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The mystery of the missing Rlain


Necessary Eagle

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I asked this on Reddit, but no one had an actual answer for me, so I'll try here.

In OB, people noticed that Rlain was oddly absent from the second half; the beta readers confirmed that Brandon did it on purpose. Most people assumed, from that comment, that he was off on a mission, possibly spying on the Singers or trying to find the remaining Listeners. Well, RoW has come and gone, and it seems neither of those things is true. Rlain had no idea there were any Listeners left, and his Singer spy arc was this book. So... am I missing something? What was he up to offscreen in OB?

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So from memory Rlain appears in the chapter in Part 2 where all of Bridge 4 “get” their Spren. Renarin turns up and they sit together. 
 

now Renarin ALSO doesn’t reappear until Part 5. So my headcannon is the two of them sat on the plains waiting for a Spren to choose Rlain. Finally Part 5 started and Renarin said “this is awkward I’ve gotta go” and left Rlain on the Plains. 
 

When Kaladin returns to the tower in Part 1 of RoW they remember he exists and go get him from the plains. 
 

 

In all honesty I think we are supposed to assume he trained with Bridge 4 watched Rock get attacked and then came to help out in Thaylenah. 

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Okay, I found the WoB...

Quote

Doomquill

Frustrated with the editing/beta readers for not noticing Brandon leaving out a character.

The character I'm talking about is Rlain. An entire part of the book was spent with every single member of Bridge Four talking about how Rlain wasn't really a part of things, and even more so Rlain himself in his POV chapter. And then nothing! We get a conclusion to the whole buildup of Bridge Four, but Rlain is nowhere mentioned in the last half of the book. Nevermind that we've all spent an entire book (and the three years since WoR) wondering if Rlain will become a squire, and nevermind that we get an answer to whether a Parshman can become Radiant in the first place. We just get nothing! No resolution.

Peter Ahlstrom

Everyone noticed this. I noticed it even before the beta read started. Brandon was well aware, and this was all intentional. I'll bet you can think of some reasons for it.

General Reddit 2018 (Jan. 9, 2018)

...and sorry, Peter, but you lose that bet. At least with regards to me.

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I assumed that his absence was a big ol’ flag of foreshadowing what we got confirmed in part 1 of RoW: no spren wanted him. His outsider status was brought up in OB and his being left out of the story was likely a harbinger of the fact that we was, indeed, left out of Bridge 4 from then on out for the most part. Their journeys diverged. 
 

we see Rlain’s work in RoW and realize just how far from the action he had flown, and still how little Kaladin understood his feelings, which I think was meant to make us feel for him all the more when the Tower was invaded and he was accepted by neither the invaded or the invaders. I’m glad renarin remembered him in the end with an “enlightened” truthwatcher spren. He deserves it.

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I actually have a theory about this. I think Rlain is a ghostblood. 

Primary evidence, Shallan informs Mraize that Sja-Anat agreed to send one of her children to inspect the ghostblood at Urithiru to find a worthy bond mate without guaranteeing that it would be Mraize. 

We learned in Row that one of the traitorous Sleepless was working with the ghostbloods. 

Later in the book we find out that the corrupted Mistspren that bonds with Rlain was voidspren that had been hiding in a cremling. 

Also, when Rlain is talking about staying at Urithiru instead of joining Venli's group he mentions that he was an outsider to both the Humans and the Singers, so he it was natural for him to create a bridge and that he's been a spy. 

I only have the audio book (my pre-ordered copy hasn't come yet), but that passage is particularly interesting how he phrases it, if anyone who has the ebook could look that part up and post it I'd be much obliged. 

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1 hour ago, Ookla the Mok Turtle Soup said:

I actually have a theory about this. I think Rlain is a ghostblood. 

Primary evidence, Shallan informs Mraize that Sja-Anat agreed to send one of her children to inspect the ghostblood at Urithiru to find a worthy bond mate without guaranteeing that it would be Mraize. 

We learned in Row that one of the traitorous Sleepless was working with the ghostbloods. 

Later in the book we find out that the corrupted Mistspren that bonds with Rlain was voidspren that had been hiding in a cremling. 

Also, when Rlain is talking about staying at Urithiru instead of joining Venli's group he mentions that he was an outsider to both the Humans and the Singers, so he it was natural for him to create a bridge and that he's been a spy. 

I only have the audio book (my pre-ordered copy hasn't come yet), but that passage is particularly interesting how he phrases it, if anyone who has the ebook could look that part up and post it I'd be much obliged. 

Interesting. BTW, we actually saw that Sleepless briefly in WoR. Well, heard. He’s the one who brings Shallan’s pictures to Master Thaidakar. The way his voice is described is very similar to how other Sleepless voices have been described. 

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On 11/26/2020 at 8:49 PM, Xerun said:

So from memory Rlain appears in the chapter in Part 2 where all of Bridge 4 “get” their Spren. Renarin turns up and they sit together. 
 

now Renarin ALSO doesn’t reappear until Part 5. So my headcannon is the two of them sat on the plains waiting for a Spren to choose Rlain. Finally Part 5 started and Renarin said “this is awkward I’ve gotta go” and left Rlain on the Plains. 

Hmm, I kinda felt reading this book that there was a possible Renarin/Rlain set up, and my gaydar and shippingdar both run on age of steam technology. So it may be part of this. 

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16 hours ago, Ookla the Mok Turtle Soup said:

Primary evidence, Shallan informs Mraize that Sja-Anat agreed to send one of her children to inspect the ghostblood at Urithiru to find a worthy bond mate without guaranteeing that it would be Mraize.

Renarin was specifically the one who recommended Rlain, though. Unless you think Renarin is a GB? (Man, that would be weird).

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