Ice, Wind and Fire [solo rp/fanfic]

[Roan]

Tia Tomosan, Accepted For a Cloud Dancer, the channeling yards could often feel too small for some of the things one might want to practice. Because of this, Tia spoke with Mirin Sedai about the possibility of traveling somewhere remote in the Mountains of Mist to practice. The Mistress of Novices was not thrilled with the idea, but understood the reasons for the Accepted’s request, and granted her approval, so long as the young woman was escorted by a Warder, and preferably, an Aes Sedai or Asha’man.

Tia had been very tempted to ask her Mother and Father to join her, but the Mistress of Arms wouldn't escort most Accepted on a field trip. Tia still shied away from anything that might be seen as potential favoritism, and thus found herself escorted by a Blue Sister named Genieve Aes Sedai, and her Warder, Weslin Gaidin. Genieve Sedai had been the woman assigned to help Tia understand more about her Cloud Dancing talent, and, most importantly, how to control it. She seemed more than agreeable to escort Tia for her day of practice in the field.

Tia watched Genieve as she pulled together weaves to create a gateway. Once it was open, the trio stepped through, and the Gateway snapped shut. The Blue took the trio to a remote ridge in the middle of the Mountains of Mist. It was not the tallest ridge, which was good given that Tia would be playing with lightning, among other weather effects. While there were plenty of trees throughout the mountains, the small ridge they were on was a bare, rocky outcrop.

“Mirin Sedai said we could stay out for the full day since you are caught up in most of your studies, child. I am here to observe and keep you safe. If you have questions, you may ask them, otherwise and until such time, I will attend my own business,” Genieve replied before walking over to her Gaidin who was scanning their surroundings, looking for potential threats, Tia guessed.

A light breeze blew from the north, and Tia took a few steps along the ridge in that direction. She watched as the trees below the ridge she stood on swayed gently in the breezes, and listened to the whisper of a whistle as it danced through the needles on the evergreens. Opening herself to Saidar, the Accepted reveled in the glow of the Power and the thrill she felt as she embraced it. Her senses sharpened, and she could feel the wind tease the hairs on her arms. Looking to the north, she felt there might be a spring storm off in that direction, though she didn't
fully understand how she might know something like that.

The far-off storm was not her concern, and she pushed the thought of it away. What Tia wanted to practice today ran the gamut of Cloud Dancing, from creating clouds, to generating wind, and bringing down lightning. In her mind, she figured clouds could offer good cover if they were at ground level, like fog. Wind could be used to push opponents away, pull them closer or bind them. Lightning, of course, could create devastating havoc if she were to call on it in the middle of a battle. Given how easily Cloud Dancing came to her, she wondered if she could pull together multiple weaves of each. In her mind, her agenda for the day was set. . .she just had to get down to business.

Starting with a simple weave of air, coupling it with a weave of water plus a small weave of earth, Tia finished the hand motions, pointing skyward, and started building a cloud over head. Watching as the cloud came together, she motioned down with her hand in an attempt to lower the cloud. It moved a little, but not all the way down to the ground. With a frown, she released the weaves and started again, but this time, she altered her hand gesture so it she pointed horizontally out from her. Again, the cloud started to build, and this time, it hung close to the ground. She continued to let it build until it enveloped most of the ridge.

Happy with the result, Tia released the weave, and the cloud began to dissipate. She looked northward again as a gust of wind swept across the ridge. The small spring storm was trying to build in intensity. She would have to be careful that none of what she did would unnaturally build the still far-off storm. Could she harness the wind? Did she dare? Not wanting to take a chance, she opted to stick with what she created. For what she hoped to practice next, she considered asking Genieve Sedai to let her practice on either the Sister or Gaidin, but thought it might not be. . .proper.

Instead, Tia turned her attention to a bolder not too far away from her. It was big, but not massive, and should do nicely for her next experiment. With determined concentration, Tia wove a very fine thread of air, and four more that she intertwined around one another. She repeated the process, giving her two ‘wind ropes’ that she used to wrap around the boulder. She tried to lift it, but found her weaves slipped off. Frowning, she tried again, but achieved the same result. On her third attempt, she created three wind ropes, but again, was unable to hold or move the boulder.

“You can use air alone to push people away, but to lift or hold something or someone, you should add a little substance. I would suggest water or even a hint of earth if you can manage,” Genieve suggested as she came closer.

Looking to her mentor, Tia gave a small nod as she replied, “I will give it a try.” Starting once again with weaves of air, Tia added in a hint of water, and found the ‘ropes’ she created did seem to hold, though the boulder started to slip as she got it to about three feet in the air. Concentration etched on her face, the Accepted added a small weave of Earth to the mix, and found the boulder stabilized. Giving a slight wave, Tia moved the boulder so that it sat between her and the two who escorted her before releasing the weaves.

Not quite satisfied, Tia repeated the combination of air, water and earth, and picked the boulder up once again, moving it back to its original location. The second attempt seemed much easier, and she was happy to tuck that bit of knowledge into her mental tool box. She was about to start playing with lightning when she recalled a certain Channeling Yards showdown between herself and Soldier Zarius, or Zeen as she tended to call him.

It had been a most entertaining day, and the look on his face as she caused the snow cloud to sit over him was priceless. The memory got her thinking about other ways to manipulate elements of weather, and made her wonder.

Tia started once again by creating a net of air, and added water to it until it started to rain. More weaves of water dropped the temperature, changing the rain to snow, but. . .could she dispense with the cloud and create ice on its own? Letting the weaves drop, she tried something as she spun together weaves of air and water. She altered the balance of each until she got not rain but ice in the form of ice pellets. Once again she dropped the weaves and wondered how to bind everything together.

The thought came to her, and she worked with a thicker weave of water that she bound in a series of weaves of air. To this, she added a ‘sheath’ of water weaves, and there was a pop as a spike of ice dug itself into the ground about five feet away from her. More than pleased with the result, she repeated the process, and got another spike, followed by another. Would such a thing prove useful? Perhaps, but it was certainly fun.

The Accepted let the weaves dissipate, and turned her thoughts once more to lightning. It was the most dangerous of what she would attempt today, and the ridge they were on gave her a vantage point from which to find an appropriate target. As she moved to the northernmost point of the ridge, the wind swirled about her, tugging at the hem of her dress. Looking in the direction of the spring storm, she sensed it had grown into a proper thunderstorm.

Part of her wished she were closer to the storm, as she had a fondness for listening to thunder echo as it rolled through valleys and mountainous terrain. Given the moment of chaos that leads to thunder, it seemed ironic to find a sense of peace in listening to thunder rumble through an area, echoing off valley walls. She closed her eyes for a moment, and embraced Saidar, almost surprised by how into focus everything seemed to be when she opened them once again.

Tia didn't fully understand why the weaves came so naturally to her, but she just seemed to know what to do as weaves of air came together with a hint of water. She saw her target on a ridge opposite the one she occupied and pointed as she added fire. The hair on her arms stood on end, and a split second later, the sky was pierced with a white-blue flash. The sound was immediate, starting with a crackling that seemed as if the world held its breath, but mere moments later, the thundering boom rattled the ridge-top and valley.

Genieve Sedai stepped over and nodded in approval, “Remember, you can scale up and down. Sometimes, smaller scale has its advantages. Try a small bolt...hit the big rock over there.”

Tia looked where the woman pointed, and focused on size. It was almost like following a recipe, but not really. Scaling the individual weaves down wasn't always easy, but Tia seemed to manage as there was a much smaller flash, and softer “Pop!” Her eyes went wide, and she laughed, “Mini-bolts. That was fun!” For emphasis, she made another one, and looked back to her mentor, “Though, I know we don't do this for fun, Genieve Sedai.”

Her mentor rewarded her with a small smile, “Sometimes, we do it for fun, Accepted, but only sometimes. Come...it is time to return to the Tower.” Moments later, a gateway appeared, and the trio disappeared through it. Not an hour later, the spring thunderstorm passed over the now empty rocky ridge.