Welcome back to my re-read, recap, and reaction to Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. This post will only have spoilers through the current chapter.
You can find my previous chapter recaps HERE.
Chapter 22: Birdcalls By Night
NOTE: The following chapter summary comes from wot.fandom.com
Point of view: Matrim Cauthon
Mat is getting a backrub from Melindhra. He has memories of being different men, some taller, some shorter than he is today. Melindhra questions why he stands in the shadow of Rand. A blackbird call is heard all around the camp and they spring to action to fight Trollocs. Mat kills three Trollocs and a Myrddraal before the attackers are dead or fled. His battle knowledge notes that the size of the attack was too small to have really hoped to accomplish anything.
Point of view: Rand al’Thor
Rand wakes to the same birdcalls as Mat, grasps saidin immediately, and runs out of his tent. Rand doesn’t understand why they would be attacked. When the sounds of fighting die down he turns to go back into his tent and sees a Draghkar closing in on Aviendha. Rand channels a narrow beam of balefire to destroy the Draghkar. She turns toward him and channels a fireball at him, which he ducks. He yells at her before he realizes she was destroying another Draghkar, not attacking him.
The Wise Ones and Egwene come up the hill to Rand’s tent to check on him. Moiraine and Lan arrive also. Adelin and the Maidens assigned to guard Rand come back from the fighting to find the dead Draghkar being dragged away. The Maidens believe they have failed Rand and offer him their spears, but he just tells them to go back to guarding him. Rand then goes to check on Asmodean who is alive in his tent. Rand believes it is Sammael who attacked, since it was similar to another attack he arranged during the Age of Legends. Asmodean thinks it was one of the other Forsaken trying to mislead him. Rand is distrustful of Asmodean, though.
Rand returns to his tent where Adelin still wants to talk about the failure of the Maidens to guard him properly. He tells them to talk to Amys or Bair about it.
REACTION
Carai an Caldazar!
Mat POV sections are always great. Mat killing a Fade is epic. I can remember when doing that was a *big* deal in this series. It still is, really, hand-to-hand. Melindhra was very impressed by that, which is about as big a compliment as there can be, considering that she is Aiel. Mat does it about as well as anyone can.
There was a lot of subtext going on during the rest of this chapter. I took some notes:
- I think Egwene truly realized for the first time that Rand and Aviendha are sleeping in the same tent. She might have known that was happening, intellectually, but she actually saw their state of undress after the attack and internalized what that might mean. She covered up her shock by quickly chiding Rand and then entering the tent to speak with Aviendha. They were alone together for a long time.
- Moiraine was doing… something… that distracted her from immediately coming to Rand’s aid and whatever it was embarrassed her. Her cheeks flushed. I cannot think of what that might have been, though.
- Lanfear is still in the camp, I believe, pretending to be Keille, the merchant wagon owner. It’s kind of crazy that this is the case, when you think about it. I don’t know what that might mean, but 1) she won’t be happy that someone tried to assassinate Rand, and 2) she’ll probably want to check on him sometime soon.
- The Maidens think they have toh toward Rand for leaving his tent to go fight. They probably do. Rand sending them to Wise Ones was unintentionally clever, but this whole incident indicates that he’s going to have a growing problem with them. He has to send them out to fight and he has to act appropriately when they’ve messed up. He doesn’t want to do either.
- Aviendha’s flight into the tent and her weird quietness after the attack meant something. Worry about almost killing Rand in the attempt to save him? Worry about almost seeing him die? Excitement over fighting together? All of the above? Rand used balefire. Maybe he unknowingly did something weird with time.
- It’s a fun contrast between Mat and Rand. They both have memories from another life/lives. Mat’s extra memories are not a sign of madness while Rand’s are. It’s worth noting though that Rand’s “memories” appear to be real. Asmodean’s reactions seem to confirm that. If Asmodean is playing a game against Rand, I think Rand freaked him out by indicating that he has some real Lews Therin memories. That would be a dangerous game for Asmodean to play.
- Rand’s dream at the end was also odd. Does he mistrust Aviendha? She hurled fire at him and Sammael was sitting at her side, laughing? Well, if Sammael sent the attack, that is kind of what just happened while awake. Maybe this is the rare case of genuine processing.
On the mystery of that attack more generally: Assuming it was Sammael, what is he after? Is he baiting Rand to respond? If so, then it seems likely that Sammael is probably interacting with the Shaido in some fashion – since they are the closest military force that is hostile to Rand. Is the assassination attempt itself a distraction?
I guess we shall see.