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Reading The Wheel of Time: Egwene Makes a Stand in The Gathering Storm (Part 11)
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The Wheel of Time
Reading The Wheel of Time: Egwene Makes a Stand in The Gathering Storm (Part 11)
Egwene breaks her silence around Elaida in dramatic fashion…
By Sylas K Barrett
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Published on December 9, 2025
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This week in Reading The Wheel of Time, we are finishing up Aviendha’s little portion of chapter 15 and then moving on to chapter 16, in which Egwene’s fight against Elaida finally comes to a very dramatic peak. It’s a very exciting chapter, and very well written, and I’m excited to get into it.
Aviendha is carrying out her newest pointless punishment when she is startled by the approach of Amys. Amys comments on Aviendha’s dedication to her work, and Aviendha can’t figure out why Amys would shame her so. She replies that she only does as duty demands, and Amys answers that she does… and she also does not.
“Sometimes, Aviendha, we are so concerned with the things we have done that we do not stop to consider the things we have not.”
Aviendha has no idea what the proper response to this comment is, but she is saved from responding when she notices a light by the Traveling grounds. They move closer, and find that Flinn and Bashere have returned from their meeting with the Seanchan. A maiden, Corana, informs them that the Seanchan have agreed to another meeting with the Car’a’carn, but Corana doesn’t think he should sue for peace with such people. Amys and Aviendha are horrified to learn that the Seanchan have collared a number of Shaido Wise Ones, who were put on display when Rand’s delegation arrived.
Amys asks for Aviendha’s assessment, and Aviendha admits that, however it pains her, the Last Battle must be faced first before anything else, even this grave insult, can be addressed. After Corana has left, Amys and Aviendha discuss the disturbance this news will cause among the rest of the Aiel, and how many will call for Rand to give up his attempts to make peace with the Seanchan. Amys declares that it is time to stop coddling Aviendha.
In the White Tower, Egwene has been called to attend the white sisters Ferane (a Sitter), Miyasi, and Tesan. After an hour of shelling walnuts, she is finally asked how she would deal with the Dragon Reborn. Ferane tries to make it sound like she is giving Egwene a lesson in logic, but Egwene realizes that this is a test; Ferane has heard of Egwene criticisms of Elaida and is trying to feel her out.
Egwene answers carefully, first explaining how she would handle it in a purely theoretical sense, and then, when called to, how she would handle it as herself, with the knowledge that she has of growing up with Rand. She points out that Rand should have been worked with, guided and supported, not pressured and fought and attacked, and that all of the “terrorizing” he has done fits with what prophecy says he will and must do. She compares Rand to a river, “calm and placid when not agitated, but a furious and deadly current when squeezed too tightly.”
She outlines how she would approach Rand, the delegation she would send, and which Ajahs would send the right signals to him. She also points out that the Reds’ experience is in “dealing with” men who can channel, “which is different than ‘working with.’” She reminds the Aes Sedai of their history as master guiders and manipulators, subtle and clever, and asks why now, of all times, they abandoned that way for beating kings and locking them in boxes.
She also points out that they cannot deal with Rand until they fix the White Tower, and lays out everything she has thought about the situation, both the split between rebels and Elaida’s followers and the decay inside the Tower that has happened since. She talks about the way the Ajahs have allowed themselves to be torn apart and lays out the conversations that she has had with members of other Ajahs, some of whom have been reasonable while others have been stubborn, and encourages the three Whites to make overtures to members of other Ajahs.
By the time she has finished talking, the three all seem to be listening and taking her advice seriously, and she is even praised for her logic. Ferane remarks that Egwene would make an excellent White, a compliment Egwene accepts while also reminding her that the Amyrlin has no Ajah.
As she leaves, she inclines her head to Ferane, and receives the same gesture in return. Egwene is elated, right up until Katerine comes to collect her and informs Egwene that she will have no more lessons. Elaida has decided that Egwene’s refusal to curtsy to sisters is the last mark of her defiance, and that Egwene will be given no more lessons, only work, until she lets go of her pride. Egwene is dismayed, not at the work but at the fact that not having lessons cuts her off from being able to do any work with the Aes Sedai.
Set to clean out one of the fireplaces by Laras, Egwene considers giving in and starting to curtsy, in order to regain her access to the rest of the sisters, but she realizes that giving in won’t solve her problems. It will only show Elaida that an all-work detail is an effective way to get Egwene to submit.
After hours of working, Egwene is surprised when Laras, quietly and secretly, shows her a hidden room in the kitchen floor, offering to hide Egwene there and smuggle her out of the city. She tells Egwene that she finds the beatings she is undergoing shameful. Laras has served loyally for many years but won’t be party to breaking someone’s spirit.
“Well, I can see when a girl has moved away from being instructed and into being beaten down. I won’t have it, not in my kitchens. Light burn Elaida for thinking she could do such a thing! Execute you or make you a novice, I don’t care. But this breaking is unacceptable!”
Egwene is tempted for a moment to return to her allies having rescued herself, especially now that she doesn’t know if she’ll have any more success in the Tower. But she can’t sit outside and watch the Tower fall, so she refuses.
They are almost caught by Katerine, but Egwene’s quick thinking covers Laras’ deception. She is told to clean herself up so that she can serve Elaida for dinner.
After an hour of scrubbing away soot, Egwene makes her way to Elaida’s rooms. She has decided that she will take the same tactic with Elaida as last time, remaining silent so as not to anger her, but not showing undue deference, either. However, when she goes in she finds that Elaida is entertaining a group of Sitters, including a representative from every Ajah except the Red and Blue, including Yukiri and Doesine, as well as Ferane.
Egwene thinks for a moment that Elaida might be trying to mend some of the division in the Tower, but it quickly becomes clear that she is showing off her breaking of Egwene. Elaida makes derogatory comments about the different Ajahs and gives Egwene the job of refilling her wine every time it is slightly less than full. She even makes comments about the “stink of soot” on Egwene.
When conversation turns to the Seanchan, Elaida tries to dismiss concerns about them as laughable, but Shevan, a Brown, has interviewed Egwene about them and thinks that the Aes Sedai should be concerning themselves with the danger to Sisters. Elaida accuses Egwene of being a liar and orders her to admit it.
[…] as Egwene glanced down the long mahogany table, set with bright white Sea Folk porcelain and flickering red candles, she saw five pairs of eyes studying her. She could see their questions. Egwene had spoken boldly to them when alone, but would she hold to her assertions now, faced by the most powerful woman in the world? A woman who held Egwene’s life in her hands?
Egwene realizes that she cannot keep to her plan of silence and keeping her head down. She engages in a debate with Elaida, reminding Elaida of her Dream and stating that the assembled women know that Egwene doesn’t lie. Elaida must admit that the Seanchan are a threat. Elaida orders Egwene to kneel and beg forgiveness for her words and actions, but Egwene refuses.
She points out that the Amyrlin should be able to convince people to obey her, and should not have to resort to force. She points out how Elaida has treated every sister who displeased her, and mentions her idea for a fourth Oath, an oath of obedience to the Amyrlin Seat. Egwene relies on the knowledge Siuan taught her, pulling a quote from the first Brown to be raised to the Amyrlin Seat and pointing out all the flaws in Elaida’s plans to capture and cage the Dragon Reborn, quoting The Karaethon Cycle and pointing out all the flaws in Elaida’s logic. She even calls Elaida a coward for refusing to attempt to mend the division in the Tower.
Elaida’s eyes flared wide. “How dare you!”“I dare the truth, Elaida,” Egwene said quietly. “You are a coward and a tyrant. I’d name you Darkfriend as well, but I suspect that the Dark One would perhaps be embarrassed to associate with you.”
Elaida loses herself completely and begins to beat Egwene with flows of Air, causing Egwene to fall and cut herself on the broken pitcher. She screams that Egwene and the rebels are the Darkfriends, continuing to beat her even as the other sisters tell her to stop, that she is violating Tower Law by using the One Power to discipline an initiate.
“I am Tower law!” Elaida raved. She pointed at the sisters. “You mock me. I know you do it. Behind my back. You show me deference when you see me, but I know what you say, what you whisper. You ungrateful fools! After what I’ve done for you! Do you think I’ll suffer you forever? Take this one as an example!”
But when Elaida turns, she sees Egwene standing, calmly, and watching her. She is shocked into silence, one hand pressed to her breast, as Egwene calmly tells her that she wishes she could give in, that the Tower could find a good leader in Elaida. That she would accept execution if it meant leaving the White Tower whole.
Elaida only declares that death is too good for Egwene and shouts for guards to come and throw her in the deepest dungeon the Tower can provide. She orders that it will be announced in the streets that Egwene is a Darkfriend.
As Egwene falls into unconsciousness, she feels a deep sorrow, knowing that, one way or another, her fight to save the White Tower has come to an end.
You know who would really love Egwene? Cadsuane.
I was fully cheering Egwene on out loud at the end of this chapter. I know she was (rightfully) worried that speaking her mind to Elaida would ruin any chance she had to keep working with the Aes Sedai in the Tower, but it must have felt so good to finally stop holding back all her opinions and righteous fury towards the woman who has done so much to destroy the Aes Sedai. Elaida is petty, vainglorious, power-hungry, and, while she may not actually be stupid, she is very dumb about people. This has always been true, even before Siuan was deposed, and before being touched by Mordeth-Fain messed with Elaida’s head. I honestly think she was doomed to be a poor Amyrlin no matter what. But of course, as Egwene pointed out, she is uniquely unsuited to be Amyrlin in this time, particularly.
As a Red, Elaida represents the world’s distrust and fear of men who can channel. And to those men, she represents pain and a slow death. But even outside of Egwene’s very salient point about how Rand would never trust a Red, any Red living during the Dragon’s time has a particularly difficult struggle ahead of her in accepting that the traditional way of “dealing with” men who can channel cannot be applied to the Dragon Reborn. This is even more true now that Rand has cleansed saidin, but even if he hadn’t, even if there weren’t Asha’man to deal with, the simple fact is that the Dragon Reborn must not be gentled, and he must not be restrained, either, since the prophecies say he must do so many things before the Last Battle.
Most people in this world are struggling with the fear of the Dragon and what he is prophesied to do, and many have struggled to recognize what Egwene knows: that the devastation the Dragon is prophesied to bring is inevitable, and perhaps even necessary to his success. This is as true of the Aes Sedai as of any other group. While it is understandable that everyone would struggle with such a difficult, frightening situation, for a Red Sister, whose entire Ajah is founded on the need to gentle such men to protect the world, it would be particularly difficult to adapt to this new reality. I agree with Egwene that any Red would make a poor Amyrlin for such times.
Though to be fair, it isn’t just the Reds. Any sister might find the idea of allowing the Dragon Reborn to become a leader on the world stage difficult to swallow, because of the taint and because of the prophecies, even though the prophecies say he will and must do the very things everyone fears. We know that Moiraine and Siuan worried over the White Tower’s ability to engage with Rand’s existence, which is the other reason (aside from fear of death by Darkfriend) they kept his birth and identity a secret. From everyone, not just Reds.
Of course, Elaida’s issues are deeper than that. As I said, I don’t think her personality is particularly well-suited to being Amyrlin in any era, but she probably would have gotten away with it if she’d been raised to the Amyrlin Seat normally, had not governed during Rand’s time, and hadn’t so many dark forces interfering with the White Tower during her tenure. Elaida is absolutely responsible for contributing to the distrust between the Ajahs and the general state of the White Tower, and if she was a stronger leader she might have done some work to combat the work of the Black Ajah—however, even outside of what she has or has not done, the Black has been very successful in creating an atmosphere of fear and danger in the halls of the White Tower. Alviarin forcing Elaida to pass certain regulations and decrees was a big part of that, but not the whole thing by any means. As we know, the Black have been at work undermining the White Tower for a very long time, since before Siuan and Moiraine were even students. Probably long before.
This is why the search for the Black is so important, and will be particularly so when/if Egwene is put on the Amyrlin Seat and can actually work with the Black Ajah hunters directly. If she can unseat Elaida, unify the Aes Sedai, and get rid of the influence of the Black, we will have a very different White Tower on our hands, and hopefully just in time to help set a few things up before the Last Battle breaks.
I have to applaud the way the end of the chapter was written. It was beautifully cinematic; I could see everything so clearly in my mind’s eye. Egwene, stoic and strong and regal despite her injuries and the flurry of blows falling upon her. Elaida, looking wild and crazed and paranoid, wide-eyed and rumpled, almost like she is the one being struck, rather than the other way around. The two facing off together, while the Sitters look on, horrified but also, perhaps, realizing a truth about Elaida, and about Egwene, they had been unwilling to recognize before.
Everyone in that room saw who the true Amyrlin was, and nobody thought it was Elaida. Egwene recognized that this battle was the deciding one in her war, but I’m not sure she has a full sense of the impression she made on everyone. Now she’s going to a deep dark dungeon, but I don’t think she’ll be there very long. Something is coming to a head, and I can’t imagine at this point that the current Sitters—united by Egwene’s efforts and by Elaida’s display—won’t decide that something has to change. That Elaida is, as Egwene has tried to show them, destroying the Aes Sedai.
Although they might not like the optics of making Egwene official on their end, it’s not like the Aes Sedai in the Tower have any other clear options to replace Elaida. Or enough time to spend on the political maneuverings and debates required to pick out a new candidate. Especially since few of them are able to talk to anyone from another Ajah.
So I think this is going to be the pivotal moment in which the Hall decides they have to do something about Elaida, and that they may very well need to make Egwene their Amyrlin. She has made an impression on enough of them that I think, under the circumstances, the Sitters will make that choice. It might take them a minute, though, which will leave Egwene in the dungeons for a little while.
You know, narratively, this would be the perfect moment for the Seanchan to attack the White Tower, while the Sitters are in the midst of conversations about Elaida’s actions and Elaida is going around issuing proclamations that Egwene is a darkfriend.
Also, the absolutely pettiness of Elaida being so upset at being accused of being darkfriend material that she’s like, “no you are!” is really funny. Or it would be if it wasn’t so dangerous. It’s also funny that she missed Egwene’s actual insult, which was that even the Dark One wouldn’t want her in his ranks. What a perfect burn, oh my golly.
Anyway, I also really appreciated Egwene’s assessments of Rand, both to the Whites and to Elaida, in particular the suggestion that he probably always had a temper, it’s just that it was rarely seen in the Two Rivers because there wasn’t anything there to spark it. I do remember we saw a strong drive for justice from Rand, and that his temper sparked whenever that drive was challenged. It also flared whenever he experienced mistrust or suspicion towards Moiraine. He also was very angry at Ba’alzamon (rightly so) by the end; that rage very much fueled him through the confrontation at The Eye of the World. Egwene also remembers everything that is good in Rand’s personality, and that is so very valuable in someone who will soon be having high-stakes encounters with him on the political stage. Anyone and everyone can fall prey to their own emotions around what Rand is and how he comes off; Egwene remembering his good nature, even if just as a temper to her own anger and fear, can only help as she tries to come to some kind of agreement and alliance with him before the arrival of Tarmon Gai’don.
You know, I kind of see a parallel between Rand and Elaida here. Like Rand’s anger, Elaida’s more problematic personality traits have been enhanced both by the pressure of her position (which Elaida chose, of course, but I digress) and by the touch of darkness. In Rand’s case, his anger and suspicion has been enhanced by the taint on saidin and the madness it creates. In Elaida’s, her paranoia around the other Aes Sedai not respecting her as Amyrlin and her power-hungry, self-important nature have been enhanced by the touch of Mordeth-Fain. In both cases it’s hard to tell where the natural strain ends and the unnatural influence begins, but both are there. Moreover, Elaida and Rand both have a tendency to discount the humanity of other people. Each has their own reasons for this, but they share a common impulse to view others as tools to be wielded, and any dissent from said tools as a threat to their position and to their goals.
Of course we also have many parallels between Egwene and Rand. I’ve remarked on these before, but I thought it was kind of perfect that Egwene herself identified them. Elaida tried to subdue Rand by force, to imprison and beat him until he accepted her authority and was bent to her will. Now she is doing the same with Egwene, up to including throwing her into the deepest cell of the Tower. Elaida seems to believe that authority and loyalty can be achieved with pain and fear, and in both cases that idea has backfired spectacularly. Indeed, I think that her attempts to break Egwene are the very thing that is going to result in her own fall, perhaps even more so than Egwene’s efforts to inspire and unite individual sisters.
As Egwene said to the Black Ajah hunters: “Loyalty is better earned than forced.”
Her words could not have been more prophetic had she Dreamed them.
Looking at Egwene and Elaida, two Amyrlins who could not better exemplify how to lead and how not to, and seeing parallels with the leader of the male channelers in both of them, I feel like we have a really clear and sharp picture of two possible directions that Rand himself could tip. In one direction, Elaida’s direction, lies a further hardening, a further removal of his own humanity, which would no doubt come with an increased disdain for others and increased paranoia, including a further withdrawal from those few people he still allows himself connection to. In the other direction, Egwene’s direction, lies an improved connection with humanity and a greater empathy for others, (something that we, and Egwene, know he does possess, somewhere buried under the pain and trauma and taint madness) as well as an understanding of how to weather pain and grief in a way that both keeps him strong and keeps him human.
Aviendha is also on a similar journey as Egwene and Rand and Elaida, though hers is on a slightly smaller scale and is somewhat less fraught. Not that it probably feels that way to her; she even considers that if things continue on as they are for too much longer, she is going to lose her sanity.
Like Rand and Egwene, Aviendha is learning to be a leader, to understand difficult concepts like how to put aside her feelings about the collaring of Aiel by the Seanchan. She displays a great deal of wisdom when she explains the situation to Corana—how preparing for the Last Battle means putting aside everything else, no matter how important—including an ability to look past her own emotions and weigh the situation dispassionately. That doesn’t mean stifling those emotions or deciding that they are unimportant—it means not being ruled by them. As we know, this is a lesson Rand desperately needs to learn, and if Aviendha can ever pass her last test, she might be able to help teach it to him.
Right now, Aviendha is in exactly the position that Egwene was when she was called to serve Elaida at the dinner, so much so that Amys’ advice could have been delivered to Egwene as she made her way up to Elaida’s rooms: “Sometimes […] we are so concerned with the things we have done that we do not stop to consider the things we have not.”
Egwene had a plan for how to deal with encounters with Elaida, which was to accept punishment and to keep from angering Elaida as much as possible, so that she might retain her freedom to keep working with the rest of the Tower. She made this choice because she understood that her job was not to fight Elaida but to protect the Aes Sedai and restore the White Tower, and so she looked past her anger and hatred of Elaida, choosing to do what was tactically and morally most important, rather than what would feel the best. However, in this second confrontation, Egwene realized that, while her goals remained unchanged, the situation was different. She needed to show the other Aes Sedai her strength, be willing to stand up to Elaida as she has asked them to do, be willing to “put her money where her mouth is,” so to speak, when it comes to being an Aes Sedai and doing what must be done for the good of the Tower. Egwene realized that she needed to stop focusing on what she was doing (keeping her head down enough so that Elaida wouldn’t prevent her from having opportunities to speak to the other Aes Sedai) and recognize what she hasn’t done, which is showing everyone, including Elaida, that she is willing to stand up for what is right, for the Aes Sedai and for the White Tower, no matter the consequences to herself. She feels sadness at the end because she doesn’t know what the outcome of her choice will be, but she recognized that there was no other option. Sticking to what she was doing, however correct and useful that course of action was when she first settled on it, would have been a mistake. Probably a fatal one.
The Wise Ones are waiting for Aviendha to come to a similar realization. She can see no reason for her punishments, is unaware of any transgression that might warrant so much shaming, even goes so far to think that the Wise Ones seem to be behaving erratically, but she continually focuses on how to bear the punishment correctly, how to discern the mistakes she assumes she must have made in order to receive such shaming, and never considers any more outside-the-box solutions, or reasons, for her current predicament.
She never wonders if the Wise Ones are wrong, never decides to trust her own instincts, to believe that she knows what is right and wrong, has the wisdom to lead and therefore to stand up for herself. She hasn’t realized that the situation has changed, and she needs to make a different choice for how to handle it.
I do feel like, once she does, she is going to be unstoppable.
I also have to take a moment to praise the character of Laras. We haven’t seen much of her in a while, but her characterization remains distinctive and enjoyable. I really love her particular sense of morality. She doesn’t have any loyalty to any woman in particular, and she doesn’t really care who is in charge, but if someone does something that crosses the line, she will act every time. She helped Siuan, who she didn’t even like, for exactly this reason. I’ll be interested to see how she feels about Egwene when Egwene becomes Amyrlin. Will Egwene’s display of strength and dedication win Laras over to a more personal respect for the Amyrlin Seat?
I’m also wondering if people will ever find out that Perrin is responsible for the Seanchan managing to collar so many Shaido. The rest of the Wise Ones might be temporarily willing to put aside their need for vengeance in order to focus on the most important problem, but it might hit a bit differently to know that someone Rand trusts, and someone who will be back in Rand’s inner circle soon, made the choice to allow the collaring. Rand and the Wise Ones will be hard pressed, I think, to keep the rest of the Aiel from wanting to exact some very serious toh from Perrin.
We’re moving on to chapters 17 and 18 next week, in which Cadsuane finally comes up with a method of dealing with Semirhage and a revelation about Elaida throws the rebel Aes Sedai camp into chaos. Next week will also be the last post before the new year! [end-mark]
The post Reading The Wheel of Time: Egwene Makes a Stand in <i>The Gathering Storm</i> (Part 11) appeared first on Reactor.
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