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Egwene had had to watch her clothes being burned, too, including that lovely green silk It had ht h she ain What she had on noas the saray all damane wore Damane have no possessions, it had been explained to her The dress a damane wears, the food she eats, the bed she sleeps in, are all gifts from her sul’dam If a sul’dam chooses that a damane sleep on the floor instead of in a bed, or in a stall in a stable, it is purely the choice of the sul’dae of the da nasal voice, but she was sharp with any da lectures

"I don’t think there will be any going back for estured to the rocks on the table "Renna gave me a test, yesterday I picked out the piece of iron ore, and the copper ore, blindfolded, every time she mixed them up She left them all here to remind me of my success She seemed to think it was some kind of reward to be reminded"

"It doesn’t sees explode like fireworks -- but couldn’t you have lied? Told her you didn’t knohich hich?"

"You still do not knohat this is like" Egwene tugged at the collar; pulling did nothat bracelet, she knohat I a with the Power, and what I am not So it; she says sul’dam develop -- an affinity, she calls it -- after a while" She sighed "No one even thought to test me on this earlier Earth is one of the Five Powers that was strongest in men When I picked out those rocks, she took ht to an abandoned ironto be seen at all, but once I kne, I could feel the iron ore still in the ground There hasn’t been enough toin a hundred years, but I kneas there I couldn’t lie to her, Min She knew I had sensed the mine as soon as I did She was so excited, she prorowing hot, in anger and embarrassment "Apparently," she said bitterly, "I as explode Any daround Light, I hate s explode, but I wish that was all I could do"

The color in her cheeks deepened She did hate it,trees tear themselves to splinters and the earth erupt; that was , and she wanted no part of it Yet anything the Seanchan let her do was another chance to touch saidar, to feel the Power flowing through her She hated the things Renna and the other sul’dam made her do, but she was sure that she could handleTar Valon She certainly knew she could do things with it that no sister in the Tower had ever thought of doing; they never thought of tearing the earth apart to kill men

"Perhaps you won’t have to worry about any of it"I’ve found us a ship, Egwene The captain has been held here by the Seanchan, and he is about ready to sail with or without perwene said wearily "I told you I’ a ship back to Seanchan Just to take rin vanished, and they stared at each other Suddenly Min hurled her rock at the pile on the table, scattering them "There has to be a way out of here There has to be a way to take that bloody thing off your neck!"

Egwene leaned her head back against the wall "You know the Seanchan have collected every woman they’ve been able to find who can channel even a speck They come fro villages, and froers off ships they’ve stopped There are two Aes Sedai a them"

"Aes Sedai!" Min exclaimed By habit she looked around to wene, if there are Aes Sedai here, they can help us Let me talk to them, and -- "

"They can’t even help themselves, Min I only talked to one -- her name is Ryma; the sul’dam don’t call her that, but that’s her name; she wanted to make sure I knew it -- and she told me there is another She told me in between bouts of tears She’s Aes Sedai, and she was crying, Min! She has a collar on her neck, theymore about it than I can They captured her when Fal to stop fighting against it, because she cannot take being punished any because she wants to take her own life, and she cannot even do that without perht, I kno she feels!"

Min shifted uneasily, swene, you don’t want toEgwene, you et you out sowene said dryly "Even if I could Let me have your knife Come on I won’t hurt myself Just hand it toher knife from its sheath at her waist She held it out warily, obviously ready to leap if Egwene tried anything

Egwene took a deep breath and reached for the hilt A soft quiver ran through the muscles of her arm As her hand came within a foot of the knife, a craers Eyes fixed, she tried to force her hand closer The craher ar the knife Slowly, the pain began to lessen

Min stared at her incredulously "What ? I don’t understand"

"Damane are not allowed to touch a weapon of any kind" She worked her aro "Even our meat is cut for us I don’t want to hurt myself, but I could not if I did want to No daht -- thatis nailed shut -- or throw herself in a river"

"Well, that’s a good thing I meanOh, I don’t knohat I mean If you could jump in a river