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| A Chat With The Amyrlin (From Tower Grounds); *closed* | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 22 2005, 06:02 PM (311 Views) | |
| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 22 2005, 06:02 PM Post #1 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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Edeleas tried pulling down his wild golden hair as he made his way through the Tower's many groves. He had been off to tell of some Soldiers and sent them to the Master of Soldiers for a disciplinary action; he caught them lurking around corners and drinking instead of heading to their Trainings, which have started an hour from that moment. He could clearly remember the dark Soldier's glare, but Edeleas did not let that faze him off - what did height matter anyway? But then, he really could have used some more inches on his part. Some of the Soldiers tended to be rude to him because they were taller. Edeleas' face soured. The grove was quite empty, and Edeleas absent-mindedly sat down on the nearest bench he could find, thoughts whirling about his head. He remembered how Asha'man Rialt literally screamed his head off when he'd found out his mentor was taking a stroll in Dragonmount instead of raking the yard. Edeleas still recalled his mentor's booming voice and the way he pointed a threatening finger under his nose; he was sure he wasn't going to forget that easily. "But I only went off to discover something profitable for Tar Valon," Edeleas mumbled sulkily under his breath as he stared moodily onto his boots. "Never did any mischief...so unfair..." "Unfair?" someone spoke. Edeleas jumped and whipped his head around to see who heard him. He quickly recognized the striped stole on the shoulders of the woman he unwittingly sat down beside with. Stuttering, he bowed to the Amyrlin Seat. "Forgive me, Mother, I didn't see you!" he gasped. |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 22 2005, 06:36 PM Post #2 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira sat at her desk, going over the last few papers that Lyla had sent in. She was thankful that it seemed to be a light day, hopefully no one would find something urgent that the Amyrlin simply had to know about. Sapphira signed the last one, and put it on the pile with the rest of the finished papers. She picked up the stack, and straighened it, before stepping out into her antechamber. She smiled at Lyla, and set them down. "Finally finished for the day," she said cheerily, as she stepped out the door. She felt sorry for her Keeper, the woman's job was never done, she got even fewer brakes than Sapphira, but she never complained. Sapphira was glad she had chosen the woman, she could not think of anyone she would rather have as Keeper. Sapphira made her way through the halls, nodding at the sisters she passed, and smiling warmly at the Accepted. She had no system for greeting the novices, she felt that any sort of greeting should be reserved for those who proved themselves loyal to the Tower, the novices would earn it one day, if they proved themselves. She stepped out of the Tower, into the grounds, the cool spring breeze catching her hair. The day was not cold, but without her trick to ignore the temperature, the breeze would have made it chilly. She concidered going back inside, she could ignore the temperature, but the wind was enough to catch her long hair and frustrate Sapphira to no end. Finally, she did step back out of the wind, but only long enough to put her hair into a long braid, and tie it with a small black ribbon she found in her belt pouch. Sapphira stepped back into the grounds, much more content now that she did not have to battle with her hair. She walked through the grounds, with no destination in mind. She continued to nod at the sisters she met, half hoping that one of them would stop her for a chat. No one stopped the Amyrlin to chat, though, and it did not change today. She wished sometimes that people would not put her on a pedistal, of course, oftentimes it worked to her advantage. When she was Red, Sapphira made her way through the Tower hoping that no one would speak to her, because non-Reds tended to frustrate her. Upon her raising to Amyrlin, she had seen that that was probably not the best way to go about life. She had worked to make herself approachable, and thought she had done fairly well. Of course, those who remembered her before her raising to the stole, might think her less than approachable because of her former disposition. She turned a corner in the gardens, and saw one of the Dedicated sitting on a bench, muttering to himself. She caught only the last few words, though, but was intrigued, and decided to go from there. He muttered about something being unfair, apparently not having noticed Sapphira yet, so she spoke. "Unfair?" she asked, resisting the urge to quirk an eyebrow. The young man jumped up, and bowed, begging forgiveness, as Sapphira sat, leaving room for him to take his seat back as well. Sapphira waved a hand. "Do not worry about it, Son," she said. "But, what is so unfair?" He had not had a look of happiness on his face when she found him, so she assumed it was some slight to him. Perhaps one of the soldiers had not given him his due respect, but surely she could have just sent the boy to the Master of Soldiers, and forgotten about it. It was probably something more, but Sapphira did not know what. Perhaps he had been punished for something he did not feel he had done wrong. That was a common source of disgruntlement among novices and Accepted, she could see why it would be the same for the males as well. She waited for him to answer, allowing him whatever time he needed to formulate his answer- or his lie, whichever he prefered. Sapphira had no ilusions about the initiates, they had not yet taken the Oatha, and could still lie. Doubtless they would be willing to rather than incriminate themselves, even to the Amyrlin herself. Sapphira herself had lied her way out of several possible punishments as a novice, as Accepted, though, she tried not to do so. The Accepted were training to become Aes Sedai, and Aes Sedai could not lie. Even so, she could still recall a few times when she had lied after earning the ring. More often than not though, when she lied, she had gotten caught, only a few times had she gotten away with it. She wondered whether this Dedicated would try to lie, or tell the truth about whatever had him so angry. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 22 2005, 08:21 PM Post #3 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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"Do not worry about it, Son. But, what is so unfair?" the Amyrlin asked. Edeleas swallowed nervously. He can't go on prattling about the Mahdi al'Tain, now can he? But the Amyrlin's cool, gray gaze demanded an answer. He shuffled again, under that same gaze, and suddenly he had the same feeling as the Queen of Cairhien when the Amyrlin Seat had visited her. He was barely ten years old then, and his father told him about the visit. He never imagined he would be subjected to that far-famed gaze one day. He cleared his throat. "It was just that...just that..." Edeleas mumbled. "Asha'man Rialt...scolded me...too much, I think..." he started toying with his fingers. "well...there was this issue...I went to Dragonmount, but I swear I wasn't skipping anything, Mother, I swear!" now he sounded desperate. "I just wanted to try out my Delving and such...I found a mine, truly, one that can be profitable for Tar Valon! I swear! But then, Asha'man Rialt came and literally nicked off my ear..." He felt his cheeks color. He wasn't expecting the Amyrlin Seat to side with him; most likely he'd get scolded again. Now he wondered why he went to the gardens so far. He should have remained raking the paths with the Soldiers near the west gate. He looked up at her ageless face, and it was blank, but Edeleas steeled himself for the blow ready. "Y-you should see the mine I found, Mother."Edeleas tried again. "I really wasn't up to mischief...I just wanted to...to..." he faltered. He knew explaining his way out was just stupid. |
![]() +Earth Singing, +Delving, -Elementalism (Earth), *Summon Shadowspawn Bonded To: Myara Anhri | |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 22 2005, 10:36 PM Post #4 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira waited for him to reply, and when he did, his voice went from quiet, almost grudging, to desperate quickly. She raised an eyebrow when he said that he thought Rialt had scolded him too much. Any Dedicated should know that whatever an Asha'man did was right, simply because he was Asha'man. Obviously there were a few exceptions to that, but scolding had not yet fallen into that category. She listened while he explained that he went up to Dragonmount, but swore that he was not skipping anything. That was very possible, the Dedicated did not have too many chores to keep up with, but going to Dragonmount in his spare time? He went on to say that he had simply wanted to practice Delving, and had found a mine. She was unhappy to hear that Rialt had nicked off his ear, though, even for an Asha'man, that was extreme. Light, but that idiot man has gone too far again! At least he was a strong Healer, and could replace an ear with fair ease, that did not make it better though. She waited to make sure that Edeleas was completely finished, he seemed rather paniky, and, much as Sapphira did not want to add to that, she saw her responsibility, and was not about to shirk it. She thought for a moment about just how to put what she had to say to make the most impact, but not give the already-desperate Dedicated a heart attack from his fear. She could not help but wonder how such a paniky young man had been raised to Dedicated, this could certainly not be how he was all the time. "Young man," she began, her face serious, "as Dedicated, you should realize that any scolding an Asha'man gives you is fair. Asha'man Rialt is a fair man, if he scolded you strongly, then you no doubt earned it." Much as she hated to admit something positive about the Seeker, it was true. "More importantly, though, you should not have been to Dragonmount, especially by yourself. Look at it," she said, pointing to the mountain rising more than twice as high as the Towers, "how high up were you? Maybe it did not seem like so much up there, but from here, tell me, how high were you? What if you had fallen, if you were up high enough, it is unlikely any of your remains would have made it all the way to the bottom. Do you not think that any Asha'man would take you up there, if you had asked, especially for the purpose of practicing with saidin?" She stopped there, Rialt had obviously already done enough scolding for that. Sapphira thought, instead, that it would be better for her to focus on his complaints about Rialt's scolding. She would wait, though, until after he answered her questions. She was quite curious as to what had made the Dedicated want to visit the great mountain, why could he not have practiced Delving in the grounds, he would not find anything, true, but he could do so anyway. Why not in the fields outside of the city? What had made him choose to visit that fabled mountain? Those questions, though, could wait until later, along with the question of what he had found. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 23 2005, 12:08 AM Post #5 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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"Young man, as Dedicated, you should realize that any scolding an Asha'man gives you is fair. Asha'man Rialt is a fair man, if he scolded you strongly, then you no doubt earned it. More importantly, though, you should not have been to Dragonmount, especially by yourself. Look at it, how high up were you? Maybe it did not seem like so much up there, but from here, tell me, how high were you? What if you had fallen, if you were up high enough, it is unlikely any of your remains would have made it all the way to the bottom. Do you not think that any Asha'man would take you up there, if you had asked, especially for the purpose of practicing with saidin?" Edeleas hung his head in shame. Yes, he should have chosen another place to sit - and he could have avoided the Amyrlin's wrath. But hey, he thought, it was a lot better than to lie. A few minutes' silence and he slowly took up his head and met the Aes Sedai's cool, clear gaze. "I never climbed the peaks, Mother. I just roamed the foothills as I Delved. I went out there to feel the ore deposit because, when I had my class earlier that day, a Soldier under my charge told me about the odd resonances we've both felt. He was so bothered by it all that it took me quite a while to assure him. But then...I had to see for myself. I was free, Mother, and I thought it couldn't bring any harm, so I went Travelling to the foothills and did my Talent there. The quantities of the gold, Mother! A whole load of them, even bigger than the one I found for the Arafellin court!" But still, the Amyrlin's eyebrows were drawn into a single, severe line. Edeleas took a deep breath. He didn't want to spend the day moping yet again after another well-earned scolding. He took the silence as a step, and went on. "I swear under the Light that I will never do anything stupid again, Mother. I've learned my lesson; Asha'man Rialt made sure I did, and he gave it an extra push so it could sink deeper into my stupidly thick skull. And...yes, you reminded me that as Dedicated, I still have no right to go elsewhere other than the City. I am sorry." Still, the Amyrlin did not speak, and Edeleas kept his silence. He busied himself instead with toying with his black sleeves; poking at the white thread that hung frayed from all of his washing. I hope I could just... |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 23 2005, 12:34 AM Post #6 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira waited for him to answer. When he did, he seemed much more collected, his sentences far more coherent. He explained that he did not go high, and his reasons for going. Sapphira was surprised to learn about a deposit of gold beneath Dragonmount, perhaps he was wrong, but surely one of the Dedicated would be able to tell gold from something else. He finished, saying that he was very sorry, and had learned his lesson. Sapphira kept her expression the same, but she was glad that it seemed someone else's input had rid the young man of his anger. She smoothed her expression, and nodded sharply. "Very well, be sure that you do remember this. And, do not make promises you cannot fulfil. I have never yet met another person who has promised me never to do something stupid again." She waited to see his reaction, her voice had been serious, but it was possible that he had found humor in her comment. Rather than comment on something else he had said, Sapphira had chosen to latch onto that comment with a direct purpose. Hopefully she could give him a small lesson about speaking before thinking, and making impossible promises. Such promises could be especially unprofitable once a person had sworn the Oath, it tended to make it more difficult to get out of something once a person had given his word. "The next time you wish to go somewhere out of the Tower, please find an Asha'man to take you, and if he says no, then wait until he says yes. Rarely is something so pressing that you should leave without supervision." She wondered whether Rialt had assigned him a punishment, the man was not intelligent, but surely he was not dense enough to leave that out. It was not her place to punish the Dedicated anyway, she had not caught him doing anything wrong, other than complaining about Rialt's scolding, he was Rialt's responsibility for this one. Sapphira waited for the boy's reaction, wondering what he was thinking. From his last little speech, it was clear he was not happy with himself. She did not like the fact that he thought so lowly of himself, but it seemed that that was the way the Black Tower worked, they told the boys they were worthless until they became Asha'man, and then it was their turn to insult the initiates. Sapphira made no secret of her disapproval of this, but she could not very well coddle one of the Dedicated, even if he was so upset. Doubtless it was partly from the events of the day, and the scoldings he had received, surely on a normal day he would be far happier. Sapphira looked over him, gauging his reaction to what she had said, hoping it would not further dampen his mood. Whatever his reaction, Sapphira knew she could not do any different, she was treating him as she might any Accepted she found in this position. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 23 2005, 05:38 AM Post #7 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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"Very well, be sure that you do remember this. And, do not make promises you cannot fulfil. I have never yet met another person who has promised me never to do something stupid again." the Amyrlin Seat said in a stern voice. Edeleas nodded quickly to show her he understood. Never met another person who has promised her to do something stupid again? Why? How odd...so I'm the only person in the place who can say and keep such promises? Edeleas thought, and a smile very nearly came off his lips, but he stopped himself just in time. Dedicated did not simply go smiling before the Amyrlin Seat just for no reason at all - the Aes Sedai might even think him insane or something. He decided to turn his smile into a hasty cough. But the Amyrlin was speaking again, and Edeleas barely caught up with what she said. "The next time you wish to go somewhere out of the Tower, please find an Asha'man to take you, and if he says no, then wait until he says yes. Rarely is something so pressing that you should leave without supervision." Edeleas very much liked to disagree on this, but he had remarkable control on his tongue. But she had a point; he SHOULD have gone inform his mentor instead in the first place. But still, Edeleas doubted if Asha'man Rialt would actually see the issue on Dragonmount the way he saw it - most likely he would just rub it off and tell Edeleas to quit his wild fancies of gold underneath that mountain. Again, Edeleas felt a protest somewhere in the pit of his stomach. But it wasn't just gold there - there were diamond and silver, too! Also in great heaps and clumps! What a shame Asha'man Tishoan hasn't taught me how to extract ores yet - could have been very useful then, if they liked proof of what Charn and I felt! Squaring his shoulders, Edeleas sat straighter in the bench. He gave his glasses a push, and he could still feel the weighty glance of the Amyrlin on him. It was like sensing a woman touch saidar; the Amyrlin's gaze alone could make goosebumps pop out on his arms and send him shivering like he had just been doused with ice cold water. She must be thinking of how you downstep yourself, Edeleas thought once more. Who've seen a Dedicated who's so sulky like an Arafellin? Light-blinded idiot, are you from Cairhien or not? Cairhienin aren't sulky! Edeleas hesitated. The Amyrlin might think it so rude or insolent of him, but he had to admit she had been fascinating him ever since he was a beardless boy. Another push for his glasses and he met her gaze. He itched to have a casual chat with her, not sulk and be scolded some more. He wondered if she would give him that honor. He wasn't after Aes Sedai secrets, no, thank you very much. He just wanted to know about how an Amyrlin does her job...where she gets all that effect from... "Mother, I'm very sorry for the sudden question," Edeleas swallowed hard. "But...is being Amyrlin quite interesting?" |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 23 2005, 10:02 AM Post #8 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira sat silently, gauging the young man before her. He seemed to be gathering the control of himself that the Dedicated should have, whether or not he had another protest, he did not voice it. After several moments he spoke again, apologizing for his question, but asking all the same. She was a bit surprised by what he asked, as it had nothing at all to do with anything they had been talking about. She wondered skeptically whether he was trying to divert her from their previous subject, and get out of a punishment or mose scolding. She looked through his glasses into his green eyes and finally decided that it was nothing more than an honest question. She wondered how he could have gone from complaining about Rialt to wondering about the job of Amyrlin so quickly, but some people were a bit odd, she had to admit. She thought about his question. Is being Amyrlin interesting? she mused, it certainly had both good and bad points. She tried to think back to just after she had earned the stole, when the novelty was still real, and Sapphira's mind was not focused mainly on the papers she had to read every day. Back then, yes, it had been quite interesting, back when there were so many people in the Tower who did not particularly like the idea of a Red as Amyrlin. Back when she had so many plans of what she was going to do, before she had really learned that as Amyrlin, she could not work solely toward the Red's goals anymore. Sapphira moved her thoughts to now. She certainly had to admit that life as the most powerful woman in the world was rarely boring. She could go and do what she wanted without anyone saying no, she almost laughed, the only exception to that was that she could not visit Tar Valon without a guard, or Rialt would scream at her. The memory of that was not a fond one, especially as it had been the first in a series of visits to Tar Valon which had completely ruined her entire day. Sapphira shook off her thoughts, and looked back at Edeleas, trying to formulate a simple answer to his question. He may have formed it to be answerable by a simple "yes" or "no" but Sapphira did not think that that would suffice, and she was fairly sure he wanted to hear more than that. "Yes, it is quite interesting at times," she began, trying to figure out just what to say without seeming unhappy with her position, for she certainly was not. Finally she decided to focus only on the posititve side. "How could it not be? Kings and queens bow to me, and do as I say. When anyone in the world thinks of the Towers, or Aes Sedai, I am not far behind in their thoughts. I am personally responsible for heading up the Aes Sedai, quite a daunting task, if you ask me." She paused there, for a thought, and decided to ask the young man something in return. "And, is it quite interesting to be Dedicated?" She did not bother to suppress the smile that threatened, but she was quite interested, having never held the position herself. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 23 2005, 06:24 PM Post #9 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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"Yes, it is quite interesting at times, How could it not be? Kings and queens bow to me, and do as I say. When anyone in the world thinks of the Towers, or Aes Sedai, I am not far behind in their thoughts. I am personally responsible for heading up the Aes Sedai, quite a daunting task, if you ask me." the Amyrlin replied, with a sort of fondness in her voice that Edeleas did not miss. Quickly, the Dedicated perked up in his seat and turned to face the woman now, giving his slipping glasses a push. Very few actually had the chance he had now, and he was going to make the best out of it. Talk about flaming luck, Edeleas thought excitedly. I am here talking to the world's most powerful woman! Burn me, who wouldn't get perked up and excited and all?! He just had to make sure he observe proper decorum at all times. He wanted to ask a million questions, but he figured out the Amyrlin would send him to prison for voicing out some of them. Using a trick of Daes'Demar his father thought him, Edeleas prepared his tongue to voice out only those of real interest of him, but not threatening or nosy in any way. How he would love this chat! Only, if the Amyrlin wasn't so busy or she thought chatting with a lowly Dedicated was just a waste of her time... And then, all thought about being scolded had flown off from Edeleas' mind completely. "Yes, Mother, but I suppose it is exciting! I don't know if you recall when you visited Cairhien then - I was about ten, and my father told me about how you made Queen Alisia quail. I really couldn't believe him then, I thought whoever can make our Queen so uncomfortable? She's the toughest woman I've ever seen!, but then, now I know my father wasn't lying to me or such. But then, ever since I was a boy I had always stood in awe of everyone and everything connected to the One Power. And...well, I am talking to you now. Oh, if only I was back at home, my father's eyes would have popped out of his head when I tell him, 'Pops, I've just had a chat with the Amyrlin!'!" But Edeleas realized he had been babbling like a monkey, and quickly he felt his cheeks flush red. He hung his head briefly and muttered, "I am very sorry, Mother, you might have thought of me as a loudmouth!" Then he looked up, wondering if he'd offended her. But to his relief, she just smiled, and after a pause, asked him a question in turn. "And, is it quite interesting to be Dedicated?" He blinked at her query, and a part of him even wondered if she was kidding with him or what. Edeleas figured out that Amyrlins rarely joke, especially if they'd just berated you for going out-of-bonds during a freetime. But her question also sent Edeleas thinking. He sat silent for a moment, remembering all of his training and responsibilities. It had to be interesting, in a way...but then, sometimes it could get horribly boring too... He nodded slowly. "Well, Mother, it is interesting most of the time, but I'd tilt more on the exciting side. Everytime I'm being taught a new weave or such, there's always the risk of getting burned out or being drowned by saidin's raging flood. The satisfaction on your mentor's face when you've mastered something is quite...spiffing...and, and...hmm, what else? You get to try out new things, that's fairly good enough for me; Asha'man Rialt always said I had curiosity enough to match five Brown sisters!" He barked a laugh at that. "Holding my very own classes can be both fulfilling and frustrating at the same time, just like what happened yesterday." He explained enthusiastically. "A Soldier under me just could not get the hang of a simple weave, and I swear under the Light that I was ready to tear my hair and slap him silly for such a simple lesson...but in the end it all held, and he got it. You should have seen the boy jump at me, Mother! He looked like someone who hadn't had a nameday celebration for fifty years. But of course, all the excitement reaches a lull in some point, and it becomes boring." he shrugged. |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 24 2005, 04:34 PM Post #10 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira listened while the young man replied, soon becoming quite excited. She nodded, remembering the trip he was talking about, it had been quite a productive one. She could not help but look back farther in Cairhien's history, to well over one hundred years ago, when she had been a girl though. She looked at the man before her, one of her countrymen, both in their common land of origin, and in that they both now called the Towers home. At least, she hoped that the Dedicated concidered this place home, usually by the time a person was raised to the second level, they saw their respective Tower as much as a home as the place they previously inhabited. Sapphira certainly had, and, truth be told, Cairhien had long since ceased to be a home for her. She no longer viewed Cairhien with any particular fondness simply because she had lived the first few years of her life there. The Tower was home now, and she did not think that that would change any time soon. She waited for the Dedicated to answer her question, he seemed to have to think about it for a few minutes. When he did answer, though, it did not take him long to, once again, grow quite excited. She did not think she had ever met quite as excitable a young man, especially one who had already been through the training of the soldiers. She was quite surprised that he seemed to like his classes so much. Both Accepted and Dedicated had to teach classes, true, but few enjoyed them very much. Perhaps this young man had the makings of a teacher, he certainly seemed to like his students' reactions to understanding something new. She could not help but smile at his comment about the curiosity of five Browns, depending upon who was chosen for that, that would be quite curious. Perhaps he had looked into the Dieb Cha for a future Shen. Sapphira could not keep from admiring him a bit, if he was so curious, then he probably liked- and had the patience -to study. As a novice, she had hated the classes she was required to take, as Accepted, choosing her own studies, it had been little better. She looked the young man over, and wondered what his future held for him. As excitable and honest as he seemed, she hoped it was something happy, he seemed to deserve that. She almost laughed, only a moment before she had been scolding him for breaking several Tower rules in one go, and now she was mentally wishing him a happy life. After he finished speaking, she was silent a moment, processing all he had said. After a moment, she spoke again. "I see, it sounds lovely. You are from Cairhien?" she asked, "I lived there too, before I came to the Tower, but it has changed quite a bit since then. Queen Alisia's grandfather, Jeram, had just taken the Sun Throne when I was brought here." She fell silent again, thinking about that, thinking that she was seeing the third ruler of a country in her lifetime- a lifetime which might well see three more -put things into perspective. Being able to channel greatly lengthened her life, and, should Sapphira ever choose, she could step down as Amyrlin and retire into the Kin. Removing the Oath would add several hundered years onto her life, just as no longer swearing the Second or Third Oaths that had been in practice before Sapphira was born had served to lengthen lives. Sapphira jerked herself out of her thoughts, there would be plenty of time for nostalgia later, for now, she was enjoying a conversation with an initiate of the Black Tower. Not often did that happen, Sapphira knew Asha'man, to be sure, but she could think of only one other initiate to their ranks that she knew. Radgar, that mysterious soldier who had, quite literally, bumped into her in the city not long ago. She did not think that she would be meeting many more of their initiates either, she did not go out of her way to get to know them, it was pure chance that she had heard this young man muttering about unfairness. She did not even know most of the novices, she certainly did not have enough time to get to know the Black Tower's initiates as well. She looked at the young man, and wondered what he was thinking. Perhaps something about what Cairhien would have been like Jeram's time, or maybe he was just realizing how much the Power affected life. Sapphira had not really realized that she would have such an extended life until she was Aes Sedai, when she should have been earning her first few wrinkles, but her face stayed smooth. Even no, well past her 100th year of life, Sapphira had not earned a gray hair yet. It was still a strange thing to think about, just how long her life would be, so she tried to stay away from it, sometimes it was not pleasant to concider that she would be chained to this earth for much longer. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 25 2005, 02:34 AM Post #11 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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Edeleas blinked as the Amyrlin Seat mentioned that, just like him, she had spent her childhood under the shadow of Cairhien's famous topless towers. He smiled fondly at her now, but not too much - his father told him Aes Sedai viewed what you had as a sincere smile for something else, and in his case, he could have offended her. He answered her reminiscently. "Yes, Mother, I am from Cairhien too, like you. Only, they always said I was a bit taller for our people." He gestured toward himself. "It's really very nice whenever I meet someone from the same land...I met one before, Mother, a Novice named Miakoda...and talking to her in the Mess Hall was simply splendid. I had been a Soldier then...and it was years ago...I haven't seen her again..." His voice faltered, but his gaze lingered onto the Aes Sedai for some more moments before he tore it away from her ageless face with quite an effort. And now something hit Edeleas too. Something that had long been fascinating him ever since he read his very first book about the One Power. If Mother said she had been a girl on King Jeram's time...certainly she must be over a hundred years old...but still, the look of youth never left her face... He contemplated on this thought, and in his mind a new horizon of exciting but frightening possibilities opened up. He was young, only twenty-four winters have passed for him, and now that he was training with the One Power, he realized that he would still remain in this place to witness more winters. He had never thought on slowing down again until now. He wondered what it could feel like; somehow you knew you were above ninety, but when you looked into the mirror, you still had the face you had that day when the Wheel slowed its grinding upon your body. Edeleas held up a hand and scratched his chin. He wondered if slowing down had symptoms...somehow, these past few weeks, he felt strange...it was something he couldn't explain - like something was pulling him but pushing him at the same time. He turned to the Amyrlin Seat once more. Surely it would not hurt her to ask about the time she started to slow down - he wasn't inquiring about her age anyway. "Mother, what is it like when you...you stop to age?" he asked politely. "I haven't given the matter much thought, until now. Do you somehow feel something strange? Like suddenly, the Wheel stopped touching you somewhat? I fancy I have felt quite odd myself these past few weeks...as if...something within me slowed moving to almost a frozen stop." He waited for her answer, and again he resisted the urge to touch his face. Surely, the day will come when he himself was past his hundredth nameday, when somehow, this distant day of talking with the Amyrlin Seat will come back to him. He would probably laugh out loud to himself and think it how strange for a man like him to recall something so trivial, something so useless. Edeleas felt a deep sense of foreboding come into him at that moment. Foreboding toward his own future... |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 25 2005, 10:44 AM Post #12 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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Sapphira listened while Edeleas spoke of a meeting with one of the novices, another Cairhienin. Though the name sounded familiar- as it should with any girl who had been in the Tower for years -Sapphira could not put a face to match it. She left him to his silence, for he appeared to be in deep thought. While he was, she, too, let her thoughts wander. Talking with this Dedicated was making Sapphira nostalgic, moreso than being with novices or Accepted did. She supposed that was because she was around them all the time, which was not so with the Dedicated, as well as the fact that he had once called the same city home as she had. She thought back to her own time as Accepted, that was when the Slowing hit most women, and she supposed Dedicated was the same for the men, though they tended to be older than their female peers. Their touchings usually came later, eighteen or nineteen years was not old where, for a novice, the woman would almost certainly be a Wilder, and very possibly have a block. There was no saying just when the Slowing had come to her, sometime around the age of twenty-five years, or so. Since then, time had had a miniscule affect on her physically, though mentally there was no way to stop the aging and growing wisdom that came with time. She remembered the year she had marked herself at eighty years, she had known she was no where near the end of her life, but her human perspective said that she should see only a few more winters. Since then, it had been nearly seventy years, and she was well accustomed to the fact that she was still young. Sapphira wondered what the young man sitting next to her was thinking, but did not have long to ponder. Just as she pulled herself out of her own thoughts, it seemed that he did the same. He asked her about when time stopped affecting a person. "Well," she began, trying to figure out the best way to answer his question, "there's no way to really mark when it starts. Usually for women it is around twenty or twenty-five years, men tend to be about three years older. Most people are not aware of it, a Wilder might notice that people around him treat him as if he were years younger. For some people, this is quite frustrating, as youth is generally associated with ignorance- though not without reason. A person may have seen thirty or more years, and still look to be in their early twenties. Generally, channelers outside of the Tower hardly notice it, until they grow much older. Without swearing the Oath, though, time's passage affects a person differently. It is known that someone who has never held the Oath Rod will live many years beyond someone who has. But, that person will also gain wrinkles, which swearing the Oath prevents. Since you are here, of course, you may notice something, because you are expecting it, on some level. You will still age, but if you have begun to Slow, then your age will progress very, very slowly. Of course, time may stop affecting your body, but your mind will continue to grow. Time very rarely clouds the mind of a channeler, most stay sharp until their death." She stopped there, realizing that she had said quite a lot. She hoped that the answer had not bored the young Dedicated. Then again, if he had the curiosity of five Browns, then perhaps he would want to hear more. Sapphira had not intended to give a lecture on Slowing, but since the boy already knew what it meant, she could not have given a simple definition of the word. She thought back to when she was Accepted, when she had first realized that the Slowing had begun on her, how excited she had been! Somehow she had felt that having time's affect all but stopped had made her a real channeler, and someday she really would be Aes Sedai. Of course, as Accepted she had already known that, but somehow the Slowing told her that more than the Arches had. She pushed her memories aside, and focused back on the young man she was talking to. Light, but she hoped that every Dedicated she came across did not do this to her. Maybe time was clouding her mind, she thought wryly. What irony that would be, to leave here no less nostalgic than she was now, and realize that it was not the young man's fault, but her age, after she had just said the opposite. The thought brought a small, humorous smile to her lips, what would the Aes Sedai think, the Amyrlin's wits addled by time. Surely they would see what a wonderful choice in leader they had made then. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 25 2005, 05:59 PM Post #13 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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"Well, there's no way to really mark when it starts. Usually for women it is around twenty or twenty-five years, men tend to be about three years older. Most people are not aware of it, a Wilder might notice that people around him treat him as if he were years younger. For some people, this is quite frustrating, as youth is generally associated with ignorance- though not without reason. A person may have seen thirty or more years, and still look to be in their early twenties. Generally, channelers outside of the Tower hardly notice it, until they grow much older. Without swearing the Oath, though, time's passage affects a person differently. It is known that someone who has never held the Oath Rod will live many years beyond someone who has. But, that person will also gain wrinkles, which swearing the Oath prevents. Since you are here, of course, you may notice something, because you are expecting it, on some level. You will still age, but if you have begun to Slow, then your age will progress very, very slowly. Of course, time may stop affecting your body, but your mind will continue to grow. Time very rarely clouds the mind of a channeler, most stay sharp until their death." Edeleas was stupefied by the Amyrlin's answer. Another heap of questions entered his mind, and Light, how he longed to voice them out, but he knew he'd be rude to do so. But the answer to his question introduced another flashbacks from the many books he'd read. True, swearing on the Oath Rod tended to cut a channeler's life span short, and he did remember a quote from a book, written by the Ogier Loial, that Asmodean referred to the Oaths as 'fool oaths', because not only in his time was it absurd to swear on something that deliberately cut your life in half. But then, the Aes Sedai in the Age of Legends should have been very nasty with their Daes Dae'mar - they were permitted to lie as they wanted, and get away with it. Imagine bandying thoughts with such persons! Edeleas thought his head might break open upon just looking at someone from that Age. But now he still wanted to chat with the Amyrlin, take the best of this chance. He wondered if it'd be okay to befriend her or so...but the idea sounded utterly wooly... "That is very...exciting, Mother." he said enthusiastically again. "I certainly cannot imagine a channeler being dulled by time; that would certainly be catastrophe, and for men, something awfully close to having that taint back on saidin again." He said, nodding and pushing his glasses. "My father once told me that channelers are sort of...over-blessed people, what with their power and their youth, but I think Pops is just jealous or somewhat. But I guess it isn't the same when you're both Aes Sedai or Asha'man, and you have a throne or a powerful House to rule. That'd be very...erm, tiresome. And of course, people would tend to be jealous, because one doesn't age and he could have the throne for whatever time it takes. Doesn't the tower have that law, Mother? One law that prohibits Aes Sedai or Asha'man for ruling?" Now he steered the topic to laws. Edeleas wondered if the Amyrlin longed to thwap him on the forehead for taking her to every which thing he could think about. He couldn't help it...he had, after all, curiosity fit to match five Browns. He gave a hollow laugh at the thought. |
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| Sapphira Calren | Mar 26 2005, 10:09 AM Post #14 |
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High Queen & Chancellor
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((OOC: I hope that wasn't a real law, cause I couldn't find it! :lol:)) Sapphira was glad that Edeleas did not seem bored with her speech, in fact, he went on to comment on it himself. She nodded, suppressing a small shudder when he mentioned the taint on saidin Sapphira had been a girl only about sixty years after that taint had been cleansed, it was still all to recent then, and many people had been very slow to trust the Asha'man. How could they? In the living memory of much of the population, they had seen men go mad and die, and finally the day when the man prophecised to break the world again. People had lived in fear of what that man would do, and then the news had slowly gotten around that saidin was cleansed. Certainly only a very gullible few had believed that. The only thing the people had to be thankful for was that the Dragon Reborn and all of those with him had chosen not to destroy this world with the Last Battle. They had all gone through a Portal Stone to an uninhabited world to fight the Dark One. By the time Sapphira was born, there was no denying that saidin was cleansed, but people were still distrustful of Asha'man. Sapphira, having been born quite a bit after all of that, had never really learned the true distrust of the channeling men that some held so tightly. Sapphira had been terrified when she was told she would be coming to the Tower, but mainly because she did not want to leave her home and family, and she had no idea what would happen to her. Only very, very slightly had she feared the Asha'man for those old reasons. She pulled herself out of her thoughts, Light, look what one mention of the taint could do! She focused back on Edeleas just in time to hear his question. She wondered where he had gotten that, it was nothing related to what he had said only a few moments before. In any case, she would answer his question. She thought for a few moments, and wondered what he had read to come up with such a question. "No, there is no such law in the Tower, in fact, whenever possible we like to have Aes Sedai and Asha'man rulers. That has been a very rare thing since the Age of Legends, certainly there have been almost none since Elayne Trakand of Andor, the first since the Age of Legends. It makes things easier, having someone presiding over a country who is also in line with the Tower's goals. Of course, any ruling channeler would be first responsible to his or her country, as it is a very big job, and second to the Tower." Sapphira stopped there, she could have answered his question with a simple 'yes' or 'no' so she hoped that Edeleas appreciated detail. Sapphira hated such answers anyway, they always left the asker wanting for more detail. A detailed answer should tell the asker all he needed to know, and perhaps bring another question to mind. She had suspicions that it would be this way with Edeleas, how could it not be, after such a statement about his own curiosity, after all. |
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| Edeleas al'Kuar | Mar 26 2005, 05:30 PM Post #15 |
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Asha'man al'Dieb Cha, Lost during the War
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((OOC - nah, that's just Edeleas' curiosity going wild.
Sorry if this post is way short...he's already rushing here... ))Edeleas kept nodding as the Amyrlin Seat told him about the law he'd asked her about. There wasn't really any law that prohibited ruling then, after all, it was just his age-old questions resurfacing after quite a long while. Then he remembered one of those books he'd read, they certainly mentioned Elayne Trakand of Andor. Somewhere in the city, the chimes tolled. Edeleas looked at the faraway bell towers. Just one more toll and he'd have to be back in the Black Tower to continue whatever work he'd left behind. He appreciated the Amyrlin Seat's detailed answer of his questions, and he would thank her very much for this. At least she did not look bored off her stockings because of his queries. He hoped she'd enjoyed chatting with him as he enjoyed it with her. Truly something once in a lifetime... Now, he should hasten his questioning, since he had a very short time left... "Mother, I know the Dragon succeeded and all, but darkfriends still exist." He spat out the statement before he knew it. Edeleas wanted to rein in his tongue, but it was too late. "Someday, I would very much like to help the Tower get rid of those people. Or else the Dragon's fight would be for nothing." |
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Sorry if this post is way short...he's already rushing here... ))
9:37 AM Jul 11