Onyx Storm: Chapter 14
Mar. 4th, 2025 07:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penwallaThe chapter opens with Violet reeling from the revelation that Xaden is...dun dun dun...now her professor.
I would like to reiterate that this is a stupid conflict.
Violet goes to talk to Dain, to ask him to help her break into Aetos's quarters, because they are warded to only allow the bloodline of the commanding officer of Basgiath in. Aetos won't help her, so she needs the only other relative we know of: Dain. Before he can answer, Xaden shows up. He says Violet and he haven't broken up, Violet is like, the Codex, blah blah blah.
The rules in this world only matter when Yarros needs them to facilitate the plot.
Okay, at least Xaden is reasonable. But also, like, what is anyone going to do if he and Violet just discreetly keep fucking? As the book keeps reminding us, they're the most powerful riders ever.
Anyways, Xaden needs to be in Basgiath and not on the border, because he slipped up once already and doesn't think he can control himself. So that's why he's accepted this professor job. It seems like he could have just come back to train the other riders and not taken a position as professor? For that matter, politically, is it like good for the Duke of another country to also be a professor at Basgiath? Is Xaden even in the chain of command of the Navarre military anymore? Like, does the Codex apply?
This is more thought than anyone who wrote or edited this book put into it.
Aetos shows up and denies them the exemption, because he's evil. He even monologues his intentions for them clearly, even though not wanting your professors to fuck your students is *checks notes* completely reasonable.
Fortunately, Aetos's dickery convinces Dain to help Violet, and they set a date to conduct their little heist.
Scene change.
Violet is in a meeting with Grady and some other riders regarding this mission to find the seventh dragon den. Xaden shows up, having invited himself onto the mission. Violet is annoyed because clearly no one knows anything and she doesn't like the mission composition, but also, uh, Violet, do you know anything? You're the one bonded to the only known irid here. You're bitching that no one involved has consulted their dragons, but have we seen you try to consult the Empyrean at any point so far? No.
Whatever. Xaden and Violet tell each other how bad they wanna fuck via telepathy while Grady and co try to plan the mission. They have to report back to the command between expeditions, so they have to stay within easy flight reach of Navarre. Which is dumb. Violet thinks that they need to reach out to other neighboring nations for information. Navarre is isolationist, you see, and so there's been no contact with any nation other than Poromiel for a long time. She and Jesinia have been exploring old records trying to find out more.
Grady and co disagree with Violet's theory that they need to go south, and informs them that they'll be going north. Violet and Xaden then try to steal a moment alone, but can't because Aetos has riders watching them at any given moment so they can't violate the Codex.
Chapter end.
When this book started, I actually thought the political situation could prove promising. Boy, was I wrong.
I just...I don't understand how any of this works. If Xaden is the ruler of a province with a treaty with Navarre, he is not part of the Navarre military anymore, right? So none of the rules should even apply to him. For that matter, if all the rebel riders consider themselves Aretian now, shouldn't there be a separate military structure and command for them? The book seems to assume that all the rules from the last book still apply, even though there's been a huge shake up in the situation since them.
There were two perfectly good conflicts set up at the beginning of this book.
1. Xaden is a venin now.
2. The conflict with the venin has escalated to the point that Navarre's tactics of doing nothing have failed, and they now have to hold an alliance with the rebels and Poromiel to stave off the destruction of the continent.
Conflict 1 has been ongoing, but conflict two is just too thorny a mess for Yarros to know how to handle. So she doesn't handle it, and instead has added a bunch of smaller, dumber conflicts: Evil Aetos, this irid-finding mission, Professor Xaden. There's no question of whether Navarre is evil, they are straightforwardly the bad guys, and yet Yarros clings to all the stupid rules she built back in Fourth Wing when this book was a dragon riding school novel. The entire status quo built in Fourth Wing is fucking gone!
Whatever. See y'all next time.
I would like to reiterate that this is a stupid conflict.
Violet goes to talk to Dain, to ask him to help her break into Aetos's quarters, because they are warded to only allow the bloodline of the commanding officer of Basgiath in. Aetos won't help her, so she needs the only other relative we know of: Dain. Before he can answer, Xaden shows up. He says Violet and he haven't broken up, Violet is like, the Codex, blah blah blah.
The rules in this world only matter when Yarros needs them to facilitate the plot.
“We live by the Codex—” I try again.
“I live by you. When have I ever given a fuck about the Codex or the Code of Conduct?” He cradles my face and leans down, resting his forehead against mine. “I am yours and you are mine, and there’s no law or rule in this world or the next that will change that.”
My eyes slide shut, like that might stop my heart from falling even harder for this man. “So what do we do?”
“Kaori thinks we can get an exemption. I just have to ask Panchek here in a few minutes.” His thumbs graze my cheeks, and I slowly open my eyes, clinging to the hope that he might be right. That it could just be that easy.
Okay, at least Xaden is reasonable. But also, like, what is anyone going to do if he and Violet just discreetly keep fucking? As the book keeps reminding us, they're the most powerful riders ever.
Anyways, Xaden needs to be in Basgiath and not on the border, because he slipped up once already and doesn't think he can control himself. So that's why he's accepted this professor job. It seems like he could have just come back to train the other riders and not taken a position as professor? For that matter, politically, is it like good for the Duke of another country to also be a professor at Basgiath? Is Xaden even in the chain of command of the Navarre military anymore? Like, does the Codex apply?
This is more thought than anyone who wrote or edited this book put into it.
Aetos shows up and denies them the exemption, because he's evil. He even monologues his intentions for them clearly, even though not wanting your professors to fuck your students is *checks notes* completely reasonable.
Fortunately, Aetos's dickery convinces Dain to help Violet, and they set a date to conduct their little heist.
Scene change.
Violet is in a meeting with Grady and some other riders regarding this mission to find the seventh dragon den. Xaden shows up, having invited himself onto the mission. Violet is annoyed because clearly no one knows anything and she doesn't like the mission composition, but also, uh, Violet, do you know anything? You're the one bonded to the only known irid here. You're bitching that no one involved has consulted their dragons, but have we seen you try to consult the Empyrean at any point so far? No.
Whatever. Xaden and Violet tell each other how bad they wanna fuck via telepathy while Grady and co try to plan the mission. They have to report back to the command between expeditions, so they have to stay within easy flight reach of Navarre. Which is dumb. Violet thinks that they need to reach out to other neighboring nations for information. Navarre is isolationist, you see, and so there's been no contact with any nation other than Poromiel for a long time. She and Jesinia have been exploring old records trying to find out more.
Grady and co disagree with Violet's theory that they need to go south, and informs them that they'll be going north. Violet and Xaden then try to steal a moment alone, but can't because Aetos has riders watching them at any given moment so they can't violate the Codex.
Chapter end.
When this book started, I actually thought the political situation could prove promising. Boy, was I wrong.
I just...I don't understand how any of this works. If Xaden is the ruler of a province with a treaty with Navarre, he is not part of the Navarre military anymore, right? So none of the rules should even apply to him. For that matter, if all the rebel riders consider themselves Aretian now, shouldn't there be a separate military structure and command for them? The book seems to assume that all the rules from the last book still apply, even though there's been a huge shake up in the situation since them.
There were two perfectly good conflicts set up at the beginning of this book.
1. Xaden is a venin now.
2. The conflict with the venin has escalated to the point that Navarre's tactics of doing nothing have failed, and they now have to hold an alliance with the rebels and Poromiel to stave off the destruction of the continent.
Conflict 1 has been ongoing, but conflict two is just too thorny a mess for Yarros to know how to handle. So she doesn't handle it, and instead has added a bunch of smaller, dumber conflicts: Evil Aetos, this irid-finding mission, Professor Xaden. There's no question of whether Navarre is evil, they are straightforwardly the bad guys, and yet Yarros clings to all the stupid rules she built back in Fourth Wing when this book was a dragon riding school novel. The entire status quo built in Fourth Wing is fucking gone!
Whatever. See y'all next time.
