#truth teller

[azriels-shadowsinger]

imagine azriel walking in on reader using truth-teller to cut up veggies and fruit, his beloved and legendary obsidian sword, who had slaughtered countless of enemies, reduced to a cooking knife hacking cucumbers and fruit…😭😭

this is so fucking funny he would not know what to do

Azriel had just dropped all of his stuff on the table when he got home because he desperately needed to go bathe right away

You were in the kitchen cooking soup for the two of you for dinner

And when you were about to cut up the carrots you saw truth teller on the table and thought it would be kinda funny

Azriel comes into the kitchen and doesn’t notice for a minute because he’s too busy picking up his things from the table

But when he can’t find his blade, he looks around and sees truth teller in your hand being used to cut carrots

He just stands there with his mouth hanging open not even knowing what to say

You try to hide your laugh at his reaction while you toss the carrots into the soup pot

Because cmon… the infamous truth teller blade cutting veggies? That’s hilarious.

Azriel disagrees, obviously

He rushes over and grabs the blade, looking at you like you’re crazy

“I’ve used that to... I don’t want to eat the blood of the worst males in Pyrithian in my soup!”

Obviously, you scrubbed the hell out of that thing first because who knows where it has been, but you decide to keep messing with him

“It’s probably fine. It will cook out, right?”

That only makes him speechless again and he tries to fish out the contaminated carrots from the pot with a spoon

You finally decide to take mercy on him and admit it was a joke

Once dinner is ready he refuses to eat the soup

You try to eat a bite, but the mental image of where truth teller has been is too gross, so you both decide to go out for dinner

He never leaves truth teller out on the table anymore

[ivymoonstudios]

Never. I have never once seen Azriel let another person touch that knife.

/ ACOWAR, Ch. 69, Pg. 610

[thisblogisaboutabook]

Just over here thinking about Azriel in HOFAS

-“You can do good,” Azriel warned, “while still being bad.”

-“His wings were spread so wide they nearly touched either side of the cavern.”

- “So does it… tell the truth?” A hint of a smile, more chilling than the frigid air around them. “It gets people to do so.”

[shittalkingwiththesuriel]

Is anyone else absolutely DYING to know how Azriel came to have Truth Teller?

Did he get it when he was younger? How long has he had it? Did he find it or was it given to him?

I NEED TO KNOW!!!

[sjmgirlie]

“Elain can’t fight so how can she be a FMC?? She won’t be able to kill anyone, she has no training!!! What can she do on (??) Ramiel??”

Well, she didn’t need training to stab the King of Hybern in the throat and kill him did she?

As mentioned constantly, Elain will not be a warrior.

You know what she has? The element of surprise.

You know what else she has? Patience.

Elements that are important to *gasp* spies.

No one expects her to wield a sword. No one expects really anything from her. They just see her beauty, making her a true knife in the dark.

The symbolism is clear:

Feyre - bow and arrow

Nesta - sword

Elain - knife

Not to mention, she is literally a SEER. She’ll know where someone else is before they even get there. Like how she found the Suriel.

Also, conquering Ramiel is not on top of the mountain, but underneath it. Eris himself said the Illyrians never bothered to check under Ramiel.

You know what else Eris said?

Three Sister Peaks

Not 2 sister peaks and 1 bat boy peak (let alone bestie peak).

Elain yielding Truth-Teller has been and always will be significant. Not only in relation to Azriel, who has never let even his brothers touch it, but because it is an important weapon in the ACOTAR world. If it was not important, it would not have a name. Like Ataraxia for Nesta. But we all know that.

@wingedblooms has an amazing post called “the dreams that are answered” that explains both Gwydion, TT and the knifes relation to Elain. If you haven’t read it, you’re missing out!!

Next question?

[stardustnfreckles]

Enough about ship wars or wondering who’s pov we’ll get in ACOTAR6

Bryce is the only one that’s asking the right questions

SPOILER HOFAS

.

.

• How come TT, a literal legendary blade, that belonged to Fionn himself is in Azriel’s possession?

But most importantly

WHAT DOES AZ KNOW THAT WE DON’T? who’s Enalius??

Mr. I never lose at cards cause Lady Gaga wished she had my poker face “let out a small noise of shock” and we don’t talk about it?

I think he figured something out. He connected the dots. I also think it goes back to the time he spent working for Rhysand’s father. We know he wanted to keep Rhys, Cass and Azriel apart because he was scared of how powerful they were together, he sent his own son away but kept Azriel cause he knew how rare and precious his set of skills is. I can’t wait to see how working for him affected azriel but also what he learned in the meantime.

[emmitaaa4]

"As if the city view held some answer." On visions, heartbeats through stone, and the Dusk Court.

I'm but a procrastinating engineering student so this is going to be a bit of a messy post/theory, but here we go.

HOFAS spoilers:

Others have probably already theorized about this, but we know that Bryce ended up giving back TT and handing the Starsword (Gwydion) to the acotar folks... could it be that the Gwydion is destined to be Elain's? Or used by Elain, perhaps in the revival of the Dusk court? After all, as @bright-side20 and others have pointed out we already know that she likely accessed TT's powers in acowar (stepping out of a shadow to kill Hybern; if I am not mistaken TT leaked a darkness that even Az was surprised to witness in HOFAS).

sidenote: if you are curious about the link between Avallen & the Dusk court, I encourage everyone to go read this theory/breakdown!

Could this also be why the fact that Elain returned TT (which was an obvious action) was emphasized in ACOFAS, where SJM said she planted seeds for future bookS? Cause I find it interesting that it is Mor of all people that hums pensively as she points out that Elain gave TT back to Azriel: does she know/sense something with that power of hers? Does Elain perhaps See something too, given that she supposedly moved away from it very assuredly? After all, Mor was the one to say that "there is a reason that Elain is seeing these things" (acowar).

ALSO... I believe it's been pointed out already that the heartbeat through the stone that elain famously heard in acowar could have been a literal "beating, vibrant heart locked away far beneath"; i.e. the heart of the Dusk court (hofas). I find it all the more interesting, then, that Gwydion is described to have its light like a heartbeat (paraphrased from hofas, I dont remember the exact quote).

After all, it is looking away from Lucien, towards the windows, that she tells him--or rather, appears to be telling him:

“When I sleep,” she murmured, “I can hear your heart beating through the stone.” She angled her head, as if the city view held some answer. “Can you hear mine?” “He wasn’t sure if she truly meant to address him, but he said, “No, lady. I cannot.”

I repeat:

as if the CITY VIEW held some answer.

What if it did? And what if that answer is found in Gwydion's light and/or the Dusk court's beating heart?

In fact, what else do we know happens (or happened in acowar at least) when she sleeps? Visions, most likely: before she gained the understanding she needed to free herself from the murky-realm she was trapped in (thanks to my man Az), she was lost in a dream-like state. And those dreams often including the trashing sea...

"I can see so very far now. All the way to the sea." Indeed, the sea beyond the Sydra was a distant sparkle. (...) “I can hear your heartbeat—if I listen carefully. I can hear her heartbeat, too.” (who is her? is she hearing her sisters' literal heartbeats, or someone/something else's?)

“I can hear the sea. Even at night. Even in my dreams. The crashing sea—and the screams of a bird made of fire.”

These quotes have been dissected countless times already, but what I'd really like to add to the conversation is that there is something interesting from a passage from HOFAS I referenced earlier:

“And in that moment, the mountain—the island—spoke to her. Alone. It was so alone—it had been waiting all this time. Cold and adrift in this trashing grey sea. If she could reach out, if she could open her heart to it… it might sing again. Awaken. There was a beating, vibrant heart locked away, far beneath them. If she freed it, the land would rise from its slumber, and such wonders would spring again from its earth (…)”

I am about to make the mother of all reaches (call me delulu idc idc), but all this talk about Elain being “blooming spring” and “a promise of spring”… and here we have a slumbering, barren Island (not unlike the way she herself has been forgotten, has been lost in dreams) in the trashing sea (crashing sea, anyone?) which could spring anew.

Just to wrap this up, you cant tell me that this passage isn't extremely Elain "gentle-grower-of-life" Archeron coded:

Dusk, twilight—that’s what the island was in its long-buried heart, what her power bloom into, the lands rising with it. It was, as she said, as if the island had a soul that now blossomed under her care, nurtured by the court she built here.

-------

Voila :) Hopefully I didnt get things mixed up and this made at least a little bit of sense. Ok so done with my procrastination and now back to thermodynamics (send help)(please).

[offtorivendell]

Knife and Sword

Spoilers: ACOTAR and Crescent City series to date

What if we've all been misinterpreting the following prophecy:

When knife and sword are reunited, so shall our people be. You have the Starsword. What if … I don’t know. What if there’s a knife out there for me? - HOSAB, chapter 23

Some of us have previously theorised that, long term, Truth-Teller won't belong to Azriel, but - just as Ruhn claimed the Starsword/Gwydion in a trial, and wielded it physically until Bryce was able to use it magically - it may be meant for Elain instead. That, essentially, Azriel had his own sword in the stone moment with his infamous dagger, but was always fated to pass it on to Elain, who could either wield its powers or charge it with her own light? And perhaps she did, shadow walking to save Nesta and Cassian in ACOWAR?

Mor even hinted, back in ACOFAS, that Azriel may give Truth-Teller to Elain once more.

I've wondered before whether Elain could be "the shadowsinger's knife" to which Gwyn was referring, indirectly or not, in ACOSF.

There are significant links between Bryce and Elain, namely that Bryce has Theia's light, and Elain may have her Sight.

Bryce and the Archeron sisters may even be (very distantly) related.

What if it's not meant to be Bryce and Azriel fulfilling the prophecy as sword and knife, but Elain Archeron instead? This would be a massive twist.

Elain "I don't want a mate, I don't want a male" Archeron and Bryce Quinlan... do we have a new ship? 😂

Crazy? Absolutely. It's pure crack, especially as Elain hasn't had her own book yet. But who knows?

[bryceandhunt]

I know I keep coming back to this… but another thing about the Ruhn/Rhysand resemblance tease and then the actual events of HOFAS that is bugging me:

Why did Azriel end up with Truth Teller, and Nesta with the Starsword, if Ruhn (who is Starborn and actually wields the sword for a minute there) and Rhys are the two who have a connection??

Like again. I just wanted more out of it than I got. There were some good moments in the book, but I think my SJM expectations are just so high that it’s hard to hit them (which is only because she’s created such amazing stories in her books!).

[lovelygwyneth]

like... imagine being on this level of delusional

[acourtofthought]

I received an anon about an hour ago and I wanted to respond to it but because the ask itself could be considered spoilery to HOFAS and my response as well, I wanted to create a new post where I added the question under the "keep reading" button.

Here was the anon:

The first thing I'm going to address is the theory about Truth Teller.

From what I've gathered (though I am not claiming this with any kind of certainty), there is a scene where it's revealed that Az has no idea what Truth Teller is capable of, then we're also told Truth Teller is not able to kill the unkillable in the way that Ataraxia or the Starsword can.

That does leave room for Truth Teller to have some sort of unique ability but I have to say, I think anyone believing that it's super special power is to "cut" mating bonds is being a little silly.

This mysterious dagger that Az uses to torture with, that once belonged to someone of importance in the history of the NC (I'll leave that as a mystery) and it's BIGGGGGG SECRET IS.....drumroll please!!!!!! It's ability to break bonds!!!

That would be cheesy, I"m sorry, but it's true.

My second argument to their theory is that the Asteri / Daglan ruled 15,000 years ago in Prythian.

So if they corrupted the Cauldron 15,000 years ago and it's corruption has lasted through the current events then every single bond that currently exists is corrupted.

Feysands bond? Corrupted.

Vivianne and Kallias? Corrupted

Nessians bond? CORRUPTED

The Cauldron isn't some sort of twisted claw game where every fourth bond is the unlucky recipient of the leftover corruption from what their past masters did 15,000 years ago. Either every bond is tainted because of the Daglan's influence and misuse of the Cauldron or mating bonds have nothing to do with the Daglan.

Yes the Cauldron can be used for evil as the Asteri did to create monsters but once it leaves that persons hands, they have no further hold on it, the Cauldron doesn't remain under evil influence. When in the right hands, when held in a females hands, it creates life (as in the case of the Mother). When in Drakon and Myrim's hands, they were able to turn her fae.

All signs point to the Mother being responsible for mating bonds, the Mother who first used the Cauldron to create life. Bonds that are determined before a characters birth (considering Rhys had dreams of Feyre before she was ever in the fae lands).

And Amren confirms that even the King, even while using the Cauldron for evil, was incapable of breaking mating bonds. So regardless of what we discover about Truth Teller, there is NO WAY that his dagger can do something that even the Cauldron cannot do.

Edit: just figured out more info on TT.

It seems that while the sword is "Made" and considered "matter", TT can undo things, "antimatter". "Done and Undone".

It says with a command from the one destined to wield them, they can be fused, create a place where there is no life or light. A place that is nothing.

To me, that still doesn't suggest anything regarding mating bonds but possibly a place that the weapons, when used together can create and be used to send enemies away.

If they're claiming it can "unmake things created by the Cauldron" then I hope they're prepared to see Az "unmake" Elain as she's Made.

[ivymoonstudios]

sneak of an elain piece I just finished 🤫🤭

[persefoneofsaturn]

Azriel: i know you think my judgement is clouded because I like Elain a little bit.

Nesta: you just doodled your wedding invitation.

Azriel: that’s our joint tombstone.

Nesta: my mistake.

[hopelesslyhopeful11]

Cassian’s Noteable Actions: The Copyright Infringement by Elriel’s

It’s pretty clear that there are moments that Elriel’s favorites:

Az (and Feyre) going to get her from Hybern’s camp

Az giving her Truthteller

Az easing the tension after Amren calls Elain out for trying to be human again in ACOFAS

They paint these moments as sacrosanct and as if it is only Azriel who ever saw her and acted in these moments. But that, as is with most of their favorite “canon” moments, is not true and a distortion of the text.

The Truth: Cassian steps up, Azriel follows suit

1. It is actually Cassian who volunteers first to go after Elain in ACOWAR when she is kidnapped by the cauldron, even though he is gravely injured:

Cassian is the first one to jump at the opportunity to get Elain back and was going to debate to go, even though he was gravely injured, help her. It is after Nesta addresses the severity of Cassian’s injuries that Azriel ends their debate by speaking up that he will go.

2. Cassian offers Elain a weapon for her to use in battle:

Cassian is the first one to offer Elain a weapon and it’s not until after Feyre convinced Elain that she wouldn’t have to use it that Elain accepted Truthteller. Also notice again how Elain hates the fashion of the night court and would rather sweat in the heat of winter court leathers than wear night court apparel.

3. Cassian is the one to break the tension after Elain’s discomfort, Az follows with a joke:

It is Cassian that defends Elain first and speaks out for her and then Azriel chimes in after that. Of note: notice how just above this, Azriel is looking at Elain as something to be pitied and felt sorrow for her. Idk about you but most of SJM’s end games tend to not pity one another since pity implies they are something too weak and looked down on

Overall, they give credit to Azriel as if he acted on his own where credit should be given to Cassian since he is the original creator of these “Elriel scenes”. Hence copyright infringement.

This also leaves me to wonder what else Azriel is trying to copy from Cassian? Possibly the idea that he should be with an Archeron sister? I digress.

[shansenfan]

Hofas Spoilers

~~~~

Am I the only one who thought Bryce would drag Azriel’s ass back to Midgard with her because he WOULD NOT just give up Truth-Teller?

I thought it would be like—

“If you won’t give up the dagger, then you’re coming with me.”

But instead we got what we got so…

[shadybirdwombat]

So this is a crack theory.

Hofas spoilers

What if Lucien and Elain have been mind talking or together for awhile.

After the battle of Hybern. Feyre told them to wash up together.

We need got that scene. What if she told her about her using truth teller. What it actually can do ?

I believe lucien already knows about his biological father. I believe Helion didn't let that slip accidentally from his lips.

He did it for a reason. Maybe day court royals can block out daementi. Lucien hasn't been an emissary for this many years without being observant. He figured out Feyre was suspicious right away.

Anyways he let Feyre read his mind for what he allowed.

Going back to after the battle. What if Lucien already knows about great objects of power. He as raised in autumn. I'm sure Eris and loa taught him. Maybe even Beron.

So Elain tells him. She also tells him of all her visions.

So he tells her they can talk through the bond. So they pretend to hate each other. Can't stand each other. Till all her visions come true.

So lulu flirts with Vassa in front of Feyre. Elain acts with Azriel and the necklace. To see about his loyalties.

Which I believe will also tie into Nesta and the dusk court. Maybe Azriel will switch courts. Elain also pushing him towards Gwyn. She knows mates are stronger together .

Sly Fox that's Lucien. Sjm has says he's the her smartest characters. Also she said Lucien and Dorian would be friends. Dorian who tricked Maeve.

Helion is playing along because his court knows about seers. Also he loves loa. He would never put her at risk. Neither would Eris or Lucien by revealing the truth.

Elain's story could go back to the beginning. I also believe papa archeron had gifts of seeing.

Feyre did before she turned fae. She painted that dresser. I believe Nesta did as well.

That's why Papa archeron went immediately to find Vassa.

Maybe he knew he had to play the horrible parent. Not being there. So his daughters Feyre and Nesta would become rulers. Elain my be the only one to know about it.

I believe Elain also knew Tamlin was fae. She did t forget. Just pretended.

This has to do with the goddess of fate urd or wyrd. Aka all those drawings on the cottage.

Which are to protect them from Asteri.

So in Elain and Lucien book. We will see them during each part of main events. Waiting for the right time.

Which I believe lucien will come get Elain before or after Bryce goes back to migard.

Helion will say. I have books about seers etc. This will lead to the death of Beron and defeat of Koschei.

I believe Vassa and Jurian would know Elain and Lucien are together. Jurian is adept at lying. Plus he would have knowledge of many things. He wasn't eye and not paying attention for no reason

Vassa knows the game because she's royal.

Eris always has he taught Lucien. Doesn't he say he should have taught brothers about blocking out mind readers. Throw them off his scent maybe. Lie lie lie.

This would be wild. Support my theory. That bring a seer is horrible. Family may hate you. Because if you change fate. Does it cause more problems. Elain wasn't blessed by the cauldron for no reason. It purrs and it never attacked her on the battlefield.

What if the pure mother's wyrd saw Elain in the cauldron. She awoken her.

Nesta took most the asteri bad parts . Though the mother blessed her not to become corrupt through love. Thus Nesta becoming high lady of dusk.

I don't believe Lucien will become high lord of day for awhile. Elain and Lucien maybe to become world walkers. Say emissaries to other worlds.

Maybe Tam even knows. He's acting more crazy to their them off. He told Feyre to be happy and saved Rhys life. Plus doesn't have a painting of the cauldron before the asteri.

Helion would teach Lucien about a spell to mask the mating bond.

Which I believe he does to protect the lady of autumn from Beron.

Explains why Azriel smells something off about their bond.

Why lulu look solemn at solstice. Cause Elain had to play Azriel. Knowing Rhys would find out. Pushing Azriel too see Gwyn. Not a crush like he does with Mor and Elain.

Mates. Though because Azriel had been through much in his life. He doesn't understand the mating bond for himself.

Also they would be the greatest actors since Aelin