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Fortunes of War By Tenaile Shar'a'matalle A
group of Aes Sedai
and their Warders is
trapped while on
their way to the
army of Manetheren
during the Trolloc
Wars. As
she looked out upon
the sea of death
arrayed before her
in the valley below,
Gelusa de’Brennion,
Aes Sedai of the
Green Ajah, felt a
vast despair settle
upon her shoulders.
The task assigned to
her had been to lead
a group of her
sisters and their
Warders to meet the
King of Manetheren
and his army at the
Mountain Home, as
the prepared to face
the Trolloc army
descending on them
out of the blight.
Now it looked as if
she would never be
able to complete
that task. The force
set in their path
numbered in the
thousands, and with
only thirty or so
Aes Sedai assigned
to her, she saw no
way to win her way
past. Their best
hope was to find an
alternate pass
though the Mountains
of Mist that would
lead them safely
past the seething
field of foul
Darkfriends and
murderous Trollocs.
So far, the Warders
had been unable to
discover such a
route. It seemed to
her that they were
trapped no way
forward, and, since
they had been
ordered to Aemon’s
side, no way back.
They must find some
way to get by. As
she returned to her
tent, she sent
Getlin, her Warder,
to summon the four
other sisters
directly down the
chain of command.
She needed to
discuss an idea that
had been preying on
her mind all that
day, ever since the
last Gaidin had
returned to inform
her that there were
no other paths
through the
mountains. She saw
this alternative as
the only hope
remaining, but she
hoped some of her
sisters might have
come up with
another, better
idea. The
four sisters,
Trelama, Pera,
Cadsuda, and Lofara,
all Aes Sedai of the
Green Ajah, entered
the tents minutes
later. Gelusa Sedai
invited them to sit,
and asked if they
would like a cup of
tea. "Alright,
sisters, let’s get
down to business. I
have deliberated on
this all day, and I
think it’s time
that my judgement be
brought in to the
light. I believe
that our last hope
is to wait until the
cover of nightfall,
and then attempt to
steal our way
through the enemy
lines. As I see, we
have little choice,
sisters. We cannot
go back. We must
bring what aid we
can to Aemon, or I
fear Manetheren will
fall. However, I
will not lie to you,
sisters. There is no
guarantee that our
aid in that war will
win the day, for the
army of the dark
that approaches is
vast-more vast than
any we have faced so
far in this terrible
war. So what think
you, sisters? Should
we try it, or
no?" There
were several moments
of silence as the
Aes Sedai considered
the possibilities
and implications of
the plan. There were
vast amounts of room
for error in such a
plan. "As
I see it,
sisters,"
Cadsuda said,
"it seems as
though our wise
leader is correct in
this matter. It does
appear as though all
other routes have
been closed to us.
Our only hope is to
attempt to break
through the lines
tonight, when night
falls. However,
there are several
drawbacks to this
plan. If there are
Myyrdraal, and there
are sure to be, then
we dare not use the
Power to ensure our
safe passage, since
they will be able to
feel us channeling.
We must depend
entirely upon the
skills of our
Warders to win us
past the enemy’s
encampment." "Perhaps
we all could don our
Warders’ spare
cloaks. Such a
tactic would render
us nearly invisible
to the enemy as we
pass through,"
suggested Pera. "Excellent
idea, Pera,"
stated Gelusa. "And
of course we would
have to leave behind
our wagons and some
few of our horses.
Our party cannot not
be very large when
we attempt the
crossing, or it must
fail," said
Lofara. "Very
well, then. Are we
agreed that this is
our best course of
action?" asked
Gelusa. Her sisters
replied in the
affirmative, and
then proceeded to
iron out the
details. Later,
nearly an hour after
dark had fallen, the
small party of Aes
Sedai and Warders,
split into three
groups of ten
channelers and their
Gaidin, set out into
the night, hoping
against hope, that
all would make it
through. The group
Gelusa Sedai led
started north,
seeking to pass
through the outer
fringes of the enemy
camp, and the other
two bands followed.
Moving as silently
as possible, the
horses’ hooves
muffled by wrapping
them in swathes of
canvas, the Aes
Sedai reached the
lines of their foe
about and hour after
setting forth. They
stole quickly past
the outer sentries,
slaying as they
went, and eventually
they were flanking
the main campground.
Here, they knew,
they must be
extremely cautious,
attempting to appear
to be no more than
another part of the
army. To this end,
they discreetly
spread out, hoping
to give the
appearance of
sentries returning
to their bedrolls. Suddenly,
an alarm rang out; a
bugling call to arms
to awoke nearly
everyone in the
camp. One of the
sisters had
inadvertently
tripped a ward set
by one of the enemy
dreadlords, those
traitors to the
Light who could
channel, and mostly
served as commanders
and generals of the
Darkfriend armies.
Immediately Trollocs
and Darkfriends
began pouring out of
tents and bedrolls,
scrambling for their
weapons. "Sisters!
To me! We must break
through! Head to the
west, as quickly as
possible! Let no one
stand in your
way!" cried
Gelusa. Then she
spurred her great
stallion, and
accompanied by her
Getlin and the rest
of her band, she
galloped at full
speed to the west,
following her own
directions. She
spotted a small band
of Trollocs, led by
a Myydraal, almost
directly in her
path. She channeled
coolly, sending
weaves of Earth and
Fire into the
Trolloc ranks,
exploding them where
they stood. Only a
few escaped her
wrath, including the
Fade. All around her
she could feel her
sisters weaving
saidar, blowing
apart the enemy
positions. She
channeled again, and
the Myydraal melted
into a pile of
rotted bones and
sinew. The sisters
with her took care
of the Trollocs
remaining, and they
ran on. On
they ran,
encountering
opposition at every
turn, and several
sisters and Warders
fell, but they had
no time to stop and
retrieve their
bodies. They had to
get through! On they
ran, until finally,
like a storm
breaking over the
waves, they burst
out into an open
valley. They saw no
signs of life in
front, and behind
they could still
hear the Trolloc
armies pursuing.
They led their
pursuers a grim
chase, winding
through narrow
passes and across
streambeds. The
Trollocs kept up the
pace for several
hours, but they fell
steadily behind,
unable to keep up
with the
Power-sustained
horses. Finally
signs of pursuit
faded entirely, and
the riders drew up
and gathered
together in a small
copse of oak and
maple. An
accounting revealed
that, among Gelusa’s
group, three Aes
Sedai had been
killed, as well as
their Warders when
they went into a
suicidal rage after
their Aes Sedai
where killed. Three
other Warders had
also been lost, and
their Aes Sedai sat
on their horses,
trying to control
tears at the loss. They
had no idea what had
happened to the
other two groups,
but they could only
hope that they had
somehow made it
through. The only
thing for them to do
now was press on
toward the Mountain
Home, in hopes the
missing sisters
would make their way
there. For several
days, they
negotiated the high
passes of the
Mountains of Mist,
steadily moving
towards the capital
of Manetheren, and
three days later
they found the city.
Or what was left of
it. "What
happened
here?!" cried
Crinelle, a sister
of the Yellow Ajah. "It
seems we where too
late," replied
Gelusa sadly.
"And all our
efforts to make it
here were for
naught. Let us go
down into the city
to see if we might
ascertain what
happened here." "With
that, Gelusa Sedai
led her companions
down into the ruins
of Mountain Home,
once one of the most
beautiful cities of
the known world. The
devastation was
immense. The stones
of most of the
buildings looked as
if they had been
melted by extreme
heat, and of those
that weren’t, not
one stood upon
another. The
destruction was
complete. "Where
did all the people
go? I haven’t
spotted a single
body, not even a
pile of ash that
looks as though it
might once have been
a man," said
Rengala, Aes Sedai
of the Blue Ajah. "Perhaps
they were evacuated
before whatever did
this fell upon the
city,"
suggested Gelusa. "Let
us hope so,"
said Rengala said
sadly. They
began an intensive
search of the
surrounding
mountains for any
survivors of the
calamity. During the
several days it
took, eleven more
Aes Sedai and a like
number of Warders
straggled into the
impromptu camp. They
were all who had
survived the attempt
to sneak through the
enemy lines.
Thirteen Aes Sedai
and twenty-one
Warders had perished
in the crossing. It
was one of the worst
losses in the entire
war, and one the
White Tower could
ill afford. After
they were convinced
that no more of
their sisters and no
more Warders were
likely to appear,
and the search for
any survivors of
Manetheren had
proven fruitless,
they decided to head
north and east to
see what had become
of the army
Manetheren should
have sent out to
meet the Trollocs.
After four days of
travel they found
the answer. The
army of Manetheren
lay in front of
them, surrounded by
a vast sea of
Trollocs, Myydraal,
and Darkfriends. The
numbers on the field
were uncountable,
although one sister
estimated them to be
in excess of two
hundred thousand.
All lay dead.
The Aes Sedai had come too late to assist Aemon in his defense of the Mountain Home, and nearly an entire nation had died. Manetheren, the Thorn in the Dark One’s Hand, had fallen, and would never rise again. |