penwalla | Onyx Storm: Chapter 12

You might be angry when you realize I didn’t wake you to say goodbye. But it’s only because I no longer fully trust my ability to walk away.

—Recovered Correspondence of His Grace, Lieutenant Xaden Riorson, Sixteenth Duke of Tyrrendor, to Cadet Violet Sorrengail

STOP SPOILING YOUR OWN BOOK IN THE OPENING QUOTES.

After a page or so of kissing, Violet and Xaden finally make conversation. Xaden was really upset when he found out VIolet was in danger, moreso than usual, thanks to him being venin-pilled now.

Oh, we do get this tidbit:

“Garrick’s a distance wielder, isn’t he?” I don’t bother hinting around the question.

A moment of silence passes between us, but I see the confirmation in his eyes. “Are you pissed I didn’t tell you?”

I shake my head. “You don’t owe me your friends’ secrets.” My brow knits. “But twenty hours of flying gave me some time to think. You. Garrick.” I tilt my head. “And I once thought I saw Liam…”

This is both character development from Violet and actually interesting worldbuilding. And it makes sense.

Violet tells Xaden that the dark wielders have signets like they do, and then we go to the next scene.

Hmm. So I think the set up here is that Xaden doesn't trust himself and is going to leave Violet for her own good. It's been telegraphed pretty hard, and I buy that Violet wouldn't see it coming, because she's so caught up in trying to fix him. Also because she's quite stupid.

Next scene. Classes have restarted! Except history. Imogen brings Violet a letter from Garrick to Imogen, which is actually a letter from Xaden to her, but Aetos is reading Violet's mail.

Is the mail of the rebel kids not being routinely read? WHY?

Colonel Grady is trying and failing to assemble a squad to go in search of the secret irid dragon den. His dragon has already beefed with Andarna and Tairn, which again begs the question: why is he in charge? Yeah, the Navarre government wants control of the mission, but the reality is that if they piss off Violet and co. they probably can't succeed. They need Andarna. Again, Violet and co. have all the leverage here.

Violet finishes bitching about Grady with Imogen and arrives to interrogate Jack Barlowe. She offers to feed him enough power to keep him from imminent death in exchange for four questions. She also brings some powdered orange peel in case she needs to kill him. Jack is weakened severely by his time in captivity and because he's been tortured.

“Last question.” I push the alloy to the edge of its current stone. “How do you cure yourself once you channel from the source?”

“Cure?” He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “You talk like I’m diseased, when what I really am is free.” He wavers. “Well, free in part. We trade some of our autonomy in the exchange for unfettered access to power. Maybe you see it as a loss of our soul, but we aren’t burdened by conscience or weakened by emotional attachment. We advance based on our own capabilities, our own talents, and not at the whim of some creature. There’s no cure because magic does not negotiate, and we do not wish to be cured.”

So Jack's thesis is that the dragons are the bad guys for restricting human access to magic to those who bond with them. This could be interesting in another writer's hands, but Yarros loves cartoonishly evil guys so it won't be here.

Imogen wipes Jack's memories once they're done, and they step out to find Rhiannon, Ridoc, and Sawyer waiting for them. Chapter end.

It's been hinted in multiple chapters now that there's at least one highly ranked venin in Basgiath already, acting as a spy, so I am going to make a prediction.

I think Aetos is an obvious choice, because he's evil already. I think Nolon would be the interesting choice--it would explain why he healed Jack in the first place and would create some interesting juxtaposition between his healing ability and his secret evil status. Melgren is also an option, I guess.

We'll find out!