Lord of Chaos: Chapter 15
=A Pile of Sand
Author: Caia al'Tamad
Characters: Egwene, Cowinde, Amys, Melaine, Bair, Elayne, Nynaeve, Sheriam, Morvrin
Points of view: Egwene, Elayne
Egwene's point of view
Egwene awakes and is blushing from Gawyn's dreams. She goes back to sleep, trying to get some actual rest. Her dreams begin easily enough with Gawyn. They slowly turn more nightmarish. She dreams of Perrin with a hawk and a falcon on his shoulders, a wolf at his feet. Another time he is trying to run away from his axe but it keeps following him. Then she dreams of Mat and speaking the Old Tongue. She sees two ravens on his shoulders, talons digging into his flesh. She also sees a shrouded woman beckoning him into danger. Then her dreams shift to Rand. She sees Elayne forcing him to his knees, or Elayne, Min and Aviendha in a circle around him, all reaching out to touch him. Then she sees him walking toward a burning mountain, his boots crunching the seals on the Dark One prison as he walks.
She wakes with Cowinde trying to wake her for breakfast. After snapping at Cowinde, she feels bad, but as she politely says she doesn't feel like eating, Amys, Melaine and Bair come into her tent. They were thinking of letting her go back to the meetings with the Aes Sedai in Tel'aran'rhiod. However, upon hearing she doesn't want breakfast they are rethinking that.
Amys admits that she tried to look into her dreams several times and couldn't find them. One cannot heal if one doesn't dream. This makes her fear that they might have caught her on her excursion. Melaine frowns at Cowinde and orders her to dig through a pile of sand and find one red grain. If it isn't the one red grain she is looking for, Cowinde will do it again. She is trying to convince the woman to stop being gai'shain.
Many more are refusing to put off the robes now after everything Rand has revealed about the origins of the Aiel. Egwene thinks she would glady dig through the sand just to keep the Wise Ones from finding out she had been in Tel'aran'rhiod without permission. Thinking they have offended Egwene when talking about the "wetlanders" and the effects they have had on people, they tell Egwene not to worry, they are not upset with her. They then tell her that one of the Aes Sedai has "suggested" that they are holding Egwene against her will.
After giggling with the Wise Ones over their description of "teaching" Carlinya Sedai that she didn't know anything, Egwene begins asking questions. She asks if you can be pulled into someone's dream unwillingly. Bair says not unless the emotion is very strong. Continuing to ask questions, Egwene has steered them clear of dangerous questions.
Elayne's point of view
Elayne is trying to see over the heads of everyone as everyone has gathered for Tarna's departure. After Tarna leaves, Romanda announces that things will continue in Salidar as they have been and for everyone just to keep doing their normal work.
As people disperse, Nynaeve and Elayne find Sheriam to tell her about what they found in Tel'aran'rhiod. After telling their story, the Hall decides to send a letter to Merilille with all the details on where to find it. Nynaeve and Elayne both try to convince them to let them go. However, the Hall is not persuaded. They say that Ebou Dar is no place for Accepted. After continued pleading and reasons given by Elayne, the Hall is still not going to send them.
Nynaeve loses her temper and tells them they do nothing but talk and that they are all afraid. This does not go over well. Nyn and Elayne are put to scrubbing pots under the watchful eye of Faolain. Nynaeve apologizes to Elayne for losing her temper.
Sheriam's point of view
Morvrin admits to Sheriam that Rand scares her to death. Sheriam wonders if they have not already ran out of options on what to do.
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