An example of this, on a very small scale, would be Egwene killing the to’raken carrying away Aes Sedai prisoners from the Tower. She thinks highly of the Tower and sees these women as her subjects and her responsibility, or as her possessions and adornments to her power, depending on your view of her. However, she has to do what is best for the Tower and the world, and that means killing Seanchan forces and doing what she can to cripple their war machine. If some of her daughters/pets/minions have to die with them, too damn bad. But that example is one of battle where the lines of life and death are clearly drawn, and even right and wrong gives way to a much simpler delineation: “them and us.”
Did Egwene have any reason to suspect that any of them knew Travelling? Even if she did, it's a big assumption to think she could kill ALL of the raken - for all she knew, by the time she entered the battle, Elaida had already been captured.
In terms of the AS becoming damane - they are still held by the Oaths, plus they, well, pretty much suck at combat. If they heal Seanchan soldiers, I don't think that's such a big deal. And in the timeframe before T'G (I doubt it's more than a month, or two at most) there's little chance that the captive AS would be completely broken to the point they couldn't be "reclaimed" back into the WT. I'd actually go as far as saying their emprisonment could be GOOD for the light - it's not unreasonable to think that Rand and Tuon will form some kind of alliance before the LB, and when they do, they'll have a few hundred extra trained damane who have learned combat weaves and whose Oaths still allow them to kill Shadowspawn. Which, I think you'll agree, is better than them sitting in the tower studying poetry. Their capture doesn't reflect well on Egwene, but her compassion/pity in sparing their lives might make a big difference in the end.
This message last edited by Lord Haart on 06/04/2010 at 06:00:28 AM
Did the characters come too easily to power?
16/03/2010 11:37:31 PM
- 1938 Views
Yes, and for Rand at least IMO, playing nice has cost dearly
17/03/2010 04:59:32 AM
- 968 Views
Not necessarily
18/03/2010 03:17:10 PM
- 906 Views
Good post.
27/03/2010 01:43:24 PM
- 766 Views
Unfortunately, no.
31/03/2010 10:23:58 AM
- 881 Views
Re: Unfortunately, no.
02/04/2010 07:54:10 AM
- 713 Views
All the way through, up to ripping her self-delusional assessments of her "achievements" in KoD
02/04/2010 09:27:54 PM
- 784 Views
TLDR *NM*
17/03/2010 05:43:01 AM
- 598 Views
Cmon ppl pls reply to this, Cannoli has spent such a long time writing it.... I couldn't be bothered *NM*
17/03/2010 10:31:38 AM
- 385 Views
Rand is at the perfect position after TGS for his downfall...
17/03/2010 02:49:55 PM
- 872 Views
Re: Rand is at the perfect position after TGS for his downfall...
17/03/2010 06:15:18 PM
- 822 Views
I usually read Cannoli's epic-length posts...
17/03/2010 04:08:33 PM
- 880 Views
Ha! Imagine if I didn't double-space the paragraphs. That is a fairly new practice on my part.
*NM*
18/03/2010 03:36:13 PM
- 417 Views

I'd suggest you had more paragraphs......with a lot of spacing.....
*NM*
19/03/2010 04:42:05 AM
- 443 Views

Sheesh, you people are babies. I read it. Some good points.
17/03/2010 05:35:08 PM
- 824 Views
Re: Sheesh, you people are babies. I read it. Some good points.
17/03/2010 10:08:34 PM
- 948 Views
Oh and I forgot to add
18/03/2010 01:41:28 AM
- 852 Views
I would say those cases are both examples of aknowledging their own limitations and priorities
18/03/2010 04:02:13 PM
- 925 Views
Re: Did the characters come too easily to power?
17/03/2010 06:10:22 PM
- 857 Views
I was more focussed on the cost of GETTING power, not the prices of discharging it responsibly
18/03/2010 04:27:18 PM
- 934 Views
While most of this is true...
19/03/2010 06:47:19 AM
- 749 Views
Siuan's failure to properly help Rand should motivate Egwene to overthrow...oh, right. Egwene.
19/03/2010 11:52:10 PM
- 779 Views

Re: The To'Raken
06/04/2010 06:00:07 AM
- 813 Views