Studies of Evil
Written by Dedicated Averus (former menber.)
[Board Intro/Signup Message]
[Lesson One]
[Lesson Two]
[Lesson Three]
[Lesson Four]
[Lesson Five]
[Final]
[Return to the Archive]
Board Intro / Join the Dark World of Shadow
Some people claim that the greatest enemy is the one within. That is often the truth, but there is no one who can help you and teach you how to conquer it. I am here to teach you about the enemy out there -the creatures of the Shadow, the Evil that taints everything and everyone. You must learn to recognize it, so that you can fight it. Tarmon Gai'don is coming ...
Note: This class is one way of gaining an Advantage Point in the Advantage Shadowspawn Lore.
Join the Dark World of Shadow
This class will take you to the borders of the Light and beyond. You will make a journey in your mind you hardly thought possible, which will leave you viewing the world in a different way than when you arrived.
For now though, the following will suffice:
IC Name:
Rank:
E-mail address:
You may post to as many lessons as you want right away, but I would ask you not to post a reply to the final test before you've passed the preceding lessons. I will not grade the test until that is done, since it is supposed to be a final exam.
Also, I will be disappointed if I find any of the so called one-liners in this class. Give your posts some thought, write not only answers but what happens inside your character's mind, and around him/her as well.
If you have any comments or concerns about this class, feel free to contact me in either way... email: shadoclod@hotmail.com AIM: DarkLneWlf56 Averus al'Gant Dedicated of the White Class teacher
Lesson 1 - The Basics of Evil
Averus walked into the classroom, and looked around. The room reflected its previous teacher, the desks arranged in perfect order, symmetrical on each side. Walking through the rows, Averus ran a finger along each wooden table, remembering the time when he had been in this very room, looking up in admiration at Revelin. Being taught by the actual Amyrlin Seat, which Revelin had been at the time, was a little intimidating.
The Novice they had assigned to help him squeaked slightly as she tripped over one of the stools in the front. Averus smiled at her pleasantly, and she blushed under his gaze. He waved her away, to take an hour off from chores as she saw fit. She thanked him profusely, and walked quickly from the room. The Dedicated shook his head, remembering the time when he himself had been that young.
He strode to the front of the room, and removed his coat. He laid the black silk Andoran coat over the back of the chair in the front of the class, and turned to face the students' desks. He smiled in anticipation, and rolled up his sleeves.
* * *
As the students entered the room, they were greeted by the strange sight of Averus' format for the room. The desks were still in use, but he had moved them all to the walls of the room, creating a large semicircle, which opened up to the teacher's desk at the front of the room.
At that desk, Averus sat patiently, his coat again around his shoulders, though left open. He had propped his feet up on the desk in front of him, was quietly writing in a leather-bound volume, his pen scratching loudly. His bright green eyes seemed to shine faintly in the dying light streaming in from the large windows of the classroom.
As the students filed in and looked around, confused, Averus placed his pen in the crook of the pages, closed his book, and stood up. He smiled at the students as they entered, not bothering to fix his open coat or unlaced shirt. He gestured to the desks situated around the room and greeted each student individually. After it seemed that all of his students had settled, he walked to the middle of the circle, and began to speak, slowly revolving on the spot, in order to see as much of them as he could.
"Welcome to the class on the origins and types of shadowspawn and shadowsworn. I will be your teacher during the class, and you may refer to me as Dedicated Averus, or simply Averus, if you prefer." He smiled, to try and ease any tension that may be present. "I may be your teacher, and thusly your superior, but I want us to feel relaxed when speaking here." He paused for a moment, thinking. "If there is something during the lessons you find difficult to understand or grasp, you are free to ask questions during pauses or after the lesson. There are no foolish questions. Simply raise your hand, and I will respond to you when I can."
He smiled pleasantly at one of the shier Novices, a young woman who seemed to cower in one of the frong desks. "You are technically required to attend classes, so failure to attend lessons will be reported to the Mistress of Novices, Master of Soldiers or Master of Training. But I predict no problems with that. To pass this class you will have to think about the subject discussed, think and display your thoughts in words. That way all attending students will learn from each other as well as from me."
His first speech done, Ave returned to the front of the room, and leaned against the lecturer's desk, crossing his arms in front of himself. He smiled at his students, and was quite satisfied with his view of the class from this position. "Now, for this first lesson we will begin with various kinds of evil. We all refer to the Dark One as evil, and where he has touched the world, it is twisted and dark. His minions are divided into two groups; shadowspawn and shadowsworn. The shadowspawn are the creatures created for foul purposes, for example trollocs and darkhounds. No humans are referred to as shadowspawn, but we use the term shadowsworn, those sworn to the Shadow. Darkfriends, dreadlords and the Forsaken, they are all shadowsworn. The difference, as I'm sure you see, is that shadowspawn were born -bred even- into evil and darkness, and they know only those treats. The shadowsworn had a choice, and they chose to follow the dark side. In a way one might see the shadowsworn more evil than the shadowspawn, because of this."
He paused for a moment to let this all sink in, until another thought occured to him. "There are of course other evils in the world. I'm certain you've all heard of Machin Shin, the dark wind that haunts the Ways. It is debated whether or not it has something to do with the Dark One, or if it's an entity on its own, but still the fact remains -it is evil. Another example is the city of Aridhol, or Shadar Logoth as it is known nowadays. There, the evil inside the residents was encompassed, and hate destroyed both the people and the city. Today, no one ventures into Shadar Logoth without serious danger to their lives. This too is a strange kind of evil, not at all necessarily connected to the Dark One."
He stepped forward for just a moment, and stuck his hands in the pockets of his breeches. "Now, for some discussion. I'll try to keep this simple, for the first lesson. Ponder the term 'evil' for a moment... We shy back when we hear someone referred to as evil, and do our best to not be classified as evil ourselves. But what is it that makes a person evil? Why do we percieve certain actions as evil? And what actions would those be?"
Letting the silent echo of his words fill the room, Averus took the moment to scan the faces of his students. They ranged from young to old, all of them. He expected interesting thoughts from these ones. "Anyone may speak their thoughts. Remember that nothing is right or wrong in a question like this." Again, he smiled pleasantly. "If you are too nervous to speak in front of the whole class, then, please, write down your thoughts on a piece of parchment. I will review it and respond in kind, at our next class." He leaned back against the desk once again. "However, if you speak here, I will be able to respond right away. Of course, if you don't wish to hear my opinions on your own opinions, that's just too bad." Some of the students laughed at his jest, and he smiled. "Let's begin. Who would like to go first?"
Lesson 2 - Sworn to the Dark
Once again, Averus patiently awaited his students. He wrote in his leather journal again, comfortably situated in the lecturer's chair, in the front of the room. The students filed in slowly, and he waved to each of them in turn. He had learned a few things about them all the last class, and he was eager to learn more this day. He put his book down on the desk, and stepped around it, to get into his comfortable position, leaning against the front of the desk.
"For lesson two, we will venture into the lands of darkfriends and the smallest minions of the Dark One -his eyes and ears." His eyes and words were quite serious today, but he tried to keep a patient smile on his face, to ease the tension.
"It is true that 'darkfriends' is a general term, but usually it is applied to the lowest ranks of those who serve the Dark One. More powerful minions of the Shadow have their own names -Dreadlords and Forsaken, but those will be discussed in greater detail later on." Averus tried to keep the flinch he felt from showing on his face. His background was not necessary for this class.
"There are people today who use the term 'darkfriend' eagerly about anything or anyone they find strange. Often, channelers have been forced into hiding or escape because of mislead people thinking them evil. Fear and delusion works wonders with people, and the Dark One must be laughing in his prison when he sees the black emotions spread through humanity. The finest example of ignorant people shouting 'darkfriend' to their left and right, would be the Children of the Light."
He looked around the room, the smile dropping from his face. He would not discuss all the sins of the Children in their time on this planet. There was no need to go into that here. The Children themselves were a grey area in the terms of good and evil, the Light and the Dark. There was not enough to discuss the ethical implications of their existence here in this class.
"Accepting that there in no such thing as Darkfrinds would be a grievous mistake, however. Their society is one of the oldest ones dating from before the Breaking, and would thus be even older than the societies of channelers. It is even said that they had actually originated from the Age of Legends, as did the Forsaken. That would make their order over three thousand years old. It is also said that in the times of the Age of Legends, they openly called themselves 'Friends of the Dark' and ruled in territories held by the Shadow after the Collapse. When the Dark One touched the world through the Bore, many of the baser and darker aspects of the human psyche began to reassert themselves. Theft, murder and rape became commonplace alongside a lust for power and a greed for gold.
Their overall social structure consists of hidden cabals in every major city, each individual most likely knowing only about two other individuals in order to make sure that the whole cabal is not endangered if they are captured and interrogated. Rank outside their social structure does not matter. If a beggar gave a noble the "proper signs," the noble would be expected to obey the first. Darkfriends infiltrate other social structures and will do anything to achieve their goals - be it espionage, sabotage, planting false information or making assassinations. Everyone must be wary of Darkfriends, but not act without proof that someone is one. Ignorance is just as dangerous as the Shadow, a thing the Dark One uses to its advantage all the time."
Pausing, Averus kept a serious expression on his face, though tried to keep a light air about his voice. This was a serious topic, yes, but he did not need the students to be bogged down by the Dark's influence on them. They were here to discuss what was actually in existence, not solutions to how to deal with that evil.
"Now to our discussion for the day. First of all, we turn to the eyes and ears of the Dark One, we could all mention ravens, rats and foxes as being evil spies for him. However, they are not created by the Shadow. They are animals, in a way sworn to serve the Dark One. Would that make them number as shadowspawn or shadowsworn, and why would you think that?
Also, when discussing darkfriends, there are a few questions I'd like you to ponder and answer as thoroughly as you can. Do you think that Darkfriends are inherently evil, simply misguided or are they mentally ill as was a belief in the Age of Legends? Can you find any weaknesses in their social structure? And lastly, what would it take to make you a darkfriend?"
Averus gestured to the first hand that reached full height. "Ah, a brave soul. Yes?"
Lesson 3 - Shadow Beasts
Upon entering the classroom for the third time, the students found Averus standing over his desk, looking down at few scrolls he had unrolled over the top of the desk. His face was dark, and while he continued to greet each of the students on their own, he did not lighten his expression any.
As the students settled in again, Averus picked up one of the scrolls. He moved around to the front of the desk, removed his coat, and turned back to the class. His face was serious, but he did his best to keep his voice as light as possible.
"Today, we come to the shadowspawn. There are four main groups, and though most have heard of them, few have actually seen them with their own eyes and lived to tell about it.
We begin with the trolloc."
Unrolling the scroll he held, Averus held it up for everyone to see. Drawn in charcoal was a grisly trolloc, with a human torso and hands, but with a wolf's head and a ram's legs and feet. It was snarling in the picture, and it held a large axe in both hands as if ready to attack. Keeping his voice firm, Averus continued.
"Some trollocs have the heads of eagles, wolves, wildcats, and other kinds of ferocious animals. Most are taller than humans and have advantages in terms of pure brutal strength. Indeed, their naturally inherent aggression makes them into the most perfect berserker warriors, hard to kill.
The Forsaken Aginor was the foremost of the Shadowsworn ‘scientists’ who created these beings during the War of the Power - combining human and animal material together. He used animal characteristics that were naturally predatory and aggressive to attempt to create supreme killers. The intention was to create fierce soldiers that were intelligent enough to understand orders and carry them out. However, trollocs turned to be rather undisciplined and strayed from their missions at the smell of blood or meat. They do reproduce more effectively and numerously than humans or any Shadowspawn ever created, though, and the trolloc army is quite vast, I assure you. They even have a rudimentary social class of tribes - the known ones from the Trolloc Wars being the Dha'vol, the Dhai'mon, the Ko'bal among others. They speak in a guttural tongue very different from ours, but no loyalties among family or clan have been discerned as far as studies have been able to tell.
In terms of weaknesses, the Trolloc mind is underdeveloped and although capable of rudimentary intelligence, it is still very physically and mentally clumsy. As well, most of the time, their weapons are makeshift and their armour crude and not very effective when dealing with a disciplined militia force. They are also known for being cannibals and desiring meat of any kind. Any kind."
Holding the gaze of his students before moving on, Averus wanted to imprint the meaning of those words in their minds. Rolling up the scroll again before putting it back on the desk, he listened to the disbelieving silence in the room. Good. His words had at least some effect on them, then.
Grabbing the next scroll in turn, Averus turned back to the class and showed them another drawing, this time of a myrddraal. It's eyeless face seemed to stare right out of the paper, and capture the onlooker in its silent terror. The dark cloak wrapped the figure entirely, except for a bone white hand reaching out to clasp the cloth to its body. It was a very well-made drawing, and it did depict myrddraal in a most realistic way. Folding the scroll as he began talking, Averus moved on to the subject of this kind of shadowspawn.
"Myrddraal are the throwback offspring of the trollocs. They are sterile hybrids taking after their human halves, and their animal heritage is not visible in any 'normal' way. Their essence was tainted by the Shadow and this gives them many abilities. They can for example see very well even without any visible sensory organs and their gaze causes paralyzing fear toward even the bravest individual. They move with the speed and grace of a viper and are excellent swordsmen - especially with the blades made in Thakan’dar that can kill anyone with merely a scratch. In addition, they can even vanish into and transport themselves through places where there is shadow. But their greatest asset is that they can be linked to Trollocs and control their minds. In other words, they take control of their minds and make them into a disciplined fighting force.
Of course, there are many problems with myrddraal as well. They have a fear of crossing bodies of water, and they are not indestructible. If killed, they do not completely die until the sun rises, but any Trollocs they are linked to die along with them.
The most fearsome ability, though, is that if there are thirteen Myrddraal linked with thirteen Darkfriend channelers, they can convert any channeler to the Shadow against their will. Keep this in mind because we at the Grey Tower have a responsibility to fight the Shadow and we need to know any way that it could take advantage of us."
Ignoring the chill those words brought with them, Averus took a long pause as he pulled the third scroll from the pile. Not much was known of the draghkar, but this image would at least put a sense of recognition in the heads of the students. On the picture, there was a drawing of a manlike figure standing with arms stretched out, its wings like a cloak held out by its hands. The face was pale, and had large eyes with almost no whites. The full lips were parted in a grin, displaying sharp teeth in a straight row.
"The draghkar is thought by some to be the most fearsome creature of the dark. They can fly and thus spot things on the ground both near and far, be it day or night. They prefer the night though, or days when the sun isn't visible. They enthrall their prey by singing, a wordless melody that seems to be the most beautiful thing you have ever heard in your life that draws you to the draghkar. It enfolds you in its wings, and gives you the kiss of death, physically draining you of your soul. The most horrible aspect of this is that in the last second your mind clears, and you know what is happening to you. But by then it is too late to do anything about it.
If you do notice it before it can sing to you, or can prevent your ears from catching the sound, it is rather easy to kill. A simple dagger could penetrate its skin and kill it or wound it seriously."
His voice soft as silk, Averus frowned deeply and let silence reign for a few moments. Yet there was one more creature to cover. Unrolling the last scroll before the class, he held up a drawing of a twisted dog-creature, fangs exaggerated and sharp in a snarl directed towards the viewer. It was large, with clawed paws and a pitch black coat that seemed to make the glowing eyes stand out even more.
"The rarest of the shadowspawn are the darkhounds, said to run only when the Last Battle draws near. In the Age of Legends, they were used as guard creatures, but were later trained to hunt and attack anything living. Its fangs and saliva are poisonous and it has an enormous weight and size, approximately that of a pony. Usually traveling in packs, Darkhounds hunt down their prey and more often than not kill it. Normal weapons do not kill them - their pieces stick back together like a black fluid. Usually One Power wrought blades can destroy them, but even that is sometimes debated. Their known weaknesses or fears are rain or water and the One Power."
Walking around the desk to arrange the scrolls in a stack again, Averus at last spoke the question of the day.
"Do you think creating creatures in an artificial way is good? It is true that we fight Shadowspawn, but if you had the chance to make a hound or a beast warrior to fight on our side, would you take it?"
He pointed to a Soldier who sat directly across the room. "Please, begin."
Lesson 4 - Assassins in the Shadow
Upon entering the classroom for the third time, the students found Averus standing over his desk, looking down at few scrolls he had unrolled over the top of the desk. His face was dark, and while he continued to greet each of the students on their own, he did not lighten his expression any.
As the students settled in again, Averus picked up one of the scrolls. He moved around to the front of the desk, removed his coat, and turned back to the class. His face was serious, but he did his best to keep his voice as light as possible.
"Today, we come to the shadowspawn. There are four main groups, and though most have heard of them, few have actually seen them with their own eyes and lived to tell about it.
We begin with the trolloc."
Unrolling the scroll he held, Averus held it up for everyone to see. Drawn in charcoal was a grisly trolloc, with a human torso and hands, but with a wolf's head and a ram's legs and feet. It was snarling in the picture, and it held a large axe in both hands as if ready to attack. Keeping his voice firm, Averus continued.
"Some trollocs have the heads of eagles, wolves, wildcats, and other kinds of ferocious animals. Most are taller than humans and have advantages in terms of pure brutal strength. Indeed, their naturally inherent aggression makes them into the most perfect berserker warriors, hard to kill.
The Forsaken Aginor was the foremost of the Shadowsworn ‘scientists’ who created these beings during the War of the Power - combining human and animal material together. He used animal characteristics that were naturally predatory and aggressive to attempt to create supreme killers. The intention was to create fierce soldiers that were intelligent enough to understand orders and carry them out. However, trollocs turned to be rather undisciplined and strayed from their missions at the smell of blood or meat. They do reproduce more effectively and numerously than humans or any Shadowspawn ever created, though, and the trolloc army is quite vast, I assure you. They even have a rudimentary social class of tribes - the known ones from the Trolloc Wars being the Dha'vol, the Dhai'mon, the Ko'bal among others. They speak in a guttural tongue very different from ours, but no loyalties among family or clan have been discerned as far as studies have been able to tell.
In terms of weaknesses, the Trolloc mind is underdeveloped and although capable of rudimentary intelligence, it is still very physically and mentally clumsy. As well, most of the time, their weapons are makeshift and their armour crude and not very effective when dealing with a disciplined militia force. They are also known for being cannibals and desiring meat of any kind. Any kind."
Holding the gaze of his students before moving on, Averus wanted to imprint the meaning of those words in their minds. Rolling up the scroll again before putting it back on the desk, he listened to the disbelieving silence in the room. Good. His words had at least some effect on them, then.
Grabbing the next scroll in turn, Averus turned back to the class and showed them another drawing, this time of a myrddraal. It's eyeless face seemed to stare right out of the paper, and capture the onlooker in its silent terror. The dark cloak wrapped the figure entirely, except for a bone white hand reaching out to clasp the cloth to its body. It was a very well-made drawing, and it did depict myrddraal in a most realistic way. Folding the scroll as he began talking, Averus moved on to the subject of this kind of shadowspawn.
"Myrddraal are the throwback offspring of the trollocs. They are sterile hybrids taking after their human halves, and their animal heritage is not visible in any 'normal' way. Their essence was tainted by the Shadow and this gives them many abilities. They can for example see very well even without any visible sensory organs and their gaze causes paralyzing fear toward even the bravest individual. They move with the speed and grace of a viper and are excellent swordsmen - especially with the blades made in Thakan’dar that can kill anyone with merely a scratch. In addition, they can even vanish into and transport themselves through places where there is shadow. But their greatest asset is that they can be linked to Trollocs and control their minds. In other words, they take control of their minds and make them into a disciplined fighting force.
Of course, there are many problems with myrddraal as well. They have a fear of crossing bodies of water, and they are not indestructible. If killed, they do not completely die until the sun rises, but any Trollocs they are linked to die along with them.
The most fearsome ability, though, is that if there are thirteen Myrddraal linked with thirteen Darkfriend channelers, they can convert any channeler to the Shadow against their will. Keep this in mind because we at the Grey Tower have a responsibility to fight the Shadow and we need to know any way that it could take advantage of us."
Ignoring the chill those words brought with them, Averus took a long pause as he pulled the third scroll from the pile. Not much was known of the draghkar, but this image would at least put a sense of recognition in the heads of the students. On the picture, there was a drawing of a manlike figure standing with arms stretched out, its wings like a cloak held out by its hands. The face was pale, and had large eyes with almost no whites. The full lips were parted in a grin, displaying sharp teeth in a straight row.
"The draghkar is thought by some to be the most fearsome creature of the dark. They can fly and thus spot things on the ground both near and far, be it day or night. They prefer the night though, or days when the sun isn't visible. They enthrall their prey by singing, a wordless melody that seems to be the most beautiful thing you have ever heard in your life that draws you to the draghkar. It enfolds you in its wings, and gives you the kiss of death, physically draining you of your soul. The most horrible aspect of this is that in the last second your mind clears, and you know what is happening to you. But by then it is too late to do anything about it.
If you do notice it before it can sing to you, or can prevent your ears from catching the sound, it is rather easy to kill. A simple dagger could penetrate its skin and kill it or wound it seriously."
His voice soft as silk, Averus frowned deeply and let silence reign for a few moments. Yet there was one more creature to cover. Unrolling the last scroll before the class, he held up a drawing of a twisted dog-creature, fangs exaggerated and sharp in a snarl directed towards the viewer. It was large, with clawed paws and a pitch black coat that seemed to make the glowing eyes stand out even more.
"The rarest of the shadowspawn are the darkhounds, said to run only when the Last Battle draws near. In the Age of Legends, they were used as guard creatures, but were later trained to hunt and attack anything living. Its fangs and saliva are poisonous and it has an enormous weight and size, approximately that of a pony. Usually traveling in packs, Darkhounds hunt down their prey and more often than not kill it. Normal weapons do not kill them - their pieces stick back together like a black fluid. Usually One Power wrought blades can destroy them, but even that is sometimes debated. Their known weaknesses or fears are rain or water and the One Power."
Walking around the desk to arrange the scrolls in a stack again, Averus at last spoke the question of the day.
"Do you think creating creatures in an artificial way is good? It is true that we fight Shadowspawn, but if you had the chance to make a hound or a beast warrior to fight on our side, would you take it?"
He pointed to a Soldier who sat directly across the room. "Please, begin."
Lesson 5 - Channelers of the Dark
\As he waited patiently for his students to enter, Averus went over the notes for today’s lecture. Revelin had had plenty of notes to use, but had apparently skipped over a lot of things when he had taken the class. However, now that he was reading them all, he decided it would not be worth it to teach the class about every aspect of the Forsaken’s worst weaknesses. But perhaps another class?
Reading over these notes had really done nothing for the pain he felt concerning Elisa, but he did what he could to keep a pleasant smile on his face as the students filed in once again and took their seats. His past was helping to teach this class, yes, but it was not the only thing he had to go on. After all, he was here for their futures, not his own pains. As everyone settled into their seats, Averus took a moment to walk around the desk, then addressed the class.
"The channelers of the dark side exist, however much we may wish different. Dreadlords have existed in all Ages, but they were most prevalent in two eras - the Age of Legends and the Trolloc Wars. It is possible that the Forsaken started out as Dreadlords in their time before being promoted to the Dark One's 'Chosen.' They were originally Aes Sedai who, like their non-channeling 'Friends of the Dark' counterparts, wanted more power and respect than they had previously. Needless to say, they became the generals and leaders of Shadowspawn and Shadowsworn armies, possibly even given additional powers by their pledge to the Dark One. Dreadlords, both male and female channelers, are especially remembered in our time for their involvement in the Trolloc Wars, leading massive hosts of Shadowspawn to wipe out the old kingdoms of that time.”
Averus did what he could to fight down memories that flared into his mind. In his head, a shrunken old man fought desperately for his life, while Alitar, the symbol of House al’Gant struck again and again toward his flesh. A Dreadlord had tried to claim his life, once. However, he did not know how the man had been able to channel without Ave knowing he was doing so.
After a long moment of pondering, Averus blinked and came back to the present. He did not want to try too much attention to himself, so he put on a bright smile, and continued his speech.
“Over time, however, most Shadowsworn channelers have gone into hiding after their eventual defeat in the Trolloc Wars and now, like Darkfriends, they are more insidious and covert. They have become organized and threatening to all, appearing kind and caring but later turning out to be as dark and evil as any of the Dark One's minions. What I am referring to now are the Black Ajah - Aes Sedai or perhaps even Asha'man who pretend to help their Ajahs in their battle against the Dark, but secretly obey it. Perhaps they have Gaidin helping them as well. What we do know is that they exist and we must always be mindful of them. The damage and pain they can inflict is beyond words, as has been proven in the past in places thought to be safe from the Shadow."
Inside his mind, Averus ran down a list of possible Black Ajah members. He shook his head. Thoughts like that were unnecessary. Oddly, he wondered what kind of talk would pass through the Tower, after this class. He was behaving erratically, he knew. To cover, he quickly continued with his lecture.
"Of course, the Forsaken are even more frightening than even these people. They are all known for their individual atrocities toward the human race, but those are details you will study later during your education. You should know that their individual personalities have weakenesses that can be exploited to the Light's advantage, though. Inner fractions as well as the external version is always a weakness, in any society."
It is true that all the Forsaken are over three thousand years old, as ridiculous and as horrifying as that sounds. They are the most powerful channelers of their Age to have joined the Shadow - they had to be in order to survive the Dark One's philosophy of fatal competition. He originally had more Age of Legends' Aes Sedai obeying him, but he wanted the best and so he let them to kill each other. From the ashes of those many rose these thirteen survivors.
You probably know their names; Aginor, Asmodean, Balthamel, Bel'al, Demandred, Graendal, Ishamael, Lanfear, Mesaana, Moghedien, Rahvin, Sammael and Semirhage. Though some are rumoured to be dead, one can never be too sure. Always fear the worst, and you may be prepared for what the Shadow throws at you."
Falling silent, Averus walked over to the window and looked out before turning back to the class and delivering the question they would have to answer.
"Imagine you had the vast amount of power to equal any of the Forsaken. Not only strength in the One Power, but also the power they hold towards people. Most or all of you would probably state that you would use it to do good, and fight against the shadow. But for how long do you think that would last? In what ways do you think a person will change when holding so much power? And what causes this change in the human mind? Speak freely."
Lesson 6 - The Final Test
As this was the last day of class, Averus arrived early. He used flows of Air to rearrange the desks back the way that Revelin had preferred them. The neat rows reformed rather quickly under his steady channeling, and he passed among them, distributing a sheet of paper onto each wooden table.
As he finished up, the students began to arrive. He gestured to them to take a seat anywhere, then took his own seat at the front of the room. He greeted each student as they entered, as usual. When they had all taken their seats, he stood, and addressed the class. As he spoke, he used a flow of Air to pick up a piece of chalk and begin to write the questions for the final test on the board.
"A sheet of paper has been placed on each of your desks. I expect to recieve them covered in words, written in a readable hand and with sincere thought behind them. I have more papers up front, should you need them, and there is no upper limit to the test. You have one hour from now, to answer two of the following questions." As he spoke, he turned to the board, where the piece of chalk had just finished writing, and read each of the questions aloud.
"Number 1: Do Shadowspawn possess freewill or are they biologically determined to serve the Dark? Keep another idea in mind -are we, as creations of the Creator biologically determined to serve him, or do we possess freewill? Can we compare the two?
Number 2: Do you think a human can be evil and corrupt without being a Darkfriend and serving the Dark One? And with this I mean ordinary people, like you or me.
The last, and perhaps the most controversial question is this: Why do you think the Shadow is the wrong side? If you ask Trollocs and Forsaken, they will say that it is the people following the Light who are bad. What is it that makes you and not them the good one?"
He turned back to the class, and smiled warmly. "You may begin writing. I will be here to answer questions any you may have. Please keep in mind that discussion amongst yourselves is not encouraged -I want your own thoughts on these matters."
He sat down in his desk, and pulled out his own journal, prepping it for writing.
"You may begin."
|
|
