Prediction: Szeth vs Kaladin.

[diwakar478]

I had forgotten about this particular detail. Very well then. Though I think Taravangian's issue is more with Dalinar uniting the Alethi armies (and this maybe finally ending the war?) than with his visions which he can't know about.

 

Even this information (uniting the armies by becoming high prince of war) is not known to many, only elokhar, dalinar and anyone spying on their confrontation which happened at the tail end of the book knows. (If you don't consider dalinar's attempts to work together with other high princes on plain assaults as uniting armies)

 

Taravangian seems to be on good side (trying to stop/prepare for desolations) but had his own plans (which doesn't include united alethi or atleast united alethi under dalinar) or may be his own inner man on shattered plains (sadeas? - through whom he intended to deal with dalinar)

 

I was just trying to figure out, if there is a spy on the inner circle of dalinar/elokhar or just got his info from usual spy network.

[cem he/him]

Even this information (uniting the armies by becoming high prince of war) is not known to many, only elokhar, dalinar and anyone spying on their confrontation which happened at the tail end of the book knows. (If you don't consider dalinar's attempts to work together with other high princes on plain assaults as uniting armies)

Timeline doesn't have to be that exact. We don't know when Taravangian gives the order in relation to Dalinar-Elhokar meeting. Dalinar tells Elhokar to publish the document making him Highprince of War tomorrow. All Taravangian needs to know about it is someone with a spanreed in any of the warcamps.

[FeatherWriter she/her]

In regards to Kaladin and the possibility of him obtaining a Shardblade, it presents an interesting character conflict for him. While there are issues with this theory, namely that I think Szeth's arc hasn't had anywhere near enough growth to end with him dying at Kaladin's hands, I think it would represent a major point of conflict if Kaladin were presented with the option of taking another Shardblade.

 

He's got reasons to go both ways. On one hand, Shardblades are the tools of the lighteyes and Syl has mentioned that she dislikes them. Kaladin refusing to take Amaram's Blade is one of the things that first drew Syl to him, and therefore one of the reasons that he has his powers. I don't think Kaladin winning a Blade by killing a Shardbearer is the right choice for him as a person. If Kaladin is going to get a Shardblade, the only healthy way for him to do that would be some other way - possibly the way that the Knights Radiant got their Blades. I'm thinking they may be created through something to do with the Nahel bond, something Syl would help with, and I know there's been speculation about the possibility of a Shardspear.

 

However, let's say Kaladin kills a Shardbearer in an act of protecting Dalinar or someone else - whether this Shardbearer is Szeth or not - and he's presented with the same choice that he faced so long ago. There's lots of reasons why he shouldn't take it, but could he really listen to them? After how horribly giving up the Blade he'd won went last time? I don't think he's going to be able to trust any of the lighteyes enough to give it to one of them (though Kalarin shippers might argue that there are other possibilities), and trying to give it to one of his teammates is what he tried last time. With Amaram coming to the Shattered Plains, I highly doubt Kaladin's going to be willing to forget that whole experience. Faced with the pressures of his history, I can see a major pressure that Kaladin would take this Blade, if only to avoid repeating the past.

 

It's a fascinating character conundrum and one that I can't completely decide where I think he'd fall on it. Conflicts of character like this are so engaging to me, and I'd love to see Kaladin being confronted with this choice, if only to see what Brandon would do with it. Perhaps this could open the door for Kaladin to reveal his history with Amaram to Dalinar or Bridge 4. They'd be more likely to believe that he'd won a Shardblade and given it up before if they had seen him do so again. 

 

Things to think about...

[Gloom he/him]

I can see two possible spies. One is placed high in the council of the king. This would be Sadeas, and he is the most likely person to be in contact with Taravangian. It is likely that he has access to Span-reeds as well. Sadeas was one of the possible people that Galivar named as his assassin, even though Sadeas was their helping Galivar at the time. That is how trust worthy Sadeas is. Sadeas knows that Dalinar was pressuring Elhokar into naming him High Prince of War, and that Dalinar was trying to get all the Princes to work together. I could easily see Sadeas and Taravangian working together, they have the same level of moral ambiguity.

 

The other possible spy is Gaz, but if Gaz is a spy, I don't think he reports to the same master as Sadeas. In fact, in the case that Gaz is a spy it would only make sense if he was actively spying on Sadeas himself. If Gaz is alive, I think that he either works for either Thadikar or Restares, which ever one Taravangian isn't.

 

 

It's a fascinating character conundrum and one that I can't completely decide where I think he'd fall on it. Conflicts of character like this are so engaging to me, and I'd love to see Kaladin being confronted with this choice, if only to see what Brandon would do with it. Perhaps this could open the door for Kaladin to reveal his history with Amaram to Dalinar or Bridge 4. They'd be more likely to believe that he'd won a Shardblade and given it up before if they had seen him do so again. 

 

Things to think about...

 

I completely agree with your stance on this Feather. I don't know how Kaladin would react to the opportunity to claim another Shardblade, but I can see him being seriously conflicted over the matter. I will say that I believe that Kaladin will make his decision with a far greater understanding of the ramifications of his decision than he had the first time, and that understanding may give him options that we aren't seeing at the moment.

 

I also agree that Szeth has more to show us, and that it would be unfortunate if he made Kaladin kill him.

[Arran]

However, let's say Kaladin kills a Shardbearer in an act of protecting Dalinar or someone else - whether this Shardbearer is Szeth or not - and he's presented with the same choice that he faced so long ago. There's lots of reasons why he shouldn't take it, but could he really listen to them? After how horribly giving up the Blade he'd won went last time? I don't think he's going to be able to trust any of the lighteyes enough to give it to one of them (though Kalarin shippers might argue that there are other possibilities), and trying to give it to one of his teammates is what he tried last time. With Amaram coming to the Shattered Plains, I highly doubt Kaladin's going to be willing to forget that whole experience. Faced with the pressures of his history, I can see a major pressure that Kaladin would take this Blade, if only to avoid repeating the past.

I think that should Kaladin win another Shardblade, he'd be comfortable giving it away for two reasons. 1) Moash has stated that he came to the Shattered Plains to win a Shardblade of his own, so Kaladin already knows that at least one of his men is interested in acquiring a Shardblade. Also, when he decided to give the Shards he'd won to his men, Kaladin wanted to give them to the best fighter among his remaining soldiers. With his new crew, the best fighter after Kaladin seems to be Moash. 2) Dalinar has already shown himself to be honorable, to the point of giving up his own Shardblade for Kaladin and the other bridgemen. I really don't think Kaladin will fear Dalinar "pulling an Amaram" on him should he decide to give up a second Shardblade he'd won.

 

Also, there was a particular situation when Amaram stole the Shards, namely that there were few inconvenient witnesses who saw Kaladin kill the Shardbearer for Amaram and his lackeys to get rid of. If Kaladin wins a Shardblade during a pitched battle against the Parshendi and decides to gift it to Moash or whoever else afterward, chances are that there'll be dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of witnesses to the event - far too many for a greedy lighteyes to falsely claim that he killed the Shardbearer and that the Shards are thus rightfully his.

[Gloom he/him]

It's also possible he will gift the Shardblade to Dalinar to replace the one he'd sacrificed to free Kaladins men. Wouldn't that piss Sadeas off.

[FeatherWriter she/her]

You guys are probably thinking longer-game than I am. For a while I think Kaladin's going to be pretty mistrustful of Dalinar just on the fact that he's a lighteyes. There's a lot of character growth that needs to happen here, and I think it'll be a large part of Kaladin's character arc. Giving the blade to Moash? I think that's feasible—though again that's exactly what he tried to do before and it turned out horribly—but giving it to Dalinar? That's not something I'd expect Kaladin to be able to do for a long time. That's a major step of trust, and Kaladin's pretty damaged when it comes to lighteyes still.

 

If somehow Kaladin did end up offering a Shardblade to Dalinar, I actually think Dalinar might refuse it. He's stated that as he assumes the role of Highprince of War he's going to not be in the field quite as much. He might insist that Kaladin keep it for himself—or default that he give it to Moash—because I don't think Dalinar really wants to be a Shardbearer anymore. He gave his Plate to Renarin already; he might end up giving a Blade to Renarin if he had access to it. (Oh Harmony, my baby as a full Shardbearer. Just sec, I'm tearing up over here.)

 

EDIT: Also, ignore the egregious em-dash abuse going on over here. Kurk just showed us how to do it in another thread and I'm reveling in my em-dash ability now. Hehehe.

Edited October 23, 2013 by FeatherWriter

[Arran]

You guys are probably thinking longer-game than I am. For a while I think Kaladin's going to be pretty mistrustful of Dalinar just on the fact that he's a lighteyes. There's a lot of character growth that needs to happen here, and I think it'll be a large part of Kaladin's character arc. Giving the blade to Moash? I think that's feasible—though again that's exactly what he tried to do before and it turned out horribly—but giving it to Dalinar? That's not something I'd expect Kaladin to be able to do for a long time. That's a major step of trust, and Kaladin's pretty damaged when it comes to lighteyes still.

I think Kaladin will continue to be mistrustful of the majority of lighteyes for a while, but why would he continue to mistrust Dalinar? Dalinar gave up his Shardblade to buy the freedom of Kaladin and the bridgemen. Amaram deliberately killed darkeyed soldiers to appropriate the Shards, while Dalinar deliberately sacrificed his Shardblade to save darkeyes. This is the exact opposite of what Kaladin had seen and understandably come to expect from lighteyes, and IMO proved from Kaladin's perspective that Dalinar's reputation for honor was well-founded.

 

Also, Dalinar has lived up to his reputation in other ways - sending the healers to take care of Kaladin's men ahead even of his own, assigning them well-kept barracks, being forthright about what he wanted from Kaladin and his bridgemen, and what they'd face if they accepted his offer to become his personal guard. Just this last proves that Dalinar has a lot of confidence in Kaladin - you don't entrust the safety of your family to people you don't trust.

[FeatherWriter she/her]

I don't think I can agree with that. We're talking about a major level of trust. At the end of the book, I'd say Kaladin's view on Dalinar is "I think it's possible that you might not be a horrible person like I was assuming but I'm doubtful." That's not exactly the kind of relationship in which Kaladin would give him an incredibly invaluable weapon. It's going to take a long time for that relationship to gain trust.

 

Not to mention, Kaladin sees a lot of similarities between Dalinar's reputation and Amaram's. He has decided, unquestionably, that it is the same situation, that Dalinar is corrupt to the core and just hides it well. Everytime someone brings up Dalinar around him, Kaladin immediately thinks of Amaram - as if he's "citing his sources" on why Dalinar can't be trusted. That isn't the sort of worldview that one breaks down based on one experience of honor. 

 

“Dalinar Kholin,” Moash said. “They say he’s a true lighteyes, like the men from the old days. A man of honor and of oaths.”

 

Kaladin snorted. “I’ve seen plenty of lighteyes with that same reputation, and I’ve been disappointed by them every time. I’ll tell you about Brightlord Amaram sometime.”

(WoK, Ch. 55)

 

Will I never stop hearing about Dalinar storming Kholin? Kaladin thought. Men had spoken that way of Amaram. How easy it was to ignore a blackened heart if you dressed it in a pressed uniform and a reputation for honesty.

(WoK, Ch. 57)

 

“I’ve been here before!” Kaladin bellowed, turning back toward that blue banner.

 

Dalinar always fought at the front.

 

“What happened last time?” Kaladin yelled. “I’ve learned! I won’t be a fool again!”

(Wok, Ch. 67)

 

Kaladin really trusted Amaram and thought he was a good person, and he was betrayed in a very deep and scarring way. That's not the sort of thing you get over and start to trust anyone again, even if they haven't given you a specific reason to mistrust. Kaladin's worldview for most of the book is "all lighteyes are corrupt and some are better at hiding it than others." Kaladin has decided that Dalinar is just like other lighteyes and he's just waiting for the other shoe to drop, the betrayal and the corruption to be shown. He thinks Dalinar is probably exactly like Amaram, just maybe a little better at hiding it. Even when he sees Dalinar start to show honor, Kaladin is suspicious, looking for the trick and the lie.

 

“I will take care of Sadeas,” Dalinar said. “Return with me. I vow that you will be safe. I promise it with every shred of honor I have.”

 

The young bridgeman met his eyes, searching for something. Such a hard man he was for one so young.

(WoK, Ch. 68)

 

He promised, Kaladin thought. He promised he would free us from Sadeas. And yet, where had the promises of lighteyes gotten him in the past?

(WoK, Ch. 69)

 

Dalinar stood in place. He looked confident, though Kaladin saw no reason why. And another promise dies, Kaladin thought, turning away. In the end, for all his good intentions, this Dalinar Kholin was the same as the others.

(Wok, Ch. 69)

 

I think that a healing process of this has begun, but it's going to take a long time. Kaladin shares some traits with early Vin here, in that they both believe that betrayal is an inevitable conclusion. (Though Kaladin's "paranoia" is specific to lighteyes, whereas Vin is mistrustful of everyone.) It takes a lot of effort to heal from this kind of hurt. How long does it take Vin to start trusting Kelsier? To believe that Elend isn't going to abandon her? And Vin hadn't really seen someone who really acted honestly, whereas Kaladin definitely saw Amaram being honorable - until the defining moment when he wasn't.

 

Ever since the failed betrayal and subsequent rescue earlier, Kaladin had found himself nervous. Freedom. Bought with a Shardblade. It seemed impossible. His every life experience taught him to expect a trap.

...

“Dare I trust him?” he asked softly.

(WoK, Ch. 73)

 

I'd actually recommend a critical reading of Chapter 73 in the totality of the passage that concerns Dalinar and Kaladin. Kaladin is almost hostile towards him, never using honoriffics, never saying "sir" or "Brightlord." His dialogue is curt and casual, certainly not the way a subordinate would normally talk to a superior. He pushes against Dalinar with this, as if seeing if he can get his honor to crack. Kaladin's testing Dalinar, trying to see how far Dalinar's goodness really goes, and I think that's going to be an aspect of their relationship for a long time.

 

While Kaladin is beginning to trust Dalinar, it's going to take a lot more than he's seen so far to be sure. And I think the idea that Kaladin would come to the point where he would have enough trust to be able to give a Shardblade to Dalinar anytime soon is not not a view that I think conforms to canon.

 

Aaand, this turned into an essay. Whoops. Get me talking about Kaladin and I'm sure to get carried away.

Edited October 24, 2013 by FeatherWriter

[weebojello]

Kaladin due to an Ideal stated / gained during the fight with Szeth.

 

Taravangian's beef with Dhalinar is what I'm confused by. Is Taravangian pre-cog? Or was Taravangian aware for what Gavilar was doing, and surmises that Dhalinar will continue the same - the supposition being that the Ghavilar was un-intentionally starting a desolation?

 

Theoretically, Taravangian, via Szeth, has the black spere, correct?

[Argent he/him]

I don't think he knows about it, actually. Szeth buried it (somewhere in Jah Kaved) very soon after the assassination. Since he is not required to tell his masters everything, and they probably don't know that Gavilar gave it to him, he would neither volunteer this information, nor could he be forced to reveal it.

[Pinpoint he/him]

If speculations are true and Szeth does indeed wield an Honorblade or, at least, a Radiantblade, rather than a regular Shardblade, then perhaps Syl will react favorably to that Blade and Kaladin will take it up.

So yeah, my final speculation is this: Kaladin kills Szeth, is encouraged by Syl to taking Szeth's Blade, and discovering that it's a Windrunner Radiantblade which ushers Kaladin further down the path of the Knights Radiant.

If Kaladin wouldn't take of a blade that killed his army squad, why would he take this one. He doesn't want to become a light eyes.

 I personally think that Szeth will kill some of the main characters from bridge four. 

 

Also it seems like Dalinar is Szeths Imediate target. the odds are definetely not leaning in Kaladins favor. if it is a question Shardbearer Versus Kaladin, Kaladin can win. Szeth, however, has proved himself more deadly then two shard bearers put together plus a load of guards. he was able to take out a groups like that with only a little effort. Kaladin is just barely learning how to use his powers. Szeth doesn't lose. Even against Galivar he didn't lose. Also remember that Szeth has his own book later in the series.

Arrg! I just read that even though Dalinar and Szeth have their own book that doesn't guarentee their survival.

 

Maybe Kaladin will die (he won't) but maybe he will. Kelsier did it and both their names start This post has been reported for attempting to skirt the rules K! Okay maybe the K idea isn't a very strong arguement.

I think that when Dalinar is attacked by Szeth either there will be so many soldiers there that he is forced to flee or someone will break his oath stone.I don't think Kaladin or Szeth will die.

I don't really know what breaking the oathstone would do but I can guess and maybe one of you guys know.

Dalinar will most definitely get involved in the fight. The herald that died at the end of the WoK was at Dalniars city right? If so maybe Dalinar will get the Heralds blade. Not extremely likely be maybe. If so Dalinar would have a stronger blade then Szeths. Is it possible for him to break Szeths shardblade?.

So the questions that need answering in order to more effectively predict what will happen are

1. Can the oath stone break if so what effect would it have on Szeth

2. can shard blades break

 

All in all I think that niether of them will die.

I can see two possible spies. One is placed high in the council of the king. This would be Sadeas,

 

The other possible spy is Gaz,

What about Danlan

 

Even this information (uniting the armies by becoming high prince of war) is not known to many, only elokhar, dalinar and anyone spying on their confrontation which happened at the tail end of the book knows. (If you don't consider dalinar's attempts to work together with other high princes on plain assaults as uniting armies)

Once again I'm going to suggest Danlan as a spy

 

i dont think Sazeth will retreat.

because what he realy wants it so die, but he cant commit suicide.

so he can only die in combat.

 

 

 

 

maybe some of thouse KR idomes might stop him.

 If death would interfer with fulfilling his mission and he could obviously succeed easier if he retreated wouldn't he retreat? What does KR mean?

figured it out, Knight Radiant

Edited October 24, 2013 by Pinpoint

[Crysanja]

maybe this encounter will never happen.

if Szeth would see a voidbringer, he might decide that his belive is no longer correct or importand enough.

[weebojello]

I don't think he knows about it, actually. Szeth buried it (somewhere in Jah Kaved) very soon after the assassination. Since he is not required to tell his masters everything, and they probably don't know that Gavilar gave it to him, he would neither volunteer this information, nor could he be forced to reveal it.

 

Thanks! I couldn't quite remember. Something was nigging in my brain about it.

 

Personal thought is that Dalinar survives quite well, passing away in volume 4, ascending to a sliver / shard reformation with help from Cultivation. Heck, maybe even a romance! She's only a couple of millenia older at this point, no? Volume 5 is about his assimilation to the power with everything set and staged for the final five books.

 

[FeatherWriter she/her]

@Pinpoint: Just a note, double (and triple) posting is discouraged on the forums. In the future, when responding to multiple people, you should put all your responses in one post, rather than multiple.

 

http://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/6-welcome-to-17th-shard/?p=12693

[Gloom he/him]

Maybe Kaladin will die (he won't) but maybe he will. Kelsier did it and both their names start with K! Okay maybe the K idea isn't a very strong argument.

 

Up vote for making me laugh

 

I don't believe Danlan is a spy. If I were to try to place a spy in House Kholin through a romantic relationship I would target Renarin. Adolin changes prospective partners to quickly, and he hasn't shown an interest in revisiting old flames. Dalinar hasn't, until recently, shown any interest in women that we know of since the death of his wife.

 

My last reason that I don't think Danlan is a spy is because she is too high profile. I would want my spies to have access to information, but I would find it less than ideal to have them in the public spotlight. If Danlan was discovered, and proof was presented to show who she was spying for, it could lead to war or public embarrassment due to who she was targeting specifically. An inconspicuous house servant though would just be executed.

 

As to Szeth,

 

If at some point the fight between Szeth and Kaladin is interrupted by an attack by Voidbringers...Yes, I could definitely see that having an effect on Szeth and his world view. Enough of an effect to cause him to retreat and try to incorporate this new development into who he is and how this impacts him.

[Arran]

FeatherWriter:

 

Actually, it's Gloom who's arguing that Kaladin might want to give that hypothetical Shardblade to Dalinar; I'm in favor of Moash, with Kaladin trusting Dalinar at least enough to expect him not to want/try to appropriate that Shardblade through nefarious means as Amaram did. IMO that's a lesser level of trust toward Dalinar than outright giving him the Shardblade.

[Gloom he/him]

I'm not really in favor of it, I don't think it will be an option in the first place. I just think the symmetry of it would be amusing. And yes, if Kaladin did turn the Blade over to Dalinar in the unlikely event that it became an option, I believe that he would give it to Renarin. It could also be that Moash gets lucky and kills Szeth when he is distracted by something and claims the blade for himself.

[Pinpoint he/him]

I don't believe Danlan is a spy. If I were to try to place a spy in House Kholin through a romantic relationship I would target Renarin.

 

My last reason that I don't think Danlan is a spy is because she is too high profile. I would want my spies to have access to information, but I would find it less than ideal to have them in the public spotlight. If Danlan was discovered, and proof was presented to show who she was spying for, it could lead to war or public embarrassment due to who she was targeting specifically. An inconspicuous house servant though would just be executed.

 

Was Renarin courting? I can't remember. Also if he did he probobly courted a lot longer then Adolin did. maybe that was the problem. Danlan probobly only needed enough time with Adolin to get into a good scribe position and to get some information from him. Maybe she saw his quick dating as a way to get spying quickly. rather then wait for Renarin.

The last thing Dalinar wants is to start a war or seperate the princes through public embarrasment. Sadeas and, seemingly, Taravangian know this. I think Dalinar would try to shurg Danlan off as best he could. Also I had a thought, it is really really far fetched and I have no idea how this could work but it explains why Adolin settled for her all the sudden. Maybe Danlan is a Rioter/Soother. Probobly not but it would definitely be Bransonish (you can thank MadRand for that term)

I'm not really in favor of it, I don't think it will be an option in the first place. I just think the symmetry of it would be amusing. And yes, if Kaladin did turn the Blade over to Dalinar in the unlikely event that it became an option, I believe that he would give it to Renarin. It could also be that Moash gets lucky and kills Szeth when he is distracted by something and claims the blade for himself.

 

Not likely but very Bransonly. Maybe Moash dies trying to kill Szeth.

[Ethrien he/him]

Dalinar will most definitely get involved in the fight. The herald that died at the end of the WoK was at Dalniars city right? If so maybe Dalinar will get the Heralds blade. Not extremely likely be maybe. If so Dalinar would have a stronger blade then Szeths. Is it possible for him to break Szeths shardblade?.

So the questions that need answering in order to more effectively predict what will happen are

1. Can the oath stone break if so what effect would it have on Szeth

2. can shard blades break

The herald at the end of WoK didn't die. Remember from the prologue Herald’s blades act the opposite of Shardblades. They disappear when their owners die. Still it’s another point to consider the Herald himself, what is Hoid planning on doing with him and how does Stone Shamanism treat the Herald’s and Knight Radiants in their theology. I can’t help but feel the important aspect of this fight is not whether Szeth’s ability to kill exceeds Kaladin’s ability to defend but how he reacts when faced with a Herald or Surgebinder (or four depending on whose present) with a Nahel bonded Spren. From one of his interludes we know he kind of considers the spren holy, atleast going so far as to mention them alongside walking on stone, and stormlight.

 

WoK - Interlude 6

And yet they thought nothing of walking on stone or using Stormlight for everyday illumination. They ignored the spirits of things that lived around them, and they ate whatever they wanted on any day they wanted.

On the 'Who dies before their book?' front, Kaladin has another book right? I can see Brandon not wanting to start the series with two books from a single flashback character in a row. Just saying, might be the sort of situation where the flashbacks have to come after the death

 

He also mentioned something once (that I can't find), basically saying that he originally wanted everyone to be alive for their book, but it just wasn't going to work out. Instead of torturing himself, he decided the flashbacks could be done separately. Based on that, SOMEONE is going to die before their book. It's just a matter of who.

 

Edited because the links did something funky

Edited October 24, 2013 by Ethrien

[marianmi]

Dalinar was supposed to be in book 2, but now he's pushed back to book 5 I think. So unfortunately, looks like Dalinar would be the one to die. But I don't think he will die in 2nd book. Szeth's book was going to be 4 I think, and now may be 3. So it's not Szeth, I see him having an important role near the end of the series.

 

So:

 

1) Szeth will attack Dalinar and kill him in book 3

 

I believe if/when Szeth will attack Dalinar, he would def. not retreat - he wants to die, he wants to find someone to kill him. He would be happy to find Kaladin. Also, he cannot be taken prisoner - he has a shardblade... he can summon it anytime and break free

 

2) Szeth vs. Kaladin are on the cover => they will meet in this book. Previous book had Dalinar vs. Esonhai, and those 2 fought. So Szeth and Kaladin will fight. Even if he kills Dalinar now, I can't see him running away from Kaladin.

 

This is a big conundrum. Unless Szeth somehow "converts" and breaks his stoneoath before/during his attack, I can't see how he and Dalinar and Kaladin can all stay alive after their encounter. Kaladin would let him go if he would need to help Dalinar - but I really cannot see Szeth running away.

 

The only way I see this would go if it's somehow the fight gets "intrerrupted" - for example both Szeth and Dalinar would be fully incapacitated, and Kaladin would choose to leave Szeth and heal Dalinar, and Szeth would see he has no chance of continuing the fight, then he would see it somehow as his duty to get better and come back later to finish the fight  

Or Darkness would make an appeareance to take out both Kaladin and Szeth (and Jasnah and Shallan btw) then they would have to work together (Szeth having a better idea who/what Darkness is and somehow being the proof that he is not truthless?).

[FeatherWriter she/her]

Just chiming in that I can assure you with absolute certainty that there is no mention of Renarin courting anyone at all. (I tend to be a bit hyperaware of things like that and I think I would remember something such as that...)

[marianmi]

Another idea: the black sphere Szeth is carrying breaks during the fight, a corrupted spren is released that bonds and creates a thunderclast. Both Kaladin and Szeth fight the thunderclast. Szeth has proof about voidbringers and is not truthless anymore.

[Windrunner he/him]

Just chiming in that I can assure you with absolute certainty that there is no mention of Renarin courting anyone at all. (I tend to be a bit hyperaware of things like that and I think I would remember something such as that...)

 

I concur, Feather. The girls Adolin knew told him that they saw Renarin as kind of creepy.

[FeatherWriter she/her]

Wait... I've got that one! I have developed the very unique skill of being able to find/quote anything to do with Renarin near instantly. Addiction is a powerful thing...

 

[Renarin's] voice was measured, controlled. He always paused before he replied to a question, as if testing the words in his mind. Some women Adolin knew said Renarin’s ways made them feel as if he were dissecting them with his mind. They’d shiver when they spoke of him, though Adolin had never found his younger brother the least bit discomforting.

(WoK, Ch. 12)