S5 : Ep 42 - Brimstone by Callie Hart - PART 2

Summary

Flights of Fantasy Podcast - Season 5, Episode 42: Brimstone by Callie Hart, PART 2 Released December 30, 2025

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Main Theme and Purpose

This episode dives deep into the latter half of Callie Hart’s fantasy novel Brimstone, specifically unraveling the book’s major character arcs, magical mysteries, and the explosive story conclusion. Hosts Anna, Kim, and Christina share their candid reactions, favorite moments, and burning questions. Reading between the lines with humor and heart, they unpack both the swoony romance and the plot’s more challenging or confusing elements, never shying away from critique.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Spoiler Warning & Patreon Bonus Content (02:53)

• Christina warns listeners about spoilers for both Brimstone and Kingfisher POV bonus chapters.
• Announcement of three hours of bonus on-camera Brimstone content on Patreon, including in-depth chapter chats.

2. Serris as a Leading Lady (03:10–07:13)

• The hosts agree that Serris (FMC) is exceptionally likable, clever, and grounded compared to other fantasy heroines.
  • Quote [04:02, Anna]: “…she’s not obtuse when it comes to events and situations happening around her…She trusts her own mind and her gut and we really do appreciate that…”
• Key scenes showing her vulnerability and growth:
  • Her moment of realizing she’s found a new “family” after years of self-reliance and trauma.
    • Quote [04:33, Anna]: “…I was too tired. Tired of putting up the front. Tired of telling myself I had to deal with everything by myself. When for the first time since my mother died, I had people again. I wasn’t alone anymore…”
  • Her assertiveness at the ball when she uses magic to put Zovina in her place.
    • Quote [06:22, Kim]: “…You seem to confuse the dynamic between us Zovina. I am your master…”
    • The hosts absolutely loved this “iconic” moment.

3. Challenges with Serris’s Magic & Story Stakes (07:41–11:39)

• Hosts found Cerys’s magical arc (her alchemy and quicksilver powers) unsatisfying because:
  • There is little struggle or learning curve; new abilities emerge as needed.
  • Her power grows with each chapter, often removing tension or risk from the story.
    • Quote [09:12, Christina]: “…it does feel that when it comes to Cerys’ power and her magic, there doesn’t seem to be a limit to what she can do…”
  • Her triumphs—like splitting a god-sword or overcoming enemy attacks—are described as unearned.
    • Quote [10:29, Christina, joking]: “…you don’t divide something and end up with more. That’s not how division works.”

4. Hayden: The Useless Brother (11:38–14:02)

• The hosts express strong frustration with Serris’s brother Hayden, branding him “useless.”
  • His accusation that Serris works for Queen Madra (her oppressor) is described as “wild and unhinged.”
  • Serris’s retort about her sacrifices for him becomes a moment of cathartic power.
    • Quote [12:54, Kim]: “…It was a full time job keeping him out of trouble and taking care of him… I broke myself to look after you…”

5. Kingfisher: Character POV, Romance, and Complicated History (14:04–16:32)

• The hosts enjoy the new POV chapters from Kingfisher, making him more relatable and deepening understanding of his motives.
  • Quote [15:19, Anna]: “…having faith was like trying to remember a language I had once known as a child. No, it was worse. It was like trying to run with broken legs…”
• They acknowledge the romance’s sudden flip from “hate” to “obsessed,” but embrace it for its emotional payoff.

6. Romantic & Spicy Moments (18:00–22:17)

• Marriage Discussion: Fae traditions demand true-name exchange for marriage; Kingfisher's insecurity about not knowing his true name adds emotional depth.
  • Quote [18:44, Christina]: “…it doesn’t work that way, Osha. It doesn’t matter that you weren’t given a true name. I was. And unless I share it with you, the ceremony won’t take root…”
• First “I love you” Exchange:
  • Quote [20:04, Christina]: “…I lost the parts of myself that knew how to feel anything other than pain and sorrow centuries ago. But for better or worse, you have brought me back to life.”
• Playful bedroom scenes and declarations of strength through love.
  • Quote [21:54, Kim]: “…I’d spend the fortunes of the universe to protect you. I’d drain the seas dry, fell every tree…All I have is my life. It isn’t much, but I’d spend it and consider the price small if it meant keeping you safe.”

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The Book's Climax: Plot, Mysteries, and Hot Takes

7. Hasrax: The Creepy New Character (22:47–24:05)

• Appears partway through the story, gives Serris a new rune with powers to break oaths or undo events.
• Only interacts directly with Serris, adding mystery and foreshadowing.

8. The Endgame: Fast Plotting, The “Wicker Wood”, and True Names (24:47–29:33)

• Chaotic Escape: The crew loses Kingfisher and Onyx through a shadow gate, prompting Serris to seek them by forcibly “falling asleep” (getting punched!).
• Dream Rescue and the Wicker Wood: Hasrax transports Serris to the Wicker Wood where Fisher is trapped in a tree and rescued in a bloody, magical scene.
• True Name Reveal: Serris sets Kingfisher free using info from a discovered paper, calling out his true name: Kaidan Greystar Finvarra (27:46).
  • The hosts are disconcerted by how easily everyone, especially Serris, slips into using the new name.
    • Quote [28:44, Kim]: “…It already took us an entire, like, book just to get through that and be like, his name is Kingfisher. And now you’re gonna try to gaslight us, Callie, and be like…‘Oh, it’s effortless. He’s always been Kaidan to me.’”

9. Triumvirate and the Immortality Quagmire (29:56–32:13)

• Discussion about whether beheading major antagonists (Malcolm, Belacan) actually kills them and what would happen if Queen Madra dies—are the others truly “dead enough?”
• Quote [32:01, Kim]: “…I need a status update. Like, we’re playing a video game and you can see, like, ‘Oh, I only have 30% life left.’ Where are we at with them?”

10. Onyx: The Fox's (Temporary) Death & What It Means for Stakes (32:14–37:44)

• Onyx dies heroically saving Serris. Serris then bargains with Hasrax and uses her new rune to undo his death.
• The hosts debate whether his resurrection cheapens the emotional cost and stakes of war.
  • Quote [35:36, Kim]: “…Even I am like, I’m not gonna go so far as to say I wish Onyx had died…But again, you’re just removing all of the stakes. I was reading this scene and I honestly was like, she’s not gonna kill him…”
• The group wants the narrative to justify Onyx’s return with plot consequences.

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Final Act: Big Mysteries, Endgame Theories, and Wild Revelations

11. The Ajin Gate, Quicksilver Pool, and… Hell? (39:15–41:43)

• Fisher and Serris travel through portals, arrive at a corrupted quicksilver pool—that, unlike others, stays open. Fisher was thrown into it at age 11.
• They descend (literally) into hell, meet a vengeful dragon mother, and the god Styx with his twin sons (Crave and Githrin).
• It’s revealed only “half-gods may wield shadows”—a huge hint about Fisher’s true parentage.
  • Quote [42:06, Kim]: “…They also make a point to say that Fisher should not have shadow magic. They say only half gods may wield shadows.”

12. Cliffhanger: Fisher’s Claim & Implications (42:21)

• Fisher to the gods: “I’ve come for a dragon, as is my right. Summon our Father. Tell him I’ve come to make a trade.”
• The hosts are floored, speculating about his lineage—human, fae, god, or all three?

13. The Math Isn’t Mathing: Timeline and Parentage Plot Holes (42:47–47:02)

• Anna meticulously lays out a timeline contradiction involving Fisher’s age, his mother’s death, and his sister Everlane’s existence.
  • Quote [44:04, Christina]: “…The age gap between Fisher and Everlane is 247 years. That is canon. The math isn’t mathing…”
• The hosts debate whether Quick Silver’s time distortion could explain it, but none are convinced.

14. Styx, Finryn, and Fisher’s Parentage (47:06–50:15)

• They question if Finryn (Fisher’s “father”) and Styx (the god in hell) are the same—it’s left ambiguous.
• Kim suggests “father” could refer to a “maker,” not a biological parent—mirroring how vampires call their creators “father.”

15. Who Is the God-Blessed Herald? (50:26–52:54)

• Was Fisher recruited by the gods to become a “silver-eyed herald” but turned them down? Are the power upgrades about him, or Serris—or both?

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (By Timestamps)

• On Serris’s character
  [04:33, Anna]:
  "I was too tired. Tired of putting up the front…for the first time since my mother died, I had people again. I wasn't alone anymore."
• On the stakes of magic
  [09:12, Christina]:
  "…it does feel that when it comes to Cerys’ power and her magic, there doesn’t seem to be a limit to what she can do."
• On heroic sacrifice and family drama
  [12:54, Kim]:
  "…I broke myself to look after you…And then you have the audacity to turn around and accuse me of the most heinous thing…"
• On true names and the Kingfisher twist
  [18:44, Christina]:
  "…It doesn’t work that way, Osha. It doesn’t matter that you weren’t given a true name. I was…" [28:44, Kim]:
  "…And now you’re gonna try to gaslight us, Callie…"
• On good romance writing
  [20:04, Christina]:
  "I lost the parts of myself that knew how to feel anything other than pain and sorrow centuries ago. But for better or worse, you have brought me back to life."
• On the plot hole
  [44:04, Christina]:
  "…The age gap between Fisher and Everlane is 247 years. That is canon. The math isn’t mathing."
• Cliffhanger
  [42:21, Kingfisher/Kaiden]:
  “I’ve come for a dragon, as is my right. Summon our Father. Tell him I’ve come to make a trade.”

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Flow and Tone

The hosts keep the discussion honest, critical yet caring, and peppered with good-natured sarcasm and laughter. They readily celebrate swoony moments and sharp writing, but are just as eager to identify what didn’t work for them. They throw in pop culture references (Tiger King, video games, Kim Kardashian memes) and book-nerd in-jokes to keep the energy high and accessible.

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Useful for Listeners Who Haven’t Read or Listened

• Explains character motivations and the logic (or lack thereof) behind plot twists.
• Highlights both romance and world-building.
• Raises the important, lingering questions for future books (parentage, magic’s limits, the true stakes of resurrection and power).
• The hosts' predictions and critiques offer jumping-off points for book club debates.

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Sections for Quick Reference

• 03:10 — Serris’s character highlights
• 07:41 — Power creep and lack of magical stakes
• 11:38 — Sibling drama with Hayden
• 18:00–22:17 — Major romantic moments
• 22:47 — Introduction of Hasrax & runes
• 24:47–29:33 — Climactic action, unlocking Kingfisher
• 29:56–32:13 — The immortal villains debate
• 32:14–37:44 — Onyx’s brief death and resurrection
• 39:15–41:43 — Going to hell, meeting dragons and gods
• 42:47–47:02 — Timeline/parentage “math” discussion
• 47:06–52:54 — Godly lineage theories

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In sum:

This episode is a lively, immersive book club session offering both adoration for Hart’s character work and sharp, insightful (and often hilarious) critique of her plotting and world logic as Brimstone barrels toward its cliffhanger conclusion.

Transcript

[Anna]

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[Christina]

Welcome to Flights of Fantasy, your Romantasy podcast book club. I'm Anna, joined by my book besties Kim and Christina, and together we're diving into the characters, theories, lore and magic behind all your favorite fantasy romance books. Hello listeners, we are so excited to be back with part two of our Brimstone episode. If you have not already, please go listen to part one of our episode because we set up so much that we are going to finish discussing in part two. Yes, we are so excited to dive in. We have Kingfisher and Seras to look forward to and of course the ending of this book.

[Anna]

Oh God, so many questions.

[Christina]

Yes, so many questions. But first, Christina has some announcements.

[Anna]

I do. Exciting news, listeners, friends, besties, we have over three hours of bonus Brimstone video content awaiting you on Patreon right now. Yes, I said three hours and it is all so fun. Our video chapter chats, if you're unfamiliar with those, these are our read along real time reaction video episodes where we pause every few chapters and hop on with our thoughts and theories. And these in particular are so, so fun. And you guys are having so much fun in the comments. We love chatting with you there. And just if you want more from us on this book, more detailed chapter breakdowns for the majority of the book, we've got you covered on Patreon. Anna even acts some things out. It's really wonderful.

[Kim]

She does. It's great.

[Anna]

Also, we're feeling very festive this month. Friends. Kim is bringing you her holiday TBR via a cutie video episode. We're also bringing you a book chat video episode on Megan Quinn's How My Neighbor Stole Christmas. Oh my gosh.

[Kim]

Oh yeah.

[Anna]

So festive, so steamy. Can't wait and don't forget as a patron you get our episodes a day early ad free. The video of our episodes if you're in tier 2 and also access to our back catalog of chapter chats, our SJM series, and so much more. We've got two tiers starting at $5 a month, so something for everyone and we would love, love love to welcome you into our Patreon family. So come join the [e-mail] flightsofantasypodcast oh my goodness.

[Christina]

With that all being said, we are going to give our official spoiler warning for Brimstone by Callie Hart as well as the bonus chapters that she has released in Kingfisher's pov. So let's dive in. We are picking up with our leading lady Serris. Oh Saris.

[Anna]

Let's talk about her. I think all three of us can agree that Saris is a very likable leading lady. We've met some that are not. She ticks all our boxes. She is smart, she's got street smarts, but she's also kind and very open minded while not being a pushover. And probably most important, arguably, is that she's not obtuse when it comes to events and situations happening around her like some other FMCs that we wanted to physically shake because they were ignoring plain facts around them. But Serris doesn't do that. She trusts her own mind and her gut and we really do appreciate that about her first and foremost. But let's run through some of our favorite serious moments. Okay, so I want to start off with this really sweet, beautiful moment with Tal where Serris is in pain because of her runes are flaring like her hands are bubbling again. Happens all the time. And Tal calls her out on the fact that she's lying and masking the pain that she's feeling and it triggers this memory of when she was little, after her mom died and she got really sick and. And pretty much she goes on to say that she had a fever, she was sick, but she was alone and she was like shivering by herself. And it says I had told myself I didn't need the help because I couldn't have it, and what was the point in craving something that would never come? Oh this poison girl. I convinced myself so thoroughly of this, that I was strong and I was all I needed, that I didn't want anyone else's concern, that now it made me feel like crawling out of my own skin when anyone showed the slightest bit of care for me. I was too tired. Tired of putting up the front. Tired of telling myself I had to deal with everything by myself. When for the first time since my mother died, I had people again. I wasn't alone anymore. Oh, sweet, sweet Sarah. God. It's this beautiful light bulb moment where she realizes she has this found family. And then we really see this come full circle when she not only lets someone care about her, but she asks for what she needs. We love to see it during one of their moments in the Huntsman's cottage. This time not in a dream, actually, real life. They're there. Fisher is essentially telling her he won't tell her to do. And he says, quote, I will not rob you of your path by insisting that I carry you.

[Kim]

Oh, I love that line.

[Anna]

Same. And Saris says, quote, and what if there comes a day when all this becomes too much and I want to be carried at least for a little while? And his response is, then it would be my honor and privilege to do so. Saris, never doubt that whenever you need me to catch you, I am here, ready and willing. Oh, God, we love them.

[Kim]

Stop it. I love this.

[Christina]

How far we have come.

[Anna]

Oh, my God.

[Christina]

We'll get to his character in a minute, but from where we were at the beginning, Quicksilver to here, it would be my honor.

[Anna]

Honor, Honor. Really?

[Christina]

I know.

[Anna]

Oh, my God.

[Kim]

He's just wonderful. He's just wonderful. You know what else is wonderful?

[Anna]

Tell us.

[Christina]

Tell us.

[Kim]

We have an incredible moment between Serris and Zoeina at the ball. Oh. And Serris is up on the dais, and she's listening to people, And Zovina starts to bitch at Seras yet again. And Serris is like, all right, that's enough. I've had enough of you.

[Anna]

We have reached our limit. Our capacity is met with Zovina's awful bitchiness. Like, come on.

[Kim]

Truly. So Serris uses her magic and pins Zovina to the floor with a candelabra and then slowly drags a chair across the room, sits in it, and then props her feet on Zofina's back.

[Anna]

Y' all the way this payoff hit. This is iconic.

[Christina]

The dragging of the chair. Like, I can hear the noise. I can see the visual.

[Kim]

Love it. Yeah. So then she says, you seem to confuse the dynamic between us. Zovina. I am your master. I could command you to sit at my feet, and you would bow, knowing death chased the edge of my blade. You mistake my patience for weakness, for tolerance. But test me further, and you will discover the limit of that patience.

[Christina]

Yes. Queen.

[Anna]

Amazing.

[Kim]

Queen Iconic. Something else that's iconic is there is a scene where Seras and Carrion are outside Tal's room. They're, like, waiting for him, and Zovina walks up and is being a bitch. And so Serris makes Zovina kneel. She makes a comment about Malcolm. And so being is like, back in my day, you would have crawled just to say father's name. And serious is like, ew, sounds like someone's been fucking Daddy.

[Christina]

The mic drop that this moment was absolutely sent me.

[Anna]

I agreed. I was listening to this part and I was like, come again? What did we just say?

[Kim]

What?

[Christina]

Seras went there so good.

[Kim]

I actually, as annoyed as I was with the magical components of Seras's character, I actually really liked her as a character in this book.

[Anna]

Me too.

[Christina]

I agree. Like, all the things that Christina stated earlier and these moments, she's sassy, she's sarcastic, she says what we're thinking. Like, I absolutely ate that up.

[Anna]

I liked seeing her juggle. Being the Vampire Queen.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Anna]

And also being like, God, I just want to go back to college with my friends. I really enjoyed it.

[Kim]

Yeah. What did we not enjoy so much, Anna?

[Christina]

You know what we struggled with a little bit tell us was the magical element of Serris.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

So first, I want to set this up. I'm going to read a few quotes in regards to her magical ability, specifically the alchemy. So this is from the old vampire witch in the library. She drops this little nugget and she says, an alchemist is a dangerous thing. Has no one ever told you what you are? No one's told you why Bellacon and your precious Queen Madra both hunted down and murdered your kind. And before we can follow up, Tal interrupts.

[Kim]

Yeah, of course he does.

[Christina]

You know, that's what people do in these books. Whatever. And then we get this from Kingfisher when he is visiting Elroy in the forge and he finds out that there was yet another book burning and all of the papers about alchemy, Elroy destroyed them. And this is what he says, Fisher, what had been in those papers that they could have damned? Saris. I was beginning to suspect I knew the answer to that question, but I didn't know how to approach it in my mind. Okay, what do you mean?

[Kim]

Find a way. Find a way to approach it in your mind.

[Anna]

A way.

[Kim]

Say more words.

[Christina]

I need you to find a pathway. Okay. So there's clearly a lot more going on with the alchemy.

[Anna]

Yeah. I mean, Madra killing all of them was a clue.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Christina]

And Belicon Destroying all of the books.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

Foley is the only one who knows a goddamn thing about alchemy because his grandfather put him on his knee when he was little and told him all.

[Kim]

About it on a Tuesdays with Maury situation.

[Anna]

Let me tell you a tale.

[Kim]

Oh, God.

[Christina]

So here's the thing. It's difficult to speculate because it does feel that when it comes to Cerys power and her magic, there doesn't seem to be a limit to what she can do.

[Kim]

Nope.

[Christina]

Which brings us to the constant leveling up. We listeners, we are hard pressed to find a moment in this book where Seras didn't struggle for more than a PA before all of a sudden being able to perform feats of magic so powerful that alchemists were literally killed for it in history books.

[Anna]

And that no one's ever done before.

[Kim]

Yep.

[Christina]

No, there's no learning curve. There is no training montage, nothing. She just wills it, basically, and it comes.

[Kim]

Yep.

[Christina]

So, yeah, I struggle with this.

[Kim]

Yeah. To me, again, this goes back to what I said in our first episode about the stakes. Like, where are the stakes? That she doesn't have to earn or fight for her abilities. I'm not talking about her physical training with Laura that she does. That's physical fighting. That's fine. But her actual magic, when the quicksilver is going over her body, it's coming over her, and all of a sudden she's like, I would never need a forge again. I would never have to make a relic again. I don't have to struggle anymore. I'm like, seriously, come on. Again, there's no stakes. It doesn't feel earned. Nothing about her magic in this book felt earned. Like, when she's attacked in that same scene with the null blades, and then she just takes Solas, splits it into two blades. It doesn't half the power friends. It doubles the power of the swords, which just makes no sense because that's not how magic should work.

[Christina]

That's not math.

[Anna]

That's just math.

[Christina]

You don't divide something and end up with more.

[Kim]

That's right. That's not how division works.

[Christina]

I think the thing that was hardest for me to swallow is that we spent so much of book one with her in the forge, and I actually really loved it. I loved that her human side, she spent time learning how to forge with Elroy, and then she was able to use that knowledge in book one when she got her alchemy magic to then kind of have this learning curve of, okay, how do I use what I know about. Forging to now use quicksilver and silver, make silver relics and make God swords. And we spend so much time doing that. And then, like Kim said, all of a sudden she seals her quicksilver rune, and it is stated that she no longer needs a forge. So what was the point of book one and spending all that time building this beautiful foundation of her character and her magic to then all of a sudden snap her fingers and now she no longer needs it? I also just. I don't know. It really. I really. It bothered me. And I also feel like, guys, the amount of time you spent in a.

[Anna]

Forge, so much forge time, lots of forging. And I think this is amplified by the fact that, like, what does it even mean to seal a room? Why do we have to seal the room? I think we sealed a lot and then they still bubbled up and we're burning. Like, I don't understand. So again, back to what you said, Kim. The stakes.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Yes, exactly. Exactly. Yep. And we're going to continue on this annoying train with talking about Hayden Saris's younger brother.

[Anna]

Oh, God.

[Kim]

Because he is the definition of useless. I'm just gonna say it.

[Anna]

I didn't think you get worse.

[Christina]

No.

[Anna]

And then.

[Kim]

No. And then he said, hold my beer.

[Anna]

Hold it.

[Kim]

Hold my rat urine beer.

[Christina]

Guys, I can't.

[Kim]

I can't.

[Christina]

That's so gross.

[Kim]

Okay, so this man child had the nerve, the audacity, to look Saris in the eye and accuse her of working for Queen Madra. Queen Madra? The same woman who forcibly sterilized Saris and countless other women. The architect of so much of Sarah's trauma. The literal embodiment of oppression entire life. So for Hayden to throw that accusation at her was so wild and unhinged and so disrespectful, I think.

[Anna]

Oh, my God.

[Kim]

Cruel.

[Anna]

So disrespectful.

[Kim]

Yes. But the moment ends up being incredibly powerful for Saris as a character because like we mentioned earlier, she's had to survive on her own for most of her life. Emotionally, physically, mentally, all of it. Saris had to be her own soft place to land her own protector. And Hayden's protector, too. She literally notes like it was a full time job keeping him out of trouble and taking care of him. And that's what makes this quote hit so much harder. Because it's a moment where we really see the weight she's been carrying and how deeply Hayden's accusation cuts. I love this quote.

[Christina]

So good.

[Anna]

Me too.

[Kim]

She says you. Hayden. More food. I shoved him again. More water. If we had anything, if you didn't starve and die in the sand, it was because I bled to keep you alive. I had to crawl on my stomach through sewer lines to reach the Royal Reserves once a week. I had to do that for you. Do you have any idea how disgusting that was? And did you ever hear me complain? I broke myself to look after you. I slipped into every other warden Sylvar and I robbed and I stole and I bartered and traded just to make sure that you were comfortable and your belly was full. And then you have the audacity to turn around and accuse me of the most heinous thing I can possibly think of because I made life too easy for you while everyone around us had to suffer.

[Christina]

There you go.

[Anna]

God. Mic drop.

[Kim]

Boom. That, like, gives me goosebumps because I made life too fucking easy for you while everyone around us had to suffer.

[Christina]

But the audacity of this man.

[Anna]

I'm so happy we got this.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Anna]

I was waiting for her to tell Kingfisher and him to come in and like, be like, what the fuck's wrong with you? And like, yeah, put him in his place or something. But it never gets brought up again, so.

[Kim]

Nope. Sure doesn't. And later she's like, babysit Hayden. I gotta go do this. Yeah, of course he has to be babysat. He's a grown ass man.

[Anna]

But fine.

[Kim]

Yeah, fine.

[Christina]

Can't be trusted.

[Kim]

Nope. But who can be trusted?

[Anna]

Kingfisher. Oh, wow.

[Kim]

Beloved.

[Anna]

We're gonna go ahead and give the psa though, that we're going to call in Fisher and Kingfisher. So, like, heads up. I know that his true name is Kaiden. We read the book. We're not going to call him that. Apologies. Can't do it.

[Kim]

Not right now.

[Christina]

Not right now.

[Kim]

We need some time.

[Christina]

Processing time.

[Anna]

We need more time than Saris did. Let me tell you.

[Kim]

No time.

[Anna]

Okay, so Kingfisher getting his POV in this book was quite literally everything. It helped us connect with him so much more. It was really wonderful to get to see his intentions in regards to not just Seras, but also his friends and his home.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

And yes, we have heard the complaint that the 180 from I Hate you Too, I'm Obsessed with youh was a bit stark and agreed. But also with all the aspects in the world, I. I didn't care because I. I am here for the romance in this moment. I feel like we went through 70% of book one of him being mean to get us here. So I feel fine with it agreed.

[Christina]

We paid our dues.

[Anna]

I do understand there could be some layers. I do understand the whole book. He was just obsessed with her. But, like, that's what I want, honestly.

[Kim]

Yeah. As long as we get there, we don't need to know how the sausage is made. Just get us there.

[Anna]

Yeah. I'm so happy they weren't separated for longer. And the fact that we didn't worry about them and their romance, this whole book, no such a gift.

[Christina]

Not at all.

[Anna]

I was very happy that we knew they were stable was lovely.

[Christina]

Absolutely.

[Anna]

And there's also this quote from Kingfisher that we just think is such beautiful writing from the beginning of the book. And it's really important to remember his mental state for the last few centuries. Guys. Okay, so listen to this quote. I desperately clung to the promise I had made to have faith. But having faith was like trying to remember a language I had once known as a child. No, it was worse. It was like trying to run with broken legs. My legs could not carry me right now, and so I was dragging myself along on my hands and knees. The word faith, a boot on the back of my neck shoving me down into the dirt.

[Christina]

Wow.

[Kim]

Wow, you guys, that writing is fantastic.

[Christina]

The word faith, a boot on the back of my neck, shoving me down into the dirt. I mean, you can see that.

[Kim]

You can picture it so well.

[Anna]

And the feeling of it weighing on you and crushing you down. This was such beautiful writing. I loved this.

[Kim]

I loved it, too.

[Christina]

We have moments like this in this writing. It's so beautiful. And that's what makes it frustrating. Then when we get these little plot hole moments because I'm like, girl, you have it in you.

[Kim]

You have it, you have it.

[Christina]

We just need a little editor in there.

[Anna]

How did this happen is the question. You know, like, the writing is there, but like, sure, if you're the purchasing.

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[Anna]

Santa, did you get my letter?

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[Christina]

Okay, so let's move on to some of our favorite kingfisher Seras romance. Lovey dovey moments, please. So I'm gonna walk us through this kind of like marriage conversation that they have. So the subject of Saris and Fisher getting married comes up a few times at a dinner. And Fisher is very quick to shut it down. We find out later that in Fae mating ceremony, it's tradition for the married couple to share their true names with one another. And that's what seals the marriage bond. And if you don't remember listeners, a Fae usually receives their true name on their 14th birthday. But Fisher's mother died before that. I also would love for everyone to please pin that. That his mother died before he was 14. I need you to pin that for the ending. Okay.

[Kim]

Do we all have it?

[Christina]

Pin it.

[Anna]

Pin it.

[Kim]

Okay.

[Christina]

Fischer is insecure about not knowing his true name, which is really sad. And Seras basically says, who cares? Like I don't have a true name. And so it shouldn't matter. And what he says in response is, it doesn't work that way, Osha. It doesn't matter that you weren't given a true name. I was. And unless I share it with you, the ceremony won't take root. There's nothing to be done about it. So I do understand. If marriage is important to you, then. And she cuts him off and she says, I love you, Fisher. It was the first time I'd said it. I love you, and nothing else matters beyond that. Wherever you are, I'll beg the gods and all the fates to let me be there too. And he just grabs her face and he says, say it again. He growls, oh, God, I love. My cheeks are burning. And she's, like, flirting with him. She goes, say what? And he says, don't play with me, please. He begged, oh, the please. And then it's her pov and she goes. I leaned back so that I could look at him properly, at the open, raw emotion on his face that stole my smile. The hope in his eyes destroyed me. Like there was a possibility that it wasn't true. Like there was any realm or reality in which I didn't love him. But he was praying that I might. He was out of his God's cursed mind. I love you, Fisher. Of course I do. Always. Forever.

[Anna]

Oh, God.

[Kim]

Wait.

[Christina]

And then his response. I lost the parts of myself that knew how to feel anything other than pain and sorrow centuries ago. But for better or worse, you have brought me back to life.

[Kim]

I actually can't. I love this so much.

[Anna]

Agreed. Also, coupled with what he just said about faith being a boot pushing his neck into the sand. Yes, yes. And then here, her seeing hope in his eyes. It's so beautiful.

[Kim]

Oh, that's so beautiful, Christina. Oh, I love that.

[Anna]

Oh, God, it's so good.

[Christina]

So we have spicy times after that, which I absolutely love. And Fisher, like, you know, she says, I love you. And he says, come now, Osha. Where else would an acolyte kneel to worship but at the altar of his God?

[Anna]

Sir. Oh, my God, I love it. 1. I feel like this was a tie back to. I'm going to introduce you to all seven gods. Two, this is extra interesting because he's half God.

[Christina]

He's half God, and he's like, Let me introduce you to all seven. Sir. I think you could.

[Kim]

Sir.

[Christina]

Sir.

[Kim]

Or if anybody could think it'd be you.

[Anna]

Also, him being at. At the altar of his God. Like, I am actually half God and you are my God.

[Kim]

I'm kneeling before you.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Kim]

You guys know we love that.

[Christina]

Love it so much.

[Anna]

The spice works.

[Kim]

You know, we love that.

[Christina]

You know what else we love, Kim?

[Kim]

I felt like we had so many really playful scenes with them in this book, and I really appreciated it because it felt so real. There's a scene that I. From chapter 29, and they're in bed, and Sarah is tickling Kingfisher, and she makes a joke about him not having weaknesses, but that he knows all of her flaws. And, Kingfisher. You have no flaws, Sarah Spain. You are perfect in my eyes, imperfections and all. I'm in love with every part of you. Every part. I love all of you. I'd spend the fortunes of the universe to protect you. I drain the seas dry, fell every tree. I would sacrifice the sun from the sky and surrender the stars, too, if I could. But those things aren't mine to give. All I have is my life. It isn't much, but I'd spend it and consider the price small if it meant keeping you safe.

[Anna]

Oh, my God. The devotion. The devotion, people.

[Kim]

So then Sarah says, there it is. The way you love me. Some would say that is your weakness. And he says, some would say that, but they would be wrong. It's my strength.

[Christina]

I mean.

[Anna]

Oh, I love it.

[Christina]

Shut up. Shut up.

[Anna]

This deep level of romance with the spicy, spicy, spicy times was really working for me.

[Kim]

Chef's kiss.

[Christina]

All right, listeners, so we are going to dive into the ending now.

[Anna]

Here we go.

[Kim]

All right, everybody, just take a breath. Here we go. It's a whirlwind.

[Anna]

Refill your beverages.

[Kim]

I'm gonna stretch. Do some stretches, some mobility exercises.

[Christina]

It feels like a sprint, but it's also a marathon.

[Kim]

I don't know, triathlon.

[Anna]

I have not been this excited to break down an ending of a book with the two of you in quite some time. Oh, yeah. The fun conversations ahead, as well as the fun questions we have.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Anna]

Okay.

[Christina]

Take it away.

[Anna]

So, first off, let's talk about the newest addition to our cast of characters, the Hasracks. Oh, wow. What a treat.

[Christina]

Has he.

[Anna]

Has he. Has he racks. So he's has he racks is creepy, y'.

[Kim]

All.

[Anna]

He's monster like, which is not like anything else, really, we've seen. He's got these weird little claws, and his mouth is a line.

[Christina]

He has webbed hands.

[Anna]

Webbed hands, gills. There's a lot going on there. He also doesn't speak to anyone. Oh. But besides special, special Seras.

[Kim]

Yeah, of course.

[Anna]

In addition to being so creepy, he's also important to the plot in a few ways. Number one, surprise. He gives her another rune which contains the true name of the Hasrax. Interesting quote. Undo or break. More on this in a bit, so stay tuned for that. Number two. Long story short, Serious agrees to the same deal that Malcolm had. So that is that he is allowed to observe in exchange for one favor per year. Just observe. He just wants to watch.

[Christina]

Yeah, I would love to know what he's observing and how often he's there, what?

[Anna]

And when. Because we know that he's not there all the time. Because later she's like, where are you?

[Christina]

Hello?

[Anna]

And he's like, what are you doing?

[Kim]

He's like, how dare you summon me?

[Christina]

She's like, I just thought you were always here.

[Kim]

Thought you wanted to watch. You're missing stuff.

[Anna]

Are you not always observing me?

[Christina]

You know what I always think of, like, is that gif of Kim Kardashian. And she, like, pops out from behind the bush.

[Kim]

There he is.

[Christina]

Did you call?

[Anna]

Has he. Me always there.

[Christina]

I'm here.

[Anna]

Also, though, important to remember that we have no idea what this creature is. But I think it's definitely going to be important going forward. Sarah says, quote, you're never going to tell me what you are, are you? The Hazrack smiled its needle smile, quote, why would I? When you're so close to piecing it all together. King Killer, you've almost figured it out. Can we just get one answer? Just. I want one question answered in this book. Yeah, it's really just one.

[Kim]

Nope.

[Anna]

Also, she's not working on this. What do you mean she's almost figured out this isn't on the to do list.

[Christina]

She doesn't seem like she's figured it out at all.

[Kim]

I don't think she's anywhere close to figuring it out.

[Christina]

Fisher also says that he is the oldest creature in existence in Evilia.

[Kim]

Yes. Okay, so let's move on to Inishtar. We're gonna move rapidly through this next part so that we can get to the Wicker Wood and to the big reveal.

[Anna]

Okay, Nelly.

[Kim]

So there's a magic school bus evacuation from College to Innistar because the rot is about to take over. But, oh, no. We lost a passenger through the Shadow Gate. Kingfisher and Onyx are missing, but Cirrus has the bright idea to let Danya work out some frustration and punch her right in the face so that she can black out and visit Fisher in her dreams.

[Anna]

Yeah, sure.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Okay.

[Anna]

I did like the fact that she was like, okay, how can I talk to Fisher? I gotta fall asleep. Well, I'm just too wired for that. Who will punch me?

[Kim]

Go take a sleeping drought. Go.

[Anna]

There's no, like, Melatonin? Yeah.

[Kim]

Is there no. Lemme sleep gummies. Like, what?

[Christina]

Yeah, Danya.

[Kim]

So she's like, I must find Dania. But Dania doesn't give it a second thought. Just wax her. Real good. Does that not make you guys think of the Tiger King? Song. Carol Baskin. Yeah. Kill her husband. Whacked him.

[Anna]

Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[Kim]

Just a waxer. Real Carol Baskin.

[Anna]

Baskin.

[Kim]

I can't hear it now.

[Christina]

Oh, my God.

[Kim]

Sorry.

[Christina]

That's a great job.

[Kim]

So Donya gives her the good old Carole Baskin wax. Her real good. And Sarah wakes up in a, quite frankly, hellish version of college. Okay, this is so creepy. Fisher is there, but it is clear he is very unwell. He's awake but not awake. He doesn't know that Serris is there. He's there, but not there. It's very confusing. Sarah finds the missing scrap of paper from Adina's blue book that she had stored away in her bedroom at Kalish that conveniently has the whereabouts and instructions on how to free Fisher.

[Anna]

The. The one page that was at college. Yeah.

[Kim]

Yeah. So the hasrack shows up again because he's a creeper and he magic saris to the Wicker Wood, and it take us to the Wicker Wood.

[Anna]

What a place to be.

[Kim]

O. I would absolutely love to.

[Christina]

This is where the plot started to lose us for a bit, listeners. Not gonna lie. We had to suspend a lot of belief throughout this book. Callie has been playing a fantasy bingo game where literally everything gets picked off.

[Kim]

Yep.

[Christina]

Every. There is not a mark empty on that page.

[Kim]

Nope.

[Christina]

So first, Serris, who has only been training with a sword, mind you can't even hold Solace with two hands because it's too heavy. Yet she somehow fights off 10 plus seasoned warriors in Bellicon's army. Also, they have null blades, so she can't even use her magic effectively, y'.

[Kim]

All.

[Christina]

She didn't struggle at all. It turns out that Fisher is stuck in a dream hellscape while locked inside of a festering wound of a tree. Absolutely hated everything about the description of this. No, thank you.

[Anna]

My claustrophobia could not handle the tree growing around him.

[Christina]

I immediately thought of both of you.

[Kim]

No. Ditto. I was like, no, no, no, no, no. The tree is open halfway and he's in the opening of the tree.

[Anna]

Same.

[Christina]

Yeah. Bellicon thinks that he has Serris where he wants her and that he can use Fisher as a bargaining trick. Nope. Serris has Edina's blue book. And guess what else was on that missing scrap of paper. Funds Fisher's true name. This is the quote. She approaches Kingfisher to free him. King Fisher of the Ajin Gate, I hereby call you by your true name. I declare all oaths you have sworn null and void. Rise Kaidan Greystar. Finvarra, in honor of the name you were given at birth. Rise up and fight. It is very hard to. To deliver that with his name in the powerful way I wanted to.

[Kim]

Yeah, sure.

[Christina]

But I do wanna say first, before.

[Kim]

We dive into the name, is that.

[Christina]

This was a cool moment. I did love this, like, freeing him. I need everyone to remember that she has a hole in her chest. Her beating heart is like open rivers of blood. Quote, rivers of blood are dripping out of her mouth. And I just love that the first time his eyes open again, she's, like, bleeding to death.

[Kim]

She's near death again. He's like, every time. Is this happening again?

[Anna]

Beerus, get it together.

[Christina]

But while we loved this, what. What we struggled with, friends, is the name.

[Kim]

Is the name.

[Anna]

Yeah.

[Christina]

Kai Dan. Is that. Is that correct?

[Kim]

Kai Dan. Yes. Christina listened to the audiobook and it's.

[Anna]

I did. It's Kai Dan.

[Kim]

Kai Dan.

[Anna]

Got it.

[Kim]

Okay. I thought it. We thought it was Kaiden.

[Christina]

Kaiden, Which I was better.

[Kim]

Although it is. It's Kai Dan. And it's the hardest of passes for me. First of all, his name is Kingfisher. I. It already took us an entire, like, book just to get through that and be like, his name is Kingfisher. And now you're gonna try to gaslight us, Callie, and be like. Like, oh, it's effortless. He's always been Kaidan to me.

[Christina]

The amount of times Seris is like. It's like it was breathing air. I could say his name. Kai Dan. Like, it had always been this way. I was like, has it.

[Kim]

Has it.

[Anna]

The way that Seras talks about how easy it is to switch is so alarming. While you're reading this or listening to it, and at the exact moment when you're like, that is not his name. There was a moment where she's like, oh. And then Kai didn't help me to my feet. I was like, who.

[Christina]

Who.

[Anna]

Who helped you?

[Kim]

Who.

[Anna]

Who else is there? What do you mean?

[Kim]

Who's this?

[Christina]

Are you cheating?

[Anna]

What do you mean? I.

[Kim]

Are you having an affair?

[Anna]

Are you fucking Daddy? Oh, God.

[Kim]

I. I'm sorry. I think Callie was trying to push it too hard by having Seras go on this rampage about how effortless and easy it was to call him Kaiden and how it just rolls off the tongue. And I'm like, no, you got to give us some time. You. I'm sorry. We need to give us some time.

[Anna]

Just say his name less in this part. Call him my love.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Anna]

Call him, mate.

[Kim]

Him. He. Him.

[Christina]

I Do know that using the Hazrax rune, because name breaker, she is able to break him of the oaths. But you have to remember that everybody else walking around with the true name does not go by their true name, because if you say their true name, then everybody has power over you. Now, I realize that he somehow now, Heavenly Fire. No one can ever command him, but it seems to me that everyone should go by their nickname.

[Kim]

Well, doesn't everybody? Isn't it just mates that know their true name in their mother?

[Christina]

Yes. So, like King Fisher would. I would still think that would be what everybody else calls him.

[Anna]

Great point.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Because remember, it says your mother is the only one that knows your true name. And you give that to your mate when you get married. But it's just supposed to be your mate and your mother that know you.

[Christina]

Renfus is his nickname, Right?

[Anna]

Right. And if Rinfus got married and did a true name marriage ceremony, his mate or wife would not call him his true name out loud. She'd call him Rinfus because it's sacred. So. That is a great point, Ada. Now, I'm firm believer that Kaidan should only be mental. Speak. We should mind. Speak. Kaidan. Even though she broke the oath, still my God.

[Kim]

Agreed.

[Christina]

Yeah. So the final thing I just want to touch upon before we move on is this beheading of Belakan. We have some questions, folks. So we have to remember Malcolm was beheaded at the end of the last book, and the prajenvert cannot die unless all three of them are dead. Queen Madra, Malcolm, and Belacan. So she's beheaded Malcolm, but I guess he's not really dead. And then Bellacon is beheaded, and she says, well, he's not really dead.

[Anna]

So what are we doing?

[Christina]

My question, folks, is, is this like a Men in Black situation where the alien's head gets blown off and then a little tiny squeaky head grows out? Because I absolutely hate that visual.

[Kim]

No, I hate that I loathe everything about it.

[Anna]

Wow.

[Kim]

Loathe entirely.

[Anna]

Also, are Bellicon and Malcolm dead enough that if we killed Madra, they would die?

[Christina]

I mean, Malcolm has yet to reappear, so we at least bought ourselves a bit of time with Bellicott. I would think in the next book. It's been. We've kind of did the math, I think in our. When we were talking about the outline that it's been roughly somewhere within a couple weeks to a month.

[Kim]

That's my understanding of it. From. From the beginning of Brimstone to the end of Brimstone. I believe is a few weeks.

[Anna]

Yes. And if Malcolm were at all alive or able to walk around like a functioning vampire, he would have taken the Court back from her.

[Christina]

Yes. Oh, good point.

[Anna]

Point. Yeah. But I have to think that they're, like, kind of dead somewhere. But maybe there's a spell that could bring them back. But if we killed Madre, maybe they'd all just be dead.

[Christina]

That's what my understanding is.

[Anna]

We need a status update vis a vis. The heads.

[Kim]

That.

[Anna]

Where are they?

[Kim]

I need a status update. Like, we were playing a video game and you can see like, oh, I only have 30% life left. Where are we at with them? What percentage are they at?

[Christina]

How much more do we need to go?

[Anna]

The heads. Right, the heads.

[Kim]

Okay.

[Christina]

All right, Kim.

[Kim]

Let's talk about Onyx, you guys.

[Anna]

Oh, God.

[Kim]

Okay, okay, okay. This part was rough for a few reasons. So just when we think things cannot get any worse. Or Bellicon's right hand man, that super obnoxious, sniveling little. So he comes at Sarah for a killing blow and out jumps Onyx to defend her. But in the process, he is dealt a mortal wound. And Saris is holding him. And it says Saris lifted Onyx into her arms, cradling him gently. Velvet ears tipped with black. Tiny white eyelashes. Toe pads cracked and bleeding again. He looked so small curled in on himself like that. But he was not small. In all my years alive and traveling this realm, I had never encountered anything so mighty and brave as this little fox with the heart of a wolf.

[Anna]

My God, the beauty. God, the tiny eyelashes just really. Oh, I know.

[Kim]

And the topaz a little. It's God. Saris is obviously so distraught about Onyx. We all are. Like, we were all so distraught. She's sobbing and begging Fisher to save her, but. And in her desperation, this is when she calls the Hasrax and demands for him to show her how to bring Onyx back. And this is what he says. The alchemists tried and failed for centuries to bring their Fae loved ones back from the dead. Well, guess what? Has he? All your old alchemists were not Sarah's fame. Who apparently has never met a magic that she cannot conquer.

[Anna]

With ease.

[Kim]

Okay.

[Anna]

With ease.

[Kim]

Yep. So she uses the Undo rune that the Hazracks gifted to her to essentially undo Onyx's death.

[Christina]

Okay, okay, listeners, this might be our hottest take of the episode. And we truly do not mean to offend anybody because we love Onyx and we were all very upset when we thought that he died, but I feel Like, Onyx's sacrifice was very noble. And the way he protected Fisher and he died saving Saris's life, it felt very sweet. It felt very honorable. And for some reason, this insane amount of heavenly fire and leveling up that Seras does to save Onyx feels honestly like it cheapens the moment to us. Personal opinions. None of us wanted Onyx to die, but also, it's war times and death is going to happen. We all prepare ourselves. It happens in a lot of other books. We hate it. We live through it, we cry, but we mourn and we move on. And if we're going to save Onyx, I just wish it had been done in a different way. Yeah, honestly, through Fisher's use of stealing magic. And instead of him using it at the beginning of the book to save Onyx, I would have been so nice to see Callie hint at it throughout the book and, you know, mention Fisher's like, small bits of healing magic. And so then when it's used to save Onyx, it would have felt like Fisher was also sacrificing something. Like it was a trade for a trade. You know, that. Yes, Onyx is saved, but Fisher had to relinquish something of himself to do. So instead, Seras just levels up with zero issues again and literally gives up nothing except the rune on her hand.

[Anna]

She gives up the rune on her hand and her favor for the year. Both of those.

[Kim]

Yes.

[Christina]

And the favor for the year. So if you guys don't remember, this is what the Hazer act says about the rune. Okay. If you proceed any further talking to Sarris, you will shatter the rune I gave you. You will not be able to use it to save anyone else. You will not be able to use it to free your other friends from their oats as you freed your mate. And this is her inner monologue. I didn't care there would be another way to free the others. I would find one. One, make one, if I had to. I mean, we believe that Saris.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Christina]

But again, going back to what Kim talked about is the stakes.

[Kim]

Yeah, listeners, if you're new here, I really don't like animal deaths in book because I don't like children's deaths in books. It really bothers me. It very much upsets me. And even I am like, I'm not gonna go so far as to say I wish Onyx had died, because like we said, we love Onyx. I don't want him to be dead. But again, you're just removing all of the stakes. I was reading this scene And I honestly was like, she's not gonna kill him. Like, she's gonna bring Onyx back. I know he's not gonna be dead because she didn't kill Archer. And I just felt like she had proved time and time again that an issue arises in the book and there becomes an easy fix for it. And so it honestly took away some of the like, emotional intensity of the scene for me because I was like, she's not gonna kill Onyx. Like, I just know that she's not. And as much as it has devastated me in the past when a beloved little supporting character has died. Yeah. It gives the book stakes. It shows that there are consequences for action. Have to show that. Otherwise it's like, what are we even doing? I mean. Yeah, why do I care?

[Anna]

Really, really good point, Kim, about the stakes. And I think what I need is for Onyx to be important and magically pivotal in some way in the next book. I. I want that moment where we think, oh, wow, okay, if we hadn't brought Onyx back then we could have never done xyz.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Anna]

And I need that XYZ to be an equal trade. A true counterbalance to not being able to break their friends oaths. That's, I think, what we need for this whole thing to feel like a complete plot. Like there has to be a reason. And I. Am I correct in that if she had stopped, the rune would have stayed like the other runes. Like it wasn't a one time rune. She could have used it to break a bunch of people's oaths.

[Christina]

That's his point is if you use this now, it's gone because she used every bit of power.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Christina]

I think just this on the coattails of the amount of leveling up in the wicker wood, being able to touch Fisher's godsword, being able to fight off Bellicon's army, being able to. Able to heal from a chest wound where Bellicon's literally holding her beating heart in her hand. All of these things, it was.

[Kim]

It was constant.

[Christina]

So I think when we got to this, to Kim's point again and to your point, Christina, both of you, is that you weren't worried. You were like, oh, well, it's gonna be fixed. Okay.

[Anna]

Precisely. And we are happy to have Onyx. But also, you know, these are the questions we have. Who's to say not us?

[Christina]

Who's to say not us?

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

Guys, thanks for helping me carry my Christmas tree.

[Zoe]

Zoe. This thing weighs a ton.

[Drew Ski]

Cris, live with your legs, man.

[Kim]

Santa. Santa, did you get my letter?

[Zoe]

He's talking to you, Bridges.

[Drew Ski]

I'm not.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

Of course he did. Right, Santa?

[Drew Ski]

You know my elf Drew here, he handles the nice list.

[Zoe]

And elf, I'm six' three. What everyone wants is iPhone 17 and at T Mobile, you can get it on them. That center stage front camera is amazing for group selfies. Right, Mrs. Claus?

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

I'm Mrs. Claus's much younger sister. And at T Mobile, there's no trade in needed when you switch. So you can keep your old phone.

[Drew Ski]

Or give it as a gift.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

And the best part, you can make the switch to T Mobile from your phone in just 15 minutes.

[Christina]

Nice.

[Zoe]

My side of the tree is slipping, Kimber.

[T Mobile Ad Voice]

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[Christina]

Visit t mobile.com if you're the purchasing.

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[Christina]

Great.

[Anna]

Okay, so before Serris Necromancied Onyx, Fisher had led them through a bunch of shadowgates and brought them to Ajin's gate. And guess who's there, friends? Rinfest. We found Renny. Okay, so turns out Renfest was not really missing. He had been called to be a protector of a portal gate that Azhin protects. Protects the rest of the Veilia from. What is this portal gauge, you may wonder? Friends, here's what we do know. The direct quote is it's like quicksilver, dot, dot, dot, but not Kelly. Okay, yeah, Kelly. What we like to think of this as is some sort of twisted form of quicksilver. Yes. So it's like murkier way grosser to jump into. It's not like pretty and sleek and silver.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

But the most important bit of info that we learn is that this is the exact pool of quicksilver, but not quicksilver that Fisher was tossed into by Bellicon when he was 11 years old. Again, I'm gonna need you to pin that age for theories, because Anna has some receipts and we all have some feelings, so stay tuned for that. But, yes, little Fisher's thrown in. And this portal is different, because unlike the other pools of quicksilver that stilled when Madra locked them all down, this one stayed open for business. And unfortunately, that their business is hell. And it's not a nice place to be, as we're about to learn. So Kingfisher and Seris jump into that pool and Kim, take it away.

[Kim]

I would love to. Welcome to Hell, everyone. It's hotter than the surface of the sun. We have dragons who hold thousand year grudges. Come on in.

[Anna]

Grab a beverage.

[Kim]

There's Warren. Okay, so it turns out that the dragon Fisher killed in his bonus chapter, Old Shakray, old Greg, if you don't know what we're talking about, please go watch our bonus episode on Patreon where we break down these Kingfisher POV bonus chapters. It's a real hoot. Okay, it is. So the dragon that Fisher killed in that gate bonus chapter was the offspring of the dragon we now come face to face with. And mama dragon is not pleased. Okay. We quickly learned that dragons are essentially all knowing. They can read all the thoughts in your head. Although Fisher alludes to the fact that he somehow trained to block them out. Unfortunately, he did not train Sarah. So she's an open book.

[Christina]

Yep.

[Anna]

Correct.

[Kim]

So Saris and Fisher end up getting knocked out. And when they wake up, they are hanging upside down above what we can only describe as one of Dante's levels of hell. Okay. It's giving purgatory. It's not pleasant.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

At this point in the book, I was locked back in. I was like, this is wild. What is happening? Yes.

[Kim]

Okay. We also learned that this Hellscape is the stronghold of a God named Styx. And we are also met by his two very creepy twin sons, Crave and Githrin Hand, who are very obsessed with Fisher's godsword. No, that's not a euphemism. They really are obsessed with his God sword. Okay. Not his other God sword.

[Anna]

Okay, that was good.

[Kim]

So this is what I believe. It's Crave says this. That sword could end worlds in the right hands. If it's what I think it is, it is one of the forgotten blades of our ancestors. And you, to Kingfisher, do not have the right to wield it. They also make a point to say that Fisher should not have shadow magic. They say only half gods may wield shadows.

[Anna]

All right, there it is.

[Kim]

Okay, friends. Which brings us to the final line of the book from Kingfisher. I've come for a dragon, as is my right. Summon our Father. Tell him I've come to make a trade.

[Anna]

What?

[Kim]

Wow.

[Christina]

Our Father.

[Kim]

I've come for a dragon, as is my right. Summon our Father who aren't in heaven.

[Christina]

He is in hell, who art in heaven.

[Anna]

Also right after we get the only half gods may wield shadows.

[Kim]

Yes. Yes, exactly.

[Christina]

Okay, so let's break down some of our thoughts and theories on this ending. So first, I would like for us to go to court. And I'm going to present my case.

[Kim]

Let's hear your case.

[Christina]

Here we go. We were at science lab in the first episode. And now we're in math class. Also at court. So all the things.

[Kim]

It's court, it's math class, it's all the things.

[Anna]

Anna wears lots of hats.

[Kim]

She does.

[Christina]

Listen, people have many names. I have many hats. So let's chat about what appears to be a pretty big discrepancy in regards to the timeline surrounding Kingfisher's age and when he was thrown into the Quicksilver pool. We would be remiss and not doing our job if we didn't bring it up. So let's state the facts first. Now, these are canon. Feel free to go back to book one in Quicksilver and fact check me. But I will tell you right now, they are in chapter 10. Kingfisher is 1733 years old. Everlane is 1480. That is math. A 247 year age gap. Okay, now, in Quicksilver, chapter 11, when Fisher was 10, the king sent his father on a mission to Zilvarin. He never returned. So like Christina said earlier when she was walking us through Ajun gate in the portal, Fisher was 11 when Belacan pushed him into the Quicksilver pool that we see at the end of this book. His mother had recently died. This is the quickest quote I was oath bound to him. 11 years old. My mother had been dead a week, y' all, already. The math isn't mathing. Okay, hold on. There's more.

[Anna]

Please hold.

[Christina]

Remember, this is Everlane speaking. Back in book one in Quicksilver. She says Belacan didn't want Kingfisher as his heir by marriage. But it took a long time for my mother to fall pregnant again. Fae children are a rare gift. Most couples are Lucky if they even have one child. He still insisted that when our mother did fall pregnant with me a long time later, it was Fisher's fault that she wasn't strong enough to survive the delivery either. And then she says none of her healers were surprised when she passed. Shortly after I came into the world. The age gap between Fisher and Everlane is 247 years. That is canon. The math isn't mathing. If King Fisher was 11 and his mother had been dead a week, then Everlane should not have been born according to their age gap when he went into the quicksilver. Now, for argument's sake. Okay, for argument's sake, let's say that time works differently in the quicksilver.

[Kim]

Sure.

[Christina]

Okay.

[Kim]

Why not?

[Christina]

We've gotten hints of that. That's fine. Fisher is pushed in at 11 years old. He emerges in Evalia with 200 plus years have passed, but to him, maybe only moments. Right, because quicksilver time works differently. He comes out. There is no way for Everlane to have been born in those 200 plus years because. Because, friends, his mother has been dead a week prior to him being pushed in.

[Kim]

So it doesn't matter how much time has passed when he's in the quicksilver. His mom died before he went into the quicksilver and therefore can't be pregnant.

[Anna]

And cannot have Everlane.

[Christina]

And we also have multiple times stated that his mother died before he was 14 because he never got his true name.

[Kim]

Exactly. Precisely.

[Christina]

So this is a very, very glaring plot hole to me. And I don't quite know how she's going to come out of this one.

[Kim]

Agreed.

[Anna]

There are a lot in this book. This one in particular feels like there's no fixing this. I don't think. And I think fixing it, you'd have to jump through so many hoops, it.

[Kim]

Would make it worse.

[Christina]

Just ignore it, honestly.

[Kim]

Well, I think she is ignoring it. I don't think she said anything. As of right now, as of recording.

[Anna]

You know what could help me ignore it is if Everlane died, I would forget maybe about her age.

[Kim]

True.

[Anna]

I really appreciate the receipts. This was a rough one for sure.

[Kim]

Agree. Thank you, Anna.

[Christina]

You're welcome. I close my case.

[Anna]

I think there are some errors that are maybe hints to a timeline being messed with with or other things happening and things being on purpose. I would argue one, that this is not that and two, that if that is the case, it. It was not well done. Yeah, agreed. Was not handled correctly.

[Kim]

It was not explained well. That was not made clear. It should have been a canon from the beginning of Quicksilver. That Fisher tells Saris that time works differently in Quicksilver. And it can be. It's like going into the cauldron in Acotar. It's not a spoiler, but, like, we don't know how time works in there. Say something like that. Say it. Make it necessary. Fabulous. Like, just say something.

[Christina]

Yes. You gave a lot of numbers, and we might not be good at math, but we can add and subtract.

[Kim]

I can add and subtract with my phone calculator. That's why we have it. Okay.

[Anna]

I think that's where it gets tricky. And that's what we think about the editor here.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

Cali put dates in there and ages. There were numbers.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

So if that's her job or an editor's job, it's somebody's job to keep track of them.

[Christina]

Yeah, I agree. So let's chat about out Finryn. And this revealed that Styx is Kingfisher's true father's father.

[Anna]

Is Finryn Styx?

[Kim]

I don't know. Yeah. Is Finryn Styx?

[Christina]

So here's the thing. Let's say for argument's sake, that Finryn was not his biological father. Let's say that it was somebody who helped raise him with Idina. And so then maybe when Fisher was pushed into this Quicksilver pool and ended up in Hell, he somehow came face to face with Styx. And Styx was like, by the way, you're my son.

[Anna]

I went back and looked at the conversation with Saris in book one.

[Christina]

Yes.

[Anna]

So she asks him in Quicksilver. She says to Xerath, does Fisher know any of this about the Tree of Life, about the rot, anything? Xerath says, no, I orchestrated events so that he would be brought here as a young male. His mother had just died, and his disposition wasn't very polite. He frowned as if the memory were troubling even now. Now this is what's important. He made an enemy of my family. He was only allowed to live because I demanded it.

[Christina]

But he's not the father.

[Kim]

No.

[Anna]

But he says here that Kingfisher made an enemy of his family. I'm assuming family is like the gods, like his brothers and sisters of the gods or something? And he was only allowed to live because I demanded it. So did he show up in the quicksilver and sticks like, you're my son. And he was like, fuck you. No, I'm not. And tried to, like, mess something up?

[Kim]

You know what I'm thinking, though? I have a thought.

[Christina]

Go ahead.

[Kim]

You know how Zoeina calls Malcolm father?

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Kim]

Because he made her.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Kim]

So could he be saying father, as in, like, my maker, like, sticks turned Fisher into a half God, and that's he's his father in that he's his maker.

[Christina]

That would be interesting.

[Kim]

But Finryn was actually, like, his actual dad.

[Anna]

I like that.

[Kim]

Malcolm is not actually Zina's, like, actual birth father. She's calling him father because that's her, like, maker.

[Christina]

Yeah, totally, totally.

[Kim]

So I'm thinking that potentially Styx is his maker. He made Kingfisher a half God when he went through the quicksilver. Or some. Or at some point, maybe not then. But Fenryn is still his actual birth father.

[Christina]

I like that a lot, Kim, because that would make a lot of sense to me. And then that could also be why they're all pissed off if he, basically, they feel like, left the God realm and went back and didn't want to be a part of it. But also pivoting really quick because. Because let's look at it from a different angle. And what if Finryn and Styx are one and the same? It would also be a shocker to Fisher if he showed up when he was 11 years old and was like, I thought you've been dead a year. It turns out you're living in this hellscape. How did you end up here?

[Kim]

Oh. Oh, that's interesting, because. Yeah.

[Christina]

And then it would also make sense as to why. Remember, there's this big question of Carrion's age. And if Fisher was 10 when he went through and Carrion's a baby. Carrion and Fisher are only, like, 10 years apart, heart. So their age should be close. And that would explain if Finryn is Styx, if he can manipulate time and somehow kept Carrion in this quicksilver realm for a while, and we know that that one quicksilver pool didn't change, then maybe he was able to keep Carrion there. And that's why time passed differently. And then when he came out in the human realm, it's like he's still a baby, but time has passed.

[Anna]

And they kind of hint that in that moment.

[Christina]

Yeah.

[Anna]

They say, oh, yeah, time is different in the quicksilver if God's interfering.

[Kim]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Anna]

Also, something about him showing and seeing his dad, who he thought was dead, as a God would be really fascinating.

[Kim]

Agreed. Let's move on to Saris.

[Christina]

There's just a lot of things about Ceres that I feel like, obviously, we talked about earlier in the episode where the vampire witch is like, do you not know who you truly are? Do you not know why they really killed the alchemists? And we never find the answer to that. I don't know. And then there's just obviously her being this very, very strong alchemist. And at some point someone says the alchemist hadn't just channeled quicksilver. In some cases, they had become so intertwined with it that they had merged with it altogether to become silver eyed heralds of the gods. These were the alchemists who had spurred Belacan and his ilk to murder the alchemy and line and eradicate them from the realm and all others because they became basically more powerful than the Triumvirate.

[Anna]

Do you think that when Kingfisher went through the quicksilver, the gods were like, okay, great, you will now become this herald of the gods and, like, do this thing? And he was like, no, I don't want to do that. Because we also know in the bonus chapters, he says he's been to the God realm three times, and one time he. He said no to an offer. They asked him to do something and he said no.

[Kim]

Oh, yeah.

[Christina]

And he has all the quicksilver in him. And they probably were like, yes, because all the Alian lines have been destroyed. You are our only hope to be a herald of the gods.

[Kim]

Yes.

[Anna]

And he said no.

[Kim]

He's talking to Bal and Mithin. Right, Christina? Isn't that great?

[Anna]

Yes.

[Christina]

No, that is absolutely. Because we talked about that in our bonus episode.

[Kim]

Yeah, we were like, what did he say no to? Like, what did they offer him that he said no to?

[Christina]

I feel. Whoo. Silver eyed herald of the gods. And he was silver eyed for the longest time. This could be like a red herring where we think it's about Saris, but it's about him.

[Kim]

That's what I thought. I was like, oh, she's going to become a silver eyed herald of the gods.

[Christina]

But it could be actually Fisher.

[Anna]

Oh, my God. Okay, okay, here we go. So we learn in the Gate, part one, bonus chapter that this is from Kingfisher. He's talking about the times he's been to the God realm. There had been the first occasion when I was just a boy and Bellicon had sent me into the quicksilver without a relic. Then there had been another time three centuries ago when the God of Chaos had approached me with a proposition, one that I had summarily rejected out of hand. And now this third time. So this didn't happen when he went in the first time, but another time three centuries ago.

[Kim]

Another time.

[Anna]

During that time, I think that that the God of chaos, Zeref, could have approached him with a proposition to be one of these, the silver eyed heralds of the gods. Because they're like, oh, we see that, that silver eye you got there. Let's come on and make it official.

[Christina]

Work with that.

[Anna]

And then he said, no, I like that.

[Kim]

Y. I like that, Christina.

[Anna]

So who's to say? Not us is the point. Yeah, you know, we had a great time. We have a lot of questions and this was a different kind of episode for us. We hope you guys enjoyed these. Yeah, we had fun chit chatting with you though. This was a fun time.

[Christina]

We did.

[Kim]

We did. This was so fun. We hope you guys enjoyed it. We hope you guys have enjoyed the chapter chats. Again, like Christina mentioned, if you have not gone over to our patreon, we have over three hours of bonus content of the chapter chats and the Kingfisher POV bonus episode, which is just a.

[Anna]

Treat and a half, I'll tell you honestly. They really are. And due to some family travel, I was not able to join for chapter chats. So please trust me when I say that the chapter chats are exponentially fun to watch even after you finish the book.

[Kim]

Oh, thank you. Okay. All right, listeners, we'll see you next time.

[Christina]

Cheers and happy reading.

[Anna]

Bye bye.

[Kim]

Well, friends, that wraps up another episode of Flights of Fantasy podcast. Don't forget to join our book club community on Instagram and TikTok at flights of Fantasy podcast where you can share your thoughts, theories, and favorite moments with us and fellow listeners. We'd love to hear from you. If you enjoyed today's episode, please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform. Platform. Your support helps us spread the magic of Romantasy to even more book lovers. Until next time, keep dreaming, keep reading, and remember every good story deserves to take flight.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

Guys, thanks for helping me carry my Christmas tree.

[Zoe]

Zoe. This thing weighs a ton.

[Drew Ski]

Drew Ski, lift with your legs, man.

[Christina]

Santa.

[Kim]

Santa, did you get my letter?

[Zoe]

He's talking to you, Bridges.

[Drew Ski]

I'm not.

[Christina]

Of course he did.

[Drew Ski]

Right, Santa, you know my elf, Drew Ski here. He handles the nice list.

[Zoe]

And elf. I'm six three. What everyone wants is iPhone 17 and at T Mobile. You can get it on them. That center stage front camera. Camera is amazing for group selfies, right, Mrs. Claus?

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

I'm Mrs. Claus's much younger sister. And AT T Mobile, there's no trade in needed when you switch, so you can keep your old phone or give.

[Drew Ski]

It as a Gift.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

And the best part, you can make the switch to T mobile from your phone in just 15 minutes.

[Zoe]

Nice. My side of the tree is slipping, Kimber.

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[Kim]

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[Anna]

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[Kim]

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[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

Thanks for helping me carry my Christmas tree, Zoe.

[Zoe]

This thing weighs a ton.

[Drew Ski]

Drewski, live with your legs, man.

[Kim]

Santa.

[Anna]

Santa, did you get my letter?

[Zoe]

He's talking to you, Bridges.

[Drew Ski]

I'm not.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

Of course he did. Right Santa?

[Drew Ski]

You know my elf Drew Ski here. He handles the nice list.

[Zoe]

And elf. I'm six' three. What everyone wants is iPhone 17 and at T Mobile you can get it on them. That center stage front camera is amazing for group selfies. Right, Mrs. Claus?

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

I'm Mrs. Claus's much younger sister and AT T mobile there's no trade in needed when you switch. So you can keep your old phone.

[Drew Ski]

Or give it as a gift.

[Mrs. Claus's Sister]

And the best part, you can make the switch to T mobile from your phone in just 15 minutes.

[Kim]

Nice.

[Zoe]

My side of the tree is slipping, Kimber.

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