Difference between revisions of "Aesudan Kholin"

Aesudan marries Elhokar some time before his ascension to the throne of Alethkar. Little of her life prior to that is known. As a princess of Alethkar, she attends the treaty signing feast with the Parshendi on the night that King [[Gavilar Kholin]] is assassinated by [[Szeth]].{{book ref|sa2|prologue}} On that same night, prior to the king's death, [[Jasnah Kholin]] meets with [[Liss]], an assassin that she had hired as one of Aesudan's maids. For unknown reasons, Jasnah instructs Liss to observe Aesudan and report back on her actions, but not to assassinate her unless Jasnah orders it. Ultimately Jasnah decides against that, but her reasoning remains unclear. Elhokar later states that his sister had spoken out against his decision to marry Aesudan in the past, and that she'd claimed Aesudan was too power-hungry. Elhokar, however, just took it for strength.

However, either Navani makes a crucial misjudgment or the Unmade corrupted Aesudan after Navani's departure, because Aesudan inadvertently begins to turn the populace against herself.{{book ref|sa2|i|12}} She throws lavish feasts, reveling in excess, and allows food sent in by starving farmers for the soldiers on the Shattered Plains to simply rot away. She also cancels the [[Beggar's Feast]]s. This is perhaps due in part to her sycophantic [[ardent]]s who simply tell her that she is always on the right path. However, one of the ardents assigned to her retinue, a young woman named [[Pai]], refuses to look past the queen's flaws and performs an act of civil disobedience. She goes before the Common Throne of the [[People's Hall]] and inks the [[glyphs]] of the [[Ten fools|ten foolish attributes]] before the Throne, as well as a paragraph below each glyph, explaining how Aesudan exemplifies each of these traits, denouncing not only the queen but the government itself. Pai is executed, but Kholinar erupts in riots the next day.{{book ref|sa2|interlude|12}}

Following the summoning of the [[Everstorm]] and the rallying of a Voidbringer army, Kholinar is surrounded by [[Fused]] and [[Singers]], who use spren to locate and punish any use of [[fabrial|fabrials]], preventing communication via [[spanreed]]. [[Elhokar]], [[Kaladin]], [[Adolin]] and [[Shallan]] are sent by [[Dalinar]] to infiltrate the city and save Aesudan and [[Gavinor Kholin]]. They find out that she is under the influence of the [[Unmade]] [[Yelig-nar]] and [[Ashertmarn]].{{book ref|sa3|84}} After part of the infiltration team flees Kholinar via a corrupted [[Oathgate]], Aesudan's fate is unknown (Odium says that "the power consumed her" but it is not clear what he means by this{{book ref|sa3|118}}) but [[Drehy]] and [[Skar]] are revealed to have saved [[Gavinor]]{{book ref|sa3|122}} and [[Yelig-nar]] finds a new vessel in [[Amaram]] during the battle of [[Thaylen City]].{{book ref|sa3|118}}