The Eye of the World: Chapter 18
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Author: Dinn da Noor
Chapter Icon: Trolloc Skull and Fist
Point of View: Rand
Setting: Caemlyn Road
Characters: Egwene, Nynaeve, Lan, Moiraine, Perrin, Mat, Rand, Thom, Trollocs, Myrddraal
Contents
Outline
The group is forced into Shadar Logoth to take refuge from Trollocs.
Summary
Three days after leaving Baerlon, the party stops at the top of a hill. Lan is studying the road ahead and behind while the others sit under some trees eating. Egwene talks about how good some tea would've been and Nynaeve tells her that flatwort tea and andilay root are best for fatigue. The Warder tells them that they have a Fade or two and their Trollocs on their tail who know what road they're taking. Thom asks what stops them from having someone or something at Whitebridge already when a horn sounds from the west. The Warder tells him that nothing stops them and that they must trust the Light, but now they know for certain that there are Trollocs behind them.
They mount their horses when a second horn blows and this time another answers. Lan tells Moiraine to keep them moving and sets off heading west. Moiraine responds "The Light go with you, last Lord of Seven Towers", before she moves on with the others at a steady trot. Rand wonders what last Lord of Seven Towers means, when the horns sound again, closer this time, maybe seven or eight miles behind.
When Nynaeve urges them to go faster, the Aes Sedai tells her that that may be what they are wishing for, and keeps the same steady pace.
Every time the horns sound, it sounds closer. When Rand thinks they are about five miles away, Lan comes galloping over the hill behind them and tells Moiraine that there are at least three fists of Trollocs, maybe five, each led by a Halfman. He says that they are closing the gap and will be on them in an hour or less. Suddenly a horn sounds in the west, behind them and is answered from one ahead of them.
The Aes Sedai says that they can go south or north, when Lan says that there is a place the Trollocs won't go. Moiraine says no, but after some discussion, they decide to go north.
They ride through the woods and hear the horns directly behind them. They top a hill and below them they meet an army of Trollocs led by a Myrddraal. The Fade unsheathes its sword and rides at Lan, followed by the Trollocs. The Warder cries to the rest to stay with him before he sets down the hill, shouting "for the Seven Towers". The rest of the group streams after Lan, and caught up by Lan's cry, Rand shouts "Manetheren! Manetheren!", repeated by Perrin. Mat shouts "Carai an Caldazar! Carai an Ellisande! Al Ellisande!"
The Warder and Myrddraal fight alone in a clear circle while Rand rides about, swinging his sword with the little skill Lan has taught him. Nynaeve and Egwene are close to Moiraine who lashes out with her staff, causing fire to envelop Trollocs. Rand is surrounded by Trollocs who try to unhorse him when suddenly all of them fall on the ground shouting. He then sees the Myrddraal sitting in its saddle without a head. Thom yells that it won't die until nightfall while Lan urges them on. They can hear the horns from west, east and south.
Rand turns and sees that only a hundred spans is separating the Trollocs and his party. Moiraine climbs down from Aldieb's back and takes out the angreal. With the angreal in one hand and the staff in the other she faces the Trollocs and the three Fades. She raises her staff and stabs it down in the earth, causing the ground to tremble and ripple. The Trollocs begin to tumble down the slope in heaps yet the Myrddraal moves forward in a line, their horses never missing a step. The Aes Sedai then lifts her staff and the earth stills. She points to the hollow between the hills and flames spread as far as the eye can see, creating a wall between the Trollocs and the humans. Lan then makes them go on while he takes care of Moiraine who nearly falls on the ground.
They soon catch up with the others and Moiraine tells them that she will be all right soon and that she's not at her strongest while working with Earth and Fire. After some riding, Lan stops and talks alone with Moiraine. Egwene asks Rand about the things he shouted at the Trollocs and he says that they had to shout something, as that's what you do in times like that. Perrin adds that they had a right since Moiraine said they all were descended from Manetheren. Egwene says that it wasn't that she meant, but what Mat was shouting. He tells her that he can't remember where it came from or what it meant, and Egwene says that for a moment she thought she understood him, though it's gone now. Moiraine comes up to them and says that it means 'for the honor of the Red Eagle. For the honor of the Rose of the Sun. The Rose of the Sun'; the ancient warcry of Manetheren and the warcry of its last king. She says that the blood of Arad's lines is strong in the Two Rivers and that the old blood still sings.
Horns start blowing again, and Lan says the Trollocs have passed the fire and that Moiraine is not strong enough for what she intends and that she needs rest. And neither Myrddraal nor Trolloc will enter that place. Moiraine sighs, but agrees, and gets the others to gather close around her. She stands in her stirrups and starts swinging the staff over their heads, before thrusting it out to the west. She tells them it's for the Trollocs, that their scents and tracks will seem to follow it. They set off again, and soon they reach something that Rand believes is a cliff first but when he looks closer he understands that it is a city at least fifty times as big as Baerlon. When Egwene wonders what city it was, Moiraine tells her that it was called Aridhol and it was an ally to Manetheren in the Trolloc Wars. Later, the place died and got another name: Shadar Logoth.
Notes
Character Development
- Nynaeve
- When Lan goes to check on the Trollocs, Egwene worries he is being reckless, but Nynaeve is confident he wouldn’t be seen
- She spends time with Moiraine, talking about herbs
- Perrin
- Perrin is the one to notice Shadar Logoth is abandoned. This doesn't seem to be as a result of his improved eyesight as Rand is able to see it when Perrin points it out.
Mysteries
- Why is Lan called the Last Lord of the Seven Towers
- Why does Mat speaking the Old Tongue draw the Fade's attention?
Nature
- Animals
Deer
- Plants
Flatwort, Andilay
Herbs
Flatwort tea and Andilay root for fatigue
Spoilers
This section contains Notes on this Chapter which may contain spoilers. Please expand to view.
Foreshadowing
Mat rubs at his neck after being thrown from his horse - foreshadowing of his later hanging
Mysteries
- Why is Lan called the Last Lord of the Seven Towers
It's a Malkier thing
