A Memory of Light Speculation

[David Selig]

Aviendha notes in one of her PoVs in ToM that's she would do her best to ensure Rand would survive the Last Battle. A Darkfriend wouldn't want the Dragon to make it through the LB.

[randsc]

 

 

Perhaps more importantly however she is bound to Rand, Elayne and Min. We know per RJ that when bonded the others would know instantly that something was up. It is why BA sisters need to be so careful when finding a warder.

 

 

I agree that the notion that Avi is a darkfriend is unsupported in the text. However, we do know (from Egwene's POV after ordering the execution of the Black Ajah sister in the rebel camp) that it is possible for a Darkfriend Aes Sedai to have a non-Darkfriend Warder. So it is possible for Avi to be a Darkfriend while sharing a bond with Min, Elayne and Rand.

[randsc]

 

 

Avi's Revelation Not too certain when this will occur, but I think Avi will cause the Wise Ones to go to War with the Seachan during the last book by telling them of what happened in the Ter'Angreal. This will not sit well, at all, with the Aiel. Unless they try and say it is the final punishment for their great Toh or whatever. Either nothing of great importance will occur from what Avi knows, or it will cause a possible alliance with the Seachan to completely dissolve.

 

 

I hope this theory is right. The broader consensus seems to be that the Aeil will turn into worthless Tinkers. If that happens, I will burn my copy of the book, and broker some sort of deal with Cthulhu for the destruction of Sanderson's soul.

[Suttree]

 

 

Perhaps more importantly however she is bound to Rand, Elayne and Min. We know per RJ that when bonded the others would know instantly that something was up. It is why BA sisters need to be so careful when finding a warder.

 

 

I agree that the notion that Avi is a darkfriend is unsupported in the text. However, we do know (from Egwene's POV after ordering the execution of the Black Ajah sister in the rebel camp) that it is possible for a Darkfriend Aes Sedai to have a non-Darkfriend Warder. So it is possible for Avi to be a Darkfriend while sharing a bond with Min, Elayne and Rand.

 

Hmm interesting as I recalled quotes to the contrary...but now that you mention it wasn't one of the warders a non DF in the Caemlyn BA hunt as well? Not sure but for some reason that jumps out for me.

 

The Path of Daggers book tour 18/19 November 1998, Philadelphia - Melinda Yin reporting

Oh, and he made some comments about how a Warder of the Black Ajah might sometimes meet with "accidents" so the Black Ajah can remain secret. Alternatively, Black Ajah might intentionally bond Darkfriends.

 

but there is this...

 

The Path of Daggers book tour 21 November 1998, VA - John Novak reporting

If an Aes Sedai becomes Black Ajah, the Warder would know instantly that something was up, but wouldn't know exactly what. The Black Ajah has three choices, then -- hope the Warder is a Darkfriend or amenable to being one, hide the affiliation, or arrange for an accident. Yes, this would be painful for the Aes Sedai, but it might become necessary. The process of becoming Black Ajah is evidently quite painful in its own right and thus probably involves more than just swearing new Oaths on the Rod.

 

So you I guess it is possible but that would seem to be a pretty full time occupation trying to block that strange feeling. Seems like it would be a very difficult thing to carry off.

[andrewks]

Is there anything out there showing that Aviendha is not a Darkfriend?

 

 

There is 0% chance that Avi is a DF. How could you possibly think that? Just curious.

[Luckers]

 

 

Avi's Revelation Not too certain when this will occur, but I think Avi will cause the Wise Ones to go to War with the Seachan during the last book by telling them of what happened in the Ter'Angreal. This will not sit well, at all, with the Aiel. Unless they try and say it is the final punishment for their great Toh or whatever. Either nothing of great importance will occur from what Avi knows, or it will cause a possible alliance with the Seachan to completely dissolve.

 

 

I hope this theory is right. The broader consensus seems to be that the Aeil will turn into worthless Tinkers. If that happens, I will burn my copy of the book, and broker some sort of deal with Cthulhu for the destruction of Sanderson's soul.

 

I kinda feel the same, though I do think part of Aviendha's task will be to find a path to pacifying the Seanchan without war--My top ideas being either Aviendha saves Fortuona from Graendal, opening a line of communication between Fortuona and a marath'damane, or perhaps Aviendha forcibly sparks Fortuona (or saves her after Graendal forcibly sparks her--it would be a solid plan to forment chaos in Seanchan)

[BrainFireBob]

. . . you know inbreeding isn't causing the cats to have 6 toes. . . natural selection, perhaps.

 

the cats have thumbs. the humans can channel. i see the evolutionary parallel.

 

Small gene pool. Polydactylism in cats does exist, it's a genetic recessive. Same with channelling. They may not technically marry their cousins, but people they're just as genetically similar to as their cousins? Not outside the realm of possibility.

[b3arz3rg3r]

 

 

Avi's Revelation Not too certain when this will occur, but I think Avi will cause the Wise Ones to go to War with the Seachan during the last book by telling them of what happened in the Ter'Angreal. This will not sit well, at all, with the Aiel. Unless they try and say it is the final punishment for their great Toh or whatever. Either nothing of great importance will occur from what Avi knows, or it will cause a possible alliance with the Seachan to completely dissolve.

 

 

I hope this theory is right. The broader consensus seems to be that the Aeil will turn into worthless Tinkers. If that happens, I will burn my copy of the book, and broker some sort of deal with Cthulhu for the destruction of Sanderson's soul.

 

I hear you. Whenever I read someone posting how the Aiel will return to the Way of the Leaf after TG I cringe inside. Yes, that is their eventual fate in several thousand years when the Wheel has turned to the next AOL, but until then the future of the Aiel is completely unknown. The Aiel doing a complete 180 after TG would just be the worst possible storytelling. They have striven for 3,000 years to become the deadliest thing under the sun, they can't just give that up from one day to the next.

[aunt_pol]

In some thread or other someone not that long ago posted a q& a from somewhere, where Brandon said Nynaeve didn't yet know quite what it meant to be married to him. I for one am going to use this to bolster my completely irrational hope that Lan didn't in fact die at the end of ToM. Fingers crossed...

 

Well Lan always said 'bugger off! I'm going to die in my war agasint the shadow, I cannot give you the husband you deserve etc.' So he warned her he was going to die and maybe thats what Brandon meant when he said that.

To be married to Lan is to suffer the consequences of his actions.

 

or

 

it could be the whole thing where the survivors of the last battle, that are Lan's little merry group - Malkier(spelling?), all will want to get back together as a nation and will demand Nynaeve to do all the looking after them. She loves healing and to heal a nation would be the biggest task of all.

 

She should've got together with Micheal Jackson and healed the world.

 

Yeah I think you hit the nail with the second swing there. Queen of the Malkieri, she'd be in here element with all those Borderlander men to boss about. Polite to women, even more polite to AS...

[Owayn The Traveller]

 

 

Avi's Revelation Not too certain when this will occur, but I think Avi will cause the Wise Ones to go to War with the Seachan during the last book by telling them of what happened in the Ter'Angreal. This will not sit well, at all, with the Aiel. Unless they try and say it is the final punishment for their great Toh or whatever. Either nothing of great importance will occur from what Avi knows, or it will cause a possible alliance with the Seachan to completely dissolve.

 

 

I hope this theory is right. The broader consensus seems to be that the Aeil will turn into worthless Tinkers. If that happens, I will burn my copy of the book, and broker some sort of deal with Cthulhu for the destruction of Sanderson's soul.

 

I hear you. Whenever I read someone posting how the Aiel will return to the Way of the Leaf after TG I cringe inside. Yes, that is their eventual fate in several thousand years when the Wheel has turned to the next AOL, but until then the future of the Aiel is completely unknown. The Aiel doing a complete 180 after TG would just be the worst possible storytelling. They have striven for 3,000 years to become the deadliest thing under the sun, they can't just give that up from one day to the next.

 

Some will, some won't. The Aiel as a people are already fracturing - the brotherless, Shaido and even some refusing to give up the white. I don't think it's naive to suggest some of the Aiel will adopt the way of the leaf.

 

 

And Pol, I knew I'd get there eventually. Just keep on swinging the meaning behind the film Signs.

[b3arz3rg3r]

 

 

Avi's Revelation Not too certain when this will occur, but I think Avi will cause the Wise Ones to go to War with the Seachan during the last book by telling them of what happened in the Ter'Angreal. This will not sit well, at all, with the Aiel. Unless they try and say it is the final punishment for their great Toh or whatever. Either nothing of great importance will occur from what Avi knows, or it will cause a possible alliance with the Seachan to completely dissolve.

 

 

I hope this theory is right. The broader consensus seems to be that the Aeil will turn into worthless Tinkers. If that happens, I will burn my copy of the book, and broker some sort of deal with Cthulhu for the destruction of Sanderson's soul.

 

I hear you. Whenever I read someone posting how the Aiel will return to the Way of the Leaf after TG I cringe inside. Yes, that is their eventual fate in several thousand years when the Wheel has turned to the next AOL, but until then the future of the Aiel is completely unknown. The Aiel doing a complete 180 after TG would just be the worst possible storytelling. They have striven for 3,000 years to become the deadliest thing under the sun, they can't just give that up from one day to the next.

 

Some will, some won't. The Aiel as a people are already fracturing - the brotherless, Shaido and even some refusing to give up the white. I don't think it's naive to suggest some of the Aiel will adopt the way of the leaf.

 

Those Aiel are gonna stop being Aiel in short order, they'll either die out or be absorbed by regular human culture in one or two generations. In any way they are not part of the "Remnant of the Remnant".

[Owayn The Traveller]

What about the ones refusing to give up the white after their alotted time? They are still within the Aiel society and will not die out or be intermingled with another society. So they will also form the remnant of the remnant. There are turbulent times ahead for the Aiel and who knows what will happen.

Again some will and some won't take up the leaf.

[Bob T Dwarf]

Take a look back at my post #342 above, for a (slightly!) more likely scenario.

 

For the rest, I'm happy to wait and see what that dream of Egwene's about Galad's shroud turns out to mean.

 

My impression has been that a big subtext to the last two books was Gawyn getting past such silliness and acquiring a little more maturity.

 

My guess about Galad's "wrapping himself in his own shroud" thing was him preparing to take-on Valda. Galad doesn't really have an ego problem. If anything he undervalues himself, and he probably went into that fight fully expecting to die. Even so, he is Galad, and fighting for Morgase is both his duty and his honor, so no matter the outcome he would do that duty openly and honorably.

 

Quite true. In fact, he now has a problem:

 

I killed Valda.. Killed him for the death of my mother. Who is not dead. I have done evil.

 

No. Valda had deserved to die for the assault on Morgase. Or was that part true? He had spoken to Children sure that it was, but they'd also been sure she was dead.

 

He would sort that out later.

 

Has he?

 

One of many $64 Questions waiting to be answered.

 

A Memory of Light will be an ending, but not the ending, since there are no beginnings nor endings in The Wheel of Time. Mainly because there's gonna be lots laundry left flapping in the wind. No matter how hard he tries, Sanderson cannot wrap this thing up in a neat little package. Jordan wanted some questions left open anyway. So that WOT would continue to exist as a living world.

[Dryone]

Just a few minor corrections: ;-)

 

Hmm.

 

-MoL begins with final preparation for the Seanchan attack on the White Tower, Fain is traveling north of the Blight, Caemlyn is burning, the Black Tower conflict is laid out, peasants are arriving at the fields Merrilor.

 

-The Black Tower plotline is the first resolved, in something of an anti-climax, and Logain becomes the new Black Tower leader.

 

-Meanwhile, Mat, Thom and Moiraine go to Caemlyn; things are looking bad until Logain and the Asha'man show up and clear a path. The dragons are rescued, Mat sends Logain and the Band ahead to the fields of Merrilor.

 

-Mat arranges to visit the White Tower, and is retrieving the Horn when the Seanchan start opening gateways in to invade. Mat demands to see Tuon, convinces her to slow down and go to the fields of Merrilor.

 

-The book catches up completely with Towers of Midnight (bar Lan's epilogue); there's a meeting where Rand, Min, Perrin, Nynaeve, Elayne, Faile, Galad (maybe), and Gawyn (maybe) are joined by the arriving Mat, Thom, Moiraine, and Aviendha. We see the start of this scene at the end of Towers of Midnight. Egwene is absent.

 

-The meeting occurs. Rand kneels before Tuon and says that he'll serve the Crystal Throne... because his purpose is to be the Servant of All, not just the Crystal Throne but everyone who is, was or who will be.

 

-Egwene and Rand Sedai have a war of words, and Egwene loses. Everyone supports Rand, including the Hall of the Tower. Egwene loses it a little and gets really angry, Nynaeve delves Egwene and discovers that Aran'gar put compulsion on her to drive a spike between her and Rand. Nynaeve heals Egwene, but Egwene is still waffling when Nynaeve senses that Lan is riding into battle.

 

-Rand essentially says that Egwene needs to make a decision, to join the Dragon Peace or stay out of the way. Nynaeve throws away her Great Serpent ring and says she's with Lan first, Aes Sedai second, and that she'll go alone if she has to. Egwene decides to throw in with the rest of the good guys. The stress of everything causes Elayne to go into labor, and she gives birth.

 

-Mat takes command of the combined army of Light with Rand's blessing, and they travel to the Gap; Rand will embark on a mission to rescue Lanfear. Lanfear will reveal how to heal the Bore, through Ogier and Aiel singing. Then she'll be forced by Moridin to attack Rand, and Rand will need to retreat.

 

-The good guys win and save the army Lan gathered, but Lan dies in Nynaeve's arms due to injuries from shadow forged weapons, injuries too great for even her to heal. Lan's death will shake the will and resolve of everyone in the army of Light.

Lan's death/rebirth are unnecessary and would just lengthen the book.

 

-Rand will come, and bring Lan back from the dead. One final war conference will occur, and the plan will essentially be Mat leading the combined forces of Light in a massive distraction battle, where he'll blow the Horn and keep the main army of Shadowspawn off of Rand's back, while Perrin provides support for the actual assault itself. We'll see Nynaeve vs. Moghedien, Logain vs Demandred, Egwene, Elayne and Aviendha tag-teaming Lanfear and Graendal, and finally Rand squaring off against Moridin while Fain lurks nearby. Gawyn and Lan battle Shaidar Haran, Gawyn using the Seanchan rings to give himself a massive power boost. After dispatching Moghedien, Nynaeve helps Lan; after being separated from the battle with Lanfear and Graendal, Egwene helps as well.

 

-On the battlefield, Mat is holding his own, barely. A breakthrough of Shadowspawn puts Mat on the front lines; Tuon instinctively uses the One Power to burn away the Shadowspawn attacking Mat, saving his life.

 

-Perrin ends up taking the battle into the Dream World, slipping into it physically due to the weakness of the Pattern near the Pit of Doom. First he's fighting back Slayer, and then aiding the Ogier and the Aiel by forging a new Seal in the Bore in Tel'aran'rhiod. He's defended by the spirits of the wolves of the world.

 

-Loial, the Aiel and the Ogier will succeed in their song, and the Pattern will start to heal. The Dark One will reach out, and the healing will slow - as long as the Dark One is still reaching through, they can't seal the Bore, and something needs to push it back. Rand will see it as his destiny, and go to be the Seal himself with Callandor (linked to Moiraine and Alivia). Pain will take his chance, and stab Rand while Moridin strikes at Rand.

 

-In the fragile reality around the Pit of Doom, Elayne, Aviendha and Min are combined to become one person. She looks mostly like Elayne, but she's every bit as much Min and Aviendha. Lanfear recognizes their combined nature as Ilyena, which makes Lanfear sad. Ilyena finishes off Lanfear, and goes to the Pit of Doom itself to back up Rand.

Too complicated and doesn't fit well with "three women around a funeral pyre"

 

-Pain falls into the Pit of Doom, and the taint on him counteracts the Dark One's taint, causing the Dark One to recoil and gives the Pattern the freedom to heal; Rand holds on long enough to seal it with Callandor. The connection between Rand and Moridin leads to their body swap as Moridin strikes at Rand with massive flows of spirit. Rand, in Moridins body, escapes; Alivia sees what's happened, and helps Rand "die" by not telling anyone what she realizes. Moridin, in Rand's body, dies of Rand's wounds. Ilyena, having Min's powers, realizes what happened.

 

-The good guys regroup and get out. Egwene says the eulogy for all those who died. Rand's funeral leads to a gathering of all the main characters in the series, and we have minor characters from throughout the series say their goodbyes to the man who saved them all.

 

-Mat and Tuon finally sleep together, and Tuon finally recognizes that the existing Seanchan system might need to change. She and Mat return to the Seanchan controlled territories to start making changes.

 

-Nynaeve and Lan travel to Malkier, where the Blight is receding. Lan will rebuild his country, and Nynaeve will be with him.

 

-Perrin returns to the Two Rivers, and we have a chance to see what it's become. He tells Tam about what happened. Faile announces she's pregnant.

 

-Moiraine and Thom get married.

They already got married right after Moraines rescue.

 

-Ilyena asks Egwene if she can bury Rand's body on the Dragonmount, and Egwene agrees. She takes a boat across the river to the Dragonmount, and flowers and trees bloom at her passing. She buries Rand's body, and Rand shows up in Moridin's body. The series ends with Rand/Lews/Ilyena/Min/Aviendha/Elayne finally being reunited, to face the future together without fear of the past.

 

 

 

That's my best guess.

 

Not bad, but my guess is that BS will cut down on the epilogue and will find different solutions for Rand/Seanchan truce and TG battle dynamics. :-)

[Rocky_Outcrop]

Everyone seems to think Matt will go and pick up the horn at the tower. I don't know why but for some reason I think someone will bring the horn to him. This could happen at any time and come as a surprise, being one of numerous surprises of this nature throughout the book.

 

It's so simple to make it so Matt has no reason to be inside the tower when the Seanchan come knocking. If that happens then all the theories which I really like would fall apart! In a way I hope there are hundreds of these surprises and none of our theories are right.

 

Imagine, for instance, that cads were to die in the prologue! Everyone would be flabbergasted!

[SharpDressedAsha'Man]

Everyone seems to think Matt will go and pick up the horn at the tower. I don't know why but for some reason I think someone will bring the horn to him. This could happen at any time and come as a surprise, being one of numerous surprises of this nature throughout the book.

Wasn't Verin aware of the Horns location?

[Edorion]

Anyone else remember the bit about the pole being raised on the green and the women spinning string (weaves) around it while the men sang from way back in TEOTW? And of course, followed by..."No one remembers why it was done, but that it always had been, and that was good enough for Two Rivers Folk" the most obvious of "nothing to see here" taglines. Would be pretty RJ-ish if some nonsense from the 15th page of the series ended up having something to do with the last battle @ the end.

[Jak o' the Shadows]

Hmm.

 

-MoL begins with final preparation for the Seanchan attack on the White Tower, Fain is traveling north of the Blight, Caemlyn is burning, the Black Tower conflict is laid out, peasants are arriving at the fields Merrilor.

 

-The Black Tower plotline is the first resolved, in something of an anti-climax, and Logain becomes the new Black Tower leader.

 

-Meanwhile, Mat, Thom and Moiraine go to Caemlyn; things are looking bad until Logain and the Asha'man show up and clear a path. The dragons are rescued, Mat sends Logain and the Band ahead to the fields of Merrilor.

 

-Mat arranges to visit the White Tower, and is retrieving the Horn when the Seanchan start opening gateways in to invade. Mat demands to see Tuon, convinces her to slow down and go to the fields of Merrilor.

 

-The book catches up completely with Towers of Midnight (bar Lan's epilogue); there's a meeting where Rand, Min, Perrin, Nynaeve, Elayne, Faile, Galad (maybe), and Gawyn (maybe) are joined by the arriving Mat, Thom, Moiraine, and Aviendha. We see the start of this scene at the end of Towers of Midnight. Egwene is absent.

 

-The meeting occurs. Rand kneels before Tuon and says that he'll serve the Crystal Throne... because his purpose is to be the Servant of All, not just the Crystal Throne but everyone who is, was or who will be.

 

-Egwene and Rand Sedai have a war of words, and Egwene loses. Everyone supports Rand, including the Hall of the Tower. Egwene loses it a little and gets really angry, Nynaeve delves Egwene and discovers that Aran'gar put compulsion on her to drive a spike between her and Rand. Nynaeve heals Egwene, but Egwene is still waffling when Nynaeve senses that Lan is riding into battle.

 

-Rand essentially says that Egwene needs to make a decision, to join the Dragon Peace or stay out of the way. Nynaeve throws away her Great Serpent ring and says she's with Lan first, Aes Sedai second, and that she'll go alone if she has to. Egwene decides to throw in with the rest of the good guys. The stress of everything causes Elayne to go into labor, and she gives birth.

 

-Mat takes command of the combined army of Light with Rand's blessing, and they travel to the Gap; Rand will embark on a mission to rescue Lanfear. Lanfear will reveal how to heal the Bore, through Ogier and Aiel singing. Then she'll be forced by Moridin to attack Rand, and Rand will need to retreat.

 

-The good guys win and save the army Lan gathered, but Lan dies in Nynaeve's arms due to injuries from shadow forged weapons, injuries too great for even her to heal. Lan's death will shake the will and resolve of everyone in the army of Light.

 

-Rand will come, and bring Lan back from the dead. One final war conference will occur, and the plan will essentially be Mat leading the combined forces of Light in a massive distraction battle, where he'll blow the Horn and keep the main army of Shadowspawn off of Rand's back, while Perrin provides support for the actual assault itself. We'll see Nynaeve vs. Moghedien, Logain vs Demandred, Egwene, Elayne and Aviendha tag-teaming Lanfear and Graendal, and finally Rand squaring off against Moridin while Fain lurks nearby. Gawyn and Lan battle Shaidar Haran, Gawyn using the Seanchan rings to give himself a massive power boost. After dispatching Moghedien, Nynaeve helps Lan; after being separated from the battle with Lanfear and Graendal, Egwene helps as well.

 

-On the battlefield, Mat is holding his own, barely. A breakthrough of Shadowspawn puts Mat on the front lines; Tuon instinctively uses the One Power to burn away the Shadowspawn attacking Mat, saving his life.

 

-Perrin ends up taking the battle into the Dream World, slipping into it physically due to the weakness of the Pattern near the Pit of Doom. First he's fighting back Slayer, and then aiding the Ogier and the Aiel by forging a new Seal in the Bore in Tel'aran'rhiod. He's defended by the spirits of the wolves of the world.

 

-Loial, the Aiel and the Ogier will succeed in their song, and the Pattern will start to heal. The Dark One will reach out, and the healing will slow - as long as the Dark One is still reaching through, they can't seal the Bore, and something needs to push it back. Rand will see it as his destiny, and go to be the Seal himself with Callandor (linked to Moiraine and Alivia). Pain will take his chance, and stab Rand while Moridin strikes at Rand.

 

-In the fragile reality around the Pit of Doom, Elayne, Aviendha and Min are combined to become one person. She looks mostly like Elayne, but she's every bit as much Min and Aviendha. Lanfear recognizes their combined nature as Ilyena, which makes Lanfear sad. Ilyena finishes off Lanfear, and goes to the Pit of Doom itself to back up Rand.

 

-Pain falls into the Pit of Doom, and the taint on him counteracts the Dark One's taint, causing the Dark One to recoil and gives the Pattern the freedom to heal; Rand holds on long enough to seal it with Callandor. The connection between Rand and Moridin leads to their body swap as Moridin strikes at Rand with massive flows of spirit. Rand, in Moridins body, escapes; Alivia sees what's happened, and helps Rand "die" by not telling anyone what she realizes. Moridin, in Rand's body, dies of Rand's wounds. Ilyena, having Min's powers, realizes what happened.

 

-The good guys regroup and get out. Egwene says the eulogy for all those who died. Rand's funeral leads to a gathering of all the main characters in the series, and we have minor characters from throughout the series say their goodbyes to the man who saved them all.

 

-Mat and Tuon finally sleep together, and Tuon finally recognizes that the existing Seanchan system might need to change. She and Mat return to the Seanchan controlled territories to start making changes.

 

-Nynaeve and Lan travel to Malkier, where the Blight is receding. Lan will rebuild his country, and Nynaeve will be with him.

 

-Perrin returns to the Two Rivers, and we have a chance to see what it's become. He tells Tam about what happened. Faile announces she's pregnant.

 

-Moiraine and Thom get married.

 

-Ilyena asks Egwene if she can bury Rand's body on the Dragonmount, and Egwene agrees. She takes a boat across the river to the Dragonmount, and flowers and trees bloom at her passing. She buries Rand's body, and Rand shows up in Moridin's body. The series ends with Rand/Lews/Ilyena/Min/Aviendha/Elayne finally being reunited, to face the future together without fear of the past.

 

 

 

That's my best guess.

 

/make it so

 

VERY good list

[Guest Geotvlr24]

Egwene and Galad will both die. It's unfortunate but Egwene herself dreamed it.

[squallor]

So, first time poster, long time lurker, and I wanted to throw out a couple of my personal predictions for the last book. Some are slight variations on normal theories and no big deal, others are less talked about

1. Rands death and resurrection: Rand most assuredly will die in some form. Not just his body when he swaps with Morridin (though I think of that even before I started reading the theory boards). He will physically die. While I can see the logic in that Nyneave will pull him back into the pattern a-la Birigitte-Moghedien method, I would find that very very underwhelming. There has been a LOT of mention that death cannot be healed via the power. None of the wonder girls have ever really thought of Birigitte as being resurected from death in any way, and I don't think if this happened to Rand that it would be in the same realm as resurrection. I honestly think the Nyneave will fully learn how to heal death. While every other great discovery all the OP weilders have made throughout the series, they were all re-discoveries. No one else has done anything that even AoL channelers had deemed impossible. There might be specially circumstances for which death can be healed, maybe she teams up with Damar Flinn and uses callendor, or something else, but I think she will do something much more impressive than simply pull him out of TAR. This is the last book after all.
   
2. Taim and the BLANK in the Blight: So I have never seen these two really put together. There has been a lot of speculation about Taim being from the AoL since he knows a lot of OP terminology, the way he pronounces his name, how he thinks of AS as untrained, etc. I don't believe he is just an apprentice to a Forsaken b/c he has been roaming around since before any FS were released, and was fully trained then. I don't think he was stuck in a stasis box either as one theory I have read. I believe that Taim was raised in the Blight. I think the _____ in the Blight is some sort of civilization. Possibly contained in some slow-time vacuol and preserved from the AoL, or just otherwise unaffected by the trolloc wars and war of 100 years. I am especially confident after reading ToM where we see both the sharp toothed canables and the blight huts being transported where Perrin saw them. We know the Morridin has a palace somewhere up there, so why couldn't a whole society of darkfriends exist? I think that they have their own school of channels up there, and this is how Taim was trained, and where his old apprentices were. He came Randland side as per some prophecy or at the orders of who ever was in charge up there at the time to cause some trouble for the mainlanders, possibly knowing the Dragon was truly reborn, and he wanted to take the tittle for himself and cause Rand to be taken as a false dragon. The only gap in my knowledge for this theory is if anyone has knowledge of his past. As far as I am aware, nothing has ever been mentioned since before he proclaimed himself the dragon.
   
3. Aviendha's children and the Sealing of the Bore: So, I have no good concrete answer to the mechanics, but I do have a couple of ideas. I like the belief that finding the song, and then having the Aiel and Ogier sing to heal the pattern. It seems very poetic, was very important to society in AoL, ties in with the Dragon being one with the Land, brings meaning to the mission of the Tinkers, etc. Thematically, it has a nice correlation to things like VoG, where Rand realizes the battle is about love and life prevailing of nothingness. I think sealing the bore needs to be that celebration of humanity/Ogierity. On that note, I think there is going to be some serious OP goodness to go along with it, being the OP is the power of the creator and all.
    
   How this relates to Aviendha's children: I don't think Rand really has time in his schedule for a little stress relief. I also don't see Aviendha just deciding now is the right time to get all soppy for Rand. She knows her obligations, and she is the last of the three ladies who will need Rand's love. She knows she has it and thats good enough for her. She will definitely be there doing something import during the sealing, either by being part of the OP link thats going on to seal the bore, or leading her people, or something. I think that the song, with all of its life inspiring goodness, along with overwhelming amounts of OP will actually cause a bit of immaculate conception. What better way to be connected to the OP than to be born of it. We have had plenty of mythological and christianity parallels, but no immaculate conception, so I dont think its out of the question.
   

 

Other thoughts:

1. Demandred is in Shara, though this is late game, out of left field, and slightly Deus Ex Machina. I'm sorry but leading Murandy is incredibly BORING.
   
2. Fain is going to be used as some kind of buffer against the DO during the sealing of the bore. Too many refrenses to them being equal but conflicting evils.
   
3. Good Guy Death toll: Egwene, Galad, Gawn, Lan, Nyneave, Min, and Perrin. At least thats it for who we actually care about.
   

[A. Pseudonym]

Think about this:

 

The Aiel are concerned with honour and obligation above all. This does not necessarily involve warfare. In the Age of Legends, with the Da'Shain Aiel, they found honour through devotion and service to the Aes Sedai.

 

Now after Tarmon Gai'don, if the Dragon's Peace actually happens and holds, the Aiel will need to discover how to find honour in a time of peace.

 

This is what the prophecy means when it says "slay them with the leaf", I think. Aviendha needs to figure this out.

 

I don't like it, because pacifism is kinda lame, but it seems to be where they're going.

[Dollhouse]

Figuring out what will happen in the last book shouldn't be too difficult if we use the RaFO replies we have gotten from both RJ and Brandon. If they haven't been answered yet then chances are VERY big that they will be revealed in the final book. Using this it is much easier isn't it? By saying RaFO they have already revealed a great deal.

 

So some things that we can expect to find out in that book:

 

01. Some Cyndane pov showing us more of her story and exactly what happened to her in Aelfinn.

02. Most likely this will give us at least 10+ chapters.

03. What happened to Alanna?

04. The Seanchan

05. Rands meeting with the lords Egwene has gathered.

06. The White Tower being attacked AGAIN by Seanchan?

07. Some use for the three Seanchan rings Gawyn found.

08. LTT/Rand's thoughts about Mierin and him possibly trying to save her.

09. Two-three possibly even four major battles between armies.

10. Elayne should figure out that in order to make perfect angreal/terangreal a man and a woman need to be linked.

11. Something unexpected.

12. The final battle.

13. epiologue

 

The above we can be pretty sure about but other less sure things could be:

 

* Cyndane really being a prisoner and tortured but "somebody" used her to try and lure Rand into a trap.

 

*We know that the bond when used by a female on a male that can channel doesn't allow the woman to control the man at all (although the other way around seems to work.) So For a forsaken to try and using that bond in a normal way wouldn't be very productive. I figure the bond could be used in other ways though. One being taht the one is gvien to Shaddar Haran, the other is that it is given to Moridin -- these two scenarios would likely be Moridin or the Great Lords plan -- however if it was Cyndane's plan? Maybe the Mind Trap is simmilar in nature to a bond, so if she makes Alanna pass the bond to her she would be able to use it as a trumph card in order to escape her prison?

 

* Possible flash of the future with several of the characters reincarnated again. Some would be siblings and others who were friends would be rivals ect. Book would end with the Great Lord being released from the prison again by somebody else making a new bore.

 

* This part is just my speculation but since Rand is now LTT as well and since there is no Ilyena around (as far as he knows) he would remember his feelings for Mierin. No I don't mean this would lead to a redemption or anything like that. I am just saying that I believe that despite everything he has said that LTT pobably is still loves Mierin. I'd wager she was his first love and that he drowned in her eyes. The way Rand has so far been almost impersonal (except for anger) towards some of the Chosen that he had even been comrades with at one point (see Sammael) made his encounters with them a bit too cold since he didn't remember them fully. But now that he has a full set of memories he should have a full set of feelings as well. No longer would these guys be people he vagually remembered with anger nor "legendary monster" -- they would be people that he remembered. People that might have been as close to him as Matt and Perrin and any of his friends. This is something I hope to see in the final book. I want to see LTT/Rand reflect on that they aren't just his enemies but that their betrayal would be far more personal.

[RandA lThor]

Outline of things that need to happen:

 

FoM forces need to be figured out

Mat needs to gather his army

Moiraine needs to see Rand

Rand needs to catch up with Elayne about baby

Aviendha has to decide on what to do to prevent future

The Black Tower has to be resolved

Cairhein has to be controlled

Borderlanders have to move to north

We need to figure out

Some more things with Rodel Ituralde?

Seanchan Crystal Throne and binding the Nine Moons

Seanchan attacking White Tower again?

Sea Folk have to get involved

All confusion between White Tower and Elayne has to be resolved

Alliances have to be made

Forsaken have to finish up their plans

Demandred has to reveal himself

Moridin has to reveal his other plans

What Graendal is going to do now

Callandor figuring out

and a bunch that I forgot

 

Please add more to this list

[FarShainMael]

Re CynFear's current plight (as of the end of ToM): there is much speculation on whether it's a trap or not. Surely, Rand Sedai's DF-detector-stare will be able to tell?

[Maleshub]

Just drawing a parallel between RJ and Rand when it crossed my mind that "A Memory of Light" can be applied quite strongly to RJ himself. The last book of the series, the title of the book to be published after RJ was diagnosed with his illness, would be a culminating "memory" of its creator and author. When a readers have AMoL in their hands, they are handling the last memory of RJ.

 

And in the same vein that the creator and author of WoT is giving us his final memory in AMoL, never to return for more; I think that Rand, at the end of AMoL, will be dead. He might die and be resurrected during the book. But it would be a fitting end for Rand to end it all the same way RJ did. The world would have been a better place with RJ still around; and WoT's world would have been better if Rand stayed after TG to fix things. But no. For Rand to live, a memory of light, he will give the ultimate sacrifice.

 

Just a thought I wanted to share with you all regardless of how textual evidence goes with or against it.