Intro to Saidar: Lesson two

[Phelix]

Once all the novices were present, Elin clapped once to bring their attention to her. “Welcome back, girls. To begin I want to reiterate something: You must always have an Accepted or an Aes Sedai supervising you while you channel. We are there to protect you and make sure that you do not over extend yourself. If you break this rule, you will be sent to the Mistress of Novices.”

 

She paused for a moment, and then picked up a stack of papers off the desk. “Girls, each of these pages has a woman’s name on it. Some were novices, some Accepted, and a few were Aes Sedai. Each and every one of them burnt themselves out while channeling.”

 

As she let that sink in, she passed the pages out to the novices. “Each of you will take your sheet and do some research into the situation surrounding that woman’s burning out. Please make sure to turn it in at our next class. If you fail to turn in the assignment, you will be assigned a visit to the Mistress of Novices.”

 

Watching the girls look over their assignments, Elin had to smile grimly. It was a harsh lesson, but one they had to learn.

 

“Now, please put your assignments away. We are going to work on a technique that will help you all learn control, which will help you avoid the fates you will be investigating.” She settled the stack of extra papers back on the desk, and turned back to the girls. “Please pay attention. Every one of us has an inherent limit on how much of the Power we can hold. When you first learn to touch the source, you will only be able to hold a small portion of your full potential. To make sure that you don’t draw too deeply, you have to practice letting go of the Power.”

 

The girls seemed to be taking it well, so Elin continued. “This technique is called pushing and pulling the source. Open yourself, just like we did last lesson with the rosebuds, and let the source fill you. Once you feel as full of the source as is comfortable, push the Power away. Don’t let it go entirely, but push it as far away from you as possible so only a trickle is still flowing into you, then pull it back in to full.”

 

OOC: RP your reaction to the assignment and the idea that novices like you have burnt out simply for not having enough control. Then RP push/pulling the source. I’ll reply to “end” the lesson, and post the third lesson as soon as everyone has replied, or Friday... whichever comes sooner.

[Matalina]

This was the first time Kate was allowed to move past the first lesson. She made sure she paid attention to the lesson and to everything that was being taught. Novices that burnt out didn't surprise her, it was a powerful thing the One Power. Nalia had taught her that at the very least, she was a dreadlord even if she wasn't the best person in the world. Kate's memories of the One Power were tarnished with her mother's views on it, but she did learn a little even if it wasn't actually to know how to channel. Miss Nalia had never suspected Kate could channel the one power. It had been a surprise to Kate as well.

 

Kate too her paper and filed it away in her note book and moved on with the lesson, she wouldn't really enjoy the research but at least it was the next lesson in the class. Kate was proud of herself as she embraced Saidar. It still took her a lot longer than the others to do so, but it was also much more complex for Kate to do so too many conflicting things, but it was getting easier with each time she tried.

 

Pushing and pulling, that was what they called this. Kate didn't want the warmth to go away, but she heeded the warnings and pushed it away till it barely glowed in her mind. Kate almost lost it, that was how far she pushed it away, but she managed to maintain control, that made Kate smile. She pulled it back in like her teacher had instructed, and practiced the exercise each time. But unlike most others after Kate did a few rounds, she let go entirely and practiced attaining Saidar. She needed to practice it all, she knew that and she would do it as often as she had to until it came as easy as it did to any other channeler.

[Zentopia]

Fianna looked over the list of names with some trepidation, glancing concernedly at her instructor for two reasons.

 

The first was obvious. Having now touched saidar, Fianna couldn't begin to imagine how it must feel to have that ability wiped away in a single act of thoughtlessness. What must that do to you? she thought. She wasn't looking forward to reading the records of this. But Healing could cure anything short of death, yes? Or so she'd heard it said. The novice had no idea if those claims were true, but surely they could heal burnout - that was short of death, too, wasn't it? She assumed they'd tried.

 

Secondly, she was less than thrilled about the word research. She'd grown to dislike that word and all it entailed since she came here. Fianna nibbled on one beaded braid in worry. Light, that meant going to the library again and working under the dismissive gazes of fellow Novices who knew their way around books. Worse, that meant she'd actually have to write and the teacher would have to parse her chickenscratch. Couldn't she just go and ask someone about it, and not have to toil through books for the answer? Truly told, the classwork was the worst part of the novice experience for her, so far. Toiling in the kitchens and scrubbing floors were an absolute joy in comparison. The Tuatha'an had no idea how the Tower expected her to catch up to the others, but she'd keep trying all the same.

 

With a sigh, Fianna set it aside, after making a barely legible 'Healing?' note in the upper right corner. I'll worry about that later, she said to herself, as the Accepted moved on to the focus of her lesson for the day. The novice paid very close attention to what she said; she really didn't care to be the next name on any of those lists.

 

She let her eyes flicker shut, finding it much easier to touch saidar when she closed herself off from any visual distractions. The rosebud appeared in her mind, and fumbling, she managed to embrace the Source. On Elin's direction, she pushed it way - and lost it completely. The girl blew her breath out in carefully minded frustration.

 

Nono. Push. Accepted Elin did not say 'shove'. However, 'pushing' something that she couldn't feel felt like pushing fog. Either you pushed really hard and lost it, or very lightly and got no reaction. Fianna could feel her frustration rising with every failure...and then she got it right.

 

Saidar hovered on the edge of perception, teasing her, and she reeled it back in just before the Accepted ended class. Light, I'll need a lot of practice with that one, she thought before heading out. Perhaps she could find an Accepted to spot her.

Edited October 4, 2010 by Chikara

[Phelix]

OOC: Gera again, not Elin...

 

IC:

 

Of course there were foolish girls and women who didn't know when to stop drawing on the source. Then again, it was common knowledge that Lews Therin Telamon, the Dragon, had killed himself by deliberately drawing too much of the Power. One needn't be foolish, necessarily, to over draw. Gera made the note on her assignment. Perhaps the woman she was assigned had been prudent, but simply made a miscalculation. In her former life a small miscalculation could have disastrous effects. Push a hard man too far, and rather than crumble and break, he might lunge at you with his knife. Gera had lost lieutenants to similar errors.

 

When it came time to embrace the source again, Gera smiled. The warmth that filled her was quickly becoming her favorite part of being in the Tower. How had she lived more than fifty years without this?

 

Pulling the Power into herself, Gera let it flow, filling her up to the top... it felt glorious to be so full of the Power. Then she let it drain away, letting all that glory and light flow out of her until there was the tiniest of trickles left. After all that shining glory, pushing it so far away made her feel cold and empty, longing to be filled again. So she let it flow back into herself. Then out again. And back in.

 

After she sighed deeply, a thought struck her. That heavy sigh and addicts grin were exactly how some drunks and smokers acted when imbibing their poison of choice. She knew because she arranged for many of them to get their substance. The Aes Sedai and Accepted were right... the One Power was as addictive as anything else out there.

 

Gera pushed it away, down to the trickle, and let it stay there for three heartbeats before entirely releasing the source. Gera Mondwin would not become an addict. Saidar was a tool to be used, not something to prop herself up with good feelings.

[keyholder21]

Miahna frowned slightly as the Accepted repeated what Valeri Sedai had told her upon her first night in the Tower – which was that novices were not permitted to channel without an Accepted or Aes Sedai present. She certainly didn’t want to break rules – rules that made sense anyway - but she was more of a kinesthetic learner. It was as if her body needed to go through the process before she could learn. I wonder if that includes embracing the One Power…. She weighed the possibility of getting in trouble to the ability to embrace Saidar on command as Elin picked up a stack of papers from the desk.

 

There was a tittering of chatter as the Accepted explained the assignment she handed out. Mimi looked down at the name on her paper and felt herself frown again. These women could never touch the True Source ever again. Despite the fact that she had only touched Saidar a few times in the few days she’d been at the Tower, Miahna knew that she never wanted to not be able to touch the One Power. She would not let that happen to her, even if she had to bother every Aes Sedai and Accepted in the bloody tower to supervise her!

 

Placing the paper within the notebook provided her, Miahna refocused on the Accepted at the front of the room. There had been a reason for the report after all. So as not to suffer the same fate of the women they would be learning about, Elin was describing a method through which they could test their inner strength. That was a handy technique, but this was the first time Mimi was hearing about the fact that not every Aes Sedai was the same strength. She made a mental note of that before tuning back into the lesson.

 

“This technique is called pushing and pulling the source.” Mimi snorted as she imagined Saidar as a rope being pulled at each end by some of her brothers and sisters. They used to play tug-of-war in the summer time before, well just Before. She closed her eyes and pictured the rosebud and the sun, going through the procedure she learned the other day. Nothing happened. Gritting her teeth, Miahna tried again, this time picturing her brothers and sisters as flowers next her, as she did at the end of the first lesson. The golden feeling seeped into her like it was filling her from the inside out.

 

Following Elin’s instructions, Mimi drew in as much of the feeling as she could. It was bliss almost to the point of pain. Reluctantly, she pushed it away. When it disappeared entirely, the novice let loose a small groan of disappointment and pictured those rosebuds again. This time the Source came immediately and when she pushed it away she felt the flow of warmth drain from her body until only a dribble remained. Pulling it back to her with earnest, Miahna felt that incredible touch flood into her again and she couldn’t help but smile at how it felt.

 

Just to test herself, she fully let go of the One Power and again pictured her row of roses. The Source bloomed into her and she proceeded to play tug-of-war at Elin's request.

Edited October 5, 2010 by keyholder21

[Grimmlocke]

Nanna rocked back and forth in her chair, trying to get comfortable despite the fact that the small ladder back had been made for someone with less heft to them than her. The thing made her pine for her old, comfortable well-cushioned stool. She shook her head and tried to concentrate on what Elin was saying. It seemed she had only been lost in her own thoughts for a few minutes. Nanna thanked the Light that she hadn't missed the entire lesson.

 

It made sense to have the Aes Sedai and Accepted watching over them. After all, you didn't give a girl a knife and expect her not to cut herself with it if you weren't watching over her shoulder the whole time. Light, half the time they managed to slice themselves when you were blinking or using the privy. Considering what all could be done with the Power, it was no surprise that they tried to make sure that no one did anything with it without a more experienced hand nearby to correct any mistakes. Luckily, Nanna was no slip of a girl. A grown woman was more than capable of handling any tool, no matter what it was. At least, a grown woman was smart enough to realize when she didn't know what she was doing.

 

She glanced down at the sheet of paper that Elin handed to her. So, people had managed to burn themselves out? Why did they have to do research on the subject? They were no doubt fools if they managed to cut themselves off from the Source. What could possess a fully trained sister to draw too much of the Power? More importantly, how was it that they could even do so? She had seen men tear muscles and break bones from trying to lift too much weight, but they had all healed in time. Why was burning oneself out so much different?

 

She looked around at the other girls. Well, the other girls and one woman. Nanna made a mental note to find out more about her as she looked back to Elin. The Accepted had said they could ask questions earlier, so surely they could ask questions in this class?

 

"Accepted, why is it that the connection to Saidar does not heal? I've seen women heal from all sorts of injuries, so why doesn't the ability to channel come back in time?" She asked, and then looked, well, glared around the room, daring any of the other Novices to try to make light of her ignorance.

 

After she had received her answer, the lesson continued on to learning to let go of Saidar. Nanna almost snorted. How hard could it be to let it go? No one in the room had burnt themselves out in the previous class, so it was hard for her to believe that anyone would have any problem doing so.

 

She formed the sunflower again, and after a few tries was basking in the warmth of the sun again. She lost the Source a few times while trying to pull more into her. It took more tries for her to figure out that she only needed to allow the One Power to fill her, not actually reach out for it. The idea was a simple one, but hard to master. She was used to bending the world around her to her will, not guiding it in the way she wanted it to go. Everything in her was contrary to what she needed to do to Channel, so she was one of the last to actually achieve the first objective of the lesson.

 

Letting go was even harder. After all that work, it seemed a waste to just push it away. Still, it was hardly the first thing she loved that she had had to push away. Her husband's face coalesced in her mind's eye, destroying the sunflower and shattering her tenuous hold on the One Power. Well, that was one way to let it go. She took a cautious look at Elin. The girl would likely not be satisfied until a more gradual release was achieved. Nanna grimaced and formed the wide sunflower again.

 

It took time, more time than she had hoped, to let go again. She did so gradually, as though stepping out of a pool of light. She noticed the lack almost immediately, but steeled herself against the dulling of her senses, the seeming fading of color and light as she let go of the One Power. She was unable to stop a regretful sigh from escaping her lips. Then she became aware of how long it had taken her to complete the lesson.

 

Embarassed, Nanna blushed and looked around again. As soon as she realized what she was doing though, she jerked her head forward and did her level best to crush the emotion. She was a grown woman, and she wasn't about to act like some sheepish, brainless, flaming child!

[Phelix]

Elin smiled as Nanna asked a question. "Accepted, why is it that the connection to Saidar does not heal? I've seen women heal from all sorts of injuries, so why doesn't the ability to channel come back in time?"

 

With a finger raised, Elin thought about her answer. "Nanna, when you over extend yourself, say you sprain your ankle or strain your back, everything is still there, still connected, and still able to Heal. Imagine if, instead of spraining your ankle, someone snapped your foot off at the ankle, leaving nothing but a jagged stump."

 

The mental image wasn't very pleasant, but it made her point. "If you channel a bit too much, but are stopped before it becomes more dangerous, it would be like the sprain. Channeling too much, or too long, or really in any way that you are unused to channeling, can cause you to overstress yourself, straining your connection to the Power. A woman can recover from that with a few days of rest."

 

That hadn't happened to Elin, yet, but she worked to be careful avoiding overstressing herself.

 

"Now, if you go too far and aren't stopped, you can snap your connection to the source. You will no longer be able to touch it or use it, just like if someone snapped your foot off at the ankle you wouldn't be able to use it again. Does that answer your question, Nanna?"

 

After the novice nodded, and the other girls continued on in the lesson, pushing and pulling the source, Elin smiled again. This group of novices was learning well, quickly. They were a pleasure to teach. Once she was sure they all had the technique down, Elin clapped, bringing their attention back to the front of the room.

 

"Now, girls, you have all mastered reaching the source, and are well on your way to learning to control the flow of the power in you. In our next lesson, we will actually be channeling the Power. Please make sure you are well rested when you next come to class. A tired woman can make mistakes that can be dangerous. A sleepy mistake with a flow of fire can turn lighting a candle into a fireball. Be sure to sleep well girls."

 

With that, she dismissed the novices and went to gather her materials before she went on to her own studies.