Ripple Five: One Fine Morning
written by Leanna Lisette Damodred, Aedomon al’Cor’vron, Caden Ives and Shyne

Turning down the hall towards the center of the Tower, Aedomon turned at the base of the stairs leading to the Keeper's office and studied the door infront of him. This was the room Cpt. Ives had said was his chambers, and Aedomon had meant wholey that he would stop in when he had finished his week in the kitchens. His hands still showed wrinkles from the stained water, but Aedomon had learned quickly the few tricks for dealing with the smell.

Straightening his shirt, Aedomon ensured his peacestrings on his dagger were tied before lifting his hand to rap his knuckles on the door three times. Stepping back slightly from the door, Aedomon awaited a responce.

He had awakened when Leanna left and now sat by his redwood table in the middle of the large room. Caden Ives pulled out his dagger and began to shave. It skimmed his flesh while he looked back at himself in the small steel-framed mirror. His emerald orbs were unmoving behind strands of blonde hair, still damp after the water basin. He enjoyed the once-daily ritual, he would not let any Grey Tower servant with pig lard and soap near him. He had always preferred to shave dry and alone, and not once had he broken skin the past ten years. The blade gleamed in the sunlight entering through the three arched windows and it cut without pressure.

His thoughts were far off from he was doing. The days in the Yards were dark with suspicions and plotting. The Shadow stir behind the battlements, he thought, almost ruining his record by baring his teeth at a crucial moment, and all we can do is to sit and wait for a chance to act. He hated the this play, but he was not unnerved by it. Soon the three sa'ji'alantin would do something overly foolish and something could be done without alerting Eya Sedai. The three were bold as they beat the lower ranks into doing their bidding, but they had not yet acted without thought. When they did, he would be there.

However, there was the matter of the Aes Sedai. Caden had pressed the suggestion of arresting them all at the same time, so that neither could do further harm in their desperate esacapes to flee. Who knew what influence they had gained this far? Caden did not know what was worse; three veterans in the swords with an unknown number of subjects creating bloodbath in their wake, or a lone Aes Sedai smiting key points within the Grey Tower.

"Master?" said a familiar voice behind him. It was Edon, his squire. "There was a knock on the door. It appears a mute drin'far'ji seeks you. He wrote his inquiry to me. His name is Aedomon al'Cor'vron." The dark haired young man with hazel eyes was dressed in his usual white robe when Caden looked over his shoulder. Two black swords ? pointed down ? were embroidered on his chest. His curved sword hung by his hip as always.

Finished with his morning ritual, he rapped the dagger against the table to clean it. The amount of hair falling from the blade was a fair crop. Though after this noon, the stubble would have grown visible again. The Gaidin Captain did it still for he knew discipline and ritual mattered. "I know the man, Edon. Bid him enter."

Rising from his seat, Caden pulled on a black shirt with silver laces in the collar. Buttoning it, he pulled on his fancloak and awaited the drin'far'ji before the table. He would decend to the Yards and his study soon, only briefly visiting Leanna to tell her he was not leaving anywhere beyond the battlements. His Aes Sedai could need his services and she had to knwo his whereabouts. When Aedomon entered the room, he raised his hands and signed, Good morning, drin'far'ji. I take it you are finished with your duty in the kitchens.

Bending a knee slightly and tilting his head as he entered Caden's office, Aedomon looked up in time to see the man sign. His form had improved conciderably in the last week. Holding his hands up and turning them slightly so Caden could see the still fresh wrinkles to the skin, Aedomon nodded. "Good morning, Captain, I came directly. I'm pleased to see how much your signing has improved, it appears you shalt need help afterall." Taking in the man's freshly shaven skin, Aedomon continued. "I am not interrupting, am i?" Standing stiff awaiting the man's reply, Aedomon hoped he hadnt signed too fast.

"No. At ease drin'far'ji, and I'm pleased to hear my small efforts prove fruitful," signed Caden with one hand, walking over to the open fireplace. It was of solid white marble and was unlit. However, the carvings drew his attention and he trailed the patterns with his eyes. At the same time, his thoughts trailed the problems in the Yards. An idea had come to him, and he contemplated if he could take the risks. The silence lay heavy before Caden turned around, standing tall and solid. His presence filled the room more than the fact of his body. "What I am about to tell you will not leave these walls. Pay attention, for this will be your first true assignment beyond the training you undergo. I need not tell you that it is of serious nature, and should you take an ill turn, it could mean the death of you."

Dropping his hands, he spoke up with the voice of the Gaidin Captain. Command ringed in the undertones. "Are you ready to do your duty for the Grey Tower?"

Loosing his shirt laces as Caden turned towards the mantle, Aedomon allowed his shirt to hang slightly more than usual. Leaning slightly against the wall, he studied the Captain. There was something off about the man... an ill-ease, or purhaps he had previously had an argument with his Aes Sedai. Either way, unless he made it known to the drin'far'ji, it was none of his business. Following the man's hands as he turned and began to sign, Aedomon scowled slightly.

"Are you ready to do your duty for the Grey Tower?" The question sounded quite loud in Aedomon's ears, yet slightly hallow. Was the duty for the Tower, or Caden? The look in the man's eyes led in neither direction, only mere circles. Under penalty of death... provided on what information was to follow, Aedomon would follow his nose to the source, not be somebody's trained dog. Giving a slight nod, Aedomon awaited for his orders.

Caden collected his thoughts before he raised his hands and signed. "The yards are no longer safe..."

And then he explained everything without uttering a word. That way, no one would gain anything by overhearing. He told the tale of the three sa'ji'alantin and how they gained influence by beating the lower ranks into submission. They thus gained a network of own subjects which they could use for whatever their dark needs saw fit. He told him about Eya Sedai and how the three now were promised to her, and how careful they must thread since a massacre would be the result if any of them suspected they had been discovered. None knew how much influence any of them had gained thus far.

"This can hardly be news for you. I suspect the three are noted in the yards because of their demeanour.

Shyne got a few odd looks running through the tower. He also got a few sharp looks from the Aes Sedai and Asha'man he saw. Even as important as his message was, he found that he couldn't help but nod politely to each one, as though it had been ingrained into his head (which it had).

When he finally reached the chambers that the Captain owned, he didn't pause a hair before banging loudly on the door.

It was quickly opened by a dark-haired man in a white robe. Two black swords adorned his chest, marking him Caden's squire. "Can I help you Ji'Alantin?"

"Yes, you can. I must speak with Captain Ives immediately. It's an emergency."

"I'm sorry. Captain Ives is in a meeting with Aedomon al'Cor'vron Drin'far'ji at the moment. He asked not to be disturbed."

Shyne sighed, breathing hard, his right arm convulsing. "With all due respect to the Captain, I'm sure this would merit disturbing them."

Raising his hands to speak, Aedomon paused and tilted his head slightly to the door as rapid footsteps turned to a loud banging at the door to Caden's office.

"Purhaps it would be wise to continue this later? I'll keep my eyes and ears open, you should be able to find me in the Yards if needed." Waiting for his leave, Aedomon watched Caden while his ears listened to what transpired at the door.

Shifting his eyes from Aedomon, he saw Edon enter the room from the ante-chamber. "Drin'far'ji Shyne awaits for a word, master. He says his matter merit the disturbance," he said, standing rigid in the doorway, "shall I bid him enter?"

Shyne... Caden let his face betray nothing which the name brought him. "Yes," he said with a sigh, he then turned to the first Trainee to visit him this morning, "Aedomon. I trust you understand the importance of keeping what you know behind your teeth. As you have understood, I want you to be observant from now on. I will seek you out when the time is right, when I need an extra pair of hands. Go now, and thread with care, for the Shadow own many eyes."

When Croi's son left, Edon led Shyne into the big room. The two Trainees passed each other in the ante-chamber, and the Gaidin Captain wondered briefly if the ji'alantin and the drin'far'ji knew each other. Caden said nothing until Edon withdrew and he was alone with the former. "What brings you, ji'alantin?" he asked while folding his hands behind his back. A moment later, he ground his teeth, he thought he already knew. "Are you here to ease the decision I stand before regarding your fate?" If Shyne had decided to leave the Tower on his own accord, he had surely chosen a strange way to do it.

Nodding as Caden gave him leave, Aedomon turned half towards the door before raising his hands to speak. "Of course, Captain. The Shadow possesses more eyes than we could possibly know exactly, but the Eyes of the Light are numerous, and mine will search for the Dark. Lights blessings, sir." At that, Aedomon headed into the ante-chamber.

Passing by Ji'Alantin Shyne, Aedomon took in the mood of the man's eyes, the posture that showed his feinting panic. Something had obviously caught the man, but exactly what Aedomon could not tell. Was he here regarding news of the three sa'ji'alantin, or purhaps for them? Nodding slightly as he passed, Aedomon checked the man's hands. Hard practiced from the two swords the man always used, and a trace of something Aedomon could not quite make out from the distance. Noting it in his head, Aedomon nodded to Edon as the door was shut behind him.

Shyne nodded to Aedomon Drin'far'ji and almost ran past into Caden's office. Immediately, out of habit and training, he saluted and stood to attention. He didn't move, aside from the still frantic shaking of his right arm, until Caden had finished speaking.

"What brings you, ji'alantin? Are you here to ease the decision I stand before regarding your fate?"

"If only captain. If only. There are slightly more pressing issues to attend to. There... there was quite recently a drin'far'ji hanging..." He swallowed rather loudly. "Hanging... dead... from the roof of the Warder's Hall. A dead Drin' and what's worse... everyone saw it. A dead Warder in Training, and the entire Yard is aware..." H was babbling.. he knew he was babbling. He couldn't help himself.

The stone features in Caden's face were creased for a moment, the impact of the news crossing plainly over them. "What?"

His first instinct was to run down there and witness it for himself, but action gave away to thought. Why? This was the third man dead, but the others could have been accidents. Now a man was hanged, and there was no accidental circumstances about such a death. He was not certain, but few other alternatives existed. The three sa'ji'alantin had done this. Why had they been so foolish? With an official investigation, all would point to them, given the recent activities of theirs in the Yards.

Yet now they had made a terrible mistake. All knew, and they would not be able to hide anymore.

One recruit was dead, but in his death he had given the Executive Council the power to act without alarming Eya Sedai that they were on to her. The Shadowsworn within the Tower would not break havoc now when the Warders stirred. Caden felt sick, for he could not say if he was excited and glad that they were finally able to do something, or anger because one of the warriors he had accepted into the Yards had to die for it. He closed his eyes and tok a deep breath.

One thing was sure, they would pay dearly for their mistake.

Looking to Shyne, Caden walked to his weaponry ? a table below a stained glass window ? and reached for his hand-and-a-half sabre. "I need you to show me the body," he said, not quite keeping his Domani anger from his voice, it was not directed to the trainee, but it seeped through the vowels.

Fastening it to his hip, he set a mercurial pace out from his chambers and down the stairs, leaving Shyne no choice but to follow in his wake. "Tell me all you know," he ordered, his boots thudding against the stone. "Do you know his name?"

Shyne hurried along behind him. "He's not someone I knew well, but I'm pretty sure his name was Luantar. When I arrived this morning at the Hall, there was a large crowd of Drin'far'ji outside in a fit. Together, Kira and I dispersed them, telling them to go back to their studies and such, telling them not to mention it.

"I grabbed a Drin'far'ji, and the three of us went upstairs. The Drin' went looking for you, but of course you weren't in your office, so he came back and the we took down the body. It's now sitting in one of the classrooms on the third floor. Kira went looking for any of the Council, Bassal Drin'far'ji, who showed up not long after we got the body down, went to fetch Anyaiss Gaidin, who was downstairs, and the other Drin' is watching over the body. I think he knows something."

And that was everything, so far as Shyne knew. He couldn't read any of Caden's expressions, but the anger in his voice was a frightening thing.

Luantar cen Thaal, thought Caden, sadness gripping his cold hart for a moment, It was that Murandian boy. He remembered his parents seeing him off by the gates to the Grey Tower. They had travelled with him there to see him off. His father had been a retired guardsman from these very battlements and had urged him to join the Yards. The boy must have been groomed for the uniform from the first day he had learnt to walk. And he wasn't even raised once. All because we were idle. All because we didn't do anything, even though we know what was underway.

Groudning his teeth, Caden pushed the thoughts away. They could not have done anything different. If they had done anything, there was no telling what ripples of shadow would spread through the Tower.

Yet now, they could act without revealing their knowledge. Now, the sa'ji'alantins would pay back dearly for Luantar's early death.

Glancing over his shoulder as they left the main structure of the Grey Tower, Caden spoke again to Shyne, "The body. Did you search it when you took it down? Did he have anything on him that would reveal the cause of his passing? And who was the drin'far'ji he was left with?"

The Yards came into view then, and when he narrowed his eyes, he could see the rope still hanging from the roof. He could imagine what a scene it all had caused...

"No, Captain, the body hasn't been searched. I thought it might be best if we left that to someone with more experience and knowledge of this subject, such as a full Gaidin or Gaidar. As for the boy I left him with, I can't say I know his name, it's been alluding me this whole time, but I've seen him around and he seems to know what he's about..."

He'd never seen the Captain like this. It was inherantly frightning...

Caden's lips thinned at Shyne's response. "If the Light shine upon us, the body is still there. As well as the other drin'far'ji," he growled, but added nothing to that, for his thoughts raged inside his skull. If the three sa'ji'alantin got to the body before they, there would be no chance of binding them to the murder.

And the Light willing, the namelessdrin'far'ji Shyne had left was not in leage with the Shadow's trio.

By then, they had crossed the Yards and entered the Warder Hall.

Chapter One: Dawn to Murder
~Ripple One: The Sunrise
~Ripple Two: A Written Order
~Ripple Three: Where are you, Luantar?
~Ripple Four: Uncertainty
~Ripple Five: One Fine Morning
~Ripple Six: Taking Action, at Whatever the Cost

Return to the Ripples Intro