Valkyrie

So we'll talk to Kyle about all that stuff coming up here.

The Valkyries, by the way.

The

Valkyries, thank you.

You know what a Valkyrie is?

Yes.

The sorrow of all living things at his death means the gloom of northern countries when winter comes.

The Valkyries were beautiful female warriors.

They had some of Woden's own strength, and were armed with helmet and shield and spear.

Like Woden, they rode unseen through the air, and their horses were almost as swift as Sleipnir himself.

the walls of Valhalla were hung with shields, its ceiling glittered with polished spearheads.

From its five hundred and forty gates, each wide enough for eight hundred men abreast to march through, the warriors rushed every morning to fight a battle that lasted till nightfall, and began again at the break of each day.

When the heroes returned to Valhalla, the Valkyries served them with goblets of mead, such as Woden drank himself.

the teutons believed that before there were any gods or any world there was a great empty space where the world now is it was called by the curious name ginnungagap which means a yawning abyss to the north of ginnungagap it was bitterly cold Nothing was there but fields of snow and mountains of ice.

title is, of course, A Court of Splintered Harmony.

And then underneath, there's a line that says the Valkyrie Cycle Movement 1.

Throughout the series thus far, there has been a strong thematic use of music and melody to describe elements of the world.

Magic often has this sound component to it, for example, like the magic is singing in a character's blood or even titles for magic like Asriel and his shadow singer magic, right? It's also associated with various magical objects like the harp or when, for example, swords like Truth Teller are activated by a user.

So I'm like, this was probably only actually 10% of the story, if even that much.

And if Silver Flames was split into separate books, and if part one ended right before Gwyn had joined the Valkyries, I would have been like, that was ass.

Yeah.

So, like, obviously there wasn't any resolution and we had to build the conflict and it was extremely frustrating to read as a reader, but I was expecting it.

The duty of burying the dead properly was, for the Greeks and Romans, one of the most sacred of all obligations, and the image of the unburied souls waiting in vain on the shore was a powerful reminder of why it mattered.

In Norse mythology, the Valkyries, the warrior maidens of Odin, rode over the battlefields and chose those who were to die.

and carried the bravest of the slain to Valhalla, Odin's great hall, where they would feast and fight until the end of the world.

Those who died of sickness or old age went instead to the realm of Hel, a cold, shadowy underworld ruled by a goddess of the same name, who, according to the Icelandic writer Snorri Sturluson, was half living flesh and half dark and dead.

just makes me go, oh, that instantly puts me at concern that it's just, Sarah has just made us notice those words and put them right beside Gwyn to make us pay attention.

He does then go on to marvel at how she's changed from Sangrabah, that she's a Valkyrie now, that she has the Valkyrie stillness.

Her eyes are lit with starlight post-singing, notices her longer hair.

She straightaway says, where's Truth Teller? And a few people have said it's interesting that she picks up on that straightaway, that she misses nothing.

I just – this is interesting and it builds more towards our more gods, more – external greater sources oh

yes absolutely yeah and I think there's even uh there's another scene the scene where nesta goes to watch her sing with clotho and and that and she starts watching wins in and she's like she's the most beautiful person in the entire world she was the best friend why did I you know how have I not been completely mesmerized by her she's the most wonderful creature in existence like like she just you can clearly see she starts to get caught up in whatever spell Gwyn creates.

I think the thing that then makes you concerned is when you add what we've just spoken about, which could still be badass you know, it could be a really good Valkyrie.

Could be a really awesome Valkyrie with really awesome powers.