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 13: Floating Like Snow
NOTE: The following chapter summary comes from wot.fandom.com
Point of view: Rand al’Thor
Rand is in Illian to deal with the army Sammael raised to stop his advance. Rand proposes to talk to the soldiers himself and everyone around him objects. He does agree to take Gregorin den Lushenos and Demetre Marcolin with him. Lews Therin has been absent from Rand’s head for a while now and he isn’t sure if that is good or bad. He also brings Dashiva and Hopwil as he rides to meet with the Illianer army. Rand has learned the Seanchan have taken Amador and Ebou Dar and wonders how much time he has before he has to face them. Rand uses the power to give his terms so everyone can hear. Everyone must either lay down their arms or join his army. Rand leaves the parley and as he releases the power he sees double for a short time.
REACTION:
To some extent, this chapter feels like Jordan trying to address criticism that Rand’s conquest of Illian was too neat or too clean. I don’t know if that was actual criticism after the publication of A Crown of Swords, or whether it was self-imposed. Maybe the overly-detailed Jordan just intended to included this all along.
Rand is rounding up and/or crushing the remnant of the army built by Sammael… because they didn’t all just joyously and unrealistically join his side as appeared to be the case at the end of the previous book. If Rahvin had a LOT of Darkfriends in his army, in Andor, it stands to reason that Sammael did the same in Illian. This is a mess that requires at least some page time to clean up.
This chapter is primarily to set a tone regarding Rand’s mental status – an important point of discussion in the preceding chapter. Rand isn’t hearing Lews Therin’s voice anymore and he’s not sure why. If we’re going to test Cadsuane’s goal to make him remember tears and laughter, we should think about whether Rand has laughed or cried recently. If so, then the absence of the voice is of particular importance. [Someone go back and read the end of A Crown of Swords and report back.] It strikes me as a bad sign that Min is not with him.
While hunting down Sammael’s old army, Rand learns that the Seanchan are back and badder than ever. They’re essentially on his new Illianer doorstep. Rand won’t have The Heroes of the Horn to fight them this time, but he has the armies of multiple nations and also a whole bunch of male channelers. The Seanchan, in turn, have a MUCH bigger foothold and a much larger armed presence.
It’s said as a total aside that one of the Illianers Rand is commanding was once commanded by Tam al’Thor… but I have to wonder if Rand’s surname has helped him with the people of Illian (leadership in the military, at least.) Tam was a high ranking military officer in Illian, in living memory, and Tam was a Blademaster – which is very uncommon. Tam – as we also know – is very likeable. It’s hard to imagine him as anything less than a beloved figure. (We *really* needed the Tam-focused prequels that are sadly never coming. PAIN!)
Jordan lays down a lot of clues that Dashiva is one of the Forsaken in this chapter. He’s described as a farmer who doesn’t like being outdoors… who also reads and speaks the Old Tongue like a scholar. For all of the admonitions that Rand is constantly giving to Taim about looking out for one of the Forsaken… he absolutely doesn’t take his own advice.
Seriously… a very powerful One Power channeling farmer who is fluent in the Old Tongue? Is that like someone who didn’t finish 8th grade in the U.S. reading and speaking adn reading ancient Greek fluently? Yes. Yes it is. It doesn’t make sense. It’s SUS! Frankly, it’s dumb that Dashiva was so obvious. It’s dumb that Rand didn’t notice.
The other big notable event in this chapter is that Rand sees double after he releases the One Power. That’s new. I have no idea what it means, but it’s almost certainly significant to the upcoming plot. Otherwise… why point it out?
The chapter title here comes from something one of the Asha’man tells Rand. Eben Hopwil had just killed Seanchan sul’dam and damane while on a scouting mission and had to hide their bodies by burning them to ash – which he said floated in the wind like snow. Eben says this didn’t bother him at all. Rand completely misreads this as the youthful young male channeler trying to be hard in the face of a cruel world, instead of what it most likely was… the first signs of an early onset channeling induced insanity. That will probably matter sometime soon, too. For the readers though, it’s extremely well-written and deeply tragic… while still coming across as haunting and unsettling.
Ominously, and back to the point of the chapter (IMO) Rand ends this chapter thinking to and about himself that “he was steel.” This is ominous because Cadsuane and Sorilea *just* warned us in the previous chapter that Rand is confusing hardness with strength, and that this confusion imperils the entire world.
Are we about to get a book where we see some negativity associated with Rand unleashing male channeling insanity on the world?! PERHAPS.