Chapter 1 "Apples First"

[Awakened]

 

And Rand is all Zen, a master in control of himself and his destiny, calm and amused, distant but friendly, with knowledge of the path before him and of the world and the current condition of it all. He seems to know the shape of things to come, finally. He understands his "mission". How is this possible? On top of Dragonmount, Rand was raving, ready to end it all - and I mean it all. Then enlightenment.

 

But where does it come from, this shining halo, the goodness and order that radiates from The Dragon Reborn? From inside his soul, that is also Lews Therin's soul, or from another source? As far as we know Rand is still connected to Moridin, the greatest philosopher of The Age of Legends. A mortal yet immortal man who was - and is - the only living being who truly understands at least a part of The Dark One.

 

 

I think it came from merging with all of his past selves. He may not remember the specifics of every life he has lived but he obviously gained something. It was probably

a result of the amount of Saidin he was taking (cosmic amounts) and the enhancing of his awareness that it caused combined with his madness/split personality problem that allowed for him to see his past lives and gain his newfound sense of self.

[Crael123]

did yal notice the "warp of light" dude this chapter was AWESOME

[b3arz3rg3r]

Something just occurred to me. At first I thought Rand's manifesting the increased impact of ta'veren on a rapidly unravelling pattern, but now I'm not that sure. We've been told the difference between ta'veren "happenstance" and the DO's touch on the world is that things caused by proximity to a ta'veren are merely improbable, but not impossible -- they don't break laws of physics or happen unless there's at least one chance in a trillion or whatever. Fish aren't going to rain from the sky unless somehow they got up there to begin with. The DO's touch causes things that couldn't naturally happen, such as the wind blowing two directions at once, or someone's body spontaneously combusting, or...you get the idea.

 

So what the heck was what Rand did to the apple orchard? Rotting apples don't just melt into the ground and vanish, and trees don't go from new blossom to ripened fruit in the blink of an eye. That's an impossibility if we're playing by the Wheel's natural laws. I don't think this could be caused by ta'veren effect. It's if what happened was a...a Bubble of Good.

 

Goodbubble? Lightbubble? Meh. None of them roll off the tongue.

 

I think Rand consciously exerted his will against the pattern to make it happen. The second apple growth wasn't by chance it was by Rand's design. We've seen several times how one of the ta'veren consciously influenced the effect he has on the pattern. Mat throwing a losing toss because he wanted it, Rand influencing on which side the coin would land in Rhuidean and now the apple orchard.

Yeah, but there's a difference between Mat...nudging...dice toward a desired outcome that could happen anyway and Rand creating something that's effectually an impossibility if you follow the rules of the Pattern. Simply removing the DOs own touch was one thing but turning blossoms into ripe apples? Then again, I suppose the Nym were able to do the same thing although there hasn't ever been any real explanation for it other than that they were magical constructs of the Power able to Do Things.

Not really an impossibility. Rand didn't create anything new. He didn't create something out of nothing. He accelerated the flow of the pattern for the orchard to induce a second growth and nudged probability to the best possible outcome.

[Hael Me]

I love how focused our guys and gals seem now. I mean, I know there is still a long road ahead, and probably some heartache, but, they all - (especially Rand) - really seem to be getting their Game Faces on now.

 

For the first time in a long time I really am feeling like Team Light is ready and about to Go FTW.

 

 

Fish

 

Right on, Fish! There is a long road ahead, BUT this is NOT the end of the beginning, it's the beginning of the end, as Winston Churchill, probably A Hero of the Horn and definitely Ta'veren, would have said. No foreplay any more, this is the endgame. The Last Battle has begun. We saw it in the prologue. And Trollocs pouring out of the Blight, well, like Verin predicted, this war will not be fought entirely on the soil of Randland. It's a spiritual battle. And I don't just mean The World of Dreams, but in the very minds of the participants. The Dragon is now one with the Land. If Rand - Dark Rand that is - wins, is that truly a victory? No. It is all about who you are, when you're The Champion of the Light.

 

You said it first: Team Light IS ready, at least a part of Team Light, the most important part, yes, but not the only part. Or is that crucial part really ready? There will be setbacks, I think. The shadow of The True Power, and more... There is always a price, for everything.

 

And dammit, Perrin, the other two legs of the tripod, they're hard at work and you're hardly working. Go down to the forge, pick up the hammer and do what has to be done. Finally. We've been waiting for a couple of books now. It's your time to shine now, Wolf King. It must be!

[Hael Me]

 

I think it came from merging with all of his past selves. He may not remember the specifics of every life he has lived but he obviously gained something. It was probably

a result of the amount of Saidin he was taking (cosmic amounts) and the enhancing of his awareness that it caused combined with his madness/split personality problem that allowed for him to see his past lives and gain his newfound sense of self.

 

Good point, Awakened! This could be an answer. Rand is now - as far as we know - one with Lews Therin. The Tamyrlin. The greatest dude of The Age of Legends [the second was Demandred - Ishamael, well strong and smart, but not as prominent]. What does that mean for The Dragon Reborn? Knowledge, yes, we have already seen it. Deathgates and Blossoms of Fire are just a small part, I think. Understanding could very well be the greater part. We saw a hint in the first chapter. Rand said things - and acted in a way - that suggests that he now is beyond what we have seen so far. Could be, like you suggest, memories from past lives. BUT it could also have something to do with the connection to Moridin, dark knowledge bathed in light, so to speak...

[Cyf]

I find it unlikely it's due to Moridin. Then again, I would find that really trite and hackneyed, so I hope not. :)

[Jimmy]

I don't think he mentions that be is going to go talk to the amrylin. Just that he is going to go see someone and she isn't goof to like what he has to say

Men who can channel are not called marath'damane. I don't have my book at work but it's in the fires of heaven, chapter 32 (a short spear). I think that is he chapter it's in. I swear the name is differed for me

I would love it if rand made some Nyms to help create food. That would be awesome

[Elend]

Well, my reason for thinking its Egwene...

 

Lets look at Cadsuane. Why would he want to see her after his epiphany? To apologize somewhat and make some amends? She'd like that. To go all Lord Dragon on her, which she wouldn't like? It doesn't fit what Rand's doing.

 

Any of his ladies would be ecstatic to see him, I think.

 

Ditto the Wise Ones, after his epiphany.

 

He's also walking. Since he's walking that kinda implies he's going somewhere within walking distance. Which is Tar Valon.

 

Nynaeve could be a possibility, but, once again she'd like the change in him. That's true of pretty much every good character.

 

The exception would be if he has some crazy awareness of Moiraine and if Mat had somehow freed her at this point. I'm not sure if that works with the timeline though. She may be unhappy due to his wounds and actions while he was gone, etc. But I think Egwene is the safe bet. She won't like seeing him because of all the crap he's done since she left and he knows he did wrong, even if Egwene herself hasn't exactly been little Ms. Perfect. Of course, he'll acknowledge and realize his faults... will Egwene do the same?

[Duskfire]

The cloud breaking up in Mats POV could possibly be because of him. While Rand is one with the land and able to seemingly stave of the Dark Ones influence now, its possible that Mat and Perrin are also able to do so to a smaller extent as well. Out of the three ta`veren, until the end of TGS Mat was - somewhat ironically - the most stable of them, with Rand being Darkrand and Perrin still being moody and uncertain in terms of what must be done. Mat had come to accept his role of importance and as a general after fighting the Seanchan in KoD. Once all three ta`veren have put aside their internal conflicts and accepted their fate, maybe this cloud breakage will happen more often.

[GB]

yeah egwene i think is a safe bet as well.

 

i agree with you elend, he must be walking to somewhere close and tar valon is close to where he is.

 

and he said he has been putting it off for a while, and he has seen Wise Ones, Nyn, Cads, just before his trip and he hasnt seen egwene since she left for Salidar and that was since LoC.

 

he will admit i think doing some things wrong but i dont know whether or not egwene will do the same, she can be reasonable if she could just see beyond the "i know what is best for everyone aes sedai mentality". maybe her ability to heal and negotiate (amyrlin of all ajahs) will be of use here (heal as in time for reconciliation and moving forward). lol

 

and know her anger, i take it means he will know she is angry at the seanchan for their raid, and wont be willing at first to face the idea of a truce unless any recently caught aes sedai on the raid be handed back to the tower is on the discussion table.

[Jimmy]

I thought there was a different name for men chanelers. I just read through the chapter. If they mentioned it, it was done in a different chapter

[Elend]

I take knowing the anger to mean understanding it. Not just knowing she's angry, but fully understanding why and admitting where he's been wrong in the past.

[Jimmy]

I think she will be angry about the bonding of aes sedai be because she assumes he gave the order to do it

Either that or he will go tell her his revelation on how to win TG and she is going to be mad about what it entails. Or she will suggest changes to want he says needs to be done, he will say no to some/all of her suggestions and she will get mad

[Deadsy]

Based on the correlation between Mat and Verin, supposedly it is. But since an element of Mat's timing is wrong, I'd say its safer to say the timeline is wrong, than that someone miraculously made up rumours of precisely what occured at Tar Valon.

 

BS already confirmed at a signing that they are merely rumors.

 

Of course they are rumours, and there are obvious elements that are wrong, but there also elements that clearly reflect reality--too much so for the rumours not to be based on the actual events--and Brandon did not confirm that.

 

Here is the quote from the guy who talked to him. Read it how you want, but I think it's pretty clear that they aren't supposed to be based on reality. I am a bit bothered by them being so accurate, though.

 

With regard to the White Tower attack- I prompted this one a little, and he said that they are simply rumors which have coalesced from multiple rumors together, nothing related specifically to the real attack adding that “in the Wheel of Time rumors sometimes have a tendency to double-back on themselves” turning into truth eventually.

[Auld Manriva]

In The Great Hunt, at one point after Egwene has been collared, Renna is explaining "the facts of life" to her. When doing so she says something like "the marath'damane who are men are killed of course". Now Renna may not be a great linguist among the Seans, but that is how SHE refers to men who can channel then. Maybe she's keeping it simple for her new puppy dog *shrugs*

[Rufae]

I think what he has to tell Egwene is that she must accept peace with the Seanchan until after the Last Battle. In light of her (and the White Tower's) experiences with Seanchan, she is not likely going to be glad to hear it.

[Kaznen]

I think the raid will make Rand rethink the truce. He offered before, Tuon refused. I don't think he was planning on giving the Seanchan a second chance.

 

His battle plan in tGS was to travel his armies into the blight behind the trollocs coming out and letting the Seanchan deal with them.

 

The raid on TV and what they will learn from caputered AS will make the Seanchan to dangerous and they will need to be dealt with now.

[Sharaman]

In The Great Hunt, at one point after Egwene has been collared, Renna is explaining "the facts of life" to her. When doing so she says something like "the marath'damane who are men are killed of course". Now Renna may not be a great linguist among the Seans, but that is how SHE refers to men who can channel then. Maybe she's keeping it simple for her new puppy dog *shrugs*

TGS - Tuon thinks of men-channelers as "Black Tempests" using the Old Tongue name. IIRC, no Seanchan name is mentioned earlier.

[Guest Emu on the Loose]

Sam Vimes really nailed it about "Why is Rand walking rather than traveling?" I just wanted to say that. The journey is integral to the destination. It always is.

 

Now:

 

Main issue with Egwene is she still thinks she has to control Rand. She's far better than the other AS, but she's basically 'drank the kool aid' and in all of her musings, we keep seeing how she wants her own sort of leash around Rand because he muse be controlled by the AS. Basically two steps forward, one step back.

 

Look at it from her point of view: Rand has become increasingly sociopathic and all-important over the course of the series. He's stuck with this prophecy that he can't possibly live up to, and he's not coping with it well. His enemies are relentless. The Shadow is relentless. Egwene doesn't see her own efforts to control him as "I'm Egwene, boss of the White Tower, so bow before me, farmboy!" She sees her efforts to manipulate him as her duty to the wellbeing of her Aes Sedai and of the world. If you had a mentally disturbed friend, in a position of great power, and under enormous stress, wouldn't you try and guide them in some way?

 

She certainly is prideful, stubborn, and stuck-up, as nearly all of the main characters are in some way or another, but she hasn't been acting unreasonably. Indeed, I'd say her logic is pretty sound, even if we readers, who have the virtue of the big picture, can see that her approach is doing as much harm as good.

[ajfurst]

I'm still holding against hope that the end of the series does -not- lead to a removal of the use of the One Power for a few ages. I really hate 'Magic Goes Away' themes. :) Yes, I know it'll happen eventually in setting, I just don't want it to happen -now-. :)

I used to hope for the OP to continue in the 4th age and I'm 99% certain it will. For the reason I hope it doesn't. It'd be great to have the Age end and no OP and Egwene 'super-Amyrlin, real saviour of the world' suddenly left as head of a organisation that no longer has any meaning. Rand I think could adjust to life post-TG as being fairly anonymous.

 

As for the meeting Egwene still equates advising with her in command, Rand doing as she wants. Egwene has had everything on a platter (Black Ajah, the Seanchan attack handing her the Tower), I'm sure ToM will see her somehow being equal with Rand at worst, and probably him having to publicly kow-tow to her.

 

Storywise the Aes Sedai just aren't any more important then a bunch of other groups.

1. They can't supply any more soldiers then the borderlanders or Seanchan (not to mention the Aiel and kingdoms he already has).

2. For channelers, sure they'd be handy, but the numbers aren't any more then the Asha'man, Wise Ones, Windfinders etc. All who aren't restricted by the 3 oaths.

3. Politics - I can't think of a single land who isn't already allied to Rand who'd come around if Egwene publicly had announced in their kingdom something along the lines of 'The Aes Sedai acknowledge Rand is the Dragon Reborn and think you should follow him'. If anything their 'support' would only make harder to get his treaty with the Seanchan.

 

I know Egwene will get kudo's and worship out of this, as that's been her storyline since LoC at least, but in story, the Aes Sedai don't deserve the respect they are about to get from Rand.

[Freud]

My guess is, that Rand is on his way to Egwene. Since Aes Sedai hate men who can channel in control, I think what he has to tell Egwene is they need to form groups of 13 to link. That can only happen with men taking control of the linked groups. If there's one thing that any Aes Sedai despises, it's that. They still haven't come to grips with the fact that there's no taint anymore.

[b3arz3rg3r]

Sam Vimes really nailed it about "Why is Rand walking rather than traveling?" I just wanted to say that. The journey is integral to the destination. It always is.

 

Now:

 

Main issue with Egwene is she still thinks she has to control Rand. She's far better than the other AS, but she's basically 'drank the kool aid' and in all of her musings, we keep seeing how she wants her own sort of leash around Rand because he muse be controlled by the AS. Basically two steps forward, one step back.

 

Look at it from her point of view: Rand has become increasingly sociopathic and all-important over the course of the series. He's stuck with this prophecy that he can't possibly live up to, and he's not coping with it well. His enemies are relentless. The Shadow is relentless. Egwene doesn't see her own efforts to control him as "I'm Egwene, boss of the White Tower, so bow before me, farmboy!" She sees her efforts to manipulate him as her duty to the wellbeing of her Aes Sedai and of the world. If you had a mentally disturbed friend, in a position of great power, and under enormous stress, wouldn't you try and guide them in some way?

 

She certainly is prideful, stubborn, and stuck-up, as nearly all of the main characters are in some way or another, but she hasn't been acting unreasonably. Indeed, I'd say her logic is pretty sound, even if we readers, who have the virtue of the big picture, can see that her approach is doing as much harm as good.

 

Egwene has been trying to steer Rand since the very beginning and she hasn't been even close to Rand in ages, long before he showed any sociopathic tendencies. So that business of trying to guide a mentally disturbed friend out of concern for the world is a laughable argument. Fact of the matter is Egwene has always had a domineering personality, she has a drive to be in control.

[Freud]

Egwene grew up in a town where it is normal for women to consider all men stupid. Just look at all those 'Women's business' in the women's circle. It's the women that actually decide, and guide, and whatever. That's the background from where Egwene grew up in. So it's normal for her to keep on wanting to do this, especially with Rand, male channeler and all.

 

If for your whole youth you've grown up with the fact women need to guide men, and you end up leading the one institution that transformed that into a Higher Art, it's quite natural for you to keep on doing that with a vengeance. :)

[Random Man]

Something just occurred to me. At first I thought Rand's manifesting the increased impact of ta'veren on a rapidly unravelling pattern, but now I'm not that sure. We've been told the difference between ta'veren "happenstance" and the DO's touch on the world is that things caused by proximity to a ta'veren are merely improbable, but not impossible -- they don't break laws of physics or happen unless there's at least one chance in a trillion or whatever. Fish aren't going to rain from the sky unless somehow they got up there to begin with. The DO's touch causes things that couldn't naturally happen, such as the wind blowing two directions at once, or someone's body spontaneously combusting, or...you get the idea.

 

So what the heck was what Rand did to the apple orchard? Rotting apples don't just melt into the ground and vanish, and trees don't go from new blossom to ripened fruit in the blink of an eye. That's an impossibility if we're playing by the Wheel's natural laws. I don't think this could be caused by ta'veren effect. It's if what happened was a...a Bubble of Good.

 

Goodbubble? Lightbubble? Meh. None of them roll off the tongue.

 

I think Rand consciously exerted his will against the pattern to make it happen. The second apple growth wasn't by chance it was by Rand's design. We've seen several times how one of the ta'veren consciously influenced the effect he has on the pattern. Mat throwing a losing toss because he wanted it, Rand influencing on which side the coin would land in Rhuidean and now the apple orchard.

Yeah, but there's a difference between Mat...nudging...dice toward a desired outcome that could happen anyway and Rand creating something that's effectually an impossibility if you follow the rules of the Pattern. Simply removing the DOs own touch was one thing but turning blossoms into ripe apples? Then again, I suppose the Nym were able to do the same thing although there hasn't ever been any real explanation for it other than that they were magical constructs of the Power able to Do Things.

Not really an impossibility. Rand didn't create anything new. He didn't create something out of nothing. He accelerated the flow of the pattern for the orchard to induce a second growth and nudged probability to the best possible outcome.

You're right, the more I think about it the more it makes sense as not being an "impossibility" in that the chemical reactions involved in the growth of a living plant could simply be rapidly accelerated -- which appears to be what the Nym could do. I wonder how they got around the rapid depletion of water and nutrients from the soil, though -- but now I'm just getting more technical than RJ probably ever intended to.

[metaphor]

Things Rand can say that could make Egwene angry. That they need to break the seals on the prison of the Darn One. That she needs to be more understanding of Gawyn.That he's going to marry 3 women .