Chapter 1 - Apples First

Summary

A wind sweeps across Seanchan and eventually reaches Dragonmount in Andor, where Almen Bunt tends his sister's orchard amid widespread famine and blighted crops. He worries over a desperate letter from his sons and the failure of the apple harvest until a mysterious stranger with a stump for an arm arrives. The man speaks cryptically about the world's madness and causes the dead trees to instantly bloom and bear ripe red apples. Almen recognizes the visitor as the Dragon Reborn, orders the immediate gathering of the miraculous harvest, and feels an inexplicable pull to follow the stranger eastward.

Characters

• Almen Bunt / Almen — Visits his sister's orchard near Dragonmount while managing a failing crop and worrying about his sons' desperate letter. He witnesses the blighted apples miraculously bloom and bear ripe fruit upon the arrival of a mysterious stranger. After recognizing the man as the Dragon Reborn, he orders the immediate gathering of the harvest before following an inexplicable pull toward the stranger's path.
• Adim — Thirteen-year-old nephew voices concerns about dwindling grain supplies and the unnatural winter alongside his brother Hahn. He obeys Almen's orders to fetch workers and carts to salvage the miraculously restored crop.
• Hahn — Fifteen-year-old nephew attempts to maintain a brave front for his younger brother while worrying about their situation. He accepts Almen's directive to sharpen a felling axe before joining the others in the orchard.
• Uso — Orchard worker summoned to fetch carts alongside Moor. He runs toward the orchard with a concerned expression upon seeing Almen's gesture.
• Moor — Orchard worker who squints at Almen before hastening toward the miraculously restored trees alongside Uso.
• Dragon Reborn (Dragon Reborn) — Tall young man with deep red hair and a stump for a left arm arrives at the orchard with calm intensity and cryptic warnings about the world's madness. He causes the blighted apple trees to instantly bloom and bear ripe fruit, then departs toward an unknown destination while Almen recognizes him as the Dragon Reborn.