A Peace Offering (Fanfic)

Tel'aran'rhiod and Portal Worlds
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Leala
"The Path of Daggers"
Posts: 1191
Joined: October 8th, 2014, 3:13 am
PC: Leala Gymorraine, Aes Sedai of the White Ajah
SC: Torianin Soulane, Aes Sedai of the Red Ajah
TC: Jhanic, Asha'man of the Indigo Ajah
QC: Abby Soulane, Novice
Location: Tel'aran'rhiod

A Peace Offering (Fanfic)

Post by Leala » December 13th, 2015, 7:06 pm

Leala's mentor was in a sour mood as of late. He had apparently been in one since she revealed to him that she had discovered a Talent for entering Tel'aran'rhiod. He had seemed a bit unprepared for this announcement, and when she tried to delicately approach him about it, he simply brushed it off. It had escalated to today, when he had told her in no uncertain terms that since she was so concentrated on her Talent, she may as well join the Indigo Ajah. He had not raised his voice, but the subtle tone in his voice told her that he was rather angry. She did not retort. She simply gathered her things and left his company. She had not been expecting that. It had cut her that he thought she would be interested in another Ajah, for all that she had shown him over the years. She knew that he was reacting irrationally because of another reason, and that she had nothing to do with his ire, but emotions were part of being human. No matter the stereotype of the cool-headed White Ajah, they were all human.

While she knew that it was not her fault, she also knew that she must make it right. She had to prove to him that she could use this Talent for the benefit of the White Ajah, or in some way that could help him, but in a logical manner. Leala sat on her bed, fully clothed, her things put up, and thought. There had to be something. She considered what the reason may be that he was frustrated to begin with. She knew Aelyn. There was an underlying reason for his mood. She thought back, examining mutters under his breath. She couldn't think of anything that he hadn't already solved. Finally, she remembered a tense meeting between him an Asha'man of the Blue Ajah, Asha'man Kniel. The Blue Asha'man had a very smug look on his face while telling Aelyn that someone had been sentenced to a certain prison term, and that it was looking more and more like he would be executed, if he did not offer information within a certain amount of time. Aelyn had tensed up, responded rather shortly, and after the other Asha'man had left, Aelyn hadn't said a word.

As she thought about it, Leala remembered that this had been a week before she had discovered her Talent. Now, with determination and confidence, she readied herself for bed, threw the covers over herself and entered Tel'aran'rhiod.

~~~

Leala was in her rooms, as she usually was, in this place, and when she stood up, she sighed when she saw the dress and shawl. She thought of her Accepted's garb, and after it finally appeared, she left her room, then quickly found herself in Aelyn's quarters. His room was a mess, but there was always logic to it. She shuffled papers around, trying to find notes on a court case. Something. Somewhere. She moved across his room until she found papers and notes on Altaran laws. Digging deeper, she found notes on a case. His name and Asha'man Kniel's name were listed at the top as advisers.

She knew that such a document should not be read by her, but she knew this was the answer to his frustrations. Because of the physicality of this place, disappeared from her hands often as she read. It seemed that two Aes Sedai had visited an inn with their respective Warders. One sister was of the White Ajah, and one was of the Blue Ajah. One night, both Warders were killed, and the suspect was an old Palace Guard who was outside the inn. He was found cleaning his sword. Leala remembered that Asha'man Aelyn's father had been a Palace Guard in Altara. He must have volunteered.

Carefully, she poured over the evidence, reading every detail. There had to be something. If Aelyn knew he was right, then she knew that an innocent man had gone to prison. She read that the guards assigned to the inn had come in and scared the intruder off. They were all certain that there was just one. Leala wondered about the veracity of that. It was later found that there had been an escape through a window, and that the suspect did not have glass on him when found. The scene was much to garbled to find out how many men were fighting. It was assumed that there were more than one suspect, but that the suspect in custody was definitely the culprit. This was determined by looking at the blade swipes, the force used, and the vicinity of the man when he was found.

Something seemed off to her, though. Why would a guilty man be calmly cleaning the murder weapon in his own home moments after committing it?

Suddenly, it dawned on her. It was a piece of evidence that no one had touched, but it was in the report of searching at the inn directly after the attack.


~~~

Leala pulled herself out of Tel'aran'rhiod, and found her physical body in her own room. It was dawn. She went over the evidence found in her head again and again as she got dressed. The evidence was so small that no one had noticed it. Once presentable, she glided from her room to the White Ajah Quarters. She saw Aelyn leaving his rooms. He looked at her, and began to speak, but she interrupted him. "Asha'man, I have something that may save an innocent man's life. Would you hear it?"

He was taken aback. He blinked behind his spectacles, but realization dawned on him as it had her last night, and he enthusiastically invited her into his rooms. He sat down, but she went straight to where the case file was and picked it up. Leala sat the file down in front of him, and he stared at her in disbelief. "The World of the Dreaming is a reflection," she told him, flipping through the documents until she found what she needed. "At the beginning of this report, it mentions that two guards had fought off the intruder, but three were on duty."

"The third had stepped away to--" He stopped, not because of her words, but because of the cool, confident look she had on. "Continue."

"That was the reason given. However, I doubt very much that two guards on duty would simply step in after two fully trained Warders were fatally wounded. I also doubt that one man alone could murder two Warders without nary a scratch. There is the matter of the shattered window, and no glass on the suspect."

"He is a Blademaster, and it is posited that he had washed up. He did have a few scratches."

"Those can be explained easily enough. They were not deep."

"No, they were not, though recent."

She nodded, willing to admit that. "However, there is something unmentioned in the proceedings that I believe will absolve this man." She pointed to the beginning of the review of evidence. "The doors were not tampered with. The locks were not tampered with."

"The explanation for that is the glass on the inside of the window." He paused. "No. That was not covered in trial." He picked up the document and read over the initial report. "There were footprints in the glass on the outside, in the alley, but the only footprints inside did not touch the glass."

There was a pause as Aelyn read and re-read what he held. Finally, he laid the document down and nodded. "If you'll excuse me, Accepted, I must speak with Asha'man Kniel, then Travel to Altara. A man's life is at stake." She nodded and stood up. He stood with her and gave her a rare smile. "Thank you."

As Leala left the room, she felt a sense of relief and a weight lift from her chest that she had not realized she had had for quite some time.
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