Well... - Edit 1
Before modification by Etzel at 30/09/2009 06:43:52 PM
"Again the seed slays ancient wrong, before the Great Lord comes. Now the Great Lord comes."
The first verse most likely refers to the Seanchan attack on the WT, which Ishy certainly foresaw. TG will begin sometime after the attack, because then the DO will come.
In my view Nicola's foretelling of "a great battle done" also refers most likely to the Seanchan attack on the WT.
The famous Nicola foretelling was:
"The lion sword, the dedicated spear, she who sees beyond. Three on the boat, and he who is dead yet lives. The great battle done, but the world not done with battle. The land divided by the return, and the guardians balance the servants. The future teeters on the edge of a blade."
I think this entire prophecy is about events following the Last Battle. "The great battle done" is referencing Tarmon Gai'don, not the Seanchan attack on the WT. It suggests that any unity that is achieved will dissolve shortly after TG - the land is "divided by the return" and the Asha'man and Aes Sedai have to work things out. Just because TG has been won doesn't mean that everything will be perfect.
Especially the last line in the Prophecy states that the future of the world is still undecided, although it's precisely the point of TG to decide the future. Therefore it makes no sense that TG is done, won by the Light, and the future still teeters on the edge of a blade.
If you compare it to another Prophecy which clearly deals with a time before TG, namely the one in the beginning of CoT: "And it shall come to pass, in the days when the Dark Hunt rides, when the right hand falters and the left hand strays, that mankind shall come to the Crossroads of Twilight and all that is, all that was, and all that will be shall balance on the point of a sword , while the winds of the Shadow grow", you'll see that almost the same image is used for the unknown future before TG here.
Besides that, as far as I know no other Prophecy - especially none by Nicola - deals with the time after TG that casually, basically taking for granted that TG will of course be won. Also considering the intention of RJ by writing these Prophecies to give a little glimpse on the plot, it would be totally anomalous to invent one Prophecy which clearly states to the readers and the characters that the Light will win TG.
Therefore actually nothing really suggests that Nicola's Prophecy deals with a time after TG, and it would be quite strange, because the general rule is that Prophecies deal with a time after or during TG.