Mat Cauthon - Youth

Youth

Mat, like Rand and Perrin, was led away from the Two Rivers on Winternight by Moiraine Damodred, and it was revealed that all three were ta'veren, threads that create a swirl in the pattern disrupting the surrounding area. Mat was the first of the three to show any sign of being ta'veren: during a battle with pursuing Trollocs, Mat gave the war cry of Manetheren in the Old Tongue, with no understanding of what he had said. Moiraine theorized that this was the result of the Old Blood that many in the Two Rivers are said to possess. Mat has throughout the series been known to unconsciously slip into the Old Tongue.

On the journey away from the Two Rivers, the party stopped in Shadar Logoth to lose the Trollocs chasing them. Against Moiraine's advice, Mat took Perrin and Rand to explore the city. While exploring, they met a man calling himself Mordeth, claiming to be a treasure hunter in need of help to carry a large amount of treasure out of the city to his horses. Heedless of the danger, Mat followed Mordeth immediately, and Perrin and Rand, unwilling to leave him behind, were forced to follow after. After he led them to a room full of various treasures, Rand realized that Mordeth lacked a shadow. Upon announcing this, Mordeth quickly reverted to his true form and vanished through a wall. Unnoticed by Perrin or Rand, Mat had picked up a dagger that he carried with him on the flight from Shadar Logoth. The dagger made Mat increasingly sick, as well as inflaming his paranoia, suspicion, and hostility.