Gaidal Cain

Gaidal Cain is a legendary hero-swordsman and one of the Heroes of the Horn.
==Appearance==
In all instances we see him, he is a swarthy, heavily muscled man with broad shoulders. He wields two swords which are strapped to his back when not used. His face is wide and flat, his heavy nose too big, and his mouth far too broad. He is short of stature, shorter than Birgitte. When called by the Horn, he also rides a horse. 
During his rebirths, his appearance will be different, but he is always ugly. 
==History==
The soul known in the Third Age as Gaidal Cain has been bound to the Wheel for an unspecified length of time. It is unknown if he has been bound for many Ages, many turnings of the Wheel, or ever since the moment of Creation. He is also bound to the Horn of Valere and is summoned whenever it is blown except when he has already been woven back into the Pattern.
The circumstances of his rebirth are determined by the needs of the Pattern. When reborn, his life follows an archetypical pattern unique to that soul. While his appearance and name differ with each incarnation, certain features are common in every one; the ability to fight with two swords, a link (usually a romantic one) with the soul of Birgitte Silverbow, and being remarkably ugly.
The myths and legends of his past lives are often changed or forgotten with the passage of time. For example, legend says he is handsome as Birgitte is beautiful, but legend is wrong.
Between incarnations, he and the other Heroes dwell in Tel'aran'rhiod and can appear or spy on visitors to the World of Dreams. There are, however, unwritten precepts which forbid him to interfere with the physical world while he is being "stored" in Tel'Aran'Rhiod. When he is reborn, it is always before the Birgitte archetype - by one year, five or ten.
===Birgitte Silverbow===
Gaidal is linked with Birgitte Silverbow when he is spun out by the wheel. At first meeting, the two usually do not get along well, with emotions ranging from dislike to hatred. Over time, they invariably become attracted to each other, often falling in love. This bond also seems to be mirrored when they are both restricted to the World of Dreams as they are the only two heroes which we see together there.
===Reincarnations===
In , under an unknown name, Gaidal and Birgitte helped to found the White Tower.
In one life, after what was called the battle of Lahpoint Hills, Gaidal was inflicted with a horrible head wound that affected his mind. Birgitte, then known as Jethari, took Gaidal and traveled into the Tower of Ghenjei with him in hopes that the Finn would heal him. Sadly, neither of them survived, the Finn killing them both.
==Activities and Mentions==
"Gaidal Cain's Sword" is one of the stories that Thom Merrilin tells at The Stag and Lion in Baerlon.
Gaidal Cain is one of the roles played by the "players" (actors) in Cairhien whose craft Thom disparages.
He is summoned by Matrim Cauthon after Mat blew the Horn of Valere at Falme to aid in the defeat of the Seanchan invaders.
He warns Birgitte not to help Nynaeve or others that are visiting tel'aran'rhiod. He also says that Moghedien threatened them when they followed Lews Therin Telamon.
==Current Whereabouts==
One of the most common theories was that Gaidal Cain had been reborn as Olver. This has been denied, however, by both Jordan and Sanderson on multiple occasions.CoT Signing report, Jan 16 2003, Q23Olver on Theoryland interview database
A second suspected identity was Gadren Grady, son of the Asha'man Jur Grady, but this is generally ruled out for the same reason as Olver - he is too old (Rand says he is four). While Grady later says Gadren is "big for his age", it should be noted that Gaidal last appears in Tel'Aran'Rhiod in Ch. 52 of The Shadow Rising and Birgitte suggests he has been spun out into the Pattern in Ch. 14 of The Fires of Heaven, meaning that there is an upper limit for Gaidal's age of four and a half months (the time between his last appearance and Rand's visit to the Black Tower) - definitely too young to be confused with a four year old. There is also a lower limit of three months (the time between Birgitte noting he had disappeared and Rand's visit).
Later, Sanderson underlined the problem with Gadren's age and (reluctantly) confirmed that Grady has multiple children. It may be the case that Sanderson originally intended Gadren to be Gaidal, but this was an inconsistency with the timeline and so he needed to fix it by saying there was another child.Twitter, Jan 22nd 2013, Q51aMoL Signing Report, Feb 22nd 2013, Q9AMOL Signing Report, Feb 16 2013, Q2[[File:GaidalTimeline.png|left|825px|Viable timeline for Gaidal's rebirth. Dates from Wheel of Timelines , Tellings of the Wheel and Encycloaedia WoT.|alt=Viable timeline for Gaidal's rebirth. Dates from Wheel of Timelines, Tellings of the Wheel and Encycloaedia WoT.]] 
Elayne is six months pregnant by the end of the series, with Grady and his family arriving at the Black Tower around nine or ten months earlier. From the upper and lower limits of Gaidal's age above, it can be determined that there are 12.5–14 months between Gaidal's disappearance and the end of the series. If Gaidal's soul is woven out when the baby is born, then Gaidal would be this range of age although if Grady had another child, it is not seen or mentioned. If, as seems more likely, the soul is woven out at the moment of conception or sometime during the pregnancy, then he will be a baby 3.5–5 months old. 
Given this, Grady would have left with Perrin when his wife was 4–5 months pregnant. He would likely have known his wife was pregnant (unless she kept it secret from him) but not yet seen the baby. This may explain some of his impatience to get back to his family in Towers of Midnight, especially as this is around the baby's due date and he has "a reason to live" now that saidin is clean.
In conclusion, Gaidal Cain is a baby between 14 weeks and 5 months old and is the son of Jur and Sora Grady and the younger brother of Gadren.
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people
Category:Historical people