Rand's Fate

[Asmo]

Has anyone considered the possibility that Rand might be severed? It would:

 

a) Fit with the blindness vision / dream. Remember how losing the Source was like "losing the sun"? The avid descriptions of such occasions fit with a general loss of light.

 

b) Fit with the dying dream / prophecy. Being stilled is described as being murdered, only slowly.

 

c) Solve the problem of the Taint still affecting Rand, as well as his connection with Ishamael and the sickness. Probably, at least.

 

d) If he is severed by Alivia, possibly in a Lews Therin-trying-to-draw-too-much-of-saidin-and-kill-himself case, then it all fits together.

 

e) He does not have to be ressurected with the dreaded Balefire or some insane Healing that will come too late in the series to be realistic. He can be Healed by Nynaeve, and that's that.

 

f) It will serve somewhat to restore his humane emotions, reminding him of how life was without channeling etc.

 

To me, it seems an appealing, if rather unlikely, direction the plot could take, since it fulfills prophecies and visions, and also solves a lot of problems that Rand has.

[phantom-semi]

sorry just a minor point, im pretty sure it has been stated that theres nothing rand can do about the taint, once infected thats that...

[Asmo]

A lot of things have been stated that have been disproven later on. Such as the inability to cure stilling, for example ;>_>

[phantom-semi]

i think the statement was from RJ himself! :P though correct me if im wrong, i dont have time to find a direct refernce.. sorry  :-[

[Luckers]

Phantom-Semi is indeed correct. RJ stated that the removal of the taint would not remove its effects--as such whether Rand were severed or not the effects of the taint on Rand remains constant. It would, perhaps, be curable--certainly Ishamael infers that possibility in the prologue of the Eye of the World--but severing him would not cure him.

 

a) Fit with the blindness vision / dream. Remember how losing the Source was like "losing the sun"? The avid descriptions of such occasions fit with a general loss of light.

 

Thats a bit of a stretch isn't it? Rand is seen by Perrin as a beggar with a bandage over his eyes--that bandage hardly speaks to him being severed. That's literal blindness, not figurative 'loss of light'. The only person described to be giving up light in a way that might be figurtive is Mat, and he can't channel.

 

b) Fit with the dying dream / prophecy. Being stilled is described as being murdered, only slowly.

 

Again, a rather large stretch. Severing sometimes causes people to lose the will to leave over time--a matter of, at the very least, months. Why would Rand give into depression and let himself die when he knew he could be healed? Even were he removed from the chance for immediate healing, that to me would provide more than enough reason to hold on however long it took him to find an Aes Sedai.

 

Beyond which i don't much see how it fits the dreams and prophecies about his death. Stilling may cause depression, which can result in death--but i don't see how that holds through to the specific immediacy of the various visions, dreams or prophecies about Rand's death. By the same logic you could say living is being murdered slowly, as you end up dead.

 

d) If he is severed by Alivia, possibly in a Lews Therin-trying-to-draw-too-much-of-saidin-and-kill-himself case, then it all fits together.

 

Why, exactly, does that make it all fit together?

 

e) He does not have to be ressurected with the dreaded Balefire or some insane Healing that will come too late in the series to be realistic. He can be Healed by Nynaeve, and that's that.

 

Well, no, that wouldn't be that, as that would mean he hadn't died. The prophecies make it clear, Rand must die. A physical death, not suffer something that might cause death.

 

By the way, the most likely option is neither healing--which is probably excluded by Niccola's foretelling that he is dead, yet lives--that he is both dead and alive at the same time. Or balefire, which similarily has some causality problems (balefire causes things to be one then the other, not the same at the same time). The most likely option remains the bodyswap.

[RAND AL THOR]

he is both dead and alive at the same time

 

I would LOVE to see how RJ brings this idea about in a realistic fashion. ;D

[Luckers]

Lol, the Schroedinger's Cat of the fantasy world.