Tag: cuendillar

Crossroads of Twilight, Part VIII

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This week, your host is Eivind and he can be found in the comments.Make sure to check out Sue and her often insightful answers over at Coffee, Cookies, and Chili Peppers. And catch Liesel at Musings on Fantasia who has the cool fanart.

This week, we cover Chapters 27-END. Spoilers for this section run free below!

1. After letting himself go with the Shaido prisoners, Perrin abandons his axe in the forest, as predicted by Elyas. What do you think of his way of breaking the Aiel? Is this a defining moment for him, and in what ways?

I thought Perrin did really well. It was quicker and more humane than letting the previous methods of torture continue. I think it was the concept of being so crippled and left in a city to beg that broke the Aiel resolve. Also, I believe it showed others (like Masema) that Perrin is insightful, decisive, and quite capable to taking care of business.

Unfortunately, I do think this is a defining moment for Perrin and he has defined it all negative. As much as I really enjoy Perrin, he can be an idiot and he will be an idiot over this one. I can see him moping over his decision to remove a hand in order to gain info, beating himself up over it for the rest of the series (all 4000 pages or so).

And, really, who leaves weapons lying around in the woods during times like this? I hope Aram or Elyas fetched it back for him, just keeping it tucked away until in the heat of battle, Perrin swears up a blue streak for having left his axe behind.

2. Tallanvor suggests to team up with Seanchan to defeat the Shaido. Should Perrin agree? Will he just end up having to rescue people from the Seanchan instead?

As far as we know, the Seanchan only enslave female channelers. So if he sends those ladies off, or keeps them in hiding, teaming up with the Seanchan may work. However, if the Wise Ones refuse to be sidelined, and the Seanchan are arrogant pricks (and we all know they will be) then I expect inviting them to the party will only increase Perrin’s headaches as the Seanchan make a point of enslaving the Wise Ones, and the Aiel retaliating by removing some Seanchan heads. It would be immensely entertaining for me, but I would feel sorry for Perrin (eventually).

3. From the female or male viewpoint, what do you make of Mat’s courtship strategy, and Tuon’s response? Bewildered? (I am!)

Quite frankly, I was very surprised that Mat was so able to change his tactics. After all, most other women have fallen for the jewelry lure.

But, yeah, I am still a bit confused. We know so little about Seanchan customs, let along how they go about courtship and marriage back home. I am guessing that Tuon had to be the first to make a move (since she is of the highest royalty). So direct gifts were an insult. But that final little gift of cloth rose buds, simply set beside the game board, well that left all the decisions in Tuon’s hands. She could have tossed them or given them away. But later she deigns to wear them. I am hoping this is a good sign. I think. Can I root for the Seanchan in this instance?

4. Renna betrays our heroes and Mat is presumably forced to leave the circus. Were you surprised? How happy are you to be rid of Valan Luca?

Mat was going to have to leave the circus sooner or later – I mean he has this part to play in saving the world, right? But I was not expecting Renna to stab Egeanin in the back. I didn’t fully understand what she thought she was gaining by that either. I guess her dedication to the Seanchan way was stronger than her obedience to Egeanin or Tuon (if she realized fully who Tuon is).

And since Mat wasn’t putting on a sparkly, thigh revealing suit and doing a high wire act, I am OK with Mat & crew leaving Valan Luca behind.

5. Egwene’s plan is revealed, and the harbor chains of Tar Valon are now cuendillar. How will this change the siege?

The plan was revealed? Hmm…..Well, OK, I thought we had a small smidgeon revealed. I expect the chains being cuendillar will allow Egwene (or some other Sister) to seal the harbor. Egwene wanted to prevent the boats from going in and out, because they allowed movement of the people inside the tower and restocking of goods. So by blocking the Tower harbor off, there would have to be some sort of attack from the Tower or some sort of surrender from the Tower. Anyway, that is what I was thinking. Did I miss something?

6. Egwene is captured! Should she have sent Bode after all? Is she stupid for having risked herself? Never mind the harbor chains… how will THIS change the war?

Well, yes, Egwene was stupid for having risked herself. But this falls back to that fond phrase, ‘The Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills’. So Egwene had to be on that boat one way or another.

How does this change the siege? Well, it depends on who captured her. If it is Sisters completely disgruntled with Elaida, then Egwene should be fine because they will want to undermine Elaida. If it is Darkfriends or Black Ajah, then Egwene may be in some danger from them directly, but not from Elaida (as the Dark wants to undermine Elaida). If they are Elaida supporters, then Egwene will have to worry about being stilled and possibly executed.

Then Egwene also has to worry about her detractors in her own camp. I expect they will try to wrest control for themselves no matter Egwene’s status inside the harbor. So Egwene will have to work quickly and come out smelling like a rose to remain Amyrlin.

7. Rand will meet the Daughter of the Nine Moons, but we know she’s nowhere to be found (by Suroth, anyway). An obvious trap or just a really obvious trap? What do you expect to happen?

As the reader, I know that Suroth is a Darkfriend and that Tuon has gone missing, so this is such an obvious trap to me. But Rand doesn’t know those two things. I am hoping that the colorful mind-to-mind phone among our ta’veren will start working soon and Mat can tell Rand about Tuon.

But until then, I expect Rand to agree to meet with Suroth and the Daughter of Nine Moons. If that meeting goes down, I expect Rand to escape immediately with minimal blood shed. After all, he can Travel. Unless they have a convenient leash for male channelers. In which case, i expect Rand to be the first ever to break one with his belligerent personality.

While I personally want to see Tuon kill Suroth, I expect that Suroth will be kiled by one of our ta’veren or by the Dark side for incompetence.

Other Tidbits

Mat still doesn’t see his own influence on Olver when it comes to the ladies. This is amusing and distressing at the same time.

Mat pushed their mounts in order to catch Renna, and then pushed himself to order her killed. And yet he returns to Tuon to see that she signed a bit of paper than made the circus and Mat & crew untouchable no matter what Renna told the Seanchan outpost. He had trouble with that……and yet I still want to give him a wake up call. Having a vagina and boobs doesn’t protect you from being killed in war, especially when you stab someone in the back and run off towards the nearest enemy outpost.

Remanda (or is it Remilda? Anyway, the high & mighty snot whose name starts with an R) didn’t take the news about the Oathrod and longevity very well. I thought Egwene had a strong argument – it would keep the Kin tied to the Tower but also give the Sisters a reasonable retirement option.

Crossroads of Twilight, Part VI

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And the WoT Quad returns with Book 10, Crossroads of Twilight! If any of you silent stalkers want to join us, you are always welcome to. You can leave me a comment or email me (nrlymrtl [at] gmail [dot] com) to get on the weekly email of the discussion questions. Check out the schedule.

Sorry for posting late this week. The pain of my donkey-squished foot has been sapping my energy, and I have been doing plenty of weekend activities. Plus farm life. Anyway, I hope to be better this week.

This week, your host is Liesel at Musings on Fantasia who has the cool fanart.  Eivind, our keeper of esoteric WoT knowledge, can be found in the comments over at Liesel’s .Make sure to catch Sue and her often insightful answers over at Coffee, Cookies, and Chili Peppers.

This week, we cover Chapters 17-20. Spoilers for this section run free below!

1) Nicola and Areina are still around causing trouble. Do you think they’ll stay around? Reveal Egwene’s secrets? Get sent home?

Perhaps one or the other will end up dead and Egwene will save the other from certain doom? Then she would have a fateful follower forever, and quite frankly, she could use a few of those. But most likely these two idiots will keep pushing the boundaries of Egwene’s benevolence and eventually one or both will be sent on long rambling necessary but yet not important missions. Or Egwene will wrap their heads in flows of power and suffocate them.

2) What do you think Egwene is planning with the newly-rediscovered method of making Cuendillar?

I have to say I was VERY surprised by this turn of events. I think Egwene is planning to have new seals and/or weapons (or shields) made of the stuff. But first, folks must practice and get good at it. Hence, all the trinkets. But she is wise to have so many, even the trainees, practicing. If she is going to have them make weapons or shields later on, the more who know how to do it, the more that will survive.

3) Siuan has discovered a strange trend of sisters too young to be Sitters being made Sitters. What do you think it means? Who or what is behind it?

Well, we know that some of the Aes Sedai voted Egwene in as Amyrlin because they thought she was young and malleable. Perhaps the same idiots are hopeful that young Sitters will be the same way and will give them more control.

4) There is talk in Egwene’s camp of taking the Red Ajah out of her stole entirely. Given that the Red’s main purpose had to do with controlling men who can channel, and now things have changed, both because of Rand and because saidin has been cleansed, do you think the Red Ajah has become obsolete? Will they disappear completely?

I think there will always be a small and precautionary need for Red Ajah. Say, after Rand saves the world, and we have Asha’men and Aes Sedai working together and having kids together, there could always be some male channeler that goes rogue and wants to rule the world (imagine Masema channeling!). So the Red Ajah would have the knowledge and skill to at least bring the rogue under control. The other side of the coin is that the Black Tower will eventually have their own form of Ajahs and they will have an Ajah with the skill to bring rogue Aes Sedai under control.

5) Egwene’s Hall is arguing about a possible agreement with the Black Tower. It’s based on bad information (or just a lack of info, I suppose) but it sounds like it might happen. Do you think this is a good or bad thing? What will it lead to? What form will it take?

I think it is a good thing because I as a reader have all this other knowledge. I know that Logain is planning something, probably involving going head to head with Taim. We need that jerk out of there and probably without a head. I also know that Asha’men and Aes Sedai have started working together here and there and the Aes Sedai haven’t fainted dead away or turned into geese from the experience. And I also know that Rand has cleansed saidar, which takes a lot of the wind out of the sails for those arguing against it.

But of course, our rogue White Tower doesn’t know all this. So, they will make a bungle out of it and I expect the Black Tower will come out on top of any deal.

Eventually there will be mating between Asha’men and Aes Sedai and then we will have all these geeky, socially inept channelers running around.

6) Egwene dreams both of a Seanchan woman who will save her, and of the Seanchan attacking the Tower. What do you think these dreams mean?

I think Egwene is going to have a very, very hard time accepting help from the Seanchan. But eventually, she will, and together they will take out the White Tower. Perhaps Mat and Tuon will work out their thing and then Tuon will order Seanchan assistance to Egwene.

7) Who do you think killed Anaiya and her warder, and why? What was she doing on the outskirts of the camp in the middle of the night?

I think Halima the Evil lured Anaiya out there and then killed them. I am just not sure why yet. Perhaps Anaiya is working against Egwene (like for an opposing Sitter) and hoped to get some juicy intel from Halima.

Other Tidbits

I think the rainbow stole looks better with a bit of red in it. It’s not a true rainbow without red, so the Browns would argue that a rainbow stole without red would need a new name. That would spark a very tedious discussion.

During this section, Egwene commented on Elayne’s pregnancy outside of marriage, how things were different from the Two Rivers, and then on Halima’s light skirts. I found it interesting that in passing (mostly just Egwene’s thoughts), Jordan covered this range of what is socially acceptable for a woman, or not, depending on circumstances and culture.