CTA

Further evidence that this is an Aether world: the story mentions there being 12 moons (video timestamp ~4:30), and Brandon has said "the Aether world is a 12 world"

Idk if it's true (not familiar with their naming system either), but I think it's fine. Nowhere is punchier imo (and we've been hearing about the Nowhere for the last two books!) but Cytonic doesn't bother me.

It'll be interesting to see how Sel interacts with other space age powers given the geographic limitations of their magic system. I could imagine Elantrian engineers making really cool magitech devices that are completely impossible to export.

I think it's amazing. Gaotona's part of the epilogue always gets me.

In this framework, does Vin represent Ruin or Preservation? She Ascends to become Preservation's vessel, but black is associated with Ruin.

This theory is fascinating. What questions could we ask Brandon about this that wouldn't get RAFO'd? Some ideas: Are Siah Aimians honorspren that have been pulled into the physical realm? Pros: Very straightforward answer Cons: Could get RAFO'd (related to Ishar's work, which is a plot point); could be too specific, allow Brandon to say "no" even if we're almost correct What did diplomatic relations between pre-scouring Aimia and different spren societies look like? Did such relations exist? Pros: Not as likely to be RAFO'd (doesn't seem to be related to main plot) Cons: Could be too vague, not move us closer to an answer

This reminded me of the names of the Unmade. From the Coppermind article: "The names of the Unmade are derived from deities of Near Eastern pantheons and H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos; however, the powers and characteristics of the Unmade do not necessarily match those of their nominal inspirations."

Ever since the scene in which Odium gives Dalinar a glimpse of his 'true form,' I've pictured the spiritual realm as a roiling sea of differently colored investiture. That... doesn't actually correspond to how the spiritual realm works, though, so I like OP's visualization a lot better.