Dhruv Trivedi
‘The Wheel of Time’ follows the epic struggle between the forces of good and the Dark One even as the latter continues to grow stronger. As the world slowly slips into chaos, Moiraine, a member of the magical Aes Sedai, locates the legendary Dragon Reborn, who can stand up against the Dark One. Eventually, there is a showdown (and more!), but does the Dark One succumb to injuries and die? Or does it continue to spread chaos around the world? Let’s take a look at the fate of the Dark One. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Is the Dark One Dead or Alive?
The Dark One remains unseen for most of season 1 despite its presence being perpetually felt. Apart from appearing in some of Rand’s visions, the ominous entity never really comes to the fore. Even at the Eye of the World, where it allegedly exerts the most influence, the Dark One approaches Rand in the form of a hallucination, making it very difficult to be attacked. These humanoid forms that it takes also work well in hiding just how powerful the Dark One is.
In the season 1 finale showdown, the Dark One attempts to convince Rand to join him, offering him control of reality. The young Dragon Reborn rejects the offer and points a Sa’angreal at the figure, summoning his newly discovered magical abilities. As we have heard on multiple occasions, the Dragon Reborn is exceptionally powerful, and therefore, Rand’s dramatic burst of magical power instantly decimates the humanoid form that the Dark One takes, cracking the floor underneath. However, looking at Moiraine and Rand’s reaction, it becomes quite certain that the Dark One is not dead. In fact, Moiraine ominously mentions that the battles are just beginning.
Thus, the Dark One is still alive, which suits the powerful antagonist character. In fact, in the book series by Robert Jordan on which the show is based, the Dark One is described as being powerful beyond measure and a universe-spanning force of evil that is both incomprehensible in its nature and infinite in its being. Taking this into consideration, it appears that not only is the Dark One not dead, but it is also likely impossible to kill. The evil entity is also the source of the True Power, which is analogous to the One Power that the Aes Sedai use.
The struggle against the Dark One is a long one, and ultimately (at the end of the books), Rand traps the Dark One and imprisons it. Interestingly, it is also implied that it is possible for the latter to be killed. Using a combination of the One Power and the True Power, Rand successfully brings the Dark One into our reality, making it vulnerable and possible to kill.
However, the young Dragon Reborn also comes to the conclusion that all the havoc attributed to the Dark One is actually enabled and carried out by human beings and that the mythical entity is not the true enemy after all. Thus, Rand actually gets the opportunity to ultimately kill the Dark One but decides not to and imprisons it instead.
Read More: What is the Blight in The Wheel of Time?
