Moiraine can’t break Mat’s curse, but she steadies him long enough for a reunion. The gang shares their horror stories, Moiraine pivots the plan, and Fal Dara becomes the new destination — via the murder maze known as the Ways.
Rand leads the group downstairs to the library, momentarily forgetting that no one has met Loial yet. The shock fades fast, and soon he’s fielding questions about being an Ogier.
Soon Mat joins everyone in the library with Moiraine at his heels. He’s looking a lot better, and definitely has that Ferris Bueller vibe back, with his cheeky grins and smart-ass charm. Mat apologizes for the way he has been acting, and explains that his memory of events has been getting hazier ever since Whitebridge. Everyone is relieved to have the old Mat back, but Moiraine clarifies that she couldn’t take the dagger away without killing him — he’s safe for now, but will need help from the White Tower to be fully healed.
As the group discusses what to do next, the subject of the Eye of the World comes up. The boys tell Moiraine about Ba’alzamon visiting their dreams. Egwene and Perrin share the spearmaiden story they heard from the tuatha’an. Loial talks about a man who came to his stedding at the end of the Aiel War. The message from all of these sources is the same — that the Dark One plans to blind the Eye of the World.
At last! We’re almost done with this goddamn book, and we still don’t know what the fuck the Eye of the World is. Certainly, Mr. Jordan is about to tell us, right?
ROBERT JORDAN: Sorry, fuckers!
Nope, Moiraine is not going to tell us what the Eye of the World is or why it is so important. She says this news changes everything, but nobody demands to know why! Unbelievable. They simply accept it when she says that they must skip Tar Valon and head to Fal Dara instead, where the Eye of the World supposedly waits.
But they can’t simply hit the road in the morning. With dark forces amassing outside Caemlyn, they’ll be overwhelmed by Fades and Trollocs the moment they try to leave. Lucky for them, they’ve got an Ogier, so Moiraine proposes leaving via the Ways. Loial ends the chapter by protesting the idea, saying they’ll all die if they enter the Ways.
Hey Moiraine, I’m going to send you a book to read — it’s called Start With Why by Simon Sinek. He writes books about leadership, and it seems like you could use a few pointers.