Re: I think the chance of that is zero - Edit 1
Before modification by Sidious at 28/06/2010 06:51:40 PM
Cadsuane and the WO aren't the only ones who could deduce Cadsuane kept the domination band and where. She intended to test it eventually on an Asha'man, but still had to convince Rand to let her (she had made another attempt in chapter one). Her followers and probably pretty much everyone present at Semirhage's capture probably knew about that (it's when Cadsuane grabbed the objects...). Cadsuane had promised Rand it was safe.
Most importantly, notice that at the first meeting with Cadsuane upon their arrival, Bair and Sorilea already knew Cadsuane had male/female a'dam and took the initiative to ask her about that. Cadsuane wasn't in any way surprised that they knew. They knew she was the one keeping them. So, it wasn't a secret that Cadsuane had the DM.
Her hiding place wasn't quite "clever": in her room, in a trunk. Riiiight. No one would search her room first, no one would look in her trunk after trying her jewels box. Cadsuane sinned by overconfidence. She thinks she has everyone under control, and that inverted weaves can't be detected. She was wrong.
The other obvious fact: Cadsuane has not even wondered (nor Nynaeve, nor the WO) how the Shadow could find the DM. There was no hunt for the DF who led Elza/Semirhage to it, for the good reason everyone knew Elza needed no one telling her Cadsuane had the DM, and Cadsuane's hding place had been all too obvious to any BA in the group, and Elza/Semirhage just had to wait until Cadsuane was out of the building to steal it. Had Bair and Sorilea been the only ones to know, Cadsuane would have suspected them immediately.
We also know it's Shaidar Haran who made Elza steal the DB. It's probably him who could detect wards. Most likely he asked Elza in the first place where the a'dam taken from Semirhage were. Elza answered "probably in Cadsuane's room". SH made her search it, they found the warded trunk, and SH taught Elza how to unravel the ward (yes, she probably used the TP for that. SH couldn't do it itself because of limitations to its interaction with the physical world).
Most importantly, notice that at the first meeting with Cadsuane upon their arrival, Bair and Sorilea already knew Cadsuane had male/female a'dam and took the initiative to ask her about that. Cadsuane wasn't in any way surprised that they knew. They knew she was the one keeping them. So, it wasn't a secret that Cadsuane had the DM.
Her hiding place wasn't quite "clever": in her room, in a trunk. Riiiight. No one would search her room first, no one would look in her trunk after trying her jewels box. Cadsuane sinned by overconfidence. She thinks she has everyone under control, and that inverted weaves can't be detected. She was wrong.
The other obvious fact: Cadsuane has not even wondered (nor Nynaeve, nor the WO) how the Shadow could find the DM. There was no hunt for the DF who led Elza/Semirhage to it, for the good reason everyone knew Elza needed no one telling her Cadsuane had the DM, and Cadsuane's hding place had been all too obvious to any BA in the group, and Elza/Semirhage just had to wait until Cadsuane was out of the building to steal it. Had Bair and Sorilea been the only ones to know, Cadsuane would have suspected them immediately.
We also know it's Shaidar Haran who made Elza steal the DB. It's probably him who could detect wards. Most likely he asked Elza in the first place where the a'dam taken from Semirhage were. Elza answered "probably in Cadsuane's room". SH made her search it, they found the warded trunk, and SH taught Elza how to unravel the ward (yes, she probably used the TP for that. SH couldn't do it itself because of limitations to its interaction with the physical world).
I find that supremely unlikely for several reasons.
1. Even in the WoP and the Collapse only 29 people were ever allowed access to it, and from Moghedien's POV that was seen as a great honor.
2. At this point only Moridin is allowed access, why make a big point of telling us this if the DO was going to hand a peon like Elza access for a minor task?
3. Bsand's comments that Elza had been taught weaves not used since the AoL in explanation seems to indicate that she simply used saidar to unravel Cadsuane's ward.
Brandon told us that Elza was taught some rarely known weaves. There's no reason to doubt that they were weaves of saidar. We don't even know who taught her.
Taught by whom? Who but a Forsaken would know those "rare weaves" to teach Elza?
Not Semirhage, she was a prisoner then. There's no evidence another female Forsaken was involved, and it makes little sense to use Elza to free Semirhage if another Forsaken was there and could do it, or to let Semirhage deal with Elza's compulsion if the all-time specialist Graendal was with SH. Mesaana? Unlikely, after what happened in the prologue. The mindtrapped pets? It makes even less sense than the others that SH would not simply have had one of them do the deeds if he had one with him.
There's also the matter of Cadsuane's inverted wards. In the Forsaken know "rare weaves" to unravel them, what's all the fuss they're making about Rand's wards? Demandred and the others have had like forever to loot the vaults in Tear, and take Callandor, and there they don't have Mesaana's motive not to raise the alarm in the Tower unless she needs something really badly.
So, that leaves Shaidar Haran. How likely is it that he can teach rare weaves of saidar? To quote you, the chance of that is zero. But what are the odds he can teach and give permission to tap the True Power? Excellent odds, I would say. "Rarely known weaves" can perfectly be an euphemism for TP weaves, all the more since Brandon also said the whole experience was most unpleasant for Elza. Let her use the TP this once for a special mission for SH is pretty harmless too - she won't be able to tap it anymore without express permission. We also know SH didn't do all this himself and he had to use Elza because, as Brandon explained, he is limited in how he can interact with physical reality. That suggests strongly SH was acting alone in this mission.
Semirhage felt nothing of what Elza did to kill the two women outside. No other woman around did either. All Semirhage noticed was that her shield was gone all of a sudden. No one in the manor felt any of Elza's channelling either. She stole the DM in complete immunity.
There's a whole lot speculative stretching to do to have her learn rare saidar weaves, and while there's no definitive proof she was taught to use the TP, the chance it's precisely what she did are much higher than zero. Over 50% is more like it...
But how would he teach her True Power weaves? The True Power can't be seen or detected by other channelers. Moridin was channeling right next to Demandred and he didn't sense or see a thing. The use of the TP has become a status symbol associated with the rank of Nae'blis. If he's cut off its use from the Forsaken, it unlikely he'd extend it to Elza. One could argue that he dishes it out to suit his own needs and to attain his goals i.e. obtaining the Domination Band. However, if Moridin gave the TP to all the Forsaken his advantage over the Light would be huge, and he still doesn't.
Like all things of the Shadow I think Elza's knowledge makes little sense. I think the knowledge of the weaves was put into her brain, much like Fain received knowledge early on in the series. Fain considered it to be pain beyond belief, so I suspect that SH gave her knowledge but that it was extremely traumatic. For all we know the DO knows everything about the One Power - he certainly know about balefire, as he told Rahvin.