Nynaeve, Elayne, Thom, and Juilin camp outside Mardecin. When Nynaeve and Elayne head into town for supplies, they find an herbalist shop showing the Yellow Ajah’s emergency signal on the door. They inquire inside and are immediately roofied into unconsciousness.
Nynaeve, Elayne, Thom, and Juilin reach the city of Mardecin. Oh, finally — that means everyone can have a bath at the inn, right? Wrong!
NYNAEVE: One-wagon merchants are little more than peddlers. They cannot afford inns in a town like this.
Fuck, Nynaeve, you really did choose the absolute worst possible way to travel to Tar Valon. I’ll wager Thom and Juilin wouldn’t mind a trip through the Ways at this point.
Instead, the group settles into a campsite by a stream. Thom goes into town for supplies, but of course the women are not happy with what he brought back. So they head into town together, and Nynaeve takes the opportunity to confront Elayne about her coquettish conduct.
NYNAEVE: I thought we should discuss how you’ve been behaving toward Thom. I thought you were in love with Rand.
ELAYNE: I do love him, but… He is very far away, and surrounded by Maidens. But Thom is here. And he is smart and secretive.
NYNAEVE: Oh my God. He could be your grandfather. He doesn’t know whether to turn you over his knee or… or… climb a tree!
Climb a tree? What does that even mean? Is that some kind of euphemism from the Two Rivers?
So yeah, Elayne’s first choice is the neurotic, reluctant, messiah figure from Emond’s Field. But he’s not here. So what is a girl to do but settle for second-best? Thom is a sophisticated, intelligent, older gentleman who definitely knows how to treat a lady. The oily undercurrent here is the subtext that Elayne seems to be saying, “Hey Nynaeve, I’m horny, and I’m ready to get it on with a cucumber if I have to!”
Should I mention that Nynaeve’s braid tugging appears to have returned? I’m still trying to decide if I should start keeping count again. Nynaeve, you’re on notice.
The women discover that the town is indeed a shit-show. There is scant food to be found at the market, and they don’t come away with anything better than Thom did. Sociopolitical disruptions have clearly depressed the local economy. The two women meander through the city and witness the sorry state of the ailing inns and abandoned shops.
Then Nynaeve spots it — a ribbon on the door of an herbalist shop, arranged just so. It’s a secret emblem amongst the Yellow Ajah signaling an emergency.
ELAYNE: How are we gonna get in?
NYNAEVE: Follow my lead.
Oh great, Nynaeve’s in charge? These women are fucked.
Nynaeve walks into the shop and says the words to advertise that she is with the Yellow Ajah. She figures that she’s going to be a Yellow when she is raised, so it amounts to stretching the truth at worst. It makes a certain amount of sense.
What doesn’t make any sense at all is how easily she is fooled by Mistress Macura and Luci. Is it any wonder that Nynaeve’s name has so many letters in common with “naive?” Because the next thing we know, Nynaeve and Elayne are sitting in these women’s kitchen and sipping some fucking mystery tea they just concocted. Jesus fuck, were the two of you born yesterday?!? It’s got a flipping, flapping, paddle-whacking roofie in it!