- For the chapter with the same title in The Path of Daggers, see The Path of Daggers/Chapter 10.
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| Setting: the White Tower |
Summary[]
- Point of view: Moiraine Damodred
Moiraine has just received the shawl and is shown that she has almost as much to learn now that she's been raised to Aes Sedai as she did beforehand. Most of what she learned were the Blue Ajah customs. She learns that the Ajahs are not always on the same side, and that the Blue and Red Ajah opposed each other as a matter of course. Both Moraine and Siuan begin to learn the secret weaves of their new Ajah, and the secret to ignoring heat and cold. It turns out the latter is nothing but a breathing exercise which Siuan picks up easily and Moiraine struggles with, as it seems is the case with everything. Moiraine muses about the fact that some girls seem to have their own secret weaves, and she wonders if Siuan might have her own.
The Feast of Lights begins and for two nights every window in the Tower stayed bright. Moiraine muses about the fact that there are so many empty chambers, unused for centuries, scattered throughout the Tower. She is saddened by it and worries that the gentling of male channelers may be breeding the ability out of the new generations. Sisters receive invitations to balls during the holiday, and some accept. Moiraine receives many from Cairhienin nobles and declines them all despite knowing that doing so may provoke unpredictable reactions in Daes Dae'mar. She is doing as much as possible to avoid being pulled closer to the Sun Throne.
Moiraine is pleasantly surprised to find her new dresses arriving just in time for the first day of the feast. She is somewhat annoyed that her dresses aren't as dark as she would like and that she would be getting far too many embroidered. She notices that Siuan's dress is rather tight around the bosom and hips, but Siuan takes to the style rather fondly.
Siuan complains of her work for Cetalia. She is treated like a child because of the fact that she's weaker in the One Power than her. Siuan begins cursing, but is caught by the First Oath as she's about to exaggerate a little too much. Moiraine points out that she won't have to deal with it for long. Soon she and Siuan both will be the strongest in the Tower.
Moiraine worries about whether she'll be able to get out of the tower and that she will be ordered to take the throne of Cairhien. She contemplates simply running away, figuring that it might be better to serve a penance than be stuck as a queen who might put her homeland into chaos.
Ellid is called to be tested, but fails to come out of the ter'angreal and there is a day of mourning. Not everyone who could ordered the two about. Elaida seemed to avoid them and then headed back to Andor, and Lelaine, who was nearly as strong, invited them to tea several times "to ease the tension" of their first couple of weeks.
She resumes her friendship with Leane and also befriends Adine Canford, who is close with Leane. Moiraine muses about how her bed has too much lace in it and that she'd rather not have so much, but she didn't want to offend Anaiya who seemed to think it perfectly proper. Moiraine is quite fond of Anaiya, but Siuan does not share this sentiment. The days pass slowly as Moiraine sees Tamra's searchers leave the Tower one by one. Siuan begins to take to the work of managing the Blue eyes-and-ears. Sheriam is also called to test for the shawl and passes, and Moiraine performs the ceremony to welcome her to the Blue. Siuan wants to bring Sheriam into the search for the Dragon Reborn, but Moiraine fears Sheriam gossiping and refuses.
Three days later, Ryma Galfrey announces that the Amyrlin Seat died in her sleep. This seems unlikely as she was still very young and seemed to be set to live much longer. On the other hand, Moiraine sees an opportunity to get out of her task and see to leaving the tower to find the boychild. As guilty as she feels about this, she still decides to take this chance. As a self penance, she puts on a dress which is rather scandalous and bound to make her feel embarrassed (see Mortification of the Spirit). She wears this dress to the Amyrlin's funeral and burns it afterwards, as it would always remind her of the Amyrlin whom she deeply admired.
The new Amyrlin, Sierin Vayu, turns out to be a man-hating woman who fires every male employee of the Tower for one thing or another. It becomes obvious that the new Amyrlin is a lover of the Red Ajah in spite of being part of the Gray. She promotes a new Keeper and a new Mistress of Novices, both from the Red Ajah. She also exiles several sisters for a year and birches two, setting a chilling tone for her time with the stole.
Moiraine finally goes to the new Amyrlin and requests to be let free of her task to oversee disbursal of the bounty. The Amyrlin agrees to this, but states that Moiraine must stay in the Tower because they have plans for her. She leaves the Tower saying that she's "going for a ride" but discreetly tells Siuan that she starting the quest to find the Dragon Reborn. Siuan knows her search pattern and will be able to locate her should the need arise.
Moiraine goes to her private banker to gather the needed coin for her journey and picks up the five Cairhienin-style riding dresses. She takes her horse Arrow with her onboard a ship for the Borderlands, the Bluewing. After boarding the ship, she sees the man who tried to get her banking records looking from the docks. The man, likely in the employ of another Cairhienin house trying to stop her from taking the Sun Throne, will know where the ship is headed and all intermediary stops. She realizes that she is risking much to leave the Tower despite explicit orders to stay, but strangely she's not afraid.
Characters[]
- Moiraine Damodred
- Siuan Sanche
- Lelaine Akashi
- Anaiya
- Aeldra Najaf
- Kairen
- Sheriam Bayanar
- Ryma Galfrey
- Sierin Vayu
- Duhara
- Arrow (animal)
- Eadyth
- Ilain Dormaile
- Tamore Alkohima
- Ries Gorthanes - as tall Cairhienin following Moiraine to the docks
- Captain Carney
Referenced[]
- Cetalia Delarme
- Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan
- Leane Sharif
- Adine Canford
- Meilyn Arganya
- Kerene Nagashi
- Aisha Raveneos
- Ludice Daneen
- Valera Gorovni
- Ellid Abareim
- Tamra Ospenya
- Amira