Siavahda’s Comments (group member since Jan 10, 2022)

Siavahda’s comments from the The Tarot Sequence 2022 Readalong group.

@F @Meghan I think that's a pretty good argument that the button might have something to do with the Emperor - the whole corde du roi thing!

Although I'll laugh if it's not magical at all and just came from one of his suits or something!

There's the Q&A today

If we ask KD if Rune's dad is still alive and get a :) I will LOSE MY MIND

aza wrote: "Am I the only one who finished this mini and is now obsessed with the theory that Rune's dad isn't dead? I don't have the books on me but didn't they say that everyone was "destroyed beyond recognition"? Can someone confirm or deny this? Maybe Lord Sun was kidnapped or is hiding out somewhere"

I NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED THAT! You're not wrong, it was stated as early as Last Sun that the bodies were unrecognisable, they had to work out who had died by who didn't turn up for work the next day.

But Jesus, Rune's dad would have to either be a monster or have the most INCREDIBLE reason to abandon Rune like that. ...I suppose it's possible he was taken prisoner rather than killed? But I can't believe anyone could keep him contained for this long, he'd have escaped by now, surely.

THANKS AZA I ABSOLUTELY HATE THIS IDEA AND NOW IT WON'T GO AWAY

@Hannah I'm positive the Emperor was murdered, not 'killed in the war'. My going theory is that there's a conspiracy to disrupt the Arcanum, and that started with someone going after the Emperor and Empress - that the Empress ran not out of grief, but because she knew she'd be killed if she didn't.

Which very much fits with the idea that Lord Sun was looking into it - the Sun Court was supposedly a haven for creative types, which is a pretty good cover for...well, almost anything, what with having all these outrageous, unorthodox, loud people around, masking whatever you're doing quietly.

And yep, I'm firmly of the opinion that the prophecy is why Rune (and Brand) is still alive. My worst fear is that the whole raid happened to ensure Rune didn't grow up a spoiled, pampered scion, but to forge him into something very unusual (and special). I hope that's not it, because I can't imagine what the guilt of that would be like for Rune (even though of course it wouldn't be his fault!)

Hannah wrote: "@Moxi it's possible Mrs. Barrie was just saw people attacking the estate and wanted to protect Brand and Rune, but I can't help but think that maybe she knew more. What If Rune's dad was doing some..."

All of this. MAYBE Mrs. Barrie was just a wonderful person who wanted to protect the kids Just Because, but I'm leaning toward her being wonderful AND knowing Something Was Going On.

And I desperately want to know how the HELL they took down Lord Sun. I mean. There must have been Arcana or Principalities involved, probably multiple ones, because who else would have the power required to subdue and kill him and, as you say, prevent any sound/warning getting out?

Hannah wrote: "I feel like whatever is in that warded tower belong to Rune's dad is going to be important. Maybe in there is information on why the Sun Throne was attacked in the first place."

After some of the Q&A stuff - ie KD hinting that the Sun Throne was very much Up To Something (albeit not necessarily bad or wrong) I'm thinking this too. Maybe something tied into the prophecy - or what Rune's dad was thinking about/going to do re the prophecy (because surely it affected his long-term plans? He WAS Lord Tower's bestie, I'm sure that means he had plans within plans like Lord Tower does.)

Hannah wrote: "I want to know Ciaran's aspect and what he means by it being "too on the nose""

S A M E

Hannah wrote: "I wonder if we'll ever find out what was on the old Roman galleon in the dead docks with the power to send shivers up Rune's spine."

I'm extremely sure that we will. KD doesn't seem to put ANY details in that won't be relevant later. So far everything ever mentioned has had a purpose.

WHICH MAKES ME WORRIED ABOUT THE GALLEON.

I for one remain SO HAPPY that they freed the Ocean Roc 8D

This is the readalong discussion post for Scenes From the Holidays for Week 8! What are your thoughts? How do you feel? Is Addam too good for this world? DISCUSS!

This is the readalong/discussion thread for Scenes from Quarantine for Week 8! Share all your thoughts and Feels!

Chad wrote: "Siavahda wrote: "Moxi 🛼 wrote: "I wonder if the arcana are so reluctant to end a court’s rule because there are so few of them left, or perhaps because they have been around for centuries and the d..."

I'm pretty sure it's been said somewhere that he's called the Anchorite *because* hecwas bricked up for his crimes - whatever those were...

Also, this is where we see that Anna's not just powerful - 'breaking the glass' and even the golem are arguably natural ability + massive power.

But recreating the Companion Bond?! Just by looking at two example bonds?! That's unbelievable levels of intelligence, being able to see, comprehend, and recreate what she sees. That's a lot more than just a deep well of power.

(Intelligence probably isn't quite the right word, but I feel like you all probably get what I mean?)

I keep going over and over it, and I don't understand how Lord Hanged Man works as a character. He should be over-the-top evil - if you described him to someone who hasn't read the books, they'd probably roll their eyes because he's All The Evil.

And yet he does work. I found him completely believable, I never felt like he was fake or over-the-top. Kind of like how Addam feels believable to me, even though he's impossibly perfect.

How does KD do this?!

I LOVE Death's horses. They're so interesting - if you'd asked me what the special magic of Death's bloodline would be, I wouldn't have guessed 'horses that can go super fast anywhere they want'.

That they're white could be KD giving a tip of the hat to Death's White Horse in the Bible, or the fact that white horses have been seen as magical in a whole bunch of cultures throughout history.

Either way, they're ridiculously fabulous and I love them.

Moxi 🛼 wrote: "I wonder if the arcana are so reluctant to end a court’s rule because there are so few of them left, or perhaps because they have been around for centuries and the depth of knowledge and history is..."

Very possible. Personally I want to know what Lord Star did that merited bricking him up, because even Lord Hanged Man didn't get that treatment!

(But then, Lord Star's court has apparently not been destroyed...I really want to know how the Arcanum make these decisions!)

Hannah wrote: "Rune states he's hip deep in prophecies about his future. As of now, we only know of two and for one we don't know the details of. Are there more prophecies we don't know or is Rune just referencin..."

Probably random comments? I think they do technically count, even if most of them aren't Big Important Prophecies.

But we do also have Brand's comment, I think back in Last Sun, where he said something like 'Rune can't swing a cat without hitting a prophecy'. So it's possible other prophets, other than the one we know about when he was a baby, have made prophecies about him too, and we just haven't heard specifics yet.

Hannah wrote: "I want to know what the Hourglass Throne did that was so horrible that not only did they get destroyed, but time magic became so forbidden that you can't even mention it in passing."

Personally I find it VERY NOTABLE that both the Lovers and Hourglass were destroyed 'for crimes against humanity'. Not against Atlanteans! Humanity.

Kind of backs up Rune's whole point about headlines. Courts are apparently only punished with destruction when they harm humans.

Hannah wrote: "I wonder if part of what Anna can do is not just her power, but also the fact that she grew up how she did, with no real training in magic. It seems unlikely she grew up with sigils or learning abo..."

That's a good thought. Rune is as amazing as he is not just because of his power, but because of how he learned to use it, ie outside of the box and as economically and intelligently as possible. And Anna was in an even worse situation, with no sigils at all. But she's clearly immensely more powerful than her dad was (that hasn't been explicitly stated, but if her dad had been that strong either he'd have survived, or Corinne would have been on the lookout for that potential to show up in his kids, surely) so it's a bit more than that.

I suspect not being taught what isn't possible helped her immensely - she didn't know what was impossible, so she just...did it. You know?

But her Aspect manifesting this young - this much power, this young - that's got to be in huge part a genetic lottery. (If it's genes that determines magical power - there's a bit of evidence against that theory.)

It occurs to me that we don't know anything at all about her mother...

Hannah wrote: "Also, sometimes I feel like Addam should take over the Crusader Throne. He seems to understand the concept of Justice more than his mom."

THIS!

I hope we get to see more of Christian and that he turns out to be amazing, because otherwise I'm gonna be rooting for Addam to stage a coup.