Summary:Words of Radiance/Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Ideals
Words of Radiance Summary
Follows	Chapter 4: Taker of Secrets
Precedes	Chapter 6: Terrible Destruction
Analytics
Viewpoints	Kaladin, Torol Sadeas
Word Count	8500

Epigraph

“The sign on the wall proposed a greater danger, even, than its deadline. To foresee the future is of the Voidbringers. ”

—From the journal of Navani Kholin, Jesesach 1174

Plot Summary

Tanatakan 1173

Kaladin and the members of Bridge Four listen to a crier read Dalinar's proclamation. The proclamation states that all gemhearts won in battle will now belong to the king, and shares of that wealth will be apportioned at the Crown’s discretion. The men are concerned that this will sow even more discontent among the highprinces, making their job as bodyguards to Dalinar more difficult. Kaladin orders Rock to start training cooks for the other bridgeman barracks, hoping it will make them less despondent, then heads to the Pinnacle to relieve Skar's team. On the way, Syl worries that Kaladin no longer laughs.

Once at the king's palace, Kaladin is allowed to stay for a meeting consisting of Dalinar, King Elhokar, Adolin, Navani, Renarin, General Khal, and his wife Teshav. Teshav reports that the highprinces are irate. They had hoped that Dalinar would reconsider, and sending the proclamation out to the public has provoked them. Elhokar says that it is a disaster, and fears that they'll be dead before the week is out. Dalinar says he'll unite the kingdom or destroy it trying. The proclamation was made in order to re-focus the highprinces’ attention on the war, and Dalinar did this knowing that it would enrage them. He wants the highprinces angry, to remind them of why they came to the Shattered Plains in the first place. He then announces his intention to "disarm" the highprinces by having Adolin begin dueling for the Shardblades and Shardplate in their armies. Lastly, when prompted on his endgame, Dalinar states his intention to refound the Radiants. He isn’t sure why exactly he needs to do this, but he knows he has to.

Meanwhile, Torol Sadeas sits in front of an elaborate stone table with Oathbringer stuck through it. He thinks about how often he had lusted after the weapon, but now possessing it felt hollow. His wife Ialai enters the room, and mentions that she's used Dalinar's heavy recruitment drive to more place more spies in his warcamp. They talk about how the other highprinces hate the proclamation, and plan to fan the flames of discontent. Torol wants conquest. He plans to let Dalinar alienate the other highprinces and fracture the kingdom, at which point he will "forge a new Alethkar from flame and tears."

Characters

Present

• Kaladin (Point of view)
• Torol Sadeas (Point of view)
• Eth
• General Khal
• Adolin Kholin
• Dalinar Kholin
• Gavilar Kholin
• Navani Kholin
• Renarin Kholin
• Leyten
• Lopen
• Mart
• Moash
• Rock
• Ialai Sadeas
• Shen
• Sigzil
• Skar
• Teft
• Teshav
• An unnamed member of the King's Guard

Mentioned

• Aladar
• Meridas Amaram
• Beld
• Dabbid
• Drehy
• Hatham
• Gavilar Kholin
• Lirin
• Ruthar
• Wit

Setting

The warcamps of Dalinar and Sadeas as well as the Pinnacle.

Notable

• Elhokar has what may be the corpse of a Larkin inside a crystal paperweight in the conference room.

Chapter Header

Chanarach wedge

See Also

• Tor.com Re-read

Notes

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