DOCK BRAWL * open to all*

[zie]

The city should have impressed her but she was to busy gathering all of her things from the small cabin that her father had purchased for her on this trip. The captain had not been pleased but since he knew her father she was felt alone for the trip and given the cabin to hold her things. Her hands hovered over her mothers swords for a moment before she picked them up; strapping them in place she put her pack over top before leaving the cabin. There was nothing in the room to show that she had ever been there, smiling she turned and walked up on deck. The first glance at the city caused her to slow her step, a smile coming again, this would be her new home and she wondered what it was going to be like.

 

By this time they were docked and it took her a few moments to locate the captain since he was standing on the dock talking to several of the crew. From one step to the next her whole demeanor changed, gone was the young girl and now walked a woman with a purpose. It was time for him to pay her for the work that she had done and then she had to the warders were in this city. There was so much that she needed to find out and only one small clue as to where to start. If she had to spend all of her time walking though the city trying to find out more about her mother it was going to take her longer that she expected.

 

The captain continued to talk with the others while she waited a few steps away, after a short time she noticed that they kept looking at her and then talking quietly between them. All of them continued to ignore her, almost as if hoping she would give up and go away. Just as she was about to speak the captain started all over again with what he wanted every one to do. Growing frustrated she waited until he stopped talking a moment before moving closer to the group, while raising her voice to be heard over the others.

 

“Captain Terdan? Can I have a moment of your time?â€

 

It was a simple request she thought but he almost seemed like it was a bother to take the time to talk to her. She shifted her stance and waited for him to say something, it was not long before he waved her closer. His tone when he spoke should have given her a clue as to what he was thinking, as soon as the first set of words came her temper started to simmer.

 

“What is it Girl?â€

 

“You owe me wages for working on the ship all the way up the river, since I paid for the cabin we both know that I was not working for room and board. All I am asking for is what is rightfully mine.â€

 

The laughing started with the captain and all the men joined in as soon as it started, a feeling settled in her stomach. There was going to be a fight she just knew it, but the odds were against her since there were so many sailors standing around the captain. More in a fight did not always mean that more numbers would win the day. This was not going to go well but all she could do was give it her best and get the silver that was promised to her. When the laughter died down to where the men could breathe easier the captain looked at her and smiled.

 

“What are you talking about Girl? I never promised you any thing for working on my ship, isn’t that right boys?â€

 

Several of the men agreed with him but one sailor Danny who had been the one that Kalush talked to most spoke differently. There was no telling what started the fight but the raised voices between all if them were a start. The other men of the crew started yelling at Danny for agreeing with her and she started to yell at the captain while he was yelling at all of them. Jant was the first to throw a punch and that connected with Danny who fell back in to Kalush who some how ended up shoved in to the captain and to keep herself from falling to the ground she grabbed on to him. The only trouble with that was that her hand caught his money pouched and snapped it off his belt that motion caught his attention and he bellowed loudly as his pants slipped down to the top of his boots.

 

Kalush laughed at his predicament but not for long since he was shouting at all the men to get her and the pouch she was now holding. Feeling the weight of it she could tell that it was a little less than what he had agreed to pay her. Waving happily at him she started to walk away from the fighting, she stopped when she heard the captain tell the other men to stop fighting and attack her. Since she was several feet away she turned and ran out in to a larger area, the dock its self was not the right place for a fight. She needed more room to move if she was going to take on the whole crew of the ship, well not the whole of them. Danny looked like he was willing to help her; she gave him a smile and changed in to a fighting stance.

 

Jant was the first to reach her and she ducked him easily, and sent a punch up in to his ribs. It always seemed to startle men when she was able to hit with enough strength to actually cause them harm. He was on his knees cursing her by the time she pivoted slightly and kicked him in the head. That one move caused all the other men to join in the fun, arms and legs were flying in every direction and Kalush was right in the middle of it all. One of the smaller crew members slipped up beside her and delivered one of several hits, the fist connected with her left cheek and split her lip open. Time slowed for her just a little reaching a hand up she wiped away the blood, a smile coming to her lips. Turning smoothly she gathered the pain and used it; her right hand came up in a fist and sent the man sprawling back in to several of the others. Again every thing happened at once and she was working hard to keep her feet under her. She felt some one make a grab for her sword and some thing took hold of her, growling low in her throat she spun around again and let her fist fly. Expecting to see a sailor she was slightly shocked when it was not one of the crew standing behind her. Too late to pull the punch back she just shrugged and let him have it, hoping that who ever it was would not be to upset later.

 

 

** Any one can jump in, Aran owes her a black eye but that’s the only set requirement. *impish grin* Enjoy. **

[Wayfarer]

It had been a relaxing lunch with a number of his fellow guard. Not all of them were fast friends, but they'd all desired a lunch that was different from what was usually served in the mess hall. Eating with sursa was something he'd learned early in his life, but not all of his fellow guard had been forced to learn and it had been entertaining if nothing else.

 

One of the advantages of being on the southern docks was entertainment. There was always something going on if you looked for it, and this time it looked for them instead. A girl running through their midst, sailors chasing after her rammed by them. Cursing, Aran decided to give chase, this was a good chance for some fun and besides which it was one girl against all of them. It just wouldn't be right to leave the odds tilted so.

 

Crashing into the back of one of them as the girl whirled on them, Aran ran over the man's back as he launched himself into another one. Making his way towards the girl, he decided the best thing to do was to get her out of there. The easiest thing to grab at was one of her swords which he took and pulled at to try and drag her clear.

 

Staggering back a step, Aran would have put her on the ground if a sailor hadn't decided at that moment to tackle him to the ground. Rolling about on the ground, Aran pummeled the man with his elbows as he fought to get free.

 

 

Aran

Tower Guard

[Asfaloth]

It had been a long morning and Shawn was glad for the chance to get out of the Tower. The sights, sounds, and even smells of Tar Valon still made him a little uneasy. It had been many years since he'd come here but he still found city life to be much too crowded. He was on his way down to the docks to pick up a new shipment of iron for the forge. Usually they would have just sent a couple apprentices down to get it but the last shipment had been confiscated by some thieves on it way back to the Tower, leaving the boys bruised and scared, so Shawn had decided he would handle the delivery himself.

 

As he approached he saw a crowd running toward him. Curious as to why there were so many people he took a closer look and realized they were a group of sailors chasing a small girl. Well, that didn't seem right. Even if the girl was in the wrong there was certainly no need for her to be so greatly outnumbered. Shawn ran to help, noticing as he did another guard come running from a tavern nearby. Aran, of course, would never miss the oppurtunity to engage in a little mischief.

 

Shawn saw Aran grab the girl's sword and watched her swing around and connect her fist with his eye, right before he was tackled by a sailor. Chuckling to himself at Aran's reward for trying to help knocked the sailor out and then pulled him off his fellow Guard. He winked at Aran and then called to the girl, "Settle down girl, we're here to help." Unfortunately, it seemed she might not have heard his words in time for she swung faster than he would have expected and got him in the eye as well. He and Aran would have matching black eyes when this was over. Setting the girl down beside him he turned her to face their attackers and stood to guard her left side while Aran took the right. They wouldn't last in this position long but it was a good place to start.

[Mark_Mandragoran]

Mark sat atop of a roof near the docks, letting the feel of the sea breeze flush over him. It had been a long day, and he was still tired from the training his new mentor Deneira was putting him through. He let himself relax, trying to loosen the knots developing in his shoulders. It was not going to be easy to sleep tonight, but he had asked for the deliberate beating. He reached behind him and grabbed a loaf of bread he had bought while taking some time out on the town, and sat back to watch the masses of humanity go by.

 

Surprise, surprise. A girl came running by, followed by a gruop of sailors, and when they caught up with her, she started to give them hell for their pains. Along came a warder, Aran by the looks of it, and started to help the young girl take them on. Yet another, he couldn't tell who, joined the fray, and earned a black eye from the spunky girl before she recognized assistance and moved aside for him to help.

 

Mark watched for a few seconds, letting his adrenaline pump before getting up. He then threw away his loaf of bread and grabbed a gutter to lower himself down to the road. With an evil grin, he moseyed on up behind the nearest sailor, quickly turned him around, and punched him right in the face, knocking a few teeth flying. A wound opened up on his hand where the teeth had cut him, but it didn't hurt much, so he dove headfirst into the riot, intent on finding more prey to take down. Even though he was quickly pinned down, he continued to grin, and managed to find his way to a standing position after a few kicks. This was going to be more fun than his training, if he was any judge.

[zie]

Every thing happened so fast, first the punch to the guy who grabbed her, she felt bad about that especially after the look on his face. And now she managed to hit some one else who seemed to be trying to help her, if only they did not sneak up on her it would not have happened at all. Growling under her breath she took another swing at the first sailor that was headed in her direction, her hit landed hard against the man’s nose and blood gushed every where. That did not stop her from hitting him again and making him step back several feet from her. Turning slightly she saw some one else working towards them and wondered how it always seemed to be her fault that some one got hurt.

 

Of course it always seemed that bad things happened in threes, first the captain refused to pay her, then she hit two guys who were trying to help her, and now by the looks of the men coming around the corner from behind them it was about to get more interesting. There were three of them and they looked rather large, more so than the other sailors, seeing the captain right behind them made it even worse. Kalush guessed that they were loaders he had hired from the last stop, they were not seen much only when the cargo was being loaded or unloaded.

 

“We have more company coming and they are bigger.â€

 

Kalush knew that they were the ones to really watch, she had seen them in action and even though they were big they still moved quickly. The others seeing them coming moved out of the way to give them more room to fight. Some one slammed in to her form behind and Kalush was pushed right in to their path, it did not take them long at all to grab a hold of her. Cursing her luck she could at that point, swinging a leg to the left she kicked Tarl in a very soft spot that got one of her arms free. It was not enough though because now she had a very angry Tarl and the other two were now surrounding her. Looking past them she saw the others still fighting with the other sailors.

 

She felt some thing being taken off her belt and glared at the captain; he would choose this moment to take back the silver that was hers. There was little she could do being held between them and when Tarl hit her, the force of it snapped her head back hard. Shaking her head to clear it she used the pain on order to gain the strength to retaliate. One solid kick to his face and she twisted enough to get one arm free but that did not last long. With her arms recaptured by the third guy all she could do was use her legs to keep Tarl far enough away that he could not hit her again. If the tide of this fight did not change soon she was sure that the captain would get away with her silver and all of them would be hurting on the ground.

[Wayfarer]

"Bastard!"

 

It was that word that Aran chose to punctuate a well placed elbow on a man who had been grappling with him. Kicking the man while he was on the ground, Aran rolled away from the punch of another assailant and came to his feet in a smooth motion before sweeping out with his leg, taking the person down as his leg struck the back of the sailor's ankles.

 

Standing, Aran frowned as he saw the girl who'd struck him earlier being held by a couple of men easily half again her size while a third one was laying into her. Barging by a couple of people inbetween, Aran threw himself at the man's back with one knee raised. Smashing into the small of the man's back, an elbow to the back of the man's head knocked him out cold as he dropped to the cobblestones.

 

The trouble, Aran realised even as he danced with the two that remained, was not so much taking the men down but doing so in ways that didn't permanently injure them. It was one thing to have a brawl and throw some fists about, but when you knew exactly how to break someone's kneecap or gouge their eye out in one strike, it was difficult to ignore parts of one's training in favour of others when it was all meant to be instinct and reaction.

 

The girl grabbing one of the men from behind gave Aran the opportunity to single the other out. Getting inside the man's guard, Aran punched repeatedly as he slipped to either side of the man's blows, driving him back.

 

 

Aran

Tower Guard

 

OOC: Its open for Shawn or Mark to help her with the other one, whoever gets in first :D

[Mark_Mandragoran]

OOC: i got your back covered

 

IC: Mark wiped away the blood from his eyes, trying to see though the matted hair that had bundled up in front of his face. The last guy has been holding a very extensive piece of lead pipe, and had left a nasty gash on Marks forhead. Luckily, he hadn't gotten any further, and was now lying face down somewhere in the mob, hopefully being stepped on. Mark had left the lead pipe, not wanting to miss out on the feel of his fist breaking something. Whether it was his own knuckles or not.

 

He spun around just in time to witness another three men reach for him, and they managed to grab his arms while he leaned in and bit at their hands. One started to punch him in the head, and Mark momentarilly lost sight of his surroundings. Still smiling, he lashed out with his feet, using the two holding him as anchors, and managed to kick the third guy in the face. With him down clutching a broken nose, Mark was left to deal with the other two, who tried to toss him down to finish him off with kicks. Mark rolled away, and managed to knock out a passerbys feet in the process. He rose to one knee quickly, and instead of waiting, lunged at the guy on the left, aiming for the shins. The man toppled like a domino, but landed square on top of Mark, winding him with a random blow to the stomach.

 

Mark pulled himself out from under the big man, and crawled away a few feet while trying to catch his breath, which was running from him faster than a Cairheinian smuggler. The two guys who had been trying to catch him got grabbed by other passing brawlers, and soon disappeared, leaving Mark to crouch on the ground and hope he didn't puke up his guts.

 

While sitting there, still not sure of himself, Mark looked over to watch as the girl who had started the fight got nabbed by some very big, angry men. While they got ready to give her a good beating, a furious ball of legs and arms flew out of nowhere and eliminated on of them from the general group, driving him away from the girl, who now was going at it with the other one who had been holding her. Mark watched as they battled, but it was obvious that these big guys were more accustomed to this sort of thing than the average sailor, and even now were recovering from the vicious attacks dealt out to them. Not wanting to let a good fight go to waste, he sprang from the ground, all but forgetting his pain, and jumped on the back of the guy holding her left arm. He wrapped his arms around the mans neck, and started to squeeze, knowing that if he held on long enough he could knock the man out from lack of air. Tasting his own blood still pouring from his head, he grinned wider.

[Asfaloth]

What had started off as a girl running through the streets pursued by a few sailors had gradually transformed into a full-out brawl involving nearly everyone in the vicinity. The street was packed from one side to another and as was typical in a brawl of this size Shawn knew most of those involved didn't have any idea what they were fighting about. All the better as it left them disorganized and confused, giving Shawn plenty of oppurtunities to wreak havoc among the masses.

 

Shawn flowed through the crowd as water flows through a river bed, weaving his way between the participants of the brawl leaving damage in his wake. A punch here and a kick there and Shawn was gone before his victims even knew who had done it. He'd trip one to the ground or help somebody up, choosing at random who to help and who to hinder. The randomness added to the fun and Shawn was laughing and enjoying himself in no time.

 

Soon he found himself on the fringes of the brawl and took a quick moment to catch his breath and look around. The girl who was the cause of all this trouble was running, good for her she might just survive this. It'd be a shame if she got killed after he and Aran had come to her rescue. Only, it seemed she wouldn't be getting away as quickly and easily as she'd thought she would, as she was soon caught by three extremely large men.

 

Shawn ran toward her and saw Aran jump one of the men, effectively taking him out of the fight. Then a trainee he'd seen a few times around the Yards jumped on the back of one of the two men holding her and applied a choke hold. Shawn took a flying leap and connected a foot to the head of the third guy in the fight. The man staggered but didn't fall. Who was this guy? As Shawn landed in a crouch he swiftly swept the man's feet out from under him. When he fell Shawn was on him in an instant, pummeling his face with rapid punches.

[zie]

Every thing was turning out to be a huge mess, three guys were now in the brawl and they seemed to be helping her out. With only two of them sporting black eyes she was trying not to hit the third one but he seemed determined to get in the way of if her legs. Finding herself dropped by the guy holding her she took a quick look around; most of the men from the ship were flat on the ground. Some were groaning and holding them selves, other were not even moving at all.

 

Kalush caught sight of the captain and growled there was no way that he was getting away with her silver. Since she had no idea how long it was going to take her to find the warders and learn about her mother, she needed all the coin she could earn. She let out an ear piercing whistle that seemed to get every ones attention, even the three who were helping her. There was so much contempt in her voice that it dripped when she spoke.

 

“Captain you are beyond contempt, how can you stand there acting like an honorable captain when you refuse to pay some one who worked on your ship its whole journey. I may be only 16 turns but even I know that it’s not right to cheat some one, whether you are doing business with them or if they work for you.â€

 

Since there were others around, even other captains, shop owners and other people all around them she knew she had hit her mark. He was beyond upset as he walked back over towards her; there was a feeling in the air as she watched him. Before for he even started the hit she dropped down and used her leg to knock his feet out from under him. Snatching the pouch form him yet again she stood up and waited to see if he would move or come at her again. He jumped up faster than she expected and slashed at her with a knife, her eyes narrowed slightly as she moved back.

 

As it was her shirt now had a nice long gash in it. She was about to take a step forward when he lunged at her again, sucking in her stomach she jumped back again her elbow connected soundly with a very hard stomach. It did not take long to realize that some one larger than her was right behind her; with her arm posed to strike she heard a hiss come from behind her. Hands grabbed her shoulders and literally tossed her out of the way before stepping forward to face the captain.

 

Barely managing to keep her feet as she staggered she had to turn back to see what has happening. The man she'd first struck first was already throwing himself at the Captain with no hesitation at all. Another hasty thrust was caught and the man didn't even pause as he punched the Captain in the throat. The dagger clattering to the ground as the Captain began to sag forward onto his knees; a vicious elbow slammed into the side of the man's temple and knocked him unconscious. All she could do was stare, she had only see one other move like that, fear and excitement washed though her at the same time.

 

His look of confidence annoyed her and she gave a small smile before dropping low and using her leg to sweep his out from under him. It gave her great pleasure to see the startled look on his face as he landed hard on his rear end. Launching herself at him for no other reason than that he was male and sitting there, a growl came from her throat again. It only took a second for him to start shouting for some one to get her off him so that he could get up. Straddling his chest she started to hit him, much to her frustration he was able to block her hits even with being at a slight disadvantage. Once in a while she would managed to make contact, it was the second hit that landed close to his already blue black eye that had him really shouting and some one picked her up by her pack.

 

“And to think I thought you were a warder.â€

 

The word warder sounded more like a curse when she spat it at the man on the ground, not caring what they did to her for saying it. An aggravated hiss came form her before she managed to land a kick against the legs of the person holding her. Instantly she was dropped, the landing made her legs throb for a moment before she dove away from them all and came up in a crouch. Her eyes were watchful but she made no move to run, they would have caught her in a few steps because she was more tired she let on. She needed sleep but at the same time she needed to start her quest for knowledge and find out what the warders were and why her mother disappeared.

 

It took her a moment to realize that every one they had been fighting was on the ground; slowly it sank in that these three men might just be what she was searching for. The expression on the man with the second black eye gave away that they warders or possibly training with them. Any appreciation that might have been in her eyes of their skill died instantly, pure hate replaced it and since the first black eye wearing man was right in front of her he seemed to be the easiest target for it. Fire burned in her eyes as she slowly stood up, her body radiated fury and it continued in to her voice.

 

“It’s your fault; you sheep herding whoreson, your all bastards, warders should be killed for what they have done.â€

 

It started in her breathing; the slow full breaths that readied her for action, her mother had taught her how to ready her self for extreme exercise. Her muscles loosed up and she looked almost relaxed right before her foot slipped back and she threw her best knife right at his heart. Not even waiting to see if it connected she spun around and ran, not listening to them shouting after her. Her only thought was to get away from the men who would make her disappear if they knew who she was.

 

Using all of her speed, which as not really much but it was all she could do, she made for the corner since they had been fighting in the middle of the street. Just as she was about to make it around the corner some thing large hit her from behind, she felt arms come around her and she fought like a wild cat. Nothing she did helped and he as able to grab her arm and twist it behind her back, as soon as he started to apply pressure she had to stop her struggles or risk dislocating her shoulder. Slowly he stood up with her held captive, if her mother was there she would know what to do, thoughts of her mother caused a very different reaction. Her fighting seemed to stop and she stood there fighting the pain both emotional and physical at that point. There was no telling why the tears started but once they did she could not seem to stop them. She had not cried in years; even when they found her mother missing she had not. Using her free hand she brushed at her tears, glaring at them and then at the man who held her still.

 

It was about that time that the others came up to where he had her standing, her expression changed again, almost like a mask came over her face. She used a bored and expressionless look until her captor pulled up slightly on her arm. All three of them started talking quietly but she ignored them all acting like they were not even holding her there. The one that she had not hit that day was looking at her very closely and she was starting to get annoyed by his close inspection, growling softly she kicked out at him but was jerked back quickly by her arm. A small gasp was the only indication that what he had done hurt her, after that she moved back a step trying to take some of the strain of her arm.

[Wayfarer]

While some would say that Aran was rather relaxed when it came to... Well, practically everything, there were some things that he just refused to let slide. Some of these things could be considered rather strange, for example he had a habit of interfering in people's business when they didn't wish it for their own good. It often got him into a great deal of trouble, but more often than not he was at least grudgingly thanked for it in the end. Alternately he could be cursed for his trouble whether he'd succeeded or not, and even though he knew he could stir trouble and draw attention with his antics he continued with them.

 

Then there were things that no one, let alone himself could let slide. Amongst these things was never letting a person throw a dagger at him and get away with it. Especially an ungrateful chit of a girl who had cursed her rescuers, thrown a dagger at himself and made a run for it.

 

He'd managed to snag the dagger out of the air, one of a number of tricks he'd picked up over the years. Better yet, he'd managed not to cut himself in the process and he'd wedged the dagger inbetween his belt and hip as he'd chased the girl down. Taking her to ground hadn't taken longer, and making her get back on her feet had been easy enough. The tears had been a surprise, it wasn't fear if Aran's suspicion that she was too dumb for the emotion was correct. Which would then lead to the question of what she had been crying about.

 

Or would have if she hadn't tossed a dagger at him.

 

Since she had, Aran was more concerned with keeping her under control, especially with the other two close. They barely had the chance to begin talking about what to do with her when the chit decided to lash out at Mark with a foot. Jerking her back, Aran frowned as the girl decided to try and ease her situation. A kick to the back of her legs had her on her knees as Aran changed his grip so her arm was fully extended and twisted, forcing her to bow forward.

 

"There's something that needs to be done before we continue. Mark, you see how I'm putting pressure on this hand? I want you to take it and anytime she starts to talk without having been spoken to first or decides to lash out you just do this." Bending her hand and wrist rather painfully, a gasp of pain escaped her from the sharp sensation. Easing up, he frowned as she began to curse him and repeated the trick. As he eased up the second time, there was a distinct silence on her part.

 

Handing over to Mark, Aran frowned as something occured to him. Taking her free arm, she offered it to Shawn. "If you'd be so kind? It won't take long." With Shawn as accomodating as he was, and no doubt smarting a little from the black eye she'd given him during the tussle, Aran was ready to proceed. The first thing he did was divest her of her swords, leading to Mark having to use Aran's trick at least three or four times before she learned better.

 

Setting them aside, he took the daggers at her belt and when padding her down found another in her boot. Girl was well enough armed, yet she didn't really have the skill to merit her armament. Walking about, Aran squatted down infront of her and with quite an amused grin proceeded to help himself to the pouch of coins she'd been fighting over. The protest was immediate but Mark thankfully was quick to silence her.

 

Shawn on the otherhand was curious as to what he was doing. Chuckling, Aran shrugged. "Dagger tossing in public fine." Tucking the pouch in his own belt, Aran collected the weapons up. Examining them a little closer, Aran's eyebrows arched before he chuckled. "Hey Shawn, you're the smith come and have a look at this."

 

Offering one of the swords to Shawn, Aran spoke on. "I'm not all that familiar with maker's seals as I prefer my weapons to be unmarked. Recognise the work at all?"

 

 

Aran

Tower Guard

 

OOC: Hoping that about covers things, if I've fouled anything just let me know :)

[Asfaloth]

Well if this child wasn't the most ungrateful little chit Shawn had ever met. Her life is saved by two Tower Guards and a trainee of the Yards and does she thank them? Oh no, instead of thanking them she hurls insults at all those trained at the Tower, the three of them in particular, and then runs, attacking Aran in the process. This was unbelievable. Shawn was fast to the scene but Aran, having started from a standing position instead of squatting over a victim, had already subdued the girl by the time he'd arrived. This girl provided a dilemma for the three of them. Should they bring her to the city watch, or the Tower, or set her free to do what she wants?

 

That was what the three of them were discussing when she lashed out at Mark, or rather attempted to since Aran's hold on her arm prevented much movement. This accomplished little for the girl. Actually it resulted in her on her knees with Mark applying pressure to her wrist to keep her cooperative so Shawn and Aran could further look into the situation. For the time being Shawn was content to let the older, more experienced Aran take the lead in this situation. This included holding her free arm out of the way so that Aran could remove and examine the weapons she carried.

 

And if Shawn applied a slight amount more pressure than neccessary? Well, it was justified after the punch she'd served him earlier. His right eye was tender already and he knew from experience that it would swell up consideringly by the end of the day. More than likely it would stay swelled up for the rest of the week, the girl definitely had some strength in her arm.

 

No telling whether she knew how to use them but wasn't it interesting that she carried three daggers in addition to the two swords? Why was she here in Tar Valon? Was she a threat to the Sisters of the Tower? It was unlikely but Shawn wasn't one to let the possibility of a threat pass until he was sure it wouldn't come to pass. Shawn didn't quite agree with Aran taking the money but right now it was important they proved a united front, not give the girl reason to divide them, the money thing could be dealt with later.

 

A strange look crossed Aran's face as he checked the swords and then he asked for Shawn's expert opinion, "Hey Shawn, you're the smith come and have a look at this. I'm not all that familiar with maker's seals as I prefer my weapons to be unmarked. Recognise the work at all?"

 

Taking the sword Aran handed him Shawn looked it over. There was a hawk on the pommel where a Master's mark would normally be found. Interestingly this was not a mark he recognized. Drawing the sword he examined the blade hoping to discern its maker but was only more puzzled. It was true Shawn hadn't yet familiarized himself with all of the master's marks in the continent but what made this interesting was that he recognized the work of the blade, or at least thought he did. The problem was that he knew the mark of the Master he suspected of having forged this sword and it wasn't a hawk. What did that mean?

 

"Where did you get this sword?" Not surprisingly, she provided no answer to that question. He suspected he might get more information from examining the second sword. This one had a wolf head on its pommel, once more a symbol he did not recognize. He drew the sword from its scabbard and all hell broke loose.

 

OOC: Thought I'd leave it to you to decide exactly how she responds.

[zie]

It did not take long to understand that they were not going to let her go any where, but she could not help struggling when the one removed all her weapons. Each time she tried to move the jerk behind her yanked on her arm and caused fresh pain to travel its length. Curses flew out of her mouth as the worked at disarming her, with both arms being held all she could do was wait until they were not paying such close attention to her before she made her next move.

 

She squirmed a little when the one called Shawn over to look at the swords she carried, protesting got her arm twisted some more but let her get one foot under her at the same time. The one named Shawn took a real interest in them and that caused a small bit of panic on her part, but she did her best to keep calm even when he spoke to her.

 

"Where did you get this sword?"

 

There was no way that she was telling him any thing; she had no idea what they would do if they found out that it was her mothers. They could use her against her and Kalush would never put her mother in to more danger. These Warders were involved and they had to know where her mom was, if any of them had hurt her in any way she would make sure they all paid for it. Shifting and cursing at them again Mark used the arm trick again and she was able to get both legs under her body. She had to wait for the right moment before she tried her mothers move again. Her thoughts went back to the first time and she grimaced, some things are very hard to learn.

 

The first time her mother had ever showed her, it was a day that she would never forget, they had been out in the field working forms when her mom decided to teach her some hand to hand fighting. For the time when you did not have any weapons at hand that would be used easily. She had been on her knees and her mother had her arm behind her, it was a simple thing, just use the hold on your arm to flip away from the person holding you. Of course it was easier when you had your feet actually under you, Kalush managed to do that but when she tried to do the flip some thing went wrong. Her legs shifted wrong when she pushed up and it caused her shoulder to dislocate, the pain had knocked her out for several hours. Both of her parents were worried and they took her to the village wisdom, after several days of drinking a horrible tea she was fine.

 

As soon as Shawn’s hands came in contact with the wolf sword that was her mothers she acted, pushing off hard with her feet, her now free arm came around and hit at Mark. The power in her legs sent her body up and over, just as she was about to complete the move, Mark pulled on her arm and there was a loud pop. Tears came to her eyes for a moment as the pain threatened to rob her of sense; she finished the move and ended up free of Mark and standing closer to Shawn. With her good arms she snatched the sword form him, knowing that she would not be able to get both of them from the two men. She went for the one that was most important to her, it had been her grandfathers.

 

They were not shocked for long and the first guy who got black eyes made a move towards her as if to hit her. She jumped back not wanting him to get his hands on her, but she was not aware of Mark moving to stand right behind her. She was about to pivot and run when his hand came down hard on her dislocated shoulder, there was no way she could stop the scream that came from her. Or the fact that the last things she saw before passing out was two very grim looking male faces. Her hold on the sword might have loosened a little but it was all that she was aware of as darkness engulfed her.

[Asfaloth]

There was a brief struggle, lasting only seconds really, before Kalush had her arm dislocated by Mark and slipped into unconsciousness. Why had she reacted so violently to Shawn's inspection of the sword? Who was she and what was really going on here? These were questions that needed answering. Shawn looked around and saw that they were drawing quite a crowd around them. "We need to get out of here, it's getting to be a bit crowded." Turning to the trainee Shawn grinned, poor boy was going to get stuck doing all the grunt work if he wanted to tag along with a pair of guards. "Mark, you carry her and follow me, I know just the place to go to continue our interrogation. You coming along Aran?"

 

Shawn started off without waiting for a response from either man, or even checking to see if they followed. Lately he'd been finding himself taking charge of situations no matter who else was present. It came partly from his work in the forge, but he was beginning to wonder if there might be more to it. Was he born to be a leader of men? Who was he born to be? Oh well, those questions would have to wait, they had more pressing business at the moment. Such as figuring out who this wild girl was and why she was in the city. they had to determine if she posed any sort of threat to the denizens of the Tower.

 

The inn Shawn led them to was a good ways from the dock but the girl was small and he was sure Mark could handle his burden with care. He could have chosen any number of inns or taverns closer to the docks but he'd chosen The Tower's Shadow for its proximity to the Yards. Situated directly outside one of the main gates the inn was frequented often by off duty guards and boasted several meeting rooms. Shawn considered it might be dangerous to have her so close to the Tower if she was what he feared, some assasin sent to do the Sisters harm, but knew that the privelges given to Guards at the inn far outweighed the risks.

 

As they entered the barkeep called out greetings to he and Aran and then gasped in surprise as Mark walked in carrying the girl. "We need a room we can use to question this child Master Kinkade. the blue room ought to do if its available."

 

It was available and Shawn led the other two in and locked the door behind them. Mark deposited the girl in a chair in the center of the room and Shawn and Aran worked together to secure her hands and feet so she could not escape. On the way Shawn had taken the oppurtunity to see the second sword and discover why she'd been so upset. She was hiding something and he intended to find out what it was. "Aran, can you think of any reason this little chit would carry a heron marked blade?"

[Wayfarer]

"Because she's dumb." Not exactly a conclusive answer, but one that Aran felt had a certain amount of merit. Beyond the fact she'd thrown a dagger at him, given both him and Shawn black eyes and caused that entire brawl to begin with, she was wearing blades she had no right to clearly. One idea did come to mind that was worth chasing up, though it was a grim one if Aran was correct. It also seemed unlikely, but then stranger things had happened, and not every blade was drawn on a battlefield.

 

"This may sound crazy but... she did say death to Warders for what they've done. Thats as good a way to get a heron marked blade as any no? She couldn't beat a Warder in a fair fight, let alone one with a heron marked blade. But then, fights are rarely fair, or she may have stolen them from another. Either way, what I could do is take these blades to the smiths back in the Tower. Maybe one of them will be able to recognise the blade's make. Or have an idea of where it is from. Keep an eye on her."

 

Getting a nod of assent, Aran made his way from the Tower's Shadow to the inner walls. It was a worry, if these blades were in this girl's hands, then there was a good chance that the person who had lost them had died. If that were a Warder then it also begged the question of what happened to the Aes Sedai he was bonded to. Or if it were a Tower Guard, then whatever he or she had been assigned to was now lost. All questions that would have to be answered if Aran's assumption was correct.

 

"Aran!"

 

Turning about to see Daemon, Aran grinned. They didn't talk all the time, but they got along in a certain manner. Besides which, they had Cairma in common and that helped in many respects. Walking over to him, there was an easy casualness in the insult that came with familiarity as he spoke. "What is it old timer?"

 

Daemon's reaction was not what Aran expected. Nor the coldness in the voice as the man spoke. "Where did you get those swords from, Aran?"

 

"Do you recognise them?" Aran was surprised to say the least, and he was already handing one of the blades to Daemon to inspect. "I've just come across them. What can you tell me about them?"

 

Daemon's eyes slided down the blades, near to where the guard was. "Yes I do." - he pointed to a little brown spot of dried blood - "There is a good chance that some small part of that drop of blood is mine."

 

Frowning, Aran pulled the blade back as he looked at Daemon curiously. This didn't match up, if that girl had tried to use a butterknife let alone a pair of heron marked blades on Daemon the man could have simply flicked her with his little finger and knocked her over. His blood? "I think you need to tell me about these swords, now. Whose are they?" The name of the girl would be a good start.

 

Daemon's voice was level as usual. Though it his voice was not as cold as usual. "Those blades belong to Akira Roan Gaidar, Master of Ren'Shai, and my mentor. She taught me most of what I know today. I took up her place when she disappeared." His gaze moved back to Aran.

 

"Where did you find them, Aran?" - the coldness was back.

 

Frowning at the tone of voice Daemon was adopting, Aran was trying to sort out what he'd been told. He'd seen Akira Roan before, and that girl wasn't her. There was no way the girl could have gotten the blades from her, but that girl did look oddly familiar... "Come with me, see for yourself."

 

It was a shorter trip back to where they were holding the girl. The girl was awake again, not to mention glaring at them rather resentfully. Aran also noticed that someone had also had the wise idea to gag her, the last thing they needed was her yelling and cursing and generally making as much trouble as she possibly could.

 

Daemon seemed to be lost studying her, so Aran decided to prod with what had happened. After all, it did bear a certain disturbing parallel to an old piece of history he'd heard spoken of about Akira Roan. "You know, she started a brawl on the docks. After we got her out of trouble she cursed us, threw a dagger at me of all things then ran. Had to chase the rabbit down and then when I stripped her of her weapons I noticed the quality of the swords, Shawn looked them over and gave more details. I was on my way to the smithy to let the smiths try and identify them when you called me over. What do you think?"

 

 

Aran

Tower Guard

 

Daemon Ronshor

Tower Guard

[Ghaul]

Aran let Daemon to a building, to scene which Daemon had to admit he was not expecting. There were two other men, men Daemon knew, one was a fellow Tower Guard - Shawn, the other was a trainee - Mark. What caught his attention however was the girl. She was not tall, compared to Daemon she was even small, but he was rather big. She had long hair, black and her eyes were blue, but there was not a way that Daemon could mistake this look. Not to mention that her shoulder was dislocated, and with the way she was tied it would put big preasure on her shoulder, making it a very painful expirience. And yet,she was not flinching or giving out any signs of being pain, as if she was taught by a Ren'shai too.

 

"You know, she started a brawl on the docks. After we got her out of trouble she cursed us, threw a dagger at me of all things then ran. Had to chase the rabbit down and then when I stripped her of her weapons I noticed the quality of the swords, Shawn looked them over and gave more details. I was on my way to the smithy to let the smiths try and identify them when you called me over. What do you think?"

 

Daemon nodded to the man.

 

"Well I have a good idea who this girl is. I am not one hundred precent sure yet but I can tell you that it will be safe to untie her, she will not cause any harm"- yes, Ren'Shai stuck together and never caused trouble in the presence of another Ren'shai.

 

The other men just looked at him as Daemon as he began untying the girl.First he removed her gag. As he was untying her he asked.

 

"You're last name is Roan, isn't it?"

 

The girl just noded. As she was free Daemon looked at the swords in James'es hand and than back to the girl.

 

"Those swords belong to your mother, don't they, to Akira Roan. - he continues besides the girl's surprise. - "Yes I do know your mother, she was once my teacher. I dare say she taught be well and would be proud with the way I turned out. Now what is your name? Mine is Daemon, Daemon Ronshor"

 

He held his hand out to her

 

Daemon Ronshor

[zie]

Awareness came to her slowly, the first things she knew is that her shoulder was out again, the next thing was that her arms and legs were both tied to the chair she was sitting in. Using the training that her mother had given her she used it now to help her regain control. Breathing deeply she opened her eyes and looked around the room she was in, two of the three men were with her still and quietly talking over on the other side of the room. When she tried to close her mouth all the way because her jaw was starting to ache she realized that they had gagged her. Growling softly she was about to make it known that she awake when the door opened Aran came in followed by the most dangerous man she had ever seen.

 

She could not take her eyes off him and the way he moved, he moved just like her mother did all the time. That calm flowing gate that no one else ever seemed to have, it was not just how he moved but the look on his face that decided her about this one man. He at least was some one that she could trust, the way that he looked at Aran and the others made her want to question him about every thing. The thought came to her mind that he might even know her mother and the truth about her past, since her parents had never told her any thing. She did not even noticed what Aran was saying since her focus was on the other man standing there, he reminded her so much of her mother even his eyes, that cold look was there. When he turned his attention back to her it took a moment to realize what he said and that he was undoing her bonds.

 

"Well I have a good idea who this girl is. I am not one hundred precent sure yet but I can tell you that it will be safe to untie her, she will not cause any harm."

 

She was not sure she agreed with him but in order to find out more from him she was willing to hold her temper at least the best she could. Not even a groan escaped when her arm was freed and she shifted slightly to ease it. The looks form the others would have made her laugh if his next words had not rendered her speechless. He asked her if her last name was Roan, well not exactly asked her but she could not speak to answer him so she just nodded her head.

 

"Those swords belong to your mother, don't they, to Akira Roan. Yes I do know your mother, she was once my teacher. I dare say she taught be well and would be proud with the way I turned out. Now what is your name? Mine is Daemon, Daemon Ronshor"

 

Not even trying to hide her surprise, she just started at him, he knew her mother and her mothers past. Or he was one of those involved in her mother’s disappearance, but why would he give her his name then. She was trying to figure this all out when it was obvious that he was waiting for her to give her name. Not seeing any harm in it she felt the need to get up and move, as she stood up Mark sifted stances slightly. She gave them a half hearted glare and answered Daemon.

 

“My name is Kalush Roan, and yes the swords are my mothers.â€

 

Her answers were vague but she could not help that, she was trying to locate some where in the room where she could fix her shoulder. Slamming it in to a wall would work but the room was not set up so that she could do it that way. The only other option was to hand from it and at this point she was not sure she could life it up high enough. Walking to the far way she saw exactly what she needed and moved over to it, the wall came out just enough that she could stand next to it and relocate her shoulder. All of them were watching her now but she did not pay them any mind, she had to focus to do this other wise she would black out. Taking a few deep breaths she released that last one and slammed her shoulder in to the wall. None of them seemed surprised by what she had done but she did not care, she was working her shoulder in order to make sure that it was back in its proper place. Turning back to Daemon she asked the only question that came in to her mind and the one seemed to be the most important.

 

“Why did the warders take my mother away?â€

[Ghaul]

“My name is Kalush Roan, and yes the swords are my mothers.â€

 

So her name was Kalush eh? Well Akira did seem to have a taste for the more rare names. And though that she was of the right age, Daemon was not yet quite sure of was she telling the truth or not. The girl did bare some physical resemblance with his mentor, but not so great to identify her as Akira's daughter right away. She did however had Akira's firm look and expression. And as she stood up and moved arround, Daemon recognized the pattern of moving, it was that of a person who had seen how Ren'Shai had moved. Still that could be an attempt to imitate the way Daemon himself moved, but je very much doubted, it took quite some practice until a person began to even look slightly like a Ren'Shai and Kalush was beyond that stage already. However what happened next, convinced Daemon that she was Akira's daughter.

 

Kalush was walking up and down, looking at the walls, ignoring the four men in the room. Obviously she was looking for someplace we she could relocate her shoulder.When she finally did find a suitable spot, she slammed her shoulder against it as expected. What Daemon noticed though, and he was ready to bet that everyone else has noticed too, was the Kalush did not even flinch as her shoulder snapped into place. Now Daemon was certain that she had been arround a Ren'Shai, and indeed Akira's daughter. Plus, Akira's sword seem to belong to Kalush, and Daemon's mentor would not just give her sword over like that, unless Kalush was reall her daughter.

 

“Why did the warders take my mother away?â€

 

The Warders? Taking Akira?

 

"The warders have not taken her, Kalush. Had they have I would know. When I last saw your mother was 15 years ago, she told me that she needed a rest, but that she'll come back one day. And your mother is not the kind of person to sneak in. she would have openly declared her arrival. Not to mention that for a warrior such as her, quite a few people would be need in order to take her anywhere against her will."

[Asfaloth]

When Aran returned it was in the company of Daemon, an older Tower Guard that Shawn greatly respected but spent little time with. It seemed Daemon even knew who the girl was. Interesting. And a blademaster and former Tower Guard for a mother? And a Ren-shai Master? Well that certainly explained the temper and the fighting prowess she displayed back at the docks.

 

And she earned his respect anew when she reloacted her shoulder without any display of pain crossing her face. Shawn had dislocated his own shoulders several times, due to training and a few times from swimming, so he knew how painful both the injury and the treatment could be. That she kept such pain concealed spoke well of her upbringing and the training she'd received, more evidence that Daemon could be right as to his guess at her identity. And proved to Shawn at least that she wasn;t lying when she'd confirmed that identity for them.

 

How could she think the Warders would take her mother from her? Did she think the protectors of the Tower would stoop to such levels? If she did think that than it explained much of her behavior since learning who they were. And if she was a Ren-Shai Master as Daemon claimed than he was right, it would have taken many more men to take her captive than the girl said had been there.

 

"Is that why you've come to Tar Valon? To rescue your mother from the clutches of the Warders?" Shawn tried to hold back his laughter with only moderate success as a smile split his face, "If so, I'm afriad you've made the journey in vain. What will you do now?"

[zie]

Things were becoming confused, if the warders had not taken her mother then who had? All of the men she was standing in front of were telling the truth of that she was sure. Shawn's amusement almost set off her temper again but she moved her shoulder and the refresh of pain allowed her to control it this time. Thinking over Daemon and Shawn's words it left her in a place that she never been in before. She had no idea what to do now, her only lead had been the man mentioning warders before her mother disappeared.

 

"Your amusement is not welcome, let me ask you this what would you think if the moment before your mother disappeared you heard several men talking about warders. When you came back from going to get your father no one could tell you any thing, no direction on where they went, no idea of who any of them were, nothing but the mention of Warders. Now you tell me what conclusion you would come to?"

 

"She never talked about her past or what came before she met my father, for some reason the impression she gave others was that she did not like or trust any one when it came to that. My mother never mentioned the warders it was almost like she forgot her past on purpose. All I know is how she met my father, or at least the watered down version of what happened. In all honestly I did not even know that my mother could wield a sword until about seven months ago. I followed her one morning when she use to go train for about 2 hours every day, she almost took my head off with one of her swords. After that she started teaching me how to use weapons, mostly swords but I am accurate with daggers as well."

 

It was hard to retell her story since she had told no one but her father what she had seen or heard, but what other choice did she have. Maybe telling them would help her find out what had happened to her mother, at this point it could not hurt. The only bad thing was that there was not much to tell, she only new a few things and now they knew the same information she did. It was hard not to blame the warders at first but now that she had met a few of them she could not find it in her to continue to blame them for her mothers disappearance. Her eyes moved over each of them and landed on Aran well maybe not all of them since he still held on to her mothers swords and her daggers still. She could understand his wanting to keep them away from her but it still made her growl that he would not think of giving them back.

 

" I am sure that you all know the stories that are told about Ase Sedai's and their warders, just the ones I heard while traveling here would be enough to cause any one who did not know a warder in person to be leery of them. It just added to the feeling that the warders were some how responsible for my mother going missing."

 

She was done trying to explain it to them, if they did not want to believe her then there was nothing she could do or say about it. It was a waist of energy and at the moment she was just to tired to care what they thought, her shoulder ached but that did not stop her form working it to keep it form going stiff. Kalush was not sure what her next move was going to be since this was the only real lead she had and now.... there was no telling.

[Ghaul]

Daemon could see why the girl has travelled to Tar Valon. After all the only lead she had was the word warders. However it has led her to a dead end. And even if Daemon was amused by the thought of Kalush alone rescuing her mother from the White Tower, had Akira been here in the first place, he did not show it. One of the first lesson a Ren'Shai learned was to stay emotionless. Still he had a few guesses of his own he voiced.

 

"Well, Kalush, whatever the stories tell we do not go arround in gold plated armors,encrusted with gemstones of all colours, nor do we wield weapons that 5 ordinary men can't lift up. And as you see we're not giants either, neither do we eat people. Kidnapping people and killing them just for fun is also not on our to do list. Actually, our goal is quite the opposite."

 

Daemon could see that his fellow Tower Guards were amused. He continued.

 

"As you see, we're humans, like everyone else. But I do believe that you have more important things to worry about now, like what are you going to do, now that it became clear that your trip here was in vain?" - Daemon's voice was level, without any change,matching his face. - "And just for your information, the White Tower is not the only one intrested in Ren'Shai warriors. During my training, when a group of Ren'Shai students were on the road sometimes nobles tried get us to leave the Tower and serve them. One king even suggested to our whole group that we enter his army as officers, and to train his personal guard. I do not know if this has happened to your mother, though it is a possibility. After all, she is a Master of Ren'Shai"

 

Daemon Ronshor

[zie]

It was hard to stand there and take their amusement, several times she had to sift her shoulder just so the pain would give her added control and focus. She was not use to having to control it for this long, or in situations where she would rather not control it at all. But being with these men and them having all of her weapons left her little choice in the matter though and she had to know what they knew about her mother. Even if all the stories told were lies there still could be some truth, maybe not in how it was told but in part of the past. Taking a moment to think about what he had said, sure there is a possibility that some one would want to have her mother train their guards but there were better ways to ask then threaten to kill her or take her daughter. Her mother would have killed them all, or would she have? At this point Kalush was not sure what her mother would have done or how they were bale to take her away from the village. There was so much that did not have an explanation or any way to reason it out.

 

" Even if what you say is true and some noble came to ask my mother to come train his men. They would not have threatened me in order to get her to come. That would be pure stupidity, because my mother would have protected me at all costs, even if it meant killing them. I don't see how they could have got her to go with them willingly. You have to admit that even the best warriors can be over whelmed, it makes me wonder if they did not drug her some how. With out more information there is no way that I can find her, and with the way that you are talking I get the feeling that you wont let me walk out of her to try and find her."

 

The look on all of their faces was enough to let her know that she had been right, maybe they thought that she was a danger to others. Or maybe they thought that she should train more so that she could complete her quest and find her mother. She was not sure what she thought about that, training with them and spending time to get to know them. In all honesty what choice did she have? If she was to continue and find her mother then she needed to know and understand her mothers training. Understand what it was that drove her and why others would want to take her and have her train their soldiers. At a lost as to what to do she turned away form them, she did not have a plan for what to do she had come here to learn what she could of the warders and try and find her mother. Now that was not a possibility because her mother was not here, or at least that is what they claimed.

[Wayfarer]

Aran had been fairly quiet as he listened to both Daemon and Shawn converse with Kalush. Several things became very apparent during the discussion. One, Kalush had clearly been getting instruction from her mother because the way she handled her dislocation spoke for itself. It also became apparent that she was very young, not just in age but in temper as well. She quickly judged, not only those who wore the crimson or fancloth cloaks, but also everything else about her mother's disappearance.

 

Of course, that led back to the problem of her temper. If she was quick to judge and quick to anger, combined with her unwillingness to back down there was going to be more trouble than just that dock brawl. Either she'd get herself killed, or she'd end up killing people sooner or later and neither option was very appealing. Well, the thought of pushing Kalush down a flight of stairs did enter his mind but that was more a flight of fancy. Black eyes tended to engender such flights of fancy, or so Aran had noticed over the years.

 

"You're right, you're not." Getting a baleful look from the girl, Aran was unfazed as he continued. "You're a danger to yourself and everyone around you as far as I'm concerned. You have training, but not enough and if it wasn't for us you would have either ended up dead or sorely beaten. Tried that in other places, worse could have happened to you. No, your wandering is done, and as far as I'm concerned you have two choices."

 

"One, we have you imprisoned for the disturbance as well as assaulting Tower Guards. You'll sit in a cell, your meals will consist of gruel and you will know nothing except the ten feet by ten feet cell you are kept in. Or two, you come with us and we enroll you at the yards and submit to our rules and training. Either way we will look for your mother, I think Daemon here would certainly like to know where she is as a former student of hers. But how you spend your time while your mother is being located is up to you, and either way you're not going to be roaming about on your own and picking fights."

 

"So, whats it going to be?"

 

 

Aran

Tower Guard

[zie]

Why did it have to be him that made the decision as to what her choices were, she had a feeling that he would rather toss her out of the city than keep her here. That the others seemed to agree with those two choices made matters even worse in her opinion, but she did not have any choice in the matter. It was either a cell or training, the cell did not agree with her at all since she did not like being confined at all. Training had its advantages because that meant movement and in away freedom, she would be able to learn more than what she already knew about how to use swords. It was hard to accept any thing coming from Aran but he gave her little choice in the matter. Squaring up her shoulders she looked at each one before giving them her decision, all the while burring the hate she felt towards Aran.

 

" In all honesty its not that much of a choice."

 

It was harder that she thought to voice the choice she had made, almost as if saying it would some how bind her here and to them. The thought of Aran having any control over what she did was unsettling but it was not some thing that she could turn down just because of that reason. Right now at this time she was deciding her future for the next several years if not all of her life would be tied to this one choice and deciding to train in Tar Valon and become a tower guard or Warder.

 

" I would like to stay and train."

 

She said it simply, there really was not much more to say at this point since they would not let her just walk away. It did bother her that Aran said they would try and locate her mother, it was not their place to do that. She thought about that for a moment and realized that it was since her mother had been a warder. That made her feel a little better but some thing about the way that Aran phrased it caused her to pause. It was almost as if he did not believe her in what she told them shrugging it off she turned her attention back to the men standing around the room with her. They wanted to take her to see the Mistress of Training and get her all signed in and settled before any of them let her out of their sight. She had a strange feeling that she would be watched for some time to come to make sure that she was where they had put her and not off causing more trouble for them. As soon as they all came to an agreement she could have groaned, Aran was to take her to get checked in since Shawn had some thing he needed to finish for the armory. Daemon it seemed was going to accompany them as well while Mark was to go back to what ever he was suppose to be doing.

 

The walk was not a long one since they seemed to be close to the Warders training grounds, she felt a little strange walking between all of them like a prisoner. That thought amused her slightly, but she made no move to get away from them or do any thing that would make Aran change his mind. The only thing that kept her temper at a simmer was that he still had her swords and would not give them back to her. Introductions were done quickly and then she was being herded off to the training barracks, where she would be staying while in the first parts of her training. Once she was alone again her mind came back to some thing she missed, why had Aran been so amused by the choice of mentor. Shrugging it off again she set out to settle her things, growling every now and then about the lack of her swords.