Your favorite literary chaos agents Abby and Ronnie are back with part one of their mind-blowing deep dive into the ending of Onyx Storm! We're kicking things off with a return to our Diet Coke discourse (and bubbly drinks in general) before diving head-first into what happens to our favorite shadow-daddy on top of that hidden sun-soaked canyon. 

We start by tackling the burning question that's keeping us all up at night: who is the brother that turned Venin? We bring receipts analyzing every possible candidate - from Bodhi (on his hands and knees "retching" in the town square... or channeling?), to Garrick (mysteriously missing at the end), to Aaric (who would be the last person Xaden would expect to turn). The evidence points to someone who felt they "weren't enough" during the battle, and we're ready to name names!

We explore the mysterious line about "the one who thinks himself my brother" - is it a person or could it be something else entirely? And what about Berwyn's cryptic comment "I have another" when Panchek claims to be the only one who can give him access to his son? 

Our investigation gets wild when we discuss which initiate wants to kill their sage (besides Xaden). Could Naolin still be alive? Has he been Venin this whole time? And what does Berwyn have that Xaden needs so desperately? We theorize it might be knowledge about dreamwalking that could be crucial to whatever plan Xaden has set in motion.

We round it all out by analyzing why Xaden tells Sgaeyl "it is the only way" - what happened that made this path the only viable option? And what's the real purpose behind those Rhi and Imogen POV chapters? (Hint: it might have something to do with those missing 12 hours we'll discuss next episode!)

In our wildest Precog Corner yet, Abby theorizes about Bodhi's name meaning "awakening" or "enlightenment" in Buddhism and what that could mean if he's Venin offspring destined to evolve, while Ronnie explores the fascinating possibility that Venin can sense pain even when there’s no magic!

Spoilers for the entire Empyrean Series (Fourth Wing, Iron Flame, and Onyx Storm)

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00:00 - 5:54: Sparkling Water, Avril Lavigne, no skips albums

5:55 - 11:29: Intro + Opening Thoughts

11:30 - 23:43: Corrections, Omissions, Social Media - Gifts, Irids, and Venin; Were Aaric and Andarna working together, Mairi family + Maorsite

23:43 - 29:01: How we felt about the ending of Onyx Storm

29:02 - 49:16: Recap of the ending (through Xaden’s POV)

49:17 - 1:05:57: Who is the brother?

1:05:58 - 01:11:10: Who is the one who thinks himself the brother?

01:11:11 - 1:14:50 : Who is Berwyn’s son? (Probably not Jack!)

1:14:51 - 1:21:14 Who is the other initiate who wants to kill their sage?

1:21:15 - 1:26:32: What does Berwyn have that Xaden needs?

1:26:33 - 1:28:33 Why this ending was “The Only Way”

1:28:34 - 1:35:42: The purpose of Rhi and Imogen’s POV Chapters and why doesn’t Rhi know about dragon’s farsight

1:35:43 - 1:43:58: Pre-cog corner - Is Bodhi the key to the end of this series? Do Venin have abilities even when there's no magic?