The Eye of the World: Chapter 10

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Author: Dinn da Noor

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Leavetaking


Chapter Icon: A Staff

Point of View: Rand

Setting: Emond's Field and North Road

Characters: Mat, Perrin, Rand, Lan, Moiraine, Egwene, Thom, various Emond's Fielders

Outline

The group sets off. Thom and Egwene go with them.

Summary

Rand, Mat and Lan go to the stables where they find Perrin waiting for them. While Lan examines the horses, the youths talk about the weapons they have: Rand's sword, Perrin's axe and Mat's bow.

Rand tells them that he talked to Tam about the journey when Moiraine enters the stables. She gives Rand a sharp look, but says, "what is done is already woven in the Pattern".

When Lan suggests that they leave immediately, Egwene walks in and says that they won't leave without her. She had spotted Mat and Perrin sneaking around like "bull calves pretending to be foxes" and when she put that together with Lan buying more horses, she could only see one answer. When the boys try to get her to change her mind and remind her about the trollocs, she asks them to spare her those "nonsensical tales". Moiraine decides that she may come with them, and after a discussion with Lan, he agrees as well. The Warder tells her that she can "ride the gleeman's horse", when suddenly Thom's voice comes from the hayloft saying that it "will not be possible". They let him come with them after some discussion with him.

When they've mounted their horses, the Warder talks about how much better it would be if there were wolves there. The villagers are shocked and wonder how he can want wolves, so he explains that wolves don't like trollocs and trollocs don't like wolves. Therefore they could be sure that there were no trollocs waiting for them if they'd heard wolves.

They ride out of the stables, but when they're just about to leave the stable yard, Lan stops them.

They see the Watch patrolling - a dozen men from the village and the surrounding farms, armed with spears and wood axes, some armored with helmets or pieces of armour that had lain in attics for generations.

After they've passed, Lan remarks that two Dha'vol trollocs would have them all for breakfast, but at least they have eyes and ears. The party rides over the Winespring Water onto the far bank, and stops from time to time at Lan's signal, each time a patrol passes.

When they're on the North Road and out of the village, Rand suddenly stops and looks at a creature as big as a man with wings like a bat. Lan tells them that it's a Draghkar, and Moiraine says that if the Trollocs have a Draghkar at their command they will soon know where they are.

The villagers asks what a Draghkar is, and Thom explains that "in the war that ended the Age of Legends, worse than Trollocs and Halfmen were created". Before they get a chance to ask him more questions, Lan tells them that they shall continue down the North Road and follow his lead "for their lives"

Notes

Common Themes

Unwillingness to believe awkward truths
Overconfidence in their own knowledge/Acting on poor information
  • Egwene does not believe that the Trollocs could be after Rand, Mat or Perrin or that that might be the reason they are leaving.

Character Development

Egwene

Egwene still doesn’t believe the boys are leaving because they must

Mat

Mat mocks the sword and Perrin’s axe

Perrin

When Lan mentions that there are wolves nearby, Perrin is the one to react

Rand

When they leave, Rand is the only one to talk to anyone about it

Nature

Animals
  • Field Mice, Owls, bats, flies, bitemes

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