What Lies Ahead for the Empyrean Series
Rebecca Yarros's (author) "Onyx Storm", the third book (of the Empyrean series) has drawn in readers with a plot that is difficult to escape and an ending that offers more questions than solutions. Announcing the start of its week-long print sales on January 21, 2025, the novel attained a stunning achievement with sales of 2.7 million copies within its initial week-long run marking the first adult fiction book in two decades to sell that fast. In particular, the booker's conclusion has triggered very strong discussion and conjecture in readers attempting to break those mysteries and predict the fate of the show.
A Recap of 'Onyx Storm's' Climactic Events
The story peaks in the fierce fight in Draithus between protagonists Violet Sorrengail and Xaden Riorson and their powerful enemies. Violet is locked in combat with life weaver stakes with Theophanie, a stormven, a venin master, powered by magic that is all too similar to the former mother, General Lilith Sorrengail. In the meantime, Xaden is forced to confront the core inconsistency of viewing the abduction and mutilation of his own dragon, Sgaeyl. Desperate to shield his family, Xaden calls forth power from the earth and deeply embodies his venin alteration. By means of this act an enormous shadow wave, called the "onyx storm," is dispersed which kills foes but also ties them further in the dark.
Violet, exhausted after a victory over Theophanie, with Andarna's support, succumbs to exhaustion and falls unconscious. Twelve hours later, as she sits at the threshold of Riorson House in Aretia she drifts, disoriented and floundering, right at the cusp of the incredible revelation. A wedding ring adorns her finger, and official documents confirm her marriage to Xaden, now rendering her the Duchess of Tyrrendor. However, she is unable to recall anything leading to the time of writing as instructed Imogen to completely remove the memory covertly just to protect any potentially sensitive information from an attack by adversaries.
Deciphering the Marriage and Memory Erasure
Its consequent hasty union with Xaden has made Violet one of the many subjects of fan whispering. Xaden's cryptic note, "Don't look for me. Now it's yours," spoken alongside the severed connection between each of the dragons, Tairn and Sgaeyl, implies a deliberate decision to erase himself as a means of protecting Violet from the destruction his venom mutates inevitably conspire to bring. Memory erasure, if it ever works, when Imogen learns it seems to be a tactical action to avoid a recall of information from others particularly in the presence of memory readers (e.g., Dain) and Venin who are always there.
The Role of the Irid Dragons
One of the most significant advances in "Onyx Storm" is the emergence of the irid dragons, a hidden seventh dragon kind. As they are shown to Violet and her companions, these peaceful creatures offer a special insight into the magical cauldrons that bridge the gap between rider and dragon. Leothan, an irid dragon, tells Andarna of able of the kind, namely its ability to manipulate these links and in so doing to break the connection between Tairn and Sgaeyl. This scene, in turn, has repercussions not only on the couple Violet and Xaden but also on the nature of magic at a deeper, more complex level, from which the near future story would very likely and fruitfully depend.
Xaden's Transformation and Future Implications
Xaden, deep and encompassing functional immersion in his venin nature, to induce the erxes black windstorm is of cosmic size, with generalized consequences. As the one that reversed the war in favor of the Methodist Church, this act raises a number of, if not particularly helpful, critical issues surrounding its implications for the man's humanity and his potential for redemption. The absence of a clinical cure for the venin condition adds another layer of complexity to his character trajectory, so what sacrifices will need to be made and how that impacts his relationships with Violet, are questions that the reader is left to consider.
Anticipations for the Fourth Installment
The unanswered question of "Onyx Storm" is primed to launch the franchise into a highly anticipated fourth Empyrean saga release. Readers are intrigued by the plot developments concerning the loss of Violet's memories, and what seemed to be the true force of marriage between Violet and Xaden, and its consequence on the grid dragon doctrine as a whole. Rebecca Yarros (Author) has also hinted at additional chapters from the perspective of Xaden and indicated further investigation of Xaden's psychapinstres and background motives. Although Yarros claimed to take a brief respite to see to the health of her cast, she tells viewers that a new season is on its way with possible release dates ranging from 2026 and 2027.
"Onyx Storm" combines elements of action, romance and suspense and arrives at a plot resolution that challenges readers to consider solutions for its knotty puzzles. With theories seemingly every day and speculation even more so, the Empyrean series continues to intrigue its readers by delivering more intrigue, reveals, and emotion in its later parts.
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