There is also a strange notion in my head that rand REALLY shouldn't be using balefire... I have a feeling that this is what undoes some link to the darkones prision. Balefire literary unweaves the patern. (odd thought: supose that Culiander is linked to the weave, you can't destroy it because you can't directly destroy the patern. However you can get around this by destroying other things with it) I have a feeling that the seals aren't there to prevent the darkone from escaping into this world, he is as much linked to the pattern as anyone (prehaps indeed the pattern is what contains him), The seals are more of a wall... of course at the moment he can send people over the wall to do his work, but rand can't, he can only atack the DO directly, and he does so by destroying the DO minions with Balefire, which in turn is only shreding apart the pattern, and increasing the DO's power by removing his link to it. The DO doesn't want to destroy rand, because it seems randis do! ing him the most good! If rand were to quickly destroy the seals and attack ( i have no idea how he'd attack) he would still have a better chance b/c the darkone would still be bound to the pattern. But as it is now... well... he he he. The dark one doesn't request his minons do use Balefire because he is using them too, he wouldn't want them to discover that he plans no reward for them, only the same for all. (though note he does ask if they would use balefire in a mocking question) Besides there is a certin Irony to Rand being the one who is making the DO stronger. Ah hell, If I ever spend more than 5 minutes on this I'll getback to yeah.