The Great Hunt

Atop a stone tower in the town of Fal Dara, Rand al’Thor spars with Lan. Lan is a Warder, a warrior “bonded” to an Aes Sedai. As Rand tries to parry Lan’s blows—made with a mock sword to avoid real injury—the wind suddenly gels around Rand, pushing him directly into Lan’s “blade.” Bruised and bleeding, the two men take a break. Rand runs his hands along his own sword, a “blademaster’s” weapon marked with the symbol of a heron. He marvels at his fate: Rand is a shepherd from the Two Rivers who now the wielder of a mighty sword, a gift from his father. Lan—whose full name is al’Lan Mandragoran, the last surviving of the seven Malkieri lords—explains the history of the “heron-marked” sword (as well as his own): blades forged by the magic of the Aes Sedai, used in the War of the Shadow and capable of great destruction. Rand is mystified how his father, also a simple shepherd, came to be in possession of such a legendary blade.

Lan urges Rand to leave Fal Dara with Moiraine, an Aes Sedai, because Lan does not have enough time to properly train the boy as a blademaster. Nevertheless, he adds, “You hold yourself as if the sword belongs at your waist, sheepherder” (7). As Rand prepares to resume training, a trumpet blast from the nearby forest draws their attention. A large contingent of Aes Sedai and marching infantry from Tar Valon emerge from the forest and approach Fal Dara. Rand can draw only one conclusion: They have come for him.

Rand runs to his room in anticipation of the summons of the “Amyrlin Seat” (the head of the Aes Sedai) and finds housekeepers replacing his old clothes with new ones. They remove all of his used, worn possessions, except for the harp and flute he keeps hidden in a firebox. He packs his saddlebags, girds his sword, and prepares to leave before the Aes Sedai call for him. Bustling through the crowded courtyard, he sees the delegation of Aes Sedai and their Warders. He pushes through the crowd and makes his way to the stables. He asks the groom to saddle his horse, but the man cannot comply; the gates have been sealed, and no one is permitted to leave. As the bells sound, signaling the end of the official greeting, Rand flees.

At the city gates, Rand tries to persuade the guards to let him pass, arguing that, as a guest of Lord Agelmore, the order cannot possibly apply to him. The guards are adamant, however, so Rand walks away, seeking another way out. With all the gates guarded, he climbs a parapet, hoping to climb down the fortress wall, but a forest of spikes below convinces him otherwise. He wanders the courtyards and sculleries, trying to elude discovery and terrified at the thought of being “gentled” at the hands of the Aes Sedai. He finds his way into a blacksmith’s forge where he feels he is being watched, but the forge is empty. That feeling—of an actual presence—follows him through the streets until he enters a storeroom filled with “menials” playing dice. Among them is Loial, an Ogier—a race of non-human creatures known for their love of knowledge and architecture. Rand asks him if he knows another way out of the city, but Fal Dara was built by men, not Ogier, so he knows the city no better than Rand.

Rand’s friends, Mat and Perrin, are also there, but when they offer to leave Fal Dara with him, he rebuffs them, wanting to avoid putting them in danger as well. They argue, and Mat, Perrin, and Loial storm off, leaving Rand alone. As he looks for a place to hide until the gates are open again, he encounters Egwene, the woman he once thought he would marry but who is now fated to apprentice with the Aes Sedai. She knows of his plan to leave and tries to convince him it’s foolish, until he tells her of Lan’s revelation: that he is more than a mere sheepherder and fated to bear the heron-marked sword. Egwene now understands why the Amyrlin Seat may have interest in him, and she agrees to help him hide in the dungeon.

Egwene leads Rand past the dungeon guards; she is familiar to them because she often visits Fain, a prisoner from their hometown of Two Rivers. At Fain’s cell, the gaunt man taunts Rand in an unhinged rant: “They are coming for me, and they’re coming for you, and the war goes on” (43). Fain’s ravings unsettle Egwene and Rand, forcing them to seek another hiding place. Egwene suggests the women’s apartments, the one place the Aes Sedai would never think to look for a man.

Moiraine prepares for an audience with the Amyrlin Seat, donning a formal shawl rarely worn outside the White Tower of Tar Valon. Two Aes Sedai sisters, Anaiya and Liandrin, knock on her door, summoning her to the Amyrlin’s chamber. As they walk, they report news of recent events to Moiraine: Three more “false Dragons”—pretenders claiming to be the “Dragon Reborn,” a man who can channel the One Power—have been discovered recently. False Dragons can gather armies to their banners and wreak havoc before being “gentled” by the Aes Sedai.

Anaiya shares other news of court intrigue and of “’The Great Hunt of the Horn’” (52), the first search for the Horn of Valere in 400 years. The Horn is rumored to be a crucial weapon in the battle against the Dark One. Anaiya reports of unrest across much of the land as rumors of war loom. Tired of their “idle talk,” Liandrin brusquely ushers Moiraine into the Amyrlin’s chamber. Moiraine stands before the Amyrlin who reports that Elayne, daughter of Queen Morgase of Andor who is currently training in Tar Valon, “could well be the most powerful Aes Sedai in a thousand years” (56). Moiraine argues that Egwene is at least the equal of Elayne in potential and that, with training, Nynaeve, the chosen “Wisdom” of Two Rivers, may outshine them both. The Amyrlin, however, is less concerned with repopulating the ranks of Aes Sedai and more concerned with Moiraine’s “meddling” with Rand, a ta’varen, someone around whom the Wheel of Time bends to forge a unique fate. The Green and Blue Ajahs (sects within the Aes Sedai) propose that Moiraine be placed under the “care” of the Red Ajah to prevent further interference. The debate over Moiraine’s fate reveals a schism within the Aes Sedai; Ajahs are openly defying the Amyrlin, an unprecedented development in the sisterhood’s 3,000-year history. The Amyrlin dismisses Leane, the Chronicler, to meet with Moiraine privately to discuss a plan which, if discovered, would result in them both being “stilled.”

When an Aes Sedai is stilled, she is stripped of her ability to channel the One Power—that is, to touch the “female half” of the True Source. In defiance of caution and tradition, Moiraine and the Amyrlin have planned to locate the Dragon Reborn and, rather than gentling him, bring him back to Tar Valon to observe and guide him. The Amyrlin, however, feels Moiraine has veered too far from the plan by bringing Rand to Fal Dara, a town perilously near the Blight (a region in the North under the sway of the Dark One). Moiraine argues that, since Rand is ta’varen, his fate is controlled by the Wheel and is therefore beyond the Aes Sedai’s influence.

The Amyrlin opens a golden chest and takes out the Horn of Valere which, when sounded, can summon dead heroes back from the grave. A prophecy foretells that the Horn will be found at the time of the Last Battle; it frightens the Amyrlin to think that the final battle against the Dark One could be so near at hand. Moiraine argues that all the recent appearances of false Dragons are not an ill omen but merely a precursor to the coming of the true Dragon Reborn. She then empties the contents of her pouch which contains fragments of “heartstone,” a substance even the One Power cannot shatter. However, something has shattered this heartstone. Moiraine assembles the pieces into a large disc—half-black, half-white. It is one of seven ancient seals symbolizing “the Flame of Tar Valon; the other half was scrawled on doors, the Dragon’s Fang, to accuse those within of evil” (67). The seal’s shattering suggests that the Dark One is stirring within his prison. Fearful they have little time left, the Amyrlin acknowledges that Rand is “the one.” Moiraine’s plan is to give Rand some slack and convince him that he is not being targeted by the Aes Sedai. She wants to enlist Rand, Mat, and Perrin to bring the Horn to Illian, the citizens of which will rally around the true Dragon.

Meanwhile, Geofram Bornhald is the battle commander of the Children of the Light, an “ascetic” military organization which seeks to defeat the Dark One but also despises the Aes Sedai, seeing it as an ally of the enemy. Bornhald leads a legion of warriors to the village of Alcruna where he will be issued further orders. Outside the village, he meets Einor Saren, a “Questioner” (someone who elicits “confessions” through torture). Saren assumes command and orders Bornhald to lead his men into Alcruna.

In Fal Dara, Liandrin visits the Lady Amalisa. As a member of the Red Ajah—hunters of men who attempt to wield the One Power—Liandrin suggests that Lord Agelmar may be such a man. Terrified, Amalisa agrees to do Liandrin’s bidding. Liandrin commands Amalisa to find Rand, Mat, and Perrin and to have them secretly removed from the city and taken to Tar Valon. She also tells Amalisa that the rumors of a Black Ajah—a group of Aes Sedai who serve the Dark One—are true, and that only she, Liandrin, can be trusted. As she leaves the Lady’s chamber, Liandrin senses she is being watched, but the corridors are empty. Later that night, Padan Fain, a Darkfriend, receives a visit in his dungeon cell.