The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose in the the deep woodlands of Andor. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning...
The calm autumn breeze seemed cool to the young Asha'man, Dulain Armala, as he passed through the gateway, cooler so by the fate he so narrowly escaped by the hands of his former compatriots. He raked a hand through his short, cropped black hair and sighed as he let Saidin slip away and the gateway winked out of existence. He felt hollow for a moment, soon followed by nausea and an overall drained state. Everything felt dull and dead, in comparison to how it was when holding Saidin. The world churned for a moment as the sickly emotions left him, and he had to steady himself on a nearby tree to keep from fainting. It was said each man reacted differently to the taint, some went insane the moment they touched Saidin, and some had a more gradual transition into madness. Some men lasted days, others lasted for years. Dulain had not channeled as much as his 'friends' at the black tower had. But he still did what was necessary to attain the rank of a full Asha'man.
A large brown cloak was wrapped around him, covering his black Asha'man coat, with the silver sword and dragon pins on the neck. In a fit of anger he tore them off, ripping some of the fabric on his coat carelessly. He despised all they stood for, he hated the Asha'man, the very name is a mockery in itself, in the old tongue it means "Guardian", but they are no such thing. Abandoning his thoughts, he scanned the horizon for signs of habitation.
"Anything will do, it would be nice to sleep in a bed tonight," he mumbled quietly to himself as he wrapped the cloak tighter, shivering in the wind. "But right now, I'd be happy if I find an abandoned barn," he scoffed, the thought of him talking to himself was amusing. Had he already lost sanity?
Dulain noticed something rising in the distance, it looked like smoke, thin smoke one can imagine comes from a chimney. Dulain set off towards the light pillar of smoke, as twilight fell all around him...