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.