Daes Dae'mar for Dummies - Lesson 3

[AddiBeth]

Lesson 3: The Art of Disguise

 

Despite the reasonably neutral expression on her face, Estel’s mood was black.  Jaw muscles practically groaned with the effort of internalising yawns and powder hid dark bags under her eyes.  It was immature for an Aes Sedai to resent mornings, especially to the point of allowing it to affect her mood; however, it was a scrap of her Acceptedhood that she clung to.  Now, Estel Liones was the least favourite member of her Ajah, a jaded shell of a woman.  Longingly she remembered being a raging ball of fire at her pupils’ age; it had taken an Aes Sedai nearly physically yanking her from bed in the mornings to wake her up before the sun was halfway between horizon and zenith.

 

When the last student hurried into the classroom, relieved her five minute tardiness was being ignored, the Blue Sister began the day’s lecture.  “The Art of Disguise is perhaps the simplest art and certainly requires the least amount of explanation.  A disguise can be as simple as covering your face and removing your ring,” Estel twisted the golden serpent ring on her finger, “or as complicated as changing one’s hair colour and style, using a different accent and manner of speech, even walking differently.

 

“This art, in its most obvious form, is the least used of the three arts but can be just as, or more, vital; if you are planning any excursions to Amadicia or even Tear, I would advise not advertising you are Aes Sedai.  That is a more obvious situation, but what if you happen to be followed through a crowd?  How will you lose your pursuer?

 

“In a short-term situation, a few simple tips are applicable in most situations.  Try changing your gait and posture.  Do you stand straight or hunch over?  How do you walk?  If you take off your shoe and examine the wear marks on the sole, what do you see?  Do your feet angle inwards or outwards?  Do you walk more heavily on the heel or ball off your foot?”  The Aes Sedai waited a moment while her class shuffled in their seats, finding answers to the rhetorical questions.  “If you are in a foreign country, your skin colour may set you apart from the rest of the crowd or you may need to hide your face since you will all eventually develop the telltale ageless faces of Aes Sedai; even in warmer climates, dust cloaks are an excellent devise to shield help shield identity.

 

“However, more complex disguises are needed should you need to conceal your identity for a longer period of time.  In addition to your visual disguise, you may need a back story.  Many Aes Sedai have a number of aliases they use depending on their location and the situation.  This becomes more difficult taking into account the restrictions of the First Oath.

 

“When creating an alias, you must first ask yourself “where is this person from?”  Powders and pastels can alter your skin colour, adjust the appearance of your eyes or bone structure; with a practiced hand, an Aes Sedai can even disguise the look of agelessness.  Hair colour and fashion is another obvious physical trait to take note of.  Now, “how does this person talk?”  What accent should you use?  Are they well educated?  An uneducated person would not understand large words; they might fumble with their grammar and use slang while an educated person would not.  “What subjects interest this person?”  A Tairen fisherman’s wife would not talk for hours about the Borderlands nor would she even believe Trollocs and other Shadowspan to be real.

 

“I want you to create an alias.  Tomorrow I want you to return here, disguised as this new persona.  You are dismissed.”

 

ooc: First post for this lesson (min250 words): the next day Estel will ask your character who she is, describe your alias.