Mishraile each held the One Power, wrestling on the floor, a knife in Evin’s hands.
Androl scrambled toward Emarin, then nearly fell on his face as his legs gave out. Light! He was weak, but he did manage to burn away Emarin’s bonds, then Pevara’s. She shook her head, trying to clear it. Emarin nodded in gratitude.
“Can you weave?” Androl whispered. Taim’s attention was on Evin’s fight.
Emarin shook his head. “The drink they gave us. .”
Androl clung to the One Power. Shadows began to lengthen around him.
A gateway. He needed a gateway! Androl sucked in the One Power, forming the weave for Traveling. And yet, as before, he hit some kind of barrier-like a wall, preventing him from opening the gateway. Frustrated, he tried to make one to a closer destination. Perhaps distance mattered. Could he make a gateway to Canler’s store above them?
He struggled against that wall, fighting with everything he had. He strained, inching closer; he could almost do it. . He felt as if something was happening.
“Please,” he whispered. “Please, open. We need to get out of here. .”
Evin fell to Taim’s weave.
“What was that?” Taim bellowed.
“I don’t know,” Mishraile said. “Evin attacked us! He had been talking to the pageboy, and-”
Both spun toward Androl. Androl stopped trying to make the gateway, instead flinging a weave of fire in desperation toward Taim.
Taim smiled. By the time Androl’s tongue of fire reached him, it vanished into a weave of Air and Water that dissipated it.
“You
Androl gasped in pain. Emarin stumbled dizzily to his feet, but a second weave of Air knocked him down. Dazed, Androl felt himself hoisted up and pulled across the room.
The ugly woman wearing black stepped out of the circle of Aes Sedai and walked up beside Taim. “So, M’Hael,” she said. “You are not nearly as in control of this place as you indicated.”
“I have inferior tools,” Taim said. “I should have been given more women earlier!”
“You ran your Asha’man to exhaustion,” the woman replied. “You squandered their strength. I will take charge here.”
Taim stood on the dais, beside Logain’s slumped form, the women and the Fades. He seemed to consider this woman, perhaps one of the Forsaken, a greater threat than anyone else in the room.
“You think that will work, do you?” Taim asked.
“When the Nae’blis hears of how you are bungling-”
“The Nae’blis? I care not for Moridin. I have already provided a gift to the Great Lord himself. Beware, I am in his favor. I hold the keys in my hands, Hessalam.”
“You mean. . you actually did it? You stole them?”
Taim smiled. He turned back to Androl, who hung in the air, struggling without success. He wasn’t shielded. He flung another weave at Taim, but the man blocked it indifferently.
Androl wasn’t even worth shielding. Taim dropped him from the weaves of Air. Androl hit the ground hard. He grunted.
“How long have you trained here, Androl?” Taim asked. “You shame me. That is the
Androl struggled to his knees. He felt pain and worry from Pevara behind, her mind clouded with forkroot. In front of him, Logain sat on his throne, locked in place, surrounded by the enemy. The man’s eyes were closed; he was barely conscious.
“We are done here,” Taim said. “Mishraile, kill these captives. We will take those above and carry them to Shayol Ghul. The Great Lord has promised me more resources for my work there.”
Taim’s lackeys approached. Androl looked up from his knees. The darkness grew all around, shapes moving in the shadows. The darkness. . it terrified him. He had to let go of
He had to begin weaving.
Taim glanced at him, then smiled and wove balefire.
Androl clung to the Power.
He wove by instinct, the best weave he knew. A gateway. He hit that wall, that blasted wall.
A white-hot bar of light sprang from Taim’s fingers, pointed right at Androl. Androl shouted, straining, thrusting his hands forward and snapping his weave into place. He hit that wall and
A gateway the width of a coin opened in front of him. He caught the stream of balefire in it.
Taim frowned, and the room grew still, stunned Asha’man pausing their weaves. At that moment, the door to the room exploded inward.
Canler, holding the One Power, roared in. He was followed by the twenty or so Two Rivers boys who had come to train in the Black Tower.
Taim yelled, embracing the Source. “We are attacked!”
The dome seemed to be centered on the building project he’d noted. That was bad; with those foundations and pits, Slayer would have plenty of places to hide and ambush him.
Once they reached the village, Perrin pointed to a particularly large building. Two stories, built like an inn, with a solid wooden roof. “I’m going to take you up there,” Perrin whispered. “Ready your bow. Yell if you spot anyone trying to sneak up on me, all right?”
Gaul nodded. Perrin
Perrin dropped to the ground, floating softly the last inch or so in order to keep from making noise. He crouched and
From here, Perrin crept forward on his belly, not wanting to
Perrin rose to a crouch and began to make his way around the perimeter of the large foundation. Where would the exact center of the dome be? He couldn’t tell; it was too large. He kept his eyes open.
His attention was so focused on the foundation holes that he nearly walked right into the guards. A quiet chuckle from one of them alerted him, and he
He couldn’t make out many details, so he cautiously
Yes, there were two of them. Men in black coats. Asha’man. He thought he recognized them from the aftermath of Dumai’s Wells, where they had rescued Rand. They were loyal to him, weren’t they? Had Rand sent help for Perrin?