She twisted upwards, turning to face the man above her. Her eyes were full of the pain that she had endured for days, now, the pain that threatened never to depart from her body, from her organs, from her inner systems. It was not necessarily physical pain, though her body was coated in bruises. It was pain of the mind, pain of the sort that could not be grasped unless one went under it, pain that would never depart from her memory, pain that was still fresh in the annals of her mind. It was pain of the mind, psychological and mental. It was pain of the sort that the Forsaken brought upon their minions.
"Please," her voice was hoarse and scratchy, giving evidence of the hurts that she still felt. "What do you wish of me, master? What is it that I can do for you?" She dared not look into his face, for he could be very harsh when disobeyed. Many of the Forsaken were harsh masters, but Demandred alone put what he had felt into others. Semirhage had been eviler and enjoyed it more, but for Demandred, it was more about exonerating his past wounds. After all, Demandred was known for failing in every endeavor of his, but coming so very close to success. In some ways, it was his curse.
"You can do for me? It is not difficult to understand. You are one of the women of the Tower, are you not, Casaerin?" Casaerin nodded, feeling her body quiver every instant that she talked to the Forsaken. "Of the ruling tower, I might add. Elaida enjoyed your company, did she not? Your shawl was always the same color as hers, as I recall." Casaerin did not dare ask Demandred what he meant with the last two words. Questioning one of the Forsaken would have meant certain death, without question. Casaerin was not stupid, far from it.
"But are you aware of the activities of another of my kind in your beloved tower, Casaerin?" Demandred's voice sounded purely evil, as a smirk moved towards his face. "Mesaana. My scholarly…rival." Demandred laughed, facing the Aes Sedai full in the face. "We had an agreement, once upon a time. She broke it, of course." Demandred seemed to be rambling, now, but Casaerin kept her eyes on him. You never knew with one of his kind. "But that is not the matter in question, is it, Casaerin?" She nodded quickly, knowing that contradictions to a Forsaken resulted in bad circumstances.
"I want you to go the White Tower and spy on her. It is a simple task, especially for one such as you, but risky as well." Demandred was ordering, now, and Casaerin was intelligent enough to see that she had to accept his demands. "So, you will go, and you will do it." His eyes glowed and the room suddenly appeared much darker. Casaerin felt fear wash all over her, and she nodded quickly at the commands of the Forsaken. The faster she was gone from here, the longer she would live. Her life was on the line and she knew it. This was her life.
"Do not think that I will not watch you. I will be near you, always." Immediately, Casaerin felt pain rip through her arm. Reaching across her body, she pulled up her sleeves to see a sign branded into her right arm. A gauntlet holding bolts of lightning. "Just call if you need me, Casaerin." And her world went dark.
"Slick, very slick, Demandred." Came a voice from the back shadows of the room. Demandred turned, to see a man, a man cloaked in black, a man who sent chills down Demandred's spine. "Now, what about the Dragon?" The other man had a cruel tinge to his voice and Demandred knew that whatever was coming next would not be good.
"His time will come." Demandred managed to choke out.