The Grey Tower

Part One: Best Friends

“I’m so glad I met you,” Casey said with her biggest smile. “We’re going to be best friends, I just know it.”

“I know! Right? I feel like we’ve known each other forever already. It’s like it’s meant to be.” Her fellow novice Mavin sat cross-legged at the other end of the narrow bed, munching on a handful of strawberries.

After her encounter with Lady Sabine ni Hayadan t’Masin, which had left both of them bruised and bloody, Casey had almost given up on the other novices who lived around her in the Great Serpent structure. She had been slapped with extra chores as a punishment for getting into a fight with Sabine, even though in Casey’s opinion she had done a public service by decking Princess Fancypants. The Mistress of Novices had not been impressed.

Fortunately, at dinner with the other novices Casey had found a target less likely to pull a dagger on her. Mavin was an eager gossip who clearly loved having somebody to talk to because she hadn’t stopped talking ever since Casey had first sidled up to her. She must have led a sheltered life, since she didn’t seem to find it at all suspicious that Casey agreed with her on everything, laughed at all her jokes, and found every detail of her life fascinating.

Mavin popped another strawberry in her mouth. “I can’t believe you’re rooming with Sabine. We totally called it, you know. Yaisu said the Mistress of Novices might put you two together. Sabine is quite something, isn’t she?”

“Yes, Sabine is a real—”

“She’s so smart.” Mavin gave a dreamy sigh. “Even when she’s mean to me, I feel like I get smarter just listening to all those fancy words. And her hair! It’s so silky and pretty.”

“—darling.” Casey barely blinked. “She’s been so nice to me. I can’t believe I was so clumsy as to bang heads with her. She’s so graceful, she even forgave me.” Casey’s face still throbbed where Sabine had hit her with the hilt of the jewelled dagger.

“Don’t you want a Yellow to look at your bruises?” Mavin asked.

“A what?”

“The Yellow Ajah?” Mavin gave her a sidelong look and clearly decided she was a little slow. “It’s a group of Aes Sedai and Asha’man who dedicate their lives to Healing people with the One Power. They do amazing things. I’ve seen them bring people back from the brink of death. A few tiny little cuts and bruises would be nothing.”

Blood and ashes. Casey had to work hard to keep a blank face at the threat of a witch messing around inside her body with their evil powers. “Uh… Mirin Sedai said it would do me good to heal the old-fashioned way. She said it would teach me not to be so clumsy in future.”

“Oh. Your face is all puffy. And your lip is cut. And your cheek. You must have banged heads hard.”

“You know servants. We’re so clumsy and silly!” Casey gave her lightest laugh. “You know, I really miss home. I’ve never been away from Tear before. I might cry into my pillow tonight.”

“Yes, I just can’t wait to make Aes Sedai so I can go see—”

“Are there any other Tairens here? I’d really love to hear another Tairen accent. It would make me feel so much less alone.” Casey pretended to sniffle and wipe her eyes.

“Well, there is that Lia girl…”

Finally. The sun burst out, all the birds started singing hallelujah, and Casey had to fight off a huge sigh of relief. “What Lia girl?” Casey asked innocently.

“Oh, she’s new. She’s only been here a few weeks and she already got sent to the Farm.” Mavin made a face of mock shock. “She’s pretty, even if she’s stroppy. She has these beautiful green eyes, kind of like yours. She’s very—”

“Young. She’s very young.” That came out terse. Mavin gave her a strange look; Casey recovered. “What’s the Farm?”

“It’s where they send bad girls.”

Casey’s whole body went cold. The rest of the world dropped away and her voice went distant. “Where do they send bad girls?” Into a lake with weights tied around their feet? Into a barrel buried in the earth?

“To a fate worse than death.” Mavin actually giggled.

It took all Casey’s restraint not to slam the idiot girl up against the wall with Casey’s arm across her throat. “They kill them?” She was going to burn them to the ground. She would tear the Tower stone from stone, she would leave Hama Valon a smoking crater. She would salt the fields and scorch the earth—

“What? No! Of course not.” Mavin gave her an even stranger look and inched away, as if she was reconsidering this best friends thing. “They just send them away for a few months. It’s some farm or other way out in the sticks. People come back tanned.”

“Oh.” Casey had to take several deep breaths. Not dead. Then her voice went up an octave. “A few months?”

“Oh, it depends what you’ve done. Like if you make out with a cute boy called Nate and the two of you get all rumpled and then Mirin Sedai catches you, you might just get chores. But if you slap her in the face, you’d better like digging vegetables.”

Casey put her face in her palm, silently cursing her idiot sister.

“I think she slapped Nate too,” Mavin added. “Teehee!”

Unbelievable.

This was going to delay their escape by weeks, maybe even months. Casey had dreamed of getting Lia out tonight, smuggling her out of Hama Valon under the cover of darkness. And all those dreams had just blown up in her face. Seven hells. What was she supposed to do now? Her first instinct was to go find this stupid Farm, but what about Stacia and Beckan? She couldn’t abandon Stacia to look after a small child in a strange city for months on end, and she could hardly storm a farm of channellers with Beckan tagging along. But equally, Casey couldn’t keep up this lie at the Tower for so long. It wasn’t like she could even channel; the stupid candle had gotten it all wrong—that was what they got for asking a stick of wax. And Casey couldn’t be a giggly novice for months on end without her patience snapping. This was an absolute disaster.

“Do I get a reward for pointing you at this Tairen girl?” Mavin wondered. “Because I have this essay that needs a lot of work…”

“Absolutely,” Casey said in her brightest voice. “I know just the person!”

Two minutes later, she pushed open the door to the room she shared with Sabine.

“Princess Fancypants!” That greeting got Sabine’s annoyed attention. “Mavin really needs help with her homework. I know you won’t mind, since you’re such great friends. Also, she thinks you’re smart and pretty and she wants to know how to put ribbons in her hair. Got to go. Have fun!”

Casey shut the door on the two of them with a serene smile.

And went to work.

Part Two: Steal You Back

Casey planned her exfiltration with the single-minded focus of a jewel thief whose next task was to get out of the bank vault with the diamonds.

Slowly, meticulously, she chiselled away at the wall of that vault. She walked the Tower and its gardens as often as she could, burning every detail into her memory. She mapped out exit routes and timed herself crossing them, counting down the seconds under her breath. She slipped questions about key personnel into gossip with the other novices. She even tested perimeter security a few times by “innocently” wandering into restricted places.

Thanks to the devious Dax, she had enough access into Hama Valon to prepare there too. She bought a long cloak, bundled it up and stuffed it behind a loose brick in a wall behind a tavern so that every time she went into the city she could cover her novice whites and become anonymous. Each visit, after checking in on Stacia and Beckan, she slipped through the crowds, measuring her paces, calculating angles of fire for arrows from elevated positions if the city guards decided to stop them with warning shots. And she spent her stolen coin recklessly, buying up everything they could possibly need, making dozens of caches around the city. Civilian clothes, food and water, travel supplies—not just for Casey and Lia, but for Stacia and Beckan too, who would follow them at a safe distance. Because Casey was not staying apart from her sisters for one second longer than absolutely necessary. She would carry Beckan in her arms if need be.

All this waiting made her sick with tension, a knot of worry in her stomach that only ever tightened. She wrote lists and maps on the back of the mirror in her room, then scribbled them out and wrote more. She paced and fretted while Sabine pointedly ignored her. In her dreams, she stumbled through mazes of nets and fishing lines, clawing at ropes and yards until her fingertips tore, desperately searching for Lia.

Days passed. Then weeks.

Then one glorious morning while Casey lingered over her breakfast porridge, another novice mentioned that Lia Marcos was back from the Farm.

The spoon clattered from Casey’s fingers. She could only stammer some excuse before she had to bolt from the table. She could not bear even another second apart from Lia; even the short distance to the novice living quarters felt like a million miles.

When she burst into the seventh room along from her own, she stopped dead. Because a heartbreakingly familiar girl stood in front of the mirror, prettifying herself with cosmetics, as if nothing had ever happened. As if she had never been stolen, as if their home had never been burned.

Casey had never been away from her sisters so long, never been so terrified for them; she could barely get out the name through the tightness in her throat. “Lia?”

And wonderfully, Lia turned from her mirror, lifting those sea-grey, sea-green eyes to hers, and Casey couldn’t even breathe.

For one heart-stopping moment, the Marcos sisters stared at each other.

Then Lia lit up with joy. The whole world brightened. And Lia leapt into her arms with a squeal. “Nadia!”

And just like that, she was Nadia again. Nadia caught her little sister up in a huge hug, in a surge of hope and joy. Even though Lia was almost her height, Nadia spun her around in her arms, staggering slightly under her weight. Nadia squeezed her so tight Lia squeaked, a familiar soft warmth in Nadia’s arms. “Lia. You’re safe now. You’re safe. I’m here.” Her eyes stung with tears.

Lia whispered muffled words against her shoulder, still clinging to her. Nadia stroked her silky curls, smoothed a hand up and down her back. She could feel Lia trembling.

Finally, reluctantly, Nadia pulled back from the hug, taking Lia by her slim shoulders instead. Lia lifted her tearstained face to hers, eyes wide and beseeching, and Nadia lost her heart all over again. “I came to find you.” It was all Nadia could choke out, her throat so tight it strangled words.

Lia just nodded. She swallowed hard. Her face crumpled briefly before she sniffed and wiped away the tears. “I was so scared. I didn’t know where they were taking me, I didn’t know what they wanted. I thought you’d never find me. I thought you’d just… I thought…”

“No. No. They could take you to the top of a mountain, they could sail you away on a ship, and I’d still come get you. Understand? I’d find you anywhere. I’d never just give up on you. Never.”

That made Lia smile a bit shakily. Her pointed chin came up and she tried to laugh. “As if you’d ever forget me. I’m awesome.”

Nadia couldn’t stop touching her, stroking back a stray curl, tugging her white dress straight. Her little sister glowed with health, the colour pink in her face. Nadia cupped her soft cheek, keeping Lia’s face tilted to hers. “You’re perfect. And you’re mine.”

And that was when Lia looked her up and down and her brow furrowed. “Nadia? Why are you wearing a novice dress?”

Ah. Right.

Nadia put on her best smile. “I signed up as a novice. I tricked them. They think I’m like them, but I’m not. I’m just me.”

Lia’s voice went up an octave. “You can channel?”

“Um…” Blood and ashes. “Don’t worry about it. I’m only here for you.”

Lia was a picture of confusion. “But you’re not… You can’t…”

“That’s not the point. I’m here to rescue you.”

And Lia said, “Rescue me from what?”

And the silence that followed—as Lia blinked at her while Nadia stared back, equally puzzled—made it clear Nadia had seriously misunderstood something here.

Nadia should have known Lia wouldn’t make it easy for her. Lia had been a stubborn child, always thinking she knew best, wanting to do everything for herself. She hadn’t even wanted Nadia to hold her hands while she learned to toddle. Lia’s favourite phrase growing up had been, You can’t tell me what to do. Playing in sunken gardens of seaweed that could drag her down and drown her? Climbing up onto the rooftops to eat nuts and throw the shells at passersby? Out at night mercilessly wrapping some poor boy around her little finger? You’re not my mother, Nadia. Don’t boss me around.

Nadia had been so fixated on Lia as stolen treasure, one of her three precious jewels, she had forgotten how many times she had had to slap Lia to keep her in line. How many times Lia had cried and begged forgiveness after another screaming row. And how many times Lia had sneaked into her bed to cuddle after a nightmare. Lia would tug and fuss until Nadia sleepily put her arm around her and let Lia snuggle into her.

The memory made Nadia gentle. “Lia. It’s all right. I know they kidnapped you. They must have scared you, even hurt you. But I’m here now. I’m going to steal you back. I can get you out of here, I promise.”

Lia scrunched up her face as if Nadia was the stupidest person on earth. “Uh, I don’t want to leave.”

“What? Why?”

“Nadia! What is wrong with you?” Lia drew herself up to her tiny height and put her hands on her hips. It was Nadia’s turn to blink. “I mean, they did kidnap me and they’re witches and they’re probably all evil. Plus these dresses are criminally boring, even though white is totally my colour. My tan glows. Look at me glowing.” Lia pointed at herself. “And there are all these stupid rules. I don’t even know why I got sent to that dumb Farm just for kissing Nate. He’s pretty, by the way. I’d kiss him again.”

“Lia!”

“What? You are so boring. He’s just a boy. Pay attention.” Lia waved her hand around to indicate the view from the window, the lush gardens, the glittering glass tower. “We’re in a palace! All the women wear the fanciest dresses. They have so much jewellery, they must have coin spilling out of their purses. Even their candlesticks are made of silver. I can’t believe you’d even think of leaving here without looting this place. And I’m not going anywhere. Can you imagine me as an Aes Sedai? Everyone would have to do whatever I told them. They’d probably bring me gifts so I wouldn’t crush them with my awesome powers. It’s like being a queen. Who wouldn’t want to be a queen?”

Blood and ashes. “Lia—”

“No. Nadia. No. You’re not my mother, you’re not my boss. You don’t get to tell me what to do. I’m special, they told me so. I’m going to be an Aes Sedai queen and you can’t ruin it for me. You’re just jealous that—”

Nadia slapped her in the face.

The crack of her palm rang out across the room. The force of the slap snapped Lia’s head around. Lia gasped, brought her hand up to cup her cheek, unbelieving. The mark had already begun to redden.

“Listen to me, you little idiot.” Nadia spoke through her teeth. “You are not going to be a queen. These people are abominations. They’re not even human. Get that through your empty little head.”

“That’s not f—”

Nadia slapped her again. Harder. “Do you even know what happened after you started that riot in Tear? Just because you like bewitching boys to get kisses and presents? Everyone found out what you were. They burned our house down. Stacia had to rescue Beckan from the smoke and the fire. They could have been killed!” The whole thought of Stacia desperate in the fire, Beckan crying in her arms, tightened Nadia’s chest until she could barely breathe.

“What? A fire? Are they all right?” Lia clutched at Nadia’s arms.

Lia clearly had not been worried about anyone else for one second. “They’re fine. No thanks to you. And I survived too. Also no thanks to you. I had to break with the Masks, I had to fight Rylan. She nearly cut out my liver.” Nadia yanked her own dress off her shoulder to reveal the livid scar below her arm. She had had to treat it herself because a servant girl with a knife scar would raise too many questions. “I brought Stacia and Beckan all the way to Hama Valon to rescue you. I spent every night on the road worrying about you. For weeks I’ve lied to everyone I met. I’ve lain awake waiting for my roommate to change her mind and smother me in my sleep. All because you just had to have a little fun.” Nadia’s teeth ground and it took all her restraint to bring her voice down. “You’re leaving when I tell you to leave. And I don’t want to hear another word from you.”

For once, Lia did not snap back at her. She had lost the colour in her face when Nadia had revealed the scar down her side. That seemed to bring it all home to Lia; she welled up with tears again. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean…” She touched Nadia’s side, tracing where the scar lay beneath the white cloth.

Nadia softened. “I know. I know you didn’t mean to. But this Aes Sedai thing is over, Lia. You need to be ready to go at any moment. Just drop everything and leave it all behind. And when we leave the Tower, you can never bewitch people again. Do you understand? Never. It’s too dangerous.”

Lia just nodded. Her face was set.

Nadia pulled her in for one last hug and kissed the top of her head. “My name here is Casey Frey. I’m still from Tear. But we don’t know each other, and if we talk, it’s only about home. All right?”

They were all used to this—not acknowledging each other in public in case it messed up a cover identity. Lia said with a little smile, “Casey definitely isn’t the boss of me.”

Nadia laughed, cheek against her hair. “I’m going to drown you like a kitten in a bag.”

Lia nestled closer. “No, you won’t. You love me.”

Nadia melted. “I do,” she whispered back.

She was going to steal this girl back and keep her safe forever. Just like she’d dreamed in that One Power class with Avyra. She would take them all to a little stone cottage by the sea, with a tiny boat so she could catch their dinner with a net. Beckan could play in the rock pools, Stacia could meet some shy boy so she could be shy back. And Lia could cause a local sensation, just the way Lia liked it.

And Nadia would be the happiest of all. Just as she had been when they were first put in her arms as tiny newborns—soft little bundles with dark curls, staring up at her with their wide sea-green eyes—and Nadia had first fallen helplessly in love.

#

Within two months, the entire Great Serpent structure had been razed to the ground, a whole generation of future Aes Sedai had been slaughtered, and Lia was dead.