Onyx Storm: Chapter 11
Feb. 28th, 2025 08:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penwallaTheophanie opens the chapter by dropping the fun fact that Andarna's species is called an "irid". Violet tells Andarna to run, which Andarna does not want to do. Meanwhile, Theophanie keeps dropping fun facts.
Like, she refers to Violet as a 'mortal', which implies that the venin are immortal? I mean, we've seen venin die, so I assume they just don't age, or whatever. Or it's a conceit they all have since the venin's only personality trait appears to be 'power-hungry af' unless your name is Xaden Riorson. Anyways, immortal or mortal, Theophanie can't escape her fate: to tell Violet how great she is. And to try to convince her to make Theophanie her venin mentor, not 'Berwyn' (the sage from earlier?).
Theophanie, having delivered her exposition, leaves. Tairn wakes up to insult Violet, letting her know he's alive.
So Garrick fast-travelled to Violet because he wields 'distance' whatever the fuck that means. One of the problems of this book is that Yarros meanders between a very modern style and a generic fantasy one, which makes the world feel fake and also makes her fantasy terms sound silly. You've already used the phrase 'for the win', just fucking say he teleports or whatever.
I will now show you this nonsense:
I guess this makes sense, but like. If Jack's dragon had done a bit of gossiping she might still be alive.
Scene change. Tairn flies Violet home, landing in the quadrant itself instead of the flight field so she has to walk a shorter distance. Violet complaints about this and then about them telling Brennan she was coming so she could be healed. Our super-smart protag, y'all. You could argue that this pigheaded pride is one of Violet's character flaws, but it only ever comes up when she's being Brave and Strong and never actually has consequences, so I think Yarros thinks this idiocy makes Violet looks like a badass. It doesn't. She's been disabled presumably her whole life, there's like two menders in the whole of Navarre, if she were smart she'd have asked Brennan to show up with a stretcher or a wheelchair.
Xaden is also there, and he's really mad. Then the rest of the squad plus Maren's rescued family piles in. Brennan mends Violet while Aetos shows up to berate them all and to make more threats.
I've already complained ad nauseam about how this makes no sense and how Aetos has no leverage here, but whatever. Once he's gone, the still super-broody Xaden orders everyone out, and the chapter ends with them making out. Yay.
Okay, hot take: we don't even need Aetos. There's plenty of actual political tension to mine for conflict at this point in the book that's much more interesting. For example, we learn in this chapter that King Tauri closed the borders as part of the peace treaty. Xaden solves this by simply making Maren's family Tyrrish citizens, but what if he couldn't just do that? What if saving all those villagers meant breaking the treaty? Then our heroes would have to make an actual choice about whether to risk a war between the nations to save a relatively small number of people.
As always, Yarros eschews the path of nuance in favor of cartoonishly evil villains so that our heroes never have to be wrong.
Like, she refers to Violet as a 'mortal', which implies that the venin are immortal? I mean, we've seen venin die, so I assume they just don't age, or whatever. Or it's a conceit they all have since the venin's only personality trait appears to be 'power-hungry af' unless your name is Xaden Riorson. Anyways, immortal or mortal, Theophanie can't escape her fate: to tell Violet how great she is. And to try to convince her to make Theophanie her venin mentor, not 'Berwyn' (the sage from earlier?).
Theophanie, having delivered her exposition, leaves. Tairn wakes up to insult Violet, letting her know he's alive.
“You have a second signet, don’t you?” And like Xaden, he hid the strongest one.
“So do you.” He hands back my daggers and sways. “Or at least you will.”
“Thank you.” I hold his gaze while sheathing the blades and wade through the significance of what he’s concealing. “You know the last time someone wielded distance—”
So Garrick fast-travelled to Violet because he wields 'distance' whatever the fuck that means. One of the problems of this book is that Yarros meanders between a very modern style and a generic fantasy one, which makes the world feel fake and also makes her fantasy terms sound silly. You've already used the phrase 'for the win', just fucking say he teleports or whatever.
I will now show you this nonsense:
“Did you know?” I ask Tairn.
“We do not gossip about our riders.”
I guess this makes sense, but like. If Jack's dragon had done a bit of gossiping she might still be alive.
Scene change. Tairn flies Violet home, landing in the quadrant itself instead of the flight field so she has to walk a shorter distance. Violet complaints about this and then about them telling Brennan she was coming so she could be healed. Our super-smart protag, y'all. You could argue that this pigheaded pride is one of Violet's character flaws, but it only ever comes up when she's being Brave and Strong and never actually has consequences, so I think Yarros thinks this idiocy makes Violet looks like a badass. It doesn't. She's been disabled presumably her whole life, there's like two menders in the whole of Navarre, if she were smart she'd have asked Brennan to show up with a stretcher or a wheelchair.
Xaden is also there, and he's really mad. Then the rest of the squad plus Maren's rescued family piles in. Brennan mends Violet while Aetos shows up to berate them all and to make more threats.
“I doubt Sgaeyl would agree,” Xaden warns in a tone that reminds me just how little guilt he feels when it comes to killing enemies who get in his way.
“Your dragon is always welcome in the Vale. You’re simply not welcome in the quadrant.” Aetos’s focus snaps to Garrick. “You and Lieutenant Riorson will depart by tomorrow afternoon for the Eastern Wing as ordered.”
I've already complained ad nauseam about how this makes no sense and how Aetos has no leverage here, but whatever. Once he's gone, the still super-broody Xaden orders everyone out, and the chapter ends with them making out. Yay.
Okay, hot take: we don't even need Aetos. There's plenty of actual political tension to mine for conflict at this point in the book that's much more interesting. For example, we learn in this chapter that King Tauri closed the borders as part of the peace treaty. Xaden solves this by simply making Maren's family Tyrrish citizens, but what if he couldn't just do that? What if saving all those villagers meant breaking the treaty? Then our heroes would have to make an actual choice about whether to risk a war between the nations to save a relatively small number of people.
As always, Yarros eschews the path of nuance in favor of cartoonishly evil villains so that our heroes never have to be wrong.
