#Sergei Beznikov

[doyouknowthis-grishaverse]

Sergei is a heartrender in the Second Army and the boyfriend of Marie, he remains at the Little Palace during Siege and Storm and travels with Alina and the others in Ruin and Rising

[aleksanderscult]

I think i remember leigh writing something along the lines of that 'wanted best for his people and he was a tyrant' etc, basically a nuanced view. Do you have it? I don't remember where it was.

I think you mean this, right?

It's from her acknowledgements on "Demon in the Wood" (graphic novel). If this is not what you mean, tell me.

She always gives a very nuanced characterization about him which makes me mad because I don't understand her point of view for him at all. It only confuses me more.

"I want the readers to make their assumptions about him. I don't want to affect their view of him". Look. If you give your own opinion of him which will consist of ten pages then it's going to be the reader's problem if they want to "adopt" your view or not. Also, your readers are not stupid. They can distinguish their own assumptions FROM your own opinion. And if they can't, then they're not fit to read books and complicated characters. It's called critical thinking. You take an opinion, read it, see if it makes sense with the canon we have from him and make your judgement. Easy peasy.

Now about that note. I agree that Aleksander isn't purely a hero or a villain. He sees himself as the hero while Alina and the others see him as the villain. We, the readers, mostly see him as something in-between and, at the same time, something entirely different. A human that has lived for too long and as a result of his immortality and tragic events he has reached a point of desperation that make him act relentlessly against the corrupt monarchy and in favor of a persecuted group of people and a country that he has lived and loved for almost all of his life.

Therefore, his characterization is (I believe) something more than the archetype of "good hero" and "bad villain".

Is he a survivor? Yup. In all the meaning of the word.

Does he want safety for his people? Isn't that why he didn't give up on life already? It was the ambition that drove him the most and kept his heart beating.

Is he a tyrant? I think that term needs to be studied. Back in Ancient Greece this word had different meanings.

1) A ruler who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. The Darkling did that (good for him).

2) A person who rules without law, using extreme and cruel methods against both his own people and others. If Leigh means that then I'll have to disagree. First of all, we didn't see enough of the Darkling's rule to know if he was that cruel (unless she knows something we don't). And even from what we saw, it seems the word doesn't apply to him. He was sitting on the throne and listening to reports, signing paperwork, making an alliance with his enemy to feed his army. So where it the "cruel methods against both his own people and others" came from? He didn't have a beef with otkazat'sya that lived in Ravka and he certainly didn't want to hurt his own Grisha (unless they committed treason). So Leigh just threw that word in like it was nothing.

And, lastly, he brutalizes and exploits those who trust him most.

Brutalizes. Hmm....

Genya: she committed treason so he punished her.

Sergei: he committed treason so he punished him.

Baghra: committed treason so he punished her (and very lightly actually).

Yeah.. right...umm. Look. If he had attacked them or killed them for literally no reason then I would say "Yes, he brutalized them". But there was always a reason for his actions against them. He didn't see Genya on board and said "I'm bored. Gonna ruin your face 'cause I've got nothing else to do".

And he exploits them.

To exploit someone is this:

If my memory serves me correct, his soldiers (his Grisha) knew what they were serving him for. And he didn't use them for something completely selfish like "gaining power for myself because I like it" but he needed power to make Ravka better. So he didn't do it for selfish reasons.

The one instance where the term "exploit" may apply is when he gave Genya to the Grand Palace knowing what a pervert the King was. But then again, wasn't the Queen's responsibility to keep her safe?

[robinlmaoo]

YOUVE BEEN HIT BY

YOUVE BEEN STRUCK BY

i have no rizz so let’s just get this done and over with

enjoy seeing my (and maybe your) blorbos claw each other to the death I guess

RULES

(friendly non toxic) propaganda allowed

no nsfw stuff of any kind in my inbox

no hate towards any character

[robins-favourites-tourney]

[ravka-bracket]

Round 1B: Tamar vs Sergei

[the-lonewriter]

The night like skylights

@sophierequests, this is for you <3

Later, Sergei thinks of it in fractures, like shattered glass. As if in a muddled flashback, he’d held Vasily in his arms, skin to skin in a warm embrace, a closeness unlike anything else in this world. It fades into the scene of his funeral, standing rigid as a statue while holding back the tears pouring into his eyes, cascading down his cheeks like a flash flood – sweeping away everything in its destructive path.

Later, Sergei thinks of it in fractures, like shattered glass. As if in a muddled flashback, he’d held Vasily in his arms, skin to skin in a warm embrace, a closeness unlike anything else in this world. It fades into the scene of his funeral, standing rigid as a statue while holding back the tears pouring into his eyes, cascading down his cheeks like a flash flood – sweeping away everything in its destructive path.

Goodbye my love. I will see you soon. On the other side. In the next life. Wherever you want us to meet.

This is how this story ends. In misery, heartbreak and grief. 

Are you sure you want to hear about it? 

In spite of the violent conclusion, it was a lifetime of love. Desire. Wanting and needing and getting. Planning a life together, far away from it all. Floating away from the crushing pressure that rested on their shoulders.

Tears of joy. Smiles. Vasily’s love was like sugar, candid and beautifully addictive.

So buckle up for the ride that's life. For the country that’s Ravka. Unforgiving and taking and never giving anything back. An adventure. A lesson in loving and being loved and never giving up despite every odds.

When all was said and done, Sergei had always keyed in to the things that mattered.

Vasily Alexandrovich Lantsov.

His best mistake. 

-

Caryeva was not yet stifling with heat at this time of the year but Sergei could feel the warm air dragging on his tee shirt as he got out of his car. He shouldn't have come here. After Vasily's death things had blurred together. The estate was his now.

He'd rather have his fiancé in his arms than this fucking pompous mansion, he thought, over and over. It made no sense to dwell on loss, and yet Sergei found himself mulling over it at every opportunity. If he had known four years ago that falling for the elder Lantsov prince would lead up to this tragedy, would he have done it anyway? Would he have indulged in all the sweet kisses? In the touches and secret meetings? Would he have said yes when Vasily had asked for his hand in matrimony?

He took a tentative step forward; the gravel cracking underneath the soles of his sneakers. He'd been here once – before he'd known of his dead lover's grand plan to make this house their own. A horse farm. Far away from the dramas of Os Alta. The calm after the storm. 

His legs carried him to the stables on their own. Muscle memory. It was flesh and blood now after half a decade of loving a horseman. There were nickers greeting him, twenty-four curious ears of Vasily's finest race horses turning their heads towards him with their muzzles stretched out from their stalls.

He only had eyes for one.

"Dag?"

He whispered. The stallion lifted his fine head immediately. For a moment, they just stared at each other, blues lost in brown, so much pain lingering in both their souls. Vasily had told him he had saved Dagrenner from abuse when he'd just been a colt. The horse had always been fierce but he'd discovered his love for racing, his gentle nature. 

His hand worked mechanically as he pulled the bolt back to unlock the stall, treading on a mix of soft straw, hay and sawdust.

Only the best for my babies, Vasily's voice echoed in his ears.

Dagrenner scrutinized him as he stretched out his palm, canting his head before ever so carefully sniffing his hand with his velvety nostrils. The tears in his eyes stung the longer he thought about what that gesture meant. He was looking for traces of Vasily’s scent on him. His cologne – still on the bathroom sink at the Grand Palace. Neither he nor Nikolai had had the heart to clean out his room yet.

"I brought you something, Dag."

The horse licked at his fingers as if he understood and Sergei had to suppress a sob. Everything here reminded him of Vasily. He shouldn't have come here.

The urge to come to a closure had been stronger.

If he ever could.

-

"Why do you love me?"

Sergei stares at him as if he’s just questioned him about a particularly difficult aspect of rocket science and alternative fuels. He swallows, his throat parched, dry as a rose well past its prime.

“Because.”

Vasily's laughter, thick and sweet as honey. If he closes his eyes, he can pretend he just ascended to heaven.

“Because?”

His fingers card through the prince's blonde locks, soft and still slightly wet from the shower. The king size bed in his room in the Grand Palace is big enough for both of them and yet Sergei hovers over his boyfriend, straddling him.

“Because you are you. And I wouldn’t want anything else but that.”

Vasily seems to ponder it for a moment but his thoughts are quickly discarded as his guard begins tracing kisses down his neck and he just…

Starts falling into unimaginable bliss.

You are my prince. My king. My forever.

-

Maybe if he could go back to the night he first met Vasily, he wouldn’t have gotten into his Mercedes. Maybe if he hadn’t driven like an idiot, if he had actually paid attention to the road, Marie would still be here. Maybe the tides would have turned and Vasily would be here, too. 

Maybe if he could return to all those moments, maybe then he could tell himself what the hell he was supposed to do now.

He had lost the love of his life twice in the span of six years. For the past five he’d actually thought he’d found peace with the crown prince. The offer for the guard post had been too lucrative to turn down and he’d needed the money after his parents had kicked him out. They still blamed him for Marie’s death. The poor girl. Wherever she was now. Maybe even talking to Vasily about how stupid he was. Sharing stories. Sharing memories. Fleeting kisses. Gentle touches. 

Dagrenner hadn't stirred once since Sergei had wrapped his arms around his muscular neck a while ago, breathing in the distinctive smell of Vasily's shampoo - someone must have washed his fur with it. Had he left a bottle here before he died?

Another breath. So slow. Dragging. How unfair it all was, to be still here after everything. Alone once more. All he had left of his love was his horse. His beloved, kindled horse. 

Vasily must have known something horrible was about to happen to him, otherwise he wouldn't be standing here after reading his goodbye letter with a bank account fuller than it had ever been and an entire stable and house at his disposal. They’d never talked about the possibility of his death until he’d been in the ICU, deathly sick, barely clinging to life fighting the deadly sepsis cursing through his veins after having his lungs torn to pieces by an assassin’s bullet.

They’d talked about it then, or as much as Vasily had been able to and Sergei had cried. Day and night. Those weeks had been the worst of his life and the only thing that kept him going had been the small flicker of a chance his lover had had. All lost. Lost to a traffic jam and a missed dose of a drug.

A future sacrificed to an internal bleeding. 27. He’d been 27. Now he’d be 28. 

An odd thought.

-

Sergei takes the keys. A black horse dangles from the chain. He doesn't look back once. This journey is over. He can’t stay here, not when everything reminds him of Vasily and he had kissed his forehead during his funeral on live television. His fiancé. Once and for all. Nikolai has offered him a commission somewhere outside the city, a quiet desk job. He declined.

This is over. It all ends here. With Vasily’s life.

-

He’d promised to take care of Dagrenner after Vasily had asked him to during a delirious episode in the hospital, with his fever so high they’d thought he’d break a record. They’d both been crying and Sergei would have agreed to anything in that very moment because Vasily has never been more vulnerable around him. It had seemed like he had dropped the mask of the arrogant crown prince for all and everything that remained was a scared boy, afraid to die at that very moment.

“Vasya would have wanted you to have it.”

Sergei fastened the emerald ring to his halter. It glinted in the lowlights of the sun. Somewhere he could hear the faint whinny of another horse.

He was home. He was lost. 

-

Ketterdam is something else, Sergei thinks as he glances down at the glittering nightlights of the city in sheer wonder. A trip to Kerch has been his dream since he’s been but a little boy and nothing else had his boyfriend gifted him. Luxury and bottle after bottle of wine later, so much he would have never been able to afford, they shared the privacy of standing on top of one of the highest buildings hand in hand; bathing in the  magic of the moment.

This is life. Just the two of them. Free from destiny. 

"Do you want to marry me?"

Sergei gasps, taking a step back in shock as Vasily kneels in front of him, a tiny box in hands with a ring inside. An Emerald. The gemstone of the royal family. Tears break his vision. 

"Yes. Yes, I want to marry you, Vasya."

-

Dagrenner had never been calmer under the saddle, walking through the blooming fields of poppy surrounding them. The vast landscape of Novyi Zem was a sight to behold but Sergei couldn't find it in him to focus on it. His thoughts were a mess of scrambled ideas, heartache, longing. Loving was a burden and a blessing all the same, he’d learned. 

After all those years, he still found himself astray in the Ravka. He had left the country months ago, finally making good on the promise to travel the world and he somehow ended up at the other end of it. It was an escape. Fleeing from whatever there was to run from. It was lonely but not. Free but not.  Nothing was ever enough to conquer the unyielding emptiness inside of him.

The sun was rising slowly, ascending from the carved curves of hills in the distance. A surreal view and yet he couldn’t help but feel mesmerized by the blur of purple and orange. A mess of colors, a vision of the future. Bright but hazy. Dark as the night sky with streaks of sunlight breaking through.

"In the next life, we'll do it all together."

He stroked the stallion’s silky black mane, longer now than Vasily would have ever let it grow but times changed. Seasons passed. He’s been dead for almost half a year now. His voice grew all soft, placid, quiet, recalling the funeral. His last kiss. His promise. In the next life. Not now. Ever?

Sergei’s gaze traced over the blossoms. Cherry red. Blood like. A sea of scarlet so far he was sure it could almost fit the valley of his tears he’d shed since it happened. 

Hope is dangerous.

He’d hoped and begged and prayed and now that it was all over, what had it been for?

They’d done everything the doctors said, had tried every drug and miracle treatment and it hadn’t even mattered in the end. But it was okay. It got to be okay. He knew. He knew because- 

Someday he would be with him. Forever. Nothing could part them again. 

"You, me and Vasily."

Many thanks to @camilleisback and @udovaintomyheart for beta reading this angst fest <3

[imheredisappointingmyparents]

My opinion on Leigh Bardugo's character's names as Eastern European:

- Alina Starkov - 8/10, it'd be believable if it was StarkovA and it doesn't make sense her grandpa to be named Stark but ok ig.

- Malyan Oretsev - 0/10, Malyan literally means small, nobody would name their kid this way.

- Genya Safin - 0/10, I absolutely despise it. Genya is nick name for Genadiy which is strictly masc name. I think it should be ZHenya SafinA. Zhenya is neutral (nick)name used for Evgeniy/Evgeni(y)a.

- Nikolai Lantsov - 6/10, the name is translatinized either Nikolay, or Nikolaĭ, other wise it sounds bad. I'm also not fan of the name Lantsov because it comes from the word lantsi what we call golden necklaces shaped like chains.

- Alexander Morozova - 9/10, absolutely believable name if it wasn't the 'a' I learned exists.

- Eryk - 0/10 The name is stupid. It is not typical name esp. for that long ago and transcyrillized it's Ерйк which is unpronouncable.

- Zoya Nazyalensky - 9/10 it should be Nazyalenska.

- Tolya Yul-Bataar - 9.5/10 his father is supposed to be from Shu-Han which is like the version for Mongolia there so the first name is a bit questionable

- Tamar Kir-Bataar - 8.5/10 The same with Toya plus the name is usually Tamara

- David Kostyk - 5/10 cuz the first name is logical but the last name is transcyrillized Костйк which is unpronounceable

- Nadia Zhabin - 4/10 The name is Nadya, not Nadia, it sounds weird. Plus I doubt someone would name their 'from a frog', 'granddaughter of a frog' or 'the one who takes care of frogs' because zhaba means frog. Also it should be ZhabinA.

- Adrik Zhabin - 7/10 Adrik is weird name but it's pronounceable

- Dunyasha Latzareeva - 9.5/10 I think the last name is supposed to be Lazareeva or Lazarova.

- Vasiliy Lantsov - 8/10 because of the weird last name

- Tatiana Lantsov - 2/10 because the name is Tatyana not Tatiana, it sounds weird. And the last name is weird plus it should be LantsovA. She is also to be supposed to be from Fjerda that seems a bit like the equivalent of Sweden and I don't think the name makes sense.

- Ludmila Lantsov - 4/10 it should be LYUdmila LantsovA

- Sergei Beznikov - 3/10 The name is Sergey or Sergeĭ. Also Beznikov is not really nice name cuz the pronunciation is weird.

- Marie - 7/10 The name is almost always Mariya (or Maria, depends on the translatinization the country chose) and it can't be justified as nick name or shorten version because the right one is either Masha or Mimi.

- Yevgeniy Lantsov - 0/10 I've got to add this because I'm tired of western people adding Y in front of E in names like Evgeniy, Elena and etc.

- Ilya Morozova - 9/10 It should be Morozov.

- Baghra - 0/10 The transcyrilizaion is unpronounceable. And if she wanted to name her something like this she could've used Bagra which literally means colour.

Ms. Bardugo has 110/210 from me.

I still wish I never saw how the names were in the original and we can still ask for more the Western authors and media.

[glitter50000]

For the Ask Game - Sergei Beznikov

002 | Give me a character & I will tell you

How I feel about this character: oof… (that’s really it cause damn..)

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Marie cause they were a couple in the books and also how distraught he was after she died

My non-romantic OTP for this character: No one really

My unpopular opinion about this character: though selfish, he did what he thought he had to do and I can’t really blame him (also he wasn’t really wrong in questioning Alina’s authority in that moment in s&s but he was an asshole about it as well)

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: That Marie didn’t die or that he didn’t die in that way, that he hadn’t told the darkling everything, or that he healed perhaps

my OTP: I would say Marie/Sergei

my cross over ship: don’t have one

a headcanon fact: I don’t know I don’t really have one

[stromuprisahat]

Siege and Storm- Chapter 22 (Leigh Bardugo)

The tragedy of incompetent leadership:

We can make a run… No viable strategy. Suggesting to leave temporary hideaway to try to outrun corporeal shadows out in the open among civilians.

We'd known… we'd assumed… Inability to take responsibility for decisions made. Alina prefers to remain in comfort of plural, where the blame can be spread among all the generals.

... we’d assumed we’d have greater numbers, and the hope of reinforcements... Further plans consisting of bringing more canon fodder.

“He’s coming.” … “He’ll kill us all.” ... “If we’re lucky.” I understand this is likely their first action and the attack was lead to be as brutal as possible for this purpose exactly, but it's among leader's many tasks to keep their subordinates' morale above negative numbers.

It wasn’t the most helpful thing to say... thinks the person, who's job is to intervene in such cases, but Alina rather prepares to die. Again...

I’d seen the truth of how the Darkling dealt with traitors ... As if another era-appropriate general would act differently, should he have to deal with traitors (sans plot armour).

[flippityflaps]

None of this had been prophesied or sponsored. No prophecy spoke of a demon king, dragon queen, one-eyed Tailor, or hartrendes twins. They were just the people who had stood up and managed to survive.

But maybe that was the secret: survive, dare to stay alive, lose all hope and still forge their own. "To the survivors, then" Zoya said to herself as they all knelt before her and chanted her name. "And for the lost."

[hauntedsuns]

forever haunted and emotionally unwell at Sergei's and Stigg's Deaths

They most likely grew up in the Little Palace, the Safe Haven for all Grisha, the only safe place for Grisha in the whole World and thats what makes their Deaths hit.

Sergei betrayed Alina for Safety, because he couldn't see anything but Marie's ripped open Body in his arms. She died in the Little Palace. Her Safe Haven. HIS Safe Haven. He wasn't safe there anymore, he wasnt safe anywhere, there was threats and blood and war everywhere and the only home he ever had on this big earth was the grave of his beloved. Sergei payed with his Life for what the Darkling had said he wanted to give all Grisha: Safety.

Stigg's worst fear throughout the whole Journey was that he wasnt important enough to them to he saved, that they would abandon him under the rocks in the cave, when he and sergei got burried. Stigg had accepted Death right there, because even though the Grisha's biggest Rule seemed to be to care and protect each other, now that the Little Palace' Sanctuary had be violated, why should they save him? would they abandon him? and they did they abandoned him at the Spinning Wheel. They left him behind, hell the only one to care was Alina, because of the guilt from his accusations, his true accusations.

Sergei had no safe Place in this World and Stigg had no one to care for him.

They died due to things, that everyone who lived at the little Palace thought they never had to fear again.

[lilisouless]

Okay, I will end up my self promo phase by posting the link to the chapters of the fic, i will try to copy the format other users…use , for theirs

Érase una vez en Ravka, Chapter 1: Sólo una dibujante by Nosoulcrow

Summary: Alina Starkova no había pedido ser la salvadora de un mundo de gente loca que piensa que está en un mundo de fantasía, pero parece que la vida no tiene la intención de darle opciones cuando termina varada en el pueblo de Storybrook.

O

Un au basado en la serie “Once Upon a Time” de ABC

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories:Gen , Multi

Words: 43,049 , Chapters: 11/? Language: Spanish

Fandoms: Shadow and Bone (TV), The Grisha Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo, The Language of Thorns - Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, Nikolai Series - Leigh Bardugo

Relationships: Mal Oretsev/Alina StarkovThe Darkling | Aleksander Morozova & Alina StarkovMal Oretsev & Ulla (The Language of Thorns) (more will be added soon)

Characters:

Alina Starkov, Mal Oretsev, Genya Safin, Kaz Brekker ,Zoya Nazyalensky,Hanne Brum,Nadia Zhabin,Marie (The Grisha Trilogy),Sergei Beznikov,Colm Fahey,Paja (The Grisha Trilogy),The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova,Sankta Neyar | Ohval Saran,Ulla (The Language of Thorns),Roffe (The Language of Thorns),Baghra (The Grisha Trilogy),Koja (The Language of Thorns),Jan Van Eck,Alys Van Eck,Emil Kirigin,Nina Zenik,Ivan (The Grisha Trilogy),Fruzsi (Shadow and Bone TV),Yuri Vedenen (more will be added soon)

Additional Tags:

Alternate Universe - Once Upon a Time Fusion,Alternate Universe - Fantasy,Other Additional Tags to Be Added,Tags se agregan conforme avanza la historia,Snarky Alina Starkov,Grumpy Alina Starkov,Childhood Friends,Memory Alteration,Artist Alina Starkov,Zoya Nazyalensky is Bad at Feelings,Kaz Brekker is a Little Shit,Kaz & Zoya hostility,One sided Alina-Kaz beef,Relationship tags will change,Alina meeting Sankta Neyar,Mal meeting Ulla,Gaslighting (sort of),Alina Starkov Needs a Hug,Minor Hanne Brum | Ilya Grimjer/Nina Zenik,Minor Sergei Beznikov/Marie,The darkling & Mal hostility,Jealous Alina Starkov,Jelaous Mal Oretsev,Kaz Brekker has a heart,Alina Starkov being manipulated,Minor Ivan/Fedyor Kaminsky,Past Kaz Brekker / Imogen (more will be added soon)

And some images I found on Pinterest as a visual summary (not a moodboard cause I got antsy about image rights, so i included user in screenshot.

[dreamsatdusk]

Command and Strategy of the Second Army, Post-Shadow and Bone

I had grand plans of getting more meta written over a recent weekend, but between major fatigue and so on, it didn’t happen.  I did get some more reread done and thus, meta prep notes on several topics.  Most are for longer posts (or a series of them in one case).  But I’ve found myself musing on the Second Army’s situation in book 2+3, strength in numbers and other related details.

It’s definitely more musing than anything, as I’m not looking up specific details and what is most fresh in mind is the middle third-ish of Siege and Storm.  Some things below may have a concrete answer in some book or another - and I would be happy to hear if so!  But for now, to ramble:
 Alina returns to Os Alta in this segment and with the help of NIkolai’s input, is granted temporary command of the Second Army.  On page, this mostly manifests as her involvement with the Grisha still at the Little Palace.  And that number is much reduced over what it was some months prior:  there and elsewhere, many Grisha went into hiding or joined the Darkling.  Many of those who stayed behind are of the younger set - in their late teens and early twenties for those where their age is roughly known.  (The group that Fedyor brought with him to join Alina has probably got some older Grisha in it, as the group was one that had been stationed at a southern border outpost and Fedyor himself seems to be more experienced too.)

When Alina first arrives back at the Little Palace to announce her command, the following exchange occurs:

Sergei cleared his throat.  “Alina, you are the Sun Summoner, and we’re grateful for your safe return, but you aren’t qualified to run a military campaign.”

“Qualified or not, I have the King’s blessing.”

And Sergei was in fact totally correct.  Alina was not qualified to be in command of the Second Army.  And by the end of the book, if I recall right, the only surviving members of it that were at the Little Palace during her tenure as commander are:  Sergei, Stigg, Harshaw, Nadia, Zoya, David, and Alina herself, plus the students (Adrik is technically in this subset, though he left with Alina’s group rather than go to Keramzin).  At a dinner soon after Alina assumes command, she surveys the tables:  “I made a silent count—forty Grisha, maybe fifty, most of them barely out of school”.

I would also suspect there could have been other Grisha in Os Alta that didn’t happen to be at dinner at the Little Palace when the Darkling’s forces attacked the city that could have gotten away.  But still.

Furthermore, there’s little more than cursory attention shown in the book to the idea of an actual military campaign.  Alina spends much of her time on page attending meetings, talking with people about other topics, angsting about Mal, and so forth.  It’s true they do not know where the Darkling’s group is, but still, they make frequent references to assuming it could be comprised of many experienced Grisha, on top of having the Darkling’s capabilities and the nichevo’ya.  There is a lot of talk about what to do about the Darkling, but not the overall rebel faction of the Second Army that I recall.  

Alina as commander of the Second Army reads as pretty disastrous, though that isn’t really dwelled upon at all in the text.

Mind you, this is not the same as saying some other person in charge would have automatically done better.  They may not have, especially if the choice were just from among those Grisha at the Little Palace.  What sort of training and experience did those who were there have?  The Second Army must have had a command structure, as an independent entity from the First Army.  But I don’t recall we get much, if any, mention of what it might have been in the books.  We know that at coming of age, some Grisha immediately join ‘the troops’ so to speak, and some of them are selected for advanced studies first, one of which is explicitly stated to be ‘military strategy’.

We know the group remaining at the Little Palace was stated to be a ‘young group’.  Serigei’s situation sheds a bit of additional light on this too I think.  He demonstrates a bit of ‘take charge’ approach when Alina arrives, and while this doesn’t get him anywhere in the context of who’s going to be in command, the scene does read overall like he HAD been helping run things previously.  Furthermore, a bit later on, Alina remarks on Sergei having been the one to have “tried to manage some of the Darkling’s duties, but much of the work had simply gone unattended”.  

How young was Sergei himself? I suspect he was around Marie and Nadia’s age, though perhaps a little older.  It’s not just that he and Marie began to date, but more some of their interactions in Shadow and Bone.  He came across as having a similar maturity level and not being a more experienced adult. Also, it’s possible he was there as an advanced studies student too, like Marie and Nadia. Zoya is another one to consider:  she said she spoke for the Summoners during that encounter and we know she’s 18 or so at this point.  

I don’t know that we ever get any numbers overall for the number of Grisha in the Second Army at the time of Shadow and Bone.  They do seem very widely distributed though - at outposts, serving with noble families, stationed at the Shadow Fold, etc.  How many were neither at the Little Palace nor with the Darkling/in hiding in Siege and Storm? Was there no one with more command experience who could have been recalled to Os Alta to support Alina (or be the one actually in charge, with Alina as a figurehead)?  Was this even considered?  

Again, if the Darkling was believed to have significant numbers of Grisha with him, the fact that the strategies seemed so focused on how to fight he and the nichevo’ya is an immense failure to plan.  To not account for the capabilities of talented Heartrenders, Summoners, etc., could have meant disaster even without the Darkling’s abilities.  Add in that the Darkling could pull of things only Alina could effectively counter?  

I’m continuing on with the reread and will note down if I find any further relevant details, but so far, what I’ve found aligns with the above and what I recall from past readings.

Outside the narrative, there is some explanation for all of this.  This isn’t a military fantasy, it’s a YA trilogy. The focuses between the two are very different - this is supposed to be about Alina’s personal journey so to speak.  That said, as someone who liked reading military fantasy, amongst other things, even when I was in the target age bracket, I think I’d have been annoyed about some of this even then.  The situation is such a mess, but more than that, it’s never much examined in the story as part of the MC’s arc. It’s just…a thing that happened?

[ravka-bracket]

ROUND 1B

Alina Starkov vs Marie

Luda vs Alexei Stepanov

Botkin Yul-Erdene vs Fedyor Kaminsky

Genya Safin vs Adrik Zhabin

Vasily Lantsov vs Nadia Zhabin

Tamar Kir-Bataar vs Sergei Beznikov

Harshaw vs Oncat

Nikolai Lantsov vs Isaak Andreyev

Round 1A is wrapped up. Round 2A will start Sunday night eastern time

[the-lonewriter]

Heavy is the head - pinterest board

that feeling when your boyfriend is a crown prince with a father that hates him for being gay and then he ends up bleeding out in the arms of his brother and you didn't even get to properly say goodbye

@sophierequests