The ending of Shadow and Bone season 1 offered a big turning point for Zoya (Sujaya Dasgupta), which opens up questions about what the future might hold for her in season 2 of the Netflix series. For most of the show’s eight-episode first season, the Squaller was a rival to Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li) and a loyal subordinate of General Kirigan (Ben Barnes).
In the Shadow and Bone season finale, Kirigan revealed his true intentions for Alina’s Sun Summoner powers. Instead of destroying the Shadow Fold, Kirigan sought to use it as a weapon that would allow him to control other nations. As a display of the power he now holds, he used the Fold to devastate Novokribirsk. This act prompted Zoya, who had family there, to turn on him by saving Inej (Amita Suman) from Ivan (Simon Sears). Afterward, Zoya employed her wind abilities to navigate the ship to safety through the Fold. As a result of her actions, the main characters were able to survive the big battle with the Darkling.
In the episode’s final minutes, they regrouped and discussed where they would go next. Zoya became the first to split off, having told Alina and the others that she decided to head back into the Fold to Novokribirsk to check on the family she had there. Just as Kaz (Freddy Carter) warned her, going into the Fold will of course be a dangerous journey, but her large presence in the Grisha novels suggests that she’ll come back unscathed.
Zoya’s arc in the second book, Siege and Storm, sheds light on what may come next for her, considering that both the TV and book versions of the character betrayed the Darkling over the death and destruction that occurred at Novokribirsk. After seeing what happened there, she returned to the Little Palace and emerged as an ally to Alina, though a love triangle with Mal kept them from easily becoming friends. She stuck around for a while, and also assisted in the final battle against General Kirigan. Her story extended far beyond the book, with her getting big roles in other novels set in the Grishaverse. She even became the queen of Ravka, but that’s unlikely to happen until much later in the TV series.
Instead, Zoya’s Shadow and Bone season 2 story is expected to focus more on how she’ll be involved with the upcoming struggle between Alina and the Darkling, as well as Alina’s quest to finally bring down the Fold. When she gets back to the Little Palace and has to start preparing for these tasks, she’s sure to need people like Zoya to help her accomplish her mission. If the finale is any indication, they should be able to achieve some level of cooperation as things move forward.