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apocalypticavolition · 5 months

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Let's (re)Read The Great Hunt! Chapter 26: Discord

Gather around everyone and I'll tell you a tale. It's a tale of my reactions to someone else telling me a different story in book form. Many book form, to be technical. And I already know the story, so my reactions will be very spoilery for all the books. Every book. If that's gonna be a problem, plug your ears or something I guess.

This chapter has a harp icon because it's Thom time! I'm as happy as Rand is to see him.

Rand, I may have been too hasty in leaving Stedding Shangtai the way I did. When I do go home, I may be in a great deal of trouble.

Not sure why you couldn't just lie about being a young Ogier from Saldaea or something, Loial. You all can't keep that close a set of tabs on each other. Or is the unbearded look a dead giveaway?

When they came pounding through the common room, Rand winked at the innkeeper, then laughed at his startled look. Let him think I’m off to play his bloody Great Game. Let him think what he wants. Thom’s alive.

What is it about needing to keep a low profile in inns that makes Rand so reckless? First Baerlon and his channeling sickness, now this when he doesn't even have that excuse.

The innkeeper was a woman with hair as white as Thom’s, and sharp eyes that studied Loial as well as Rand.

Innkeeper size, and therefore loyalty, uncertain.

The slender woman sitting cross-legged on the bed with her skirts tucked under her was keeping six colored balls spinning in a wheel between her hands.

Dena meanwhile has to be small so that Jordan can fit her into the fridge more easily.

“I have never heard of a woman gleeman,” Loial said.

And this frankly makes Dena's fridging all the more exhausting. Why are there no gleegals anyway? Surely there'd be a good source: women who go to the Tower to become Aes Sedai and then get put out again when it's clear they're not worthy but who don't want to go back home now that they've tasted the world. Especially since this world seems to be pretty low on sex work, you'd think that gals who don't have much else in the realm of prospects would pick up the job.

But also, it's infuriating that Dena is intro'd in this way and then killed off and then we never have any other woman who tries to take up the mantle later. One can hardly blame Thom for being in a hurry to pick up a lady apprentice given what happens to Dena and the events of the next few months, but by the time he ended up in Ebou Dar it should have been going again. It's a wasted opportunity.

They hang a scrap of painted canvas behind them, supposed to make the audience believe these fools are in Matuchin Hall, or the high passes of the Mountains of Dhoom. I make the listener see every banner, smell every battle, feel every emotion. I make them believe they are Gaidal Cain. Seaghan will have his hall torn down around his ears if he puts this lot on to follow me.

And here's another apparent revolution in the world's culture that doesn't seem to go anywhere. Theater exists; there's a play held in Andor much later, but apparently Gleemen will stay the preferred style for now. I suppose after the circus it's probably for the best we didn't pick up a subplot of players.

“She listens to a tale once—once only, mind!—and she has it right, not just the words, but every nuance, every rhythm. She has a fine hand on the harp, and she played the flute better the first time she picked it up than you ever did.”

Yes yes, we all know she's too pure for this sinful Earth.

She’ll be court-bard to a king or a queen before she’s done.

Okay but for real Thom, there's only so many monarchs in the world and I doubt many more nobles besides their immediate subordinates could afford court-bards so what are all the women in the world who aren't mind-bogglingly talented supposed to do in the performance arts? They can't all just give up their dreams and move on. Why are they absent?

“Your clumsy sheepherder’s fingers were never meant for the harp.”

There is something very sad in Rand not being meant for the sophisticated forms of art (and science) that he'd really rather be a part of than conquering.

There is even a lord in the city has what he claims is the Horn locked up inside his manor. He says it’s a treasure handed down in his House since the Breaking.

You know, I'm willing to believe that this lord really does have a 3,500 year old horn in his basement. Obviously not a magic one, but still. Stranger things have happened.

“Moiraine says it’s the Horn,” Rand said. Thom’s mirth was cut short.

Thom takes Moiraine as gospel even now.

“I don’t suppose you are talking about simply riding to Shienar and handing the Horn to—who?—the King? Why Shienar? The legends all tie the Horn to Illian.”

I suppose this must be one of those myths that grew in the telling. That or there was some confusion with a Foretelling and the sea that the Horn gets tossed into is off of Illian's coast.

“Thom,” he said at last, “are there any books that have The Karaethon Cycle in them?” Easier to call it that than the Prophecies of the Dragon. “In the great libraries,” Thom said slowly. “Any number of translations, and even in the Old Tongue, here and there.”

Thom of course has to answer slowly because Rand's question has given him a heart attack and he needs to take deep breaths. This might well be one of the more terrifying moments of Thom's life, having a young boy taken from his home on suspicion of channeling asking about the Prophecies while waving the sign of their imminent fulfillment around. Or at least this would be the case if Thom was taking it at all seriously (he's not, not yet).

For a moment, Rand could only gape at him, and when he could speak, his voice was unsteady. “The sword makes five. Hilt, scabbard, and blade.” He turned his hand down on the table, hiding the brand on his palm. For the first time since Selene’s salve had done its work, he could feel it. Not hurting, but he knew it was there.

Moiraine of course thought she was fulfilling prophecy but as Rand points out the coat counts for nothing, though funnily enough the sword and the coat are echoes of the later, true markings: the sword setting Rand on his path away from home and the coat being Moiraine naming him among the candidates as the real deal.

Thom's got to be happy Rand's denying it though.

I suspect Aes Sedai would want to make events fit the Prophecies as closely as they can. Dying somewhere in the Blasted Lands would be a high price to pay for going along with them.

Thom's a very kind mentor for actually telling Rand straight out what the price of being the Dragon is and suggesting that if he's just doing it for the Aes Sedai that it's time to do something.

“Then why ask about the Prophecies? Why send the Ogier out of the room?”

One of the problems of being an expert player of the Great Game is that when a novice shows up and starts blundering around, you're going to mistake his idiotic moves for strategic ones. Thom correctly identifies Rand's got an ulterior motive for his behavior and skips right past the obvious, simple, and true answer in favor of a conspiracy theory.

“I’ve learned a few things since we parted, Thom. They will come for whoever blows the Horn, even a Darkfriend.”

I'm not sure you've learned that at all Rand, and I suppose we should have taken Thom not knowing that detail as warning enough that it wasn't true.

“Owyn held it off almost three years. He never hurt anyone. He didn’t use the Power unless he had to, and then only to help his village. He. . . .” Thom threw up his hands.

The taint on saidin was an absolutely masterful counterstroke if you think about it. The perfect way for the divisive paranoia of the Shadow to worm its way into the minds of Light aligned individuals. Thom knows that Owyn was a danger to society but he still tries to make excuses out of love.

If Moiraine’s let you go, then you are well out of it.

While Rand outplays Thom through naivety, Moiraine outflanks him legitimately.

“A clean break is best, boy. If you’re always coming around, even if you never mention it, I won’t be able to get the Horn out of my head. And I won’t be tangled in it. I won’t.”

A cruel move by Thom, but one can hardly blame an old man for trying to refuse the call. One can blame the Wheel for how refusing the call plays out for him though.

Ruefully, he realized he was considering whether to tell Zera the truth or let her continue thinking as she did. All it takes is to think about the Great Game, and I start playing it.

Politics as a whole are a rather infectious way of corrupting the Light too, and the fools do it to themselves. It's no wonder part of Rand's coming is resetting the whole damn board on the players.

Coat or no coat, Rand was still only a shepherd. If he had been more, if he had been what Thom once suspected—a man who could channel—neither Moiraine nor any other Aes Sedai would ever have let him walk away ungentled.

Frankly, I think Thom's very much hiding in denial here like Rand does. He has to know that the facts don't add up in any way that's good but he pretends he can send Rand away and not have to worry about it.

Ah well. We have to part ways here too. See you next chapter!

#let's read #wheel of time #wot #robert jordan #wheel of time spoilers #wot spoilers #rand al'thor #cuale #loial #hurin #zera #dena #thom merrilin

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wearelatinamericanrockers · 7 months

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if you're not latine/from latam just reblog silently :]

here's a second poll if you cant find your nationality here

#polls #latino #latin america #latino america #latam #todos fueron elegido por estadísticas de cuales países son lo mas poblados #+ cuales creó son lo mas común aquí en Tumblr

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diamondsheep · 8 months

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Okay okay pero Así es la Vida de Elefante, la rolita de Zoro cuando Sanji esta en WCI 👀👀👀🌱

NOOOO al pobre le robaron el novio, le rompieron el corazón y ahora esta en un bar en Wano sufriendo y ahogando sus penas

asdfkls eso me recordó que desde que vi WCI siempre me imagine a Sanji con GATA BAJO LA LLUVIAAAA así bien dramático

ASDFJSKA lo siento tenia que dibujar el ZoSan Angst con esas canciones ( Así es la vida - Gata Bajo la lluvia )

#don't think that i gotta explain much about this #it is just them suffering with sad spanish love songs in the background asdfgjkls #is this a latin ZoSan au ?! MAYBE #asdkdls al principio no sabia cual era la canción que recomendó hasta que la parte de ASÍ ES LA VIDA DE CAPRICHOSA !! y yo estaba como :o !#aww i like how Sanji looks .. maybe later i could paint this sketch #zosan #zoro #sanji #roronoa zoro #blackleg sanji #one piece #my art #diamonsheep art #ram doodles #answer #latin zosan #my drawings

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magiaveneno · 7 months

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las sub tramas de este país se están volviendo muy complejas

#tal cual hermano #argentina

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verso-abstracto · 2 months

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Deja de mentir,

deja de negarlo.

Son tantos años,

te conoce mejor que cualquiera.

Quieres que intente negarme a ver lo que esta frente a mis ojos.

Como negar qué... Son tal para cual.

Y ahora yo estoy de más.

Papittafritta

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renata-dp · 3 months

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Your Mike, hand him over.

I would, but... I just draw him in so many styles sooo.. here you go, have as many mikes as ya want! *hands you all these michaels in a box* Take a good care of them, they all deserve it <3

(also personal extra hehe xD)

#(esto ha sido muy “dime cual es tu personaje favorito sin decirme cual es tu personaje favorito” de mi parte JASHJASJASHJA XD)#(no me arrepiento jhajsa)#ask #answered asks #ask me things #ask me anything #fnaf #michael afton #mike afton

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secretlilycookie · 3 months

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data: name unknown, planet unknown, parents unkno- okay no, it's a joke

so I decided that they would have a child and if it will only be one and it was a complicated baby because they didn't really know if it was going to be born

It brought them some scares, starting with the fact that it was an egg similar to techno ones except that it didn't shine but then they went to several doctors (b&r and laguna) and indeed there was something inside, alive and healthy

The second was at birth because holy crap, it was gray, not exactly gray, there was still some color and in fact she wasn't sad or scared but it definitely worried them but as he grew he took on his color and it didn't really affect him that much.

Physically she is taller than Branch but not as tall as Synth, her hair is short, what shines most about her is her heart both physically and metaphorically.She is very similar to Branch in attitude/personality but just as optimistic as Synth, she is not calm, she was never calm, she was always everywhere being curious about everything and she loves mathematics.

----

It doesn't have a name, I keep thinking of one ':>

#trolls #trolls branch #trolls synth #brynth #artcookie #doddles #dreamworks trolls #trolls oc #puedo dibujarla pensar como seria su actitud cual es su tio favorito pero no puedo ponerle un maldito nombre #help XD jajajaj #brynth fan kid

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goldammerchen · 5 months

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not to be contrarian but a blushing (emphasis in blushing is not like you can't disagree with me) virgin wouldn't call a historically inaccurate magazine like play@oy "cool"

(from here) (yes this was in the anime too but i watched it only once)

1st reply, going from memory 2nd reply, manga moments collection extra 3rd reply, forgot about 2007 christmas and notosama 5 (THE REPLY ITS GONE? 😭 Can be seen in the last one...) extra 4th reply, 2009 april's fool self introduction as "sexy man"

#hws prussia #hetalia #hws germany #sr. tnddr #tal para cual

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elbiotipo · 1 month

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What's really sad about this is that Biden is, let's face it, on his last years, and this will be his legacy. The guy who sold weapons to kill children, supported a genocidal state, and repressed the people who told him no, and by that, he's basically handing the election to Donald Trump who will wipe out any accomplishments he could have done. It's honestly a sad, pathetic way to sink yourself and your country. Not that Biden was a great guy with a legacy before, but the way he sacrificed everything just to give an apartheid state carte blanché to bomb children...

And the whole United States with only two parties (people seem to call you insane if you chose to vote for another party, it's crazy, even though it's not illegal! you can vote for other parties you won't get shot!) and those two parties who are right-wing and far-right have elected possible the worst people, just two useless old men... I honestly don't envy people who have to take political choices there.

#cosas mias #lo cual me hace pensar si Alberto Fernández no fue nuestro Biden también un viejo inútil que le entregó las llaves a un hdp de derecha #pero para su crédito Alberto no le vendía armas a estados genocidas

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apocalypticavolition · 5 months

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Let's (re)Read The Great Hunt! Chapter 27: The Shadow in the Night

I couldn't find any Trolloc puppets so this is what we're going with I guess. It seemed better than pictures of real life fireworks accidents where I wasn't sure if maybe someone got seriously hurt or not. I'm pretty sure that no one got hurt in this episode of Star Trek; the Gorn lived. But I can't promise that about this book series, so if you don't want that kind of spoilers for Wheel of Time, or really any kind of spoilers, it's best not to click keep reading.

This chapter has the Trolloc triptych since we will be getting Trollocs in Cairhien.

The street was empty save for one of the big puppets, a goat-horned Trolloc with a sword at its belt, coming toward them with five men working the poles, but sounds of merriment drifted still from other parts of the Foregate, where the halls of entertainment and the taverns stood. Here, doors were already barred and windows shuttered.

Presumably this is the work of the undescribed man who saw Rand awhile back. I suppose that if Fain is going to defy fate, he might as well defy narrative convention as well.

Instinct brought the sword out of its sheath in a flashing arc. The Moon Rises Over the Lakes.

Honestly the motion I picture when I think of the sword form's name is a bit more complex than a flashing arc, but it gets points for being such a great name.

“Loial, we have to get back to the inn. Hurin’s alone, and they—” He grunted as he was lifted into the air by a thick arm long enough to pin both of his to his chest.

Rand's Shadowspawn Senses still don't seem to have kicked in yet.

The Power. That could do it. How, he did not know, but he knew nothing else to try. The Trolloc had its sword half unsheathed. When the curved blade was bare, it would kill Loial.

I love it when a hero is forced to use an undesirable power because the escalation of the narrative has left them with nothing else.

Driven by a distant desperation, he tried again and again. And again and again there was only the taint.

Of course, that really only makes it all the more hilarious that Rand isn't capable of channeling consistently yet.

“I’m sorry you had to do it, Loial, but it would have killed both of us, or worse.” “I know. But I cannot like it. Even a Trolloc.” Pointing toward the setting sun, the Ogier seized Rand’s arm. “There’s another of them.”

Funny how this bit of work towards Perrin's arc is here in Rand's, considering how many dead Trollocs this boy will be making even in Zen Mode.

He pulled Loial along to the next corner and turned toward the nearest sounds of laughter and music, but long before they reached it, another group of men appeared ahead of them in the otherwise empty street with a puppet that was no puppet.

Rand has something in common with that Trolloc, I suppose. There are some parallels of course - the puppeteers are far less dangerous than the "puppet"; they control it only to the degree that it's convenient for the Trolloc, everything is being done out of sight and in the shadows - but I'm sad to say that I'm at a blank for any deeper meaning.

Sometimes, here where there were no eyes to see, a Trolloc stalked alone. More than once he was sure it was one he had seen before. They were closing in, and making sure he and Loial did not leave the deserted streets with their shuttered windows.

I really like that the Trollocs are still terrifying at this point.

“I don’t have it with me,” he snapped, “and I don’t know how it could help if I did. The dead heroes are not supposed to come back to save me from Trollocs. Selene, you have to get away. Now!”

This is (very likely unintentional) irony, since the Horn isn't blown in the Last Battle until a young boy with no other options has to be saved from Trollocs.

“Seek the Oneness, and be calm. One who would be great must always be calm.”

This is also ironic, since Lanfear has the chill of a blast furnace on the surface of the sun.

Selene cut him off. “If he wants to go in, alantin, he needs a door. Such as that one.” She pointed to a dark patch a little down the wall. Even with her telling him, Rand was not certain it was a door, but when she strode to it and pulled, it opened.

If it weren't for the fact that the far side of this wall had brackets for a bar, I'd half think that Selene had some incredible forgotten weave for turning walls into doors.

At the worst, humans had to be better to deal with than Trollocs. He might be able to talk the Illuminators into letting them go; Trollocs did not listen before they killed.

Rand of course will forget this lesson much later in his dealings with the Seanchan.

The woman’s dress, worked elaborately across the breast, seemed a pale green, and her hair was done in a multitude of short braids.

Hi Aludra! Sorry about what happens to you for the next six books or so. (Also hi Tammuz I guess? Apparently you're technically a recurring character. Good luck with that; I barely remember you from this chapter and I only reread it seven hours ago.)

In any case, fireworks were too expensive for the Village Council to have allowed anybody unskilled to open one. He could well remember the time when Mat had tried to do just that; it was nearly a week before anyone but Mat’s own mother would speak to him.

I'm pretty sure we hear about this story again. I'm also pretty sure Mat will finally open a firework next book.

Rand was just breathing a sigh of relief as they approached the low wall—and the alleys and buildings behind it—when Loial brushed against another rack, standing right beside the wall. It held ten soft-looking sticks, as long as Rand’s arm, with thin streams of smoke rising from their tips. The rack made hardly a sound when it fell, the smoldering sticks sprawling across one of the fuses.

It's like the Illuminators were asking for their chapterhouse to be burned down, frankly.

“Sometimes,” Selene said quietly, “if you are very still, no one can see you at all.” She did not sound the least bit worried.

This is both a useful observational fact about life and clearly a good weave.

“I am not to blame for this, Aludra,” the man protested. “I have been sure to put everything where it belonged, and the punks, they were—”

Sorry Tammuz, I'm absolutely blaming you.

“It is said great men make their own luck,” Selene said softly.

Lanfear: Just because I'm pretending to be a helpless noblewoman doesn't mean I'm not going to expect credit for every secret thing I do to help you.

“Your greatness will make me happy.” Despite the words, Selene sounded angry. “Perhaps I should leave you to find your own way for a time. If you’ll not take greatness when it is in your grasp, perhaps you deserve to die.”

I can see why she hooked up with LTT in the first place and why the dude dumped her the second he had a chance with a slightly more chill woman.

“You let me worry about the Trollocs.” Three of them. I might do it, with the void.

Of course, Rand is finally embracing the greatness she wants anyway. Doesn't even realize it.

It tilted, started to fall over, and he caught the square wooden base; the tube pointed straight at the Trollocs.

Hence the picture above.

Blinking, Rand staggered to his feet, coughing in thick, acrid smoke, ears ringing.

Jordan should have added tinnitus to Rand's list of agonies because it is a bitch and the boy damages his ear drums way too much not to end up with it.

“An old woman, my Lord. Not a quarter of an hour gone. A servant, though she did not say from what House.” Cuale smiled as if inviting confidences.

Definitely Lanfear in disguise. She's not too vain to try and fool Rand this way as we'll know from later, and the difference in age is more than enough for Mr. Idiot here not to suspect that the Obviously Magic Woman following him around improbably might have left the letter herself.

Think of the glory. “I wish Ingtar would come.”

Rand would have been a great hornblower, since he always slides right past the glory in favor of the salvation.

#let's read #wheel of time #wot #robert jordan #wheel of time spoilers #wot spoilers #rand al'thor #loial #lanfear #tammuz #aludra #cuale #hurin

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