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LOC: "I should have killed him LONG ago..." Shannow Send a noteboard - 23/07/2010 07:55:59 AM
Recently BS gave an interesting answer at Twitter regarding Rand's and Taim's apparent auras of darkness:

Q: @BrandonSandrson Thanks! TGS: Rand's dark aura was an effect of channeling TP, right? WH, prologue: didn't Taim cast a similar aura?
A: @HBFFerreira You're the first to notice that that I've seen.


If BS isn't completely misleading here, this answer strongly suggests that Rand's and Taim's dark auras might have occured for similar reasons.

It was reported that BS said at a signing that „the black/dark aura around Rand is partially, but not entirely, an effect of True Power usage“.

After his TP usage Cadsuane describes Rand as having „a strange serenity about him now, but it had a dark edge“, and that „the air around him seemed to warp, and she could almost think that the room had grown darker.“ Tuon notes in her talk with Rand that „in the corners of her vision, she thought she saw something around him. A dark haze, a halo of blackness, emanating from him. It warped the air like a great heat.“

I'm not sure, if other people note Rand's halo as well in TGS.

Taim is described by Elayne in WH, prologue, „as nearly as tall as Rand, with a hooked nose and dark eyes like augurs, a physically powerful man who moved with something of a Warder’s deadly grace, but shadows seemed to follow him, as if half the lamps in the room had gone out; not real shadows, but an air of imminent violence that seemed palpable enough to soak up light.“
And Pevara tells in KoD, epilogue that Taim „was tall, with a strongly hooked nose and an air of physical strength about him. An air of darkness, too.“

IIRC, this darkness around Taim isn't noted before WH, though, especially not already when Taim meets Rand in the end of PoD.

So, does this indicate that Taim being, a high-ranking DF, has used the True Power once between PoD and WH for some reason? Or did he at least come into contact with the TP then, e.g. from the Myrddraal during a turning to the Shadow via the 13+13 trick?

The problem with both ideas is that, as far as I know, this dark aura is never mentioned around the ultimate TP channeler Moridin, e.g. when Rand meets him in ACoS or TGS, or at the Forsaken meetings; just the saa are mentioned (therefore this darkness is IMO also not a convincing clue that Moridin is Taim, as some suggest). On the other hand, I think Ishy had such a dark aura in certain scenes in the first books. But other people, who obviously came into contact with the TP, like Slayer, Fain, Elza or Alviarin, never showed such a dark aura either, IIRC.

Or can this dark aura only be seen by certain sensitive persons or under special circumstances? The persons who mention this dark halo around Rand and Taim (Ishy is another case again) are apparently all female channelers (with the possible exception of Tuon), but don't see it all the time, but rather for a moment only.

It's all pretty puzzling, especially since BS said that the halo is not entirely an effect of TP usage. Any further ideas or comments on this?

BTW, there were also the following Q&A, which are a bit informative:

Q: @DukeOfDunstable asks "Will TofM be as dark in mood as TGS was?"
A: Well, the Last Battle is close, so things aren't getting brighter. There's a reason Mr. Jordan named the last volume A Memory of Light.

Q: @BrandonSandrson but wont rand be a bit more light since the last chaptor of GS? so hence a bit of a cheery mood lol
A: @DeanRoyWoodward RAFO. (But chances seem good.)

Q: @BrandonSandrson that being said, will ToM still have its bright moments, like Rand recovering his sanity and will to live at the end of TGS?
A: @muggenhor There will be those, of course.

Q: @BrandonSandrson Did you end up finding space for those 50k words on Pevara in ToM? If not, is there a chance we'll see it before Nov 2nd?
A: @yoniy0 Got two chapters of it in. Decided I could juggle the timeline, maybe, to get the rest into Bk 3.


I was reading through LOC again, yesterday. Specifically Rand's visits to the farm.

It is clear beyond a shadow of a doubt that Lews Therin believes that Taim is someone he has known for a long time. You don't say you should have killed someone "long ago" if you've only known him for a few weeks.

Based on LOC evidence I remain convinced that Taim is a figure from the Age of Legends.

Either that, or Demandred/Moridin was somehow "possessing him" part of the time, and Lews Therin "felt" the specific Forsaken's presence on a spiritual level.

It is not something as watered down as Taim simply having been trained by Demandred or Moridin. There has to be an actual "presence" of an Age of Legends figure, to trigger Lews Therin's response.

And also to explain Taim's violent physical reaction when having to be annointed by Rand as the "second Ashaman", during the badge awarding ceremony at the farm.

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Rand's and Taim's dark aura - 22/07/2010 11:58:35 AM 2047 Views
Control? - 22/07/2010 12:34:31 PM 759 Views
Yes, could be... - 22/07/2010 02:35:02 PM 642 Views
Or a simple little trick. - 22/07/2010 04:39:03 PM 564 Views
Re: Or a simple little trick. - 22/07/2010 05:57:45 PM 563 Views
True. - 22/07/2010 06:03:15 PM 582 Views
Moridin doesn't have it - 22/07/2010 04:13:19 PM 621 Views
Rand saw Moridin in the end of ACoS in SL - 22/07/2010 04:36:49 PM 891 Views
I noticed that, too, but didn't have any idea what to do with it... - 22/07/2010 04:14:59 PM 666 Views
If... - 22/07/2010 05:32:09 PM 574 Views
If he doesn't use it that much, perhaps the saa hasn't manifested, yet. - 22/07/2010 09:04:16 PM 614 Views
We will see - 23/07/2010 07:56:08 AM 482 Views
If it can be taken literally, it is the biggest spoiler we've ever seen - 22/07/2010 04:56:09 PM 659 Views
The Moridin poses as Taim theory is rather weak, IMO - 22/07/2010 05:33:26 PM 596 Views
I agree. - 22/07/2010 06:06:30 PM 492 Views
I agree with your agreement - 23/07/2010 05:29:02 AM 508 Views
Taim is a new forsaken - 22/07/2010 08:59:59 PM 540 Views
The problem is, why Taim's dark aura wasn't mentioned before WH. - 23/07/2010 08:07:42 AM 611 Views
LOC: "I should have killed him LONG ago..." - 23/07/2010 07:55:59 AM 604 Views
I think... - 23/07/2010 08:02:42 AM 580 Views
That's the popular explanation, but doesn't really address the main issue... - 23/07/2010 08:08:27 AM 693 Views
It's also possible... - 23/07/2010 08:22:57 AM 499 Views
It's interesting... - 23/07/2010 08:29:18 AM 571 Views
I guess till we have a Taim PoV, we can't really decide it... - 23/07/2010 09:22:59 AM 517 Views
Lews Therin hates Demandred more than the other FS - 23/07/2010 10:47:47 AM 642 Views
I'm still around 50% sure that Taim is Demandred. - 23/07/2010 12:04:48 PM 492 Views
but all the Forsaken have used the TP at some point - 23/07/2010 03:41:51 PM 644 Views
Quote please... - 23/07/2010 03:51:20 PM 495 Views
The answer is simple: - 24/07/2010 07:41:49 AM 566 Views

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