Wheel of Time: Darkness Falls

First topic message reminder :

This is an RP based on The Wheel of Time. It takes place three years after the Aiel War, when the Aiel (the warrior tribes from the Aiel Wastes, across The Spine of The World mountains) are retreating to their homes. The set-up is…long, to say the least, but it IS important. This is a whole world, and I need to condense it as much as humanly possible…bear with me please.

Only serious Rpers, please. I plan to have this go on for a while, and I plan for this to have a story line of sorts. I would like this to stay alive past on night. You must also be willing to read. A lot.
However, you can skim. I don’t expect you to read every last bit. You can skip the background if you wish, but I suggest at least half-reading it. You can skip the bit about The One Power if you don’t plan on being able to use “magic”, but I suggest you read about the Aes Sedai and the Whitecloaks.


Background:
At the dawn of time, The Creator forged the universe and the Wheel of Time which, as it turns, spins all lives. The Wheel has seven spokes, each representing an age, and it rotates under the One Power, which flows from the True Source. Essentially composed of male and female halves (saidin and saidar) in opposition and in unison, this power turns the Wheel. Those humans who can use this power are known as Channelers; the principal organization of such Channelers in the books is called the Aes Sedai or 'Servants of All' in the Old Tongue.

The Creator imprisoned its antithesis, Shai'tan, at the moment of creation, sealing him away from the Wheel. However, in a time called the Age of Legends, an Aes Sedai experiment inadvertently breached the Dark One's prison, allowing his influence to seep back into the world. He rallied the powerful, the corrupt and the ambitious to his cause and these servants began an effort to free the Dark One fully from his prison, so he might remake time and reality in his own image. In response to this threat, the Wheel spun out the Dragon, a channeler of immense power, to be a champion for the Light. In the Age of Legends Lews Therin Telamon was named the Dragon, who eventually rose to command the Aes Sedai and their allies in the struggle against the Dark One's forces. After a grueling ten-year war, which began a century after the Dark One's prison was breached, Telamon led his forces to victory in a daring assault on the site of the earthly link to the Dark One's prison, and was able to seal it off, his highest and most powerful subjects, The Forsaken- 13 men and women who swore themselves to Shai’tan- being sealed away at the same time.

However, at this moment of victory the Dark One tainted saidin, driving male channelers of the One Power insane. The male channelers devastated the world with the One Power, unleashing earthquakes and tidal waves that reshaped the planet, referred to in subsequent ages as "The Breaking of the World." Their leader, Lews Therin, killed his friends, his family, and everyone in any way related to him and finally himself in his insanity thus gaining the epithet Kinslayer. Eventually, the last male Aes Sedai was killed or cut off from the One Power, leaving the human race all but destroyed and only women able to wield the One Power safely.

The Aes Sedai reconstituted and guided humanity out of this dark time. Mankind now lived under the shadow of a prophecy that the Dark One would break free from his prison and the Dragon would be reborn to face him once more, raining destruction upon the world in the process of saving it from the Dark One.

Over the next three and a half thousand years, the human race returns to a level of technology and culture roughly comparable to that of the 18th century (although without military use of gunpowder and without formalized science, the development of both playing a part in the story), with the difference that women enjoy full equality with men in most societies, and are superior in some. This is put down to the power and influence of the female-only Aes Sedai spilling over into everyday life. Several major wars have ravaged the main continent since the defeat of the Dark One, such as the Trolloc Wars, when the surviving servants of the Dark One tried to destroy civilization once more but were defeated by an alliance of nations led by the Aes Sedai; and the War of the Hundred Years, a devastating civil war that followed the fall of a continent-spanning empire ruled by the High King, Artur Hawkwing.

These wars have prevented the human race from regaining the power and high technology of the Age of Legends, and also left humanity divided. Even the prestige of the Aes Sedai has fallen, with their shrinking numbers and the emergence of organizations such as the Children of the Light, a militant order who hold that all who dabble with the One Power are servants of the Shadow.

The nations of the modern era are able to unite against the warrior-clans of the Aiel, who cross into the western kingdoms on a mission of vengeance after they suffered a grievous insult, but are too divided to work effectively together in other areas. Over the Ages, there have been “False Dragons”, who all claim to be The Dragon Reborn. Each one has either been killed or “Gentled”, if they could indeed Channel, by the White Tower, the seat of Aes Sedai power in the city of Tar Valon.

Now, this may take you a while to read, but its important. I cannot stress enough how important this is to those that wish to use magic.

The One Power:
The One Power is divided into male and female halves, saidin and saidar respectively, that work both with and against each other to drive the Wheel of Time. The True Source cannot be consumed by channellers, as a river cannot be consumed by a waterwheel. Each half of the One Power is able to be used only by people of the associated sex, and men and women have very different experiences in channeling.

The One Power is basically magic, and using too much of it at once can either kill you or “Still” you, which is what being cut off from the True Source is called- you can sense it, but you cannot touch it. Females surrender to Saidar, surrender and merely guide it to what they wish it to do- they compare it to a flower opening towards Saidar, absorbing, releasing and guiding the flow- whilst Males have to fight Saidin.

They fight it with every fibre of their being to prevent it from overwhelming them, fight to control it. As it is, Males that can channel are rare, as any male that channels is doomed to go mad and kill and destroy until he is either killed, “gentled” (What the Aes Sedai call stilling a man) or dies himself, although times vary from two years to over ten. Aes Sedai hunt these men and Gentle them to prevent them from causing destruction.

Angreal are artifacts which enable its users to draw more of the One Power than they would normally be able to. Angreal also protect them from drawing enough Power to burn themselves out.

Sa'angreal are identical to angreal, except that they allow the user to draw more Power than even an angreal can handle. Ter'angreal are objects of the One Power that perform specific functions. Some ter'angreal do not require the One Power to be used for their activation. The techniques the ancient Aes Sedai used to create angreal, sa'angreal, and ter'angreal has long been forgotten to the White Tower.

Not everyone has the ability to "channel" the One Power. Most men and women cannot reach it at all; of those who can, most must be taught to access it to varying extents, and can go their entire lives without touching (or even knowing they can touch) the Source. Generally those on the main continent find out when Aes Sedai, visit their town on a recruiting trip. Aes Sedai visitors also search for the few channelers who are born with "the spark," an innate gift that will inevitably lead them to touch the Source. If left untrained, these gifted channelers often die without ever gaining control over their innate ability; the Aes Sedai estimate the mortality rate at 75% or more.

Those who survive, called "wilders" by the Aes Sedai, do not realize that they have channeled, only that "things happen" if they want them to. To aid in this self-deception, they often develop a "block," an instinctive self-preservation behavior that keeps them from channeling in all but exceptional circumstances. Known blocks include only being able to channel while angry, in the presence of men, with one's eyes closed, and so on. These blocks can be eventually overcome, but only after significant and sometimes drastic counseling.

Ok, now I know this may take you a while as well, but is ultimately important. These are the main factions that I feel you need describing, and the rules for you being one:

--Aes Sedai, Women only (you can just skim this if you aren‘t going to be Aes Sedai. If you want to be Aes Sedai, you MUST read this) : The Aes Sedai are the women who can channel. Their base is in the White Tower in tar Valon, and they go in three stages: Novices are the lowest. They are basically servants with no pay as they also attend lessons in self-control, politics, history etc. They wear grey. Accepted are slightly higher then Novices, and are occasionally allowed out of the tower. They wear white, and the great serpent ring on their ring finger on their right hand. Aes Sedai wear whatever they want, with a formal shawl in their Ajahs colours. They can wear their ring wherever they want, and can come and go as they please. They are split into seven Ajah’s: The Blue Ajah involve themselves with causes and justice, and are always calm and expert manipulators.

The Blue Ajah is the second smallest one, but it has the most extensive network of eyes-and-ears (spies), and are the second smallest. The White Ajah devotes itself to questions of philosophy and truth, are all coldly logical (they don’t show emotion. Ever. And they always ALWAYS think things through logically) and is the smallest Ajah. The Brown Ajah forsakes the mundane world and dedicates itself to seeking knowledge, and they are always far-off and bookwormy. They can’t focus on one thing for very long.

The Gray are mediators, seeking harmony and consensus. The red Ajah bends its energies to finding men who can channel and gentling them. Although women cannot detect saidin, they can read the residue of the weaves and that is their primary tool for tracking- they don’t like men (so as such do NOT have warders), and although all Aes Sedai don’t like men who channel, and ‘take care’ of them, Reds HATE men who can channel.

The Green (called the Battle Ajah, during the Trolloc Wars) holds itself ready for Tarmon Gai'don (the Final Battle, where the Dragon reborn will fight the Dark One for the sake of the world), they also are a BIG fan of men (besides those who can channel), and as such they usually have two or three Warders. The Yellow concentrates on the study of Healing. There is an eighth Ajah, although the Aes Sedai deny it, called the Black Ajah. The Black Ajah is dedicated to the service of the Dark One- there are some in every Ajah, undercover.

The Aes Sedai all take three oaths, bound to them by a Ter‘angreal: To never speak a word that is not true (although the truth you hear may not be the truth they mean), to never make a weapon for man to kill other men, and to never use the power as weapon except against Shadowspawn, in defence of their life, their warders or another sisters life (Sister is what they call fellow Aes Sedai). These oaths are unbreakable, save by the Black Ajah, who have sworn new oaths to The Dark One. The Aes Sedai MUST be skilled manipulators and cunning wordsmiths, and must not bat an eyelid at using people for their own ends. That is Compulsory.

--The Warders (male only) : The Warders are Blademasters of the highest calibre, the greatest warriors in the world. Every Full Aes Sedai has one (except the Red Ajah, who don’t have them, and the Green Ajah, who have several, some even marrying one of their Warders). If you are to be a Warder, please set out an Aes Sedai to follow- as a Warder, you must follow your bonded Aes Sedai to keep her safe from harm- whether it be an NPC or a player (I recommend the latter). The Warder feels a portion of whatever the Aes Sedai feels (and vice versa- whether it be pain, pleasure, sorrow, anger, etc) and the Aes Sedai can “Compel” the Warder to do something via the bond, which forces them to do it. This is rarely used. Although very good at sword craft, the Warders are hardly invincible.

--Whitecloaks (Generally males) : The Whitecloaks are against ALL uses of The One Power. They see all Aes Sedai and male channelers as Darkfriends (humans that worship The Dark One), and have sworn to exterminate all those that can channel. They always wear a white and Gold uniform-and-cloak, with a Golden Sunburst on their chest. There are also the “Questioners”, who are unpopular even amongst the Whitecloaks, their symbol being the Golden sunburst with a scarlet shepherds crook behind it.

They question for “guilt”, and torture for confessions….even if the accused has nothing to confess. After enough torture, one will confess anything. The Whitecloaks real name is “The Children of The Light”, the Questioners name being “The Hand of the Light”, but people never use those names, referring to them as their slang…not to their faces, of course. Never to their faces. They swagger about and are generally zealous and arrogant.
Whitecloaks generally don’t like Questioners, and refer to them by their slang name rather then their formal name- to their backs, at least. Even a Child of The Light is not safe from The Hand of The Lights. Questioners don’t have friends. They are suspicious of everyone and everything.

--Darkfriends: those that worship the Dark One, whom they call “The Great Lord of the Dark”. (the Dark Ones name is Shai’tan, but saying it is classed as the WORST luck ever, so it is NEVER- I repeat, NEVER- used).


Ok….that’s it then. That’s the background and what you need to know for the purposes of this RP. The roles that are prohibited are as followed:

--The Forsaken: There are only thirteen, and they are trapped within the Dark Ones prison. They have appearances and personalities that are defined in the books, so…yeah.

--The Amyrlin Seat: The leader of the White Tower Aes Sedai. For various reasons, chief among her being a named character in the book.

--King/queen of Murandy/Tarabon/Andor/Cairhein/High Lords of Tear: They have surprisingly little freedom, and, again, are all named characters in the book.

--Rand al’Thor, Mattrim Cauthorn, Perrin: Main characters in the books. Only just born.

--Moiraine/any named Aes Sedai: Obvious reasons.

--Pedron Niall: Leader of the Children of Light, the “Whitecloaks”, he’s a named character.

--The Dark One/The Creator: You can’t be these two for obvious reasons.


Roles I would advise against:

--Trollocs: Beastial half men, they are not intelligent. At all. They fight and eat. That’s it.

--Myrddraal/Fades/sightless, etc: Whilst just as intelligent as humans, you get no choice with your personality, appearance or motives. They all look the same and act the same, and all serve the Dark One (Shai’tan)

--Aiel: One of the retreating Aiel (returning to the wastes after their goal was complete). They don’t like “wetlanders”. They will be attacked wherever they go, their ways are too complex to explain, etc.

--Any Lord or Lady: They get very little freedom. If you want to be a noble of a lesser house from Andor, Cairhein, Tear, Murandy, etc. then let me know. I just advise against it, is all.


Ok, now that’s over and done with, roles that I suggest need filling:

--Soldiers that fought against Aiel before Tar Valon (note: you think the Aiel left because you beat them.) :
Murdoch and Bryan (me)

--Soldiers (other. EG. Royal guard, local police, etc) :

--Peasants (please specify sub-role, eg farmer, Fletcher, blacksmith) :

-Lacey, ordinary girl, father works at local inn.

--Merchants (please specify sub-type, eg fabrics, tobacco, food, etc) :

--Warders (note: You MUST have an Aes Sedai NPC along with you, or another Rper to be your Aes Sedai)

-Gabriel, Skye's warder [Brandon]

--Aes Sedai (Please specify Ajah. I would only like one per Ajah, please, and at least one Red, and unless you‘re red, you must have at least One Warder. I would like to start with a maximum of three, but that can expand after a while) :

-Skye (Shuyler), Yellow Ajah.
-Kristie, new Aes Sedai, Green Ajah.
-Capri, Red Ajah

--Novices:

--Accepted:

--Men who can channel (Two only, please, and specify how long you‘ve known you can channel) :
Bryan, 10 years (me)

--Wilders (Three max please) :

--Whitecloaks:

Rowan [Howl}

--Whitecloak Questioners:

--Other (please specify) :
Murdoch, soldier (mercenary) (me)


The Rules:
No Godmodding.
No leaving without announcing
I will try to bend to allow you in…but I won’t change the rules completely.
Please try to stay within the rules of magic here.
Have fun

There are rules about the One Power (I won‘t go into depth, these are just generally) : Death can’t be healed, and there are some wounds that can’t be healed. The energy that is required for healing always comes from the patient. You can lift others, but it is the hardest to do, and varies according to your strength in The Power. You can shield, and be shielded, from the power, stopping your channelling immediately, by another wielder. How easily depends on your strength, and cutting off someone already channelling is harder then cutting someone off who isn‘t.

13 Aes Sedai can “link“, combining their powers, but men need a woman to link them. Conversely, 13 Aes Sedai need a man to take the link to 27, then another to take it to 41, etc. Men are stronger in the power individually to women, though. Men who channel are doomed to go mad as the taint of the Dark One seeps into their mind- when they go mad varies. It could be ten years, it could be ten days; it does, however, depend on how often they use Saidin.

Women who can channel can’t detect men channelling, but men who can channel get a tingly feeling on their arm when women channel. Women who Channel can detect other women channelling, just as men who channel can detect other men channelling. For both genders, seeing the same sex channel is like seeing a glow, an aura around them. Women who have been Aes Sedai for a while can detect women who can channel, whether or not they’re channelling at that moment.

There is a weaving (what they call spells) that can detect men’s channelling, and that’s what the Red Ajah use. Most men who can Channel can overwhelm an Aes Sedai one-on-one, and usually require two or three Aes Sedai linked to defeat him and shield him. Rand Al’thor, Mazrim Taim and Logain all require at least five Aes Sedai to overwhelm, six at most. I will step in if you go too far with the power.

I will explain the rules of enemies as they appear (Eg. Trollocs, Myrdraal, Grey Men, Draghkar, etc.) You can make up other creatures, bandits, etc.
You may have up to two other characters under your control (Unless you’re green Ajah, then you can have a max of four Warders)

Now, for the setting:
It's a small hamlet in the north of Andor. There is a blacksmith, a stables, three inns and a large collection of houses, but besides that it's barely classed as a town. It's small and out of the way, and that is where we start. You can be passing through, running from something or just living there. Murdoch and Brian are both living there and have been for a year, since Brian managed to escape the Red Ajah that were hunting him. They first grew suspicious during a series of suspicious events during the final battle of the Aiel War, and set off in pursuit after Murdoch and Brian. Murdoch and Brian escaped, settling down for the past year.
Now, Red Ajah Aes Sedai have arrived in town, asking after Murdoch and, more specifically, Brian. (When I say, lol). There have also been rumours of Trollocs in the area...what will happen?

“You stupid bastard.” I muttered about the Whitecloak, not stampeding towards us. I kicked the sides of the horse, and followed behind the others, but a good 20 feet back from taking off so late after them. We needed a get away, something to throw him off for the time being until we found a place to hide. “The chase will be endless! We must get ride of him!” I shouted only loud enough for Justin to hear me.

Not even in the town an hour, the Whitecloaks found us, and are now after our asses. My horse ran directly beside Kristie’s as we tried to catch up to the group, or to just stay far enough away from him. But it wouldn’t last, Kristie was right; we needed to toss him off our trail. I looked over at her, watching her cloak flap vicious against the wind, and how large it actually was. “It may by us a couple seconds, toss back your cloak! Blind the man!”

The chances of it actually hitting him were slim, but it was worth the shot I guess. “Take her reins!” I called to him, handing him my horse’s reins while I fiddled with getting the cloak off. There were a good 15 buttons from bottom to top – To much for my patience. When he took the reins, I reached to my side and pulled out the smaller of the two blades I carried. With it, I ripped down the cloak, cutting off the buttons thread and hold on the cloak. I held on to it with my other hand once it was freed, and looked back to the Whitecloak. In less time then I should have taken to aim, I tossed it back in his direction, watching as the wind opened it fully and wide.

I sighed and pulled myself bak onto my horse. Why must we always run...I'm pretty sure Justin and I could easily handle four Whitecloaks. Sure, they were good. But we were better. I pushed my horse to speed up to a light gallop, diagonally to the left of Justin. I wanted to hang in the back. Just in case things got nasty. That's when they fun would start. I smirked at the thoughts, just as a large gray cloak shot passed mt head. I jerked the reins and my horse got out of it just in time.

Murdoch watches the Whitecloaks gallop off after the Aes Sedai with grim satisfaction; either way, that's one problem at least taken care of. Whether it's the Aes Sedai or the Whitecloaks is irrelevant; now they have a chance to get out of here.
Turning on his heel, he scans the area for Brian. He heard Brian approaching earlier, he just needs to find where he went to...ah. The tree.

Striding over purposefully, he reaches up towards Brians shoulder....and clouts him round the back of the head.
"Ow!" Brian exclaims, whipping around suddenly. "What was that for?!" he demands, indignant.
"For acting like you're twelve," Murdoch states quietly. "You honestly came over here to hide? We need to get out of here, now. I've distracted the Whitecloaks and the Aes Sedai, but they won't squabble for long."

Brian nods, rubbing his head slowly. "We need to get back to the farm and get our emergency kit ready. We need to get out of Andor, preferably soon."
Murdoch nods. "I know. Come on," he says abruptly, turning and stalking away. Brian shakes his head slowly, following closely.

Schuyler turns into another street, heading towards the original place of the white cloaks. If they were catching attention, she could get a good look at the men's faces. "Blue eyes, black hair. Dark green eyes, blonde hair." She muttered, not bothering to look back at the others. They would have to be together. "Look for the profiles!" She yelled towards the others, hoping they'd hear. She looked up from a man, towards the market ahead. A man was on a horse, another walking below him. Black hair, blonde hair. Schuyler's eyes widened as she came closer and closer, her eyes locked onto these men.

Lacey gets up and starts walking towards the market, noticing 2 men who looked an awful lot like Murdoch and Brian, so she walks up in front of them and smiles.

"I thought I saw you guys! Hello"Lacey says, stopping in front of them so they dont keep walking. Lacey looks around and see's people mingling and her Father's in on the far east of the market.

ooc: Neither are on horseback...


Ic:

Murdoch and Brian stop in their tracks as a young girl- Lacey, that was the name- stops in front of them. Burn it! Brian thinks angrily; they need to get out of here! He can hear the scuffle coming closer, and they need to be away. He can see their horses tethered very close; the wagon has been removed from Murdochs horse to give the animal a rest, but it seems it won't get it soon. They need to get past Lacey, and fast but without drawing attention.

Murdoch merely grunts, moving as if to go around her, but Brian puts his hand on Murdochs arm. "Hey, Lacey," Brian smiles- with a little effort- trying to appear friendly. "I really am sorry, but we can't talk right now. We have a lot to do at the farm, y'know, and I was coming here to collect Murdoch early. I'll talk to you next time I'm in town, alright?"

Lacey frowns and steps to the side slowly and turns to face Murdoch and Brian.

"Oh im sorry, I didn't know you guys were busy, I just wanted to say Hello"Lacey smiles softly and looks to see people on horses, inching closer to where we are standing. Lacey smiles weakly and backs up slowly, hopeing to get out of here fast.

The Children of Light all find themselves on horseback, chasing after the fleeing Aes Sedai except for Viktor who heads for the opposite direction. The other four ceases to stop even for a second, running swiftly even with their cloaks still on. Rowan notices a young woman switching spots with a man and brings out a dagger. Immediately knowing that the girl is about to make a move, Rowan swerves to the left and his choice proves wise as the girl plunges her knife into her coat.

The coat catches the wind and fully expands and as it does so, it finds itself on a child of light, blinding him momentarily. However, even a single moment is enough to get a man to fall on horseback. The steed skids to a stop and gallops back to his master. The impatient man stabs through the cloak and rips away the tattered pieces away from him. Rowan curses and tightens his grip on the reins.

Viktor navigates through the town like an expert, since navigation is his field of talent. Even in the short time that they were here, Viktor had been able to map the majority of the town. He came to a point where the road split into three and took a path that led back to the town, estimating that the others should be there.

Kristie:
"I was almost positive that wasn't going work - I'm glad I was wrong." I said aloud, not directing it to anyone especially. Galloping as fast as the horses could go, we stopped at a fork that went numerous ways. One onto a street that appeared to be going BACK into the village, and another that went through tall grass, in the directions of the farming lands we'd passed on our journey here. "Did you see where Skye and Gabriel turned to?!" I shouted quickly, my breathing heavy and nervous with this sudden stop. They would catch us if we didn't decide now.

Justin:
"Would it not be easier to lose them out there then in the village? Perhaps they went that way." A third path led to open fields - Cleary they hadn't gone there, it would be a pointless chase as this was. But the village, seemed a small bit too sketch to be running into. Small, and not a lot of places to hide and get away should we be backed into a corner. "The fields, they may hide in a local farm, we have to go!" I said to Kristie, my horse stamping with the shouting going on around it.

Kristie:
"Then let's move!" I gave the order, and the two of us shot in the direction of the fields, through the path of tall grass and dead soil. We needed to slip them completely, then we could tie the horses and get somewhere better protected - So much for that cosey Inn.

ooc: Sorry Murdoch. I thought Bryan was on horseback. Ignore that then. And Howl everyone is on different horses. ^__^
bic: Schyler cursed, seeing the White cloaks appear in front of the men. Her head turns, seeing Gabriel behind her. "U Turn!" She shouts at him as they neared closer and closer to the White cloaks. She moved to the right side of the street, the few people walking stepping out of the way. She turned in a 'u', now on the left side of the wall, the horse galloping away from the white cloaks. She grits her teeth seeing Kristie and Justin going into the grass path. She could follow them, leading the White Cloaks to Kristie and Justin, or navigate her way throughout the town like a maze. Taking the second choice, she turns into the streets again. Her hands tighten around the reins as she takes left and right, not daring to stop or look behind.

Brian inclines his head, resisting the urge to look behind them. "Thank you, Lacey. I swear, we will catch up when I'm next in town." With that, he follows Murdoch- who started walking almost as soon as Lacey stepped aside- towards the horses. Untethering them swiftly, they swing themselves up and onto the horses backs.

Tugging on the reigns, they turn the horses around to point towards the southern entrance, the direction their farm is in.
"We need to get out of here quickly. I managed to distract the Whitecloaks and the Aes Sedai, but it's best we leave as soon as possible with no one the wiser."
Brian nods. "It's a good thing we keep a pack for emergencies like this."
Murdoch merely grunts his agreement.

Digging their heels into the horses flanks, they set off at a trot, then a canter out of the town. They need to get far enough away so that they can gallop; if they can get their horses to a gallop, they should be at their farm in a matter of minutes, at which point they can make their escape.

Kristie:
We passed only a few farm homes – Smaller residents, 1 floor, fitting maybe 3 people indoors. These smaller homes however, had very little land accompanied with it, being useless as a hideout till we could reconnect with Skye and Gabriel. Odd, seeing as how we’d been galloping down this path for a minute or two, and no sight even when the path is straight. Meaning, they’d taking a different path then us. “We’ll have to wait till everything is clear in order to find the others. Turning back now would be suicidal; we need to locate a bigger farm, more land. Hiding the horses is the difficult part.” I called over to Brandon, only loud enough for him to catch it, and not loud enough so that our followers could hear it’s echo or itself.

Justin:
“Then we have to keep going farther into the lands. The bigger establishments will have to be far out to cover the area of the land and products.” Being so distant from the others was nerve racking for me. Were they all right? Had they been captured? I don’t doubt Gabriel’s ability to protect Skye – Should she need it – But numbers were a large factor in these cases, one the Whitecloaks had an advantage on. Hiding, although a smarter thing to do for the moment, didn’t sit right with me for even a moment.

Kristie:
Less and less single homes became clear, implying their land was taking up more area. We were headed in the right direction thank God. Corn and wheat fields were surrounding most of the paths, but as we kept going a large barley field emerged. But still, nothing big enough that I could see as a proper escape. “Just one damn barn, that’s all I’m asking for.” I thought to myself.

Rowan loses sight of the Aes Sedai and blows on his whistle, telling others to regroup around him. Every child of light eventually returns and tells Rowan that they lost sight of the other Aes Sedai as well.
“Damnit,” Rowan curses. “We had finally found them after weeks and we lost them just like that?” Rowan asks himself and no one else in particular.

Viktor returns the latest and tells of his close encounter with the Aes Sedai and her warder. He also provides valuable information regarding his encounter.
“Though I lost them in the point that the road split into three, I know they must’ve gone to one of the other two roads. We can go from there,” Viktor says, clenching his fists. Rowan makes a gesture with his index and middle finger, then the children of light mount on their horses and move out.

Schuyler turns right, seeing the path Kristie and Justin took off onto. She stops to look behind, clenching her teeth in what she might see. Gabriel was still with her, though the White Cloaks had disappeared. With a jagged sigh of relief Schuyler turns back to the road, moving after Kristie and Justin.

There was no helping her now, seeing as Schuyler was paranoid. She had Gabriel to protect her, that is true. But she was still afraid of the White cloaks when they were outnumbered. "Gabriel, where would they have gone?" She asks, turning to face him. The houses were getting farther and farther apart, meaning they were heading in the right direction, out of the village.

Murdoch and Brian encounter no other travellers on the road, save for one or two farmers, and soon they are galloping up to their farm. It's a relatively small farm, only a field or two belonging to it, and it is quite out of the way; you have to go down several slip-roads and into some tricky-to-find turnings to find it, and although they cleared the roads for the wagon, it is still quite difficult to find if you don't know where it is.

The three fields surrounding the farmhouse on its right, left and behind it are all surrounded by a large wooden fence topped with coiled wire to prevent easy break ins. The gates of the fences are bolted on quite securely, the locks being reinforced steel. They decided not to oil the hinges or the bolt, seeing as how if it's lifted or moved, it will make a loud noise that will either alert them or make the would-be thief nervous.
The three fields are all ploughed and bare earth, the mud and earth and compost all mixed together and turned around so that the brown-black earth can grow the seeds that have only been sown yesterday, and Brian feels a certain disappointment that the Barley- right- wheat- left- and carrots- in the garden- won't be tended to properly. He enjoys farming. It's so peaceful and monotonous, it's the only constant in this life.

Still. It can't be helped, so he swings himself off of his horse, tethers it to the fence next to Murdochs and leads the way up the path to the farmhouse.
The farmhouse itself is divided from the main road by a large fence-and-gate, a small gravel path leading up past a small greening lawn up to the front door. Brian had wanted to plant flowers in the beds lining the path, but Murdoch had refused, on the grounds that 'they shouldn't get comfortable here'. Guess he was right, in the end.

The farmhouse is a one-story stone building, only containing three rooms. When you open the front door, you would find yourself in the small lounge, a room only about eight feet by six feet; just enough room for a couple of chairs and a fireplace. The chairs have been surreptitiously placed so that they only part face the fire on the far right wall, and partly face the door. Murdochs idea.
There is a wooden door in the corner of the right-hand-side of the room that leads to the right hand field, and a door opposite it that leads to a small dining room, again with a door leading into the left hand field. There is a long- but very thin- room backing onto both rooms, and that is where they sleep; it is big enough for two or three beds, but not much else besides a door leading to the back field. It is usually lit only by one or two lamps dotted around the room, and it is little more than two or three paces from the end of one of their small, hard beds to the bed of the other one.

It is through the two doors and into this bedroom that the pair walk now, Murdoch staying inside the lounge to keep an eye on things outside the house from one of the windows. Brian stoops down to the space between the beds, and starts feeling around with his fingertips. They found out long ago that there was a small hollow underneath the floor, and with a bit of work, they managed to widen it and case it with wood so that rats couldn't get in. They made it wide enough to fit a large amount of stuff in, and this is why he is searching for it now; those are their emergency supplies.

He manages to find the loose floorboard, and pulls it up- which, in turn, pulls up some more floorboards- and begins to fish around inside. There're emergency rations, spare weapons, travelling clothes, small, heavy pouches of money- of all weights- travelling harnesses for the horses and, possibly most importantly considering the current danger, their old armour and whatever weapons they decided to stash away. They take them out and polish and maintain them once a week, but they haven't seen use for a while. Brian gets the feeling that those days have come to an end.

He stands up, hefting Murdochs armour behind him. He passes it carefully to him- if there is one thing that will get Murdoch angry, it's mistreatment of his armour- and says, turning around again, "get that on. We can't take any chances."
Murdoch nods, simply saying, "We'll wear cloaks over the top. It may help to disguise ourselves. Got our hats in there?" Brian nods. "Then lets get ready and get out of here."

I shook my head slightly as I kept close to Skye. "They would most likely, if they were thinking right, looking for a barn or someplace slightly larger and less inhabited. Unlike these houses. We need someplace that the horses could fit as well.

Justin:
With no sight of the Whitecloaks, for now we could assume we had thrown them off of our trail. Whether they had lost their ways, and were still pursuing us, was also something we needed to assume – To keep on guard. “There, over the field! It’s large, and by it’s colours I’d say not tended to properly, if at all. If residents are there they could be, down on their luck. Paying for a quiet place to rest would be easy.” I suggested, as we moved slowly down the trails of the fields that seemed to be getting narrower as we went on. They would end soon, and we’d be stepping on crops eventually.

Kristie:
I looked to where Justin had gestured to, and not only did I see the housing he was talking about, but a smaller unit to the back of it. With our luck, it could be a stable and we’d be able to disguise the horses as property of the owners. “It’s our best option. When we arrive there, we’ll need to think of a way to contact Skye and Gabriel without giving ourselves away. Regrouping is our priority.” With that I kicked lightly at my horse, which picked up it’s pace to a fast jog – For a horse that is.

A repetitive, clopping noise sounded on the dirt road as the black horse trotted along, its grey-cloaked, hooded passenger glancing at the surrounding crops. Capri was about twenty feet behind Kristie and Justin, next to Skye. She had been silent the whole while, simply listening.

"Do forgive my cross words," Capri said suddenly, loud enough for Kristie and Skye to hear, "But, Sisters. We have caused quite a commotion. There's no doubt that the town knows we're here. Nevertheless, they now know. And as we speak, they are probably fleeing."

ooc: Aw, come on guys; why does this always happen?

Ic:

Murdoch re-enters the farmhouse from where he was standing watch outside, sighing heavily. He's dressed in his full suit of custom armour, a thin-but-strong black steel plate armour only encasing his torse, sides of the thigh and knee-high boots to allow for greater flexibility. The plate is frequented by gold and deep red flowing designs like fire flowing across the surface, the bottom of the curaiss being covered by a diamond-shaped similarly-patterned armour beneath a medium-sized fabric belt of black with red trimming. The edge of the diamond is covered in a golden trim, and the buckle holding the belt together is a golden demaonic-looking skull on a silver disc. His arms are bare, save for a pair of red and black vambraces and a half-bicep covering dark grey tunic. Two small silver pauldrons with tribal design poke out from the overlapping curaiss which hides the top of the pauldrons with a pair of pauldron-like black extrusions. He wears a black pair of breeches beneath his lower-half armour, leading from the belt down to the boots-and-greaves. On his head sits a black steel conical-like helmet that flows into his shoulders, a medium-sized golden trimming lining the area where his face peers out darkly from within the otherwise all-encompassing helmet. The golden trimming also extends to two small golden spikes either side of his head.
His sword- a simple affair, a straight steel blade with a silver-steel crossguard and leather wrapped hilt with a silver heron emblazoned on the black pommel protrudes slightly from where he has it placed horizontally along his back in its black scabbard with red flowing tribal designs. Murdoch got that made a few years before he met Brian, before the Aiel War, in his mercenary days by a blacksmith who wanted to repay him for saving his daughter from a band of bandits. The materials for the base armour alone must have cost a fortune, but the blacksmith readily agreed, from what Murdoch has told Brian.
"Still no sign of any Aes Sedai or angry villagers out there," he says, "but that could change very soon. Hurry up!"

Brian growls, turning around as he struggles with his armour. Brians armour is somewhat less grand and less expensive than Murdochs, being merely a pieced together bit of armour; he did noticeably worse than Murdoch as a mercenary, and couldn't afford- in money or gratitude- as flash or functionally effective piece of armour as Murdoch; whilst it may look a little gaudy to some, it does work.

Brians armour is merely a simple triangular plate covering his chest that points down towards his waist, connected by a few links to a full-arm gauntlet on his right arm that ends in slightly clawed fingers. The top of the arm-armour is a slightly spiked pauldron, and his left shoulder is covered in tight chainmail. His knee is covered in a hinged piece of steel, connected to a pair of armoured boots by a few long strips of boiled leather.

Underneath his armour, he's changed from his brown tunic to a dark brown suit made of strips of layered boiled leather; although not as strong as steel, it still puts up a fight against weapons. Dark, dark brown breeches hug his thighs tightly below his small black belt. His sword- a small longsword with an inch-and-a-half of dullness at the base of the blade behind a pair of small hooks- hangs at his belt as he struggles with the last of the straps.

Murdoch sighs again, moving across the room quickly. He reaches for the straps that lie behind Brians questing arm, deftly doing up and pulling tight the straps- accompanied by some uncomfortable grunts of Brians- before stepping back. "Now come on." He says, turning around and picking up the last of the provision sacks. They have the rest of their supplies and Murdochs quarterstaff strapped to the horses, and as they reach the horses, they strap the last supplies onto the saddlebags and mount up.

"Where to?" Murdoch asks simply, throwing on a dark cloak that conceals his armour. He takes off his helmet, setting it down on the saddle in front of him, taking a wide-brimmed hat from his saddlebag and placing it onto his head, tilting it to hide his eyes. Brian does the same before answering.
"I was thinking we head south-west, into Amadicia- perhaps losing the Aes Sedai on the way-" Amadicia is ruled by a king, but the Whitecloaks are the real power behind their throne, ruling through fear and force, not tolerating any Aes Sedai in the country "- before heading to Far Madding."

Murdoch nods, but doesn't say anything. "Let us go then," he says eventually.
Brian nods as well, and spurs his horse into a trot towards the hill to the south of the farm, leaving the village behind him to the north.

Schuyler wandered after Kristie and Justin as she absently listened to Capri's words. Her view faced the chipping farm houses to her right, looking for any sign of movement. She stops herself as she sees two men on horseback heading the opposite direction in town. "Sisters" she mutters loud enough for the others to hear. She pulls her hood over her head and kicks the sides of her horse after them on a trot. She heads west towards the farm house they were near before departing to the south, without looking back.

ooc: I thought you guys left the town to the North, meaning that you went in the opposite direction to the farmhold....O_o

OOC- I haven't a clue what direction we're going in.. Before I post, are we heading North, South, or West? I thought West to be honest, unless I said otherwise :S

I'll post once I know if we saw you or not.

ooc: Well, I thought you were going to the north, so my characters went South XD.

OOC- Well.. Balls. I can't make a post till I know D: !!

ooc: I never posted any directions after looking over my posts...I was following Kristie and Justin.
I thought there was one road out of the town to the South...? The directions are confusing me O________O