THE GAMERS III needs fan support

In the past I have spoken positively about Dead Gentleman Productions and their excellent fan-made, low-budget Gamers movies. Fans have waiting for a third movie in the series for some five years now. Rather than continue to slowly accrue the budget necessary to make a third film, Dead Gentleman have gone directly to the fans through a Kickstarter campaign.

The Gamers: Hands of Fate picks up several years after the events of Dorkness Rising. The same cast of characters returns, this time determined to master a new game (a collectible card game) and overcome some more personal issues whilst continuing their roleplaying campaign (and attempting to finally destroy their arch-nemesis, the Shadow). Part of the movie will be filmed at GenCon 2012, the largest roleplaying and CCG convention in the world.

The first two Gamers films are probably the best and most accurate representations of roleplaying put to film. They certainly knock the official D&D movies into a cocked hat, and are extremely funny on their own terms (the undead roast chicken and the wall of bard corpses both have to be seen to be believed). Contributing to this project or spreading the word can only be a good thing.

Note: for those unfamiliar with the Kickstarter concept, people pledge to support the project through a monetary sum. However, no money is collected until the project passes its target. If it does not make it, the project fails and no money is collected. With Kickstarter projects it is important to check the previous form of the company proposing the project to assess their integrity. In this case, Dead Gentleman Productions has been in operation for fourteen years, producing numerous fan films and webisodes, and has a large number of fans. They have a detailed plan on the Kickstarter page for how the film will be funded and how investors will be rewarded depending on the amount pledged.

The Wheel of Time So Far: Part 5 - The Eye of the World

Previous instalments of the series:

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

Spoilers for those who are unfamiliar with the series. Note that this summary is designed to help people who have already read the books get back up to speed before the release of the final volume in January. First-timers are advised to read the books directly, as in some cases these summaries may spoil things that are not revealed in the books until much later.

 And so it begins...Moiraine and Lan lead Rand al'Thor and his friends out of the Two Rivers.

Follow the break for the summary (and yes, this is the first time ever I've had to employ this on the blog, as the summary is quite long).



The Eye of the World

Moiraine Damodred and Lan Mandragoran, searching for the Dragon Reborn, arrive in the town of Emond’s Field on Winternight, the day before the Bel Tine festival that celebrates the spring solstice. After asking some questions, Moiraine discovers that there are three young men in the town who had all been born within weeks of the Battle of the Shining Walls: Rand al’Thor, Matrim Cauthon and Perrin Aybara. Interestingly, both Rand and Mat’s fathers are skilled archers and, even more interestingly, Rand’s father disappeared to explore the world for some twenty years, returning with a new wife and a new son very early in 979 NE. Moiraine is almost certain that Rand was the one she is looking for, but can’t rule out the possibility that it is Perrin or Mat either. Moiraine is also startled to discover that there are many girls in the Two Rivers able to channel the One Power or able to learn, an indication of how long it has been since Aes Sedai last visited this area. The strongest channellers are Nynaeve al’Meara, a wilder (someone who has mastered the One Power without realising it) and village Wisdom, and Egwene al’Vere, daughter of the Village Mayor (Brandelwyn al’Vere) and Rand’s sweetheart.

The peddler Padan Fain arrives with news of the false Dragon ravaging Ghealdan, which slightly panics the villagers since Ghealdan’s northern border is just across the White River to the south. The Mayor points out that between Ghealdan proper and the Two Rivers is the dense Forest of Shadows, where most people refuse to travel, and there is no reason for danger to reach the Two Rivers. A gleeman, Thom Merrilin, has arrived with fireworks to perform on Winternight and likewise dismisses the threat, claiming it was old news when he passed through Baerlon a few weeks ago. Thom recognises that Moiraine is Aes Sedai and recalling the fate of his own nephew takes an interest in Moiraine’s questions about the three young men.

Rand and many other young men in the village (including Mat and Perrin) are slightly disturbed to find themselves being watched by cloaked figures. Rand and his father Tam return to the farm, but the farm comes under attack by Trollocs! Tam is wounded and Rand has to carry him on a stretcher to Emond’s Field. Rand is startled that his father is a skilled swordsman, wielding a blade marked with herons, the symbol of a blademaster. Along the way Tam falls into a fever, muttering about how he found Rand on the mountainside during a great battle. Rand dismisses it as the fever, but is still unnerved.

Emond’s Field has also been attacked, but the Trollocs and Myrddraal concentrated their attentions on the Luhhan smithy (where Perrin is apprenticed) and the Cauthon household and caused little damage elsewhere. Moiraine and Lan drove off the Trollocs by using the One Power. Some of the villagers become angry, thinking that the Shadowspawn pursued the Aes Sedai here, but Moiraine defuses their fears somewhat by telling them of the fall of Manetheren during the Trolloc Wars and their ancestors’ noble stand against the Shadow. The villagers are moved, but not totally placated. Moiraine tells Rand and his two friends they should flee the village before the Trollocs return. Thom Merrilin attaches himself to their party, claiming that he doesn’t want to travel alone, and Egwene is also allowed to join them, surprising Rand, Perrin and Mat. Moiraine is impressed by Egwene’s potential strength in the Power and wants to take her to Tar Valon to be trained as an Aes Sedai.

The party departs Emond’s Field by night and heads north up the road to Taren Ferry and beyond, to Baerlon and the rest of Andor. However, just outside the village of Watch Hill the party is attacked by a Draghkar. Lan drives it off and they reach Taren Ferry without further incident. Crossing the river, Moiraine uses the One Power to create an immense bank of fog stretching down the River Tarendrelle. With any luck, the Shadowspawn will think they fled downriver and be distracted. The party proceeds northwards. Along the way Rand learns that Egwene can wield the One Power and learn to be Aes Sedai. He is slightly disturbed.

At Baerlon the news is all about the false Dragon Logain Ablar and his victory over the armies of Ghealdan and Altara. Logain has announced his intention to take Tear and the fortress which guards it. Thom tells Rand that the fall of the Stone of Tear will herald the coming of the true Dragon Reborn. Moiraine is disturbed by both news of Aes Sedai deaths in the battle, and also of a detachment of Children of the Light in Baerlon, pursuing rumours of an Aes Sedai in the district. Moiraine leads the party to a friendly inn she knows of. During the night Rand, Mat and Perrin share a dream in which a black-cloaked man with fire for eyes and mouth appears and taunts them, claiming to be Ba’alzamon (the Trolloc name for the Dark One, apparently). The next day an unnerved Rand and Mat set out to explore Baerlon and almost get into a fight with a group of Children of the Light, led by Captain Dain Bornhald. Rand also sees Padan Fain, but the peddler flees before Rand can get more than a few words out of him. Thom learns of Rand and Mat’s dreams and suggests they tell Moiraine nothing of them.

Back at the inn Rand meets a young woman (though a few years older than Rand), Min Farshaw, who is an acquaintance of Moiraine’s. Min apparently can see vague impressions of the future in the form of auras surrounding people. Around Perrin she sees a wolf, a broken crown and flowering trees. Around Mat she can see a red eagle, an eye on a balance scale, a dagger with a ruby, a horn and a laughing face. Around Thom she can see a man - not him - juggling fire and an image of the White Tower, which is odd. Rand plucks up the courage to ask about himself and learns that Min sees images of a sword that is not a sword, a golden crown of laurel leaves, a beggar’s staff, water being poured on sand, a bloody hand and a white-hot iron, three women standing around a funeral bier with Rand on it, and black rock wet with red blood. According to Moiraine, Min’s abilities are unrelated to the One Power - she cannot channel - but are instead ancient, lost abilities slowly returning to the human race after an absence of several millennia.

In the inn Rand discovers that Nynaeve has arrived, having tracked them from home (impressing even Lan, who hid their tracks exceptionally well). Nynaeve initially demands that Moiraine return them home, but after learning her fears agrees they should go to Tar Valon. Nynaeve attaches herself to their group. That night Rand encounters a Myrddraal in a corridor and Moiraine decides they should leave, since the Shadow has once again picked up the scent. She leaves instructions for Min to travel to Tar Valon by herself at a later date and then flees with the others. At the gatehouse Dain Bornhald attempts to stop them for questioning, but Moiraine uses the Power to scare him off. Unfortunately, Myrddraal can sense the use of the Power and thus now know where their quarries are.

After two days of fleeing eastwards Lan scouts ahead and reports that Shadowspawn are closing from both ahead and behind. Given that there is nothing southwards except the Hills of Absher and the Tarendrelle, Moiraine turns north. The group heads across-country, fighting off a Trolloc attack along the way. Lan estimates the pursuit force to number in the hundreds; there have not been so many Trollocs in this part of the world for over 2,000 years. Eventually they reach an ancient, ruined city. Moiraine claims they will not be followed inside. Once within the city they set up camp in an abandoned house and Moiraine tells them to take nothing from the city.

The group enters the ruined city of Shadar Logoth.

Mat feels restless and convinces Rand and Perrin to go exploring. In another part of the city they meet a man who claims to be a treasure-hunter, Mordeth. Mordeth convinces them to help him move some treasure, but then Rand notices that he doesn’t have a shadow. Mordeth suddenly erupts into a gaseous-like monster and the three young men flee. Back in their hiding place Moiraine reveals that this place is Shadar Logoth, the ruined city of Aridhol which fell to internal evil during the Trolloc Wars. Mordeth was the King’s counsellor and the man widely held to be responsible for the city’s descent into chaos and eventual destruction. According to legend Mordeth lives on in the city, as does a mist-like creature called Mashadar, apparently the evil and greed of Aridhol made manifest in some way. Lan returns from his scouting mission and reports that, with great difficulty, the Myrddraal have forced the Trollocs to enter the city and look for them. The party flees again, but Mashadar appears and splits them into two groups. All are then scattered by a Trolloc attack. Mat and Rand escape through the main gates and are joined by Thom. They find a boat, the Spray, moored on the River Arinelle and leap on board, waking the sleeping watchman, Floran Gelb. The captain, Bayle Domon, rallies his crew and drives off the Trollocs long enough to set sail downriver, despite Rand’s protests that they wait for the others. Domon agrees to give the three men passage to Whitebridge in return for coin and also for exposing Gelb’s laziness. He will be put off the ship at Whitebridge.

Egwene and Perrin escape together, only to be separated at the river. They meet up the next day across the other side. Perrin suggests that rather than head downriver they go across country to Andor’s capital city, Caemlyn. Once there they should be able to find Moiraine and the others again. Egwene agrees. A few days later they meet a man in the wilds, Elyas Machera. Elyas is a Wolfbrother, a man able to talk to wolves telepathically. This is not related to the One Power and is more akin to Min’s abilities, an ancient human talent that is now returning. Elyas agrees to guide them to Caemlyn. Along the way he tells them that he was once a Warder, but had to flee Tar Valon when his abilities were discovered, since the Red Ajah believed he could channel and tried to kill him. Whilst crossing Caralain Grass they meet a caravan of the Tuatha’an or Tinkers and travel with them for a while.

Nynaeve, Moiraine and Lan meet up again and proceed on foot to Whitebridge. Moiraine tells Nynaeve that she too can wield the One Power, but she has erected a mental block against being able to do it. This block, in Nynaeve’s case, is that she can only channel when angry. Nynaeve agrees to seek advice in the White Tower, unaware that Moiraine believes that she has the potential to be the most powerful Aes Sedai in more than a thousand years. Moiraine also reveals that coins she gave to Rand, Mat and Perrin are warded with the One Power, allowing her to track them even over several hundred miles. Two of the coins have vanished (given to Bayle Domon as payment) but the third remains active. Moiraine suggests they go after the two that have vanished and collect the third one when they have time.

The journey to Whitebridge is uneventful for both groups. Thom trains Rand and Mat in the basics of being gleemen and finds that Rand can learn the flute and Mat is a good juggler. Whilst travelling downriver Bayle Domon tells them about many relics left over from the Age of Legends or even before: a silver tower near the river (they actually see it in the distance) with no windows or doors; a crystal lattice covering an island which hums in the moonlight; a spire reaching up from a circular valley in the Black Hills which can kill a man from a mile away; a great silver hand clutching a vast crystal ball, reaching out of a hillside on the Sea Folk island of Tremalking, and others still. Domon reveals that he collects artefacts from the Age of Legends, and is gloomy because Trollocs have been troubling him ever since he left Maradon in Saldaea. He doesn’t know why.

Rand al'Thor on the Spray, with the Tower of Ghenjei in the background.

Reaching Whitebridge, Thom, Mat and Rand depart (and are given their passage fee back, having entertained the crew so well that Domon will accept that as payment instead; he keeps the Tar Valon coins, however) and stop at an inn to catch up on the latest news. The barman tells them that a great battle has been fought near Lugard, the capital of Murandy, and that an alliance of southern nations led by Aes Sedai and consisting of Tarabon, Amadicia, Altara, Murandy, Illian, Tear, Cairhien and Andor has defeated the false Dragon Logain and taken him prisoner. He will be taken to Tar Valon for gentling, but will be paraded through Lugard and Caemlyn along the way. Rather unexpectedly, the Council of Nine in Illian has called the first Great Hunt of the Horn of Valere in more than 400 years. Adventurers and youngsters from across the West are heading to Illian to swear the oaths and become new Hunters. Thom asks the barman if he has seen any of their colleagues and the barman replies no, but others have been asking for them. Thom decides to leave the town immediately. He tells Rand and Mat that his nephew Owyn got into ‘trouble’ with Aes Sedai and died for it. He doesn’t want Rand and Mat to suffer the same fate, which is why he has helped them. Before they can exit the town gates and cross the White Bridge, a Myrddraal appears. Thom thrusts his belongings at Rand and tells him to flee, asking him to remember the name of an inn in Caemlyn, the Queen’s Blessing. He then suicidally attacks the Myrddraal. Rand and Mat escape under the sound of screams.

Perrin, Egwene and Elyas travel eastwards with the Tinker caravan for some days. Perrin is disturbed by the Way of the Leaf, which he sees as noble but unrealistic and suicidal when faced with such dangers as there are in this world. Egwene is more engrossed by it, but reluctantly agrees with Perrin. Along the way the caravan’s mahdi (‘Seeker’ or leader), Raen, asks them to help him solve a riddle. Three years ago a Tinker caravan travelling in the northern Aiel Waste encountered a group of Maidens of the Spear - female Aiel warriors - slain in battle with Trollocs. The last surviving Maiden, before she died, claimed that ‘Sightblinder’ means to slay the Great Serpent and blind the Eye of the World. Sightblinder is the Aiel name for the Dark One, and the Great Serpent is the universally-accepted symbol of eternity, but the rest of it is nonsense. Their three guests cannot shed any light on the subject. Shortly after this they depart, heading southwards towards Caemlyn.

Moiraine, Lan and Nynaeve pass through Whitebridge, finding a scene of devastation near the town gates but no-one willing to explain what happened. Purchasing new steeds, they head east along the Caemlyn Road towards the capital.

Rand and Mat make good time on foot as they journey eastwards. Initially they sleep rough, or occasionally get a bed in return for helping out on a farm for the day. However, Rand then starts playing Thom’s flute and Mat juggles, allowing them to entertain in inns and private homes along the route. Rand is slightly worried when Mat reveals that he was given an ornate curved dagger with a ruby in the hilt by Mordeth and took it from Shadar Logoth despite Moiraine’s warnings (Mat points out that it was a gift and thus not taken from the ruins in the way Moiraine meant). Mat plans to sell it if necessary, but never does. Their journey is uneventful until they reach Four Kings, where an innkeeper tries to rob them of their belongings and also where a merchant from Whitebridge (and also a Darkfriend) tries to capture them. The inn is struck by lightning, allowing Mat and Rand to escape. In the next town, Market Sheran, a young Darkfriend confronts them but Mat denounces him and the youth is chased out of town by a mob. In the town after that a young woman tries to murder them whilst Rand is stricken by a fever, but is driven off by Mat and his dagger. After passing through Carysford they reach the last village before Caemlyn itself and see a Myrddraal trying to bribe a merchant into keeping an eye out for them. The merchant refuses, since the two men have done him no harm. Later, Rand and Mat approach him for a lift and he agrees. They reach Caemlyn the next morning. To hide the heron-mark on his sword and scabbard, Rand buys a red armband and ties it around his weapon.

Reaching the Queen’s Blessing Inn, Rand and Mat meet the innkeeper, Thom’s good friend Basel Gill. Basel laughs at suggestions that Thom may be dead and tells them about how Thom used to be Court Bard at the Lion Palace, but was driven out of the city after arguing with Queen Morgase’s Aes Sedai advisor, Elaida do Avriny a’Roihan, about the unlawful gentling and death of his nephew. Rand suggests seeking Elaida’s protection until Moiraine arrives, but Gill points out that the Red and Blue Ajahs are rivals, and also that Elaida would hold any friends of Thom’s in great suspicion. Gill suggests they hide out in the inn and wait for their friends to arrive. Rand learns that there is friction in the city at the moment about Caemlyn’s long-standing alliance with Tar Valon. Those loyal to the Queen and who support Tar Valon wear red armbands, whilst those who oppose it wear white armbands and are egged on by a detachment of the Children of the Light under Lord Captain Eamon Valda. The crisis has been triggered by both the imminent arrival of Logain and also by the fact that the Daughter-Heir of Andor, Elayne Trakand, is soon to be sent to Tar Valon to be trained in the art of politics by the Aes Sedai, as all heirs to the throne of Andor have been for a thousand years. Her brother Gawyn will accompany her to be taught in the ways of combat by the Warders, for he will be her First Prince of the Sword, protector and commander of her armies when she is Queen. Their half-brother Galad Damodred will accompany them both to keep an eye on them. Apparently Elaida and the Aes Sedai have taken a keener-than-usual interest in Elayne, but for no obvious reason. Rand also meets Loial, an Ogier from Stedding Shangtai, who is staying at the inn. Though at 90 he is too young to be allowed out of the stedding, Loial wanted to see the outside world and has run away from home. Rand, instinctively trusting the Ogier, tells him about his adventures. Loial suggests that Rand and maybe Mat and Perrin are ta’veren, those special people who twist time and destiny around them in strange ways. Rand rejects the idea: he is no new Artur Hawkwing.

Meanwhile, Perrin, Egwene and Elyas reach the ruins of a huge statue. Elyas tells them that is the great statue of Artur Hawkwing, erected upon the site where his new capital was meant to be. The statue, like all monuments of the High King, was torn down during the War of the Hundred Years, but is so huge that most of it remains intact. Over the course of their journey Perrin has begun to be able to talk to the wolves, and like Elyas his eyes have started turning yellow. Perrin is reluctant to embrace this new ability, but it is forced upon him when a group of Children of the Light attack. Elyas and most of the wolves escape, but one, Hopper, is killed whilst mind-linked to Perrin. Perrin goes into a psychotic rage and kills two Children before he is overcome. Egwene is also imprisoned. Lord Captain Geofram Bornhald (Dain’s father) and his second-in-command, Jaret Byar, tell Egwene that she may avoid execution, but for his crimes Perrin will be hung under the Dome of Truth in Amador. Bornhald has been recalled to Amador on urgent business, but plans to pass by Caemlyn along the way and learn news of events there.

The day of Logain’s procession dawns and Rand goes to see the parade. Mat is ill with a fever and refuses to rise from bed. Reaching the crowd, Rand is suddenly accosted by a man in rags and runs off. Escaping to the tallest hill within the Inner City, Rand climbs on top of a wall to see the parade. Startlingly, he sees Logain look straight at him and start laughing. Rand is then startled by a woman’s voice and falls off the wall.

Regaining consciousness, Rand finds himself in an ornate set of gardens. A young man and a young woman tend to his wounds and it is not long before Rand realises he has fallen into the Royal Gardens themselves! Elayne and Gawyn agree to smuggle him out of the palace, but he is discovered by Galad, who alerts the palace guards, led by Lieutenant-Guardsman Martyn Tallanvor. Tallanvor attempts to arrest Rand, but Elayne instead orders that he be taken before Queen Morgase. Morgase and her closest advisors - Captain-General Gareth Bryne and Elaida do Avriny a’Roihan, Aes Sedai of the Red Ajah - question Rand closely. Elaida doesn’t believe that Rand comes from the Two Rivers given his height and hair colour, but Morgase knows the accent of the region and identifies it in Rand’s speech. Elaida then has a Foretelling that chaos and fire will engulf the world and that Rand will stand at the centre of it all. Despite this prophecy, Morgase releases Rand since he has committed no crimes as yet. Before he leaves Rand learns that Elayne can channel the One Power and that is why the Aes Sedai are so interested in her; she will be the first ruler in more than 1,500 years to be openly Queen and Aes Sedai simultaneously. He also learns that many people take him for an Aiel because of his height and hair colour.

Moiraine, Nynaeve and Lan approach Caemlyn, but then Moiraine senses the third warded coin blinking out (it is confiscated by the Children of the Light). She immediately heads for where she last sensed it and after a while comes across the Whitecloak camp. Under cover of darkness and using the One Power to create maximum confusion, she, Lan and Nynaeve raid the camp and rescue Perrin and Egwene. They escape to Caemlyn before any pursuit can be organised.

In the Queen’s Blessing a few days later Rand is startled when a detachment of Children of the Light enter the inn and demand to know the whereabouts of two Darkfriends who have escaped Whitecloak justice. Basel Gill and his hired bouncer, Lamgwin Dorn, stare down the Whitecloaks and evict them from the inn. Then Moiraine and the others arrive through the kitchen and there is a joyful reunion, cut short when Mat suddenly tries to attack Moiraine with his dagger. Moiraine uses the One Power to Heal him of his infection, explaining that the corruption and evil of Shadar Logoth infested every single object inside Aridhol when it fell. Unfortunately, should even a pebble from that hated place be carried beyond the walls, then Mordeth will be made free to terrorise the world again. Mat has been infected by Shadar Logoth’s evil, but Moiraine has Healed it somewhat. However, the full breaking of the bond between him and the dagger can only be done in Tar Valon itself.

The group swaps news and Moiraine learns about the incident in the Aiel Waste between the Tinkers and the Maidens of the Spear. The Eye of the World is a special, secret place in the uttermost north, in the Great Blight itself. Bordermen seek it in the same way southerners search for the Horn of Valere. A threat to the Eye cannot be ignored. Loial then tells her that twenty years ago, after the Aiel War, a refugee was granted safe haven in Stedding Shangtai for some months. During that time, in a fever, he said that the Dark One wished to destroy the Eye and time itself. Rand, reluctantly, admits the truth of his dreams and that in one of them Ba’alzamon said the same thing. Moiraine decides that the weavings of the Wheel have brought three different accounts of the same threat to her at the same time for a reason, namely that she should investigate personally. But the Blight is more than a thousand miles and a month’s travel away, and the danger now seems urgent. She asks Loial to guide them through the Ways. The Ogier protests about the dangers of Machin Shin, but eventually caves in.

The trip through the Ways takes two days, but they emerge near the great fortress of Fal Dara in Shienar, near Tarwin’s Gap. Lan is convinced that someone is following them, but he cannot find them by backtracking. At the Waygate in the ruins of Mafal Dadaranelle Machin Shin appears to block the gate, ending fears of pursuit. The party proceeds into the keep, where they are welcomed with honour by Lord Agelmar Jagad, inarguably the most respected general alive, as well as the second-most-powerful man in the Kingdom of Shienar. Agelmar knows both Moiraine and Lan well, and tells the others of how Lan is the Uncrowned King of Malkier and the story of that nation’s destruction fifty years ago. Agelmar has grave news: Trolloc raids have increased along the entire length of the Blightborder, paralysing Saldaea, Kandor and Arafel as they prepare for an invasion. However, Shienaran scouts have discovered a truly vast horde of Trollocs gathering beyond the Mountains of Dhoom, aimed at Tarwin’s Gap and Shienar. Though Agelmar has sent riders to the other rulers, it seems that only the armies of Shienar will ride forth to confront the Trolloc threat this time. Moiraine remains convinced that the true danger is at the Eye of the World and even convinces Agelmar, who goes as far as to suggest taking the Shienaran army with Moiraine’s party. Moiraine dissuades him by pointing out that a smaller party has a far greater chance of success in reaching the Eye undiscovered.

A man is captured whilst trying to sneak into the city and Moiraine discovers it is Padan Fain. He is dressed in rags and Rand recognises him as the man who chased him in Caemlyn. Obviously he chased them through the Ways, but how he evaded Machin Shin as well is unclear. Moiraine has him locked him and plans to deal with him when - if - they return from the Blight.

Moiraine and the group fight their way through the corruption of the Blight.

They set out northwards. After crossing the Blightborder they enter the foulness and corruption of the true Blight. After a few days they pass the shattered ruins of the Seven Towers of Malkier and the once-beautiful Thousand Lakes, now poisoned and inhabited by foul creatures. Camping for the night in sight of the ruins, Rand overhears Nynaeve confessing that she has feelings for Lan, but Lan pushes her away, telling her he will make no woman a widow when he inevitably dies in the Blight.

The party approaches the Mountains of Dhoom and the High Passes that will carry them beyond, but then Worms appear and begin chasing them. Just when it seems they will be overcome the landscape shifts and they find themselves in a beautiful garden full of living things. They have passed through some dimensional warp and entered the domain of the legendary Green Man, keeper of the Eye of the World (in reality Someshta, last of the Nym). The Green Man is confused about his own history, but is aware of what others are not. He greets Rand as a ‘Child of the Dragon’ and calls Perrin a Wolfbrother. Moiraine tells him of the threat to the Eye and he takes them to see it. The Eye is hidden in a cave in the side of a hill. Moiraine tells them that the Eye of the World is the pure, untainted essence of saidin. It was created by fifty of the last remaining sane male Aes Sedai during the earliest days of the Breaking of the World, and then somehow cleansed by fifty female. Though they died in its making, they achieved the impossible and managed to partially cleanse the Dark One’s taint on saidin. The amount of energy stored in the Eye could level a large city if not handled with care, which is why it was hidden here.

The party emerges from the cave to be confronted by two men, one withered and ancient and the other hiding his face behind an iron mask. The ancient one claims to be Aginor and introduces his comrade as Balthamel: two of the Forsaken! The Green Man appears and wrathfully commands them to leave his sacred place. When they refuse he attacks Balthamel and kills him, though in the process is slain himself. Moiraine distracts Aginor with the Power, allowing Rand and the others to flee. Aginor pursues Rand, telling him triumphantly that he is ‘the one’. Suddenly energy swirls around Rand, the energy of the Eye of the World. Aginor is annihilated in a firestorm and Rand is suddenly transported by the Power to Tarwin’s Gap, where the Shienaran army stands on the brink of defeat. Again the Power is unleashed and a mountainside collapses, burying most of the Trolloc army and forcing the rest to retreat. Rand then hears a thundering voice telling him that he must do what must be done; the owner of the voice cannot intervene again in the struggle the world is facing.

Then Ba’alzamon appears to challenge Rand to combat. Rand wins, not by slaying Ba’alzamon but by severing a strange cord of energy that seems to be coming from him. Ba’alzamon vanishes and Rand finds himself back in the Green Man’s garden. He is horrified that he managed to channel the One Power, but only Moiraine, Egwene and Nynaeve saw him vanish and reappear. Egwene and Nynaeve agree to keep his powers a secret, but Moiraine’s intentions are unclear. Re-entering the Eye’s cave the party discovers that the Eye itself has vanished, burned out in Rand’s struggle (though only Moiraine and Rand work this out). Underneath they discover three items, apparently hidden along with the Eye. One is a flag made of a material unknown to any but Moiraine, a material used in the Age of Legends. The banner depicts a dragon roaring. It is the Banner of the Light, the personal flag used by Lews Therin Telamon during the War of the Shadow. The second is a golden horn marked with the legend The Grave is No Bar to My Call, meaning it is none other than the Horn of Valere itself. The third item is a circular disk made of cuendillaror heartstone, indestructible by even the One Power. The disk is emblazoned with the ancient symbol of the Aes Sedai from the Age of Legends, the Dragon’s Tooth and the Flame of Tar Valon embracing one another. Moiraine identifies it as the First Seal of the Dark One’s prison. Horrifyingly, the seal is shattered into several pieces. Rand thinks the Dark One is dead, but Moiraine guesses otherwise.

The party returns to a Fal Dara celebrating a miraculous victory over the Shadow. Lord Agelmar receives the party in honour and makes them guests of honour at a feast, guessing their triumph is related to the larger victory. Later, Moiraine questions Padan Fain and learns that he is a ‘hound’ for the Dark One, sent to sniff out the location of one man. However, in Shadar Logoth he somehow bonded with the escaping essence of Mordeth and became something less than human. In the Ways Fain/Mordeth encountered Machin Shinand somehow absorbed part of that entity’s essence as well. Now Fain claims to be utterly opposed to the Dark One and dedicated to its destruction, but he is prone to rantings and ravings. Moiraine leaves orders for him not to be released.

 
Rand confesses his fears to Egwene and Nynaeve, who still claim that they will keep his secret. Meanwhile, using the Power to eavesdrop on their conversation, Moiraine laments, "The Prophecies will be fulfilled. The Dragon is Reborn."

GAME OF THRONES & WINDS OF WINTER news

A round-up of some recent news about Game of Thrones and the books it is based on.

First up, HBO has found its Riverrun. With filming of Season 3 of the show now entering its second month, shooting is focusing on the ancestral castle of House Tully. Gosford Castle in County Armagh is standing in for the castle, apparently with both exteriors and interiors being filmed there.

Looks like an excellent match for the castle from the books, though presumably the Red Fork and Tumblestone rivers will be added later with CGI.

George R.R. Martin has also conducted an in-depth interview with the Spanish ASoIaF website Asshai.com. Martin's interviews for several years have focused on the TV series and very general questions, so it's good to see a plot and character-focused exchange like this one. Note that there will be spoilers for those who have not yet read A Dance with Dragons. In a separate interview Martin has also stated that he now has 200 completed and semi-finalised manuscript pages for The Winds of Winter, as well as a further 200 pages in draft form. This means that roughly a quarter of The Winds of Winter exists in at least an initial form, but given how the writing went on A Dance with Dragons it is not really possible to extrapolate a potential release date from this info.

The next A Song of Ice and Fire-related releases will be Inside HBO's Game of Thrones by Bryan Cogman (25 September), an insider's guide to the TV series, and The Lands of Ice and Fire by Jonathan Roberts (30 October), the first-ever canon collection of maps of the world of Westeros and Essos, approved by GRRM.

The Woman in Black

London, the turn of the century. Widowed lawyer Arthur Kipps is sent by his office to deal with the legal affairs of Eel Marsh House, whose owners wish to sell it. He finds the local village folk uncooperative and fearful of the house, apart from rich landowner Samuel Daily (who owns the only motorcar in the village). As Kipps investigates the mystery of Eel Marsh House, he learns of a spate of unusual deaths amongst the local children and starts seeing a woman dressed in black watching his activities.

The Woman in Black is an adaptation of Susan Hill's 1983 novel of the same name. It was produced by the resurgent British company Hammer Film Productions, who in an earlier incarnation produced numerous horror films in the 1950s and 1960s. Unlike most of those films, which were noted for their use of blood and gore, The Woman in Black is a taut, claustrophobic piece which relies on tension and things glimpsed out of the corner of the eye.

The film's casting is superb, with a post-Harry Potter Daniel Radcliffe starring as Arthur Kipps (coincidentally, a role previously played by his on-screen father Adrian Rawlins in a 1989 TV movie based on the book). Radcliffe arguably risks more typecasting than any actor in film history, but his canny choice of stage and screen roles has seen him so far avoid that fate. In The Woman in Black he convinces in the role of the world-weary, grief-stricken father whose career as a lawyer is in doubt due to his growing disillusionment with the world. The only other major character is Samuel Daily, played with conviction by the always-excellent Ciaran Hinds.

The director, James Watkins, handles the material well. His depictions of a village consumed by fear, the huge and rambling Eel Marsh House and of lonely and windswept marshlands are all excellent, giving the film a real sense of place. Knocking in at just 95 minutes, the film also doesn't outstay its welcome.

Unfortunately, the movie shows its hand a little too early. Upon arriving in the village, Kipps is immediately greeted by fear, suspicion and terror, letting the audience know that All is Not Well. It's not long before just about every time we get a close-up on Kipps we also get some sinister stuff going on in the background, or every other time he turns around we get a shot of the Woman in Black hanging about for a moment. The first few times this happens, it's unsettling. Somewhere around the twentieth, it loses its power. Viewers will soon find themselves predicting when something 'scary' is about to happen and will, by and large, be right. The film does succeed in achieving a few genuine shocks despite this issue, the movie's second half is overall weakened by this predictability. Given writer Jane Goldman's solid form (Stardust, Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class), it's surprising that she doesn't put more genuine twists into the script, especially given its deviations from the source material.

The Woman in Black (***½) is well-made, excellently-acted, concise, focused and well-directed. The film is let down by its script, which relies a little too much on a single scare tactic and overplays it to the point of boredom. In this manner, The Woman in Black is the film equivalent of the computer game Doom 3: well-made, great in short bursts, but a little dull over the long haul. It is redeemed somewhat by a startling ending, however, and is certainly worth watching. It is available now in the UK (DVD, Blu-Ray) and USA (DVD, Blu-Ray).

How PRINCE OF PERSIA was saved from oblivion

Wired has a fascinating article on how Jordan Mechner has saved the original source code for his classic 1989 computer game, Prince of Persia, and shared it with the world.

The original Prince of Persia. Fantastic graphics but insanely rock-hard.

Mechner spent three years coding Prince of Persia, from 1986 to 1989, for Broderbund Software. The company was dubious about the project, which featured never-before-used-for-gaming rotoscope technology and polygons to deliver more fluid animation than anything ever seen before. However, they also saw its potential and allowed Mechner to complete the project. Their faith was justified, with the original game selling two million copies in several years and being ported to every computer game and console of note at the time. Mechner, who obsessively saved all of his drawings, journals and notes from the time period, also saved the original source codes on Apple II disks, storing them in a box. Unfortunately, the box went walkabout and when Mechner tried to track it down in 2003, to help the Sands of Time team recreate a 3D version of the game as an Easter Egg, he couldn't find it.

He assumed it was lost to the world. Whilst plenty of copies of the game are out there, it still troubled him that the original source code - the original manuscript if you will - had been lost to the ether. This worry has intensified in general in the retro gaming community in recent years, as the magnetic disks that people coded games on in the 1980s are starting to decay and lose the information stored on them, even if perfectly stored.

Then success! Mechner's father located the storage box and shipped it to his son in Los Angeles. Mechner called in the specialist services of professional software archivist Jason Scott and renowned Apple expert Tony Diaz to see if they could extract information from the disks. They could. After several hours of work, the entire game's source code had been copied and stored. The only thing Mechner could do with it was, of course, release it for free onto the Internet.

As the technologically-revolutionary game that launched a franchise which has sold tens of millions of copies and inspired a successful Hollywood movie, Prince of Persia is of tremendous historical interest. But it's slightly sobering to think that most games from that period have not been so lucky and, if they are lucky, survive only in emulated form.

Raymond E. Feist's MAGICIAN gets a new UK cover

Raymond E. Feist's debut novel, Magician, is getting some new cover artwork, presumably to tie in with the novel's impending 30th anniversary and the release next year of the very last novel in the Riftwar mega-saga. Here it is:

Hmm. Considering that Magician is an epic fantasy war story spanning twelve years, two planets and involving thousands of warriors and wizards fighting one another on a truly vast scale, "Hooded guy holding some keys," isn't really cutting it for me. The new edition will be published next month in the UK.

The Wheel of Time So Far: Part 4 - The New Era

Previous instalments of this series:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

As usual, extensive spoilers for those unfamiliar with the series.

A map of the Seanchan continent and empire, c. 999 NE

The Founding of the Seanchan Empire
In FY 993 an immense fleet made landfall on the western coast of the Aryth Ocean. More than two thousand ships carrying three hundred thousand soldiers and settlers found themselves in a new land, far from home. The commander of the invasion was Luthair Paendrag Mondwin, the son and heir of Artur Hawkwing. His armies achieved some early successes, such as capturing the city of Imfaral, but were presented with a formidable problem. In this new land - Seanchan - female channellers of the One Power had never unified as they had at home. Instead, female channellers frequently ruled as queens and warlords. Seanchan, an immense continent divided into two landmasses almost girdling the planet from pole to pole (and considerably larger than Luthair's homeland), was a shifting patchwork of hundreds of nations, often at war with one another, with the One Power used openly in battle. The local rulers also used exotic creatures such as raken (flying lizards) and grolm (three-eyed reptilian beasts of notable strength and ferocity) in battle. They were initially mistaken for Shadowspawn by Luthair's forces, but were then employed by him in his own army.

Due to the schism between his father and the Aes Sedai, Luthair's armies lacked any channellers or any way of levelling the field. Outnumbered and outclassed, it is likely that Luthair's forces would have been annihilated had providence not delivered a great force-equaliser to him. A woman named Deain offered Luthair an alliance in return for the use of the a'dam, a ter'angreal shaped like a leash which could prevent women from touching the One Power and force them to use it only at the direction of the leash-holder. Luthair took possession of the a'dam and used it on Deain herself. Satisfied that the device worked as advertised, Luthair employed the a'dam to take enemy channellers prisoner and then force them to fight for him.

In this manner Luthair and his descendants overran and conquered the entire continent of Seanchan, a process which took three centuries. A series of civil conflicts wracked the newly-forged Seanchan Empire for a further two centuries, with a near-constant succession of uprisings and rebellions following. Before his death Luthair committed his descendants to the Corenne, the Return, to resume contact with the empire of his father and, if it had fallen, to reforge it by military means. But it would be some considerable time before Seanchan would be stable enough to support such a venture (which would match or exceed the original invasion of Seanchan itself in size).


After the War of the Hundred Years
Back on the home continent, the century-long war that followed the death of Artur Hawkwing ended with the establishment of twenty-four new, sovereign kingdoms. Ten of these nations would fail over the centuries, leaving behind the fourteen nations of the modern era: Saldaea, Kandor, Arafel, Shienar (collectively, the Borderlands), Arad Doman, Tarabon, Amadicia, Ghealdan, Altara, Murandy, Illian, Tear, Andor and Cairhien. There were also three notable city-states: Tar Valon, Far Madding and Mayene (along with numerous smaller independent townships, such as Falme).

The influence of the Aes Sedai waned considerably in this period. Their numbers had dropped notably and they were no longer able to reach crisis-points in time to stop wars and conflicts erupting. The Children of the Light were also vigorously opposed to the Aes Sedai, decrying and denouncing them at every turn and although many nations ignored them, some individual opinions were changed. Amadicia, which the Children of the Light annexed as their own fiefdom in the 930s NE, effectively banned Aes Sedai from entering its borders. Tear did not go as far, but Aes Sedai were extremely unpopular there. However, these problems were balanced by Tar Valon's official alliances with Andor and the Borderlands, and their friendly relations with most of the other kingdoms.

Rivalries grew between the nations. Cairhien and Andor frequently clashed over control of trade along the strategically vital River Erinin, whilst Tarabon and Arad Doman warred several times over Almoth Plain and Toman Head (left uncontrolled after the fall of the kingdom of Almoth). Tear and Illian frequently came to blows over control of the Plains of Maredo, whilst Tear attempted several times to conquer the city-state of Mayene (by both war and political intrigue) but was repulsed on every occasion. Altara and Murandy were also riven by internal dissent, with the nobles acting independently and only paying lip service at best to their titular rulers. Cairhien also suffered frequent raids from the Aiel along its eastern border.

These raids come to a surprising end in 509 NE, when the Aiel presented the King of Cairhien with a sapling of Avendesora, the legendary Tree of Life (and the only chora tree to survive from the Age of Legends). All raids on Cairhien stopped and the Aiel left without much explanation, baffling the Cairhienin. In reality, the Aiel had identified the Cairhienin as the distant descendants of townsfolk who had given the Aiel's ancestors succour and refuge during their long flight into the Waste, during the Breaking of the World, and wished to make restitution. The sapling, Avendoraldera, grew in the city centre near the Sun Palace for more than four centuries, adding to Cairhien's prestige.

As the years passed, more false Dragons began to appear than ever before. Few could channel, and almost all of them were defeated and contained before they could do much damage, but their appearances spread fear and panic. With the Aes Sedai rarely, or in most cases never, seen by the common people, the One Power was starting to become something that was feared and the legend of the Dragon Reborn was retold emphasising that he would destroy the world once more, not that he would save it. As such, superstition and fear began to replace the more educated, enlightened times of earlier epochs.

Lan Mandragoran in 1000 NE.

The Fall of Malkier
In 955 NE the Borderland kingdom of Malkier was destroyed by internal treachery and external attack. Breyan Mandragoran, the wife of the king's brother, schemed to place her husband on the throne and to make her son, Isam, the royal heir. Breyan's husband, Lain, took five thousand lancers into the Blight to challenge the Shadow, with Breyan hoping to shame King al'Akir with a demonstration of his brother's superior bravery. Instead, al'Akir refused to support the endeavour and Lain and all his men were slain. Somewhat irrationally, Breyan blamed al'Akir and plotted with another noble (and secret Darkfriend), Cowin Gemallan, to kill him. The coup failed, with Gemallan slain in single combat by al'Akir (after the king's most trusted scout, Jain 'Farstrider' Charin, had captured him) but it distracted the Malkieri long enough for a vast army of Shadowspawn to descend on their nation and destroy it. The Malkieri fought a heroic defence almost to the last man but were overwhelmed. The other Borderland armies prevented the Shadowspawn from advancing any further, but Malkier was lost to them.

A small number of Malkieri warriors fled south into Shienar, bringing with them the infant al'Lan Mandragoran, son of al'Akir, the heir to the Malkieri throne. Lan was raised and tutored in the arts of warfare. He made a personal pledge of warfare against the Blight and that he would not rest until either he or the Shadow was slain.

Lord Captain Pedron Niall of the Children of the Light in his youth.

The Whitecloak War
In 957 NE the Children of the Light decided to expand their power from Amadicia into the neighbouring kingdom of Altara. Altara was divided between squabbling nobles paying lip service to whoever sat on the royal throne in the remote, southern port city of Ebou Dar, ripe for division and conquest. The young Lord Captain Pedron Niall, noted for his vigour and tactical acumen, led the attack and was initially extremely successful. However, the equally young and determined King Mattin Stepaenos den Balgar of Illian was disturbed at the thought of losing Altara as a buffer between Amadicia and his own kingdom. He convinced many of the nobles of Murandy to the north of this and forged an alliance between their kingdoms and Altara. Their joint forces then moved into Altara to engage the Whitecloaks.

The resulting conflict became known as the Whitecloak War. It was hard-fought, with Niall winning several stunning victories (such as at Soremaine, when Mattin himself was taken prisoner and ransomed back to Illian for a huge sum of money) but ultimately concluding that the Whitecloaks and Amadicians lacked the strength to defeat the opponents ranged against them. He negotiated a peace and returned home. Despite their defeat, the Whitecloaks noted Niall's comportment and his individual victories, which were vital factors in his later elevation to the position of Lord Captain Commander of the organisation.

A very young Andoran soldier named Tam al'Thor came to notice in this war, fighting on the side of Illian. He was noted by his superiors for his bravery and tactical skills. He was recommended for the Illianer Companions, the most elite military formation in the kingdom, and over the next twenty years rose to the rank of Second Captain.

Even after the war, several villages and towns evacuated during the fighting were left abandoned and never reoccupied. One of these, Salidar, was pressed into service by the Aes Sedai as a secret base of operations for sisters spying on events in Amadicia to the west.

Laman Damodred, King of Cairhien (965-978 NE).

Laman's Folly
In 965 NE Laman Damodred was elevated to the throne of Cairhien and immediately moved against Andor, planning to decisively take command of the river border between their two kingdoms. The Andorans opposed him, resulting in a military stand-off that lasted for three years. With open warfare between the two most powerful kingdoms on the continent not an option, Laman grudgingly accepted a peace agreement in 968. As part of this deal, his nephew and heir Taringail was married to Tigraine Mantear, the Daughter-Heir of Andor (the heir to Queen Modrellen), and the two nations united in peace.

Unfortunately, the match was not successful. They had a child, Galadedrid, but otherwise the two did not love one another, with Taringail trying to dominate Tigraine with his overbearing manner. Tigraine was miserable, a situation that was worsened in 971 NE when her brother Luc disappeared on a visit to the Borderlands (allegedly vanishing into the Blight). Tigraine became distraught, and sought the advice of her mother's Aes Sedai advisor, Gitara Moroso. Gitara had the Foretelling and told Tigraine that the safety of the world itself depended on her going into the Aiel Waste and joining 'the maidens'. She was not to return to the green lands until the maidens went to Tar Valon. Baffled, confused and afraid, Tigraine took her advice and departed Andor in secret.

The disappearance of her daughter, so soon after her son's vanishing, pushed Queen Modrellen into despair and depression. She died in 972 NE with no further heirs remaining. A civil conflict - the Third Succession War - briefly wracked Andor until the youthful Morgase Trakand won enough support to take the Lion Throne. Morgase also inherited Gitara Moroso as her advisor, but a year later Gitara returned to Tar Valon to serve the new Amyrlin Seat, Tamra Ospenya, as her Keepers of the Chronicles. She was replaced by Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan (who also had had a Foretelling that Andor was vital to victory in the Last Battle).

Morgase, a wilful, proud and politically canny woman, married Taringail to ensure continuity with the old regime and adopted Galad as her own son, but also rejected any of his attempts to control her. Morgase and Taringail had two children, Elayne and Gawyn, and with the line of succession secured Morgase had little time for her husband. With Taringail sidelined and marginalised, King Laman realised his dreams of unifying Andor and Cairhien under one ruler were done for, to his fury.

In 976 NE Laman ordered that Avendoraldera - the only chora tree to survive in the world outside the Aiel Waste and a gift from the Aiel to the Cairhienin - should be cut down and its wood used to create a throne of stunning beauty and prestige. This proved to be a horrendous error in judgement that would cost him everything.

The Aiel army advancing on Tar Valon.

The Aiel War
In 972 NE a caravan entered the Aiel Waste. Protected by rules of hospitality and free passage, the caravan was bound for the Sharan trade towns on the far side of the wasteland, where huge amounts of profit could be made. Before entering the Waste, the caravan had been joined by a young woman of unknown origin who wished to travel with them. Shortly after entering the Waste, she ran off. The caravan moved on, believing she would die without shade or water.

Instead, the young woman was found by a group of Aiel Maidens of the Spear belonging to the Chumai sept of the Taardad clan. They took her in and gave her hospitality. She refused to divulge her true name, instead taking the name 'Shaiel', or 'She Who is Dedicated' in the Old Tongue. After proving her determination and worth, the Maidens adopted her into their ranks.

Shaiel eventually married and fell in love with Janduin, the leader of the Iron Mountain sept of the Taardad who had recently become clan chief. A noted peacemaker and leader, Janduin had negotiated an end to the blood feud with the Reyn Aiel and made peace with the Nakai, who were not far from it. He was close to negotiating an end to the blood feud between the Shaarad and Goshien clans when word came from across the Spine of the World that Laman had destroyed the Aiel's gift to the Cairhien, an act of grave dishonour and insult.

Furious, Janudin demanded that all of the Aiel make war upon Cairhien for this infamy. Despite his passion, many of the clans did not agree, but four did. He led the Taardad, Reyn, Nakai and Shaarad clans through the Jangai Pass and into eastern Cairhien in 976 NE.

The sudden appearance of over 90,000 Aiel warriors in eastern Cairhien took everyone by surprise. The Cairhienin barely had enough time to gather their armies before the Aiel were upon the capital. They sacked it brutally, burning the 'topless towers' (tall spires built by the Cairhienin to impress visitors) and sparing only the Great Library from their fury. Laman evacuated the city and fled south with his army, the Aiel in pursuit.

The resulting Aiel War lasted two years, and only that long because the Aiel's primary goal was the execution of Laman, who proved extremely elusive. Laman sought refuge in Tear and Andor, but was refused it as he would bring the Aiel's fury down upon those nations. However, the true reason for the Aiel attack was never made widely-known, and Laman was able to convince many that the Aiel wanted nothing less than the conquest of all the lands west of the Spine of the World. As a result, and with the assistance of Aes Sedia mediators, he was able to forge a coalition of nations to oppose the Aiel.

In late 978 NE the largest army since the days of Artur Hawkwing was assembled outside Tar Valon. Laman's presence would ensure that the Aiel would attack. Almost 168,000 troops stood ready to defend against the Aiel. Amongst their ranks was Tam al'Thor, Second Captain of the Illianer Companions. Watching from the White Tower itself was Tamra Ospenya, Amyrlin Seat of the Aes Sedai, and her closest adviser, Gitara Moroso. Waiting on them were two young women of the Accepted, Moiraine Damodred (Laman's neice) and Siuan Sanche.

The Battle of the Shining Walls was joined, with the Aiel unexpectedly (as their fear of water was well-known) crossing the Erinin to attack from several directions. Janduin's goal was to locate Laman's camp and finally kill him, with other attacks being merely feints to direct attention away from this. After three days of heavy fighting across a wide swathe of territory surrounding Tar Valon (the Aiel, aware that the Aes Sedai could only use the One Power in defence, never attacked the city itself or any Aes Sedai they encountered outside the walls), Janudin's troops located Laman's camp and attacked it. Laman was decapitated, his two younger brothers killed and his Power-wrought sword captured as a trophy. The mission accomplished, the Aiel withdrew in good order and returned to the Aiel Waste.

Second Captain Tam al'Thor of the Illianer Companions finds a new-born child on the slopes of Dragonmount.

Neither the Aiel nor most of those present at the battle were aware that something of much greater  significance had happened. During the battle an Illianer detachment trapped a group of Aiel Maidens of the Spear on the slopes of Dragonmount. A desperate battle was fought with no quarter given, and the Maidens slain. Tam al'Thor found one of them alive, but dying of her wounds. To his shock, she had gone into battle pregnant, and had given birth to a baby boy there and then. She perished, but Tam took the child as his own. His own wife, Kari, could not have children and he was willing to adopt the baby, especially since he had been planning to leave the army and retire to his home in the Two Rivers district of Andor anyway

But upon the moment of the child's birth on the slopes of Dragonmount, Gitara Moroso had the Foretelling. She cried out that the Dragon had been Reborn on the same spot where he had died, in accordance with The Prophecies of the Dragon, and then dropped dead from sheer shock. The Amyrlin Seat swore the only other two witnesses, Moiraine and Siuan, to secrecy. The world was not ready for the Last Battle, and the child must be found before the Shadow could find him.

Al'Lan Mandragoran swears himself to Moiraine Damodred's service.

The End of the Third Age
In the aftermath of the Aiel War, the western nations underwent several more tumults. There was a brief, nasty war in Cairhien that saw House Damodred lose the Sun Throne to House Riatin, under King Galldrian. Whilst the Damodreds remained a powerful faction under Lord Barthanes, their prestige had been eroded by Laman's folly (now more widely-known) and their position weakened.

Several years after this defeat, in 984, Taringail Damodred was killed under murky circumstances in Caemlyn. Initially agents of House Riatin were suspected, but it was later suggested that Taringail had been planning to seize the Lion Throne himself and had been pre-emptively assassinated by Thomdrim Merrilin, Morgase's court bard and lover. Merrilin himself was exiled the following year after claiming that his nephew Owyn had been effectively murdered by the Aes Sedai (a channeller of the One Power, he'd been gentled by several Red Ajah sisters and then left to the mercies of a mob).

In 979 NE Moiraine Damodred and Siuan Sanche were made full Aes Sedai. They decided to join the hunt for the Dragon Reborn organised by the Amyrlin Seat, but she was killed before they could learn much. Siuan remained in Tar Valon, making use of the resources there to help gather information for Moiraine to use in the field. Moiraine followed one trail of clues to the royal palace in Kandor, where she exposed and eliminated several Darkfriends (including a member of the Black Ajah, Aes Sedai secretly sworn to the Dark One) with the assistance of al'Lan Mandragoran, the heir to the lost throne of Malkier. Lan agreed to ally with Moiraine and became her Warder.

Around 983 NE, the Forsaken Ishamael escaped from imprisonment. Assuming command of the continent-spanning network of Darkfriends, he was furious to discover that the Black Ajah had risked discovery by ordering the assassination of Tamra Ospenya. He executed the leader of the Black Ajah and replaced her with the cold, logical Alviarin Freidhen. Tamra had been replaced by Sierin Vayu, who in turn was killed allegedly by elements amongst the Red Ajah. Her replacement, Marith Jaen, only managed four years before dying of old age.

Concerned that the deaths of so many Amyrlins in so short a time was not good for the image of the White Tower, the Hall of the Tower elected the young, vigorous and well-respected Siuan Sanche to the position of Amyrlin. Full Aes Sedai for less than a decade, the decision was controversial. However, it also allowed Siuan access to much more information to help Moiraine and Lan in their search.

Between 993 and 998 NE, no less than four false Dragons arose to trouble the world. The first three could not channel, but caused chaos in Kandor, Arad Doman and Illian regardless. The third, Gorin Ragad, amassed enough support to attack the city of Illian before being defeated and killed. However, the fourth claimant was a very different matter. Logain Ablar arose in Ghealdan in late 997 NE and revealed that he could channel. Amassing significant support, he blazed a trail of destruction across the southern nations as he marched on Tear.

In 996 NE a Darkfriend peddler named Padan Fain had been 'transformed' into a hound of the Dark One, ordered to sniff out traces of the Dragon Reborn on his travels. During his annual visit to the Two Rivers district of Andor in 997 he detected a trace of the Dragon Reborn. Moving slowly, trying not to attract attention, the Shadow ordered that Fain would return to the Two Rivers in early 998 and confirm the Dragon Reborn's presence. If this was the case, then steps would be taken against him.

Early in 998 NE, the towns and villages on Toman Head suddenly went silent. Merchants and travellers headed to Falme and the other independent settlements vanished. The governments of Tarabon and Arad Doman began to ponder if the other kingdom had seized Toman Head as a prelude to war, and began raising their own armies in response to this imagined threat.

Finally, in the spring of 998 NE Moriaine and Lan suddenly hit upon a lead that led them to believe that the Dragon Reborn, now a young man approaching his twentieth birthday, was located in or around the village of Emond's Field in the Two Rivers. By chance, they would arrive in the village mere hours ahead of Padan Fain, on the eve of the local celebration known as Bel Tine, where the fate of the world would be decided.

Next time: the book recaps begin (finally!).