The Eye of the World: Chapter 5

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Author: Arn Oakenskye

Winternight

Chapter Icon: Leafless Tree

Point of View: Rand

Location: Emond's Field

Characters: Tam al'Thor, Rand al'Thor, Trollocs

Outline

Trollocs attack Tam and Rand's home.

Summary

Tam and Rand al'Thor return to their farmhouse searching for any signs of the black cloaked rider. Finding nothing, they go about their chores and settle down for supper.

Tam pulls out a sword from an old chest and tells Rand he had gotten it a long time ago and that it was not worth much, that he had paid too much for it and Rand's mother did not approve. Tam tells Rand he had thought of giving it away and that it is not much use for herding sheep, plowing a field or harvesting a crop. Tam wants to have the sword should their luck change though. The sword looks much like Lan's sword, except that Tam's is decorated with herons. The only people Rand had ever seen with swords before were merchant's guards and Lan, so it was quite a surprise to him.

While they're about to settle down to supper, Trollocs burst through the front door. Tam begins fighting off the beasts with his sword and yells to Rand to escape out the back.

Slipping out a window while more Trollocs break down the back door, Rand escapes to the barn while Tam jumps out a window and leads the monsters away from his son.

Rand then sneak into the woods where he and Tam are reunited, however Tam is injured and burning up with a fever. Tam explains the little bit he knows of Trollocs, that they can see better than a man in the dark, but bright lights blind them for a short time. That some can track by scent or sound and that they are lazy, that they'll give up after a while. Tam tells Rand that Trollocs kill for the pleasure of killing and that they cannot be trusted unless they are afraid of you, and not even much then.

Rand needs to get Tam to Nynaeve in Emond's Field if he wants to help his father's fever. Taking Tam's sword and returning to the farmhouse, Rand plans to gather blankets, clothes, a cart and Bela.

Rand finds one Trolloc by the name of Narg still alive in the house. Rand is frightened and holds up the sword in defense, Narg asks him repeatedly to lower the sword, that he only wants to talk, and that the Myrddraal wants to talk to him. After a little while Rand lowers his sword only to have the Trolloc lunge at him, Rand brings the blade up and manages to kill it in defense.

Gathering what he needs from the house and going to the barn Rand discovers Bela gone and the cart broken. Rand uses the sword to cut shafts from the cart so he can carry Tam, he's surprised that the sword is still razor sharp afterwards and testing the blade with his finger cuts himself.

Rand then returns to the woods and begins tending to Tam's wound.

Notes

Mysteries

• Why does Tam have a sword?

Miscellaenous

• Tam makes his own cabinets and chests
• Books are hard to come by but are popular
• No one in the Two Rivers locks their doors
• In the stories, Myrddraal are 20 feet tall with eyes of fire

Characters

First Appearance

• Narg

First Mention

• Oren Dautry

Nature

Animals

• Chicken, Fox, Rabbit

Plants

• Pine, Oak, Willow

Spoilers

This section contains Notes on this Chapter which may contain spoilers. Please expand to view.

Mysteries

• Why does Tam have a sword

This is pretty simply answered, because he got it as a Blademaster. We do learn here that he paid for the sword, which suggests that he didn't kill another Blademaster and take it from him, though he does later say he got to be one by killing a man that needed killing, in front of witnesses (TGH, Ch. 47)

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