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[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 46 - Fal Dara

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(Dead tree icon) In which we learn that yes, the whole world's been having a hella weird winter.

The countryside is rolling, forested hills, but most of the trees are leafless. There are a few evergreens, but their needles are mostly brown. This is Shienar, one of the countries in the Borderlands. The Blight itself isn't far. Some of the trees look like they've been hit by lightning, but Lan explains the winters get so cold, sometimes the sap freezes and explodes, sounds like fireworks going off, and there were more than usual the past winter.(1)

They pass an empty farm. Egwene notes they can't have been gone long, and when Mat asks, explains that the curtains in the window are too thin for winter, they can't have been up more than a week or two. Perrin laughs at curtains, but agrees with them, there was a scythe out, with no rust on it, can't have been out more than a week or two. Rand tries not to stare at Perrin, because his eyes are (or were) sharper than Perrin's and he didn't see well enough to tell if the scythe was rusted or not. Mat says he doesn't care where they went, just that they get to a place with a fire, soon. Rand wonders *why* the farm is abandoned.

Rand tries again to get the women and Loial to stay behind in Fal Dara, and Loial gets excited about meeting the Green Man. Many of the Elders have met him, and tell such stories. Nynaeve says they're part of the Pattern too, and if you boys... you men, are willing to do whatever it takes to defeat the Dark One, then she can do no less. They're all stunned that she called them men at all.

Egwene comes up beside Rand and says quietly that she only danced with Aram, he wouldn't hold it against her, would he? He wonders why she brought it up now. He also remembers Min saying she's not for him, nor him for her, but he tells her no, of course not.(2)

They approach the Fal Dara city wall and Lan pushes down his cloak's hood, and motions to the others to do the same. It's the law in the Shienar, nobody can hide their face in a town, because Fades can't hide with their face exposed. As they enter, several call out to Lan, calling him "Dai Shan" excitedly, asking if the Golden Crane will fly again, which he doesn't really answer. However, many people are crammed into the city, and many carts piled high with furniture and miscellaneous belongings. This is where the farmers went.

A man, Ingtar, meets them in the courtyard of the fortress, and leads them to Lord Agelmar, the leader of this place. He greets Moiraine and Lan with the local language, says they must have had a long journey, and calls for rooms, baths, and such to be prepared. Moiraine says they'll stay just one night. Agelmar says they're planning a confrontation in some place called Tarwin's Gap, and they both would be more than welcome, more than helpful there. Especially if Lan would fly the Golden Crane again...

“The Seven Towers are broken,” Lan said harshly, “and Malkier is dead; the few of her people left, scattered across the face of the earth. I am a Warder, Agelmar, sworn to the Flame of Tar Valon, and I am bound into the Blight.”

Agelmar says surely a few weeks can't make a difference... Lan asks how bad it is, and it's Pretty Bad. All the Borderlands have been raided by Trollocs all winter, everyone's sure a great army is coming forth from the Blight, some are even saying the world is ending, the Dark One loose and all. He begs Lan to ride with them, to hearten the men. He and Moiraine both. They both cannot, they have their own battle to fight in the Blight.

Agelmar takes a moment to evaluate the company she's keeping, and is skeptical of their chances. Moiraine says his men would distract from their purpose. Need and intention are the key to finding the Eye of the World and the Green Man. She has been there once before (at which the Duopotamians stare at her) but there is no need greater than hers right now, and she has something that may make the difference.(3)

Rand's observations of the decor of the place (all very minimal and stark) is continued into dinner talk about "there's beauty in a single flower placed among the rocks, making the rocks more beautiful in contrast" and such. Even Lan recites some poetry.(4)

Ingtar appears and tells Agelmar that a stranger tried to get into town. He ran away when the gate guards questioned him, then was found shortly thereafter trying to scale the walls. His accent marks him from Lugard, sometimes. Agelmar excuses himself to deal with this stranger, you can't know who to trust these days, and Moiraine asks to accompany him. The whole party goes with.

It doesn't take them long to recognize Padan Fain. Rand realizes he must have been the beggar in Caemlyn, and the one who followed them through the Ways. He says that "he" made him do things, "him" with the burning eyes, and then his whole manner and accent change, and he says he's overcome by spells sometimes, don't mind him, or his clothes, he had to hide from those who mean him harm. Padan Fain is one of the disguises he's had to wear over the years, but don't be fooled, he can teach you how to defeat the Dark One, yes he can. Then he changes back to Fain, saying he wants to "be free of him".(4)

Moiraine recognizes what this is. There's no time to wait, she has to question him alone.

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(1) True events! The effect is very similar to a burst pipe in a home, the tree's sap mostly doesn't freeze, but the right tree type under the right conditions can explode. You see 'em a lot in places like Texas when they get those freaky cold snaps. (2) I suspect it was remembering that they're both considered old enough to marry, and probably would have been nudged into it had they stayed home much longer, since Egg had only just earned her braid. The reminder from Nynaeve that the lads are men, and Egg wanting some security since all their lives have been royally upturned in the last month or two. (3) The Borderlands, and Shienar in particular, are heavily inspired by Asian folklore and tropes. Even the language has echoes of Japanese throughout it, and the whole poetry over one flower in a stone yard thing makes it pretty clear. (4) What's happened to Fain?

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 22 - A Path Chosen

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(Dead tree icon) In which at least someone's okay, and yes I mean the horse.

Perrin wakes, long after sunrise. There are branches woven over him, hiding him from sight. He gets up and sees no trace of Trollocs, but none of his friends or traveling companions, either. He also doesn't know where his horse went, but he's more used to walking anyway, and he's got good boots.

He has no food, but he has a sling to take down small game, and he can get what he needs to make a firebow with his axe. He could dry his clothes, but it's not exactly warm. The problem is taking time to do anything when it could mean not finding his friends.

He decides not to waste any more of it, and sets off down river, covering several miles by running from bush to bush so he won't be spotted easily from the other bank where the Trollocs were. He comes upon a print in the mud, and smiles. Some Trollocs have hooves, but none wear horseshoes with the distinctive mark Master Luhhan puts in his.

He follows the horse prints to a dense stand of trees and finds Egwene, wielding a large branch like a weapon next to a small fire, and Bela the horse as well.(1) She drops it and hugs him fiercely. Neither of them have seen anyone else. She shares some of her packed food, and they decide with some discussion to go directly to Caemlyn, since the Fades might be looking for them at Whitebridge.(2)

Perrin suggests they get started now. He'll dry off as he walks, and they've got a long way to go.

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(1) That horse really does seem to have a knack for coming out alright. All the more fuel for our "Bela is the Creator" theory, amirite? I just hope Perrin's horse is alright somewhere too. (2) How they'll really navigate there is anyone's guess, but I suppose their collective memory of Bran's maps and a general sense of direction ought to get them to civilization eventually, if they can survive the wilderness or whatever else they might run into.

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 11 - The Road to Taren Ferry

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(Dead tree icon)(1) In which we ride.

Lan and Moiraine are at the head of the line, and Rand at the back, all the horses galloping as fast as they're able, even steady old Bela. Rand thinks to himself that if Bela and Egwene start to slow, he'll slow down too, because Moiraine and Lan won't leave him behind. But he thinks real hard about Bela continuing to keep up, as if by sheer force of will he can make her faster on his own.

They make it as far as Watch Hill, about a third of the way to Taren Ferry. The boys daydream about mutton pies and hot tea at the inn there, but Lan says they can't stop until they're over the river Taren, not for more than a few minutes. Moiraine uses some of her magic to relieve the horses' fatigue, noting that Bela is the least weary of all the horses.(2)

Suddenly the Draghkar screams nearby, and the horses run to chaos, barely held together by the reins still in everyone's hands. Lan says it wouldn't reveal itself unless it already reported their location to the Myrddraal, and they need to get back on the road now. Rand doesn't even realize he's got his sword out by instinct until Egwene tells him to hurry back onto his horse.(3)

They ride on for hours without another break, Moiraine at one point pulling a fog over the road to hide their path. Eventually they arrive at Taren Ferry. Lan knocks on a door until someone wakes and opens the door, and says he wants to cross the river. The man protests that the ferry only crosses during daylight, but Lan counts out a number of gold coins, and the man agrees to go wake his haulers.

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(1) The dead tree icon, it now seems safe to say, mostly marks travel through forests at night. A very odd thing to have a whole chapter icon for, but the icons are for setting an expectation, and this is certainly the sort of event that happens often enough in a story like this. (2) Obviously, Rand and Tam just weren't letting her fulfill her full potential. Also, there's a semi-joke in the fandom that Bela is the Creator, or the Dark One incarnate, just for funsies. There were bumper stickers and everything, at one point. (3) That's so sweet of you, Rand, but you've had that thing for five minutes and your only real strike with it was an accident.

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 7 - Out Of The Woods

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(Dead tree icon) In which some costs are too great, but perhaps we can hope, not this one.

Rand plods on until he notices the dark night fading. He can barely feel his shoulders or his legs anymore, just the queasy hunger in his stomach and the burning in his lungs. He smells smoke, and smiles, but shortly realizes there's too much of it in the air.

The city's been sacked. Sort of. The destruction is in patches, as if specific houses, specific streets were targeted, and those between and around them left alone.(1)

Master Luhhan is the first one Rand can flag down, and he calls for Egwene and helps Rand with the litter. Egwene leads them to Nynaeve, who looks Tam over and declares sadly that she can't help him. Rand protests that Tam is dying, and Nynaeve says she knows he is, but she knows what she can do with her herb lore, and there are people she can still save.(2) She goes back to her work, calling Egwene in after her. Egwene gives Rand a tackle-hug for comfort, and goes back to work.

Rand sets himself to bring Tam to the Mayor, surely Bran al'Vere will know something to do. He walks in a daze, brushing off offers of help from others in the village. Thom Merrilin is outside the inn, and says he's sure the Wisdom will set Tam right, he admires her work since last night, and how odd that Padan Fain disappeared in the night.

Ignoring Thom as he did the other villagers, Rand is started on his arrival at the inn to see its door marked with charcoal, a teardrop shape balanced on its point. Rand calls it the Dragon's Fang,(3) and thinks it's used to accuse those within of evil, why would anyone accuse anyone at the inn of evil? Somewhere along the way, Master Luhhan left to other tasks, so Thom helps get Tam on the litter inside.

Rand gets Tam in and Bran insists on settling the man in a bed, so he can at least rest. After telling them Nynaeve won't help him, Rand begs Master al'Vere and Thom the gleeman for any idea what he can do to save his father.

Thom wonders who scrawled the Dragon's Fang on the door,(4) and the Mayor accuses the Coplins and Congars, troublemaking families. One of them, he says, told him he ought to throw Moiraine and Lan out of the village, as if there would be a village left without them.

Rand is confused. What did they do? Turns out Moiraine is an Aes Sedai. She called lightning out of the sky and killed many of the Trollocs. Lan being her Warder, his sword felled any that came near him. Bran realizes that Aes Sedai can heal, and asks why Thom didn't just say that in the first place, since he knows all the stories? Thom remarks coolly that the Coplins and Congars aren't the only ones who want no truck with Aes Sedai.

Help from an Aes Sedai was sometimes worse than no help at all, so the stories said, like poison in a pie, and their gifts always had a hook in them, like fishbait.

Despite his misgivings and the men's warnings, Rand runs off to find Moiraine and ask for her help. As he walks up, Lan and Moiraine talk about how seven bands of Trollocs have been noted in the dead, that many haven't worked together since the Trolloc Wars.(5)

Rand stumbles over his words and says he'll pay any price in his power if she can help his father. Moiraine says they'll talk of prices later, if at all, but she'll do what she can. When Rand tries to rush them, Lan snaps that she's obviously tired, from what she'd already done the night before. He adds that he's not sure Rand is worth helping, "no matter what she says."(6) Moiraine bids Lan to go gently, the boy only cares for his father as much as Lan wants to protect Moiraine.

For his part, Rand just tries not to worry what price she'll ask as they approach the inn.

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(1) What were they looking for? Well, nearly all the boys of an age range in and around town reported seeing the black rider in the days before. That would be a pretty big coincidence. (2) Triage is a wonderful and terrible thing. (3) And this is why I used that name a few chapters ago. Only, we see now what connotation it carries. Looking back, what in chapter 3 might have justified its use there? Was it the talk of the Dragon, or something more sinister? (4) Note here, how Thom tries to draw attention to Moiraine Sedai's ability without saying so. He knows the Fang was probably exactly what Bran said, done to accuse Moiraine and Lan of being Darkfriends. So, he tries to guide Bran down the path to "Aes Sedai can heal" without compromising his principle to know about and interact with Aes Sedai as little as possible. (5) We've seen mention of the Trolloc Wars before, "when men battled Trollocs for rule of the earth", from Thom's bragging about all the stories he knows. We didn't know quite what Trollocs were then, but we have a much better idea, now, of what horror a Trolloc War might entail. (6) Moiraine seemed awfully relieved to see Rand had survived the night, and now we learn that Moiraine thinks Rand is worth putting herself out over. Who is this woman, this Aes Sedai, and why is she here?

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 5 - Winternight

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(Dead tree icon) In which that escalated quickly.

Rand and Tam arrive home the sun halfway from noon to sunset, to find everything in order at their relatively small home. They're unusual for having just the two living there, as most families live three or four generations in a house.(1)

A fair bit of time is just spent establishing that they are indeed farmers and know what they're about, and that the effects of the long winter are causing the animals to be less fruitful as well as a delay in the growing season. They do the daily chores, attending to the animals, checking on the early plantings, chopping wood and mending tack. As dusk falls, Tam breaks Rand out of a woodchopping fugue and suggests they get some supper and sleep before tomorrow.

At one point in the evening, Rand notes Tam locking the doors, something that's never been done in his life, and then Tam retrieves something from the chest under his bed: a sword, with a heron on the scabbard, the hilt, and the blade.(2) Rand is enamored but confused, Tam says he should have gotten rid of it, he paid too high a price and it's no good for farming, but maybe they'll be glad of it tonight.

Then comes the knock at the door. Then thumping. Then the door bursts in, the lock laying almost exploded across the floor.

Rand felt the beginnings of an odd sort of relief. Whoever this was, it was not the black-cloaked rider. Then he saw the curled ram’s horns on the head that brushed the top of the doorway, and where mouth and nose should have been was a hairy muzzle. He took in all of it in the space of one deep breath that he let out in a terrified yell as, without thinking, he hurled the hot kettle at that half-human head.

Tam tells Rand to run for the woods, and Rand is ashamed of how quickly he obeys, until he realizes the back door is locked, too. He slips out a window just as another creature breaks down that door, and as he listens, he hears both boots and hooves across the wooden floor inside.

After some scuffles, chases, and finally running into the woods, Tam finds Rand and confirms that these are Trollocs, and they're no myth. They have the properties of the animals that are part of them, so some can see or hear or smell particularly acutely, but they're sensitive to bright light and lazy, so if they can evade the creatures long enough, they should give up.

Unfortunately, Tam's hurt, and already running a fever. Rand has to sneak back to the house for Bela, the cart, and blankets, to get him to town. The sheep are all dead, and the house's contents in splinters and shards.

As Rand looks for a waterskin, one of the Trollocs comes back, and starts telling Rand to put the sword down, he just wants Rand to talk to the Myrddraal. Rand panics momentarily at the mention of Myrddraal, another myth, and starts to lower his arms. When the Trolloc lunges at him, he raises the sword quickly and makes his first, messy, horrifying kill.

He gathers what few things are still intact, which doesn't include his bow. Rand uses the sword to take some of the wood from the broken cart. Marveling that the sword stayed sharp even after chopping old, hardened ash that would dull any axe,(3) Rand makes his way back to his father. He finds the older man asleep, and touches his face gently to check his fever.

The touch roused Tam, but only into a hazy wakefulness. “Is that you, boy?” he breathed. “Worried about you. Dreams of days gone. Nightmares.” Murmuring softly, he drifted off again. “Don’t worry,” Rand said. He lay Tam’s coat and cloak over him to keep off the wind. “I’ll get you to Nynaeve just as quick as I can.” As he went on, as much to reassure himself as for Tam’s benefit, he peeled off his bloodstained shirt, hardly even noticing the cold in his haste to be rid of it, and hurriedly pulled on the clean one. Throwing his old shirt away made him feel as if he had just had a bath. “We’ll be safe in the village in no time, and the Wisdom will set everything right. You’ll see. Everything’s going to be all right.” That thought was like a beacon as he pulled on his coat and bent to tend Tam’s wound. They would be safe once they reached the village, and Nynaeve would cure Tam.(4) He just had to get him there.

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(1) Yep, the nuclear family is an incredibly new and incredibly American development. A lot of places in the world still live with many generations, and even several of the siblings of each generation staying in the one home. It can get crowded, but it's also a way of distributing responsibilities: if everyone's together, everyone can work together and cover every base. (2) Now, why would a farmer like Tam al'Thor have a fancy sword like that? It's no wonder he thinks it cost too much, it must have cost a fortune, with delicate detail work as described… but is a monetary cost all he means by it? (3) And weirdly strong, to hold up to that kind of usage without needing sharpening. Just what is this heron-marked sword? (4) I sure hope you're right about that, my lad, for your sake and his.