#wot blighted tree icon

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Chapter 48 - The Blight

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one!)

(Blighted tree icon)(1) In which there's a conversation that catches some readers off guard.

That morning, Lord Agelmar and all the lances rode east at daybreak, the farmers and most of the common people riding out a different gate toward a city further from the Blight and battle. The only people remaining in the city were a few old men, and a handful of soldiers who volunteered. Fal Dara could not be allowed to fall totally undefended, in the worst case. The smallest column leaving the city were headed north, to the Blight.

Ingtar and a hundred lances accompany the party to the border with what used to be Malkier. He's grumpy because this means he'll be late to the battle at Tarwin's Gap, but he's also been commanded not to set foot in the Blight, and Agelmar wouldn't tell him why. Moiraine tells him it's as she planned with Agelmar, and Ingtar grumps and bids them farewell, so he can ride hard to Tarwin's Gap and get some battle in. Nynaeve asks if he's so eager to fight Trollocs, and Ingtar replies that it's what he is, what he was born for.

An hour's ride north of the border, the temperature starts to rise, but it feels wrong. Rand sees a tree that looks mottled with yellow and red spots, and Lan tells them some of the dangerous creatures that live here, a stick bug which can bite and leave a venom that will digest a whole body being the least of them.(2) Every mile further they ride, the wrongness gets more intense. Lan and Perrin are the only two who don't seem to be affected.

Eventually they get to an area near enough to the mountains to have cold breezes, but even those feel bad, like the icy chill of opening a tomb. Moiraine says there's an area nearby where they can make camp, it will be a good omen to camp there, and they'll be able to cross the mountains at noon, when the DO's eye is weakest. They crest a hill, and Lan slows, so Rand looks where Lan does. There are seven hills in the distance, and as the sun lowers to a certain angle near the horizon, a couple of them glint. Not hills: seven towers. Lan dismounts, his face as stony as ever.

Nynaeve asks if they can't camp by some small lakes in sight of their hill, and Mat adds that he'd stick his head in and maybe never take it out. Then something disturbs the surface of the water, rolling on and on, until a tail raises five spans into the air. And along the whole length of the tail, tentacles writhing like worms. It fades, and Rand exchanges a look with Perrin, both disbelieving. There couldn't have been *HANDS* on the ends of those tentacles. Mat changes his mind about the lake.(3)

They make camp, and settle down for the evening. The camp is surrounded by a “Bending” of the light, to keep them less visible with the fire going. Egg says she could probably do it even now. Nynaeve says she should go to Tar Valon with Egg after this, just so she’ll have a familiar face around. Egg gets excited and says the boys will come too, right, and Rand can train to be her Warder. Rand agrees, even as he remembers Min’s warning.

Later, Rand lays in his spot though he has trouble finding sleep, but nearly everyone else is snoring in short order. Everyone except Lan and Nynaeve, who are still sitting up by the fire.

Nynaeve hands Lan a cup of tea and says, she should have known he would be a king. He says he's not a king, just a man, with nothing to his name. Not even a farm. Nynaeve says steadily that some women don't ask for land, or gold, just the man. Lan counters saying the man who would ask her to accept so little wouldn't be worthy of her. He calls her remarkable, a lioness.

“A Wisdom seldom weds.” She paused to take a deep breath, as if steeling herself. “But if I go to Tar Valon, it may be that I will be something other than a Wisdom.” “Aes Sedai marry as seldom as Wisdoms. Few men can live with so much power in a wife, dimming them by her radiance whether she wishes to or not.” “Some men are strong enough. I know one such.” If there could have been any doubt, her look left none as to whom she meant. “All I have is a sword, and a war I cannot win, but can never stop fighting.” “I’ve told you I care nothing for that. Light, you’ve made me say more than is proper already. Will you shame me to the point of asking you?” “I will never shame you.” The gentle tone, like a caress, sounded odd to Rand’s ears in the Warder’s voice, but it made Nynaeve’s eyes brighten. “I will hate the man you choose because he is not me, and love him if he makes you smile. No woman deserves the sure knowledge of widow’s black as her brideprice, you least of all.” He set the untouched cup on the ground and rose. “I must check the horses.” Nynaeve remained there, kneeling, after he had gone.(4) Sleep or no, Rand closed his eyes. He did not think the Wisdom would like it if he watched her cry.

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(1) Not to be confused with the dead tree, which is for forests at night. This one is special for the Blight. (2) How very bidi-taurabo-haza of you. (I've been rereading Seanan McGuire's InCryptid series leading up to book 13, and one of the Patreon shorts has one of these as a plot point. I couldn't just NOT comment on it and drop a rec for one of my other favourite book series.) (3) Good call, bud. (4) This really came out of nowhere for me the first time I read it, but in retrospect, it's sort of set up, particularly in Nynaeve's chapters. Just. Sigh. Lan so firmly believes that he's doomed because of the promise on his behalf as a child to avenge his country, as part of the oath of kingship. And Nynaeve has grown feelings for him anyway. And the best-worst is that he has no lack of feelings for her, but he wants so much more for her than what he thinks his life has to offer. Tragedy.

#wheel of time #wot #the wheel of time #twot #the eye of the world #eye of the world #eotw #teotw #wot blighted tree icon #rand al'thor #loial #mat cauthon #perrin aybara #egwene al'vere #nynaeve al'meara #moiraine damodred #lan mandragoran #lord ingtar shinowa