8BTFreek: Okay, it's a brand new chapter. With as little fanfare as possible, I managed to create chapter 14.
Nynaeve: But you got reviews.
8BTFreek: Well then, let's answer them!
REVIEW RESPONSES:
tigerlily: Another interesting! Yay! People are interested! Thanks for liking it.
Mesoforte: Ah, using my own phrase to describe my work. It was really surreal, having someone use my... phrase thingy! And I am the self-titled "King of Plot Twists", but I could always use someone to give me that title...
Zero84: Thanks!
Kitsune: Heh, yeah, they're all coming back. Trust me, I have a special surprise for Alex at the end.
Allexandra: Yes, please use the guard! Unfortunately, he won't be coming back, I'm afraid. We've exited the "Isaac Champa" storyline. However, there will be more unusual places, accents, and people! As for Briggs, he's like I see him-concerned for his people and homeland. That includes their reputation. The Champa have a good reputation, and he doesn't want to make his hometown look bad.
GaretFire: Thank you for reviewing. As for your question, they met atop Mercury Lighthouse.
END RESPONSES
8BTFreek: In addition, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to tigerlily98, my not-quite-loving-but-still-somewhat-kind sister. Because I know she'd go ape if she knew I was planning this.
Nynaeve: Ah, brotherly love. Now then, Rand! Come and do the disclaimer, or I'll box your ears!
Rand: *grumbling* I don't see why I have to do this... Eh, here goes: Freek doesn't own Golden Sun, nor does he own any stock in the fine company that made it. Although he is plugging for a sequel.
8BTFreek: You're right. But, all work and no play makes me bored. So, chapter 14!
**Chapter 14: What Stirs Unseen**
(Lalivero)
Alex stood outside of the building. Diplomatic negotiations weren't his forte, and besides, he had no reason to enter. He was confident of Felix's ability. Hama, Garet, and Sheba, on the other hand, went in. They didn't think it was safe for him to be in there alone. Well, Hama didn't. Garet went in to protect his sister, and Sheba... Well, Sheba was Sheba. She was mysterious, and didn't usually give reasons.
Inside the small stone house, Felix was trying to negotiate with the inhabitants. The "Kyle" of the sign wasn't as pliable as Felix had thought. In fact, he was as hard as steel, and had a venomous tongue. {This is going to take a long time.} He turned to Garet and Sheba. "Hama and I will handle negotiations. You two go exploring." Sheba nodded, concealing a frown. Garet, on the other hand, stood stiff, saluted mockingly, and slunk out of the room. He understood what they were going to do, even if Sheba seemingly didn't. Felix wanted him to find the leader, a one "Faran", and get him to force Kyle to grant them access to Venus Lighthouse.
Garet stopped at the tallest adobe house. "This has to be it. Who else would have a bigger house?" Upon further investigation, the suspicion was confirmed (there was a plate on the door that said, "Residence of Faran Arred, Master of Lalivero"). Carefully, they pushed open the door. Inside was a normal looking room, filled with normal looking furniture. Some was ornate, but most was plain. Sitting on one of the tables, looking like it didn't really belong there, was a small silver medallion. Garet spotted it almost immediately. He ran across to the table and picked it up. Engraved on it were runes, but he recognized those immediately. "Sheba," he said, "could you take a look at this?"
She nodded, then cast Reveal. "Aria Forge, b. 12 Mwadib 1077 AGA, parents Jay and Anna, sister Kay, brother Garet." She looked at her friend. "When did you create this?"
Garet looked at Sheba with a look of utmost sincerity. "I didn't! Jeez, you think that somebody had enough time to create a burned silver medallion, place it on this table, and make it my sister's..." He paused, looking at the medallion again. It was silver, and it did appear burned, as though struck by a giant column of flame. He grabbed it, then turned it over. Silently, he pulled out a medallion from around his own neck. "Read this," he said.
"Garet Forge, b. 12 Mwadib 1077 AGA, parents Jay and Anna, sister Kay, sister Aria," she whispered. She looked at the two medallions. Slowly, she turned to face Garet. "Garet, how did your sister die?" His head bowed down. He sighed, then started to retell the tale.
"When I was just one month old, my sister and I were with Mother, walking to the plaza. Neither of us was displaying much power, but she did have enormous potential. Eventually, something happened on that day, and the potential in her discharged. A column of flame opened up underneath her and launched her into the sky. We didn't know what happened to her. About two years later, Hama rescued me from Vale."
She looked at him. "But what's the significance of finding this medallion? I mean, I know we already found your sister. You fought her on top of Mercury Lighthouse." She looked at him. "Right?" He shook his head. "What? What do you mean, no?"
He sighed. "It's just... I couldn't tell if it was her or not. The not knowing was killing me. Finally, I decided that she might be, but I would never know. But this medal... It explains everything! She had to be my sister, or she wouldn't have been an adept!"
"And what, pray tell, is an adept?" asked a voice behind them. They spun around. Standing in front of them was a gray-haired man. He seemed to have the weight of experience hanging around his shoulders, and the power of rule inside his robe. His face held no humor, but the lines on his face suggested that he would have been laughing under different circumstances.
"An adept is someone with... special abilities," Garet said, making sure to keep his powers secret from a non-adept. The man nodded. "But that's not why we came here. We're looking for Faran, the Master of Lalivero."
"I am he," announced the man, staring at the two of them. "I heard that General Felix of Tolbi was in the city. Are you he?" Garet shook his head. "Then I will not waste my harsh words on you. What are you doing in my house?"
"I am here to find you to ask you for permission to enter Venus Lighthouse." Garet bowed. "But there is something I must ask. Do you have any children?" The man nodded. "A daughter, perhaps?" He nodded again. "Red hair, brown eyes, carries a staff?" Faran nodded again. "And this medallion... did you find it around her neck?" He nodded for a fourth time. "Did she fall from the sky in a column of flame?" Faran nodded, then spoke.
"What is the nature of this questioning? Have you seen my daughter? Or perhaps the kidnapper Isaac? It is said she travels with him. Have you seen them?" His stare bored into Garet's mind, but he knew Faran was no Jupiter Adept, and so he couldn't read thoughts. Still, the man's stare made him uncomfortable.
"Yes, I have seen my sister and this... Isaac. He seemed kind, though - not the kidnapping sort. Appearances may be deceiving, but he strikes me as an honest fellow." He bowed. "And I suppose I should be thanking you for taking such good care of my sister." Garet nodded, then took out a piece of parchment. On it, he copied down the runes from the two medallions. On another sheet, he wrote a rune key. After that, he took out a third sheet and translated the two. Faran's puzzled gaze soon turned into a gaze of shock. The third sheet had many words written on it, but the ones that stood out were "Aria Forge" and "Garet Forge." Garet then pulled off his gloves and held them before Faran's eyes. "And did your daughter have these symbols on the backs of her hands?" Faran's eyes widened in shock, and he nearly jumped out of his skin.
"Y-yes," he managed to stutter. Garet stared at him with shock-widened eyes. He blinked.
"Then your daughter, Master Arred, is my sister, Aria Forge. She is also an Adept. I feel I owe you the truth about what an Adept is. The whole truth." Garet told Faran everything he knew about Adepts. This took several hours, since Garet knew quite a bit about Mars Adepts. Of course, not all of this time was Garet explaining Adepts. Part of it was Faran discussing his daughter, as well as Faran's wife coming in and learning the truth about their daughter. Finally, Faran agreed to go see Kyle and Dora, the Healers.
Outside the Healers' house, which was right outside the Sanctum, Felix was standing massaging his ears. Hama was nowhere to be seen. Upon seeing them, Felix bowed. "Faran, Master of Lalivero, I presume. I am General Felix of Tolbi. There is some news which I must convey."
"There are some things I'd like to say to you, too." Faran's eyes narrowed, and a scowl deepened his face.
Felix took a deep breath. "Lord Iodem Passyf, King of Tolbi, wishes to talk with you about the release of the City of Lalivero from Tolbian control." Faran proceeded to ask about Babi. "The Lord Babi of House Ermos is dead. He died not more than a month ago." Looking into Faran's doubting eyes, he said, "I give my word as Captain-General of the Tolbian Army, what I say is the complete truth." He looked inquisitively at the man. "Now then, one of your soldiers said that there was a raid on Champa. What is this about?" Garet and Sheba excused themselves, and Faran's wife followed them into the Healers' house. Alex was standing there with Hama and two others. Hama was shouting at the other two.
"How dare you have my husband thrown out by the ears?! I should flay you alive for that!" Her voice cracked like a whip. "And don't try that against me, or I swear I'll-" Her words were cut short by Alex's cry of "Garet!"
Garet walked in. "Hey, sis! What's going on? Who are these people? Have you managed to get us into Venus Lighthouse?"
One of the two, a man with thinning brown hair, walked toward him. "Listen here. If you're with this woman or General Felix, then you're about as close to climbing the lighthouse as I am to flying."
"That can be arranged," muttered Hama. She was eyeing the two with obvious distaste. It seemed that she and Felix hadn't been successful. In fact, seeing Alex there seemed to confirm that they had to resort to the worst-case tactics. Garet walked up to the man.
"Would it be correct for me to assume that you are the father of Isaac, lover of Jenna and opponent of General Felix?" The man proudly nodded his head. "Well... I have some good news and some bad news. The good news is, he's doing fine. I've seen him, and I'd like to compliment the person who trained him. The bad news is, he's trying to light the beacons of the elemental lighthouses. I fought against him atop Mercury Lighthouse. They ended up lighting the beacon and escaping." He looked the man in the eye. "Can I also assume that you are Kyle, son of Alexis, son of Isaac, Head of the Venus Clan of the West?" At these words, the man's head snapped up, as though he had been called by name.
"Yes, I have been called that. Why?" His inquisitive gaze pierced through Garet's mind, and he seemed to be trying to read Garet's thoughts. "Is this about the notice? Because if it is, the message still stands."
"Please, hear me out. Isaac is also a member of the Venus Clan, am I right?" He nodded. "Did you believe what I said about your son?" He thought for a moment then nodded.
"He's somewhat rebellious, yes."
"Then do you think he will keep himself from allowing his friends access to the lighthouse?" Kyle's eyes grew wide, and the woman next to him nearly fainted.
"Dora, he's right. We have to let them climb." She shook her head. "Dora, listen! We can't let the lighthouses be lit again! That flash we saw in the north must have been Mercury! Clearly, the Mercury Clan has been defeated. We must allow these people to enter the lighthouse through the sacred ruins, even if it means that we must let General Felix, the Tolbian Tyrant's favorite soldier, run through our sacred place." Slowly, she nodded. "Good. I hoped you'd see it my way. We have to keep the beacon from being lit at all costs." Dora nodded, then looked up.
"You'll need something to eat. I'll pack you travel rations. Chances are you'll run out of food during the journey."
(The Suhalla Mountains)
Agatio frowned. "Elders, they went by here not more than a half-day ago. The tracks are still fresh." His older cousin wasn't satisfied, of course. He walked over and examined the tracks.
"Agatio, really. It's been exactly fifteen hours since they passed here, if they passed here at all. You really need to become better at tracking. No wonder you lost their trail. Now then, let me see." He bent down again, but the other elder's hand pulled him up. "Menardi..."
"Saturos, there's no reason to examine these tracks again. It's obvious they weren't here. They're already at the Lighthouse. We should be going there, too." Menardi dragged Karst over to the rest of the group. "Now then, Karst, explain what you saw." Karst took a deep breath, then nodded.
"I didn't see much, just a boat docked on the Idejima peninsula. I didn't really go to investigate, seeing as how a boat really isn't cause for worry. Then I tried to think of what could be going on, and I went down to look. Left on the ship were telltale signs of Ivan and his little band of followers!" She nodded, out of breath. She usually was better at controlling her voice during battle. Outside of that, she became tired easily. At least she could run.
Saturos nodded. "Okay, so that means they're further ahead than we thought. Let's head off to Venus Lighthouse. They'll be there for sure!" The group continued, but Karst would occasionally try to correct Menardi, or it would be the other way around, and whoever ignored the correction was always wrong, and so it took them a very long time to get through the Suhalla Pass.
(In the Middle of the Eastern Ocean)
The Admiral sailed his small one-man craft on. Storms were approaching on the horizon, but there was a bit of a letup in the west. Quickly, he headed for it. He had to find out why his father had died after leaving for the outside. He had to know what exactly it was that was so deadly about leaving his homeland. Turning the wheel, Piers set out for the one visible spot of land. A peninsula called "Idejima."
***
8BTFreek: Well, that's the end of chapter 14!
Nynaeve: Finally. That's longer than any other chapter you've written.
8BTFreek: Only in this story. If you'll kindly remember, chapter 2 of Forms was longer.
Nynaeve: Okay, so it's the SECOND-LONGEST, but not by much.
8BTFreek: Perhaps. But I had a lot to cover. So please review!
Nynaeve: Yes, or I'll make you regret not doing so every waking moment of your life.
Nynaeve: But you got reviews.
8BTFreek: Well then, let's answer them!
REVIEW RESPONSES:
tigerlily: Another interesting! Yay! People are interested! Thanks for liking it.
Mesoforte: Ah, using my own phrase to describe my work. It was really surreal, having someone use my... phrase thingy! And I am the self-titled "King of Plot Twists", but I could always use someone to give me that title...
Zero84: Thanks!
Kitsune: Heh, yeah, they're all coming back. Trust me, I have a special surprise for Alex at the end.
Allexandra: Yes, please use the guard! Unfortunately, he won't be coming back, I'm afraid. We've exited the "Isaac Champa" storyline. However, there will be more unusual places, accents, and people! As for Briggs, he's like I see him-concerned for his people and homeland. That includes their reputation. The Champa have a good reputation, and he doesn't want to make his hometown look bad.
GaretFire: Thank you for reviewing. As for your question, they met atop Mercury Lighthouse.
END RESPONSES
8BTFreek: In addition, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to tigerlily98, my not-quite-loving-but-still-somewhat-kind sister. Because I know she'd go ape if she knew I was planning this.
Nynaeve: Ah, brotherly love. Now then, Rand! Come and do the disclaimer, or I'll box your ears!
Rand: *grumbling* I don't see why I have to do this... Eh, here goes: Freek doesn't own Golden Sun, nor does he own any stock in the fine company that made it. Although he is plugging for a sequel.
8BTFreek: You're right. But, all work and no play makes me bored. So, chapter 14!
**Chapter 14: What Stirs Unseen**
(Lalivero)
Alex stood outside of the building. Diplomatic negotiations weren't his forte, and besides, he had no reason to enter. He was confident of Felix's ability. Hama, Garet, and Sheba, on the other hand, went in. They didn't think it was safe for him to be in there alone. Well, Hama didn't. Garet went in to protect his sister, and Sheba... Well, Sheba was Sheba. She was mysterious, and didn't usually give reasons.
Inside the small stone house, Felix was trying to negotiate with the inhabitants. The "Kyle" of the sign wasn't as pliable as Felix had thought. In fact, he was as hard as steel, and had a venomous tongue. {This is going to take a long time.} He turned to Garet and Sheba. "Hama and I will handle negotiations. You two go exploring." Sheba nodded, concealing a frown. Garet, on the other hand, stood stiff, saluted mockingly, and slunk out of the room. He understood what they were going to do, even if Sheba seemingly didn't. Felix wanted him to find the leader, a one "Faran", and get him to force Kyle to grant them access to Venus Lighthouse.
Garet stopped at the tallest adobe house. "This has to be it. Who else would have a bigger house?" Upon further investigation, the suspicion was confirmed (there was a plate on the door that said, "Residence of Faran Arred, Master of Lalivero"). Carefully, they pushed open the door. Inside was a normal looking room, filled with normal looking furniture. Some was ornate, but most was plain. Sitting on one of the tables, looking like it didn't really belong there, was a small silver medallion. Garet spotted it almost immediately. He ran across to the table and picked it up. Engraved on it were runes, but he recognized those immediately. "Sheba," he said, "could you take a look at this?"
She nodded, then cast Reveal. "Aria Forge, b. 12 Mwadib 1077 AGA, parents Jay and Anna, sister Kay, brother Garet." She looked at her friend. "When did you create this?"
Garet looked at Sheba with a look of utmost sincerity. "I didn't! Jeez, you think that somebody had enough time to create a burned silver medallion, place it on this table, and make it my sister's..." He paused, looking at the medallion again. It was silver, and it did appear burned, as though struck by a giant column of flame. He grabbed it, then turned it over. Silently, he pulled out a medallion from around his own neck. "Read this," he said.
"Garet Forge, b. 12 Mwadib 1077 AGA, parents Jay and Anna, sister Kay, sister Aria," she whispered. She looked at the two medallions. Slowly, she turned to face Garet. "Garet, how did your sister die?" His head bowed down. He sighed, then started to retell the tale.
"When I was just one month old, my sister and I were with Mother, walking to the plaza. Neither of us was displaying much power, but she did have enormous potential. Eventually, something happened on that day, and the potential in her discharged. A column of flame opened up underneath her and launched her into the sky. We didn't know what happened to her. About two years later, Hama rescued me from Vale."
She looked at him. "But what's the significance of finding this medallion? I mean, I know we already found your sister. You fought her on top of Mercury Lighthouse." She looked at him. "Right?" He shook his head. "What? What do you mean, no?"
He sighed. "It's just... I couldn't tell if it was her or not. The not knowing was killing me. Finally, I decided that she might be, but I would never know. But this medal... It explains everything! She had to be my sister, or she wouldn't have been an adept!"
"And what, pray tell, is an adept?" asked a voice behind them. They spun around. Standing in front of them was a gray-haired man. He seemed to have the weight of experience hanging around his shoulders, and the power of rule inside his robe. His face held no humor, but the lines on his face suggested that he would have been laughing under different circumstances.
"An adept is someone with... special abilities," Garet said, making sure to keep his powers secret from a non-adept. The man nodded. "But that's not why we came here. We're looking for Faran, the Master of Lalivero."
"I am he," announced the man, staring at the two of them. "I heard that General Felix of Tolbi was in the city. Are you he?" Garet shook his head. "Then I will not waste my harsh words on you. What are you doing in my house?"
"I am here to find you to ask you for permission to enter Venus Lighthouse." Garet bowed. "But there is something I must ask. Do you have any children?" The man nodded. "A daughter, perhaps?" He nodded again. "Red hair, brown eyes, carries a staff?" Faran nodded again. "And this medallion... did you find it around her neck?" He nodded for a fourth time. "Did she fall from the sky in a column of flame?" Faran nodded, then spoke.
"What is the nature of this questioning? Have you seen my daughter? Or perhaps the kidnapper Isaac? It is said she travels with him. Have you seen them?" His stare bored into Garet's mind, but he knew Faran was no Jupiter Adept, and so he couldn't read thoughts. Still, the man's stare made him uncomfortable.
"Yes, I have seen my sister and this... Isaac. He seemed kind, though - not the kidnapping sort. Appearances may be deceiving, but he strikes me as an honest fellow." He bowed. "And I suppose I should be thanking you for taking such good care of my sister." Garet nodded, then took out a piece of parchment. On it, he copied down the runes from the two medallions. On another sheet, he wrote a rune key. After that, he took out a third sheet and translated the two. Faran's puzzled gaze soon turned into a gaze of shock. The third sheet had many words written on it, but the ones that stood out were "Aria Forge" and "Garet Forge." Garet then pulled off his gloves and held them before Faran's eyes. "And did your daughter have these symbols on the backs of her hands?" Faran's eyes widened in shock, and he nearly jumped out of his skin.
"Y-yes," he managed to stutter. Garet stared at him with shock-widened eyes. He blinked.
"Then your daughter, Master Arred, is my sister, Aria Forge. She is also an Adept. I feel I owe you the truth about what an Adept is. The whole truth." Garet told Faran everything he knew about Adepts. This took several hours, since Garet knew quite a bit about Mars Adepts. Of course, not all of this time was Garet explaining Adepts. Part of it was Faran discussing his daughter, as well as Faran's wife coming in and learning the truth about their daughter. Finally, Faran agreed to go see Kyle and Dora, the Healers.
Outside the Healers' house, which was right outside the Sanctum, Felix was standing massaging his ears. Hama was nowhere to be seen. Upon seeing them, Felix bowed. "Faran, Master of Lalivero, I presume. I am General Felix of Tolbi. There is some news which I must convey."
"There are some things I'd like to say to you, too." Faran's eyes narrowed, and a scowl deepened his face.
Felix took a deep breath. "Lord Iodem Passyf, King of Tolbi, wishes to talk with you about the release of the City of Lalivero from Tolbian control." Faran proceeded to ask about Babi. "The Lord Babi of House Ermos is dead. He died not more than a month ago." Looking into Faran's doubting eyes, he said, "I give my word as Captain-General of the Tolbian Army, what I say is the complete truth." He looked inquisitively at the man. "Now then, one of your soldiers said that there was a raid on Champa. What is this about?" Garet and Sheba excused themselves, and Faran's wife followed them into the Healers' house. Alex was standing there with Hama and two others. Hama was shouting at the other two.
"How dare you have my husband thrown out by the ears?! I should flay you alive for that!" Her voice cracked like a whip. "And don't try that against me, or I swear I'll-" Her words were cut short by Alex's cry of "Garet!"
Garet walked in. "Hey, sis! What's going on? Who are these people? Have you managed to get us into Venus Lighthouse?"
One of the two, a man with thinning brown hair, walked toward him. "Listen here. If you're with this woman or General Felix, then you're about as close to climbing the lighthouse as I am to flying."
"That can be arranged," muttered Hama. She was eyeing the two with obvious distaste. It seemed that she and Felix hadn't been successful. In fact, seeing Alex there seemed to confirm that they had to resort to the worst-case tactics. Garet walked up to the man.
"Would it be correct for me to assume that you are the father of Isaac, lover of Jenna and opponent of General Felix?" The man proudly nodded his head. "Well... I have some good news and some bad news. The good news is, he's doing fine. I've seen him, and I'd like to compliment the person who trained him. The bad news is, he's trying to light the beacons of the elemental lighthouses. I fought against him atop Mercury Lighthouse. They ended up lighting the beacon and escaping." He looked the man in the eye. "Can I also assume that you are Kyle, son of Alexis, son of Isaac, Head of the Venus Clan of the West?" At these words, the man's head snapped up, as though he had been called by name.
"Yes, I have been called that. Why?" His inquisitive gaze pierced through Garet's mind, and he seemed to be trying to read Garet's thoughts. "Is this about the notice? Because if it is, the message still stands."
"Please, hear me out. Isaac is also a member of the Venus Clan, am I right?" He nodded. "Did you believe what I said about your son?" He thought for a moment then nodded.
"He's somewhat rebellious, yes."
"Then do you think he will keep himself from allowing his friends access to the lighthouse?" Kyle's eyes grew wide, and the woman next to him nearly fainted.
"Dora, he's right. We have to let them climb." She shook her head. "Dora, listen! We can't let the lighthouses be lit again! That flash we saw in the north must have been Mercury! Clearly, the Mercury Clan has been defeated. We must allow these people to enter the lighthouse through the sacred ruins, even if it means that we must let General Felix, the Tolbian Tyrant's favorite soldier, run through our sacred place." Slowly, she nodded. "Good. I hoped you'd see it my way. We have to keep the beacon from being lit at all costs." Dora nodded, then looked up.
"You'll need something to eat. I'll pack you travel rations. Chances are you'll run out of food during the journey."
(The Suhalla Mountains)
Agatio frowned. "Elders, they went by here not more than a half-day ago. The tracks are still fresh." His older cousin wasn't satisfied, of course. He walked over and examined the tracks.
"Agatio, really. It's been exactly fifteen hours since they passed here, if they passed here at all. You really need to become better at tracking. No wonder you lost their trail. Now then, let me see." He bent down again, but the other elder's hand pulled him up. "Menardi..."
"Saturos, there's no reason to examine these tracks again. It's obvious they weren't here. They're already at the Lighthouse. We should be going there, too." Menardi dragged Karst over to the rest of the group. "Now then, Karst, explain what you saw." Karst took a deep breath, then nodded.
"I didn't see much, just a boat docked on the Idejima peninsula. I didn't really go to investigate, seeing as how a boat really isn't cause for worry. Then I tried to think of what could be going on, and I went down to look. Left on the ship were telltale signs of Ivan and his little band of followers!" She nodded, out of breath. She usually was better at controlling her voice during battle. Outside of that, she became tired easily. At least she could run.
Saturos nodded. "Okay, so that means they're further ahead than we thought. Let's head off to Venus Lighthouse. They'll be there for sure!" The group continued, but Karst would occasionally try to correct Menardi, or it would be the other way around, and whoever ignored the correction was always wrong, and so it took them a very long time to get through the Suhalla Pass.
(In the Middle of the Eastern Ocean)
The Admiral sailed his small one-man craft on. Storms were approaching on the horizon, but there was a bit of a letup in the west. Quickly, he headed for it. He had to find out why his father had died after leaving for the outside. He had to know what exactly it was that was so deadly about leaving his homeland. Turning the wheel, Piers set out for the one visible spot of land. A peninsula called "Idejima."
***
8BTFreek: Well, that's the end of chapter 14!
Nynaeve: Finally. That's longer than any other chapter you've written.
8BTFreek: Only in this story. If you'll kindly remember, chapter 2 of Forms was longer.
Nynaeve: Okay, so it's the SECOND-LONGEST, but not by much.
8BTFreek: Perhaps. But I had a lot to cover. So please review!
Nynaeve: Yes, or I'll make you regret not doing so every waking moment of your life.