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Prologue

(Serpent and Wheel)

The First Sparks Fall

Elaida do Avriny a’Roihan absently fingered the long, sevenstriped stole about her shoulders, the stole of the A table Many would have accounted her beautiful, at first glance, but a second look eless, Aes Sedai face was not a ht of anger in her dark eyes If anyone had noticed

She barely listened to the women arrayed on stools before her Their dresses were every color from white to the darkest red, in silk or wool as each woman’s taste dictated, yet all but one wore their formal shawls, embroidered White Flae proclai of the Hall of the Tower They discussed reports and ru to sift fact fro to decide the Tower’s course of action, but they seldolanced at the woman behind the table, the woman they had sworn to obey Elaida could not keep her full attention on them They did not knoas really important Or rather, they knew and feared to speak of it

"There is apparently soht and often seely lost in a dream, the only Brown sister present Green and Yellow also had only one sister apiece, and none of the three Ajahs was pleased about that There were no Blues Now Danelle’s big blue eyes looked thoughtfully inward; an unnoticed ink stain sray wool dress was rumpled "There are ruh raids through the Niamh Passes appear to have increased Between Shienarans Unusual for the Borderlands They rarely fight each other"

"If they intend to have a civil war, they have chosen the proper time for it," Alviarin said coolly Tall and slim and all in white silk, she was the only one without a shawl The stole of the Keeper around her shoulders hite also, to show she had been raised from the White Ajah Not Red, Elaida’s former Ajah, as tradition held Whites were always cool "The Trollocs ht seeuard"

Teslyn’s bony fingers shuffled papers on her lap, though she did not look at them One of four Red sisters there -- more than any other Ajah -- she ran Elaida a close second for severity, though no one had ever thought her beautiful "Better perhaps if it did not be so quiet," Teslyn said, her Illianer accent strong "I did receive athat the MarshalGeneral of Saldaea does have an arht, but in the opposite direction South and east He would no ever have done that if the Blight did no see out" Alviarin could have been discussing the weather or the price of carpets instead of a potential disaster Much effort had gone into capturing Taiood to the Tower if the world learned they could not hold on to a false Dragon once he was taken "And it seems that Queen Tenobia, or Davram Bashere, or both, thinks we cannot be trusted to deal with hiain"

Dead quiet fell at the mention of Taim The man could channel -- he had been on his way to Tar Valon to be stilled, cut off from the One Power forever, when he was broken free -- yet that was not what curbed tongues Once the existence of a man able to channel the One Power had been the deepest anathe such men doas the main reason of existence for the Red, and every Ajah helped as it could But now most of the wo to ht them too close to another subject they did not want to speak aloud Even Elaida felt bile rise in her stomach

Apparently Alviarin experienced no such reluctance One corner of her riest that a sister be dispatched to counsel Tenobia So woman will put up"

Others rushed to help fill the silence

Joline shifted her greenfringed shawl on slender shoulders and sh it seemed a bit forced "Yes She needs an Aes Sedai at her shoulder Someone able to handle Bashere He has excessive influence with Tenobia He ht wakes up" Too reen silk was too snug, too clinging And she s Especially atwe need now is another army on the htly plued the outward calm of Aes Sedai; there was often a strain of anxiety around her eyes, and more so of late

"And someone to Shienar," added Javindrha, another Red Despite sh to hammer nails Her voice was harsh "I don’t like trouble of this sort in the Borderlands The last thing we need is Shienar weakening itself to the point where a Trolloc arh"

"Perhaps" Alviarin nodded, considering "But there are agents in Shienar -- Red, I am sure, and perhaps others? --" The four Red sisters nodded tightly, reluctantly; no one else did "-- who can warn us if these s to worry us"

It was an open secret that every Ajah except the White, devoted to logic and philosophy as it was, had watchers and listeners scattered through the nations to varying degrees, though the Yelloas believed to be a pitiful thing There was nothing of sickness or Healing they could learn from those who could not channel Soh perhaps even ents of the Ajahs The Blues had had the most extensive, both Ajah and personal

"As for Tenobia and Davrareed that they must be dealt with by sisters?" She hardly waited for heads to nod "Good It is done Memara will do nicely; she will take no nonsense fro her see the leash Now Does anyone have fresh word out of Arad Do there soon, we may find that Pedron Niall and the Whitecloaks have sway from Bandar Eban to the Shadow Coast Evanellein, you have so?" Arad Doman and Tarabon were racked