No Guts, No Glory, No Legend, No Story

[Matty]

Time was running out for the plucky heroes. Nate looked back to the broken section of wall with dismay, but he refused to let it show on his face. Rather, Nate raked a hand through his hair and kept channelling. There were no other options really, it was channel or be cut to pieces and Nate was too young and fabulous to die here of all places. Oh, he was happy to die in the field of battle if he had to, but so early in his Asha'man career? No thank you.

He looked down to see Jaren was doing... er... something... with Fire. Sort of. He wasn't going to kill any trollocs that way, was he? Nope. Oh. Maybe that was the point. Harrumph! Nate couldn't fault a Healer for not having the same skill with Battle weaves as he did, so he didn't judge too harshly as he watched. Instead Nate put a hand out and channelled a ring of fire, so the trollocs that had been surprised into falling back, were much less likely to jump through and back at Jaren and Johan.

Amathie weaved a Gateway, and Nate gave a thumbs-up at the sight of it. But he wasn't going to be able to jump down and make it through, he'd break his legs first and that would just be awkward. No, he was going to have to make his own on the wall and meet them there-

A great idea, were it not for the trollocs that were climbing the wall behind him. There was no time.

Not good. Nate grimaced, preparing to jump on down anyway and hope his rolling skills would save his neck, but then... he had an idea, and it just clicked into place because it was so mad, and it just might bloody work. Desperation could make a man stretch outside of his comfort zone, and as Nate wove together Spirit in intricate threads, this was what he was doing. A Gateway appeared on the ground below him, but it wasn't a standard one. Instead it was flat on the floor, and hopefully big enough for him to jump through. Trollocs might try and swing at him, and he could miss, but this was his one shot and there was no time to think it through.

"I'll meet you there!" he shouted at his comrades, before he made a silent prayer to the Creator and jumped off the wall, down... and through the Gateway.

-

Of course physics being physics, Nate's landing was not pretty. He fell at speed into the new encampment where the villagers had been taken to, and when he hit the floor, even with a roll his legs simply gave out and bent in a number of unnatural ways. Nate rolled to the ground with a hysterical howl, writhing on his back in agony, but above him the Gateway shimmered, and the trollocs on the wall were staring down at him with confusion until it closed completely and he was safely out of their way. He'd look back on this moment with some pride later, but right then he was half mad from the pain.

[Elan]

Jaren

Jaren followed Amathie through the gateway with all haste, Johan right behind him, and the gateway snapped shut after the Gaidin was through. Being suddenly not faced with a charging horde of Trollocs felt odd for a second, the refugee camp felt too quiet and still and not quite real…

And then Nate came falling from the sky.

Switching back into emergency mode made the confusion dissipate. Jaren knelt beside the Blue and seized saidin again. Delving confirmed what anyone would have known to expect after a fall like that; bones broken in several places, and not prettily so. Jaren grimaced slightly as he looked at Nate. “Nate? Can you hear me? I’m going to Heal you but before I can do that, I need to set the bones properly… and that’ll hurt.”

He looked up at Johan and one of the soldiers who’d gathered nearby. “Try to hold him still.” And then at his fellow Yellow, “Amathie, a circle, if you please.” Again, it was not really his place to be giving her orders, but she complied without making a fuss. The addition of her power to his meant that he was able to draw almost as much as he would have fully rested; the fact that part of it was saidar was always a little strange at first but he’d always been able to adapt to that easily enough. Sometimes the surrender to guide saidar felt more natural to him than the constant battle for dominance over saidin.

We’re not going into detail about the setting of the bones because the writer knows bugger all about how that actually works. Let’s just say Jaren and Amathie know what they’re doing and that’s enough.

The actual Healing was quick enough, and once it was done, Jaren sat back on his heels and closed his eyes with a sigh. “I need a drink,” he muttered. But this was neither the time nor the place. He felt Johan’s hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring pat, then turned his attention back to Nate. “Nate? How are you feeling?”

[Matty]

Time worked in a funny way when you were experiencing excruciating pain. Nate was sure he was lying there for hours as Jaren set to work resetting his bones and putting them in the right position so they didn't Heal crooked, but in reality it wasn't that much time at all. The Power was an effective time travelling device in that sense, making weeks and months of recovery time into mere moments.

Nate didn't move when he was Healed, not at first. He felt that he was no longer in pain, and that his brain was now capable of more than "ow", but the remnants of that intense agony lingered, and Nate took some deep, calming breaths to get his head back on properly. At least I didn't try and kill anyone on my side this time, he thought to himself eventually with a bit of a snort. Progress, not killing allies. Hmph!

Jaren asked how he was feeling and Nate figured he ought to stand, or at least sit up. Okay, opening his eyes would be a good start. The Blue did blink and look up at the cloudy sky - more rain soon, not like the ruined village but it would be here shortly - and grunted with irritation. "I'm alright now, thanks." He hauled himself upright with a grunt, leaning his forearms on his now fixed legs with a small smile for the Yellow. "I could never work out how to make the flows work, not for Healing. More than a scratch and it just don't make sense to me." He could appreciate a skilled Healer when he saw one, and the Yellows didn't get quite enough credit. Nate had been injured enough times to start wondering whether he needed a Healer on standby more regularly...

"I'm glad you are better Nate," Amathie said. She looked to Johan, "I will need a moment's rest then I will see what is happening here. Hopefully those who came through aren't in need of urgent Healing but who can say?" She turned and went to find something to drink, not that it took more than two seconds for one of the boys to fetch her some tea. Aes Sedai always got the best treatment, but Nate didn't hold it against them. He wouldn't have complained if someone gave him a sandwich though, he'd worked flaming hard.

"We didn't get everyone, did we? But we got most of them. What we could." Nate frowned down at his hands, "those trollocs were moving with a vengeance, which ain't like them. Not that many with so few Eyeless. And why on this village of all places? There wasn't much there to start with, now there's gonna be nothing. It doesn't make any bloody sense." With a shake of his mane, Nate hauled himself to his feet a tad unsteadily, but the hand he held out for Jaren to haul him up was as strong as ever. "Thanks for coming along, both of you. I don't know how it would've gone had I been on my own... I say that a lot, I reckon. Maybe this whole Warder gig ain't so bad after all?" Nate wore an easy grin again, tiredness seeping from his eyes but he was awake enough to persevere for a while longer. There would be a lot to do here, and not all of it would be Healing. Organising people, keeping them from fighting one another, making sure nobody was being ignored or left to die, Nate was going to be a busy man. This was what he was there for though, after removing the threat of the trollocs of course. Helping people who couldn't always help themselves. It gave him great satisfaction.

"Anyone got a sandwich for a hungry Asha'man?" he asked, speaking a bit louder so people could hear him.

Meanwhile, Amathie sat on a barrel with a cup of tea and a sandwich, as well as two boys tending to her every need.

[Elan]

Jaren

We didn't get everyone, did we? Jaren shook his head slowly. The old soldier still bothered him, perhaps more than any of the others; that was one death that could definitely have been avoided if Jaren had been more observant, if he’d noticed the old man in his corner quietly bleeding to death…

No, that was not a useful line of thought. We did what we could. Saved most of them. Nate was right about that. The Blue had been doing this kind of thing before, it was clear, and he’d had to face the reality that you couldn’t always save everyone.

That was the difference between working out in the field as opposed to the clean and comfortable infirmary. Of course the infirmary saw its fair share of drama as well, but if a patient had made it to the infirmary alive, it was very rare that they couldn’t be saved. Working conditions were optimal, there was always another pair of hands to lend assistance when required, and nobody had to make the toughest judgement calls alone… except maybe Maever, who was ultimately in charge of everything.

Out here, it was different. Out here, you had to prioritise, compromise, think of the bigger picture, make quick decisions and keep going even if one of those decisions turned out wrong. At the end of the day you couldn’t always look back with satisfaction; sometimes you just had to try to remember you’d done all you could.

Jaren smiled faintly up at Nate as the Blue helped him to his feet. “I wouldn’t presume to tell anyone to bond or not,” he said, “but I think… nobody should be alone, not all the time. Especially…” He hesitated a little; he didn’t know Nate that well, after all, and people weren’t generally too happy with unsolicited opinions from people who weren’t close friends. But it wasn’t in his nature to hide the fact that he cared. “Especially doing what you do, Nate. This isn’t light work,” and he didn’t mean that just physically, “no matter how rewarding it may be. You’re doing a lot to help people in places like that village, just maybe… maybe let somebody help you do that? Maybe sometimes even when you could do it alone?” He smiled again, a little brighter. “Celebrating a victory is more fun with a friend. No bonding required, if that’s not something you want to do.”

But there was still work to do, and this was probably not a conversation best had when there were people still injured, lost and homeless. Or, Jaren thought, when he was tired enough that he found himself wondering how Nate would react if he hugged him. Nope, definitely time to get back to work. He patted the Blue’s arm, shaking his head at his own thoughts. “I don’t mean to preach,” he said. “Just… something to think about, maybe.”

[Matty]

Jaren was definitely a Yellow, Nate thought to himself with wry amusement. All that talk about how lovely friendship was and sharing with people and how wonderful it was to be bonded, blah blah blah, it was very Yellow. Nate was sure it was great, and he did enjoy his various shenanigans with Bells, but that didn't mean he needed to be bonded to someone, or that he couldn't be a pain in the Dark One's ass on his own. Jaren had the best of intentions and offered his insight from a genuinely good place, so the Blue accepted his insights in the spirit they were intended.

"Thinking? Ahh. I save the thinking for the Whites." Nate wasn't a stupid man, but he was a man of action at heart, and people often assumed he was as dumb as a rock. He was okay with letting them think that. "I'll bring Bells along more often, need to make sure he doesn't turn to a fat lazy guard now he's all Gaidin-like." Alrim liked to fight the good fight, but it wasn't really his battle, or Nate's place to make him put himself in danger constantly. The problem with Bells was that Nate liked him too much to make him a Warder, and he was pretty sure the man wasn't interested anyway, so lumping him with Warder-like issues was not appropriate. Nate could handle himself just fine anyway.

There was still a lot to get on with, and although the worst of it was behind them, Nate knew there would still be a lot to do. "I'm going to meet with the circle of the village, or the mayor, or whatever they call them here. Can you do that thing where you tell everyone it's gonna be fine? People like you Jaren, you're a good bloke and they can see that." Johan might have snorted, or maybe it was the wind. But between Amathie and Jaren they could keep the morale up, and Nate would help in his own way too in order to see some progress made for housing what was basically a bunch of homeless refugees.

There wasn't really the luxury of time or space for such meetings. It ended up being a rather intimate huddle at the side of a currently unused stable, where a number of refugees were currently huddling up to bales of stale hay. Nate towered over the short but stubborn Mayor, and the three more personable but no less stern women who assisted him. They all treated the man like he was some shared lover or something, whoever heard of such a thing?! But Nate was there on business, and as arrangements for where people could stay went underway, Nate's naturally loud voice could be heard over his peers'.

"If the building isn't being used then let's utilise it now... I don't think we have the luxury of time to fill out documentation when people are freezing to death... have you even heard yourself? I'll fix the damn roof myself if it's such a flaming issue... no, let people work if they are healthy, but these people have just lost everything. You can't force them to 'earn their keep' when most of them aren't in any condition to.... I can Gateway people wherever they need to- why are you interrupting me?- if people want to go elsewhere they can but let's not force the issue just yet. Make an offer, see what people think. But I can't make any Gateways right now, I'm tired. Where's that sandwich?"

When a sandwich appeared, Nate took himself off to one side to eat it on his own, chowing down on and frowning at the people in front of him.

[Elan]

Jaren

Well, it was easy enough to see that the topic of Warders wasn’t a welcome one, so Jaren didn’t try to push it. He just flashed an easy smile and ignored the wry look Johan gave him. The Gaidin might have actually rolled his eyes, but Jaren was looking elsewhere and pretended not to notice.

The meeting with the mayor was exactly as frustrating as such things could get. Nate had a good idea of what needed to be done, but the mayor was clearly reluctant to let an outsider tell him what to do. Some of the villagers’ concerns were valid, though; winter was just around the corner and feeding so many extra mouths was going to put a considerable strain on the village’s resources, and building sufficient housing for the refugees before first snow would be a challenge. So, valid concerns, in part, but they didn’t have to be so obnoxious about it.

When Nate got his sandwich break, Jaren spoke up. “I understand your concerns,” he said, addressing the mayor. “Believe me, I do. But you’re Borderlanders. If you don’t stick together and support each other when the Shadow tries to break you, you’re letting the Shadow win.” He spoke gently, without judgement or challenge in his voice, and though he paused for a second to let the words sink in, he didn’t wait for anyone to speak before moving on, “But you’re right that no amount of good will is going to feed or house these people.”

“That’s what we’ve been trying to say!” an elderly man interjected from the side in a voice that sounded approximately like rusty hinges.

“You have,” Jaren agreed readily, “but you’re not listening, either. We can help. We didn’t rescue all those people just to let them starve over the winter. They just need a place to stay, and for now that has to be here because like Nate said, we can’t gateway people around the world just now. But you’ll have resources—” Jaren would see to that himself if the Tower wouldn’t assist “—and enough help to get sufficient shelters built for those who’d wish to stay and start new lives here. And transportation for those who'd prefer to go elsewhere.”

He glanced at Nate; he wasn’t sure if this qualified as telling everyone it was going to be fine but it was close enough, he hoped. He didn’t exactly think he was a great motivational speaker, but Borderlanders had a reputation for being sensible folk and he hoped they’d see that people’s lives were at stake. Light, there were children who just needed somewhere safe and warm to rest for the night!

Finally it was the women who turned the mayor’s head. The stout little man trying to stare Nate down would have been a hilarious sight if Jaren hadn’t been so tired and frustrated with the situation. “Fine,” the mayor announced as if he was doing them a favour. Which he technically was, Jaren supposed, even if that favour fell under basic human decency, so… fair enough. “Fix that roof and let the refugees stay the night. We’ll see everybody fed tonight, but tomorrow we’ll want to see some material assistance coming in if you want us to keep these people.”

As the mayor waddled off, Jaren sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I wonder how many will want to go somewhere else,” he mused out loud. “I wouldn’t want to stay in a place where I’m obviously not wanted… but how many of them have a choice? …Anyway.” He looked up at Nate and smiled. “Let’s see about that roof, and anything else we can do about the temporary lodgings. I’m no carpenter but I can follow instructions. Johan, too.”

[Matty]

Nate liked to think he was a good bloke and that he could interact well with others, but more and more he found that actually, he was less charismatic than he first thought. Maybe it was time as an Asha'man making him more driven, or maybe his experiences made him less sensitive to the lesser plights of those with what were essentially unimportant "concerns". Was it so hard to do the right thing? Listening to Jaren, a Yellow through and through, Nate knew his own words were poorly chosen, that he was thinking about the bigger picture rather than the minute details. But he tried. He just wished other people were on the same page as he.

So he ate his sandwich and watched Jaren, listened, but didn't comment. It wasn't his place and Jaren's honey seemed to work where Nate's stick didn't. Too much time using a stick out here, the Blue thought to himself, wiping his hands on his trousers and coming back with dirt, blood and mud in some awkward mix. At least he'd finished eating...

At least they had a day to prepare themselves and give the refugees somewhere to rest. If not in complete comfort, they could at least have some shelter from the weather and be a little warm. Nate gave Jaren a grateful nod, not bothering to look at the mayor or his ladies. He was always more about representing the little man, after all, not the people in charge. "That's great," he said. "I don't know much about fixing roofs either but... I can follow instructions and there's a thatcher here. I think it'd make more sense to cover it with Air where needed, and make the interior as comfy as possible." He'd said he would fix the roof himself but really they had more important things to worry about like making it warm enough for the refugees overnight.

"What we need to do," he told Jaren, "is make the inside as comfortable as possible. I'm thinking that we use Air to block off the drafty bits, patch the roof up - make the Air cloudy so people know it's there, yeah? - and maybe tie off some small weaves of Fire. Maybe. It's a bit dangerous but we could tie it loosely, and section it off. People won't all have blankets. In the meantime we send people to ask the villagers for aid, any spare beds, or clothes, or blankets, anything they can offer. It's a Borderlander village they should be used to this sort of thing happening, right?" Perhaps not this far south, but Nate wasn't looking for excuses. He was as southern as they came and he still got out there and dealt with what was going on, they could do the same.

With a gesture behind him, Nate put on a forced grin. "Let's fix this damn place up, yeah?"

What transpired after this can only be described as a training montage of the most epic proportions as Nate, Jaren and Johan proceeded to go and help fix up the building. There were a few hardy, uninjured people from both the ruined village and the current one that lent a helping hand, and a few orders from Nate had them leaping into action. Whether it was getting supplies, moving things around or just making sure people were okay, Nate made sure everyone was busy doing what he wanted to do, but didn't have the time for. No, instead he went about fixing the roof up with Air, taking great pains to ensure that it was going to be rain and wind-proof.

But the fighting had taken it out of the man already, and it didn't take a great deal of time for Nate to start to flag (even with a sandwich). He stubbornly channelled until he was happy with the roof, but his legs were so wobbly upon releasing Saidin that he quickly sat down on a bale of hay, trying to make it look like he chose to deposit himself there rather than doing it because his body was exhausted. The last thing he needed was for Jaren to start fussing over him for wearing himself out, being a little tired was really the least of anyone's problems here wasn't it?

[Elan]

Jaren

This was certainly a new kind of use for the Power, for Jaren at least. Tied-off weaves would last the night easily, but Nate was right about Fire being a dangerous one to leave unsupervised. Fortunately, Jaren had a better idea. …Well, technically it still involved weaves of Fire, too, but in a Ward he knew exactly how they would interact with the other components of the Ward and he could trust that it would remain stable and not set anything aflame. A net of Spirit to keep the Ward together, Fire and Air to regulate the temperature, a touch of Water and Earth to add stability. He frowned slightly, studying the threads and adjusting some of the components slightly before setting it in place.

Jaryd would approve, he thought with a faint smile as he inspected the Ward. The chilly air was already beginning to feel warmer, though of course the absence of a cold draft contributed to the effect. Now people wouldn’t run the risk of dying from hypothermia in their sleep, though Jaren was still determined to scour the village for as many spare blankets as could be found. He turned to ask somebody about that, but then Johan was there, blocking his path. Jaren blinked. “Is there a problem?”

“Yes,” the Warder said. “You still channelling is a problem. You need to rest, and before you think of arguing, let me remind you that I can feel how tired you are.”

“Oh,” Jaren said eloquently. He couldn’t argue, though; he’d been channelling nearly non-stop for hours under considerable pressure, and the day had been emotionally exhausting on top of all that. And if he felt tired… He looked around for Nate and found the Blue sitting on the other side of the barn where some hay bales were stacked next to the wall. “Yes, you’re right,” Jaren said distractedly, looking back at Johan. “Could you see if you can find some tea and something to eat. I saw Amathie with tea earlier, she can probably help.”

As Johan headed off in search of Amathie or tea or both, Jaren made his way over and sat next to Nate. “How are we doing?” he asked quietly. “I think we can rest assured that nobody will freeze to death tonight. I sent the kids from earlier running around gathering any spare blankets people can spare. My Ward will keep the space warm enough, but people will feel more comfortable with blankets, blankets are something they can see and feel and understand…” He trailed off, shaking his head with a faint grimace. “I’m rambling, sorry. Johan’s getting us tea. Then… I’d very much like to tell you to take a nap. I know I could do with one, and you’ve been channelling for longer than I have and you’ve been Healed twice today. You need to rest. We all do.”

[Matty]

Jaren must have had some sort of Yellow sense or something because it didn't take him long to come over and start giving him the Yellow treatment. Tea and a nap? If only there was the time for such a thing! Nate looked at the man sitting next to him, trying to keep his impatience from his voice. He'd had plenty of this sort of conversation with people since becoming Asha'man, and he knew that there was normally truth in their words, but it didn't stop the man from being stubborn in his response. "These people have lost their homes, their loved ones, their livelihood. There's no time for me to be taking a nap!" Nate huffed, "how can I when there's so much to do? The Mayor will toss them out unless we stick around and stop him.

"Besides, I'm fine. It's been a long day but I'm good to keep going." Not Oathsworn, Nate could bullshit as much as he wanted, though he made the mistake of standing up to prove his point. Unfortunately, regardless of his fitness and the hours he put into training at the Yards, being exhausted was being exhausted, and his legs shook before simply giving out and making him sit back on the hay bale. Thus caught out, Nate folded his arms and looked on ahead until Johan appeared with some tea for them. He didn't need to look at Jaren to know the look he was getting, so... he didn't. Bloody Yellows, being right and all that. He'd start talking about getting a bloody Warder again at this rate.

Johan handed him a steaming mug of tea, and he took it carefully. "Thanks," he said, not sure why a Warder was giving out tea like a serving girl but not questioning it. He held the cup in his hand for a moment before he put it to his lips and knocked it back like it was water, not scolding hot tea. Nate was an impatient eater and waiting for food to cool down was for suckers, or people who didn't have two equally greedy brothers. As a result he was able to eat or drink things that would burn other people. Maybe I should submit for points in that talent. "Thanks," he said to the Warder, "that hit the spot. Alright Jaren, I can take a nap. Normally, what I do is find a room nearby and keep close, but I don't think there's any room here. Amathie can Gate us back to the Grey Tower and I'll come back in the morning. How's that sound?"

It sounded acceptable, so when Amathie made her way over a moment later, Nate was ready and sort of willing to Travel back to the Tower. Amathie could make the Gateway, and arrangements were quickly and quietly made. Amathie could Gate them all back to the Grey Tower, then she would ask Maever to send a small group of Yellows to oversee the refugees. Nate would return in the morning.

"It's warmer than I expected in here," Amathie remarked once these things were decided upon. "Saidin?"

"Jaren's put up a handy ward that'll keep people from getting too cold," Nate said proudly. As a man with no skill in that sort of thing, he could appreciate the knack in other people. Nate only really knew how to destroy, rather than create or preserve. It would have made him feel upset had he not used his talents to help a broken village that day. "Alright, I think I'm good to go now." Nate hauled himself back to his feet, but Johan was right by his side so when he flagged, the shorter man was able to help keep him upright. How embarrassing... still, Nate was in no position to refuse because the alternative was living on the hay bale for a few hours. Maybe a Warder wasn't such a bad idea after all for when he got tired and needed carrying to bed.