Thank you, Soreidy27, for your review. I try to upload a new chapter every Monday and Thursday.

I just felt like the Whitecloaks needed to appear as well. Especially, after their little meeting with our friends in episode two. You'll see if their appearance will be enough for Moiraine to channel again.

Enjoy the new chapter.

"Moiraine!" This was her name. But who was calling her? "Moiraine!" She knew this male voice. It belonged to someone she trusted and who had been by her side for years. She just couldn't put her finger on it. "Open your eyes!" Her eyes? Why should she open her eyes? Couldn't he see that she was tired? She didn't want to wake up.

"Please, do it for me.", begged the man desperately, and her heart ached at his begging. She didn't want him to beg. She wanted him to be happy with… with the wisdom. He deserved it. He had saved her so many times that she had stopped counting.

"Moiraine." He was her friend, her partner, and her confidant. He was…

"Lan." His name came out as a whisper, but it was everything the warder needed. Relieved, he watched how his Aes Sedai was slowly opening her beautiful eyes.

"I'm here." She turned her head in his direction, so, he saw exactly how her eyes widen in shock when she realized the situation, he was in. Lan was tied to a weird wood construct and he wasn't wearing his tunic anymore.

Moiraine wanted to stand up, but she couldn't. Her hands were tied to the armrests of her chair and her feet were tied up as well. Angry, she tried to free her hands, but she was just rubbing the rope over her wrists.

"Moiraine, stop it." She knew that Lan was right, but there had to be a way out of here. Her gaze moved over their surrounding. They were held in a big tent. In front of her was a desk with lots of papers, maps, and books on it. A flag with a golden sun hung behind the desk. Whitecloaks!

"Now, would be a very good time to break the barrier." Moiraine's eyes fell on Nynaeve, who lay on the ground next to Lan with her hands tied on her back. But something wasn't right. The wisdom sounded sleepy.

"What's wrong with you?"

"They gave me some herbs to prevent that I'm concentrating on the One Power."

"But you're not an Aes Sedai. Why should they give you some herbs, but not me?"

"Because she used the One Power." A black man with dark brown hair entered the tent, and Moiraine recognized the cold brown eyes immediately. It was the questioner, who they had met on their way to Whitebridge, who had worn her sisters' rings. But now, he looked different. A long scar moved over the right side of his face and on his arms, she saw the bite marks of an animal. What had happened to him?

Eamon Valda stopped in front of Moiraine and smiled sweetly. "I had a feeling that we would meet again."

"And I thought that you had died. Must've been a terrible animal attack."

Valda's finger stroked gently over his scar, but his smile didn't fade. "I barely survived. This young channeler, she stabbed me with a dagger, and those wolves… but I survived. The light wanted me to continue with my mission, and that's what I'm doing." Suddenly, he moved and laid his fingers around Moiraine's throat. She tried to lean back, but Valda followed until her back was pressed against the back of the chair and she had nowhere to escape.

"Take your hands off her!"

Slowly, Valda increased the pressure, while Moiraine was gasping for air. "The only thing I don't understand is, why you haven't used the One Power yet. I have given you plenty of time. And my men told me that you also hadn't used it when they had taken you. This brings up the question, are you an imposter? You wore a ring of the Aes Sedai, but you don't use the One Power. Meanwhile, this girl here used it on my men. This way, your other friends were able to escape. This makes me believe that she is the real Aes Sedai, and you are only an imposter to fool others."

"I'm going to kill you!" Lan fought against the ropes, which hold him in place, but it was useless. He couldn't free himself. "Let her go!"

The questioner increased the pressure again, then he moved closer to Moiraine's face until his nose was almost touching hers. "But the most interesting part is that you are close to suffocating and your so-called warder isn't feeling a thing." Valda turned his head to the furious warder, who was still tearing on his restraints. "So, stop barking. I already know your secret."

With those words, he released Moiraine's throat and moved to his desk. Moiraine coughed but pulled in as much air as possible. Shaking, Lan stopped fighting against the ropes, while he tried to make eye contact with his Aes Sedai. He needed to know that she was alright.

"I really don't know why you still hold on to that stupid idea, Valda." Another Whitecloak entered the tent. He was probably as old as Valda, with short brown hair and brown eyes. But from the way he moved, it was clear that he came from a wealthy family. He was used to commanding his subordinates.

"He just proved my point!" Valda took a dagger and pointed at Lan. "He was still able to curse me and fought against the ropes, although she was almost out of air!"

"She can mask the bond. This way, he doesn't feel anything." The second Whitecloak seemed way calmer than Valda as if he was used to the outbursts of the questioner.

But the questioner wasn't convinced. "And how do you explain it that she doesn't channel to save her life or the life of her warder? Doesn't this sound strange to you?"

"Not at all." The other man walked over to Moiraine's chair until he stood in front of her. Slowly, Moiraine looked up until her hateful eyes met his amused ones. "This is just another one of her plans. Am I right, sis?"

Silence fell over the tent, while everyone was watching Moiraine and the whitecloak in shock. Finally, Valda broke the silence by stepping beside his brother. "Hold on, Kaslian. Are you telling me that she is…?"

"Yes, she is my little sister. Lady Moiraine Damodred, who left the sun palace to become one of those disgusting creatures, called the Aes Sedai."

"I… I didn't know that. I would've never…" Valda was obviously shocked that he had hurt a family member of his brother, but Kaslian held up his hand to stop him from talking onward.

"There is no need to apologize, Valda. The Aes Sedai are monsters, who need to be stopped. My little sister is no exception." Without a warning, Kaslian used his hand and slapped Moiraine in the face. "Why don't you end this charade, Moiraine? We both know what you are able to do. Why don't you let me see how you weave?" He slapped her again. "Show me how powerful you are." Slap. "Use that power of yours to show me how little I am against the powerful Moiraine Damodred!" Slap!

"Touch her again, and I rip your head off!" Lan knew that this was an empty threat, but he needed Kaslian's attention, so, the man would let go of his sister, who hadn't said a word. Her angry eyes were doing all the talking, while her cheek became darker with every slap she received.

The warder almost sighed in relief when Kaslian did turn his attention to him. "You want to fight someone?! Free me and I will fight against you!"

"How dare you speak to us like that?!" Valda imitated Kaslian's treatment and slapped Lan in the face. Nynaeve growled, but she couldn't do anything from her position. Moiraine winced when the sound of the slap echoed in her ears, which was something her brother saw from the corner of his eyes.

"You don't like that, sis?" Kaslian grabbed Moiraine's face and held it in place. This way, she had to watch how Valda was slapping her warder over and over again. "Then make him stop. Use the One Power and help your poor warder."

"I can't.", Moiraine answered through gritted teeth "Tell him to stop."

"I don't believe you, little sister. You can help him, but you are too proud to do it. So, every hit he takes is on you."

"You know that I can't lie, Kaslian! I can't use the One Power anymore! Tell him to stop!" Moiraine couldn't see how Lan was doing. He didn't say anything, and Valda was blocking her sight, but she could imagine how much the slaps had to hurt. Especially, since they were way harder than hers had been. "Please!"

Kaslian released a disgusting snort, then he let go of his sister's face. "I think that's enough, Valda." The questioner slapped Lan one last time, then he stepped back.

Finally, Moiraine was able to make eye contact with her warder, who gave her a small nod. He was alright. Quickly, she made sure that her mask was back in place before her brother would see her relief. She wouldn't give him another opportunity to hurt Lan.

Sadly, it was already too late for that. Kaslian took Moiraine's ring from Valda's desk and returned to his sister, while he turned the golden ornament between his fingers. "I never understood, why you had been so eager to become an Aes Sedai. You had a good life at the sun palace, but you threw it all away for wielding the One Power."

"And how exactly are you so much different than me? You left home to become a whitecloak. Looks like we both needed to escape."

Kaslian slapped her again, then he leaned forward until their noses touched. He didn't notice that Moiraine's lower lip was bleeding from his last hit. "I left home to get my sister back! You couldn't see what the Aes Sedai really were! What they would do to you! What it would cost you! And now it is too late for you! You are a monster, just like them!"

Moiraine lifted her chin a little bit more and made sure that her brother would see the arrogance in her eyes when she calmly said: "You are the only monster here, Kaslian."

Kaslian leaned closer to her until he was able to bury his nose in her hair. "You're blinded, little sister. But I will free you from this madness." He pressed his lips against her temple, then he leaned back and saw the blood on her lip. "Do you know that my friend Valda here has a special method to make people talk?"

It seemed as if Valda took this as a sign since he positioned himself behind Lan with the sharp dagger in his hands. Moiraine watched his every move from the corner of her eye. What was he…? She gasped when she saw how the questioner placed the blade on Lan's bare shoulders and pulled it down slowly over his back. Lan didn't scream, but he closed his eyes to cut out the pain and pressed his lips together.

"Stop it.", Moiraine begged, while her eyes remained on Valda's hands, which were already going upwards to draw the next line.

Kaslian smiled, then he wet his thumb and wiped the blood off Moiraine's lower lip. "I have to admit that I was surprised when I heard that you found a warder. I never thought that there would be anyone in the whole world, who could stand your attitude. Who would say 'I would give my life for you'."

Valda drew the third bloody line over Lan's back, and now, the warder was shaking. He tried very hard to suppress the pain, but even he had a breaking point.

"Please, make him stop.", Moiraine begged her brother and turned her eyes on him again "Kaslian, please."

"You know what I want, little sister."

"I can't channel. No matter what you do, I won't be able to do it. So, please, stop this nonsense."

"How long is he your warder? For a year? Two? What did you do to convince him? Was it hard to suppress your true nature, so, he would agree?"

Moiraine pressed her lips together. She wouldn't tell her brother anything about her bond with Lan or how they had met. He would never understand.

Lan groaned when the blade drew a new line on his back. It wasn't much, but Moiraine felt as if Kaslian had slapped her again. Since their bond was masked, she couldn't feel Lan's pain, but she knew that it had to be terrible if he was groaning. She closed her eyes to keep her tears from falling.

"You keep watching!" Kaslian grabbed her face angrily, but she didn't open her eyes. "You want this to stop?! Then channel, Moiraine! Save him!"

She wanted to shove her brother off her, but this wouldn't quiet him. Besides, it was more important to get rid of Valda, who was still drawing line after line. She needed to help Lan. So, she ignored Kaslian's grip and his annoying voice. Even Lan's groans disappeared in the back of her mind. The One Power was there within her reach. She just had to break the barrier and touch it.

'They will kill Lan if I don't touch the source! Please! Let me through! This isn't for me! I have to save Lan!'

But the barrier withstood her attempts. It didn't break. Frustrated, Moiraine sent her fear to the barrier. This thing needed to understand that it wasn't a game! Lan's life was on the line!

"Pathetic." Kaslian released her face when she stopped pushing. The barrier wouldn't disappear. Not even for Lan.

"Please, kill me. Let them live.", Moiraine begged her brother.

"Moiraine, shut up!", Lan barked through gritted teeth. His back was drenched in his blood, and a puddle has already formed underneath his body. She saw that sweat was running down his temple. When would he pass out from the pain?

'No! Focus on Kaslian! Don't think about Lan!'

"You said you want to free me. So, kill me."

"Moiraine!"

Kaslian looked at her face for a moment, and the Aes Sedai wondered what he was searching for. Was he looking for the little sister, he had lost all those years ago? Did he want to know if there was still a part of her, which would be worth to be saved? "You really care for him." He seemed confused as if she had never cared for anyone in her life before.

Moiraine decided to ignore his comment. She needed him to let Lan and Nynaeve go. "You hate me, Kaslian, not them. They shouldn't suffer because you held a grudge against your sister."

Suddenly, her brother started to laugh, and even Valda stopped in his doing and watched his fellow brother confused. "Oh, sweet, little sister. I had never expected that this day would ever come. You, caring for anyone other than yourself. I have to say, I'm impressed."

Angry, Moiraine turned her hands into fists, but then she took a deep breath and calmed herself. She couldn't argue with him when she wanted him to fulfill her wish.

Gently, Kaslian stroked with his knuckles over her cheek, while he smiled at her sweetly. "Don't worry, I just found the perfect solution for our situation. I won't kill you."

"Kaslian! She is still an Aes Sedai!", Valda argued shocked, but Moiraine's brother didn't listen.

"You deserve it to live onward without your connection to the One Power. I can only assume how hard this must be for you." He continued to stroke her cheek when he released a chuckle. "I think you're right. I've never been a good brother to you. When you became an Aes Sedai, I never send you a prober gift to honor your effort. Please, allow me to reward you with a gift now."

Kaslian took a deep breath, while his eyes glistered in madness. Moiraine was afraid, what kind of gift she would receive. She didn't want anything from him. "Valda?"

"What are you doing, Kaslian? Please, tell me, that you don't actually think about…"

"Kill the man."

Moiraine's eyes widen in shock, but her voice was no louder than a whisper. "No."

"You will keep living without your power and without the one man, who you have let into your cold, little heart." Kaslian leaned back, visibly content with himself, while Valda cleaned the blade of his dagger to carry out the death blow. "Isn't this a gift worthy for a mighty Aes Sedai?"

Moiraine couldn't form any words. Her mind was completely blank. He couldn't be serious. He would let her live, but kill Lan? This wasn't a gift. It was a punishment. "Don't do this, Kaslian. I beg you. Please, just kill me and get it over yourself. You never have to deal with me ever again."

"Moiraine!", Lan growled "Would you please shut up?!"

The noble whitecloak turned away from his sister and walked over to the still sleepy Nynaeve. The wisdom hadn't been able to move at all. The herbs had weakened her pretty well.

"Kaslian! Please!"

But Moiraine's brother didn't listen. Instead, he nodded at Valda, who positioned himself behind Lan again, but this time, the dagger was meant to kill. Although she knew how useless it was to fight against the ropes, the Aes Sedai tried to get free again. She couldn't just sit here and wait for her warder to die.

"No! He hasn't done anything wrong!"

"He became your warder, Moiraine. He bonded himself to an Aes Sedai. And he would do it again if we'd let him live."

Blood dripped down from Moiraine's forearms, where the ropes moved over her wrists, but she didn't feel it. Her eyes were on Lan and the man with his deadly dagger. The questioner lifted his arm, then he slammed it down, pointed at Lan's heart.

"NO!"