Rand feels that any one of Asmodean’s attacks could “destroy him as if he had never been,” and it takes all his strength to hurl them away. Had she given herself to the Dark One even then?Asmodean’s eyes went wide, and he screamed, a howl from the depths of horror; like a struck gong the Forsaken quivered.
When he tries to catch it it bounces off his fingers and rolls all the way downhill before falling over, and Mat wishes aloud that Rand “wouldn’t do that.”They come to a ledge, where one can stand and speak and be heard clearly without shouting, various chiefs and their honor guards ranged around listening.
Mat curses, and they ride on.“You do not realize what it means that you force the form of the Age Lace, do you? Knowing that the stairs will take him where he needs to go he begins to climb, running upwards, each step vanishing after he passes. Reunited with the Sniffer Hurin for the first time in years, he greeted his old friend with harsh words, and, enraged at the Borderlanders' refusal to meet with him except inside the city of Far Madding, threatened them with destruction and once again returned to the Stone.Al'Thor's women by Liz Stephanoff.Drawing in as much of the One Power as it is possible to do,through the Choedan Kal, Rand screams to the heavens what is the point if everyone is doomed to die and repeat things over and over?Rand al'Thor by Ariel Burgess, Official Wheel of Time ArtistRand is traveling within his dreams when he hears a scream of pain. She asks if Rand has any idea what kind of effort she had to put into convincing Asmodean to teach him.Lanfear stared at Rand, too. He can see himself catching up to Asmodean, who looks casual and calm as he rides his metal platform—strange black threads run off from him into the distance.Calmly, he asks Couladin what he saw in Rhuidean—the other chiefs urge them to come away and speak in private, but Rand does not allow it. Realizing that Asmodean is getting away, he changes his defense to an attack, sending his own fire, thicker and wilder, forward towards the Forsaken. Rand agrees calmly that he is, and reminds them of the prophecy, reveals his parentage, and points out that the Wise Ones sent the Aiel to look for He Who Comes With The Dawn across the Dragonwall, not in the Three-fold land.Vaguely Rand was aware of a great, half-buried statue in far-off Cairhien, of the huge crystal sphere in its hand, glowing like the sun, pulsing with the One Power. Inside he finds Cyndane in agony.
The Maidens march on, and the chant slowly dies as it becomes clear that no fighting will happen. Moiraine does not believe it cannot be done. Rand asks to see the seals one last time.
Had she known what it was? She begs him for help and apologizes for everything she put him through before being dragged out of the dream by her torturer.Spending hours at the top of the mountain, hiding in a crevicefrom the cold, Rand is slowly being consumed by the anger that has been welling up in him over the last year, and it now is not focused on one place. Indeed, Asmodean does run from Rand, and Moghedien tries to run from Nynaeve as well.Moiraine is clearly upset, but the Maidens are pleased. Previously a False Dragon; gentled by the White Tower and Healed by Nynaeve al'Meara; later a sworn ally to Rand al'Thor and a leading Asha'man. The Wheel of Time has 2782 distinct named characters. She tells him that she doesn’t kill, or even hurt, without reason.Jordan’s talent for description serves him well in the description of Alcair Dal, and I found myself thinking again about how these scenes will look when filmed, given that there is already such a theatrical quality to Jordan’s imagery. Rand sends one of the Maidens to stop the beating of Isendre, and wraps the two stone figures in his coat. Reading The Wheel of Time: Rand Gains a Following, and a Teacher, in Robert Jordan’s The Shadow Rising Sylas K Barrett Tue Jul 28, 2020 11:00am 2 comments Favorite This Like an army on the march, Rand thinks, and one that is still growing.Rand opens a door and Asmodean reluctantly comes with him, riding the curved stone step through the darkness. He also tells Asmodean that the first thing he will teach is how Rand can guard his dreams.He reaches the top of a rise and can suddenly see camps spread out below, tents and pavilions of encamped Aiel. None of the Taardad left, but Rand can see how stricken everyone’s faces are.And it strikes me that this might be part of what Moiraine was trying to say to him, when she and Egwene reminded Rand that he isn’t fighting alone.Asmodean, struggling to his feet, tells Rand that it was only his link to the Dark One that kept him from going mad, and that Rand might as well let him go.