A glimmer of optimism shines through in the recently released Cosmo's Onyx Storm excerpt. In contrast to the darker ending of Iron Flame, Xaden's eyes, devoid of any red hue, suggest a hopeful turn. This subtle detail underscores the nuanced nature of the venin condition, highlighting that it's not a simple black-and-white transformation.

The detail about Xaden’s eyes was a relief to readers after the Iron Flame ending and was one of several Onyx Storm sneak peek have inspired a new influx of fan theories.

Xaden's Eyes Are Their Classic Gold-Flecked Onyx In The New Excerpt

Violet Is Relieved Xaden Has No Red In His Eyes

Yarros has provided a snapshot of Onyx Storm to Cosmo, in which Fourth Wing’s venin have infiltrated the Scribe quadrant. Here is the mention of Xaden’s eyes in the Onyx Storm excerpt:

“Gold-flecked onyx eyes meet mine, and my breath stabilizes only when I realize he’s unharmed and there isn’t a single trace of red to be found anywhere near his irises. He may technically be an initiate, but he’s nothing like the venin we just fought.”

– via Cosmopolitan

Violet's relief upon seeing Xaden's eyes indicates the significance of this detail. The red-rimmed eyes of initiates, a visual marker of feeding, are absent in Xaden's gaze. This implies strong willpower, suggesting that he has resisted the temptation to succumb to his venin nature.

To put this in context, readers need to the epigraph from a book about venin placed in chapter 48 of Iron Flame:

“Defeating a dark wielder begins with knowing where they rank in age and experience. Initiates have reddish rings to their eyes that come and go depending on how often they drain.”

Xaden is currently an Initiate venin. He is not yet an Asim – the Asim type of venin is a constant, fluctuating degree of redness. Another detail from Iron Flame – that there is no cure for venin, only control – suggests that further development of the venin state is determined by willpower and resistance. All of this has profound implications for how Xaden's story will develop – as well as revealing more about Onyx Storm's potential story.

The Venin's Ranking System Reflects Power Corrupting In Fourth Wing

Yarros Seems Taken With The Adage That Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely

Rebecca Yarros's Empyrean series delves into the complex themes of power and agency. While characters like Jack, who actively seeks power and control, embody the corrupting influence of venin, Xaden's journey offers a more nuanced perspective. The series suggests that the venin condition is not an automatic descent into evil; rather, it's the individual's choices that ultimately determine their fate. Jack turns evil because he was already evil. In Fourth Wing, he tries to throw people off the parapet, and he leads a hunt for Andarna.

Being an Initiate does not automatically make a venin evil — it's their choices thereafter that determine further descent...

Yarros' message in the series seems to be around power and agency. Being an Initiate does not automatically make a venin evil — it's their choices thereafter that determine further descent, as it is in venin's nature to pursue power. This has its roots in Empyrean lore with the Three Brothers fable. Control is the continual refrain – indeed, the word “control” is used twice in this excerpt alone. Firstly, Fourth Wing’s Violet’s control over her own power is addressed by Tairn. Secondly, Violet refuses to control Xaden. Readers’ favorite shadow wielder’s plight in Onyx Storm is likely to control himself.

Source: Cosmopolitan