Iron Flame

Xaden is a newly graduated dragon rider from Basgiath, a key rebellion member with a rebellion relic, and Violet’s love interest. Xaden’s signet ability is shadow summoning, but he eventually reveals to Violet that he possesses a second ability as an inntinnsic that allows him to read people’s true intentions. While Xaden and Dain are depicted as foils in Fourth Wing, the reveal of his inntinnsic abilities in Iron Flame depicts them mirroring one another; this is especially apparent when he admits to using his ability to read Violet’s intentions during her first year before he came to love her. As Xaden’s deepening love for Violet prompts his overprotectiveness, he begins to exhibit the same behaviors Dain showed during Violet’s first year.

Xaden is the primary wielder of The Protective Power of Lies. His relationship with Violet suffers when she discovers the depth of the secrets he has kept to protect her and the rebellion. The foundation of everything Violet has ever believed to be true is uprooted by the discovery of how her country’s leadership and her family have lied to her. The one thing she holds onto is the knowledge that Xaden is the one person she can trust, but when she discovers that, too, is not true, it only perpetuates her feelings of losing control and inability to trust her own judgment. Xaden’s choices reflect the power of the love he feels for Violet, which greatly outweighs his loyalty and moral duty. His devotion to Violet prompts his final decision to become venin to spare her life, making Xaden the novel’s most sinister embodiment of The Power of Love. Xaden’s arc demonstrates that while love can inspire acts of goodness, it can also lead to moral downfall.

Dain Aetos is Violet’s former best friend and a third-year rider who is promoted from a Squad Leader to her Wingleader. His signet allows him to read a person’s memories via touch. His signet is kept secret because such an ability often warrants execution. Dain is a prime example of Loyalty Versus Moral Duty, as his unquestioning loyalty to Navarre leadership garners him the reputation of “rule-following Dain” and blinds him to the ways in which they manipulate him (487). In Fourth Wing, Dain weaponizes his signet against Violet when he reads her memories without her consent. His feelings for Violet—and his overprotectiveness when he sees her growing closer to Xaden—prompt his breach of privacy, which leads Violet, Xaden, and many other cadets with rebel relics to be sent by Colonel Aetos into a deadly trap at Athebyne. The betrayal results in two deaths, which permanently damages his friendship with Violet. Dain embarks on a redemption arc in Iron Flame as Varrish pushes his loyalty into unforgivable territory. Dain’s feelings for Violet prompt him to forsake his loyalty to Navarre and join the rebellion.

Rhiannon, Ridoc, and Sawyer are all second-year cadets and Violet’s close friends from their shared first year at Basgiath who all vow to survive until graduation. Rhiannon is a natural leader and talented fighter, which facilitates her promotion to Squad Leader. Her signet power is teleportation of objects. Rhiannon is Violet’s closest friend—especially after her estrangement from Dain—but is held at a distance for most of the novel when Violet chooses to withhold the truth of the rebellion and venin for her protection. As her relationship with Rhiannon deteriorates and Rhiannon is drawn into the conflict despite Violet’s attempts to keep her safe, Violet rejects The Protective Power of Lies in favor of giving Rhiannon and her other friends the right to choose for themselves whether they want to be involved with the rebellion.

Sawyer was a repeat first-year cadet in Fourth Wing, but successfully bonds with a dragon during Violet’s Threshing and displays a signet power that allows him to manipulate metal. Sawyer takes the initiative to learn sign language during Iron Flame so that he may act on his feelings for Violet’s scribe friend, Jesinia Neilwart. In the ultimate battle against the venin, Sawyer is attacked by multiple wyverns; Violet views his attack as a repeat of what occurred during War Games with Liam. She redeems her previous failure by saving Sawyer’s life—and his dragon’s—but he loses a leg below the knee. Ridoc is the comedic relief in the narrative, known for his wit. His signet gives him the ability to wield ice, which proves helpful against dragon and wyvern fire.

General Lilith Sorrengail, Violet’s mother, is cold and distant, unyielding in her decisions, and known foremost for her lack of mercy. Her signet ability allows her to wield storms, which prove vital to heightening Violet’s lightning. Though General Sorrengail has always shown great pride in Brennan and Mira, Violet finds it nearly impossible to impress her distant and unfeeling mother. Contradictory to the reputation General Sorrengail has garnered, her actions in Iron Flame reveal that everything she does—good or bad—is not driven by loyalty or moral duty, but purely by her love of her children. She makes the ultimate sacrifice, evidencing the theme of The Power of Love, by sacrificing her life to raise the fallen wards so that Violet will live.

Mira Sorrengail, Violet’s older sister, is a lieutenant in the Navarrian military and patrols the border with the Eastern Wing. Mira is a younger version of her mother. She is highly respected and physically powerful, unlike Violet. A naturally gifted rider, she is bonded to a green dragon, Teine, and her signet “is the ability to extend the wards, to tug the protections with her even where they shouldn’t be able to stretch” (194). Mira is Violet’s greatest weakness when it comes to The Protective Power of Lies; when Violet must keep the secret of Brennan’s survival from Mira, she feels like the “worst person on the Continent” (193).

Brennan Sorrengail, Violet’s older brother, is known as one of the greatest menders in history. At the beginning of Iron Flame, everyone except Violet and the members of the rebellion believe that he is deceased. Brennan embodies the theme of Loyalty Versus Moral Duty. Though allowing his family to believe he is dead hurts them deeply, Brennan places his loyalty to the rebellion’s cause above the needs of his family. The fact that he is alive becomes the driving catalyst to General Sorrengail’s character arc, as she becomes more openly driven to keep her children alive at all costs. When she sacrifices her life to spare Violet and protect Mira and Brennan, her act of love prompts Brennan to finally forgive her for her support of the Navarre leadership that he has come to hate.

Burton Varrish is the vice commandant at Basgiath War College and the main antagonist of the novel. His interrogation methods are infamous for their brutal physical torture, and his leadership style is incredibly strict, especially for riders wearing rebellion relics, and for Violet, due to her connection to Xaden. Varrish invades Violet’s privacy and abuses his power to catch her in punishable offenses. Varrish’s signet is the ability to sense a person’s weaknesses, which, for Violet, are the people she loves. He exemplifies what happens when a person puts loyalty to a country above everything else: a total loss of moral center. Varrish does whatever he feels he must, no matter how cruel, to keep Navarre’s secrets hidden. Varrish’s lack of morality and inhumane cruelty effectively ends Dain’s loyalty to Navarre’s leadership. Varrish eventually dies at Violet’s hands.