too. And then you. She finally came to terms with how her heart is and the reality of the situation where it's not about mortal and descended, but it's just about Henry and Luther.

[Carvana]

Exactly.

[Alix]

Well, and then he brings Aurally into the mix Slut shaming her for having sex with a descended man. Thus leading to DM like him saying like she got down on her knees or she spread her legs or whatever. However he says it like it.

[Carvana]

Oh God, I hate you, man.

[Lexi]

His misogyny is just oozing out.

[Carvana]

Ah, you suck.

[Lexi]

I give DM an A for effort, trying to convince Vance to see reason and understand that she is on his side. But what DM doesn't fully grasp is that Vance doesn't care if they're on his side. Because as far as he's concerned, his side does not include the descended. Period. End of story there. And that's where he and DM will never ever see eye to eye. And along with trying to create a wedge between DM and her descended friends, Vance outs her as a Guardian. He tried working with her, after all, he gave her chance after chance. But every mission she was part of, she messed up because she chose the Guardians over the mortals.

[Carvana]

First of all, Taran, are you hearing this? Well, literally, he didn't tell Del any.

[Alix]

Of this because it didn't help. It didn't help his own narrative in the moment. And now because it does help his narrative in the moment moment, he's all too happy to share how helpful DM was as part of the Guardians, making her sound like a longtime member. When with Del, he was saying it was so brief, she didn't matter. She like.

[Lexi]

This is not an accident that he brought up Dean. Being a Guardian, he might consider her an enemy, but he is ready to plant a seed of doubt to her descended friends as well. He wants everyone against her. He wants these other men with him to know she was supposed to be with them originally, but she betrayed them for the descended. And now the descended knows she was betraying them at one point for the mortals.

[Alix]

And that's the big kicker. Because while DM told Luther about her involvement with the Guardians, involvement that he already knew about, she definitely did not tell Alix and Taryn in the fear that their loyalty would waver. And here we see Taryn's back straighten and the second surprised betrayal that comes about his features. Taran knows Diem is a queen who is compassionate, who values all lives equally. But that's not how he views the Guardians. He's known people who have died at their hand. People who have been taken out from their types of attacks. And in his mind, hearing about this part of Diem's past, it's not really off kilter with how DM was feeling with her mother when she was learning about that version of OR where it was like, I can't combine this version of OR with the person I've known. That's how Taryn's feeling where it's like, I can't combine this version of DM that I'm hearing from Vance with the DM that I've known for the past month now. Thank goodness for Taran, who, yes, will be pissed at dm and we'll talk about that next episode. But he will ultimately forgive her, especially when all the secrets come out.

[Lexi]

In Umbros, Vance turns to one of his men and taunts DM about the fact that this man was the brother of the human DM killed against her. Oh, that's real rough. I also have to wonder if he ensured this man came with him to be able to. Oh yeah, in DM's face there. Oh yeah. Or he was able to recruit this man to his own cause because it's like, hey, let's go find the girl who killed your brother. DM's defense to this mortal of the brother that she accidentally killed. She's like, well, he was going to hurt one of my friends, and she didn't feel like she had a choice but to protect those she cares about. And this man is like, oh, hurt your friend like this. And he jabs his Godstone spear straight into Taryn's ribs.

[Carvana]

Oh, bad, bad. This is bad.

[Lexi]

As Vance so horribly reminds us, Godstone almost always causes a slow and painful death. And there is no known treatment for Godstone toxin.

[Alix]

No known treatment is doing a lot of heavy lifting there. Ready to end not only this conversation, but the lives of the descended men before him. Vance instructs his men to aim their crossbows at Luther because he can't kill dm. Remember, her blood is still too valuable. Vance decides to take Diem and kill Taryn and Luther. With a wave of his hand, the crossbow holder pulls the trigger. But at the last second, the front of the crossbow tips, causing the bolt to whiz past Luthor, missing him by inches.

[Carvana]

Phew.

[Lexi]

So at first I was like, oh my gosh, is this divine interview intervention again? But then I realized with the grassbow tipping up as if knocked from below, it's Elise, who is hiding in plain sight thanks to her illusionist light magic.

[Alix]

Brilliant. I love it. Taking her chance, DM runs towards Vance.

[Carvana]

Not away from him like Luther wanted.

[Alix]

Ramming her shoulder into his wounded arm. Ouch. And chaos erupts in the fray. DM is attacked by a Godstone dagger. But right before it makes contact contact with her skin, and invisible force pulls DM out of the way. Taran, not wanting to be left out despite the Godstone spear wound in his ribs, launches himself into the chaos and starts snapping spears and cracking skulls, completely ignoring the flaying Godstone weapons. Probably because what's another wound when you're already marked for death?

[Lexi]

And he gets another Godstone wound, He does.

[Alix]

How he only managed to get two wounds is honestly kind of surprising in this moment, but he is a really good fighter. But before DM can jump back into the fight again, she's pulled away by that disembodied voice of Alix, whose magic did conveniently come back and she was able to manipulate the light. And now her and DM are invisible, allowing them to sneak away. Almost right before they are fully in the clear, Elix's magic falters, and her and DM are left with only one more option.

[Carvana]

Run.

[Lexi]

The women cross the nearby border into igneous, and the forest falls away, to be replaced with miles and miles of sand dunes. But DM is not having this whole running away thing. They just abandoned Taran and Luther to go fight against the mortals with Godstone all on their own. DM is obviously never one to leave a fight, especially to leave others to continue fighting in her stead. But as Alix explains, DM is a liability. She wants to help. Yes, that's great. But DM needs to be kept safe there. The others will always put her life first. It doesn't matter what DM says or does. That's just the truth. And if DM is trying too hard to protect her friends, she prevents them from doing their jobs and making them easier targets. So the best Alix could do was to get DM out of there and let Luther and Taran be on their own and do their own thing without DM there to worry about or for.

[Carvana]

Her to be like, don't kill them.

[Alix]

Like, I love Alix so much for this because she's so right. Dm, you are a liability here. And the sooner you understand that, the sooner they are able to do their jobs in a more effective way. And I don't think she even learns.

[Carvana]

That in this book. I don't know if she's ever going to.

[Alix]

To be honest, after what feels like an eternity of waiting on the sand dunes of Igneos. Two figures appear at the Arboros tree line, one limping and heavily leaning on the other.

[Carvana]

They lived. But fuck.

[Alix]

Taryn is injured with two guys stone wounds. And while joking, he believes his life is definitely over from this injury. Luther is practically silent, one might even say shell shocked in the moment. On the first read of this part it feels so obvious and clear that he's terrified that he's going to lose his best friend to Godstone. But as we will learn many, many pages from now, after Alix and Diem left the fray of the fight, Luther was slapped, sliced at the hip by a Godstone blade. And in seeing the horror behind DM's still calm demeanor with Taryn, but he can see right through that, telling Taryn that he's gonna be all right. And you know, to have him to give faith and hope to hang on to. Luther does take that same approach that DM does, keeping his own wound from Diem, knowing that if she saw it, he would never see her happy again and all hope and faith would fly out of her. We will discuss at length Luther's decision here, and especially in the next few episodes, and what it means for the group and all of our thoughts and all that kind of stuff. But for now we have officially entered igneous.

[Carvana]

All right everybody. Wow. Heat, heat, heat.

[Lexi]

In this magic fueled segment of the episode, let's tap into our Umbros magic and turn our full attention to important foreshadowing moments for the rest of this book and specifically speculations for book four, Burna the Everflame.

[Alix]

While DM is unconscious, she becomes the Queen of Montios.

[Carvana]

Even though it doesn't have the same.

[Alix]

Intense fire at the top of her head, there's still fire in her lungs. Now that could be the cause of the flame root, or it could be because she's becoming Queen, who knows?

[Carvana]

But surprise, surprise.

[Alix]

Also while in camp, she doesn't have any mirror to look at and she will not pull it back out until Umbros, where everyone will then note that. Huh, this looks like a little different. It's because it's melded with Matios.

[Lexi]

Cordelia offers to get Teller to this Guardian camp so that he can be safe here. While this is very tempting for dm, she thinks how she can't imagine making him have to end his education and relationship with Lily, and she doesn't want to put a target on him because of his connection to the Guardians. Well, pretty much all of those things will happen before the end of this book, except ending his education. He will get to study in Sophos instead, so that. That is a better education for him in that regard. There.

[Alix]

True. But in the Burn of the Everflame three chapters, he's in a Guardian camp, so he's left Sophos.

[Lexi]

That is very true there, too. Yes, indeed.

[Carvana]

We get so many Moon watches in.

[Alix]

This stretch of chapters, and for Most of them, DMs discussing the moon like it's something watching her. It's, you know, looking at her with bland curiosity, or it's distinctly unimpressed.

[Lexi]

I think of this as Lumnos, because she. She represents the sun and moon, light and shadows. Or maybe it's not actually Lumnos herself, but DMs avatar for Lumnos, where she's thinking, ugh, Lumnos must be unimpressed with me.

[Alix]

But then she mentions multiple times that.

[Carvana]

The silver light of the moon, the.

[Alix]

Moon, silvery light, the gaze of the.

[Carvana]

Silver moon, all of it's watching her. Agree to get. I agree to disagree. We will not have another sister fight on this episode.

[Lexi]

Remember at the beginning of this episode.

[Carvana]

When we were like, oh, we're like twins. Okay, Nicole, you asked for my proof.

[Lexi]

About Breck, so here it is. Breck uses present tense when he's talking about DM's mother not telling her father about being a Guardian. I don't think he knew that Andre was dead until DM shoots back at him that her father is. And it's her fault because she was not prepared to be queen because of her mother's secrets. So with him using this present tense, I know you're going to be like, well, he could be lying, but I just don't think he is. I am officially going with. Breck was at least not involved in Andre's murder and did not know about it. If it was the Guardians, like Vance.

[Carvana]

I was so prepared to say, like, nah.

[Alix]

Like absolutely not.

[Carvana]

But when you bring up grammar like this, you know. You know me and my italics and.

[Alix]

The grammar and all this kind of stuff.

[Carvana]

So you know what? I.

[Alix]

You have convinced me. I do not think Breck was part of the attack.

[Carvana]

So no burn of the Everflame bet is made today. I don't know. We still got some of this episode. Let's do.

[Alix]

I cannot believe I'm here again. DM thinks about how she's seen both kindness and cruelty in Aemond, and how she's unsure which path he will ultimately choose. And then there's the fact that Alix mentions how Aemon is still holding all Luther's titles, but he didn't follow through on the threat to send them away, nor did he get in their way. When they said they needed to leave for this mission, I was on the fence then I was leaning one way on the fence. I think I am officially stepping in the yard fully that Eamon is going to have a redemption arc.

[Lexi]

I'll jump into that yard with you.

[Carvana]

Yay.

[Alix]

Yeah, let's do that.

[Carvana]

Trespassing. DM overhears how in Miros the Guardians.

[Alix]

Are setting up blockades on the waterways to lead them off the continent. Which, yes, is keeping the Miros descendant away from looking at Kuril because they're too worried about what's happening in here. But hold on. If they're controlling the water, that would lead them off the continent. Do you think that some of the Guardians by the end of the series are actually going to leave Omarion as a whole?

[Lexi]

I don't think the Guardians would, but I could see somebody else because the Guardians whole point is that this is the their homeland. They deserve to be here. And it's the descendant that need to leave. Although the descendant, they're also like, well, this is our home too.

[Alix]

Yeah. Well, okay. So that makes me. That makes me wonder. Another question. Are there descended on other continents or just a Marian? That might be a Pen question.

[Lexi]

I'm going to guess no, because the Kindred came from their world to this world. They meet the mortals and all of that and the descended are the result. Result of mortals and kindred. So it's like an unlikely breeding. Yeah, I'll call it.

[Carvana]

Sure.

[Alix]

Okay. Okay. Okay. Now my other question. Are there other magical properties on other continents? I don't think we're ever gonna have a come sail away, come sail away.

[Carvana]

Moment because there's way too much happening on a Marian.

[Lexi]

I think ultimately these hints that there is more than just a Marian is simply Pen's way of demonstrating that there is more in this entire world than just this continent here. Yet I don't think that is relevant to our overall story here because it is all taking place on Amarian. But it is her way of being like it's not just like the whole planet is not this continent.

[Alix]

Yeah, okay, that makes sense. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

[Lexi]

DM also overhears that there's a strange story about a Guardian cell up north. Some descended just showed up out of nowhere claiming to hate his own kind and he wants all the descent ascended dead. Oh, and he's super duper powerful.

[Carvana]

Hello, Ophiuchai. Mention in chapter two of this book. Ah, yes.

[Lexi]

So this other Guardian cell is in the Forgotten Lands, which is a known Guardian settlement. And Ophiuchai came here because that was originally Omnos's land. And he is now leading them, as dm. Luther and Aurelie will find out later on in the story.

[Alix]

And Breath also mentions that he is going to a cell up north because things are heating up there. And as long as he's able and willing to fight, he doesn't think they're going to ask questions about his background in the army. We know that there is Ophiuchai's cell up north, so I'm assuming this is the one he's referring to. There is another one, but the way he's talking about how it's heating up, I think he's referring to this one. So is Breck working with Ophi?

[Carvana]

No. I love him so much.

[Lexi]

So you're wondering if. If Breck was part of the attacks, like against the Realms. Because Amiros, they are having extra lots of attacks and they're gaining the stronghold there. Or maybe he was even in Umbros or Sophos.

[Carvana]

Not so.

[Alix]

I feel like. I feel like we would have seen him in so. Well, I don't know. Maybe because there was a lot of people.

[Lexi]

I just don't see him going with Ophiuchai, though. Not after either.

[Carvana]

But also he and Henry are friends, and I could see Henry going with Ophiuch. I'm not going to gonna lie.

[Lexi]

But I do also think that Brett does pretty much say that he agrees that Vance is too much and Breck prefers how Dell and Orally lead. So I could see him finding his way back to like Orally and Dell and the Guardian Cell that they have that Luther and Teller are with at the beginning of Burn. So I don't know.

[Carvana]

Just with it.

[Lexi]

Okay, so here's another question. With it being such a large Guardian settlement up north, do we think Ophiuchai has, I'll say, taken over all of them? Or if any of them don't like his violent ways, like they'll find a way to go elsewhere.

[Alix]

I could see Brecht being maybe. Maybe spy is not the right word, but I could see him having worked in Ophi's camp and he didn't like it and he leaves. And that's the first time we see him in Burn is where we get a huge divulsion of information of here's all the shit that was going on in. In Ophi's camp. And it was fucking crazy. Yes. That's what I think. Could be. I could totally see that. Okay. Yes.

[Lexi]

I just feel so bad for Bre.

[Carvana]

I know you do. He's mortal.

[Lexi]

He's worked against the Omarion army for a while. And these guardians here in the arbor of Cell, they still don't trust him. Back to that black and white thinking with anyone in the army. It's not just ascended that they hate anybody who is in the army. They automatically oh you're a bad guy to they look at everything in the black and white. If Breck isn't accepted by some guardians, of course they're going to especially hate DM's dad who was a high ranking official. I just really wish the best for Breck and I hope he doesn't get hurt. But I'm very worried about him making out of the series life.

[Alix]

Oh. See, I think he's one of the people who's like pretty deemed safe because we have that favor with DM and I just feel like that favor is going to come into play with his aliveness somehow.

[Lexi]

What if he gives the favor to ensure somebody else lives and in that favor it means that he does not live.

[Carvana]

Why do you want Bre to die? I don't want Breck to die. I love Breck. I love him a lot more than you do. Wow. Wow. Anyway, we do get a reminder of.

[Alix]

That very favor that DM owes Bre for giving her the Fortosian steel blade back in book one. A favor that has has still not.

[Carvana]

Been called in yet. And I will say if Breck is working with Ophi, that could be bad. No, he's too good. I think he's going to be a.

[Lexi]

Valuable ally to DM and burn.

[Carvana]

I think part of. I'm just fucking with you at this point and I think he's going to.

[Lexi]

Be part of the side that is like a mix of descended and mortals who are pushing for a better, more peaceful world against Vance and Ophiuchai and the descended who love to be in power. We have to remember that the favor can be anything as long as it does not invol involve anything illegal or touching any part of him. And DM agrees to any other favor within her power to do so. I really do think that that within her power to do so is going to do some heavy lifting when he.

[Alix]

Does eventually call in his favor.

[Lexi]

Or maybe his favor, like I was saying, will be to sacrifice himself because she won't want to let him, but it will save everybody and it'll be Selfless and poetic.

[Carvana]

Because he is, I won't say, like.

[Lexi]

Super selfish, but he's like, kind of like a rugged, selfish guy. Guy. A little bit. Especially spark. And this would be like, his way of, you know, the whole full circle.

[Alix]

Okay. That I could totally see if. But if that's also the way he goes out in this series, I think that is so beautiful.

[Lexi]

So, yes, maybe it'll also be, pardon some guardians. And she's still not in enough power to do so. So he will overestimate the power that she has. And she, you know, being a woman of her word, I have to do this favor for him. And then she has to, like, try to navigate getting the power in order to do that.

[Alix]

Next, Elix brings up how she's been thinking a lot since the night before the challenging when DM showed her and Taran Mortal City, and how she wants.

[Carvana]

To integrate the mortals into the Royal Guard.

[Alix]

This is amazing because she believes they should have a hand in governing their own community. And that includes patrolling not only Mortal City, but Lumnos City too.

[Carvana]

Oh, my God. My God.

[Alix]

We don't see a lot of action on this in this book, but I can almost guarantee this will happen in the Royal Guard before the end of the series.

[Carvana]

This is.

[Alix]

A lot of people are like, why do you like the leak so much? It's for, like, this. This is why I love Alix. Because she got educated and now she's making changes. That is so beautiful.

[Lexi]

Yes, absolutely. In the same conversation, DM says to Alix that she fears their days of facing danger are just beginning. Girl, you have no idea how right you are. But then I love Alix's response with good. I wouldn't have it any other way. Elix is ready for what's to come. Alix is ready to fight for what is right, and she's not afraid to do so. One more thing from the same conversation. Elix gently urges DM to take advantage of her titles. Some people won't respect her no matter what, but they do have to respect.

[Alix]

Her title as Queen.

[Lexi]

So DM should use that as a weapon against those who don't believe she deserves to be at the table. Aka like the 20 houses, there will always be those people where no matter how hard DM tries to appease them, they will not agree with her because of her background and Slash or her vision for the future. And with those people, they need to submit to DM because she's the one with the title. She doesn't have to convince them that she is good enough? She already has. What makes her good enough? The title of Queen. The crown itself. We talked a lot about this during glow, and after this kind conversation, we'll start to see DM really embrace her title as Queen, while at the same time figuring out what it means to have multiple crowns. Last one here. When DM is freaking out about having mortal blood soaked into her clothes, she thinks, quote, corpses at my feet. Is that a conscious or unconscious reference to the vision where there are countless corpses at her feet?

[Alix]

Yes.

[Lexi]

And yeah, we've been wondering who's the cause of all of them. This could be some foreshadowing to DM feeling responsible for their deaths, even if she doesn't intentionally kill them. Or maybe it's Ophiuchai. And again, she blames herself for not being able to stop this. She will literally have corpses at her feet at some point. From Based on these visions, it is.

[Alix]

Time to enter the Sophos library where each episode Lexi guides us through a world building topic to help us deepen our understanding of this world and and it's magic.

[Lexi]

Today's Sophos Library topic is Arboros. Spoiler alert. You might notice a pattern in this book's Sophos libraries as we travel to different realms. I'm so excited and you know me and how much I love geography. I feel like we're back in the third book of another series. We've covered two actually. All right, so real quick, let's go through the overview of Arboros. It is the realm of root and thorn. Their eye color is green. The queen of Arboros. She has emerald green eyes. Their magic is the ability to communicate with and or conjure plant life. And their sigil is a long stemmed flower entwined with a stalk of wheat. The Arboros gryvern is named Onar. She is a female and thankfully alive. This realm is known for its rich vegetation and for being the primary source of the continent's food and medicinal herbs. Arboros is one of the southernmost realms of Omarion. It's its western border goes up against Faunos and its eastern neighbor is Igneous. But remember that mortals can only enter Arboros from Igneous, so they can only come by following the ring road through Faunus or by sea. The thick trunks of the redwoods are as wide as a horse, covered in ropey vines and stretch high into the sky. It's home to lush ferns and rainbow hued flowers dotting the landscape with its rich green vegetation and being the realm of place plant life, it's absolutely no surprise that many medicinal plants grow here in Arboros, with Arboros being the best realm for especially difficult to find ingredients. It makes sense that its massive annual medicinal herb market is a must visit trip for mortal healers like Orly would go every year and often bring Dame along. Arboros has laid back farming villages tucked into the redwood forests. There's an Arboros city which we don't really know anything about, and the realm has its own mortal city city located near the ring road. Arboros is one of the few realms still friendly to mortals, and they are permitted to live here with only minor restrictions. This in part makes Arboros the primary realm for the Guardians. Plus, like we were saying earlier, the Arboros Queen is working with the Guardians. She's been letting them operate freely in her realm for years. She helped the rebels get on and off the island on the day of the attack, going as far to pretend to be chained to throw off any suspicion. Why, you may ask. Well, actually, I know you're not asking because you've already listened to this episode, but Queen Murell is also secretly a half mortal. She and her mortal father were very close, and she promised him on his deathbed that she would do everything she could to help the mortals. So she's been on the Guardian side for an unknown amount of time. What else do we know about the Queen of Arboros? She has a deep love for all things nature, not surprising at all for the Queen of Arboros. And she believes the natural course of life is to propagate and spread. And she doesn't believe anyone should be denying this. Vados. And that is what we know about our Boros.

[Alix]

Let us close out this episode by skipping around the apple orchard and discussing our favorite moments from this stretch of chapters. When DM sees Luther for the first time and he's, you know, horrified to see the woman he loves covered in blood. His eyes are roaming her body because.

[Carvana]

She'S covered in blood, that's why.

[Alix]

And DM calls out, quote, how many times do I have to tell you? Eyes up here, Cour boy.

[Lexi]

When DM changes into simple leather breeches and a linen tunic, she thinks about how the familiar clothing is so familiar to what she used to wear before becoming Queen. And it's comforting and soothing for her, and it's a reminder of who she is and what she's fighting for. Again, the concept of clothes and fashion. In this series, we see it even when she is going back to her old mortal clothes.

[Alix]

Yes, when Alix brings up Andre and the then apologizes for talking about him. DM says how she's so grateful for the respect that Alix showed him and she wants to talk about her father so that the wonderful Andre Bellator is never forgotten. I love that. And it's just such a beautiful reminder about grief and how it's ever changing.

[Lexi]

Absolutely. I know I mentioned this during our Glow coverage, but I really appreciate how Pen honors grief and it still holds space in these characters as they have to keep on going.

[Alix]

Right.

[Lexi]

DM figures out how to turn her crown off. Since it's connected to the forging magic instead of her elemental magic, she's able to tap into it and it goes.

[Carvana]

Off like a little light switch.

[Lexi]

Yeah, it actually just like goes back inside of her. I don't really know how it works.

[Carvana]

But yeah, just absorbs some of our favorite TAR moments. Let's go.

[Lexi]

Just how much Alix babysits him where he's like, if the three of you are asleep, then there's no one for me to be in charge of.

[Carvana]

And she.

[Lexi]

She's like, yeah, exactly.

[Alix]

When he says, quote, fine, but if.

[Carvana]

You two don't get out here soon, I'm making Lou wear Alix's clothes next. And of course, when DM has to talk him out of eating the edible mushrooms that will have him drooling and seeing Fae because he wanted to try one just for fun.

[Alix]

Amazing.

[Carvana]

Real quickly, I love how she just.

[Lexi]

Randomly had Fae in there.

[Carvana]

I think it's such a nod to.

[Alix]

Romantasy how there's like Fae everywhere and.

[Carvana]

I think that's her just being like, boop, there's Faye. I do not think we're gonna see any Fae. No, no.

[Lexi]

Like the Descendant are the equivalent.

[Carvana]

But I just love how she has.

[Lexi]

That little knot in there too.

[Alix]

I love how Alix is so passionate about becoming the most well rounded soldier she can be. When DM is teaching them all how to start fires, Alixe is the one who watches extremely carefully. And then she practices on her own over and over again until she's done it successfully multiple times. I love Alix so much.

[Carvana]

I don't know how my by heart is not exploding having both her and Luther in the exact same story. Because honestly, my type. And of course speaking of my type.

[Alix]

My favorite Luther moments. We learned that Luther, as keeper of the laws, never enforced penalties for unpaid taxes to the mortals. Instead, he made sure the funds were miraculously available for them to pay. Which is just a slow clap waving green flag. And what DM says in return isn't incorrect either. It doesn't relieve the extreme lengths that many mortals had to go to in order to avoid the impending risk altogether. I love that holding space for both things. When DM is changing, she teases her boo about how when they finally get their night alone, he will not have anything worth looking at since he's seen her naked so many times.

[Carvana]

To which Luther King Courbois takes over.

[Alix]

Pulling the clasp of her bra on, he says, quote, DM, when you and I finally get a night alone together, looking will be the least of what.

[Carvana]

I do to you. I don't know if we're ready for that episode yet. Oh my God. The fact that we're gonna have the shower scene and the library scene in the same episode. Get ready for that to be the longest episode Fantasy Fangirls history. And last but not least, when Luther grabs a fish from Taran and slaps his best friend's cheek with it. I can hear that sound like that. It's just so good. Wow.

[Lexi]

Thank you so much for listening to this first episode of our Heat of the Everflame Deep Dive.

[Alix]

Next Monday we are continuing with Heat of The Everflame episode two, chapters 15 through 21.

[Carvana]

He Heat of the Everflame is going to igneous.

[Alix]

Here we go.

[Carvana]

Let's meet Tibalt. Yay.

[Lexi]

We would love to give the biggest.

[Carvana]

Warm welcome, welcome, welcome to our newest Crowns Council members. Welcome, welcome, welcome to Laerryn, Ashley T, Ange P and Jackie B. Welcome, welcome, welcome. Yay.

[Lexi]

Thank you so much for being part of this community. We appreciate you so, so much. And if you're like, hey, I I want my name shouted out on the podcast and to be shouted with all the love and attention too. Join our Fan Club at fantasyfangirls.com Fan Club link is also in the show. Notes.

[Alix]

Thank you as always to our top Sophos scholar, AKA Content researcher Brooke and of course our Executive Producer AKA our Sanity manager Hayden.

[Carvana]

Thank God for you both.

[Lexi]

We are very active on social media with weekly trivia and lots more. So please be sure to follow us on Instagram, instagram and or TikTok@ fantasy fangirlspod. And if you're watching this on YouTube or want to watch on YouTube, please hit that subscribe button to keep following along.

[Alix]

And in case you're following along on Instagram and/or TikTok, we are starting to tease the next book series we are covering. The announcement is coming on August 1st, but there may or may not have been a hint in this very episode. And of course do not forget to hit that Rate the Show button. Please do not just do this for the fantasy fangirls. Please do this for any and all podcasts that you listen to. And if you're feeling extra generous, write a little love note in the review section. And last but not least, do not forget to share this episode with your fellow Ever Flame friends. If you and your friends on your reread of Heat of the Everflame were.

[Carvana]

Like, oh, what if Luther got the Godstone wound in the first battle? Here is your episode to send to them.

[Alix]

Because you were right. You and I, you know, right now, your friends are.

[Carvana]

I'm with you. All right, friends, we gotta go. Bye Bye. Well, it's all a ruse.

[Lexi]

Wait, let me do that again.

[Carvana]

Ruse.

[Lexi]

Oh my goodness. Let me show Googling it. I can hear Hayden right now being like, oh no, not the ladies.

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[Carvana]

It'S not a demon.

[Alix]

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[Alix]

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