Credit to @emmaannaelisabeth for the amazing character of Jordie, Kanej’s child <3
Perhaps if Nina hadn’t given him the tiny glass turtle he wouldn’t be so freezing cold, perhaps if she hadn’t told him so many times to “be careful” he wouldn’t be crying, his cheeks and nose red from the biting wind. Perhaps if he hadn’t loved it so much, perhaps if he hadn’t dropped it, he wouldn’t be lost, perhaps he’d still be at Christmas Eve dinner with his family.
But Nina had given him a tiny glass turtle, bought in Fjerda, it looked just like his pet turtle, Dirtles Turtles. She’d told him to be careful and he was, as best he could, but in the end he’d dropped it, the green glass shattering as it hit the floor. He hadn’t told anyone, no, he was too ashamed, the tears flowed freely and his feet carried him through the door, into a world of white, where it was so easy to be lost.
——
The only sign of anything wrong are the shards of green glass that lay on the wood floor. Kaz kneels down to pick them up, pushing through the pain in his leg. The only thing missing is his son. Jesper is beside him, he gives Kaz a knowing look and they put on their coats.
——
Jordie is running, to where? He isn’t sure; he hardly knows he’s running. Auntie Ninny told me not to break it, the only thought in his mind, how could I be so stupid?
The snow crunches below his feet, the cold nipping at his ears till his lungs need a rest. He looks around, the world unrecognizable with it’s coating of white. He fights the fear away, the gnawing truth, he’s lost. Even at nine years old he knows the city well enough, but so rarely did it snow. He wants his mama.
The cold is too cold, he’s too tired, the little space between two buildings looks too welcoming, he’ll sleep and wait for his mama and papa to find him. He slips into the darkness of sleep with ease, the nothingness welcoming him against the snow.
He wakes with a start, he’s being tapped by a boy just a few years older than himself, it takes him a moment to understand what’s happening, sleep and cold clouding his mind.
“You really should get inside, you’ll freeze out here,” The boy says, he looks like Papa, very young Papa. Jordie nods, but his eyes are already closing again, and the boy is drifting into sleep.
This time he dreams of hot chocolate, of mama and papa, of dirtles tutles and Auntie Ninny, of home and his family. Something deeper, more permanent than sleep calls to Jordie, and he wants so badly to rest, maybe forever. No, he wants his mama, he wants his papa.
Now he wakes slowly, there’s more snow than before. How is there so much of it? He too is covered in snow, he brushes it off grogily.
No one is on the street, has he been left alone in this world? Is it Christmas day yet? How long had he slept? He wanders for minutes or hours as the snow begins to fall heavier, the light in the sky dimming, the cold creeps in and chills him to the bone.
The whole world is white. Not sparkling and light like before, but dark and biting, the snow blinds him. He stumbles on, no idea of where he’s going, unable to see anything, the storm rips around him. He can’t stop walking, he needs to go home.
A loud cracking noise fills the air as the ground below him gives out. He’s plunged into water, it fills his lungs. He can’t move. I must. He claws for the surface, pushing himself up, but his hands meet ice. No, no, no, I can’t be trapped.
Open your eyes, whose voice tells him? He doesn’t know, not against the cold and the screaming of his lungs for air. He looks around with stinging eyes and pulls himself to the surface. He holds the ice, too weak to pull himself from the water.
I’m going to die here, the tears stream from his eyes once again asd he screams. For help, for his parents, for the Saints and Ghezen and anyone who will listen. But the edges of his vision go dark and there is no answer.
A hand drags him from the water. Papa must’ve found me, he drifts into sleep again.
“You look just like him,” The words rouse him from sleep, but they are not from his Papa. It takes him a moment to realize the boy who spoke is the same as before.
“Who are you?” His throat is sore from the yelling, he’s oh so cold.
The dark haired boy looks at him and grins, holding out his hand, “Jordie, Jordie Rietveld.”
“We have the same name!” He forgets the cold.
“Oh really? Well, it’s a good name.”
“My Papa says he used to have a brother with our name too!”
For a moment the other boy’s smile falters, maybe he’s sad about something, Jordie thinks.
“I’m awfully cold.”
“You hold on, okay? Your Papa will be here soon, I promise.” Sleep calls to him and once again he drifts into it, welcoming the absense of snow.
——
“Ghezen, Kaz.” Jesper breathes, but Kaz is already running, his cane long forgotten.
“Jordie!” The boy doesn’t move, he’s soaked and freezing, his lips are blue and he isn’t moving. A discarded hot chocolate cup lays on in the snow beside him, whose is it?
His mind is frantic, praying, pleading, worrying for his son, “Jesper, do something.”
“Kaz, you know there’s nothing I can do.”
Kaz takes off his jacket, ripping open the buttons on his shirt as Jesper helps to get Jordie’s off as well. His cold, clammy skin against Kaz’s bare chest is more than enough to send waves crashing above. He pushes away the nausea, pulling the boy closer. He needs to keep him warm, to hell with what I feel.
Jesper places a coat around the two of them and they trudge home through the snow.
Every moment that passes he feels as though Jordie slips further away.
Kaz places Jordie on the kitchen table, cleared by Inej and Wylan, “Oh my god,” Inej covers her mouth with a hand, choking back a sob. He climbs onto the table as well, pulling his son’s body closer to his, I need to keep him warm.
He watches as Wylan brings blankets and pajamas. He watches Nina, who is as frozen as him, surely wishing she could help.
Matthias adds wood to the fire, Inej fusses over Jordie and still Kaz does not move. His boy, his only boy. He cannot lose another Jordie to the harbor.
“Mama?” The boy’s eyes flutter open and everyone whips around to see him, thank Ghezen.
Matthias appears from the kitchen and hands a bottle of whiskey to Kaz, “Now is really not the time, Matthias.”
“Not for you, Demjin,” He gestures to Jordie, “For him.” Kaz understands, but he doesn’t take the bottle.
Worry flashes on Matthias’ face, but in a moment it’s gone, he sits Jordie up only enough to have him sip it. Jordie coughs and the sound reverberates in Kaz’s mind, dredging up old memories, reopening old wounds.
——
Sleep is Jordie’s new best friend, he’s warm now but the cold haunts his fingertips, his coughing, evidence of his time spent in the cold.
“Papa?” He doesn’t move and it worries him, “Papa?”
“Yes, Jordie?”
“Please tell Auntie Ninny I’m so sorry.” Jordie is a big kid, he tries to be strong, but his voice cracks at the end and the tears flow. He loved the glass turtle with all his heart and was so sorry to know his Auntie would be sad.
“Oh Jordie, it’s okay, she isn’t mad at you.” His Papa kneels beside him, all Jordie wants is a hug.
He holds up his hand, curling it into a fist two times, he waits and Kaz does the same. Before he knows it he’s wrapped in a hug, warmer than anything he’s ever felt.
When he wakes up again, Jesper is beside him, “Hey kid, have a good adventure?” But Jordie sees worry, the same lines by his Papa’s eyes are around Uncle Jeppe’s. He leans toward him and pulls Jesper into a hug.
“Uncle Jeppe? Can we still open presents tomorrow even if I’m sick? Please? I really don’t want to miss Christmas and this year I asked Santa for a hat like Papa’s and I really want to still have Christmas.”
“We’ll still have Christmas, I promise.” Jesper reaches out his hand and Jordie shakes it.
“The deal is the deal,” With all the grown-up-ness he can muster, a short coughing fit interrupts them but when Jordie is alright again, Jesper says the same.
“The deal is the deal.”
Before he goes, Jesper reaches out his hand once again and places it on Jordie’s forehead, it feels ice cold against his skin and a worried look flashes across Jesper’s face.
Nina is the next to visit Jordie, he’s worried though because he sees tears in her eyes, is she angry? She walks over and sits on the bed next to him.
“I’m so sorry Auntie Ninny, I really did try to be careful, I promise.” He feels the tears rising again.
She shakes her head and wraps him in a hug, she smells pretty, like flowers and sugar, and waffles and Jordie hugs her tightly, now he knows she isn’t angry.
“Never run off like that again, promise?” Jordie nods, he will never run off again.
“Will you please tell my Mama it’s too hot in here?” Nina’s eyebrows knit together, why does everyone keep looking so worried?
Imagine the Crows planning and throwing an elaborate Christmas party to get Kaz into the holiday spirit.
They put up tons of decorations, with loads of presents and make sure music is playing the entire time.
Kaz shows up, gives the place a good look, and turns to face the (extremely excited) Crows and deadpans, “I’m Jewish.”
He is not, he just has fun watching the color drain from their face. He bursts out laughing after a minute of silence which only confuses them more.
In the end they all have a great time though. Somehow Jesper steals Kaz’s cane and wraps it with Christmas lights, he fabrikated them on so Kaz can’t remove them. And Inej coerces him into wearing a Santa hat.
Morning Doodle: “You look well rested,“ She said sourly.
"I barely slept, and I woke with a crick in my back that feels like Tolya played lawn tennis with my spine. But a king does not hunch, Zoya dear.” (Leigh Bardugo’s King of Scars CH 7)
Forced to live the same day again and again, Nikolai must find a way to rid of himself of the predicament all the while trying to save their unit from the war. But the outcome of it was always the same—a death he can never seem to prevent.
Word count: 4148
Nine hundred and forty-seven.
Nikolai didn’t know why he hadn’t lost count yet. Day after day, new information was stored in his mind—the battle plan, the training and warnings, everything. But losing count never happened, and it was that many times the day of the invasion had been reset.
Nine hundred forty-seven times he woke up in that ship with his rank demoted to a Private. Nine hundred forty-seven times he saw the people he would be fighting with on the beach the next morning, but would never make it through. Nine hundred forty-seven times he died and lived the same day over and over.
And nine hundred and forty-seven times he had crossed paths with humanity’s Storm which was Zoya Nazyalensky.
Today was no different among the first ones before it; they landed on the beach, and almost a fourth of the soldiers were slaughtered the moment they touched the ground. His squad still got wiped out. The invasion still looked impossible to win through.
But both of them somehow got off the beach and found a working car.
The only difference now was that he should have just pretended to do what she’d told him to and kept his mouth shut.
Everything looked peaceful for once, at least. The fields were quiet enough as they trudged along with the remains of what was once a cornfield before the aliens came down and wreaked havoc. It was already in the afternoon, and Nikolai could already see the signs of sundown in the sky.
He could feel Zoya’s anger radiating off her as she kicked the door to the farmhouse. The Storm was many things on the battlefield—ruthless, merciless, brutal. But behind the title and the mask was still a woman who once cared for someone dear to her. Right before they were taken away.
Nikolai eyed her wistfully and he followed inside the house, weapon ready to fire at any possible sign of danger.
That wasn’t my aunt’s name, she had said through gritted teeth as if she were trying to hold off her anger towards him after he mentioned the name. Don’t ever mention that name again.
Zoya continued to take the lead, venturing deeper into the house without much care if she was making too much noise. “There’s nothing here,” she said, only casting him a glance before she was turning away again. “Keep going.”
“Zo—” Nikolai stopped. Should he apologize? But he knew she would just wave it off, and there wasn’t much left for him to say.
Eventually they reached the garage. It wasn’t much different from the house—quiet and abandoned, with little to no supplies left. Nikolai knew better than to assume there was nothing else.
He turned away from the other exit, hoping that Zoya would follow him instead of going out to the backyard. But she had already opened the door and stepped outside.
It would have passed on as another dead end of the house if it weren’t for the shape of a small helicopter covered by a tarp in the middle of the backyard. Nikolai eyed the chopper warily. He was sure that it would make much noise once they got it started—if they got it started. The saints only knew where the keys to that thing were.
Zoya pulled the cover off the chopper. “We have to find the keys,” she said, startling him out of his thoughts. She eyed the helicopter with a certain look of fascination and relief.
“Let’s just siphon the gas,” said Nikolai. Please, listen for once.
“Why drive when you can fly?”
“In that thing?”
The Storm looked displeased. “Let me guess. You’re afraid of heights.”
“I’m afraid of crashing,” said Nikolai, making it sound convincing. Saints, he had lived the day almost a thousand times and most of them were spent jumping out of the forsaken plane that was going to drop them off the beach. He was definitely running out of excuses. “I’m not at all ashamed to admit it.”
“You’ll be fine, Lantsov. You’ll learn,” Zoya said as she approached the ropes that got tangled around the rotor. She started to pull at them, only to stop with a stifled groan when she moved abruptly. Her movements became strained and she muttered, “Shit.”
Nikolai furrowed his eyebrows. “What is it?”
“It’s nothing. I’m fine.” Zoya continued her ministrations despite her labored movements. She cast him a furtive glance and quickly looked away when he started approaching her. She was turning her right shoulder away from him. “I’m fine, Lantsov.”
Leave it to one of the greatest soldiers ever lived to pretend she’s alright, and they’d be arguing all day. “Zoya,” he said, mustering up all the authority in his tone. She was a lot of things, and one of them was holding superiority over another. He figured that it was time their positions were reversed. “Let me see.”
Zoya looked reluctant, a guarded expression in her eyes evident. Nikolai stared right back and patiently waited. He wasn’t going to cower back to her gaze, not when her injury was taking a toll on her. “Fine,” she said curtly.
She zipped down her jacket as he walked towards her. Slowly, he reached up a hand to push the collar of her jacket and uncover her bad shoulder, visibly wincing when he saw the extent of the wound.
Three deep lines ran all the way from her nape to her shoulder, like it had been raked by a pitchfork. The jacket was black, so the bloodstain wouldn’t be visible from the first look. Nikolai didn’t know how much she lost just by looking at her drenched shirt.
He cast her an unamused look. “Tell me again you’re fine.”
Zoya scowled, trying to draw away his hand. “Stop being cranky, Private,” she said. “You forget your place.”
“And you forget you’re still human,” Nikolai fired back, and thankfully, this made her stop. For once, the fire in her blue eyes dissipated, replaced by the look of exhaustion and defeat. He may never know what it was like to fight in wars and survive them only to fight more battles ahead. But reliving the same day over and over again might have given him a glimpse of what she had been through in the past years. “Why don’t we go back to the farmhouse in the meantime so we can fix this atrocity of a shoulder?”
He could still see the conflict in her eyes, the want to say ‘no’ evident in her expression. But after a few more moments, she finally let out an exasperated breath, pointing a finger at him. “If you get more annoying than this, Lantsov, I swear, I will shoot you.” She batted his hand away, shrugging off her jacket as she stomped back to the house.
Perhaps he should just let her shoot him, reset the day and get on with it all over again. But they already got this far inland, and going back to the beginning of the day would take another toll on his wavering sanity.
Nikolai figured that he would never find a way out of this if he continued delaying the day he was in now.
He would just have to brave through it today.
***
Zoya’s wound was a lot worse up close, and he didn’t know how she’s still alive with all the blood she had already lost. It had taken them more than an hour to scavenge through the farmhouse and get as many supplies as they could to fix her shoulder before they looked around for the keys of the chopper.
A hiss suddenly came out from her mouth, and Nikolai had to wince when she glared at him over her uninjured shoulder. “Take it easy, yeah?” said Zoya with a strained tone. “It’s like you’re still manhandling a mimic with your bare hands.”
“You’re stronger than a mimic, Nazyalensky,” he said, “you can handle a bit of a sting.”
“The sting feels like getting impaled by one of their arms.”
Nikolai laughed lightly. There were times that he forgot that she used to go through the same predicament. “That’s a nice way to say it,” he said as he finished putting the gauze on her wound. Her skin was warm against his touch, and he tried not to let his fingers linger too much. “The heli’s full of fuel. I found a hose down the basement.”
There was a short silence, and then Zoya sighed. “We’re flying, Lantsov.”
He met Zoya nearly a thousand times now and the one thing that was consistent all throughout was her stubbornness. “Alright, then. Let’s say we find the keys,” he said, standing up from the chair behind hers, “it’s going to be dark out soon. I suggest we stay here first until the morning.”
Zoya huffed. “And curl up by the fire and open a bottle of wine?”
“I mean, that doesn’t sound so bad.” Nikolai shrugged, kneeling down to get the first aid kit that could still be used later. If they could still use it later. “But I didn’t find wine, only coffee.”
“You amuse me, Lantsov.”
“I do what I can, Sergeant.”
Another silence stretched between them. It was a bit surreal, the quiet surroundings for once. The sound of gunshots and explosions every single day had already been stuck in his mind that it would feel like it was just some regular day at work.
It was the same day over and over, and yet it felt like years had already passed.
There was suddenly a click, snapping Nikolai out of his thoughts, and he looked up just in time to see Zoya pulling a gun behind her.
“I think we should just reset—”
“Whoa, easy—” His hand shot out to hold her wrist in a blink, the panic in his mind taking over and making him forget that the Storm didn’t like any means of physical contact. But if she wanted to bring up that reminder, she didn’t bother to. “Haven’t we gone far enough to reset now?”
“Nikolai—” She stopped, a pained expression flashing on her face when she moved abruptly to pull her wrist away. There was a tight crease between her eyebrows and he wanted nothing else but to draw it away. She let out a ragged breath. “It’s a dead end, and it’s all the same to you. I’m exhausted and in pain. I’d rather just start fresh.”
Nikolai loosened his hold on her wrist, but didn’t let go completely. Zoya made no move to pull away again. “Tell you what, take a few minutes.” He gestured a hand to the table beside her where the small thermos of coffee he found by the kitchen sat. “Coffee’s ready.”
Zoya looked like she wanted to shoot him, and he had to send a silent prayer to whoever was still in charge if she could listen to him for once. Thankfully, she did, tucking the gun back to her belt, and she gave him a glare. Nikolai let out a quiet breath of relief, anyways.
“I’ll look around for the keys. That’s productive,” he said.
“Ten minutes, Lantsov,” she said as he stood up to pour her a mug of coffee. He furrowed his eyebrows at her. “Ten minutes, and then I’m killing you.”
I’m sure you will if you knew. “Alright, fine,” he said, shrugging.
“I still can’t believe you found coffee.”
Nikolai smiled. “There are some things I’m good at besides talking,” he said, pouring the coffee into one of the mugs.
Zoya raised an eyebrow. “For example?”
“Brewing coffee.” He handed the mug to her. “And reliving the same day over and over without losing my sanity.”
Her hands paused from taking the coffee for a moment, a worried expression appearing on her face. But it was gone in a blink. She offered him a grateful smile. “Thank you.”
Something clicked in his mind. “Oh, wait. Sugar, right?” he said even before she could take a sip from her mug.
“Yeah.” There was a wary look in her eyes as he opened a packet of sugar and mixed it with her coffee. With another small smile, she said, “Thank you.”
“Wait, hold on. Three. You like three,” said Nikolai even before he could think of it, and it took him a few seconds to realize his stupidity.
He refused to meet her eyes, all too aware of her gaze on him that’s becoming heavier as the seconds passed, and whatever hope he had of her not catching up vanished into thin air. Of course, Zoya Nazyalensky would always know.
When he decided to look back up at her, there was something dark lurking behind her eyes that was a lot worse than anger—the look of betrayal.
Nikolai sighed defeatedly, slowly standing up. He averted his eyes and turned his attention elsewhere. Anywhere but her. “There’s a shirt over there in the drawer. It should be your size.”
He started to walk towards it, but her voice stopped him. “How many times have we been here?”
Sixty-eight. You mentioned Genya to me on the thirty-fifth. Told me about your aunt on the forty-eighth. He still refused to speak. Because if he did, he might say something that he would regret. It wasn’t as if Zoya would remember it later, when the day resets, and yet he was still afraid—afraid of being honest.
Mustering up his usual confidence, Nikolai turned to face her. She put the mug roughly down the table. He tried not to flinch. He could feel her patience wearing thin, but she still managed to remain calm.
“How many times?” she asked again. Then after a moment, she added, “Where are the keys?”
“I don’t—”
The barrel of the gun was already pointing at him as soon as he could blink. “Where are the damned keys, Lantsov?” she asked, her voice rising to the commanding tone she always used at him during his training.
Perhaps he should just let her shoot him, and the day would be reset. He could go through it all over again. He wouldn’t have to make the same mistake he did today.
But one look at her, Nikolai knew he couldn’t lie. At least not to her.
He pulled out the keys from his pocket, and Zoya immediately snatched it from his hand. Anger sparked in her eyes as she pointed a finger at him.
“You can fly it, can’t you?”
“No—” He sighed exasperatedly at the thought of lying again. There was just no use. “I mean, yes. I can take off, but I’m still working on my landing—”
This only seemed to ignite her anger more and suddenly she was getting her jacket from the chair and moving swiftly as if she wasn’t injured. “Then what the hell are we still doing here?” she reprimanded.
“Zoya—”
Zoya stomped towards the doors leading to the backyard. “We’re wasting time—”
“If you start that engine, you die,” Nikolai called out, making her stop in her tracks. She turned to face him with a conflicted expression, and it only made it harder for him to control the words threatening to tumble out of his mouth. He drew in a shaky breath. “This is as far as you go,” he added quietly. It was painful to say it to her, but she had to know. There was still a chance that she would listen to him. “No matter what I do.”
His mind took the liberty to remember the days they had reached this far, and the memories flashed before his eyes.
Zoya getting overwhelmed by the monsters that were lingering not too far from the yard.
Zoya staying back to hold the horde off so he could escape.
Zoya pushing him out of the way and taking the blast of the helicopter by herself.
Zoya making it through the fight but was already too wounded to survive the trip.
Nikolai had purposefully crashed the heli or just let the mimics flood him just so he could reset it and save her. But all those times, all those resets, ended up in the same result: Zoya never got out from here. And that was the cruel reality.
She’s dead, her angry voice echoed in his head. And I have to watch her die three hundred times, and I remember every detail. I remember everything, Nikolai. So I don’t need to talk about it.
Now that he was in her place, he finally understood how she felt to lose someone dear.
His eyes stung. “This is as far as you ever make it.”
A look of hurt flashed on her face, the truth somehow creating a crack to her invulnerable mask. And yet the determination of a soldier prevailed, and her jaw was set when she shook her head. “Then so be it.”
Zoya pushed the doors open and went out.
“Zoya!” He called out as he followed her to the heli. “Listen—”
“Get your weapon and get in the helicopter, Lantsov.” She started removing the ropes that were holding the rotors in place. “If I were you I would stop wasting time.”
“There’s a mimic buried twenty yards away,” Nikolai said, “and there’s more in the field back there. Only one of us ever makes it.”
Zoya continued her task, refusing to acknowledge the things he was saying. But he pressed on.
“The only thing we haven’t tried is a version where you walk away,” he said, and though he knew it would be impossible for her to do it no matter how many times the day reset, he still said it. He was getting more desperate as the seconds ticked by. “Just go back to the farmhouse. There’s a cellar that has all the supplies you need. Wait until I get back.”
“Not happening, Lantsov.” Zoya removed the last of the ropes. “Get in.”
“Zoya, please—”
She turned around to face him, her expression nothing but mad. “I’m a soldier,” Zoya growled. She jabbed a finger to his chest. “I volunteered. I’m not walking away.”
Nikolai was breathing hard now. He had already exhausted every excuse he had, and it was just him, a desperate person just wanting her to live. “You die here.” And I’ve seen it so many times. “Right here. And I—” His voice broke. “I can’t save you.”
Zoya stared back at him, a flash of sadness flickering in her eyes. She almost looked like she wanted to give in, but if there was something that Nikolai admired her for, it was her determination. “Maybe I’m just not meant to be saved.”
Her words felt like knives driven to his heart, and it took all his will not to let himself cry. Sentiments weren’t ideal in the current situation they were in, but he still had them anyway. “Zoya, if I go and kill their energy source. You’re dead.” He shook his head. He didn’t even want to imagine a world without her. “Forever.”
“There’s no time.” She turned away and started to walk towards the chopper.
Nikolai stepped forward and held her arm before she could put the keys to the ignition. “Zoya—”
She wrenched away from him and turned, her eyes burning with fury. “Why does it matter what happens to me?”
This made him stop. If you knew what was good for you, you wouldn’t want to get to know me either, she had told him just earlier. It’s the only way you make it through this thing.
He shouldn’t have let himself care. He shouldn’t have made himself attached to her. He should have been stronger. He should have listened to her.
But how can he when they’ve been through so much even though he was the only one who remembered?
“I wish I didn’t know you,” Nikolai said quietly, and the fury in Zoya’s eyes slowly dissipated. He wished he could just forget her, and yet he couldn’t. “But I do.”
Zoya stepped back, shaking her head. The guarded look in her eyes was back. She shook her head, and in a hiss she said, “Get in.”
He bolted back to the farmhouse just as she started the engine. Instantly, the mimic he knew that was lurking around burst out from the ground, making a beeline to the chopper. Nikolai rolled out of the way and continued running to the garage.
There was a loud crash, and then it was followed by the sound of the chopper’s failing engine as it fought to stay in the air with the mimic weighing it down.
Nikolai reached the table where they had put their weapons before the heli rammed through the walls of the garage. He fired his gun at the mimic, trying his best not to hit the chopper, but it was already falling to the ground. The chopper crashed, along with the mimic, and the impact was enough to send the abandoned car skidding outside and dragging him along with it.
Pain shot throughout his body as he crashed to the nearby shed, but his mind had tunneled to one thought to even mind the hurt.
Zoya.
He grabbed an axe that had clattered to the floor, limping back to the garage. The mimic was still thrashing, and he angrily put it out of its misery by driving down the axe in a deadly arc. It finally stopped moving after several hits. The urge to butcher it to pieces was strong, but it didn’t matter.
Throwing the axe to the side, Nikolai made his way to the chopper, or what was left of it. Every step was agonizing as the adrenaline started to wear out, and it was all just pain.
Zoya was lying on her back on the rubble, a pool of her blood starting to grow bigger around her. His legs gave away and he fell down on his knees beside her. Her side had been impaled by a shrapnel from the chopper, and by the looks of it, there was no way she would make it.
His vision blurred. He knew he shouldn’t cry, or weep, as this had already happened many times than he could count. But he still let the tears fall. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice coming out in a sob.
A tired smile twitched on her lips and she shook her head. It only made his tears fall continuously. She held up her trembling hand, and Nikolai held on it tightly, believing if he did it hard enough, he could bring life back to her, stop the bleeding. To save her from this forsaken war.
But it’s almost as close to impossible.
“My aunt’s name,” Zoya said, forcing her voice to become as steady as possible, “was Liliyana.” She drew in her final breath, and then she was gone.
Nikolai stared at her blank eyes, the blue eyes that always held fire and fury were now empty.
There was the sound of the ground rumbling. The horde of nearby mimics was approaching the garage. He let them come, knowing that it was no use fighting. There wasn’t anything left.
As the thuds of the aliens’ steps sounded nearer and nearer, he was left wondering how many more times he would have to see the light in Zoya’s eyes flicker to nothing before he lost her completely.
The first mimic arrived only after a moment.
And then there was nothing.
***
His eyes shot open.
“On your feet, idiot!”
Nikolai was back on the ship. The day was reset again.
Nine hundred forty-eight.
The day went by as it always had been, the Sergeant’s preaching, meeting his squad, going to physical training. It was all the same until he stepped to the other side of the ship, where he approached Zoya every single day after dying the first few times at the beach.
She gave him a glare as she stood up from her push-up position, seemingly angry for being disturbed with her routine.
“Yes?” Her sharp voice echoed in the arena. “Who said you could talk to me?”
His gaze lingered at her for a moment too longer. This is as far as you go. No matter what I do, his own words echoed in his head. This is as far as you ever make it.
“Do I have something on my face, soldier?”
The only thing we haven’t tried is a version where you walk away.
Nikolai blinked. Perhaps there was still something they hadn’t tried yet. Or at least he hadn’t tried yet.
He shook his head. “I’m sorry to disturb you, Sergeant.”
With a final glance at her, he turned and left.
Nine hundred and forty-eight times he died and lived the same day. Nine hundred and forty-eight times he met humanity’s Storm that was Zoya Nazyalensky.
But this time, Nikolai walked away and didn’t look back.
Can someone explain to me why they felt the need to make Zoya say that racist comment (even though personally at first I didnt think much of it)
I mean she is half suli so therefore a halfbreed herself
I just love Zoya so much and I don’t want them to tarnish her character before we even get a chance to know her (despite the fact that she was kind of a bitch in the first book, but I think that was mostly due to the YA trope of the big bad meanie jealous of the protagonist)
~ He caught her hand, feeling the warmth of her skin. “Do it,” he said, and he took a step closer until the gun was flush against his still-beating heart. ~
Here’s my contribution to this year’s Grishaverse Big Bang! Based on a scene from the fic ‘Like Real People Do’ by two incredible writers, @wafflesandkrugeand@sanktnikolais!!
You HAVE to read this 60′s spy fic! It’s everything!! Find it HERE!
Our gang, Totally Spies, is full of amazing talents and awesome people! Make sure you check out all of their GVBB works too!
“If you start that engine, you die,” Nikolai called out, making her stop in her tracks. She turned to face him with a conflicted expression, and it only made it harder for him to control the words threatening to tumble out of his mouth. He drew in a shaky breath. “This is as far as you go,” he added quietly. It was painful to say it to her, but she had to know. There was still a chance that she would listen to him. “No matter what I do.”
Yo, peeps. It’s Shadow and Bone Season 2 Speculation Time.
Now that we know season 2 is coming and the script is already written, I’m gonna speculate what that story might look like. This is more of an “overall events of season 2” speculation post with theories and thoughts rather than specific episode-by-episode summaries predictions.
So, settle in for some reading, kids. It’s all fun and games. Some spoilers if you’ve not read the books and you care about that kind of thing.
Preface
Firstly, I think there might need to be a time jump, maybe about a year. In Siege and Storm (S&S), it’s been a few months since events in Shadow & Bone. But a year’s time jump would also help the Crows. For example, in Six of Crows (SoC), Nina’s been in Ketterdam for almost that long trying to get Matthias out of Hellgate. It also gives the Crows time to develop offscreen kind of like Luke Skywalker between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
Secondly, using the jurda parem drug as a plot device seems like a good way to keep the Crows and the Malina/Kirigan storylines tethered. The Iron Throne, for instance, was the connective tissue for all the different characters in Game of Thrones. Think about it: If Kirigan starts giving the Grisha in the Second Army the drug and half of them are not ok with that because it’s basically meth and while it makes them insanely powerful, it willkill them, then, it lends weight to Alina coming back to take command of the Second Army to liberate them and lead a rebellion against Kirigan. Also, as we know, the Crows’s Ice Court heist is centered around the same drug.
Alina/Mal/Nikolai/Kirigan Storyline
I think this storyline will follow S&S for the most part with a few changes here and there, of course. For instance, Kirigan will need something to do since he’s virtually absent throughout S&S except at the beginning, the end, and smatterings of weird, creepy visions throughout (please don’t go heavy with that shit, show people).
Alina and Mal are hiding out in Novyi Zem. They left Ravka on the same ship as the Crows, but I’m 100% sure that it was a boat service. They dropped the Crows off at Ketterdam before going onward. I think we’ll find them kind of settled into a tentative life there, possibly in a romantic relationship given all that epic development they did last season. But they also might keep the “hiding their feelings from each other” nonsense going for a little bit longer.
Meanwhile, Kirigan made it back to Os Alta with his shadow babies. He’s working in tandem (for now) with the Apparat, who took power last season. In S&S, the Apparat didn’t take power after the King mysteriously fell ill and had to go into hiding, so that’s an interesting change…
Kirigan discovers the benefits of jurda parem, and hebeing the one to champion the drug doesn’t seem like a far reach to me. He persuades the Grisha that it’s a good thing because, you know, he’s like that. But he only has a limited supply from Shu Han. In SoC, it was Jan Van Eck (Wylan’s dad) who had possession of the drug from the Shu Han government, but it makes much more sense for Kirigan to have that connection because in the show they made him so involved with politics and the running of the Ravkan kingdom. And although we know he killed all those diplomats from other countries, no one else knows that except for Malina and the Crows. So, it won’t be hard for him to just go back and do what he does best. But he does need to get his hands on the original fabrikator of the drug in order to keep giving it to the Grisha. Enter Yul BoBo (I can never remember his exact name) and the Ice Heist.
“But, wait,” you say, “Kirigan loves his Grisha. Everything he’s done has been to protect the Grisha. Why would he give them a drug that eventually kills them and is harmful to them?” Like many complex villains, he started out with good intentions, but they’ve become twisted over the centuries. He’s become blinded by his own bullshit and can’t see that he’s actually doing harm to those he intended to/meant to protect and elevate.
Kirigan also needs to find Alina because he still needs her power. It’s an obsession now. He teams up with the privateer Sturmhond (who shall be revealed as a Prince of Ravka a little later) to find her and goes on a sea voyage to Novyi Zem. Before going, he sets in motion plans to acquire Yul Boy by recruiting a team in Ketterdam via Van Eck. Kirigan will be hoping Kaz takes this job so that he can eventually get revenge on him for blowing a bomb in his face and escaping him (petty, I know. It’s not my favorite theory, but it could be another way to keep it all connected).
Back in Novyi Zem, Malina are captured by Kirigan and taken aboard Sturmhond’s ship. Kirigan decides to force Mal to track the second amplifier, Rusalye, and is being all horrible and awful to both Mal and Alina, etc. Unlike in the book, they don’t find the sea whip beforeSturmhond betrays Kirigan and rescues (rescues, not kidnaps) Malina.
Ok, I have some winded THOUGHTS about Book Nikolai:
I know he’s a fan favorite, and maybe Book Nikolai gets better, I don’t know yet. I haven’t moved on to Ruin and Rising (R&R) or his duology. But I had issues with him in S&S. If you liked him in that book, that’s cool. To me, though, he came off as a bit of a creep and douchy dickhole, especially at the beginning, which colored my opinion of him for the rest of the book.
I felt his motives were a bit weak, too. Book Nikolai teamed up with the Darkling to re-capture Alina, but he throws one over on the Darkling and abducts Alina himself to use her for hisown purposes. These purposes are:
1) Usurp the throne from his LEGITIMATE, older half-brother, Vasily. Nikolai thinks his brother can be persuaded to just step aside, which is silly to me. My impression before actually meeting him in the book was that Vasily is a spoiled bitch and he’s been raised to believe with all his heart that he WILL be king someday. He probably believes that it’s his God-given right like many monarchs in our world did (especially the Russian ones, for far too long I might add, and that arrogance is what got their monarchy destroyed). Vasily also believes the rumors that Nikolai is a bastard. So unless there’s a gun pointed in his face or another life-threatening reason to motivate him, it’s just not believable for Nikolai, a prince himself, to think Vasily would give up the throne just because he’s lazy. This whole plan makes Nikolai look like a massively naïve dumbass.
2) Marry Alina for political reasons to help cement Nikolai’s own claim. Firstly, I don’t know how marrying a Sun Summoner would support someone’s claim to a throne unless you were intending for her to blast everyone’s ass who opposed you, but that wasn’t Nikolai’s plan with this proposal. He explains the marriage would be purely a political arrangement –and then immediately takes it to hardcore Creep Town by saying they can maintain sexual partners outside the marriage until it’s time to make babies *wink, wink*. Like what is this Handmaid’s Fucking Tale shit? Now, I don’ think this would be that weird if he and Alina knew each other before this. Yes, they spent some time on the boat before getting back to Ravka, but this whack proposal hit the wrong key on a piano for me. ***And after Alina says no that first time, Nikolai continuously brings up the proposal plus Vasily proposes to her and they think she’ll change her mind. It made me insane. She fucking said “no”. No means no, ya boners! It really chaps my ass because neither one of them needs to marry her for anything they want to accomplish and she doesn’t need to marry either one of them in order to help Grisha. She’s the fucking Sun Summoner, she can do what she wants***
Now, this Nikolina thing is clearly in the book to create angsty tension for Book Alina and Book Mal because they suck. But they don’t suck in the show, so do we need another triangle as their conflict? The show eliminated Book Mal’s Toxic Man Mode and even made a point of Kirigan asking consent for sex (that ended up not happening, but that’s not the point). Nikolai’s proposal in the book is just weird, grossly outdated sauce. I also just think there won’t be justifiable time or space for another triangle; remember, we’ve got the Crows to cover.
And I’m not really saying that Nikolai proposing political matrimony, or falling in love with Alina a smidge are necessarily bad things. I’m just saying none of it belongs at the very beginning and it needs to make more sense. Work towards that shit. Leave out the “you can have as many sex partners as you want until it’s time to make babies” talk because it makes Nikolai seem like a creep. Keep Nikolai’s crush one-sided or leave it out completely and save it for Zoya.
But the biggest issue I had with Nikolai the way he is at the start of S&S is that his storyline as it involves Alina strongly repeats the “Alina-is-a-prisoner-pawn” bit. Do we really need/want to see her taken as a prisoner-pawn TWICE in the opening episodes of season 2? Kirigan capturing her is a given, I think, but come on – Nikolai, too?! We literally just came off an entire season 1 arc where Alina was a prisoner-pawn to Kirigan for almost the whole time, but in the end she said, “Fuck this shit!” and got herself out of it like a badass. She even says to the Crows, “I’m not being anyone’s captive ever again!” (Book Alina was never so direct). It is literally stupid.
And I don’t want to see a marriage proposal up front because it paints the picture, again, of becoming a PAWN in someone else’s scheme. Yes, I know she rejects the proposal, but do we need to see Alina repeatedly refusing to be the star puppet in a puppet show? Do we, I ask you?!!!
***But for reals, I am fully prepared for the writers to have kept all of this nonsense in because “it’s the story told in the book”, and I’m fully prepared to be disappointed by it. It wouldn’t be the first time a show or movie did that to me and it won’t be the last.***
End Book Nikolai THOUGHTS.
Speaking of Zoya: There’s no way she went back to Kirigan after he obliterated her family in Novokribriks, so wouldn’t it be cool if it’s revealed she teamed up with Nikolai? Being a Squaller, she’d have a use for being among his crew. If we have a time jump, the idea that Zoya joined Sturmhond’s crew wouldn’t be unbelievable. Can’t you just see her being the one to swerve in on the boat they escape on after Nikolai stages the revolt? It would be good for setting Zoya and Nikolai up as a couple and there’s a reason for notmaking him horny for Alina.
Malina and Sturmhond decide they need to find Rusalye before Kirigan. Meanwhile, Kirigan is like, “Well, Plan B is that I’ll just let them find it and bring it to me”. So, he goes back to Ravka and launches bait: Slaughters the royal family and takes control using Grisha under the influence of jurda purem. That’ll get their attention.
Because Book Nikolai wants to essentially steal the throne from his lazy, dumb brother, it makes him seem like any other greedy ass with good intentions who thinks they can do better (*cough* KIRIGAN!) It may be a bit predictable, but I think there would be more room for character development if Show Nikolai is more of a reluctant/indifferent prince at the beginning because of his questionable parentage. In the book, he does mention not feeling like he belonged at court because of how the rumors made living there kind of suck. But it feels like a footnote tacked onto the bigger goal in the scene, which is wanting to kiss Alina. I say show me more of that prince who’s had to struggle all his life with rumors about his paternity, was treated lesser for it by the entire court and so is bitter towards the institution; a prince who doesn’t want the throne and needs convincing. Kirigan slaughtering his family gives Nikolai motive. Book Nikolai didn’t seem very close to any of his family, but it would add depth to his character if, for example, he did have a bond with his mother and Kirigan kills her. Who else would have been able to pass Nikolai’s bastard ass as a Prince of Ravka except the Queen? She is the only one who knows the truth for sure, and if she hadn’t passed Nikolai off as the king’s son, she would have lost him.
Malina and co. find the macguffin sea whip about the same time the Queen and Vasily are slaughtered. At some point, maybe through some connection Alina has to Kirigan as a result of that heinous binding ritual David did, Alina and Mal figure out Kirigan took over in Os Alta. Nikolai reveals his true identity at this point, and they convince him to return and take back the throne, and/or Nikolai decides to do that on his own. Let’s give him agency, why not? Zoya and Nikolai can also bond over losing their families to Kirigan’s insane ambitions and the Zoyalai ship is launched!
Alina agrees to support Nikolai’s claim to the throne (without a marriage proposal!) and, fully embracing her identity as the Sun Summoner, decides she will take command of the Second Army, which will be BADASS AF.
Edit: Baghra meets up with Alina in secret when they get back to Ravka. After literally 1 minute of reluctance, she agrees to teach Alina how to use her Sun Cut and be badass. I know in R&R she eventually teaches Alina to use the Cut, but that logically correlates to season 3 unless they start cutting some books in half. So I say either have Baghra teach her the Cut in season 2 (because somehow Book Alina just knows how to do that so I don’t know what she even wants Baghra to teach her), or leave Baghra out of it entirely until for season 3.
Mal takes command of the First Army, which doesn’t happen in the book, but would be pretty cool. Because what else is Mal gonna do? He doesn’t do much in S&S except trail along as Alina’s personal bodyguard (boring) bitching and whining at her for doing her own thing; practically fucks Zoya; gets mad constantly at Alina for hanging out with Nikolai, not to mention RESENTING her for her burgeoning powers. Nobody wants to see that shit. They can come up with a better conflict if they need one. Personally, I think it would be refreshing to NOT see a main couple having a major conflict between themselves for once, but that’s just me.
Kirigan slaughters the Apparat and finally takes complete control. Cue Alina’s epic showdown with Kirigan. Maybe they fight over Rusalye’s amplifier if she hasn’t absorbed that into herself yet, maybe Alina uses merzost to merge it in and it fucks Kirigan up. Cue using the Sun Cut, cue controlling his Shadows against him, cue BADASS MOTHAFUCKING BITCH SHIT!!! End of season! Roll credits! Season 3 renewal, please and thank you!
Some last thoughts for this storyline:
Because I don’t want the Nikolina triangle for no other reason than it would just be too fucking much, I’d prefer them to stick with the Darklina thing. Yeah, I know, it’s wrong, it’s bad, it’s whatever. But it makes more sense. It’s been established that they’re connected on more levels than one, it’s an interesting dynamic because of that, and because they did make Kirigan more sympathetic it helped lower his toxicity a bit. Obviously, I don’t think Darklina is endgame though.
As with the first book, there needs to be some story changes to make it more exciting and continue giving agency to Alina. S&S was extremely boring especially when they got back to Os Alta. It was like meetings, meetings, meetings, Alina is in meetings all day. Like… why? And also I don’t wanna fucking watch that. The fact that we have so much to do with the Crows and the fact that you could sum up the plot of S&S with maybe 5 bullet points makes me hope that more time will be given to the Crows. But we’ll see, I guess.
And maybe that stupidest of book characters, Vasily, will still be there to play the part of making that completely stupid deal with the Fjerdans that allowed the Darkling to attack the palace. But it’s weak sauce. I don’t believe Kirigan needs any kind of political cover to sneak in anywhere. The show made it obvious that he can just come smashing in and do whatever the fuck he wants. Doesn’t need the cover of some flimsy trade deal with a useless prince. So off with Vasily’s head. He didn’t matter the first time, why the hell would he matter the second time? WE’VE ONLY GOT 8 EPISODES!
How cool would it be if Nikolai gets turned into the hybrid nichevo'ya at the end? Like maybe Kirigan is fighting Alina with merzost and it hits Nikolai? That would be a great cliffhanger, just like Kirigan emerging with the nichevo'ya at the end of season 1. But it might fuck a bit with R&R events since it happens in that book. Still, sometimes things need to be rearranged like that because it’s more exciting or serves the movement of the story better or is motive for renewal. Take Kaz’s explanation to Inej about why he named them “Crows”, for instance. It was put into season 1 to further their development, but it happens in their very last scene together of the last book in their duology.
Speaking of Crows…
The Crows Storyline
I feel strongly they’ll re-introduce us to the Crows with SoC’s truly masterfully epic Chapter 2 where Kaz obliterates the rival Black Tips gang, simultaneously exposing a traitor in his crew – which I guess will be that older guy who was always running up to Kaz in season 1 at the Crow Club with info. According to IMDb, that guy was Big Bolliger.(I thought Bolliger was supposed to be a young guy, but whatever).
Not sure if we’ll see how they deal with Dreesen and Pekka upon coming back to Ketterdam without Alina. It’s something I think they could allude to without having to show it in order to get going on the Ice Heist. I guess it will depend on if there’s a time jump. If there is a time jump, I think we’ll just get an off-hand reference to what went down, which I would prefer in favor of getting the massive Ice Heist going because who gives a shit about a guy we saw for not even 10 minutes and who we never saw again? *whispers**8 episodes!*
As I posited in the other storyline, Kirigan’s contact in Ketterdam for extracting Yul Burbur, the fabrikator responsible for jurda purem’s creation, is Jan Van Eck. Van Eck is in league with Kirigan for the distribution of jurda purem once they get hold of Yul Booboo. He approaches Kaz to do this job, as he does in the book, saying, “I’ll pay you an insane amount of money to do this heist so we can prevent this horrible drug getting out into the world”. But, really, Van Eck wants to be able to control the manufacturing and selling of this drug himself for financial gain, and part of the deal he has with Kirigan is to become his supplier. That would be a pretty powerful position for a greedy ass like Van Eck.
So, Kaz begins assembling the team including Wylan, who he needs to fulfill Jesper’s dream of having a demo guy on the team. But, really, Kaz needs Wylan for insurance against Van Eck as Wylan is his son, but that shan’t be revealed till the end. Kaz approaches Nina about finally breaking Matthias out of Hellgate because they need him to tell them about the Ice Court. She’s probably pissed at him that he’s like, “Oh, yeah, now I’ll break him out because I need him for a job.”
So they break Matthias out of Hellgate. He’s pissed, Nina’s sad and angry, but it all works out. We’re in for lots of fun stuff with the Hellgate prison break, I think.
Jesper will inadvertently betray the Crows by accidentally revealing the job to Pekka and the Dime Lions, but we won’t necessarily see that. Jesper’s betrayal will probably play like a massive surprise at the end of the season as it does in the book. Like there’s no scene, book or show, where you go, “Hey, I think Jesper just fucked up.” It’s something they could play out like they did with Arken, but I think it would be better if it plays out the way it does in the book given that Jesper is one of our beloved characters and not some rando created for the purpose of being expendable later.
Pekka hopes to steal the job as revenge for Kaz stealing (and failing) the Alina job. They sabotage the Crows, leading to the confrontation at the docks, Inej’s stabbing, and the eye-ripping of a lifetime!!!
Kaz’s backstory, I hope, will be told in flashbacks that parallel present events much like they did with Malina’s flashbacks in season 1. I love the use of showing brief scenes in the past to enhance the present-day situation. These flashbacks probably include Kaz leaving his childhood home after his dad’s death; his and Jordie’s close relationship; the revelation that Pekka wined and dined them before fucking them over, which inevitably led to Jordie’s death and Kaz’s haphephobia, thus finally explaining why Kaz hates that goddamn guy so much and wears gloves – all that good stuff. I think that’s all we’ll have time for as far as people’s backstories. Inej and Jesper will have to be saved for later. It’s possible (dare I say even probable?) that they will include Kaz’s first meeting with Inej and in so doing maybe show a little of Inej’s awful life at the Menagerie. We can only hope.
Commence Ice Heist stuff! I don’t remember everything that happens during that, but I imagine the events are going to have to be pretty heavily pared down to its bare bones. For instance, I doubt there will be those scenes with Tante Heleen and Brum. Maybe one or the other, but not both. If I had to say which one they’d include, it would probably be Heleen for Inej’s story development. Nina and Matthias are lower on the rung in terms of character importance at this point in time. Plus, they’d have to introduce Brum whereas we already know Heleen, and if we’re given a prior flashback scene where she’s mistreating Inej, it will be just desserts. But, again, I don’t know that there’s time for any of that.
Oh, shit! Yul Boogo is dead! But wait. His son, Kuwei, is here, and he knows how to make the drug. Grab him!
There’s a lot that happens with the Crows escaping the Ice Court, but operating on the assumption that they did fit all of SoC into season 2: Jesper, Wylan, and Inej steal a fucking tank; Kaz frees Pekka (who is locked up in the Ice Court after his own attempt to break Yul Boyardee out failed) to help intensify the flavor of their beef; Nina’s big, sacrificial jurda purem moment that helps them escape Fjerdan soldiers and get back to their ship.
Before Nina starts struggling with jurda purem withdrawals, she has the conversation on the ship home with Inej about breathing and Inej and Kaz have a convo about armor. You know what I’m talking about, ya book readers.
And then we’re on the Ketterdam beach getting fucked over by Van Eck, Kaz fucking him right back with fake Kuwei (secretly Wylan); Inej being captured and flown off into the sky because Kaz looked at her when they were threatened, giving away that he loves her she’s important to him; Jesper’s betrayal revealed, Kirigan’s involvement revealed; Kaz’s “Gonna get my money, gonna get my girl!” line, and END OF SEASON! ROLL CREDITS!! SEASON 3 RENEWAL, PLEASE AND FUCKING THANK YOU!!!
***I love that I don’t feel the need to figure out justification for any of the characters’ actions in SoC; I can just say what happens and it makes sense, because it was written that much better than Shadow and Bone trilogy lol.***
Some last thoughts for this storyline:
I feel like there’s a lot of SoC to cram into the second season when the Crows aren’t the sole focus of the show. However, like I said before not much happens in the S&S book, so that may allow more time to devote to the Crows and sort of shift the story so it focuses on them a little more this time around. I have complete faith the writers pulled it off, though. They pulled off Crows being in the first season, so I’m really not terribly worried about the Crows in season 2 because I know it’ll be good. I’m just more curious – ironically – about the S&S side since I had real, raging struggles with that book.
Sweet baby Wylan is heeeere! I would love it if they credited Wylan in a callback to the bomb Kaz used to get away from Kirigan. I mean, I think it’s been confirmed that Kaz got it from Wylan for the trip to Ravka, that the bomb was a nod to him. My only thing is: Are they REALLY going to keep Wylan looking like Kuwei for god knows how long? Are they really going to do that? Great twist for SoC ending, but that was probably the most major thing I didn’t like about Crooked Kingdom – that Wylan spent all of that book stuck looking like Kuwei. I just don’t think it’ll translate well onscreen and wonder if they’ll keep that for season 3, if there is one. But that’s season 3 speculation.
More Nina and Matthias and Wylan and Jesper is a given. It won’t be hard to start repairing Helnik’s relationship and lay the breadcrumbs for Wesper. If they could shove Helnik’s origin story into the first season (and I have thoughts on how successful that was, but it’s not important), then they can damn well fit in more Helnik and set up Wesper.
We got a lotta ships here and a lotta characters, and – I'ma say it again – only 8 goddamn episodes. So I won’t be surprised if some characters like Tolya, Tamar, Genya, David, Fedyor, Nadia, and Zoya don’t get much time, or even any time. But I’m fine with that. At this point in the show, those characters – with the possible exception of Zoya, maybe Genya – are not 100% crucial to the forward momentum of Alina or the Crows, so to devote precious minutes to them is really not a good idea unless they are going to forward the main characters in some way.
Well, those are my thoughts and theories. What are yours?
Morning Doodle: “Perhaps she should simply give in to the rumor that she was Nikolai’s mistress and let people talk. At least then she could skip the predawn trek from the Little Palace and sleep in.” (Leigh Bardugo’s King of Scars CH 7)
