Chapter 2: Unwanted Revelations
When Haplo came to, he had no idea where he was or how much time had passed. He assumed he was still inside the Deathgate. His surroundings were no longer pure chaos, but instead a rapidly changing flow of images, images of 'what ifs'.
He saw how the world was destroyed by the sartan council and how they failed to craft the new worlds from the remains of the old one. He saw the patryns killing the great Samah, leader of sartan council, during the construction of the seventh gate. He saw how all the patryns were killed shortly after their arrival to Labyrinth. He saw how his parents were killed before he was born. He saw his own death a dozen times, always in different time and different place.
He also saw how the elves and humans of Arianus, the world of Air, signed a peace treaty and worked together to resolve constant lack of water. He saw when the sartans at Abarrach failed at their first attempts of necromancy. He saw how the mighty and utterly evil worms were dying from starvation when they were still restricted to the world of Water, as the people of the four worlds no longer felt fear and despair but hope and happiness.
He saw how the worlds formed an everlasting alliance when the Deathgate opened by itself. He saw all the 'lesser' races rise into greatness without the interference of neither sartans nor patryns. He saw all of them die away in meaningless wars and disputes. Haplo tried to concentrate on some of the images, to guide the possibilities. If he could stabilize a single possibility, he might be able to enter it and escape from the clutches of the Deathgate. Or so he thought, for at the moment he had no other hope. He had no idea what or how he breathed for that matter, only that he somehow did or that he no longer had to.
But alas, his efforts to save himself were in vain. Even if some control could be exerted, he was too weak to do it. Haplo dared not to heal himself, for it was possible that the spell too would be warped from its original purpose. Thus he drifted past the fleeting images, wounded, weak and alone. It didn't take long for him to lose consciousness again.
The next time he opened his eyes, the images were still there but they were coming slower and they were more stable, more likely to happen or have happened. But when Haplo looked to these images, he was startled, for he did not recognise any of the happenings or places. All the pictures were obviously from a single world, yet the world wasn't any of those created by the sartans. And it didn't match the stories Haplo had heard of the original world.
Haplo began to wonder, if there would exist a possibility that during the creation of the original world, other worlds were created as well. Or perhaps other versions of it. It certainly is possible said Haplo to himself as he chuckled dryly on his joke. For all his life, the word 'impossible' had not existed. The principles of rune magic said that with enough power anything was possible. It would be merely improbable or hard to make happen.
Suddenly Haplo sensed a change in the surrounding stream of possibilities. His direction (if one can have a sense of direction without a sense of a solid point) changed. He felt himself being pulled towards a bundle of possibilities that intertwined together in the edges of his vision. Whatever it was, it was stable, a wave that was harmonious, but strangely circular.
Haplo was approaching the latest nexus the possibilities had created. It seemed he was about to enter the world in a time when critical things were about to happen. The wave, representing possibility and perhaps reality was getting bigger and bigger as Haplo speeded towards it.
Upon contact with the enormous wave, Haplo was engulfed in a strange light. When the light faded, he found himself in the middle of a field on the edges of a large forest. He could see a farmhouse in the distance, standing atop a small hill. It was late winter, early spring perhaps, judging from the look of the surrounding nature and the condition of the field. Sun was high in the sky, but seemed like it would begin to set soon. So it's a bit after midday. But something didn't seem right. The landscape was almost…dreamlike, hazy, greyish in colour and a bit out of focus. And Haplo quickly realized that he couldn't hear any animals nor see anything moving.
Am I somehow caught between two possibilities? Or is this world only partially real? No, the wave was strong, stronger than one would expect even from a normal world. Am I then only halfway in this world, or standing on its edges? Perhaps I might be able to gather enough strength punch trough if that is the case.
Haplo felt a new sense of hope and direction. Now he had something more concrete to work on towards his salvation, instead of merely watching fleeting possibilities randomly converging. Haplo began to draw seals into the air, creating a complete circle of his height. As he was placing the last rune, he hoped it would work.
The circle would find the closest more stable point in this world and connect to it. He then saw something move from the corner of his eye. It had been some kind of animal, rushing into the unmoving bushes. He saw it had yellowish eyes and fur. But Haplo had no time to find out more details. He needed to find shelter and heal himself and rest afterwards. Haplo called out the name of the last rune. It began to glow with blue light and then it burst into flames. The blue flame ignited the other runes in the circle.
For a while, nothing more seemed to happen. Then the landscape inside the circle changed a bit. It looked more normal, so Haplo walked trough. A quick look around told him that he was standing on the same field, but now it close to twilight. Now he could hear an owl hooting in the forest, the rustle of field mice as they scavenged for food and the sounds of humans coming from the farmhouse. There was a light lit in one of the windows. Haplo began to walk towards it with weak legs, hoping to request a small meal. Once he would have a bit of his strength back, he could heal himself. But as he was nearing the house, he realized what it would look like.
He was a complete stranger, with blood all over him and ragged clothes covering parts of his rune-tattooed body. He looked like a vagabond and the runes certainly would not help explaining things. Haplo shrugged and thought that it simply meant that he would have to resort to other means, such as stealing.
When he got closer, he could see that there was a small village right behind the farmhouse and that there was a road going to the village only a few hundred feet to his right. Deciding to enter the village instead (as it is always easier to steal in a crowd) Haplo walked to the road. After taking only a few steps on the road however, he heard the sound of horses and a carriage coming from behind him, behind a small curve in the road just inside the forest.
Seeing that he had no place to hide, he decided to do what he could to improve his outlook and conceal the telltale signs of his patryn heritage, the runes covering his body with the exception of his hands and head. So he quickly drew a few runes into the air and a long, brown robe instantly covered him from head to toe. He had once seen a human religious order called monks wear something like this. He decided not to put the hood on, as that would make him look more suspicious.
The carriage came into view. Haplo could see an older man, perhaps in his forties controlling a wagon filled with barrels. A young boy was riding on four legged creature, a horse Haplo remembered, next to the man. The boy had a bow on his back, and a mighty bow it was. It seemed to be almost as tall as the boy himself. Haplo though that if the boy could use that bow with any efficiency, it might mean trouble. Not that Haplo could be wounded with such a mundane weapon anywhere but if he got fired upon, it would prove difficult to hide his heritage and powers. Patryns were a stuff of legends after all, literal half-gods, and if someone noticed his abilities it would complicate things unnecessarily.
The wagon stopped, leaving a gap of ten feet or so between Haplo and the wagon. Haplo saw that the man had common sense, leaving room to act should Haplo prove to be hostile, yet close enough to talk in normal voice. The man on the carriage spoke to him.
"Greetings to you traveller. May I ask your name and what brings you so close to Emond's Field?" Though the man seemed friendly, his voice betrayed the slight suspicion the man must have felt.
"You shall have my name when I have yours friend." Haplo replied evenly. The eyes of the man got a little colder and he tensed a bit.
"I am Tam. Tam al'Thor. This is my son Rand."
"My name is Haplo, master al'Thor. Emond's Field you say? That would be the village over there?" At this comment the man seemed no longer vary, merely plainly confused.
"Most certainly. I find it surprising that a traveller would come this far and not know where he is. I admit we are quite in the middle of nowhere here in Two Rivers but still, I'm told that the main roads lead all the way to Caemlyn. What be your business 'round these parts anyway?" Haplo decided to trust this human a bit. Enough to tell a convincing lie at least. If he could just make Tam trust him, getting food and a safe place to stay would be so much easier.
"I am traveller and a body guard. I sell my sword to merchants who need protection. However, the merchant called Cayle I was travelling with got attacked. We were overwhelmed so I had to flee, wounded, into the forest. I've been wondering around the countryside ever since, searching for signs of settlements. And finally I found some."
"You say you are a guard? I suppose that will have to do. Come with us to the village. The mayor, al'Vere, might be able to help you with temporary accommodations and the Wisdom could have a look at your wounds. Hop on."
Wisdom? Perhaps that is a local word for a healer? Haplo began climbing onto the wagon, but he was overcome with dizziness and nausea. The exertion of using magic and walking had been too much for his weakened state. He tried to hold on to something, but his grip would not hold. He fell from the wagons onto his back and slipped into unconsciousness.
When he woke up, he instinctively covered it up. He didn't move a muscle, the rhythm of his breathing didn't change, but he was awake. He felt bandages all over his body. He was in a warm bed next to a fireplace. He could hear strands of conversations from the outside, one definite young female voice and an older male voice.
"…If he is a caravan guard…… no weapon, dressed in a clean robe despite the wounds… no blade nor arrow could have…The Women's Circle will be told…"
"My house, my hospitality… doesn't matter…the strange tattoos…As long as you heal him…the ultimate decision is still mine…You may be the Wisdom, but…"
They had seen his runes, yet didn't know what they meant? No use hiding the runes any longer, but their meaning was most likely still a mystery to the humans. Could it be that these mensch, these humans had never heard of the Patryn? Haplo decided he had to find out more later. But for know he was alone. He had his chance.
He placed the backs of his hands next to each other and spoke the name of one of the runes covering his hand. The circle of runes was complete and the meaning of the activated rune expanded. The circle of runes drew power, channeling it into the activated rune. The rune then defined the nature of the power and channelled it back into the circle. Around and around the power cycled, strengthening each rune within the circle.
Power flowed trough his body, repairing broken tissue, regenerating lost skin, replenishing the blood in his veins. For a while the room was baked in soft blue light as the magic of his runes did its work. When the glow faded, Haplo was soundly asleep and no trace of the wounds remained.
…
He was awoken by a woman's scream next to him. His instincts took over. Immediately awake, he grabbed the hand that was hovering above him, jumped of the bed and twisted the hand in his grasp painfully. Normally this would have deterred any attacker, but now Haplo received a slap to his face. The pain gave Haplo some focus.
Haplo took in more of his surroundings. The room was empty, except for the person he was holding. That person was a young woman. Haplo saw the beginnings of tears in his eyes, but they were covered by strong anger. Seeing that this woman could pose no threat to him, even if she wanted, Haplo let her go.
"I apologize for hurting you miss. My instincts tend to take over if I'm suddenly awakened from my rest…"
The woman took initiative immediately now that she was no longer held.
"How dare you! I'm coming to change your bandages from the very goodness of my heart and end up being restrained! I don't care who you think you are stranger, but…"
Haplo watched in amazement as the woman simply went on and on, scolding him like he was some kind of criminal mastermind. Haplo tried to politely interrupt her and tell her that it had been a misunderstanding, but the woman would hear none of it. It was beginning to irritate him. No matter who the woman was, Haplo had been unexpectedly awakened and he had already apologized for the pain he had caused. He could have easily crushed the woman's wrist, but he had, in the end, been fairly gentle with her. No real damage had been done to her arm. But the woman made it sound like he had purposefully planned the whole thing and personally insulted her in every possible way.
"…And you still have to apologize…"
"SILENCE!" The word Haplo spoke was spoken quite loudly. He didn't use any magic, but instead relied upon his experience on humans. Show them that you are the authority and they will listen.
The woman looked aghast. It took her a moment to truly realize that she had been interrupted. That she had allowed herself to be interrupted. It made her even angrier.
"Now you listen to me mister, I …"
"NO! You have been blabbering on and on, despite my most sincere apology at the very beginning! I will not be treated like some kind of criminal mastermind facing judgement! I have admitted my wrongdoing, as little as it was, but you still haven't explained why you woke me up so unexpectedly! You getting hurt were as much your fault as it was mine! And don't forget that you still own me an apology for that slap you gave me! Well?"
The woman looked like she would burst open. If looks could kill, Haplo would most certainly be dead. Without saying a single word, she left the room and slammed the door shut. Well that certainly went well. I was supposed to just acquire some food and leave without more than one or two people knowing, but that girl is probably going to tell everyone what happened. They also know of my tattooed body. It'll be… difficult… to leave without giving them an explanation. And I doubt that I can explain all the things satisfactorily.
Just then the door opened. Haplo turned to see if the woman had returned. But instead there was a middle aged man standing in the doorway. He raised his eyebrows when he saw that the visible parts of Haplo's body no longer needed bandages. But none of that surprise vas evident in his voice.
"Well now, I can see that you're finally awake. Just in time for supper. You've slept for the night and the better part of the afternoon. I'm Bran al'Vere, the mayor of Two Rivers and owner of this house. My wife has left some clean clothes for you, they're on the bench. Come downstairs when you're ready."
Before he left, Haplo spoke out of curiosity. "Mayor, who was that young woman who came to change my bandages?"
"That would be the last person in this village you should have insulted the way you did. Or rather the way she thinks you did. She is Nynaeve al'Meara, the Wisdom of this village. It would have been better if you wouldn't have shouted back at her. She's full of pride and expects everyone to be polite to her. Part of it for a reason, she is the youngest Wisdom in century around these parts. She's waiting downstairs, cooling herself off. There you can settle this and perhaps give us a few explanations…?"
"I'll be there shortly." The mayor left and Haplo began to wonder, how he would explain all this to them without appearing hostile or giving away his heritage. The answer was that he wouldn't explain it all. They hadn't recognized the meaning of his rune-covered body immediately, but it could have been just slugginess of their minds. Luckily, the clothes he had been brought cover most of his body, a long-sleeved white/grey tunic, with a brown hide jacket, brown woollen trousers and a pair of socks and cow-leather boots. The jacket went well with his brown hair.
The mood downstairs was cold at best. The Wisdom was still very much angry and the mayor, along with a few other men, was clearly expecting to hear a good explanation. Present was also a muscular man carrying a large sword and a small, beautiful woman. The man with the sword was clearly her protector of some kind.
All this Haplo took in when he stepped into the common room. The persons were sitting by a large table, next to fireplace. The house resembled an inn, though that clearly wasn't its only function. Candles were lit all around the room to give light. When Haplo took another step inside, he could feel his skin itching slightly. Quickly controlling the protective magic of his runes, he suppressed the reaction to danger. It certainly wouldn't improve his situation, if his body suddenly started to glow.
Looking and feeling around Haplo quickly discerned who posed the danger. The small woman and his protector. They could have the ability to potentially harm him. Certainly they could do no more than slightly hurt him as they were mere mensch, but he could take no chances. The woman certainly seemed to be of no danger, but something in her eyes and her regal, almost court-like behaviour and ageless face made Haplo uneasy. She was someone who had gotten used getting what she wanted.
As Haplo sat down, Bran began the introductions. "Welcome master… Haplo, was it? This is lady Moraine and this is master Lan. The Wisdom you already know. These men are part of the Village Council. I believe there are some things we have to discuss. Firstly, Nynaeve, Haplo, I would like to request that you bury the hatchet. I know I have no right to intrude upon this matter, however this is my house and such a yelling competition will not be tolerated. You Haplo are a grown man and you Nynaeve are the village Wisdom. Please try to behave."
Haplo apologized once more his rude behaviour; the Wisdom simply nodded her head. He got the distinct feeling that it was the closest the Wisdom was prepared to come to an apology.
The mayor spoke again "Good, now as for other things. Feel free to address them in any order you would like. Firstly, who are you really? We have already determined that you are no peddler guard. Second would be why you came to Two Rivers? Thirdly, I know miss al'Meara is a capable healer, but even her ointments can't mend wounds this quickly. Yet you are completely healthy. Again, why is this so?"
Haplo looked to ponder for a moment, trying to find the best way out of this. "For the first question, my name really is Haplo. I am no caravan guard, correct. I'm a soldier. Or at least was, until I deserted. I have been wondering the countryside ever since, trying to get as far away as possible from my former masters. That brings us to the second question. I came here by accident. As for the third question, I will not tell you and that's it. Anything more?"
The small woman, Moraine, spoke up. "Why did you desert? From who? And what are those tattoos?"
Haplo smiled to himself. He had been expecting this question. "I deserted, because I didn't like the way my lord treated me. These tattoos have been on my body for as long as I can remember. I believe them to be a remnant of my parent's owner. They were slaves you see. My parents bought themselves free when I was five, but they died soon after from a strange disease. I don't remember much of those times. My ex-lord… I will not speak his name."
The man, Lan, shared a long look with Moraine and then spoke. "Master Haplo, I am getting feeling you're not completely honest with us." Before Haplo could respond however, Moraine hastily stood up.
"Trollocs! Lan, go get your gear, I'll warn the others!"
The Wisdom and the mayor stood up as well. "Trollocs? We have never had trollocs here outside of a few bedside stories, good lady. I seriously doubt if they even exist."
But Moraine wasn't listening; she was already out of the door, shouting her warning to for all villagers to hear. Lan had disappeared upstairs. Haplo was slightly concerned. Trollocs? What are they? Some kind of animals? No matter, it can't be good. I might be able to get away in the possible confusion to follow, but then again these people would spread the word about me. And if I want to have any idea of what is going on I must enter a settlement sooner or later. Looks like I have to help them. Then Haplo realized that his body had just now begun reacting to the approaching menace. 'Potential danger' his instincts sreamed. He wondered who the woman was and how she could have detected these trollocs so long before Haplo. But now Haplo just searched for something to fight with. His eyes settled on a sword hanging on the central fireplace.
"Mayor al'Vere, can I take that sword on top of your fireplace?"
"Certainly, though it hasn't been used in decades and it's quite rusty. But certainly you don't take lady Moraine seriously? I mean, trollocs here? No, trollocs exist only in fairytales."
But then they began hearing the animalistic roars coming from the outside. Haplo quickly took the long sword from the fireplace and speeded outside. There he noticed a horde of creatures that resembled some kind of humanoids. They walked on two legs and used their hands to carry weapons, but they were hairy, some had snouts, others had hooves or other animal features. And they were savage. They had already lit fire to two houses on the village.
These were obviously not mere animals. Not caring if somebody saw him, he quickly drew a rune on the sword. All rust disappeared from it instantly. He also hastily drew a killing rune and a speed rune on it. They were simple runes instead of complete runic circles or patterns, so they would have little power, but they would still give Haplo an edge. Not that he needed it, but he thought that it's better to be safe than sorry.
He stabbed the first trolloc that came close to him in the back and then rushed to meet the others head on. His body glowed softly as Haplo released the natural protective magic of his runes.
A trolloc attacked him with a crude sword in hand. Haplo didn't even bother to block it. The trolloc had tried to gut him, but the sword simply bounced off. Non-magical weapons couldn't harm him anywhere but head and palms and even then the strike would have to be exceptionally strong one and Haplo would have to be in an extremely weak condition. Even most magical weapons made by mensch would have trouble penetrating his natural defences. As the trolloc prepared for another swing, Haplo used his sword in a backhand swing and cleanly cut the creatures head off.
Then another one approached him. And died. And then another and then another. Anyone who saw him thought they saw an angel of death. Weapons bounced off him and he swiftly decapitated all opponents that came close to him. The unnatural glow he emitted only added to the effect.
As he was walking down the main street, he saw a fireball explode in the distance and he heard the screaming of burning trollocs. After a minute, Lan and Moraine came into view from behind a house. Lan looked as unnatural as Haplo, for his cloak was constantly changing in colour, all the time blending into the background. And he was as deadly as Haplo. The fluid-like motion of his sword resembled a dance rather than fighting. And Moraine was clearly using magic of some kind. All the enemies she hit with her staff burst into flames and sometimes she would wave her staff towards an opponent further away and that opponent would burst into flames as well. On her other hand she seemed to hold a small object of some kind.
Haplo merely saluted them with his bloody sword. No doubt they could see the glow he emitted, but Haplo would just have to deal with it later. The lives of the villagers came first. Funny, he thought, a year ago I wouldn't have cared a damn about them, saying that they were just humans. But after my travels to the different worlds, after months of posing as a mensch, I've started to care about them. Naturally the damn worms had their part in it, since they feed on despair, fear, hate and oppression. Wonder what happened to that damn Alfred? Focus Haplo, no time for that now.
He decapitated another trolloc with almost no effort. Then he realized that there were perhaps twenty or more coming to rush him. They're going to try and bury me with numbers. Let them come!
Having anticipated their actions, Haplo easily devised a counter-plan. Temporarily discarding his sword, he crossed the backs of his hands. Speaking the names of different runes, they appeared in the air around his body. A total of ten symbols, which he then connected by drawing other, carefully selected runes between them. It took him no longer than perhaps ten heartbeats, from the beginning to the end, for him to be ready.
A few seconds later the mass of trollocs was attacking him. Haplo simply strengthened his spell by redrawing one of the runes in the air and again speaking its name. The trollocs couldn't come nearer than two feet before being repelled by an invisible barrier that sometimes seemed to flare into existence. Haplo allowed the trollocs a few more seconds to completely surround him before activating the second part of his spell.
When Haplo added a single symbol to the circle surrounding him, the runes burst into purple flames, scorching anything they touched. Haplo clapped his hands and the runes exploded outwards, burning all the surrounding trollocs to ashes. He then picked up his sword from the ground and looked around if any more trollocs remained. The itching on his body had eased so he wasn't too surprised when he saw none. But what he did saw surprised him.
Lan and Moraine, watching him like he was a rabid dog that had to be killed for the protection of everyone. Haplo decided to ignore their stares and focus on the essential. "So, any more of those creatures around?"
But Moraine would have none of that carefree attitude and answered from with her teeth clenched. "No, but I'm thinking that the greater evil is still very much alive and breathing." She left no room for interpretation of whom that greater evil was.
"So you have heard of my race. You managed to fool me with your ignorance back at the mayor's house, but now I see it wasn't the case."
"Your race? I must assume that the madness in you has a fairly strong grip. Please do not resist Haplo. Your connection to the True Source must and will be cut. If not by me, then by someone else. And believe me; you will prefer me over a dozen red sisters. You cannot outrun the Aes Sedai forever."
Upon finishing this sentence, Lan charged and Moraine launched some kind of dual attack of magic against him. One part of the attack came in the form of a fireball; the other was an attempt at some kind of mental control or attack that Haplo didn't recognize. It was mounting some kind of pressure to his mind but otherwise seemed harmless.
Thinking on his feet, Haplo decided to focus on neutralizing the unknown mental attack. His body could take care of the fireball and the sword, without problems he hoped. Shouting the names of multiple runes in quick succession, Haplo deflected the mental attack. Then the fireball connected. Haplo dropped his sword and used his hands to protect his head, expecting something a lot worse, but he was surprised how weak the attack was. It didn't manage to even weaken Haplo's defences, let alone hurt him. Then the sword hit him to his side, right between his fourth and fifth rib. That attack managed to hurt Haplo a little, about as much as the sting of a bee would hurt an adult human. Even the sword of Lan, fit for a king and enhanced by the Aes Sedai within the White Tower, bounced back from his skin.
Then Haplo had a chance to begin his attack. Not really wanting to hurt Lan or Moraine, for the last sentence Moraine had said made Haplo doubt. He wouldn't immediately kill them. It was quite likely that they thought him to be something else he was, perhaps something worse than a patryn. Haplo no longer wanted to kill without knowing fully who and why he was killing. This world was giving him too many surprises in such a short time.
So he used spells that would be lethal only potentially. Drawing two spells at the same time, he completely focused on the runes he was drawing. He couldn't afford a mistake here.
The first spell was designed to immobilize Lan. When Haplo completed the spell, the rune structure began multiplying, forming a glowing chain. The chain shot towards Lan and upon contact, encased him completely from ankles to his neck. Lan lost his balance and fell on his back. Haplo shouted a warning amidst his spellcasting.
"Don't fight it Lan! The more you fight it, the tighter the chain will get. It will suffocate you, if you resist it enough!"
Before Haplo could finish his second spell, he was hit by another fireball. This time he felt some of the heat warm him up nicely, like he would have been close to campfire on a stormy night.
Haplo's second spell completed and he began thinking his next move. The spell had transferred him behind a corner of a house and left a replica of himself to draw gibberish runes in the air. The transition had been instantaneous, so Moraine could tell no difference between the replica and true Haplo.
While she was concentrating on attacking the illusion, Haplo subdued Moraine with his next spell. It covered Moraine in a skin-tight layer of steel. Her head was still free, but she could barely breathe due to the lack of space around her torso.
"Now Moraine, let us continue our discussion you so abruptly ended. I thought you had recognized me from my tattoos, but obviously I was wrong. I am a patryn. Does that say anything to you?"
Moraine shook her head. Haplo had flatly ignored the strongest fireball Moraine could hurl at him, even with the angreal; an artefact that magnified her power. Even the weaker one would have burned a Myrddraal, a shadowspawn that commanded trollcos, to cinders. She was intimidated and it showed. She didn't trust her voice to hold under these circumstances.
"No? Then know this. You have just experienced a fraction of my power. I am not insane. Nor am I a danger to anyone, unless I choose to be. Now explain, what is this True Source and why did you try to 'cut me' from it?"
Moraine was beginning to have second thoughts. Perhaps this man couldn't channel. Certainly that what he had done had been totally different from the magic she knew. And she sensed no madness from him, in fact he was rational, cool headed and, quite obviously, in control.
"The True Source is where all life stems from. Saidin, the male half, and Saidar, the feminine half, constantly work together and against each other to turn the great Wheel of Time. Those who touch it can Channel. All men who touch the Source will go mad sooner or later due to the taint the Dark Lord put in the male half. It has been so for hundreds of years. I thought you could Channel and thus it would be my duty to stop you before you would wreak absolute havoc. But you're using a completely different form of magic, aren't you?"
"Aye lady Moraine. I don't know what this Channeling is or how it's done, but I have my own form of magic, the magic of my race. If I release you and your protector, will you promise not to attack me?"
Moraine simply nodded. Not like she had any choice. Haplo drew backwards the runes he had used and dispelled the magic. The illusionary Haplo vanished. The chain holding Lan deteriorated and disappeared. The steel holding Moraine shattered and then turned to mud. Haplo looked both ways across the road and saw no one. He still hoped that Moraine and Lan were the only ones to see him use rune magic to anything besides deflecting the weapons of trollocs, but he wasn't too sure that was the case.
"Now, since there are no more trollocs around, we should try to see if the villagers need any help." Lan said, addressing his words to Moraine, but looking towards Haplo with distinctive mistrust.
"Agreed. Haplo, I assume that magic of yours can be used for healing? If you would be so kind as to help me with the possible wounded. I'm afraid the battle has exhausted my strength quite a bit."
"Naturally. No use hiding my magic any longer. Or at least the fact that I have some abilities. They've seen something, but I doubt they know what. I would like to keep it that way."
Moraine nodded in understanding and agreement. She alone would have to calm down the villagers as it was. They certainly had seen her Channel. They knew her to be an Aes Sedai. No use frightening them any more. Moraine cleared his throat and pointed towards the sword Haplo had used.
"How are you going to explain that? That sword was a rusty lump of steel before you got it, not to mention those markings you quite obviously have drawn to it."
Haplo merely smiled when he picked up the sword. "I won't have to." Haplo swiped his hand over the sword and the three runes vanished. The sword was again blunt, rusty and dented. The three of them began walking back towards the centre of the village, where houses were still burning.