Trell, Stormlight Archive and what's going to happen

[Erunion he/him]

I was reading through the Words of Radiance reread on Tor.com, when I came to a line where it said that 'Brandon confirmed that the Wax and Wayne series occurs after SA5'. I had just finished rereading the Wax and Wayne series 2-3 days ago.

And then it hit me like a load of bricks. Sazed is under assault by Trell and his minions who are trying to take down his planet. It was a sudden assault, and Sazed/Harmony is (as of Bands of Mourning) under a constant assault/pressure of some kind. Something he doesn't understand and that has just come recently.

What if it's Odium - and what if it's because Odium is released from the Roshar system at the end of SA5.

That somehow, someway, the bonds that Honour imposed on Odium, tying him down, are released at the end of SA5. Odium is cut loose, set free and goes to take on/take down Harmony.

What do you guys think?

Am I a truthwatcher, or just one of the ten fools?

[Pagerunner he/him]

Yeah, it's been brought up before, and it's one of the leading theories as to who "Trell" could be. Brandon has also said that the metal in the spike Bleeder was using was from a Shard we've seen before, so that really narrows down the list of contenders. The red eyes at the end of BoM also seem to draw a connection between the two.

 

There's an interesting WoB on the subject found here: 

6) I assume Sazed does not know the metal used in Lessie's spike because it's offworld, but Odium seems aware of Sazed/Harmony. Why is this?

Odium has a lot more knowledge that Sazed, he has had the power longer, and there are forces purposely trying to limit Harmony's knowledge.

 

Now, I can see how it would be taken as an implication that Lessie's spike was from Odium, but I actually think it points the opposite way. I think there's something more homegrown, something that's been affecting Harmony all 300 years (not just the past 15 or less). If you're going to "limit his knowledge," I wouldn't expect waiting 300 years to be a very effective method.

 

There's also the Red Rip (as it's called on Scadrial) and Taln's Scar (as it's called on Roshar). The end of BoM makes it seem like the force opposing Harmony is coming from there. But that can't be where Odium is coming from - it's a stellar feature separate from Roshar. (Confirmed here.)

 

So, yeah, it's a good thought, but there are some gaps. Just like all the other theories on who Trell could be. It's almost like Brandon intentionally gives us just enough information to be dangerous, but not enough to actually figure things out...

[Mistibournes]

Oooo! I never thought of that! This could mean that SA5 will have a bigger downer ending than I expected, and gives some interesting implications to SA arc 2. If Odium is released and still a major player on Roshar (and it would be odd for Sanderson to drop him completely just because he leaves the planet), then we could end up reading a lot more about the Cosmere.

 

Great theory, thanks!

[Erunion he/him]

Thanks for some of the feedback guys!

Yeah, where I'm going with this is not just that Trell = Odium, but that SA5 ends with something going horribly wrong and releasing Odium.

 

OR possibly, with something going ostensibly 'right' and Odium being 'banished', but with massive negative implications later on.

[Eki]

Yeah, if Odium does leave Roshar, the natives will probably see it as a victory. Most of them aren't cosmere aware. Hoid and the 17th shard might get worried though...

In fact, this might be a pretty cool plot point! Maybe the Ghostbloods are trying to release Odium, to save their planet at the cost of the rest of the Cosmere.

[Yata he/him]

I don't know if Odium once free just leave Great Roshar System without trouble.

 

He may try to kill Cultivation or maybe simply Invest Roshar itself to accelerate his own plan and in the end kill Cultivation.

[The Invested Beard]

 

There's also the Red Rip (as it's called on Scadrial) and Taln's Scar (as it's called on Roshar). The end of BoM makes it seem like the force opposing Harmony is coming from there. But that can't be where Odium is coming from - it's a stellar feature separate from Roshar. (Confirmed here.)

 

Unless of course that's where he ends up after leaving Roshar at the end of SA5 (if that is indeed what happens).

Edited April 14, 2016 by The Invested Beard

[Argel he/him]

Maybe the Ghostbloods are trying to release Odium, to save their planet at the cost of the rest of the Cosmere.

 

The Ghostbloods are worldhoppers. One is a decendant of the SoScads (the lady with the mask), Mraize has his collection of stuff from all over the place, etc. More likely a lot is happening in the Greater Roshar system, attracting the attention of worldhoppers. There's Hoid, 17th Shard (though maybe they are just after Hoid), Ghostbloods, and Vasher. We also have a WoB that a Kandra is on Roshar (or maybe Kandra have been there -- not sure if there are specifics on the timeframe). And isn't Nazh there too? And of course Khriss writes the Ars Acanum, so presumably she has been there (doubt she would just rely on Nazh). Anyway, seems like someone is hosting a worldhopper party there. Edit: Nothing like throwing a party to spite Odium...

Edited April 14, 2016 by Argel

[Ari he/him]

There's definite hints that Odium is involved to some degree in whatever "trell" is doing. That doesn't necessarily mean Odium is Trell, either because the hints are misleading, because Odium is assisting a different Shard that's actually Trell, or because Brandon is planting a red herring in the prison scene in BoM.

[+Authweight]

On a storytelling level, this seems odd to me. I'm really expecting/hoping that The Lost Metal will give us more detail on what's going on with Trell. If it turns out to be Odium, it will be hard for Brandon to give us a satisfactory conclusion to The Lost Metal without essentially spoiling SA5. In-world I think it's the best theory, but if we look at stuff like publication order, cosmere storytelling strategy, etc., it seems to me like it doesn't work out very well.