They could always try to Shield him, though how he would fight the Last Battle in that state is unclear, and any Ashaman with him would likely be somewhat upset.


The thing is, in all of her discussions with those she is poisoning against Rands plan, she has yet to MAKE any arguments except "Rand must not break the Seals because it would loose the DO on the world." Prophecy and common sense says the Seals WILL break and the DO WILL be loosed eventually whether Rand breaks the Seals or not. Far more importantly in this context, however, is that 1) Egwene has not presented even a speculative alternative to Rands plan, even in her own mind and 2) her only "counter-argument" is that it will hasten something universally known to be inevitable. The only logical arguments presented on the subject have come from Rand and those sympathetic to his plan.

Egwene has never spoken of hearing out Rands arguments or presenting any counter-arguments of her own: Her efforts consist wholly of convincing everyone she can that Rands plan MUST be stopped at any cost, and assembling the Westlands leaders (with their armies) toward that end. She is not bringing them to Merrilor for a discussion or negotiation, but an ultimatum, one Rand almost certainly must reject.

She SHOULD back down, but that does not mean she WILL; in the context of Sandersons statements that her character development is complete, it does not even seem likely. Rands character arc has been all about developing, then smoothing, the edge of his indomitable will; Egwenes has been about hardening and concealing her equally indomitable one. Time and again, what we have seen in TWoT is that hard=brittle and "clever" people often outsmart themselves.

No, I do not think RJ intended to destroy Egwene just to settle her childish competition with Rand. I think he MAY well have intended to destroy Egwene for many of the same reasons Melville destroyed Ahab, reasons that make them more central to their respective stories than anything they do themselves. Reserving fatal flaws to minor and/or distasteful characters robs the bildungsroman of its impact, because no one casts themselves as the villain in their own life story. If tragedy can befall even the most gifted, beloved and PROMINENT characters through arrogance or carelessness, it can happen to anyone else the same way. Let us not forget that TWoT began with its most indisputable protagonists arrogance leading him to suicide and legendary infamy.