The Third Regiment

Rand finished his porridge quietly sitting at the end of one of the long tables that stood in the large tent. Each table was long enough to seat about forty men, and there were about ten of these tables. That meant that only half of the regiment could eat at once, leaving the other half to stand guard. But Rand was all alone at the end of his table. The men, with good reason, seemed afraid of his. It wasn't ideal, but their fear gave Rand the command over them that he needed. It was a point on which Lan and Logain differed on. Lan had told Rand that it was better to command an army through respect and love, whereas Logain told him the fear was the most useful tool. Rand didn't care which, as long as he commanded these men.

When he stood, one of the cooks left his post, and hurriedly picked Rand's bowl up, then quickly scrubbed the table with his apron. The man's eyes were on the table, then on the ground as he turned to leave. Not even once did he glance in Rand's direction. A voice in Rand's head said, "Everyone fears the power and anger of the Dragon." It was regretful, but seemingly obvious.

Then there was Sal; the only man that Rand had met in this camp that did not seem to fear him. The very fact that the man was so relaxed around Rand was troubling. Since everyone feared the Dragon, only someone who was very dumb or someone that was an enemy would not fear a Power wielding male, not to mention the Dragon Reborn. But there was Sal.

"Are you ready for your tour Lord Dragon?" Sal asked, waking Rand from his thoughts.

Rand almost let a smile slip onto his face. This man was indeed… different; as were many things about the past few days. "Yes Captain, lead the way."

Sal saluted Rand, then turned and led him out of the meal tent and into the open sunlight. It was a breezy, beautiful day, much different than those in Caemlyn as of late. The birds were chirping and the camp was alive with activity. Soldiers were running around the camp, doing odd jobs and standing guard. Many of the men were sitting around in groups talking and laughing. Such an easy job compared to that of the Dragon's. Rand had to send happy men like these to their deaths, so that he might live another day and unite the world together against the Dark One at the last battle. Yet still these men sat around joking and laughing about trivial things. Such a sight eased, for only a moment, the tension in Rand's shoulders. But it was gone as Rand remembered that most of these men would be lying dead or maimed on the battlefield some crying out for their mothers and some crying out to the Creator. Rand on the other hand would certainly die alone, after the last battle was done and the world was at peace once again.

Again, Sal woke Rand out of his trance of thoughts when he said, "My lord, are you alright? You look a bit pale."

Rand looked up at the man, and said, "Yes, of course. I was just… thinking." Rand paused, remembering why he was here, then asked, "Now we were going to the practice yard. I would like to see how some of the men are doing. Does this regiment have good fighters?"

Sal smiled and said, "Why yes indeed my lord! This camp has some of the best in Andor! Every man trains for at least an hour every day, and that is just the minimum requirement set by Her Majesty the Queen."

Rand's next statement even threw himself a bit off balance, "I would like to test some of the men out myself."'

Sal's eyes widened in shock, "You mean you want to practice with them? All due respect my lord…"

"No Captain! I will train with them, I must! Besides, it'll be fun." Rand left the man standing in shock when he flashed an unexpected smile at the man. It felt good to smile. It had been so long and Rand regretted the feeling. All of the grief with the list of names piling up in his head; all of the names of the men and women who had died for him, it was almost sickening.

As Rand reached the practice yard, Sal had caught up with him. When Sal stopped at Rand's side, Rand was already picking up a wooden sword. Many of the men cracking blades near Rand stopped, fear edging their eyes. They must think he is here to punish them… and he very well might be if they weren't as good as Sal claimed. Then Sal shouted out, "Gather around Third. You have a challenger. His name is Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, and he doesn't think you have the skill to fight one such as him. Show him what you've got, and if you lose in a duel with him, there will be extra kitchen duty for you."

The men looked around at each other nervously, then it was Rand's turn to speak, "Which one of you will be first to sign up for 'kitchen duty?'"

At that, a large burly made holding a massive wooden sword stepped forward and said in a deep, booming voice, "I will."

Rand smiled at the challenge and stepped into the chalk line circle, embracing the void as he did so, and the large man faced him. If an outsider didn't know who Rand was, then it would seem obvious that Rand would probably be maimed in this duel, but Rand did have one thing working for him, and that was that every man, save Sal, feared him, and that would their undoing.

Rand raised his blade defensively and waited. The big lumbering man held his large practice sword in both hands, but he held it as if it were light as a feather. They began circling the outside of the ring. Rand noticed that the man was not looking at Rand's eyes or any other movements Rand made; instead, the man was staring at Rand's blade… almost fearfully. It was outrageous. Rand was certainly going to show this brute a lesson or two. After about a minute of circling, Rand grew tired of it and decided to be the first to strike. He came out with a solid jab that the large man barely managed to swipe away. There were no special moves, only jabs and slashes and strikes. These men were trained for warfare, not single combat. The followed orders and moved where they were told to move, which made this duel, if that is what you called it, all the more easier.

Rand then fell back into a defensive mode when the burly man swung the heavy practice blade down towards Rand's skull. Knowing that he could never stop a blow like that, the men around the duel acted as if they were waiting for the snap of Rand's wrists. Instead of blocking the heavy blow though, Rand only acted as if he were going to block, then feinted to the left. Out of the corner of his eye, Rand saw Sal laughing, and directly in front of him, the large man's sword rushed to the ground, throwing the man off balance. Rand decided to show the man no mercy and strike out hard. There was a sharp crack as Rand struck out hard to the man's rib cage.

The large man bellowed a cry of pain at such a crack, but Rand felt no remorse. The man was a fool when it came to dueling. Muscle and weight aren't all you must put behind a sword; there must also be a brain and agility. Without those, a man can only win a fight by sheer luck. Still, even though the duel was easy, Rand felt a bead of sweat start on his back. This would be a good day if only the competition would get a little harder.

Rand stepped back and told the crowd of men that had gathered, "Let this prove to you that brute force only rarely wins in one on one duels. Instead you must use speed and logic to calculate your opponent's next move." After he said that he leaned on his practice sword and asked, "Is there anyone else think that they can beat me?"

For a moment, no one answered, but then a voice from the back of the crowd, which was about seventy strong, rang out. "I might try my hand at this."

When the man approached, Rand recognized him as Corbin, Jack's Second. With that, the men cheered him on against Rand. Rand let a smile slip onto his face as his opponent faced him in the circle. Corbin drew out a slightly curved wooden practice sword and raised it up defensively. The man was slender, but not skinny. He had muscle and nearly no fat. He looked like the type to use the sword he used, small and quick. Rand continued to smile at the man when they began circling. Before they had taken five steps around the circle, the man struck out fast. Rand took a step back as he blocked a jab, then one step forward as he blocked a slash from the right. The man moved lightning fast, and Rand was surprised to find that he had even let go of the void and was now fighting for the first time in a long time with his emotions released. Even without the void, the man was not too hard to defend against.

Rand formed the void once again in his mind as he blocked another jab at his chest. He fed all his fears and wants all his hate and joy into the void. Now he was empty, and the defending he was doing became boring with the ease. Rand decided to go on the offensive, and struck out with a jab. The man was quick and blocked Rand's jab and counter-struck with his own jab. Rand easily blocked it and began a series of all out attacks. First he performed with elegance Hummingbird Kisses the Flower. Even through the smooth, quick movements of Rand's blade, he still heard the crack of a block raised by Corbin. Rand let his smile deepen, and Corbin saw it. Corbin's eyes betrayed that he knew what was coming, he knew Rand was about to finish him in a slit second. And Rand did. Corbin had thrown himself off balance when he had to try hard to block Rand's sword form, and it left Corbin's entire right side open. Rand rushed in with a furry of blows, despite the gasps of the crowd around them. Even practice swords can do damage. With a series of jabs and a final slashing blow, Corbin was on the ground trying to hold his wounds.

Rand let the void go, and saw what he had done. Corbin surely had a broken rib like the other man, but he also had a number of bruises that ran very deep. One of Rand's jabs had even penetrated the man's skin, dull as the practice blades were. Yet still, Rand felt no remorse. If that was the best man here, then this regiment was not trained well enough to battle the Shaido Aiel. Only the best of men could successfully fight an Aielman. Rand saw none here. He spoke his thoughts, saying, "Fighting the Aiel will be much like these little duels we are having now, except that the Aiel do not use swords. They are quicker and more agile than I. You must learn logic and learn patience."

Rand waited for the men to absorb and think momentarily on his words, then asked, "One more call for someone who thinks they can beat me. I will give that man a gold crown if he can."

No one answered his call this time until Rand shook his head and began waling towards Sal. The man was leaning against a tree and smiling smugly at Rand, and before Rand reached him, Sal spoke out loud enough for everyone to hear. "I will challenge you my lord Dragon."

Rand was pleased and let it show with a smile, something he didn't do often enough. Sal drew a practice blade that matched Rand's and waited in the circle for Rand to face him. When Rand did so, Sal's grip on his two-handed sword eased a bit, and he slid into a defensive stance. The man seemed at ease, which rand found amusing. By this time, the sun was hot and sweat rolled down Rand's back. So he tugged off his shirt and let the Dragon Tattoos gleam in the sunlight. The breeze here was light, but just enough to seem to freeze the sweat on Rand's back.

They began circling, both of them watching every little move the other made. This lasted for at least five minutes, before Sal struck out hard with, surprisingly, a sword form that only a blademaster could master. The Creeper Embraces the Oak. It was a slow circling attack that tried to get through Rand's defenses, but Rand blocked with, Leaf Floating on the Breeze. The man seemed to know his sword forms well enough, seeming that in order to attack as he had, a man would need to know a great deal. The sly smile never left Sal's face as Rand blocked. After Sal ceased his attack and prepared for another, Rand counter attacked with, Tower of Morning, then The Boar Rushes Down the Mountain. Both moves struck home and Sal staggered back, but was not finished. The object of this kind of duel was either to disarm your opponent or to knock them off their feet. Sal had endured both blows and was ready with a complex Water Flows Downhill. This attack caught Rand between the neck and his shoulder, sending a burst of distant pain through the void.

The duel went on for about two hours before Rand and Sal both began feeling great strain from the duel. Rand had tried after the first ten minutes to finish the man off like he had done with the others, but the man was quick and controlled. But finally, Rand broke through the man's defenses and endurance with an unexpected attack of Heron Spreads Its Wings, which hit home dead center of the Sal's chest, knocking the wind out of him, and causing him to stagger backwards, then to his knees.

Rand was breathing hard when he offered the man his hand, but Sal just laid there, chest rising and falling with shudders. Rand asked, "Are you okay?"

It took a moment, but Sal replied, "Yeah, I'm okay. I just didn't expect you to try something so risky. It didn't seem to match your style as I had gathered before."

Rand laughed, remnants of the void disappearing, "Well, I was getting tired." He paused and looked around to the crowd of men that had gathered and said, "Now that was a duel. That is how you must learn to fight if you are to have a chance in combat with the Aiel. For ever man who can fairly best this man I will give him a gold crown. But that is for another day. For now you all must get back to work, as do I."

Then, Sal was at his side and he asked, "Shall we see the rest of the camp my lord?"

Rand answered, "I didn't know you were a blademaster. Why don't you wear your sword?"

Sal looked down at the ground and said, "I would rather not talk about it if you don't mind my lord."

Rand's interest sparked, but he decided not to press the man further this day… perhaps tomorrow.