The Great Hunt

Thom Merrilin returns to his room only to find Dena, his lover and protégé, dead. Two assassins emerge from hiding, and Thom pulls daggers from his sleeve, killing one and wounding the other. The wounded man, a knife at his throat, confesses that Lord Barthanes, desiring information about Rand, is behind the attack. He promises gold, but Thom, sensing a trick, kills the assassin first. Zera, the innkeeper, comes in, warning Thom to leave town. He claims he has one final man to kill, and Zera informs him that, if it is Barthanes, he was killed during the night. With that, Thom packs his bags to leave. When Zera sees one of the dead assassins, she recognizes him not as one of Barthane’s men but of Galldrian’s, the king. As a riot breaks out in Foregate, and granaries burst into flame, Thom leaves. 

From the outskirts of Falme, Padan Fain observes the town’s comings and goings, and the interactions between the Seanchan and the locals. He approaches a house and tells the guards that he carries something of great value to their master. The guards escort him inside and present the chest to the High Lord, who unlocks it and removes the Horn and dagger. As he examines them, Fain reaches for the dagger, unable to be patient any longer, but the High Lord’s servant stops him. The High Lord then asks why Fain would give him such a gift. He replies, “That you may sound it, High Lord. Then you may take all of this land, if you wish” (495). Fain concocts a story of the Aes Sedai murdering his family’s king many years ago. He now awaits the return of Artur Hawkwing’s army (the Seanchan) to exact revenge and serve the new king. The Lord, however, refuses to sound the Horn because it would look to the Empress like a challenge to her authority. Instead, he will present it to her as a gift. As the High Lord dismisses him, Fain tells the Lord about Rand, claiming he is a Darkfriend whom Trollocs follow. Rand is pursuing Fain and will bring Trollocs down upon the Seanchan stronghold. With that, Fain leaves with a summons to return the next day.

Rand, Ingtar, Verin, and company head toward Stedding Tsofu, where there is a Waygate that will bring them to Fain. The stedding is a safe refuge since Trollocs and Darkfriends will not enter one, nor will Aes Sedai since they cannot touch the One Power while inside. As they ride through a forest, they cross an unseen border into the stedding. A young Ogier appears, welcoming them and offering to escort them to the Elders. Leaving the soldiers behind, Rand, Mat, Perrin, Verin, Loial, Ingtar, and Hurin enter the stedding. Suddenly, three Aiel women appear from behind a tree, scrambling to cover their faces and draw their weapons. As they advance on the newcomers, Ingtar and Hurin draw their swords. The young Ogier beseeches them to stop, but they continue. Even Verin’s pleas fall on deaf ears. Then, an older Ogier—Juin—steps between the two groups, reminding them of “the Pact,” an oath that no one will raise a hand in violence while inside a stedding. With both sides placated, Juin leads Verin, Rand, and the others to the Elders. Based on their previous encounter with the Aiel near Kinslayer’s Dagger, both Mat and Perrin believe the Aiel women are looking for Rand, and not for “sung wood” as they claim).

Waiting inside a guest residence, Loial explains that if the other Ogier find out he has left his stedding without permission from the Elders, his mother will arrange a marriage for him immediately. Finally, Juin returns to escort them to the Elders.

Inside a cavernous chamber beneath a mound of earth, the Elders await. The chief Elder, Alar, warns them that traveling the Ways “is to risk not only death and madness, but perhaps your very souls” (515). As an example, they bring in a lethargic, shambling Ogier, the last to travel the Ways. Verin lays hands on him, pronouncing with shock that he is “empty.” After the company’s insistence, Alar eventually agrees to let them use the Waygate on the condition that, once the quest is fulfilled, they bring Loial back to Stedding Shangtai. Rand agrees, and Alar escorts them to the Waygate.

Joined by the rest of Ingtar’s men, they arrive at the Waygate, just outside the boundary of the stedding. Verin opens the gate, but as the doors begin to part, Rand sees a blackness on the other side and cries to her to close it. Manchin Shin lies on the other side. The appearance of the Black Wind twice in two attempts makes Rand fear the darkness is following him. At Hurin’s suggestion, they decide to use a Portal Stone to get to Toman Head, and Aral tells them there is one close by.

Aral leads them to an old and weathered Portal Stone. Having never used a Portal Stone, Verin argues that Rand is the logical choice to transport them. Despite her best efforts to provide guidance, Rand does not recognize the symbols on the Portal Stone, and he balks at having to channel the Power. With no better strategy, Verin suggests that “it’s time to roll the dice” (526). Rand fears making the wrong choice, but Verin argues that the Pattern will not let him fail; it has other things in mind for him. He finally chooses a symbol and, channeling the Power, the world “flickers.”

Rand has a vision of several alternate realities: He sees his father and himself as a boy, both being killed by Trollocs; A voice in his head taunts him, calling him Lews Therin; he sees himself in the Two Rivers, happily married to Egwene and the troubles of the world at a comfortable distance. His moods grow dark, however, when he increasingly feels this reality is not to be. The vision continues into the future: Egwene is dead, and a feeble and grieving Rand is called to a final battle to defend the Two Rivers from invading Trollocs, a battle that ends once again in his death. The next vision finds him a member of the Queen’s guard in Caemlyn, again questioning the reality of this world. He channels just enough—and in secret—to earn him a higher rank, and eventually he leads 1,000 men across the Mountains of Mist to battle the invading Seanchan. Driven back, he makes his last stand in Caemlyn where he is flung from a tower by a bolt of lightning. All of these visions and a hundred more end with madness, death, or both, and a voice claiming, “I have won again, Lews Therin” (532). Finally, the world flickers one last time, the Power vanishes, and Rand finds himself lying face down on the ground, the entire company visibly shaken. Rand has brought them to Toman Head, but it is months later and too late perhaps for their arrival to do any good. Once the company recovers, Verin leads them west toward the larger towns.

In her small room in the White Tower, Egwene practices channeling. Elayne suddenly bursts in with news of the death of King Galldrian, and the three women—Egwene, Elayne, and Min—discuss the possible aftermath: a civil war. When Elayne mentions the False Dragon Logain, now gentled and robbed of his spirit, Egwene thinks of Rand and prays the same has not happened to him. Nynaeve, who is also in the room, worries about her temper. As an Accepted and Egwene’s “supervisor,” Nynaeve tells her to stop channeling which brings up all novices’ common fear: channeling too much Power and burning out.

Without warning, the door flies open and Liandrin enters. After dismissing Min and Elayne, she tells Egwene and Nynaeve that Rand, Mat, and Perrin are in danger. If they want to help them, they must accompany Liandrin to Toman Head. Moreover, they must not tell anyone lest the Black Ajah—who patrol the halls of the White Tower, she claims—become aware of them. After she leaves, Nynaeve and Egwene question Liandrin’s motives: It is a mystery while Liandrin, a Red Ajah sworn to gentling any man who channels, would want to help Rand.

Min and Elayne reenter, having eavesdropped on the conversation; both want to join them on their journey. Min, who has the gift of “reading” people, sees danger in the cards for all three of them but argues that Elayne is part of “the Pattern” so she should come along too. Once decided, they make preparations.

Egwene, Elayne, Min, and Nynaeve move briskly through the White Tower, trying to escape unnoticed. Nynaeve leads them to a narrow staircase, which lets them out near the stables, and she orders the groom to saddle their horses. They make it past the gate guards without incident and ride through the crowded city streets. At the edge of the city, they come to the Ogier grove, an enclosed wood of oak, elm, and fir all dwarfed by the Great Trees. They enter the grove, the appointed meeting place. Liandrin rides out to meet them. Though angry over the presence of Min and Elayne, Liandrin reluctantly allows them to come—for their own safety. As friends of Egwene and Nynaeve, their lives would be in danger from the Black Ajah once they discovered the two women missing from the White Tower.

Riding deeper into the grove, Liandrin leads them to a Waygate. She opens it and orders the women in first, urging haste in case they are being followed. Egwene enters first, stumbling into darkness on the other side, followed by Nynaeve and the others with lanterns. Moving through the oppressive darkness, they come to a “Guiding,” a stone slab inscribed with Ogier runes. Liandrin deciphers the runes enough to get their bearings, and they move on, down a winding ramp to another Guiding, and so on. Even in the Ways, Egwene feels the pulls of saidar—the female half of the True Source—but she also senses the taint left behind after the Breaking of the World, and for once, she has no trouble resisting its lure.

Eventually, they reach a stopping point and make camp. After a fitful sleep, Liandrin rouses them for another day’s ride, pushing them on relentlessly until they finally reach the other side.