In this
section, Egwene makes uneasy alliance with her personal Dark One.
Egwene has
good reason to detest the Seanchan, having endured a short time in their
clutches as a damane. She is tolerant
of their help when she first hears of their arrival, but the matter of who leads
who must be decided. So, she and Fortuona must meet face to face for the sake
of expediency, despite the risk to their status being seen doing so.
She wore a glittering dress whose train extended
a ridiculous distance behind her, carried by eight da’covale,
those servants in their horribly immodest clothing. The use of the adjectives
‘ridiculous’ and ‘horribly’ not only describe the physical appearance of Fortuona’s
garments and entourage, but also Egwene’s judgment of it. This sort of deep and
personal attribution of adjectives is one way the author succeeds in crafting
the third-person limited point of view.
In her
confrontation with Fortuona, Egwene takes up the familiar theme of freedom to
choose. Many of the evils in this world limit people’s freedom, and Egwene’s
cause is one that Rand recently supported, and will again in his imminent
confrontation with the Dark One.
Both
Fortuona and Egwene can be excused for spontaneous bouts of uncharacteristic
blurting out what they are really thinking when their minds should be keenly
focused on the politics of this encounter. Their minds may be sharp as diamond-studded
bear traps, but all preparation and logic go out the window once a ta’veren is part of the conversation. If
Mat weren’t present, readers might frown over the women’s lack of formality and
veering off topic. I suppose Egwene’s eagerness to publicly beat Fortuona
account for some of her behaviour.
Elsewhere, the
generals are caught making mistakes, and Bashere is arrested as a result. Lan
has verified his suspicions about Agelmar as well. Perrin would like to
investigate this matter more, but he has been battling Slayer and protecting
Rand.
In his
battle Perrin sees an image of snakelike men battling as well. Are the forces
of evil also attacking the Aelfinn? Or are the Aelfinn and Eelfinn secretly participating
in the battle at Thakan’dar, staving off the threat to their own existence?
The dreamspike
serves a major plot related purpose, keeping Rand safe from outside
interference, though it may later slow his escape. The wolves add to Rand’s
defense, summoning Perrin whenever Slayer approaches.
Perrin’s
encounter with Slayer ends in victory as the other man is driven off before he
can harm Rand. Perrin and Gaul also fight several red-veiled Aiel, defeating the
last by changing them into idiots. I wonder whether the turning process somehow
weakens their willpower, thus affecting how easily they are altered in Tel’aran’rhiod, or perhaps it is simply
lack of training as Perrin surmises. Lanfear even shows up to aid Perrin yet
again, and despite misgivings, it is difficult not to wonder if this most
Forsaken of them all might be swayed back to the Light.
Moridin has
no such second chances in his future: “Now?
Now you beg me to return to the Light? I
have been promised oblivion. Finally, nothing, a destruction of my entire
being. An end. You will not steal
that from me, Lews Therin! By my grave, you will not!” Moridin came forward
swinging.
Shaidar
Haran’s demise is anticlimactic, yet not without interest. The giant Myrddraal’s
husk lies on the ground before an infinite Blackness, whose touch may spell the
end of Rand. Moridin will try to bleed one last time to weaken him enough for the
Dark One to prevail, perhaps even to defeat Rand himself. The stakes, emotion,
and uneven odds all contribute to the intensity of Rand’s slow progress to the Bore.
The slow pace of Rand’s battle, explained by the time differential, also keeps
the tension high. The book is half over, and he’s just facing his opponent now.
How much can be left? What will happen? So, so good.
A raken hit
by a fireball crashes atop a messenger in Byrne’s camp. With no one else to
carry a plea for help, Min offers her aid. Necessity is a very believable
reason for improbable coincidences to take place. In this case, it provides the
desired motivation for Min and Bryne, and is quicker and more elegant than any other
convoluted attempt to place her with the Seanchan could be. Added to Fortuona, Min
and Mat now offer another convenient pair of viewpoints to show events from a
more Seanchan perspective.
The use of
an Ogier song of mourning makes the reader’s mood more downcast, especially in
contrast to how the Ogier’s manic battle rage had provided an uplifting source
of hope in an earlier chapter. Loial’s sections are short, and used to
punctuate the plot with the desired emotion each time he shows up.
Writing Lessons: Use adjectives to simultaneously describe
physical and symbolic elements, as well as reveal character.
Use
necessity as a means to make improbable scenarios more believable.
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