Zephrun’s Imperium

So when my dad and I are in the car, we like to listen to music and a lot of times, we find songs that have lyrics which fit uncannily well with different cosmere characters. For me, the classic example of this is Mr. Roboto by Styx and The Lord Ruler. Seriously. You wouldn't think so, but... it's there. Obviously not everything fits, but that's to be expected. Another good example is I Need to Know by Tom Petty for Taln. It's pretty funny when you listen to it, actually, because the topics are so different put in the context of Stormlight rather than a breakup. Anyway, there are countless other songs, but those are the two that stand out to me most. Queen's Under Pressure works for Kaladin. No More Tears by Ozzy Osbourne works for Kelsier. Zombie by The Cranberries has always made me think of Marsh. Anybody else have songs that work surprisingly well?

Sierra took the cup of water eagerly and took a big gulp of it. Half of it splashed onto her face and dripped down her chin, but she hardly cared. And then the smell hit her. She audibility sighed in relief, mouth watering. She licked her lips. They looked. So. Good. How long had it been since she'd had food like that? She hadn't been brave enough to steal such fare in a long time. In fact, memories of close calls stealing freshly baked goods held her back from taking one. She stretched out her hand and watched it tremble for a moment, ignoring her odd vision. It didn't take too long for her to decide to take one though. Grabbing a fork, she stabbed one of the sugary rolls and put it on her plate, ignoring the fact that such rich food was not exactly the kind of thing she should be eating after throwing up. She eagerly took off a piece with her fingers and shoved it into her mouth. Flavors exploded in her mouth and she almost started crying again. Food. Good food. Such a rarity now quite literally handed to her. It seemed like a dream, made her forget the pain for a moment. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Water," Sierra managed to force out. "Please." Had she been on the streets experiencing pain like this she would have been curled up into a ball, praying to whatever diety was up there. She supposed she'd always believed in a God, when it came down to it. Most people did that because they'd felt something rescue them. She did so because nothing but some higher power could possibly punish so thoroughly.

Sierra nearly puked again. She was utterly unprepared to be hurled through spacetime. She doubled over, dry heaving and clutching her stomach.

Grey's words washed over her head in a muffled tone. She grudgingly acknowledged that he wanted her to stand up, instead of denying that she was being talked to at all. She groaned, though it came out as more of a whimper. Get up, storm you! she thought to herself. It took a lot more mental cursing and berating for her to finally lift her head and see Grey's outstretched hand. She froze. They'd warned her about this. Both of them. She'd walked right into whatever blood cult this was, thrown her life into the hands of these radical crackpots. Not that her life was worth much anyway... And... the thought of hot and gooey cinnamon rolls. She hadn't had real food in a few days. And what food she had had, she had just thrown up. Her stomach rumbled in anger and she grudgingly took Grey's hand, her fingers trembling violently. After all, it was just pain. She could handle that. @Snipexe @ZincAboutIt

Sometimes I feel like an evil scientist, said TVG. I began an experiment nearly 450 pages ago. Or rather all of us began an experiment. We took two perfectly normal children and then separated them from their perfectly abnormal parents. One of them killed himself and the other was so traumatized about the whole thing that she made herself forget she had ever had children in the first place. We took those children and we set them aside, to sit while we kept writing. Now, those children have grown up. Narrators, watch closely, for we are about to find out what happens when you rip young children's parents away from them and let them stew over it for a decade. Both their souls are crushed and even if we tried to fix them, they would never look the same way they did when they started. It's beautiful and it's heartbreaking and perhaps most importantly, it would be an absolute shame if we let them continue to rot. For, in their current states they are not going anywhere. I intend to bring Granite to CBST very soon. He is ready, but his older sister is not. Both have the capacity to become absolute works of art though, and if you know anything about me, it's that I will always choose the artistic, beautiful plot.

Flashback... "Well, goodnight," sixteen year old Rose said. She started closing the door. "Rose," Granite said softly. Rose paused. "Do you ever think that maybe... Mom might have killed Dad?" Rose paled. She shook her head. "Granite, you know I don't like talking about-" "No, I'm serious. It makes sense. She was gone for so long. Maybe... maybe she ran off with some other guy. That's why Dad was so quiet about it. And when Mom filed for divorce, then-" "Granite," Rose said warningly. "But it makes sense! Doesn't it? Haven't you ever thought about-" "Yes, of course I've thought about it, Granite! I-" "You can't say you haven't thought about if Father was murdered! Or-or maybe it's happier, Rose, maybe Mom had to leave, 'cause she was some sort of hero. And then she was kidnapped and they forced her to divorce Dad! And then-" "GRANITE, STOP IT!!!" Rose yelled. Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Mother left because she didn't care about us and Dad killed himself because he couldn't handle it. That is all that happened." She cried softly. "For all we know, they're both dead. They're not coming back, Granite, so you can fantasize all you want about them. They left because they. Didn't. Care. About. Us." She turned away. "Goodnight." Rose shut the door firmly before Granite could say anything more and walked to her bed. She collapsed onto it, grabbed her pillow and sobbed into it. "I am Rose Elena Kholin," she said in a shaking voice. "My Father was a normal man without spikes in his eyes. My Mother was a normal woman who couldn't make things happen when she said things aloud. They both died in a fire. And now I live with my Aunt and Uncle. My name is Rose Elena Kholin. My Father was a normal man without spikes in his eyes..." Rose repeated those words until she fell asleep and she dreamed that she believed them.

Sierra Thorne had thought she knew pain. She had thought she knew pain because of what she suffered at the hands of her mother. She had thought she knew pain because of her anorexia. And she had thought she knew pain because of the guilt she felt over her sister's death. For indeed, she did feel guilt over it, stoic as she may have acted about it. None of that came close to what she felt now. Nothing she had gone though, nor, she believed, anything she could have gone through, had in anyway prepared her for the pure agony of the moments passed. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't move. She couldn't speak. She could only tremble on the ground, utterly shaken to the core. She found that, more than ever before, she wished for death. The world was a blur around her. Sound had lost all meaning. The only thing she knew with utmost clarity was that, awful, horrid pain. Still, it seemed, her body would not let her pause for that pain. She felt her mouth begin to water and knew immediately to get on her hands and knees before she threw up all over the ground. She nearly collapsed right into her own vomit, completely unprepared to have to support herself. She barely managed to shove herself to the side before her bony arms gave way and her face hit the ground. She gasped, still trembling and unable to speak.

And so, she went to go find her family. Specifically her older brother Max. @Jaywalk

But she couldn't pass on because...

ToT How old was Edna when she took up Odium and died?

Many people had died on that bridge.

He'd already gotten filthy rich off of it.

Indeed, Kelsier had managed to lollipop-ify stormlight.

Specifically the lollipop that Kelsier had just given to his adopted daughter Lift.

... the entire Ghanderflaffle Empire and Butt Venture.

No one noticed until years later when...

Star smiled. She was a bit apprehensive about being thrown back into the heat of the story, but Pheo and Xino seemed reassured that his was safe. She allowed herself to breathe.

Sophie squealed with excitement, enthralled. "OhmyAuthorohmyAuthorohmyAuthor this is AMAAAAZING!!!!" She giggled, hair fluttering around her head as she watched from the safety of her forcefield. This was what it was to be a hero. And it was incredible. The plot was incredible. Her breath caught in her throat and time seemed to slow around her. It was hard for her to explain what she was feeling. Later, after she had more time to think, she would realize that this was the moment she accepted that she wanted to be a hero. Just like her sisters. She had a legacy to follow and was desperate to do so. It was why she existed. To be in a story. To destroy darkness and bring out the light. She felt herself smile. Maybe she was scared, but bravery didn't mean the absence of fear. It meant doing things despite your fear. And that meant that she had hoards of it within her. Waiting to be used...