Last night, my friend Mrs. Duncan the Tall told me that my favorite author, Ser Brandon Sanderson,
released a draft version of The Stormlight Archive Book 5 Prologue. And it was awesome.
So let’s break it down today. And let’s also get back to weekly Cosmere videos. Just a heads up:
this video has a major spoiler from Mistborn. The prologue to every Stormlight book takes
places during the same scene. The night of Gavilar’s death. Each prologue is told from
a different character’s perspective. The Way of Kings prologue was Szeth-son-son-Vallano,
Truthless of Shinovar. In this prologue, we got the fight between Szeth and Gavilar. The Words of
Radiance prologue was Jasnah Kholin. Liss told Jasnah that she had sold Szeth to the slaver
market a few weeks prior since Szeth was storming creepy. The Oathbringer prologue was Eshonai.
Gavilar gave Eshonai a sphere of Voidlight and told her that he was going to bring back the
Parshendi’s gods. This terrified Eshonai, so she told her leaders, and they sent
out Szeth to kill Gavilar. The Rhythm of War prologue was Navani. Navani had a chat with
Gavilar, and he was very condescending and disrespectful to her. This new prologue for
book 5 is Gavilar. I have broken it down into 13 sections, starting with the Stormfather.
The chapter began with Gavilar and the Stormfather in a vision of Aharietiam,
which was the name given to the Last Desolation since they had thought that it was a glorious
victory. In truth, nine of the Herald’s abandoned their Honorblades and the Oathpact.
During this vision, Gavilar grabbed two blades. First, he grabbed Jezrien’s blade. Low and behold,
Szeth used Jezrien’s Honorblade to fight Gavilar later in this chapter.
The second Honorblade that Gavilar grabbed was that of the Herald named Chanaranach. Other than
an abbreviated version of her name being used twice as a swear and a temple of her name being
mentioned once, this is the first time that Chanaranach’s name has appeared in the text.
Later in the chapter, a Herald dies. So the fact that her name was mentioned for the first time
in this chapter suggests that she may have been the Herald that died. It’s also worth noting that
the Stormfather told Gavilar that Chanaranach had fiery red hair. Keep that on your radar
because we will get back to this at the end. Gavilar disrespectfully tossed Jezrien’s
Honorblade to the stone, and this annoyed the Stormfather as well as many readers.
We also got a look inside Gavilar’s head. Gavilar’s goal was to become immortal by
becoming a Herald. He thought to himself that he sometimes acted fake so that the Stormfather
would see him as pious and worthy. He also thought to himself that if the Stormfather
knew of Gavilar’s plan and of his heart, then the Stormfather would not be working with him. And if
all that wasn’t bad enough, Gavilar literally lied to the Stormfather, saying that a king’s
duty is to his people. But, in truth, Gavilar’s plans were about one person: himself. Therefore,
he kept saying words from the Way of Kings book, but none of them were correct. After all, it’s
about more than just the words. It’s about intent. The next section is a chat with Dalinar.
Dalinar barged into the room and told Gavilar that he wanted to know what Gavilar’s true intentions
were with the Parshendi. Dalinar feared that Gavilar had a secret plan to conquer the
Parshendi, and Dalinar did not want that since he liked the Parshendi and felt a kinship to them.
As a response, Gavilar reminded Dalinar of his wife Evi. And as a reminder, Dalinar
had accidentally killed Evi while experiencing the Thrill. So that was a low blow. And Gavilar
had done it intentionally. Gavilar had reminded Dalinar of his wife in hopes of Dalinar getting
drunk to forget about her. What a punk. It’s worth noting, however,
that Gavilar was scared of his brother Dalinar, and he had a reason to be.
After all, in the past, Dalinar had nearly snapped and killed Gavilar during a moment of Thrill.
When Dalinar left Gavilar, the Stormfather told Gavilar that Dalinar had potential that Gavilar
was not seeing. In hindsight, that is very cool because Dalinar eventually bonded the Stormfather.
The next person to show up and chat with Gavilar was Thaidakar.
As a reminder, Thaidakar was revealed to be the Lord of Scars in Rhythm of War.
So Thaidakar is actually Kelsier. But for the sake of this video, let’s refer to him as Thaidakar.
Thaidakar was not happy. He said that he had given Gavilar information, and Gavilar
was supposed to have delivered Restares to him. But instead of doing so, Gavilar had
begun to work with Restares. As a reminder, Restares is actually the Herald named Kalak.
So Thaidakar was not happy that Gavilar had not honored his side of their agreement.
When Thaidakar removed his hood, he was blue. Not like an Aimian or a Natan.
Thaidakar was glowing blue as if he was made of a white-blue light. And he was. Thaidakar
was not physically there. Since Thaidakar is actually Kelsier who is on another planet,
Kelsier used a Seon to form the shape of his avatar, including the spike in his eye. Very cool.
Gavilar asked Thaidakar if he knew the words that Gavilar must speak, but Thaidakar did not.
Thaidakar then transformed back into the Seon and told Gavilar once last time to deliver Restares
to him, or else. Thaidakar warned Gavilar that he would not like being his enemy. So that was
awesome. Kelsier was as confident as ever. After Thaidakar left, Gavilar thought about
Navani, and to his credit, he missed the days when they had schemed together and laughed together.
But Gavilar believed that the Stormfather had hinted that there was room for just
one new Herald. And Gavilar wanted to be that Herald. He didn’t tell Navani about his plans
because he didn’t know if he could trust her. The next two people to show up were
Restares and Nale. Restares is in a group
known as the Sons of Honor. And, as a reminder, Restares is the man whom Thaidakar is seeking.
Gavilar did not respect Restares, in fact, he was thinking about tossing Restares aside and
taking control of the Sons of Honor. On the other hand, Gavilar was immediately impressed by Nale.
Gavilar told them that the Knights Radiant vanished when the Voidbringers died, so
he wanted to bring the Voidbringers back in hopes of bringing back the radiant powers.
And that was sort of true. What Gavilar really wanted was for the Heralds to return
so that he could usurp one of their positions. Restares told Gavilar that bringing back the
Voidbringers was a bad idea. Gavilar countered by telling Restares that a man name Thaidakar
wants him, but Gavilar had protected him so far. Restares told Gavilar that Thaidakar
wants secrets such as the location of the unmade named Ba-Ado-Mishram.
Nale then grabbed Gavilar’s shoulder like a vice, and asked Gavilar what steps he had already taken.
Gavilar showed them Voidlight spheres, and Nale responded that Gavilar was a
fool. Restares got excited though that maybe Gavilar’s plan could work. They could bring
the Voidbringers back and destroy them. It’s also worth noting that, when Restares
got excited, he referred to Nale as “Nale.” The Stormfather had told Gavilar that the Herald’s had
all returned to fight on Damnation, but Gavilar noted that Nale did look like the depictions of
the Herald. And he had the same birthmark. So Gavilar began to wonder if they actually were
Heralds, especially Nale. And, if so, then he felt as if the Stormfather had lied to him.
Nale told Gavilar that his plan was far too dangerous, but that he understands that Gavilar
is king, and thus, Gavilar’s will is law in his land. Gavilar responded that that was true.
His will was the law. He even said that he himself, Gavilar, was the law. That line was great
because it relates directly to Nale’s Order of Knights Radiant.
The Skybreakers. The one that Szeth is part of. Gavilar told them that his experiments had worked.
That they were able to move Voidlight in Shadesmar between Roshar and Damnation. As a reminder,
Damnation is located on a nearby planet called Braize. So Gavilar was able to move light between
Roshar and Braize. That excited Restares since his ultimate goal was to leave Roshar.
But then Navani showed up. Before Restares and Nale left, they told Gavilar that another one
of them was there that night. And that they had spotted her handiwork. Restares clarified
that he was not referring to another member of the Sons of Honor, but rather,
another Herald. He may have been referring to Shalash since she was definitely at this feast.
Also, he said that he had spotted her handiwork. One thing that Shalash likes to do is to destroy
imagery of herself. In Szeth’s prologue, he had noticed the statues of the Heralds,
but one was missing. Shalash’s statue. So that may have been who and what Restares was talking about.
Shalash was also at the feast. And the handiwork that she did was the removal of her statue.
So Restares and Nale left, and Gavilar had a quick chat with Navani. He noticed how beautiful she
was, and once again, he thought about telling her his plan. But ultimately, he decided to keep it a
secret. And as we know from Navani’s prologue, Gavilar was very rude to her during this chat.
After Navani left, Gavilar made an appearance at the feast, and then slipped away to be by
himself again where he had another chat with the Stormfather. He asked the Stormfather why
Thaidakar would want Ba-Ado-Mishram. The Stormfather told Gavilar that Ba-Ado-Mishram
had risen up in an attempt to replace the Gods of the Voidbringers. She gave them forms, Voidlight,
and abilities so as to fight for themselves. But Ba-Ado-Mishram was not strong enough to uphold
an entire people, so it all came crashing down when the Radiants trapped Mishram in a gemstone
so as to prevent her from destroying all of Roshar. The side effect of that
event created the parshmen. Simple parshmen. The Stormfather told Gavilar that if Gavilar
took the position that he was offering him, then he would need someone to fight. To which
Gavilar said, “Give it to me. Now. I need it.” The Stormfather turned his shimmering head in
Gavilar’s direction, most likely, because he did not like Gavilar’s tone and his demand.
But Gavilar is a big dum dum, so Gavilar thought that he had almost found the words.
Gavilar noticed that the Stormfather seemed increasingly suspicious and thought that he
might trap the Stormfather in a gemstone just as Ba-Ado-Mishram had been trapped in one. Then,
Gavilar asked the Stormfather if he regretted choosing Gavilar, but the Stormfather
refused to answer and then he vanished. Gavilar asked the Stormfather to watch
the door and tell him if anyone else came to spy on him, to which the Stormfather responded that
he is not Gavilar’s errand boy. That they had no bond, and Gavilar was but his tool.
The next person to enter the room was Amaram who is also a member of the Sons of Honor.
Amaram entered with three men and two women. One of the men was one of Amaram’s lieutenants,
and he assumed that the other four would be new recruits for the Sons of Honor.
Gavilar told Amaram that his experiment was a success, and Amaram surprised Gavilar when
he commented that maybe they would control the Parshendi instead of eliminating them.
After his prior meeting with Restares, Gavilar had begun to worry that a schism in
the Sons of Honor was coming, and he wanted Amaram to be on his side. Unfortunately,
Gavilar’s daughter, Jasnah, had not shown an interest in marrying Amaram as Gavilar
had wanted. And Navani believed that Jasnah could do better than Amaram. And she’s right.
Gavilar could sense that Amaram hungered for the throne, and he thought to himself that
he might reward Amaram with the throne since his own son Elhokar did not deserve it.
Amaram went back to the others in the room, and Gavilar noticed one of the people standing alone.
Taravangian. The King of Kharbranth. A man who was famous for being dumb. Of course,
Taravangian is not always dumb. Sometimes, he is smart. And this day was one of those days.
Gavilar told Taravangian that the Desolation was near. The Everstorm. The Night of Sorrows. And,
to his surprise, Taravangian didn’t think that Gavilar sounded crazy.
Taravangian seemed to actually believe him. Taravangian went on to tell Gavilar that his
own mother had mentioned the same thing in her dying words. And Gavilar had heard of people’s
dying words being prophetic, so he dug it. Gavilar then said that the Almighty had
told him about the Desolation through visions. And for the first time in months,
he actually had a sincere feeling of hope that he might be the person to stop what was coming.
The Stormfather then notified Gavilar that Eshonai was approaching, and there was something about
her, so Gavilar asked the others to leave, and Gavilar had a private chat with Eshonai.
We know from Eshonai’s prologue that Gavilar gave her a sphere of Voidlight and told her to bring it
to the Parshendi leaders, known as the five. Gavilar thought that his conversation with
Eshonai had gone excellently, but that’s not what happened because
he didn’t actually listen to her. Eshonai’s people had abandoned their old gods for a reason.
So the idea of bringing back their Gods terrified her. She did not want their old gods back. As a
result, Eshonai went back to the five, and they told their new assassin, Szeth, to kill Gavilar.
After Eshonai left, Gavilar had another chat with the Stormfather. Once again,
he asked the Stormfather if he regretted choosing Gavilar. The Stormfather said that
he regrets the way he treated Gavilar. That he should not have been so accommodating because
it made Gavilar lazy. The Stormfather said that Gavilar does not consider with
reverence the position which he seeks, and that he feels that Gavilar is not the one he needs.
The Stormfather reminded Gavilar that between Returns, he would be tortured in Damnation.
That keeps the Voidbringers away until one of the Heralds cracks from the torture. The
Stormfather wondered why this didn’t bother Gavilar, and Gavilar told him the truth.
He had no plan on staying in Damnation. Gavilar’s plan was to always give up right away and return
to Roshar. He had no plan to stop the war. The Stormfather did not respond, and Gavilar
wondered if the Stormfather’s posture suggested that he was proud of Gavilar. But once again,
this was just Gavilar being a big dum dum. The Stormfather was not happy with Gavilar. Quite the
contrary. The Stormfather told Gavilar that he had miscalculated with him, and Gavilar freaked out,
slamming a cup down on the table, shattering it, and yelling: “What are the storming words!”
The Stormfather pointed out that it wasn’t what he was saying that was wrong, but …
The Stormfather never finished the sentence because of what happened next. A herald died,
which we will get to. But real quick, the Stormfather may have been about to tell Gavilar
that it’s not just about the words, but about the intent. And Gavilar’s intent was way off.
Alright. So the Stormfather never finished that sentence because he suddenly cried
out that one of the Heralds had died. And that Herald may have been Shallan’s mother.
Shallan has red hair. So did her mother. And so did the Herald named Chanaranach.
For some time, Stormlight fans have wondered if Shallan’s mother was the Herald
Chanaranach due to the red hair. And now, there is more ammo for that theory.
Gavilar died six years prior to Words of Radiance. Shallan’s mother also died six
years prior to Words of Radiance. So Gavilar and Shallan’s mother both died the same year.
Now, we know that a Herald died the same day as Gavilar. So, in theory, the Herald that
the Stormfather was referring to may have been Shallan’s mother. Very cool. But let’s continue.
When the Stormfather realized that a Herald had died, he sort of freaked out and stumbled
over his words, saying that he is not ready, the Oathpact, they mustn’t see, they mustn’t know...
The reason why the Stormfather began to ramble may have been because he was scared.
He had been working with Gavilar, but he had come to realize that Gavilar was the wrong guy.
That is why the Stormfather referred to himself as the biggest fool of them all.
The Thing that had miscalculated. He told Gavilar that this was a goodbye for he had seen a glimpse
of what was coming and he would not stop it. Sadeas busted into the room and notified Gavilar
of an assassin. Gavilar did not have his armor since one of his men was wearing it elsewhere.
Sadeas’s men brought him his own armor, and they put it on Gavilar as a trick.
Sadeas then put on Gavilar’s cloak and was ushered away from Szeth, hiding beneath a hood.
As we know from the Szeth prologue, Szeth fought Gavilar and brought him to his knees.
Szeth was about to leave the Shardbearer and run after the man whom he thought was the king,
but then Szeth realized that the Shardbearer whom he had been fighting
was skilled. And it was said that few men could rival Gavilar Kholin’s swordsmanship. So Szeth
realized that the man who ran away in the king’s cloak was just a trick. Therefore,
he stayed and fought the Shardbearer who turned out to be Gavilar. Szeth defeated
Gavilar in an awesome fight that ended with that badass balcony scene from The Way of Kings.
On the ground, Gavilar assumed that the assassin had been sent by Thaidakar. But, once again,
Gavilar was wrong. Szeth had been sent to kill him by the Parshendi. Here’s how that went down.
Gavilar’s daughter, Jasnah, had been in contact with an assassin called Liss
because Jasnah had been thinking about having Liss kill her brother Elhokar’s wife.
Jasnah decided not to do this. Instead, she told Liss to keep an eye on Elhokar’s wife.
During that conversation, Liss told Jasnah that her Shin servant had been storming creepy,
so she had sold him to a slaver a few weeks prior. Low and behold, Nale had told Venli about Szeth.
Venli told Klade. And Klade purchased Szeth. So, when Eshonai told the ruling
council of the Parshendi about Gavilar’s plans, they pulled an audible. They
dressed Szeth up in white, as is a Parshendi tradition, and sent him off to kill Gavilar.
That brings us to the ending. Before Gavilar died, Gavilar worried about his family.
He realized that they would need a warrior, but his son Elhokar could not handle what was to come.
So he told Szeth to tell his brother that he must find the most important words a man can say.
Then, he pulled out the sphere with anti-Voidlight and told the Stormfather to take it, saying that
“they” must not get it without specifying who he meant by “they.” This was interesting because
Szeth certainly didn’t realize that Gavilar had been speaking to the Stormfather. And there’s a
chance that Gavilar simply misinterpreted Szeth’s own glow as the Stormfather being behind Szeth.
Regardless, Szeth grabbed the anti-Voidlight sphere, and the Stormfather responded by saying
that he would never trust Gavilar’s family again, which adds a lot of color to the relationship arc
between Dalinar and the Stormfather. Very cool. Gavilar realized that he had failed. That he
had brought them all to ruin. He realized with horror that that would be his legacy.
And in the end, Gavilar Kholin, heir to the Heralds, died as all men ultimately must. Alone.
But, luckily for him, that was not his legacy. He did not get remembered as the failure that he was.
And who does he owe that to? Navani. Quote: Although a part of her had grown to hate Gavilar,
she didn’t truly want him dead. Did she? No. No, this was not how it should have ended.
And so she felt another emotion. Pity. Lying there, blood pooling on the tabletop around him,
Gavilar Kholin’s corpse seemed the ultimate insult to his grand plans. He thought he was eternal,
did he? He thought to reach for some grand vision, too important to share with her? Well,
the Father of Storms and the Mother of the World ignored the desires of men, no matter how grand.
What she didn’t feel was grief. His death was meaningful, but it didn’t mean anything to her.
Other than perhaps a way for her children to never have to learn
what he’d become. I will be the better person, Gavilar, she thought, closing his eyes.
For what you once were, I’ll let the world pretend. I’ll give you your legacy.