I personally believe it was Padan Fain who killed Asmodean. I have read the theories that it was Graendal who killed him using balefire and I don't believe it for several reasons.
- If she used balefire it would have been noticed by every female channeler who was close by. When balefire has been used by someone it is often mentioned by another channeler that they sensed the use of saidar at quite a distance. I think it is unlikely that none of the Wise Ones who could channel would fail to notice it since there is no indication there is any other channeling going on at the time.
- In Lord of Chaos Graendal states that if al'Thor found her she would flee. Are we really to believe she would hang about in the palace for any reason?
- Given the time lag between Asmodean entering the room/passageway it seems just as likely she could shield him or use Compulsion since it would be a lot less likely to attract attention to herself than balefire.
Now for the reasons for it being Padan Fain.
- It has been stated that Asmodean would not recognize Fain since he was a minor Darkfriend who was around before he was released. That is true but it is likely he would recognize Mordeth. The evidence for this is as follows in The Eye of the World Moiraine instantly recognize the evil of the dagger and more importantly so do Aginor and Balthamel. This implies that anyone male or female who can channel can detect the evil of Mordeth if he wants to.
- Padan Fain was on his way to Caemlyn in The Fires of Heaven and was there by Lord of Chaos. Also in Lord of Chaos he knew people who worked in the palace implying he had access.
- Asmodean was killed simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time and also Mordeth/Fain hates all forsaken so would kill him on site if he had the chance.
What I believe happened is this. Fain was in the palace talking to one of the Darkfriends who works there (just inside a minor entrance so he won't be spotted). Asmodean comes along looking for a drink. He walks into the same entrance, he notices the evil of the dagger, and he stops since he knows what it means. He would be in terror so the blood would drain from his face. Fain then covers his mouth as he stabs him. This would account for Asmodean's last words since Asmodean would not know Fain's name if it was a Forsaken. I would think he would shout the name out and Fain would want to cover his mouth as he stabs him to reduce the chance of attention being drawn to himself. Fain then disposes of the body somewhere. This explanation fits the facts as well as any other.
wotmania says: I have a problem or two with this particular idea... First off, I do not think that balefire in itself is enough to draw the attention of a channeler - it is more the amount of the One Power being channeled. It would seem to me more Power would be required for Compulsion or a shield. Also, I doubt that Asmodean would recognize Mordeth - he had been asleep for a long time before Mordeth appeared in Aridhol... I have really come to like Graendal as Asmodean's killer - to me she makes more sense than anyone else.
Comments
I do realize it's been over a year since you posted this theory, and you'll probably never see my response, but hey, it's good practice.
First of all, I agree with you. Balefire, even in small amounts, would still require a large amount of the OP, and so I think Rand or other channelers nearby WOULD feel it if balefire were the weapon.
Next, I also believe it's Padan Fain, for the reasons you mentioned and more. However, I believe Asmodean had his throat cut, not his mouth covered and stabbed.
Graendel probably did it, like everyone believes, but then again, everyone thought Taim was Demandred (myself included for a while--I'm big enough to admit it).
Let's cross our fingers and hope for Fain.
-Braidtugger
"My Other Car Is Bela!"
Balefire can only be used by the stongest channellers, owing to the fact that it takes more or the Power than anything else. It took everything Moiraine had to make balefire a couple fingerswidth, if that. And she's considered fairly strong. Either way, it's too close anyway to where Aviendha is, since Asmodean just left the fountains where she and Mat were. She wasn't far away when it happened, so it couldn't have been saidar, and unlikely to have been saidin since there's a) no one available at the time and place and b) RAND would sense it, probably.
Since a tiny bit of channelling could be felt from outside a manor by SORILEA and Aviendha is much stronger, and balefire takes alot, it can't have been Graendal, simple as that.
Graendal certainly could have killed Asmodean without being sensed by any women chanellers nearby if she was allowed to use the true power to do so. As she almost certainly acted under the DO's command, would she not have had this option open to her?
Baphomet 23
Give me the strength to change the things I can, the grace to accept the things I cannot, and a great big bag of money.
My online gallery:
http://daveb23.deviantart.com/gallery/
I'm voting for Lanfear. Jordan sead that all of the clues were in Fires of Heaven. Asmodean was thinking about Lanfear just before the event, and was thinking of how glad he was that she was gone. Moments later, "YOU!!" Shock. Who would have shocked Asmoean the most at that point? Lanfear. As for the how it happened...don't know.
Poor McManamy . . .