The Grey Tower

Beyond the Grey Tower court yards was a tract of land riddled with craters and uneven gouges that scarred the earth so permanently that little green survived. Learning ranks who would come out in groups or with a mentor to refine their channeling ability were often struck by the evidence of the One Power’s destructive capabilities. When the land had been set aside for channeling Valadin didn’t know, but as his boots crunched over the barren fields he felt the familiar uneasiness of the power that lay within him. Saidin shimmered like a beautiful gem in his mind’s eye, but he ignored it as he strode purposefully into the morning.

White tendrils of mist gave way to his passage as the smell of wet earth rose up to greet him. Soon the sun would come up and all would be clear. Then the day will’ve started. The thought shouldn’t have been so bitter in his mind, but as he hunted about for the newly made Accepted to join him he couldn’t help going over the small list of things that needed doing before the day was over. His troubles plagued him until a familiar shape became apparent in the distance. “She came out without me. Blood an’ ashes…she’s out to make me feel worse than I already do,” Val huffed good-naturedly as he broke into a jog.

Betrys Cadwallader was a small girl of commoner blood. Many knew her to be a bit simple-minded though whispers of her stubborn streak were quickly becoming more frequent on the lips of those who sought to discredit her. Of course any of his brothers who said an ill word of his friend found themselves contending with a less than pleased Valadin. Having earned a bit of a reputation in the Warder Yards as well as his acquaintance with Garyas most talk tended to end hurriedly, but more than one occasion had concluded with a trip to the Masters of Soldiers’ study. It was well worth it though.

Finally reaching her, Val was struck by how changed the girl seemed. The banded white dress fit her much the same as the Novice whites had, but they fell over the girlish figure in a more…flattering manner than he remembered. Most would call Bee plain. She didn’t have the eye-catching beauty of Maegan Sedai or the majestic bearing of Miahala Ives, but there was a quiet determination and kind-heartedness that was endearing to anyone who looked for it. It may have been the village charm and the fact she shared a liking for plants—at least he thought she did—but Val had always found Bee’s looks to be good enough for him. Ain’t ‘posed to be good ‘nough fer you. She’s yer friend, wool-brain, he scolded himself as a rush of heat rose through him. Thankful for the cool of the early morning he waved a greeting, “Ho there Bee!”

Looking around the chosen site Val noted that the earth seemed softer here. There were less signs of upturned earth or scorched soil than in most areas of the Channeling Yards.

“I…” he started to say to her, but couldn’t meet her eyes when she turned to him. Like steel, those grays lanced through whatever they looked at even without meaning to. “Jus’ wanted to say congratulations on yer becomin’ Accepted; mighty proud o’ ya.”

It wasn’t customary for male channelers to keep abreast of the happenings amongst the female ranks, but Val felt guilty at not having celebrated a friend’s momentous achievement whether they channeled a different side of the One Power or not. Not wanting to dwell on the matter he gestured at the open space,” Well, ya mentioned wantin’ me to come out an’ fer some studies with ya. What’re we doin’ here?”

She'd been thinking long and hard about the One Power and how to use it, since becoming Accepted that had been more important and pressing than it had been beforehand. Not that she'd found herself lacing in studies but rather that it seemed more and more like she had far too much time on her hands at the moment. The lack of the chores that had filled so many of the hours of her day as a Novice had been taken away and while some had been replaced not all of them had been.

Besides she was supposed to practise. Right?

At least some of the restrictions in respect of that had vanished but Betrys wasn't a fool and she had no intention of allowing herself to end up making some kind of terrible mistake and accidentally either hurting herself or someone else. Which was why she'd asked Valadin to help, they'd chatted a few times since that first meeting and while he seemed to insist on referring to her as Bee it was a good feeling to know that she had gained a friend. Even if said friend did tend to make her heart skip a little - especially on the occasions when she remembered the Arches and what had happened between them.

Shaking her head at those memories she tried instead to look dignified and like a proper Accepted.

Even if he was late.

"Val! You made it" she smiled warmly at him. Probably shattering the image of being proper into little pieces but she could worry at that later on, strictly speaking spending quality time with the male channelers was a no-no sort of things. However, Betrys needed help from someone who could help her with the Earth and how much it spoke and felt...right when it came to her weaves. It was hard to put into words and unless pressed she never really tried. At his congratulations she colored slightly "Thank...umm, yes thank you. It was nothing like I's had expected..." her voice was starting to become more cultured, though her accent didn't fade only softened in respect of her words.

Betrys nodded slowly "...I wanted some help. I...well, I like Earth? And it's umm, well...I need some help?" she finally managed wishing once more than she didn't seem to always end up finding herself incapable of managing to complete a sentence almost all the time she was around him.

“Oh…”

For a time Valadin could find nothing else to say. Since becoming Dedicated he’d busied himself with studies and trying to find ways to see Nykk. His strength in the One Power had grown considerably from his Soldier days though in truth progress had only been made in areas he held interest in. Garyas had helped a great deal with his learning, but beyond that Val had never cared to advance his ability.

In effect Bee’s request shamed him. Here she was, only a few weeks into her becoming Accepted and her early mornings were spent trying to find ways to become stronger. Steel an’ Fire. The phrase had been uttered to him by one of the greatest Aes Sedai in Tower history and its meaning brushed the crumbs of Val’s doubt away.

“Well then let’s git to it then,” Val declared, face determined. Turning towards the lifeless earth, his mind ran through the lessons given on how Flows of Earth had been used in the past. Most involved crafting wonders like the Stone of Tear—a monument Val longed to see. “Right…first let’s try gettin’ used to Flows of Earth.”

Drawing the Void to him Val seized Saidin, the One Power boiling in his veins and chilling him to the core in the same breath. The world shook with vivid detail. An ant carrying a leaf upon its back several hundred meters away, the smell of the stables drifting from the other side the Tower, the flapping wings of a messenger hawk returning from the east; they were familiar experiences, but wondrous each time as if new. “First thing to try is pullin’ stones up from the dirt. Figure it’s basic practice an’ I saw Garyas do it once with a group o’ Soldiers. Lemme ‘ave a go at it.”

Sending a Weave of pure Earth into the ground, he watched as the green tinged thread of Power shot into the soil. With his mind he could feel the Flow scouring beneath the topsoil for any rocks or stones that below. It wasn’t so much that it reached for them as it was the Power called to the nuggets of earth, beckoning them to the surface. At first he felt nothing, but then it felt as if a great weight pressed against him. Grunting with the suddenness of it, he drew more deeply upon Saidin, sweat shining on his forehead as the sun peeked over the dawn’s grey clouds. Raising his hand towards the patch of ground not far from him, brow knitted in concentration, he pulled more of the Power into him, feeling himself drowning in a great sea of energy. Light, I’ve got to let go. I’ll bloody burn myself out!

Concern penetrated the Void, but it held and soon several small pebbles bubbled into view about ten paces away. Releasing the Weave, Val sagged slightly as Saidin became a dull glow at the back of mind.

“Careful,” he panted while wiping a hand across his mouth. “Ent an easy task that. Maybe try to reach fer somethin’ small at first? We can work our way up after.” Straightening he gave Bee a grin, “Less yer thinkin’ ya can do better than eight pebbles.”

She wondered at the 'oh', had she done something wrong? It seemed like something that was important to do, or at least that was the drive that Betrys felt at the moment since coming out of the Arches with that new (or was it a renewed) focus and determination in her own life. Betrys offered him a rather gentle smile, hoping it would assist in removing any upset that might have been caused with her request - was he worried about there being trouble? Technically spending time with a male wasn't exactly a good thing but Betrys was fairly sure that it would all work out and as he offered to help she felt the smile widen into a full and generous grin.

This was all going to go just great.

Betrys nodded at him. The other teachers in Weaving and such had concentrated far more on Air and Spirit as a sound basis for her use of saidar and that was why she'd hoped a man would be able to understand and help with the connection to the Earth that she always felt when calling on that specific element it was like connecting with some part of her body that had been apart from her and then was suddenly once more part of her very being again. Betrys had actually spent far more time resisting the urge to reach for the saidar and spend her life always connected to the One Power.

Which would be a bad thing.

Tempting but bad and pretty much against the rules as well. She watched him briefly in his efforts, her own efforts to draw on the One Power coming in the moment of surrender, the flower within turning to the light and opening under its delicate touch. Immediately breathing evened out as the world came that much fully to life once again. She could see the pulse and hum of everything all around her, like a warm glow of energy that allowed for to see the shape of everything so much better, it was odd to think she'd once considered running away from all of this instead of embracing it.

Betrys didn't fear it or what would happen anymore.

"Alright then" she nodded, holding back on her own weave and instead watching him. As he worked on his efforts, she saw more than just the effects but also something of how it had been shaped. Betrys knew that it would be pointless to make any kind of attempt to actually try and duplicate it - she was never going to be able to reach saidin that was not for her to achieve.

Instead as he finished Betrys licked her lips and briefly closed her eyes, concentrating on that shining light full of its rainbow and all the patterns that danced as soon as that flower became exposed to the beauty of the light and all the varied possibilities that lay just within her reach, surrendering easily (or far better than she had done at first) Betrys moved straight to the Earth, hearing it sing to her, it was the best word though there was no sound and the melody only grew stronger as her fingers twisted softly in the efforts to create a Weave that would serve for the task at hand.

Betrys sunk herself into the Earth, the land welcoming her and caused her smile as that braided form of her power danced across, spreading out like a warm pool from where she was standing. Betrys didn't command the pebbles to rise, instead she teased, and coaxed chasing them up and actually at one point laughing as they spilled up from the land, tumbling into a little pyramid in a far greater number than eight "This is FUN!" she yelled, louder than she had intended her eyes open and flashing brightly with her power and happiness "Is that enough?" Betrys looked at him and smiled at him "Is that right?" she asked, not wanting to find out she done something wrong.

But...she'd still enjoyed it.

Still, attached in part to the land she felt the suggestion of other things. The shape and lie of the land, the sickness of the burnt section as it tugged at her senses and her stomach like an ache that she wanted to answer.

A stunned hush fell over Valadin as the small mountains of pebbles spouted from the soil, the pile heaping endlessly high until it appeared every stone in the land would gurgle its way to the surface. When finally all was still and the Accepted was cheering happily Val sheepishly grinned, red touching his cheeks as he looked from his feeble attempt to Bee’s impressive display of power.

Ent women ‘posed to be weaker than men when Weavin’ Earth? he wondered, stealing a sidelong glance at the pleased girl.

The girl had grown much. None of the subservient deference she’d shown him in their first meeting remained. There was no rancor between either; she truly had come to see him as an equal. So long did he stare at her, blissful and pretty in her joy that when he imagined she shot him a curious look he averted his eyes to the ground immediately feeling foolish right after. “Not bad. Lemme try again,” he said in a serious tone, eyes fixed on a point beyond the piles they’d made.

Saidin ignited his being in a raging storm. Only the Void at his center held a modicum of peace, but as he seized the river of ice and fire, Valadin was determined to succeed where he’d failed before. Snatching the Power to himself, he filled himself with it until the creak of bones in his ear warned him to stop, but he didn’t. Further he delved into his reserves seeking to twist the earth until it split in two beneath them. So much of the Power filled Val at that moment that his hands were clenched at his sides in white-knuckled fists as he tried to contain it all within one body. Every inch of his body ached with a bittersweet pain. The Oneness began to fade in the wake of the ever increasing brightness of Saidin. How could this be a bad thing? Val thought briefly.

Only instinct formed the knot of Earth that claw into the ground in search of pebbles. Unlike with Wind or Fire, Val’s impression of the Weave was vague leaving him unsure how many rocks he would pull up, but he drew—with all his might he drew. The Power thundered within him as clumps of dirt shot into the air a fair distance from where the two stood. If Bee was saying something, Val couldn’t hear her. Only the One Power was real.

As the dirt fell away, they revealed irregular shaped stones which dangled like trophies in the air. Perspiration dotted Val’s brow now as he tried to reach for more, but the world careened out of control before his eyes and stumbled to the ground heaving his breakfast in a sickly yellow puddle. Drained and in pain, Val could only laugh at his own foolishness. If Saidin had been dim before it was barely a speck now.

Weak as he struggled to his feet his eyes counted the stones before he asked, “H-h-how…di..di…d I…?”

No sooner had the last word fallen from his tongue did Val faint, the darkness swallowing him up in welcome arms as his head struck the dirt first.

She'd never wanted to upset Valadin. She liked him. Not like-like him, really...probably not.

Although she couldn't ignore that her heart skipped sometimes when he looked at her in a certain way or said something...or...well there were other things but Betrys was fairly sure she was imagining most of it and besides, they were friends. Only friends. Just friends.

No, matter how the Arches might have recreated their first meeting together but still, Betrys couldn't deny she enjoyed spending time in his company. It was one of the things she didn't actually discuss that often with Mirin, the closest thing she really had to a friend, due to the fact that in all honesty she wasn't completely sure how to accurately describe the nature of their relationship. After all, she had trouble enough explaining it to herself without turning a bright beet red. Betrys really didn't think that would be the best way to begin a conversation regarding a male with Mirin, not unless she wanted to open herself up for all kinds of commentary and teasing jibes.

Betrys watched again as he moved through the weave, nodding as she felt the action of the One Power upon the land they stood upon. It was very different from any sensation like saidar and it made her rather curious along with interested to discover how it was used and felt to the men who could Channel.

All of her comment, observations and other matters were washed away as Valadin suddenly fell.

While Bertys had been told about the dangerous of overextending herself in using the One Power that hadn't meant that she'd witnessed or even come all that close to such an event as this, for a moment then she paused and blinked not at all sure about how she should react before she was running across and sliding down to rest next to him, immediately checking his head for any suggestion that he had hurt himself in the landing. Betrys had been told repeatedly not to use the One Power for healing outside of the Infirmary and she had to bite her lip in order to remind herself how adamant that lesson had been.

"Valadin? Val!!! Ya great stupid twit - ya best wake up!" she patted his cheek and then shifted to shake his shoulders, gently laying his head down on the ground one more while she checked him for some response. Barring anything, Betrys returned and lifted his head onto her lap and twisted her lips before gently, ever so gently opening her mind to the One Power to check on his health, just...check. Only check.

“—stupid twit…best…wake…w…”

“Bee?”

Val ‘felt’ the words more than he’d said then. He was aware that his current state likely worried his friend, but there was so much waiting for him. Where he resided—the depths of his consciousness there was relief. Layers of blissful oblivion allowed his mind to rest as it could not in the waking world. He’d once thought Tel’aran’rhiod was the only place such peace could be achieved.

Beyond his thoughts he sensed his body being moved. Had retained his senses he might’ve complained out of sheer stubbornness, but as it were the consequences of his headstrong nature waited for he resurfaced. A miasma of suffering hovered in a thick barrier around his mind. Hints of the outside world made him curious. Bee’s scent came to him in warm, soothing waves. There was anxiousness in her voice. A selfish voice took pleasure from being the center of another’s concern, but Val stilled the voice angrily. I can’t hurt her fer somethin’ as stupid as shame. I won’t.

Whatever the reason Val came coughing back into the world. The sun had grown strong since they first arrived. Feeble tendrils of light thickening to healthy beams that hurt his eyes made him wish briefly that he’d remained in the domain of his thoughts. No sooner had the sunlight near-blinded him did Betry’s face come into focus. Lines of worry brought a desperate kind of beauty to her face as she stared down at him and Val couldn’t ignore the quickening of his heart at the sight. “Fella…could get used to layin’ here,” he grunted in a pained daze.

A spike of warning nudged at the back of his thoughts, but for now he set it aside. He didn’t need to move to know that his head was in her lap; a stable boy with handsome face spent plenty of time in a girl’s lap. Shamelessly he grinned, feeling very much the child.

Overhead a songbird streaked its way across the sky, a warbling tune raining down on them from above. Something familiar came back to him. A recent memory. One made in the Tower Gardens. No, let me have peace fer now, he begged his mind and blessedly the stirrings stilled leaving. Trying to sigh happily drew a terrible rasp, his lungs burning from the overuse of the Power earlier. He winced in between coughs which racked his body with spasms that made him cry out as he tried to sit up, but fell back weakly after a feeble attempt. Waves of cold and hot swept through him as the convulsions slowed.

“Think I’m dyin’?” he asked Bee.

In the space between his question and her answer an expected terror should have jerked Val to action. Never one to risk his life before his time as Dedicated had taught him that there were certain things a man could stand to die for. With limbs that felt laden with iron he wondered blithely if being bested by a girl was a good enough reason before nestling his head further into the Accepted’s lap and letting heaviness drag his eyelids down. “This might be a good place to die y’know…here…with you watchin’. Like a hero from a story don’t ya think?” he whispered.

Part of him—the ‘slave’—swore that he’d gone made with the One Power, that Saidin had never been cleaned and that all the things that had happened to him since arriving at the Grey Tower were delusions induced by his madness. Was it blasphemy if he didn’t mind it?

At the sound of her name, Betrys relaxed slightly.

Well it wasn't exactly her name, it was a shortened and pleasant, even intimate? Betrys took a deep breath and released it but didn't let go of her connection to the One Power. Not quite yet.

As he started to cough back, she relaxed even more and gently patted his skin, stroking back his hair from his eyes so he could see better "Ya being a daft one" she murmured. Not missing the suggestion of pain in his features and instinctively wanting to help. Still, if this was about over-using the One Power it might not be the best idea to end up messing with it using her own limited healing Weaves, she didn't want to hurt him after all "Sides the ground is far tae lumpy tae ever be that welcoming" she scoffed, either missing or perhaps choosing to ignore the fact it was probably her lap he was commenting on.

"Nae...don't..." she began, her hands moving to his shoulders and then assisting as his attempt to rise up failed so completely "Ya took a nasty fall there and...nae, ya ain't dying. Else I'd be forced to march on in there and drag ya back for being a twit. What were ya thinking tae be handling the Power like that - I..." she shook her head, not wanting him to see any suggestion of tears, he was going to be fine. She wouldn't have to deal with another person she cared about dying under her care. Not that Valadin had actually been under her care in the first place but still, the memory of her sister was still far too fresh for her dismiss as easily as she might have done before "And who am I meant tae if ya be the hero, hmm? So servant tae be going forth and speaking ya tale tae all?" Betrys continued to scoff, intent on making completely sure that he didn't give up or anything like that.

She held him gently as the convulsions started, applying her strength (such as it was), born of her active lifestyle to make sure he didn't end up hurting himself as a result "Please, alright? Ya'll need tae be alright. Should I fetch a Yellow?" she asked, concern, worry and a desperate need to help him.

Betrys gently pulled together Spirit, Air and the barest touch of Earth weaving them all together to seek along his body for any sign of physical harm to try and render some measure of help in offering the warm energy to support and help "Valadin...?" she bent down slightly so she was closer to him, eyes searching with more than just her eyes as she expanded her senses.

How long they had remained in each other’s embrace, Val did not know. He only understood the sweetness of Betrys’ aroma, the softness of her lap against the hard, sculpted thew of his neck. Her voice still lingered in his ear like a gentle song, pleading and beautiful in its appeal. If only the moment could be held for an eternity the world could’ve burned for all he cared. Ain’t there others ya can’t afford to lose? an unwelcome voice asked.

Whether guilt or annoyance drove him, Val sighed. “Forgive me, Accepted,” he grunted as he rose unsteadily to his feet. “Seems I was lost in a dream.”

The smile he gave her was the only one he’d ever been able to manage in the diminutive woman’s presence: a genuine one.

In the time that had passed, the sun’s determined march across the sky had carried it more than halfway through its journey toward the horizon. Fortunately there were no classes for him to teach today. Turning to Bee, he ran a hand through the black locks crowning his head and frowned. Duty had made it difficult to groom himself to his liking as frequently as he would’ve liked. In the short weeks that had blurred by, Valadin’s hair had grown nearly to his shoulder, spilling over his ears in a full, dark mane.

“Need to do away with this bloody hair,” he grumbled. “Guess lookin’ like this I would make a fine princeling with my long, soft tresses. Might even be pretty ‘nough to catch a noble lady’s eye—bed her an’ have her worryin’ o’er me. Her coin’ll solve all my troubles…likely wouldn’t even hafta stay at the Tower when all’s said an’ done.”

If Bee thought his jest was amusing she didn’t show it. Those grey pools of light held him in place and prevented further foolishness from coming out of his mouth. Softer eyes…still got the same knack fer shuttin’ me up, he decided. “If ya have classes that need tendin’ to today ya should go,” he said suddenly changing the subject. “Think I’ll spend the day workin on…this…”

A wave of his hand indicated the displaced pebbles that lay scattered around the immediate area about them. Not far the barking command of a drillmaster told of training men in some distant section of the Channeling Yards. The answering cry suggested that it may have been Garyas with a few Soldiers. The Dedicated had become fully committed to training others in One Power combat of late.

“Guess ya should git goin.”

Not wanting to let her leave, but afraid to hold on to the warmth he felt whenever she was around he turned to walk deeper into the barren fields. The Void came swiftly to him as it always did and the release from the uncertainty he felt was welcome. He was slower in seizing Saidin again. That he could still channel was the Creator’s favor on him…or some dark luck. Neither explanation would’ve surprised him now.
Feeling Bee’s at his back he cursed his stupidity as the crunch of his boots was the only sound that filled the air. Light burned woolhead…

Betrys was confused, not only because of her own feelings but simply the way that Valadin was acting. She'd not assume to know him intimately but Betrys worked hard on understand her friends and helping out the people who were important to her, and Valadin definitely fitted snugly into that category "Were ya really?" she'd learned a little about the world of Dreams, while not a place she troubled herself with learning the skills necessary being far more focused on the here and now of this world instead. Betrys knew enough to ask that question and wait for any sort of answer.

As he smiled, she smiled back. She'd been able to smile easily enough in his presence, it was probably the more uncomplicated emotional response she felt around him and helped her relax now.

He seemed...upset and she couldn't really figure out why. The gentle use of the One to touch his body and make sure he wasn't about to collapse from some sudden relapse had faded as she started to sound a little more like himself again "Ya, need to be getting off that high horse imagine princes and ladies - ain't neither of those about here. Well, aside from your own self. I sure ain't a noble lady for that kind of story" Betrys scoffed. Calloused hands and simple manners hardly accounted for much comment in the few such stories she'd learned about, at least not unless the lady was in disguise for some reason or the other.

"Hey! I ain't a Novice to be dismissed like that and if ya thinking I'll stroll off and leave ya to be a Light-burned daftie you've another thing coming" she announced marching up behind him and pausing to shove his side slightly. It was probably not even something he'd actually even notice, she was a lot slighter than he was after all and a trained fight too boot "Sides, which...I'm the one that asked for help in the first place but that dinnae mean I cannae be telling ya about how I use my Weaves when I connect to the Earth" she admitted, would that help?

She waited, watching him. Worry, concern...and yes, some affection but Betrys truly tried not to let the softer end of her feelings appear in her words or her features. She just wasn't good with either of them. Moving around to stand in front of him she looked up, blocking his path and put her hands on hips this time to make it clear she'd wasn't being shifted.