*checks in late*

Hey Nyn, good to see we have a division leader again, and congrats. I'm Guelamin, a lieutenant in the Hand, or was; I'm sort of dead here right now.

Maybe I'll manage to get back here, maybe not, but in any case, hey. Good to see everybody.

Thanks- it's pretty awesome to be around, and when I've got a bit more time on my hands I'll try to start or join an RP, I think.

Hand here. Though rather busy.

... *eyes Ell*

Sorry to hear you're stepping down- it's been great, and you've been a great DL.

Are you not going to be around at all, then?

Guelamin nodded curtly at the boy's response, and decided he was finished here. The Drillmaster would not let him off training today because of this, and Guelamin had to leave him able to perform those duties. Already, the day would be a painful one, enough to drive today's lesson home.

"Good," he said, striding for the door. "See that you do not."

Geulamin shook his head. "Your infringement was indeed one of discipline, Child of the Light. Discipline is a virtue essential to one of the Children, and without it we would be lost. But you do not atone because of shame." The blows slowed as he spoke.

"A Child of the Light does not seek glory. Pride in one's own accomplishments is acceptable, and you must be proud of your service to the Light, but we seek only to further the Light, not ourselves." As he finished, he lashed the boy's back once more, harder and harder and then suddenly stopping. "Do you understand?"

Guelamin restrained a grimace at the boy's answer. Incomplete- he hadn't fully answered the question, and he increased the speed of the blows. Crack. Crack.

He said in a deceptively mild tone of voice, "Child of the Light, can you tell me why what you did merits punishment? What was it that you did wrongly? Why is that wrong? Tell me if you can."

Guelamin puntuated his every sentence with a stroke of the strap. The recruit took the blows unlfinchingly- as well he might. Weakness of that sort had to be purged, and the best way was through pain. Guelamin would likely have gone harder if he had flinched at all.

"You know why this is a misdeed, so that you may avoid it in future."

Crack.

"You are sorry for your crime, and will try to atone in the Light."

Crack.

Crack.

"Answer." Crack. His statements had not been questions, but he wanted a response from the boy anyway.

Guelamin only nodded at the recruit's statement. Perhaps it was the truth, or perhaps the boy was simply a good liar, but either way, the way he carried himself was submissive. He was ready to submit to the will of the Light.

"Remove your shirt, then, that you may be punished." He waited, twitching the leather strap in his hands as he did so. He wished to be done with this, but it would be done properly.

He stepped behind the boy, flicking him with the belt as he did so to see if the recruit would flinch. He raised his arm and spoke as the first blow came down. "You know what you are being punished for."

I like the post-Breaking idea. Some plot would be needed, but to solve that, we could...

1. Use the founding of the White Tower. Various factions of Aes Sedai viciously clashing (usually verbally, but not always...) would make a great setting- instead of a White Tower div, there would be an Aes Sedai div with several factions (But these factions would interact with each other), each featuring a leader and possibly a hierarchy. Each group could have its own traditions and ideals, and while some could be loosely based on some of the Ajahs, we know that some of the factions never made it into the White Tower at all, so there are a lot of possibilities there.

2. Have city-states. In the same way that all Ogier come from Stedding Shangtai (because there aren't enough Ogier even in the one Stedding), everyone would come from a choice of maybe two nearby city-states and the people living near them (bandits, villagers, whatever). The city-states could feud with one another or ally against bandit groups or both. Aes Sedai could live here also- remember that right now, pretty much anyone can call herself Aes Sedai, and they certainly aren't attached to a single location yet.

So it seems that as long as we limit it to a small area at the start, it could work out fine. If there's a lot of interest, we could then flesh out the world and allow more locations.

It was early morning, and the sun had only just dawned on the Fortress of the Light. The few windows threw squares of light against the walls of the corridor, which almost gleamed white in the sunshine. Guelamin walked down the corridor, passing from light to shadow and back again. Several Children walked the halls already; many had duties early. As did he.

He turned from the corridor into the trainee's barracks. There had, he was given to understand, been a fight between three of the new recruits yesterday, and he had been given instructions to punish them for it. Normally, such a thing would have been a province of the Drillmaster. The fact that Guelamin had been instructed to do it instead was a clear sign that the Drillmaster was busy. Still, Guelamin felt some small measure of resentment, for being placed in this position. Not that he questioned the judgement of his superiors, but he had better things to do.

He came to the first door, opening it without warning. He had been told, "If they are not on their knees in prayer when you enter, strap them doubly hard." The first recruit, he saw, was kneeling on the bed, back to Guelamin. He looked back over his shoulder as Guelamin entered. So, he had not been asleep.

"I trust you have been in prayer all night?" Guelamin said disapprovingly, unlooping the coilded strap from his belt.

It was early morning, and the sun had only just dawned on the Fortress of the Light. The few windows threw squares of light against the walls of the corridor, which almost gleamed white in the sunshine. Guelamin walked down the corridor, passing from light to shadow and back again. Several Children walked the halls already; many had duties early. As did he.

He turned from the corridor into the trainee's barracks. There had, he was given to understand, been a fight between three of the new recruits yesterday, and he had been given instructions to punish them for it. Normally, such a thing would have been a province of the Drillmaster. The fact that Guelamin had been instructed to do it instead was a clear sign that the Drillmaster was busy. Still, Guelamin felt some small measure of resentment, for being placed in this position. Not that he questioned the judgement of his superiors, but he had better things to do.

He came to the first door, opening it without warning. He had been told, "If they are not on their knees in prayer when you enter, strap them doubly hard." The first recruit, he saw, was kneeling on the bed, back to Guelamin. He looked back over his shoulder as Guelamin entered. So, he had not been asleep.

"I trust you have been in prayer all night?" Guelamin said disapprovingly, unlooping the coilded strap from his belt.

Guelamin had just exited his quarters when the shout came, echoing faintly down the corridor. With it came a rumbling whoomph and a red glow shining faintly off the white stone walls. "Witches!" He paused. Witches? In the Dome of Truth itself? Impossible. None but the Children had ever been allowed into the Dome, even the outlying parts of it. Had the witches shown their true colors and struck at the Fortress?

Unsheathing his sword, he headed cautiously down the corridor towards the glow. It led down a stairwell and into a large chamber, lined with tapestries and statues depicting various heroes among the Children of the past. A high ceiling and carved support columns added to the grand sense of the room.

At least, that was what the stairwell normally opened on to. The source of the red glow was immediately apparent, as many of the tapestries had falled onto the floor and were burning. Some of the statues had collapsed. There was one person in the room. Her back was to Guelamin, but the fringed blue shawl made it all too apparent what she was.

He moved forward cautiously, hoping to be able to sneak up on her. With the roar of the flames concealing any noise he made, it might be possible. The fallen tapestries made it difficult to creep around, though. As he watched, she raised her hands, and a bolt of fire streaked from them and immolated a statue of the third Lord Captain Commander.

Distracted, he didn't notice the rubble from another fallen statue until his foot slipped, and he fell forward, praying to the Light that he not fall into the fire. The Light heard him, but he landed heavily, and he could not restrain a grunt of pain as sharp fragments pierced his white tabard- he had not worn any armor. The noise of the fall had surely given him away.

The Aes Sedai did not turn around. She destroyed another pair of statues, then the wide double doors at the other end of the chamber. She strode out of the room, never taking any notice of him.

Cautiously, Guelamin got to his feet, surpressing a wince as he plucked blood-stained masonry from his chest. The wounds could wait. With a curse, he followed the witch deeper into the Fortress at a limping run.

OOC: You did refer to dragging the big guy back with you, though. That's who I was talking about.

But edited anyway. I couldn't think of anything to say and was just trying to get the thread going again.

Guelamin continued to scowl at the table as another Child, a young man, walked over to talk with the girl. Another woman followed. At least this one ate quietly. When a fourth Child, a fat man who looked unused to the uniform of a Child. So much for solitude. Or quiet. A laugh from the Taraboner Child disturbed his thoughts, and he grimaced down at his plate.

Something the two were talking about caught his attention, though. The recent Tar Valon expedition. He had heard about some sort of trouble on that mission, though it had only been a recruiting mission. And in disguise to boot- the witches were hardly likely to welcome the Children in Tar Valon. He gave up his attempt to ignore them, and began to listen, hoping to learn more.

He cut in to the conversation as it fell silent. "You were on the Tar Valon mission? I heard there was trouble. Prisoners taken from the witches' guards, even."

when Guelamin entered the mess, it was without any sort of ceremony, simply entering quietly. Not slipping in, not striding in, just walking in and unobtrusively taking a plate of food for himself. The officers had their own mess hall, but it was far more formalized, requiring more interaction with other officers than Guelamin usually felt like. And it served meals at a more fixed hour, rather than being open at all times for a hungry Child just getting off duty. Most of those eating were too busy eating to speak with him of pay him any attention. And that was the way Guelamin liked it.

Except that today, somebody was sitting in his customary seat in the corner, a young girl dressed in dark clothing and staring at her plate in front of her. The other side was full of busily eating, laughing young Children in uniform. Little choise at all, really, though he did wish he could have had some solitude.

Guelamin took a seat near the young woman, glowering at her before turning to his own plate. Usually nobody sat over here until the mess was full; it was furthest from the door and the kitchens, and most liked some company. Why was this Child here? He pointedly ignored her and began to eat.

Dream of getting control? Heh, pun.

I'm up for plots between your future SC character and mine (animal handler), Ashara. I can't think of anything right now but I might be able to later.

The CoL are cool because of their variety. You get everything from actually good and noble people, to people who think they are good but do horrible things on a regular basis, to people who enjoy horribly torturing people to death.

Hey... I think I remember you in the Seanchan, back when most of us were sul'dam or damane. We're getting active again, but we don't have all that many people.

I think this http://seanchan.proboards22.com/index.cgi?board=bios&action=display&thread=1102210426 was your bio? Though you can always write a new one or ignore it if you decide not to rejoin.

Ooh, poker, insecty helmet... Yep, that's me! Wow, I'm surprised! Thanks!

Now to see whether I have managed to get it to work right...

Edit- Yep, I have!

I was about to post, and then read about the surprise. Then I was unsure whether this would be an a) good or b) bad surprise. I waffled a bit. Then, as is evident by the fact that you're reading this, I posted.

And hence goes the saga of my arrival at these boards. Yea, verily.

Your signature is most excellent, Ell. Truly captures the spirit of the CoL.