The Grey Tower

As he tried to suppress his shudder, so did she. Miahala had been channeling for so long that the thought of losing it... Well, she wasn't really sure how one could survive it. Then again, she'd suffered many losses she had not at the time thought herself able to overcome and yet she had, so she couldn't write anything off.

Still, she would not be Miahala any longer without it. It was also as much her identity as anything else.

Not thoughts that were needed now, since she hadn't lost it. No, she just knew of a girl who did and they had to solve the mystery of that girl, and the strange ring she had. "I struggle to believe that would happen," she mused. "To just have it and think it something pretty to wear. I cannot think it anything other than arranged.

"But the only way for that to be would be that some arm of the Shadow had fallen upon her. So was she working for the Shadow then? If so, why was she killed? And in such a grisly way?" She paused thoughtfully. "What did that note say? Betrayal would not be tolerated. Do we think she tried to turn her back on them then?"

Jaryd rubbed at his chin, eyes still fixed on the ter’angreal. The combined might of saidin and saidar still flooded him; he wished he could use it to force answers from that bit of glittering metal. He didn’t know which bothered him more- that Seira had served the Dark One, or that the Shadow may have a way to Heal burn out.

“That seems likely,” the Red agreed with a sigh, reaching for the box he had kept the necklace in. “It is said that no man (or woman) can walk in the Shadow so long that they cannot find the Light...and from what I have seen that is true. What is not frequently touched on is the consequence of that choiceI know you’ve seen enough in your life to know that the Dark One’s reprisal tends to be...ugly.”

The Red released the Source, albeit reluctantly, as Mia dropped the rose back into its resting place. “There is more to it than her betrayal, though, I’m sure of it. Whether Darkfriend or innocent, the Dark One has gained a great deal of ground thanks to her passing. The Tower was on its knees for hours that night, and we’ve been awash with gossip and fear ever since.” He returned the box to his desk as he spoke. “I would very much like to know who the Shadow’s deputies are in this venture. The attack in Hama Valon was not strong enough to take the Tower, even with most of us drunk as skunks, so...what was the actual goal?” And then there was Viadulo. Light, what a mess.

With the One Power released between them and the ter'angreal set aside, Mia once again leaned back in her seat, although there would be no getting comfortable with thoughts like these floating around in her mind. They didn't have much proof of anything, just a great deal of suspicions that seemed likely...maybe...

"Lysira had the suggestion that it had the feeling of a test," Mia commented thoughtfully, "as one of her outside theories. That perhaps someone was seeing what weight the city had to bring. She didn't have any sort of proof about that theory either, however, just a feeling. As her long time as a Gaidin of this Tower, however, I'm willing to entertain her educated opinion."