Your favorite literary chaos agents Abby and Ronnie are BACK with part two of our DEEP DIVE into Xaden Riorson! After talking for approximately five hours of our lives about this brooding shadow wielder last week, we're tackling the rest of our burning questions about everyone's favorite angsty wing leader!
We start by analyzing those dreams where Berwyn visits Xaden. We bring receipts showing that until Onyx Storm, Berwyn didn't even KNOW Violet was dreamwalking - meaning everything he said was meant for Xaden's ears only! We dissect the cryptic messages about Xaden being "a pattern not seen in centuries" and how he hasn't "grown into his full abilities" yet. Is it his intinnsic abilities? His shadow wielding? Or something else entirely?
Then we jump into the mysterious "something" Xaden lost that the Venin want. Could it be the Sword of Tyrrendor that keeps appearing in the dreams? Why would a Sage need a sword when he's already so powerful? We theorize about what this could mean, especially if our crackpot theory about Berwyn being Xaden's grandfather turns out to be true!
We round it out with the BIG question: Why Xaden and Violet? We explore how they're perfect foils - lightning/shadow, light/dark, warmth/ice, mind walking/mind reading, power creating/power draining - and how their relationship might be the key to restoring balance in the world. We dive into the gods' involvement, with WILD evidence that Violet is touched by Dunne and possibly Malek (that "reacquainting" line is highly suspicious), and how Xaden is constantly compared to Dunne himself!
Our Precog Corner gets REALLY unhinged this week as we theorize that Xaden will have to DIE to be saved! We bring receipts from across the series about Xaden being "willing to let Violet burn him" and how they might both "meet Malek" - but will they have to die to do it? Could Andarna's flame "alter" Xaden back to human? The blanket of lies is starting to unravel!
We wrap up with some recommendations for what to read if you're stuck in an Onyx Storm rut (nothing helps, but we try anyway).
Spoilers for the ENTIRE Empyrean Series
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Time Stamps:
00:00 - 03:35: Intros and recap of Part 1
03:36 - 10:11: Berwyn's dreams and what they reveal about Xaden
10:12 - 18:05: The mysterious "something" Xaden lost
18:06 - 27:06: Why the Venin want Xaden (his mind reading abilities and more)
27:07 - 35:15: Why Xaden and Violet? The perfect foils theory
35:16 - 42:48: Gods involvement - Dunne, Malek, and the "reacquainting" line
42:49 - 46:08: Precog Corner: Xaden's death and resurrection theory
46:09 - 47:19: What we're reading (Sally Rooney's Intermezzo, Banks' new album, and Quicksilver by Callie Hart)