Iron Flame (Pt. 2)

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome to B and C Book Club. I'm Kristen. [00:00:02] Speaker B: And I'm Summer. This is the podcast where we bring you all the comfort and gossip of a regular book club. But just between you, me, and her. [00:00:09] Speaker A: And you may be wondering what the B and the C stand for. Well, the B stands for bind, and. [00:00:14] Speaker B: The C stands for cat. And you'll see a little bit why it stands for cat during this episode. [00:00:21] Speaker A: Okay. I don't know why. Oh, well, yes, I do. Just kidding. [00:00:27] Speaker B: What do you mean? [00:00:28] Speaker A: I forgot that was her name. Gotta be honest. [00:00:30] Speaker B: Yeah, that's a character. Square up, Kat. Let's go. [00:00:36] Speaker A: This is part two, the last section of Iron Flame we published today for the first time. We did. [00:00:44] Speaker B: As we're recording this, Obviously, we're not famous people, so I don't know if we even have one listener, but that's exciting. And then also, I was driving home today and I was like, man, I want to be in, like, a real book club. But then I. But then I was like, if I'm in a real book club, I would be able to not finish the book that I'm reading and totally fake it. Yeah. Or just be like, yeah, guys, I read this book. It was great. Loved it, and then move on with my life. Because I don't. I've never even been in a real book club. I don't even know how they go. [00:01:20] Speaker A: Book clubs are usually once a month. [00:01:22] Speaker B: Yeah, see, once a month, I guess that's fine. I probably would read them. But if I want to DNF a book because it's that bad, I can't do that with you. But I can do that with a book club and then just fake it. [00:01:37] Speaker A: I think that we haven't gotten to a bad enough book where you need to dnf because all of our bad books have been short. [00:01:44] Speaker B: That's true. That's a very good point. [00:01:46] Speaker A: But yeah, we're on the second half of Iron Flame. [00:01:48] Speaker B: Iron Flame. [00:01:49] Speaker A: And like we said last week, these are going to be a little bit out of order. So there's going to be some that are published after for this that we recorded before this. But it's fine. [00:01:57] Speaker B: Nobody really cares. Kristen, other than us, before we get into this, we last half, we started our second year as Violet, and Zaden was shipped off to wherever because he's out of school. And they, like, saw each other. And then at the very end of the book, Violet literally was like, hey, everybody, we're gonna go join the rebellion. You wanna come? And they were like, yeah. So then the Ones that wanted to go, went, and the dragons that wanted to go, went. So now we've got 200 dragons and 100 riders that joined us from school. And so none of this is at college anymore. Now we're at the Ryerson House. [00:02:45] Speaker A: We are a part of the rebellion. [00:02:47] Speaker B: Part of the rebellion. So we start off chapter 37 with another nightmare Violet's having. And then she wakes up and they're in Aridia. Aria. [00:02:59] Speaker A: I say arisha. [00:03:00] Speaker B: Arisha. Actually, that. That sounds pretty likely. AKA Ryerson House. They have incredibly loud sex. She's embarrassed about it, and he's like, the listening words are up. Anyway, that's my only side tangent for this episode right now. [00:03:18] Speaker A: That was. That's the only one you're gonna go on? Are you sure? [00:03:20] Speaker B: That's the only one I'm planning on. All right. And then they go and they interrupt a meeting. Everybody's debating about what to do about the hundred writers and 200 dragons that are now there to keep. What are they gonna do with them? They're not trained. You brought us untrained writers. And Battle Ax is trying to throw Violet out of the room. And Xaden's like, she's effing stick staying here. You need to get it together because this isn't going anywhere. Violet suddenly realizes that since this is his house and he is the big honcho, he technically owns all of this land and everything that they're living on right now. And I was like, yeah, Ryerson House. [00:03:57] Speaker A: Well, obviously she's like me and didn't pick that up, and she only picked up Arisha. [00:04:01] Speaker B: Okay, Violet, this next chapter, a lot happens. So we go and see Andarna, who is temperamental because she's a little teenager. Violet sees that Andarna's wing isn't looking right. Taryn tells her that she didn't get to grow correctly because of flying from resin to eridia. And then she woke up several times to fly back towards the school, and it's just not working out. Finally, he reveals that she's actually never going to be able to bear a rider because of her growth development. This doesn't come up in this book, but I'm like, okay. But, like, how? [00:04:37] Speaker A: There's no way got a back, right? By the end of this book, she's already lengthening her wing and she's been doing fine. I feel like at some point she's going to be able to take Violet, especially because Violet's so small, saying, like. [00:04:49] Speaker B: Come on, how if she has a back, how can she not bear rider. That's my thought process here. But whatever. [00:04:57] Speaker A: If Griffins can bear riders, then I'm sure a small dragon can, too. [00:05:01] Speaker B: It's fine. The cadets are starting to do classes with the professors that actually ended up following them. So they've got, like, I think four or five professors. Zaden keeps leaving this whole rest of the book. He's gone constantly because he's taking care of business. So he's been gone with Suri for two days. And then we go into another battle brief, and of course, it's the first chapter back. I get the battle brief, and. And there's only two during the second part of the book that are, like, specifically mentioned, so I was very happy about that. But they both happen to be on my chapters. Whatever, Whatever. I'm not. I'm not upset about it. It's fine at all. [00:05:38] Speaker A: It's fine. [00:05:40] Speaker B: They're looking at a map and has red and orange flags to mark the places where dark wielders have attacked. Her friends are all writing their families, saying, hey, by the way, we're a rebellion now. Just so you know, you should come here because you're going to die anywhere else. Violet is transcribing the journal that she got in that last half of the book. She's the only one who knows the language. Jessina kind of knows the language. And later we find out that somebody else does know the language, but she's like, I'm the only one. She thinks that the journal has something to do with, like, an odd magic and that they have to use their blood or something. The battle brief begins with them being called traitors, just to warn them that if they go anywhere else in the world ever again, they're going to be called a traitor. So. So we're just going to establish that now. We learned that Zaden. His attempt to tell the general public about the Wyvern failed, and they were able to contain it, or at least that's what they're reporting, because no one is reporting about Venin or the Wyvern or any of that. And then a riot approaches, and everyone turns to the great Hall. Mira's leading the group. Everybody's like, please, what's happening? We're being attacked. And then Violet's like, that's Mira. Don't you dare hurt her. And goes into the courtyard despite everyone telling her not to and to turn around. And she almost lights Mira on fire, but then she dismounts and says they're coming peacefully and that they were being led there by Zaden. Mira says that her mom told them everything, all of the Riders, and then gave them an hour to decide to fight. And half of them decided to leave. And then she sees Brennan and punches him immediately in the face at the end of that chapter. [00:07:15] Speaker A: Good for her. [00:07:16] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, I've got mixed feelings about Brennan, but whatever, we'll move on. [00:07:21] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. I don't know how I feel about him. But in chapter 39, Mira is upset with Brennan for obviously not telling anybody that he was alive for however long it's been. It's been like five years or something like that, right? [00:07:33] Speaker B: Yeah, something like that. [00:07:34] Speaker A: A long time that everyone thought that he was dead. She's upset, and she's trying to get used to her brother being here. Violet thinks that she's figured out the way to raise the ward. She just needs the six most powerful writers, and then she's going to use their blood in order to bleed on the stone, and then they bleed on the stone, and it doesn't work. And so she's not entirely sure what she did because she doesn't translate the whole book. She only translated the end where they need with the words. And so she kept going over the translation and it kept giving her the same thing over and over again. And she's like, I don't know where I went wrong. She also, after this fails, insists that Zayden take her to the guy that's supposed to get them, the luminary, who is the Griffin Rider, the one that's in charge. And so they have a luminary that is supposed to help the forge get started so that they can actually make the weapons in order to kill the venom. But that guy wants to see her willed, and Zaden says it's not part of the plan. Not going to happen. But she's like, okay, if I can't get the words up, we at least need weapons, so let's get me over there. And he refuses to take her. She gets mad and she storms out of the room, but Brennan follows her and is like, I know that face. I know that you're going to do something sweet, so let me know what's going on. And she now has a plan. Tm. She doesn't tell us what the plan is, but she does have a plan about the plan that she's going to use if Zaden doesn't give her what she wants. And of course he doesn't. She also has a new teacher for her signet power, her lightning power. And Felix is not impressed by what she can do, even though she can wield 40 in an hour. He's like, you don't know anything about control. You don't know anything about trying to aim. You don't know anything about anything. Basically, you're just out here unwieldy, just fucking throwing lightning randomly. Can you do this small? Can you wield from your hands? And she's like, no. And he's like, well, it comes from within you. Like, what the fuck do you mean? It comes from Taryn. You don't need a storm to be around in order to wield lightning. Come on, of course you can do it yourself. And she's like, oh, right. But again, she has no control, can't aim, can't do small strikes. And so he ends up giving her this ball conduit thing that's supposed to help her control her powers and tells her, I will know how much you're trying to control it by how much power you put into this conduit. And so if you don't put enough power into this conduit, then I'm not going to help you, because I'm not going to help you if you don't want to help yourself. Then Violet gets Brennan and Mira to go take her to see Techarus. He's a viscount, and he is on the griffin side. And this is the guy that's supposed to give them the luminary to make their weapons. And they make it there. And the guard, a truth teller. So they have to tell the truth in order to get inside. But then as soon as they tell the truth and get inside, guess who's there? [00:10:11] Speaker B: But Zaden, the last line is, you aren't where I left you. Violence. And I was like. Like a giddy screaming. And I knew this was the outcome. Like, I knew he was there. And my dogs were just staring at me. And I was like, guys, don't judge me. But God damn it, Rebecca, I love him. [00:10:30] Speaker A: I'm with her. I'm like, what the fuck do you mean? I'm not where you left me. I'm not a dog. I was just laughing that she just had this big giant plan. And she was like, oh, I'm gonna do it behind his back. And then he's already there when she shows up. [00:10:42] Speaker B: So Zaden says that his dragon felt her shift direction, so they followed. He starts making really weird comments about knowing the place really well. And she finds out that he's been there many, many a times. Zaden takes Violet and introduces her to the viscount really quick and Cat shows them to a room. And we do remember Cat from the last half of the book. This is Cat, Xaden's ex. She shows them to the room. Mira goes into the room, and then Zaden's like, actually, she needs to get dressed with me. And then she's like, actually, you need to f off. He says, you don't understand what I've gone through to keep you safe. She says, then don't keep me safe. He says, I'm always gonna keep you safe. And she goes, you know who you sound like? Dane. And shuts the door. And I was like. [00:11:28] Speaker A: And it's true. [00:11:29] Speaker B: It is true. That does sound like Dane. So Cat and Serena. Serena is Cat's sister, and they get into a fight with Mira and Violet in the hall, and they're just being bitches to each other on their way to the dinner. They're still being bitches to each other. And then Zaden is there, and he apologizes to her, and then reveals that Cat's ability is to heighten emotions of the people around her, and that's why she's being such a back to to cap, because she's making her bitchy. So that's a fun realization for us. The viscount then asks her to blow up a chest that Zaden's father had negotiated with them years ago. It's kind of like a symbol against Zaden, I guess, to blow up something that he valued because he traded it because it was one of the most big things he valued. Something like that. The negotiation had to do with Kat and him when he traded it, which I know at this point what that trade was for, but you didn't, so I wrote it down. [00:12:31] Speaker A: I feel like you do. I understood what it was right away. I didn't write it down because I thought it was obvious. [00:12:37] Speaker B: Okay, Just making sure wasn't like, a big spoiler alert. Basically, they got engaged because that was their arrangement. Anyway, Violet goes down to the field to blow up the chest with her lightning, and she instead ends up fighting a Venin. Beginning of the chapter, Violet's panicking a little bit. Meera throws her knife, and then she hits the creature. And Violet's like, great, you just gave him a knife. You can't kill him unless it's a special knife. And Violet then tries to kill him with the specific dagger as he's attacking them, and she ends up not being able to. So then Zayan has to, like, throw her more daggers so that she can try to use those to kill him. And then Brennan ends up Joining. And it's like, guys, stop. Stop putting yourselves in harm's way on purpose. But okay. Mira has to shield all of them from him, and Violet tells him she loves him, as in a little goodbye to Xaden. And then Violet sends Mira and Brennan away. And then she throws the daggers at the venin and then throws a lightning streak to aim. And then turn comes and saves her. And then he warns Violet that his patience is gone and that these griffin riders can't do anything else, or else he's gonna flip his. And then Zaden is found choking the viscount. And she's like, actually, I'm alive. I'm alive. Drop him. And she gets him to drop him. He threatens the viscount's life for almost harming Violet. And then they start the negotiation. The viscount finally reveals his plan and asks Zaden to take a hundred griffin riders back with him so that they can learn in the academy. And that's his exchange for the luminary. That's what he wanted all this time, other than to f with Xaden. They argue. There's no way they can come back by flying. They'll just be killed. And then Zaden's like, actually, there's one way, but it's pretty dangerous. And then Brennan is like, all right. [00:14:30] Speaker A: We'Re going to take the deal in chapter 43. We are taking that perilous path, the cliffs of drow path. And everyone is hiking together. It's cadets and it's griffin riders, and they are trying to learn how to work together, and so they're going to do this path together. She's paired with cats group because they're the best of the best, and she's the best of the best in her rider area, but she's with Marin, Cat's best friend, and they get along pretty well, and everything is going pretty well. None of the griffins have died, but it's very hard for them to walk. It's very steep. There's very high altitude. They even talk about how Violet has just always been a target, just a random target for anybody, since her mom hasn't been in the military for so long that everyone who was outside of the wards just always knew where she was because they could get reward money for kidnapping her or killing her. So that's fun. They talk about cat, and Sloan, who's also there with them, is like, oh, Liam hated cat, but she doesn't hate Violet anymore because she's been reading Liam's letters, and she can't hate Violet because Liam didn't Hate Violet. And so she's finally coming around to being on Violet's side. They talk to Marin about how they get to be Griffin writers, and Marin tells them that they basically cliff jump into the griffin's backs. And then once they are on their backs, then the griffin accepts them as a writer. It's kind of like Avatar. If they don't hit a griffin, then they just go into the water. And so nobody ever dies. And. And Violet are shocked that nobody dies. [00:15:59] Speaker B: I mean, that kind of, like, makes sense. [00:16:02] Speaker A: Yeah. So Taryn just felt something change because apparently a hatchling has just come to this area. And so the magic of Orisha will change now because it's a hatchling area. And now anybody who's within a certain amount of yardage will also be able to feel that the magic changed. And so they're worried about who might have felt it. And they're like, well, only the griffons are here, so it should be fine because there are allies anyway. And then they get to a spot where they have to run and jump across because there's a trigger for arrows, and they're not entirely sure where it is. So they're like, in order to just bypass all of that, we're just going to run and jump and get to the other side. And everyone can do it except for Violet and Luella, another small Griffin writer who's about the same size as her. And so they end up doing what they did on the gauntlet, which is like swinging. They got a sword in the middle of the cave, and then are supposed to swing to that and then swing from there onto the other side. And Violet is able to do it, but when Luella does it, she doesn't make it fully. And then they end up fall, basically, and they're holding onto the side of the cliff, and she also takes another writer with her, and her griffin ends up getting that writer because she was at the bottom and brings her back. And then as she's getting the second rider, this is when Riddick stands up and he gets two arrows in his stomach. And so as her griffin is trying to get the second rider, Louella falls before they can get to her because Violet's shoulder has popped out. And so she can't grip or anything. She's just kind of holding onto her. She's not even really holding on to her. Luella is holding on to Violet because she can't do anything because her shoulder is out. And so when Violet gets pulled back up, Kat is blaming Violet for not holding onto her, not doing anything and how the griffin saved their rider, but it didn't save the Flyer. Luella the Flyer. And so she's really mad about that. But Riddick is alive, and Dane is able to pop Violet's shoulder back in. But Luella's griffin dies, since they're connected the same way that dragons and humans are connected. And so if their Flyer dies, then the griffin will die. Then right after this is they have a wyvern attack, because the wyverns were able to sense that the magic had changed and they were going and sending a scouting party to try and figure out what's going on over there. They're trying to clear the clouds and use all the wind to hopefully allow Violet to attacks. And the dragons couldn't see any the wyverns coming because it was so cloudy. And so they're trying to clear it up, but they're also trying to allow Violet to have some so that she can use her magic. And then she is able to use the lightning from the storm to kill all four at once. All four Wyverns at once. And they realize that it was a scouting party. And since they're all connected in the hive mind by the Venin, and these are all Wyrren, they know that their Venin is still connected to the hive mind. And so they know that everyone against them now knows that the magic has changed and they'll probably be coming for them. [00:18:55] Speaker B: Dun dun dun. Our next chapter. A little bit of time has passed, and the Flyers have been there for like a week. At this point, they're reading the Death Roll and talk about how they lost two riders. Apparently, this entire time, Cat has been terrorizing Violet and has been playing tricks on her. And that this morning she showed up to her bedroom knocking at an ungodly hour in a sheer robe in hopes that Zaden would be there, but knew that Violet was staying in his room. What the heck? [00:19:25] Speaker A: I thought she didn't know that. [00:19:27] Speaker B: I thought, no, I could be misinterpreting that because it says that she knocked on the door, and then she got even more irritated because Violet actually answered the door. So I did misinterpret that. But still, she did all that. And then the only thing that gets them through day anymore is that they are both little sisters. And during Death Roll, both of them are just praying that their bigger sisters aren't harmed. And so they have like a little truce. Sawyer asks Violet to teach him sign language because he likes Jessa, which is adorable. They pair Cat's drift With Violet squad to learn runes because of course they're both the best, so they have to be paired together. Which wouldn't you pair the best with the worst? [00:20:11] Speaker A: I don't know. They keep doing that. They're like, well, you guys are both the best squad, so we have to be together. But I was also thinking that I was like, so you're going to have both of the worst squads together. [00:20:19] Speaker B: I agree. Yeah. Same thought process here. [00:20:23] Speaker A: But I guess they are on the front line and so the front line has to be the best of the best. And then the people in the back are like, we really don't want them to come. But they're. They're there. [00:20:31] Speaker B: They're there. They came. Okay. Cat is the first one to make a rune and it upsets Violet and she's like, yeah, of course. And then next chapter, Zaden is back and they're talking about runes. He. She's like, this is why you gave me that knot tying book forever ago. And he was like, yeah, I wanted you to be ahead of the head of the class. He then reveals that he got one from his parents before he died. And it was specifically a rune that was supposed to protect him from Dragonfire and that there were a bunch of them made. And there's an exact number that we all know, which is the 107 children. And all the other rebel children had them as well as they watched their parents die. So that was a little morbid, but that was fun information. And then they say that the tension between flyers and dragon riders is tense. I think my voice checks, but 2 out of 10 is tense. [00:21:36] Speaker A: I was wondering what that meant. I was like, they're getting a 2 out of 10 on the vibe check level. They're getting a 2 out of 10 on their ability to work together. [00:21:46] Speaker B: Attention is a 2 out of 10. Okay. It's tense. Okay. Basically they announced that they're just gonna let everybody beat the shit out of each other in one single match. Which is chaotic. But yes, I guess we do have to push the plot forward between Zaden and Violet. [00:22:04] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:22:05] Speaker B: So of course Cat picks Violet. And then Violet realizes Zaden has also trained Cat to fight, so all of her methods are not working because they're exactly what she knows and what she. [00:22:17] Speaker A: Realizes as she's fighting Cat. Even though they're pretty heavily matched, she's like, dude, why do you keep fighting me for over this guy? It's a guy like, I love him, but at the same time, dude, like, chill out. Out. Kat is like, do you really Think that I'm fighting for his heart. No, Zeta doesn't love anybody. What do you fuck are you talking about? I'm fighting for the crown, bitch. He's going to be in charge. My uncle is a viscount. Don't you know anything? I'm going to be royalty. And you're just coming in here and you think that you can just snap that away from me? No, no, no, girl. You have another thing coming to you. [00:22:50] Speaker B: No, no, no, girl. [00:22:53] Speaker A: Well, that's how Kat sees it. But Violet is like, you know who else? Trade me Rhiannon. And so she slams her head back against Kat as she's about to win, and then ends up taking over her, and she's choking her out. And because Kat doesn't want to lose, she's just going to let herself die by Violet's hand. And then also know that that's going to cause a shit show in the rest of the flyers and the Griffin community. And so she's like, yeah, I'm just gonna. I'm just gonna let it happen. And Violet's like, fucking tap out. I'm about to kill you. And she's like, no, no, no. I'm just gonna let it happen. And so she realizes that Zaden is there, and she's like, zayden, you gotta help me out. So Zaden uses his shadows to pull them apart, and he heard everything. And Violet is so upset about this. But why are you upset? It's not even that bad on you. I don't understand. [00:23:42] Speaker B: It wasn't bad on her at all. Kat was basically, I wanna use him. That's what's embarrassing, right? [00:23:49] Speaker A: I guess it's because Kat is using her heightened emotions and everything and making her be more upset. But at the same time, I was like, bro, you literally did nothing wrong. [00:23:57] Speaker B: You literally just said you love him as a normal person. [00:24:00] Speaker A: And so they separate, and her and Zaden go into another room. And so they talk about it, and he's like, kat only wants me because of my name, and you love me despite my name. And so that's why I'm always going to choose you. And that's why I'm always going to love you more than anybody else, is because you actually love me as a person. And then he eats her out on Throne and lets her see his thoughts because she was being insecure, and he was like, okay, see my thoughts about how much I worship you. And then he won't have sex with her because he's making a point of her not being a placeholder. For sex. Because that's what Cat calls her is somebody for him to have sex with. And I'm like, dude, you guys have been talking about your feelings for a book and a half. [00:24:41] Speaker B: Understand that you love her. [00:24:43] Speaker A: She should understand that he has some semblance of love for her. I don't understand why she's like, no, it's just sex. He just wants me for sex. I'm like, you guys don't even have sex very often. I'm gonna be honest. [00:24:53] Speaker B: That's true. Like, never together. [00:24:56] Speaker A: Anytime that he's like, are you ready for round two? She's like, actually, we have this really important thing to do. [00:25:02] Speaker B: So true, though. I kind of. Somebody came back from the dead. [00:25:09] Speaker A: I just have a lot going on. So we're gonna have to table this and come back to it. Which is why their communication is so bad. Anyway, he says that he was never in love with Kat, even though they're betrothed and all of this stuff because she's like, well, you were engaged to her. You weren't. You're telling me you weren't in love with her? You're telling me that I'm the only person you've ever loved? And he's like, yeah, basically, we were betrothed. First of all, you weren't engaged. Two separate things. And also, you can have sex with somebody and not have feelings with them. It's fine. That's all he used to do legitimately, that's what he asked her for in the first place, was to have sex without feelings. [00:25:47] Speaker B: So very true. Violet, know your audience. [00:25:51] Speaker A: He tells her that Violet didn't get her emotions warped and twisted into something that they weren't already. They just get amplified. So if she's feeling these things already, then they can get amplified. But if she's not feeling them, then she can't be made to feel anything that she doesn't already feel. And so all of this that's going on is because she has no control. Ever heard of it? Like, everyone is telling her, you are out of control. You need to get a lid on whatever is going on because you don't have what it takes. Like, honestly. [00:26:19] Speaker B: Sounds like a mom right now. [00:26:20] Speaker A: The problem is she's too volatile. Zaden is able to use all of his sickness and use everything because he isn't so in control of his emotions and he's able to understand when to use things. But like Felix said, she's just kind of willy nilly every single time that she lashes out, just hoping that doesn't hurt. Somebody she loves. If we just try to aim just a little bit. [00:26:37] Speaker B: Doesn't even have to be within an. [00:26:40] Speaker A: Area, small, narrow thing. It can be this. This way, but at least we have a direction. If we're in a certain direction, then I'm fine with that. We can't just be willy nilly. It might go behind me. [00:26:49] Speaker B: Yeah, which is all understandable why we think of this sooner, Cat. Her squad is officially integrated with Violet. Violet asked Dane for help for translating because he does know the language of the first journalist, Guy Werrick. And. And they used to use it as their secret language between the two of them. So he does understand it, and she actually asked him for help. And then this is the big redemption chapter for Dain. This is when they call a truce. Yes, he killed Varish for her, kind of, and, like, helped her out of the torture stuff. But at the same time, this is when he's like, yeah, I guess I'll trust Xaden as much as you do. Thanks for forgiving me. And then he's like, do you love him? And she's like, yeah, yeah, I do. He's like, okay, fine. Whatever. That's fine. I'm over it, really. She has training for her signet again. Zayden comes back right afterward, and they go to an assembly meeting. It's revealed that a town only an hour away for them has been taken by veteran. And it's very stressful. And then Violet's like, oh, they're coming for us right now. [00:28:02] Speaker A: She finds Aiden and gives him a chocolate cake, and he tells her what's happening because he finds her at just. Where did they go? They're. They're somewhere dangerous again. And she finds him and gives him a chocolate cake, and he tells her everything that happened while they were gone. And he doesn't think that they could ever be ready. He's not sure why they're not taking them out right now, because they just had an attack when they were gone, and it was just like resin, except 100 times worse. There's more people there. It's terrible. And again, he doesn't think they could ever be ready. He's not sure why they're not taking them out now, especially because they don't have words. Mira called it because he almost died. And he was like, I understand now what it feels like for you to be around all these people with relics and have them constantly get you out of harm's ray, because they know that I'm going to die. That's exactly what happened with Mira. She Specifically pulled us out because she didn't want you to die. And they're like, yeah, we're connected now. So her and Dane have been translating and they still don't understand what the extras are and what it says because there's like, it has to be 6 and 1. And so they're not sure what the extra one is. And then she tells Dane to go to bed. And then while he's in bed, she realizes that it's not blood, it's breath. And it has to be six dragons, not riders. And then she goes and tells Ri we are at chapter 52 and everyone that is in cat squad and in violet squad are at Ri's sister's house for a neutral third location. Quote, unquote neutral. They're talking to their squad about being able to hopefully put up ward soon because she thinks she finally figured out what they need to do. Instead of blood is going to be dragon fire. But when they put up the wards, that means it'll be taking away the flyers ability to wield any of their lesser magic. And so she's giving them an opportunity to either leave or make plans. Since the ward's about to be up, she will let everyone know once Satan gets back that she figured out the wards. But she's not gonna even more time than that because she refuses to tell Zaden a lie. Plus, they're pretty sure that the wyvern are coming for them. And they're like, we need to have some sort of protection in this area. Like, I'm sorry you guys won't be able to wield. But at the same time, we're gonna be protecting a lot of lives, a lot of dragons. A lot of things will be happening because of this. But they have to imbue the ore. They have the metal that they use for their conduits. And this conduit is able to obviously conduit power. And so they have a bunch of ore for them to use as power conduits. And if they put enough power into it and then they throw it, they can explode. And basically they won't be defenseless anymore. And so she tells them about that, so they won't be defenseless. Then she has a dream. In the dream, the sage says that she will tear down the wards herself when the time comes for love. And I just thought that was nice. And I felt like he was going to be foreshadowing. And now I feel like it's foreshadowing for the third or. You said there's gonna be five books I feel like this will happen at some point during those books. I definitely thought it was gonna happen at the end of this book, and it didn't. But now I understand why she would tear them down for love at the end of it. [00:30:58] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. [00:31:01] Speaker A: So. And Darna wants to come with them, but Taryn doesn't want her to. Since they're going to be going to this new area. They're doing a training exercise where they're finding the runes. And whoever wins gets a weekend pass. Zaden comes back and is able to read that Violet has figured out the words, but he can't do anything without Taryn because she needs the most powerful dragons there. He literally comes up and is flying back to the place and is like, hey, what's up? And she's like, oh, actually, I'm on a mission right now. I have, like, a little mission that I need to go on. See you later. And he's like, something's up with you. In your face. You found something out. You figured out the words. And she's like, yeah, I did, but I gotta go. Sorry. Bye. [00:31:41] Speaker B: They go on this, like, little mission with Sloane and Darna, Violet, Cat, and Visa. And Darna is there because she can't fly for very long. So she gets to prattle along beside them, which I think is adorable. Meanwhile, Taran's off flying around them and just kind of keeping wherever he is. They go to a cave and they bring and Darna. It's revealed that the Griffin flyers are all trading ruins with each other. So if one's better at one, then they can, like, hand it to all their friends. And I think that's cute. It's like trading little friendship bracelets. And Violet's like, why haven't we been doing this? They're going through all these revelations and still searching the cave. And then all of a sudden, they get attacked by a dragon. And it's Solas. There's his dragon. And he immediately kills Visia. [00:32:31] Speaker A: And while they were talking about all of this, they were talking about, like, signets and if her second one will manifest. And I thought for a second that the reason that she's been so out of control is because the second signet is manifesting and she doesn't quite have control over it, just like before when she didn't have quite control of her signets. And so I thought that might be one of the reasons why everything is not working for her the way it should. But she does eventually get some control later. So maybe I'm wrong. [00:32:54] Speaker B: Well, it is Revealed by Rebecca Yarros, our lovey, lovey writer, that she has a lot of signs of her second signet during this book. It's definitely shown. [00:33:06] Speaker A: Oh, so did she say that in, like, previews for the third or something? [00:33:10] Speaker B: In interviews? Well, she. No, not even for the third. For the second, she's like. It was like, after it was released, she was doing interviews and stuff. [00:33:18] Speaker A: So she. We just don't know what it is. But she is manifesting her second one. [00:33:22] Speaker B: Yes. [00:33:23] Speaker A: Okay, cool. [00:33:24] Speaker B: We don't know what it is, but there's signs during this book. So it's kind of like a little Easter egg. There's a lot of theories about what it is. Exactly. I'm set on one of them because it seems the most likely. [00:33:36] Speaker A: But I wasn't off track for a second because then. [00:33:38] Speaker B: No, you weren't. Because I saw your comments and I was like, oh, my God, she's so on it. [00:33:42] Speaker A: Because right after this, they're like, no, only somebody who. If your dragon has had a writer who's related to you, that you can get a second signet. And this is why, spoiler alert, we find out later, like in a chapter or two, that Zaden has a second signet because Seagull was bonded to his grandfather. Because when they're first talking about it and then they said, when is her second one going to do? My immediate thought was, oh, that's why she's been so out of control, is because Aunt Darna. Because she said, I felt this way since Resin. And that's exactly when Aunt Darna, like, expended her energy and then she became like her full blown dragon because of all of the things that were happening and it expedited everything. And so then that was another reason I was like, even though she's manifesting Taran signet because she possibly burned up by Darna's signet actually not manifesting the way that it should be and her not using the powers. But then I wasn't sure either way, I was on track. Okay, I'm happy about that. [00:34:31] Speaker B: You were on track. Yeah. You did good. You did good. So the dragon blasts them with fire, and Violet's dragon, Andarna, puts her wings around them to fireproof everyone. It's a little hot, but they all live. They start fighting him. Kat and Sloane get a chance to leave. So they get out of the cave, and now it's just Violet fighting him. Violet shoots lightning at him. There's fog everywhere from the burn off. And Sloane comes back in. She's trying to help. But when she touches Violet, she starts siphoning all of her power. So now it's Sloane who's getting her signet, and she's finally coming into the power she's getting from her dragon. And we find out that she's a siphon. She, like, keeps doing things. And then they're like, oh, my God, stop it. And she's like, I don't know how to stop this. And Darna kind of, like, goes after the dragon while Tarn shows up and everything is fine. And then. And Darna comes back. Violet's really worried about her, but it turns out she actually just, like, ripped the guy's throat across and, like, just ripped it off. And the other dragon is now dead. And she's called, like, a slayer by Tarn. And I was like, that's kind of. I don't know if that fits her. Yeah. But he was like, slayer. She's funny, though. I love Indarna. Zaden comes back to their room, and he's pissed off that she risked her life to save Kat just because she's third in line for the throne. Because that was her reasoning. She's like, yeah, we can't kill her. She's third in line. If we kill her, then kind of your head's on the line. You're gonna be dead. So really, I did it to save you. And he's like, none of this makes sense. Making mistakes. [00:36:16] Speaker A: They say they have to talk. And I'm like, yes, finally, let's fucking talk. Because you guys don't like to talk about anything. [00:36:21] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:36:22] Speaker A: And he says that he's been waiting for Violet to ask him about how her mother put a bunch of slash marks into his bag. And he's like, I was just waiting. I've been waiting patiently for the last couple months for you to talk to me about something, and you just refuse to. And she's like, I have asked about it before, but that was also before he was telling her things. And so he didn't tell her the truth. And she's like, I shouldn't have to ask questions in order for you to tell me anything. Like, you should just be upfront and honest with me. I don't understand why we're still having this conversation five months later. And he says, you're afraid. You're afraid that you are not gonna get what you want. You should demand more from me, from everyone around you. You should stop being afraid of what you're going to find. You keep thinking that there's going to be another shoe that's going to drop. And so that's why you keep not turning over stones. But that's not who you are. You need to keep turning over the stones because, like, that's who you are as a person. Violet, he's like, you can ask me whatever you want and I'll answer you whatever you want. She says, okay, so what's your second signet then? And he's quiet. [00:37:22] Speaker B: He's like, fuck. [00:37:25] Speaker A: And she's like, I just remembered that your great grandfather was Sego's last writer. So what's your second signet? Because I know that it manifested. I know you had to have a second signet because if you. You obviously did. And you're not crazy, so that means you somehow managed it and nobody knows what it is. And he is quiet. And then wyverns are almost at their gates and so they have to raise their words, like now and so they can't talk about it. [00:37:50] Speaker B: That conversation we were about to have. Yeah, it's a Put on pause again. [00:37:54] Speaker A: Timeout, time out. Hang on, hang on. [00:37:57] Speaker B: Kristen was like, finally, they're going to talk. And the next chapter. Damn it. [00:38:01] Speaker A: Exactly. [00:38:05] Speaker B: But then they kind of talk. [00:38:06] Speaker A: They kind of talk. [00:38:07] Speaker B: Next chapter. It's like a lot comes out. [00:38:09] Speaker A: And this is when I was like, okay, so he has a second signet. And everyone keeps on saying that Violet is going to be the most powerful because she has a second dragon. But he also has a second signet. So he is very powerful. Even more powerful than they already think that he is. [00:38:22] Speaker B: Yup. [00:38:23] Speaker A: So anyway, Zaden is just. [00:38:25] Speaker B: He's a force to be reckoned with. [00:38:26] Speaker A: Top, top, top notch. So they're flying to the Wardstone and the open area around it is perfect for the dragons to breathe fire on it. And she feels something, but they aren't entirely sure that it works because it doesn't feel exactly like it does. When they're behind the wards in normal, like Naviri, or however you say that area, they have about 15 minutes until the wyvern are upon them and they get to this open area and he says, now that we're out of earshot and there's no wards or anything, we can talk. And she's like, what seriously are you. We really need to talk about this away from like literally everybody. Like, we were behind wards and he was like, you, there's always somebody who's better at words than you. We just needed to get away from everyone. And he isn't really telling her what it is, so she starts describing him and saying, well, you do this and you do that, and then maybe it's this or maybe it's that. Basically listing out all of his traits to try and figure out what his signet is and how he uses it. And he can read intentions in the split second before you make a decision. You. He can read your intention to make a decision. And he's gotten pretty powerful at it. He's not quite a mind reader, but it is very, very similar, and it is very, very useful. And she doesn't like it because she's like, well, then you knew the entire time when I wanted to kiss you. And he's like, yeah, I did. [00:39:38] Speaker B: So. [00:39:39] Speaker A: Exactly. He says it took her less than a minute to fall out of love with him, and it's written all over her face. And she says, go ahead. [00:39:47] Speaker B: Sorry, I need to interrupt, because this is what I was talking about last book, and you didn't notice it, but I didn't. [00:39:55] Speaker A: I was. I thought it was going to be in his, like, love confession area. I didn't think it was going to be in this area. [00:40:00] Speaker B: No, it was in this. So she's going through all of these characteristics about him, and she's, like, kind of ripping him apart. She's like, you constantly need to be in control, blah, blah, blah. And he's like, how long do you think it takes for someone to fall out of love? He starts with, like, an hour, a day, a week? And she's like, keeps going on, keeps going on. Then finally she goes, you can read minds. And he, like, watches her kind of, like, realize everything that she's ever thought and how he knew what she was thinking. And then he's like, less than a minute. That's how long it took you to fall out of love with me. And I was like. When I read this the first time, I was like, oh, my God, I will never recover. That hurts so bad. [00:40:44] Speaker A: And I'm like, rory, you are so insecure. That's all I heard from that. I was like, literally. My next notes are 1. They're both insecure in their relationship. It's so fucking insane because she doesn't fall out of love with him. Just like she says. She's like, my love isn't fickle. I'm trying to wrap my head around it, but I'm not falling out of love with you. You're being dramatic and dramatic. Then they have to go and fight the wyvern, because when they get out of this alive, she's gonna have a lot of questions. And two, this another thing. It's only a matter of time before this secret gets out, because Violet is not great at keeping secrets. Zaden's especially. She tells everybody Zayn's secrets, like all the time. I'm like, girl, chill out. You keep on saying that you just want to be like, honest with everybody, but at the same time, it's not entirely yours. But whatever. I know that she didn't say anything about Arisha because she was trying to protect Brennan, but you still ended up taking 100 writers over here. [00:41:41] Speaker B: This whole half of the book, you've been a violent hater. [00:41:44] Speaker A: I'm not a violent hater. I'm just like, bro, like, let's think about some things. Like, you guys, they're just annoying me. I just hate a miscommunication trope. And she's annoying me, that's all. [00:41:56] Speaker B: You're a Dane sympathizer and a Violet hater. [00:42:00] Speaker A: So the wyvern are here, and they slow as they get closer, the slightest sage from resin is also here. And the wards work, but they don't work exactly like the other ones. And so as soon as they see that a couple of the wyvern have dropped when they cross the barrier, then the rest of them leave. Violet and Zaden stay there to make sure they're gone. And then after that, they go into the assembly. The assembly tells them that General Malgrn from the actual Naviri wants to meet them and ask them about something. And they know that something is wrong with their wards because Serena is there and she can still use bless her magic. And so they didn't necessarily have a win. It's like a half win. [00:42:41] Speaker B: The next chapter, they go and meet the General and the Commander with Violet and Meera. Zaden's dragon is fighting with Violet's dragon. So Taran and Seagull are going at it because obviously he's upset that she never told him about Zaden's second signet. So he's. He's as pissed as Violet is at Xaden. We go and Mel Green asks the rebels to fight for them at Samara. That's his request. And his offer is to let them be independent and be in their own city if they help him. Because he's seen the result of this battle. And they lose. Brennan decides it's his opportunity to walk up and surprise the mom. And mom's like, what the fuck is this? I don't know what's happening. And she's real confused. Mom then is like, actually, I just need to talk with my daughter for a minute, and she comes and she's like, by the way, check the wyvern who were dropped dead yesterday at your wards, because your wards are gonna fail. You guys haven't figured it out, I can promise you that. It's like, mom, where are you getting this information? And she's like, apparently the journal you've been reading actually has lies in it, because he didn't want someone to be able to figure it out. So you need to figure out what lies and what isn't, Violet, because you're a scribe, and if anyone can do this, it's you. And I was like, jesus Christ. Mom put all the pressure on us this chapter. [00:44:09] Speaker A: But it's perfect that we have the second journal, since men love to gatekeep and gaslight while women are trained to only girl boss and tell the truth. [00:44:22] Speaker B: Okay, I mean, that's so true. That's what makes it so funny, because we have the man's journal and he lied. [00:44:34] Speaker A: Exactly. That's what I'm saying. [00:44:35] Speaker B: Okay, so we move on. And Zaden has called Violet to the gym. It's been, like, a day or two, but they haven't really seen each other. And he's, like, ready to fight it out. Finally, he calls her to the gym, and she's like, why are we here? And he's like, we're gonna spar. And she's like, actually, that's ridiculous. And they kind of talk it out. And then he's like, all right, here's a rule. We're no longer allowed to fight in our bedroom because we share that room. And I'm saying that we make the rules as we go, baby. And she's like, so I can make a rule? And he's like, yeah. And she's like, okay, you're not allowed to lie to me anymore. And you have to literally just tell me everything. I shouldn't have to ask you questions. That's the new rule. And he's like, done. And she's like, what? [00:45:21] Speaker A: Wait, what? [00:45:22] Speaker B: Babe, babe, you found out the worst kind of information about him. It's over. He's. He's gonna tell you the rest. [00:45:29] Speaker A: That's it. Like, that was his biggest thing. It was the one question that he didn't have an immediate answer for you for. So now that he gave you that answer, you're kind of. That's it? [00:45:39] Speaker B: Yeah. Remember the first half the book, when he was like, I can tell you anything you want to know, Violet. Except there are some things I need to keep a secret. That's the one thing he was going to keep a secret. Now that it's out, of course he's going to literally answer every question you have. Why are you being dumb about this? [00:45:54] Speaker A: See? Thank you. I'm not the only violent hater. [00:45:57] Speaker B: I'm not a violent hater. [00:45:59] Speaker A: No, no, no, no, no, no. Let's. Let's hear about the hating that you're doing right now. I can hear it. It's coming through my headphones. [00:46:04] Speaker B: Don't worry. That's the one thing I'm like, God damn it, Violet. This is irrelevant for this book. But I wrote it down because I think it's going to be very relevant. She's like, asking him questions. She asked, like, a question that she wanted the answer to but knew it would be awkward, which is where his mother is, because she's never seen a picture of her or any resemblance of her in his house. And he's like, oh, yeah, she's alive. She left when I was 10. [00:46:33] Speaker A: I just had a thought. I'm sorry. Keep going. [00:46:35] Speaker B: Okay. She left when I was 10 because that was a part of the marriage contract is that she needed to see the heir be raised until 10, then she could leave and she left. So I think that's gonna be very relevant for future books In Battle Brief because of course it has to land on my chapter again, we find out that Mel Green is just waiting for a battle that isn't coming. And Violet, somehow, and forgive me if I'm not explaining this correctly, Rebecca, or anybody who's a huge 4th Wing fan, this confuses the f out of me, how she figures this out. Like, I don't. It doesn't comprehend in my brain, but she figures out that the Venin are going to be attacking that their school and in that area and like, not where the army is waiting for them. And that they only have like two days to get there. And it's more than a day's ride or whatever, where it's more than a two days ride. So they have to like, go as fast as humanly possible and they have to leave immediately. And she's like, everybody, this is what's happening. And they're like, okay, we're going. Everybody, let's go. We're gonna go protect our old friends because we have a bunch of friends at school, so we need to get over there. And they leave. [00:47:42] Speaker A: Yeah, she figures it out because they're waiting. They keep waiting to attack. And she's like, why aren't they just attacking now? It doesn't seem relevant. And she's like, oh, they're making sure they see them, so it causes a distraction and they're going to go somewhere else. [00:47:56] Speaker B: Okay, that makes sense. [00:47:58] Speaker A: They get going without agreement from the assembly because they try to talk to the assembly and actually get literally everyone. And they're like, nope, we're not gonna help them. We already told Melgreen we're not gonna help them. Now that it's going to go to the battle cosmic, doesn't matter. We're not gonna help them at all. And they end up leaving without everybody. And Zaden and Mira are going, but Violet is going to stay with her squad and make sure it stays intact. And so then they get there, and Violet's mother is there. It's only Violet's mother and a couple of other people, because everyone is obviously going to the other place to try and make sure that that battle actually wins. Because they don't realize that these wards are about to fall. And she has to talk her mother into letting her inspect the wards and the runes to see if anything is off. And her mother actually ends up letting her. And so then they go, and the guards that are at the wards are dead. Guess who's there But Jack Barlow and his dragon bade he is doing what he promised, apparently. And so he kills his dragon at the stone, and the wards fall. I know that Varysh said something about him being unstable, but, damn, is he unstable. [00:49:06] Speaker B: Because he's a Venin that they brought back to life? Because he was a Venin before he died. [00:49:12] Speaker A: Exactly. What I was thinking was maybe he wasn't actually dead because he had venom in him. And so they were able to bring him back because he was, like, clinging to life. Because the last time they tried to bring somebody back to life, that healer died. So that's why I was like, maybe he wasn't quite. Quite dead. Dead. [00:49:26] Speaker B: No. That's 100. It can confirm. Oh, okay, cool. Can confirm. That's the reason I like how I'm. [00:49:36] Speaker A: Just, like, saying things. You're like, yeah, yeah, that's right. So Jack turned into a Venon within the wards. That's what they were trying to heal. Not only him being brought back to life, but also the venom out of him. That's what they were trying to heal. And he did it before even his first challenge against Violet. She knows that whatever he did in the challenge against her, where he pushed some sort of force or power into her, she realizes now that it was ward power and the power they're making from the runes and venom power, rather than their signet power. They're able to capture him and they're able to cut him off from his dragon so that he doesn't die with the suppressant that they've been using on their bonds. And then they gather everybody up and they're planning for a while. They have about 100 riders with them currently at the Battle College, about 10 members of leadership and about 10 hours. So they don't really have a lot of people or a lot of time, but they need to get ready. Zaden is in charge of their squad, but Violet says there should be a team guarding the Wardstone. And her mother disagrees. But then the next day, Zaden are getting ready when everyone is at their door, including Brennan. And this is when her mother actually decides that they can guard the Wardstone because Brendan is going to try and mend it. [00:50:51] Speaker B: I'm not going to do these chapters justice, by the way, because there's so much that happens. I had to keep it simple. Had to keep it simple. So our dragons are lined up to fight. Andarna promises to stay hidden. Jessina is there to compare Warwick's journal to the other ones. She can try to figure out the runes and the. The translation and everything and see what was the lies that he put in there. Violet's mother changes the weather specifically to help Violet with her storms. It's kind of a sweet thing that she does. She's like, oh, she's trying to weaponize me. I love it. They go into battle. They're fighting. Violet uses her lightning. Of course, the Wyvern adjusts to stating hidden in the clouds while her mother storm is raging. So it's kind of a little bit difficult. And then the Venon attacks Violet and says, you're the one he wants. And they're fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight. Rhy actually comes and kills that Venon and helps Violet. And then Violet gets back on her dragons and they're fighting. And then she badassly sees saves Sawyer by jumping between dragons and Wyvern and all that, which is fun for her. But Sawyer gets hurt. [00:52:06] Speaker A: Yeah. He loses his leg. [00:52:08] Speaker B: Yeah. She then saves Cat and she's told that the Sage wants her and whichever Venin brings her to him will be rewarded. So she's kind of a sought after prize here. And then a giant boulder at the end of that chapter shifts into a dragon and attacks that dude, which is kind of crazy that she has these abilities. [00:52:28] Speaker A: And I was picking up on the camouflage abilities, especially because it's not very Subtle. I was thinking, like, there's something different about her. But I was thinking this was like a certain power that Andarna had that then she would get. [00:52:41] Speaker B: It's kind of cool. [00:52:41] Speaker A: But then I remembered that it's supposed to come from the writer. It's not supposed to come from the dragon. So I was like, it's not. It doesn't have to be. But that was what I was thinking in the beginning. And Darna has her fire now. And then they get called back into the Veil, just Zaden and Violet, because basically their. Their first wave is over. They're waiting to attack this, but all the Wyvern are waiting to attack a second time. It seems like they're letting this first wave get down and see what the aftermath is before they do their second attack. And so Violet and Zaden are called back into the Veil. And Jessa translated Lyra's journals, and it says that they need seven dragons, not just six. That was the extra one. And Mel Green is now there after their other battle commenced. They, like, once they realize that that battle was dead and done, they then came over here. And Melgren wants to abandon the Veil and sacrifice a lot of people. And she's like, no, we can get these fucking wards up. I know it now. I understand exactly what we need to do. And so she pleads with her mother to listen to her for once and actually allow her to get the words up. And Zaden says they won't attack because they're waiting for him. And I'm like, wow, they're just so high profile. Everybody wants them. She talks to the other Black Dragon who is with Mel Green, and he makes sure that he comes to the Wardstone. And then she tells Zaden, you have to choose if you want the words up here or if you want them up in Orisha, because I'm only gonna be able to do it once. And he says that he would rather have them up wherever she is. So since she's here, they should be up here. And Brennan says he was able to mend it. Zaden goes off and he fights the rest of the war. She calls Aunt Donner down, and she's the seventh type of dragon who can camouflage. She starts to imbue power, and she basically is like, I'm going to imbue this Wardstone with as much power as I can give, and I'm going to kill myself to do it, just to make sure that everybody else lives. But her mom is there, and her mom kicks her off the stone in order to get her to stop because she is getting weaker and weaker and she just keeps that hand on the stone. Then Brendan takes her and starts mending her. So instead what her mom is deciding to do is going to use her and her dragon and get Sawyer to siphon all of the power and put it into the Wardstone. And so that's exactly what she does. And her mom dies and the wards are up and she feels like Zaden needs her. This is when I cried when her mom sacrificed herself. [00:55:04] Speaker B: Oh, cute. I was like, her mom was kind of a bitch like own son. Oh. Then sucks. [00:55:14] Speaker A: I'm like, oh my God. He's so insecure. And you're like, dad, different strokes for different folks. People. [00:55:26] Speaker B: Okay, so once her mom's dead, everyone's like, hey, we did it. Yay. Everyone's in a good mood. The wards are up. Mom's dead. It's sad, but it's true. And then she goes to Zaden and it's revealed that he has a red ring in his eyes. Dun dun dun. You said, oop. Does this mean he's Venon? And I said he's Venon. [00:55:49] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:55:50] Speaker B: And these are really short chapters. We go right to Zaden's pov. He's having a nightmare. It's a memory though of the battle. And it's the sage telling him that he either needs to turn or he's going to go and kill or turn Violet. Either way, one of them is getting it. And Zaden's like considering it. And then Seagull is like, don't you effing dare. I chose you. And Zaden's like, yeah, but so did Violet. So I'm turning and he gives him his hand. And then he gets turned. And he wakes up from the nightmare next to Violet and she's like, oh, go back to bed. I love you so much. And he's like, oh. And then he goes and finds Jack, the Venin guy. And Jack is like, hahaha. There's no cure. You are my brother now. [00:56:45] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:56:45] Speaker B: That's how we end this book. [00:56:46] Speaker A: Wow. Wow. Wow. That is how we end this book. [00:56:49] Speaker B: Yeah. So you and I are caught up on our fourth wing together. [00:56:53] Speaker A: I can see why my sister was so mad that this is the way that this book ended and she didn't have the third one out. I do feel like this is stopping in the middle of like, when is getting good. I'm like, why don't I know more? [00:57:05] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:57:05] Speaker A: So I'm happy that the next book comes out in just a few months. For me. And that we're reading it right away for this. [00:57:10] Speaker B: You lucky son of a bitch. [00:57:14] Speaker A: But what are your thoughts? You've been ruminating on this for a lot longer than I have. So what do you think is going to come next? [00:57:19] Speaker B: I've seen so many theories compared to you. I think Violet's second signet is seeing dead or something to do with the dead. Because of Liam? Because Liam shows up twice. [00:57:31] Speaker A: That's a good call. [00:57:32] Speaker B: And he was there the whole time she was being tortured. And he seemed like himself. He didn't seem like he was in her head. [00:57:40] Speaker A: Yeah, that makes sense. [00:57:41] Speaker B: So that's my theory. I have heard all the theories. I have seen all the podcasts and all of the interviews and everything after the release of this book that were about this book. There's a lot of stuff about Andarna, actually, and about her age and how long she was in the egg and stuff like that. It's a little deep into the lore, but I definitely feel like that's gonna come up. Next book is exactly who Anderna is and where she's from, because that's technically unanswered. I already told you about the mom theory. I think she's gonna come up sometime soon, either in this next book or the one after. She's gonna be very relevant. [00:58:23] Speaker A: My mom thing that while you were saying that, I thought of was, what if she's in the Weir and Bevin side and that's how we find out about her? [00:58:32] Speaker B: Ooh, that would be good. That's a good theory. [00:58:36] Speaker A: But that was also my theory about possibly Violet's dad being alive and being on the Weir and Bevin side because somebody in power wants them both. And I'm. Who the fuck do they know that wants them? [00:58:47] Speaker B: So there's a lot of theories about Violet's dad and him being a Venin, specifically because the. The silver hair. So, like, he was Venin when she was born. She's half human, half Venom, which is why she's able to do everything she's able to do. [00:59:03] Speaker A: Okay. That's a cool theory. Sorry. Continue with the rest of your stuff. [00:59:08] Speaker B: Oh, I only have one more other thing I'm gonna say. This next third book, we're gonna start off just as we did the second book, where we're gonna be back at school again. So she's gonna be a third year. Oh, and at school, because that's where they raise the wards. So they don't. [00:59:22] Speaker A: Right. [00:59:23] Speaker B: They can't go back. [00:59:24] Speaker A: Weird. Okay, so she is really gonna be in third year, even though she's not really in third year. [00:59:29] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:59:30] Speaker A: So my thing is, what do the Wyvern and Venom want, specifically? I know that they want to get into the kingdom, but what do they want? I know they want to siphon power, but what is it for? I feel like there's stuff that I don't know, especially on their side, which is why I want to get somebody who I semi know on that side, which is why I'm like, maybe it's the dad, maybe it's the mom. Maybe it's somebody who we can have a foot in the door to, like, give us more backstory about what's happening. [00:59:52] Speaker B: Like an actual conversation. Yeah, yeah. [00:59:54] Speaker A: On that side. Because I feel like there is so much that I don't know about their side that I'm like, I don't even know what I don't know. [01:00:00] Speaker B: On that note, I think the Venin is like, a better way to look at them is kind of like the characters in Game of Thrones. The White Walkers, the Wildlings, are like the Rebellion. Right? Yeah. Zaden's side. So that's the Wildlings. And then the. The White Walkers are like the Venin. So they're not necessarily, like, having a point. They're just trying to kill everybody. [01:00:21] Speaker A: Okay, well, they seem to want specific things. They want Violet, they want Zaden. There has to be a reason why they want their power. I understand that you could make Venom to just be more powerful, but I feel like also these people might have a reason, but I want to know who's in charge, especially because whoever's in charge wants to have them both. They seem to know everyone and what they can do and, like, how everything works. So somebody has to know something. Why aren't they trading with any other continents anymore? Like Naviri, we've been talking about continents in this book and how all of the trading has been ceased with everybody, not just the main people, but, like, everybody on that continent. What is happening? Do they know about the Venin? Is there something else that's happening? Do we not know? I feel like this will expand further and further, and we just need to learn more about these people. [01:01:05] Speaker B: Yeah. Those are all really good questions, though. [01:01:08] Speaker A: That's where I'm at. Thanks. [01:01:10] Speaker B: Thanks. Right, well, this episode comes out, like, right around when we get that third book. So. [01:01:16] Speaker A: Yeah, we'll see. We will find out. [01:01:19] Speaker B: Bye.