Onyx Storm | Violet vs. the World...Again

Welcome wonderful listeners to Episode 24 of the Shadow and Starlight Podcast | Violet vs. the World…Again?! Our Onyx Storm deep dive has finally arrived! Tune in to hear us discuss some juicy theories, a shocking confession from Kenzie, and the craziness of Basgiath in full war mode.

• This episode is based on Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros. Intro Music by Boomer, graphics by @reeseplantedesign. 
• Follow us on TikTok and Instagram @shadowandstarlightpod, watch us on YouTube, and listen to us wherever you get your podcasts!
• Business email: shadowandstarlightpod@gmail.com

Transcript

0:24

Welcome, wonderful listeners, to the Shadow and Stylite podcast, where two friends deep dive into popular fantasy and romance y books. We get into the stories, characters, world building lore, and so much more. So buckle your seatbelts for this five wheeler coaster ride of emotions, magical worlds, and laughs. I'm Kenzie. I'm Kena. Today we're covering chapters 1 through 11 of Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yaros. I don't know why I just threw up first and foremost, please listen carefully to our content warning. These are adult books we were covering and neither of us have a filter. So this podcast is rated R and for those 18 plus regarding spoilers. If you haven't finished the entire Onyx Storm book, please come back after you do. So while we are discussing the first stretch of chapters, we will be doing so with perspective of what happens in the rest of the book for better understanding that way we can really dive deeper into the theories and appreciate the masterful foreshadowing of Rebecca Yarrow. So going forward, all episodes on our show will contain spoilers for the whole series in question. Next, if you like what you hear today and want more, please come back next Thursday, and next Thursday, and next Thursday, and next Thursday, and every Thursday after that for a brand new episode. As a toddler podcast, we love to hear your feedback to better ourselves and expand our book loving community. Please feel free to give us reviews, reach out to us on social media, and follow us on TikTok, Instagram, and watch us on YouTube at Shadow and Starlight Pod. I'm pretty sure we said once we got to fourth wing we were gonna be like an adolescent like in our podcast, Puberty. We're like, we're sassy adolescents now. Yes. Like Andorina. Dragons, yes. Yes. Drink of the pod. I'm drinking ginger beer. It's delicious. You would probably hate it. Like, when you said that, I was like, that sounds like something I would probably not drink. It's healthy. Ew. I'm drinking Minute Maid Fruit Punch. Nice. Well, we have a big announcement today. And we have decided on which books we are going to be covering after Onyx Storm. Kenzie, you want to tell us the first one? I think I remember the name of it. The first one has to do with metal. Metal Bringer Slinger. Metal Slinger. Metal Bringer Slinger. By Rachel Snyder. Oh wait, it was right in front of my face. I yes. We're going to be Metal Slinger by Rachel Snyder. Yes. So I've been seeing that one on book talk and it's been getting raving reviews. So we're going to go ahead and cover it. We were thinking about doing the Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent, but I had a friend read it and she said it may not have been super great in terms of like world building and mythology we can. Dig into so we're gonna do some newer releases. Also, our second one that we're going to follow Metal Slinger with is Anathema by Carrie Lake, which I recently read and I'm obsessed. If you like Zayden, girl, you have got to meet Zavander. She actually just turned this into a trilogy as well. So book one and two is out and then the third is going to be releasing April 1st. So we should be able to roll right from the first two into the third one. I'm excited for that one. Kenji hasn't read it yet, but I just know you're going to love it. I mean, it's a shadow daddy. So I think you will. I miss Fisher. I think. After I finish rereading ACOTAR, I want to go back to Quicksilver. I don't know why I can't remember the name of the book. I finally got my sister to start reading Fourth Wing, and after she finishes the next one I'm going to give her is Quicksilver. Nice. she started reading last night and she got all the way past threshing and she was like, I'm obsessed. Oh my God. She's like, I want a dragon. I was like, Oh my God, it's starting. So now we're going to get matching dragon tattoos, probably. All right, let's get this party started. Yes, it's time to cross the parapet and Kayla is going to lead us across the parapet. I hope she doesn't fall. Keep your balance. I have crap energy tonight. Surprisingly. I'm not too like for me, like just getting off work, but all right. I like it. I'm gonna need you to get on my level, I got you. Okay. That's going to lead us across the parapet as she takes us through her shadow and starlight synopsis, AKA her unhinged. Summary details on the events of these chapters. Two weeks after the battle of Bezgaioth, Violet is trying desperately not to face her rising panic about the war, the fate of her man, and the mix of grief and emotional trauma brewing within her. Luckily, she has a severely egotistical grumpy father dragon and a rebellious sassy teenage dragon to distract her with their constant bickering. After making it back from an uneventful event in patrol, Taryn begins the pointless quest of reminding Violet why she is just a little bit Delulu when it comes to the dark one. Ooh, that's actually kinda hot. Thank you, Taryn, for trying to give Delulu Violet some fatherly advice and supporting her in the myriad of ways she plans to court death. Anyways, hi, Iron Squad. We missed you. Quickly, we realize that tensions are wound tighter than they usually are at Bezgaioth. Aura Bitch Ass Binehaven, yes that is her legal name according to me, leads the charge of hostility to the so called Aretian deserters and the fliers. After a visit to Hiccup, I mean Sawyer, Onyx Storm starts out rather spicy. Venon are inside by Skaiath. Again. Pulling a trick straight out of Iron Flame Chapter 25, the Venon have infiltrated, posed as scribes to get to their bestie brother, Justin Bieber, Jack Marlowe. They descend a level to a terrifying scene. Dark wielders are playing with their kill, and Violet's Venon twin is here? Hi, Theo, we hate you. Being the badass as they are, the Iron Squad and Zayden dispatch the Venon. Riddick reminds him that he totally could have handled that one, but Zayden doesn't quite agree. But Riddick, I believe you, my dude. After a quick catch up with her Venom boyfriend, Violet heads to the Cenarium and lets them know and honors demands for Quest Squad, which are swiftly rebuked by these aristocratic assholes. Instead of her choice of squad, she gets Professor Grady, who I actually forgot existed. So basically, everything is going to shit super fast. Next morning, we get some delicious spice. Broken short by Zayden accidentally shambling just a tad. This isn't looking too good for the future Spice forecast. Ugh, we're gonna have to wait a while, again. Talking politics while getting dressed, the lovebirds find Brennan outside their door along with a whole crowd of others. And Mira, who has been on a secret rune mission and is, uh, slightly pissed at Brennan. Family therapy might be a good idea. Just a suggestion. Later, the squad's chillin in the gathering hall is interrupted by bitch ass Binehaven instigating mob violence against the Flyers and the so called Deserters. She toxically insists that anyone who won't accept her challenge is a coward. Dane, of course, fails to persuade the peace, and he is ushered into a signet challenge, where he most certainly will be torched. Thanks to a reminder from her girlboss dragon, Violet steps into the defuse. Nothing like a little lightning to humble even egotistical riders out for blood. Just in time, the professors are back to further defuse the situation. Scenarium is functioning like real world politics, so absolutely terrible. They rejected the plan to alter the runes on the Wardstone. No problem, because we know how much Violet loves to commit treason. Last piece of news, Zayden is now reinstated as the Duke of Tyrandor. Yummy. as if he couldn't get any hotter. Like, please. I know. Girl. I actually can't think of anything that would make him hotter. Actually, I can. Being a father. Oh my God, that would be so cute. I love that. Well, Violet might be pregnant. We're gonna talk about it. maybe not this episode, but yeah. Yeah. Speaking of committing treason again, it is time. Violet and the inner circle head into the Wardstone chamber to find her siblings waiting patiently. It's a whole family affair. While Violet is fighting the trauma of what happened to her last time, Sawyer is able to successfully wield and nullify the rune that does not allow the fliers to wield within. Who said treason wasn't necessary sometimes? Next morning in Battle Brief, Violet is swiftly arrested by Frickin Father, Father Atos, y'all. You've gotta be joking me, Rebecca. It gets worse! Wait, wait, you have to do the, you have to do the, the Klaus. I hope you didn't watch Vampire Diaries. It's like the Klaus scene where he's like, Rebecca! Rebecca! But it gets worse, people. He's a general now, who we still think is a traitor. But anyways, General Achos escorts Violet to the Cenarium. Violet has once again outsmarted leadership since her pardon was officially signed this morning, hours after the crime in question. Violet exits to find her super awesome loyal friends who she shouldn't be Lying to, making sure she wasn't sentenced to be roasted. After General Atos bursts in to show us how desperately he needs anger management therapy, Violet stands up to the very small man he is. True to form, he threatens her friends, sending them to the front lines of Samara. The commander of Samara is equally as shocked Atos was chosen as general, and she lets them get some rest. After a little Naperonian cheese featuring some dreamwalking hello second signet, they find out Maren's family's town outside of the wards is under attack. Die, they plan a rescue mission. Arriving first and heading straight into a storm. How suspicious. Violet and Taryn dispatch some wyvern before noticing who has set up this lovely little trap. Theophany. A. K. A. Theo, and also Garrick, our little distance wielder. Oh my god, our lightning wielder and the second largest dragon on Amaryllis are tossed like ragdolls in a tornado, making impact the bond goes dark. Rebecca! Rebecca! Rebecca! Please never do that again. Also, I'm sorry if I blew out your eardrums. No, you're good. Thankfully, Taryn is just confessed. Garrick rushes over to put Violet's kneecap in place while she questions how he got here in seconds while he was just on Zayden's babysitting duty. They are so rudely interrupted by Thea, who confirms she lured them here with Maren's family. Since she is feeling chatty, she shares the name of Indarna's den, the Irids. A. K. A. the Iridescent Swag. After tempting Violet with a deal, Theo leaves them alive, leaving Violet to interrogate Garak. Back in Vazgayath, Violet gets a lecture about running into danger by her big brother and Zayden, who is overly irritated? Angry father father Aegis is back, who is humbled once again by the family bond of the Iron Squad and the Duke of Tyrandor. Suck it, brah. After a quick mending, Zayden orders everyone out to kiss his woman. And that's where the first 11 chapters end. This book was so good. I want to go back and reread it already. I had to stop myself because I'm like, I'm going to do my chapters every week for the podcast for my reread. And then I just want to keep flipping the pages because I'm like, Oh my gosh, I love this. I love this part. I love what comes up next. So now that we've crossed the parapet, it's time to head into our battle brief section, where we will discuss all notable things in this stretch chapters, including foreshadowing, theories, and our favorite parts. Man, I want to know what Justin Bieber knows. What does Justin Bieber know? I want to know what Jack Marlowe knows! Okay, anyways, so right off the bat, we get some venom breaking the best guy at the try and we think kidnap Jack, but we actually know later that they are there to kill him. And I can't believe I'm saying this at the end of Onyx Storm, but I'm actually glad Jack Marlowe is still alive so that we can find out what he knows. It's driving me crazy to think that the Venon would risk breaking into Bezgaiath and also Theophany ends up bargaining to get him back just so that they can kill him. So I'm like, okay, what do you know that they're taking all these risks to try and kill you? maybe he knows a way to stop the venom, kill the venom, outside of what we already know. Maybe he just knows information about Sages that he could pass along, but he hasn't yet. I do have a feeling that this is gonna be a big reveal in the next book, and I'm wondering how it's gonna come out of him, or maybe he'll die and they won't even get the information out of him, because he They did interrogate him, a lot. In Onyx Storm, at least behind the scenes, and he never broke. I mean, obviously, Violet got some answers out of him, but not anything major. I wonder if he even realizes if he knows something important. I feel like maybe he, saw something, but he just didn't put the pieces together because he's an idiot. I don't know, but I want to know what he knows. I think that at this point, Jack is just, collateral damage He's also connected to Berwyn who is connected to Zayden so that could have something to do with it Yeah, so maybe it sounds like Berwyn could control the initiates that are Whoever's beneath him that he's teaching, which is interesting. I don't know if that would be like a compulsion signet or if it's event inability or if like, it's just something of their nature that ties them together. But. I don't know. There's something suspicious. Funny story. Vampires have the ability to compel. Oh my god. I can never escape the vampires. Never though. Are you sad we're not covering a vampire book next? Not really. We'll get there eventually. I mean technically we've already covered a vampire book and I loved it. That's true. I forget there's vampires in Quicksilver. I don't know why because it's like a main key component of the story. It's a little bit of everything in Quicksilver. Yeah, it is. That's the best. Alright. Next we're going to discuss Double agent Zayden, question mark, because brother is playing both sides of the fence over here. He's bidding, but he's also pro Navarre. And he's been in and then he's prone to bar. I don't really think he's prone to bar. I think he's pro keep Violet safe. So I'm going to stay behind the wards, but he's still fighting for the bar technically. So given that Zayden's transition is top secret, He played a double agent. Majority of this book, he was being Venon, but also protecting the bar and like aiding them in the war and becoming allies and. Planning a whole treaty to sign, blah, blah, blah. He even killed the most Venon after the attack because of his ability to actually sense other Venon. Quote, I can reach the rank of Maven, lead armies of Darkwilders against everyone we care for and watch every vein in my body turn red as I channel all the power in the continent and I would still love you, end quote. We love him, but this just shows that like he's accepted the fact that he's Venon, but He literally would like still do anything to stay with Violet and be with her and protect her. So I mean, he knows it's inevitable that he's going to fully channel, he still, wants to be with her. And I think this quote also like foreshadows his, Full on transition, but also like, it foreshadows the one piece of his soul that he's going to have remaining at the end. Because he was like, even though I might be like full on Venom, I will always love you. Have you seen the theories where he put his soul into the ring that's on her finger? I have. we'll have to dig into that in another episode, but that's intriguing. I also wonder if this specific quote is foreshadowing to Book 4, possibly. I don't know if Book 4 is going to be a situation where, like, Zayden isn't hiding from, like, Violet and the Venon, just trying to stay away from the mess, or if he is going to continue progressing within the Venon ranks and, turn into the monster that he was in a few glimpses in Onyx Storm. Like, is he going to lead armies of dark wielders? Is all of his veins gonna turn red and is he still gonna love Violet? is that foreshadowing Rebecca or are you just, is that just a romantic quote from our dude? I don't know. I 2027. Please tell me. This is not the real date. People were like, oh my gosh y'all, she's giving me all three books in two years. It's definitely unheard of for fantasy books. Like, give her a break. I'm just like, no, we need this book, like, this year. I feel both ways, She almost didn't finish Onyx Storm because of I think how much pressure everyone was putting on her. Yeah, so I'm trying to like understand from her perspective what it's like to suddenly get that famous and have so many people obsessed with your book. And it's like, I hope everyone treats her with respect during this time because we want her to be able to put out the rest of the series. Yes. Fantasy is a lot. Dude, 2027. So long. I'll be 27. Shit. I mean, I'll be, how old am I? 22? Oh, it's 25. I'll be 25. I mean, 24. I can't do math, obviously. Oh gosh, you're such a baby. I am a baby I am probably going to have a child before the fifth book comes out, and that's scary to me. I'll be married. Oh my god. And I probably will have a child by then too. Ooh, scary. I can't think about this right now. We gotta have bestie babies. It's true. I haven't accepted that I'm going to become a mother in like the next couple years, probably. I need to go back to therapy. Therapy! Okay. I am on one tonight, I don't know why. Okay, next thing we're going to talk about is the Duchess of Tyrandor. I thought this was An interesting quote on the reread. So after Violet has that whole de escalation speech and calms down Ora and the rest of the Basgaith riot, Arik remarks, quote, she'd be a great politician or a general, maybe definitely nobility. And then Zayden adds with that speech, at least a duchess. Holy foreshadowing. Oh my God. I always. Thought the book series would end with Violet as the Duchess, but not book freaking three. Did not see that coming, just like I didn't see them getting married. Thought they were gonna break up, but here we are. But I do think it's good in terms of Violet's character development, how she's been progressing over these books and I think in Onyx Storm especially, she kind of like realized My dragon is like the general of the battlefield, and that makes me a leader, whether I like it or not. And I feel like she's finally come to terms with that, which is good timing, since at the end of this, she's literally gonna be the leader of Tyrandeor. And that's gonna have so many implications for Book 4, so I'm excited to see how that plays out. I can see people maybe contesting the legitimacy Sorengale. And the people of Tyrandor might feel a little salty about that. I don't know. And also, like we said earlier, Is she pregnant? I don't know. Maybe? But we'll talk about that a little later. I am just really excited to see all the political intricacies of her being an aristocrat we'll bring into the book series. I do think she'll be a great leader, but I'm kind of wondering how this is going to play out when she still has another year at Bezgaioth. Like maybe Duke or whatever, Llewellyn, whatever, will rule in her stead while she finishes her, death studies or whatever., I can't believe she's still only in her second year. I wish I would have graduated already. I didn't even think about that till you just said it. She still has a financial third year. I didn't even think about that. I was like, bro. Yeah. Well, I mean, she doesn't know it all yet, so I guess she's got to, but like, yeah. At this point, when she's the Duchess, I feel like I'm ready to move on from Bezgayath a little bit. Yeah. But we'll see where we'll see what happens. All right, let's talk about Zayden's lack of trust in himself. So I thought this was like really important to highlight because we've seen this characteristic from Zayden, like book one, two, and three, and I feel like this is also foreshadowing for not only the end of the book, but book four. Kena and I actually predicted that Zayden would try to push himself away from Violet because of his transition. But at this point, he is too far gone. This dude is madly in love. He barely tried to like, resist Violet. The only restriction he had was like, less of a physical relationship. But like, he still wanted to be in her presence. And he still was like, Zayden like he was he just wasn't going anywhere. So even though we predicted this for book three This might still be the case with book four because he does kind of disappear at the end. We do still see some resistance in book three in Onyx Storm, like him depending on the warts and him limiting their contact. Like again, like saying they don't really have a physical relationship. No more than kissing. Sometimes that is the hottest thing though. It is, but he was like, really built up that excitement. And though we know that Zayden would never hurt Violet, we also know that he does not like disappointing or hurting her. And I think his self preservation throughout the book just prepares us for his departure at the end and just him constantly doubting himself and just preparing to actually channel him. Cause I mean, it was inevitable for him to turn full on victim. I had zero faith in him. I was like, yeah brother, it's not going to work. I was just like, as much as I wanted Violet to find a cure, this book, I didn't think she was going to. And I felt like it was, his departure was eventual. So, I was a little bit scared in a way. But I feel like I just accepted that. Like a quarter through the book, I was like, alright. this is gonna be bad. So I never thought that his, the cure would be that simple though. I kind of figured it was gonna be kind of Yeah. Yeah, yeah, I feel that. Okay, we're gonna talk about dragons. Little Miss Erid. I think that's such an adorable name. It is so cute. Erid's such a, put you in my pocket. Okay. So well, Okay, focus, focus, focus. Okay, well, well, Indarna's family did not have the answers we expected necessarily about defeating the Venon. I do think that there's a lot more about her type of dragon that we will learn in the future that is going to change the plot. So evidence number one is Theophany was In this stretch of chapters as well, asked about Violet's Erud, this stretch. She didn't even lay eyes on Andarna, but she said, quote, You truly don't know what she is, do you? What a prize you've won. So she already knows about Andarna, and she's clearly fascinated by her. So, why? Can you just a share a little bit? Of course not. I'll get into a more outlined theory in a future episode, but I do think Andarna's magic functions outside of normal magic, and it's very unique, which is possibly why Theophany is so interested in her, and it's also possibly why Violet has a very unique signet, and I also think this may affect her in other ways, so. And with stretch of chapters, Violet says, quote, I throw my shields up drawing on Andarna's power. So we know that Andarna has the power to sever magical bonds and God knows what else. So I had a thought, I am wondering that After she bonded in Darna, I'm thinking that because she bonded in Erid, that maybe made her mental shields so damn strong. Cause it was talked about several times, the fourth wing, how she had like the best mental shields of her year. And even like when she first kissed Zayden, he was like, wow, like you're really good at this. that's really impressive. Even he couldn't get a hold on his mental shielding for a long time, but she was just like, bam, got it. Yeah. She's amazing. and this quote and Darna's power was referenced in connection with her mental shields. I was like, Whoa, like maybe that's why they're so strong. So I don't know, but I am definitely excited to learn more about the Erids and learn why the Venon are so obsessed with them in book four, thought we were going to learn about it in book three, but here we are. Yeah, that is interesting, and I never thought about that, but it does make sense, but my main thing I want to know about the Erits is like, so like we know they went into hiding because they want peace all over the land They want people to change before they give their power to people but it's like I want to know what led up to like them going into hiding and, like why they do all of this just to test humanity cause like the world is like literally falling apart right now and it's like y'all have the answers and you have literally what we need, like, you're just gonna let us kill each other off and just, you know, we have a common enemy. We all know who's causing all the problems. Yes. Best guy is corrupt and toxic, but. What? Yeah. Save the world? Question mark? Save the world? Dude, they were such, elitist assholes. I was not expecting that. I was like, this is not what I was thinking. I felt so bad for Andarna, she was so sad. And they were like, Violet, you're the worst person ever. I'm like, dude, what? And so when I got to that part. Of the book. I was listening to it. And them talking to her and then Darna sounding like so happy and curious and excited and they're just like shunning her. I'm just like, that is so sad. She's like, but, but, I'm just like, aw. I don't like to see my little baby dragging him. Okay. Rebecca! She was like on the pillow for a little bit. Rebecca! Rebecca! Oh my god, I'm going to be editing and all of a sudden it's going to be like, Yes. Oh my god. Yeah. Yes, but the last thing that I want to just bring up is the kids of rebellion and their second signet is going to be like really brief, so after finding out that Garrick is a distance wielder we kind of put the pieces together that like, hmm, rebellion relic equals second signet question mark. And I'm curious to see, like, what other signets the Mark I's are hiding. Bodhi? Did we get Bodhi's second signet? No, Violet asked him and he was like, I don't have one. Then he said, I don't have one just like Zayden. Right. I feel like that was kind of like a hidden, like, yeah, I have one, but I'm not going to tell you. He was like, I don't have one. Just like Zayden. I'm just like, well, Zayden has two. So are you telling me you got two? Da fuck? I mean, seeing those TikTok trends where they're just like in a conversation, they finish every sentence with da fuck. Yes. Those absolutely send me. I think Imogen has one and it's relating to speed maybe because in the first book and I think in the second book as well, Violet always describes her as like, super, super fast. Unnaturally fast, which she describes a lot of the marked ones is really fast. So that's interesting, but images specifically. So I'm wondering if that could be her second segment. Maybe she doesn't have one. Maybe she has a different thing. I don't know. And Imogen also was the one that volunteered to run with her. So maybe it's very suspicious of you, Imogen. All right, let's get into the theories. I am really excited about this one I am forming this theory and it's about what may have been the weapon against Bennett in the past. So let's dig into this quote. The rarest of cygnets, those that rise once in a generation or century, have manifested concurrently with an equal twice in our records, both critical times in our history, but only once have the six most powerful walked the continent simultaneously. As fascinating as that spectacle must have been, I would rather not live to see it happen again. Hmm, a lot of information in there. So when it says that the rarest of Signets manifested concurrently at a critical point in history, I am thinking that this critical point was the Great War, when the Venon were last defeated or maybe just driven into hiding. But I think that all of these powerful signets working in tandem are in themselves, the weapon that defeated the Venon hundreds of years ago.

Kaina G: 29:05

So there's another quote in this rest of chapters. The last time as shadow and lightning wielder fought side by side, they managed to drive the Venon back to the Barrens for a few hundred years. So that's confirming. I think what I just said is that the last time that these things worked in tandem. That's when the Venon went back to the Barrens for a few hundred years. But anyways, so since Violet and Zadian Zadian? Who's that? Can I get his number? Who's that? So since Zadian and Violet are the first of their signets Shadows and lightning, super powerful to live simultaneously since the great war. I'm thinking that this is another critical point in history, and the other four signets are going to be manifesting. I think one of them is Aric, who has precognition, which speaks for itself. That's an insanely powerful signet. Distance wielding hasn't been done in centuries, according to Violet, but here we got Garrick, just chillin over here. Dane has also been referenced several times to have tremendous power, which is shocking because his signet Doesn't seem that useful, I don't know, but I think there's a potential for him to be one of the six. And then I also know that once Rhiannon manifested her signet, Violet remarked on like how powerful and how unique it was, so that could possibly be another. And then I think one of the six is probably for sure Sloane, who's the Siphon, which was Nihilanth's previous signet and is extremely useful and powerful on a battlefield, which I think a Siphoner probably would have to have been. One of the six most powerful segments, because if you're able to like redistribute energy and magic on a battlefield, I mean, you can just think that it's amazing. Yeah. And this whole theory, I really love it. Cause it's giving almost like prophecy vibes where like. These six at a certain time in history defeat the bad guy, whatever. it is interesting because we now know how much magic requires balance. So I'm like, what is the balance for these powerful signets? Is it the sages and mavens with like the counterpart signet? Is it something else? I don't know. This magic cards balance thing is kind of Sitting in the back of my head, just chilling, and it's kind of stressing me out. Yeah, that's been a big thing they've been highlighting. Well, Rebecca has highlighted a lot in Onyx Storm. It's just a balance of power. And in 6, the number 6 has been used a lot in Onyx Storm. So it's like, yeah, but I just want to piggyback off what you said. Like I, I highlighted this part of my book, but I just kind of missed the amount of foreshadowing that was present here on my first read. so when they say like these signets only rise once in a generation or every century that made me think, like, I think the last time, again, they had a shadow that was living, simultaneously was. Probably 6, 000 years ago, and it says they manifest concurrently with an equal. and that's only happened twice in the records, and they've only walked together once altogether, and they're saying they don't want to live to see it again. So obviously something happened for them to have to come up together and band together and, you know, so I feel like this is just get your gears going. I think this is like referencing to the balance, like you said, that we learned about in this book. And in the future, we do meet Theophany and she uses the word sin tweak quite often. And seeing as the Venon, don't age, it sounds like they've been playing a long game and have waited for their equal signets to manifest, is what it sounds like. Ooh, I hadn't thought about it from the perspective of like, they're waiting for their equal to manifest before they like. Going for the kill. Yeah. Cause you know, Theophany was gonna, she was trying to go after Lilith, Sworn Girl. So she waited all those years for Lilith to manifest. And then when Lilith manifest, Lilith hid behind the wards and, Theophany never got to her and then she ended up dying. So then that's when she started going after Violet and then Violet said something and then Theophany was like, I'll just wait another century. I feel like they've been waiting. I think you're right. Dang. Hmm, very interesting. All right. What was your favorite moments of these first 11 chapters? So this is not a favorite moment by a long shot, but it's just a confession that I think I should say publicly because this means I have actually matured and grown as a woman. Okay. This book actually pretty early on in the book, I actually forgave Dane guys. I actually did not hurl. I forgave Dane, Atos, yep. I did not want to hurl every time I saw his name this time and I actually felt kind of bad for him and I actually enjoyed reading about him in this book, I don't know why. But I was like, Oh, there's Dane, cool. I wasn't like, ugh! Oh my god. I know you forgave him, but I didn't think you enjoyed reading about him, girl. I don't know. I'm so proud of you, for real. Maybe it's the toxicity coming out of me, but I think he's kind of hot now. Anyways, we're not going to talk about it. So, I actually never told Kennedy this while I was reading. Wow, that was a lot of things that just came out of your mouth right now that I wasn't expecting. I'm already ashamed, okay? I never told you this while I was reading it, but it was chapter eight. I'm gonna keep sending you fan art of Dane until you just fall totally in love with him. I never thought to say what happened. We know that I was like, he has to die for me to forgive him. And it's just like at this point. Rebecca, you can't kill him off now. Like, there's no chance he can die now. Like, we've, we've, we, yeah. I think three weeks ago, you were like, the bare minimum this motherfucker could do is sacrifice himself for Violet and I were like, He's kind of hot, kind of like him. That's just how good Rebecca's writing is, I guess. Nothing that he did in the book one was acceptable. And this is kind of giving me Damon Salvatore vibes, because Damon was a very bad person in season one. But we grew to love him. I mean, he's really hot. So I'm kind of, yeah, he forgave him a lot easier. Yeah. Oh my God. No, I just feel bad for him. Cause he got really disowned and I literally wrote in my book when his father said he didn't have a son. I really wrote, damn, like now I feel like I have to adopt him. Like I literally wrote that in my book. That's your son now. I feel so bad for him. Yes. Oh my God, I'm bad. Yeah. And I was kind of low key upset in a way, cause there was not on my to do list to forgive Dan Atos. I just, I didn't think that was going to happen in this book at all. Anyways, moving on. So next, obviously we got to talk about Taryn because I've missed you. I'm sorry. Like, welcome back. I'm so glad that we get to read about you again. but the funniest part, just off rip, like I, I love how Rebecca Yara just asked comedy into her books, but I just like cackled when we got to this part, and Violet was like, did you make me repair my saddle to teach me a lesson? Or because you don't trust dating with my gear anymore? And Taron's like, yes. I'm just like, I love him so much. There's so many good Taron lines. Honestly, in like almost every single chapter, I was like, I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. And then lastly, I just love how Rebecca Yarrow's is just so inclusive and I love how diverse her books are. I had to highlight this part of my book. Cause I just felt so seen in this moment and I've been wanting to start reading like an African American fantasy book, like an urban fantasy book, but I just don't know where to start. And so in the midst of all this, Rebekah Yoss is just so good with her inclusion. And I love how strong Rihanna is and her being just such a strong Black female, like one of the main characters and like a character that everybody just loves. And in one of the scenes to stretch, Rih is wearing either. I don't know if I was. It's like a head scar for a bunnet, but she described it as a piece of silk on her head. And I was like, Oh my gosh. I literally held out. It was like, I love the culture here. It's like, I'm always wearing my bonnet when I'm comfortable. And I'm just like, in that moment, Ree was comfortable with Violet and she was like wearing her sleep. Satin, whatever you want to call it, but yeah, so cute. I don't think I even noticed that, but I also think like the first 10 chapters, I was just like, I was just like getting like the details so I can get on to like the more plot. I saw it and immediately was like, I gotta highlight this. I love this. That's cute. I love that. She does a really good job with diversity with all the ASL and like all the ethnicities and She does not miss. I love her. Alright, my favorite moment was Violet being a boss ass bitch. So not only did she stand up to aura and get the entire Bezgayath riot to just, you know, chill the f out. She faced down every aristocrat at the Cenarium and the commanding general of Bezgayath after proudly committing treason because she doesn't take petty ass threats and political BS anymore. She is here to save the world and save her man, and I'm here for it. And book one Violet would have never done any of those things and that's why I love this so much because I love the growth. And my favorite take no shit Violet moment from this stretch of chapters was when she faced the man that almost got her killed several times with not an ounce of fear. Your threats are just threats. I'm no longer the scared first year, unsure if I'd survive threshing or be capable of wielding. One of my dragons is among the most powerful on the continent and the other is the rarest. You can't afford to kill me. On. God. Suck it. Atos. I love you, Violet. Yay. And the cherry on top was that the Iron Squad like totally backed her up. And then when General Atos was like, I'll just go for your friends. They were like. Do it. See what happens. We'll still stick together. Sorry. I know Father Father Atos went home and looked in the mirror and probably cried. Yes. I hope he did. In his new big ol general suite. That he does not deserve. Ugh, motherfucker. That he wants to brag about. To people that just lost their only surviving parent. Ugh, alright. My next favorite moment is going to be the Riddick Spotlight. And I'm just going to have a Riddick Spotlight in every one of my favorite moments for the next six weeks. So get used to it. Iconic. Icon. And actually, this is shocking me because it's a Riddick moment, but it's not even a funny moment. But I did laugh out loud. Many times the stretch, but I do love in Onyx Storm that we get to see another side of Riddick And it's like his serious smart and loving side not that he didn't have all that depth in the first place But his character development in Onyx Storm, really highlights him like taking a new role in the squad and being more serious in a sense even though you know He still jokes. Alright, this quote, Quote, I love you like a brother, and I get that you lost your leg, and we respect however you're feeling about that, but you're still one of us. You're still a rider, with all the benefits and shit that comes with wearing black. So with all the love in my heart, put your fucking uniform on, because we need you. Aww. I teared up! I just, well, I felt so bad for Sawyer, cause he's clearly fighting some inner demons. But I do love that. How the iron squad is just so tight in it like a family and they just have such a special bond like and this continues to be true through the rest of the book. Like I was a little worried that cracks were gonna start forming when they learned what Violet was keeping from them again. Yeah. But. You know, not even that broke them apart, so I think they're good. Probably forever. But really, this was just like the pep talk of the century, and I just love Riddick for it. So cute. Yes. I love that this last book, we got to see how loyal Rhiannon was, like, Firsthand, and like this book is like really gets that chance to show his loyalty and he even shows his book like how goofy he is, but like, even though he's goofy, he still has feelings and he can be serious when it's the time, I mean, he'll still joke, but he can still get serious at some, somewhat when, when it calls for it. I think it's just so cute. I was laughing at the part where they found out that the Venom was posing as Scraps and they were trying to decide, they were like, are we going to go up or down? And they heard her scream downstairs and like, down. And then Riddick's like, Oh, yay. Like, risking our lives again. How fun. I know, literally, it's the fact that the jokes just continue into like the action scenes. Time to close out our battle brief and move on to the book of Jesenia, where we will dive into the mythology that inspired Onyx Storm, as well as doing a breakdown on everything we know about the scenario, feel free to skip ahead to the fight field if you feel like you're already an expert. Okay, so for mythology today, we're going to go over some of the new dragon names we learned, because we actually learned quite a few new ones, especially in the beginning stages of this book. And For anyone that hasn't listened to our other Empyrean episodes, we do also the majority of the dragon names in those earlier episodes, so go check it out if you want. Some of them have actually really cool connections to characters and signets, like Tarionok means thunder. Okay, anyways. And forgive my pronunciations, I'm not trying to offend anyone, I just can't talk. Hmm. Thwrt. I can't think of a different way to say it. It's Sloane's Dragon. And this is a word that's derived from Scottish Gaelic, like most of the dragon names, and means Taken, which I actually feel like is kind of an interesting connection. At least one that I made because Sloane was conscripted against her will. So taken. You with me here? I'm with you. All right. Glaine is Imogen's dragon and Glaine means clean or pure in Gaelic. And I'm like, well, she does clean memories. So. Yeah, kind of a connection there. Kruth is Quen's dragon. And this name comes from the old Irish word, Kruth, meaning shape or form. And since she projects her astrological form, there you have it, folks. Another connection. Cure? Cure! And I don't know who's driving this is I tried to find it and I was driving myself crazy, but I couldn't find it. And this is actually a french word that comes from the latin word corium and means leather and i'm like, hey flight leathers Okay I don't think that was what she intended but It's not even scottish gaelic. But anyways Maze is one of the dragons in the mated pair that we don't know who they belong to. And Maze is actually a pet form of the name Mayreed, a Scottish Gaelic name that is the equivalent of the English name Margaret. So basically whoever has this dragon has a dragon named Margaret. Grime, Grime is Maze's pet form. dragon husband wife. I don't know who's the boy who's the girl. And this is actually a Scottish surname and it's a variant of the name Graham. So not really a connection there, but you know. Now you're more informed so you're welcome Now we're going to talk about the scenario. From what I got from the book the scenario is like the highest ranking Whatever, it's like the people and from my understanding, um, I only found like one like human definition on this, not like fantasy wise, but like just one like solid concrete definition and it is a Latin word that means group of six. There's that number again. So in the next storm, the scenario consists of people who represent each province of, the continent. We're gonna take it. The continent? Yeah. I think it's like all the aristocratic leaders from the continent. Okay. So they represent each province of the continent. So you got the Duke of Cloudier and you got the Duchess of Mora. Well that's how you say it. You got the Duchess of Elso got the Duke of Luces. The Duke and the Dutches of Ens Shire, the Duke of which is Zaden. I got K Shire. I know that Kun Shire is right. I don't know what the, I think it's Deacon Deacon Shire or Deens Shire. Yakkin Shire d Yak, Shire or the in the Duke of Rador, which is Zaden. And of course the Kingdom Devar and the Queen of Peromia also sit in during these discussions, as well as Brennan and Llewelyn, who represent Tyrandor. And in the scenario, they come together to make a decision and call for a vote that affects the entire continent. So this is basically like their government, in a sense. Yeah, basically. It's like the, what's that, group of world leaders that we have in our world. The House of Representatives. United Nations? No. No. I don't know. I don't know. Something like that. Like a United Nations fit together. No, I don't know. Moving on it's time to head to our flight field where every week Ken and I will do two to three mini series readings to our podcast and they won't be the same every week so keep tuning in for all the fun. Today we're going to do Would You Rather and Cards Against Basquiat. Alright, would you rather be trapped in Jack Barlow's cell for one hour, or be on the front lines for one hour? Basically, do you think you could fight Jack off, or do you think you could To not die on the front lines. At this point, put me with Jack. Bam. Maybe he'll find out what he knows. Yeah. I mean, it's not like he's like super strong right now. I just like hide in the corner. Start giving him like this serum that makes him weak. But he can drain you if he gets his hands on you. I'll just distract him with my boobs. Classic. Well, what if he's a little pretty? That ain't gonna work. Well, I don't know, I guess I'm stuck. I'll just tell him I'll join the fam. If he don't join me, I'll become Benin. So I can be with Satan. So I can sniff Zayden out, cause you know, they can sense each other. I think I would rather be on the front lines so I can see a dragon before I die, cause I feel like death is inevitable for me in either situation. Yeah, I guess so. I guess, I don't know. Either, either one sounds terrible. would you rather risk being drained by your significant other? During sexy time. Yes I didn't even finish Or Or fight off the venom Like they did before we got to the next one I'm going with sex, obviously At least I'm getting something out of it Yep, yep Same, same, same, same I just knew what my answer was gonna be regardless You did All right. Would you rather be the commanding general of Best ETH or the King of Namar or I guess Queen of Namar Best eth. I thought that would be fun. Fun role. I don't know. I don't know why I said that. I was gonna be like, I'd choose the Queen because. I don't want the responsibility that comes with a general, but then I'm like, well, king is kind of like double thirsty. Yeah, yeah, I think I just want to be president. When I was 14, I was like, I'm going to be president. Nice. I could definitely see that, for sure. I don't think I want that much responsibility. Um, if I had to choose, I would also choose the commanding general, because I will have responsibility either way, and at least I'll see dragons every day. And also have to have a dragon. Okay, would you rather sleep with? Yes. General Atos, or, Halden. Ooh, I'll choose Halden. He sounds hot, come on. I don't know, he's a little arrogant. He is, but like. He's a snob. He is a snob. But he's rich. But I would much rather take that than the smallest man who ever lived. Yeah. Anyways, I thought you were going to say Berwyn. I could like see it in your eyeballs. I was thinking about it. I was like, Instant death. But what if it was good though? Okay, so we're going to do Cards Against Buzzguy eth. If you haven't joined us when we've done it before, during Fourth Winger Iron Flame, basically, I made my own wildly inappropriate, wildly immature, everything Empyrean cards against humanity. I made a handmade deck. Literally. Bought the empty cards and filled them all out with my deepest darkest thoughts So we're gonna go through a couple of them Mackenzie's gonna let me know which card she thinks is the funniest or best and you guys feel free to leave a comment and tell Us what you think is the funniest as well. So our first premise is the best thing about Bazgayeth Is the blank. The blank. The blank. The blank. The blank. The blank. The blank. The best thing about Bezgayeth is violet's dead father. Oh. Okay. Sorry. Killing Jack Barlow in the most badass way imaginable. Willy's not really dead. Yeah. Actually, no. He's not. The best thing about Bezgayeth is getting secondhand horniness from your dragon. What was the first one again? Violet's dead father. It's really, it's really a mood killer. The best thing about Bez Gyaith is the fan art of Zayden. Yeah. Yeah. The best thing about Mazgayeth is dripping silent tears into your scrambled eggs. It's true. It's true. Alright, which one do you think is the funniest? I think, baby, the funniest would probably be drippin silent tears until you're scrambled eggs. That was gonna be my second choice. What was your first one? getting secondhand horniness from your dragon. So that was my first one, and you said funny. And then I was like, okay. You can just choose your favorite. Don't let me peer pressure you. Okay, I can't leave my house without blank. I can't leave my house without running a whole country and rebelling while also attending military school. Yep. That's Satan. I can't leave my house without a gassy dragon. Dang, who's on here is gassy? Did somebody fart? No. They'll be so lit. If Rebecca like, I need this actually. If Taryn just ripped one out of the blue. He's like, what are you looking at? Like it's normal, right? I feel like Andarna would do it just to like, offend Taryn constantly. I love how he's always like, I'm not going to do it. Find out with an answer. He's always like that. Can you imagine being Violet and you're just like riding into battle and you're like bouncing up and down the seat and then you're just like, Oh my God. And then Taryn just looks at you. He does like his. Head swivel thing. Yeah, and he goes into like how disgusting humans are and like, Yes. How unaffected by waste processes, I don't know. Oh my god. Oh, this one's for you, Mackenzie. I can't leave my house without pining for Dane. Oh, wow. Wow. That was the perfect card. It was. I can't leave my house without wanting to eat my allies. I can't leave my house without a mating display. Hmm. I got to go with Pine and Firdane. It's a perfect setup. I thought I was going to offend you and you weren't going to pick it. I thought you were going to be like, I don't want to talk about it yet. At this point, it's inevitable. I've already confessed it. It's true. It's true. It's out there. It's in the world. Well, not yet, but it will be in like two days. Yeah. Okay. Last one. You know what would make for a great children's book? This one is scary, okay. This is gonna be scary. Oh no. What would make for a great children's book? A man on the brink of orgasm? Oh no. Of course. Oh no. I'm literally pulling out the dirtiest cards possible. what would make for a great children's book? Vice Commandant Bearish's Microcard. Dang. This is a lot of penis cards. Okay. Pew! Pew! You know, what would make a great children's book? Violet sending 50, 000 volts straight to the nipples. Oh, lightning bolts? Mm hmm. 50, 000? You would just die at that point. It wouldn't even be satisfying. You'd just be dead. You'd be like, burnt. You know, what would make for a great children's book? The throne scene. Oh my gosh. These cards are crazy. It's just dirty card after another, I told you. You know what would make for a great children's book? Boning on Dragonback. Oh, I don't even know which one is safe to pick at this point. I'm scared. Um, I don't think there is a safe one either. There's not a safe answer here. I'm trying to think of what was the second to last one the throne scene I'm gonna say the throne scene because you know You could just draw a throne and be like look, this is a throne. This is where the king sits. This is where the queen sits This is a crown. Yeah, you know, it's just Yeah, I don't think that's the throne scene they're talking about. That's right. They don't know that Yeah, that's true. It's fine. He's just, like, helping her tie her corset. Yeah. Or something. Bleh. Uh, on her vagina. Anyways. I'm dead. Okay, before we close out our episode today, it's time to spar. So each week, Kenzie and I will give each other an hour list. So, let us know if you get the answers right or not. Okay. So, Lyra. Lyra. Was almost sentenced, to be court martialed for helping who? Defend his people. Fuck. Was it one of the other six. I don't know the names. Was it a six? Is it a name? It is a name. Ummm mmmm Holden Senior. Holden Senior is crazy. I don't know. It's Braxton. I don't know who Braxton is but. What the f That's what it says. Yeah. That wasn't gonna get it. All right. Name one of two abilities that Garrick's Dragon sha has that is unusual. The abilities that the dragon has. Not Garrick, the dragon. Yes. He's fast. Okay, wait. I don't know. I don't remember this. He has the ability to block out his riot, and he's highly sensitive to runes. Oh, yeah, that's right. I will have never remembered that though. Okay, got you bitch, but you also got me too. I did. This is probably easy, but I don't know. What was the fake name that Brennan gave himself after the rebe I mean after the revolution? Aeserai. Damn, okay. It was mentioned once, so I was like, let me see if she remembers. Of course I do, I watch everything Brennan does, like a hawk. Alright, what is the one great equalizer in battle? Equalizer? Can you elaborate, like, what? what is the one great variable that like levels the playing field? Oh, weather. Yes, wow. You made me elaborate. Well, it's cause like, I was like, what the heck does that mean? Equalizer. That's weird. Okay, well, we did it. That is a wrap on our very first Onyx Storm deep dive, folks. we're so happy you're here. Thanks for tuning in. Can't wait to see you guys next week to talk about it. Yes, join us next Thursday as we continue our deep dive into the Empyrean Book 3 and, next week we'll actually be going over chapters 12 through 22. Ooh, it's gonna get good. Alright, it means the world for us to have feedback from you guys and we would really like to continue growing amidst the Sonic Storm release. So please take the time, leave us a review, give us your feedback. You can reach out to us on socials too. Tell us what you liked, what you didn't, or if you just want to talk about Onyx Storm theories, we're here to do that as well. So, feel free to reach out to us, and then make sure to subscribe on YouTube and all major podcast platforms for a freshly baked episode to be delivered to you next week. Bye friends! See you next week! Bye friends! We'll see ya! Wooo! Blaa blaa blaa