Onyx Storm Theories & Predictions LIVE From DENVER

Summary

Fantasy Fangirls Podcast: Onyx Storm Theories & Predictions LIVE From DENVER

Host Information:

• Hosts: Nicole and Lexi, the Fantasy Fangirls
• Podcast: Fantasy Fangirls by QCODE
• Current Focus: A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas
• Episode Title: Onyx Storm Theories & Predictions LIVE From DENVER
• Release Date: November 6, 2024

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1. Introduction to the Live Show

The Fantasy Fangirls sisters, Nicole and Lexi, kick off their first-ever standalone live show with palpable excitement. Setting the stage for an engaging discussion, they express gratitude toward their audience, many of whom have traveled from various places to join the event.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [01:24]: "Podcast where two sisters dive deep into beloved fantasy lore, characters, themed series and more."
• Nicole [01:40]: "I'm Nicole."

2. Content Warnings and Episode Overview

Acknowledging their audience's dedication, Nicole and Lexi issue content warnings for major spoilers spanning the entire ACOTAR series, including plot twists and key developments from Iron Flame and Fourth Wing. They emphasize the necessity of being familiar with specific terms and lore to fully appreciate the upcoming discussion.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [02:53]: "But before we kick off tonight's live show about our biggest questions going into Onyx Storm, we of course need to give a few content warnings."

3. Battle Brief: Summarizing Previous Books

In a dynamic segment titled "Battle Brief Class with Professor Nicole," Nicole provides a comprehensive summary of the events from the first two books, Fourth Wing and Iron Flame. She recounts Violet Sorengale's journey from a scribe trainee to a formidable Dragon Rider, highlighting key moments such as her interactions with Zaden, the challenges she faces at Bestgaeth War College, and pivotal battles against the Venin.

Notable Quotes:

• Nicole [06:04]: "Book one, Fourth Wing. Violet Sorengale has been training her whole life to be a scribe, but she has been thrust into the Deadly Dragon Riders quadrant at Bestgaeth War College."
• Lexi [09:11]: "Forced proximity."

4. Theories and Predictions for Onyx Storm

Transitioning to theories about the upcoming third book, Nicole and Lexi delve into possibilities regarding the book's opening, character developments, and overarching plotlines. They speculate on where the story might begin, how characters like Zaden will evolve, and the potential introduction of new allies from the Isle Kingdoms.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [18:12]: "All right, friends, it is time to tap into our signet powers and discuss our biggest questions and predictions."
• Nicole [19:26]: "I definitely think we're gonna wake up Justin. Violet's POV."

5. Zaden's Transformation and the Venon Threat

A significant portion of the discussion centers around Zaden's transformation into a Venon and its implications for the narrative. The sisters explore the stages of becoming a Venon, Zaden's internal struggles, and how his newfound powers might affect his relationship with Violet and other characters.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [27:04]: "Mini archive's over just right now."
• Nicole [28:11]: "He's gonna go in this order. He's gonna be like, I can do it. Mental power."

6. The Isle Kingdoms and the Seventh Dragon Den

Nicole and Lexi theorize about the significance of the Isle Kingdoms in Onyx Storm, positing that this location may hold crucial allies or the elusive seventh dragon den. They discuss historical contexts, character motivations, and the potential challenges Violet and her crew might face in recruiting support from these unfamiliar lands.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [38:30]: "I think that the seventh dragon den is originally from the Barrens and there's something to that with the connection of the sevent generation being the key to defeating the Venin."
• Nicole [38:58]: "If you win my bet, what do you get? I'm gonna make sure you wear a T-shirt of my choosing."

7. Papa Sorrengale's Research and Hidden Secrets

The conversation shifts to Papa Sorrengale's enigmatic research, which appears to be intertwined with the mysteries of the Feather Tales and the second Krovlin Uprising. The sisters hypothesize about hidden research notes, potential betrayals, and how these elements might surface in the plot to influence the protagonists' quest against the Venin.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [63:25]: "So we have to wonder if Naolin is a Vinn in two."
• Nicole [73:21]: "We think that Daddy Atos is a possibility."

8. Rapid Fire Segment: Shipping and Character Outcomes

In a lively rapid-fire segment, Nicole and Lexi engage their audience with shipping predictions and discussions about which characters might face perilous fates in the upcoming book. Topics include potential romantic pairings, character deaths, and the emotional impact of these events.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [77:01]: "I'm really worried about Imogen. I know."
• Nicole [83:24]: "How many sex scenes are we getting? Hi, mom and dad."

9. The Mystery of Violet's Second Signet

Concluding their analytical discourse, Nicole and Lexi speculate on the nature of Violet Sorengale's second signet. Drawing from textual evidence and character traits, they debate its manifestation and significance, contemplating how it reflects Violet’s core needs and her evolving role within the story.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [85:49]: "I think it's gonna be like this. The audience is going to figure out, holy shit, her second signet is something to do with the mind."
• Nicole [90:18]: "I think it's gonna say like this. The audience is gonna figure out, holy shit, her second signet is something to do with the mind."

10. Closing Remarks and Future Episodes

As the live show draws to a close, Nicole and Lexi extend their gratitude to attendees and supporters. They encourage new listeners to subscribe and stay tuned for upcoming episodes, promising extensive coverage and in-depth analysis as Onyx Storm approaches its release.

Notable Quotes:

• Lexi [97:06]: "If you are new to Fantasy fangirls, Hi."
• Nicole [98:24]: "Thank you."

Conclusion

In this episode, Nicole and Lexi of Fantasy Fangirls deliver an exhaustive and engaging exploration of past events in the ACOTAR series while unraveling complex theories and predictions for the highly anticipated Onyx Storm. Their dynamic discussion, enriched with insightful quotes and thoughtful speculation, provides both seasoned fans and newcomers with a comprehensive understanding of the series' intricate lore and character dynamics.

Transcript

[Nicole]

This episode is brought to you by Google Gemini. With the Gemini app, you can talk live and have a real time conversation with an AI assistant. It's great for all kinds of things like if you want to practice for an upcoming interview, ask for advice on things to do in a new city, or brainstorm creative ideas. And by the way, this script was actually read by Gemini. Download the Gemini app for iOS and Android today. Must be 18 to use Gemini Live. This episode is brought to you by Dutch Bros. Big smiles, rocking tunes and epic drinks. Dutch Bros is all about you choose from a variety of customizable handcrafted beverages like our Rebel energy drinks, coffees, teas and more. Download the Dutch Bros app for a free medium drink. Plus find your nearest shop, order ahead and start earning rewards offer valid for new app users only. Free medium drink Reward upon registration, 14 day expiration terms apply. See DutchBros. Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Fantasy Fangirls.

[Lexi]

Podcast where two sisters dive deep into beloved fantasy lore, characters, themed series and more. Yes, I'm Lexi.

[Nicole]

I'm Nicole.

[Lexi]

And we are the Fantasy Fangirls. Thank you so much for being here tonight.

[Nicole]

Woo.

[Lexi]

All right, well, fantastic.

[Nicole]

Thank you so much for being here for our first ever standalone live show. This is insane. Oh my God.

[Lexi]

All right. And today we are going to be talking all things Onyx Storm. Theories, predictions, all that fun. As most of you know, hopefully most of you know, Onyx Storm is the third book in the Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros and it is coming out on January 21st, which is.

[Nicole]

Which is 93 days away in case anyone is counting.

[Lexi]

One of our absolute favorite things about just speculating what's next in books, especially when there are as many Easter eggs and dots to connect like in the Empyrean series, is just how it gets us. Community. All of us creatively thinking and problem solving in just new and unique ways. And we're just so excited to take you along for tonight's ride.

[Nicole]

So this evening, let's have some fun. Let's talk about one of our favorite fantasy series, its characters. What might happen next? What the heck's going to happen with Zayd? We're going to cover it all.

[Lexi]

But before we kick off tonight's live show about our biggest questions going into Onyx Storm, we of course need to give a few content warnings. That's what we do. Most importantly, spoilers for all of Iron Flame and fourth Wing. It's a little too late. I cannot stress this enough. We will be talking about plot twists and the end of Iron Flame. Anything from the books, Interviews with Reki Yarros, Onyx Storm, blurb, the new, the back cover that just dropped as well. It's all on the table, everybody.

[Nicole]

So with all of that said, if you do know what I say when I say Papa Sor and Gails research. Yeah. Or the Isle Kingdoms. If you don't know what those mean, you're in for a very confusing next 90 minutes. I'd say say go finish the series. We'll be here when you're done. But we won't.

[Lexi]

We won't.

[Nicole]

So grab a drink.

[Lexi]

Grab two drinks, sit back, draw it. You're probably here to support a loved one. Like our parents.

[Nicole]

They're here tonight. Yay.

[Lexi]

Which makes this next part a little bit awkward because if you are familiar with fantasy fangirls, you know that we are adults who say adult things about adult books. In other words, friends, this pot and live show is rated R.

[Nicole]

We are absolutely going to be placing a bet on how many sex scenes there's going to be in Onyx Storm. So please be mindful of those little listening ears. Except for you're all most likely 21, so I'm going to rephrase. Please be mindful of the parental listening ears. Sorry, mom and dad.

[Lexi]

And lastly, just thank you. Thank you all so much for being here. I know we already said that, but it is just so wonderful seeing everyone. We know a lot of you flew in. A few people internationally.

[Nicole]

Like, yes. Wow.

[Lexi]

Like, thank you so much and we hope you enjoyed tonight's show. Cheers.

[Nicole]

And now, all this time, Lexi, all this time you've been convincing everyone you're the hero and now you're the villain. Especially in their story. So welcome to our fucked up podcast. I guess we're sisters now.

[Lexi]

Just now.

[Nicole]

Just now. Just now.

[Lexi]

Yeah. All right, so, Nicole, I know we gave a spoiler warning, but I have a feeling this audience, and especially the people that they dragged along with them could use a quick refresher about what happens in Iron Flame and Fourth Wing. Am I right, everybody?

[Nicole]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

What do you think about a two book battle brief? Can you do it? Are you up for it?

[Nicole]

Challenge accepted.

[Lexi]

All right, everybody, let's get ready for battle brief class with Professor Nicole where she will summarize what happens in Fourth Wing and Iron Flame.

[Nicole]

Take it away. Book one, Fourth Wing. Violet Sorengale has been training her whole life to be a scribe, but she has been thrust. Yeah, sorry, sorry. Into the Deadly Dragon Riders quadrant at Bestgaeth War College. Thank you, Mama Sorengale Our story opens on Conscription day where Violet must walk the parapet, a 200 foot high balance beam that would make even Simone Biles say no, I'm good. But do not worry. Violet calms herself down by talking out loud about the 400 year war that Navarre has had with the evil poor meal exposition. You love to see it. Violet makes it across. Huzzah. And after saying a quick hey there, hi there ho there to her old best friend, God fucking dammit Dane. Violet is into her wings. Sadly not by a talking hat. But what's this? The beautiful, handsome, brooding, tattooed shadow daddy wing leader has it out for the Soren Gales. But he moves her into Gryffindor. Just kidding. He moves her into fourth wing. Isn't that the name of this book? Yay. But now it's time for school. So get ready for a classic months long training montage filled with sneakily poisoning her opponents on the mat, climbing up the deadly gauntlet with the giant hanging ball, daily classes with the 100% absolutely accurate information that is not at all being censored by leadership. And of course avoiding oogling the wing leader, who according to GFDD definitely has it out to kill her. But now it's threshing day. One of the most lethal days for all first years where they must go into the valley and bond one of the coveted coveted and flame happy dragons. Violet notices. Yes, Violet notices a group of overly confident douche canoes who are taking a bit of a different approach to thrashing by going off and murdering a tiny golden dragon.

[Lexi]

What could go wrong?

[Nicole]

Violet comes to the tiny golden dragon's aid and fights off the dragon assassins until something huge lands behind her. And no, Lex, it's not the giant hanging ball. It is our favorite curmudgeon of a dragon. He says. I choose you, Pikachu and the dragon Taryn and Violet go to add themselves to the dragon roster. But that tiny golden dragon just won't leave Violet alone because she also chooses Violet Sorengail. But the twists keep on twisting. Her curmudgeon of a dragon is mated to Sigale wing leader Zayden's dragon. And now their lives are interdependent, meaning that if she dies, it sets off a chain reaction that leads to his death as well, which. Which means our shadow daddy Zaden has to keep Violet, his definite mortal enemy, alive. Oh no.

[Lexi]

Forced proximity.

[Nicole]

Shoot. There's one more threshing surprise though. GFDD kisses Violet and it's about as awkward as kissing your cousin.

[Lexi]

Moving on.

[Nicole]

Moving On. After several cadets attempt to murder Violet in her sleep, Satan says no more. So he assigns her a bodyguard. Golden retriever, Goodest boy, Leon. Marv. But the force proximity trope has been working over time. Because while their very mated dragons are off. Bang bang. Draggedy bangin. Violet, Violet and Zaden share a passionate first kiss. Was that lightning or a euphemism?

[Lexi]

Wink.

[Nicole]

Several more months of training go by and final exams are underway in the form of war games. Violet, in her drive to protect her bodyguard goodest boy Liam, gets a surge of power and unleashes her signet, killing Jack fucking Barlow with a lightning bolt. But don't worry, Lexi. Jack Barlow is definitely dead.

[Lexi]

Oh yes. I died on that hill.

[Nicole]

Absolutely. Later that night, wanting to forget all her new deadly problems, Zaden goes to Violet's room and bang, bang, bangity bang. I said Aissata. I never lost control like that.

[Lexi]

Bang.

[Nicole]

Sorry lovebirds though, we gotta interrupt this sex marathon because it's final Exam WarGames Round 2. Zayden gets together a group of all marked ones and goes off beyond the Nevarian wards to Athene, where they meet up with the evil poor Melian Griffin flyers. But what's this? Zaden's a fucking traitor to Nevarre and has been sneaking weapons to their enemy.

[Lexi]

Oh dear.

[Nicole]

But wait, there's more. Those same Griffin flyers have been losing to the absolutely not folklore Venon. Power hungry dark wielders who have severe pink eye problems. And to make matters worse, there's a Vord of Hed Ven Headen. There's a Vord of ven What? There's a horde of venom coming this way.

[Lexi]

I'm just gonna sit here all night and just listen to her.

[Nicole]

No, you're not. But wait. It's a little suspicious that Zaden and co got sent here to this exact location where the Vennonar a comin right? Well remember that old best friend? Turns out that memory stealing limp dick sold out Zaden to leadership. God fucking damn it, Dane. Our crew fights for their lives against the scary red eyed Venin and their two legged wyvern. But sadly, so sadly, not all make it out of this fight. Including our goodest boy bodyguard Liam. Mari, it's been our honor.

[Lexi]

No.

[Nicole]

After taking a poisoned dagger to the kidney, Violet rallies just enough to win the battle using her lightning signet. But where do these Victors take the on the brink of death Violet to go get healed. Zaden has an idea. Waking up in Orisha, which is thought to be burned to Ash Violet is mended. But by who? By he's supposed to be dead. Violet's older brother Brennan. Welcome to the revolution, Violet. Book two. Iron Flame. The crew that fought in Athene heads back to Basgaith with are no longer Baby and Darna. No. She is a sassy teenager now arriving just in time for graduation. And to convince leadership that they are not indeed dead. These we are introduced to the Vice Commandant Dolores Umbridge. It is actually Burton, Veresh and Tldr. Oh you suck, Tldr. Homeboy is bad news. Literally getting kicked out of his previous job for being too excited about torture. So they put him in charge of students. Cause that makes sense. Zaden learns his post graduation assignment is going to have him and Violet doing long distance with their dragons. Getting to see each other only every seven days. And after weeks of Violet asking for more information and Zaden unable to share his sneaky secrets, our lovebirds are at an impasse that only a hot shower can fix. But one question can be answered. How do they get up their own wards in Oratia? Have you tried turning them back on and off again? Violet finds out that there's a diary from one of the first six, the OG wartstone makers. And it can tell her how to raise the wards. Yay. Yay. And through a quick mission, Kim possible archives heist to obtain the book. But what's the sitch? Uh oh. She gets caught. Violet is tortured by the Vice Commandant for days with only the hallucination of her dead best friend, goodest boy Liam to keep her company. But finally GFDD is brought in to Google search Violet's memories. But as in I'm sorry for sending you and your friends to your death last book gift. Zaden Dane instead stabs Vice Commandant.

[Lexi]

Drama.

[Nicole]

I think he doesn't stab him, but I see a.

[Lexi]

No.

[Nicole]

Satan arrives. And after killing their way out of the torture chamber, Zaden, Violet and GFDD spill the tea to all the cadets about leadership covering up the Venin. And those who say fuck that shit leave with our crew to Oratia. Sorry Brennan, you said you needed more riders. What else do they need? Weapons and a luminary to make them so. It's time for a field trip to Poromiel. In addition to negotiating for a luminary, we also get to know a new character. God fucking dammit.

[Lexi]

Cat.

[Nicole]

Not a real cat, but instead a griffin flyer, a robe aficionado and Zaden's bitch of an ex girlfriend. The deal is struck. You can have a luminary if you also take the Griffin Flyer students who survived their school getting overtaken by Venon, Griffin Flyers and Dragon riders under one academic system, it's the best of both worlds. But it looks like leadership is taking more inspiration from Hannah Montana. Because it's a climb up the cliffs of Dralor. Violet's confidence is being shaken, thanks to Cat's ability to use mind work to enhance her jealousy. So, being the kind, courteous partner that Zaden is, he shows her just how much she and only she is on his mind. And bang, bang, bang, bang. I said I did. Bangity bangity, bang. But it looks like the secrets are not over. And boy, oh boy, what a secret Zaden has been keeping. Because it turns out, in addition to wielding shadows, our shadow daddy is also an intrinsic daddy. But that's a bad thing. So being the only banned signet that has an immediate death sentence for any dragon rider. But enough trouble in paradise. We have an ending battle to get to. The Venin are coming to attack Bezgaeth. So our crew rushes back to school just in time for. Wait, who's that? It's definitely not dead Jack fucking Barlow. And he's also gone Venon. And he destroys the Nevarian wards. Bad Jack fucking Barlow. What's the only way to get the wards back up? The seven dragon dens must also breathe fire on the Wardstone. But wait, there's only six dragon dens. And Darna says, hold my teenage appropriate, non alcoholic beer. But first, the Wardstone must be imbued. So Mama Sorngale is going to sacrifice herself.

[Lexi]

No, there must be another way.

[Nicole]

There's not. So Mama Sorrengail uses the last of her life force to charge the charge the Wardstone. And with the Wardstone humming away, all seven dragons can breathe fire on it. And with that tragedy over and the venom yeeting at a Navarre. That's the ending of the book, right? Right?

[Lexi]

No, no.

[Nicole]

Violent.

[Lexi]

I mean, yes. That is the end, everybody. There you go. There we go.

[Nicole]

Violet goes to seek out Zaden. And when her eyes meet his, there's a red rim around the virus. And no, he is not high.

[Lexi]

Are we sure about that?

[Nicole]

I am positive about that. Our morally gray shadow daddy has officially gone Venice.

[Lexi]

Dun dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun.

[Nicole]

Wow.

[Lexi]

Give it up for Nicole.

[Nicole]

Good job.

[Lexi]

All right, friends, it is time to tap into our signet powers and discuss our biggest questions and predictions. Heading into Onyx Storm, now that we are all caught up, thanks to battle brief with Nicole.

[Nicole]

So we have to warm it up with a very straightforward low stakes question.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Take it away.

[Lexi]

So how do we think Onyx Storm is going to open? I'll kick us off. You just talked a lot, so I'll do a little bit of talking now. So I think it'll pick up within a day or two of Iron Flames ending. And I also don't think it'll immediately be Zaden and Violet on the page together, at least just right away. Maybe it'll be at like Sawyer's bedside after he had surgery. And that's where we'll get the inner monologue. He's okay, everybody.

[Nicole]

I mean, he lost a leg, but.

[Lexi]

He'S okay, you know. And you know, like. And we'll get that, you know, nice little inner monologue to catch us all up. So what's happened since the battle? And then I think, you know, maybe when she's thinking to herself about Andarna and the seventh den, we'll get a Taryn interruption, the way that he does those. And we'll learn he's all caught up now too, with that big knowledge. And yay, everybody's all caught up. There you go. Done.

[Nicole]

I definitely think we're gonna wake up Justin. Violet's pov. I don't think she's gonna be around Zaden. I definite. I do think Violet's gonna be in solitude though. I could also see her like walking up to the flight field to meet with Taryn and. And Darna because like, like you said, we haven't gotten Taryn's like, what the fuck? And Darna, what is this? Like we haven't gotten anything of what's going on in his head. I do wonder if he's going to be like, I got left out again.

[Lexi]

Are you so serious? Yeah. I think that he'll understand that there were dragon secrets because he understands that's how it goes. But he'll be annoyed that he wasn't in on them. Maybe.

[Nicole]

Yeah, that's about right.

[Lexi]

He'll be a little preoccupied with Sigail's issues.

[Nicole]

Ooh, yeah, talk about trouble in paradise. But I also wonder if we're gonna like, open up with Violet and maybe even Brennan. Cause we don't know where Mira is going through Lilith's stuff. Cause she's dead and so TL doctor. But if it's like them going through their mom's stuff and just kind of like dealing with her death, I could definitely see it going. That's how the book opens.

[Lexi]

So knowing that Mira did. She disappeared and we don't know where she is at the very ending. I am pretty convinced that. Pretty convinced, not completely convinced that she went to go find her mom's stuff and she's going through her belongings to get a few things.

[Nicole]

So what do you think she would take. Ooh, sorry, I'm going off outline.

[Lexi]

Yeah, you went off notes. Sorry, I. I don't know. I don't know if she even knows exactly, but I could see her being drawn to looking.

[Nicole]

Yeah. Because they've always been the closest. For sure. Now another thing is thinking, because I saw this on Reddit and I'm sorry I don't have the credit here, but opening up at Lilith's, I'll call it funeral. But you had a good point here.

[Lexi]

Well, so my question was, do generals even have funerals? Like, nobody really has funerals. That's kind of the whole point is to not make a big deal of it. Yeah, you just burn their belongings and things like that. So I like the idea of it opening in the aftermath of her mother's death, but like, I could see it being like the really long death roll and her mom's included in that. Or maybe she just gets a little eulogy because she was the general. But yeah, I could see it like.

[Nicole]

Opening at the formation right after the morning after the fight where it's just like this long list of names and we're just in Violet's head of. Just like, this is not what we're supposed to be doing. We're supposed to be looking for something. Like, because we know from. We're going, we're going to talk about this quite a bit today. Like, we know from Rebecca that she has. She, meaning Violet, has one goal this entire book. And we're both in agreement that that doesn't just mean curing Xaden. We think that's under the umbrella for sure. But like having that one goal of bettering Navarre, I'll call it better. Like, you know, saving the world.

[Lexi]

Saving the world.

[Nicole]

Just normal 21 year old stuff. But I definitely think that we're gonna. I could definitely see us opening at the formation the morning after. And it's just like it really hits the reader of like, whoa, this is about to be a dark book.

[Lexi]

Well, and you also think that she's going to have her one goal immediately, like at the get go.

[Nicole]

Right? I won't say at the get go. I'll say within 24 hours. So get go. Whoa.

[Lexi]

Because I think she'll need a few chapters to process through her feelings about everything specifically regarding Zaden. But let's talk about Zayden here a little bit. Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I don't think Zayden being Venon will be as big of a jaw dropping deal just in the beginning of the book. They have so many other problems going on. Yes, it will definitely be front and to the side. Maybe not front and centered, but kind of to the side a little bit. Yeah. There's just so many other high stakes problems. And I do think that her one goal will be needing more allies because they know that they need to defeat the Venon for good versus just hiding behind the wards like Navarro has always been doing. And so she was. Violet was thinking short term in Iron Flame, you know, raising the other Wardstone and such. And in Onyx Storm, she'll be focused on the long term solutions to saving the world for good.

[Nicole]

And I also, I think we can pretty much confirm we'll say like 90%. Cause we're not entirely sure that we are going to be at Bezgaeth, at least in the opening of the book. Because in the back of the book blurb, which caused us to add much more to the outline. We, we know we're in an amphitheater doing sparring, I'll call it, with Zaden and Violet demonstrating her powers. So there's cadets around. So like there's an audience like this so I could see. Because that amphitheater. I did my little ebook search throughout the entire book and the only time amphitheater is mentioned is in rsc.

[Lexi]

Right?

[Nicole]

Yeah.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

So we've only ever seen it as Best Gaiet. So I think it's safe to assume we are at Besieged and Zaden is Professor Zaden now.

[Lexi]

But you think like actually or just like in an unconformal setting?

[Nicole]

I think, hey, I've killed a lot of Venom. Here's how to do it.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

That's professor in my mind. Okay, with all of this said, let's get into probably the most popular question that is on everybody's minds going into Onyx Storm, and that is, what is Zaden?

[Lexi]

Zaden?

[Nicole]

What's going to happen, especially now that homeboy is Venom.

[Lexi]

Well, before we get into this meaty question, who's ready for a mini archives?

[Nicole]

Yeah. Yes.

[Lexi]

I have my archives hat. So here is what we know about Venon as it directly relates to Zaden. First of all, am I wearing this right?

[Nicole]

Sure.

[Lexi]

Is it other way? It looks good. Okay, cool. Yeah. All right. So there are four stages of being a Venin based on age and extension. Experience. According to iron flame, chapter 47's epigraph, the lowest level Venin, are initiates who have reddish rings around their eyes that come and go depending on how often they drain or apparently how often, you know, they smoke. Whatever. These are beginner Venin, so Zaden is considered an initiate. Jack is as well. And we can assume any secret Venin within Navarre is an initiate because they haven't drained recently. They therefore look normal. Next. Next level, we have Asymms, whose eyes fluctuate in degrees of red and their veins distend when riled. Most of the venom fighters Violet has gone up against are Asymms. Then we have the Sages, who are the teachers, and they're responsible for the Asams. Their eyes are permanently red veins perpetually distended towards their temple, you know, which expand with age. And lastly, we have the dreaded Mavens, the Venon Generals, who we don't know anything about because one has never been caught. Once you draw from the source once, you can never give back what's taken. Magic likes all things imbalance, as we know. And when you pull power that isn't yours to take, you pay for it with your soul. Dun, dun, dun. In fact, you'll even hunger for more power. Rebecca Yarros has compared it to an addiction, which Zaden certainly feels that craving for power to despite not wanting to in his POV chapter. So there's also the question of how much of your soul do you lose from drawing magic? Only a few times. Like, for instance, how much did Zaden lose? How much? What are the consequences that he's going to face by only pulling from the source once or even twice or so on and so forth. How slippery of a slope is it? So, yeah, so that's a big question there. Now we also know Venon's magical abilities do seem stronger, based off of Zayn's POV chapter and the Chapter 61 epigraph about a Venon having better eyesight. So there's like that farsight there. And then, of course, Zaden, his shadows seem more strong. So it's like, ooh, what's going to happen with this intrinsic ability?

[Nicole]

I was going to say Zaden has two signets, so we're about what spoilers.

[Lexi]

Mini archive's over just right now.

[Nicole]

So with Zaden having two signets and them being super enhanced, we're about to see some unhinged level of intrinsic powers. I feel like from him too, in addition to. Because I feel like on the back of the blurb, we Saw a little bit of his shadow powers being. I won't even say extra because we haven't really, like, fully seen him, other than Resin, but that's gonna be really exciting.

[Lexi]

I'm very Azriel with, like, sneaking off into the shadows spoilers. Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. Wrong book.

[Nicole]

So, with all of this in mind, let's dive into the question of what's gonna happen with Zaden and being Venon. A lot of the fandom is wondering if Zaden is gonna actually distance himself from Violet. And, yeah, I personally could see Zaden, I'll say, emotionally distancing himself from Violet, basically, like, to protect her from dealing with his new shit and all that good stuff, and basically saying, I don't want to hurt you more than I now have by doing this bad, bad thing.

[Lexi]

I thought that too. Except then the. The Onyx Storm excerpt came out, and he certainly does not seem to be distancing himself from her.

[Nicole]

Like, he does.

[Lexi]

Like, right. Like, it's still. I want to say, same old Xaden and Violet there, so. But I did think, especially the line from his POV chapter, he's saying that he'll be the biggest. He's about to be the biggest cause of her suffering. So I do see there being that emotional internal struggle for him.

[Nicole]

I think it's. Yeah, I think that's a great way of putting it. Like, emotional, like, ooh, what do I do now? To answer the physically distancing himself, like, is he gonna yeet out at a var? I really don't think that's gonna happen. He turned Venon for Violet to save her. And let's not forget that that was his entire motivation. And then last book, he was like, I must be with Violet. Meh. So, like, I don't see him going back on that and saying, never mind, I'm gonna pull in Edward Cullen and Peace Out Squirrel Scout. So, like, maybe also. Cause where would he go? Like, would he go and just chill with the Venin and be, like, super spy? Or would he go and be in solitude and be like.

[Lexi]

Well, then there's a whole like, oh, no.

[Nicole]

So.

[Lexi]

So we know also from the end of Iron Flame that he'll feel a sense of responsibility to stay within the wards, where his venom power is muffled, I'll call it. But I don't think the circumstances will let him stay within the wards. And that's where I think he's going to be willing to take this signet blocking and vetting control, controlling serum to protect others from himself beyond the Wards like. Yes, it'll mean that he's blocked off from his dragon and not able to use his powers. But I wonder if that's a sacrifice he's willing to take to keep Violet and others safe from him.

[Nicole]

I think it's gonna go in this order. He's gonna be like, I can do it. Mental power. And then he's like, this is hard. So I'm gonna do Churum and see what happens if I smoke. And then when that's like. That didn't take the edge off in.

[Lexi]

The way that I wanted it to.

[Nicole]

Then he'll go to serum. I don't think he's gonna go straight to serum.

[Lexi]

I'm just saying outside of the warts, not within the warts.

[Nicole]

Oh, yes, but we know from Jack fucking Barlow that that's like you can. From the. From inside. Yes.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Okay, so that leads us to the biggest question then, because how is Zaden going to deal with being Venon? Because I've been on the record smoking chips. I'm not gonna say that's like half the book. I think that's gonna be like half a chapter. But I have been on the record saying that I believe Zaden is going to pull from the source again. I think he's going to pull like two to three times. That's what she said.

[Lexi]

Let's see. I think he'll pull a max of two. Bet, bet, bet. All right, all right, first bet here. Okay, wait, so I. I think that he'll. He'll pull from the source.

[Nicole]

You are fine.

[Lexi]

It's not even anyway. All right, so I think a maximum twice.

[Nicole]

All right, Maximum twice. I'm going. I'm gonna go more than twice. Well, I was gonna say twice or more. So I'll go three. Three. Three. Okay. And I'll say three plus.

[Lexi]

And I'll say less than two.

[Nicole]

All right, great. So if you win, what do you get? I'm gonna pull my. I came prepared.

[Lexi]

All right, you know what I'm gonna make you do?

[Nicole]

What are you gonna make me do?

[Lexi]

All right, so at the beginning of any episode, one episode of my choosing, right before recording, you are not going to be allowed to cuss once during the episode. And every time you slip, it's one hour of babysitting. That's.

[Nicole]

That is a really good bet. I'm not. I can't even be mad at you.

[Lexi]

My brother in laws came up with this.

[Nicole]

Okay if I win? You know how you have a theme every single Christmas?

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Your theme is SpongeBob SquarePants.

[Lexi]

Krusty Krab pizza. All right, all right, all right. Is it a bet? It's a bet. Woo.

[Nicole]

Here we go.

[Lexi]

Okay, that's an easy one.

[Nicole]

That's a. Yeah, SpongeBob SquarePants. I will make it so jolly. You have no idea. All right, so Zaden, back to the Zaden conversation. I definitely think he is going to basically act like everything is normal on the surface, but there's a lot of questions around him going evil underneath the surface. And to be quite honest, I don't think he's gonna go evil because that wasn't his motivation for turning Venom. Like, Jack fucking Barlow was like, I need power. And Zaden's like, I wanna save my girlfriend.

[Lexi]

I agree. I don't think he'll go Anakin Skywalker on us, but he will internally struggle with that power, with a hunger for more power and losing part of himself. So maybe, you know, instead of the more like gray man that we all know and love, he'll become charcoal gray at more moments. But for instance, we're not going to be touching on it too much here, but the reason that we think that the Venin really want Zaden as well as Violet is because they are so powerful with their two signets, specifically Zaden. So now how do they know about those two signets? I don't know. We have too much else to go through today. I also think we got to talk about Zaden and Sigail because a lot of people have wondered, are they still bonded? And I do think it's safe to assume that they are going to still be bonded. She has not broken the bond with him. In the Onyx Storm back of the book, we know that he is speaking mind to mind with Violet, so we can strongly assume that mental connection is all still there. In his POV chapter, he still could wield his shadows. So he still has all of that. And Rebecca has confirmed Sigail is indeed pissed off at him. And she said that at the beginning of Onyx Storm, she's just not speaking to Zaden, Sigaille, not Rebecca, you know, so I think that. So I do think that that'll play a big role in the book. Is exploring this huge dynamic shift between rider and dragon, which I think also may lead to us learning more about what really happened between Taryn and Naolyn, which we'll get to a little later.

[Nicole]

Ooh. Now, how do you think Violet's going to deal with Satan being feminine?

[Lexi]

I see her being torn between him doing what he had to do to survive. And buy her time to get the wards up. And she'll be mad at his sacrifice. So she knows he's Venom by the end of her POV chapter. And then she's still sleeping next to him when the next chapter opens up in his pov. So that means that she still does feel safe with him. So I'm not. I don't think she's gonna. It's not gonna be the worst issues that they've had. I don't know. But yeah, I think it's all. I don't know. It's also fine. So, like, talking about the cure, she definitely will not accept the conclusion that there is no cure for him. I keep going back to what Andarna and others have said about nature and magic, liking all things in balance. I have no idea how that rule of thumb will factor in, but I believe that magic likes all things in balance will be a key directive in her search for that cure.

[Nicole]

So in the Variety article that released right after Iron Flame from like a year ago that everyone's completely forgot about. Cause there's so many tiktoks, the interviewer of that article asks, quote, is Jack lying when he tells Xaden, you cannot turn back from being Venon once you begin? And Rebecca Yarrow says, and I quote, I mean, no one ever has. No one's seen it. But we haven't read book three yet, have we? Ooh. So with that said, I still don't think he's going to be cured in book three, because that cliffhanger was deliciously heart wrenching. I loved getting my heart ripped out and stomped on by Venom. It was great. But I don't think that's just gonna be tied up with a bow in 500 pages like it is Rebecca Yarros, because. And she's. I really trust her to do very good justice with those 500 pages, but that doesn't feel.

[Lexi]

And when we say 500 pages, like, we don't know.

[Nicole]

Yeah. That's just a guesstimate. Yeah. But like, Rebecca likes to hurt us. I think that we're gonna get, you know, it's real. I don't think she's gonna make us feel happy. I mean, we're gonna hurt a lot more. More before Zaden's finally cured.

[Lexi]

I do think that the focus in Onyx Storm will be Zaden working through the consequences of being Venon. And I like to think that there's going to be a big cost associated with alcohol retrieving his soul. I don't think the cure is going to be a simple antidote or even as simple as siphoning power back into him. I can't help but think of Horcruxes spoilers for that series and how you can put your soul back together in one piece, but you need to feel genuine remorse and the process is so painful it can kill you. I'm not saying that this is going to be exactly like that, but I do think that there's going to be like a soul deep level to the cure versus a straightforward solution.

[Nicole]

But we know from Rebecca Yarros that we are going to new places. And you know where we're really excited to go?

[Lexi]

The Isle Kingdoms.

[Nicole]

The Isle Kingdoms. Yes. So if you are not familiar with fantasy fangirls, we are. The Isle Kingdoms have become like our catch all for like, we don't know they're on the Isle Kingdoms. But in all serious, we're actually convinced we're going to the Isle Kingdoms in Onyx Storm because especially after the blurb the synopsis of Onyx Storm dropped. It says, quote, to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. For our blurb episode that we did in like, frantically, in like two hours. Lexi did an ebook search for the words allies in iron flame. And in chapter 16, the Great War's enemies were described as General Daramor, which we'll get to in a second, and quote our allies as the Isle Kingdoms. Then when they're meeting up with General Melgren and Co Zaden taunts General Melgren by saying, quote, if I were you, I'd try calling on the allies who helped you win the Great War in the first place. Oh, wait, you cut off contact with them centuries ago. We're going to the Isle Kingdom. I will die on this hill.

[Lexi]

I will die on that hill too.

[Nicole]

You will? Okay.

[Lexi]

We will go there together.

[Nicole]

We will die together.

[Lexi]

Let's get there. So going off the assumption that's where our crew will recruit allies, what else or who else might we find on the Isle Kingdoms?

[Nicole]

So one of our most, my most, our most leaning this way, a little bit more popular thoughts is that the seventh dragon den is on the Isle Kingdoms.

[Lexi]

Yeah, it is. So Isle King have the idea that maybe the allies is the seventh dragon Den as well and not just people. This is so much fun to hear live reactions. I love it. Damn it.

[Nicole]

That's so good.

[Lexi]

So I think that the dragon kind of putting aside the Isle Kingdoms for just two seconds here, I do think that the seventh dragon den is originally from the Barrens and there's something to that with the connection of the. The seventh breed being the key to defeating the Venin. But when General Daramor ruined the land and caused all dragons to abandon the Barons, that's literally what it said in the book. They ultimately, I think, settled on the Isle Kingdoms instead of staying in Navarre like the other six dragon breeds. So I think that they were the one breed of dragon who refused to bond with humans because they don't trust humankind after seeing what they're capable of turning into when hungry for more power. So, yes, Nicole, I have something. Oh, my fuck.

[Nicole]

That's so good.

[Lexi]

Oh, my God. If the seventh dragon Din is on the Isle Kingdoms, I wonder if they keep to themselves, like, you know, on their own island and not going, you know how to Train youn Dragon Style, where they go and invade and all that, and the humans just don't go there. And so that'll be one more obstacle for Violet and Darna and co to overcome. How do we get the seventh dragon din on their side? How do we even approach. Approach them?

[Nicole]

So you think there's no humans?

[Lexi]

No, I do, but there's Isle Kingdoms. So there's multiple islands. Multiple islands. And so I think that the dragons are on one and the humans are on other ones.

[Nicole]

You know what the first thing we're going to do when we get Onyx Storm in our hands is? Read it. The map. Yes, the map.

[Lexi]

Yes, the map.

[Nicole]

The map. Okay, so I. So back to the human part of what is all the Isle Kingdoms? I'm pretty convinced that in addition to the seventh dragon dungeon. Cause I don't know if I'll die on the hill. I'll, like, dramatically faint on the hill. That's what I'll do.

[Lexi]

I'll like.

[Nicole]

I think that Zayden's mom might be also.

[Lexi]

There's other believers. Yes.

[Nicole]

I think that Zaden's mom also might be on the Isle Kingdoms because we know that she and Fen were in a marriage contract that basically said you have to stay in this marriage until an heir, aka Zaden, survived until the age of 10. And then she was like, I'm out of here. I think she might have yeeted to the Isle Kingdoms because I'm getting, like, I don't know, free spirit. Like, no matter how far I'll go, vibes like, like, you know, like, I'm getting like. That screams Isle Kingdoms to me. But where do you think Zayden's mom's going to be?

[Lexi]

I am not convinced at all that she's on the Isle Kingdoms?

[Nicole]

No.

[Lexi]

So. Okay, so. So I will say this, though. If she was, I don't think it would be difficult for her to. I'll say establishment escape to the Isle Kingdoms. Because, you know, we do know that poor Emile has, like, trading vessels, or at least used to have trading vessels going back and forth. So Finn Ryerson was on decent terms with Poor Meal, so, you know, was trading with the Isle Kingdom. So I see how she could be there, like, physically. Logistics make sense. What? Oh, okay, that's another theory. Yes.

[Nicole]

Oh.

[Lexi]

I'm gonna go in a totally different direction right now, though. I know I've been leaning toward her being from Poor Emiel, but the more I think about it, the more I wonder about someone from Poor Emiel marrying the ruler of Tirndor. Finn had, you know, friendly relations with Poor Meal, like I was saying. And so that's why I originally thought that she was Pormillion and she, like, served as that alliance bridge. But I cannot see a situation where the King, when Kyutari, or whoever predecessed him, or most others in Navarre, would accept such a union, especially for how formal their union seems to be. So I think she is actually loyal to Navarre, and this contributed to the friction between her and others, including her husband and child in Orisha. So that makes me think she is actually in Caldir. And the plot twist will be that she's part of King Tari's court.

[Nicole]

We're betting on this? There's no way. We're not betting on. On this. Absolutely. Okay, so you think she's from Caldir or in. Excuse me. In Caldir.

[Lexi]

She's loyal. I'm gonna say that she is loyal to Navarre.

[Nicole]

No, you can't expand to half the map. Absolutely not.

[Lexi]

I am simply saying she is loyal to Navarre.

[Nicole]

Fine, I'll accept it. I think she's on the Isle Kingdoms.

[Lexi]

Okay. All right.

[Nicole]

If you win. Wait, hold on.

[Lexi]

I also know a lot of people think that she's a Venin. And while you and I are not personally in that camp, if she is Venin, then maybe we both lose and have to do something.

[Nicole]

Oh, we make a bet with the audience.

[Lexi]

Yes, I know. That's exactly what I'm saying.

[Nicole]

Okay, all right, hold on. I'm not reading it. Okay, mine is, if Mama Ryerson or Mama, whoever is on the Isle Kingdoms, you have to take a shot of whatever the High Fae inner circle of our Patreon choose. Oh, it gets better on a live Q and A.

[Lexi]

All right, I raise you. Your bet. I Was gonna say, you know you like Malort, right? No. Wonderful. You get to add one shot of it into your smoothie for three days in a row. And you have to video it so I can make sure that you actually did.

[Nicole]

Or you know what?

[Lexi]

I'll have Brett. Cause Brett will definitely give me scout's honor that you didn't not date.

[Nicole]

I was gonna say I share that smoothie with my husband, though. Does that mean he has to take it, too? This is a punishment for Brett.

[Lexi]

That is not. That is not my responsibility. If you share your smoothies with your husband, you're on.

[Nicole]

All right, all right, all right. But if we lose to the audience, what do we do? If she is a Venom, and if she is a Vennon, what do we have to do? Oh, God. Take a shot live.

[Lexi]

Five. Five shots. And then do our show.

[Nicole]

You would see me standing up and.

[Lexi]

Then immediately falling over dramatically fainting on.

[Nicole]

The hill before an. Oh. Take a shot before an episode.

[Lexi]

I accept that bet. On a live stream.

[Nicole]

Okay, okay. How about. Yes.

[Lexi]

Yes. We will both take a shot of their choosing on a live stream of the Lord. On a live stream. All right. Why? Sounds good. You know, you started it with a Malort last year.

[Nicole]

No, my husband started this. This was his fault.

[Lexi]

You love him.

[Nicole]

Blade. Respectively.

[Lexi]

Don't blame my husband.

[Nicole]

Don't blame Brett. We have to wear a costume. This is getting so complicated. Oh, my God. Okay, how about this? How about this? This final answer. We will wear our dragon onesies and take a shot on a livestream. Done before an episode. Before an episode.

[Lexi]

Wow.

[Nicole]

All right. Is someone writing this down?

[Lexi]

Someone write this down for us. Here, I'll write it down right now.

[Nicole]

You keep talking.

[Lexi]

Okay, well.

[Nicole]

Okay, so pivoting ever so slightly because we cannot talk about the Empyrean series without, of course, addressing the number one enemy, which is the venon to like. Yeah. Shocking. I know. I'm sorry. Spoilers. So the first question is, who do we think this general that Zaden fought? General Maven. Whatever is. And I'm gonna do a quick tldr, which, in case you didn't know, because I didn't for a long time until I googled it. It means too long. Didn't read. We're not reading. I'm cool.

[Lexi]

Looks on you. I have lice.

[Nicole]

What?

[Lexi]

No, I'm just kidding.

[Nicole]

So we of FFG have started calling this dude, this general, the sage. Not a sage, because in resin, this is the venin. Oh, I'm getting to it. I'm getting it. Because in resin, this Venon with this is the venom with the staff who Violet assumed was the sage. Then it is the again assumed sage that is in every one of her dreams. And then this is the same dude that we see in the cliff scene right after. It's like you're unintended. And then it's this. And then in Zaden's POV at the end, he sees spits at the Ven, and he says, quote, he says, quote, because you're a sage. And then the sage, not a sage, says, bitch, I'm not a sage, I'm a general. So this whole time, this dude that we all thought was a sage is actually a general, AKA Maven, AKA the highest level of Venin.

[Lexi]

And I think we're all in agreement because Zaden says that he killed him. Like, we're all convinced he's definitely did not die, right? We learned our lesson with Jack Barlow. Yes. Okay, cool.

[Nicole]

We learned our lesson.

[Lexi]

Hey. Hey.

[Nicole]

So with that out of the way, let us discuss why we do think that this guy is General Daramor. Because first of all, who the heck is General Daramor? Who is it, you ask? He.

[Lexi]

Well, okay, so Nevarra's history text confirms him as the enemy of the Great War 600 years ago, who came from the Barrens and nearly destroyed the continent with his army. He was the one who ruined the land of the Barons, causing all dragonkind to abandon the Southeast. There is never any mention of him specifically being Venon, but it does make sense because Navarre has been, you know, hiding the existence of Venon. Of course, they would not say General Daramor was a Venon. Oh, no, you know, they don't exist anyway. All right, so however, we do know from the revolution and Terran that the biggest threat during the Great War was the Venin coming out of the Barrens and a mysterious weapon defeated them. So put two and two together and you have General Daramor as the Venon enemy. Which brings us back to him being the Venin general in our story. Even if that does mean that he's 600 plus years old. Because it actually does check out the way that he taunts Zaden about generals not dying the same as soldiers. And in Violet's dreams, this general, AKA the Sage, not a sage, said he's waited centuries for someone with her power and tries to get her to join and live beyond the ages. Seems like 600 plus year old general evil villain to me.

[Nicole]

Yes. Now this is the question that truly keeps me up at night and like most things that keep me up at night, I went to Reddit and flu 1389 made a post about our good friend General Darrymore. You know how in the dreams he's always like, you'll turn for love. You'll turn for something much more dangerous than power. It's love. Meh. True love. True love. True love. Do you know what Dara more means in Spanish?

[Lexi]

I do, but keep going.

[Nicole]

It means I took Spanish class. You also lived in South America for a while, so yes, it means give love. But the plot thickens because a commenter on that Same Reddit article QuickAdd8568 Notes.

[Lexi]

Shout out to you if you're listening to this or if you're here, live.

[Nicole]

Darrimore in Scottish Gaelic means second big. Which got which got me thinking about the three brothers story. The three brothers one a dragon rider, second a Griff or, excuse me, two a Griffin flyer, and then one that grew jealous and pulled from the source. In Fourth Wing, when Violet is flipping through pages of the Fables of the Baron, she flips past a page that says, quote, a great war among three brothers who fought to control the magic of this mystical land. We know that it was, quote, the third brother who commanded the sky to surrender its greatest power, who finally vanquished his jealous sibling at a great and terrible price. So what if the second sibling is the one who grew jealous? Drew from the Source, became Venon and vanquished doesn't mean like dead. It means instead, defend defeated with the weapon 600 years ago, aka lightning wielder, so on and so forth. So this second brother, aka Dara, second in saddest Gaelic and more, means big. So it would be the big brother to the third brother who commanded the sky.

[Lexi]

I am the middle brother.

[Nicole]

So he's yeah, he's the middle brother. But I am so here for the fact that Daramor would be the brother from the the brother from the prophecy.

[Lexi]

So I absolutely love that. I'm gonna do what I do and I'm gonna poke a tiny hole in that though, because didn't dragons bond with riders because of the Venon threat? So versus how the three brothers tale goes, where the brother turned Venon after his brother becomes a dragon rider. It goes back however, to the unreliable history, as it's such a theme in our story. Yes, yes, yes. So who knows which one is correct?

[Nicole]

Yes, yes.

[Lexi]

Okay, so while we don't think this next character is the General for reasons that we just listed, we do have to wonder if Naolyn is a Vinn in two. Yes, yes, yes. Let's talk about it.

[Nicole]

Okay, so first off, we are both, and I'm assuming most of the audience is in agreement that Naolan, Taron's previous rider, is 1000% still alive, mainly because of the line from Brennan that says, quote, naolin didn't fail, but it cost him everything. Meaning when Naolin siphoned back into the life, into the dead, dying, whatever Brennan Naolin pulled from the source to get that extra power boost to, you know, resurrect him, thus turning Venon. So I'm assuming, though, he didn't. I am assuming he went full evil Venin, though, because he wouldn't be like Spy or whatever for the resistance is what I almost. Apparently I'm in Star Wars. We're talking about Empyrean. Nicole, you got this. But I don't think he went full evil Venon because they just found out that they have Wyvern a second ago.

[Lexi]

No, I have a question.

[Nicole]

Yes, Lexi?

[Lexi]

So we have to wonder how Naolin went from bringing Brennan back to life to becoming an evil venom in like 0.2 seconds.

[Nicole]

Not you. Oh, oh, I know.

[Lexi]

That's Kendra.

[Nicole]

I was gonna say come see us after the show. Well, okay, so I do wonder if he did pull in Edward Cullen and was like, I can't be with you because I'm Venon, so I'm gonna go with them. B side, Squirrel scout. That's my guess.

[Lexi]

All right.

[Nicole]

That's not confident, though. That's very low confidence, I should say.

[Lexi]

Okay, so now we gotta bring Taryn into this conversation because he would, of course, have to break the bond with Naolin. When asked if dragons can break the bond without a rider dying, Rebecca answered in an interview quote, that's an intriguing thought, isn't it? Yes, it is.

[Nicole]

Right?

[Lexi]

This does call into question why Taryn would break the bond with Naolin when Sigale assumably doesn't with Zaden. That goes back to. I'll call it the motives or the intentions or something like that there. And I think we'll find out why.

[Nicole]

Well, I think that if that's the case, I do think that one of the reasons Taryn did almost die is because it is so difficult and heart wrenching for a dragon to break that bond with a rider. So that's the reason he almost died.

[Lexi]

Instead of because he's so powerful.

[Nicole]

And I think that's part of it. Yeah, he's a powerful being, but only.

[Lexi]

Three dragons have ever died. At least on record from their rider dying. So it is very, very rare.

[Nicole]

Yeah, so it's super rare. But I think that's why it was like extra powerful. Is. And we'll also remember Violet almost. Almost pulled from the source at the very end of iron flame. She was originally supposed to turn Venon. And then Rebecca was like, what about Zaden? And we all went. But she has this line of like, I get why people would do this. And Taryn's like, no, don't. So sorry not to like really powerful finger. But I do think that that's one of the reasons. Reasons why breaking the bond with Naolin was so painful for her. Excuse me. Why he almost died is because he. It was so painful for him to break the bond. What if he.

[Lexi]

What if he thought he did?

[Nicole]

He's still connected. He's like, what is this? Thoughts thinking in my head. Who is this? Now if we do know that Brennan has a rune on his palm from iron flame. Quote, Brennan holds his hand up like he's under attack. And I glimpse a rune shaped scar on his palm before he grips the edge of the table. Quote from Brennan Naolin. He was. And then Violet interrupts him and she's like, Taryn's previous writer. I know. And I'm like, girl, let him finish. Oh my God. What was he gonna say?

[Lexi]

So it is very suspicious that Brennan has a rune shaped scar on the palm of his hand. And that of course we get the description right before he talks about nailing. And I do not think that is an accident whatsoever. We also can't forget wyvern have onyx chunks marked with complex runes. It's all terrible prunes inside of the wyvern and that's what animates them. So we can assume that's what brings them to life is these complex runes. And that's most likely what controls them as well. So it is possible that a rune with a similar ability is what resurrected Brennan, brought him to life. Which does make one wonder if he's being controlled.

[Nicole]

Finish that thought, please.

[Lexi]

So I. So I'm actually in the court of. I would have a hard time thinking Brennan is evil.

[Nicole]

Evil.

[Lexi]

Now, Rebecca has also confirmed that his orange dragon because. Right. It's like really suspicious that a lot of people have orange dragons. She has said that oranges are not bad.

[Nicole]

No, Brennan just needed some spice in his life. Cause he's way too type A. Like that's literally what she said.

[Lexi]

Yes, exactly.

[Nicole]

So maybe he's not being controlled. But this does bring up the question that if Naolin does die, we'll say, if Brennan is his wyvern, per se, then Brennan would die.

[Lexi]

Exactly. Because are their lives tethered to each other? Also, if it was Naolin who put the rune in his hand, that would have to mean that Naolin is from Tyrandor because he would know how to create runes. That's just kind of a little caveat there. Oh, yeah. Yeah. So I kind of even wonder, like, maybe I've just been reading too much. Acotar is. Maybe he and Naolin have matching rune scars, and it's like a tether to each other's lives. So then when. If Naolin does appear as a Venin, we're, like, tipped off by Violet being like, wait a second. I've seen that rune before. And she somehow puts two and two together. I don't know.

[Nicole]

I love that. Oh, my God. I can't even bet you on that. Because I'm like, that's just delicious. I love that. Oh, delicious. So now it is time for some very fun speculation. Jack has said that there are already Venon living among them in Navarre. Who do you think is secretly Venon? Right. Did someone say Taran? No.

[Lexi]

No theory shaming.

[Nicole]

I'm sorry. No theory shaming, but I don't think so. Respectful.

[Lexi]

So the prime suspect. That's a fun theory. Our prime suspect is Daddy Atos. So, Colonel Atos, now, I. And I think we're both in agreement here, is that we think that he's in league with the Venin, but maybe not necessarily one himself. He. Of course, we know that he is connected to them because he placed the box at Resin to lure the Venin and set Zaden up.

[Nicole]

And these are the same boxes that Jack planted all around Bezgaeth to lure the horde of Venon and Wyvern to come. And we do know that these boxes are Nevarian craftsmanship. So that means that there's Nevarian crafters. Sure. Like little YouTube crafters is all I see. Making Venon luring boxes. And then people like Jack and Daddy Atos go and place them places. Yes.

[Lexi]

So of course, he's also. When I was just recently reading Iron Flame, there was a line that set out that Daddy Atos is familiar with the best Gaia, the Wardstone, because Dane says his dad took him to see it. So one of my big questions has been, how in the world did Jack know how to deactivate the Wardstone? What if Daddy Atos knew it just from being able to go close to it? So I wonder about that. Damn it, Daddy Atos. God damn it. And then, of course, we know that Daddy Atos was close with Veresh, who knew all about the experiment on Jack. And I'm like, 75, 80% sure he was also Venon. Who here thinks that Veresh was Venon? Yes, some people. And then, of course, he also sent the cadet to assassinate Violet on Assessment Day, who must have been Venom because he had red rims around his eyes before he fought her. And we know he worked for Atos because he repeated, secrets die with the people who keep him. Now, we can't forget. Now we can't forget that Daddy Atos has been banished to a coastal post since July, but it would be silly for him to stay there when most writers were, you know, preparing to go fight at Samara. So there has been, like, an eerie quiet from him since the beginning of Iron Flame. And I don't think that's an accident.

[Nicole]

I am. I'm very torn because, to be honest, I don't think he is Venon. I think that he is a. I'll say he's a Controller of Venon. But then you said earlier he thinks he's a Controller of Venon, which really makes a lot of sense to me. If he is Venin, he's not as.

[Lexi]

Smart as he thinks he is.

[Nicole]

No. Secrets die with the people who keep them. I mean, come on, my guy. Now, if he is Venon, I want to just titillate this little thought for a second. If he is Venon, he would be initiate level because he's among the. I want to be where the people are. That's where he is. And that is the lowest level. And I just. I don't see General Melgren being at that level. Sorry. Whoa. Daddy Atos, let's back it up for a second. Colonel Atos. There we go. I do think that he is some kind of Controller of Venon.

[Lexi]

I agree. I think he thinks he's pulling the strings of the Venin. Of a Sciath, and he's in a position of more power than he actually is. But in reality, the big bad Venon outside the wards are completely using and manipulating him for their own.

[Nicole]

Yeah, they're totally gonna kill him, right? They're gonna be like, your work here is done. Goodbye. So what about the other members of the Nevarian army because. Or, excuse me, military. From the bonus chapter, Zaden's POV27, that just released recently, I am convinced that there are Venin working within the outpost to weaken the wards along the Breivik. And Cygnisan borders, also known as the two Parmelion borders that are right up next to the Barrens. So mainly because of how many mentions there are of the wards failing in battle brief. I mean, in that bonus chapter. And Zaden was like, that's not the Griffin flyers we work with. That definitely took down the wards. I think it's someone within Navarre, but.

[Lexi]

And you think that the Venin are working with some of the Griffon flyers?

[Nicole]

Absolutely.

[Lexi]

Because you don't like the Cygnason flyers.

[Nicole]

I don't.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

I don't. I also wonder if members of the army. So these are the people who failed the emission test into Bisgaeth. If they go then in. Because they're like, I want more power. Much like the infantry that are like secrets. Die with the people. Keep them. And I also want more power.

[Lexi]

I do agree. I think that, yes, some of those lower ranks, but also definitely some weaker riders who wish they had more power. Jack is a perfect example. You accidentally mentioned Melgren. I think we're both in agreement that Melgryn is not a Venin. Right. Because he's bonded to Coda. It would make so much sense if Atos or Varysh, because they're way more power hungry and they're seeking more of that power versus already having it.

[Nicole]

Now. I would not be me if I did not bring up my crack Second Wing theory. And I cannot take credit for this. This is ways Gopher Nicole always Gofernicole on TikTok. No, I'm just kidding. She pointed out that the first two assassinations we know of are from the writers in Second Wing. These are the people who assassinated Violet on her, like, assassin or tried to. Whoa, sorry. Clockwise. Who tried to assassinate Violet and then also who jumped Bodhi in the shower. It is pretty sus that two secrets die with the people who keep them. People are from Second Wing, so this made me absolutely spiral. And go and see where other mentions of Second Wing are in the books. Notable mentions include Dane was originally from 2nd Wing, and we will never forget that Cath's breath smells and so does Baid's. And Solace's. Second Wing also won War Games, so maybe they had some kind of venom power boost. And of course Second Wing got hotter. Why? Because I want to win.

[Lexi]

I will say Jack. And Jack was in First Wing, so he was not in second.

[Nicole]

So I don't think it's everyone in Second Wing. I think it's like little hand pick, like, I choose you, Pikachu and you and You. And like, I think that it's not everyone. Because let's not forget Tara, Ree's girlfriend, on and off girlfriend, is in second wing. And I would. I can't. I can't do that for that. That's just terrible to read. I can't do that. So, Lexi.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

There's one very notable topic we have not talked about yet. Rebecca.

[Lexi]

Good.

[Nicole]

Papa. Papa. Yes, Papa Sorrengale's research. Who's ready to talk about it?

[Lexi]

All right, well, before we officially dive in. Yes.

[Nicole]

My hat.

[Lexi]

Let's start connecting the dots with the seventh dragon Den. Andarna. And Papa Sorgel's research. Buckle up, everybody, because we have a whole bunch of puzzle pieces to talk about. To the archives. We go in. Yes. Approximately 633 years before our story with Violet begins. The first six bonded six dragons from the six dragon dens. Stay with me here. I promise I'm going somewhere with this. There was a mutual understanding to help each other. Because the six breeds of dragons needed wards to protect their hatchlings. And feather tales. Around that same time, after the Wardstone was activated by all seven dragon breeds, the seventh dragon den left Andara's egg behind. That is key word left Andarna behind. She was left behind to contribute her fire to the Wardstone if it ever needed to be activated again. Separately, but maybe related. We also know that something killed off the Venin during the Great War. Could it be a lightning wielder like Violet? Very possibly. Or could it be the seventh dragon den? Because we can't forget Vennon are fireproof. But Andarna roasted a Venin. Yes, she did decapitate it, I promise. I read that part too. But the wording specifically said the Vennan's head was smoking. Vennan are not supposed to be smoking after you breathe fire on it. We have learned that from the Venin at Resin. So I think it's a subtle sign that the seventh dragon breed are able to roast Venin while the other breeds can't. Fast forward 650 years to the summer of Violet's 18th birthday. And Darna heard her elders talking about the weakling daughter of their general who is forecasted to become the head of the scribes. And Darna knew Violet would be hers because she has the mind of a scribe and the heart of a writer. Oh, I love that so much. So she hatched two years before our story opened. Which is. Wait, a record scratch there. Because this was a year and a half before Violet herself knew she would go into the writer's quadrant since her mother pulled her out of training for the scribes six months ago. And Andarna hatched one less than one year before Papa Sorringale died. Because he died when Violet was almost 19 years old. So all that to say there is almost a one year overlap of when both Andarna and Papa Sorengale were alive at the same time. Which. Which brings us to his research. Papa Sorrengel was writing a book about feather tales and researching the second Crovlin Uprising. The only tomb in the archives that references the power of feather tales is missing. Dun dun dun. Which makes me absolutely believe it is with Papa Sorrengel's research. And I think he, you know, he seems like the kind of guy who would return his library books.

[Nicole]

Absolutely.

[Lexi]

And I think that he very purposefully did not return that library book. And it is secretly hidden away with his other things.

[Nicole]

So quite. Quite a bill he's wrecked.

[Lexi]

He never finished his research on the second Krovlin uprising, which happened 200 years ago. Side note, about this second Krovlin uprising, which by the way, the Krovla province, which is in Poromil borders. Tirandor. So healers, infantry. Thank you.

[Nicole]

You're welcome.

[Lexi]

Healers, infantry, or even scribes could be the general of the armies. Until the second Crovlin Uprising. Afterward, the commander of the riders commanded all of Nevarra's forces. And only these riders could be the general of armies. Why am I talking about this in Papa Sorrengel's research? Because he was researching it too. I don't know how, but something happened during the second Kroblin Uprising that involves feather tales. Moving on. According to Lilith, Papa Sorrengel uncover. According to Lilith, Papa Sorrengel uncovered in his research that Warwick, who was one of the first six, who lied about how to activate the wards in his journal because he did not want anyone else to hold the power of the wards. Lyra, the first six writer who had the correct information in her journal, thought the knowledge should be shared. That is a very important thing that Papa Sorrengil discovered. We will get back to that in a few moments. We also know that Violet knows where his research notes are. Quote, in the one location he spent the majority of his after hour time. Which means it's not in the archives because that is where he spent his during hours time, but it's somewhere in the Vizgaev vicinity. Like, I think that it's in his study or his studio tucked away somewhere.

[Nicole]

Interesting. I think it's in Violet's room. Because I think that's interesting. That's a fun theory, I think. Cause he was always reading to her and teaching her, and I'm assuming that that's whenever he was off duty, obviously. I mean, yes, she went with him to the archives and all this kind of stuff, but I think that if he was reading to her all this time, the Fables of the Baron, that would be the place that he spent the majority of his time. Yes, but she would read his research.

[Lexi]

Like, if it was in her room, if it was next to her bed, she would have read it. She is way too curious to not do that.

[Nicole]

But very lame Kim style from Gilmore Girls. I love that. But, like, I do think that. Deep cut, guys. Deep cut. But see, I don't think she would have thought to go to get the research because she was so focused on raising the wards.

[Lexi]

I agree with you on that.

[Nicole]

But because she was so focused on raising the wards, she was like, I need something from the archives. Also, she was raised to be a scribe and off to the archives. Like, that's where everything was. I just don't think her mind is on Papa Sortingale's research.

[Lexi]

I'm not talking about this past year. I'm talking about, like, soon after her father died. And she would have wanted to read it.

[Nicole]

But what if it was, like, too painful to read Papa Sorren Gale's research, so she hid it in a floorboard? I could. Okay, bet. Bet.

[Lexi]

All right. All right. Oh. Oh.

[Nicole]

Nicole's got a secret.

[Lexi]

Secret? Yeah.

[Nicole]

Okay. Secrets die with the people. Secrets die with the people.

[Lexi]

Okay, if.

[Nicole]

If. If Papa Sorrengale's research is. Let me. Let me be clear. I think it's supposed to be in Violet's room.

[Lexi]

We'll get to that in a few moments. Yes, we are both in agreement. That.

[Nicole]

So.

[Lexi]

So real quickly here, because, you know, stories need obstacles and extra plot devices, and we are under. We think that potentially even Markham figured out where his research was and took it. And Violet has to, like, she goes to finally search for it, and it's not where it's supposed to be, and she has to go around and on an adventure to figure out where it is. Another heist. I love a heist.

[Nicole]

Okay, so it's supposed to be. This is what we're making the bet on. Okay, so I think it's supposed to be in Violet's room.

[Lexi]

And I think it's supposed to be in his study, his studio. Something along those lines.

[Nicole]

All right, if I am Correct. You have to wear a T shirt of my choosing to a very soon towards the beginning, Onyx Storm recording for thousands of people to see on YouTube.

[Lexi]

Can it be a sparrow and wild T shirt? No.

[Nicole]

Half of our closet is sparrow and wild. I have to get you something that's not pretty. And everything she does is beautiful, so no, it will not be sparrow and wild.

[Lexi]

All right, then.

[Nicole]

Yes.

[Lexi]

So mine is. You know how pretty your hair always is. It's because Nicole spends a lot of time on it. So for one week.

[Nicole]

Okay. I mean that in a very kind way. Thank you.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

I grew this hair myself. I'm very proud of it. No.

[Lexi]

Like, no hair styling. No special product. No. Did she brush it? Yes, yes. She can brush it, she can wash it. But no, the big thing is no straightener for a week. A week? A week. That includes a cup. Yeah, sure.

[Nicole]

You can do whatever you want.

[Lexi]

Just. No. Yeah, no straightener, no special hair products for a week.

[Nicole]

Whoever just.

[Lexi]

Oh, my God.

[Nicole]

That's my. Okay, bet, Bet. Oh, my God. We got it. All right.

[Lexi]

What if we're both wrong?

[Nicole]

Then womp. Then we womp. Womp. Amazing.

[Lexi]

All right. No, I was thinking about having about. I get to choose the shade.

[Nicole]

I also was. But that was too mean. Yeah, that was. You're purple.

[Lexi]

Yes. Yes. And you're blue.

[Nicole]

So, yes, I did think about doing your accent hair color, and I was like, ooh, if I did like purple and, like, green. But then I was like, that's still too mean. So you're welcome.

[Lexi]

Oh, I think I have to change a few of my beds. All right.

[Nicole]

Moving on.

[Lexi]

All right, so all of this to say back to Papa Sorgel's research here, because I do believe that the secret that could destroy everything, which was stated in the Onyx Storm blurb, I think it ties back to Papa Sorrengel's research and Markham, maybe even Daddy Atos. We do think that they killed Papa Sorrengal or made it look like an accident to protect this secret.

[Nicole]

Yes. Yes. Yes. Retweet. Yes, that's it.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Put a pin in it. I do. I definitely think that Daddy Atos is a possibility. But I do want to point out that if Daddy Atos killed Lilith's husband, he is her aide. What a fucked up thing for an aide to do. That is rude. Yes.

[Lexi]

He is not nice.

[Nicole]

He is not nice.

[Lexi]

He is not nice. Beg. Yes. Beast. Yes. All right. Okay. We're talking about Daddy Atos here because he is very, very. We're talking Colonel Atos Colonel Atos.

[Nicole]

Daddy Atos. Not Dane Atos. We're. Hmm. He's a Questionable. Doesn't matter.

[Lexi]

All right. But. Okay, so Daddy, he is so curious about Papa Songwell's research. He and his best buddy, Varysh, are obsessed with Andarna and how she's a feathertail. And you know what? They're also connected to the Vennon. So I think that the Venn have eyes on feathertails because they are vulnerable dragons and they have a lot of power. Oh, I know.

[Nicole]

That's so sad.

[Lexi]

And most importantly, that ties all of this together when Veresh pointed out that it was ironic that Papa Sorrengail was writing a book on feather tales who haven't been seen in hundreds of years, which I'm going to say is 200 years because of the second Crovlin uprising that keeps coming up. Then his daughter bonded with a feathertail, and Andarna, notably, was silent when Violet asked if it's indeed a coincidence. Which must mean that somehow, someway, Andarna knew about Papa Sorangel's research, and she already knew that Violet would be her rider. Which makes sense, because, remember, she and Papa Sorrengail were alive at the same time. So does that mean that Papa Sorengail uncovered the secret behind activating the wards with the seventh dragon Den? Since his research somehow involved the First Six's journals, and Indarna knowing about his research wasn't just because of the Feathertail connection, but it was also about the seventh den. And he somehow, someway, knew that they left behind an egg. And that is why there's, like that, I'll say, random connection between the two of them.

[Nicole]

Lexi's lore brain is just, like, right now, because.

[Lexi]

So if Andarna's breed of dragon is connected to killing off the Venin, like that weapon Brennan mentioned that they're trying to track down, does that mean defeating the Venin is somewhere in his research?

[Nicole]

Yes.

[Lexi]

Yes. I don't think it's so black and white.

[Nicole]

I do think. I don't think it's so black and.

[Lexi]

White, but I think it'll help guide them in the right direction.

[Nicole]

It's like a good 50% of the way there.

[Lexi]

Something like that.

[Nicole]

Yeah. Ballpark.

[Lexi]

All of this to say, because this is just a lot of pew, pew, pew information here. His research involves feather tails and their powers, which directly ties to Andarna and makes us wonder if it's more than just feather tails, but also the seventh dragon den. Leading me to wonder if Papa Sor and Gail Discovered deeper secrets of the Venin and potentially how to defeat them. And the bad guys in our story want this information. We already know that. And we have reason to suspect they are strongly connected to the Venin.

[Nicole]

Yes. Yes. All right, we've got some rapid fire questions, and for this, we're actually taking it to you all. What characters do we think are going to pair up in Onyx Storm and ship some people. So let's ship some people. So here's how this is gonna work. I'm gonna say a couple, and you all are going to cheer if you think they're gonna get together in Onyx Storm. The loudest couple wins. Sure. Wins what we don't know. Bragging rights, maybe. So first couple and cheer. If you think that they're gonna get together. Auric and Sloan. Oh, all right.

[Lexi]

There's a few there.

[Nicole]

There was some thinking. I could feel the coin for that.

[Lexi]

See that?

[Nicole]

Yeah. I. Another. Kat and Dane.

[Lexi]

All right.

[Nicole]

Really?

[Lexi]

I think that she'd eat him for breakfast.

[Nicole]

She would absolutely eat him for breakfast.

[Lexi]

Maybe he likes to get eaten for breakfast.

[Nicole]

Okay, next couple. Brennan and Riddick. No.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

Okay, next couple. Mira and Drake. Cordella. Okay, next couple. Mira and Serena. Cordella. Yeah. This was one I was asking people of earlier, and they were like, oh, this is a really good one. Riddick and Auric, AKA the ultimate grumpy sunshine. All right. Auric and Catch. You gotta take that. All right, then I think they're in the lead. All right. Riddick and Bodhi. Ooh, we got some intrigue there. And last but not least. And Darna. An Auric's dragon. Yeah, I think Auric and Cat won. Oh, because that one person won.

[Lexi]

I was gonna say.

[Nicole]

Okay. I think it's a tie between Auric and Cat and Cat and Dane. Cat's getting it.

[Lexi]

I thought Mira and Serena was another good one.

[Nicole]

Mira and Serena's another good one.

[Lexi]

All right. Yes.

[Nicole]

All right, next. Rapid fire.

[Lexi]

Well, I'm just gonna really pivot here and bring the house down here, because what characters do we think are in danger of dying? This book. And we're just the messengers. Don't yell at us.

[Nicole]

Yeah, you're not allowed to yell at us. That's the rule.

[Lexi]

There you go.

[Nicole]

I don't think that's happening. I think we're. We're both in agreement that Mira is a high suspect. We've been very open about it on the pod. I am sticking to my. There's gonna be a protector of violets who dies every single book. So first we had Liam. Then we have Lilith, who's, like, kind of a background protector. Then we're gonna have Mira, who is a very, you know, growing up protector. But then when I think about her other protectors, it's like, Dain, I don't think he's dying yet because Rebecca is, like, in love with him, and we want to know why.

[Lexi]

But that's the thing.

[Nicole]

We don't know. So I'm like, I think he's gonna have a much more redemption arc before she kills him off. I could see that being a book. Four.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Yeah. And then the other protectors are like, Tarn, and so.

[Lexi]

No, not yet. Not yet.

[Nicole]

I don't. I think they're dying in Onyx Storm. Okay, I'm gonna get tackled on stage, so I keep talking about this, so I'm gonna pivot. Okay. Next is second squad. I think they're all safe.

[Lexi]

4. I'm really worried about Imogen. I know. I'm sorry.

[Nicole]

If Imogen dies before we get confirmation about her and Garrick banging once, I.

[Lexi]

Do think that we will get that confirmation. I'm just very worried about her.

[Nicole]

I think, like, Zaden or Violet is gonna walk on them in bed together. That's what I think is gonna happen. All right. Okay.

[Lexi]

Just when we're thinking about our core four and how much. How much they always are saying, like, how they all have to survive to graduation. First of all, I don't know if there is gonna be graduation by the end of this series, you know, but I'm really worried about Riddick or what you saying. Not for Onyx Storm, but not for Onyx Storm. I'm not convinced that all four of them are going to survive the storm.

[Nicole]

I'm not either. I just don't think that's Rebecca's style, but we'll see. But we don't think it's an Onyx Storm now. Okay, wait. Protectors aside, we're gonna go to Melgren because there's a line in fourth wing when Violet is saying about his signet. This is before she knows about the marked ones and three or more and all that kind of stuff. She says, quote, you can't be assassinated if you don't know what's coming or if you don't know it's don't know what's coming. If you don't know it's coming. I think that's foreshadowing. So I think he's gonna die. Maybe not in Onyx Storm, but probably in book four.

[Lexi]

Ooh, then who gets Coda.

[Nicole]

Jack fucking Barlow. I'm kidding, okay? I don't see. I don't see Jack making it out of this book of life. And here's the deal. Who do you think's gonna kill him?

[Lexi]

Violet. I think we are gonna get a full circle moment where we definitely know that he is dead this time. Like, and it would be so satisfying for her to lightning strike him, and then she, like, triple checks, and we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

[Nicole]

All right. I think the Venin are gonna kill him because they're like, dude, you're a lot. So, yeah, I think he's definitely dying.

[Lexi]

So. So I agree. So we both agree that he is dying, but you really don't think that Violet's gonna be the one.

[Nicole]

I get it. I could definitely see that. Like, that's. You said the full circle moment, and I was like, oh, that's beautiful, Po. That's poetry is what that is. Yes.

[Lexi]

That was also one of my big reasons about how she.

[Nicole]

She.

[Lexi]

Why she killed him. Anyway, never mind. I'm not gonna bring that up.

[Nicole]

We're bringing that up again. Okay, pivoting again to next.

[Lexi]

Rapid fire.

[Nicole]

How many sex scenes are we getting? Hi, mom and dad. So I think we're going to match, if not bump it up from Boing. Oh, my God. I think it's going to match from Iron Flame because I am feral for a Venon Zaden scene. You get me?

[Lexi]

I. So we know that Rebecca's editor apparently tried to get her to remove one of Iron Flame's scenes, so she had to go up to bat and explain why every single one of those scenes was necessary for the story.

[Nicole]

Facts are so correct.

[Lexi]

So I don't think we will get more. I don't think she'll be allowed to have more than three.

[Nicole]

Okay, so you say less than three, I say more than three. Are we betting?

[Lexi]

What if it's three?

[Nicole]

Then if it's three, we jump off into the sunset together and skip for joy. All right, Are we betting?

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Yes. Okay. I'm scared about your hair thing, though. So you know what? This is the hair bet.

[Lexi]

Okay, Wait, no.

[Nicole]

Okay, so you should be very clear.

[Lexi]

Wait, so also, we have to get Whitley's, like, approval on this. Like, she will be our hairstylist who.

[Nicole]

Never, ever learned she's, like, a lush with my hair on it. The hair. I just. You're not allowed to do shit. That fucks it up now. Okay, so if there are less than 3, I get to decide your accent color, and I will not be super mean about it.

[Lexi]

Okay. And I get to decide the shade of blue that yours is.

[Nicole]

Okay.

[Lexi]

Yeah.

[Nicole]

Then I'll go shade of purple. How's that? Okay, so it's even. Okay, That's a nice beg.

[Lexi]

There you go. See, that goes. Yeah, let's do that.

[Nicole]

All right, next, Rapid Fire. Well, actually, we already talked about this, so. Next, Rapid Fire. On a scale of 1 to 5, how emotionally devastating is this book gonna be? I don't think it's gonna be a five, so. But first and foremost, we have to, like, what was 4.5? What was iron flame and fourth wing for you? Like, out of five?

[Lexi]

So I would put both of them at a three for me. And for reference, I. The only five that I can remember reading is Deathly Hallows.

[Nicole]

Okay. Okay.

[Lexi]

So that's like how I do my ratings scales there. And I do think that Onyx Storm is going to be a four. I heard a lot of people saying that. Partly because we're going to be getting to know these characters even more. So when someone dies, it's going to hit even harder.

[Nicole]

Yeah. Okay. Based on where we are, I'm going to call it the W right now, which, I'm sorry, I don't have enough time to go into the full thing, but we do know that Rebecca plans her books out in a W, and then she plans this entire series out in a W. We are right now in the point in the middle, and it's about to go. I think it's gonna be like a 4.2. You and your decimals. I love a decimal point.

[Lexi]

Oh, my goodness.

[Nicole]

Okay, let us round out this live show with the arguably biggest freaking question we all have going into this book, because we can't not talk about it. What is Violet's second signet?

[Lexi]

All right, so before we get to go into this, let's do a quick little mini archive section. We know that her second signet manifested in Iron Flame, and the clues are all there. Rebecca has said it's supposed to be obvious. Yes. She also has said it isn't one of the few signet theories she has seen. She also very purposefully avoids conversations like this. And this is also really key. She said that we are going to be underwhelmed by it. So the way that Nicole and I take.

[Nicole]

Wait, we'll explain. We'll explain.

[Lexi]

So. So we think that underwhelmed isn't necessarily that. It's going to be, I'll say, like a common signet. Like. Like one of the elemental one.

[Nicole]

Yeah, something like that.

[Lexi]

But we do think that it is going to be something like. Because I know that we've even gone a little bit crazy with speculating what it could be.

[Nicole]

The sun.

[Lexi]

Yeah.

[Nicole]

Like all dragons.

[Lexi]

But I. We don't theory shame here, and we.

[Nicole]

Say that that's a fun theory.

[Lexi]

Yes. So when we think of being underwhelmed by it, we think that it is something that we are already familiar with. And her raw power, you know, her lightning wielding is going to be kind of like the really big powerful one. And then this second one, again, it's going to be a few steps lower than that. So that's our understanding of what underwhelming means. We also know that signets manifest based on who the writer is at their core and what they need most. So let's list off who we know Violet is at her core and what she needs most. She is someone who needs information and full disclosure in case nobody got that hint from Iron Flame. Facts, answers, and truth keep her centered. She also needs to protect those she loves. And at her core, I always have to bring this up. She has the mind of a scribe and the heart of a writer.

[Nicole]

So we also know that dragon names can sometimes be a clue, either for the signet or sometimes, like, the clue of what the character's fate is. Like, for instance, I think. Or a Bindhaven's dragon meant graveyard. And it's like, oh, she's dying. But for Amber, right? Amber. Excuse me. Amber, Mavis. That's it. But for instance, Indarna, or Indarna Urim in Scottish Gaelic means the second honor. So we both have the same three. The same three.

[Lexi]

For me, it's like, literally, just ask me at any different time of the day.

[Nicole]

Like, ask her at the vip, she'll be like, it's different.

[Lexi]

Yeah. It's like, I can never decide. Yeah.

[Nicole]

So we'll do our ranking as when we wrote this outline and have it as our number three, which I'll speak for myself. My two and three are low. Like, I do not think that these are gonna happen, but I'm putting them on here anyway to cover my bases. And then my number one is, like, up there.

[Lexi]

Okay. See, I think that number one and two are more so the same, and my three is ever changing.

[Nicole]

All right, so my number three right now is amplification. What's yours?

[Lexi]

Amplification. I keep going back to the time manipulation, even though I initially said no, because Andarna already had that. But, like, when I was just reading it, like, there's so many, like, her counting and heartbeats and, like, there's a lot of, like, in moment things. I know. Like, I like to think of gravity. I have no idea how that could play into effect, but I like the idea of that because then she could fly with Andarna. I do think amplification is another one, too.

[Nicole]

Yeah, well, amplification, because there are multiple times in Iron Flame where, like, oh, I'm getting to it. But there are multiple times in Iron Flower, like, for instance, when Mira created wards and cordon, or when re sucked the knife through the wall. Stuff like that. Where it's like, oh, that's a new bump up in the signet. So it could be amplification. But you brought it up on the podcast, and it's just really stuck to me. Where it's like, we want that to be Henri, or we want that to be on Mira. Where it's like, they are the ones who had the breakthrough.

[Lexi]

Exactly.

[Nicole]

Because then that's beautiful character development for them and not just Violet. So that's the reason three is very low. Number two, Truthsayer. Yep. But, oh, that was such a. Like, a medium. So I don't think it's true sayer. And here's why. Number. Well, first and foremost, let me say I don't think it's gonna be the same type of true sayer that we've seen, because Nora. And what's his face. Super general guy or generic guy, I should say, from the RS class. Torture. Yeah. Super generic guy from torture class. I don't think it's gonna be the same type because it's in Darna. She's a special type of dragon. I feel like there's at least some, like. I know we're supposed to be underwhelmed, but I think it's gonna be at least some level of special signet.

[Lexi]

It checks off the boxes.

[Nicole]

It does check off the boxes, though.

[Lexi]

It absolutely checks the boxes.

[Nicole]

I don't see a time in Iron Flame where I'm like, that's the use of Truthsayer. Like, there's very few.

[Lexi]

She does say in several instances towards the end of the book that she, like, calls out that somebody is either telling the truth or lying.

[Nicole]

I think that's just her using her snacks. She's a brilliant fucking woman after all. I know.

[Lexi]

I'm just saying.

[Nicole]

Well, that brings me to my number one. Your number one.

[Lexi]

Sure. I'm not. We have to even tell you, you are willing to die on this hill.

[Nicole]

I will die on this hill.

[Lexi]

I'm casually hiking.

[Nicole]

You're like casually roaming around the base of the hill just going, la la la la. Yes. Yes.

[Lexi]

All right.

[Nicole]

My number one is intinzic. Allow me to explain in case you're new to fantasy fangirls. So over the summer, I reread Iron Flame for like the 40 millionth time because of this whole violet second signet is super obvious. You should be able to tell it. And I'm like, how? So I read something and this, this really stood out to me. In chapter 58, when her and Zaden are having their, like, sparring and Oratia and like, no more secrets conversation, she says, quote, I am a person who needs information to center myself. This is the only time needs are in italics in the entire freaking book. Yes, I'm back on my italics. Bullshit. You're welcome. I was specifically watching for italics because they tell all. Note that. So I was wondering what other signets need information. So I re read Iron Flame again.

[Lexi]

She didn't know about the ebook keywords. Yeah, it's a pental experience.

[Nicole]

And in chapter 56, when Violet is figuring out Zaden's second signet, she thinks, quote, zaden's most pressing need is information. Yes. So she says, I am someone who needs information to center myself. She says, zaden's most pressing need is information. And that's when she's like, oh my God, you're a flipping intensic. This is such a Rebecca Yarrow style writing move using both of those words two chapters apart. And this is the only time needs is in italics in this entire book. Yes, it is underwhelming because it's something we have already seen before. It is something we have. Yep. Go for it.

[Lexi]

No, I'm supporting you. I'm saying something in support because so even so, when we did our. Our Violet second signet episode at the end of our Iron Flame coverage, we were talking about intensic. And at the time, neither of us thought it was that because it's like, well, Xaden is already an intense. So we kind of at the time wrote it off.

[Nicole]

And so anyway, so. So that would check the underwhelming box. Now we do know that it is manifested, which I hear that as she's used it, in my opinion, in an obvious way, based on how Rebecca Yarris was like, how have you all not gotten this yet? Think back to the throne scene when shimmering onyx wraps around her mind and everything intensifies, Zaden's thoughts come into her head. And whenever they're doing their mind to mind, split it's always in italics, but with quotations around it, Right? What? Does the throne scene not have fucking quotations?

[Lexi]

It is just italics in the dialogue.

[Nicole]

So you know what the throne scene. Well, I already read that again. I'm too excited. Also, we know that Violet's last signet manifested when she was in like the throes of passions with Zaden. It would not be out of the question if this one also manifested when she was very feeling intense emotions in the same way. Now here's the thing I always get. When people are like Nicole, everyone goes crazy when they become an insignant intinsic. Remember Jeremiah? No. No one does. But he was an intensic and he died. Never for never forget you, Jeremiah.

[Lexi]

Or Claire.

[Nicole]

Remember though. Remember because in all of Xaden's bonus chapters from Fourth Wing, his shields are locked into place. And that's why he cannot use his Zentinsk signet shields. Who has the best shields in her year? Violet. So she also has her shields locked almost constantly in iron flame. But I'll say specifically the second half of iron flame, because that's when we think the signet has manifested. Because that's when Indarna's awake.

[Lexi]

Yes. And again, this is just us theorizing here. Of course.

[Nicole]

Of course.

[Lexi]

Why am I even giving that a signature?

[Nicole]

We have the sinus start moving on.

[Lexi]

No. So we do think that it was after Andarna woke up from the dreamless sleep. Violet said something along the lines of like, she feels whole again. And I feel like it would be very difficult for her to manifest her second signet without her dragon's power that she's able to really pull from. So that is why we think that it manifested in the second half of the book.

[Nicole]

Now, all of this to say, I don't think her and Zaden are gonna be the same type of intense egg.

[Lexi]

Correct.

[Nicole]

I think that she's gonna cause think about it. Their I need information comes from two different places. He needs to know people's intentions so that he can be like, are you good? You sure?

[Lexi]

Are you sure?

[Nicole]

Like, whereas she's like, I need to know your information so I can center myself. So I think it's gonna manifest and. Or not it's already manifested. I think it's gonna dawn on her, oh my God, I'm a truthsayer. But then she's like, no, this is a little bit more intense and it's actually going to be intrinsic.

[Lexi]

And like an intrinsic that she is. Not only that, she can tell that someone is telling the truth, but it's.

[Nicole]

That, like, I don't know. Okay, so.

[Lexi]

So it's like a true sayer, but, like, extra amplified.

[Nicole]

I think it's like a true sayer on steroids.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Lexi]

And so that's why I go back to one and two being like. Yeah.

[Nicole]

And that's why I feel like they're so married together. I feel like it's going to. It's going to go like this. The audience is going to figure out, holy shit, her second signet is something to do with the mind. She's going to be like, oh, my God, I'm a true sayer. And then she's going to be like, nope, I'm an intensic.

[Lexi]

Okay.

[Nicole]

All right. Do you agree?

[Lexi]

Yes. I have stopped disagreeing with you when it comes to intensic stuff. I learned my lesson with that, too. Yes.

[Nicole]

Friends, this was so much fun.

[Lexi]

Yes. Can we please take a moment and.

[Nicole]

Give the biggest freaking shout out to the people here at Comedy Works? They have been so amazing.

[Lexi]

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. And if you are new to Fantasy fangirls. Hi.

[Nicole]

Hello.

[Lexi]

We are available on every podcasting platform, including YouTube. And we have covered 4th Wing, of course, Iron Flame. We are almost done with our A Court of Thorns and Roses coverage since we kicked off our. We're doing Silver Flames right now.

[Nicole]

Talk about our right.

[Lexi]

Yeah, no kidding.

[Nicole]

And we did not have time to cover everything today, sadly, but. But we will be doing basically all. It's an empyrean month in the lead up to Onyx Storm, so if we did not cover it today, most likely it's probably in an outline for January, so do keep that in mind. Stay tuned. Stay tuned. Yes.

[Lexi]

Stay tuned for a lot more in January.

[Nicole]

Thank you, as always, to our executive producer, AKA our sanity manager, Hayden.

[Lexi]

And if you're not following us on TikTok and Instagram, what are you doing? Give us a follow. Antasyfangirlspod. We've seen so many of you tagging us already this evening while we were all waiting for the show to start. Thank you so much. It means the absolute world to us.

[Nicole]

Yes.

[Lexi]

And also, if you are one of the VIP ticket holders, please remember to stick around for the meet and greet afterward. It is going to be in this room, so go ahead, stay in your seats or go ahead and go get more merch. Whatever you'd like to do. But it will be in this room here.

[Nicole]

Yes, it will.

[Lexi]

Yes.

[Nicole]

Friends, thank you so much. This was absolutely amazing.

[Lexi]

Thank you.