The Dragon Reborn/Chapter 55

==Summary==
: 
Rand enters the Heart of the Stone in the Stone of Tear where Callandor rests. The Forsaken Be'lal is waiting for him and tries to taunt Rand into taking Callandor. Be'lal reveals some of the past of Lews Therin Telamon and also tells Rand that Callandor is a sa'angreal that had been made at the end of the Age of Legends.
Rand still has his doubts about being the Dragon Reborn so he doesn't try to grab Callandor. Be'lal creates a sword using the One Power (made of black fire) and starts using force to drive him to it. Rand creates a sword of his own (made of red flame) and fights back. Rand realizes that Be'lal is a true blademaster and he is slowly driven towards Callandor by the Forsaken's superior skill. While they are fighting, Aiel and Defenders of the Stone enter the Heart of the Stone and continue their battle. Rand, caught up in his fight, is unaware of his surroundings and trips over a dead body. Be'lal comes towards him, saying if Rand doesn't take Callandor, he will die.
Moiraine suddenly appears, startling both Be'lal and Rand. Be'lal says he's surprised that she is alive still, then raises his free hand to destroy her with the One Power. But before he can complete his weave, Moiraine raises both her hands and shoots balefire, killing Be'lal instantly. Moiraine tells Rand that Callandor is his birthright, and he should take it. Black lightning suddenly grabs Moiraine and hurls her across the floor.
Ba'alzamon appears in the air and tells Rand that he is going to die. Rand realizes he truly has no choice now and leaps toward Callandor as Ba'alzamon attacks him with the Power. As his hands grasp Callandor, he feels the Power surge through him. Rand is nearly driven mad from the amount of the Power the sa'angreal lets him wield, but he gains control. Rand turns to Ba'alzamon and says he's going to "finish it once and for all!" Ba'alzamon flees by Traveling to Tel'aran'rhiod, and Rand Travels himself to hunt for him.
: 
Egwene enters the dungeon of the Stone of Tear within Tel'aran'rhiod. Unsure which cell Nynaeve and Elayne are in, she suddenly sees a flicker of a woman sitting on a bench down the hallway. Egwene realizes it's Amico Nagoyin, the Black Ajah Aes Sedai who is guarding the cell where the girls are held and maintaining the shield that blocks them from touching the True Source. Amico is falling in and out of sleep with a dream ter'angreal in her hand.
Egwene prepares a weave of Air to physically hold Amico, and a separate weave of Spirit to shield her from the One Power. When Amico flickers into Tel'aran'rhiod again, Egwene hits her with the weaves, holding Amico in place. Egwene channels Earth into the cell's lock, destroying it, and then swings the door open. She exits Tel'aran'rhiod. 
:
Egwene awakes to find the cell door still shut and the shield still maintained on them all, but at least Amico is still bound by Air. Egwene tries to fall asleep to enter Tel'aran'rhiod again, to find another way to break free. 
:
Matrim Cauthon and Juilin Sandar enter the dungeon of the Stone of Tear. Mat sees Amico sitting on the bench, physically paralyzed but mentally awake. Juilin warns him that she is an Aes Sedai, but Mat risks it and takes the cell door key off her person. He unlocks the door next to Amico and flings it open. Nynaeve and Elayne are kneeling around Egwene, who is sleeping on the floor. Both are surprised to see Mat. Upon seeing the door opened, they wake Egwene up. Then they all glare at Juilin who admits he wronged them. Juilin says he was compelled to do so and the women decide that they will deal with him later.
They exit the cell and see Amico who begs for mercy. Nynaeve punches her in the face, knocking her unconscious. The shields disappear, and they embrace saidar. Nynaeve Heals the other girls of their wounds. Mat starts criticizing Nynaeve for hitting a defenseless woman then he is lifted off the ground with the One Power. They reprimand him for commenting without understanding the situation; Mat says they are ungrateful for his effort in freeing them. They agree and let him down with a thud. Mat wants to leave the Stone immediately lest they be caught up in all the fighting, but the women are not abandoning their chance to capture the rest of the Black Ajah. The girls exit the dungeon to search for Liandrin and the others and Mat and Juilin feel compelled to follow to protect them from getting hurt.
: 
Perrin is still in the Wolf Dream trying to rescue Faile from her hedgehog slumber. He has found her several times, but each time it is an illusion he rescues, not the real Faile. Perrin sees someone he thinks could be Rand but can't believe Rand would be in the Wolf Dream. Perrin is becoming weak from being too fully in the dream.
Hopper leads Perrin to another set of doors and says that Faile is beyond it. He pounds his hammer against the doors and on the third swing the doors shatter like glass. Faile is chained to a perch. When Perrin tries to free her, many falcons in the room attack him. He finally reaches the chain and snaps it with his hands. 
:
Perrin wakes up in the real world, laying on the floor of the private dining room of the Star inn, in pain. Faile is wiping blood off his face. They exchange some tender words and look deeply into each other's eyes. 
: 
Rand is in the Heart of the Stone, but there are no men and there is no battle. He hears three loud sounds like a gong from Perrin rescuing Faile. Ba'alzamon shoots balefire at Rand, but the stream splits around Callandor. He chases Ba'alzamon and instinctively channels to protect himself from attacks. Only the enormous power he is able to channel allows him to survive. As the chase continues, Tel'aran'rhiod changes rapidly as Ba'alzamon tries to change the dream world to kill him. Sometimes the air turns into water; sometimes it turns into stone. Rand is instinctively able to change the world back to the way it should be to save himself. Eventually he finds himself back in the Heart of the Stone, facing Ba'alzamon. He sees black cords run off from Ba'alzamon into the surrounding darkness. Rand uses Callandor to sever the black cords which causes Ba'alzamon to convulse and Rand takes this opportunity to plunge the blade into his foe's chest.
: 
Suddenly Rand is out of Tel'aran'rhiod again, but he doesn't know how. He is back in the real Heart of the Stone. Ba'alzamon is dead at his feet while the Aiel and Defenders continue their battle. Rand believes he has killed the Dark One and recognizes that he is indeed the Dragon Reborn. He shouts, "Stop! I am Rand al'Thor! I am the Dragon Reborn!" The fighting stops and the Aiel and Defenders alike kneel.
==Characters ==
*Rand al'Thor
*Be'lal
*Moiraine Damodred
*Lan Mandragoran
*Ba'alzamon
*Mat Cauthon
*Juilin Sandar
*Perrin Aybara
*Faile Bashere
*Egwene al'Vere
*Elayne Trakand
*Nynaeve al'Meara
*Amico Nagoyin
*Hopper (wolf)
===Referenced===
*Tam al'Thor - as Rand's father
*Joiya Byir
*Verin Mathwin
*Natti Cauthon - as Mat's mother
*Liandrin
==Groups==
*Forsaken
*Aiel
*Defenders of the Stone
*Black Ajah
==Places==
*The Star
*Stone of Tear
*Tel'aran'rhiod
===Referenced===
*Falme
*Taren Ferry
*Remen
==Items==
*Callandor
==Concepts==
===One Power===
*Sa'angreal
*Saidin
*Balefire
*Callandor
===Sword Forms===
*Parting the Silk
*Water Flows Downhill
*Wind and Rain
*The Falling Leaf
*Watered Silk
*Cat Dances on the Wall
*The Boar Rushed Downhill
*The River Undercuts the Bank
*Stone Falls From the Mountain
==Notes==
*Subsequent printings of this book have the regular Dragon icon.