Hello, and welcome back to another exciting edition of "WoT If?", Dragonmount's weekly theory blog.  This time, our topic is about the nature of the fight between Rand and the Dark One in A Memory of Light.  But first, please remember:

SPOILER WARNING.  This will include content from A Memory of Light.  Please DO NOT read this if you have not completed the book.

Rand has a plan when he goes to Shayol Ghul to fight the Dark One.  We know from other sources that Rand's ideas of the Dark One's nature are far off.  Verin says:

The Gathering Storm

Chapter 39, "A Visit from Verin Sedai"

 

"The Chosen are predictable, but the Great Lord is anything but. Even after decades of study, I can't be certain exactly what he wants or why he wants it. I only know that this battle isn't being fought the way that al'Thor assumes it will be."

And we see Verin is correct when we actually get to the battle between Rand and the Dark One.  Rand is taken outside the Pattern, and their duel is not physical, or even really combative.  More than anything, they try to exert their will strongly enough to overcome the other.  And in this way, would Rand's goal of actually killing the Dark One even work?

Many people within the series agree it's a dumb idea.  First Moridin brings it up.

The Gathering Storm

Chapter 15, "A Place to Begin"

 

Rand stood. Moridin eyed him warily, but did not get up.

 

"There is a way to win, Moridin," Rand said. "I mean to kill him. Slay the Dark One. Let the Wheel turn without his constant taint."

 

Moridin gave no reaction. He was still staring at the flames. "We are connected," Moridin finally said. "That is how you came here, I suspect, though I do not understand our bond myself. I doubt you can understand the magnitude of the stupidity in your statement."

And Moiraine agrees with the Forsaken.

A Memory of Light

Chapter 16, "A Silence Like Screaming"

 

“I’m going to kill the Dark One,” Rand said. “I’m not just going to seal up the Dark One, I’m going to end him.”

 

“I thought you had grown up while I was away,” Moiraine said.

…

“The Dark One is beyond killing,” Moiraine said.

 

“I think I can do it,” Rand said. “I remember what Lews Therin did, and there was a moment … a brief moment … It can happen, Moiraine. I’m more confident that I can do that than I am that I could seal the Dark One away.” That was true, though he had no real confidence that he could manage either.

 

Questions. So many questions. Shouldn’t he have some answers by now?

 

“The Dark One is part of the Wheel,” Moiraine said.

 

“No. The Dark One is outside the Pattern,” Rand countered. “Not part of the Wheel at all.”

 

“Of course the Dark One is part of the Wheel, Rand,” Moiraine said. “We are the threads that make up the Pattern’s substance, and the Dark One affects us. You cannot kill him. That is a fool’s task.”

 

“I have been a fool before,” Rand said. “And I shall be one again. At times, Moiraine, my entire life—all that I’ve done—feels like a fool’s task. What is one more impossible challenge? I’ve met all the others. Perhaps I can accomplish this one too.”

And when we finally get to the scenes in A Memory of Light where Rand and the Dark One have direct interaction, the fight does go differently than most of us suspected.  In a way, they play a game of "What If?"  The Dark One shows Rand the way the world would be if he was in control.  Rand responds with different ways he would make the world.  They go back and forth, using threads of the Pattern to create a reality around them.

The interesting point is when Rand creates a world where there is no Dark One.  We see that without the Dark One, without evil, the world becomes a different sort of twisted place.  Let's look at the ending of that scene.

A Memory of Light

Chapter 37, "The Last Battle"

 

Rand looked into Elayne’s eyes, looked into them deeply. A shadow lurked back there, behind them. Oh, it was an innocent shadow, but a shadow nonetheless. It was like … like that …

 

Like that shadow behind the eyes of someone who had been Turned to the Dark One.

 

Rand jumped to his feet and stumbled backward. “What have you done here?” he shouted into the sky. “Shai’tan! Answer me!”

 

Elayne cocked her head. She wasn’t afraid. Fear did not exist in this place. “Shai’tan? I swear I remember that name. It has been so long. I get forgetful sometimes.”

 

“SHAI’TAN!” Rand bellowed.

 

I HAVE DONE NOTHING, ADVERSARY. The voice was distant. THIS IS YOUR CREATION.

 

“Nonsense!” Rand said. “You’ve changed her! You’ve changed them all!”

 

DID YOU THINK THAT REMOVING ME FROM THEIR LIVES WOULD LEAVE THEM UNALTERED?

 

The words thundered through Rand. Aghast, he stepped away as Elayne rose, obviously concerned for him. Yes, he saw it now, the thing behind her eyes. She was not herself … because Rand had taken from her the ability to be herself.

 

I TURN MEN TO ME, Shai’tan said. IT IS TRUE. THEY CANNOT CHOOSE GOOD ONCE I HAVE MADE THEM MINE IN THAT WAY. HOW IS THIS ANY DIFFERENT, ADVERSARY?

 

IF YOU DO THIS, WE ARE ONE.

 

“No!” Rand screamed, holding his head in his hand, falling to his knees. “No! The world would be perfect without you!”

 

PERFECT. UNCHANGING. RUINED. DO THIS, IF YOU WISH, ADVERSARY. IN KILLING ME, I WOULD WIN.

 

NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO, I WILL WIN.

 

Rand screamed, curling up as the Dark One’s next attack washed over him. The nightmare Rand had created exploded outward, ribbons of light spraying away like streaks of smoke.

 

The darkness around him shook and trembled.

 

YOU CANNOT SAVE THEM.

 

The Pattern—glowing, vibrant—wrapped around Rand again. The real Pattern. The truth of what was happening. In creating his vision of a world without the Dark One, he had created something horrible. Something awful. Something worse than would have been before.

 

The Dark One attacked again.

It seems that without the threat of evil, the population doesn't have anything to make them strong, anything to fight against.  That changes them into mindless robots.  They are unable to make choices—they no longer have free will.  The Dark One even points out how it is the same to remove all their good qualities to remove all their bad.

However, look at how easily the Dark One persuades Rand that this is not the right course of action.  It seems a little too neat.  The example fits in entirely too well with what the Dark One says he wants.  Would the Dark One really have surrendered to being killed if this was the outcome?  I highly doubt it.

That leads to a possible conclusion: the Dark One is tricking Rand.  Rand is ta'veren.  He is the Champion for the Creator.  But he is not the Creator.  The Dark One, trapped outside the Pattern, may have the ability to weave threads of the Pattern, but can we be certain that Rand is able to copy that ability?  Can we be certain that it is indeed Rand's vision, and not another of the Dark One's?

There has been some speculation by fans already that this was just another ploy by the Dark One to save himself.  It's reverse psychology, of sorts.  If the Dark One says, "Yes, that's a fine plan," naturally Rand will not do it. 

Or, if the Dark One himself didn't create that vision, could it have been the actual Pattern?  Would the Pattern get out of balance if the Dark One were killed?  It would even take the side of the Shadow to keep itself preserved.  So, it seems plausible it could be either the Dark One or the Pattern.

Okay, now for the argument.  The epilogue of A Memory of Light shows Rand being able to light his pipe with his will.  This is very similar to how he and the Dark One dueled.  They both used their will to make weaves form a different future for the Pattern.  Rand seems to have that ability now that he's in the real world.  This would suggest he was actually weaving the threads outside the Pattern.

Regardless if Rand was the creator of that one vision, we cannot know for certain if the Dark One tampered with it, or added in his own threads to make the people seem changed. 

From this, I think we can argue that Rand was manipulated into not killing the Dark One.  Most likely, I think, by the Dark One himself.  Because in this scenario, it's assumed that all evil, all bad things, derive from the Dark One.  That's completely illogical.  Even without the Dark One, there would still be accidents, people would stub their toes and curse, plants would die from drought or from insects.  Greed, ambition, selfishness are not necessarily evil traits.  They would still be in abundance if the Dark One were not influencing the world.  The Creator, who made all things, had to be responsible for allowing bad things to happen.

To me, this shows that Rand could have killed the Dark One, and the world would have survived without him.  It might have even broken the Wheel—as we've talked about in past blogs—and made time linear.  However, Rand's decision seems to be forced upon him; Rand wouldn't willingly give the Dark One something he wanted.

Was it the correct decision?  Probably in this case.  Rand had been guided to this decision by many people—good and bad—and perhaps even the Pattern itself.  But that doesn't mean he wasn't tricked into making this choice.  Maybe in the next Third Age, he will decide to go through with killing the Dark One anyway.

That's all for this edition.  Next week, I have an announcement that will change the flow of "WoT If?" a little bit.  So join us for the surprise!  Thanks for reading.