Question 1. Why in Aviendha’s test would the Seanchan (or anybody else for that matter) need to make trains? Cars yes, planes yes, but trains? Don’t gateways make trains kind of irrelevant?

Question 2. I’m probably miss remembering (thats what I get for not rereading before ToM), but did people in wot use (or even have) shields before? The real kind not the kind made of the Power.