In-Depth Discussion: Empire of Storms (Part 2 - TOG 6 Theories and Prediction)

“Everything had gone to shit. Everything.”

This is an In-Depth Discussion post, so this one will be full of spoilers. If you haven’t read Empire of Storms yet, I suggest you read the non-spoiler review one in here. If you haven’t read the other Throne of Glass series yet, I will gladly try to convince you with my recommendation post about it here. If you only want to read about my pretty detailed opinion about Empire of Storms, you can read In-Depth Discussion Part 1, here.

Ah, my favorite part of disecting a book, writing all my theories and prediction. So, if you love Sarah J. Maas books, you must knew that Sarah is a queen of foreshadowing. In fact some events on Empire of Storms has been predicted way back since the first book, though I found a lot of EoS predictions in Heir of Fire. Now, I will discuss my theories on Throne of Glass #6 and the upcoming Chaol Westfall’s novella (which will be out on June 27th 2017! Mark your calendar!) This predictions and theories are based on foreshadowing that I’ve found on EoS and other previous books in this series.

Some of this predictions also come from EoS exclusive stories from Target special edition, Barnes and Nobles special edition and WH Smith special edition. If you haven’t read that yet, some awesome people on tumblr are kind enough to share the screenshot of these stories. You can read the Target and B&N exclusive stories here, and the WHS exclusive stories in here and here. Now, let’s proceed with all the theories and predictions. I have a lot of things to say, this is why it took me so long to write this post. Also, I will use a bunch of strong language here, bear with me, here we go.

[SPOILERS AHEAD, THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING]

I. Characters Who Will Make A “Comeback”

a. Yrene Towers

She’s going back, I’m pretty sure of that. She’s going to heal Chaol in his Novella, then join Chaol back to the North to help Aelin’s cause. What I suspected is, we know from EoS that Aelin has sent a bunch of letters to collect a lot of life debts. Yrene is one of so many people who owes Aelin, and I’m pretty sure Aelin sent her a letter to smoothen Chaol’s journey in the South. Also, I’m pretty sure Yrene will be the one who will heal Aelin after Rowan save him in the next book (ROWAN WILL SAVE HIS MATE OKAY, THEY WILL MEET AGAIN.) Now, the other important thing, Yrene is also one of many people in this series that has ‘connection’ to the Gods of Erilea. Yrene might play a bigger role than healing Chaol, because there’s a high possibility that she is Silba’s scion.

b. Nox Owen

Nox is from Perranth, and I’m pretty sure he will come back. Some suspected that he’s Aedion’s previous lover though I doubt that. Some suspected that he’s Lysandra’s Skillful jewelry maker, and I think it’s more believable. I’m still not sure what his role is going to be in the next book, but I’m sure enough that Aelin send a letter to him as well. Nox owes Aelin a life debt too, since Aelin is the one who told him to run. Also, in one of the EoS book signing event (the one in the UK, I forgot which city though) Sarah mentioned that Nox has been busy as well, and he will make a come back.

c. Emrys, Luca and Malakai

I’m sure they will be back, but I’m not sure where they will showed up. There are two possibilities:

1) The three of them and some of Mistward’s soldier followed Galan Ashryver and then Aelin’s court to Terrasen.

2) The three of them, and some of Mistward’s soldiers and demi-fae will retaliate and help break free Aelin from Maeve. I like the last one better, which is also why I think the next person in this list will come back.

d. Lady Essar (from EoS Target Exclusive short story)

We learned from Eos Target’s exclusive short story that Essar somewhat disapprove of Maeve’s way. She even said that all the fae that took Maeve’s blood oath is basically “willing slaves.” I’m pretty sure she will play a role to free Aelin. Not to mention, she has fire power as well, and she basically ship Rowaelin. Though if Essar did somehow help Aelin, she will meet Lorcan again, and Elide is probably will be there too. Now, that’s a scene I want to see.

e. Dia and other slaves that Celaena/Aelin saved in The Assassin’s Blade

Some of you might wonder, “Who the fuck is Dia?” Well Dia is one of the slaves that Aelin and Sam saved in The Assassin’s Blade. He’s the one who translated Aelin’s words to the other slaves so they can escape. Why I think Dia will come back?

1) I believe Sarah won’t give a name to a character if they won’t play bigger role later.

2) Dia had mentioned that his father is a merchant from Banjali, the capital city of Eyllwe, and Aelin’s description of him got me thinking that Dia is not a mere low born citizen of Eyllwe:

“He’d probably never worked a day in his life. How had he gotten caught up in this mess?”

Not to mention he’s fluent in both Eyllwe and common tongue, no lowborn citizen will have a privilege like that, which leads me to...

3) Dia might knew Nehemia, and that’s the reason why he was captured and turned into a slave. In IDD Part 1, I have mentioned that there’s a high possibility that Nehemia somehow created another ‘safety net’ to supports Aelin’s cause even after she was gone. Dia might be one of those people who Nehemia had asked for help before she went to Adarlan.

As for other slaves, I suspect that the mountain men and women will be back and perhaps help Aelin’s cause. CMIIW, but the mountain people were described as fierce warriors and shamans (though I can’t remember in which books and I forgot to take a note of this, sorry!) Because of that, I think both Aelin and Erawan sides will try to persuade them to join one of their cause. I think the slaves that remember and then notice Aelin will took her cause, unless Erawan move faster than Aelin’s court to ask for their support.

f. Gavin Havilliard

Gavin will ‘comeback’, not from the death, but maybe in some sort of spirit form, or just in a memory flashback. I believe that Gavin knew what really happened because he did not tell Elena that he’d sensed Elena lies and what he had unraveled when he touched Damaris. I also believe that, unlike Elena the royal idiot his wife, Gavin is smart enough to think of some plan that will make sure that his descendant win the war without the need to sacrifice themselves. Gavin has his own plan, that’s why he left his confession in the God of Truth temple in Queen of Shadows. This also means that Gavin might be the God of Truth’s scion in the past.

I also have this theory that maybe Gavin has ‘tied’ himself with Damaris. I’m pretty sure that Gavin has no magic in his blood, the magic that Dorian inherited comes from Mala and Elena. But, he manages to showed up and woke Dorian in Crown of Midnight. Which brings me to the possibility of Gavin made a secret plan with Brannon. Now, we know that Brannon is the one who left Damaris in Elena and Gavin tombs. Gavin and Elena might not talk about what happened in Morath, but what if after that Gavin secretly asked for Brannon help? What if Gavin and Brannon have their own secret plan behind Elena’s back? BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT THEIR BELOVED ELENA IS AN IDIOT. Gavin maybe asked Brannon to somehow tied his soul/memory/some sort of consciousness into Damaris. And that leads me to another theory about Damaris.

We know that Dorian can sense the lie of Erawan’s Bloodhound. He said ‘his magic’ can sensed it, BUT what if it’s not his magic? By that time, Aelin has given Damaris to Dorian. What if Dorian did not sensed the lie with his magic, but actually with Damaris, he just didn’t notice the difference. But, this created another question, why Damaris power of truth didn’t work for Aelin? I think there’s a chance that Damaris’ power is could only be activated through Gavin’s bloodline, and that’s why it works with Dorian but not with Aelin. Also, if Gavin really is the God of Truth’s scion, maybe there’s a possibility that Dorian could also be his scion. My other theory is Gavin left Damaris so his descendant could use it to find the truth about the Gods. Let’s remember that the Gods are pretty much unreliable and full of shits. What if Gavin sensed the Gods’ lies through Damaris in Morath, and so he asked Brannon to left the Sword of Truth in his tomb, so that his descendant can use it against Erawan and maybe some of the Gods.

h. Mab and Mora and also Evalin Ashryver Galathynius

Well, the only reason I’m sure that they will ‘come back’ like Gavin is because Sarah pinned some pictures on her pinterest as them. Before EoS, Sarah posted a lot of things about Lorcan, and some pictures of Ansel and the Silent Assassins, and guess who come back? All of them. I’m pretty sure that Mab and Mora will come back to help reveal who Maeve really is (which I will elaborate about it later on.) As for Evalin, I believe she will ‘come back’ to save her daughter’s life (which I will also elaborate later.)

i. Mort the Door Knocker

So we know that Brannon was the one who created Mort. But, what if Brannon also made Mort not only to guard and watchover Elena’s tomb but also to contain another clue about the wyrdkeys? Also, to be honest, I just want Mort to make a comeback so he can trash talk about Elena. I’m still salty when it comes to Elena, sorry not sorry.

j. The Stygian Spider

I believe that somehow the Stygian Spider will come back in the next book. Don’t forget that it can use the shapeshifter ability now, and it had seen Manon’s face. One of the scenario that I imagine is the spider works for Erawan now and it will shapeshift as Manon.

II. New Characters/Character Who Were Only Mentioned Before Will Show Up and Play Bigger Role in ToG 6

a. Vaughan and Connall

Vaughan will be back and play a bigger role than before. I will explain about him later on. As for Conall, Fenrys’ twin, I have a pretty bad feeling about him. I have a hunch, that Connall will not be on Aelin’s side.  After all, he accepted Maeve’s offer because Fenrys rejected her first. It is also implied in EoS that Connall doesn’t have the same kind of popularity like Fenrys did, even though they are twins. So, I have a pretty bad feelings about him. I really hope I was wrong in this one, because Fenrys will be so heart-broken if this happen. Ah, my poor son.

b. The Ytgers, Royal Family of Eyllwe

Like Mab, Mora, and Evalin, Sarah has pinned one picture of a young man titled ‘Kharis Ytger’ which I believe is Nehemia’s younger brother. I know that somehow we will meet Eyllwe Royal Family since the King and Queen had mentioned in Heir of Fire still wearing mourning clothes. I’m pretty sure they will play a big role in Chaol’s novella. And I’m actually excited to see Chaol meeting the Ytgers because we know that Chaol still blame himself for Nehemia’s death. I suspect some of the Ytgers will also blame him, but I’m sure at least one of them knows what really happened. Also, don’t forget that Nehemia knew wyrdmarks even before she went to Adarlan. That means, they might still study wyrdmarks in Eyllwe, and the Ytgers might be the one who will play a big role to convey a plan to save Erilea without the Gods’ help. Also, this got me think on why this next people who will showed up in Chaol’s novella will also appear in ToG 6.

c. Khagans of the Southern Continent and his army from WH Smith exclusive short story

In WHS exclusive story it is explained that the Khagans are nomadic warlords who became conquerors. It is also said that the Khaganate had built several citiees throughout, key centers for trade and learning and invention. And that the magic in the Southern Continent wasn’t as rife as the magic in the Khaganate own land. Ellywe is the closest part of Erilea to the Southern Continent. There’s a possibility that the people of Ellywe learn about wyrdmarks from the Southern continent. The Khagan maybe hold more information about magic and keep it as a secret. Also, since they built cities of trade and learning and invention, they may have some sort of weapon to change the tides in the upcoming war, like firelances that was mentioned by Gavriel. If Chaol succeed playing his role as an ambassador, he could completely change the tide of this war.

d. That female demi-fae with raw magic that Luca mentioned in Heir of Fire

I have a theory that this female is not dead. Instead Maeve made this female one of her finest soldier/weapon. If this female is going to be in the next book. It could go many ways:

1) She will help Aelin to escape/kill Maeve

2) She will be one of the weapon to use against Aelin when Aelin try to escape/kill Maeve

3) In Heir of Fire, Maeve is accompanied by an owl. My theory is, that owl is this female's other form. Which leads to another theory that I will elaborate more later.

e. Phedre from the Barnes and Nobles exclusive short story.

If the last battle happened in Terrasen, there’s a chance that we will see Phedre again. She might help Aelin’s court or the civilians. I hate to see her in these circumstances though, she’s only nine years old. But then again, for a nine years old, she could use her water magic better than Aelin. Or she could appear in some kind of epilogue when all is well and Aelin reopened the magic school.

III. Erawan’s Army and the Reasons Why He Adarlan First

I bet we will see more creatures of the dark in the next book like the things that born from the witches. Just like Erawan’s Bloodhound said:

“Oh, what fun we’ll have now that I’ve found you Blackbeak. All of us.” 

- Empire of Storms (chapter 25, page 231)

Now, from EoS we learned that Erawan want to take Dorian so he can use him, and he also wants to shatter Aelin’s glass wall as a symbol. Now, do you ever wonder is there any other reasons why he wants to take Adarlan? Well, I have some theories:

1) In Crown of Midnight Aelin found a dungeon full of Wyrdhounds and other evil creatures under the Royal Library. It is possible that Erawan meant to take those creatures and expand his army.

2) He’s looking for a clue about one of the wyrdkeys. Kaltain has given Elide his only wyrdkey, now Erawan is probably looking for a clue about the final wyrdkey in Elena and Gavin’s tombs. Or maybe he’s looking for Mort because he know that Brannon was the one who made him.

 
IV. The Burning Rutting Gods of Erilea.

Okay, I will try to make a list of all the Gods of Erilea with their possible Scions and basic information first so we won’t lost track and get confused later (though I doubt that, there are so many of them):

1) Mala Fire-Bringer, “Lady of Light, Learning and Fire”, Goddess of the Sun. The ultimate shipper of Rowaelin. Scion: Aelin Ashryver Galathynius, descendants: Aelin, Dorian Havilliard, Elena Galathynius Havilliard. At one point she becomes a mortal so she can be with Brannon, but then sacrificed herself to make the Lock.

2) Deanna, “the Huntress and Protector of the Young”, Goddess of Hunting, Maidenhood, and the Moon. Scion: also Aelin, though it’s more like ‘Celaena’ rather than ‘Aelin’. Deanna is the original sister and rival of Mala. In Heir of Fire, Mab, Aelin’s great grandmother and one of Maeve’s sister was ‘immortalized’ into a Goddess and her image has been combined with Deanna.

3) Anneith, “Lady of Wise Things”, The Clever Goddess and of Slow Death. Scion:  Elide Lochan. Anneith is also Hellas consort.

4) Hellas, the Dark God, God of Death, Ruler of the Underworld. Scion: Lorcan Salvaterre. Husband of Anneith.

5) Temis Goddess of Wild Things, “who never forgot the caged things of the world.” Scion: Lady Lysandra of Caraverre.

6) Silba, Goddess of Healers, Gentle Deaths, and the Bringer of Peace. Scion: Yrene Towers.

7) Farnor, God of War. Scion: Duke Perrington/Erawan. In Throne of Glass, during Yulemas Procession, the child representing Farnor gives his symbol, a silver sword, to Perrington/Erawan. Though before that the child is hesitates in front of Dorian.

8) Unnamed God of Storms, Sea, sky and oath. Scion: Captain Rolfe (this is arguable though.)

9) Unnamed God of Truth, “more like a Sin-Eater”, Scion: Gavin Havilliard, and Dorian Havilliard (this is also arguable.)

10) The Great Goddess, Mother Goddess.Mother of all Gods and Goddesses of Erilea.

11) Lumas Lord of the God, God of love, and the first born of The Great Goddess. It is stated in Throne of Glass that when he was born love was brought into Erilea, banishing the chaos that arose from the Gates of Wyrd.

12) Lani Goddess of Dreams

13) Kiva God of Atonement

14) The Triple Goddess, “Maiden, Mother, Crone.” Worshiped by Witches. The Bluebloods Clan are her priestesses. The Eye of Elena was actually her symbol.

Honestly these deities of Erilea really confused me, because of these reasons:

1) There are so many of them.

2) I’m not sure which one is worshiped in where, and which one is not worshiped in where.

3) Their connections with each other.

4) I keep associating them with Deities from other mythology, and I’m pretty sure Sarah didn’t use only one mytholgy when she created them, and thinking about its connection to the story is making my head hurts.

In Throne of Glass, It was mentioned that The Great Goddess is the ruler of all the Gods in Erilea. Also, there are 9 Gods that people worshiped under Adarlan’s Empire. Though it was never confirmed if The Great Goddess rule 9 other Gods or she’s actually one of them. But, Deanna, Lumas, and Farnor was confirmed to be one of those nine Gods/Goddesses. In Heir of Fire and Queen of Shadows, Mala was also confirmed to be one of the nine.

Outside the Empire, the witches worshipped the Triple Goddess, and it seems like people under Adarlan’s Empire didn’t know about her. Because neither Aelin nor Dorian noticed the Eye of Elena as the Goddess’ symbol. As for the rest, their status was never confirmed.

In Empire of Storms, when Elena and Gavin use the lock, the Gods showed up. But, I noticed not all of Gods are there. There are only 6 of them there, Mala, Deanna, Temis, Anneith, Hellas, and the Triple Goddess. Which is pretty weird. Because we know that The Tripple Goddess isn’t one of the main 9 Gods/Goddesses, and yet there she was. Also, two other Gods who are confirmed to be part of the main 9 Gods/Goddesses were not there, Lumas and Farnor. The Great Goddess was not there either. All these informations about Deities of Erilea sparked some questions and speculations:

1) In Throne of Glass, Aelin had a theory that Mother Goddess came from another realm behind the Wyrdgate. We know that this is confirmed for at least 6 Gods/Goddesses that confronted Elena in Morath. As for the 6 Gods/Goddessess they’re clearly coming from another realm and wants to go home.

“Not just gods, but beings of a higher, different existence. For whom time was fluid, and bodies were things to be shifted and molded. Who could exist in multiple places, spread themselves wide like nets being thrown. They were as mighty and vast and eternal as a human was to a mayfly. They had not been born in this world. Perhaps had become trapped here after wandering through a Wyrdgate. And they had struck some bargain with her father, with Mala, to at least send them home, banishing Erawan with them. And she had ruined it.” - Elena PoV (Chapter 65 page 602)

But, what about the others? We learned in Throne of Glass that Lumas is the firstborn of The Great Goddess/Mother Goddess, which means that she has more than one child. And that means Lumas and her other children were born in Erilea. This could be the reason why the rest of the Gods/Goddesses were not there to confronted Elena because they don’t want/need to go to another realm, because they were born in Erilea.

2) But why? Why do they want to go home? They have spent a long time in Erilea, they seems to enjoy themselves being worshipped. So why the change of heart? There’s a possibility that the Gods want to leave because they have problems with human and other beings in Erilea, some parts of Eos that supported this:

“Even now,” she pushed, “our magic is failing, our gods abandoning us. Running from us. We have no fae allies beyond those in my father’s army. And their power, like his, is fading.” – Elena (Nightfall, page 6)

“Unleash him. So we have been betrayed by these earth beasts, let us return the favor. Unleash the Dark King from his coffin.” - Anneith (chapter 65, page 602)

(side note: Anneith is hella petty. Though this part reminds me a lot of Elide when she ‘burned’ Lorcan after Aelin is taken.)

3) The Gods promised to take Erawan with them and they will tear him apart in their world. But, why not just do it here? Why in their world? Also what if they came from the same world as the Valgs?

4) Now we know that Perrington is Erawan why does Farnor gives the silver sword to Perrington?

5) Are there some kind of hierarchy between the Gods? Because I noticed that when Deanna posessed Aelin’s body, Temis who is always watch Lysandra went to hide. Why did she hide? Also, what a rutting coward, you’re a Goddess, it shouldn’t affected you anyway, why did you hide, Temis???

6) In chapter 38, Aelin said that she felt like Deanna has been waiting for her. And that Deanna enjoyed every second she possessed Aelin. What is Deanna’s real intention towards Aelin?

7) If the Gods are going back to their home, what will happened to their scions? Will they lose their given power? Or is it possible for the scions to replaced them an be some sort of God like Mab with Deanna?

Ugh, I need to stop talking about them. My head hurts so bad thinking about these rutting deities. For all I care they could all go to hell.

IV. Maeve’s REAL Identity

We know that there are more to Maeve than meets the eye. Even after what happened in Empire of Storms, I feel like she still has something that she hide. As a mythology enthusiast I can’t hep but noticed that Sarah referenced some parts of her story using the Triple Deity. In many mythology the Triple Deity are three separate beings/deities that may represents either triad who always appear as a group (i.e: the Norns form Norse, Moirai from Greek, the Morrigan from Irish), or a single deity who has three aspects in one body (i.e: Hecate from Greek). Like the Triple Goddess who is worshiped by the witches in this series, Triple Deity in mythology resembled the three life cycle of women: Maiden, Mother, Crone. Maiden represented beauty and innocence, Mother represented vitality and birth, and Crone represented great wisdom and often closely related to death.

I believe Sarah did not only use three women in the witches culture, but she also put it in Maeve’s background story as well. There were three sisters who rule all of the fae. In chapter 33 when Emrys told a story about Maeve, he described those three fae queens and sisters:

“Cunning Mora, who bore the shape of a great hawk. Fair Mab, who bore the shape of a swan. And the dark Maeve, whose wildness could not be contained by any single form.”

I can’t help but notice that Mab is the Maiden because of her beauty, Mora is the Crone because of her cunningness which I associated with Wisdom aspect of Crone. But what bugged me is I can’t really pinpoint Maeve as the Mother. Granted, we can use the ‘wildness’ of her as the vitality aspect of Mother, but it doesn’t fit well. Which leads me to another theory. What if Maeve is not really a fae? What if she is another being trapped in a fae body just like Amren? But, if Maeve is another being, wasn’t Mab and Mora supposed to know about that? True, but we should also remember that Maeve can manipulate mind, she has manipulated Rowan into thinking that Lyria is his mate. So I guess, she could also infiltrated Mab and Mora’s mind and become their sister. If that’s the case, I have two theories of who Maeve really is:

1) Maeve is a Valg Queen/Valg mother. I mean, darkness is her power, I also suspected that she was actually work together with Erawan but they have disagreement over something, and then went separate ways.

2) Maeve is one of the Goddess that came to Erilea but then somehow she is trapped in a fae body. She could be the Great Goddess or Mother Goddess herself, who knows?

All this theory is far-fetched, I know, but there is one event in Empire of Storms that made me more suspicious about this. When Maeve shows up and capture Elide, Anneith fled. Now, there are only two times I can remember a deity fled and leave their scions. First, when Hellas leave Lorcan in the Stone Marsh when Aelin is about to use her fire, and when Temis leave Lysandra when Deanna use moonfire. Now, why is Anneith leave Elide when Maeve arrived? What is Maeve other form? Who is she? This is also why I believe Mab and Mora will ‘come back’ and revealed to Aelin and the others who Maeve really is, and why both of them ‘leave’ her.

V. Witches Business

a. Alliances

Manon and her Thirteen and also Dorian is now looking fro the Crochans, they might find them and make an alliance. I’m pretty sure that they could also make an alliance with the Bluebloods. Looking back to Heir of Fire also the events in Empire of Storms the Bluebloods’ Matron and her heir, Petrah didn’t really follow the ‘brutality and obedience’ teaching. They might found Manon as their savior of the Witch Kingdom, and their key to go home. I saw Bluebloods as the smartest clan and they must know that they will never be truly free from Erawan’s clutch even if they win the war. Also, Bluebloods are priestess of the Triple Goddess and some of them might have the ability to foresee the future and saw that Manon is the one who will bring them back home.

b. Elide Lochan Bloodline

I believe we will know more about Elide’s witch bloodline. We also don’t know for sure if the witch blood in Elide is from an Ironteeth or Crochan. I guess when the alliances are formed, there’s going to be one witch who recognize Elide as Marion’s daughter.

c. Manon’s connection to the Valg King

In Queen of Shadows the Valg Prince that posessed Dorian keep on saying how Manon’s eyes are the eyes of the Valg King. Manon also immune to the dark power of the valg. And unlike other witches’ eyes, Manon eyes are not black speckled with gold, but rather pure gold. This sparks a question about Manon heritage more. She might be the descendant of a valg king and a fae. It could be Erawan, but a long time ago there were other valg kings who come to Erilea too before they were banished. We might know more about this in the next book.

d. The Yielding

““It’s called the Yielding,” she said, a chill brushing down her spine. “The bit of magic we have. We usually cannot summon or wield, but for one moment in a witch’s life, she can summon great power to unleash upon her enemies. The cost is that she is incenerated in the blast, her body yielded to the Darkness. In the witch wars, witches on both sides made Yieldings during every battle and skirmish.”

“As the Ironteeth witch yields life to the Darkness, its power fills her, and unleashes from her in an ebony wave. A manifestation of what lies in our souls.””

- Empire of Storms Chapter 44, page 424 -425.

Sarah won’t even mentioned about it if she won’t use this somewhere in the series. Granted, Erawan’s Ironteeth legions might be the one who use this, but there’s a chance that the witches in Manon’s side might use it too. Some candidate for this are:

1) Asterin Blackbeak

Asterin love for Manon will be the one that pushed her to use the Yielding. I imagine it will has something to do with the Blackbeak matron as well.

2) Elide Lochan

We know that Elide has witch blood in her, but we never saw her power. Elide has power, that was confirmed when the wyrdkey from Kaltain is ‘calling’ her. There’s a line somewhere that the wyrdkeys will only call people with power inside them, that’s why it worked in Kaltain and Aelin’s hands but it did nothing when Arobynn had it. I believe Elide has some sort of magic in her, and her magic is like that of the witches. She cannot wield and summon it freely, but she might use it for the Yielding.

3) Manon Blackbeak

There’s a lot of nods regarding Manon and the Yielding. In EoS there are a lot of parts when Manon has ‘yielded’. She yields to her heart and soul, she yields to her feelings, she ‘yields’ to Dorian in bed, she yielded and accepted her fate as a queen. So it could be a foreshadowing. Though I find it hard to believe that Manon would be the one to use it. But then again, before Empire of Storms I never thought I would ever shed a tear for Manon, so who knows?

VI. Aelin’s Fate under that whore of she-devil Maeve’s hands

I really don’t want to write this part, it’s making me sad, and it’s heart breaking, but I feel like I have to so I can move on. I will keep this part short, because if I write this in detail, I will cry for days, again. And I already cried too much, so here we go:

1) Maeve will use Aelin to get the last wyrdkey.

2) Maeve will torture Aelin for the information regarding the two wordkeys which is now in Dorian’s hands.

3) Maeve will torture her by continue to whipped and locked Aelin in the iron coffin.

4) Maeve will torture her with mind tricks, because that is her forte.

5) Maeve will torture her by killing one of her friends from Mistward, or Fenrys.

6) Aelin has suffered almost all kind of torture, except one: Sexual. It’s possible that Cairn will rape Aelin. Or that Maeve will order a bunch of other people to rape her. Or even worse, she will order Fenrys through the blood oath to rape her. OKAY NOW I’M CRYING, I HATE YOU BRAINS. Using rape as a plot device is the worst kind of thing a writer could do. NOPE. DON’T YOU EVEN DARE, SARAH JANET MASS!

7) Rowan and Aelin had consummate their marriage, and Aelin could be pregnant. If Aelin is indeed pregnant, Maeve will either kills or takes her baby. Kill, if she wants to broke Aelin and Rowan again. Take, if she wants to control Aelin and Rowan and use their child to rule the world.

8) I can imagine Aelin keep reminding herself who she is, like when she was in Endovier, but now she will add her beloved names too: “My name is Aelin Ashryver Galathynius. Rowan Whitethorn is my mate. Aedion Ashryver is my cousin. Lysandra is my most trusted friend. Terrasen is my country. And I will not be afraid.” If you listen carefully, you could listen the sound of my heart, breaking.

VII. How They Will Save Aelin

I believe Rowan will get some people to help him save Aelin. As for who those people are, I’m pretty sure that we will meet Lady Essar from Target exclusive short story, Emrys, Luca and Malakai could play a role here too, though I think they could be Maeve’s leverage against Aelin too. As for other people who will help Rowan, I have some theories:

a. Based on foreshadowing in The Assassin’s Blade

We know that Sarah is the queen of foreshadowing. In The Assassin's Blade, Celaena/Aelin watch an opera, and the story of said opera could be a foreshadowing:

"The dancing was breathtaking, yes, and the story it told was certainly lovely—a legend of a prince seeking to rescue his bride and the cunning bird he captured to help him to do it"

Sounds familiar? My guess is Rowan will capture someone and ask/forced them to help him save Aelin. My first guess of 'cunning bird' is Vaughan, another member of the Cadre that I have mentioned before. It was said in HoF that his other form is an osprey. But if my theory about the female demi-fae with raw magic who I also mentioned before being Maeve's owl is true, then the cunning bird could also be her.

b. Based on foreshadowing in Empire of Storms

First foreshadowing is in chapter 38, Rowan told Aelin that if he could, he would hunt Deanna down and pay her back for what she did to Aelin. Now, we know Deanna is there somewhere watching them too, what if Rowan really going to hunt her and ask her to save Aelin. I mean, without Aelin the Gods will lost their chance to go home too. Though I supposed they can use Dorian too, and Dorian had his magic in the form of fire as well. But, I have a hunch, the Gods prefer Aelin than Dorian to make the lock. Though it won’t be easy, as Elena said herself:

“That you managed to shove her (Deanna) out before she was ready... She will not soon forget that insult, Majesty.” - Empire of Storms (Chapter 39, page 363)

The second foreshadowing, is in chapter 44 page 422 when Rowan told Aelin:

“I love you, I’d walk into the burning heart of hell itself to find you.”

 This line leads me to another clue Sarah gave us in chapter 68, page 623:

“The final key... he (Brannon) went to Mala’s temple. It was where he had wanted to end this all along anyway. The molten fire around the temple was a song in his blood, a beckoning. A welcoming. Only those with his gifts—her gifts—could get there.”

“And then he (Brannon) walked into that molten river, into the burning heart of his beloved.”

                                                                                   

I believe the third wyrdkey is still on this island, and Maeve will took Aelin there to retrieve the key. Rowan will know about this somehow, and he will walk into the burning heart of this island himself, to save Aelin.

I also believe Aelin will use wyrdmarks to escape. Iron might restrain fae’s magic. But Fae’s magic is not the only magic Aelin can use. Let’s not forget that Aelin had lock and unlock an Iron door in Crown of Midnight using wyrdmarks and her blood. Aelin also can make some sort of barrier with this wyrdmarks when she met Manon for the first time. Aelin is smart, she will always figure a way out, or at least a chance to buy a time to escape. Aelin will never stop fighting, at least not until she knew that the future of Terrasen and the people that she loves are safe. Not until she make sure that Erawan is dead/banished from Erilea.

VIII. Ways to Save Erilea and Aelin’s Fate in the End

The most obvious choice is to forge the lock. It could go many ways:

a) Aelin will forge the lock.

If Aelin forge the lock alone, there’s a high chance that she might die. But there are also chances that she might not die from it:

1) We knew that the lock must be forge with every ounce of Mala’s gift in her body. But, Mala’s gift is not the only gift Aelin owns. She still has Mab’s water gift. And this line from chapter 35 of Heir of Fire might be a foreshadowing too:

“My mother told me that the drop of water in my magic was my salvation—and sense of self-preservation.”

This is what I meant when I said Evalin Ashryver, her mother, might comeback to save her. She might come back in spirit form and lead Aelin to another tether inside her body, which is her water magic. After all, Aelin had heard her mother voice before in Heir of Fire. She might heard it again.

2) In Empire of Storms chapter 65 page 601, there is this line:

“The cost: her mother’s mortal body, the life she had wanted for herself with Brannon and their children.”

and in page 602:

“I will not remember you, Mala had said to them all before she had given herself to the Lock’s forging.”

The cost for The Lock isn’t necessary Mala’s life. Mala still alive but not as a mortal. This could mean a lot things:

First, Aelin might not die but instead lose one of her body. Either it’s her human body (mortal), or her fae body (immortal).

Second, Aelin might not die, but she might lose herself, her memories, and becomes another being.

Third, if she becomes another being, there’s also a chance that she will accidentally thrown to another world. If this happen, then Rowan will probably use the three wyrdkeys himself to retrieve her. Just like what he said in Queen of Shadows.

b) Aelin will forge the lock with Rowan’s help using the carranam bond.

If Aelin is going to be the one who forge the lock and has to give up her life, there is no chance in hell that Rowan will let her do it alone. He had lost his ‘mate’ once, he would not accept that Aelin sacrifice herself alone. He will go with Aelin to whatever end. If Aelin is going to die, Rowan will die with him. I’m sorry but if one of them is going to die, I’d rather see them die together as mates. TO WHATEVER END. If Aelin lives, Rowan lives. If Aelin dies, Rowan dies. That’s it. I won’t accept any other ways.

c) Aelin will forge the lock together with Dorian.

Aelin could also forge the lock with Dorian. We know that it was Mala’s gift that is required to forge the lock. But Dorian had shaped his magic into fire too, in Empire of Storms chapter 44, page 424:

“Dorian stood there, a candle in his—Not a candle. Pure flame wreathed his fingers.”

If both of them forge and use the lock, that could means that both of them will only use half of their power, and none of them will die.

d) Dorian will forge the lock.

Dorian could be the other one who forge the Lock and sacrifice himself in the process. Also there’s this lines in Empire of Storms Chapter 74 page 676:

“She reached into the pocket of her riding leathers and extended the Amulet of Orynth and a sliver of black stone to Dorian. He balked. “Elena said Mala’s bloodline can stop this. It runs in both your houses.” The golden eyes were weary—heavy. He realized what Manon was asking.”

It’s the most unlikely choice, but it still could happen. Though I doubt Aelin and Chaol would let him sacrifice his life. Dorian might try, but they won’t let him.

If we go with the Lock route, I have a feeling that the last battlefield is going to be Mala’s temple in the burning island. Three side will clash there, Maeve, Aelin, and Erawan. Also, there’s this line about Brannon plan and the island in Empire of Storms chapter 68, page 623:

“It (Mala’s temple) was where he had wanted to end this all along anyway.”

This could be a foreshadowing that Mala’s temple going to be the place where everything ended.

You know what? I actually don’t want to use the Lock at all. First of all, I don’t trust the Gods. I believe they have their own agenda, and except for Mala, I believe that they don’t give a shit about humans and will only help them if it will benefit them. Also, if the Gods really want to help them defeat Erawan, why don’t they just kill Erawan here, and then go back to their home world using the key? And remember, it was stated that Maeve managed to banished the other valg kings and armies in the first war, why don’t Aelin and the others just use the keys to banished them too without the God’s help? Why help the Gods? They’re all jerks, and cowards, and petty beings. Screw them all. I’m pretty sure they will find another way to kill Erawan without the Gods help.

IX. Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Stories...(Okay, Sarah is the one who will tell their stories, but I can’t help to use this song as the title)

a. Who would most likely live:

1) Fleetfoot.

Sarah already said in ACOMAF book event that Fleetfoot is the only character that she guaranteed will survive this series. She loves dogs too much. I’m grateful for this, animal’s death is one of the worst kind of characters death for me. I still want to cry whenever I remember Petrah Blueblood cried Keelie’s name.

2) Dorian.

Dorian will live, because this boy has been through a lot. Also, because if in the future Sarah want to develop more into the story of this series, Dorian’s arc is more expandable than some of the others. His story as a ruler just begin.

3) Chaol.

I hate to say this, but the main reason Chaol won’t die is because of Dorian. Dorian has been through a lot, and he may survive another heart break in the future but not from Chaol’s death. Also judging from his arc, it’s just doesn’t make sense to kill off Chaol now after all his character development, and if Sarah wants to kill him off, she’s done it in Queen of Shadows, instead Chaol survives and only paralyzed. Not to mention, Chaol will be one of the characters that the world needs after the war is over. He has the right kind of skill set, and I believe his journey in the South will make him a better man with less prejudice.

4) Aedion.

Aelin won’t lose another family member. I’m pretty sure of that, and there’s a chance that Aelin will die or live another life, so Terrasen need a person in charge. My son Aedion is the right person to handle that job. My son might be short tempered spiteful jerk, but his skill set in military and politics will help Terrasen rebuild itself.

5) Nesryn.

Nesryn won’t die. Chaol will need Nesryn just like Dorian need him. Sarah won’t kill her off. Also I believe Sarah won’t kill another POC characters after all those pre-EoS drama. I also believe that Nesryn will have a big character development in Chaol’s novella. We will learn more about Nesryn Faliq, and I can’t wait.

6) Aelin

I have already described Aelin’s fate so, yeah she might die. But I also strongly believe that Aelin will survive this series. After all, in Heir of Fire, chapter 55, there’s this lines:

“She had survived loss and pain and torture; she had survived slavery and hatred and despair; she would survive this, too. Because hers was not a story of darkness.”

I took that as your promise, Sarah J. Maas. Do not fail me.

7) Rowan

Rowan will die if Aelin dies. Like I said before, I will only accept if either both of them lives, or both of them dies. But then again, Rowan will never accept that, just like he said in the last chapter of Empire of Storms:

“He did not accept that. He would not accept that. And he would not accept that he had found her, and she had found him, and they had survived such sorrow and pain and despair together, only to be cleaved apart. He would not accept the fate that had been dealt to her, would not accept that her life was the asking price for saving this world.”

ROWAN WHITETHORN GALATHYNIUS WILL FIND A WAY SO THAT BOTH OF THEM SURVIVE. ROWAN WHITETHORN GALATHYNIUS WILL FIX IT ALL.

b. Who would most likely die:

1) Elide

If my theory of Elide’s power and the Yieldings are true, she could end up dead by using the Yieldings. Other than that, I don’t see any other way Elide could die, so she’s pretty much safe actually.

2) Lorcan

Lorcan will die from either trying to save his land, because his name means the savior of land (Salvaterre). Or he will die in the process of trying to make things right by saving Aelin.

3) Manon

If Manon turns out to be the one who will use the Yieldings, she could die. Also, if the valgs and all their creations are banished, that could means the witches will be banished too, but it’s highly unlikely.

4) Asterin

Asterin will die protecting Manon, or she would be the one who use the Yieldings. Either way, Asterin’s death might be the one thing that will unleashed Manon, though it’s kind of unlikely because she had survived her death sentence in EoS.

5) Lysandra

I WILL CRY FOR MONTHS IF LYSANDRA IS KILLED IN THE NEXT BOOK. But, it was hinted in EoS that there’s a chance Lysandra could die. Chapter 2, page 29 when Aedion talked about Lysandra’s ability:

“Even before magic had vanished, there had been one kind of feared above all others, its bearers pariahs at best, dead at worst.”

6) Gavriel

Gavriel’s death will be one of the blow for Aedion. Also, Gavriel is a man of honor, he’s the Prince Zuko of this series. What greatest honor there is than to die for the right queen, defending the right cause and save his son’s beloved cousin?

7) Fenrys

I imagine Fenrys will die trying to save Aelin. There’s a high possibility in there, also he might choose to end his life rather than kill or rape Aelin. But I don’t want him dead, my son deserves better. I want my son to survive and live a wild free life and become one of Aelin’s cadre if she survives. But yeah, there’s a chance that he could die.

8) Abraxos

Sarah might not kill Fleetfoot, but she might kill Abraxos. After all, she has killed Keelie. Also if Asterin survives, Abraxos death might be other way to triggered Manon. And if they decided to banished every valgs’ creation, they may banished the wyverns too, though it’s highly unlikely. I will also cry for months if Abraxos dies and I could never watch How to Train Your Dragon again, because Abraxos is basically Toothless.

Okay folks, that’s all my theories and predictions for ToG #6 and a bit of Chaol’s Novella. It’s just my guess, so it doesn’t mean that it will happen. After all, I don’t think anyone could really guess what happened in Sarah’s brilliant mind. She’s the queen of foreshadowing, but she’s also the queen of plot twists. I just don’t understand how will Sarah revealed all the unanswered mysteries in this series in just one book. I mean, at least Sarah planned to write 1000 pages for the next book, I can’t see how she could answer all these mysteries. I would love it if Sarah decided to write another book for Throne of Glass series. Be it novellas or spin-offs, I would love it. I just need more. I need more information, and I need more stories about them. I’m too attached to these characters, emotionally. And I’m not ready yet to say goodbye :(