Knife of Dreams: Chapter 17
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Chapter Icon: Wheel and Serpent
Points of View: Elayne, Arymilla
Outline
Elayne meets with Dyelin, Branlet, Catalyn, Conail and Perival. The meeting is inconclusive. Arymilla dines with some nobles planning her victory.
Summary
Elayne's Point of View:
Characters: Birgitte, Elayne, Deni Colford, Aubrem Pensenor, Dyelin, Catalyn, Conail, Perival, Branlet, Vandene, Kirstian, Zarya
Setting: Royal Palace, Caemlyn
Elayne leaves for the Map Room accompanied by Birgitte, Deni and other Guardswomen. There are a lot of nobles in the palace. They came here to help Elayne, having brought a few armsmen to aid. Now many nobles have to sleep four in each bed. On Elayne's way she stops to talk to some nobles including Aubrem Pensenor. He was one of the first to join Elayne and he warns her about Arymilla marching against the city. House Pensenor had been allied to Dyelin's Taravin for a long time. People are nervous because of the changes in layout of the palace, a result of the fraying of the pattern. Elayne thought that's why Reene Harfor and Naris were uneasy. Deni recalls that she was more afraid of Eldrin Hackly when he nearly killed her because that danger was real. Birgitte is worried because her earliest memories are fading and she fears losing her memories of Gaidal Cain eventually.
They arrive in the Map Room. On the floor there is a detailed mosaic map of Caemlyn, originally laid down more than a thousand years. The map is still pretty accurate, and because of the map Birgitte is using the room as her study. She tells the clerks to leave the room. There is a map on a table. The Black Tower, which is two leagues south of the city, is marked on the map. Arymilla's eight camps and Davram Bashere's camp are also marked.
Elayne takes out the falcon that indicates the Goshien camp since they are leaving on Rand's orders. Elayne tells Birgitte to check the Saldaean camp and Black Tower to see if any of them left with the Goshien. A bronze bear fifty miles northeast marks the Borderlands. The two other marked camps belong to Luan, Ellorien and Abelle, Aemlyn, Arathelle and Pelivar and hold close to sixty thousand men. Dyelin has been negotiating with them.
Dyelin arrives, she also notices and is concerned by the palace changes. Branlet, Catalyn, Conail and Perival follow her into the Map Room to hear what she has to say. Perival comes close to figuring out what is going on with the Borderlanders. Aemlyn, Arathelle and Pelivar continue to hope that Dyelin will claim the throne, while Luan and Abelle are noncommittal. Luan and Pelivar helped arrest Naean and Elenia, but that does not sway them now. Ellorien will not budge as she is still furious that Morgase had her flogged while under Rahvin's influence. Elayne is thinking that if Dyelin have decided to claim the throne she'd have more than the necessary ten houses to be crowned.
That evening Elayne reads in her sitting room when Vandene visits her with Kirstian and Zarya. She tells her that Reanne Corly was murdered. The murderer left some clues that the fled Kinswomen were killed. Elayne thinks the murderer is trying to frighten Kinswomen into fleeing. Elayne orders the Kin to move in groups.
Arymilla's Point of View:
Setting: Arymilla's camp, Caemlyn
Characters: Arymilla, Elenia, Nasin, Sylvase, Lir, Karind, Jakob Hernvil
Arymilla dines with Naean, Elenia, Nasin, Sylvase, Lir and Karind. She is carefully saving her armsmen so they can fight the Borderlanders. Sylvase questions why they continue to attack Caemlyn instead of accepting Luan's truce and unite against the Borderlands. Arymilla thinks Ellorien and possibly Aemlyn, Arathelle and Pelivar will side with her and she can coerce Conail Northan and the other three children High Seats to publish support for her. Jakob Hernvil, her secretary, comes to tell her that the bankers have agreed but they want the whole amount of gold first. She thinks that in a week the throne will be hers.
