#gaul wot

[caraianellisande]

Everybody seems to have one of these so here's my interpretation of the WoT Polycule!

Some of these relationships are defnitely deeper than others but they're all there lol.

[squirrelwrangler]

Aram as the blacksmith is such a softer better fate. And that in Aiel culture the blacksmiths are the revered noncombatant than cannot be harmed in battle or made gai’shin. Go for it, Maidens. I’m torn between Ila’s rejection of her grandson not being as harsh. I want Aram fighting alongside Faile and Perrin but I don’t…

[markantonys]

the only reason so many book fans are so hellbent on gaul being in the show is that they cannot conceptualize the idea of a wonderboy having Girl Besties in showverse instead of a Best Bro. i too am fond of gaul in the books, but he doesn't do anything for perrin and his story that bain and chiad can't do in the show! (and normally i would be sad about the loss of my little background throuple, but canon major throuple avirandlayne will be so incredibly perfect to me that i won't care if bain/chiad/gaul (and amys/rhuarc/lian) are changed to couples in the show.)

[chloristoflora]

When he finally stood, panting and nearly stunned, looking at a dozen whitecloaked men lying on the paving blocks of the square, the moon appeared not to have moved at all. Some of the men groaned; others lay silent and still. Gaul stood among them, still veiled, still emptyhanded. Most of the men down were his work. Perrin wished they all were, and felt ashamed. The smell of blood and death was sharp and bitter.

"You do not dance the spears badly, Perrin Aybara."

Head spinning, Perrin muttered, "I don't see how twelve men fought twenty of you and won, even if two of them are Hunters."

"Is that what they say?" Gaul laughed softly. "Sarien and I were careless, being so long in these soft lands, and the wind was from the wrong direction, so we smelled nothing. We walked into them before we knew it. Well, Sarien is dead, and I was caged like a fool, so perhaps we paid enough. It is time for running now, wetlander. Tear; I will remember it." At last he lowered the black veil. "May you always find water and shade, Perrin Aybara." Turning, he ran into the night.

Perrin started to run, too, then realized he had a bloody axe in his hand. Hastily he wiped the curved blade on a dead man's cloak. He's dead, burn me, and there's blood on it already. He made himself put the haft back through the loop on his belt before he broke into a trot.

At his second step he saw her, a slim shape at the edge of the square, in dark, narrow skirts. She turned to run; he could see they were divided for riding. She darted back into the street and vanished.

The Dragon Reborn, by Robert Jordan (The Wheel of Time #3, Chapter 34: A Different Dance)

[pillowfriends]

please no I don't want to hear about Perrin pounding

[iviarellereads]

The Shadow Rising, Chapter 43 - Care for the Living

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

(Wolf icon) In which I want to pat his head.

PERSPECTIVE: Perrin goes to the inn with Verin, as most of the young men reunite with their families. Feelings are all mixed, except in those who have lost loved ones. Faile worries over Perrin, but he says he just got a little lightheaded getting off the horse. He's really worrying over the lost men, and trying to stay focused on getting help for those still alive.

Some young men come to see Perrin, friends who had been adjacent to his and Mat's and Rand's activities, so Perrin asks where Loial is (cutting trees, someone was sent to tell the men Perrin and co had come back, he'll be here soon probably) and where Luc is. One of them, Elam, says Luc isn't here, but he hopes he comes back soon. Luc was teaching him how to use a sword, and he'd be a king if he had his rights, king of Andor. Perrin says Andor has queens, not kings.

Verin says Luc does have a way of causing trouble when he's here, though. Yesterday, for example, he led a delegation of mostly Coplins and Congars without anyone else's knowledge and told Whitecloaks not to come within ten miles of Emond's Field. She thinks it's not wise or particularly necessary to antagonize them. Perrin thinks Luc couldn’t have had anything to do with the Trollocs if he was in EF the day before.(1)

Perrin recognizes one of the young men, who's grown up quite a bit in a year and change, and they all start asking him questions about the outside world. Mostly, Perrin tells them adventure is about trying not to get your head split open, and going without either food, water, or a bed as often as not. They don't quite believe him.(2)

Loial arrives, and Faile shoos out the other young men. Perrin asks how the Waygate could be unlocked, and Loial says he only put the two keys on the outside, so anyone on this side could still unlock it at need. He couldn't bring himself to destroy the gate's usefulness more permanently.

Loial offers to go fix it, but Perrin says he's going to go, as soon as Alanna gets his side Healed up. She arrives just as Faile starts to realize Perrin is feverish. They move him to the kitchen table, where he murmurs about apprenticing to Master Luhhan, then muses as she smiles wanly at him that Faile's mouth isn't too wide but just right. She presses a leather-wrapped stick into his mouth and tells him to "Bite down, my heart, it will hurt."

He wants to ask her what will hurt, but gets distracted, thinking of taking her hunting. Then he recognizes the feel of the One Power working in him. Then there's pain, and he hears the stick snap in his teeth as he passes out.

=====

(1) Of course. Even if he's Slayer, he can only speed travel in TAR, right? Unless… the Wise Ones did mention some method of entering TAR fully in the flesh, having no body left outside at all, but they said it would corrupt you over time to use it. Well, that can't mean anything, can it? (2) Perrin realizing how young his contemporaries still are because they haven't had his adventures is really cute, in that "oh, honey, you haven't grown up that much more, you've just been in mortal peril" kind of way.

[transkholins]

DO YOU LIKE TO DANCE PERRIN AYBARA CLIP. SEVENTY-TWO HOUR AVIENDHA LOCKDOWN

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Dragon Reborn! Chapter 34: A Different Dance

As always, I shamelessly spoil anything and everything in these posts so you really shouldn't read them unless you're up for that.

We continue with the Wheel icon as Perrin's personal destiny takes shape.

He was too busy wondering if the black-haired girl knew what yellow eyes meant.

Perrin's paranoia about this is quite cute. Yes, Perrin, the gal was checking you out from across the room because of your hard-to-notice-at-that-distance eye color and not because you're a strapping young lad. Wish Mat and Rand were here, why don't you?

“There is another false Dragon, innkeeper? In Ghealdan?” The hood of her cloak still hid her face, but she sounded shaken to her toes.

Moiraine has clearly figured out through her spy network that Taim and the other guy fell almost immediately after Rand's proclamation, so the idea of another false Dragon is very scary. It would mean that Rand isn't the real deal at all.

“I only know what I hear, Master Andra. ’Tis said the fellow has a stare can pin you where you stand, and he talks all sorts of rubbish about the Dragon coming to save us, and we all have to follow, and even the beasts will fight for the Dragon. I don’t know whether they’ve arrested him yet or not. ’Tis likely; the Ghealdanin would not put up long with that kind of talk.”

It's great how the plotline of doom haunts us even in these early books. Moiraine and Lan would have done the world quite a favor if they'd just knifed Masema in his sleep.

“Only with those who displease her,” Lan said blandly. “Her bite is far worse than her bark.”

Talking blandly instead of darkly or outright growling is how you know Lan is downright jubilant.

Perrin, you will not believe it! My bed is sung wood! Why, it must be well over a thousand years old. No Treesinger has sung a piece so large in at least that long. I myself would not care to try it, and I have the talent more strongly than most, now.

I really want to know what's led to the mega-decline of the Ogier. It makes sense that between the Breaking and the Longing they can't do everything they used to, it isn't unreasonable that they can't build cities of old anymore because they're not being asked to do, just maintain them, but humanity lost its gifts because of the Taint. There's not really an Ogier equivalent, and a lot done to preserve the Ogier way of life. Did they just burn through all the real old-growth trees?

It was no use telling himself the adults would certainly have told him to go on about his business, that he was a stranger in Remen and the Aiel was none of his concern.

There we go Perrin, there's some sensible thinking. You just bitched that reality can't be the way it is because it wouldn't be just and *you* cared more than that. So whatcha gonna do?

No answers came to him, so he went back to the beginning and patiently worked through it once more, then again, and again. Still he found nothing except regret for what he had not done.

Dear lord why do I do this at work when I can't drink away the pain?

Moiraine pulled the pale blue robe that hung from her shoulders around herself. “You wish something?” she asked coolly.

Poor Moiraine, the one time Perrin comes to her of his own free will it's with so little respect that she can't help but go "Please get the fuck out while I'm changing."

“I could almost suspect he had learned to Travel,” Moiraine said with a small frown, “except that if he had, he would have gone straight to Tear. No, he has the blood of long walkers and strong runners in him. But we may take the river anyway. If I cannot catch him, I will be in Tear close behind him. Or waiting for him.”

Moiraine's a great bullshitter when she doesn't have an answer. Rand might be running off Aiel energy (you'd half-expect someone in-setting to claim they have extra leg muscles what with history always repeating itself), but he's also not stopping to sleep anywhere near as much as the main party, which buys him a lot of extra hours on net.

She could not help with Min’s viewing, not beyond telling him what he already knew, that it was important. And he did not want to tell her what Min had seen. Or that Min had seen anything, for that matter.

Ironically, if Perrin had said, "Min told me an Aielman in a cage is important to me, I'm gonna go rescue him," Moiraine probably would have sent Lan with him. Purely because of the Min aspect of things, of course; if Perrin ever had ideas of his own that weren't Pattern-approved Moiraine would instead have Lan tie him to a horse or four. I lament a lot of the lack of communication between our good guys but and I diss Perrin's intellect way more often than I thought I'd be doing but our boy is 100% not wrong not to want to trust her here, even though he also is very much wrong.

The common room was full as it could be, with every chair taken, and stools and benches brought in, and those who had nowhere to sit standing along the walls.

Lord Orban might not be a Gleeman, but he does have a very recent war story to share, so it checks out that everyone is desperate to hear more.

He felt a little ashamed; just because he did not like the man was no reason to suppose the Hunter would take his boasting that far.

Dammit Perrin, your gut is so rarely right you should go with it when it is.

He still had the feel of being watched, but he still saw nothing. He listened, and heard nothing. He smelled chimney smoke and cooking from the houses, and man-sweat and old blood from the man in the cage. There was no fear scent from him.

It's destiny watching Perrin, or maybe the shadow. Also it's funny, I think I've seen "man-sweat" a couple of times and it's an odd thing to specify since most (all?) animals don't sweat and no one would assume Gaul had "woman-sweat". Perhaps the wolfs are rubbing off on Perrin more than he wants to acknowledge.

“You are strong, wetlander.” The Aiel did not move beyond working his shoulders. “It took three men to hoist me up there. And now you bring me down. Why?”

Perrin is an exceptional guy in so many ways that he keeps forgetting about the different ways someone might think him exceptional as he tries to cover up the big ones.

I am Gaul, of the Imran sept of the Shaarad Aiel, wetlander. I am Shae’en M’taal, a Stone Dog.

Hi Gaul! Sadly we don't learn much about the Imran sept or where in the Waste it might be, though it's probably close to the Dragonwall because the Shaarad are one of the four clans that fought the Aiel War. The Stone Dogs are an odd society for the scouting going on at present though - they're really more the rear guard of the Aiel forces.

“Well, I am Perrin Aybara. Of the Two Rivers. I’m a blacksmith.”

Perrin's upset that he has servant's quarters and has no idea that he's just introduced himself to someone who considers his profession borderline sacred.

“Three days ago, I watched a girl sporting in a huge pool of water. It must have been twenty paces across. She . . . pulled herself out into it.” He made an awkward swimming gesture with one hand.

You'd think that the Aiel War and the river crossings necessary to wage it would have made the Aiel a little less frightened of water, but here we are.

“It is too late to run,” Gaul said, and a deep voice shouted, “The savage is lose!”

Perrin, why don't your super senses ever do anything useful? Gaul should not have known these guys were here before you!

For an instant they were caught by surprise, but an instant was apparently all the Aiel needed. He kicked the sword out of the grip of the first to reach him, then his stiffened hand struck like a dagger at the Whitecloak’s throat, and he slid around the soldier as he fell. The next man’s arm made a loud snap as Gaul broke it. He pushed that man under the feet of a third, and kicked a fourth in the face.

The real secret of Aiel combat is that their intense dedication to honor means that anyone else who might be fighting them has to be doing so in a dishonorable enough way to qualify as a ninja, and once you're a ninja, the law of inverse ninjitsu is as much a part of the Pattren as gravity.

Perrin had only an amazed moment himself, for not all the Whitecloaks had put their attentions on the Aiel. Barely in time, he gripped the axe haft with both hands to block a sword thrust, swung . . . and wanted to cry out as the half-moon blade tore the man’s throat.

Perrin could really do with a therapist, huh? Dude doesn't like violence even though he's really, really good at it.

Some of the men groaned; others lay silent and still. Gaul stood among them, still veiled, still empty-handed. Most of the men down were his work. Perrin wished they all were, and felt ashamed.

One wonders if ANY of the unconscious are among Perrin's victims or if it's just the dead.

Sarien and I were careless, being so long in these soft lands, and the wind was from the wrong direction, so we smelled nothing. We walked into them before we knew it. Well, Sarien is dead, and I was caged like a fool, so perhaps we paid enough.

Frankly I'm still surprised they managed to kill even one Aiel, the hunters being the losers they are. Musta been Faile's work somehow.

Perrin started to run, too, then realized he had a bloody axe in his hands.

I'm glad that Perrin is just barely smart enough to remember not to run with scissors. It's a low bar, but an important one.

“Is this your work, blacksmith? The Light burn me! Is there anyone who can connect it to you?”

Lan really thought that with Rand on the loose and Mat about as far away as possible that he wouldn't have anywhere near the level of headaches he did back in book one and Perrin just outdid every single one of Mat's shenanigans in the space of half an hour.

I saw a girl running, but I thought. . . .

No, I really wanna know what your first instinct to "girl running away from Perrin" is, Lan. But since I'll never get an answer, my headcanon is that he assumes Perrin tried to flirt with her and that was more than enough to scare her.

Next time: Faile joins the party!

[christophernolan]

Okay so they put Aviendha in a cage and Perrin meets her instead of Gaul???? Where’s Gaul?? He’s like my favorite Aiel??? I hope they haven’t merged or cut his character

[queen-of-andor]

One of my favourite Perrin scenes from early books is when he frees Gaul from the cage he was imprisoned. Such a great scene.

If it’s done well in the show, Gaul x Perrin has the potential to become -almost- as popular as Aviendha x Elayne.

[mashithamel]

[readingwithemi]

Here, have a collection of random WoT thoughts as I am 2/3 of the way through DRAGON REBORN:

I do love that Nyneave is always ready to fight someone in a WWE Summer Slam Rage in the Cage match. Like, if she had access to folding chair technology, she would be unstoppable.

I've gotten to a (the??) part of THE DRAGON REBORN that broke my heart </3 Rand is so utterly alone and broken and in the throes of plots and powers he doesn't fully understand and I just want him to have his pals (and for those pals to, you know, talk to him and support him lol) and for him to stop fighting SO HARD against EVERYTHING. :(

I liked Perrin's meetcute with Gaul <3 I hope he and Gaul get to be pals :>

And on that note, I'm really liking the Aiel! Honestly, I'm enjoying all the different cultures and nations we keep meeting. The Seanchan are still my favorite, I think, for how alien they are, comparatively speaking.

I can't wait for everyone to meet up in Tear and for everything to be OK UuU

[highladyluck]

Gay WoT ships (with respect to Horse Girl Gender)

Horse Girl/Horse Girl

Mat/Tuon

Mat/Elayne

Rand/Min

Mat/Rand

Min/Elayne

Nyneave/Lan

Moghedien/Nyneave

Faile/Berelain

Horse Hater Girl/Horse Hater Girl

Aviendha/Siuan

Perrin/Gaul

Bain/Chiad

Bain/Chiad/Gaul

[cannoli-reader]

It was the first day of the Feast of Lights, the shortest day of the year, the last day of the year...

-- Lord of Chaos, chapter 53 "The Feast of Lights"

We saw a celebration in the series. The quote above is the day they realize Rand was kidnapped by the Aes Sedai. Perrin, Gaul & Loial set out to pursue Rand on their equivalent of New Years Day.

I think the belief that this is the anniversary of Dumai's Wells comes from the results if we translate the solar time from WoT to the real world, where the shortest day of the year is December 21, which means the Feast of Lights is on the 21st & 22nd, with Perrin leaving on the 22nd, and ten days later, arriving at Dumai's Wells. So it would be January 1st, only in the real Calender. It's the eleventh of their first month, Taisham. We know this, because High Chasaline is on Taisham 12th, and that was the day after Dumai's Wells.

Happy Dumai's Wells Memorial Day!

I tried to find a Randland celebration for New Year, but I couldn’t find one. Turns out The Battle of Dumai’s Wells was on “January” 1st!

[asha-mage]

Okay but it dawned on me that that, since we're going right to TSR next season that means Perrin will probably leave from Falme to the Two Rivers and meet Faile there (probably with her hunting rumors for the Horn or just adventure in general). Bain and Chiad will probably get to the Two Rivers by going with him (likely as a favor to Avienda). On the one hand, the idea of Bain and Chiad just kinda sliding up to Faile after meeting with her/Faile stealing Perrin's Aiel besties for herself is funny, what would be even funnier is if they choose to bring in Gaul as Faile's Aiel companion, while Bain and Chiad stuck with Perrin, leading to a reversal of their respective roles from the books.

Perrin long suffering and having to put up with Bain and Chaid discussing weather it would be better to court Gaul or take him gai'shain, while Gaul backs up Faile with his smart ass comments is something so so delightful to me.

[iviarellereads]

The Shadow Rising, Chapter 31 - Assurances

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

(Whitecloak sunburst icon) In which a poor wee lad is in a bit over his head, but which one, or both?

PERSPECTIVE: Perrin et al enter the old sickhouse, Perrin recognizes Verin Mathwin, the Brown sister who'd caught up to them on the quest for the Horn. The other he's only seen once but knows something of: Alanna Mosvani, a Green sister, who Egg once said showed too much interest in Rand.(1) Marin tries to explain her reasoning, but Verin tells her it's perfectly alright. Alanna demands of Perrin to know if "the other two" returned with him. Perrin demands to know why they're here.

Marin tells Perrin to mind his manners. The Aes Sedai tell Marin kindly that she should get back to the village before anyone starts asking questions, and she leaves. Perrin asks again why they're here, it's awfully coincidental that everyone shows up at once. Verin says it's not coincidental at all: two incredibly powerful young women came to the Tower from just one village, so they thought they'd come see if there were any other suitable young women for training. There's some discussion between her and Alanna about "the Whites' plan" which seems to entail women having children by gentled male channelers to reinforce whatever tendencies might produce channelers.

Alanna says they were only in Watch Hill a week when they'd found four girls who could be trained, and a child who might have the inborn spark.(2) That's when the Whitecloaks appeared and they had to be spirited off into deeper hiding.

Perrin asks why they're not doing anything about the Whitecloaks, and Alanna tells him in a tight voice that he has no idea what he's talking about: she's already lost a Warder when the Children caught him in an open field. She felt every arrow that struck him until he died, then felt him die as well. If she were there, she could defend him and herself, but she cannot use the Power for revenge because of the Oaths.

Alanna notices Perrin's wounds, and the party explain that it was Trollocs, as they came through the Ways. Alanna says she'll never understand why the Amyrlin Seat let "you three" go their own way. With the seals weakening and the Last Battle coming, the last thing they need is three ta'veren running loose.(3) She says she would have considered bonding them... not against their will, she's not quite that lost to custom, not yet. She finishes her delve weave, checking for all Perrin's injuries, and says his cheek has gone too long since it happened, it'll leave a scar. He says he doesn't have to be pretty, but Alanna and Faile share a look before Alanna heals him. Faile calls the scar afterward "a beauty mark".

Ihvon comes back and whispers with Alanna for a moment, then leaves. A moment later, Tam and Abell walk in. Both are amazed at Loial, and Tam's face flickers with recognition of the Aiel. They both greet Perrin warmly and ask for news of their sons. Perrin tells them both were fine in Tear when he last saw them, hoping only Verin knows the full import of the statement.

Tam asks if Moiraine was right about the Trollocs being after them on Winternight. Verin gives Perrin a warning look, and Alanna looks a little too alert while rummaging in her saddlebags. Perrin says they'll have to ask Moiraine about that. Tam and Abell give the Aes Sedai some of the rabbits they've hunted, telling Perrin the AS gave them some healing, and they're stocking up against future need. Perrin follows them outside to talk. The older men joke about Perrin's beard (and chuckle when Perrin says Faile likes it) but never mention his eyes. When they talk about managing a woman, Perrin thinks how similar the advice is to what Mistress al’Vere gave Faile for managing him, and wonders if Tam and Marin ever compared notes.(4)

Abell does say that Alanna let slip that the three boys are all ta'veren. How did he come to travel with an Ogier and three Aiel? Perrin says that's nothing to do with ta'veren, they're just friends, in a complicated way. Tam starts to tell Perrin about his family, but Perrin says he knows, and then they all spot a raven. Tam and Abell both have arrows in it before Perrin finishes drawing one.

They say nobody paid much mind to the ravens until they started attacking the sheep. Now they doubt there'll even be merchants for their wool this year, and there are all sorts of dead animals in the woods, from rabbits up to bears, most not even skinned, just left to rot. It's definitely the work of a man, not a Trolloc, from the tracks left beside them. Perrin thinks Slayer must be here and not just in the wolf dream.

Perrin asks how difficult it'll be to rescue the Cauthon women, and Abell admits tiredly that it'll be powerful hard. And even if they get them out of the Whitecloaks' hands, there may not be anywhere to keep them safe: the whole of the 2Rs is caught between the two millstones of Whitecloaks and Trollocs, hoping not to get ground down by one or the other. Perrin says he thought better of 2Rs folk than that, and he means to give this place a reputation for being hostile to Trollocs. Tam is about to say something, but stops when the light catches Perrin's eyes.

Abell cautions Perrin not to let the hate eat him from the inside out. Perrin says nothing's eating him, he just means to do what needs doing.(5)

PERSPECTIVE: Dain, returning from a patrol. He left with 100 men, and returns with 11 bodies strapped over their horses, and 23 more injured. This is the third patrol that's been ambushed by Trollocs, and not just that: it's only the patrols he goes on personally. And the encounters seem to be planned. He sees some activity in the Traveling People's camp, and tells one of his men to tell the Seeker that if he means to move his people, they can go south. And no boots or fists: this Raen has ears, words will suffice.(6)

He looks over his camp, thinks about the prisoners, wonders if they're Darkfriends, as Ordeith claims. Even if they are, there's only one he wants: Perrin Aybara. He can't believe Byar's tales of Perrin running with wolves, but he can believe that Perrin led Geofram, Dain's ol pops, into a trap to be killed by the Seanchan Darkfriends and their Aes Sedai allies.

He dismounts at his tent, and Byar says Ordeith is back, with two casualties, and names them. Dain tells Byar to bring Ordeith if he has to arrest the man. In the tent, he thinks how twice he's sent men with Ordeith, and both times, every man he sent came back dead from a "skirmish with Trollocs" with no wounded among the rest of his group.(7)

Dain thinks how everywhere else in the world, people are willing to root out their own Darkfriends, but here, everywhere except Taren Ferry, folk just stare at the Dragon's Fang with a sullen stubbornness, it might as well be whitewash for all the good it does.

Ordeith swaggers into Dain's tent, and Dain smacks him when he starts to talk about the "Trolloc skirmish". His accent changes, and he starts talking about how they have to scourge out the corruption that spawned those three Darkfriends: Rand al’Thor. Mat Cauthon. Perrin Aybara. They argue another minute, and Ordeith says if Dain can give him a free hand to do his work in secret, he can put Perrin Aybara in Dain's hands. Dain tells him to get out and wonders what the Lord Captain Commander is up to with Ordeith.

PERSPECTIVE: Padan Fain, Mordeth, Ordeith, so many names for one man, or is he just one man anymore. He thinks Bornhald might have to be disposed of soon, he's getting too troublesome. He can feel one of the three boys in Emond's Field. He thinks he'd know if it were Rand, the only one he really wants, but he's sure Rand will come eventually.

Everything was going to plan until "this new one" appeared with Gray Men. Still, he goes back to his tent, and the men who Bornhald and even Pedron Niall still think are theirs. He goes in to examine his prisoner, asking if they've thought over his proposal: accept and you walk free, refuse... he knows how to hurt "your sort".

The chain jerks, the stakes creak, and the Myrddraal says it accepts, now release it. Ordeith smiles and suggests they talk about agreements and accord first. The Myrddraal begins to sweat.(8)

=====

(1) Did you guess? Did you guess correctly? (2) It's enough to make you wonder if, perhaps, despite Alanna's protests that they look sooooo far abroad, every place might have more women who can channel, and the Aes Sedai leave the White Tower so rarely that they just don't get found because nobody goes to those wee villages even on the way to somewhere else. The places they DO travel get picked clean, leaving fewer (3) And again, the dismissal that anyone outside the Tower could be capable of anything meaningful. Something RJ is really good at, though a lot of readers ignore it, is establishing that while the Aes Sedai live a long time and have access to the most knowledge in the world as they've collected it over the past 3000 years, they have insulated themselves in the Tower, they have ignored the affairs of the outside world except for the politics of rulers, and they have been corrupted from the inside by forces that it just isn't polite to talk about. Remind you of, oh, I don't know, every major institution, political and religious, in the 21st century? (4) See, and this sort of aside is why I think there was an active attempt to draw attention to it, lampshade and spotlight it, as an attempted deconstruction. Whether it's successful is up for debate (and debate continues, at least as lively now as thirty years ago) but I dunno, I think credit should be given where due. (5) Right, because that's where it's going to end, totally. Still, it certainly seems Perrin's ramping up to do something real about this situation, which is good, because we're well on past the halfway mark of this book already. Chop chop, good sir. Put that axe to good use. (6) We remember Raen, don't we? Despite that it's been, oh, three books since we saw him and his caravan? How funny that they're in the 2Rs right as Perrin comes back as well. (7) I wonder how long it'll take poor Dain to realize that he's never been in control of this operation, and Ordeith is the Darkfriend he's looking for, who had his father sent to his death, not Perrin. Alas, probably never at this rate, amirite? (Because Ordeith wants to try to kill him.) (8) And Fain's still hunting the wonderboys and torturing Myrddraal. So, a day ending in Y, then. But, who was that one he mentioned, who brought Gray Men? How many different groups and operatives are staging up in the Two Rivers?