Iron Flame Live Reactions: Chapter 6-8

[penwalla]

What no one openly says is that while all four quadrants obey the Code of Conduct, a rider’s first responsibility is to the Codex, which often overrules the regulations other quadrants live by.
By definition: the riders make their own rules.

—MAJOR AFENDRA’S GUIDE TO THE RIDERS QUADRANT (UNAUTHORIZED EDITION)

Oh, boy. Is this how Yarros justifies the insane inconsistency of her worldbuilding and the wild, incomprehensible logic of the war college?

The chapter opens right in the middle of the conversation that chapter 5 ended in, which makes me wonder why we even needed a chapter break. Aetos pauses to threaten Violet and her sister to make her keep her mouth shut about the prior book's events. Again...Aetos is a high-ranking member of the military. Is there any reason he has to resort to this? Why not just have them all killed discreetly?

Violet and Xaden walk out together to talk about these developments, after Violet loses her shit and sends out a huge bolt of lightning. They're both frustrated that they'll only have hours together every week or so, and their dragons will suffer. Xaden warns Violet that she needs to stay out of what the rebellion kids are doing, because she doesn't have a relic to protect them and therefore endangers everyone if she gets involved.

During this convo, Xaden cuddles up to her under the pretense of fooling onlookers and continues to make condescending comments about how it's worth the wait because he knows Violet will love him again. Cool, I now hate him. Violet agonizes over it after he leaves, berating herself for still having feelings for him.

“Never left that,” he reminds me, keeping his voice low even though the others in the courtyard are now giving us more than enough privacy. “Keep yourself alive, and I’ll be back in seven days.” His hand slides to the side of my neck, and his thumb grazes my jawline as he lowers his mouth to only a breath above mine. “We managed to keep each other alive today. Trust me yet?”

My heart jolts. I can almost taste his kiss, and gods, I want it.

“With my life,” I whisper.

“That’s all?” His mouth hovers above mine, all promise and no delivery.

“That’s all.” Trust is earned, and he isn’t even trying.

“Too bad,” he whispers, lifting his head. “But like I said, anticipation is a good thing.”

Common sense crashes through the fog of lust with embarrassing ease. For fuck’s sake, what did I almost do?

“No anticipation.” I outright glare, but my words lack bite. “We aren’t happening, remember? That’s your choice. I have every right to walk right back into the gathering hall and pick whomever I want to warm my bed. Someone a little more ordinary.” It’s a bluff. Maybe. Or alcohol. Or maybe I just want him to feel the same uncertainty I do.

“You absolutely have every right, but you won’t.” He gives me a slow smile.

“Because you’re impossible to replace?” It does not come out as a compliment. At least that’s what I tell myself.

“Because you still love me.” The certainty in his eyes pricks every inch of my temper.

“Fuck off and leave, Riorson.”

This is a couple where they both suck so bad that they should be coupled up just to protect others from them. But also I don't want to read about it.

Xaden leaves. Dain is now wingleader, and Rhiannon is now squad leader. Violet gushes over her, and the chapter's over.
Most useless chapter break ever. Let's keep going.
Five days later, the second years gather for Orientation, in preparation for the arrival of the first years. A new professor, fresh off the front, comes in to introduce himself and to comment on the small size of their class.Fewer and fewer dragons are bonding, due to disagreement among the dragon leadership about the venin.

That seems like it would a much more interesting POV--the dragons and their relationship with humans, who they are using to create wards that keep them safe, in return for having to serve in combat--but I wouldn't trust Yarros to write it.

Professor Grady introduces the new class as follows:

“…But the second year brings its own challenges,” Professor Grady continues as I focus on class. “Last year, you learned how to ride the dragons who chose you. This year, you’ll learn what to do if you fall off. Welcome to Rider Survival Course, or RSC for short.”

“What the hell is that?” Ridoc mutters.

“I don’t know,” I whisper, writing the letters RSC in the blank book in front of me.

“But you know everything.” His eyes widen.

“Clearly not.” Seems to be the theme lately.

“Don’t know what it is?” Professor Grady asks with a grin, staring straight at Ridoc. “Good—our tactics work.” He crosses one boot in front of the other. “RSC is kept classified for a reason, so we get your genuine reactions to the situations at hand.”

“No one wants my genuine reactions,” Ridoc murmurs.

I bite back a smile and shake my head.

“RSC will teach you how to survive if you become separated from your dragon behind enemy lines. It’s a staple of your second year, culminating in two full evaluations you must pass in order to continue at Basgiath—one in a few weeks…and the other around mid-year.”

Kudos to Yarros for not making Violet an expert at something. But also...what the fuck?

Why is this in second year! Your riders are already bonded and that can't be undone! You're at a shortage and losing any of them because they're incompetent is a death blow. This training should have happened pre-bonding, so that only your best have the chance of bonding--or you maximize the number of candidates and accept that you'll have to train them as well as you can afterwards. Probably that would mean individualizing the training in some way, or having different squads of riders with different strengths. Either way, doing it retroactively makes no sense. Killing a Rider who can't pass doesn't guarantee that dragon will bond again.

Also, didn't they spend most of last year doing strength and combat training? There was a whole fucking obstacle course. Violet fell off her dragon like 80 times. At least one of her colleagues died because he fell off and his dragon let them.

Oh, so this special training is just random torture sessions they'll have to endure to prove they won't break under pressure if captured. Hey, Yarros, a couple notes:

1. Torture doesn't work.
2. Torturing your soldiers in advance will not make them immune to torture.
3. Traumatizing the shit out of your soldiers before they even serve will probably not help.

I've been trying not to judge Yarros for her military romance past, but uh...holy shit, do like 30 seconds of reading, this is so stupid.

Afterwards, Violet goes to the Archives to calm down, and to enact her secret plan. Step one is to connect with Jesnia, her scribe friend from the last book. Violet reminisces on how much she misses being a scribe, which would have been simple, and on her old self. Violet, I am not convinced you have acquired a single new personality trait or undergone a drop of development, but okay.

Also, Violet states the rebellions has no scribes, which seems...unlikely. But they can't, or else how could Violet be the most special by using her old nerd days to get secret info?

Violet lies to Jesnia to get some old tests about the founding of Basgiath. She calls this "my first real lie" which I do not think is true but I can't be fucked to go disprove it.

Chapter end. God, these are so short. Who edited this?

Next chapter. It's Conscription Day, aka throw new riders off the parapet day. Violet tries not to look at the candidates.

I don’t need any more faces in my nightmares.

Maybe Violet should, uh, do something about this. Or at least think about doing something about it.

Dain is there, looking sad as the second years banter about what's to come. Only ninety-one dragons have agreed to bond this year, and Dain points out that more surviving candidates won't equal more riders. This seems like a great reason to not kill your candidates indiscriminately. Violet is thinking about some books on traditional Tyrrish weaving Xaden left her as she prepares to take roll at the end of the parapet.

It is insane to me that no one seems to clock the entire structure of rider training as a gross injustice.

A little piece of me dies watching the cruelty of it, and it’s a struggle to remember that every single candidate is here by their own choice. They’re all volunteers, unlike the other quadrants, which take conscripts who pass the entrance exam.

NO THEY AREN'T. WE KNOW THE REBEL KIDS ARE CONSCRIPTED.

Wait, why do conscripts take the entrance exams at all? That's not what conscript means.

Is this supposed to be a justification of this contemptible insanity, or is this the setup to an arc where literally any character decides murdering all your first years is a stupid way to run a military? Time will tell.

Nest up? An actual fucking prince in disguise shows up. Apparently Violet and Dain both know him already from childhood, and also his older brother already died during a previous Threshing. Presumably this is plot relevant, so I'll take it. And then...Liam's sister shows up.

Finally, Violet rouses herself enough to do something, and goes to tie back her hair. Sloane, said sister, hates Violet and accuses her of getting her brother killed. This is understandable, and to Violet's credit she accepts it without complaint.

I will bet right now: either Sloan will eventually do a full 180 and bow down to Violet's greatness, or she will tragically die.

Then the stubborn girl finally extends her arms and starts walking. I don’t look away. I watch every damned step she takes like my future is tied to hers. My breath freezes when she stumbles halfway across, and my lungs don’t fully expand until I see her reach the other side.

“She made it,” I whisper up to Liam.

Then I take the next name.

This is genuinely an emotionally impactful moment.

Next scene. 71 candidates fell from the parapet this year. The rest of them are lining up to form new squads while our heroes watch. The other second years comment there's no reason to get to know any of them until Threshing is over, since so many of them will die. A repeat from last year with a horrible burn scar from an angry dragon is here, and then Dain intervenes to put Sloan on Violet's squad.

Oh, is this Dain redemption arc book? Hmm.

Major Varrish, one of our new villains, has a dragon who is there intimidating the first years while Dain gives a speech. Apparently he's unstable. But apparently the dragons are allowed to just torch any first year who tries to run away during this first day speech, and when two of them bolt, the dragons attack. Violet doesn't object to this until Solas, said unstable evil orange dragon, tries it, at which point she...protects Sloane.

Also, she keeps bitching about Dain not having Xaden's charisma. What charisma?

Solas apparently killed a fuck ton of first years and a few bonded riders. Then Varrish rolls up to explain that the wing is only as good as it's strongest riders, and that's why randomly murdering your own comrades during roll assignment is fine and good. What a nuanced villain! Tairn shows up to frighten off Solas. Chapter end.

Every character in this book feels like they are sharing a single brain cell at all times.