Lazaruss : " This concludes my prolog. I'll hurry along and proceed to the events with Rand. Hopefully, I'll be able to bring it to the end before the next book comes out. "
Chapter 1.a ; Surprizes
The wheel of time turns and ages come and pass, leaving behind memories that fade into legends. Legends fade into myth and even a myth is long forgotten when an age that gave birth to it comes back again. In one such age called the Third Age by some, and age yet to come, an age long past, wind rose at the base of steep slopes of Dragonmount. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time, but I was a beginning.
Onward to east and north the wind blew, across the bare forests and thin sickly grass, dancing with the clouds of red dust on its way to the river called Erinin by most. Strong on the mountain slopes where it moaned like a doomed man and barely a breeze once it fled towards the planes, the wind would pick up speed and dance with the evening mists weaving them over the silent riverbed like a blanket of cotton. On to the east the wind blew parting with the river around a large island of Tar Valon, predominated by a gleaming white tower, yet shadowed by the tall mountain like a child loomed over by a parent. The Dark One's touch had been purged from the sky by an unknown force and the people of the world once again had hope in their darkest hour. The setting sun was orange like molten bronze as it descended behind the long mountain range named the Spine of the World, making the ivory tower shine like hot amber except for the many cracks and holes in its walls caused by the one power. Many workers had been called to repair the damage, and messengers had been dispatched to the Ogier grows in hope that their skill could erase the Seanchan attack from memory.
Glancing at the west window of the Amyrlin's study Egwene al'Vere observed the last rays of the sinking sun fade away into the horizon. Somehow she knew that it was Rand's doing, and not just clearing away the blanket of clouds, but also the problem at hand. Before her, on the table where she sat, peaces of a small broken statue lied neatly placed upon a white silken cloth, and across from it eleven women sat, their ageless faces serene and composed, despite what might have stirred beneath the surface. If this was another one of the Dark One's unleashed evils, than the return of the sun was a poor bargain in more ways than one. First thing they had to do was to stop the roomers spreading until they could work the problem.
" Food an provisions must still be brought by Gateways. " She said as she faced the women. The dress she had on was plain white silk with wide skirt and long hems of her sleeves, in the honor of the White Ajah. She preferred white dresses herself – wearing a Novice dress during her most treasured victories, she had grown fond of that color – but in the interest of unification of the Tower, she had a set of seven dresses in colors of the seven Ajahs which she changed daily. The seven stripped stole no longer stood around her shoulders but in a few moments she would have to put it on again and take up the flame-tipped staff as they bring this discussion before the Hall. " I can see no way around that. We will just have to make sure other sisters are present in case anything else happens. "
Every Ajah had received casualties today, but thanks to luck and a swift Healing on the sisters' part, no lives had been lost. Yet. She could still feel the shifting in saidar which had forced every Aes Sedai in Tar Valon to restrain from touching the source unless she absolutely had to. For some reason, the One Power had stopped to respond to their weaving, becoming dangerous and unstable, slipping out of their grasp even with the simplest of weaves. And the reasons for this difficulty remained a mystery to them. Not even the most ancient records in the Tower ever mentioned anything like that. But it had started shortly after Rand woke inside the Tower grounds ; Somehow, it was his doing.
Novices and accepted have been prohibited from even embracing the Source until the Aes Sedai have resolved this matter and unsurprisingly, they had obeyed with very little grumbling ; they were too frightened not to give up saidar for a while. This afternoon Kurina Manteas an elderly Aes Sedai of the Brown had accidentally unleashed a flood of wind that rushed through the corridors and knocked everyone off their feet, and Sarah Naishan a slender accepted had almost set fire to her quarters after trying to produce a simple ball of light. The list went on resembling a disease spreading through the White Tower rendering women who could channel unsafe to wield the one power. At first everyone tried to ignore it, but once lives became jeopardized, even the most uptight had to agree that saidar was too dangerous to handle at the moment. All passage to and from the Tower had been stopped, except for the mentioned Gateways which served to feed the whole island as the cuendillar chain still blocked the harbors. But the question was, how long could they last, restraining from touching the Source? Perhaps, if the matter takes longer than several days, she could consider some kind of groups forming to hold the source together and protect each other from these accidents. The Light send that it is not so.
" A tight hand will have to be held upon the young ones. " Suana spoke. Garbed in red slashed white, she seemed to focus on the shawl looped around her hands while she spoke. There was no telling whether she meant just Novices and Accepted, or also the sisters newly raised to the shawl. " We will all have to discipline ourselves hard if we are to get through this. "
" News and instructions have been sent by pigeon to every place we know has Aes Sedai. " Lelaine stated between sips of her mint tea. She was always wearing blue, never changing the color of her dress and her shawl was almost invisible against it. " Hopefully, they will pas the word on to the sisters we've missed. " A pity that once the voting for the Sitters was done she had managed to remain a part of the Hall. Not that she was uncapable, but it would have been far better if the Blues had selected someone a little less… selfish. At least Romanda was still in the Hall too and that left Egwene more room to maneuver them.
As if that had summoned her, Romanda addressed them. " I think that the Yellows should be tasked with finding a solution. If it is a sickness we're talking about, we are the most equipped to deal with it. "
That caused a stir and commotion amidst the others but at least they have restrained from arguing. It was their job to decide who exactly will be tasked with solving the problem. As it also meant that those sisters will have a rare privilege to work with the Power towards that end, they were all eager to seize the chance and ready to start squabbling over it.
" Yes, but if it's not a sickness, what than ?" Saerin spoke. She was clad in brocaded brown silk with lace at the hem. " The Browns know more of the tower histories than any other Ajah. It is we who should look for a solution. "
" Perhaps a logic approach could be applied with the greatest chance of success. " Seaine spoke and murmured more softly something about Browns and books. At least she had the sense to keep that to herself.
" But with our network of eyes and ears, we are able to measure and gauge this anomaly in the power with the greatest accuracy. " Lelaine declared in a loud voice. " Our eyes and ears report that it doesn't reach as far as we've assumed, but… "
" First of all, " Egwene interrupted further debate by slightly emphasizing those words. " All of us must quell the unease about the Tower. " That brought every eye back to her. If she was willing, so should they be. " It will be difficult, but we must make the first move. I suggest we place a proposal before the Hall that the Amyrlin and the Hall publicly renounce their channeling in the interest of setting an example for others to follow. "
For a while no one uttered a word and than Saerin stated as if to herself. " More than ever now, we must be strong. It has never been more important. "
" And also, it will help us decide the other matter. " Doesine smiled to Romanda's displeased frown. The woman smoothed her features swiftly before she too stood up but the heat still lingered in her eyes. Doesine too had managed to remain a Sitter for the Yellow and she was not under Romanda's thumb. She was too dedicated to let herself be pulled into such schemes, even though attempts have been made on Romanda's part. Lelaine on the other hand was already voicing her approval with both of the blue Sitters behind her. It seemed that she had the full support of her Ajah backing her, yet it was too soon to tell. In any event, Egwene hoped that they would have sense enough to leave their games for a later time. Acting like children was too costly as it was. The rest of the present Sitters were soon to follow and in a few moments no one remained against her proposal.
" I have no doubt that the others will se the wisdom of that. " Silviana spoke to Egwene's right. " The greater consensus is bound to be achieved. "
" Than we have only one more matter to discuss. " Egwene stated gravely. " Rand al'Thor. " All of them nodded in unison before she resumed. " The pattern has chosen to place him in our hands for the moment, but we mustn't grab too tightly or too eagerly. A lot of work still lies ahead of him and we must allow him to complete it, preferably with our help. " She didn't dare say more on the matter. What ever these women decide, she had to stay out of it as much as she could less they'd think she was defending her childhood friend.
" For now he hasn't tried to take hold of the Source. " Doesine whispered. " But the pattern bends around him. Already he weaves it in Tar Valon. A worker fell from the fifth floor this day and stood up without a scratch without the Healing touching him. I have also heard that some Blues had offered their support to the Reds until the matters in their Ajah settle down. " Lelaine shifted her feet uneasily – everyone knew the animosity between the Reds and the Blues was ancient. No one could even imagine how those Blues came up with such an idea, but they all knew the cause. " For now we can mask these events for the Dark One's touch but it won't last long. "
" The statue we have recovered " Yukiri glanced at the white cloth. " What ever sort of a ter'angreal it had been, we are unable to deduce. He must have used it to clear the sky somehow, yet we can only speculate. "
" Broken as it is, " Ferane sighed. " it is useless to him or anyone else. We can only hope that it will no longer be needed, and beyond that we should focus on him. "
" We can not ignore the fact that he has bonded other sisters against their will. " Takima spoke. " And we have still had no word of the emissaries dispatched to the Black Tower. There is little doubt of what their fate was. "
" He had approached us before, offering the bonding of his men. " Kwamasa spoke considering. " If we are to go by that agreement, than we can not hold him responsible for those actions. "
" Only eight of the Sitters approving that agreement are still Sitters. " Romanda sighed. " By all rights that contract can easily be broken. We can not allow Aes Sedai to be exchanged for Asha'man. We can not. "
The debate continued on with the sisters stating their view of the matter, all agreeing that Rand should be allowed to leave, though that it would be best for him to remain where he was a while longer if only so that they could learn more of him and figure out how to attach him to the Tower somehow. A prisoner was too strong a word, but a guest was too inappropriate. Some of them even proposed bonding him as a warder, which was fortunately dismissed as unethical and dangerous. Who would know how the sister holding his bond would be affected by his destiny and no one was really ready to face that. It was an hour of debating before they finally realized they couldn't come to any conclusion.
Suddenly, Egwene thought she saw a way out of this mess. " Perhaps it would be to the best to hear what he has to say before we go any further. " Silence took hold in the room and every eye turned towards her once more. They were eager to learn more of him and if he was brought before the full Hall, it could prove informative. And it would also give him the chance to speak for himself, as Egwene was unable to. The debate went on shifting in that direction ; fortunately, few of them had anything against her proposal and not very strong arguments at that. Now if he could only hold on to proper behavior… Perhaps this was not such a good idea after all. Not that she believed he would unleash his temper at them, but she knew he would somehow manage to do something improper. Despite the danger, a Gateway would have to be used to bring him there and back as there was no way to lead him through the Tower and that also prolonged the debate but finally everyone agreed on that plan of action.
" Well then. " Kwamasa said. " I think, we be ready as we be. The Hall, it can be assembled in twenty minutes. " Most nodded though even those who might have had more arguments remained silent.
" Than we are done for now. " Egwene nodded. " Depart now as you would, in the Light. "
All stating their farewells, they departed in an orderly fashion leaving only Silviana remaining with her. Most had curtsied, but all fulfilled their proper respect to the Amyrlin and more. They believed in her. So far Egwene had done well and they had no doubt that she would continue on in that fashion, but beyond that, they needed her. Not because of Rand, but for her strength. They needed to rely on that and if anything it made her more determined not to fail their trust. Well, Romanda, Lelaine and a few others still intended to make trouble but for the sake of unity, she included them in that intention too.
" Mother, is it wise to allow Rand al'Thor to be present for the session of the Hall ?" Silviana asked as soon as the dour closed. Clearly she had waited for everyone to leave to ask that. " He can't possibly know how to behave properly before us. He might even provoke hostility. " As a Red, there was no telling how she handled the revelation of being so near to a man who could channel, let alone the Dragon Reborn himself, yet Egwene thought she would manage a level of cool headedness. The Reds had to change and Silviana would have to change as well.
" I will not have him judged without a saying on his part. " Egwene replied. " If he missteps than at least it will be over and done rather than hanging around us like stale air. " She sighed. I hope you will at least try Rand. There is little else I can do for you.
In a few more minutes, she had donned the seven stripped stole around her neck and picked up the flame tipped staff. Giving her a brief encouraging smile, she led Silviana through the Tower corridors towards the Hall chambers. Aes Sedai she passed were generally worried with the current situation, but fortunately none of them was holding the source. Everyone was trying to put their best face on the matter but fear and unease still rippled through the corridors like a draft. In the face of that Egwene hardly could offer anything helpful except hope and advice not to spread wild stories just yet. Fear was making those as sure as a blacksmith's forge made sparks. What if the Dark One was trying to touch saidar, this time ? Will the new Breaking of the World be wrought by female Aes Sedai ? If the failure of the Keeping was followed by this, what would be the next step ? A hundred roomers circled, each more wild than the next. She herself did not believe that the matter was as drastic, as this 'difficulty' to control the one power was limited to only a few dozen miles around them and did not appear to spread in any direction, but roomers she heard being whispered in hushed tones were quite disturbing. She had to settle the matter somehow, but how under the light ? How to fix the entire ocean of saidar ?
At least she had time enough to stop and speak with several sisters along the way, offering encouragement and comfort. The pleasing thing to see was that both the former rebels and those who had supported Elaida were speaking together as if the division had never happened. Perhaps this shifting in saidar had them spooked into finally giving up on old grudges and working together towards finding a solution. Or maybe Rand's presence was nudging the pattern again. Whatever the cause, it was the one good thing that came out of this horror.
It took her a while longer before she managed to find her way to the Hall as she had suddenly found herself in the Brown Ajah's quarters. It was another of the signs of the imminent Tarmon Gaidon but with so many other malicious oddities, the shifting of corridors was a nuisance at best. Well, maybe not that. While Aes Sedai's faces remained composed they did give off other kind of hints and Silviana did seem to be holding on to her serenity with an effort for the rest of the way. Still they had reached the hall's chamber in proper order and ready to see to the day's work.
Lazaruss :" Proceed to the next chapter. "