The Gathering Storm/Chapter 36

==Summary==
:
The first part of the chapter is a meeting between Mat and Verin, with other members of the Band present. Verin first relates how she came to find Mat despite her intentions of Traveling to Tar Valon. The journey involves her being pulled strongly by the ta'veren nature of Mat in such a way as to prevent her Traveling directly to Tar Valon. Instead, she ends up meeting Mat near Trustair, although she was unsure prior to meeting Mat whether the t'averen she would be meeting would be him or Perrin.
Verin then offers a deal to take the Band directly to Caemlyn. Before telling Mat the details, she tells him that she received the picture of Mat from a Darkfriend and recommends that he be careful. The cost of the deal is that Verin will take the Band to Caemlyn on the condition that Mat agrees to open a sealed letter of instructions ten days after arriving. They end up compromising that Mat will either open the letter after ten days or that he will burn the letter unopened after remaining in Caemlyn for thirty days. Verin does, however, state that she hopes to relieve him of the letter before the ten days are up. Before ordering the camp to break, Mat notices that Verin has a stack of sealed letters inside her satchel.
:
Fortuona Paendrag, now the Empress of Seanchan, is thinking about her former name—Tuon—and how it will be a notation in history. She is seeing the soldiers going on the Raid on Tar Valon off. The raid consists of 200 members of the Fists of Heaven, fifty pairs of sul'dam and damane, and five members of the Bloodknives. The raid will reach Tar Valon using hundreds of to'raken and a flock of raken. Due to rediscovery of Traveling, the raid is leaving after sunset and away from Ebou Dar in order to remain a secret. The raid involves innovative tactics of launching the attack from the to'raken instead of from a staging point, which Fortuona thinks could be a bold new tactic or a disaster. Fortuona, in a conversation with Selucia, says that, as a consequence of the raid, the Dragon Reborn will certainly be against them. Until now, he wasn't, just Seanchan were against him. And this will make a big difference.
==Characters==
*Abaldar Yulan
*Dali
*Fortuona Paendrag
*Malahavana
*Mandevwin
*Matrim Cauthon
*Selucia
*Talmanes Delovinde
*Thomdril Merrilin
*Tomas
*Verin Mathwin
===Referenced===
*Rand al'Thor (mentioned)
*Perrin Aybara (mentioned)
*Elayne Trakand (mentioned)
*Aludra (mentioned)
*Lunal Galgan (mentioned)
*Yulanwho
==Groups==
*Aelfinn
*Aes Sedai
*Asha'man
*Band of the Red Hand
*Bloodknives
*Brown Ajah
*Damane
*Darkfriend
*Eelfinn
*Fists of Heaven
*High Blood
*Sul'dam
*Warder
==Places==
*Trustair
*Ebou Dar
===Referenced===
*Tear (city)
*Tar Valon
*Cairhien
*Murandy
*Andor
*Caemlyn
*Two Rivers
==Items==
*Lily brooch angreal