Kira rode carefully into the small village outside the Tower, her hands on reins on her saddle horn as she guided her horse with her knees. She had come on a mission, and she intended to leave with more than she came with. Her saddlebags were already full to bursting, as she had come from the forests and had been hunting with her small bow, but something seemed to be missing about the girl, a something she could not yet name.
The streets were full, and the sighting of the ocassional Aes Sedai, Ash'man, and Warders caused Kira to turn her head away, lest she get caught away from the Tower. Her cloak's hood was up, but it was better safe than sorry. The new rules she had to learn also seemed to confuse the girl, as she was unsure of whether or not she was even breaking a rule by coming here! Kira knew that a beginning Tower member could not leave the grounds, but she was technically an intermediate level now, so did she have more freedom?
The girl rode without thinking, everyonce and a while glancing back and looking at the wolf directly behind her. That in itself probably marked her out as a Tower Member, but any female channeler would know that Kira couldn't channel, and there were only two Wolfkin that she knew of in the Warder yards, one of them being herself. Her glowing eyes also would catch attention, had anyone decided to look into her face. The cloak created a shadow across her face, and her eyes stood out like a beacon in the dark.
There it was! A shop that seemed to stick out to Kira like a Tinker among the merchants. She raced over and tied her horse to the hitching rail out front before going in and seeing what it was that had caught her attention.
The walls were lined with weapons of all sorts, spanning from a wooden pratice sword to the real thing, throwing daggers to two handed blades. All sorts of weapons were there, and the man behind the counter seemed as much a part of the weapons as everything else in the shop.
"Mistress," he said immediately when Kira walked in. "How may I be of help to you today?" He was polishing a bow with a well worn rag, carefully adding to the gleam of the wood.
Kira smiled at him and said, "Good sir, I am not sure how you can help me. I was drawn to your store, and I can only think it was the will of the pattern that brought me." She stepped out of the entrance, walking toward the front counter where the man was.
He smiled gently, nodding knowingly. "Many have come here in such a fashion, though many of those are Ji'alantin, and new to their rank. Most of those have a weapon seeking them, though they may not know it. All are drawn to their true weapons in time." He smiled more broadly, his eyes showing none of the amusement that touched his face.
The floorboards creaked as Kira shifted her weight, wondering as she did if this man was mad. Then she smiled, saying, "May I look around?" At the man's nod, she turned at once to the weapons on the walls.
Something caught her eye suddenly as something in one of the corners seemed to shine as the light hit it. Kira glanced at the man, who was still polishing the bow, and worked her way throught the maze of weapons to see what it was that had caught her eye.
She reached the corner, and nothing seemed to be there. She looked back at the man at the counter and said, "Pardon, but I could have sworn something was here when I looked this direction a few minutes ago."
The man barked a laugh. "Too right you are," he said, his eyes gleaming. "But I had an Aes Sedai in here the other day and she decided that it would be best if no one could see that weapon. She said it was power wrought and should not be in the hands of commoners. But if a Gaidin or Gaidin in training saw it, I could give it to them cheap. Reach your hand toward the corner at about waist hieght and you'll feel it."
Kira was doubtful, but she reached her hand in as he had said, and found to her suprise that there was a long, slender, round object where the man said. She gripped it and pulled it toward her carefully and saw that a long, staff like object appeared seemingly out of nowhere. The thing looked alot like a quarterstaff with a sword blade on one end, a raven etched into the steel. She ran her hand lightly over the length of the shaft, sighing.
"How much is it?" she asked hesitantly. Such a thing must be expensive, for the metal was Power wrought and the type of weapon was hard to come by.
The man studied her for a moment, then said, "How much do you have?"
Kira looked into her pouch. She had only skins from hunting there that she was taking to a friend here in the village. "I have none," she said, saddened by the fact. Warders in Training had little use for money. Then, an idea came into her head. "But I can trade for it. I make saddles, good ones, and will trade you a specially made saddle for the weapon."
"It's called an Ashanderei," he said his grim eyes staring at her. "And I accept your deal. The horse is out back, so you can fit the tree."
Kira left the shop later that day with her spirits elated, her mind clearer, and a small part of herself that she had been missing put into place.