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- [00:02]
Lexi
ACAST powers the World's best podcasts. Here's a show that we recommend.
- [00:09]
Nicole
Hi, I'm Frances Frey. And I'm Anne Morris and we are the hosts of a new TED podcast called Fixable. We've helped leaders at some of the world's most competitive companies solve all kinds of problems. On our show, we'll pull back the curtain and give you the type of honest, unfiltered advice we usually reserve for top executives. Maybe you have a co worker with boundary issues or you want to know how to inspire and motivate your team. No problem is too big or too small. Give us a call and we'll help you solve the problems you're stuck on. Find Fixable Wherever you listen to podcasts.
- [00:45]
Lexi
ACAST helps creators launch, grow and monetize their podcasts everywhere.
- [00:51]
Nicole
Acast.com welcome, welcome, welcome to the Fantasy Fangirls podcast where two sisters dive deep into beloved fantasy lore, characters, themes, theories and more.
- [01:15]
Lexi
I'm Lexi, older sister and fantasy lore nerd.
- [01:18]
Nicole
And I'm Nicole, younger sister and romantic at heart.
- [01:21]
Lexi
And today is episode four as we deep dive Glow of the Everflame by Pen Cole, covering chapters 24 through 28. By now you probably know this, but just in case there's any first time listeners here, all of these episodes have spoilers for all three released books in the Kindred's Curse saga. Which means spoilers for Spark, Glow and Heat of the Everflame.
- [01:41]
Nicole
So if you ever wondered, huh, Are the Fantasy fangirls going through every single gift from the Ascension Ball and how they are used, how they might be used in the future books, the answer is yes. And it will be today. So if you have not finished the series, please go read them all. We will be here when you're done.
- [01:58]
Lexi
Next, we a Fantasy Fangirls are adults who say adult things about adult books. In other words, friends, this podcast is rated rich.
- [02:05]
Nicole
The foot massage scene. It may have passed, it may be over. But Luther is the man who keeps on giving and we are getting his ball speech today. And don't worry, we're also going to hear a lot from balls expert Amen Courbois. So please be mindful of those little listening ears.
- [02:22]
Lexi
I'm a mature adult. It's fine. Sure. Additionally, we are so excited to see you at upcoming live events coming up very soon. Nicole and I are hosting an empyrean themed trivia in Boulder, Colorado on July 10th. It is sold out, but we have a wait list you can sign up for. We will also be featured guests at Enchanticon in St. Louis, Missouri August 15th through 17th. We are so excited. We've been getting our own outfits for the ball and there's hoop skirts involved everybody.
- [02:49]
Nicole
Oh my God. I'm terrified for our luggage. Then we will be at the Everflame Ball along with Pen Cole for the first ever Kindred Curse Saga Ball on August 30th in Castle Rock, Colorado. This will also include a live Q and A with Pen at the ball. I'm so excited. Then we will be back at the Dragon Gauntlet in Boyne City, Michigan September 12th through 13th. Mountainside Obstacle Course we're coming for you.
- [03:12]
Lexi
Then Romanasy BookCon in Orlando, Florida October 23rd through 25th where we are interviewing Rebecca Yarros again at Disney World.
- [03:20]
Nicole
Check out our website or the links below for more information to all of these events.
- [03:24]
Lexi
Last thing before we jump into this Glow of the Everflame Episode 4 if you love Fantasy Fangirls and want more events, more content, more community and so much more, please check out Fantasy Fan Club.
- [03:35]
Nicole
We have three tiers that you can join. Number one, the Descended, which includes access to our Boppin Discord live Q&As from Lexi and I, a book club, exclusive author interviews, community events, 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. Yes, like the 4050 page ones. You get them all and you also special voting privileges. That is for $10 a month. And last but not least, we have our Crowns Council which includes everything from the previous two tiers plus more behind the scenes content, a welcome gift, giveaways, a private Discord channel, and your name shouted out on the podcast. That is for 25amonth.
- [04:26]
Lexi
Join the party at fantasy fangirls.com fanclub. The link is also in the show notes. And really and truly, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting us as we've turned this podcast into our livelihood. It's all because of you.
- [04:38]
Nicole
And now it is time to order Henry Albanon to the dungeons. But sadly he stay there.
- [04:50]
Lexi
To start off every episode. Nicole does us the honor of summarizing this stretch of chapters. So gather round as we consult with our royal advisors to discuss what happens in chapters 24 through 28 of Glow.
- [05:04]
Nicole
Of the Everflame chapter 24. Learning from her past mistakes, DM has Eleanor pick out a few dress options for the ball no need to embarrass herself again so soon after the funeral fiasco yesterday. While it's not very her, DM has picked out her perfect costume of choice. Sitting on Sarai's perch, Diem watches the guests arrive and is shocked not only by their choice in attire, but also their rides. It's lions and tigers and cars.
- [05:29]
Lexi
Oh my.
- [05:30]
Nicole
Aemond picks up DM for their date and gives her a gift of a gold medallion engraved with a sigil of House Corbois. He clearly went to Jared's, but Aemon is aghast when DM pokes fun at him for blackmailing her into this date. Aemon, wordsmithing master balls expert extraordinaire, is not gonna take it. Instead, he brings up Luther and spills some tea. Luther is lying to dm and everything tonight was his idea. And up until this point, everything has been a setup for more power. And it looks like DM is starting to learn from her past mistakes here as well, because she almost believes him. Chapter 25 While paving their way through the servants passages, Aemon informs Diem all about the lonely, weak palace staff and how they are Courbois. But DM does not get the chance to ask questions when a shout catches her attention. Oh shit. Henry is here. I thought we got rid of him already. After yelling at everyone to clear the room, DM begs her, whatever he is at this point, to leave for his own safety. But homeboy isn't having it. Henry doubles down. Not on their relationship. No, that's just too convenient. He's out for blood and he's brought back up to ensure he gets it. Not wanting to see the bloodshed on either side, DM tries again to persuade Henry to change his mind. If only DM had magic mind control powers to force him to leave or something. Doing the next best thing, DM calls in the guards to escort him to the dungeon, after which Aemond steps in to console her. But DM only wants her boo Luther. Yeah, she does. Once the man of my heart arrives, DM tells him everything. And Luther has a brilliant, beyond brilliant idea. Let's use the people with mind control to convince the Guardians to get the fuck out. This being the best of both worlds, DM allows for the Umbros descendant to have their magic back. Chapter 26. I guess Aemond can have one single W this episode, since he obviously knows how to make a grand entrance. Waltzing into the ball balls expert leads Diem directly to the other Courbois and let the game of politics officially begin. Dm May the odds be ever in your favor. It's not a party without gifts. Each of the eight realms representatives take their turns giving Her Majesty a coronation gift. Even after the drama filled gift giving, DM still doesn't get a break between House Banette housing the Sophos descendant, which is Sus, and House Hanover being the general pain in the asses that they are. But Diem being Diem, knows exactly how to get under Marth Hanover's skin, practically eviscerating her. Take that, Marthe. Chapter 26 again. Luther's Edition smash cut to our boy who has just finished with the Umbros descendants, sending all of them home this little piggy style. Returning to the ball, Luther watches Diem. And homeboy's got it bad. Sadly, Luther's got a worm to deal with. Walking to the dungeon, the two men finally have a face to face. I'm with Luther on this one though. Can't we just leave Henry in the freaking cell? After a pissing match of sorts, Luther accidentally lets it slip that he knows Arlie used to lead the Lumnosel guardians. Not wanting to expand on this little mishap, Luther leads Henry out of the dungeon. With an attempt at giving Henry some helpful DM advice. Don't be a dick there. Advice. Henry, reading between the lines, calls Luther out for the one thing he really doesn't want Henry to know. Luther wants Diem all to himself. With one final comeback, Luther leaves to serve his queen. Chapter 27 back to diem. Hours into the ball, Diem finally finished receiving the line of guests. What better way to celebrate than to steal some wine and hie away from everybody? Same girl, sane. After downing half a bottle, DM decides she should probably make an appearance on her own ball. But then Luther's voice sounds. Her hiding spot. Followed by the one, the only Illyana. What else would DM fueled by wine and poor decisions, do but hunker down and eavesdrop? Elianna does not hold back. She's got her eyes on Lou and her magic all ready to challenge dm. But like the great protector he is, Luther shuts that shit down hard and fast. Back in the balls room, balls expert Aemond pulls DM to the dance floor for their first and only dance. I would say I hope he wore steel toed shoes, but honestly, I don't break his toes. DM interrupting his brother's moment in the spotlight, Terra Taryn asks the queen for a dance. And it takes all of two minutes before she accidentally spills the beans about Henry. To Taryn. Oops. Trying to get another reprieve from the crowd. Again, same girl. Same Diem runs into Jean Hanover. And while he might get a few verbal jabs in, Jean Hanover is no Jean Valjean. And before you can say 24601, Luther Courbois hands him his ass. Chapter 28. By the end of the evening, Diem is basically doing the wobble with all of her besties. But now there is only one dance left. And luckily for Diem, Luther's swoops in, saving her from another dance with walls expert Aemond. After exchanging TL doctor's for the evening, DM opens up about her insecurities about the whole mess she's living in. While spilling her demons, DM exposes one more secret. She's planning to take down the crowns and stop the descendant. God fucking damn it, dm. But Luther doesn't even bat an eye. He's game for anything that involves Diem. And he's not afraid of telling her either. And boy, oh boy, does he. He might as well have just said his mating vows for how much he went for it. And yes, I will be going through every moment. Oh, and did I mention the entire time DM and Luther are basically having their own mating ceremony, baring their souls to each other, the ball is still happening. Well, DM does love a crowd.
- [10:51]
Lexi
All right, thank you so much for that, Nicole. Now, friends, it is time to reach for our foraging magic. Hey, that actually does apply for this episode. And unravel key insights, character analysis, lore, foreshadowing theories, and oh, so much more. Oh my goodness. This is going to be a roller coaster of an episode. And I am so excited because we've got a ball in our honor to attend. But first, let's quickly make sure we're all on the same page with the timestamp. It's the same day as where we left off last episode, where DM had dancing and magic lessons in the dungeons that morning, after an unsuccessful attempt at Conjuring her magic, DM and Eleanor are strategizing DM's appearance and what she should convey to all of Amarion as the new Queen of Lumnos. More on that in a moment. It is five days after King Ulther died and DM received the crown. One day after the funeral and cousin's dinner party.
- [11:38]
Nicole
It is wild to remember that DM has not even been a queen for a week, yet she's had five business days. I take five business days to return an email. Think of all the things she's done in five business days. That is insane.
- [11:51]
Lexi
The palace has been extra busy as guests from all over Lumnos pour in. I assume first for yesterday's funeral and now for the Ascension Ball. It's my understanding that the Ascension Ball is tradition among the nine realms. When a new crown comes of power. And tonight, the palace is ready for the festivities. The palace already appears as if it's made of light and shadow. And now the dark tangle of shadow vines have sprouted thousands of flowers that twinkle with light, so it looks like a midnight field of sparkling flora. Oh, my goodness. How beautiful. Also, is anyone else getting Isabella vibes from Encanto? Ooh.
- [12:25]
Nicole
Okay. I can see it with any big event for diem, it is time for a fit watch. And you know what? She's finally asked Eleanor for help with the outfit for the evening.
- [12:38]
Lexi
Huzzah. We finally got there, everybody.
- [12:41]
Nicole
Thank God. But there's an abundance of choices for tonight, and her attire matters truly more than ever, especially after yesterday with the funeral. Which brings us back to the ever present theme of us versus them. Because in the world of the descendant, how you look is almost everything. What they wear is a reflection of who they are and who they have already been prejudged to be. Before a descendant even gets the chance to know themselves, they are already put into a box based off their house, the strength of their magic, and their political standing. This puts dm, though, in a very unique situation. As Eleanor puts it, no one has known her since birth. No one has judged her based off of who she was when she was young and who her family was. No one told her she was weak when it came to to magic and therefore was irrelevant. She is a completely new blank slate, and she gets to decide through this outfit how the realm will treat her and the perception she is choosing for herself this evening. So what picture does she want to paint for herself this evening? DM knows she wants to hide her insecurities. She definitely wants to hide her plan for the realms and taking on the descended. She wants to hide the vulnerability she feels in this role. But that's what she doesn't want them to see. And she's really struggling with thinking what she wants them to see. Does she want a modest emerald gown with the insignia of Lumnos literally stitched into the fabric to showcase that she's a regal stateswoman? Or does she want a barely there slip of ready orange that would most likely bring up images of her in bed rather than on the throne? I don't know. DM you can do a lot on the throne. If Romantasy has taught me anything. Or does she want a twist on a soldier's uniform that makes her look more like a fearsome warrior queen? Honestly, this is probably the outfit I'd end up going with. That sounds fun. At the end of the day, Diem does go with none of those above and instead goes with exactly what Eleanor calls her, a blank slate. The top of her white dress is made of sheer panels for the corset, edged with white boning and coated in diamonds, trickling down like stardust. Then there's swathes of silk hanging off her shoulders. I kind of like that off the shoulder look. And then she's got gossamer skirts moving like waterfalls as she walked. Paired with her white hair and her gray eyes, this is little a cute exactly how DM wants to appear. She wants to be that pure, innocent queen. The blank canvas, the white flag, the blushing bride. Soft, virginal, harmless. All the things I wasn't. I love this image even more, especially when you pair it with the shimmering light that Eamonn decorates them as they make their grand entrance with. But then, of course, there's the dark, thorny crown on top of her head to completely contrast the look. Oh, my God, it's so good. Now, when it comes to dm, she takes no credit for this outfit. Though in the ball, she instead loudly and obnoxiously proclaims that this was Eleanor's idea, proclaiming that she is the wise one and our fair queen would be lost without her advice. I feel like she's trying to rewrite the narrative that, like, Eleanor is just this irrelevant cour bois, and instead, she's trying to be like she is cunning. She is who she is. Who I appointed for a reason.
- [15:42]
Lexi
Exactly. She is talking Eleanor up because it's a mix of overriding what happened at the funeral and bragging about how valuable her advisor is, while proving how House Corbois was wrong to write her off as unimportant. Yeah, with it being ball time. You know who that means. We're meeting up with Eamon Crobois, balls expert and DMs escort for this evening. And he has a gift for the new queen. It is a gold medallion on a long, thin chain with the Corbois sigil engraved in it, a crest with a phoenix whose flaming wings spread wide as it rises from smoke. There are two tiny sapphires in its eyes and a dark ruby over the phoenix. Phoenix's heart. The ruby represents the blood of Lumnos that runs in their veins. And the sapphires represent the Lumnos descended eyes. The Phoenix signifies that House Corbois always survives. No matter who tries to destroy them, they will always rise again. We'll get into Eleanor's alternative perspective on the meaning behind the Phoenix next episode. But for now, this necklace with the sigil of House Corbois is a message for Deam to embrace as she prepares to go into the political battlefield that is this ascension ball. Dam is a survivalist and as Aemon says, wearing the House Corpois sigil is a clear message this evening as she meets the 20 houses, interacts with all the important people the realm and is introduced to the other realms representatives. It's a symbol that she is part of House Corbois. So don't fuck with her because if anyone tries to bring her down, she'll only come back stronger. Which hey, it's a smart move on Aemond's part. I feel like we say that a lot about Aemon because it's a classic Eamon move that both benefits DM and very much himself. Because after all this can be perceived as his claim to her. As DM notes well, and it's so.
- [17:17]
Nicole
Ayman that after he puts it on her he says quote there, now you're ready. It's like this gift or symbol that she's part of House Corbois. The subtext is now with my finishing touch now with this gift that I have given you that is what completes you. We have so much to say about Aemond this episode and so I'm trying not to only look through negative point of view, but this does give such I've claimed you vibes. There are few things I love more than my past patio. In the summertime it is so nice to just escape and read or write. It's just my favorite favorite place. And there's just something about the beautiful outdoor spaces that is so satisfying. It's like your own backyard oasis. Wayfair's got everything you need to level up your outdoor space. They have patio sets and lounge chairs, outdoor bars and hot tubs, fire pits, gazebos, and of course string lights. My favorite. It's so easy to have a one stop shop where you can make over your entire space with the resort feel without the resort price tag.
- [18:08]
Lexi
I'm pretty sure all of the furniture in my office is from Wayfair. Both of my bookcases that you all absolutely love. Wayfair, my desk. Wayfair, my very handy, handy dandy filing cabinet slash extra bookshelf. Wayfair Yep. I love it all. And Nicole, guess what?
- [18:20]
Nicole
What?
- [18:20]
Lexi
I finally ordered my green velvet chair from Wayfair.
- [18:23]
Nicole
It took you forever. I know.
- [18:25]
Lexi
There were just so many options. No matter what you're looking for, Wayfair has everything your home needs in this warm weather season.
- [18:32]
Nicole
Don't wait. Make your outdoor space your dream oasis today with Wayfair and enjoy it all summer long. Head over to Wayfair.com right now to shop a huge outdoor selection that that's W-A-Y-F-A-I-R.com Wayfair every style every home. I am so ready for pool season. I love laying by the pool and bringing a good book to dive into. But with all the poolside reading time, you've got to be ready with your favorite glasses. And that's why Pear always has my.
- [19:00]
Lexi
Back no matter what you're reading. Pear has tons of budget friendly shapes and styles that don't compromise on style or quality. Plus you get 15% off by going to pear eyewear.com FFG I especially love the sun tops collection. They have have so many cute options and I know I'm going to need some good sunglasses while I'm soaking up the sun this summer at Nicole's pool.
- [19:18]
Nicole
So I have the Casper base frames and then I have a white like kind of standard frame that I can put over it. But then I have two sunglass frames. One of them is white and it's got this pink lens. I look so cool wearing these sunglasses. They are so fun. They're my favorite poolside because they also match my bathing suit.
- [19:32]
Lexi
Slay your summer reading look like Nicole here. Go to pair eyewear.com FFG for 15% off your first pair and support the show by mentioning that fantasy fangirls sent you in your post checkout survey. That's p a I r I wear.com FFG acast powers the World's Best Podcasts Here's a show that we recommend.
- [19:58]
Nicole
Hi, I'm Frances Fry. And I'm Anne Morris and we are the hosts of a new TED podcast called Fixable. We've helped leaders at some of the world's most competitive companies solve all kinds of problems. On our show, we'll pull back the curtain and give you the type of honest, unfiltered advice we usually reserve for top executives. Maybe you have a co worker with boundary issues or you want to know how to inspire and motivate your team. No problem is too big or too small. Give us a call and we'll help you solve the problems you're stuck on. Find fixable. Wherever you listen to podcasts, Acast helps.
- [20:35]
Lexi
Creators launch, grow, and monetize their podcast.
- [20:39]
Nicole
Everywhere acast.com.
- [20:44]
Lexi
Well, like we talked about a lot last episode, Eamon does have his eye on the prize, which is DM's hand in marriage, so he can be king consort. He's simultaneously genuinely courting her. And while he's doing that, he's planting the seed of him being king consort not only to dm, but to the rest of Amarian. And as he does that, he's keeping the attention off DM's actual love life and he's pushing other hopeful men away because that'd be a whole other headache for dm.
- [21:08]
Nicole
I do have a quick question for you about this game gift. Because when Gareth sees DM wearing this, this is at the ball, he will share a quick, subtle nod with his son, Aemon, what do you think that nod means? Like, did father and son discuss this plan and then come up with it together? And Gareth's like, good job you did it. Or did Gareth see it and say like, ah, Like, I see what you did there, son. Like, I see you playing the political. I don't know. Like, it just. It.
- [21:33]
Lexi
I was like, ah, it stood out to me too. And I'm thinking it's Gareth's way of being like, oh, good, my son is at least making her look good and sending a message to other houses. So I think the latter, that you are saying there because Gareth has zero faith in dm, but he still doesn't want her to be challenged. Well, actually he's giving mixed signals because it seems that he would love for her to be challenged from last episode during the funeral. But once when we get to the house receptions, he's furious at how her behavior will inevitably lead to a challenge.
- [22:04]
Nicole
I feel like that's just the show don't tell of someone with major anger issues like Gareth does. They are so flippy floppy, where it's like, if my anger is triggered, then I'm going to be like, down with you. You suck. I'm going to get you challenged as quickly as possible. But when he's in more like, baseline mode, like, he is here. And maybe during the house receptions, before she pisses him off, he is more okay, like, this is. This is better for the house if she doesn't get challenged. So I think it's more of the showing of his anger issues.
- [22:31]
Lexi
DM thinks this about the pendant quote. One way or another. It was a gilded threat. It Remained to be seen who was its real target. How do you read this, Nicole? Because I've been scratching my head a little bit because it seems like the other potential real threat. He's threatening her. And I'm having a hard time seeing how that might be because Aemond's motives are entirely self serving. Yes, but he also genuinely wants to see DM on the throne.
- [22:56]
Nicole
The only other way I could read it, because I. I agree. It's. It's a thinker. It's a head scratcher. It's her being targeted by those in power like Aon, Gareth and Remus. It's almost like with this claim, she is going to be more easily manipulated by them. And that's how she would be the target.
- [23:13]
Lexi
Okay, I can vibe with that. Yeah.
- [23:15]
Nicole
From this gift to Aemond's attire, it is all a neon sign that this ball's expert intentions for the evening are clear. He is wanting the realm to know that he is standing by DM's side. Not as a loyal subject, but as her soon to be consort. Not the consort option. The soon to be consort. He will be making comments during the reception, like about how she would be a wonderful mother because of her nurturing instincts. And no doubt she'll be a mother very soon. Which leads to a whole slew of chatter from the crowd. Can I just say, hell fucking no. But he doesn't just stop there because it's Aemond. He also kisses her shoulder and shoots her a warning, challenging stare that tells her don't say anything back and to play nice. Even throughout the house receptions, he continues making frequent implications that they're basically mated. Okay, we get it. Territory planted. Aemon. This plan of make myself seem as important to DM as possible is only enhanced by Aemond's outfit. The archangel inspired. Aemon is wearing a suit of white and gold jacquard, which is like a type of fabric with designs interwoven in the fabric itself. The suit is emblazoned with flame spurts of metallic beads. And he's got a feather trimmed cape. Here's the deal. The first part of his outfit, I kind of love it. I'm vibing with it. Especially with his like, you know, stark blonde hair. I could see him looking like just so beautiful. But then this cape is what sends me. It's sweeping to the floor in a wide, long train. And then lastly, he's wearing a wreath of gilded leaves threaded throughout his fair. It looks like a crown. Okay, Aemond, we get it. You just can't wait to Be king. Aemond, balls expert will later say that this is all because he's protecting Diem from being bombarded with marriage proposals and drooling suitors or other questions about her eligibility. And DM will believe this was his main motive for Aemond to dress like the peacock that he is. And maybe that's part of it, but this whole make sure the realm sees me and roots for me as king is highly likely that it is the number one priority. It's the number one priority in what I see Aemond doing. It's like, for instance, if someone is acting as if, you know, subtly, and, you know, maybe not so subtly calling to attention to, oh, I don't know, them having a role in a TV series that they might not have. But if enough people see this behavior from this person and back up that person for the role, believing that they have it, there might be this pressure to make sure that that person fulfills the role as to not anger a community of people. You know, as a hypothetical example, what I love about DM is that she sees the kingly attire that Aemond is wearing, and she's like, the audacity of this fucking balls expert. Oh, my God. And she's like, of course Aemond would.
- [26:07]
Lexi
But here we get quite the interesting exchange between Aemon and Diem, and it is most definitely not the first time we've seen him use this tactic on her her. Because, hey, it works, at least in the moment. Dm, of course, has to make a jab about how Aemon is her escort only because he blackmailed Luther with it in exchange for his silence about DM being engaged to a mortal. And to her surprise, Aamon's like, wait, what are you talking about? What's more, he pushes back with a if that's what you think, I don't want to be by your side. I will give Aemon this. His mission revolves around DM actually liking him and wanting him to be her king. Constant sort. He is happy to play up the role to convince her that he's the obvious choice, especially compared to Luther. But this is a man. So we have to ask, is this statement about if that's what she thinks, then he won't stand by her. A lie?
- [26:56]
Nicole
Yes. I think this is absolutely emotional manipulation 101. If he says this, it is entirely for her to feel guilty that she would think such a thing about him and then for him to be threatening to pull out of being her escort. And it's like a way of her suddenly feeling like she needs to Grasp onto him so she's not alone for the evening. Like this is. It is as she does it is literally manipulation 101 that he is doing.
- [27:24]
Lexi
Oh my God. Bet you're right.
- [27:25]
Nicole
I'm gonna rip Aemon apart this episode.
- [27:31]
Lexi
Aemond goes on to deny this blackmail from his POV. What good would it do for House Corbois and DM's chances at keeping the Crone if he revealed her secret about Henry? According to Aemon, he's the last person who would share this information with anyone because he wants her, not Luther, to be the crown.
- [27:48]
Nicole
Here's the annoying part. I'm saying I'm gonna rip Aemon a new one. And then I read this and I'm like, oh yeah, that totally makes sense. Like he is so good because his reasoning for appearing like as the victim of Luther's manipulation, it's so reasonable.
- [28:02]
Lexi
But there we go. Luther. Aemon turns the blame right back on Luther. Luther to absolutely no one's surprised because this is the third time he's done this exact thing in the last four days. Luther is focused on controlling Diem and turning her against others so she can only rely on him. It was Luther's idea for DM to take Eamon instead of Henry because Luther doesn't want DM to be with Henry. Luther knew Amon asked DM to go to the ball with him, so he saw this as his opportunity to persuade DM into accepting his offer and ditching Henry. All the while making Aemon out to be the bad guy. When it's really Luther manipulating Diem. Picking up on our conversation about this exchange from last episode, Nicole and I definitely think this is more Aemond bullshit. Just like he pulled at the cousins dinner where he and Ileana were working together to put a wedge between Luther and dm. He blatantly lied to DM at the dinner and poisoned her against Luther. And now it appears he's doing the same this time doesn't work nearly as well as before with turning DM against Luther Luther, but it does plant a seed of doubt again. And it makes DM think how it makes sense that Luther would do that. Take like, is Eamon just the best actor? I want to fall into his trap too, of being a nice guy deep down. But if he's really playing her like this. Ah, like I think Eamon is a master at mixing truth and lie, blurring the line so that he can get away with his bullshit. Because he's that good at applying his venom to real situations and emotions and twisting Them where he comes out as the good guys.
- [29:28]
Nicole
Well, and he's not done. Aemon sees that he's getting a response out of her doubting Luther's true intentions. So he takes it a step further to not just Luther, but also her new found family. The other people under this palace that she trusts. He says, quote, have you not noticed how quickly he, Luther, isolated you behind his closest friends? Do you think that Eleanor and Taryn are the only Courbois who desire to cozy up to the new queen? Well, according to Aemon, Luther made it known that the only way to get to the new queen was through Luther himself. Like, boo, you suck, Aemon. Just these two sentences. Aemon takes this newfound family that DM has found solace and trust and a budding home in, and he makes it out to be manipulated by Luther and not the special bonds she's formed. And if there's anyone who's marking territory up, oh, it's Luther. He's basically peeing on your leg. Dm, again, I don't agree with Aemond in his tactics, but also, he is so effective with what Aemond wants, what Aemond needs. Making Luther seem like the villain and the one who is truly peeing on DM's leg and marking territory. And Aemond would be sad, but he would be fine, just fine, if DM decided to leave his company for the evening. It does exactly what Aemond wants. It ignites this, like, righteous indignation of DM being like, I'm my own person and Luther Kouro Bois can't hold me. Aiman sees that and respects that. He would give me my space if needed. Like, I will give DM this. I'm so proud of her for not immediately falling into this trap. Instead, she sees a man for the danger that he is. Maybe not the manipulation part that he's pulling over her because he's so good at it. She just doesn't see it in front of her. And I'll be straight up honest, I wouldn't either if I was in her shoes.
- [31:14]
Lexi
I agree. Because he's showing just enough of the manipulation. I'll say the innocent manipulation where he's showing, this is exactly what I want from you. Yeah, Kind of thing.
- [31:24]
Nicole
Exactly.
- [31:24]
Lexi
And he's also saying. Saying, but I want you to want me to have it too. But he's also manipulating her on a whole other emotional level too. That. That is not what she is paying attention to.
- [31:34]
Nicole
Yeah, exactly. Like, instead, she's seeing this, like, suave allure that he has, and she's able to fall under the spell of his, like you were saying. And for that reason, she's not going to banish him as her escort for the evening. But her antenna is up. Ish. Ish. Yes, ish.
- [31:51]
Lexi
With all this conversation on Eamon and we're definitely not done yet, we decided this exchange would be a great question for Pen. So let's hear what she has to say.
- [31:59]
Pen Cole
Did Aemon really not know about the blackmail or was he lying? Okay. So I think when it comes to Eamon, it's safe to just always assume that there's a little bit of truth and a little bit of deception in every single thing that he says. I think that Eamon, he's certainly not above lying outright. But I think Eamonn knows that it's much more powerful if there's a thread of truth in everything that he says. And also Aon's perception of what's going on is very much colored by his own attitudes towards people and how he views them. So when he talks to Diem, for example, about Luther and Luther's intentions, I think Eamonn is being, in his mind, very honest about what Luther is trying to do and how he's using their cousins to do it. Whether that's actually what Luther is intending to do is up to you to decide. But I can't really say outright whether or not Amy, what he knows. But I will say that I think you should always be skeptical of anything Eamon says, but you should also not dismiss it outright because sometimes there's a little bit of accuracy in a lot of what he says.
- [33:31]
Nicole
All right.
- [33:31]
Lexi
Makes sense. Ah, Eamonn. What a character you've written, Pen. And I'll say it's very interesting that Aemond thinks he is being honest about his warnings against Luthor Luther.
- [33:40]
Nicole
It makes sense when you think about his feelings towards Luther and especially his feelings towards Taryn and that little group that they have. I will say I love Pen and I see something behind her eyes that we don't know for Bird. Absolutely know what that means.
- [33:57]
Lexi
And that's gonna happen a whole lot more this episode. Friends, we have a lot of phone appends this episode. She was such a trooper. Let's all give her a big round of applause at the end of this episode.
- [34:07]
Nicole
Seriously. Now, as much as I wish that Eamon was the most complex character we were discussing this episode, that is simply not the case. Because as DM and Eamon are walking down the hallway taking the servants passages to avoid the mingling guests, they overhear a screaming voice say, bring me DM Bellator. Oh, shit. That's a voice that DM would know anywhere. Henry is at the palace. Henry, it turns out, received DM's letter telling him not to come to the ball because it wasn't safe, and he did not accept it.
- [34:40]
Lexi
I've just gone ahead and put on my Henry hat because, oh, goodness. And I admit I was saving today's squid hat for next episode with, you know, like, the underground canal. But quite frankly, this will not be crazy enough for the Henry hat I will need for that one. So today, you get a squid and my daughter's little princess crown. Okay. This also feels like a good time to plug in that we have a YouTube channel. We're almost at 50,000 subscribers. It's so exciting. And you can watch this whole thing there. I can't believe I'm doing this for my job. All right, let's continue. Nicole.
- [35:18]
Nicole
Now, Lexi, we wondered when exactly Henry decided that no matter what, he was going to go to the palace for the Ascension Ball. And we were guessing it was right after he received the letter. We were even guessing two episodes ago if it was right when DM said that there was a ball, and he decided that no matter what, he was gonna go. And we decided to reach out to Pen to get the full story of Henry deciding to ignore DM's warning. And here's what she said.
- [35:44]
Pen Cole
When did Henry decide to go to the palace before or after DM's letter to him? So in my head, this was after he receives the note. Note. He's absolutely furious about it because he feels like DM is pushing him away, that she's abandoning him because she would rather cozy up to the descended. He just feels so incredibly hurt and betrayed by this note, he turns to Vance because that's really the only person in his life right now that's still really trying to bond with him, except maybe a certain other healer. And Vance, you know, eggs him on and encourages it and says, she's betraying you. Like, she wants to push you out. She wants all the power for herself. She said she was gonna help us, but she's not really helping us. She's doing her own thing, making friends with them. You know, we need to take matters into our own hands. She can't shove you aside. You know, we're gonna show up there. You're her fiance. You have a right to be there, there. And so I think Vance kind of, like, whips him up into a frenzy. And sweet Henry is very impressionable. Very easily peer pressured, let's just say. And so I think Henry bought into that and he's like, yeah, you're right, she is pushing me aside and if I'm supposed to be her, her husband and, and king by her side, then I should be there. And so, yeah, that we're gonna go and we're gonna show these Descended who's really in charge. And he sees this as an opportunity to finally get the mortals some power. I know a lot of people see Henry's actions in this whole context of DM as selfish, but I really think that for Henry, it's a lot more about the mortals finally have access to power and to authority and he, he wants to use it because he knows that these opportunities can disappear overnight. And he also kind of sees them slipping away as DM is getting closer to the descended. So I really think that his, his motives here are I, I have this opportunity to help the mortals and I'm gonna do it. And even if DM doesn't want me to do it, I'm taking advantage while I can.
- [38:05]
Nicole
Can I just say one thing? Of course. It comes back to Vance, let's fuck. And everything Pen said, we're seeing it all over Henry's face here from just the beginning of this interaction. Henry is livid, not just at the guards for detaining him, but he's furious at DM for how she sent him.
- [38:26]
Lexi
The letter and betrayed him with that.
- [38:27]
Nicole
Rejection, and for also for how she commands the guards and they listen to her. It's like in Henry's eyes, this is DM stepping into her role as queen and she's enjoying the power that she has over other people. He's also angry at her outfit and how utterly descended she looks. She's dripping in wealth and diamonds and pearls and oh my. And that in Henry's eyes, is money that could have gone towards helping the mortals. It's everything he hates. And then he's also furious at how DM is worried for Henry safety and she's scared of losing him again. In his eyes, he sees her in a palace. She is the most powerful person in the entire realm. What on earth could she have lost? And what on earth could she be afraid of losing more? Again, I am going to do my best to put myself in Henry's shoes. Henry sees all of this from DM and it spikes this question in his mind. Is she really on the mortal side, or is she just as bad as all of the Descended? And again, this is hyper, hyper, hyper amber amplified from Vance DM might be saying that she's still herself, she's still dm. But Henry only sees that DM sent him away. She's wearing this outfit, she's commanding the guards and therefore she can only be one of them. And most of all, we can only imagine what Vance has been whispering to Henry's ears. Vance is an extremist. He will view anyone who has any sympathy or alliance or is descended as the enemy. And he's been telling Henry that DM's off in her big castle, she's with more food and wealth than they could ever even imagine. And because of those circumstances, she is the enemy. And Henry will even say quote, and you want nothing to do with me. I have no proof of this, but this is just my gut in what it's saying. I feel like that is not Henry speaking. I feel like that is a Vance line that he said to Henry and Henry accepted it as truth and that is now Vance's truth coming out of Henry's mouth. So by the time Henry is here with the guardians waiting outside, he is basically Gaston singing with the townsfolk ready to storm the palace and kill the beast.
- [40:35]
Lexi
Because as Henry says, he showed up to make these descended learn how to bow down to their mortal king. Yes, through DM's power as the queen. But I'll say even more so to teach these descended who's boss, who's really in power here as the guardians seize this opportunity to overtake the palace. I'm not gonna lie, these Henry scenes are getting harder and harder to cut cover for so many reasons. And in this moment I can't help but pity Henry. His reasons may be very questionable, but he showed up here as the king consort. He came dressed to the height of formality for mortals with a clean shaven face, shined boots, black breeches and an ill fitting doublet. But his attire is pathetic even for descended staff. DM's realization that he probably borrowed this outfit to do his best to fit in with the descended and present himself as their king consortium like that's just like a gut punch. We know Henry doesn't give a shit what the descendant think of him. But again, it's that stark difference of these two cultures and how superior the descended have made themselves out to be in every which way. Imagining Henry compared to what DM is wearing right now and how hard he had to work to look this presentable for mortal standards. I like it. Just hurts my heart every time I read this part.
- [41:52]
Nicole
Okay, I'm so glad you phrased it. This way. Because whenever I read this section, I'm always in just, like, this, like, heartache for Henry, who I'm simultaneously also wildly questioning his motives and behaviors. But then I could never put into words why I hurt so much for him and felt sad for him. And you're right here with it. It's like he tried now, tried to look a certain way. We're giving him that. This is not discrediting all the other things that he's doing.
- [42:20]
Lexi
Yeah. Not associated with this. So he can attack and kill a whole bunch.
- [42:23]
Nicole
This is not that. It's. Instead, it's like he. He tried and it wasn't even near enough. Like, oh, that just. That's.
- [42:30]
Lexi
And DM recognizes that too, and it's just so sad. Yeah.
- [42:35]
Nicole
But back to the reason that Henry is here so we can shake off that. Because it's more than just wanting the room of Powerful descended to learn that they need to practice bowing down to their Squid King. He says with some hesitancy. There is an army outside, 200 strong of guardians. Vance has called in the Guardians across Lumnos, and also some from Fortos too, and they are ready to take the palace.
- [42:58]
Lexi
I think he's hesitant to share this information with DM because he can't trust her.
- [43:02]
Nicole
Oh, absolutely. Well, he's looking at her as a dripping in diamonds descended, and he's screaming about how she doesn't even want him anymore. And all of this stuff. Like, he is thinking, how should I even tell her this? Like, is she gonna stop us? Like, well, she already.
- [43:16]
Lexi
With the armory attack too. Yeah, that was before the whole crown and. And everything like that. Yeah.
- [43:22]
Nicole
Can we just take a second? And what if Henry hadn't told her that this was happening? That outside there was all of this going on? Like, the fact that he told her. Thank God he did, but he almost didn't.
- [43:33]
Lexi
Yeah. Oh, my God, you're right. See, like, going back to what Penn was saying about how impressionable Henry is, I bet he wasn't going to tell her. I bet Vance told him not to tell her, and then he kind of slipped up, and then she's like, wait, what? And he can't really lie to her like that. I mean, I know that he has in plenty of other situations, but with something like that, there is still that bond between them. And he couldn't do that because he is also impressioned by her. And so he did. And then that's how everything kind of fell apart.
- [44:00]
Nicole
Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Now, let's look at things from the Guardians pov Because they know so little about how Descended magic works or even training in general. They've really only see Descended who are on patrol of the streets of Mortal City using weapons and and minimal magic on the mortals. Because Descended like to keep the true strength of their power hidden away from the mortals so they don't know too much. Which that is a whole other can of worms that we're not going to open this episode. But that's not good either. So in the Guardians mind, they have the height of Descended power. In their minds they have Descended weapons from their armory attack. Ergo they believe that they are equals with the descended in the past palace.
- [44:44]
Lexi
Plus all the bombs and those weapons that they have at their disposal here too. Exactly like they are fighting with what they perceive as the way to fight when the Descended have a whole other toolbox available to them. Yeah.
- [44:59]
Nicole
So with all of the powerful descendant in one place, it is only logical, at least in Vance's mind, and therefore Henry's mind, to take out all of the descended in one felt swoop. But DM sees this for what it truly would become. She knows just the cusp of Descended magic. But it is enough for a couple of them to take out the entirety of this 200 strong Guardian army. There are people in this room who we will see how badly they want to crush the mortals. Evren Burnett and House Hanover would relish in ending every single one of their lives out there.
- [45:36]
Lexi
And they are powerful enough to do so. Later on in the book there will be a comment about how they're were something like 10 very powerful descendants here who could have just in the blink of an eye gotten rid of all 200 of them. Well, that's only around a few of the Descended here.
- [45:50]
Nicole
Yeah, but if the Guardians did manage to get a strike or two in like Lexi was saying, they have bombs and they have a lot at their disposal that they think they could easily get a surprise attack in. There's innocence and children in this room. Lily, Evony, Loras, just for starters, are all in this room right now. Now. But the Guardians don't see those as lives lost in a travesty. Because like we discussed at length last book with the Abram House visit, a few innocents lost is nothing compared to what the mortals have suffered at the descendants hands over centuries. It always goes back to if the Descendant did it. The Guardians under Vance's lead are ready to dish it back out in a concentrated fashion. And that starts with the attack on the palace.
- [46:34]
Lexi
And from the Guardians perspective, this is A very rare opportunity for them. It might be centuries before the next time. This many important descended are all under one roof with their guard down. And the Guardians have an inn, which is dm. And Vance does not think she'll survive the challenging. So he's wanting to take advantage of their connection to the crown, which right now is obviously Henry supposed to be King consort. This is war. And the Guardians are prepared to launch this targeted attack and seize control of the palace. It could literally change the tides of this war between the Guardians and the descended. Except, like we've been saying here, the Guardians have no idea what it truly means to overtake the palace, what with the magic they would be going up against. When DM naturally refuses to go along with this mass murder, Henry brings up his argument from their last interaction in Spark. Time to pick a side, dm. War is coming. War is here and she can't have one foot on each side side. Especially if she wants him in her life. DM says protecting the mortals means everything to her, so she better prove it by enabling this attack. This feels wildly unfair from Henry. You either support and allow killing all descended, including children, or you are evil just like them. But I have my Henry hat on right now. We've talked about at length and will continue to do so. That is the black and white that Henry lives in.
- [47:53]
Nicole
There is this intense sense of urgency under Vance's rule within the Guardians right now. It's like. It's like we must act now. And like you're saying, it makes sense from them being like we might never have an opportunity like this again. And while in his mind this logically makes the most sense to attack while they're all together, while they have the opportunity, yada yada yada. I also wonder if he's wanting to make these big decisions. The armory attack. This attack while Arlie is gone. Because if Arlie comes back and people feel like there's more happening under Vance's rule, the needle is moving forward more under Vance's rule, maybe he'll stay as leader and Arleigh will be out.
- [48:30]
Lexi
Yes, I think along those lines too. He thinks that she is a weak leader and he's trying to get the ball rolling here and to take charge when she clearly was not willing to do so. In his opinion, DM can't pick a side though, because unlike Henry, she is living in the gray. Her version of us versus them is not the same as Henry's. Hers is the guilty versus the innocent instead of mortal versus Descended, which is the sides of this War. So as we're talking so much about this us versus them, Diem is living her reality and realizing it is not like that. It's much more about who these people are on the inside versus what they are. Right?
- [49:11]
Nicole
Right.
- [49:11]
Lexi
But then from Henry's point of view, because again, I am still wearing my hat, I can see how he is fed up with dm because he thinks her insistence on no violence is naive and it's only protecting the descended, enabling them to continue oppressing as she tries to keep everybody happy. She's in a position right now where it's like she's kind of frozen, where it's like I want to just help everybody. And with that mindset, it's almost like she's helping nobody. Henry sees her as simply sane. She wants to protect the mortals, but she's not willing to go to these seemingly necessary lengths to actually protect them. Despite promising him over and over and over again that the mortals are her number one priority. So from Henry's perspective, he is getting major mixed signals from dm. And especially with her now being a descendant and the crown and the power that she has, he's going to think the worst of her.
- [50:00]
Nicole
It is a major understatement that DM is between a rock and a hard place. Place. She's telling Henry that he still matters to her, the mortals are still her priority. But she sees that he is too far gone, too far in his anger and rage to be listening to her right now. Like Lexi said, he's giving her an ultimatum. Let us attack and be on our side or we attack anyway. And you're part of the damage. Her fiance. Everyone but dm. I commend her so much because her heart is breaking for this new version of Henry. We cannot remind ourselves enough. Enough that these two have known each other their entire lives. Five days ago, they confronted each other after the armory attack. That was only five days. Again, less than a week ago. That is not enough time to rewrite 20 years of being best friends and close with someone. But also, DM has the lives of 200 mortals and who knows how many descended. On her shoulders. She thinks on her feet though. This is why I'm so proud of her. She nods and she droops her shoulders as if in defeat. And she presses herself into Henry, kissing him. Then she reaches into Henry sheath and throws his blade away. Yes, girl. And tells the guards, take Henry to the dungeon. This move, it buys her time. Henry was going to go outside and tell the green light to the guardians to go attack but if they get no green light, they will just be waiting outside until DM can figure out a solution to send them home. But the guards are instructed not to hurt Henry because if they do, they're dead. This is in no way a win for anyone, but this is as close to a win as we possibly could be in DMs POV. And this move comes at a great cost. Henry just gave her the ultimatum and she did not pick a side, but he views it as she absolutely did. She is sending a mortal mortal to the dungeons.
- [51:59]
Lexi
And not just any mortal, but the mortal she said she loved just a few days ago, who she is supposed to be engaged to, who she has known and loved and trusted her whole life. This is the ultimate betrayal and absolutely her picking aside to hit in his.
- [52:15]
Nicole
Perspective, I was gonna say in Henry's eyes, DM just said mortals deserve to be imprisoned and the descended will rule over them and dance on their suffering. Haha. Like that. That is what he heard.
- [52:25]
Lexi
And the way DM hopes that he will forgive her, that's her relying on the old Henry.
- [52:32]
Nicole
And because of this extremist way of thinking that Henry has, it is no surprise that Henry looks at her as he's being dragged towards the dungeons with no love in his eyes for his future wife. He has no trust that she's telling the truth or making the right decision. No hope for their future to keep together. No attempt to even put himself in her shoes to understand her motives. No forgiveness, only betrayal. This summer, Instacart is bringing back your favorites from 1999 with prices from 1999. That means 90s prices on juice pouches that ought to be respected, 90s prices on box Mac and cheese, and 90s prices on ham, cheese and cracker lunch. Enjoy all those throwbacks and more at throwback prices only through Instacart. $4.72 maximum discount per $10 of eligible items. Limit one offer per order. Expires September 5 while supplies last Discount based on CPI comparison.
- [53:34]
Lexi
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- [53:41]
Nicole
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- [54:17]
Lexi
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- [54:23]
Nicole
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- [54:28]
Lexi
It makes me think about how hurt he was when he received the letter from her saying not to come. And then Vance talked him up about how he needs to go anyway while simultaneously poisoning him against the Diem. And here he is feeling that hurt and betrayal all over again. And it cements that Vance was right about DM abandoning him for the Descended.
- [54:48]
Nicole
Absolutely. I wonder if DM believes Luther is doing what Vance is doing to him. Basically, Luther is whispering in DM's ear. He's telling her all the reasons she should forego the fight with the mortals. Now I'll actually I'll expand this beyond just Luther because Aemon walks in as well. So I'll just say the Descended. Basically if the Descended are whispering in her ear telling her all the reasons she should forgo the fight fight with the mortals and she should leave them and live with us, the Descended and da da da da. That's another reason. I think he also is really struggling to trust her. My heart breaks for DM right now. The only way to make Henry quote unquote happy would be to let the Guardians attack. But that would only make him happy until the next time the Guardians do something like this. It's like he's going to give her another ultimatum after ultimatum after ultimatum. Like raise your hand, have to prove.
- [55:39]
Lexi
That herself to him.
- [55:40]
Nicole
Raise your hand if you've been in a relationship like this. I think all are, yeah, exactly like it. I'm so proud of her for breaking that cycle.
- [55:48]
Lexi
Yeah, we've talked so much about Henry's POV toward DM even before she got the crown, and how he's felt like she's the one going back on what they always agreed with. They hated the Descended together and in spark, DM was trying to save some Descended. They were guards after all, at an armory and argue that there were innocent people among them. A few days ago when DM begged Henry to be her King, he challenged her on which side she was on, the Guardians or the Descended. And knowing she had no other option to hold on to Henry in her life, Diem agreed and sided with the Guardians. So here Henry is believing himself to be the future King Consort because that's what the Queen promised him dressed to the nines for Immortal and showing up to the palace which he was originally invited to by the Queen herself. Then getting beat up by the guards and bloody to the point where DM is going to have to wash it off of her. And he's blocked from getting any closer and he's treated like absolute filth on the street. And now dm, who again said she was on the Guardian side and is assuring Henry that all she wants to do is protect the mortals. She's sending him to the dungeons and calling off the whole attack. DM is betraying Henry, plain and simple. As far as he's concerned, he is ready to for this attack, to take up the role as King Consort and show these descended just what that means in this new era. And DM is pulling the rug out from under him, wielding her power to shut the Guardians down, when a few days ago, I cannot stress this enough, she promised the opposite. I will say this again, how I feel like these two only hear what they want to hear from the other. Henry very clearly heard DM try to explain she is on thin ice as the new crown and there is a problem process she has to adhere to in order to truly have power as that crown. But what he interprets is that right now is the best opportunity for the mortal sissy's power while she has power, while there's all these festivities that bring all these important descended together under one roof. Henry also can't comprehend DM's belief that there are innocent descended. So it's like in this moment she's showing her true colors as an evil descendant. She's turning her back on us, on the mortals, on Henry, on the Guardians and becoming like them. I don't think that there's really any going back with that. I know we're going to explore that a lot more next episode, but yeah, there's nothing to understand with DM sending him to the dungeons. Because Henry is committed to his chosen path. There is nothing for him to understand. There is nothing for him to even forgive because that is inconceivable to him. And this is a betrayal by the woman he used to love. And now that woman he knew new might as well be dead. I'll be honest, the fact that DM thinks they may still be engaged after this, I know we're gonna get into her reasonings and all that kind of stuff, but this is a whole new level of Delulu Diem. And I am now taking my hat off because I don't want to wear.
- [58:37]
Nicole
It anymore with DMs world. Crumbling around her hands begin to cocoon her into a hug. And this hug feels wrong, wrong, wrong. Turns out it's not her normal comforting presence. It's balls expert. Amen. Yeah, because remember, we're still at a ball. Friends who offers her words like, it'll be all right in the end and don't fret. And my personal favorite quote, what can I do, honey?
- [59:04]
Lexi
The funniest thing is that is your husband's, like, signature line. But the way that this is used, I can absolutely see how furious you are about it.
- [59:14]
Nicole
It has my not gained the right to call her honey. It was like, three months until Brett even called me honey. And the first time, I, like, kind of went like this. And I was like, oh, wait, you're my partner. Okay, that's actually. This is okay. This is fine. And then I just grew to love it. Like, he was so close with asking her, how can I help? But the addition of honey makes me want to see. See? Luckily, the correct preference presence steps in after DM kicks out Eamon. Luther hugs her, and all is right with the world. Literally, everything in DM's body eases, and a wave of calm rushes through her. I repeat Lexi's earlier sentence. The fact that she still thinks she's engaged to Henry after feeling this feeling. Oh, my goodness. While on the surface Luther might be saying similar things that Eamonn did, there's ever so slight this word change that makes the world of a difference. Instead of telling her, don't fret, Luther assures her she's not alone. Instead of saying, it'll be all right, Luther says, we will fix this. All of those promises. Diem's fears grow distant and safe in his arms. She never wants to leave. Damn. Open your eyes, Luther.
- [60:29]
Lexi
You're the goodest, good boy.
- [60:32]
Nicole
He would never call her honey before earning it.
- [60:37]
Lexi
I think you're going to be talking about that a little bit later. The way that DM dismisses Aon and openly admits she needs Luther is its own slap in the face to Aon. Just a little while ago, he was continuing his tactic of making Luther out to be the real villain. But these two are just too drawn to each other.
- [60:54]
Nicole
With 200 guardians still outside of the palace, it is time to come up with a peaceful, less peaceful solution that they possibly can come up with that does not get anyone killed.
- [61:05]
Lexi
I remember reading this predicament for the first time and being like, well, how the hell are they gonna find out? A way for no one to get hurt.
- [61:12]
Nicole
Honestly. Honestly. Luckily, Luther has an Idea. And note he will not try to convince her on violence is the only answer. Nope. He is totally free of judgment. He is only steadfast in his trust for DM and the choices that she is wanting to point him to. Towards his idea. There's Umbros descended here. They have the power of thought magic. The Umbros descended could infiltrate the Guardians heads and make it seem like it was their decision to turn around and let's go home. But in order to do that, DM would need to use the foraging magic to release the Umbros's magic in the realm of Lumnos.
- [61:51]
Lexi
Now, While Luther supports DM's choice to go through with this plan, there is no doubt that there is. There's a steep, steep, steep, steep cost in giving the Umbros Descended their magic back. Because they won't just be able to use their mind magic on the mortals. They will also have free reign to read anyone's thoughts. And as we know, there are a lot of important people in attendance at this ball, most of whom are Lumnos descended. There's a lot of secrets, including Luther and DMs for them to learn about and potentially use to their advantage. Absolutely use to their advantage, I should say. Think of all the family secrets, the business dealings, so much more that these Umbros now have fully at their disposal.
- [62:32]
Nicole
This is not a decision that can be made lightly. And I like that Luther says that. But DM really feels it. She really does. Ambrose is already feared for their coveted knowledge that they have. And for their queen. Hoarding secrets like a kid hoards their bag of Halloween candy.
- [62:49]
Lexi
And by giving these Umbros Descended their ability back to read everyone's mind. Minds. DM is about to expose her realm's most vulnerable secrets to the least trustworthy crown of all. That is bad. Not only that, but these Umbros descended can control minds too. That is the exact intention, after all, with the mortals. So even though Luther will make them promise not to, they could make the descended do whatever they want. And once again, no one else in the realms trust Umbros. They keep their distance from these descended for a very good reason. Reason to prevent Umbras from knowing their secrets and being able to control them. DM is about to wipe out probably centuries of distance in one fell swoop.
- [63:30]
Nicole
But the only other options leave to blood on DM's hands. So seeing this as the only option that does not lead to mortals and slash or descended being dead, even if it is a temporarily peaceful solution, DM is willing to risk it.
- [63:46]
Lexi
I was honestly shocked that we didn't get the consequences of this during the ball, and even more surprised when it didn't, like, blatantly come up. When our crew visits Umbros in the heat of the Everflame, though, we'll keep a close eye out for any mentions as we go through the deep dive. Because something might have slipped through the cracks.
- [64:01]
Nicole
Only one problem. How the hell does DM use foraging magic?
- [64:06]
Lexi
I'm so glad you asked. The foraging magic enforces the realm borders and prevents the descendant from being able to use their magic in other realms. Realms with the crowns as an exception. So DM has to lift the foraging magic's hold on the Empress descended, so they will be able to have access to their powers automatically lost when they crossed into the Lumnos border. But friends, we all know that DM sucks at using her magic. Luckily, this is different than needing to wield magic, though. It's a connection between the crown and the soil of their realm. It listens to the crown and obeys them. This is such cool magic, you all.
- [64:41]
Nicole
But.
- [64:41]
Lexi
But DM's pessimistic that she'll be able to tap into this magic because she's never felt any kind of attachment to the Earth. Not technically true, she unknowingly did when she had her big magical explosion with Luther. But anyway, she didn't know that. However, of course she's going to give it a try. So she reaches her spirit out into the darkness and ah, there it is. So tightly woven into a fabric of her soul that she hadn't even recognized it as something new. This is already so much a part of her that she didn't know know that this was something new. Since she became the crown, DM feels this energy of life with a current running through every living thing in Lumnos. Creatures, grass, terrain, people. DM can feel in the 4D Magic how Lumnos is part of her, and she feels a fierce protection over it and its people, both mortal and descended. She can even feel the 16 individuals, two from each of the other eight realms, who do not belong to this realm Realm where the forging magic is solidified around them like a hard shell. So DM mentally tap tap taps on the Umbros descendants encasement that currently prevents them from using their magic to break them free and release their magic onto Luno soil. When she does this, the magic binding them shatters like broken glass. What a cool mental image this is. And their dark, hazy energy began to roll across the Realm like an ominous foam fog. This is so fascinating. Oh my gosh. I love the different dimensions of magic. It's like the flipping upside down. But not really. I just love it. I won't lie though. I remember screaming at DM through the pages for digging. I still sometimes do for taking this risk. Because it's gotta come back to bite her, right? Yes. I applaud this solution that does not have bloodshed. That is wonderful. Very good. And at the same time, I talk about a lose lose situation. Oh my God.
- [66:29]
Nicole
So Luther tells DM to not worry. She has enough on her shoulders. He will take care of this burden for her. Again. Reason why he is my number one book boyfriend. What an acts of service man. Oh my God. But we are very lucky that in the new hardcover version of GLOW we get some background as to what happens while Luther is taking care of business. So it is time for a POV chase. Jumping ahead a little to Luther and one of the Umbro's descended representatives, having just finished up with sending away the mortals.
- [67:01]
Lexi
So they made a deal. She helps Luther send the mortals away, and in exchange she gets to rift through their minds, Luther's and the other descendant.
- [67:09]
Nicole
I love that we don't even see the Ambrose descendants sending the Guardians away. Instead we just see her completely unfazed by infiltrating 200 people's minds and now just giddy that she basically has a buffet of information to choose from. Now, it might not have been taxing, but it was not quick. According to Luther, she spent her time rooting around every single Guardian's heads for any information that she will now get to go tell yersel her queen. Putting yourself in the Guardian's shoes. This is bad. Sure, Iris Cel doesn't really do much with it, but damn. I can only imagine if Vance knew that a descendant had done this, like I'm so glad he does. Can you imagine what he would have done if he did?
- [67:53]
Lexi
Yeah, like I will even say this. Lana will assume the descendant played a hand in it. And she'll even be like, oh, like you made them all go away. But DM will absolutely not elaborate.
- [68:03]
Nicole
No. Well, I do wonder, because we know that Ophiuchai attacks Umbros next book. And we don't know if Vance was.
- [68:11]
Lexi
A part of that attack.
- [68:12]
Nicole
But I don't know how he would have known that the Umbros did that. This. But I could see that if he did know, somehow, some way, then he would have been livid and he would have had some extra gusto. During that attack. Not that he really needs it.
- [68:27]
Lexi
I. That's interesting you say that. I think Ambrose and Mirrors, they were the two major targets. And I think that has to do with the trade that they have. Yeah, because Miro's is kind of like the outward facing, like the professional trade. And then Umbros is like the black market.
- [68:45]
Nicole
Yeah, but the morals are not. The only people that the Ambrose descended are rooting through. After she goes through Luther's mind, learning everything she needs to know about Queen Diem and how Luther feels about her. Oh, your cell's gonna have a field day with this information. This Umbros descendant turns to the ball. But Luther does have rules. No planting seeds in their head, no rooting through children's minds, and no going through DMs. Well, she basically said fuck that to rules one and two. Although I don't think she planted any seeds in there. Heads.
- [69:14]
Lexi
I was gonna say, I think it was mostly just rule two that she did not do.
- [69:18]
Nicole
Yeah, she agrees to rule one, Rule two. She says basically fuck that. But she does agree also that she will not go through the Queen's head, Probably thinking that Simon already did. Let's be real. But after all, she knows everything she needs to know just from rifling through Luther's mind.
- [69:32]
Lexi
It's kind of sad that she gets more information from rifling through Luther's mind than she would through DM's mind.
- [69:40]
Nicole
It's not factually incorrect.
- [69:43]
Lexi
Exactly. Exactly. And again, as much as we of course love Luther, he is keeping some secrets. I do find it interesting how Luther mentions being able to create a mental shield. Yes, right. That this Umbras descended makes him lower because it's part of their deal. And she's like, no, no, no. I get access in there. I'm sure we learn about that in Umbros, but it's a little detail I didn't remember, didn't really think of about. But what DM will do with Simon is much more than a shield. She will literally throw him out of her mind. And I think that's with her special kind of power at work. But yeah, I'm really curious about these mind shields here because we see them in a lot of other fantasy books, but they're not quite relevant here because nobody else really uses their shield.
- [70:24]
Nicole
Yeah, Right.
- [70:25]
Lexi
By the way, I love how the Umbros woman tells Luther he should tell DM his secrets. I'm so glad we're all in agreement.
- [70:31]
Nicole
Right.
- [70:32]
Lexi
But it also reminds me of what we will learn when we get to Ambrose and how none of the Umbros descended have secrets from each other. They live open and honest and DM will even be like, oh that. That actually sounds kind of nice.
- [70:44]
Nicole
Yeah.
- [70:45]
Lexi
And here is this woman telling Luther he could benefit from some transparency with his threat to Umbros that she and her fellow representative Simon better be out of Lumnose by sunrise. Luther heads down to the dungeons to check on Henry and let him out unharmed. And Henry's first words are, did she send you to kill me? That is what he thinks of DM and what she is capable of. He is not comprehending that she is trying to protect people. He did not recognize her anguish and tears trying to help him. Henry thinks she's one of those evil descended. Now have we mentioned that enough this episode? We even get a description about Henry's dirt eyes. Which is both a subtle hint to the unconscious bit of prejudice that Luther recognizes in himself that he admits here in this chapter. And more so Luther's disgust with Henry for how he treats dm.
- [71:35]
Nicole
We also get to see how Luther in his Keeper of the Laws mode talks about the mortals. Specifically when he tells Henry that him and his mortal brethren have to stay in their place. Luther hates these words, but in order for him to keep the believable role as Keeper of the Law, he must be this mortal hating asshole. But Henry only sees these as the Descended. And honestly, he's even looping DM into these words as well. And Henry is. We thought we saw Henry livid before. We now see Henry just like apoplectic with fury. And Luther snaps at this connection to dm. He is seeing a man who is supposed to love this woman, call her a fucking traitor. Which brings me to another series. Because she didn't tell her betrothed to murder hundreds of people. So Luther tells Henry that Henry has no fucking idea what DM risk tonight to save the Guardians lives, you idot. And also he goes on to say the Guardians were never this violent under Aurelie's rule. Oh, but folks, Luther just totally showed his hand. We've known that Luther has been watching the Guardians and therefore watching Arlie's movements and all of that kind of stuff for years. But the Guardians didn't. They had absolutely no idea that the descendant had any clue about their motives. They thought they were being sneaky. And by Luther just admitting that this rebel group wasn't this violent months ago. Yeah, that shows just how long he's been watching this them. So Henry asks the question that's on many of our minds. And many of us would wonder as well, if he has been so aware of the Guardians, why hasn't this Keeper of the laws arrested them all already? And Luther does not answer them out loud. Internally though, he shares his reasons. Partially because of Aurelie's help with the half mortal children. And this was almost a way of thanking her, repaying her partially for blessed Mother Lumnos. Because Luther believes she was have been mortified to see what the world has come to and she would have loved helping them. This is also partially for Luther's own mother. The Guardians are fighting for people just like her after all. And this kills me for himself as a half mortal. As much as he can't admit it out loud, there's part of him who views the Guardians and the mortals as a whole people as his people too. Oh Luther.
- [74:04]
Lexi
Just as Luther is wondering if telling DM his biggest secret that he is a half mortal himself. Because remember, DM doesn't know this yet will change her feelings toward him. Like in a lovey dovey way, Henry cockblocks his thoughts, almost as if he knows what Luther is thinking. Where Henry says, did DM tell you we're engaged? I think he's partly testing to see how close DM has gotten to this Keeper of the laws marriage between mortals and descended. They're illegal. DM's obviously exempt. But I think Henry is also challenging Lucy, who is supposed to uphold these laws against such a union.
- [74:39]
Nicole
There is never a moment more stark in this book showing the differences between how Luther and Henry view diem. And as I go through this, I do want to point out that this is how they are viewing her right now. In this moment in Glow, Henry is viewing DM as just another descendant. We've talked about this endlessly. He's listening to all that Luther is saying and immediately thinking the worst of her, rather than looking at what a dangerous position she is that Luther will literally slap him upside the face about verbally. Henry is not concerned for DM's safety because frankly in his eyes she has no reason to be unsafe. She is the most powerful person in the realm and therefore cannot be overruled. Henry knows about the challenging, but maybe he's forgetting what a dangerous position she's in. And he he's just in his anger, believing that DM has the crown, ergo she is the ruler. From day one, Henry is looking at everything through the lens of but the mortals have it worse. And then it finally clicks for him. He asks Luther, oh my God, can't she just kill them? This is for the people who are standing up against dm. Last book, we talked all about how Henry and Diem were in love with the old versions of themselves. But this line right here shows that I'm to going to speak directly to Henry because it's him saying this line, saying that he does not even know her anymore.
- [76:01]
Lexi
Well, and then the way that Luther challenges Henry on this notion, he's like, do you really think being the bloodiest crown in history is what DM wants for herself? And Henry actually does know the answer to this because he's been fighting with DM about it for months. And he kind of frowns a little bit where it's like he doesn't say it, but he's like, in his mind, you know, that he's like, like, yeah, that's not what she would want at all. It doesn't change what he expects of her, but it checks him a little to actually consider her in all of this. I think that is the first time he actually did a little bit because Luther was pushing back on him so much.
- [76:37]
Nicole
Well, let's talk about Luther for a second. How does he view Diem in this moment, and specifically Diem in relation to Henry? Luther is seeing this man doing him his damnedest to drive a wedge between himself and his betrothed. And after all, Luther's a little happy to let Henry do it to himself. To let Henry show DM who he truly is. To let DM then break up with Henry and then let Luther insert himself as the much better option. After all, he sees DM for the incredible woman that she is. It breaks his heart, heart to see her beg, literally for this asshole to love her. And especially Luther still views Henry's wanting to be king as a selfish motive. Luther knows that DM deserves someone to love her, to stand by her side, to serve her, and to be there to support her as queen. After all, that is literally what Luther is doing while Henry is not. But at the end of the day, that path, DM and Henry breaking up, would have hurt DM and break her heart. And that's the last thing I think.
- [77:43]
Lexi
She'D get over it.
- [77:43]
Nicole
But, you know, I think so too. But Luther doesn't want that for his queen. He would kill him to see her go through that kind of heartache. So instead, he gives Henry some advice. Be the person DM needs. Love her. Stand by her side. Serve her. I am going to give Luther this way to be the bigger person. Wow, that is amazing. I. That that is wild. Now I say that. And I'm going to try to get through this next part without swearing. I promise. Because this whole. Be the person DM needs, love her, stand by her side, serve her. Henry doesn't like the sound of that. He says, quote, serve her. She is your queen. She is my friend. You kneel to her because you'll never be her equal. I stand beside her because I RM already am. Okay. In Henry's eyes, DM is still his friend who he climbed trees with when they were young. She is the woman he saw starting a family with, and she would quit her job as a result.
- [78:41]
Lexi
And all that kind of stuff kind of serve him. I don't mean that. I don't think it's in a traditional way exactly. It's not like a conscious, like, oh, I'm gonna make her my wife and she's gonna serve me.
- [78:49]
Nicole
I don't know.
- [78:50]
Lexi
But it's very much. Henry is so rooted in tradition.
- [78:54]
Nicole
Well, he saw them having that traditional life together that was exactly path he saw for them. And that did not include her being queen, where he would have to kneel and serve to her. And I cannot believe Henry is still alive after saying this to Luther.
- [79:08]
Lexi
Again, like, I see his person. It actually is very much in line with his character.
- [79:13]
Nicole
It is. Oh, I'm not saying it's not.
- [79:16]
Lexi
Yeah. But I will say I love Luther's comeback to this, though. And friends, I know we're kind of going a little bit beat by beat by this, because I know so much of you might not have access to this bonus chapter. So I hope that you're getting all the goodies out of this here. Quote, every time I look at her side, you're nowhere to be found. Go, Luther. I guess what Teller is going to say something similar to DM later on. And while, yes, it is not safe for Henry to be by DM's side right now, it is the fact that he doesn't even consider himself on her side. He is villainizing her and at this point, using her for the Guardians. Cause like Luther points out, Henry's not even trying to be worthy of dm. But it goes back to Henry refusing to serve dm. Why would he have to prove himself worthy to someone he's known and loved all his life? I say loved. That is definitely past tense now, but you all know what I mean.
- [80:05]
Nicole
Well, I think it is loved, especially as we go into which version of DM does he think he loves? I think he loved. Or maybe he still thinks he loves. The version of DM that was a guardian and that was just a blank lip of their time together. Now, as Luther is walking Henry out, Henry kind of turns on Luther and accuses him of having feelings for dm. And I do wonder what is going through Henry's head in this moment. Is it jealousy that there's this incredibly handsome man who's inserting himself at his. At DM's side? He's a descended.
- [80:37]
Lexi
He's the keeper of the laws.
- [80:39]
Nicole
He's a keeper of the laws. And I think that if anything, that just wedges more distrust that he. He has with dm. And I think that's why we're going to see him make some very, very questionable decisions next episode. Because he believes that DM has already cast him aside, chosen another person. I think this is when he goes to Lana.
- [80:56]
Lexi
I was just gonna say he's doing the same fucking thing exactly.
- [80:59]
Nicole
Well, I don't think he and Atlanta have acted on anything. Maybe this is a question for Pen. I don't think he and Lana have acted on anything until after the ball, because.
- [81:06]
Lexi
I agree. I 100% agree. Because again, we're getting a little bit ahead of ourselves right. Right here. But at the funeral, the interaction with Lana is very interesting. And that's where I think. And emotion. I think that she and him are emotionally in a relationship, but they might not have acted on it yet. And then.
- [81:23]
Nicole
Yeah, anyway, absolutely. But I love that Luther does not say, like, oh, I don't have feelings for her. He. He does. He admits, sort of. And so he doesn't deny it. I'll say it that way, which is basically confirming it. And I think that that's Luther's little bit away of saying, step it the up, dude, or else I'm gonna go get her. Love you, Luther.
- [81:42]
Lexi
But guess what, everybody? We can't forget. There's still a ball in our honor to attend. And we haven't even gotten to her yet. Go away, Henry.
- [81:51]
Nicole
Go away, Henry. We don't want you.
- [81:54]
Lexi
Before the grand entrance, Eamon helps DM get washed up from Henry's blood. And she's terrified that he is now seeing the real her. The vulnerable. Vulnerable and broken girl instead of the confident savage queen. I am going to be a major aim and watch from here on out to see how he may use that to his advantage. Because she wholeheartedly believes that he will. But she's like, I can't worry about that right now. I just can't imagine being this shaken up, sending my fiance to the dungeons for his safety. While knowing that what we had is probably broken. Working on a plan to stop an attack on the ball and revealing her realm secrets to unless Bros. And then having to put on a smile and go out there for a ball in your honor.
- [82:32]
Nicole
Damn.
- [82:32]
Lexi
You are so much stronger than me.
- [82:35]
Nicole
I would. I'm repeating what I said last episode. I would have wanted a bath, a bottle of wine. I would have cried with Chinese food in my hands.
- [82:43]
Lexi
She feels so broken inside. But she knows she has to play the part of a bright, shiny object tonight. Before the grand entrance, though, Aon uses his magic to create twinkling stars. Stars woven into their hair and clothing. So now there is pale blue lighting dancing around the two of them. He says he can't let a Corbett queen walk in unadorned. In other words, can't let her not put magic on display once again, elevating her to be seen as the Luminos queen that she is. While at the same time, it's entirely for his own benefit, too. Her success equals his success. So as the heir to the crown, Her Royal Majesty, Queen. Queen Corbois, the unchallenged Queen of Lumnos, Realm of Light and Shadows. By the way, that announcement really rubbed in that she isn't fully queen yet. I don't know who announced that. It did not say.
- [83:28]
Nicole
But my goodness, I bet you anything. Gareth.
- [83:31]
Lexi
I was thinking. As she makes her debut, Aamon reminds her to rise from the ashes and burn bright once more. Honestly, a very applicable statement and a vote of confidence DM needs right now before we dive into the events of the ball. Can we just take a moment. Moment to appreciate this setting and how luminous magic is used. You all know how much I love it when magic is just on display like this. The massive hall matches the palace's exterior with every wall covered in shadowy vines and speckled with glittering flowers. The vaulted ceiling disappears beneath a cloud of shadows with glowing orbs bobbing as if floating in a sea of midnight. Then we have the ballroom that is crafted to be like the night sky. And. And then here we have DM and Aemon, who are like the full moon, the bright light in the shadowy depths.
- [84:17]
Nicole
Did you just say full moon? Did you just say full moonwatch?
- [84:21]
Lexi
I didn't even realize I was on.
- [84:23]
Nicole
Moonwatch for this episode. Do I think it means anything? I have no idea. But the moon. The moon is coming back. It's coming back into our story. First things first. It is time to meet the realms. Every realm has brought two representatives to meet the new queen. And give Diem a gift from their ruler. Pause though, because as the foreign descended were arriving to the ball, DM was watching over them and Sarai was noticeably agitated. Why? Why do you think she was agitated? DM even notes how they can't hurt her because of the forging magic and all that kind of stuff holding down their magic. So it's odd that Sarai would have such a reaction. So why do you think it is?
- [85:03]
Lexi
I wonder the same thing. It especially seems suspicious that this mention of Sarai's agitation is right after the observation about the Sophos descended. Even if Sarai's agitation is caused by all of the foreign realms, it would be because Sarai is reading their intentions. Like Sarai picks up on their mistrust of the new queen. Or their intentions to feel her out for their own gains. Or Symond in general. Or maybe Sarai has an innate need to protect dm and no matter what, there are always tensions between those realms. So Sarai is like extra protective in that nature. But we will definitely be talking about those off vibes from Sophos a little later on. And we should remember this about Sarai.
- [85:44]
Nicole
Yes, yes we should. After DM talks to the members of House Corbois to get their, you know, little like we're the most important House out of the way, it is time for the eight, really seven representatives to step in. Ah, but even the order of these events are quite political on the surface. Greeting the representatives right after the most important house, it appears to be a gesture of good diplomacy. It's so early in the evening, you know, all this kind of stuff, the higher up the line you are, the more important you are. But in reality, it's a not so subtle encouragement for these people to get the fuck out as soon as possible rather than spend another night in Lumnos, which is beneficial to of both the representatives get to get back to their Terra Mer and therefore their magic much sooner. And Lumnos doesn't have to worry about the other outsiders in the realm except for Sophos. It seems. More on this in a moment.
- [86:34]
Lexi
In one of Pin's videos for this episode's phone, a pen she dropped a teaser about these Ascension gifts that we're about to go through. So real quick, let's pull that clip so we can keep it top of mind as we discuss each foreign realm's gift to dm.
- [86:46]
Pen Cole
Is there anything else you should know about this? Them? At least one of them will become very important in burn. Let's just say that.
- [86:58]
Lexi
Okay, let's get into this. First up we have Fortos, which is Lumnos's southern neighbor. Two army warriors are this realm's representatives, which I just love the little detail that they remind DM of old Grumpy friends because she grew up among her father's mortal army. Friends with similar brash man mannerisms, they gift Diem a finely made blade that looks like Breck's handiwork. Ah, we know who Breck is. Remember that Breq is a Fortos mortal we met back in Spark, who is a blacksmith in the Yamarian army, a member of the Guardians and a friend of Henry's. He even gave Diem a Fortosian steel weapon in exchange for a favor he has yet to cash in. Can't forget about that. And when DM will thank the King of Fortos for this gift when they're on Kuril at the End of Glass, he will become very suspicious of her connection with Breq because Breq will disappear a few weeks after this ball with a very important stash of weapons, leading the King of Fortos to rightly believe he's with the Guardians.
- [87:55]
Nicole
Next is the two lavender eyed Matios representatives who refuse to speak even a single word to anyone at the party. We will learn in Heat of the Everflame, when the Matios descended gets their magic, they will take a vow of silence either from outsiders or in totality. We will learn that this is the wish of Blessed Mother Montios who made the mountains her home because she believed being isolated and spending time in silence enhances the mind and opens them to higher truths. We will see this how they seek virtue in all things and they connect best to that virtuous life. By silence, the Montios descended will give Diem a thick fur lined cloak that always keeps the wearer warm. This would sure be helpful when we're on the run in Monteos. In the last third of Heat of the Everflame, after a failed attempt to go back to Lumnos with Arlie in tow, Luther tells DM really Sarai to fly to Montios because he's got a hunch that DM really really really needs to go there and that she's the Queen of there too. It's super, super handy that on this spontaneous adventure, Luther also just so happens to have brought this exact cloak with them after all. That hunch really work it over to time.
- [89:00]
Lexi
I wonder if this fur coat will be used again if they venture to Montios and the Forgotten Lands in Burn. Next we have the Green Eyed Arboros representatives with their gift. It is an emerald hued potion they say can cure any illness, except for curses sent directly from the Gods. This gift also makes plenty of sense coming from Arboros, which is known among the mortal healers for its rare medicinal plants. And yes, we will see this gift coming. Come back into our story in Heat of the Everflame 2. Luther is about to die from his Godstone wound upon returning to Lumnos, and Diem is desperate to save him. She'll ask Remus if our Bos has a cure for Godstone toxin, and he doubts it, because Arboros and Sophos have been researching a cure for centuries, and a cure would give a realm leverage over any of the other crowns because of its priceless value. So they probably wouldn't want to keep that information secret. DM will give this vial of potion to Luther after the King Compass tells her she's just found what her heart desires most. It'll be her last hope to heal him from his fatal Godstone wound. But really, as DM ensures he gets every last drop of this potion, her blood from her earlier cut will get into his system and that will be what actually cures him. So I'm under the impression this Arboros gift can't heal Godstone because it falls under the exception of curse from the Gods. The origins of Godstone are are still a mystery, though we'll learn it can only be made by the Kindred. So I'm thinking it's a substance made through the Kindred from their deities. We know how each descendant's godhood is directly connected to the Kindred's Gods, so it makes me think God's stone is also a direct connection to them, making it a curse they created for whatever reason. So, quick pause here because DM wants to taunt these two Arboros representative about why they didn't offer such a gift to the late King Ulther as he slowly died over months. First of all, we can gather that each of the realms are very protective of what's theirs. Coronation gifts are a rare occasion where they share their magical devices with other realms. So I could see it just being part of the descended culture not to consider giving this valuable any illness healing potion to Ulther, not their problem kind of situation. I think that the only exemption for something like this be.
- [91:09]
Nicole
Would.
- [91:09]
Lexi
Would be the Fortosian healers, right? Or what if this is a bit of foreshadowing that Ulther's illness was brought on by the Kindred because they knew it was time for the daughter of the forgotten to emerge into power. This potion can't cure curses sent directly from the gods, which could be a nod to the fact that this wouldn't have been able to cure Ulther, even if he did take it, because it is a curse from the gods.
- [91:32]
Nicole
My mind was going in an entirely different direction, but I really, really like what you're saying. So my mind was thinking, because we know the Arboros queen is working with the Guardians, sort of ish. And I wondered if she didn't want Ulther, who was, you know, very much instilling the progeny laws. She didn't want him to be healed. So I wondered, because she didn't agree with Ulther's stance. She didn't want him to be cured and therefore she wanted him to die so Luther could take over. Now, there's a huge asterisk here, because she would have had to have known about Luther's background and dealings, probably from orally. So I don't think that's the case. Honestly, I like your version a whole of a lot. A hell of a lot better. Next, we have the yellowed eyed representatives who rode in on fucking tigers like badasses. I love that DM is almost disappointed to see these faunus descended because they're human, and after hearing that the Fon Thanos descended can have animal characteristics or even shift into animals. Now, these are mortal rumors, but is this a showing of how out of touch mortals are with descended magic? Because, you know, descended hide it from them, the reasons we talked about earlier, or is this a possibility that we will see? And please, oh please, oh please, oh please let it be the latter, because maybe that's how DM gets off the island. Maybe she turns into a fish and swims away.
- [92:49]
Lexi
I'm so sorry, but I'm pretty sure this is just a mortal rumor, because Thanos magic is control and slash, or communication with animals. But I still just wanted, you know, just keep swimming, just keep swimming. And also, DM can't use her magic on the island.
- [93:05]
Nicole
Fine, sorry. Anyway, the faunos descended give DM two tiny, cute, furry animals that are a delicacy for gryverns, which DM has no interest in giving these animals to. Sarai. Sorry, girl. The Fano's crown will later lament about how she should have killed and skinned them first so they would be less cute and fuzzy. After all, it's a circle of life.
- [93:31]
Lexi
I really want to go to Fauna.
- [93:33]
Nicole
I know, right?
- [93:34]
Lexi
I don't know what that says about me, but Like, I want to go there so badly.
- [93:37]
Nicole
I do too. But I also feel like, because it's like very jungle esque, there'd be like these like giant snakes and I don't know if my heart can take that probably.
- [93:45]
Lexi
But still all the other. I want to ride a tiger.
- [93:48]
Nicole
I. I want to ride a tiger.
- [93:52]
Lexi
Next up, we have our gift from Igneous. Our crown bestie.
- [93:55]
Nicole
Jk.
- [93:56]
Lexi
You suck, Igneous King. But that's not who's here. From the desert realm. These orange eyed igneous descended women have red skin and wear linen robes and they rode in on camels. I just love the way that these creatures and the realms just. I just love it all so much. And they've brought a white spider silk scarf that is so strong it can not be penetrated.
- [94:15]
Nicole
Hey.
- [94:16]
Lexi
Oh. By any metal weapon, no matter how sharp or how big your sword is.
- [94:21]
Nicole
There. Luther.
- [94:21]
Lexi
Soon after Andre will be killed. DM will wrap Teller in the scarf to protect all his major organs as one more way to keep him safe. And this scarf is not mentioned in Heat or in the first three preview chapters of Burn, where Teller is with Luther. So my question is, who's got the spider scarf now? Because I assume it's still just back in Lumnos from when Teller had it at the end here in Glow.
- [94:44]
Nicole
I'm assuming it's just chilling in Limnos. I worry that we're gonna like, stab Aon or something and then he's gonna be like. And he's got it.
- [94:53]
Lexi
Well, I do hope it'll be put to use for our beloved characters in this war. Maybe it'll save someone like Teller from getting killed.
- [95:00]
Nicole
Well, I could also see Eleanor having it. And maybe she's wearing it and she gets to have her. Just kidding. You tried to stab me, Remus. Sucker. Next up, we've got the Miros descended. It's from two Aqua eyed sailors who have dirty mouths. They give her a compass that points to whatever your heart desired most.
- [95:19]
Lexi
Fantasy compass?
- [95:20]
Nicole
Is that you? If you have listened to fantasy fangirls covering a different series, you know how much I love a fantasy compass.
- [95:30]
Lexi
Do you all know how hard it was to to not say any Kindred's Curse saga spoilers during that deep dive coverage? Like, finally, the compass is in our story and we can talk about it freely.
- [95:42]
Nicole
Thank God. In this moment, as DM gives the compass a brief glance, she sees that it is pointing to the back of the palace. She doesn't know if that means it's her home on the marsh. It's pointing to Or Mortal City or the island, because that's where she's going to be coordinated now. It is the same place that later it will point to. It's her childhood home, because that's where she felt safety, she felt security. She had a family who was alive and brought her all kinds of good feelings. And it was the representation of when things were easy or uncomplicated. So it could be pointing to that just preemptively from when it does that later. Or it could be pointing to Luther in the dungeons with Henry. And apparently that's where it's just, like, floors below. So you. Yeah, I also thought it was pointing to Luther, but I also kind of like the idea that it's pointing to aurally, but I don't think that's what her heart wants most right now. Well, I just mentioned one of the ways the compass will be used later on this book with dm and when her father dies and all of that. It's so sad. But that's not the last time we see this fantasy compass in Heat of the Ever Flame. After we team up with Luther and company, we learn that Luther's been practically clutching it like it's a lifeline. That as long as he has it, he can find dm.
- [96:51]
Lexi
He has this emotional support compass, like how someone else in a series has an emotional support dagger. He's got his emotional support compass.
- [97:01]
Nicole
That is until the first three chapters of Burn Link in the show. Notes to read those where Luther is also holding this compass. But instead of pointing to dm, it is just spinning around and around and around and around and around. Assuming that is due to the magic on Koreel, it also could be because DM was stabbed.
- [97:18]
Lexi
That's what I assumed, too. So I'm wondering if DM will find a way to get off the island. And that's how Luther will immediately know, because the compass will point to her again.
- [97:28]
Nicole
Can you just picture this so vividly? Like it's spinning. It's spinning, it's spinning. And then just walks.
- [97:35]
Lexi
Exactly. And like, he looks down and it's pointing in that direction and the hope that it gives him. Oh, my goodness. I'm also brainstorming how the compass might help these characters. Characters in ways that aren't pointing to each other. Like Luther pointing to DM and showing that she's actually okay and maybe that she's off the island. Could it nudge diem in the right direction to reveal some very important information? Kind of like how it did when Luther was about to die and she was so desperate for a cure and it pointed in the direction of the potion. But I don't think it was actually the potion like we were saying earlier. It was that the compass and fate and destiny all knew that is what she need to do to the then get her blood into Luther there. Could this compass help her discover something about herself or the kindred or how to defeat her father? I'm just gonna keep this compass in the back of my mind, especially as we go through heat and crank up the theory talks.
- [98:24]
Nicole
I absolutely see it being something for Ophia Kai. I could also see it being something towards pointing DM to take the rosebane.
- [98:31]
Lexi
Yes. With or the key that she has from your cell.
- [98:35]
Nicole
Yes.
- [98:36]
Lexi
And like she needs this information. And then the compass points to the key and then with the key then she will be able to go into the library and it's like, oh yeah, I do have this key, this very important thing.
- [98:46]
Nicole
If I got to have one of these coronations gifts, I think the compass would be the my immediate go to. Not because I love a fantasy compass, but also just because I would say.
- [98:56]
Lexi
Yes, because I think that it would help me find my glasses and my phone a lot because I always lose everything.
- [99:03]
Nicole
You were talking about getting two phones.
- [99:05]
Lexi
I was not. Other people were. I know myself too well.
- [99:10]
Nicole
Next up, one person approaches with black onyx eyes and a neatly cut hair with a groomed goatee. Of course he's got a goatee. Simultaneously, DM's thoughts go hazy as if slithering tentacles are writhing around in her mind and going, eleanor, that guy was creepy, but also kind of hot.
- [99:34]
Lexi
Nicole, this is all your fault. I will never think of the word tentacles the same way. After our spice challenge, friends in our fan club, for our monthly live Q and A, Nicole and I did a spicy reading and we tried to break each other. And Nicole brought out tentacle ass play. And I didn't break.
- [99:56]
Nicole
No, you did with that one. It was the second one. It was the tentacle dildo that you didn't break.
- [100:01]
Lexi
Oh, excuse me, but in all seriousness.
- [100:07]
Nicole
Tentacles are very serious.
- [100:08]
Lexi
Lexi Simond is working his umbro's magic here on dm.
- [100:12]
Nicole
Well, as we've been saying, welcome to the chat. The one and only tentacle go tier Simond one of the creepiest fucks umbros descendant who is the right hand of the queen Ursel. Because DM released the umbros magic, Simon is exercising his use of that tentacle power, which pause. Because we have to reiterate how fucking huge this is. Simon and his cohort, who's off assisting Luther, have access to read every single person's mind in this room. We talked about that earlier. But the way that Simon is teasing about how he's learned so, so much, it brought up the question for us. What did they learn here in this ballroom? Because they can read the minds of the 20 houses. Remus and Gareth Aemond, everyone. This is huge. And also all of the other realms and their representatives. So is this going to come into play especially around Diem's father's murderer? And you know what? We decided to ask Pen. So here's what she said they learned at the Ascension Ball.
- [101:12]
Pen Cole
What did the Umbros descended learn learn at the Ascension Ball? That is an interesting question, isn't it? A lot of things. Whether we will see them come back in the story remains to be seen. I think if you put yourself in the shoes of the Umbros descended, the power of Umbros is really in their markets, the black market and the, the taxes they levy on these things and how much runs through their port. So probably a lot of the things they're focused most on on are going to be trade related economics, you know, finding what the houses of Lumnos are buying from other realms or what they want to buy, the terms that they're trading on so that maybe Umbros can offer them better terms and, and you know, get in those deals. That really is the source of their power with other realms. So I think that's probably what they're most focused on, which is probably pretty boring to us, but very interesting to them when it comes to D. They have agreed not to read her mind, but there are certainly other people at this ball who know many of her secrets. And there are also people at this ball, say for example, Luther, who have many secrets of their own. And as the Ambrose descendant are trying to figure out how to manage this new crown and how to keep her in, in her place, they might find a lot of those secrets particularly useful. In particular, I don't know, maybe who she cares about or who might care about her and certain details they might could use to keep those people under their control. I don't know. We'll find out.
- [102:50]
Nicole
While everyone else may not know that there's a slimy sleaze ball tentacle man reaching into their head, which I guess DM can only feel because. Because she's special or because she's the crown or because she's the one who released her magic. Or honestly, because Simon does. Making a spectacle out of it. But DM does not enjoy this dude being in her head. He's sending her images of him and DM Throne fucking while everyone else jerks off to them. Listen, I know that DM likes exhibitionism, but I think this is a little bit of a jump for our girl. Two using mind control to have her trail her fingers up and down her body to match his own own movements. Listen, I know Simon has had every pleasure known to man. He's used to the Umbros orgies on the reg. But, bro, buy a girl dinner first.
- [103:35]
Lexi
My God, it's like, in his perspective, he's with her. But. Oh, my God, Simon, you are disgusting. L. L for you, Simon. You know what? You can be smiting. L. She did not give you consent for this. So smite. L. They smiting.
- [103:49]
Nicole
Smiting, Smite. Yes. Luckily, DM is taking the smiting into her own hands. And welcome back to the chat fight voice. We've missed you. DM happily surrenders to this voice, and an icy fire bursts through her defenses. And her whole body glows in a silvery light.
- [104:10]
Lexi
Quick reminder that everyone in this hall can see this right now. It's the same thing that happened at the funeral. It's not normal for a luminous Ascendant, but because she can't control her magic, no one even cares. Like, nobody even thinks that this is something weird. It's just like John river will say. He's like, oh, just like party tricks, kind of. Yes. But this is not Luminos Ascended magic here.
- [104:32]
Nicole
No. Which I'll get to in a moment. Because through this cresting wave of silver light exploding out of diem, it kicks Simon out of her mind and his expression is very, very unsettled. So, first and foremost, let's talk about the silvery light, because this is absolutely Omno's power at play. We know that all realms have two powers. So is the power of all the realms one power of omnos, and this silvery light fire is the other one. Which, by the way, this icy fire, I'm taking that to be the silver fire.
- [105:02]
Lexi
I agree. Yeah.
- [105:03]
Nicole
Or these two powers, the silvery light and fire, and then the ability to absorb others magic. And then the omnos element of it all, the allness of it all, is just a third power.
- [105:14]
Lexi
So. Because omnos means all, I wonder if the silver light and fire and absorbing magic and these other unique magical abilities DM has is kindred magic, like General kindred magic. So someone on our Discord named Nancy shared a cool theory, which is that there isn't a Single or paired kind of Omnos magic. We know from Mantios journal that Omnos was not on board with the forging spell that bound the Kindred siblings magics to their realms. So Nancy wonders if Omnos somehow held back from the spell which made him keep all the magic he had, rather than it being contained like it is for his siblings tied to the foraging spell. This could mean that originally the Kindred could use all magics, but perhaps some were specialities and that's what they they kept as their own realm magic. On the other hand, Omnos does again mean all, so he could have uniquely been able to wield all forms of magic. So I love this that Nancy brought up here and I'm going to expand on the idea and bring up the fact that the mortals of Amarian renamed the Kindred in their own language so they named them for their types of magic or traits which for us readers the root is Latin. So if the mortals named Omnos all because Omnos was the only known kind of Kindred without a specific type of magic. The only one with all of them, whether because of the foraging spell or the magic they were all known for. And these other powers like absorbing other magic and glowing silver is possible only for a direct offspring of Omnos, because that's kindred magic that is not contained and passed down to the descendant in the realm like all the other ones. These special kindred powers are some of what they gave up for the forging spell I think, and for them to no longer be immortal. And Omnos is the only one who did not participate. So he kept his old powers and that's why he was so dangerous. Or he somehow got his siblings powers as Dorial says in Heat quote, he would have lived forever. And if he was immune to magic and could also steal their magic. Though this does seem to be an assumption on Doriel's part based on what DMs doing with collecting the crown. So I don't think we can take that assumption fact for what Omnis was capable of back then. Sorry, that totally went off the rails. Last thing I will say about DM pushing Simon out of her mind is that while other descended can shield like we were talking about earlier, this is unheard of magic. She does not have her Umbro's magic yet. That'll come in heat when she crosses the border into the realm for the first time. So I'm guessing DM pushing Simon out is specifically Kindred magic where it's as if her magic can repel other magic. Kind of like the opposite of how she can absorb it. More magic.
- [107:47]
Nicole
There are days where I am just in awe of you, big sister. And today is truly one of them. The fact that you just pulled that out of your brain is.
- [107:55]
Lexi
Well, hold on. I did have Nancy from Discord. That's true.
- [107:59]
Nicole
The fact that you and Nancy had. Had that.
- [108:02]
Lexi
Wow.
- [108:03]
Nicole
I am blown away. My God. Now, whatever this power is coming from, whether it's Kindred or Omnos, one thing is for certain. Simon is like. Like, what the. He has not been kicked out of someone's mind ever. Not in this way. Maybe other centuries when they shield against him. But I don't. They don't really.
- [108:23]
Lexi
Yeah, like that's kind of like a.
- [108:24]
Nicole
Rule that they don't shield. Yeah, but the queen. Yes, they. But they just don't go into her mind, period.
- [108:31]
Lexi
They don't. Yeah, you die if you do that. You don't do that.
- [108:34]
Nicole
So this is a thing he's so not used to. And it's of kind. Kind of. At least in my opinion. It's a little bit like, good for you. I hope you get used to this feeling. Simond. He does even try to get into DM's mind again and is shit out of luck. Okay, Simond, you did your show and tell. It's time for you to go.
- [108:53]
Lexi
This is the moment in the story where it is revealed that the Umbros queen yourself was the old woman who had that mysterious interaction with DM in chapter one of Spark. Man, it feels like we just did that episode yesterday. I know she told DM to stop taking that cursed flame route. That her real father knows who she is and is waiting for her. And she shared this prophecy that we picked apart in our very first episode of the series, Deep Dive quote. When forgotten blood on Hearthstone falls, then shall the chains be broke. Life for life, old debt requires or eternal be his yoke. What's more, Simon teases that these two queens have so much to discuss and that she looks forward to DM's coronation. Oh boy. Where do I begin here? First of all, DM's mind is spiraling with the knowledge that it was the Umbrous queen who she spoke with in the alley. That strange interaction catapulted the rest of our entire story. Yersel was the first one to encourage DM to stop taking the flame route, which led to her magical powers showing up since they were no longer suppressed. And while DM is is wondering how the Empress Queen knew about her mother's secrets when no one Else is supposed to. We do know that answer. Yersel has read Aurelie's mind from when she's been in Umbros. And for her own reasons, Yersel has not stopped Aurelie's sneaky secrets actions. But that does not explain how Yersel knows Ophiuchai is still alive. She was one of the Crowns who put Ophikai in his present in the first place. So she already knew about that and where he was. But she should not have been able to use her powers on the island to like, you know, do a little check in to see if he was still around and what he was thinking about with the daughter and all of that. So how does she know DM's father knows about her and that he is still alive and that he's waiting for her?
- [110:34]
Nicole
That sounds like a great phone pen for Heat of the Everflame. If she'll answer.
- [110:41]
Lexi
Okay. Now moving on to what Simon says about how Yersel is looking forward to DM's coronation if she survives the challenging. Everybody but DM's inner circle always feels the need to include that asterisk. We know that yourself is going to expect the Heartstone to break when DM's blood touches it. She knows what's about to go down, I think, even with DM's father breaking out. But she also knows that all of these things need to happen for the new age. She knows what she'll have to sacrifice to her own life.
- [111:09]
Nicole
Do you think that she took the Rose Bane? She talked with the Kindred. She got in on the conference call, and she. Maybe they can see the future in some weird way. And in said conference call, they gave her the PowerPoint of like, here's what's going to be coming down the mountain in the near future. Go fix it. But like, she only was able to do that through the Rosebane. And that's why she a knew she was going to be dying soon. And that's another reason why she was like, dm, take the Rosebane. Go to the conference call, get the lowdown.
- [111:36]
Lexi
Maybe I keep going back to Lumnos and the Vision with first of all, Luther when he was young. And now especially with dm. So I don't think that the Rosebane is necessary for the Kindred to communicate with. And also even prophesies to the Crowns at the same time. I definitely think she has taken some Rosebane. Oh yeah.
- [111:54]
Nicole
Oh yeah.
- [111:55]
Lexi
Ah, there's just so much with the Umbrous Queen and she's not even on the actual page.
- [112:00]
Nicole
Herself yet. I cannot wait to get to your cell. I'm so excited. She's one of my favorite characters in this entire series. But that horror show. Let's get Simon off the pedestal. Get him out of here. It's time to get to the last gift. Two sofas represent both with blush pink eyes. Offer up a blush pink pillow containing a golden orb, the Magic 8 Ball. I mean, the orb of answering will respond with a yes or no to three questions of DMs choice, so long as the answer is known to any living being with the Kindred's blood. Pause. Oh, my God, there's so much here. We see DM on the pages in this book. Ask two questions to the orb. 1. Is her mother still alive? The orb will say yes, but the answer must be known by any living being with the Kindred's blood. So my guess is, because Ophi is still on the island and he heard her, he might not be aware of his surroundings because he's like a husk of a person, but because he heard her, he knew she was alive, and that's why it was able to be answered.
- [113:03]
Lexi
That's kind of what I'm assuming. Or maybe even Luther could count.
- [113:07]
Nicole
The only reason, because I was also thinking Luther at first, but he also just assumes she's alive. But it has to be known by true. So I'm assuming it's because of Ophi. Now, question number two. Is the man who sired DM still alive? And again, the Magic 8 Ball answered yes, but also, this has to be known by a living being with kindred blood. So of course I'm assuming that's because it's Ophi. He has kindred blood. But hold your one horses.
- [113:34]
Lexi
Oh, clippity clap. Clippity clop.
- [113:36]
Nicole
The fact that you had your coconuts readily available, Nicole.
- [113:40]
Lexi
They literally live right here at my desk for any opportunity. And you all, you would be surprised how many opportunities I can find to add clippity clop. Clippity clop.
- [113:50]
Nicole
You'd be surprised with how much coconut action is on the cutting room floor here at fmg. Anyway, if you're also thinking the same thing we're thinking, yes, she only asked two questions. There's one more.
- [114:05]
Lexi
This is huge. I really do think this is the gift that Pen is referring to about being very important of birth. Yes. Same.
- [114:15]
Nicole
Yeah.
- [114:15]
Lexi
Yeah.
- [114:15]
Nicole
Yes.
- [114:16]
Lexi
Okay, so let's wonder, what could the third question be? I feel like it could have something to do with how to kill her father, but again, it has to be a yes or no answer. Or what about this damn Kindred's curse we still don't really know anything about or about the ever flame and DM's own connection to it. The question might have something to do with her future decision making. Like will she have to die? Or who can she trust? But like, I guess it's more prophecy versus facts. And someone with Kendra's blood needs to know the answer.
- [114:47]
Nicole
I'm going to lean towards her connection to the Ever Flame because. Because if someone with Kindred's blood would know the answer, it would be Ophi. Because if he is Omnos, he came over with the other Kindred. He came over when the Ever Flame was present and accounted for in Amarian. So he might be the one who knows the answer. Who has Kindred blood.
- [115:09]
Lexi
I love that. Well, even just in general, let's say that he is Omnos. Then he would be a wealth of knowledge for. For with anything. Yeah, because he knows so much and he has that Kindred. He is a Kindred. So. Ah, another thing could be a cool twist if the person who has the answer is not someone we would expect to have Kindred blood. I'm not saying like a random half mortal kind of like you know, DM where it's like been a secret all her life, but somebody who we might not have expected anyway. Just thinking about that there.
- [115:41]
Nicole
Oh, on that same front, what is if somehow the Everflame is connected to the Kindred Somehow they have similar blood. What if the answer is in Teller?
- [115:53]
Lexi
Exactly.
- [115:54]
Nicole
Oh, that makes me happy. But then wouldn't they.
- [115:58]
Lexi
I know there's a like there. There's a million plot holes with all.
- [116:02]
Nicole
That's not our job.
- [116:06]
Lexi
I do want to point out that we have to remember by the end the of Heat. DM has the power of Sophos, where she can remember everything she sees. And the power of Umbros, where she can tell if people are lying and she can read their minds. So the Orb of Answering would have to solve something she can't get from one of those powers. Or it could even be something that she needs. Like in addition to these powers that she's getting. Let's say you know, she remembers something that she read with Sofos. So remember how she literally read like an entire library and. And she just has all of that on her kindle in her head. Or she finds out something with her on burst magic and it's like she needs to like ask a follow up question. That's what I'm thinking of here. Like the Orb of answering could be a follow up question to an answer that she got from her new cool powers. Anyway, I'll keep noodling on possible yes or no answers that could help DM as we keep covering the series, but that's definitely going to be at the back of my mind.
- [116:56]
Nicole
Oh yeah. Now Sophos has a second gift for our fair queen. They would love to invite her younger brother Teller to come to the realm of Thought and Spark to study as a mortal there. Yay, Teller. This is literally his absolute dream come true to go and study there. But remember what the guy in the dungeon, AKA Henry, told Diem about earlier last book about Sophos? Humans go there to study but then they mysteriously die or they become the research in their never seen again. Dun dun dun. DM is terrified at the idea of Teller going to face the same fate as these rumors. Remember right now she still believes that everyone is out to get her and the other realms are taking her brother and holding him hostage or killing him or even threatening his life to control the queen. So I don't.
- [117:46]
Lexi
And that's a possibility because that is actually going to happen.
- [117:50]
Nicole
Yes. Like I, I don't blame her for immediately going to like, no, no, don't touch my bro, bro. So Diem growls to the Sophos representatives that there is no way in hell they are taken. Teller, this does bring up a good question that even DM asks. How the hell do you know that I have a mortal brother? And while they say they're the keepers of the Amarian knowledge, we here at FFG have access to the real keeper of Amarian knowledge. So let's phone a pen and ask how the Sophos represent representatives knew about her mortal brother Teller.
- [118:21]
Pen Cole
How does Sophos know about Teller? Well, I think it's very safe to assume that a lot of the crowns have spies in other realms. Certainly Ambrose has spies everywhere. But Sophos in particular, their descended, are obsessed with knowledge and hoarding as much information as they can for themselves. And so they probably pay a lot of money to certain allies they might have in other realms to continue to slip them information about what's going on so they can maintain their status as sort of the keepers of all of the information in Omarion. We know that Sophos has a close relationship with House Banette, so probably that had something to do with it. I imagine that the second everyone became aware that there was a new crown, there was a messenger hawk flying across the sacred sea from Sophos to Lumnos to House Banette saying, tell me everything you know because we need to know as much as we can about her. Was that malicious or scheming? I don't know. I guess we'll find out.
- [119:44]
Lexi
Like we mentioned earlier this episode, and as DM observes throughout this exchange, the Sophos descended seem off hollow and shrewd smiles something sinister about them despite their polite demeanor. Now, could this be DM's own prejudice against Sophos after what Henry told her about how horrible they are for what they do to the mortals invited to research. Research there? Yes, absolutely. But they are close with House Banette, who will become a prime suspect for Andre's murder. And toward the end of Heat, the sofa's crown will have a weapon that is almost identical to the blade that kills her father, to which Dorial will tell DM that they got it as a coronation gift from Lumnos. Which House is in charge of weapons in Lumnos? House Banette and the Sophos descended know about DM's family specific specifically tell her. That's a lot of connections in the web of theories for who killed Andre. At this time, House Banette is playing nice with Diem. They haven't had the argument with her mortal father in the room yet. So I don't think in this moment the Sophos descendant and House Banette are actively plotting to take out the Lumnose Queen's mortal father. But something is really fishy here. Which brings us back to the question, why do the Sophos descended scene seem so sinister? Do they know more about DM's true upbringing than they're letting on? Especially after seeing the show of Unique Magic when DM expelled Simon from her mind? I don't think so, because Doriel won't know when DM visits in Heat. And obviously that is something that they would have said. Do they have plans with House Banette regarding weapons against the mortals? And no, DM will be against it. And why does the Sophos Descended look at Remus when she says they're staying extra days because they have business to conduct? Is that only business with House Banette? Or is there a little nod there that there's something going on with Remus too? I don't know, but I want to.
- [121:33]
Nicole
Well, because remember last book when DM overhears Evren Bennett talking about Sophos and Dorial and how they are putting together a bomb or something as powerful that will basically wipe the Guardians off the map? So I might get my head canon. Is that the Sophos descended are staying an extra day to give a TLDR here how the project is going, but something's not right here. Right? I know. Because during this exchange, everyone will come up to DM and kind of be like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what you doing talking to my homies this way? But he will say, quote, I hope your majesty has a strong plan of retaliation against the rebel scum responsible for the recent attack on my armory. Rebel full scum. What else does it say on the wall after Andre's attackers leave, quote, mortal lover, half breed, rebel scum. Is this me saying it must be Evram's doing? No, because we'll also have something really similar with the Hanovers in a second. But something's. I'm so.
- [122:38]
Lexi
Is this one of those moments where we're waving our hands and saying something?
- [122:42]
Nicole
The funny thing is, Pen was like, I think it's pretty obvious. And I'm like, I'm having a date. Another obvious moment that just totally went.
- [122:51]
Lexi
Over our head flashbacks. I think I'm leaning more and more toward it being a coordinated effort between House Corbois, specifically Gareth, and House Banette, with Sophos involved in that too. And Hanover. I know that's a lot of cooks in the kitchen, but it kind of makes sense, all of that. Next episode.
- [123:09]
Nicole
Speaking of, after the Representatives line is done, it is now time for the rest of the Houses of Lumnos. Oh, my God. My cheeks would be vibrating from how many smiles were happening on my face. No one has come more prepared for these House talking twos than House Hanover. Murph, Ileana and Jean Hanover all step forward and they are ready to stir up some shit. In the last few days, since learning about this strange new queen, it looks like they've been doing the a little digging around DM's history, learning about her family, where she grew up, like her house, where another thing happens next episode, and most importantly, where she was when the King died. Hmm. It looks like they've got some opportunities here to spread some gossip that just might ruin DM's reputation. Apparently, the Hanovers are not Taylor Swift rep fans.
- [124:04]
Lexi
Now, real quick, because House Bennett spoke with DM first and its head of House, Evren Bonnet, had a very different approach than the Hanoveras with meeting dm. His children remember DM and are fond of her. It's revealed that she used to be a healer and cared once for his daughter. And he's all like, oh, well, we were so glad to have you at our home. Even though I just remember when really, she wasn't worth his time whatsoever because she was a nobody. He could be hostile toward DM for having been a healer. He could be stirring the potential hot big time. He's still clear with his intentions about retaliation against the Guardians, don't get me wrong. But he's playing nice with compliments in the political game, at least for now. And that's his tactic. Then we have the Hanovers who come in with the goal of ruining Diem's reputation and putting her in her place. And I want us all to be very aware of how Remus, Gareth and Eamon are the ones playing nice with Hanover. These corps, Bois, greet the other house with warmth, lots of theatrical kisses. They are all ignoring Diem as if she's not there. Even Aemon as if she's not Queen or worth their attention. Remus is chatting loudly with Ileana's parents, which is another signal of the betrothal arrangement between Ileana and Luther. This is where we should have known. Aemon and Ileana are actually good friends as he lights up talking to her brother Jaune. And this is another reason why I think maybe Remus and specifically Gareth are accomplices to Andre's murder.
- [125:25]
Nicole
I think Gareth, Aerith and I could see Aemon as well. I'm back and forth on Remus, but we'll get into that next episode. The house reception, specifically the one with the Hanovers, might be a few days away. At least it's scheduled for a few days away. It will be pushed back because DM will be in mourning. But they are already wanting to ensure they start off with their bargains. Starting off with the most important. Marthe is expecting that this new Queen will honor Ulther's agreement with the betrothal of Luther and Ileana. Particularly. They've been betrothed together since birth. I am genuinely curious. Why did they think this was the best time to bring this up? Was it to remind the room that a more powerful couple was available to take the throne for if Slash, in their opinion, when DM died from the challenging, was it just because Ileana is impatient and she wants to dance with her boo at the ball? Like I'm leaning towards the form former, but I also don't think the latter wasn't on the table.
- [126:21]
Lexi
I'm leaning toward the former too. And I wonder if this is a way of Hanover flexing their power status and feeling out this new queen, specifically with how she feels toward Luther. Is DM going to stick to the betrothal and honor what House Corporal agreed to or try to take it away from Ileana by marrying Luther instead. Because after DM is like, fuck that, Marth will change tactics. Tactics so fast, pivot and blame DM for the death of King Ulther, and more specifically, rope Luther into the accusations too. Planting the seed that they're in on this scheming to get the crown together. Kind of like a alright, fine, if my granddaughter cannot have him, then I'm throwing him to the wolves too.
- [127:00]
Nicole
God, What a peach. DMs leaning towards Nader because if the Hanovers are going to play dirty, what's to stop her from doing the same? So Diem feigns confusion about how it's so interesting that Luther and Ileana were betrothed. She certainly never heard anything of it. Quote, in fact, he said you were nothing to him at all. How interesting. That last episode. It was actually Diem who said those words to Luther, but that's neither here nor there. At the end of the day, Marth did point out how the kindreds blessed them all with their free will. This was in reference to others deciding to challenge her. But if they can all exercise their own free will, then Luther sure as hell can exercise his own free will and choose whatever person he desires. Slow clap for dm. While Ileana might see this and basically go apoplectic, Marth knows how to play the game though, so she sees this as an opening for her next retaliation.
- [127:59]
Lexi
Funny DM should mention how close she is with the Prince Prince? Because this matriarch of House Hanover heard a nasty rumor that DM posed as a mortal healer to gain access to the late King while he was mysteriously ill. And DM was even left alone with King Arthur on the day of his death, armed with a drawn weapon standing over the King's body. Joke's on you, Martha. DM wasn't actually standing over his body. She had fallen. But yeah, everything else checks out as Marth knew it was Wood immediately putting DM on the defense, as she has to openly and very publicly admit here that Marth is saying the truth. But there's a hell of a lot more context that makes this not sound as murderous as it does. Except it doesn't matter what DM has to say to explain herself. Marthe's accusation that the new Queen killed the late King is spreading like wildfire in the crowd of descended. And then Martha even brings Luther into it. He was supposed to be Ultra's heir, so why did he allow a violent stranger alone with the King? Bad, bad, bad. This is bad. How many times have we said that for the series deep dive? I feel like it's a lot more than usual. The Hanovers know exactly what they are doing to make DM seem unacceptable to the other houses, to make them doubt her rule and how she came into power. Her motives, everything about her calling DM a violent stranger, that she was posing as a mortal healer. Think about how Bennett was just like accepted that. But they here they are challenging that, enticing the prince that the late king was ill and defenseless. Ileana throws herself in front of her grandmama, as if DM will attack.
- [129:40]
Nicole
With the uproar of gossip sounding off in the hall and Marth finally done interrupting DM so she can get her full accusations out. Instead, she now just sits back and admires her handiwork. She got exactly what she wanted. A room full of incredibly powerful descended, suddenly seeing DM as a murderer and feeling distrusting towards her as the new queen. And especially her motives.
- [130:04]
Lexi
As well as Luther, who has quite the reputation among the descendants. Like we were saying last episode, he's not one of the popular kids like Aemon, but he is feared, he is serious, he is brooding. He was supposed to be the heir to the crown. It's almost like Marth was like, okay, if you won't give Ileana Luther, then we're throwing him under the bus too.
- [130:25]
Nicole
Yes. But after a small moment of panic, DM realizes this is a moment she has to handle this all on her own. I love that, yes, later Luther will be like, I should have been there. But I love that he wasn't. I love that she was able to just absolutely slam dunk this. Because plastering on a confident look, she raises her palm in the air and says quietly, you dare accuse House Courbois? She's brilliant. Because she's saying this quietly so that everyone in the hall who's roaring in a gossip, they now have to shut the hell up so they can hear what she has to say. But why is it House Corbois, you ask? Well, DM goes on cutting off Marth at every fucking moment possible, just like Marthe did to her. It was House Courbois who sent Ulther to Fortos to get examined, House Courbois who stood guard at his chambers, House Courbois who hired the healers to treat him, House Courbois who prepared his food. House Courbois who cleaned his body after his death. If Marthe is saying that diem of House Corpor killed the king, then surely she is Accusing all of the house of being in on such an elaborate scheme. But wait, there's more. Because Forto's healers looked at the late king and deemed him too ill long before DM started caring for the king. So if that's the case, then they must be complicit in on this plan. If the healers were in on this, then my goodness, I bet the big scary King of Fortos would have been in on this as well. Again, she's cutting Marth off at how she highlights the intention inventing of this lie with no clear evidence and how it is treason. So one more time, are you sure this is what you're saying, Marthe? No. Thought so. Three chairs for dam Bellator.
- [132:18]
Lexi
Huzzah. Huzzah. Huzzah. However, as much as we may be huzzaing, DM standing up for herself and shutting Martha and her accusations up have one big, big con. DM just showed her true colors and dissolved her. And Remus's plan for her to act like an empty headed girl. Remember how she intentionally dressed tonight because this was her first real introduction to the rest of the realm. Yes, she was there at the funeral, but now is when she's meeting the others and mingling and being formally presented as the new Queen. She wore all white to appear innocent and soft. And now after what just went down with the Hannah heirs, no one is looking at her with that impression anymore. If she goes back to being a docile queen who doesn't know anything and lets her regent just handle everything, no one's gonna believe it because they just saw her claws come out. Rawr. And now understand she can handle herself. So much for her and Remus's plan. Though let's be honest. What was the alternative? Remus and Gareth weren't stepping in to come to her defense. Luther wasn't around and like DM will tell him she is capable on her own. So it was either let Marth run her mouth and get away with accusing the new Queen of murder to all of Lumnos and representatives of the other realms, or what DM did. DM's solution was far better than the alternative. Her and Remus's plan may not work anymore, but worth it considering how the Hanovers were causing a scene and Remus didn't shut it down because he was didn't know literally what to do.
- [133:47]
Nicole
And while this is brilliant on the on DM's part, even she knows this is not the end of House Hanover and their shittiness. The rest of the House's Interactions might have ended up being, you know. You know, not outright threatening DM like the Hanovers did. But like Lexi said, the whole plan that DM and Remus had, it is out the window. Now, to be fair, House Corbois youths also saw during the dinner how it was all an act. They saw her climb, if you will. And if they told their other friends in the other houses, the news that spread like wildfire.
- [134:21]
Lexi
Ileana did see it too, and knew that DM had claws. So also, what if that was part of their strategy was to be like, all right, like, let's show her a real hand here? Because Ileana was like, no, no, no. Like, nobody's gonna fall for this little girl situation that DMs trying to do here. So Martha and her, like, really pushed her to her limit, so she would have to show. Show who she truly was, no matter what. Remus and DM's plan was very short term, so now it's even shorter. Shorter. Shorter term.
- [134:48]
Nicole
Well, and I'll even argue that that kind of helps dm, because if there was a rumor about the queen being a vicious little beast, but acting all coy and dull in public, I could see that also promoting discourse and, like, distrust with the Queen. So. But at the end of the day, the thing is that the Hanovers said and did it did not really go unnoticed. Their motives are clear. They will lose this battle, but they will prepare for war.
- [135:15]
Lexi
Remember that Marth's accusations will even plant the seed of doubt for Diem in regard to her mother. Diem knows she herself was not involved in the king's illness and death, but her mother was the palace healer and clearly had a lot of secrets. Could she maybe have something to do with the king's death, where she executed a plan, plot to overthrow a crown and place her daughter on the throne instead? Oh, my goodness. I feel for dm.
- [135:40]
Nicole
I would have thought the same thing. Right, Mom?
- [135:43]
Lexi
Well, and exactly. I feel for DM so much because she doesn't know what to believe about her mom anymore. And neither do we, because it's a very fair question. Did Orly have anything to do with King Ulther's demise? I'm leaning no because of how Orly wondered if she misread his illness in Sparks and Epilogue. And his death is connected to what Teller said in Spark, that sometimes the kindred decide when it's time for a new crown. We talked a lot about that in those first few episodes. So I think Lumnos was more so behind King Ulur's Death because she was ready for DM to be crowned. But I bet you anything Orly does want Luther on the throne so she can have a crown who is an ally. And she needed to get to Kuriel. So again, that brings up the very fair question. So we decided to ask Pen, does.
- [136:27]
Pen Cole
Arlie have anything to do with. With Ulther's illness? I almost don't want to answer this because I love it just being kind of a mystery that nobody really knows. But if you really want to know, no, she did not poison the king. I'm sure she would have, honestly, if she thought she could get away with it. But by the time she was really invited into the palace to treat the king, he was already ill. It was more of a. An effect, not really a cause. So in my mind, the illness was brought on more by, let's say, divine sources who are ready to get this show on the road.
- [137:11]
Lexi
You all. I get such a thrill. It's like getting an A on a.
- [137:15]
Nicole
Paper when I write all my stuff.
- [137:17]
Lexi
In the outline and then listen to Pen's videos. And my hunch was right, because I will a little peek behind the the scenes here. If we're asking Pen a question that we're speculating, we already always have our thoughts in the outline before even receiving Pen's response. So I promise we're not like, pretending like we're guessing and then that's not how it is whatsoever. I'm just so proud of myself while.
- [137:38]
Nicole
DM is taking a moment away from the crowd, which fair girl, I love going to ball so much. And sometimes I get a little overstimulated. So there's always like a little silent room and I'll just like go and sit in the silent room and it's so fun. I love it.
- [137:51]
Lexi
Oh, for me, especially with young children, it's like, oh, got to take the baby in somewhere and I might stay an extra few minutes.
- [138:01]
Nicole
DM overhears two voices, though. Luther and Iliana. Remember, this is DM's first time hearing Luther's voice since she sent him off to go deal with the guardian situation. And it turns out that Ileana found him first. In this interaction. Most things went exactly as you'd expect. Ileana's terrible, demeaning DM and telling Luther he deserves to be king. But of course, it's Ileana and she's coming out of an interaction where DM said Luther has nothing to say about his ex to the new queen. She's feeling a little extra pissy accusing Luther of being More ambitious than she assumed, telling him how she'll challenge DM herself. And I can't believe that claim Luther as the spoils of her victory. Bo. You suck, Eliana. And because somehow that's not far enough, she'll tell him that he's already got that whore down on her knees while you. Fuck you, Eliana. Luther, of course, defends his queen and even tells Ileana that he's always expected this bitch never knew him. Go, Luther.
- [139:04]
Lexi
I mean, he must have known this since childhood, right?
- [139:08]
Nicole
I think he tried to, like, just accept it. Like, I think he tried to.
- [139:14]
Lexi
That's the corporal way.
- [139:15]
Nicole
Yeah, exactly. And just hurts my heart. But when Ileana starts running her mouth again on the mortals and how DM grew up in a swamp again, she knows where DM lives or lived. Luther goes silent, letting Ileana just continue running her mouth about why he's so loyal to Diem when he wasn't that way with Ulther. But wait, another interesting thing happens in this interaction. Ileana says half breed twice and mortal lover once in regards to dm. Alarm, alarm, alarm. These are two phrases that out of the three are going to be on the wall at Andre's murder scene. Also, what did Diem say at the end of the previous chapter about their interaction? Action quote. House Hanover was preparing for war before this episode. I was really torn as to who Andre's murderer was going to be. But now I'm 99.999 convinced that house Hanover is part of it. Like you were saying earlier, Lex, I think it's multiple different working things here. It's two days out until Andre is murdered. But I bet you anything in those two days they put their heads together to find, you know, the meeting as a couple cover up. And then they also arranged it so that someone else would get their hands dirty on their behalf, like they'd hire us an assassin or something. As Ileana continues running her mouth, DM is ready to leave. She is sick of hearing this girl talk about her and Luther and how they'll finally be king and queen when she's gone back. But thank goodness we have Eleanor here at this scene. She arrived just in time to tell dm. Wait just a moment. Moment. Let's hear Luther out for a second. And thank God she did, because Luther says, quote, let me make myself extremely clear. If you or anyone in your family makes a move against dm, it will be the last thing you ever do. I will see to it personally that House Hanover is destroyed. Okay, now we can go.
- [141:10]
Lexi
Go back To Aemond for their first dance. And back to our big question mark next to Aemond, DM confronts him about how she's not happy with him because when they've been in front of a crowd all evening, he's turned into a pompous fake who was lying about how close they are, as if he's already claimed her as his. We all know that's not DM's style, but this was in your best interest. Come back. Yes, he acted that way to shut down speculation about who else is in her bed and to keep others from looking into that too closely, like a certain mortal she's betrothed to. And damn it, he has a good point. Like usual, he goes on emphasizing that he's not trying to trick her into marrying train him. He wants his partner to enjoy his company, and I sincerely think that he's telling the truth here. Yes, he wants DM to be his wife so he can be king consort, but he doesn't want to force her into marriage. He's trying to court her in his own Aimon kind of way, but still.
- [142:02]
Nicole
And I don't think he's wrong or necessarily lying per se like you're saying. I do think he knows exactly what to say to make DM's heart soften with him. If he starts talking about how he he wants a partner who enjoys his company, she might start feeling bad for thinking ill of him. Whether he's consciously aware that he's doing this or not, he is a master manipulator. With this being such a huge amen episode, this feels like a good moment for us to do a quick check in regarding him. An FFG Aon vibe check, if you will. Lexi, you have been. I won't say pro Aamon, but giving him the benefit of the doubt in the past. Past. Where do you stand with Aemon now?
- [142:41]
Lexi
I can't put him in a box because I think that's the point with Aemon. He's definitely not good. Luther and Taran do hate him for a reason, and we know he's capable of lying and manipulating. And yet I don't put him at the same level as Gareth or the Hanovers. I know we'll discuss this a lot next episode, but I have a hard time believing he was involved with Dame's father's death. Though his dad is a different story. Yet we know how disposable the mortals are to him because of how Henry witnessed Aamon run over a child. I think Aemon is ultimately out for Aemon. He is a product of his traumatic upbringing. He was beaten into submission by his father. And because he has weak magic, he has learned how to prove himself powerful in other ways. He is a phoenix himself who has risen from the ashes and showed he can survive and. And even thrive. And he takes pride in what he's good at, which are these manipulative but still somewhat truthful conversations. This is a pretty normal way of being among the descendant too. So, like, the fact that he is like this is not uncommon among the descendant. It just is such a culture shock for us and DM seeing how he is here. And I don't want to label him as bad because I feel like that does his complex character. A dissertation, the surface. But he sure as hell isn't good.
- [143:57]
Nicole
I agree mostly with what you're saying because I feel like he's a direct product of his upbringing. It's like that you can be raised by the same people and yet have two entirely separate personalities. Taryn decided to be everything his family wasn't. And Eamon decided to be everything his family was. I do feel like in this section of chapters we get a few glimpses into Aon's I'm going to call it True Colors. He calls Henry, who he does know his name. Name that mortal. And as we're walking through the passages and DM is thanking all the servants for their hard work this evening and all of that, Eamonn mentions how that might be the first time a Corbois has thanked them. Bro.
- [144:37]
Lexi
But that goes back to their culture.
- [144:39]
Nicole
Exactly. No, that's.
- [144:40]
Lexi
Yeah, that's what I'm saying.
- [144:41]
Nicole
But like there's a. There's that major us versus them with him. But it's not even us versus them. It is him being us. He is high on that food chain and he does not want that to go away anytime soon. It's not unlike Remus, who is very comfortable in his position and wants to do anything to keep it. Then he will go out of his way to say that they can't let mortals roam the palace. Note he laughs when he says this. And then how there's hundreds of Courbois. They can't all be important. Again, it goes back to him feeling like he's above everyone else. Offhanded comments like this are really showing his priorities. Yes, it is absolutely the culture. He is a product of his upbringing. I don't discount that. And Luther grew up in that same place. So did Taryn. And it really just shows that his priorities are not in alignment with DMs. Or what we would call a quote unquote, good person. It's like how if you've ever date, like, did you ever hear the thing of like, never date someone who's rude to a waiter?
- [145:40]
Lexi
Oh, absolutely. But hold on. I do want to challenge. Challenge you here just a little bit. Is that. Let's take Eleanor for instance here when they were walking around and meeting all the servants and stuff. Yes, she was doing. She was complimenting some of them and such. But. And she didn't mention to DM about them being corporal, which again is something that she might have. Should have said. So I think that it's just so ingrained in them that I don't know if I could say that this is really showing their priorities because what would the alternative be? Even Luther in his bonus chapter says, you know, like, putting you back in your place. Yeah, that's true. And he cringes because he's like, oh, like, I don't mean it like that, but it still is such a product of who I. Of my upbringing.
- [146:24]
Nicole
Well, he was putting on an act. He was putting on the keeper of the laws mask.
- [146:28]
Lexi
I don't think that was entirely an act.
- [146:31]
Nicole
Okay, you bring up a good point there. I hear you. And the way that I'm looking at, at this is Eamon. I'm putting him in the box with Remus and Gareth where it's like his priorities are to keep his status as high as possible.
- [146:45]
Lexi
Yes.
- [146:46]
Nicole
Versus for the greater good. That is where I am. I'm not going to say anti aiming because I think he's a really interesting character and I hope he has a open his eyes moment. And I don't know if he's going to.
- [147:00]
Lexi
While I'm agreeing with you, I'm just having fun playing devil's advocate here.
- [147:03]
Nicole
Of course you are.
- [147:04]
Lexi
Because let's take Eleanor. Eleanor showed her ambition to diem and was very much like, I want to be. I want to have a seat at the table. And I think that I can prove that I can. That's her taking her chance at power now. It's not nearly the same effect as, you know, Remus and Eamon. And I'm not putting her in that same category, but it is still. I'm just looking at it with a different character. Character who has shown their own ambitions too.
- [147:32]
Nicole
True. And Eleanor was like, how can I serve you, my queen? Whereas Eamonn is like, how can I manipulate the queen?
- [147:38]
Lexi
True. Yes, yes. To get away from an awkward question about what she asked Luther to do in Regard to Henry, DM gets caught up in dancing with Taryn. Hi Taryn.
- [147:48]
Nicole
Yay.
- [147:49]
Lexi
Haven't seen you in a minute. Taryn is Amos little brother and they absolutely hate each other. So you can imagine his reaction when DM insists there is a good guy underneath. He is uncharacteristically cold and it's obvious there is a lot that Taryn wants to say but won't. We will find out that Taryn felt betrayed by his big brother when he wouldn't protect him from their father. Aemond actually sided with their father despite having received the same treatment himself. So Luther stepped in to watch out for Taryn and be his real brother. And that really leaves an emotional scar immediately.
- [148:21]
Nicole
Going to a one on one scene with Taryn is interesting because he does automatically believe the worst in Amen. So whether Aamon is genuine or manipulative like you know we think he is, it doesn't matter because Taran will always believe it is whatever the worst possible outcome could possibly be. Is he right? Maybe. We don't know. But he's so incredibly biased. Understandably if you're in his pov. And it does make me nervous when Taran says quite quote. That's how he works. He meaning Aemon. He pretends to be your friend until he knows your weakness. Then he's your worst enemy you could ever have. You can't trust him. That sounds like analyzing someone's behavior over a brotherly feud.
- [149:02]
Lexi
Absolutely. And I think we'll see more of this side of Aemon and burn. To be honest, I would be surprised if he gets a full redemption arc. I think once he's settled into his own powerful status as the the keeper of the laws, he will start using the information he has on DM against her.
- [149:19]
Nicole
I think we have enough redemption arc juju out for Henry that I can't imagine some being left for Eamon. Woof.
- [149:33]
Lexi
We have to remember that in Heat DM is the enemy of the crowns after all. And I think that Aemond will turn on her in a second second for the good of the realm from his perspective and more so so that he can be more powerful.
- [149:46]
Nicole
Dah. I'm done talking about Aemond. Let's go to Taryn. Taryn finally gathers the courage dm. Please don't marry him. Well fuck. Luther must have told Taryn about Henry. No note how DM immediately thinks Luther told Taryn. Not Aemon, not Eleanor. Luther again. She is so conditioned to believe the worst about Luther as her coping mechanism to keep pushing him away. But an interesting turn of events. Taryn goes on and on, and DM finally breaks and says, how does he know about Henry? And she knows how it looks bad and how Henry only agreed to marry her to become king. And. Wait, who the fuck is Henry? He was talking about Aemon. Oops. Okay. I love how she tried. Eric quotes to defend Henry, saying about him only marrying her to become king is not a vote of confidence. Dm. Wow. Taryn was convinced of Aemond's act this evening. Like, that's how convincing it was. Yikes. So when it's like, surprise, there's another one, Taryn's mind goes into hyperdrive. First, he's shocked because it's immortal, and he's like, that's bad. That's bad, bad, bad. His second thought is, does Luther know? And I love this. He's worried if his best friend is out here getting. Getting his heart broken because Taryn sees how much Luther has fallen for dm. But wait, that actually makes sense now Taryn says it makes sense why Luther won't. Won't what, Taryn? I'm assuming the end of that sentence was why he won't act on his feelings.
- [151:16]
Lexi
That's exactly what I'm thinking.
- [151:17]
Nicole
Yeah, some version of that. It's so sweet that he immediately is like, I need to go find Luther. He wants to make sure his friend is okay. God, I love him.
- [151:26]
Lexi
While trying to escape a throng of people vying for the Queen's attention, DM successfully gets away from the crowd and subsequently, Perth, our boy. Poor Perth this episode. But only to get cornered by Jean Hanover, Marthe's grandson and older brother of Ileana. Spoiler alert, he sucks just as much as the rest of the Hanovers. And no way are the Hanoveras going to allow Diem to get away with her pushback and shutting down at this house. And their accusations from earlier, they came to this ball with the goal of dragon dragging DM through the mud. And they are not done yet. Marth took her shot about DM being responsible for the death of King Ulther and made sure the rumors spread among the other houses. And now Jaune is coming in for round two where he can target DM's inability to use her magic.
- [152:10]
Nicole
Starting off with the opening line, calling her Diem Bellator. Ooh, not good. Because she is Diem Corpois. This is just a little hint to DM as to how much they've researched, searched and researched about her family. Which means they know her surname. Which means it wouldn't be that hard to figure out who her father is. And remember earlier, Ileana mentioned she knows where DM grew up. This is just a neon sign pointing to the Han of Airs. Right here.
- [152:36]
Lexi
Jaune begins taunting DM to show off her magic and shut down the rumor that she can't use it. And no, what she did at the funeral with her dress and her skin, it doesn't count. That wasn't truly wielding her magic magic. In fact, maybe it was just a trick of the sun. But no, no, that can't be possible. She's the crown. She's the most powerful Lumnos descended, so she has to be able to easily prove them wrong, right?
- [152:59]
Nicole
Right. After Jaune mentions her full name, the Hanovers begin closing into a circle around dm. Huh. Where have we seen this type of behavior before? Well, from the Guardians last book, when DM was running to the army armory explosion. I love and hate this parallelism. I hate it because it's terrifying for DM and any person, specifically women. But I also love it because it's just that little reminder of the enemies on both sides.
- [153:26]
Lexi
It cannot be overstated how impossible it seems that the queen of a realm cannot use magic. We've learned how important strong magic is for the descendant and that the crown is obviously the most important descended among among them. That's why they're chosen as a crown. All descended, including these Hanovers, have grown up learning how to hone their magic. The idea of not being able to use their magic, even for the weaker descended, is incomprehensible. Make it a newly crowned queen who can't use her magic. Next level. Absolutely next level. It's embarrassing for the realm. It makes them vulnerable to threats because they need a crown who can wield their magic and in turn wield their power as the realm's ruler.
- [154:05]
Nicole
It comes as no surprise that Jaune threatens to challenge Diem at LA Challenging. First of many times he will do this move. But what is extra context for us readers is that he sees this as a duty as part of the 20 houses. Yes, I'd say that's part of his reasoning to wanting to challenge this queen. Her being half mortal is another huge reason. But let's say he's fully duty bound to challenge her and that's the whole reason so that he can sleep at night. After all, a crown without magic would make their realm vulnerable. Mortals would feel like they would have such a higher success rate attacking because they wouldn't fear a non magical queen. This is a good reminder for us readers that this Is so much bigger than just prejudice against dm. Don't get me wrong, that's there too. But they view a crown's weakness as the mortals believing they would have strength. And in this realm where they have been trampling over mortals their whole life lives that simply will not do.
- [154:58]
Lexi
Pressured by these taunts and threats and feeling like prey for these hungry wolves closing in on her, DM looks inward to call upon her godhood. Hello, can you help me? She wants to prove them wrong and make them shut up about her inability to use magic to turn this game of humiliation back on them. She recognizes the importance of showing her strength as the crown and needs to seize this opportunity before the rumors get worse. Person she's put in even more danger. She just has to give in to the voice, to her godhood. And she searches for it, asking it to come out and help her, Trying to conjure it with her emotions. But her God is silent and her emotions are numb. Dean will shortly wonder if it refused to help because her godhood knew better than for her to try and wield her magic in this ballroom full of people. She can't control her magic and could accidentally blow the place up. The exact thing she's just prevented with a guardian attack. I'm sorry. I should not be laughing. But the irony is rich. And while this may absolutely be true, you know me and how I love talking about DM's relationship with her godhood and how she'll tap into her connection with it finally during the challenging.
- [156:04]
Nicole
I love that moment where she realizes why she wasn't able to call it forth. This is at the challenging previously, like in this scene, DM is begging it to appear and see. Save her. Save her. But the magic is like, girl, I can only do so much to you. You need to learn how to save yourself. Which is fair. And she could use some help.
- [156:26]
Lexi
In this moment at the ball, she's trying to pull it out and give in to its power to prove she can wield magic. She views her godhood as separate from her, as its own entity that answers her or that she answers to with a mind of its own that calls her to fight and surrender to the power. But the magic doesn't answer her. It's part of her. And she will have to truly embrace and accept that about herself before she is ready to tap into the real power she possesses now.
- [156:52]
Nicole
It would not be a Luther entrance without something to do with the knees. When Jaune asks, dm, what will we do with you? A voice comes out of the Darkness and says nail. That's right, sir. Jaune immediately changes his demeanor. He goes pale and panicked. But just in case Jaune didn't feel terrified enough, quote, keep your hands off my queen and you will address her by her title or I will rip out your tongue with my hands and nail it to the door of house Hanover. I love a good touch her and die twist. Fun fact. This was one of the questions at our spicy trivia with the fantasy fan club, which also was the tentacles this would get this past weekend. And I was so disappointed in myself that I hesitated with this question of like, who said this quote? And Lexi got the point, but it's fine. I'm clearly over it. What with it being Luther. He doesn't just say that he's the big bad wolf and therefore protects the damsel in distress. No, he is still spreading the good word about DMs magic. Saying that Jaune would be a pile of ash and diem is too much for Jaune to handle. Bravo, sir.
- [157:58]
Lexi
Who's ready for one of the best exchanges between DM and Luther in the whole series?
- [158:04]
Nicole
Me.
- [158:06]
Lexi
Because we're to chapter 28, baby. AKA the dancing chapter. First things first. I adore how DM is like Dancing isn't half bad. The majority of the past year since her mother's disappearance, the few months since going off the flame route, and especially this last week now with the luminous crown, DMs had the weight of the world on her shoulders. She feels broken. She's inwardly a hot mess. She is barely hanging on by a thread. And she gets this time to just have fun and dance the rest of the night away. Eleanor ensures that she does have a good time by pairing her with safe descended, most of whom are elders and important figures in their houses, and coaching her through how to make a good first impression.
- [158:43]
Nicole
Which paws one of these coaches is don't talk about carrots. It's a very sensitive subject and maybe I exercised my power a little too hard, but I needed to know. I needed to know why carrots were such a sensitive subject. So you know what we did? You bet you know what we did. We reached out to Pen and we asked her our final of seven questions for this episode. And here's what she said.
- [159:11]
Pen Cole
So you want to know what makes carrots a sensitive subject? Huh? Well, you know, sometimes when you're young and you have a lot to drink, things get a little out of hand. I'd love to tell you the details, but I just could never share such a sensitive story from Someone else.
- [159:27]
Lexi
But that's not to say DM has forgotten about the Guardians and Henry. That guilt and worry is always on her mind. Yet DM is giving herself permission to have fun, to compartmentalize her very real concerns and enjoy the moment. I want to commend her for that, because I think so many of us can feel a heavy guilt of holding space for positive feelings when it feels like everything is falling apart. The two feelings enjoying a moment of happiness and never forgetting about the important problems. They can coexist. After all, DM may not have many more chances at happiness with the challenging looming over her and making plenty of enemies.
- [160:02]
Nicole
I want to take a moment and truly appreciate how hard this has been for DM to balance. She's handing the Han affairs their asses. She's dealing with courtly politics, all while knowing her friendship and her relationship with Henry is most likely over. And she's jumping at every dropped dish or loud drum, wondering if it's the Guardians coming in to attack. I am in awe of our girl this episode. She is multitasking and compartmentalizing like crazy, and I'm just really proud of her.
- [160:32]
Lexi
And she's keeping her head in the cat game with hours of introductions and schmoozing and politicking and all of that. Like, holy moly. As the final song of the evening begins, our favorite handsome Courbois comes up to Diem to secure his last dance with the Queen. Just kidding. It's Aemon calling her Diem, dear and oh, let's honor your reign and finish this night as it began together. But even as he's positioning himself as the future King Consortium, he summons her with a come. This is not the first time Aemon is bossing her around. And while it might seem flirty and commanding, like we prefer in our MMCs, I think this is Aemond's true colors really shining through. This is not MMC material here. He's not truly looking to serve Diem. He's looking to be her equal in political power, with command, like a king. And it makes me feel like that is a consort that he wants to be. Yeah.
- [161:25]
Nicole
Remember. Remember what Henry said earlier in Luther's POV saying about how, like, you serve her, I stand next to her. Yes. And I feel like that's the same mindset that Aemon has around us.
- [161:37]
Lexi
Aemon is willing to serve her to get next to her, and then that's where he's gonna have his real power. Yeah.
- [161:44]
Nicole
But don't worry, friends. Luther steps in and he Requests a dance from his queen.
- [161:50]
Lexi
I love the differences in how these two men also address dm. Aemond calls her by her first name, along with deer and honey and these pet names that makes Nicole just absolutely want to combust, while Luther calls her my queen. Just so different.
- [162:04]
Nicole
And before DM can think about how bad it looks that she's ditching her date for the man that Aemon hates most, the man who was supposed to be king, she takes his hand.
- [162:14]
Lexi
I believe this is the last time DM plays along with Aemond's games. And he doesn't go trying to cozy up to her as King Connie Consort for a while after this. I think when DM snubs Aemond here for Luther, he takes it very personally and is like, well, then, fuck you. Then. After DM's father will die, Aemond will try to comfort her. And it is so cringy, like, way worse than what we've experienced here so far. And she's so over it and it goes so badly. But here again, if House Hanover has a hand in Andre's death, could Aemon be part of it? I know I've said I don't really think that, but you always got to entertain the idea, could Aemon be part of it? Even by passing information along to Iliana.
- [162:56]
Nicole
Like he does in Heat of the Everflame, where he does tell Ileana that she was engaged to Henry. That doesn't go over very well because she's not engaged to him anymore then.
- [163:05]
Lexi
Exactly.
- [163:06]
Nicole
DM reaches for Luther's hand and he weaves their fingers together and places them joined on his chest. I am about to be a puddle. I have been waiting for this moment. Oh, my God. And for just a minute, the rest of the world fades away, leaving only the Queen and her prince. Her prince? Yes. This is the first time we get a her prince. Luckily, it will not be the last, with them finally having their moment alone. Ish. Since she sent Henry to the dungeons, it's time for a quick tldr about what they've been up to, since it's not at all a distraction for DM's skin, feeling like she's about to combust and how attracted she is to this man. We've talked a lot about what's been happening on Luther's side, about DM's side. So here's the things that we didn't talk about. Luther confirms that the guardians were sent home and that he let them keep their blades, but he threw their bombs and other weapons into the sea. It's gonna take them a while to restock. Smart thinking, Luther. He confesses he also sent Henry home from the dungeons. And knowing how much much the ache of her and Henry's relationship is weighing on her, Luther assures DM that Henry will forgive her. The way things were left off with Henry, Luther seemed to open his eyes, if you will, to the idea that maybe, just maybe, life is a little hard for DM right now. So is Luther here thinking slash hoping that it was enough to get Henry to forgive dm, or is he fibbing? I don't think it's lying lying. But is he fibbing to try and soothe that hurt? So she's not sad?
- [164:37]
Lexi
Maybe a little bit of both.
- [164:39]
Nicole
Yeah, I could see that.
- [164:40]
Lexi
Like you're saying, I don't think he's technically lying to her, but telling DM what she wants to hear, what she needs to hear to keep herself a tiny bit together. Even if Luther does not believe this himself. Or maybe this is Luther's way of opening DM's eyes to Henry and that he won't actually forgive her. But Luther is saying the opposite to help DM realize that he truth. Because he does follow up with if he loves you, he'll understand why you did it.
- [165:06]
Nicole
I almost feel like it's Luther testing Henry, if you will. Luther's given Henry everything he needs to pull his head out of his ass after their confrontation in Luther's POV chapter. And now it's time for Henry to finally show her that their love is true enough to endure anything. So it's almost like Luther is saying if he's smart, he'll forget. Now, how does Luther know that true love will conquer all? Though earlier, as Diem and Luther began their dance, there's a moment of her putting a name to the rightness she feels in his arms. She feels safe, she feels protected. She feels accepted and loved. Here in this moment, DM is seeing that love Luther is pouring out to her. In his gaze, he knows true love will endure anything because it is with her. He is so unbelievably in love with her. And he knows that that love will not be shaken by anything unlike Henry's love. It's almost like he's saying, like, I know this because I'm so in love with you. Open your eyes.
- [166:10]
Lexi
Dancing in Luther's arms and drowning in him. Because who wouldn't? Diem lets her shields down for a moment and lets herself be vulnerable. She's been so strong tonight at the ball and put up with a whole lot all While she is really, really struggling internally, she doesn't have to pretend with Luther like she does with everyone else. He gets her unfiltered thoughts because he is her safe space. So DM's walls crack open and she shares that she doesn't know what to do about any of these big problems and that she pretends to know what she's doing, but it's all fraud and she's just letting everyone down instead. And how is she supposed to take down the crowns and the descended when she can't stop making mistakes? Oh, shit.
- [166:50]
Nicole
Wasn't supposed to say that.
- [166:51]
Lexi
Her walls go down a little too much. And DM lets her biggest secret out to someone she doesn't think she should have told. By definition, she's right. She should not have just said that. To him, Luther is number one a descended. He is also the keeper of the laws. He is a powerful Corbois. He is helping her acclimate into this family and political setting and the descended world. And now she just accidentally let it slip that she wants to destroy all of that and that she's basically been a double agent this who whole week since she got the crown. But she said it because it came out so naturally, because again, Luther is her safe space.
- [167:24]
Nicole
Well, and it turns out that confession might have actually been the right thing to say. DM has been asking, if not begging Luther why he is so unshakably devoted to her. And here he finally shares that this is why. It's at least a little Billy 90% of it. Earlier in his bonus POV chapter, he wonders what would happen if he finally opened up to DM about his motives, his background, all of it. Basically, exactly what DM has been asking for him from last episode that we, we kind of gave him an L for. And he wonders if he shares all of it, will it finally close the distance between them? So Luther starts with this truth. Before DM got the crown, Luther felt an urging towards Diem. He knew it was from Lumnos. She wanted change and believes that Diem. Diem can achieve it. Again. I will give Luther credit for 6, 50, 60% of this truth. It's not all of it. And he'll later say that it was Luminos coming to him in a vision and saying specifically he must serve the Gray Eyed Queen. But that'll come later with how peace oriented Lumnos was. Luther believes wholeheartedly that he was being urged to serve DM because it will bring back the change that Lumnos wanted. And as he says here, Diem is strong. Strong and brave and resilient. And she never stops fighting. And even when DM says that those qualities make her reckless, Luther disagrees. They make you the queen that we need. And as Luther lays his forehead so it's flush with hers, he says, quote, you are my queen and I am your sword. Point me at your enemies and watch them fall. Lead this world, Diem, and I will follow you into war, into death, into the tundra of hell itself. You are the fate my heart was spared. For as long as it beats, you will never fight alone. I am melting.
- [169:15]
Lexi
As Luther offers her assurance that she is the leader this realm and world need. If they want to see peace in this land. Team feels the power of his words. She arrived to the palace with the intention to destroy the descended from inside. That's it. That was her plan. And while her goal to create justice and equality. Absolutely a million percent still stands. She's learned it's not us versus them as she originally thought. There are good hearted descended who hold the same values and goals as her. And all the rebels aren't innocent. Vance, we're looking at you. This gets DM coming to terms with the fact that yes, there is a war coming. And instead of joining an army like she initially thought about doing back in Spark, now she's like, maybe I can lead one. This is a huge step for Dam dm, who has worn the shoes of a leader for a week now. But not until this moment does she believe in herself that maybe she can lead these two people into a better society and make real change. Yes, this war will be bloody. But if there's a leader who advocates for peace and justice for the innocent, that's gotta be good, right?
- [170:18]
Nicole
DM on the edge of basically melting into a puddle and absorbing herself into Luther. His face shifts so they're never noses graze and their lips are a hair's breadth apart. And Diem gives in, asking Luther what would happen if they gave in to this thing between them. Henry who don't care. DM give in, girl. Give in. But something is itching at the back of DM's mind. Because at the dinner Luther mentions how he has no interest in marrying her, only serving her. And as the unasked question hangs between them. It feels like the DMs future was holding its breath, waiting for his answer. This is huge right here. We know that DM is someone who is shaky at best when it comes to commitment. So for her to talk about her future openly for the first time. Especially when it comes to love. This is no small thing, and you all know me. Allow me to quote the entirety of Luther's response to Diem's un unasked question.
- [171:19]
Lexi
Could I just interject real quickly? Nicole and I were recently asked to be featured for something, and it asked several things and included what was the last romance book that you read? And Nicole did not only include low, she included this entire speech too. It's like, Nicole, they didn't ask for a quote. She's like, I don't care. I'm giving them one anyway.
- [171:39]
Nicole
It's like, okay, I would be shocked if that makes it into the arch article. But just knowing that someone else has it is all I needed. Oh, my God.
- [171:48]
Lexi
Please continue.
- [171:51]
Nicole
So to answer the unasked question, why is he interested in serving her, not marrying her, Luther says, quote, every person in this room wants something from you. They look at you and they see the things they want to take. I know because I lived it. Yes, he has. Has. Eliana is literally still trying to take pieces of him, and he's seeing Henry and Eamon and feeling, and not entirely wrongly feeling that they're doing the exact same thing to her. He goes on quote, when you took the crown, I swore to be different, to serve your goals, not mine. I told myself, even if you had no one else, you would at least have me. I never wanted to become just another person who wanted to steal a picture piece of you for themselves. This is why I believe he did what he did at the dinner the other night. He said what? He said he wanted so badly to uphold this promise he made regarding DM and not wanting something from her. But he goes on quote, and I have failed. Completely, irreversibly failed. I don't just want a piece of you. I want them all. I want every breath, every last laugh, every tear, every taste of your mouth, every inch of your skin. I want to kneel at your feet. There's the knees. I want to kneel at your feet, soaked in the blood of your enemies. Then worship your body until you scream my name. Yes, dm. I want to serve you in every way a man can. I don't think I have ever read something in my life that made me stop breathing the way that this did. But I am not done because it goes on quote. I want to burn alive in that fire in your eyes. I want it to melt me down and forge me into the weapon you need me to be. How often does diamenching, fire, burning, etc. When she talks about love and passion, this is what she's wanting. This is him saying, I want the exact same explosive chemistry that you do. And lastly, quote, I want to stand by your side for the rest of my life, and I don't need you to marry me and make me a fucking king to do it. I pledged you my loyalty, and you have it, no matter your choice. But I cannot keep lying to you or to myself. I want all of you, dm. You already have all of me. I can't believe I'm about to say this next sentence, but I wonder if part of Luther is finally saying this and admitting this to DM because of the conversation he just had with Henry. He saw how much Henry was wanting to use her as a tool for the Guardians and how furious he was with her now that she's not working with him again. This is at least in Henry's eyes. And so Luther is like, I want to be open with her, saying how he wants her as is he wants her not what she can do for him. So I think that this was entirely kicked off by him finally being like, if Henry's gonna be a chicken shit, I'm not.
- [174:45]
Lexi
I think all of that and the Umbros decision ascended, kind of egging him on a little bit.
- [174:50]
Nicole
Oh, 100.
- [174:51]
Lexi
You want to tell her a few important things and. Yeah, and I'm so glad he did. In this magic field segment of the episode, let's tap into our Umbros magic. Hey, I did. I love it when it all makes sense here. And turn our full attention to important foreshadowing moments for the rest of this book and the series, including speculations for book four, Burn of the Everflam claim.
- [175:14]
Nicole
When Henry is facing off with dm, a person steps into the room. And DM assumes, based off the look on Henry's face, AKA the hatred on it, that it is Luther again. Because she still believes that Luther is the one who ran over the boy and killed him, thus leading Henry in a rage to join the Guardians. But oh no, it is Aemon who enters the room. Just another hint for us that Aemon is that descendant who killed the boy. DM thinks about the very hypothetical situation that if the roles were reversed and a group of descended had come to threaten and hurt her family, let her father and tell her there would be no one in Omarion who would stop her from killing them. Next episode, there will be an unknown group that will kill her father and DM will feel a calling to end them more than ever before. Which brings me to a question. When we finally get DM's father's career killer. Do you think DM will kill them? Because I think, yes.
- [176:09]
Lexi
Yes, I like to think so. Where her claws really come out and shows she's capable of killing those who truly deserve it, who have done unspeakable things. Kind of like what we'll see with Ron and how he tries to kill her after she lets him go. She doesn't technically purposefully kill him, but he still goes poof. But then that's also not like with Vance, after he tries to eliminate a bunch of children. And there's a whole lot of layers to all of that that I won't get into. But she lets him go. Now, she didn't know that he was trying to kill the children at that moment, but I don't think that would have changed her perspective.
- [176:41]
Nicole
No, because remember, there's also, like, the other guardians around her that if they saw a descended crown killing someone, that would just rally them behind Ophiuchai even harder.
- [176:50]
Lexi
Yeah.
- [176:51]
Nicole
So there's other things happening in that moment where we will get all into that dissection and analysis. Do I agree with her? Yes and no. But I definitely think she would kill. Unless it's Breck. And Breck is like, hey, remember that favor? I'm calling it in. Don't kill me. Thanks.
- [177:08]
Lexi
I do think that something very interesting about DM's character is how she does not want to kill. And she is so fiery and aggressive, and it's almost like. Seems like that should be her nature. But the nice thing is that it's not, because otherwise she would be kind of crazy. And so I wonder if this dm, Liam's father's killer, is going to really challenge her, even in a way she hasn't even seen yet. Which is really saying something.
- [177:35]
Nicole
I know.
- [177:36]
Lexi
And so, like, as I'm talking all this out, I actually do think that she will not personally kill Audrey's killer. Yes.
- [177:44]
Nicole
Okay. That'll be a fun bet for when we get to burn. In Luther's pov, he is looking at DM and wondering what would happen if he finally tells her every secret. And in. In his mind, the Umbros descendant says, I can read minds, but she can't. Not yet. But soon enough, she will be able to.
- [178:02]
Lexi
Remus tells Diem that House Banette provides weapons to all of Lumnos. And if she interferes with their business, then every last house will rise up to challenge her. Well, every last house, and then some will rise up to challenge her. And technically, she did interfere with his business back in of spite spark. So check, check. Eleanor lets DM in on some gossip about Jean Hanover. He's a frequent customer of the mortal brothels, which, yep, we already know from Luther's book that Zaleric is his son. But we will see this in a much bigger way. And heat. While dancing with Luther, DM imagines what the Umbros magic could do if it's unleashed in a war. Well, first of all, she will get the Umbros power. So we might see something like this from her. Obviously it would be to save lives, like here at the garden guardians, but who knows what else is possible in this war with that kind of magic at play. And also, does Ophiuchai have these kind of powers too? Because we have not seen him use the other realms magic, have we?
- [178:59]
Nicole
No, you're right. We've only seen him use, I think the silvery.
- [179:03]
Lexi
Yeah, like the kindred magic.
- [179:04]
Nicole
Yeah.
- [179:05]
Lexi
Yeah. So interesting.
- [179:07]
Nicole
What if that's the curse? Oh, oh, put a pin. Put a pin in that.
- [179:14]
Lexi
During the same conversation, Luther says if the Umbro's queen believes she can control you with what her descended learn, she'll want you on the throne. Any move she makes will come after the coronation when they're in Umbros in heat. Your cell will absolutely have a lot she wants to talk to DM about. But they won't really get into it. Not nearly enough anyway. Gosh darn it, your cell.
- [179:36]
Nicole
We wish you were still with us.
- [179:38]
Lexi
Because we have questions.
- [179:39]
Nicole
Gone too soon, my girl. Maybe she's up in the conference call and we'll be able to talk to her later. Now it is time to enter the Sophos library where each episode Lexi guides us through a world building topic to deepen our understanding of this world and the magic within it.
- [179:53]
Lexi
Today's Sophos Library topic is Gifts from other realms and magical devices. It'll be a fairly short segment and luckily we called in reinforcements with the ultimate resource to add extra content context you all. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is having the author like on call here. Oh my goodness. I love it so much. Let's start with the purpose of these other realms presence at a new crown's Ascension Ball. During the Ascension Ball, two representatives from the eight other realms bring a gift on behalf of their crown. This gift exchange is done during the beginning of the ball as an outward facing gesture of diplomacy. Because being first in line for the introductions is a sign of importance portents. But really it's a not so subtle way to tell them to leave the realm and not save the night. Most representatives do leave shortly after giving their gift to the crown because they want to get back to their own realm where they have their magic again. But it's not a requirement for them to leave as soon as possible. Alright, now let's move on to the types of coronation gifts and how they are representative of the realms. So we don't have many examples to go off of here, so we're going to do our best. Realms typically guard their magic and secrets close to the their chests, but these gifts are one of the few exceptions. The gifts are a direct reflection of each realm, though it's not specified how they work or why they can work outside the realms. More on that soon from Pen. But we do get a good look into the minds of these other crowns, getting a sense for what they think is important for a new crown to have. Fortos likes giving weapons. It's noted that Diem is not the only crown to receive one which makes sense given they are hard nosed rule obsessed soldiers whose realm is the the headquarters and training grounds of the Amarian army. Fortosian steel is from Fortos. Right. Then we have Faunos with this gift of the animals, which falls perfectly into their hunt or become the prey mentality as well as their general stance as apex predators. Then there's Arboros and we've seen this example of them gifting a potion to cure sicknesses. They are known for being the primary resource of food and medicinal herbs for the entire continent. So again, make sense. This gift example we've seen from Igneous is interesting because it's armor, but it's like protection from the infamously violent descended who roam the harsh Igneous deserts, given they are more likely to shoot first, ask questions later. I'm very curious if Umbros ever actually gives gifts or if they just give advice. I feel like this is a little bit of a unique situation with dm, but I wouldn't be extremely surprised if their gift was usually gifted cryptic advice or prophetic wisdom. Because it's a realm that can read minds and they have so much knowledge and not the sofa was kind of knowledge. Right. I don't think that this could be any more on the nose if that is their usual gift. Moving on to mirrors. We got the compass that we talked a lot about and yeah, makes sense with mirrors being sailors who love the sea, they always want to find their way home or what they desire most. So I do think that their gifts again really about direction and travel and being an Adventurer. But still knowing where home is, Sophos we actually know the most about here. I believe they are known to give out one of their super secret advanced contraptions. From speedboats to megaphones to enchanted orbs of answering, the realm of Sophos is obsessed with research, inventions and knowledge. Last but not least, we have Montios. We know that they gave DM a spelled fur coat. They live in a place that is so cold, all the humans had to to be kicked out for their own safety. And so I wonder again, cold weather, a spelled coat, again, makes total sense coming from their realm there. As far as for Lumnos gifts, all we know is that the Sophos crown was gifted by Lumnos, a beautiful jeweled blade for their coronation, which checks out for Lumnos gifting dazzling jeweled objects. Lumnos is known for its wealth on full display. And I think that pretty much any gift that they give has a lot of jewels. So now going forward, like dm, we're curious about how the magic of these items work outside their own realms. And how are they made and infused with magic? So, friends, for the first time ever, I'm going to hand these Sophos library reigns over to the world building queen herself, Pen Cole, so she can wrap up this segment with insights not included in the books.
- [183:53]
Pen Cole
So you want to know all about the coronation gifts? Well, in terms of the magic behind them, do you know how in Spark, Luther's having a conversation with DM and he's talking about how the light magic works, how it's like a magnifying glass that focuses light into a beam that can make it really hot and really destructive. And so there's kind of a logic and a science behind how that magic works. And then she says, well, what about the shadow magic? Like that, how does that work? And he says that, Ms. Bellator, is why we call it magic. I think the coronation gifts are a little bit of the same thing. There is some logic behind some of them. We already know from the necklace she gets at the end of heat or at the end of glow, that descendant can imbue a little bit of their magic into objects. And sometimes not always, not in the case of the necklace that gives the object some magical, magical power. You know, we also see things like the thing they use to announce the, the loudspeaker at the challenging and, and certain other times in the book where we see that there's a little bit of magic imbued into a physical object that gives it the power to do something that the person who wields that magic could potentially have done so. Some of the gifts are examples of that. I think some of them are passive, passed down from the kindred who have more sophisticated magic and are able to do much more complicated things. And some of them are just magic. So use your imagination, I guess we'll say in terms of whether they are always tailored or always generic. Again, it probably depends on the crown. In some of these cases, the person who receives the crown is someone well known who has been very powerful. For example, if Luther had taken the crown, I think a lot of the other realms knew about him and probably knew people in the realm that could say, oh, he likes this. Or you know, he values this. And so they might tailor a gift to that to try and curry favor with him. He in this case, they really didn't know anything about her at all, so they probably just plucked something that they had from their vault of magical objects in their palaces and hoped for the best. Is there anything else you should know about them? At least one of them will become very important in Burn.
- [186:28]
Lexi
Let's just say that Let us close.
- [186:30]
Nicole
Out this episode with skipping around the apple orchard and discussing our favorite moments from this stretch of chapters.
- [186:36]
Lexi
When Avin hears yelling, he says, a hundred gold marks. Says, it's my brother. Well, ha. It was Henry. So Eamon, you owe DM 100 gold marks. Nobody's gonna care.
- [186:46]
Nicole
But I did some favorite Taran lines calling a min a quote, ugly growth on DM's arm. Then when Eamon tells him to go kiss a cousin's ass or something. Something Taran says, quote. Now that you mention it, cousin Diem does have quite a nice round little and then he gets cut off. No wonder him and Diem get along so well. Every moment of Luther's internal monologue around DM and the love he feels that she deserves and just honestly, everything from his pov. It's so good. And I'd be lying if Luther's internal monologue about Henry didn't make me just giddy. I love how he's like, I want want to throat punch this guy, but I won't. I kind of wish you did. Less of a favorite moment, but this is more of a huh. Interesting comparison. After Aon tells Taryn to go off and be a good little sheep, DM almost goes into a full lecture with Aemon about sibling love and loyalty. No spoilers. But this does remind me a lot of our coverage in later books around Feyre in the ACOTAR series. It's like dm. Because she had a happy family and loves her siblings, she believes that everyone should. And frankly, that's not the case sometimes.
- [187:59]
Lexi
What a good call out. Oh my gosh, I love that.
- [188:02]
Nicole
During the dance portion of the evening, Luther kept getting approached by women. Specifically Ileana girl. Take a hint. But Luther finally relents with Lily and dances a fun, jaunty tune with his little sister. I may have had a lot to say about Eamon this episode and I'm sure I'm not done. I'm sure I'll continue on with episodes five.
- [188:22]
Lexi
I don't know what else to say about him at this point.
- [188:25]
Nicole
I'll have a lot in heat when we're in. Oh, that's different. Yeah, but I do love that he's described as prancing in his thick feather cape.
- [188:35]
Lexi
Like I just see he's such a show pony.
- [188:40]
Nicole
He is such a show pony.
- [188:41]
Lexi
We did it. Friends, thank you so much for listening TO episodes Episode 4 of Our Glow of the Everflame Deep Dive.
- [188:48]
Nicole
Next Monday, we are continuing with Glow of The Everflame episode five, chapters 29 through 37. Oh, get your tissues out friends, and your detective hats on for this episode.
- [189:00]
Lexi
Let's give the biggest warm welcome, welcome, welcome to our newest Crowns Council members.
- [189:06]
Nicole
Thank you so much for joining Brittany K, Sarah S, Rebecca A and Liz B.
- [189:12]
Lexi
Welcome, welcome, welcome.
- [189:14]
Nicole
We appreciate you, you all so, so, so much. Thank you for supporting the show.
- [189:18]
Lexi
Really, thank you so much for being part of this community. It means everything to us and friends. If you're like, hey, I want my name shouted on the podcast and to be shouted with love too, join our fan club@Fantasy Fangirls.com Fan Club Link is also in the show. Notes.
- [189:32]
Nicole
Thank you as always to our top SoFo scholar, aka our content researcher Brooke and our executive producer aka our sanity manager, Manager Hayden.
- [189:42]
Lexi
We are very active on social media with weekly trivia games and lots more. So please be sure to follow us on Instagram and slash or tick tock at fantasy fangirlspod. And if you're watching this on YouTube or want to watch on YouTube, I literally wore a giant pink squid hat today with a princess crown that I got from my daughter's dress up closet. Please be sure to hit that subscribe button to keep following along. We are so close to 50,000 and you know us, we don't really talk about numbers but that's a really big milestone and we would love for you to contribute and help us out with it.
- [190:14]
Nicole
While you are smashing buttons, please please, please hit that five star button on whatever podcasting platform you are listening on. And friendly reminder, don't just do it for fantasy fangirls, although please do it for fantasy fangirls. But also please, please, please do this for whatever shows you listen to on the reg. It is so helpful for your fellow podcasters out there. And last but not least, share this episode with your fellow Ever Flame friends. If you all had a bet as to how many times we'd say balls expert this episode, I honestly don't know.
- [190:43]
Lexi
I have no idea. I didn't keep Honestly, not as many as I thought.
- [190:45]
Nicole
Not as many as I thought either. I think we just got too mad at Eamon. But if you want to text this episode to their to your friends group and see who won, let us know.
- [190:54]
Lexi
Yeah, let us know.
- [190:55]
Nicole
Let us know.
- [190:56]
Lexi
Bye everybody. Thank you so much.
- [190:59]
Nicole
Soon the suit is emblazoned with flame squirts.
- [191:03]
Lexi
I was very much wondering what you were trying to say there.
- [191:06]
Nicole
I want to say spurts. We're going to go with spurts with.
- [191:15]
Lexi
Flames squirting out huge.
- [191:23]
Nicole
Hey Tinsley, why don't we use Ezcator to order food for staff lunches? Because my 46 page acronym system is so easy. I just have to salad, stay alert to late arriving deliveries, pie put in expenses and guga pie go out and get everyone's preferences and allergy information. That's supposed to be simple. No, simple is Steven, Irma and Margie prefer lasagna and empanadas. Omg. No need to make work life more complicated. Just use EasyCater.
- [191:50]
Lexi
The easy way to get food for work. ACAS power the World's Best Podcasts here's.
- [191:59]
Nicole
The show that we recommend. Do you like being educated on things? Entertain but don't matter. Well then you need to be listening to the Podcast with Knox and Jamie. Every Wednesday we put together an episode dedicated to delightful idiocy to give your brain a break from all the serious and important stuff. Whether we're deep diving a classic movie, dissecting the true meanings behind the newest slang, or dunking on our own listeners.
- [192:21]
Lexi
So they're both bad takes or cringy.
- [192:22]
Nicole
Stories, we always approach our topics with humor and just a little bit of side eye. And we end every episode with recommendations.
- [192:28]
Lexi
On all the best new movies, books.
- [192:29]
Nicole
TV shows or music. To find out more, just search up the Podcast with Knox and Jamie wherever you listen to podcasts and prepare to make Wednesday your new favorite day of the week.
- [192:41]
Lexi
ACAST helps creators launch, grow and monetize their podcasts everywhere.
- [192:47]
Nicole
Acast.com.