The Grey Tower

The warm rays of the summer sun beat down on Cecil's skin as he strolled through the Tower garden. What a fine day, he thought. As he walked, he whistled a merry tune. Walking the Gaidin Captain's pet dog, Snowflake, was one of the most pleasant chores a Ji'val could have. One only had to tolerate the silly prattling of Ravak's four-year-old daughter, though that was also usually not too difficult as the girl was easily distractable and often amused herself.

Cecil frowned. Speaking of which... where was that fool girl? Suddenly, the leash nearly tugged out of his grasp as Snowflake lunged forward. She twisted on her leash and growled. Cecil huffed.

"Woah! Bad girl! Sit!"

Snowflake barked furiously and pulled him toward the lake. Cecil strained to hold her back. What had gotten into her? The pet Shienaran husky was never so temperamental. Cecil twisted his head around, wondering if the dog was after a stray animal. Then he realized how quiet it was in the gardens, aside from the barking dog. It was never so quiet when Kaira was around. She rarely stopped chattering, even to herself. Dread settled into his stomach. Where was she? The girl liked pranks, and she was hardly ever punished. This had better not be one of her little games.

Then he spotted something in the lake. His breath caught and he froze. Oh Light, no. No! It couldn't be...!

Snowflake's leash slipped from his grasp and the husky bounded into the lake. Cecil screamed.

"HELP! Help! Someone please!"

He ran after Snowflake and plunged into the lake. He gasped. The water was cold! He struggled through the water, but his limbs felt sluggish and weighed down by wet clothing and oh, Light, he wasn't going to make it... wasn't going to make it in time to the small figure that floated limply in the water...

At the edge of the lake, a man raced from the foliage. A dark jacket, glimmering with the golden dragon pin of an Asha'man was cast aside and fluttered to the ground. With a clean, smooth arc, the man dove into the lake, hardly causing a ripple. Within seconds, the man had reached the bobbing figure, turned her face up, and begun returning to the shore with smooth, strong strokes. Snowflake swam at his side. When they reached ground, the dog curled herself protectively around the girl and licked her face. The man placed a hand on the girl's chest and closed his eyes.

Cecil stared, dumbfound. Slowly, the Ji'val turned and began paddling back toward solid ground, dreading what he would find, and wishing that he would never reach the shore.

Dripping with water that seemed unable to effect the Asha'man's body, Taesh looked over the young form. This was Mirin Sedai's daughter, the Aes Sedai that was reported to have been Black, a claim that the Atha'an Miere Grey refused to believe. Mirin Sedai had been the first Aes Sedai that Taesh had taken lessons from when he was just a Soldier, and she had left a good and lasting impression upon him. It would take more than rumor mill talk to change those memories.

The girl's body was cold, but that was to be expected, water seemed to sap the heat out of everything that entered it's depths, even in summer. What concerned Taesh though, was the barely felt heartbeat beneath his palm. He was no healer, had taken nothing but the most rudimentary and required courses in Healing, but before he was an Asha'man, he had been Atha'an Miere, The People of the Sea. He had seen overly ambitious boys and girls attempt jumps into rough waters, waters that over took them. And he had seen, and even helped, bring those same ones from the door of death when their lungs had become filled with water instead of air.

This time though, he could do so more quickly and efficiently than before. With little though the dark skinned Asha'man opened himself to saidin, the excruciatingly seductive torrent of the male half of the One Power, and with will alone wrested it to his control. Threads of Water and Air spun into the deceased Blue's daughter's body, at the same time removing the water that had been sucked in, a liquid ribbon snaking out of the girl's mouth, as her chest expanded with Air.

"Breathe child" Taesh pleaded as he heard the splashing of the ji'val coming to shore. Him he would deal with shortly. The severity of which would depend on the next few seconds.

Kaira drifted. Pastel colors filled her dreams, floating by like colorful clouds. From the distance, pleasant voices sang in a rhythmless, wordless song. The air held a delicious, enticing scent that reminded her of warm freshly made honey cakes or ripe, sweet blueberries. What a wondrous place! Kaira laughed and reached out to play with one of the clouds. Then a voice pierced through the haze.

"Wake, child. It is not your time yet."

A woman strode through the swirl of colors. She wore a blue riding dress cut from fine material and soft travel-worn leather boots. She had pale, sharp features and dark hair that tumbled in waves down her back. Kaira thought that she had seen her before, in a picture that her father had saved.

"Are you my mother?" Kaira asked.

The woman smiled, yet a sense of sadness remained in her eyes. She knelt down and gently took Kaira's hand.

"No, I am not," she said.

Kaira blinked up at her innocently.

"Then who are you?”

"Many strange things can happen in dreams," the woman said. "Places like this come and go. The Pattern twists in strange circles. There is little difference among what was, what is, and what will be. It all comes together. One day you will come to know me, sweet child. But now, you must wake."

Kaira bit her lip and hugged herself. Suddenly she realized how alone she felt, even in a place like this. A chilly breeze swept through the air. The colorful clouds darkened. The voices in the background became harsh and dissonant, and even the scents in the air changed and became tinged with bitterness. Kaira shivered.

"Wake? What do you mean? I don't know how."

"Close your eyes, little one." The woman's voice was soothing and hypnotizing. "Think of the place where you call home. Think of your father and his love. Feel that? Let your heart guide you."

A man’s voice spoke from above. Kaira opened her eyes, startled, but could not see him. She looked around in confusion.

"What is it that you’ve found?" the man said. "A lost child? Leave her. We must hurry."

The woman stood, seemingly in no rush to leave.

"Yes, Emmond," she called. Then she turned her attention back to Kaira.

"Go now, child. Your destiny awaits. May you shelter in the palm of the Creator's hand."
----- The little girl coughed. Liquid spilled out from her mouth and nose. Argh, it burned! She coughed again.

"Breathe," a man's voice commanded. “Breathe, child.”

The voice had changed. It was not the same man as the one she had… what was the voice again? She could not remember. Something seemed to force air into her lungs. Her body convulsed and then relaxed with relief as her chest began to move rhythmically. The burning in her throat did not stop. Kaira blinked blearily up into the sky.

“W-what happened?” she croaked. “Where’s Daddy? I want my daddy!”

She began to cry.

Spoiler: show

(OOC: I think that talking (and for me, writing) with a four-year-old will get frustrating. Perhaps we should just close this thread. I'd like to start a new one with Taesh and novice Kaira, who will be sixteen. Something with diplomacy, the Seafolk, and striking a Bargain. Let me PM you when I have it written!)