I wanted to consider the dark prophecy at the end of ToM a bit more, and try to puzzle out some of what it means. Lets have a look.



This one is likely pretty literal. The Dark Ones prison is certainly growing weak. I am unsure what the second part means though. It might refer to Rand. LTT was the one who sealed him away, and now Rand has lost one limb. However the prophecy seems to refer to multiple people, the way it speaks of not one limb but rather multiple limbs, and the way it says "of those" rather than "of the one".

Could it have something to do with Mat&Perrin? Mat has lost an eye, and Perrin claims to feel pain in his leg. Now an Eye is not exactly a Limb, and the pain in Perrin's leg could just be some phantom pain. On the other hand, the Slayers arrows could have been infected with the DO's evil somehow, causing Perrin to lose his leg. I am not sure if you could stretch the definition of limbs to mean Mat's eye however.

Also, while Mat and Perrin are now connected to Rand, they were not around when LTT crafted the seals. Unless there is something we don't know.



Again pretty obvious. The DO is certainly showing his influence in the world. The world is "smothered" in dark clouds and bubbles of evil happen all over.



Again, bubbles of evil and the spoiling of food which is causing starvation and suffering.



I am not sure what this means, if anything. Might just be boasting about how big and cool the DO is supposed to be.



This one obviously refers to Mat, in an insulting way. He has lost his eye, and he is probably the most easygoing of the three ta'veren so that may be where the "fool" comes from. As for the halls of mourning, that could perhaps refer to the domain of the finns. Another possibility is that it speaks of Mat grieving for someone in the future. It is possible that Olver and/or others in the Band will die in the trolloc attack in Caemlyn. Mat would most certainly mourn Olver, who in some ways is like an adopted son or younger brother to him.



It has been suggested by some that this might mean Fain, but I still believe that Rand is the most obvious answer to this. Firstly, the other two mentions in this part of the prophecy refer to the other two ta'veren, so it seems likely that this one is far more likely to be Rand.

Second, Rand is the reborn LTT who was known as First Among Servants. The other ta'veren are referred in insulting ways (fallen and fool) so it makes sense that Rand too would be mocked in this prophecy. First Among Vermin not only insults Rand, but also implies that all Aes Sedai are vermin too. Very fitting.

And finally, the last part obviously refers to Rand, lifting his hand to break the final three seals and in doing so releasing the Dark One to touch the world freely through the bore. The DO is certainly a destroyer.



Fallen Blacksmith is obviously Perrin, but I am unsure what the prophecy means otherwise. Graendal seemed to think that the "last days" meant that Perrin's days were numbered, and he was supposed to die soon. However for the moment atleast, Perrin seems to have escaped alive and is safe.

Strictly speaking though, the last days refer not to Perrin, but rather to his pride. Could this actually refer to the fact that Perrin finally accepts the mantle of leadership. Then again, that does not exactly fit the definition of pride. What else is Perrin proud of?



Okay, I am unsure what this means. There are several potential candidates that come to mind. I have one that I suspect most though.

1.Perrin
Perrin would certainly fit the whole wolf thing, but it seems strange that he would be referred in the prophecy as a fallen blacksmith, and then right afterwards by a completely different title. I also don't know how Perrin is broken? If anything, he has grown stronger and more whole now than he ever has been.

2.Ituralde
Ituralde has been referred to as a wolf in several places, but like Perrin I don't see how he could be considered broken. Not only did he lead a massively successfull defense of the city, and in doing so gave Rand time to come and save it, but he has recently learned that his King is alive afterall. His death might potentially be bad for morale though, if he goes back to the borderlands to fight the trollocs and falls.

3.Hopper
Hopper is a wolf, and he is most certainly broken having been killed by the Slayer. I thought that he might return as a darkhound. He might also fit the whole "Death has known" part since Hopper died once already in the real world. However I simply do not see how Hoppers death could possibly "shake the will of men". Perrin is the only one who even knows of this, and while he is grieving, I don't really see his will being shaken by this.

4.Rand
Rand's death would certainly shake the will of men badly, and cause them to lose hope. However I don't really see how he would be called a wolf. I think Rand is a possibility, considering his importance, but he would not be my first guess.

5.Bashere
This would be my first guess. Bashere has been shown to carry around "The wolf-headed ivory baton of the Marshal-General of Saldaea". And the broken part would be filled by the Broken Crown. Min also had a nasty vision of Bashere, implying that he might be about to die (death has known?). And when it comes to the will of men, Bashere has played a vital role to Rand's efforts. He basically built up the Legion of the Dragon, and is one of Rand's top generals. If he is given command of some vital front in defending against trollocs, and he and his forces fall and are destroyed, that would certainly be a huge blow to the morale of the light.


I have no idea what the part about the "midnight towers" mean. There are the "Towers of Midnight" in Seanchan, but RJ said we would not go to the Seanchan continent in the books. It could potentially mean that the "broken wolf" will be consumed by the Seanchan. Perhaps Bashere falls in a fight against the Seanchan rather than the shadow.

The Death has known is a bit mysterious too. I wonder if it could refer to Moridin, whose name is Death in the old tongue? If so, Rand and Perrin are the only ones who would really have any connection. Rand especially.



At first glance, I figured this probably meant to the Dark One. However on second thought I no longer think so. For one, the DO was already named in this prophecy as the Great Lord. Second, I remembered that one of the titles LTT had was "Lord of the Morning". Needless to say, "Lord of the Evening" is the exact opposite of that. Rand is basically a champion of the light now, so it seems likely that if Rand is LotM, then LotE would be his opposite, the champion of the shadow. This most likely means that Lord of the Evening is either Shaidar Haran, or more likely Moridin, given his connection to both Rand and LTT.



When I thought this referred to as the DO, this was just the usual shadow stuff. But if it refers to Moridin or Shaidar Haran, could it mean something else. Could it imply that Moridin/SH will gain some power or influence over darkfriends in the future? Maybe as the bore is opened, Moridin or SH will gain some ability to mind control or possess or something, any darkfriend who has sworn to the DO. Basically "taking their eyes, skin and flesh" to serve the Lord of the Evening.



Lord of the Evening is again either Moridin or SH. The broken champion is most obviously Rand, but I don't understand why he would be called broken. Unless maybe something happens in the future to break the peace Rand has acquired. We know that Moridin is trying his best to break Rand's mind, and Shaidar Haran said to Graendal that someone else has been given the job, with the obvious suspect being Cyndane. Maybe she will succeed somehow, doing something that will cause Rand to fall back into madness or despair, making him a "broken champion" once more. The death of some of the people Rand is bonded to is another option. Alanna has vanished, maybe her death will "break" Rand.

The latter part would then be obvious. Rand, being broken, cannot win against Moridin and is defeated. And if Rand is still causing the sun to shine around him, even if he is broken, then his defeat/death would obviously end that quite quickly, bringing in darkness.



Not sure if this has any significange. It might be a clue that after Rand has fallen and before the DO destroys the pattern completely, he has some fun by totally screwing over all his followers, causing them to scream and beg for the escape of death. The DO is a nice guy like that.