Sun Summoner Explained: History, Powers & Future In Shadow & Bone

Shadow and Bone protagonist Alina Starkov is the world’s first known Sun Summoner. Here’s what she can do, and why she is so important.

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Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Shadow and Bone season 1.

From fire-flinging Inferni to the clever craftwork of the Fabrikators, Shadow and Bone’s fantasy world is full of people with incredible powers – but there’s no one quite like Alina Starkov, the Sun Summoner. Hailing from the humble background of an orphanage in Keramzin, Alina eventually becomes praised as a living saint by people who hope she will use her powers to destroy the Shadow Fold.

Based on the Grishaverse books by Leigh Bardugo, Shadow and Bone is set in a world where some people are born with innate abilities to summon, control and manipulate elements and materials. These acts of summoning and manipulation are referred to as the Small Sciences and are distinct from magic, or merzost, which is the forbidden practice of creating something from nothing. There are common types of Grisha, like Heartrenders, Squallers, Tidemakers and Healers. Then there are rare and unique Grisha like General Kirigan a.k.a. the Darkling and his mother, Baghra, who are the only two known Shadow Summoners in the world.

When Alina Starkov is attacked by monsters while on a supply run across the Shadow Fold, a great burst of light reveals that she is an entirely new kind of Grisha: a Sun Summoner. Her power is on a level that rivals the Darkling’s, and it has the potential to undo the greatest and most terrible work of Shadow Summoner magic in history: the Shadow Fold itself. Here’s a breakdown of Alina’s Sun Summoner powers, why she’s considered a saint, and why she’s the only one of her kind.

Sun Summoner History & Other Saints Explained

Though Alina is the first known Sun Summoner, there have been myths of a Grisha with her abilities for many years, which is why she’s hailed as a prophesied savior after revealing her powers. The people’s belief in the Sun Summoner stems from the known existence of Shadow Summoners like the Dark Heretic; they reasoned that if a Grisha with the ability to summon darkness exists, there must surely also be a Grisha who can summon light.

Ravka is a deeply religious country with many saints, as detailed in Bardugo’s companion book The Lives of Saints. Most of these saints are Grisha who used their powers to perform miracles that helped the people of the Grishaverse in some way, and many of them were martyred – much like saints in our own world. Ilya Morozova, one of the very first Grisha and the creator of amplifiers like Morozova’s Stag, is also known as Sankt Ilya in Chains, as he was punished for his use of merzost by being wrapped in chains and thrown off a bridge into deep water. Alina is named a saint by people who believe deeply in her, like Inej – not because of what she has already done, but because of the miracle she is expected to perform.

How Powerful Alina’s Sun Summoner Powers Are

Alina’s storyline in Shadow and Bone season 1 is based on the first book in Darbugo’s Grisha trilogy, so TV viewers have yet to see the full scope of what her Sun Summoner abilities can do. Still, the enormous blast of light that she created in the first episode is a clear indication of just how much raw power she has inside her. General Kirigan offered another glimpse of her potential when he tested Alina to confirm her Grisha abilities, unleashing a blinding beacon of light that pierced the sky. As the Sun Summoner, Alina is both Kirigan’s opposite and his equal in power, with the potential to wield light in the same way that he wields darkness.

Like all Grisha, Alina’s powers can be greatly enhanced through the use of amplifiers. There are a number of these legendary amplifiers out in the world, and in Shadow and Bone season 1 one of them – Morozova’s Collar, made from the antlers of Morozova’s Stag – is melded into Alina’s body. Like Kirigan she could also potentially withstand the use of merzost, though tapping into this forbidden magic of creation is dangerous, and could cost her dearly.

Is Alina The First Sun Summoner? Why They’re So Rare

Alina Starkov is the first known Sun Summoner in existence. Unlike the Darkling, who is descended from Morozova and inherited the same Shadow Summoning powers as his mother, Alina’s ancestry is unclear. Though her appearance indicates that one of her parents was from Shu Han, a country at war with Ravka, she was raised in an orphanage and never knew her mother or father. Grisha powers are usually passed down through a bloodline, but the gene is recessive and may skip generations, so that Grisha are born to non-Grisha parents. It’s also possible that Grisha powers could sometimes manifest spontaneously in bloodlines with no Grisha ancestry. So, whether Alina is descended from some powerful ancient Sun Summoner whose existence passed under the radar or whether she truly is the first of her kind remains a mystery.

One theory that might explain the spontaneous appearance of a Sun Summoner is the universe’s demand for balance. Grisha who practice the Small Sciences maintain balance by only manipulating existing matter, while merzost is dangerous, unpredictable and unstable because it creates from nothing. The creation of the Shadow Fold was a cataclysmic use of merzost, and so the world may have manifested a Sun Summoner – a Grisha with the power to destroy the Fold – as a means of restoring balance to the magical ecosystem.

The Sun Summoner’s Future In Shadow & Bone

Even with the amplifying power of Morozova’s Stag, it’s unlikely that Alina was yet at a level in Shadow and Bone season 1 where she could have completely destroyed the Fold. The current power level of her Sun Summoner abilities makes it possible to temporarily blast holes and short tunnels in the Fold, but the darkness spans an entire country and will require considerably more strength and training to be completely destroyed. In fact, destroying it might not even be possible through the use of the Small Sciences only; the Shadow Fold was created using merzost, so Alina may need to venture into that dangerous territory in order to undo the work of the Dark Heretic.

Alina was weakened in the final battle by Ivan’s Heartrending, so in the short term she still needs to recover from being pushed to the brink of death. Shadow and Bone season 1’s final scene revealed that the Darkling is still alive, and he already has hundreds of years worth of training and refining his powers, giving him a considerable advantage over Alina. Since she can’t hope to catch up to Kirigan in terms of experience, her best bet will be finding more amplifiers to boost her raw power – but Kirigan will no doubt be searching for them as well.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/shadow-bone-sun-summoner-alina-powers-history-explained/