Thirteen Sins. In Ebou Dar, figures carved into a lintel at the Kin house. They included Envy, Gossip and Greed.
Thirteenth Depository. A section of the White Tower Library where secret documents were kept. There had always been rumors of a closed section of the White Tower library, though usually whispered rumors—a section containing records and information available only to a select few even among the Aes Sedai. The fact that the White Tower had never issued a direct denial—so far as could be determined from any public record—militated for the existence of this closed section, or of some body of records or information that was closely held, at least.
Beyond the rumored existence of such secret records, the only other thing known came from another whispered rumor, which, interestingly enough, the White Tower had also never contradicted straight out. According to that, there was a Tower law covering the secret repository. By that law, unless you were one of the few authorized, penetrating or attempting to penetrate the records carried severe penalties, while revealing either the existence of the repository or any of the information contained in it was on a level with treason or rebellion. Additionally, this law itself was supposed to be a part of the repository, itself thereby secret and protected, thus completing the circle of secrecy in a manner that would be incredible among any except the Aes Sedai or the Seanchan.
While the secret records were officially open only to the Amyrlin Seat, the Keeper of the Chronicles, and the Sitters in the Hall of the Tower, they were in the keeping of a handful of librarians, who also had access, of course. The librarians just weren’t considered when the others thought of who had access. They were the librarians, so ubiquitous in the Library as to be almost part of the furniture, or the fabric of the building.
Thom Grinwell. The name Mat used in Caemlyn when meeting Morgase and Gaebril.
Thom Merrilin. An Andoran gleeman. His full name was Thomdril Merrilin, and he was sometimes called the Gray Fox. He was six feet tall, and lanky, with a leathery face, sharp blue eyes, white hair long enough to touch his collar, bushy white eyebrows, and long white mustaches that hung down on either side of his mouth. Thom was accomplished in High Chant, Plain Chant and Common, juggling, music and the use of a variety of weapons. Before he gained a limp, he was a first-rate tumbler and could high-walk with some small facility. He had a wide-ranging knowledge of geopolitics, history, language and cultures.
He was House-bard to House Trakand in Andor; even then he was known as a skilled player of the Game of Houses. He advised and assisted Morgase’s mother, who taught him much. He also assisted Morgase in gaining the Lion Throne during the Succession and became Court-bard. He assassinated Taringail Damodred on learning of his plot to kill Morgase and replace her on the throne; there were rumors that someone close to Morgase had killed him, but Thom was never named. Afterward, he became Morgase’s lover but drew her ire when he left suddenly without telling her why, to help his nephew Owyn, who had been gentled as part of the male channeler pogrom. When Thom returned to Caemlyn, he and Morgase had an argument, and she issued arrest warrants which she never canceled. He fled Andor and became a gleeman, traveling widely.
He went to Emond’s Field to perform for Bel Tine, and left with Moiraine, Lan, Rand, Mat, Perrin and Egwene. He, Rand and Mat became separated from the rest at Shadar Logoth. He saved the boys from a Myrddraal in Whitebridge, escaping largely because the Myrddraal was more interested in following Rand and Mat, though he did put up a good fight and wounded it, perhaps even killed it. He himself was wounded in the leg and would have died had not an Aes Sedai shown up just in the nick of time. Like Samitsu, she could regulate her weaves, so she was able to Heal him enough to keep him alive, but he was left with a limp and a scar. When he could finally travel on, he avoided Caemlyn, went to Cairhien and met Dena. Thom wanted out of the business with Rand, but when Dena was killed, he decided he was in whether he wanted to be or not. He assassinated Galldrian, who was behind Dena’s murder, setting off the civil war in Cairhien, then traveled to Tar Valon hoping to get some lead on Rand. He had begun drinking heavily by the time Mat found him.
Bitter toward Aes Sedai for what they did to his nephew Owyn, he eventually resolved his feelings, especially toward Moiraine, who had promised to tell him who was responsible for the Red sisters gentling and abandoning Owyn, instead of bringing him to Tar Valon for gentling as required. Owyn was the only man Elaida was involved in taking and gentling, as she had hoped that the deed could be used to break Morgase from Thom’s influence, which in fact happened.
Moiraine sent Thom to help and look after Elayne and Nynaeve; he was particularly protective of Elayne, and taught her a lot about the Game of Houses, sharing his knowledge of lands and courts. He felt bereft at Moiraine’s supposed death, but her letter to him put doubts in his mind on that account. With Mat and Noal, he rescued Moiraine from the Aelfinn and Eelfinn and married her.
During the Last Battle, he went with her to Shayol Ghul and guarded the entrance to the Pit of Doom.
Thorin al Toren al Ban. A king of Manetheren who was Caar’s father and Aemon’s grandfather.
thornbush. A shrub; also part of the name of a sword form, Lizard in the Thornbush.
Thornhill, Marris. See Marris Thornhill
Thoughts Among the Ruins. An ancient work of history studied by Min.
Thousand Flowers. An Aiel game that involved laying out patterns of flat bits of stone carved with what seemed a hundred different symbols.
Thousand Lakes. The chain of lakes that went through the city of Malkier.
thread. In channeling, a segment of a flow, which could be divided into numerous threads. In reference to the One Power, it referred to the Five Powers; e.g., Fire is a thread of the One Power.
threadleaf. A weed that Sahra Covenry was pulling on Mistress Elward’s farm just before she was murdered.
Three Foxes. The sign of Agelmar, the Lord of Fal Dara; it was three running red foxes on a field quartered blue and white.
Three Geese, the. A constellation that pointed the way north.
Three Halls of Trade. An institution of commerce in Kandor. In the Last Battle, Agelmar said that he would not like to see the Three Halls of Trade fall, but Prince Antol said that Kandor had already fallen.
Three Ladies of Maredo. An inn located in Far Madding. Rand walked by it when he was looking for the renegade Asha’man who had tried to kill him. Verin met him nearby and told him that the Seanchan had crossed the border into Illian.
Three Moons, The. An inn found in Tear. When Rand and several women tried to get a large room with a view of the Stone at another inn, The Dragon, the innkeeper offered to escort them to The Three Moons; Cadsuane was having none of that.
Three Oaths. Sworn to by all Accepted becoming Aes Sedai on the Oath Rod: 1) to speak no word that is not true; 2) to make no weapon with which one man may kill another; and 3) never to use the One Power as a weapon except against Shadowspawn or Darkfriends, or in the last extreme defense of her own life or that of her Warder or another Aes Sedai. The first and third oaths came about as a result of ordinary people’s suspicion toward the Aes Sedai, and were in place before the beginning of the Trolloc Wars, possibly as much as five hundred years earlier. The second oath grew from tales passed down among Aes Sedai regarding the War of the Shadow, and was the first created after that war. If they did so knowing that it would significantly reduce their lifespan, they had to have a strong motivation. Later women raised were not told, and so knowledge of the effect was lost.