The Aiel party continues toward Cold Rocks Hold. Aviendha attempts to steer Rand’s romantic interests toward Elayne, leading to a public confrontation. The group encounters a merchant wagon train led by Hadnan Kadere; Mat purchases his signature wide-brimmed hat from him. Upon meeting Kadere and his mysterious companion Keille, Rand becomes increasingly paranoid, warning Mat to watch them closely and mentioning the presence of “eyes” and Lanfear.
This is one of those rare chapters that is told from multiple points of view. Not that it helps readers navigate the Wheel of Time story any better. Quite the contrary, the perspectives seem purpose-chosen to obfuscate information.
First, we get Rand’s perspective. He’s traveling through the Aiel Waste with a huge escort of Aiel. They’re headed for Cold Rocks Hold. Lots and lots of lots of imagery, dense paragraphs about buttes, and legions of words about the relentless sunshine. Suddenly I feel enriched, as though by a crisp spring morning. </sarcasm>
Aviendha is now walking along next to Rand’s horse, carrying out her slutty surveillance mission. Only she feels all icky inside about being so attracted to a wetlander. Yuck! So she tries to convince Rand (and herself?) that Elayne is the woman for him. She describes Elayne’s physical features, gradually becoming more and more x-rated, until Rand publicly shames her for being such a nosy bitch.
And that was the insight we got into Rand’s head this chapter. Porn again. That’s the first half of the chapter:
- Rand looks at the stark, beautiful landscape of the Aiel Waste.
- Rand listens to Aviendha describe exactly how Elayne’s body looks in the nude.
- The end.
Great, now I really understand Rand better. Thanks, Mr. Jordan.
Then we switch to Mat’s perspective. And hey, even though it feels like a letdown after the porn, I love Mat.
Mat is shading his eyes from the sun and looking for a means of escape. He has gone to Rhuidean now, fulfilling the destiny the snake-people prescribed him… so that means he’s free to leave now, right? You can almost see Mat’s eyes darting around, trying to spot anyone who might conspire to keep him here. An Aiel scout spots a merchant’s wagon train, so the group stops to meet with them.
Mat, Rand and the Aiel meet the man who comes to greet them, Hadnan Kadere. He briefly talks about his wares, and Mat steps up to offer a gold mark for the merchant’s hat. Before Kadere can respond, a morbidly obese woman bounds out of the wagon and accepts Mat’s offer. The woman’s name is Keille, and she is described as having a voice like angels singing, incongruous with her stature. You can tell Kadere isn’t happy about Keille selling the hat right off his head, but clearly he doesn’t wear the pants around here. And so, Mat acquires his trademark black wide-brimmed hat.
The Aiel inform Kadere that his wagon train is headed straight for Rhuidean, and they chastise him for traveling without a guide. Kadere acts humble and allows the Aiel to lead them to Cold Rocks Hold, which was their intended destination. As the procession begins moving again, Rand gets weird. I don’t mean weird in a good way. Out of nowhere, he starts talking about “the eyes.”
RAND: Kadere’s eyes. You have to watch the eyes. He is not what he seems.
Well, fuck, it would have been nice to be in Rand’s head right now, wouldn’t it? Don’t worry, it gets worse. He starts talking about Lanfear, and eyes watching him, and all kinds of tinfoil hat type shit.
RAND: You can’t see it or feel it. We ride with evil now, Mat. Watch yourself.
Mat is left with the overwhelming urge to get the fuck out of there, and frankly, I don’t blame him.
Mat and Rand got new hats