The conclusion to Fourth Wing was one of the most mindblowing I’ve read! In this book guide to the Fourth Wing ending explained with spoilers throughout, I’ll unpack the plot twists that unfolded on the final pages of the wildly popular first fantasy book in the Fourth Wing series in order.
I read this book twice (including after the most recent book in this fantasy romance book series was released), so I’m able to share the most interesting details to help you better understand what went down and what’s important to know for the following books in the Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros. Let’s “fire” things up!
Quick Takeaways From the Fourth Wing Ending (With Spoilers)
TOP SPOILERS
Fourth Wing Ending Explained by Chapter (33-39)
Need to recap earlier chapters? Read my full Fourth Wing summary or check out my guides to the Fourth Wing characters and Fourth Wing map first.
Chapter 33
Panchek reveals “the attack” is really the last event of War Games. They must pretend the wards are falling and the borders are attacked by gryphon riders. Fourth Wing is sent to the southeast, where the squads will pick outposts to reinforce. Xaden’s headquarters will be at Athebyne, which is beyond the wards and where Xaden had a secret mission. The wingleaders can assemble squads at their discretion.
Dain wants to go to Eltuval, the northernmost outpost in their region. However, Xaden says that Violet, Imogen, and Liam will accompany him to Athebyne. Dain isn’t happy about this and ominously tells Violet he’ll miss her and that Xaden will get her killed, foreshadowing what happens next.
Chapter 34
Xaden kisses Violet. A woman catches them. Violet sees a pair of gryphon riders (later revealed to be called “fliers”) with gryphons, who are a third the size of the dragons with beaks and claws. He tells Violet to trust him, then he tells the gryphon fliers they’re early, which implies he knew they were coming.
Chapter 35
Violet realizes Xaden is working with the gryphon fliers she believed to be their enemy. They say that venin decimated a village and are headed to the outpost. Everyone there knew this except Violet (and all of the people Xaden compiled are “marked ones” with rebellion relics).
Xaden has been giving the gryphon fliers weapons to fight venin, who really do exist. They never enter Navarre because the wards make non-dragon magic impossible. However, Navarre does nothing about the venin because the only thing that kills venin is what powers their wards (thus keeping Navarrians safe). This is the real reason why the border has been attacked.
Violet realizes her father has been warning her through books and that The Fables of the Barren is a forbidden book. All was not as it seemed in Navarre! She agrees to fly to Athebyne.
But, no one is there. It isn’t a War Game. Xaden realizes Dain read Violet’s memories of Xaden telling her about his mission in Athebyne and told his father. Colonel Aetos left a missive that says they must survive, and Xaden blames Violet for getting them sent there to die.
Chapter 36
The letter says they must choose to abandon the village of “their enemy” or the command of their wing. If they leave, they’ll make it to the new headquarters for Fourth Wing with Dain at Eltuval for War Games, but if they leave, the trading post and its occupants will be destroyed by venin, who are wearing purple robes and have red veins around their red eyes.
The venin can only be killed by the daggers, not dragon fire.
The group is happy not to see wyvern, which compete with dragons. Venin channel power into them, not from them, as humans do from dragons.
Violet is angry that her mother kept this a secret. The rebels’ parents fought to expose this secret and fight venin, while her mother covered it up and protected herself. History is not as it seems!
They all agree to be courageous riders and fight.
Then, they do see wyvern with two legs.
Xaden says General Melgren won’t be able to see the outcome of the battle because of his rebellion relic. (More on this later.)
Soleil and Fuil die.
Violet wields lightning.
The wyvern kills Deigh, and thus, Liam dies too. As Liam dies and Violet carries him to his dragon, he asks Violet to care for his sister Sloane, and she promises to do so. This sad scene sticks with so many readers who have grown to love Liam!
A wyvern comes toward Tairn.
Chapter 37
A venin gets on Tairn’s back, and Violet battles her. She says that Violet has so much untapped power to command the sky but doesn’t know what to do with it. (This is important in later books.)
The venin wants to hand Violet over to her Sage teacher. Violet kills her but is hurt. She realizes that Liam was trying to tell her that when she kills a venin, all the wyvern that the venin created also die. If they want to win the battle, they must focus on killing the venin.
Violet sees the Sage with a staff. He looks at Xaden, then disappears. A general can recognize another general.
Violet tells Xaden to drop the shadows so he doesn’t burn out. Wyvern head toward them, and Violet tries to command the sky with her signet. Tairn worries that Violet will take too much power and die. Andarna arrives (despite Violet telling her to hide) and helps by stopping time. Violet is finally able to aim her lightning to kill the venin.
Xaden kills the one remaining venin, but Violet falls.
Chapter 38
Violet lands on Andarna’s back, but Andarna is also falling because she isn’t strong enough. Time starts again, and Violet slips into Xaden’s arms. He says a green-tipped dagger poisoned her.
Violet awakens groggily, with her magic cut off. Her blood is black, and the group questions whether it was poison or magic. They want to get her back to Nolon at Basgiath to heal her, but the flight is too long. Xaden says he knows somewhere closer, but Garrick says that will risk everything. Xaden doesn’t care.
Violet feels herself flying over the Cliffs of Dralor in Tyrrendor. Violet hears a voice say, “You have to save her.”
Chapter 39
(Xaden’s perspective) It’s been three days, and Violet hasn’t woken up. Tairn blames a guilt-ridden Xaden for not telling Violet about the venin.
Violet awakens, and Xaden checks her wound, which is healing.
He promises to make things up to her, but she is confused because the poison went to her brain. He tells her that Andarna is huge now, but her gift of stopping time is gone.
Xaden looks out onto Aretia, which he’s been rebuilding. Violet wonders why she hasn’t read about it, then realizes Melgren can’t see the outcome of a battle (his signet) when three or more “rebels” are together. (Now she knows why they aren’t allowed to assemble.)
Xaden also notes that the scribes just haven’t been attentive to what they’re doing. (This implies that sometimes “history” is that which is chosen to be recorded.) The land in Aretia remains Xaden’s. He confirms Liam is dead.
Garrick wonders if Violet will keep the secret and discusses the iron box with runes that his dragon, Chradh, retrieved. (Runes will later become more important.)
Xaden asks Violet if she’s willing to fight with them, and she agrees, but she doesn’t want to be with Xaden anymore since he violated her trust. (That said, if he were exposed, he would die as a “traitor,” and no one would be protected from venin outside the wards.) He says he will earn it back.
Violet wonders if the missive at Atheybyne was about War Games or a death mission, and her brother, Brennan, enters and tells her it wasn’t an accident. He is alive, and he healed her.
On the last page of Fourth Wing, Brennen welcomes Violet to “the revolution,” ending the book on a massive cliffhanger. How did Brennan live? What else has happened in the revolution?
Related Fourth Wing Posts
If you liked this Fourth Wing summary, then check out these posts about the Empyrean Series by Rebecca Yarros next:
remember, it’s a good day to read a book. – jules
