Fire in the Sky (Closed RP, DR PSW Anniversary Celebration)

Saerythra surreptitiously rubbed her backside as she slid off the horse and handed it over to one of the young Tinkers filling the area.  She had never left Andor’s borders before, and at current, she wasn’t terribly sure why she had thought it would be a grand time to go for a wander.

“Of course,” she mused to herself as she gazed at the gathered people, “You’re probably feeling this way due to the relative discomfort of the trip here!” Chuckling softly, she promised to herself to use a little bit of the salve in her belt pouch before she set off again; that would set her back to rights.

Her reasons for coming all this way from home were actually two-fold, and as she attempted to work kinks from her muscles by walking around, she attempted to attend to the first – harvesting herbs.  While she hadn’t stopped on her ride to the Caralain Grass, she had noted several likely spots for some things she normally had to get from peddlers, and was most pleased to have already spotted several things worth collecting (and not overly trampled) around the campsite.

And obviously, Sari had wanted to see the rare splendor of the night’s event.  She’d lived to see it several times, but often only went as far as relatives’ nearby farms.  But when the peddlers’ gossip had brought word of this gathering, something had woken up in her, an urge to go somewhere new just this once.

Another Tinker came to her and bade her to help herself of the available food.  Nodding graciously, Sari all-but-hobbled over to where a sumptuous banquet was laid out.  Helping herself, she peered around and spotted a group of women surrounded by soldiers.  There were some amongst them she could not put an age to, and it occurred to her that they must be Aes Sedai.  Nodding to herself, she sat down and finished her food before wandering over to the group.

“Excuse me,”  she spoke clearly, dipping her head in a polite greeting, “But are you from the White Tower?  I was hoping to see my niece and nephew here, but…”  She trailed off with a small frown before continuing, “Selene and Jasine Al’Thorin.  I know that they decided to go off to the Tower, but I’ve not had a letter since they left.”

Once More With Feeling – Advanced WS Training for Dreads

Touching the dagger on her belt, Rendra muttered at having to be in breeches again.  True, she understood that it was much easier to learn about weapons with the freedom of movement they provided, but that didn’t mean that she ever had to be particurally comfortable in them!  Shooting a glance at her wardrobe and its pretty dresses, she sighed and headed for the training room.

Her hand tightened on the dagger as she entered the room – she was there again.  She being Rebecca, or ‘that stuck-up ladyspawn’, as Rendra preferred to think of her.  And there her ladyship was, sucking up to the teacher, “Master… Randra, was it? I’d like to apologise for what happened during my last lesson. I assure you it will not happen again.”

Rendra muttered under her breath – that stupid Cairhienin chit had started it last time, but what made her think she’d not get another dose of it today!?  Doing a double-take, she realized that it was the same man as last time.. and looking a lot crosser than he had the class before.  Nodding her head in greeting, she kept a careful distance from Rebecca, but didn’t loosen her grip on her dagger.

Rendra
I’ll show that chit what-for!

——————————————————————————————

03 Jan 2009 (11:30pm GMT)

Blinking in surprise, Rendra’s fist tightened involuntarily on the long dagger belted to her waist.  Another person, an unfamiliar person wandered in. “I wonder if he’s another student?  Great Lord, but how many people are there in this crazy place?!”

Her notion that he was another student was quickly disabused when he started doling out instructions to have their weapon of choice on hand.  Shooting a dark glance at Rebecca, Rendra pushed back a stray braid with her free hand while smiling at the dagger belted to her waist.  As much as she’d love to give that snooty Cairhienen a taste of bare steel, she had a feeling that even an ‘accident’ in training would be punished greatly at this stage.  Later, perhaps…

Shaking her head out of the lovely fantasy road it was taking her down, Renda glanced quickly to make sure that no one was behind her trying anything funny, and awaited further instruction.  While she knew know in her heart she would probably never get the chance to be an assassin like she wanted to, she wasn’t about to get caught short should she ever not be able to use this witch power she was cursed with.

“GAH!  Quit wandering off, mind, especially in this place!” she chastised herself mentally.  Her lips formed a pouty moue as she glanced around again, taking in the room.  She almost growled as she spotted one of the boys in her class checking out… her“What does that scrawny chit have that I don’t?!” Rendra thought, shooting the boy a dark look.  She unconsciously cocked her slender hip to the side, tapping her fingers idly on the hilt of her blade.

——————————————————————————————
13 Jan 2009 (12:37am GMT)

Perking up, Rendra watched assiduously as this new teacher began demonstrating the various forms.  There were quite a few she wasn’t familiar with, but she was grateful when Dalek (as she learned his name was) was able to make it around to her to make corrections.

One such case was attempting to learn The Cat Dances on the Wall.  After almost cutting Rebecca’s head off (“On accident!”, she swore fervently), a very bemused Dalek wandered over and tersely explained, “You’re just waving that dagger all over the place – were you actually paying any attention to my instruction?!”

Blushing slightly, she made herself take a moment before speaking, “I tried to do it like you showed us; what was I doing wrong?”  Sighing, he re-demonstrated that it was tentative and controlled, not just wild swings.  Nodding, Rendra tried again to mildly better success.. but still more dangerously than needed.  Dalek shook his head, “I think that you’re not quite ready for that particular move; save it for once you’ve got better control of your wrists.”

She waited until he turned to another student before sticking out her tongue at his back briefly.  Resisting the urge to stomp, she tried her luck at Dandelion in the Wind again while thinking, “I did have the fastest wrists of the three of us back home.. what does he mean my wrists aren’t any good?!” Rendra moved into a mimicry of The Grapevine Twines, enjoying the twisting of her wrists.

Before she knew it, Dalek was dismissing them with admonishments to practice in their off time.  Nodding, she suddenly realized just how thirsty she was, and scooted off to get a drink.

——————————————————————————————
23 Feb 2009 (7:10pm GMT)

“Back in these pants,” Rendra grimaced to herself as she filed back in for the next iteration of her arms training course.  She felt a bit unsure about how well her practicing had gone since the last class, but at least she’d not accidentally killed anyone in that time.

She was very relieved that Dalek didn’t drag her up to the front for demonstration purposes.  The lessons of the Shadow were sharp and to the point, and it was an immense relief to find out she wasn’t going to be the latest example.  Still, watching one of the three people Dalek had pulled to battle, she winced for the other girl, “I don’t think I managed to even be quite that bad… perhaps I should see about partnering with her down the line, if only so I don’t feel a complete dunce.”

Suddenly, he changed what he was doing, throwing everyone into confusion.  After a moment, he nodded in satisfaction and spoke, “Forms are useful, but sometimes the most dangerous foe will be the one who know nothing of weaponry, because they will be totally unpredictable…” his eyes wandered among them. “So lets pair up and train in dueling, use both forms and then also try to be inventive, never let yourself expect anything in a match sword form or not, that will be the end of you eventually”.

Nodding in bemusement, Rendra strode up to one of the girls that Dalek had pulled to the front, “Hi, I’m Rendra… care to practice with me?”  The other girl wiped her forehead with the back of her hand and stood, nodding as she re-drew her sword.

Rendra smirked briefly as she launched her assault.  Cutting the Clouds was prevented by the other girl stepping backwards, and to counter-balance, Rendra swung her other dagger up at her opponent’s face in Hummingbird Kisses the Honeyrose.  The other girl jerkily swung her sword up to block, enabling Rendra to try her luck with Black Pebbles on Snow.  The other girl had thrown herself off-balance trying to block the blade coming at her face, so only took a slight graze across the side as she felt to one side, and Rendra to the other.

Laughing softly, she thwapped the other girl on the side of the leg from where they had fallen.  The other girl jumped slightly, and pushed herself up on her elbows.  Seeing Rendra trying unsuccessfully to not laugh out loud, she too started giggling.  Pushing herself up, the Taraboner woman quickly sheathed her daggers and helped the other girl up.  “I wonder if my ‘attack’ there counts as getting you by surprise… you’re not too cut up, I hope?”  After all, this wasn’t Rebecca she was fighting, so why bear the other girl any ill will?

Helping a Blonde (attn: Raeyn)

Growling at the damnable sword, Audie whined mentally, “Why is this so hard?!  I think this must not even be a form; that Thera is a mean woman and trying to trick me!” Taking a deep breath, she gripped the sword’s hilt even harder and tried again, “I don’t know why this is so hard!  Everyone else makes it look so easy, it’s not fair!”

She’d been working the forms all day, and Audie was tired and annoyed.  Her fuzzy little blonde brain couldn’t understand why she’d been singled out to keep practicing long after class had been dismissed, or even why she was still here working on it.  It was sounfair; if only she had been able to channel, then she could’ve already gone and taught her meanie evil husband the lesson her deserved!

She had even tried talking to some of the Accepted when they had a freeday and were able to come down to the Yards to watch the Tower Gaurds and Warders train.  Audie still felt that the Aes Sedai were lying about her being able to learn, and tried to get the Accepted to teach her.  They wouldn’t either; they were greedy women and didn’t want to share their power, and wouldn’t talk to a poor woman sweating herself to death.

Suddenly, a voice spoke up behind her, “Can I be of assistance?”  the young man standing there bowed slightly. “I am Jesse, I can help but I think you need to sit down and relax for a little while.  You’ll never get it when you are this worked up.”

Sheathing her sword, her eyes narrowed, “Jesse, is it?  You can go tell Thera that she’s a meanie and a liar; I don’t know what she’s trying to get me to learn, but this surely isn’t it… it’s nothing like bundling straw back on the farm!”

——————————————————————-

08 September 2008 (3:49pm BST)

Audie’s irritation faded into a smile as Jesse talked about sword forms, though she still disagreed with his assessment of Mistress Thera – she was a mean evil crone of a woman!  But still, an offer of help wasn’t to be scoffed at, nor was taking a break.

Peering up at the sky, she nodded abruptly, and kept nodding for punctation, “A break sounds fine, thank you!  And my name is Audie, Audie Acker, nice to meet you!”  She peered around quickly, supiciously, and continued, “I think that I’ve practiced long enough, Mistress Thera isn’t going to get mad at me for stopping for a break and some food, do you think?  I’m ever so hungry, she’s had me going since before dawn, I think!  Where did you want to go to talk, then?  Somewhere with food, perhaps?!”

Gesturing for him to lead on, she couldn’t understand the perplexed expression on his face, but didn’t really care – it was nice to finally take a break!

Audie
Miss Blondie Talks-a-Lot!

——————————————————————-

10 September 2008 (4:14pm BST)

Beaming sunnily, Audie replied, “I don’t mind at all; anything is better than standing around here any longer!”  As to suit that, they promptly set off into town.

She had been silently relieved when Jesse dropped her hand.  Even though her husband was a mean and awful person who needed to be taught a lesson, it had been ingrained in her that she shouldn’t really let any other men touch her outside of her spouse.

Still, the young Andoran woman was somewhat starved for companionship.  For some reason she couldn’t fathom, she’d not made a single friend since coming to Tar Valon!  The other girls in the Yard didn’t like her for some reason, even though she was nothing but nice to them, and the girls training in the Tower?  Stuck up selfish brats, all!

It was a nice day though, and she chattered incessantly all the way to the inn that her new friend Jesse had picked.  As Audie wasn’t a bright girl, most of this amounted to complaints about how mean some of the Warders were and how cruelly they overworked her, how the girls in the White Tower were selfish and mean, and she had no idea why she stuck around to be treated so awfully!

Once at the inn, Jesse did the properly gentlemanly thing and offered her a chair.  Taking it as her due, she settled into it and allowed him to order the drinks.  When he said she could pick the meals, Audie broke into a wider smile – this was truly a young man with proper manners!

Listening over the offerings, she asked the girl to bring them large portions of mutton and bread.  Once the girl left, she turned her attention back to Jesse, “I hope that’s okay, Jesse!  I find mutton to be just the thing when I’m as hungry as this.  I hope they make it nice here, I’ve not eaten here before?  Have you eaten here before?”

Stopping to take a sip of her cider, she looked expectantly across the table.

——————————————————————-

10 September 2008 (8:12pm BST)

Nodding graciously, Audie sampled the mutton.  While it didn’t compare to her mother’s cooking, it was better than the mess hall.  “You’re right, Jesse, this is better than the mess!”

Feeding with little feminine grace, she gave into her hunger and shoved food down with unseemly haste.  That didn’t stop her from shooting off more questions between gulps of cider and meat, however, “That’s mean of Shoar, why would he do that to you?!  I mean, you either get hit by a rock or risk falling out of a tree, and what good is that?!”

Tearing off a large portion of bread, she ripped it into smaller pieces and pushed it into her mouth around words, “Mmm, so hungry..  Anyways, no one has done any of that tree stuff to me yet, and I wouldn’t let them do something so horrid!  I’m still so cross when that hag Mariasha forced -FORCED!- me to get into the river and stand on barrels.  It was so cold, and I was shivering!  But did that mean old witch care? No!”

She hrmpmmed, still making it sound somehow whiny, and took a large swallow of her cider to clear her throat.  Suddenly, she realized how impolite she had been, and blushed slightly, “I must apologise for my manners.. this awful place seems to have stripped me of the time to eat a meal leisurely.”  Audie grimaced slightly, her lips twisting into yet another pout, “I just never have time between training, and I’m always so hungry!”

——————————————————————-

10 September 2008 (8:32pm BST)

She grimaced at Jesse’s almost-lecture about the barrels – she didn’t have any friends, no one was nice here.  Sure, there had been other people doing the training with her and having a good laugh, but they were all mad.  Audie had heard of some people from up north thinking that splashing around in ice water was a way to have good fun, but considering that she barely could tolerate snow, why would she want to be cold and wet?!

She was pulled out of her reverie when Jesse spoke again, “Why are you here Audie?  Just to get at your husband?”  He paused quickly.  “I could help you with him instead of putting you through this torture you claim your training is.”

Frowning, she spoke slowly, “That wouldn’t be fair either, would it?”  She scratched her chin and furrowed her brow in thought, “I mean, he wasn’t being awful to you, so why should you teach him a lesson?  It’s not like you could trade places with me, or move in with us and keep reminding him that he should treat me better… no, that wouldn’t be right at all.”

Shaking her head, Audie smiled softly, “But I do appreciate the thought; it sometimes feels like I’m the only person looking out for me.”

——————————————————————-

15 September 2008 (8:50pm BST)

Audie made a moue and spoke slowly, “I think that you’ll probably make someone a good boyfriend or husband sometime, Jesse… you’re sweet… If none to bright; why would Egbert want silks and gems?!

She abruptly giggled at the thought; how ridiculous to think of a man wearing gems!  Why, that was as silly as Egbert’s insistence that he couldn’t afford such things for her!  Noticing Jesse looking at her oddly, she giggled again, “I’m sorry Jesse, I had a funny thought cross my mind.  But as my husband is also a soldier, he’d only respect force to give into me having my way.  I just never thought it would be so hard to learn how to do all this stuff!”

Frowning, she picked at the last bits of her mutton before brightening suddenly, “But at least you can help me get better!  That’ll be great, and then I can teach him good, and he’ll treat me right and..”

She stopped suddenly as she remembered something, then jumped up with a yelp, “Light, I have to go!  That awful Jasine told me I had to clean weapons today, and I don’t want to get in trouble and have to go see Thera again.”  Dashing for the door, she called over her shoulder, “We’ll meet up soon and practice, okay, later bye!!!!”

Audie Acker (Deceased)

Character’s name: Audie Acker
Age: 19
Place of Origin: Near Caemlyn

Hair Color: Dirty blonde
Eye Color: Green
Height: 5’8″
Weight: 145 lbs

Physical Description: Twiggy yet muscular, Audie’s upbringing meant lots
of work.  Even before coming to the Tower, she tended to dress like a boy
because it made her father happy to have a pretend son.  She keeps her
hair cut short, and if not for a girlish face, would easily be mistaken
for the boy she dresses like.

WS: 3
Weapons: Staff, short sword, (bow)

Character History:

Audie is the eldest child of Lizbette and Aldar Breen.
They owned and lived on a small farm near Caemlyn, far away from any
other relatives.

Aldar had always wanted a son, so he treated his eldest daughter as such
(to her mother’s dismay).  As it were, all three of them had long days
filled with heavy work, not to mention having to peddle their own wares
in Caemlyn.

Aldar often took Audie with him on these short trips, as she was the
‘heir’ to what little they had.  She wasn’t the sharpest girl, but she
did her best to learn from her father of selling their produce.

Even so, she wasn’t that good at it; she lacked the cleverness to
convince people that their carrots were the best in the lot, or that
their lovely fat pigs would make the best rasher of bacon.  Lizbette
despaired further of her stupid child, and pressured Aldar to look for a
husband for Audie.

Aldar gave in to his wife’s pressures, and started eyeballing his normal
clientèle.  He wanted someone who could protect his daughter, now 16 and
a woman grown.  It wasn’t too long before he noted a young soldier in the
Queen’s Guard, Egbert Acker.  This was a man that Aldar felt he could
respect as a son-in-law – he was a soldier and protecting the good Queen;
surely he could take care of Audie.

Audie, being an average girl, had all sorts of fairy-tale notions of
marriage and men.  To her, marrying a soldier in service seemed dull; he
wasn’t a prince, he wasn’t going to be able to take her for rides in
carriages.  Still, her parents were persistent, and she found herself wed
shortly before her 17th nameday.

Marriage was horrible to the girl; Egbert was a kindly man, but he was
nothing she wanted.  He wasn’t handsome, he wasn’t a prince, and he
denied her the pretty silk gowns and gems she felt she had to have to be
a proper wife!  What a horrid man, she thought!  So mean and cruel,
denying her her every whim.

He had to be taught a lesson.

A few months after they were wed, Audie stole what little coin they had
and hired passage to Tar Valon.  She, like many girls, had idly dreamed
of being an Aes Sedai, and figured that if she were one, she could teach
her horrible husband a lesson!

When she got to the Tower, she found out that she’d never touch the
Source; she had neither the spark nor the ability to learn to channel.
Undismayed, she enrolled in the Tower Guards.  If she couldn’t teach him
a lesson with the Power, perhaps she could scare him into giving her
everything by force of arms!

Weapons training was hard on the young woman; she might have had some
degree of strength or endurance, but she had no particular grace or
dexterity.  Audie had a hard time understanding the philosophy that went
behind arms training, but after two years in training, it has started to
sink in.  She still wants to teach her husband a lesson for being so
horrid and mean.. but not until she had a bit more training under her
belt.

The core of her philosophy thus far is such – be scary and intimidating,
and then she can get her way!