The journey down the river is hard thanks to numerous refugees being crammed onto the boat, and the captain Neres being a Straw Misogynist and a smuggler. But Nynaeve, Elayne, and Birgitte also manage to patch up their relationships. They also get three new companions, Nicola, Marigan, and Areina.
After a Crowning Moment Of Heartwarming where everyone assures Nynaeve her fear of Moghedien doesn’t make her a coward, she and Elayne work on channeling in the Dream World, also learning about someone named Davram Bashere that Elaida wants to find. They and Egwene also give each other a new update before they arrive at Salidar.
This chapter is too long. We spend forever on random background characters, and the material between our heroes isn’t worth the wait. The new companions might prove something later, but right now they’re just part of the background too. What we have here is another “moving furniture” chapter with delusions of grandeur, and I can only hope things pick up from here.
