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 Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:26 pm
Skiiy had become so engrossed in the book that he almost jumps when Katerine says something behind him. He stands and positions himself to look at the book over her shoulder, pretending all the while that he wasn't suprised at all. "So, what your saying is, we might find this symbol on, like, a power-wrought weapon? Or something like that? But what does all of this have to do with you? I guess I haven't heard the rest of your story, so I don't know what our next step should be..." Skiiy is, of course, most obviously hinting that he would like to hear the rest of her story. He always liked knowing as much as possible about people, and her story sounded interesting indeed.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:48 pm
"Yes, it could be found on weapons. Buildings, objects, ter'angreal. Anything along those lines."
Katerine was glad she had found some answers even if they did lead to more questions. The possibility of having to go on another trip was growing. Skiiy's question seemed to fit in with her plans too. Marking the page with her finger, Katerine closed the book and looked at Skiiy.
"I only know a little on what this has to do with me; but before I tell you, I have a question. Will you be my warder? I know I haven't known you for very long, but I would be delighted to have you watching over me. I also ask because I don't like to tell everyone my secrets. The only other person who knows about my connection with this symbol is Vancelle Sedai and she is my best friend."
Her voice had gone soft as she spoke. It was rather nerve-racking to ask that question despite that she really believed she was making a good decision. Even though she had gone quiet, Katerine's blue eyes stayed locked on Skiiy.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:59 pm
"Katerine Sedai, you are correct in saying that we haven't known each other very long. However, I would be most honored to become your warder, because I feel like I can trust you. They tell me Aes Sedai like to twist words around, for they cannot lie, but you have been very straightforward with me in all matters. There are not many here in the White Tower I feel like I can trust, but you are one of the few I can. I will gladly place my sword...er, blade...at your side." Once again, Skiiy kneels, his gunblade held in front of him, and waits to be bonded. He had never been bonded before, and he wonders briefly if it will hurt, and then decides not to ask, for it would be more fun as a suprise.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 5:04 pm
((Well I am currently sitting in the Warder practice yard in front of a newly broken training summy. o_O))
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 5:36 pm
As he started to speak, Katerine felt as if everything was going to come crashing down aroudn her; but as he continued, the nervousness of bonding a warder started to grown. Her face belied her none; she was too used to keeping emotions hidden. Taking his words as a heart-felt compliment, Katerine was glad she had chosen to ask him. When he knelt, she came closer to him and placed her hands on his head. Remembering the weave she had been shown only after becoming an Aes Sedai, she created in the air and let it sink into Skiiy.
After a few seconds, she could feel a little ball of emotions in the back of her head that she recognized as Skiiy. Knowing that he would be feeling the same thing, Katerine let only her happiness flow through the bond. The worry that sometimes came up was something she didn't want to try and explain.
"How does it feel to finally have an Aes Sedai?"
A playful smile was on her face and she held out her hand to help him rise.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 5:59 pm
Skiiy's eyes go wide as he is filled with a sort of warmth, and his head is flooded with emotions. He was so used to hiding his emotions from everyone, even himself, and these sudden feelings he couldn't suppress were very new to him. He feels joy, and a little of something else, but this elation causes him to be filled with happiness as well. "Wow...I've never felt, anything like this. It's amazing!!!" Skiiy takes her hand, slowly rising to his feet, but once there, he stumbles around a bit, lacking the proper balance for the moment. "Woah, it's...overwhelming. Is this what it means to be bonded? It's wonderful! It'-" Skiiy stumbles over himself, falling to the ground once again, but he's back up again quickly, laughing. He had never been worried about being bonded, but he now knows that had he accepted the wrong person, this situation could've been very bad indeed, and he had made a good choice in Katerine.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 6:34 pm
Katerine could tell from the bond that Skiiy was a mess of emotions, but happiness overrode all of them. He would eventually get used to feeling her inside of his head. As he stumbles though, Katerine moves to catch him. She manages to get him the first time, but not the second. As he laughed, Katerine began to laugh too. She eventually calmed down though and tossed her head a little. The little silver bells in her hair gave off their pleasant ring and the charms flickered with light.
"Yes, you are bonded. I can always feel you; you can always feel me. Unless either of us shut off the bond. Now I am able to tell you about my connection with the symbol, but not here. Anyone could be around and listen. Follow me."
Katerine smiled and picked up the book she had found the symbol in. She would copy the information down on some paper and keep it with her things. As she left the Library, Katerine didn't head back toward the Warder's Quarters; she headed toward her own. Since Skiiy was now her warder, she might as well show him where her rooms were now.
Getting to the Blue Ajah's quarters was acutally quite simple. Only a few staircases had to be climbed before you were there. Katerine's rooms were the fourth door on the right. The door was a dark oak and the only distinguishing factor about it was the small sky blue Flame of Tar Valon on it. Katerine opened the door and motioned for Skiiy to go in. The room he entered was the small sitting room and her bedroom door was off to the left. While she was out, a servant had started a fire in the fireplace and the room was warm.
"Well these are my rooms. You will be able to come up here at any time you need to. More likely than not though, I will be somewhere else. Now I can tell you about the symbol."
Before she explained though, Katerine set a simple eavesdropping weave. She really didn't want anyone else hearing about it. She also removed the five charms from her hair and held them in her palm.
"These charms are more than they appear. They are ter'angreal and angreal. Each one bears that symbol which we were looking up the meaning for. I found them at a forgotten city that I found after following a Foretelling. There were also many other things, such as buildings that bore this same symbol. I still haven't been able to figure out the name or even when the city existed, but my troubles started there. I've returned to the site a few times before, and each time I feel the presence of the Shadow growing stronger. But since I still haven't found much out about the city itself, I do not know the significance. The last time I was there was right before I came back here."
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2005 7:41 pm
Skiiy follows Katerine to her room, looking around like a cat trapped in a dogyard. He had never been up to the Aes Sedai rooms, or around anywhere inside the upper tower. He can't say he's not relieved when they're finally tucked away safely inside Katerine's room. He listens closely to her story, trying to plan for what he'd need to do, and feeling out the emotions through the bond the entire time, to try and get a bit more used to it.
"It sounds to me like you've been getting yourself into some dangerous situations, but at least you got some angreal and ter'angreal out of it. I think that maybe we need to head back to that city. It is a city, and you couldn't have explored all of it. Maybe we can find some sort of library or something like that, and surely, that would help more than anything we have here..."
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 1:02 am
For a moment, Jade wanted to speak all of her worries and thoughts, but she pushed her thoughts away. "Nothing," Jade smiled a very small, very Jade-like smile. "Let's go eat, you both are hungry. I am a bit myself too."
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 3:20 am
Replacing the charms in her hair as Skiiy spoke, she nodded her head in agreement. She had been planning on returning once she had a warder. Now Katerine could finally do that.
"Dangerous or not, I have been able to look after myself. It's just been getting harder, and the attacks come from all over the place now. It worries me that a city that pretty much has this symbol stamped all over is being overtaken by the Shadow. We will go back though. I had not been staying there long because of the growing threat, but now I have you to watch my back."
As she talked about the city, the same worry from before got a little stronger; but it was controlled. It just put her on edge that each time the presence of the Dark One seemed to be stronger.
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 5:39 am
Skiiy can now recognize the worry through the bond that he had missed earlier, and he tries taking up an air of confidence in hope that his lack of worry will help Katerine get through hers too.
"No need to worry m'lady, I've got your back now, there's no way I'll let any harm come to you. We'll reclaim this city from the Shadow, and if we can't, at least we can get away from it with more information. However, I think it's safe to make a couple of assumptions. 1. The Shadow would not be after the city unless it had some specific reason. 2. Chances are, it's seeking something inside the city, and if we can find that, it will probably stop taking the city. Even if it doesn't, we'll at least have gotten away with something that it will not have."
Words spoken true from Skiiy's mouth, for, underneath his light-hearted exterior, he always had a backup plan, and usually a backup plan for that backup.
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:43 am
Rein's eyes flashed, confusion obvious on his face. "Pardon me, but I do think that that tower was built but two or three years ago. Though it does seem a little weathered. Perhaps... maybe... maybe I spent more time in that tower than I thought. But surely not as long as all that!" he said, mirth slowly returning, "I mean, seriously, if that tower were as ancient as you say... well then, how could it still be standing?"
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 12:23 pm
Katerine nodded her head as Skiiy listed two assumptions. Based on what she had seen and experienced, his ideas were quite valid. Sitting down in one of the chairs, Katerine pulled the other one to where they were facing.
"Sit down, we should probably start to make plans about leaving since I have told you everything I know and have puzzled out. Now, I can make a Gateway to just a few miles from the city, so getting and leaving will be no problem. Supplies though will be because there is nothing there except buildings, furniture, and the like. And we probably need to talk to the Amyrlin because of your status as the Master-at-Arms."
Her worry had eased with Skiiy's confidence, and Katerine thought about how they were going to figure out what it was the Shadow was after. The city was huge and it honestly could be anything, but if the library was still intact, they could start there.
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:01 pm
After some time, Kakashi finaly stood up and began practicing the staff once more. He had already broken the dummy once, but he seemed not to care. His staff whirled, struck, whirled and struck, jabbed and lashed at the dummy at such a rapid pace that his arms were blurs along with the staff. Each crack of the staff against the dummy came one right after other, often without a second between each one. His face was blank and the set of his jaw hard. His eyes seemed to burn with determination to remain focused on his practice and nothing else.
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Posted: Mon Oct 24, 2005 8:10 pm
CleverMog
Holding the Mask of Mirrors around him, an all-encompassing cloak made of saidin, Mog had to move at a crawl, his 'cloak' shimmered occasionally, but not enough to alert anyone to his presence, the Trollocs were ranging farther feeling that they had exhausted the possibilities of the nearer hiding places.
In his mind's eye, Yurin could still see where the boy had been when he had fallen unconscious earlier, he hated admitting it, but that seemed the only viable possibility. He had never passed out like that before in his life. What was wrong with him? He was usually much more in control. The ball of emotion in his head that wasn't him seemed to seek him, he had to fight the urge to open a Gateway and go to Clarissa, immediately. He doubted that he would be able to be here, unknown and able to walk around with impunity should he attempt to leave and return again.
Concentrating hard, he tried to send calming thoughts and promises that he would return from the Blasted Lands as soon as he was able. He knew that, typically, the bond didn't allow such passing of thoughts and desires, but the dual bond they shared seemed to hold properties that were hereforto unknown. Returning his focus to the serious matter at hand, he knew he had to enter the disgusting maw that was like a gaping wound in the side of the living ground that the Creator had made for them all. The very existence of the Dark One was a thorn in his side, he loathed everything about him. The Aiel called him Sightblinder. Well, he saw now.
Inching into the cavern felt like moving into the fiilth that once covered saidin. It was an awful feeling. As if death had caught him and were awaiting the time to strike him down. Trollocs moved about the area constantly with the occasional Halfman striding with it's deadly grace and unmoving cloak past him without notice. The Shienaran hugged the wall of the cave closely to hold onto his surreptitious entrance. The Trollocs gutteral language offended his ears as they conversed with one another in passing.
Moving down a little used side passage, Yurin felt that he was closer to his goal, the stench from the Shadowspawn was even thicker here, his Warder sensing of the foul creatures made him want to slaughter as many of them as he could before they finally took him down. They were all abominations on the face of what would otherwise be a beautiful land. Entering a small chamber to avoid the passing of a Myrdraal as the corridor was now too small to accomodate his slinking form and that of other bodies, he discovered several prisoners.. Or rather their remains. He almost vomited at the stench.
He had to keep from allowing this to happen to Dorian!
((Blood and Ashes! I haven't posted in like four pages! I guess it's easy to do when you're posting alone. Hello procrastination! rofl ))
Looking at the poor tortured souls, Yurin gagged, this time not at the smell, on one of the fingers of the dead shackled prisoners there sat a gold ring a serpent biting it's own tail. An Aes Sedai had been tortured and killed in this very room. The body that lay nect to the fallen Sister was contorted into a convoluted muscle spasm, a tell-tale cloak was around his neck. Apparently the cruel Shadowspawn had allowed the poor man to die simply from the pain they were causing the one he was bonded to. Blood and Bloody Ashes! Evil, vile, Bloody creatures! Mog's vision swam with the sheer magnitude of the raw fury swelling within him threatening to overcome him even in the Void. It seemed that no matter how much he fed to the Flame, the more was produced, he saw red and began drawing from the angreal at his side. The vision of a small, helpless boy locked in this disgusting place quenched his anger like a waterfall would quench a match. First, Dorian. Then revenge.
Begging his long dead Gaidin brother's pardon and promising the man a proper burial with his Aes Sedai when he took them back to Tar Valon to be treated with the dignity and respect that their stations and actions had earned them, not to be forced to rot for the rest of their days in this Hellhole of corruption, Yurin removed the man's Fancloth cloak, placing it around his own shoulders sending a prayer to the Creator to forgive him for what he was doing, if it wasn't for such an unselfish reason, he'd never do such a thing.
Forgive me, Brother. Had you breath, I know you'd offer your blessing. As it is, after I save this boy, I will be back for you and your Aes Sedai, after that... After that, vengeance will be yours, and my blade will strike for all the blows you could do nothing to stop. Farewell, Gaidin, I shall return. I swear beneath the Light and by my hope of salvation and rebirth, should breath remain in this body, it shall return for you.
As the Shienaran swept from the room he emblazoned the memory of the location of the almost last resting place of the pair into his mind. Now, to find Dorian and leave this foul place.
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