Towers of Midnight/Chapter 53

==Summary==
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Pevara Tazanovni walks through the Black Tower with Javindhra Doraille and Mazrim Taim. All around her men carrying out all sorts of tasks with the One Power. Taim shows the women the partly finished stone wall around the Tower, a guard post situated every fifty feet. Taim states that the women are only allowed to bond Dedicated, no full Asha'man. Javindhra replies they will consider it. Taim tells them to be quick otherwise he will let the other group of White Tower Aes Sedai outside the Tower select their Warders first. The women have decided to stay longer in the Black Tower to learn more about it's workings. Pevara feels it is almost time to leave, however Javindhra all but refuses to leave at this time, even though Pevara has been placed in charge of the group. Javindhra is determined to bond full Asha'man. Pevara notices the signs of madness that strikes a number of men within the Tower. She walks alone towards the huts where they live. On one side are the huts where the Bonded Aes Sedai live. Pevara had heard of methods they had used to control their men. Pevara plans to ask Tarna Feir for help in getting Jahindhra to change her mind. Tarna had expressed the night before that it was time to leave. Pevara enters her hut and tells Tarna about Jahvindhra's plan. Pevara believes that they should bond their Dedicated and leave. Tarna disagrees and thinks they should stay, believing the rebel Aes Sedai will otherwise get to bond the Asha'man. She looks up and looks Pevara in the eye. Pevara is horrified at what she sees, something has changed about her eyes. They have become cold and her smile looks like it belongs on a corpse. Pevara agrees just to placate the woman and leaves the hut. Earlier this morning the wall hadn't been manned but now Asha'man are stationed at every guard post now. The lifeless chill to Tarna's eyes are frightening. Pevara plans to create a gateway to escape, but the weaves fall apart. She realizes she is now trapped in the Tower.
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Perrin Aybara wishes Matrim Cauthon's group farewell and good luck. Perrin is stunned to learn that Moiraine Damodred is still alive. Thom laughs wondering if every farmboy will become a noble. Mat denies being a noble but Thom reminds him about being the Prince of Ravens. Jur Grady creates a gateway and tells them he will reopen it in this same spot every day right on noon. Mat's group step through the gateway. Perrin's leg had been Healed but he could still feel a shadow of taint where his injury was. All the channelers in Perrin's army have created a gateway. The entire army now walks through it to the Field of Merrilor where Rand will be. Through the other side Perrin sees the entire coalition of nations that Egwene al'Vere has gathered to oppose Rand's plan of breaking the Seals. Zarine ni Bashere t'Aybara asks Perrin if it is enough to oppose Rand. Perrin has no intention of opposing Rand as he believes breaking the seals first before reforming new ones is the correct method to be used. Perrin shouts to his men,
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The call is passed down the men and they give a loud cheer when they hear it. Perrin wants to pick a camp site that is situated away from other nations. Aravine Carnel decided to stay with Perrin rather than returning with the other refugees to Amadicia. She is now his camp steward, liaising between the different factions in his army. As Perrin's factions ride past him he salutes each leader and their men. Galadedrid Damodred and Berelain sur Paendrag Paeron ride side by side. Alliandre Maritha Kigarin stops by Perrin, asking why he doesn't ride. Perrin tells her he leads the way he wishes and prefers his feet today. He asks her to send men back to Jehannah to start recruiting everyone they can for Tarmon Gai'don. He has sent recruiting parties to all other nations under his banner already. Near the end Jori Congar approaches him. He apologizes for how he acted when he thought Perrin had slept with Berelain. Perrin tells him it's okay. Jori salutes telling him that the men will follow Perrin wherever he goes. A number of Two Rivers men had already apologized. Perrin is thankful for whatever Faile had done to make this happen. Perrin can start to feel the Last Battle happening.
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Mat looks at the surrounding area, his memories unclear if he has been here before . However he remembers the Tower vividly. Mat carries the Ashandarei that the Finn had given him, with a new counterweight at the bottom . Mat, Thom, and Noal investigate the Tower of Ghenjei. Thom uses a bronze knife to cut the symbol used at the start of the game of Snakes and Foxes. The triangle Thom had cut lights up and disappears, showing the inside of the tower. Thom cuts a much larger one so the men can actually fit in. Mat steps through and is blinded temporarily by white light. It finally fades showing a very different world. The other two come through. They are in a chamber not quite square. There are four corridors leading off in separate directions from the room. Mat doesn't recognize this place from his previous visit . Noal wants to make sure their doorway out works. He steps out and disappears. Noal comes back after a short time. He tells them he was sealed out and had to redraw the pattern again. They know their means of escape works. They analyze some glowing steam coming out of the floor. It moves away from the flaming torch they carry. Noal wonders at how large inside of the tower is. Mat believes they have been transported away to somewhere else. They look out a window to see a very different view of the land. Mat recognizes a lot of the landscape from last time. He looks for the three spires he saw on the horizon last time, and realizes from the angle of the land that they must now actually be in one of the spires. Mat wonders if the land of the Aelfinn and Eelfinn are one and the same. Moiraine had fallen through the Twisted redstone doorframe which means that the Eelfinn must have her. The men begin to walk down a hallway. Mat feels like he is being watched now and notices faint motion behind. He spins in that direction but nothing is there. The hallway ends so they move in another direction. Noal begins to write a map. Mat decides to retrace their steps all the way back to the starting chamber with the gateway out. They get back to where they had started but it is a different chamber now. Faint laughter can be heard. Mat asks if Thom has heard the story of Birgitte Silverbow inside the Tower of Ghenjei. Thom doesn't recall one but he does know of the tale of Elmiara who had tried to save her lover inside the tower. Mat is pleased that the tale did survive , it had just changed forms. 
Suddenly a voice tells them that they have broken the bargain. Mat spins to see an Eelfinn standing there. The Eelfinn tells them he will lead them to where they want to go, as long as they leave their iron, fire and music behind. Mat starts to agree with the Eelfinn when he tells Thom to play some music. Thom plays on his flute and the music dispels the hypnotic trance the Eelfinn was trying to place on them with its voice. The Eelfinn again asks them to leave fire behind and it will take it to the Chamber of Bonds. Thom carries on playing his flute, which puts it to sleep. Noal tells Mat he was struggling to keep up with the conversation which was in Old Tongue, in which Mat didn't realize he was speaking. Mat pulls out some dice and allocates the number of pips to a hallway. He rolls and they head down the corridor. Mat rolls again and it is the way they had already come. They go back into the room but the sleeping Eelfinn has now gone. They then head down another long hallway. The next roll sends them back the same way they came again. Noal is protesting when they step into a completely styled room. Mat recalls the room now and knows they are on the right track.
==Characters==
*Pevara Tazanovni
*Javindhra Doraille
*Mazrim Taim
*Tarna Feir
*Perrin Aybara
*Mat Cauthon
*Noal Charin
*Thom Merrilin
*Jur Grady
*Faile Aybara 
*Gaul
*Bain
*Chiad
*Fager Neald
*Edarra
*Aravine Carnel
*Berelain Paendrag
*Galad Damodred
*Bertain Gallenne
*Alliandre Maritha Kigarin
*Gerard Arganda
*Azi al'Thone
*Jori Congar
===Referenced===
*Moiraine Damodred
*Rand al'Thor
*Slayer
*Egwene al'Vere
*Elayne Trakand
*Sulin
*Tam al'Thor
*Gholam
*Aludra
*Birgitte
*Master Denezel
==Places==
*Black Tower
*Whitebridge
*Field of Merrilor
*Tower of Ghenjei
===Referenced===
*Illian
*Andor
*Tear
*Amadicia
*Jehannah
*Mayene
*Two Rivers
*Shadar Logoth
==Items==
*Ashandarei