The rising sun pushed its crimson1 edge above the horizon and sent long shadows down the cobblestone streets of Falme toward the harbor. A sea breeze bent3 the smoke of breakfast cook fires inland from the chimneys. Only the early risers were already out of doors, their breath making steam in the morning cold. Compared to the crowds that would fill the streets in another hour, the town seemed nearly empty.
Sitting on an upended barrel in front of a still-closed ironmonger's shop, Nynaeve warmed her hands under her arms and surveyed her army. Min sat on a doorstep across the way, swathed in her Seanchan cloak and eating a wrinkled plum, and Elayne in her fleece coat huddled4 at the edge of an alley5 just down the street from her. A large sack, pilfered6 from the docks, lay neatly7 folded beside Min. My army, Nynaeve thought grimly. But there isn't anybody else.
She caught sight of a sul'dam and a damane climbing the street, a yellow-haired woman wearing the bracelet8 and a dark woman the collar, both yawning sleepily. The few Falmen sharing the street with them averted10 their eyes and gave them a wide berth11. As far as she could see down toward the harbor, there was not another Seanchan. She did not turn her head the other way. Instead, she stretched and shrugged12 as if working cold shoulders before settling back as she had been.
Min tossed her half-eaten plum aside, glanced casually14 up the street, and leaned back on the doorpost. The way was clear there, too, or she would have put her hands on her knees. Min had started rubbing her hands nervously16, and Nynaeve realized that Elayne was now bouncing eagerly on her toes.
If they give us away, I'll thump17 both their heads. But she knew if they were discovered, it would be the Seanchan who would say what happened to all three of them. She was all too aware that she had no real notion of whether what she planned would work or not. It could easily be her own failure that would give them away. Once again she resolved that if anything went wrong, she would somehow pull attention to herself while Min and Elayne escaped. She had told them to run if anything went wrong, and let them think she would run, too. What she would do then, she did not know. Except I won't let them take me alive. Please, Light, not that.
Sul'dam and damane came up the street until they were bracketed by the three waiting women. A dozen Falmen walked wide of the linked pair.
Nynaeve gathered all of her anger. Leashed Ones and Leash18 Holders19. They had put their filthy20 collar on Egwene's neck, and they would put it on hers, and Elayne's, if they could. She had made Min tell her how sul'dam enforced their will. She was sure Min had kept some back, the worst, but what she told was enough to heat Nynaeve to white-hot fury. In an instant a white blossom on a black, thorny21 branch had opened to light, to saidar, and the One Power filled her. She knew there was a glow around her, for those who could see it. The pale-skinned sul'dam gave a start, and the dark damane's mouth fell open, but Nynaeve gave them no chance. It was only a trickle22 of the Power that she channeled, but she cracked it, a whip snapping a dust mote23 out of the air.
The silver collar sprang open and clattered24 to the cobblestones. Nynaeve heaved a sigh of relief even as she leaped to her feet.
The sul'dam stared at the fallen collar as if at a poisonous snake. The damane put a shaking hand to her throat, but before the woman in the lightning-marked dress had time to move, the damane turned and punched her in the face; the sul'dam's knees buckled26, and she almost fell.
"Good for you!" Elayne shouted. She was already running forward, too, and so was Min.
Before any of them reached the two women, the damane took one startled look around, then ran as hard as she could.
"We won't hurt you!" Elayne called after her. "We are friends!"
"Be quiet!" Nynaeve hissed27. She produced a handful of rags from her pocket and ruthlessly stuffed them into the gaping28 mouth of the still staggering sul'dam. Min hastily shook out the sack in a cloud of dust and plunged29 it over the sul'dam's head, shrouding30 the woman to the waist. "We are already attracting too much attention."
It was true, and yet not entirely31 true. The four of them stood in a rapidly emptying street, but the people who had decided32 to be elsewhere were avoiding looking at them. Nynaeve had been counting on that - people doing their best to ignore anything that had to do with Seanchan to gain them a few moments. They would talk eventually, but in whispers; it might take hours for the Seanchan to learn anything had happened.
The hooded33 woman began to struggle, making rag-muffled shouts from the sack, but Nynaeve and Min threw their arms around her and wrestled34 her toward a nearby alley. The leash and collar trailed across the cobblestones behind them, clinking.
"Pick it up," Nynaeve snapped at Elayne. "It won't bite you!"
Elayne took a deep breath, then gathered the silver metal gingerly, as if she feared it very well might. Nynaeve felt some sympathy, but not much; everything rested on each of them doing as they had planned.
The sul'dam kicked and tried to throw herself free, but between them, Nynaeve and Min forced her along, down the alley into another, slightly wider passage behind houses, to yet another alley and at last into a rough wooden shed that had apparently35 once housed two horses, by the stalls. Few could afford to keep horses since the Seanchan came, and in a day of Nynaeve's watching, no one had gone near it. The interior had a musty dustiness that spoke36 of abandonment. As soon as they were inside, Elayne dropped the silver leash and wiped her hands on some straw.
Nynaeve channeled another trickle, and the bracelet fell to the dirt floor. The sul'dam squalled and hurled37 herself about.
"Ready?" Nynaeve asked. The other two nodded, and they yanked the sacking off their prisoner.
The sul'dam wheezed38, blue eyes teary from dust, but her red face was red as much from anger as from the sack. She darted39 for the door, but they caught her in the first step. She was not weak, yet they were three, and when they were done the sul'dam was stripped to her shift and lying in one of the stalls, bound hand and foot with stout40 cord, with another piece of cord to keep her from forcing the gag out.
Soothing41 a puffy lip, Min eyed the lightning-paneled dress and soft boots they had laid out. "It might fit you, Nynaeve. It won't fit Elayne or me." Elayne was picking straw out of her hair.
"I can see that. You were never a choice anyway, not really. They know you too well." Nynaeve hurriedly removed her own clothes. She tossed them aside and donned the sul'dam's dress. Min helped with the buttons.
Nynaeve wiggled her toes in the boots; they were a little tight. The dress was tight, too, across the bosom42, and loose elsewhere. The hem9 hung almost to the ground, lower than sul'dam wore them, but the fit would have been even worse on any of the others. Snatching up the bracelet, she took a deep breath and closed it around her left wrist. The ends merged43, and it seemed solid. It did not feel like anything except a bracelet. She had been afraid that it would.
"Get the dress, Elayne." They had dyed a pair of dresses - one of hers and one of Elayne's - to the gray damane were, or as close as they could manage, and hidden them here. Elayne did not move except to stare at the open collar and lick her lips. "Elayne, you have to wear it. Too many of them have seen Min for her to do it. I would have worn it, if this dress had fit you instead." She thought she would have gone mad if she had had to wear the collar; that was why she could not make her voice sharp with Elayne now.
"I know." Elayne sighed. "I just wish I knew more of what it does to you." She drew her red-gold hair out of the way. "Min, help me, please." Min began undoing44 the buttons down the back of her dress.
Nynaeve managed to pick up the silver collar without flinching45. "There is one way to find out." With only a moment of hesitation46, she bent and snapped it around the neck of the sul'dam. She deserves it if anyone does, she told herself firmly. "She might be able to tell us something useful, anyway." The blue-eyed woman glanced at the leash trailing from her neck to Nynaeve's wrist, then glared up at her contemptuously.
"It doesn't work that way," Min said, but Nynaeve barely heard.
She was . . . aware . . . of the other woman, aware of what she was feeling, cord digging into her ankles and into her wrists behind her back, the rank fish taste of the rags in her mouth, straw pricking47 her through the thin cloth of her shift. It was not as if she, Nynaeve, felt these things, but in her head was a lump of sensations that she knew belonged to the sul'dam.
She swallowed, trying to ignore them - they would not go away - and addressed the bound woman. "I won't hurt you if you answer my questions truthfully. We aren't Seanchan. But if you lie to me . . . ." She lifted the leash threateningly.
The woman's shoulders shook, and her mouth curled around the gag in a sneer48. It took Nynaeve a moment to realize the sul'dam was laughing.
Her mouth tightened49, but then a thought came to her. That bundle of sensation inside her head seemed to be everything physical that the other woman felt. Experimentally, she tried adding to it.
Eyes suddenly bulging50 out of her head, the sul'dam gave a cry that the gag only partially51 stopped. Fanning her hands behind her as if trying to ward2 off something, she humped through the straw in a vain effort to escape.
Nynaeve gaped52, and hastily rid herself of the extra feelings she had added. The sul'dam sagged53, weeping.
"What. . . . What did you . . . do to her?" Elayne asked faintly. Min only stared, her mouth hanging open.
Nynaeve answered gruffly. "The same thing Sheriam did to you when you threw a cup at Marith." Light, but this is a filthy thing.
"But an a'dam isn't supposed to work that way," Min said. "They always claimed it won't work on any woman who cannot channel."
"I do not care how it is supposed to work, so long as it does." Nynaeve seized the silver metal leash right where it joined the collar, and pulled the woman up enough to look her in the eyes. Frightened eyes, she saw. "You listen to me, and listen well. I want answers, and if I don't get them, I'll make you think I have had the hide off you." Stark55 terror rolled across the woman's face, and Nynaeve's stomach heaved as she suddenly realized the sul'dam had taken her literally56. If she thinks I can, it's because she knows. That is what these leashes57 are for. She took firm hold of herself to stop from clawing the bracelet off her wrist. Instead, she hardened her face. "Are you ready to answer me? Or do you need more convincing?"
The frantic58 head-shaking was answer enough. When Nynaeve removed the gag, the woman only paused to swallow once before babbling59, "I will not report you. I swear it. Only take this from my neck. I have gold. Take it. I swear, I will never tell anyone."
"Be quiet," Nynaeve snapped, and the woman shut her mouth immediately. "What is your name?"
"Seta. Please. I will answer you, but please take - it - off! If anyone sees it on me . . . ." Seta's eyes rolled down to stare at the leash, then squeezed shut. "Please?" she whispered.
Nynaeve realized something. She could never make Elayne wear that collar.
"Best we get on with it," Elayne said firmly. She was down to her shift, too, now. "Give me a moment to put this other dress on, and - "
"Put your own clothes back on," Nynaeve said.
"Someone has to pretend to be a damane," Elayne said, "or we will never reach Egwene. That dress fits you, and it cannot be Min. That leaves me."
"I said put your clothes on. We have somebody to be our Leashed One." Nynaeve tugged60 at the leash that held Seta, and the sul'dam gasped61.
"No! No, please! If anyone sees me - " She cut off at Nynaeve's cold stare.
"As far as I am concerned, you are worse than a murderer, worse than a Darkfriend. I can't think of anything worse than you. The fact that I have to wear this thing on my wrist, to be the same as you for even an hour, sickens me. So if you think there is anything I'll balk63 at doing to you, think again. You don't want to be seen? Good. Neither do we. No one really looks at a damane, though. As long as you keep your head down the way a Leashed One is supposed to, no one will even notice you. But you had better do the best you can to make sure the rest of us aren't noticed, either. If we are, you surely will be seen, and if that is not enough to hold you, I promise you I'll make you curse the first kiss your mother ever gave your father. Do we understand each other?"
"Yes," Seta said faintly. "I swear it."
Nynaeve had to remove the bracelet in order for them to slide Elayne's gray-dyed dress down the leash and over Seta's head. It did not fit the woman well, being loose at the bosom and tight across the hips64, but Nynaeve's would have been as bad, and too short besides. Nynaeve hoped people really did not look at damane. She put the bracelet back on reluctantly.
Elayne gathered up Nynaeve's clothes, wrapped the other dyed dress around them, and made a bundle, a bundle for a woman in farm clothes to be carrying as she followed a sul'dam and a damane. "Gawyn will eat his heart out when he hears about this," she said, and laughed. It sounded forced.
Nynaeve looked at her closely, then at Min. It was time for the dangerous part. "Are you ready?"
Elayne's smile faded. "I am ready."
"Where are you . . . we . . . going?" Seta said, quickly adding, "If I may ask?"
"Into the lions' den," Elayne told her.
"To dance with the Dark One," Min said.
Nynaeve sighed and shook her head. "What they are trying to say is, we are going where all the damane are kept, and we intend free one of them."
Seta was still gaping in astonishment66 when they hustled67 her out of the shed.
Bayle Domon watched the rising sun from the deck of his ship. The docks were already beginning to bustle68, though the streets leading up from the harbor stood largely empty. A gull69 perched on a piling stared at him; gulls70 had pitiless eyes.
"Ate you sure about this, Captain?" Yarin asked. "If the Seanchan wonder what we're all doing aboard - "
"You just make certain there do be an axe71 near every mooring72 line," Domon said curtly. "And, Yarin? Do any man try to cut a line before those women are aboard, I will split his skull73."
"What if they don't come, Captain? What if it's Seanchan soldiers instead?"
"Settle your bowels74, man! If soldiers come, I will make a run for the harbor mouth, and the Light have mercy on us all. But until soldiers do come, I mean to wait for those women. Now go look as if you are no doing anything."
Domon turned back to peering up into the town, toward where the damane were held. His fingers drummed a nervous tattoo75 on the railing.
The breeze from the sea brought the smell of breakfast cook fires to Rand's nose, and tried to flap at his moth-eaten cloak, but he held it closed with one hand as Red neared the town. There had not been a coat to fit him in the clothes they had found, and he thought it best to keep the fine silver embroidery76 on his sleeves and the herons on his collar hidden. The Seanchan attitude toward conquered people carrying weapons might not extend to those with heron-mark swords, either.
The first shadows of morning stretched out ahead of him. He could just see Hurin riding in among the wagon77 yards and horse lots. Only one or two men moved among the lines of merchant wagons78, and they wore the long aprons79 of wheelwrights or blacksmiths. Ingtar, the first in, was already out of sight. Perrin and Mat followed behind Rand at spaced intervals81. He did not look back to check on them. There was not supposed to be anything to connect them; five men coming into Falme at an early hour, but not together.
The horse lots surrounded him, horses already crowding the fences, waiting to be fed. Hurin put his head out from between two stables, their doors still closed and barred, saw Rand and motioned to him before ducking back. Rand turned the bay stallion that way.
Hurin stood holding his horse by the reins82. He had on one of the long vests instead of his coat, and despite the heavy cloak that hid his short sword and sword-breaker, he shivered with the cold. "Lord Ingtar's back there," he said, nodding down the narrow passage. "He says we'll leave the horses here and go the rest of the way on foot." As Rand dismounted, the sniffer added, "Fain went right down that street, Lord Rand. I can almost smell it from here."
Rand led Red down the way to where Ingtar had already tied his own too. I can't see him letting the dagger83 or the Horn, either one, far out of his sight."
Ingtar stopped. After a moment, he said, "It could be, but we will never know from out here."
"We could watch for him to come out," Rand said. "If he comes out at this time of the morning, then he spent the night there. And I'll wager84 where he sleeps is where the Horn is. If he does come out, we can be back to Verin by midday and have a plan made before nightfall."
"I do not mean to wait for Verin," Ingtar said, "and neither will I wait for night. I've waited too long already. I mean to have the Horn in my hands before the sun sets again."
"But we don't know, Ingtar."
"I know the dagger is in there," Mat said.
"And Hurin says Fain was here last night." Ingtar overrode85 Hurin's attempts to qualify that. "It is the first time you have been willing to say anything closer than a day or two. We are going to take back the Horn now. Now!"
"How?" Rand said. The officer was no longer watching them, but there were still at least twenty soldiers in front of the building. And a pair of grolm. This is madness. There can't he grolm here. Thinking it did not make the beasts disappear, though.
"There seem to be gardens behind all these houses," Ingtar said, looking around thoughtfully. "If one of those alleys86 runs by a garden wall . . . . Sometimes men are so busy guarding their front, they neglect their back. Come." He headed straight for the nearest narrow passage between two of the tall houses. Hurin and Mat trotted87 right after him.
Rand exchanged looks with Perrin - his curly-haired friend gave a resigned shrug13 - and they followed, too.
The alley was barely wider than their shoulders, but it ran between high garden walls until it crossed another alley big enough for a push-barrow or small cart. That was cobblestoned, too, but only the backs of buildings looked down on it, shuttered windows and expanses of stone, and the high back walls of gardens overtopped by nearly leafless branches.
Ingtar led them along that alley until they were opposite the waving banner. Taking his steel-backed gauntlets from under his coat, he put them on and leaped up to catch the top of the wall, then pulled himself up enough to peek88 over. He reported in a low monotone. "Trees. Flower beds. Walks. There isn't a soul to be - Wait! A guard. One man. He isn't even wearing his helmet. Count to fifty, then follow me." He swung a boot to the top of the wall and rolled over inside, disappearing before Rand could say a word.
Mat began to count slowly. Rand held his breath. Perrin fingered his axe, and Hurin gripped the hilts of his weapons.
". . . fifty." Hurin scrambled89 up and over the wall before the word was well out of Mat's mouth. Perrin went right beside him.
Rand thought Mat might need some help-he looked so pale and drawn-but he gave no sign of it as he scrambled up. The stone wall provided plenty of handholds, and moments later Rand was crouched90 on the inside with Mat and Perrin and Hurin.
The garden was in the grip of deep autumn, flower beds empty except for a few evergreen92 shrubs93, tree branches nearly bare. The wind that rippled94 the banner stirred dust across the flagstone walks. For a moment Rand could not find Ingtar. Then he saw the Shienaran, flat against the back wall of the house, motioning them on with sword in hand.
Rand ran in a crouch91, more conscious of the windows blankly peering down from the house than of his friends running beside him. It was a relief to press himself against the house beside Ingtar.
Mat kept muttering to himself, "It's in there. I can feel it."
"Where is the guard?" Rand whispered.
"Dead," Ingtar said. "The man was overconfident. He never even tried to raise a cry. I hid his body under one of those bushes."
Rand stared at him. The Seanchan was overconfident? The only thing that kept him from going back right then was Mat's anguished95 murmurs96.
"We are almost there." Ingtar sounded as if he were speaking to himself, too. "Almost there. Come."
Rand drew his sword as they started up the back steps. He was aware of Hurin unlimbering his short-bladed sword and notched97 sword-breaker, and Perrin reluctantly drawing his axe from the loop on his belt.
The hallway inside was narrow. A half-open door to their right smelled like a kitchen. Several people were moving about in that room; there was an indistinguishable sound of voices, and occasionally the soft clatter25 of a pot lid.
Ingtar motioned Mat to lead, and they crept by the door. Rand watched the narrowing opening until they were around the next corner.
A slender young woman with dark hair came out of a door ahead of them, carrying a tray with one cup. They all froze. She turned the other way without looking in their direction. Rand's eyes widened. Her long white robe was all but transparent98. She vanished around another corner.
"Did you see that?" Mat said hoarsely99. "You could see right through - "
Ingtar clapped a hand over Mat's mouth and whispered, "Keep your mind on why we are here. Now find it. Find the Horn for me."
Mat pointed100 to a narrow set of winding101 stairs. They climbed a flight, and he led them toward the front of the house. The furnishings in the hallways were sparse102, and seemed all curves. Here and there a tapestry103 hung on a wall, or a folding screen stood against it, each painted with a few birds on branches, or a flower or two. A river flowed across one screen, but aside from rippling104 water and narrow strips of riverbank, the rest of it was blank.
All around them Rand could hear the sounds of people stirring, slippers105 scuffing106 on the floor, soft murmurs of speech. He did not see anyone, but he could imagine it all too well, someone stepping into the hall to see five slinking men with weapons in their hands, shouting an alarm . . . .
"In there," Mat whispered, pointing to a big pair of sliding doors ahead, carved handholds their only ornamentation. "At least, the dagger is."
Ingtar looked at Hurin; the sniffer slid the doors open, and Ingtar leaped through with his sword ready. There was no one there. Rand and the others hurried inside, and Hurin quickly closed the doors behind them.
Painted screens hid all the walls and any other doors, and veiled the light coming through windows that had to overlook the street. At one end of the big room stood a tall, circular cabinet. At the other was a small table, the lone107 chair on the carpet turned to face it. Rand heard Ingtar gasp62, but he only felt like heaving a sigh of relief. The curling golden Horn of Valere sat on a stand on the table. Below it, the ruby108 in the hilt of the ornate dagger caught the light.
Mat darted to the table, snatching Horn and dagger. "We have it," he crowed, shaking the dagger in his fist. "We have both of them."
"Not so loud," Perrin said with a wince109. "We don't have them out of here, yet." His hands were busy on the haft of his axe; they seemed to want to be holding something else.
"The Horn of Valere." There was sheer awe110 in Ingtar's voice. He touched the Horn hesitantly, tracing a finger along the silver script inlaid around the bell and mouthing the translation, then pulled his hand back with a shiver of excitement. "It is. By the Light, it is! I am saved."
Hurin was moving the screens that hid the windows. He shoved the last out of his way and peered into the street below. "Those soldiers are all still there, looking like they've took root." He shuddered111. "Those . . . things, too."
Rand went to join him. The two beasts were grolm; there was no denying it. "How did they. . . ." As he lifted his eyes from the street, words died. He was looking over a wall into the garden of the big house across the street. He could see where further walls had been torn down, joining other gardens to it. Women sat on benches there, or strolled along the walks, always in pairs. Women linked, neck to wrist, by silver leashes. One of the women with a collar around her neck looked up. He was too far to make out her face clearly, but for an instant it seemed that their eyes met, and he knew. The blood drained from his face. "Egwene," he breathed.
"What are you talking about?" Mat said. "Egwene is safe in Tar15 Valon. I wish I were."
"She's here," Rand said. The two women were turning, walking toward one of the buildings on the far side of the joined gardens. "She is there, right across the street. Oh, Light, she's wearing one of those collars!"
"Are you sure?" Perrin said. He came to peer from the window. "I don't see her, Rand. And - and I could recognize her if I did, even at this distance."
"I am sure," Rand said. The two women disappeared into one of the houses that faced the next street over. His stomach was twisted into a knot. She is supposed to be safe. She's supposed to be in the White Tower. "I have to get her out. The rest of you - "
"So!" The slurring112 voice was as soft as the sound of the doors sliding in their tracks. "You are not who I expected."
For a brief moment, Rand stared. The tall man with the shaven head who had stepped into the room wore a long, trailing blue robe, and his fingernails were so long that Rand wondered if he could handle anything. The two men standing113 obsequiously114 behind him had only half their dark hair shaved, the rest hanging in a dark braid down each man's right cheek. One of them cradled a sheathed115 sword in his arms.
It was only a moment he had for staring, then screens toppled to reveal, at either end of the room, a doorway116 crowded with four or five Seanchan soldiers, bareheaded but armored, and swords in hand.
"You are in the presence of the High Lord Turak," the man who carried the sword began, staring at Rand and the others angrily, but a brief motion of a finger with a blue-lacquered nail cut him short. The other servant stepped forward with a bow and began undoing Turak's robe.
"When one of my guards was found dead," the shaven-headed man said calmly, "I suspected the man who calls himself Fain. I have been suspicious of him since Huon died so mysteriously, and he has always wanted that dagger." He held out his arms for the servant to remove his robe. Despite his soft, almost-singing voice, hard muscles roped his arms and smooth chest, which was bare to a blue sash holding wide, white trousers that seemed made of hundreds of pleats. He sounded uninterested, and indifferent to the blades in their hands. "And now to find strangers with not only the dagger, but the Horn. It will please me to kill one or two of you for disturbing my morning. Those who survive will tell me of who you are and why you came." He stretched out a hand without looking - the man with the scabbarded sword laid the hilt in the hand - and drew the heavy, curved blade. "I would not have the Horn damaged."
Turak gave no other signal, but one of the soldiers stalked into the room and reached for the Horn. Rand did not know whether he should laugh, or not. The man wore armor, but his arrogant117 face seemed as oblivious118 to their weapons as Turak was.
Mat put an end to it. As the Seanchan reached out his hand, Mat slashed119 it with the ruby-hilted dagger. With a curse, the soldier leaped back, looking surprised. And then he screamed. It chilled the room, held everyone where they stood in astonishment. The trembling hand he held up in front of his face was turning black, darkness creeping outwards121 from the bleeding gash122 that crossed his palm. He opened his mouth wide and howled, clawing at his arm, then his shoulder. Kicking, jerking, he toppled to the floor, thrashing on the silken carpet, shrieking123 as his face grew black and his dark eyes bulged124 like overripe plums, until a dark, swollen125 tongue gagged him. He twitched126, choking raggedly127, heels drumming, and did not move again. Every bit of his exposed flesh was black as putrid128 pitch and looked ready to burst at a touch.
Mat licked his lips and swallowed; his grip shifted uneasily on the dagger. Even Turak stared, openmouthed.
"You see," Ingtar said softly, "we are no easy meat." Suddenly he leaped over the corpse129, toward the soldiers still goggling130 at what was left of the man who had stood at their shoulders only moments before. "Shinowa!" he cried. "Follow me!" Hurin leaped after him, and the soldiers fell back before them, the sounds of steel on steel rising.
The Seanchan at the other end of the room started forward as Ingtar moved, but then they were falling back, too, before Mat's thrusting dagger even more than from the axe Perrin swung with wordless snarls131.
In the space of heartbeats, Rand stood alone, facing Turak, who held his blade upright before him. His moment of shock was gone. His eyes were sharp on Rand's face; the black and swollen body of one of his soldiers might as well not have existed. It did not seem to exist for the two servants, either, any more than Rand and his sword existed, or the sounds of fighting, fading now from the rooms to either side out into the house. The servants had begun calmly folding Turak's robe as soon as the High Lord took his sword, and had not looked up even for the dead soldier's shrieks132; now they knelt beside the door and watched with impassive eyes.
"I suspected it might come to you and me." Turak spun133 his blade easily, a full circle one way, then the other, his long-nailed fingers moving delicately on the hilt. His fingernails did not seem to hamper134 him at all. "You are young. Let us see what is required to earn the heron on this side of the ocean."
Suddenly Rand saw. Standing tall on Turak's blade was a heron. With the little training he had, he was face-to-face with a real blademaster. Hastily he tossed the fleece-lined cloak aside, ridding himself of weight and encumbrance135. Turak waited.
Rand desperately136 wanted to seek the void. It was plain he would need every shred137 of ability he could muster138, and even then his chances of leaving the room alive would be small. He had to leave alive. Egwene was almost close enough for him to shout to her, and he had to free her, somehow. But saidin waited in the void. The thought made his heart leap with eagerness at the same time that it turned his stomach. But just as close as Egwene were those other women. Damane. If he touched saidin, and if he could not stop himself channeling, they would know, Verin had told him. Know and wonder. So many, so close. He might survive Turak only to die facing damane, and he 'could not die before Egwene was free. Rand raised his blade.
Turak glided139 toward him on silent feet. Blade rang on blade like hammer on anvil140.
From the first it was clear to Rand that the man was testing him, pushing only hard enough to see what he could do, then pushing a little harder, then just a little harder still. It was quick wrists and quick feet that kept Rand alive as much as skill. Without the void, he was always half a heartbeat behind. The tip of Turak's heavy sword made a stinging trench141 just under his left eye. A flap of coat sleeve hung away from his shoulder, the darker for being wet. Under a neat slash120 beneath his right arm, precise as a tailor's cut, he could feel warm dampness spreading down his ribs142.
There was disappointment on the High Lord's face. He stepped back with a gesture of disgust. "Where did you find that blade, boy? Or do they here truly award the heron to those no more skilled than you? No matter. Make your peace. It is time to die. " He came on again.
The void enveloped143 Rand. Saidin flowed toward him, glowing with the promise of the One Power, but he ignored it. It was no more difficult than ignoring a barbed thorn twisting in his flesh. He refused to be filled with the Power, refused to be one with the male half of the True Source. He was one with the sword in his hands, one with the floor beneath his feet, one with the walls. One with Turak.
He recognized the forms the High Lord used; they were a little different from what he had been taught, but not enough. The Swallow Takes Flight met Parting the Silk. Moon on the Water met The Wood Grouse144 Dances. Ribbon in the Air met Stones Falling From the Cliff. They moved about the room as in a dance, and their music was steel against steel.
Disappointment and disgust faded from Turak's dark eyes, replaced by surprise, then concentration. Sweat appeared on the High Lord's face as he pressed Rand harder. Lightning of Three Prongs met Leaf on the Breeze.
Rand's thoughts floated outside the void, apart from himself, hardly noticed. It was not enough. He faced a blademaster, and with the void and every ounce of his skill he was barely managing to hold his own. Barely. He had to end it before Turak finally did. Saidin? No! Sometimes it is necessary to Sheath the Sword in your own flesh. But that would not help Egwene, either. He had to end it now. Now.
Turak's eyes widened as Rand glided forward. So far he had only defended; now he attacked, all out. The Boar Rushes Down the Mountain. Every movement of his blade was an attempt to reach the High Lord; now all Turak could do was retreat and defend, down the length of the room, almost to the door.
In an instant, while Turak still tried to face the Boar, Rand charged. The River Undercuts the Bank. He dropped to one knee, blade slashing145 across. He did not need Turak's gasp, or the feel of resistance to his cut to know. He heard two thumps146 and turned his head, knowing what he would see. He looked down the length of his blade, wet and red, to where the High Lord lay, sword tumbled from his limp hand, a dark dampness staining the birds woven in the carpet under his body. Turak's eyes were still open, but already filmed with death.
The void shook. He had faced Trollocs before, faced Shadow spawn147. Never before had he confronted a human being with a sword except in practice or bluff148. I just killed a man. The void shook, and saidin tried to fill him.
Desperately he clawed free, breathing hard as he looked around. He gave a start when he saw the two servants still kneeling beside the door. He had forgotten them, and now he did not know what to do about them. Neither man appeared armed, yet all they had to do was shout . . . .
They never looked at him, or at each other. Instead, they stared silently at the High Lord's body. They produced daggers149 from under their robes, and he tightened his grip on the sword, but each man placed the point to his own breast. "From birth to death," they intoned in unison150, "I serve the Blood." And plunged the daggers into their own hearts. They folded forward almost peacefully, heads to the floor as if bowing deeply to their lord.
Rand stared at them in disbelief. Mad, he thought. Maybe I will go mad, but they already were.
He was getting to his feet shakily when Ingtar and the others came running back. They all bore nicks and cuts; the leather of Ingtar's coat was stained in more than one place. Mat still had the Horn and his dagger, its blade darker than the ruby in its hilt. Perrin's axe was red, too, and he looked as if he might be sick at any moment.
"You dealt with them?" Ingtar said, looking at the bodies. "Then we're done, if no alarm is given. Those fools never cried for help, not once."
"I will see if the guards heard anything," Hurin said, and darted for the window.
Mat shook his head. "Rand, these people are crazy. I know I've said that before, but these people really are. Those servants . . . ." Rand held his breath, wondering if they had all killed themselves. Mat said, "Whenever they saw us fighting, they fell on their knees, put their faces to the floor, and wrapped their arms around their heads. They never moved, or cried out; never tried to help the soldiers, or give an alarm. They're still there, as far as I know."
"I would not count on them staying on their knees," Ingtar said dryly. "We are leaving now, as fast as we can run."
"You go," Rand said. "Egwene - "
"You fool!" Ingtar snapped. "We have what we came for. The Horn of Valere. The hope of salvation151. What can one girl count, even if you love her, alongside the Horn, and what it stands for?"
"The Dark One can have the Horn for all I care! What does finding the Horn count if I abandon Egwene to this? If I did that, the Horn couldn't save me. The Creator couldn't save me. I would damn myself."
Ingtar stared at him, his face unreadable. "You mean that exactly, don't you?"
"Something's happening out here," Hurin said urgently. "A man just came running up, and they're all milling like fish in a bucket. Wait. The officer is coming inside!"
"Go!" Ingtar said. He tried to take the Horn, but Mat was already running. Rand hesitated, but Ingtar grabbed his arm and pulled him into the hall. The others were streaming after Mat; Perrin only gave Rand one pained look before he went. "You cannot save the girl if you stand here and die!"
He ran with them. Part of him hated himself for running, but another part whispered, I'll come back. I'll free her somehow.
By the time they reached the bottom of the narrow, winding staircase, he could hear a man's deep voice raised in the front part of the house, angrily demanding that someone stand up and speak. A serving girl in her nearly transparent robe knelt at the bottom of the stairs, and a gray-haired woman all in white wool, with a long floury apron80, knelt by the kitchen door. They were both exactly as Mat had described, faces to the floor and arms wrapped around their heads, and they did not stir a hair as Rand and the others hurried by. He was relieved to see the motions of breathing.
They crossed the garden at a dead run, climbing over the back wall rapidly. Ingtar cursed when Mat tossed the Horn of Valere ahead of him, and tried again to take it when he dropped outside, but Mat snatched it up with a quick, "It isn't even scratched," and scampered152 up the alley.
More shouts rose from the house they had just left; a woman screamed, and someone began tolling153 a gong.
I will come back for her. Somehow. Rand sped after the others as fast as he could.
收听单词发音 |
1
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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alley
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| n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路 | |
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pilfered
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| v.偷窃（小东西），小偷( pilfer的过去式和过去分词 )；偷窃（一般指小偷小摸） | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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bracelet
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| n.手镯，臂镯 | |
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hem
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| n.贴边，镶边；vt.缝贴边；(in)包围，限制 | |
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averted
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| 防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移 | |
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berth
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| n.卧铺，停泊地，锚位；v.使停泊 | |
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shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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shrug
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| v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等) | |
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casually
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| adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地 | |
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tar
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| n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于 | |
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nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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thump
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| v.重击，砰然地响；n.重击，重击声 | |
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leash
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| n.牵狗的皮带，束缚；v.用皮带系住 | |
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holders
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| 支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物 | |
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filthy
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| adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的 | |
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thorny
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| adj.多刺的，棘手的 | |
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trickle
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| vi.淌，滴，流出，慢慢移动，逐渐消散 | |
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mote
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| n.微粒；斑点 | |
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clattered
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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clatter
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| v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声 | |
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buckled
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| a. 有带扣的 | |
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hissed
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| 发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对 | |
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28
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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29
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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30
shrouding
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| n.覆盖v.隐瞒( shroud的现在分词 )；保密 | |
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31
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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hooded
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| adj.戴头巾的；有罩盖的；颈部因肋骨运动而膨胀的 | |
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34
wrestled
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| v.（与某人）搏斗( wrestle的过去式和过去分词 )；扭成一团；扭打；（与…）摔跤 | |
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35
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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36
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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37
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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38
wheezed
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| v.喘息，发出呼哧呼哧的喘息声( wheeze的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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39
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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41
soothing
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| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
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42
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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43
merged
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| （使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中 | |
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44
undoing
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| n.毁灭的原因，祸根；破坏，毁灭 | |
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45
flinching
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的现在分词 ) | |
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46
hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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47
pricking
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| 刺，刺痕，刺痛感 | |
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48
sneer
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| v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语 | |
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49
tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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50
bulging
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| 膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱 | |
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51
partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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52
gaped
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| v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的过去式和过去分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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53
sagged
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| 下垂的 | |
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54
gulped
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| v.狼吞虎咽地吃，吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 )；大口地吸（气）；哽住 | |
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55
stark
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| adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地 | |
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56
literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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57
leashes
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| n.拴猎狗的皮带( leash的名词复数 ) | |
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58
frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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59
babbling
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| n.胡说，婴儿发出的咿哑声adj.胡说的v.喋喋不休( babble的现在分词 )；作潺潺声（如流水）；含糊不清地说话；泄漏秘密 | |
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60
tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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61
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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62
gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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63
balk
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| n.大方木料；v.妨碍；不愿前进或从事某事 | |
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64
hips
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| abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的 | |
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65
curtly
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| adv.简短地 | |
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66
astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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67
hustled
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| 催促（hustle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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68
bustle
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| v.喧扰地忙乱，匆忙，奔忙；n.忙碌；喧闹 | |
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69
gull
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| n.鸥；受骗的人；v.欺诈 | |
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70
gulls
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| n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 ) | |
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71
axe
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| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
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72
mooring
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| n.停泊处；系泊用具，系船具；下锚v.停泊，系泊（船只）(moor的现在分词) | |
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73
skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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74
bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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75
tattoo
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| n.纹身，(皮肤上的)刺花纹；vt.刺花纹于 | |
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76
embroidery
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| n.绣花，刺绣；绣制品 | |
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77
wagon
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| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
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78
wagons
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| n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车 | |
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79
aprons
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| 围裙( apron的名词复数 )； 停机坪，台口（舞台幕前的部份） | |
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80
apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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81
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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82
reins
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| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
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83
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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84
wager
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| n.赌注；vt.押注，打赌 | |
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85
overrode
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| 越控( override的过去式 )； （以权力）否决； 优先于； 比…更重要 | |
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86
alleys
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| 胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径 | |
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87
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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88
peek
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| vi.偷看，窥视；n.偷偷的一看，一瞥 | |
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89
scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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90
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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91
crouch
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| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
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92
evergreen
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| n.常青树；adj.四季常青的 | |
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93
shrubs
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| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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94
rippled
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| 使泛起涟漪（ripple的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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95
anguished
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| adj.极其痛苦的v.使极度痛苦(anguish的过去式) | |
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96
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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97
notched
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| a.有凹口的，有缺口的 | |
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98
transparent
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| adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的 | |
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99
hoarsely
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| adv.嘶哑地 | |
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100
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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101
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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102
sparse
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| adj.稀疏的，稀稀落落的，薄的 | |
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103
tapestry
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| n.挂毯，丰富多采的画面 | |
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104
rippling
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| 起涟漪的，潺潺流水般声音的 | |
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105
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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106
scuffing
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| n.刮[磨，擦，划]伤v.使磨损( scuff的现在分词 )；拖着脚走 | |
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107
lone
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| adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的 | |
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108
ruby
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| n.红宝石，红宝石色 | |
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109
wince
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| n.畏缩，退避，（因痛苦，苦恼等)面部肌肉抽动；v.畏缩，退缩，退避 | |
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110
awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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111
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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112
slurring
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| 含糊地说出( slur的现在分词 )； 含糊地发…的声； 侮辱； 连唱 | |
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113
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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114
obsequiously
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115
sheathed
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| adj.雕塑像下半身包在鞘中的；覆盖的；铠装的；装鞘了的v.将（刀、剑等）插入鞘( sheathe的过去式和过去分词 )；包，覆盖 | |
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116
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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117
arrogant
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| adj.傲慢的，自大的 | |
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118
oblivious
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| adj.易忘的，遗忘的，忘却的，健忘的 | |
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119
slashed
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| v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减 | |
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120
slash
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| vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩 | |
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121
outwards
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| adj.外面的，公开的，向外的；adv.向外；n.外形 | |
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122
gash
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| v.深切，划开；n.(深长的)切(伤)口；裂缝 | |
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123
shrieking
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| v.尖叫( shriek的现在分词 ) | |
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124
bulged
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| 凸出( bulge的过去式和过去分词 )； 充满； 塞满（某物） | |
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125
swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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126
twitched
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| vt.& vi.（使）抽动，（使）颤动（twitch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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127
raggedly
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| 破烂地，粗糙地 | |
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128
putrid
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| adj.腐臭的；有毒的；已腐烂的；卑劣的 | |
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129
corpse
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| n.尸体，死尸 | |
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130
goggling
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| v.睁大眼睛瞪视， （惊讶的）转动眼珠( goggle的现在分词 ) | |
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131
snarls
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| n.（动物的）龇牙低吼( snarl的名词复数 )；愤怒叫嚷（声）；咆哮（声）；疼痛叫声v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的第三人称单数 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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132
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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133
spun
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| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
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134
hamper
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| vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子 | |
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135
encumbrance
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| n.妨碍物，累赘 | |
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136
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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137
shred
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| v.撕成碎片，变成碎片；n.碎布条，细片，些少 | |
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138
muster
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| v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册 | |
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139
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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140
anvil
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| n.铁钻 | |
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141
trench
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| n./v.(挖)沟，(挖)战壕 | |
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142
ribs
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| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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143
enveloped
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| v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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144
grouse
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| n.松鸡；v.牢骚，诉苦 | |
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145
slashing
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| adj.尖锐的；苛刻的；鲜明的；乱砍的v.挥砍( slash的现在分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减 | |
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146
thumps
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| n.猪肺病；砰的重击声( thump的名词复数 )v.重击， （指心脏）急速跳动( thump的第三人称单数 ) | |
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147
spawn
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| n.卵，产物，后代，结果；vt.产卵，种菌丝于，产生，造成；vi.产卵，大量生产 | |
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148
bluff
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| v.虚张声势，用假象骗人；n.虚张声势，欺骗 | |
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149
daggers
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| 匕首，短剑( dagger的名词复数 ) | |
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150
unison
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| n.步调一致，行动一致 | |
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151
salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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152
scampered
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| v.蹦蹦跳跳地跑，惊惶奔跑( scamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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153
tolling
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| [财]来料加工 | |
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