Salidar [Saturday morning]
After Mat's very reasonable reaction to Egwene--who had only been old enough to braid her hair last year--and her announcement of being the Amyrlin Seat to this pack of goat-brained lunatics, the Aes Sedai had left him cooling his heels (and, as Nynaeve had scathingly told him, lucky not to have it be in a locked room) as they figured out what exactly to do with him and his band of Dragonsworn (though he objected strenuously to the word. He worked for Rand. He wasn't insane like the ones who thought his coming had broken all bonds to responsibility and aimlessly wandered the countryside).
On his second day in Salidar, he was summoned. "You will present yourself to the Amrylin Seat at once," he was told, and expected to jump for a girl he'd seen climb trees not so many years ago.
They were all in that room in the Little Tower: Egwene and Nynaeve, Elayne and Aviendha. At least Elayne and Aviendha weren't trying to strangle each other, but they both looked stony-faced. He managed to hold his tongue as Egwene laid out his choices as she saw them, sitting behind her table with the striped stole on her shoulders.
"Should you think you can do neither," she concluded, "remember that I can have you tied to your horse and returned to your Band of the Hand. There is no room in Salidar for slackers. I will not allow it. For you, Mat, it's either Ebou Dar with Elayne and Nynaeve, or off to see who you can impress with your flags and banners."
Which left him no choice at all, of course. He'd promised Rand he'd bring Elayne to him, and he always kept his promises. When he pointed that out, nobody's expression changed. Egwene just said, "I'm glad that it's done, Mat. Now I have a thousand things to do. I will try to see you before you go." Dismissed like a stable boy; the Amrylin was busy. At least she could have tossed him a copper.
That was why his third morning in Salidar found him just outside it, on cleared ground between village and forest. "They may stay here until I come back," he murmured to his second-in-command. "I hope so, anyway. If they move, follow where they go, but never close enough to frighten. And if a young woman named Egwene shows up, you ask no questions, just take her and ride to Caemlyn if you have to cut a hole through their army yourself." Of course, the Aes Sedai might be heading to Caemlyn themselves, but he was fairly certain it was Tar Valon they were aiming at--Tar Valon and the headsman's axe.
Mat glanced toward the village. Still no sign of Aes Sedai and the sun was beginning to bake him. He jerked his hat irritably over his eyes. At last there was a stir--a group of women leading horses, and not just Elayne and Nynaeve as he'd expected. Aviendha was there as well, looking at the mare she'd been given more than a little dubiously. A blonde woman--Mat figured her for a Hunter for the Horn (which he'd already found, not that there were more than five people in the world who knew that)--chatted with her, trying to convince her of something. There were two Aes Sedai, as well--well, other than Elayne and Nynaeve, he supposed--slender women with white hair. How old did an Aes Sedai have to be for her hair to go white? An old man trailed after them, a stringy guy without much hair. Mat snorted. There was incentive to be a Warder: Aes Sedai working you until your hair fell out.
"With luck, I won't have to put up with any of them long," he muttered. "With luck, whatever they're doing in Ebou Dar--" which Egwene hadn't felt he'd needed to know about, and that burned, "--won't take very long and we can be back here in five or ten days." With luck, he might be back before the Band began shadowing the madwomen. Tracking two armies would be easy as stealing pie, of course, but he didn't look forward to any more days in Elayne's company than necessary.
"Ten days?" The blonde woman overheard him. "Even with the gateway, it will take five or six days to reach Ebou Dar."
Mat stopped listening. Every bit of irritation that had been building since he saw Egwene came to a head at once. He snatched his hat off of his head, he stalked to where Elayne and the others were. "What's this nonsense I hear about five or six days to reach Ebou Dar? You can open a gateway in sight of Ebou Dar. We aren't any bloody army to scare anyone, and as far as popping out of air, you're Aes Sedai. People expect you to pop out of air and walk through walls."
Elayne's chin came up. "Apparently you know rather less than you believe, Master Cauthon," she said coolly. "There are villages and farms around Ebou Dar for a hundred miles. A gateway is quite dangerous. I do not intend to kill some poor man's sheep or cows, much less the poor man himself."
He hated more than her tone. She was right, and he hated that, too. He was not about to admit that, though, and when he spotted Egwene coming out of the village, he saw his way to retreat. She was being trailed by two dozen or more Aes Sedai, but they were chatting in little clumps, talking among themselves and completely ignoring the woman they had named Amyrlin.
To the Pit of Doom with them if they think they can treat a Two Rivers woman that way, he thought grimly, striding up to Egwene and sweeping off his hat and bowing. He made the best leg he knew how and he could flourish with the best of them. "Good morning, Mother, and the Light shine on you," he said, loud enough to be heard in the village. Kneeling, he seized her right hand and kissed the Great Serpent ring. A quick grimace at his second-in-command had the man on his knees, then the others, calling out, "The Light illumine you, Mother," or some variation.
Egwene looked startled at first, then smiled. "Thank you, Mat," she said softly.
He stood up, brushing off his knees. "I didn't expect you out here," he said. "Does the Amrylin always see people off on trips? You wouldn't by any chance want to tell me what it's all about now, would you?"
For a second, he thought she might but she shook her head. "I will always see friends off, Mat. Do try to stay out of trouble in Ebou Dar."
He stared at her indignantly. Here he was kneeling and kissing rings, and she told him to stay out of trouble, when the whole point was for him to try to keep Elayne and Nynaeve with whole skins. "I will try, Mother," he said wryly. "If you'll excuse me, I must see to my men."
Elayne stepped forward and suddenly there was a slash of light in front of her, widening into a hole, the view through it what seemed to be a low hilltop covered in brown grass.
The women and that poor Light-blighted Warder went through the gate, then the squad of Mat's men Egwene had insisted accompany them all. Mat, holding his horse by the reins, was the last to go through.
One step forward...and the world went white.
His last thought for a while was Bloody Elayne.
On his second day in Salidar, he was summoned. "You will present yourself to the Amrylin Seat at once," he was told, and expected to jump for a girl he'd seen climb trees not so many years ago.
They were all in that room in the Little Tower: Egwene and Nynaeve, Elayne and Aviendha. At least Elayne and Aviendha weren't trying to strangle each other, but they both looked stony-faced. He managed to hold his tongue as Egwene laid out his choices as she saw them, sitting behind her table with the striped stole on her shoulders.
"Should you think you can do neither," she concluded, "remember that I can have you tied to your horse and returned to your Band of the Hand. There is no room in Salidar for slackers. I will not allow it. For you, Mat, it's either Ebou Dar with Elayne and Nynaeve, or off to see who you can impress with your flags and banners."
Which left him no choice at all, of course. He'd promised Rand he'd bring Elayne to him, and he always kept his promises. When he pointed that out, nobody's expression changed. Egwene just said, "I'm glad that it's done, Mat. Now I have a thousand things to do. I will try to see you before you go." Dismissed like a stable boy; the Amrylin was busy. At least she could have tossed him a copper.
That was why his third morning in Salidar found him just outside it, on cleared ground between village and forest. "They may stay here until I come back," he murmured to his second-in-command. "I hope so, anyway. If they move, follow where they go, but never close enough to frighten. And if a young woman named Egwene shows up, you ask no questions, just take her and ride to Caemlyn if you have to cut a hole through their army yourself." Of course, the Aes Sedai might be heading to Caemlyn themselves, but he was fairly certain it was Tar Valon they were aiming at--Tar Valon and the headsman's axe.
Mat glanced toward the village. Still no sign of Aes Sedai and the sun was beginning to bake him. He jerked his hat irritably over his eyes. At last there was a stir--a group of women leading horses, and not just Elayne and Nynaeve as he'd expected. Aviendha was there as well, looking at the mare she'd been given more than a little dubiously. A blonde woman--Mat figured her for a Hunter for the Horn (which he'd already found, not that there were more than five people in the world who knew that)--chatted with her, trying to convince her of something. There were two Aes Sedai, as well--well, other than Elayne and Nynaeve, he supposed--slender women with white hair. How old did an Aes Sedai have to be for her hair to go white? An old man trailed after them, a stringy guy without much hair. Mat snorted. There was incentive to be a Warder: Aes Sedai working you until your hair fell out.
"With luck, I won't have to put up with any of them long," he muttered. "With luck, whatever they're doing in Ebou Dar--" which Egwene hadn't felt he'd needed to know about, and that burned, "--won't take very long and we can be back here in five or ten days." With luck, he might be back before the Band began shadowing the madwomen. Tracking two armies would be easy as stealing pie, of course, but he didn't look forward to any more days in Elayne's company than necessary.
"Ten days?" The blonde woman overheard him. "Even with the gateway, it will take five or six days to reach Ebou Dar."
Mat stopped listening. Every bit of irritation that had been building since he saw Egwene came to a head at once. He snatched his hat off of his head, he stalked to where Elayne and the others were. "What's this nonsense I hear about five or six days to reach Ebou Dar? You can open a gateway in sight of Ebou Dar. We aren't any bloody army to scare anyone, and as far as popping out of air, you're Aes Sedai. People expect you to pop out of air and walk through walls."
Elayne's chin came up. "Apparently you know rather less than you believe, Master Cauthon," she said coolly. "There are villages and farms around Ebou Dar for a hundred miles. A gateway is quite dangerous. I do not intend to kill some poor man's sheep or cows, much less the poor man himself."
He hated more than her tone. She was right, and he hated that, too. He was not about to admit that, though, and when he spotted Egwene coming out of the village, he saw his way to retreat. She was being trailed by two dozen or more Aes Sedai, but they were chatting in little clumps, talking among themselves and completely ignoring the woman they had named Amyrlin.
To the Pit of Doom with them if they think they can treat a Two Rivers woman that way, he thought grimly, striding up to Egwene and sweeping off his hat and bowing. He made the best leg he knew how and he could flourish with the best of them. "Good morning, Mother, and the Light shine on you," he said, loud enough to be heard in the village. Kneeling, he seized her right hand and kissed the Great Serpent ring. A quick grimace at his second-in-command had the man on his knees, then the others, calling out, "The Light illumine you, Mother," or some variation.
Egwene looked startled at first, then smiled. "Thank you, Mat," she said softly.
He stood up, brushing off his knees. "I didn't expect you out here," he said. "Does the Amrylin always see people off on trips? You wouldn't by any chance want to tell me what it's all about now, would you?"
For a second, he thought she might but she shook her head. "I will always see friends off, Mat. Do try to stay out of trouble in Ebou Dar."
He stared at her indignantly. Here he was kneeling and kissing rings, and she told him to stay out of trouble, when the whole point was for him to try to keep Elayne and Nynaeve with whole skins. "I will try, Mother," he said wryly. "If you'll excuse me, I must see to my men."
Elayne stepped forward and suddenly there was a slash of light in front of her, widening into a hole, the view through it what seemed to be a low hilltop covered in brown grass.
The women and that poor Light-blighted Warder went through the gate, then the squad of Mat's men Egwene had insisted accompany them all. Mat, holding his horse by the reins, was the last to go through.
One step forward...and the world went white.
His last thought for a while was Bloody Elayne.