I'm On My Way (for Illyria)

[Chris]

Perhaps this was the first time Murdock had ever been asked to go on an excursion that wasn't at some Asha'man's whim, based on how they were feeling at the time. He was rather tired of these private sessions with people taking him on wild adventures, and yearned for something a little more... organised. So when he was sat in the Library and one of the Aes Sedai approached him about a trip to Saldaea to investigate a minor Lord's Library collection, he was quite keen. Apparently the House had a small stash of ter'angreal, not to mention some enticing times which had the Indigos and Browns frothing at the mouth to go and collect.

Murdock didn't mind this particular trip. It was organised by some of the Browns and Indigos, and they had a handful of chosen Dedicated and Accepted to go along and assist in the itemising and collecting of these items. As someone who quite liked the idea of organising such chaos, Murdock was happy to go along. He didn't consider that the Browns hoped to evoke some innermost desires to join their ranks, really he was there to do as he was told. Wasn't that what they were all there for?

As per the instructions, Murdock made his way to the Travelling grounds early in the morning. He had with him a satchel containing some pencils and a small notebook in which to document his findings, though he was going to need a stool so he could sit and write at the same time. He carried his walking stick in his left hand, which is the hand he used to write with. He sure hoped they took this into consideration, especially because his leg was feeling particularly cantankerous this morning. Unsurprisingly, Murdock was one of the last there, though he was still on time. Three Accepted and three Dedicated were already there, as well as a Brown Asha'man. Murdock saluted for Asha'man Dimitri, and tried not to roll his eyes as the stout little teapot of a man barely looked up from his book. Such a sad, sad stereotype, walking around with his head in the clouds. Didn't he notice anything around him? Shaking his head, Murdock went to stand with the other trainees, none of which he knew or cared to know. They weren't his friends, and he didn't care to pretend they were either. He simply stood there, leaning on his stick and trying not to grumble too much in his head about the cool morning wind chilling his bones and making his leg hurt.

"Oh!" Asha'man Dimitri finally graced the group with his mental presence rather than his physical alone. He closed his book and looked at them. "Good morning everyone, thank you for being here. We are very excited to be heading to Lord Lucian's estates to peruse his Library. As you may know, there are several unidentified objects of power there, not to mention the first edition writings of Serena Sedai herself!" He smiled briefly, his wide grin uncommon on his ageless face. He continued, "myself and Illyria Sedai are going to oversee the expedition, and we expect to be there until early afternoon. We have an agreement that we may borrow up to a dozen books at a time to copy for ourselves, and once we can discern the nature of the objects, we can discuss terms then. We are just waiting for- and here she is."

Murdock made sure to salute the Aes Sedai who was joining them. He knew nothing of the woman in question, having little interest in the Ajah as a whole. It seemed like they were Browns, only even more self indulgent, and he had no time for that. But he was definitely not going to say that when surrounded by these people, as some of them were aspiring Indigo members. Murdock just wanted to make it back early enough to get a nap.

"Let us be off!" Asha'man Dimitri declared, and with a gesture he made a large Gateway to what looked to be the elaborate and overly expensive grounds of a fancy Saldaean manor house. Nobles, how lovely. With any luck we won't see any of them, and they will let us get on with our work. Shouldering his satchel and gripping his stick, Murdock limped on through the Gate with his dark eyes fixed firmly ahead.