Lan has a hard time knocking some sense into two stubborn women.
The former sitting room was a mess. It was hard to imagine how it had looked before. Most of the ceiling was missing and there was a big hole in the floor.
Lan and Moiraine kneeled at the edge. One concentrated on regaining her strength, while the other one let his eyes wander over the room. The Aes Sedai and the Warders were gone. Lan hoped that they had been able to save all the hurt Aes Sedai.
Moiraine groaned in pain and had Lan's attention immediately. Her head was killing her. When this was over, she would need an Aes Sedai to heal her.
"What is it?" Lan leaned protectively over her. He would attack her headache if he could.
"My head.", Moiraine said and gave him a reassuring smile, which didn't work on him. "I'll deal with it later."
"Why didn't Alanna heal you?"
The Aes Sedai sighed when she remembered what had happened at the infirmary. "We got attacked by Trollocs. Alanna and Ihvon did their best to fight them off, but I was just in the way. So, I thought I would be at more use helping my injured sisters."
"I left you at the infirmary, so you wouldn't get hurt."
Moiraine waved his worries aside, then she got back on her feet. She was swaying but standing nonetheless.
Quickly, Lan followed her and steadied her. "What are you doing? You're in no condition to walk."
"We have to help my sisters. Who knows how many of these creatures got in?"
"You stay away from the fights."
"I can't just stand there and do nothing, while everyone risks their lives."
Lan growled angrily. "Moiraine. You're hurt and you can't use the One Power. You stay away."
They glared at each other for a moment, then the Aes Sedai freed her arm and walked to the door. There was no way, she would watch her friends get hurt. She still had her dagger, and if this wasn't enough, she would find a sword to kill these monsters.
The floor behind her growled. Would this whole building fall apart? Out of nowhere, Lan stood in front of her suddenly and blocked her way. Surprised, Moiraine took a step back. She hadn't seen him coming.
The Warder used her surprise to throw her over his shoulder. "What… Lan! Put me down!"
"You won't risk your life."
"I can help! Please!"
But he ignored her begging. He was her Warder. It was his mission to keep her safe. And he would keep her safe, no matter how much she was trying to be brave. He wouldn't lose her!
Lan's plan lasted for exactly five minutes, then he ran into the first group of Trollocs. He had to put Moiraine back on her feet to fight off the two creatures, who wanted to cut off his head.
Needless to say, his stubborn Aes Sedai didn't wait until he was done with the Shadowspawn. She left to search for her sisters, and Lan had to run after her. When he had almost reached her, a Trolloc surprised him and crushed into him. Pressed against the wall, the Warder did his best to keep the teeth of the creature away from his throat, though he was slowly losing the fight. Where were the other Warders?
Suddenly, the Trolloc started to rattle and black blood dripped out its mouth. Surprised, Lan watched how the eyes of the creature rolled back, then it sunk to its knees and fell dead on the floor. Moiraine stood behind the dead body with her dagger in her hand. The dagger was covered in Trolloc blood.
"I may not have my powers, but I'm not useless."
Sighing, Lan stepped over the Trolloc and pulled Moiraine in his arms. Stupid woman! As if he wouldn't know what she was capable of. "I would never call you useless, Moiraine. I know how strong you are. But I would feel better if you would still have the One Power to defend yourself when I turn my back on you."
Instead of an answer, she clutched his tunic tight before she pushed him away. She hated to be sentimental in public where everyone could see her and think of her as weak. So, Lan put his stoic face back in place and grabbed her hand. "Would you please allow me to get you out of here?"
"My sisters…"
"We help whoever we see on our way out of here. And I promise you that I will come back as soon as you're somewhere safe and I will help the others. But please, let me get you somewhere safe."
Moiraine hesitated. She wanted to search for her sisters. Light, she wanted to search for Siuan! She knew that Siuan had helped Lan to rescue her from the collapsing fragments, but where was she now? Was she safe?
But Lan's eyes were begging her to stop. He knew who she wanted to find. This damn man knew her way too well. He would search for Siuan. For Moiraine, he would search for the Amyrlin and wouldn't give up until he'd find her. But first, he wanted her to be safe. To be as far away as possible from the danger.
Sighing, she nodded. Relief moved over Lan's beautiful face and he squeezed her hand thankfully. "This way."
He led her back to the two Trollocs, who he had killed only a few minutes before. When he turned right to the next corridor, the Warder heard his name. "LAN!"
Shocked, Lan turned around and watched how Nynaeve came running over. "What are you doing here?!"
The Wisdom stopped at a safe distance when she heard his growl and saw the anger in his eyes. "I wanted to help you."
"I told you to leave this place with Maksim! It's not safe here!"
"That's why I wanted to help you!"
Lan let go of Moiraine's hand. A frustrated scream escaped from his throat and he punched the wall in anger. Why did they have to complicate things? Nynaeve took a step back when she saw how angry he was, while Moiraine stepped closer to her Warder to calm him. But Lan didn't want to be calmed.
"What is it with you two that you can't follow the simplest order?! You-" He pointed at Moiraine. "-don't stay hidden with the person, who could've healed you!"
"The Trollocs found us.", Moiraine explained calmly "Alanna did everything in her power to…"
"And you!" This time, Lan turned to Nynaeve. "You are just as bad as her! I'm pretty sure that Maksim found a safe spot for you guys, but you decide to come back! Why don't you two understand that I can't fight when I have to worry about you?! How am I supposed to keep you safe when you keep running toward danger?!"
"Lan." Gently, Moiraine touched Lan's arm, but he freed himself. "We didn't…"
"I just want you to be safe! Away from the Myrddraals and the Trollocs! Away from their poisonous weapons!"
"That's enough, Gaidin!"
Lan breathed heavily, but he listened to Moiraine's command. No word came over his lips. His Aes Sedai placed her hand on his chest and leaned her forehead against his. "We know that you do everything in your power to keep us safe. It's not that we don't listen because we like to anger you. We don't listen because we want to help."
"Then help me to protect you by listening to me."
"Okay. Why don't you take the lead and get us out of here?" Moiraine smiled at him reassuringly.
Before Lan could answer, the door on his right exploded. Within a heartbeat, the Warder pulled his Aes Sedai out of the way and behind him. A Shienaran warrior lay unconsciously on the floor. Through the open door, Moiraine, Lan, and Nynaeve could see how more soldiers were fighting against a Trolloc.
"Stay!" Lan drew his sword and ran toward the fight. He had to help them.
"Lan!"
"Don't!"
The Warder heard the screams of the women, but it was too late. From the corner of his eyes, he saw how a Trolloc stormed out of the right corridor. The creature would run over him.
In the last second, he felt how someone grabbed his arms and pulled him back. The Trolloc's run ended with an ugly crack at the opposite wall. Like a stone, the big creature fell to the floor and didn't move anymore.
Lan turned toward Moiraine and Nynaeve, who were still holding his arms. They had saved his life! "Thank you."
Moiraine simply nodded, but Nynaeve couldn't help herself. "Looks like we're not the only ones, who run into danger without thinking."
The Warder gnashed with his teeth but stayed quiet otherwise. She was right. This had been a newbie mistake.
He took his sword and stabbed it into the Trolloc's heart. Then he checked on the Shienaran soldiers, but they had killed their Trolloc by now. They weren't in need of his help anymore.
"Let's get out of here." Lan reached out his hand toward Moiraine, who intertwined their fingers. She would follow him.
The Wisdom grimaced when she saw it, but when Lan looked at her questioningly, she nodded and followed him. It was time to leave the fortress.
When they reached the inner courtyard, there were fights as well. Exhausted Aes Sedai kneeled on the ground, while their Warders fought against the Shadowspawn. They had formed a circle to protect the women. A few Aes Sedai were still standing – Moiraine recognized Alanna, who was fighting with gritted teeth – but they wouldn't be able to do this much longer.
Siuan kneeled in the middle of the circle, surrounded by her daughters. Her eyes met Moiraine's and relief moved over her face when she saw that her lover was alive.
Lan wanted to get Moiraine and Nynaeve to the inner circle, but the Trollocs were blocking their way. Without a fight, they wouldn't be able to pass the creatures.
And the Trollocs had noticed their arrival. Roaring, they turned toward the little group. Lan went immediately into action, while Moiraine and Nynaeve stepped back to give him some room.
Sadly, as good as Lan was, he couldn't be everywhere. A Trolloc passed him and went for Moiraine and Nynaeve. Like Moiraine, Nynaeve only had a dagger to protect herself from the creatures. Together, the two women did their best to attack the opponent while avoiding its teeth.
But their tiny daggers didn't seem to bother the Trolloc. It actually looked as if they would only poke him, which annoyed him very much. After what should have been their twentieth attack, the Trolloc roared angrily and grabbed the front side of the Wisdom's dress.
Nynaeve screamed and pushed her dagger into his exposed arm, but he didn't let her fall. Instead, he threw her aside. "Nynaeve!"
Moiraine tried to grab the Wisdom's arm, but she was too late. Nynaeve flew through the air and crashed into Lan, who went down as well. Before Moiraine could react, her opponent used the back of his hand and wiped her off her feet. She crushed into the wall behind her, where she sank to the ground groaning. Her dagger fell out of her hands, but she wouldn't have been able to use it anyway. Her back hurt like hell!
"Moiraine!" That was Alanna's voice. The green sister had seen what had happened from her position within the circle.
But the woman of the Blue Ajah only had eyes for the Trolloc, which was standing above her. It roared loudly in her face, and its breath smelled terrible. For a moment, Moiraine wished she would be unconscious. This way, she wouldn't feel the end.
The Trolloc opened its mouth, and Moiraine closed her eyes. At least, it would be over soon. The last thing she heard was Lan's panicked voice: "Moiraine!"
And then five seconds passed and another five, but nothing happened. Surprised, Moiraine opened her eyes. The Trolloc was a hand's width away from her, though didn't come closer. No, that wasn't true. It tried to come closer. Moiraine saw how it was struggling to reach her.
Then she saw the weaves of her sisters, which were holding the creature in place.
"Do you need an invitation?", Alanna asked through gritted teeth "Move!"
The green sister was sweating, and so were Siuan, Leane, and Liandrin. The four Aes Sedai used the One Power to save her life.
Before Moiraine could move, black blood splattered over her when the Trolloc lost its head. Lan had cut its head off, and the dead body sank to the ground.
"Are you hurt?" Worried, Lan kneeled down in front of her.
Moiraine shook her head. Her back would be fine in a few days. Then her eyes fell on the big cut, which moved from his left shoulder over his chest to the right side of his stomach and had cut his tunic. "Lan, you're hurt!"
Her back protested when she leaned forward, but the Aes Sedai gnashed her teeth and ignored it. Her Warder was injured! Carefully, she touched his chest and examined the wound.
Lan didn't seem to care about the injury and pushed her hands away. "I'll be fine. I have to check on Nynaeve."
Before she could stop him, he got back on his feet and moved to the Wisdom, who was still lying on the ground.
The Warders of her sisters were occupied with the last five Trollocs and it was obvious that they would win this fight. So, the woman of the Blue Ajah grabbed her dagger, and swaying she made her way over to Lan and Nynaeve.
The Wisdom had a deep cut on her stomach. Lan examined the wound, but there was not much that he could do.
"Go.", Moiraine said to him and nodded at the Trollocs "Help the others. I'll stay with Nynaeve."
The Warder hesitated for a heartbeat, then he nodded and threw himself back into the fight. Moiraine kneeled down beside the young woman. "May I look at your wound?"
Nynaeve nodded and grimaced when Moiraine carefully touched her injured skin. "How bad is it?"
"It doesn't look poisoned. I assume one of its claws cut you when he grabbed and threw you."
"It hurts like hell."
Moiraine pressed her hands on the wound to reduce the bleeding, and Nynaeve hissed in pain. "One of my sisters will be able to heal you."
"I don't want your sisters to heal me. You Aes Sedai stay away from me."
"Don't be stupid! You will bleed to death without our help!"
"Egwene can heal me. We don't need your sisters."
That reminded Moiraine that she hadn't seen the young woman for a while now. "Where is Egwene anyway?"
"Maksim took her to the infirmary. This blue sister we had saved was seriously injured, so he thought the infirmary would be the best place."
"How is she?" Lan appeared by their side. All of the remaining Trollocs were dead, and the Warders checked on the Aes Sedai.
"Stubborn. Maybe you can convince her to let my sisters heal her."
Nynaeve growled at Moiraine. "Egwene is the only one, who will heal me!"
Lan sighed heavily when Moiraine and Nynaeve were shooting daggers at each other. Why did these two always have to fight? It would be so much easier if they would be working together instead of arguing.
"Nynaeve!" Egwene came out of the fortress and rushed to her friend's side. "You're hurt!"
"Do you have enough strength left to heal me?", the Wisdom asked with a weak smile "I came in contact with a Trolloc."
The young girl nodded enthusiastically and pushed her sleeves up her arms.
"Foolish child."
Moiraine stepped out of the way, but Nynaeve had heard her mumble. Although she was in pain, the Wisdom sat upright and tried to strangle the Aes Sedai. Thanks to Lan's quick reflexes, she couldn't reach Moiraine and had to lie back down, so Egwene could heal her. But her angry eyes stayed on Moiraine's back.
The Warder moved to his Aes Sedai as soon as Egwene started to channel. He didn't say anything. The reproachful look in his eyes told Moiraine everything she needed to know.
Moiraine's eyes landed on Lan's injury and immediately, she forgot about her fight with Nynaeve. Gently, her fingers examined the wound. It wasn't deep, but it was still bleeding. "Will you accept a healing of one of my sisters or do you prefer Egwene's healing as well?"
She couldn't suppress the sting in her words. Nynaeve's constant mistrust of the Aes Sedai was bugging her.
Lan grabbed her chin and made her look up before he rested his forehead against hers. "Now, who is acting like a child?"
When Moiraine pressed her lips to a thin line, his face softened. "You know very well that I would let you heal me if you could. I won't allow every Aes Sedai to heal me, but I will accept the healing of a friend of yours. I know you wouldn't put my life in the hands of someone you don't trust."
A tear escaped from Moiraine's eyes and Lan brushed it away with his thumb.
"May I offer you a healing, Gaidin?"
Surprised, Moiraine and Lan turned to Siuan, who stood behind them. She looked pale, but she was standing on her own two feet without the help of Leane or another Aes Sedai.
Lan bowed his head. "That's very generous of you, Mother. But you should save your strength."
"You're hurt, and Moiraine can't heal you. Please, allow me to heal you in Moiraine's name."
Insecure, Lan looked at Moiraine. He trusted Siuan, but she was obviously exhausted, and he didn't want her to use the rest of her energy for him. She was Moiraine's lover, and he wanted Moiraine's approval.
The woman of the Blue Ajah nodded quickly before she bowed her head at Siuan. "I would be very thankful if you could heal him, Mother."
Siuan stepped in front of Lan and moved her hands, which were trembling. The Warder thought about stopping the woman of Tear, but then she pressed her hand on his wound and her weaves closed it.
As soon as she was done, she swayed, and it was only thanks to Lan and Moiraine that she didn't fall. Panting, she leaned heavily against Lan. "Stay close to her."
Unseen by the other Aes Sedai, Siuan whispered. Lan, who couldn't answer her without letting the other Aes Sedai know that they were closer than it seemed, tightened his grip on her arms to tell her that he had heard her.
"Thank you for the healing, Mother." Lan spoke loudly on purpose. It was the sign for Leane to join them. "You should rest now. Regain your strength."
Siuan nodded and allowed her Keeper of the Chronicles to lead her back to the inner circle. This day was far from being over.
The next chapter will be uploaded on Wednesday.
Reviews are always appreciated ❤️
