The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Nine

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE: WEAVING OF THE WEB

The chapter opens on a high note by displaying more of Mat's winning personality:

• "Are you coming?" [Rand] asked again.
  
  Mat glowered from where he lay curled up in a ball on his bed. "Take the Trolloc you're so friendly with."
  
  "Blood and ashes, Mat, he's not a Trolloc. You're just being stubborn stupid. How many times do you want to have this argument? Light, it's not as if you'd never heard of Ogier before."
  
  "I never heard they looked like Trollocs." Mat pushed his face into his pillow and curled himself tighter.

Isn't he just a delightful card? Racism is fun when it's fun.

Fortunately, this is the last we see of Mat for now, as he's completely shut himself up in his room, not letting anyone else but Rand see him or give him food. Rand thinks he might be sick (which I certainly hope is the cause of his rotten attitude), but he can't get a healer up to the inn because it would make them vulnerable to assholes who are paranoid about people they don't understand being Darkfriends.

Honestly, I'm trying to understand where Mat's coming from right now, but the fact that he's acting almost exactly like the prejudiced masses we're supposed to hate is really not helping his case.

Not even kind, hospitable Master Gill is immune to hating people he doesn't know, as he points out a couple of "blood-be-damned traitors" to Rand before the guy leaves to see Logain being paraded through the city. Traitors to what cause, you may ask? Well, they wear white, the sign of opposition to the Queen, as opposed to red. Naturally, Rand doesn't have any real stake in this political debate, but since he's being sheltered by a very pro-queen inn, he's being dragged into it whether he likes it or not. Add to that the fact that the whites outnumber the reds about twenty to one and it seems that Rand's quest to find a place where he isn't in mortal peril remains fruitless.

He goes to the crowded streets where the parade celebrating Logain's capture is to pass by, which naturally reminds me of the Macy's Thanksgiving parade. I'm not a very outdoorsy sort of person, nor do I like waiting in crowds, so the appeal of parades is sort of lost on me. Then again, in a setting without photography or the internet, people would probably struggle to get a close look at a VIP more than they would in the real world.

But seeing Logain will have to wait, as Rand locks eyes with a shabby ragman who Master Gill said was looking for him. While there's no guarantee that he's a Darkfriend, there's not much option on what else he could be, and Rand suddenly decides that appearing in a public place isn't the right way to go. Instead he settles for scrabbling up a sodden slope and climbing a stone wall to get a more unconventional look at Logain. It's a bit of an odd thing for Rand to do, but it gives me the impression that he's curious about the world around him, and willing to indulge in a childlike sense of wonder. It gives him some character apart from typical Hero's Journey fare, and that's always a plus.

What he ends up seeing is a confident man with a regal bearing, acting like there's nothing wrong, like everything's going according to his plan. It makes me think of how the Joker acted in The Dark Knight after the first time he's captured, which turned out to be the setup for his real plan all along. Seeing this connection with a book published seventeen years before the release of that movie surprised me at first, but now that I think of it, it makes sense. Logain has been built up quite a bit before his first actual appearance here, and it would be a waste if he just spent the rest of the series defeated and captured, wouldn't it?

• "Why were the Aes Sedai watching him?" [Rand] wondered aloud.
  
  "They're keeping him from touching the True Source, silly."
  
  He jerked to look up, toward the girl's voice, and suddenly his precarious seat was gone. He had only time to realize that he was toppling backward, falling, when something struck his head and a laughing Logain chased him into spinning darkness.

Wait, what? What just happened? Who was that? Did Rand just fall and hit his head? Did someone knock him out? Why did he hear Logain laughing? WHO AM I?

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Eight

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: THE RESCUE

Yeah, this one was kind of a letdown, honestly. As it turns out, the Whitecloaks are completely unable to lift a finger against Lan and Moiraine's rescue attempts. The feeling of danger that I got when the super-competent fighter and sorceress weren't around was nice when it lasted, but now the stakes have been lowered again as the protagonists are being reunited. I'm still waiting for a nice, decent climax in this book, but this chapter wasn't it, or even the beginning of it.

Another issue I have with this chapter is the issue of Byar's character, which I don't think meshes up with his introduction way back in chapter thirty. Back then, it seemed like he was a psychopath who was barely being leashed by an immoral, bigoted organization who would let him have his way if they didn't want that veneer of respectability. Now he seems to be all business and an emotionless robot, who just kicks the crap out of Perrin because he thinks he doesn't have feelings. He is so obviously a Darkfriend, after all. It just doesn't mesh with me, maybe because of the way I interpreted Byar's first appearance. His character here is pretty explicitly spelled out, so it's not that open to interpretation. I assume this means it takes precedence, but I still find it weird that a character who's so dispassionately cruel would smile at the thought of the punishment the Whitecloaks have in store for Perrin and Egwene.

Anyway, this chapter does not entirely follow from the previous chapter, with the narrative cutting off on Nynaeve mid-rescue. Instead we start with a microcosm of Perrin and Egwene's experience as captives of the Whitecloaks, and I'm very grateful that Jordan was brief on that. What surprised me is what Byar does right before the rescue happens:

• "You are slowing us down, Darkfriend, you and your wolves. The Council of the Annointed has heard reports of such things, and they want to know more, so you must be taken to Amador and given to the Questioners, but you are slowing us down. I had hoped we could move fast enough, even without the remounts, but I was wrong."

His solution? Hint that there's a sharp rock for Perrin and Egwene to cut their bonds on, allowing them to escape, but not that there are guards waiting to butcher them the instant they try. It's actually a pretty clever idea that Perrin didn't catch onto at first, and if the wolves didn't alert him that help was coming, Byar might have just forced them into doing that.

But help does come just in the nick of time, and Lan drops Byar in seconds, not killing him because Jordan went to too much trouble to set up a recurring villain. Moiraine refers to Lan by a bunch of titles that hint at more history between them, and they all set off to meet Rand and Mat in Caemlyn.

As Nynaeve heals him of the conglomeration of bruises Byar gave him, she continues to express her irritation with Moiraine, and just as I'm about to vent on that like I did with Mat's whining, Moiraine proves that Nynaeve has good reason to bitch about her. When Nynaeve points out that Perrin's irises are yellow now, thinking that it's a symptom of a disease, Moiraine gives her the most obtuse non-explanation she possibly can:

• "Do you know what it is?" Nynaeve asked reluctantly, then hesitated. "Can you do something for him? Your Healing?" The request for aid, the admission that she could do nothing, came out of her as if dragged.
  
  Perrin glared at both the women. "If you're going to talk about me, talk to me,. I'm sitting right here." Neither looked at him.
  
  "Healing?" Moiraine smiled. "Healing can do nothing about this. It is not an illness, and it will not..." She hesitated briefly. She did glance at Perrin, then, a quick look that regretted many things. The look did not include him, though, and he muttered sourly as she turned back to Nynaeve. "I was going to say it will not harm him, but who can say what the end will be? At least I can say it will not harm him directly."
  

Because withholding information from the vulnerable youths who are on your side worked out so well for Albus Dumbledore, am I right? Fortunately, Lan is a bit more forthright with Perrin, listening to how he got his wolf communion abilities and explaining that Elyas used to be a Warder and a close friend of his. I can't wait to see Elyas again, much like I can't wait to see Tar Valon, stop this endless chase, and finish this book. But that'll have to wait until we get Rand and Mat back with Moiraine, so let's go do that now.

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Seven

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: THE LONG CHASE

Another Nynaeve chapter, and another short one at that. Judging by the events, this is probably the last time I'll be looking at things from Nynaeve's perspective in the book, barring her separation from other characters yet again, so it pains me to admit that Nynaeve probably shouldn't have been a focus character just yet. The book's chapters on Nynaeve were few and far between, and did little to advance things except to remind readers that Nynaeve, Lan, and Moiraine still existed and were following the people the villains were actually after were, the people who were getting into conflicts. I appreciate that Jordan didn't feel the need to add incidental events to their journey like he did with Rand and Mat's travel down the Caemlyn Road, but something to justify these chapters would have been nice, too.

The reason I feel that this will be the book's last chapter from Nynaeve's POV is that she and her companions have finally stumbled across Perrin and Egwene, as well as over two hundred Whitecloaks. Pretty even odds for Lan and Moiraine, if you ask me. That's also the reason this chapter is so short; since Perrin is involved in this rescue and his POV takes precedence over Nynaeve's, everything after he starts seeing his rescuers again must take place from his viewpoint. Nevertheless, Nynaeve's part in starting the rescue (cutting the ropes securing some of the horses to the point that they'll snap when the horses get spooked, creating a distraction) is a tense moment and the chapter ends on a decent cliffhanger.

A couple more things rather distracted me, however. For starters, Moiraine senses that Perrin (she doesn't know it's him specifically) has lost possession of his coin, only for her to sense that he's gotten it back a couple of paragraphs later. This indicates that the Whitecloaks did in fact give it back to him. Since Bornhald knows full well that this is an Aes Sedai charm meant to lead them back to Perrin, this indicates two possibilities: Either the Whitecloaks are blithering idiots or they have a trap waiting to spring for Moiraine.

Also, take a look at the behavior of the guards Nynaeve has to sneak past:

• "All is well with the night," one white-cloaked shape announced. "The Light illuminate us, and protect us from the Shadow."
  
  "All is well with the night," the other replied. "The Light illuminate us, and protect us from the Shadow."
  
  With that they turned and marched off into the darkness again.
  
  Nynaeve waited, counting to herself while they made their circuit twice. Each time they took exactly the same count, and each time they rigidly repeated the same formula, not a word more or less. Neither so much as glanced to one side; they stared straight ahead as they marched up, then marched away. She wondered if they would have noticed her even if she had been standing up.

Am I the only one who thinks their behavior is just like that of enemies in crude, early stealth games like Metal Gear Solid? I don't know whether to find this funny or creepy. I mean, I know that the Children of the Light hate any sort of individuality, but this is on a whole other level!

But Nynaeve does set the distraction in motion. Lightning crashes, horses run wild, and Elyas's wolfpack comes in, leaving Nynaeve in confusion. Will she and her friends get out alive? Tune in next time to find out!

NEXT TIME: Well, that was easy.

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Six

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: WEB OF THE PATTERN

There are two things that really grabbed my attention in this chapter. One was intended to by Jordan and the other was not. I'm going to start with the latter one first:

• Rand went back to his food, but he saw that Mat had stopped eating. "I thought you were hingry," he said. Mat kept staring at his plate, pushing one piece of potato in a circle with his fork. "You have to eat, Mat. We need to keep up our strength if we're going to reach Tar Valon."
  
  Mat let out a low, bitter laugh. "Tar Valon! All this time it's been Caemlyn. Moiraine would be waiting for us in Caemlyn. We'd find Perrin and Egwene in Caemlyn. Everything would be all right if we only got to Caemlyn. Well, here we are, and nothing's right. No Moiraine, no Perrin, no anybody. Now it's everything will be all right if we only get to Tar Valon."

My immediate reaction to this passage was to wish that I could slap the stupid out of Mat and order him to shut up if he couldn't say anything constructive. I am not the sort of person who jumps down characters' throats the instant they bemoan their circumstances. I think Shinji Ikari is a pretty cool guy, even if he does afraid of anything. But the combination of Mat saying variations on the exact same thing every chapter he's talked in recently and my chapter-a-day pace in a stretched-out book is starting to make me hate this character now. (Now that I think about it, I'm probably holding Shinji up to a double standard because I haven't seen Evangelion in a long time. Oh well.)

I started thinking of how much longer I could stand to tolerate this attitude coming from Mat, and when I finished the chapter I began to thought of in-story events that could make him stop being such a broken Simple Plan record. Here's what I came up with, in order of my preference for those events:

1. Reuniting with any of the traveling companions he got separated from in Shadar Logoth,
2. Losing that dagger he found there by theft or destruction, breaking a spell it had on him,
3. Getting fed up with Rand and leaving either permanently or temporarily,
4. Turning on Rand to save his own skin,
5. Dying.

As long as Mat changes for the better before the end of the book, I'd rather not see that last option happen. Otherwise, though, all bets are off.

I spent so much time thinking about Mat at first that I forgot the conversation Rand had with Gill before they got their (pitiful) meal. Rand tells Gill the whole story, but with the Fades an Trollocs changed to ordinary men and Darkfriends, since not everyone believes in them. Gill offers his help, and points out that going to Elaida (or the Guards) would be a bad idea since it's likely she'll ascertain the connection with Thom, who left Morgase on very bad terms. Rand eats with mat, hangs around the common room, then gets uncomfortable and moves to the library (which this inn has, I guess), where he finally meets someone who managed to put Mat out of my mind for a while.

Rand stumbles into a guy named Loial in the library, who's in there not because he wants some privacy from the hustle and bustle of the crowd, but in order to keep people from panicking about the fact that he's ten feet tall and furry with a snout-like nose and eyebrows that grow so long that they dangle from his face like leaves on a weeping willow. Yes, Loial is the Wheel of Time's very first non-human character!

He belongs to a race of beings called the Ogier, which I vaguely remember hearing some characters talking about before. All I remembered is that they lived long ago and built ancient cities like Caemlyn and Manetheren, which lead be to believe that they were an ancient precursor civilization of humans that died out long ago. Instead, they turn out to be a reclusive, long-lived species with barely any similarities to be had with humans. Because it's the only other high fantasy story I have reference to, I immediately thought of the Ents from Lord of the Rings when I heard that the Ogier were patient and slow to act in accordance with their longer lifespans.

Unlike the Ents, though, Loial is a hot-tempered youth of ninety years, who brazenly left the stedding he's bound to in order to see the world! His age is a bit of a sensitive matter to him, as he can't take part in Ogier meetings for another decade, even the meeting that decided whether he could leave the stedding or not. When Rand tells him the story of his travels, Loial even expresses a wish to come with him so that he can visit the grove in Tar Valon.

Even so, Loial is polite and subdued; when Rand reacts with shock upon first seeing him, mentally mistaking him for a Trolloc, Loial just says, "I wish you humans wouldn't do that." Indeed, his reaction to human prejudice and being sequestered in the inn's library is confusion and not pain. He also reminisces on when cities had different names and when there was a grove in Caemlyn. When Rand tells him that Two Rivers was once named Manetheren, Loial suddenly recognizes it and apologizes that the Ogier couldn't get there in time.

Because Rand gets a vibe of naivete from Loial, he reluctantly tells him the whole truth about the journey, from which Loial concludes that he is ta'veren, a thread in the Pattern that tangles up other threads (a metaphor for Rand's destiny influencing the destiny of others). He explains this with the air of a proud student who wants to prove that he did in fact learn something from school, which is appropriate since nobody who graduated from school is surprised that Rand is destined for Great Things (TM). Is there really a need to beat us over the head with this, Jordan? But I am glad that the Pattern allows for a little leeway in how most people can live their lives, as long as it doesn't really interfere with whatever grand scheme of things that vague metaphysical forces have in store for the world.

Despite the corniness of the revelation that Rand is a VIP (which Rand humbly denies, of course), I am kind of interested in Loial. True, I would have preferred that Rand run into old companions than new ones, but I guess it would be nice to see Thom's slot in the party get filled.

NEXT TIME: We catch up with someone else.

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Five

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE: CAEMLYN

As the final third of the book begins, things are finally looking up, with the main character having arrived in an honest-to-God city, where plotlines are set to converge and there's danger and intrigue lurking in the distance. This is where my own personal bias comes into play, as I have always found cities more interesting than the open wilderness. Don't get me wrong, unspoiled vistas of forests and mountains and even deserts are breathtaking to look at, and breathing in fresh air with a pine scent is a nice sensation, but those joys are ephemeral and I tend to get bored of them rather quickly. A city, by contrast, is full of interesting people and a myriad of different cultures interacting and sometimes clashing with one another. Even if privacy is hard to find sometimes, you can always find something interesting going on in a city, especially a fictional city. It's really just a personal preference; The Lies of Locke Lamora and Perdido Street Station each took place entirely in one city and I'm going to have to put them several levels higher than Eye of the World.

This being Rand's first real city, he's as happy to see it as I am, or at least in complete awe of the sheer enormity of the place. His mind tries to grasp how many Whitebridges or Baerlons would fit inside Caemlyn, and sees the crowd he remembers seeing back home at Bel Tine repeated thousands of times over. Mat, meanwhile, only sees threats to their safety multiplied:

• "How are we going to hide in this?" he demanded loudly when he saw Rand looking. "How can we tell who to trust with so many? So bloody many. Light, the noise!"
  
  Rand looked at Bunt before answering. The farmer was caught up in staring at the city; with the noise, he might not have heard anyway. Still, Rand put his mouth close to Mat's ear. "How can they find us among so many? Can't you see it, you wool-headed idiot? We're safe, if you ever learn to watch your bloody tongue!" He flung out a hand to take in everything, the markets, the city walls still ahead. "Look at it, Mat! Anything could happen here! Anything! We might even find Moiraine waiting for us, and Egwene, and all the rest."
  

Thank you, Rand, you are entirely correct! Mat's sullen paranoia is starting to get on my nerves at this point, as it's been pretty one-note from what I can remember, and I still don't have a definitive answer as to why Mat's personality changed so suddenly after Shadar Logoth. But he does have a point in that the city is so big they barely have any idea of where to go next. Fortunately, they do have one lead: the inn that Thom directed them to before he died.

They head off, but not before Bunt advises Rand not to carry his sword where people can see the heron mark. Yeah, he pretty much figured out that they were the people his sketchy friend told him about, but he just shrugs it off and walks away, leaving well enough alone. Because he wants to be loyal to Tam, Rand resists the idea of putting the sword away despite the fact that it would be a really smart move, and as almost soon as I thought of a compromise that Rand could use to solve this problem - covering up the heron mark with cloth - Rand himself thinks sees swords with hilts wrapped in cloth and goes to buy cloth to do the same thing, naturally getting scalped by a cynical local businessman who insults and threatens him. What was that Bunt said about Caemlyn being the grandest city in the world again?

After passing by a ton of people on the streets, they do get to the inn, and I have to admit that I find it amusing that Rand finds fat innkeepers far more trustworthy than skinny ones. But then if the only skinny innkeeper I ever met was a creeper like Saml Hake, I'd probably make the same association no matter how illogical it really was. This fat innkeeper, Basel Gill, is an old friend of Thom's, and manages to fill in some things about him:

• "I'll believe he's dead," the innkeeper said slowly, "when I see his corpse." He nudged the bundled cloak with his toe and cleared his throat roughly. "Nay, nay, I believe you saw whatever it was you sawl I just don't believe he's dead. He's a harder man to kill than you might believe, is old Thom Merrilin."

Interestingly enough, we get a little backstory for Thom from Gill, which surprised me, because what I knew about Thom was simple, but seemed complete in itself. Not that I'm complaining to get more character development, unless perhaps it's for a character who's legitimately dead and might not actually affect the series anymore. When I think of characters who get more focus after their death than before, I think of the Comedian from Watchmen, which is just about the best way a writer can do it. Of course, if Thom is alive after all (which might not be as much of a copout as I thought at first, I dunno), this talk is moot, but I'm keeping an eye out for more of this subplot. I'm adding it to the list, as it were.

NEXT TIME: Rand hunkers down, meets a new friend.

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Four

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR: THE LAST VILLAGE

I found myself focusing on the background details that we learn in this chapter instead of Rand and Mat, because their progression through this chapter is the exact same goddamn thing it was in the last one. If it weren't for the fact that there was a pointless chronology scramble in the last chapter, these chapters could be merged and presumably shortened into one. I'm sure it was enjoyable for Jordan to write, but it's generally not a good idea to be so redundant and repetitious when telling a story.

The pair continue to trudge along the Caemlyn Road, and it's choked full of people wanting to see Logain in chains before he's sentenced to death or life imprisonment or whatever fate awaits him. Much like the average tourist in the real world, they're self-centered and completely disrespectful of anything that gets in the way of their fun:

• A flicker of motion as the first wagon rumbled close was all the warning [Rand] had. He went sprawling on the ground as the wagon driver's whip cracked in the air where his head had been. From where he lay he met the driver's eyes as the wagon rolled by. Hard eyes above a mouth in a tight grimace. Not a care that he might have drawn blood, or taken an eye.
  
  "Light blind you!" Mat shouted after the wagon. "You can't-" A mounted guard caught him on the shoulder with the butt of his spear, knocking him down atop Rand.
  
  "Out of the way, you dirty Darkfriend!" the guard growled without slowing.

These two can't catch a break, can they? I thought accusing people of being Darkfriends was serious business, but I guess it can just be used as a casual insult by people with road rage.

Everyone's sick of these jerks on the road, but sadly the hands of the Queen's Guard are tied, as they haven't actually hurt anyone or stolen anything yet. They seem like far more reasonable authority figures than the Whitecloaks, who are less beleaguered and at their wits end than bigoted and frothing at the mouth.

It's starting to feel like Mat and Rand are part of the Long Walk now, with Rand's insistence that they keep going as much as they can despite exhaustion and hunger. They can't afford food anymore, nor can they perform for money thanks to the Darkfriends knowing about their entertaining abilities. Through sheer willpower, they manage to make it to another village, where Rand spots a Fade almost immediately.

Thankfully, it doesn't spot him, instead talking with an innkeeper and leaving. The innkeeper passes on the cover story it told him to Almen Bunt, a man with a cart nearby, that Rand and Mat stole the heron-mark sword from him. It's a reasonable story, since nobody's going to believe that a weapon like that is the rightful property of a peasant boy like Rand, but Bunt doesn't seem to be taking it all that seriously:

• "Darkfriends and followers of the false Dragon? And telling wild stories, too? Getting up to a lot for young fellows. You did say they were young?" There was a sudden note of amusement in Bunt's voice, but the innkeeper did not seem to notice.

Bunt disregards the innkeeper's warnings about traveling and gets ready to leave, and Rand decides that he's better off with him than with the Fade. They hit it off well and Bunt starts an expository talk about Caemlyn and its politics.

Apparently Caemlyn is the capital of the nation of Andor (where we've spent the whole story so far), or at least where Queen Morgase lives. She also works with an Aes Sedai named Elaida, and it's a matter of contention as to which of them is dominant over the other. Uh, I mean which one is in control. Yeah. Rand thinks Elaida would be helpful, but Mat just shakes his head, because he doesn't trust anyone anymore.

Bunt is a good Queen's man - I know because he said so at least three times - and denies that Morgase is subservient to Elaida or that she wrongfully stole the throne from the previous heirs, Luc and Tigraine, who died in the Blight and vanished without a trace, respectively. They were trained as Warder and Aes Sedai, as are the current Lady Elayne and Lord Gawyn, which doesn't sit well with Bunt. He'd just as soon see Andor sever ties with Tar Valon. It might sound weird, but political intrigue like this is a good way to hold my attention. Hell, there's times when real world politics can really capture my interest, so fantasy politics are good, too, and you just know that Rand's going to get dragged into that mess sooner or later.

That's all Rand hears before Bunt's endless droning puts him to sleep. When he wakes up, they're in Caemlyn, and Mat confirms that Bunt talked the entire way there.

I may be getting my hopes up here, but now that the boys have finally reached Caemlyn, I'm excited for what sort of things are going to happen here now. It seems like everything's going to happen in Caemlyn! Everyone's going there or already inside: Rand and Mat just got there, the Whitecloaks who captured Perrin and Egwene are stopping over there, Moiraine, Lan, and Nynaeve are following them, Logain is on display in the city, and then there's the mysterious queen we know barely anything about. If this series is worth a tinker's damn, things are going to happen and happen big. Let's not waste any more time!

NEXT TIME: Caemlyn, at long last.

The Eye of the World: Chapter Thirty-Three

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE: THE DARK WAITS

I don't really know what this chapter accomplished. It's yet another travel montage, and I'm really starting to wonder how many of them this book needs (and at this point I'd much rather see one of the captive Perrin and Egwene, or even with Nynaeve's party). Admittedly, I don't have too much experience writing stories myself, but I'm not sure if this is just too much world- or mood-building. I hesitate to call the chapter padding, because things do happen in this chapter, but I don't see how those things could possibly effect the plot in the grand scheme of things.

Another thing about this chapter that baffles me is that it's not in chronological order. It begins with Mat and Rand riding on the cart of a friendly merchant, who takes them far enough to be two days from Caemlyn. In the beginning, I had no idea how they met up with this guy, and just sort of assumed that those circumstances weren't of much consequence. Then, after a break of white space (which I think is only the second time I've seen such a break in this book), Rand and Mat go through some other events, ending the chapter with them meeting the merchant for the very first time. What was the point of going anachronic for this one chapter? I don't mind things being told out of order, but it helps if the audience knows that's how you're doing things!

Since this break with tradition makes no sense to me, at least for now, I'm going to present things in the order that they actually happened:

1. Another dream with Ba'alzamon, this time at the Dancing Cartman with Gode's burned, barely-alive body turning to dust. When they guys talked about Gode and how they hoped he was dead, I took that as a sign to mean that he would survive and become a recurring villain, but I guess not.
   
   It's at this point that I have to admit that I like how Jordan can come up with decent names - with just a hint of exoticism because FANTASY - for a handful of incidental characters who pop up here, at least some of which will undoubtedly never show up again for the rest of the series. It conveys the impression that there are things that exist in the world outside the story's main narrative, along with news from far-off places like the capture of Logain.
   
   But what I don't admire is the villain cliche of the main bad guy instantly disposing of his minions the instant they fail at a task he gives them. I just pictured Ba'alzamon disintegrating a henchman for putting too much foam on his latte, which isn't a good sign for the depth of his character. Honestly, if he doesn't get any deeper than this, I would have preferred it if he pulled a Sauron and never made a personal appearance.
   
   
2. Mat not only has a similar dream, but wakes up completely blind. Not to worry, he does get most of his vision back by the end/beginning of the chapter, which again makes me wonder what this contributes to the grand scheme of things.
   
   
3. They meet a kind man who gives them another ride on a cart, and can tell that they're running from something. He graciously gives them each a woolen scarf, and Rand says that he's "the best we've met in days," which kind of broke my heart a little. I still noticed that this guy repeated a bit of his own dialogue, as did Ba'alzamon in Rand's dream. Weird.
   
   
4. They stop at another inn, where rising prices part them from most of their remaining money. Mat starts seeing again, and Rand looks forward to getting to Caemlyn and seeing Moiraine again. Whatever misgivings about her he had before have been swept away by the experience of living without her. Then a twitchy young man comes by and is almost immediately guessed to be a Darkfriend. Rand and Mat waste no time hurling verbal abuse at him, and he tries to convince them to talk before just losing it and blowing his cover in a common room with people in it. It was a sad, pathetic display which reminded me of a drug addict desperately trying to get another fix that he doesn't have the means to acquire.
   
   I also noticed that Mat initially asked the guy what he wanted to talk about before hearing Rand shut him down, at which point he joined in. I think I know where this is going.
   
   
5. They leave for another village and hear the news of Darkfriends appearing in the town they just left. The stories naturally vary from the truth; some say there weren't any Darkfriends while others claim that dozens had gathered for some sort of ritual orgy or something.
   
   
6. They reach another inn, which Rand notes to be about the same small size of the last one, prompting this paragraph:
   
   Strange, to think of the Winespring Inn as small. Rand could remember when he thought it was about as big as a building could be. Anything bigger would be a palace. But he had seen a few things, now, and suddenly he realized that nothing would look the same to him when he got back home. If you ever do.
   
   Rand collapses from an illness he caught from being soaked in the rain and is forced to sleep in the stables. There is no Wisdom to help him out, and thus he hallucinates guilt-provoking visions of all the people who aren't with him until his fever breaks.
   
   
7. A woman comes in, offers to look at Rand, and turns out to be another Darkfriend. Mat foils her assassination attempt, disarms her, and kicks her out (after being urged to spare her by Rand). Then they leave town and quickly meet up with the merchant guy. End chapter.
   
   
8. They ride with him, and see a procession of the Queen's Guard. The merchant has to explain to Mat and Rand who these are, and Rand thinks on his ignorance of the queen, noting that Two Rivers always seemed completely autonomous to him. It seemed that way to me, too; I didn't even know that there was a queen until a few chapters ago. Then they get off two days from Caemlyn.
   

None of that really seemed essential to me, and I can't see how I'll be proven wrong.

NEXT TIME: Tourists and politics.