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TEotW: Chapter 51 Against the Shadow

Summary

Rand POV - Rand runs away up a hill. He hears Moiraine stop screaming and Aginor follows him. He reaches a cliff and has to stop. Aginor arrives. He is growing younger. He says Ba'alzamon will give great rewards to whomever brings Rand to Shayol Ghul, but he faced Lews Therin in the Hall of the Servants and does not want to share power. Rand sees a glowing white rope on Aginor and begins to draw on it himself.¹ Rand begins drawing on the cord as well. Aginor says it is his, draws even more, and bursts into flame. Rand desperately wants to get away, and suddenly he is at Tarwin's Gap. An army of men fights an army of Trollocs and Fades. He sees banners, the Black Hawk of Fal Dara, the White Hart of Shienar, the horned skull of the Dha'vol, the red trident of the Ko'bal and the iron fist of the Dhai'mon. Rand sees six Draghkar and strikes them out of the sky with lightning.² He pounds on the ground and a wall of flame and rock pours over the Trollocs. He says, "This has to end." A voice in his head says, "IT IS NOT HERE. I WILL TAKE NO PART. ONLY THE CHOSEN ONE CAN DO WHAT MUST BE DONE, IF HE WILL." Rand says, "Where?" The voice says, "NOT HERE."³ Stairs appear and he climbs them through blackness, eventually reaching the same wooden door of his dreams.⁴ He faces Ba'alzamon again. He also has a cord, but it is black and bigger.⁵ Ba'alzamon says he let the Aiel escape and sent Jain Farstrider "whom I painted like a fool" to the Ogier to tell of the threat to the Eye of the World. He commands Rand to look and he sees Egwene, Nynaeve and his mother. Egwene and Nynaeve fade, but Kari al'Thor remains.⁶ She begs him to save her and Fades begin torturing her. Rand suddenly has a sword of fire⁷ and burns them freeing her. Ba'alzamon says he must teach Rand before he can wield the One Power safely. Rand turns the sword on Ba'alzamon cutting his cord then spraying him with fire. Ba'alzamon wails and is gone. Rand's cord diminishes to nothing and he falls.

Notes

1. Drawing on the Eye of the World.
2. Does this fulfill Min's viewing about him and lightning?
3. This is the only time in the series this voice speaks to Rand. Is it the Creator?
4. This sounds a lot like Skimming.
5. What is this black cord? See the discussion in the FAQ, Section 1.3.1, local FAQ, Section 1.3.1.
6. In early printings, Kari al'Thor is described as "dark-eyed and beautiful" which contradicted Rand's belief that he got his eyes from his mother. In later printings the description is corrected to "gray-eyed and beautiful."
7. Rand's sword of fire is made of Air and Fire. (TWoTRPG)

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