A Court of Wings and Ruin: Soap Opera Version

Part 3-5

Chapters 71-75

Spoilers

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Discussion

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Spoilers 🪽 Discussion 🪽

High Lady

Think back to ACOTAR. Do you think Papa Archeron’s surprising arrival on the battlefield is enough of a redemption arc?

Nesta is immobilized from Hybern’s use of the cauldron, with Cassian steadfastly by her side. Azriel has decided to defy orders to fight. Just as Hybern’s armada sailed in behind them, defeat seemed inevitable. Then, from the east, the resounding call of another horn symphony echoed. Rhysand went froze, surprised by the familiarity of the sound. In the skies, Drakon and his legion of Seraphim arrived, and out at sea, Miriam and her armada. But they weren’t alone! Leading the other ships was Queen Vassa, the firebird. Lucien found her! Or so I thought. She was actually found by a human who calls himself The Prince of Merchants. And that human? None other than Nesta, Elain and Feyre’s father! The Archeron patriarch discovered the human queens’ traitorous deeds months ago and had been gathering a human army in secret. To show his dedication to redeem himself in the eyes of his daughters, he named his three personal ships after them. With him at the helm of the lead ship, The Nesta, they led the charge.

I believe that of the three, Nesta harbored the most resentment towards their father for his inaction and his cowardice. I see this a papa Archeron’s redemption arc, and THIS is what I call an apology! This scene truly touched me and brought me to tears.

Vassa, in her firebird form flew into Hybern’s fleet, reducing it to ashes. Finally! A glimmer of hope. They just might come out of this battle victorious. But they still need to make it to the cauldron. Determined to buy Feyre and Amren time to fulfill their task, Nesta made a bold decision. Drawing Hybern's attention to herself, she became the distraction, knowing it would cost her. Naturally, Cassian refused to let her face the danger alone.

As Amren and Feyre pressed closer to the cauldron, Nesta rallying the power of the cauldron could be felt. The king of Hybern predictably took the bait and descended to face Nesta. Stryga, bent on avenging her fallen brother, moved to intercept him. But the king, wielding formidable power, broke her effortlessly. With chilling precision, he snapped Stryga's neck, fed her lifeless body to his naga-hounds, and resumed his march toward Nesta and Cassian.

With Hybern drawn away, Feyre and Amren finally reached the cauldron. As Feyre laid her hands on its dark surface, she was betrayed—Amren revealing treachery at the worst possible moment.

Amren

Feyre struggled fiercely against the cauldron's overwhelming power, but it consumed her consciousness, pulling her into its far-reaching search for Nesta. Through its vision, Feyre witnessed the battlefield unfold. Helion and Rhysand, in their beastly forms, seemed to mirror each other—a striking embodiment of Night and Day, their powers intertwined.

Predictably, the cauldron reached Nesta before the king did. When Hybern arrived, he had their father with him, with a sword at his throat, using him as a human shield. Nesta was forced to dispel the magic she had been gathering from the cauldron. True to his nature, the king of Hybern delivered a cruel twist, snapping their father's neck without hesitation. Cassian engaged Hybern to give Nesta a head start, meanwhile Feyre remained bound to the cauldron. Nesta did not run like Cassian told her to. She closed her father’s eyes, kissed him goodbye and embraced her raw power.

Suddenly Cassian’s scream sliced through the air as Hybern began to torture him. Nesta, feral with power, demanded that Hybern stop. When he did not, she unleashed her power. Hybern luckily, winnowed before they blast, but Nesta’s power made it clear to the battlefield and took out many of his soldiers.

Nesta refused to leave Cassian’s side. As his life waned, he confessed his feelings for her and sealed them with a kiss. Hybern, sensing their weakness, closed in to deal the final blow. But Nesta, resolute, shielded Cassian with her own body, ready to meet their end together. Desperate to save her family Feyre offered the cauldron a bargain. Just as she completed the thought, the Kings hand dropped and he made a sickening choking noise. Elain had rammed Truth-Teller to the hilt through the back of his neck!

I know I still have two more books to read after this one, but I am not sure how I feel about this little hero arc for Elain.

Moving on.

I guess a sword through the throat wasn’t good enough for Nesta, because she twisted it…slowly…until she severed his head clean off his shoulders.

As if responding to Elain’s grief-stricken scream upon seeing their father’s body, the cauldron retreated to its origin point, pulling Feyre’s consciousness with it. In an instant, she was back in her body, Amren’s urgent voice cutting through the haze as she slapped Feyre back to focus.

Freed from the cauldron’s grasp, Feyre turned on Amren, ready to lash out. But Amren explained that the Suriel’s cryptic advice had always been meant for her. The cauldron held the key to an unbinding spell that would unleash Amren’s full potential. Once she is unbound from her Fae body she will have the power to annihilate Hybern’s army, but at a great sacrifice. Varian appears and he begs her not to go through with it. She told him she loved him and jumped into the cauldron. Feyre recited the spell, and Amren emerged in her true form—blazing and magnificent. She swept through Hybern’s forces, obliterating the army in a wave of unimaginable power. As the battle ended, Amren’s light faded, her sacrifice complete.