EWoT: Elayne Trakand

Elayne Trakand Biographical information Nationality Andoran Date of birth 981 NE Current Status Alive Physical description Gender Female Height 1 span, 10 inches Hair color Red Gold Eye color Blue Chronological and political information First mentioned TEOTW 34 First appeared TEOTW 40 Last appeared TOM 56 Title Queen Rank Aes Sedai Ajah Green Ajah
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Elayne Trakand is the current queen of Andor and also lays claim to the Sun Throne of Cairhien. She is an Aes Sedai of considerable strength in the One Power. Elayne is Bonded to Birgitte Silverbow and Rand al'Thor, the latter of whom is her lover. She will soon bear his twins.

Acknowledged to be potentially one of the greatest Queens of Andor since its founding, she has shown intellect, delicacy and diplomacy in her doings and is an accomplished player at Daes Dae'mar.

Contents 1 Appearance 2 Channeling Abilities 3 Background 3.1 Family Tree 4 Activities 4.1 To the White Tower 4.2 Out of the Tower 4.3 Back to the Tower 4.4 And Away Again 4.5 Reunion with Rand 4.6 Back on the Hunt 4.7 Bonding 4.8 Raised to Aes Sedai 4.9 Escape from Ebou Dar 4.10 Campaign for the Lion Throne 4.11 Capture by the Black Ajah 4.12 Gaining the Throne 4.13 As Queen of Andor 5 Ter'angreal 6 Rand's Women 7 Parallels 8 Notes

AppearanceEdit

Elayne is described as exceedingly beautiful, with blue eyes like sapphires and red-gold, curly hair. With a smooth-skinned, perfectly oval face, Elayne can charm many with her pretty, dimpled smile with full red lips. She stands around one span, ten inches tall with long supple limbs.

She bears a resemblance both in name and appearance to Ilyena, the doomed wife of Lews Therin Telamon from the Age of Legends.

Channeling AbilitiesEdit

While customary for the Daughter-Heir of Andor to receive training at the White Tower,^[2] Elayne is the only member of House Trakand in memory and the first to sit on the Lion Throne to be born with channeling abilities high enough to become full Aes Sedai.^[3]

Elayne is one of the most powerful channelers to have been born in the last 1000 years. She has helped rediscover the ability to create ter'angreal, demonstrating strength in both in Earth and Fire. She is the most skilled Cloud Dancer among the Rebel Aes Sedai due to Sea Folk Windfinder training. Elayne has the same strength potentially as both Egwene and Aviendha. She is one of the strongest among Aes Sedai, with only Nynaeve, Alivia, Sharina, Talaan, Tamela, Viendre, and the Forsaken known to better her in strength.

BackgroundEdit

The youngest child and only daughter of Queen Morgase Trakand of Andor, Elayne grew up in the Royal Palace in Caemlyn. She was Heir Apparent throughout her childhood, bearing the title of Daughter-Heir, as only women traditionally hold the Lion Throne of Andor. She and her older brother Gawyn Trakand were fathered by Taringail Damodred, as was her half brother Galad Damodred.

Family TreeEdit

Ishara Casalain

Mordrellen Mantear

Maighdin Trakand

Luc Mantear

Janduin

Tigraine Mantear1

Taringail Damodred

Morgase Trakand2

Rand al'Thor

Galadedrid Damodred

Gawyn Trakand

Elayne Trakand

Taringail Damodred was married twice: first to Tigraine Mantear, with whom he fathered Galad Damodred, and then to Morgase Trakand who bore Gawyn and Elayne. Although Galad is half brother both to Rand and to Gawyn and Elayne, Rand is only very distantly related to Elayne by their common ancestor.

ActivitiesEdit

To the White TowerEdit

Elayne's first appearance is when Rand al'Thor falls into the Royal Garden^[4] and makes acquaintances with Elayne, her brother Gawyn Trakand, her half-brother Galad, and Queen Morgase herself.^[5] Elayne falls in love with Rand at first sight. She does not follow Rand both due to her royal duties and, as a daughter of House Trakand, she is to train at the White Tower.

Not long after her encounter with Rand, Elayne leaves Caemlyn with Gawyn and Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan for Tar Valon.^[6] At the Tower, she becomes close friends with two who know Rand quite well: his former childhood sweetheart Egwene al'Vere and his village's Wisdom, Nynaeve al'Meara. She also gets to know Min Farshaw, a young woman who had met Rand and is in the Tower for "safekeeping."^[7]

Out of the TowerEdit

When she overhears Liandrin speaking of the need for Egwene and Nynaeve to leave the Tower to help Rand,^[8] Elayne elects to travel through the Ways with Egwene, Nynaeve, and Min to Falme.^[9] It turns out to be a trap set by the Black Ajah. Egwene is collared by Seanchan as a damane, but Elayne and Nynaeve escape capture^[10] and, with Min, devise a plan to rescue their friend. They free Egwene, but are separated by the battle that ensues in which the Horn of Valere is blown and Rand fights Ishamael across the sky, emerging victorious.^[11]

Back to the TowerEdit

Elayne returns to the Tar Valon with Egwene, Nynaeve, Hurin and Mat, led by Verin Sedai.^[12] In the Tower, the three girls training to be Aes Sedai face discipline as though they were runaways rather than victims of a Black Ajah plot in order to keep quiet the reality of the Black Ajah.^[13] Privately, the Amyrlin Siuan Sanche acknowledges their situation, allowing Egwene and Elayne to be raised from Novice to Accepted. (Nynaeve was already Accepted.)

And Away AgainEdit

Siuan trusts these girls not to be darkfriends and assigns Egwene and Nynaeve the task of hunting Black Ajah. Elayne is excluded due to her political importance in Tower relations with Andor,^[14] but Nynaeve and Egwene do not hesitate to bring her into their confidence.^[15] The hunt sends the girls to Tear and although Egwene and Nynaeve assure Elayne that she is not required to join them, Elayne is discontent to stay in the Tower (still suffering her penance) while her friends are out having adventures.^[16] She sends a letter to her mother Morgase with Mat to assure her of Elayne's well-being,^[17] and the girls set off.

The girls are captured twice, once on the way to Tear on the order of three Fades then rescued by Aiel,^[18] then again in Tear by the very women they are hunting.^[19] They are rescued by Mat and Juilin Sandar.^[20]

Reunion with RandEdit

During Elayne and the other two girls' imprisonment and rescue, Rand draws Callandor from the Heart of Stone and proclaims himself the Dragon Reborn. In the aftermath of that declaration in the Stone of Tear, Egwene, Elayne and Nynaeve masquerade as full Aes Sedai to keep the Tairens under control. Moiraine knows but does not give them away.^[21] Elayne finally takes the opportunity while in Tear with Rand to express her feelings for him. Egwene shares that she no longer sees a future with Rand and feels no romantic connection to him, and the two girls discuss bringing this revelation to Rand.^[22] On the heels of Egwene's speech to Rand dissuading him of her interest, Elayne is to declare hers, though Elayne's part of the conversation does not go quite according to plan.^[23]

Elayne and Rand spend precious moments together in Tear, Elayne sharing her knowledge of statecraft and the two stealing kisses.^[1] Unfortunately, their time is limited - soon Rand and Egwene go to Rhuidean, and Elayne and Nynaeve to Tarabon. Before she leaves, Elayne has two letters delivered to Rand each with conflicting declarations of her feelings for him.^[24]

Back on the HuntEdit

Elayne and Nynaeve travel by way of a Sea Folk ship, reputedly the fastest ships available, and Elayne quickly discover how: Sea Folk Windfinders can channel.^[25] Elayne promises to keep this secret, as the Sea Folk fear Aes Sedai meddling. (However, Elayne lets slip to Egwene while in Tel'aran'rhiod that Jorin can channel.)^[26] Juilin Sandar and Thom Merrilin are sent by Lan and Rand to look after the two. After a time, Elayne recognizes Thom from dusty childhood memories as her mother's former lover.^[18] She comes to see Thom as a surrogate father, a role he gladly accepts.

In Tarabon they are instrumental in routing the Black Ajah and returning the Panarch Amathera to her office.^[27]

Nynaeve and Elayne leave for Tar Valon with Thom and Juilin to deliver the Seal to the Tower.^[28] They are again held captive and in the process get an introduction to forkroot, a drug that renders them unconscious and, when they come to, unable to access the Source.^[29] Juilin and Thom come to their rescue. The party dons disguises and aliases as they travel across Amadicia, since they are obviously being sought by the White Tower (since Morgase is frantic about her daughter's disappearance) as well as Black Ajah, darkfriends, and Moghedien. They no longer see the Tower as a destination any more desirable than capture by darkfriends, suspicious that they are one and the same.^[30] They decide to seek out Salidar where the Rebel Aes Sedai are gathering.

After meeting Galad in Sienda and refusing to accompany him to Caemlyn, yet another reason to hide from recognition, the group takes cover as a part of Valan Luca's Traveling Show circus.^[31] Elayne, under the alias Morelin, performs on the high wire.^[32] She and Nynaeve encounter a Seanchan woman named Cerandin among the animal trainers, who gives the women an a'dam.^[33] Elayne is able to figure out how the tel'angreal works and believes she may be able to make more.^[34]

BondingEdit

Elayne and Nynaeve have been using a twisted stone ring ter'angreal to enter Tel'aran'rhiod where they communicate with Egwene and inexpertly try to gain information on the Black Ajah and the Forsaken. They meet Birgitte Silverbow, one of the Heroes of the Horn, who goes against rules of non-interference to help Nynaeve and Elayne. Birgitte acts in defense of Nynaeve's life during an encounter with Moghedien and the Forsaken rips the Hero from Tel'aran'rhiod and expels her into the waking world to die.^[35] Elayne bonds the dying Birgitte as her Warder in order to save Birgitte's life,^[36] and the famed archer has been a constant companion since.

This is an unusual event as the bonded Warder is a woman, and also because the Elayne is only an Accepted and not full Aes Sedai. It should be noted that the Warder bond between the two women is not the same as the Bond between an Aes Sedai and a male Warder. For instance, their emotional states are tightly linked and cannot be shielded--possibly because both of them are women, something that has apparently never happened before.

Raised to Aes SedaiEdit

She finally arrives in Salidar and is present when Egwene is raised as the brand new Amyrlin Seat. Elayne and Nynaeve are raised as Aes Sedai by Egwene's decree, despite the lack of the Great Oval Ring for the required Aes Sedai test and the lack of the Oath Rod by which to swear the Aes Sedai's Three Oaths. Elayne goes with Nynaeve, Aviendha and Mat Cauthon to Ebou Dar where they find the Bowl of the Winds. Due to her great strength in the One Power, she takes control of the Salidar embassy from Merilille Ceandevin, with which the other Aes Sedai fall in line. While in Ebou Dar she stumbles across the closely held secret by the White Tower of the Kin. She manages to finally find the Bowl with the help of Mat and Travels to the Kin's farm just before the Seanchan arrive and conquer Ebou Dar. She makes a bargain with the Sea Folk, for them to use the Bowl to change the endless summer back into the normal seasons. The bargain's terms do not favor the Aes Sedai and Egwene is not too pleased with the results.

Escape from Ebou DarEdit

While trying to unravel a gateway she made out of Ebou Dar, the Seanchan try to attack. She loses hold of the weave creating a massive explosion. The Seanchan seem to believe from this point on that the explosion was purposeful and are looking for an Aes Sedai weapon able to re-create it.

She then shepherds the large group of channelers of Aes Sedai, Kin and Windfinders, to Caemlyn. She also manages to secure a turtle-shaped angreal from the cache in Ebou Dar for for her personal use. She begins investigating the ter'angreal in her possession in an attempt to work out their functions. One ter'angreal in particular leads to a whole night of memory loss.

Campaign for the Lion ThroneEdit

On arrival back at Caemlyn she receives Dyelin Taravin's pledge to back her for the Lion Throne. One of the first things she does is tear down Rand's dragon banners, which infuriates him. She also sends away the Aiel and the Saldaean soldiers from Caemlyn which cause the crime rates to soar. She begins to employ mercenaries for her army and promotes Birgitte to Captain-General of the Queen's Guards.

Dyelin earns Elayne's trust when she is injured by the three rogues trying to attack Elayne. Elayne is poisoned with forkroot and is saved by Doilin Mellar (who is actually the darkfriend, Daved Hanlon), who she promotes as Captain of the Queen's Bodyguard. After becoming pregnant by Rand, she lets the rumor that Mellar is the father run rampart and even gives off signals in front of others to support it. She later meets with the Borderlander Rulers and encourages them to move south through Andor promising not to raise an army against them.

She is confronted by the mercenary captains in her employ about being paid more gold due to a loss of men. She sends them away with no new agreement. She begins to find it very difficult to grasp the One Power now that she is pregnant. She has also started to become reckless due to Min's viewing of her giving birth to twins and believing that nothing can happen to her until then. She begins to teach Aviendha about ter'angreal and finds out that Aviendha may have the Talent for working out what they do. This discovery is short-lived however, as Aviendha is summoned back by the Wise One's and required to leave Andor with them.

Capture by the Black AjahEdit

She hires a number of men to follow Mellar, who all end up dead. She finally hires Samwil Hark who is in prison after a career as a very successful cutpurse before finally being caught. He follows Mellar to a house on Full Moon Street, which is also occupied by Black Ajah sisters Elayne had been hunting for some time. She enters the house with Vandene, Careane and Sareitha. They are caught unawares by other Black sisters staying there and are all shielded. Careane is revealed Black Ajah and the one who killed Ispan and Adeleas, and is killed by Vandene. Vandene and Sareitha are both killed by Chesmal Emry. Elayne is then captured and kidnapped by Mili Skane and the rest of the Black Ajah sisters.

Birgitte gathers a huge strike force, and with the Windfinders help manage to defeat and capture the Black Ajah members. She then learns of Arymilla's forces attacking the Far Madding Gate and orders an attack. Her forces plunge into the back of the opposing army and soon defeats it. Arymilla's army finally surrenders and Arymilla and the rest of the nobles who supported her are taken prisoner. Because of that action she obtains enough houses to secure the Throne of Andor.

Gaining the ThroneEdit

The neutral High Seats ask for safe passage into Caemlyn and seek and audience with Elayne. At the meeting Luan Norwelyn wishes to form a temporary alliance to engage the Borderlands army. Elayne reveals that as an Aes Sedai, she gave them permission to travel through into Murandy to carry on seeking the Dragon Reborn. She also tells them about the Black Tower set-up and the unfortunate fact that she can't do much about its presence in Andor now. Luan and then Abelle Pendar declare their support for House Trakand. Pelivar Coelan, Arathelle Renshar and Aemlyn Carand all declare their support for House Trakand, but only for Dyelin. This gives Elayne the required number of High Seats now to obtain the Lion Throne.

As Queen of AndorEdit

At one point, while Birgitte is away from the palace, Elayne uses the chance to disguise herself as one of the Forsaken and wring information out of the captured Black Ajah sisters. It goes well for a time, but when Dollin Mellar and two other Black Aes Sedai break out of their cells, they nearly kill Elayne while escaping. She is later confined to bed rest to allow her body to recover sufficiently enough to ensure the health of her unborn babies.

After Mat arrives in Caemlyn, Elayne is overjoyed with the plans for Dragons that he presents her, relieved that she may now have an effective weapon against any possible Seanchan attack. After the first one proves to be a success, Elayne enlists the employment of every bell-maker in Andor to manufacture the new weapons. Soon after, Elayne's mother, Morgase, arrives at the palace, revealing herself to be alive.

Elayne then makes her move to claim Cairhien's Sun Throne. She invites a number of Cairhienan nobles to Caemlyn and offers them estates in Andor in order to make connections between the two nations. Through further manipulation, she gains the support from these nobles, albeit only because it gives them the chance to steal the throne for themselves in future years.

Ter'angrealEdit

The art of understanding and creating ter'angreal was lost to the White Tower in the time after the Age of Legends. After studying extensively an a'dam, a damane leash, she obtained during her stay in Valan Luca's menagerie, Elayne learned how to make ter'angreal. She was the first in a long time to be able to not only understand the workings of some ter'angreal, but to also be able to create them.

She was able to create a number of ter'angreal that would allow access to Tel'aran'rhiod by examining existing ones recovered from the Black Ajah.

Rand's WomenEdit

Elayne is one of three women who love Rand al'Thor, along with Aviendha and Min. Elayne and Aviendha have a particularly strong friendship, and adopted each other as first-sisters in the Aiel fashion, and as such are able to sense each other to a degree. The three women are close friends and have agreed to share him, recently bonding him as their mutual Warder. Shortly thereafter, she and Rand spent some time together alone in Elayne's room, almost immediately demonstrating one of the downsides of the Warder bond and leading Birgitte, Min and Aviendha to get blinding drunk as soon as possible. According to Min's visions, Elayne is now carrying Rand's twin children, one of each sex, and uses that vision to put herself in harm's way under the belief that no harm can come to her or the babies until they are born, since what Min "views" inevitably comes to pass.

ParallelsEdit

Elayne could likely be a reference to the name Elaine, which was in truth the name of several different women in Arthurian legend (including the mother of Galahad by Lancelot). Most of these women had connections to royalty or nobility.

NotesEdit

Characters
Protagonists	Main: Rand al'Thor · Matrim Cauthon · Perrin Aybara · Egwene al'Vere · Elayne Trakand · Nynaeve al'Meara · Thomdril Merrilin Primary: Aviendha · Faile Bashere · Min Farshaw · Tuon Athaem Kore Paendrag · Moiraine Damodred · Lan Mandragoran · Loial · Birgitte Silverbow
Antagonists	Dark One · The Forsaken · Padan Fain · Couladin · Pedron Niall · Eamon Valda · Mazrim Taim · Sevanna · Galina Casban · Liandrin · Alviarin Freidhen · Suroth Sabelle Meldarath
Major Characters	Aes Sedai: Siuan Sanche · Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan · Verin Mathwin · Leane Sharif Other Allies: Morgase Trakand · Juilin Sandar · Bayle Domon · Elyas Machera · Logain Ablar · Amys · Bair · Melaine · Rhuarc · Berelain sur Paendrag Paeron · Davram Bashere · Gaul · Bain · Chiad · Sebban Balwer · Gawyn Trakand · Galad Damodred · Gareth Bryne · Martyn Tallanvor · Lini Eltring
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