Chapter 18 - The Caemlyn Road

Summary

The group travels along the Caemlyn Road under the pursuit of Trolloc horns, forcing Lan to scout ahead and reveal a massive army driving them toward a trap. After a chaotic battle in the hills where Lan engages a Myrddraal in single combat and Moiraine uses an angreal to summon a wall of fire and an earthquake to halt the pursuers, the exhausted party escapes northward. They navigate through difficult terrain, laying a false scent trail with Moiraine's staff to mislead the Dark One's forces, before stumbling upon the vine-choked, ruined walls of the ancient city of Aridhol, now known as Shadar Logoth.

Characters

• Rand — Rand rides Cloud through the hills, fighting off Trollocs with a catchpole and hook while struggling to stay mounted. He witnesses Moiraine's powerful use of the One Power to create a wall of fire and later helps lay a false scent trail before spotting the ruins of Shadar Logoth.
• Mat — Mat rides with the group, shouting the ancient warcry of Manetheren during the battle and later admitting he cannot remember the words or their meaning. He is the only one unhorsed during the skirmish and identifies the ruined city as he is led into it by Lan.
• Perrin — Perrin fights alongside the group, shouting the warcry and struggling against three Trollocs that have him pinned. He observes the ruined city and points out the collapsed nature of its walls, noting the lack of inhabitants.
• Egwene / Egwene al'Vere — Egwene rides Bela and fights Trollocs with a belt knife. She questions Rand and Mat about the warcry they shouted, feeling she briefly understood it, and listens as Moiraine explains the lineage of the Red Eagle and the Rose of the Sun.
• Moiraine (Aes Sedai, Moiraine Sedai) — Moiraine leads the group, debates strategy with Lan, and uses an angreal to summon a massive earthquake and wall of fire to stop the pursuing Trollocs and Myrddraal. Exhausted, she later lays a false scent trail for the group's escape and reveals the name of the ruined city, Shadar Logoth.
• Nynaeve (Wisdom) — Nynaeve rides alongside Moiraine, arguing for faster travel and later assisting the exhausted Aes Sedai. She gives Moiraine a packet of herbs after the battle and watches the argument between Moiraine and Lan before proceeding to the ruined city.
• Lan (Warder, Lord of the Seven Towers) — Lan scouts ahead, confirms the size of the pursuing army, and charges a Myrddraal in single combat while his horse Mandarb fights alongside him. After the battle, he argues with Moiraine about her strength and leads the group into Shadar Logoth to escape the pursuers.
• Thom (gleeman) — Thom rides with the group, growingl that the Trollocs are trying to frighten them. He observes the battle and later comments on the strange warcry Mat shouted, noting he might use it in a story before urging the group to move.
• Cloud — Cloud is Rand's spirited gray horse, which rears and kicks at Trollocs during the battle. He is nearly thrown by hooks and jerks Rand backwards, later stumbling under the ground's tremors before galloping north with the group.
• Bela — Bela is Egwene's shaggy brown mare, ridden during the flight and the battle, keeping close to the other horses as they navigate the rough terrain.
• Aldieb — Aldieb is Moiraine's white mare, which dashes and cuts at Trollocs with the slightest touch. She staggers during the earthquake and Moiraine sways in the saddle as she leans on the reins and saddle for support, eventually being led by the reins by Lan after the Aes Sedai dismounts.
• Mandarb — Mandarb is Lan's black stallion, which plunges down the slope to charge the Myrddraal. It matches step and stroke with the Myrddraal's black horse in a clear circle, and later staggers under the ground's tremors before galloping north.