After the breaking of the world, a group of male Aes Sedai took refuge from the taint inside the Ogier stedding. After a while, the call of Saidin became too much for them and they left the stedding. In exchange for giving them sanctuary, these male Aes Sedai gave the Ogier a valuable gift, the Ways. Grown from the One Power in a way no longer understood, the Ways connected all the known stedding. These Ways were separate from the pattern. Even when the Ways connected two areas which were separated by the shattering of the land, the Ways remained unchanged. These Aes Sedai also gave the Ogier the Talisman of Growing, a ter�angreal which could be used to grow the Ways to other stedding as they were discovered after the Breaking.
For nearly two thousand years the Ogier used the Ways to move between stedding. The Ways were well lighted, and covered with a thick grass, and the islands within the Ways were also filled with large fruit trees which could be enjoyed by travelers. The Ways were a beautiful place in tune with nature, much like the Ogier stedding they connected.
All that changed around the time of the War of the Hundred Years. The Ways darkened, and the living things disappeared. The stone itself became pitted and decayed. Travelers sometimes entered the Ways and never came out, or came out drastically changed.
One of the most terrifying discoveries during this deterioration was that of Machin Shin, the Black Wind. Those who are touched by the Black Wind lose their minds and their souls. None know for certain where Machin Shin came from but there are two likely possibilities: that it is a product of the taint on Saidin which was used to create the Ways, or that it is a parasite living off the Ways.
Fire can be used against Machin Shin, but the black wind cannot be defeated or completely destroyed.
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