Wheelbound (Godbound/Wheel of Time SI)

Cloak of Blood and Change

A thick cloak that moves of its own accord with a dark red colorization, in the light it glistens as if it's wet. The cloak comes with a hood that looks like it swallows the wearer when it's done up and there are two tassels that seem to speak to the wearer.

Secondary nodes of the Tikkat Entity would be equipped with these to help adapt itself to different environments and threats. It also helped in the recovery from injuries and losses.

A mortal that dons the cloak will find themselves become obsessed with change and perfection. As these are opposing states, the mortal quickly descends into a warped state of mind where the grotesque is not quite good enough.

Effort: 4

Boiling Rain (Lesser Gift/Smite): Commit Effort for the Scene. The cloak spits out a cloud of bloody droplets that are boiling hot in a 90 degree cone with a maximum range of 30 meters. Whenever they touch flesh they inflict boils, cancers, or other ruinous mutations doing 2d6 points of damage.
Flesh Like Clay (Greater Gift): The bearer touches a living creature and commits Effort for the Scene. They can now reshape their target's form as they please, though still roughly bound by the original mass of unless they add it from another source. No supernatural gifts can be bestowed with this Gift that the target didn't already have or had the potential for. Worthy Foes can make a Hardiness Saving Throw to resist this effect, on a success that case it can't be used again on them for 24 hours.
This power will also work on recently deceased organic matter except no commitment of Effort is needed in that case. The bearer doesn't need to touch a creature if it's already been subjected successfully to this Gift, in that case it only needs to be in the bearer's presence.
Any creature warped or created with this power is naturally obedient to the bearer of the Crimson Cloak unless they are a Worthy Foe who succeeds on a Spirit Saving Throw to resist this effect for 24 hours.
Life Hunger (Constant/Greater Gift): The bearer's flesh is never still as it brims with life. Every five minutes they heal for 2 hit points with an additional 2 if they spilled the blood of a living creature the turn before. If their hit points were full, they suffer 2 points of damage instead.

"Ron, Ron, hold on. Don't you dare die!"

Gemiad's words as much as a trickle of One Power Healing flowing into my body roused me from unconsciousness. I dragged one eyelid open as I felt my heart struggle, the copper smell of blood overpowering everything but a hint of flowers.

"Don't worry." I gasped, every word hurt. Looking down at my body, I saw Sheraine with her hands on my belly. To use the Healing she was weaving into me, I would have to expend Effort, that's why it tired people. But I had little left, and it wouldn't be enough.

I could feel what life was left in me drain away. "Healing won't be enough." I grimaced, but there was no time for pain. No time for anything. "Quick, Rasputsar's cloak." My eye flicked to where his corpse lay. "Bring it to me."

There had been no time to truly study the Artifact, but I'd seen enough to discern a few things. And at least one of its Gifts was a passive form of Healing. Even with its Effort pool drained dry, that should still work. As long as I had the Effort to spare to bind myself to it.

"Help me," Gemiad shouted to Sheraine as she ran over to the naked corpse. Sheraine gave me a frustrated look before she hastened to follow.

"The artifact remains our property. You may not leave with it," Fifth Note chimed as they hovered into view.

"Yes." A spasm rocked my body, had to force myself to freeze as that single involuntary movement sent ripples of pain bouncing through my stomach. "But we made no agreement on not using it while we're-"

Removing the cape was made easier by the fact that Rasputsar had no head anymore, but it was still half buried underneath his body. Gemiad struggled until Sheraine did something and made a gesture that sent the body rolling away from Gemiad.

Together, they dragged the large, liquid like cloth back towards me. "This is not a good idea," Sheraine called out. "More than one Aes Sedai was either burned out, or simply died, investigating ter'angreal."

"Not a problem. That's not a ter'angreal." It was, in fact, far more powerful. "And I can figure out a ter'angreal in seconds anyway."

"You should let me Heal you instead," Sheraine argued. "This thing warped everybody. And you look to be barely conscious."

"If Nynaeve were here, perhaps she could. She's the strongest Healer since, perhaps, the Breaking. But if I accept Healing and it doesn't work, I won't have anything left to use the Artifact." The pain was too much, robbing me of my voice before I fought it back. I slid and pushed a hand towards them. "Please!"

Sheraine pressed her lips together, but Gemiad tugged at her end. "Come on, he knows what he's doing."

"I'm not so sure," the Aes Sedai muttered, but she stepped forward and dragged the cloak over my claws and into my hand. I reached out with my soul, forging a connection with the last of my Effort. Complete understanding flowed back, along with a little bit of welcome healing. The cloak flowed over me, clasping around my throat as it draped over my shoulders.

"Ah."

"What?" Sheraine looked me over. "What is it doing? Is it not working right?"

"No, just poor quality. This Artifact, they accepted flaws in order to create more of them." I grimaced. "It is healing me, but this Artifact will actually start to injure me should I be in perfect health. After which it will heal me again."

"So it is damaged then," Sheraine said.

"No, it works as intended. The people that made it didn't care, because this flaw meant they could make these Artifacts quicker." The trade-off made perfect sense, you can't have perfect be the enemy of more in a war, but it still offended me they accepted lesser workmanship.

Gemiad frowned. "Wait, did that man go through the same thing? Healing and then getting injured?"

"Yes, every five minutes his insides would heal, then tear apart over the same span of time before it would heal once more. And this Artifact does nothing to numb the pain. But I won't be in any danger," I hastened to add. "It will take the Artifact over an hour to heal me and I can disconnect with a thought."

I gasped as my intestines were dragged a centimeter back into my stomach. "I can't speed it up, Rasputsar wrung it dry in our fight."

Sheraine looked back at Rasputsar's naked corpse. "And what will we do then?"

"This one will escort you back to Central Harmony once you are mobile," Fifth Note chimed. "So that you can deliver the Artifact and receive your reward for breaking the resistance of the invaders. Without the support of their leader and with a substantial part of their number combat ineffective, Central Harmony can restore order."


Doors that would have dwarfed me even in my draconic form creaked and groaned as they slid apart just enough to let us all through. It had been several days since we'd … since I'd killed Rasputsar and there wasn't a mark on me anymore.

I'd managed to negotiate with Central Harmony about Miroslar and his people. I couldn't secure their freedom, but at least they'd been restored to their previous appearance. Once they'd all been captured, which took a couple of days. If there had been some place for them to go, I might have pushed it. But I didn't trust them and bringing them back to the Wheel of Time world could go wrong in too many ways.

The room we entered couldn't really be called that, this vast cavern that Central Harmony had named the Tertiary Embrace of Rest and Resupply could comfortably house a mountain. Light didn't come from the ceiling, it was too far above our heads, but instead from floating orbs that slowly lit up as we walked deeper into this harbor.

We walked over a ribbon of dark metal, just floating in the air, with other ribbons going off in other directions towards floating platforms of various sizes. Most of them were empty, a few had forgotten cylinders and boxes, perhaps things that were supposed to have been shipped away.

A platform below us was wrecked, a third of it just gone leaving ragged but sharp edges. I only needed a few seconds to puzzle out what had happened. One of the cylinders had failed, its contents not just exploding but actually twisting the fabric of reality before it all had decayed. The Midnight Forge was old, but this damage told me it had been left dormant many centuries ago.

I became quite aware of something else, the defense systems tracking our every move. They were hidden, cloaked somehow, but they were still connected to the platforms, both below and on top, and that connection I could read like an open book.

"How did the intruders even get as far as they did?" I asked Fifth Note as they glided ahead of me.

They turned their conical head without slowing down. "They used the regular procedure to enter the Midnight Forge," Fifth Note rang. "One reserved for secret missions. Central Harmony was thus only warned once they tried breaking into the vault. At that point, defenses were activated and their ship was located."

Said ship now came into view as the light orbs ahead woke up. "You call that a ship?" Sheraine commented.

The ship in question looked a little like a spaceship, and a lot like a bat. Even had two extensions that looked a little like ears at what probably was the bridge at the front. It rested on two legs and its folded wings, reinforcing the impression. The damage was clear, holes had been blasted into the wings and one leg had been heat-fused to the platform.

"Ship is the closest word in your language," Fifth Note sang back. "It appears your language lacks the necessary words to properly describe this vessel."

"Yeah, they don't have godwalkers," I said, my eyes taking in the flowing lines of the craft. She was big, but even now she seemed to be trying to blend into the environment.

"And what is a godwalker?" Sheraine's tongue stumbled over the last word, and only now that I heard it back did I realize that word hadn't been in the Common Tongue.

I stroked my chin, thinking how best to describe it. "They were made to give ordinary people abilities similar to my own. But far more limited, more specialized. And because they were machines, they couldn't grow and needed constant maintenance. But they were a lot easier to make."

Gemiad joined my side, her attention focused on the hole in the wing. "Can you repair it? And can we even man it with just the three of us?"

"Repairing it won't be an issue," I assured her. It would have been harder before, but my repair Gift could also be used to fix magical devices like this one. Just took more Effort. "And godwalkers were made to be piloted by a single person. Shouldn't take me long to figure out its controls."

The one drawback was that while I was connected to the godwalker, I wouldn't be able to use my own abilities except my passive Gifts. These machines weren't meant for Godbound after all, or Made Gods. They were meant for ordinary mortals.

"Inform this one when you are ready to leave," Fifth Note sang. "This one will start the departure operation at that point."

Sheraine eyed the construct. "You will not be following us into the ship?"

"This one isn't allowed to leave the Midnight Forge."

"But this ship is inside the Midnight Forge," the Aes Sedai said.

"Correct, but it is not part of the Midnight Forge." Fifth Note's lights dimmed for a moment, then they resumed as they sang softly, "that is why you are allowed to depart with it."

"I understand," I said. "Come on, let's see how bad it is."


The heart of the machine stirred, a purple egg-like object with raised ridges and intricate designs carved deeply into its surface rose up and began to spin. More diagrams traced in light and shaped sound unfolded along the inner walls of the chamber and power finally flowed out into the rest of godwalker.

"She's alive," I said. I considered continuing the quote, but nobody here knew what either Frankenstein or movies were. They'd just think me mad.

I stepped back and admired my work. Repairing the physical machinery had been quick, but that still left restarting the whole godwalker which had taken a lot longer. At least I'd learned her name in the process, but now Camazothrir's chakra engine had been roused and it worked.

"That just leaves the small matter of finding our way home," Sheraine said. "If just seeing this Uncreated Night is so dangerous, how will we find our way through it. Or even know which direction to go?"

Gemiad crossed her arms. "There must be a way, or how did Rasputsar find this place to begin with? So it must be dangerous if you're exposed to it for too long." She glanced at me. "And I think Ron wouldn't be so confident if he didn't already have an idea on how to find our way back."

I inclined my head. "I was actually worried about that, until I saw the bridge. Come on." I turned and ducked out of the small engine room, down a short flight of stairs and up the long corridor that lead directly to the bridge. The threshold was wide, it had to provide enough room for the two separate sets of thick blast doors.

The bridge itself wasn't that big, just enough room for five stations, and four of them only consisted out of a very comfortable seat along with a single console that could project information either into the air in front of the operator or just directly into their minds. I'd set them to the former, just to be safe.

I turned to one of the consoles that had several slots and recesses and pointed at it. "See that indentation, doesn't the shape look familiar?" I asked Gemiad before pulling the crystal tablet we'd found what seemed like years ago, but it had been less than one.

"You never did tell me where you found that," Sheraine said. "It seems quite the coincidence that it happens to be part of this … godwalker."

"Caemlyn, I found it in Caemlyn," I said. "Though the shape of it is not as important as the contents. Because in this tablet, there's not just a diary, the person who wrote it included coordinates. Those didn't make any sense to me, not until I'd taken a look at how this ship navigated."

"And one of the worlds in that book, is ours," Gemiad said, shoulders slumping as if a great weight had slid off of them. "So you can just fly us home?"

I nodded. "Basically. We'll have to be careful, someone told me your world has defenses against people trying to get in. But the Camazothrir was designed to sneak past such defenses." Well, past the defenses a Former Empire could throw up. If it was the Creator that had made whatever defended their world, that might not be enough. Then again, others had made it so there were holes, at the very least.

I placed the tablet on the console and it sank in deeper, something that looked like quicksilver flowed into the gaps and over the tablet, streams of data appearing in the air above the console.

"Let's see, we're looking for one of the most recent entries," I mused aloud for their benefit. I plucked at the code strings, which I could actually feel, more data appearing for each entry as the godwalker had already summarized the accompanying text and correlated it to the relevant worlds.

"Found it." No information in Camazothrir's databanks, but the description it had distilled was what I recalled having read in the tablet. I crumpled the coordinates up in a ball and threw them into the navigation system, the godwalker automatically began plotting a course.

"Then let us depart," Sheraine said. "And hope that Tarmon Gai'don didn't happen while we were gone."

"I doubt that enough time has passed," I said, yet my own concerns couldn't be contained. "But a lot of other things might have happened."

"If anything's wrong, then we'll just have to fix it," Gemiad said. "Between the three of us, what can't we face?"

I couldn't help but smile a little at the vote of confidence. "Maybe we should have some confidence." I stepped onto the honeycombed platform at the front, the one that had an unobstructed view of the wraparound screen. Air stirred and gripped my body, lifting me in the air as I connected with the godwalker Camazothrir and controls made of light and solid sound formed themselves around me.

I called upon the godwalker's command of all sound within its surroundings and projected my voice in front of Fifth Note. "We are ready to depart."

"Excellent," the construct chimed. "A path of departure has been selected, please follow the lights."

Some of the floating light orbs turned red, blinking in a sequential pattern. The godwalker lifted off in dead silence and spread its wings. No bright lights shone from its surface as I followed the indicated path towards an airlock. "I don't expect we'll ever be back, but if I do meet any people belonging to the Concert of Blossoms and Moonshine I'll let them know that the Midnight Forge still waits for them."

"This one thanks you," Fifth Note sang, the melody sounding wistful.

The air lock turned out to be a series of seven locks, one opening only after the previous one had shut closed. "Do you really expect to meet any of their people?" Gemiad asked.

I shook my head. "As far as I know, all the Former Empires are barely a memory anymore. Centuries have passed. Actually, Rasputsar and his people might have been descendants of them even. And I don't think Central Harmony is expecting us to find any."

Sheraine had taken a seat at the Engineering console. "Then why did it command us to search for them?"

I hummed. "It might have been so that it had a valid reason to let us go with this godwalker. Remember, it operates under a set of restrictions somewhat similar to the Three Oaths. A set of rules it can't disobey. But like an Aes Sedai-"

"It can work around them when it needs to," Gemiad finished with a nod, earning us both a disapproving glare from Sheraine.

The Aes Sedai shook her head. "The Oaths are more than that, and I would have hoped you both realized as much by now. Without them, we are simply not trusted. We can only do our work because people can trust our word."

Gemiad crossed her arms and scoffed. "Except that's not true. I can think of at least five sayings about not trusting Aes Sedai or their words."

"And then there's the question of just whose idea the Oaths really was," I said. "But let's table this discussion, the final lock is about to open."

It slid open before us, revealing a boiling rainbow, swirling and bubbling, as Camazothrir slipped outside. "Activating the Night's Veil, that should keep us hidden from anything we might pass by."

"I don't know what I was expecting," Sheraine said. She'd slipped out of her chair and now stood next to me. "Given all the horror stories you and Central Harmony told us, I was expecting something … more."

I shrugged. "What you're seeing is just an interpretation created by the godwalker and … painted across the wall in front of us. It's just repainting so fast that your eyes can't tell. And the godwalker is actually rotating through its senses, like using one eye, and then the other, just to spread out the strain."

"Do you know how long it will take for us to reach our world?" Gemiad asked.

"More than a day, but time and distance are just guesses in this realm."

"And then we'll have to make the journey all the way to the north," Sheraine added. "At least this new ship has somewhere you can bathe."

"Oh, once we get back to your world, we'll reach Andor or Tar Valon in no more than an hour or two," I told them. "This vessel is a lot faster than the Albatross."

They kept me company for a little while longer, but eventually retired to the communal dining room of the godwalker as there was little to see but chaos. The screen did change how it depicted it regularly, from eyewatering colors to shades of black, something like a relief map, a series of of symbols, and a number of others.

More than once, I received the impression of something, or some things, coming closer. Size was impossible to tell, but every time their attention slid off us like water of a duck's back. The thought had occurred to me to take a break, to have a night's sleep, but just those vague impressions were enough for me to push through the ship's night.

Gemiad brought me breakfast, which I ate right there on the platform. At least it had formed a seat so that I could rest my legs. I even resisted answering the call of nature for as long as possible, darting in and out of the head attached to the bridge itself when everything seemed about as quiet as Uncreated Night could get.

"What is that ribbon we're flying next to?" she asked. "It looks different from anything else."

"That's a Night Road," I said, finishing the mashed something. It didn't taste like potatoes, more like broccoli with a carroty aftertaste. "They crisscross Uncreated Night, providing paths for people from Creation from one reality to another. I think this one leads right your world."

She shook her head. "I can't believe humans made all of that."

"They only made some of them. Others supposedly just appeared naturally. Or maybe they were created by the Creator, who knows? The Night Roads don't just lead to other worlds like yours, they can also-" The tray with what was left of my breakfast fell to the floor, along with the fork. Both made a racket as they hit the metal platform.

"What? Why are you making that face?" Gemiad asked. "What's happened?" She whirled around, staring at the screen. My arm shook as I gestured and the godwalker zoomed in.

Perfect globes with a hundred eyes and three pairs of wings made of holy symbols blasted out beams of golden words which sliced through Uncreated Night, severing creatures made of limbs and mouths as they rushed them in an unending tide.

A crystal giant with three heads and six arms wrestled with an equally large thing made of light-drinking flame and flesh like steel. Every shift of their struggle sent out ripples that launched scores of critters off the plane before the gate and back into Uncreated Night proper.

It was a battlefield, and we had to pass through it.

"It has been over an hour," Sheraine said. "And neither side has relented for even a moment."

"Are you sure we can't simply slip past them?" Gemiad said, staring at the impossible geometries of the smaller angels blasting away at the Uncreated monsters still clambering and dropping onto the battlefield. "This ship can hide itself, is hiding itself right now."

"There's a chance the larger ones are powerful enough to pierce the veil hiding us," I told her. What we were looking at wasn't actually the entrance to the real world, just the gate to the fortress built around the entrance. I vaguely recalled reading about such wayhouses in the manual, but seeing one simply exist in Uncreated Night was still a shock. "Neither side is anything close to human, so you can't expect them to experience fatigue or fear as you do; or me."

Sheraine turned away from the slaughter. Not a single angel had suffered more than some superficial damage in all that time. And at least four giant Uncreated had been torn apart by the titanic angel. "If they don't get tired, could this battle have been going on since forever?"

I considered that, then shook my head. "No, the writer of that travelogue came through that entrance. That was three thousand years ago. Does make we wonder if the Butcher came in through a different entrance because they ended up in Caemlyn and not the Madlands." I felt like I was missing something.

"We don't know how he ended up in Caemlyn," Gemiad said. "He was confused. You told me so as well. And he had spent a long time looking for a way out, right?"

I nodded, head feeling a little heavy. "True. And he might not have been alone when he came here. Which leaves the question of how they got past that," I said, gesturing at the continued battle.

Sheraine tilted her head. "You may be thinking of this the wrong way. The … Night Road, you called it? Not a single one of these things has emerged from it. They have stayed away from its exit. Yes, the angels would spot anybody approaching the gate, but you keep assuming their orders are to keep everybody out. You don't need a gate if the objective is to keep everything out; a wall works better."

"Could be it's there in case your world needs to be evacuated," I said, rubbing my chin. But that didn't fit with my theory that their entire world was part of the Dark One's prison. With humanity as its warden. Of course, that theory could be wrong since it was something I'd come up with, and it wasn't directly stated as such in the books.

"The Dark One will not win as long as even one Aes Sedai still draws breath," Sheraine said, rising to her full height, eyes hard. "And if the unthinkable should ever happen, it will be so quick there won't be time for anybody to flee. No, I think those angels will let us through. Because we have every right to return home."

"And between us and those things, we are clearly the lesser danger," Gemiad said. "And perhaps the One Power can offer some additional protection?"

Sheraine shook her head. "I know no weaves that could protect a moving ship."

I looked from one to the other, still hesitating, still imagining those extermination beams slicing through my godwalker. They made sense, it fit with the known facts, and it would likely work. But what if it didn't?

I rubbed the right side of my stomach, no trace of the wound remained. My feet paced on their own. There was no guidance, we were off the map and outside the books. Even the godbound books didn't deal much with the Shards of Heaven, Angels, and Night Roads.

Sheraine scrutinized me with narrowed eyes. "What is wrong? You've been dragging us into one hair-brained scheme after another, with little regard for the danger. Yet at the threshold of making it home, now you hesitate?"

"As hard as it might be for you to believe, I did, in fact, know what I was doing, and we weren't in that much danger." Until I'd underestimated Rasputsar and nearly died. I think I could still have used Divine Fury, but that would have bought me half a minute at best. "This is different. That Archangel, at least, is more powerful than me. And while I'm tied to this ship, my powers are bound as well."

Gemiad looked out towards the battle again. "How much time would it take them to pierce the ship's hull?"

I blew out my breath. "Wouldn't be instant. This ship wasn't made for battle, but what armor it has should block the first couple of attacks like what we've seen so far. So, let's say it would take ten seconds of sustained fire before we'd be in danger."

"Then we should make the attempt," Sheraine said. "Should the worst happen, you can repair the ship again as you've done before."

I nodded. This … fear was familiar, thought I'd left it behind along with my human body, but one collision with death and it was back. But it had done me no favors in my old life, it would only be worse in this one if I listened to it. "Then take a seat. I'm dropping the veil once we get close."

Sheraine smoothed her skirt once she sat down while Gemiad's fingers had a firm grip on the console in front of her. Only when I was sure they were comfortable did I initiate the dive. It still took time for us to reach the battlefield as distances were very strange here in Uncreated Night.

"Sheraine Sedai, do you … hear that?" Gemiad asked.

Sheraine turned to her. "I'm not sure hearing is the right word, but yes, I do. Almost like those angels are channeling, except when an Aes Sedai channels you can see it."

I took a deep sniff. "I don't smell anything." We were close now, but the smaller Uncreated and their angelic opposition gave no hint they'd pierced the Night's Veil.

"At last, something you don't outshine us on," Sheraine said. "And I'm certain now. I can almost hum along with the music, it crests every time one of those angels launches one of those light beams."

"I can't make it out that clearly," Gemiad said, before letting out a gasp as the fortress shifted. Buildings moved, crenelations frowned, and turrets stared right in our direction. All the features came together to form three faces that shared a single mouth. We weren't looking at a fortress at all, it was an angel the size of a mountain range.

"Shit," I cursed. "Hold on, I'm-"

A pyramid spun itself into existence on the bridge, eyes on every side taking in everything and everyone.

"You(All) / May {Possess Permission} / Pass [Resume Thread]." The pyramid froze, eyes unblinking. Below us, everything grew rapidly.

The crystalline angel with three heads felt more like a living mountain this close, though even it was a toy compared to the titan that had just spoken. Even the smallest angel on the battlefield was larger than a tank, all were alien.

I pulled up, and Camazothrir now flew parallel with the ground. Some of the larger Uncreated turned pseudopods, claws, and things one could charitably called heads, in our direction. One angel did so as well, wheels within wheels turned and spun, two of three heads tracking out flight.

The fortress Angel opened it's mouth, what I'd once taken for a reinforced gate. A word that I didn't hear through the godwalker, didn't hear with my ears, but one that I felt through the resonance in my own soul, rippled through existence.

It was in no language I could name, and it slipped through my memory like sand through my fingers. All it left was a feeling. Hurry. There is a place for you there, not here.

Outside, the closest Uncreated reeled. One even exploded as its chosen form reacted poorly to the word. The glow in the angel's multiple throats froze as the Night's Veil faltered at last. The next moment, the angel unleashed its attack, two beams slicing out, passing left and right of us to incinerate the Uncreated closest to us.

"Ron, we should rethink this," Sheraine said, finally breaking eye contact with the pyramid.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Already regretting you were right? No, the only way is forward. Into the belly of the fortress."

"That's not a fortress!"

The angels danced out of our way before slamming back into the Uncreated that chased our wake. We passed through the gate, Camazothrir was swallowed whole. Even with the godwalker's sensors all I could perceive was a kaleidoscope. Then, a moment of nothing. We were nowhere, we were nothing but a thought. The next breath, the harsh glare of the desert sun shone down on us and we were alone on the bridge again.

Behind us, I could, for a moment, sense the gate to the Night Road. Nothing like a gate you'd see on a castle or a palace. It was round, consisting of four disparate parts that folded out as the gate closed until it all locked back into place, and then it was gone.

"I am-" Sheraine broke off and looked around. "It worked? Are we home?"

I couldn't quite believe it myself. That had gone a lot better than I'd feared. A quick check of the readings and I nodded. "Yes, we're back in the Madlands. I'm even picking up what's left of Nol Caimaine. But not the Albatross."

The airship would have stopped floating after a few days, but I wasn't even picking up a crash site. "It must have been blown away by a sandstorm or something."

"Master Shen," Sheraine said. "Are you telling me we'll have to make the entire way back without a change of clothes?"

"Ah." I checked the sensors again, specifically the estimated local time. "The Camazothrir is a lot faster than the Albatross. It's also still morning, so we should be able to reach Caemlyn in time for dinner. We can get you both clothes there."

"It took us nearly two weeks in the Albatross," Gemiad said with a frown. "Is this ship truly that much faster?"

"The Albatross was made with what technology your world has, and it's barely within reach. This ship," I said, gesturing around the bridge, "was made by a people as advanced if not more so than those of the Age of Legends. Even without Traveling they could have circumnavigated the entire world in a day, using a machine like this."

"Are you sure you're up for piloting the ship for the rest of the day?" Gemiad laid a hand on my arm. "You've had no rest since we left the Midnight Forge."

Her words made the ache in my muscles, the sting in my eyes, a little sharper. Still, I shook my head. "No need for concern. This ship can handle a storm without issue, and I'm sure everybody here would like to rest in a familiar place for once. We'll rest in Caemlyn, make sure everything is in order with Hagaidhrin and the others, then we can figure out where we need to go tomorrow."

"Tar Valon, obviously. This ship and its contents need to be studied by us, and the Amyrlin needs to speak with you. She'll want to speak with all of us," Sheraine said, lips pressed firmly together after she admitted that last bit.

My laugh filled the bridge. I hadn't meant to, maybe I'm more tired than I thought. I shook my head as I took a deep breath. "No. This ship is my way home. The only people who get to touch it are the ones I trust. And we won't know who the Amyrlin is," I said, thinking of what must happen soon.

A moment later, I already regretted saying that as Sheraine rounded on me. "What do you mean by that?"

I closed my eyes, then shook my head as I met her glare. "You don't know what will happen once the news of The Dragon Reborn making himself known reaches Tar Valon." The Aes Sedai flinched at the mention of Rand. "There, that. Even the ones that aren't Black Ajah will be scared. Scared of the Last Battle, of change, of a male channeler they can't just gentle. And a t'averen they can't control."

"You think the Aes Sedai will change their Amyrlin?" Gemiad turned to Sheraine. "Can they even do that? How do you even get a new Amyrlin? She's not a queen."

"A new Amyrlin is voted into office by the Sitters in an ancient ceremony. But only once the old Amyrlin has retired or died. And Siuan Sanche was chosen in part because she was quite young for her position and in good health. And she's certainly not going to take a step back in the face of Tarmon Gai'don," Sheraine said, once again glaring at me.

"Officially, no Amyrlin has been deposed, or murdered," I agreed. "Officially. But the Aes Sedai are people, and people can panic in a crisis. Especially with the Black Ajah certain to stir the pot, they might just blame Siuan for not getting Rand under control. So Siuan gets retired to a farm, or a fishing village, and a new one is chosen that promises to be strong and decisive. Probably a Red."

"There hasn't been an Amyrlin raised from the Red Ajah in a thousand years," Sheraine said. "And doing it now would be foolish. We need someone who won't frighten … the Dragon Reborn. If I can see it, so can the Sitters."

I gave her a grin. "Want to bet on it?" I waved that away. "No, never mind. We'll see what the future brings. Right now, we should get underway. Even with this vessel, it's going to take the rest of the day." With those words, I sent the Camazothrir up and opened up the throttle.

It still took over half an hour just to reach the coast, but after that, it was just open ocean and mostly clear skies. Halfway through, an entire mountain range of black clouds rolled in from the west, and I angled the godwalker east to fly around it.

The sun had passed its high point, the shadows lengthened, and I could now see a dozen ships sailing the waves as a coastline appeared on the horizon. I blinked heavily and cracked a yawn.

I'd gotten some shuteye during the flight, but I was too aware it was still day so true sleep had slipped through my fingers. I triggered the intercom. "I can see the mainland now, we'll reach Caemlyn in an hour or so. Once I've figured out where we ended up."

"I may be able to help you with that," Sheraine said a few moments later as she came onto the bridge.

Gemiad followed behind her. "Only an hour more?"

I nodded to her before gesturing at the view to Sheraine. "All I can see right now is a river and several ships. No city on the coast itself, so we haven't returned to Ebou Dar, but with this much traffic, there must be a city nearby. It could be Illian."

Sheraine frowned as she studied the coastline. "No, that's not the bay of Carom. We're looking at the Fingers of the Dragon. Where the Erinin flows into the sea. We can follow her right to Tar Valon itself."

"Or head west once we reach Aringill and spend the night in Caemlyn. It is late in the day, after all, Aes Sedai," Gemaid said, crossing her arms. "And we wouldn't want to try landing in the dark."

Sheraine inclined her head and placed her hand on one of the consoles. "I understand that you wish to see your friends and make sure they are well. But we have a higher duty. I've had to resort to making notes like a Brown just to keep everything I've learned on this journey straight. It has already been too long. The Amyrlin must be informed as soon as possible."

Which could risk the information falling into the hands of Elaida or the Black Ajah. It depended on where we were in the timeline. But while I was lost in a fuzzy cloud of sleepy thoughts, Gemiad had no such issue. "Are you sure it's not because you want to take those Aes Sedai oaths again? The ones that are going to cut your life in half?"

"Don't take every utterance of Ron as unvarnished truth, child. Perhaps there is a cost, but it is the Oaths that make an Aes Sedai. It is the Oaths that assure people we can be trusted," she said, only to be cut off when Gemiad burst out in laughter for a brief second.

Gemiad shook her head. "I'm sorry, Aes Sedai. But nobody trusts an Aes Sedai. You can't lie, but everybody knows that the truth that you think you hear from one, is not necessarily what she says. So your every word is mulled over and considered, that's not trust."

I nodded. "I'd rather have 2,000 Aes Sedai now to face The Last Battle, that can lie to their heart's content even if they aren't darkfriends. Rather than a thousand still rife with traitors. But we'll fight this war with the allies we have, rather than imaginary ones."

Sheraine stepped forward, trying to look down on me even when she barely reached my shoulder. "I've accepted that there are some Black Sisters; the Daughter-Heir would know better than to lie about something like that. But you have yet to provide any proof for your allegation."

"I haven't." I blinked; my eyelids sticky. Something caught my attention. A large red hill that didn't fit into the landscape. At first glance it kind of reminded me of Uluru. Once you looked better, there were clear signs of construction, ramparts and towers strewn all over the massive structure. "Huh, that must be the Stone."

I zoomed in, which brought home just how massive the entire thing was. The only structure I could really compare this to from back home would be an arcology, and those had just been concepts. Even the great Pyramid of Khufu would be nothing more than a foothill compared to this small man-made mountain.

There were gasps from my passengers but not at the sight of the Stone. Because on top of the tallest spire flew a large, white flag. And as the wind played with the cloth, a dragon of gold and scarlet danced.

"Rand must have taken the Stone, and with it, he must now possess Callandor," I thought aloud.

"Yes," Sheraine said, naked concern on her face. "He's fulfilled another prophecy. But in so doing, he'll have frightened every monarch this side of the Dragonwall. They'll all worry the Dragon Reborn will come for their throne next."

She shook her head. "Ryma would never agree to something this reckless. Or abandon all the women that had suffered at the Seanchan hands."

"But the Dragon Reborn does need to take the Stone, right? If it's in the prophecies," Gemiad trailed off.

Sheraine let out a sigh. "I'm neither Brown nor White, I've always been more practical. But even I know that staring yourself blind on a glimpse of the future will only cause calamity. Prophecy just tells us what will happen, not how. Or do you have something to add?" She turned to me.

All I could do was shrug. "You're not wrong. And, of course, there are other prophecies as well. Both the Atha'an Miere and the Aiel have their own, of that I'm sure. Regardless, I'm not stopping so we can ask how Rand did it or what he's planning."

Naked surprise showed in Sheraine's expression, it took her so much time to recover that it was Gemiad who questioned me. "Why not?"

I let out a breath even as I angled the godwalker to follow the river Erinin north. "Because the only place I can set the Camazothrir down is on the Stone itself. The guards will probably overreact if they find us wandering the corridors looking for the Dragon Reborn."

Sheraine scoffed. "That can't possibly be your reason. You've been showing up wherever you like since I've met you."

I gave her a shrug. "I'm a little tired, not really in the mood to deal with overexcited people who think they're in control of the situation. And Rand might not even be in the city." We passed over the city, and I could now clearly see the signs of spring, or even early summer. "He has no time to sit back and relax, he's got a lot to do."

"We still need to know where the Dragon Reborn is," Sheraine said.

I blinked again and considered my options. There were some things I wouldn't mind getting involved in, but I did not want a confrontation with Moiraine when I was this tired. I gestured at one of the consoles instead. "There, that one has every conversation recorded the ship could overhear as we flew over. Just tell it to bring up the ones that mention the word Dragon and it should tell you plenty."

Sheraine eyed the console. "It can do that?"

I yawned. "Camazothrir has perfect control over all sound within a mile, and that includes catching it. I just told it right now to make a record of it all."

She studied me for a moment, then nodded. "Very well. It's not like I can stay with the Dragon Reborn if he is indeed still in the Stone. He needs a proper Aes Sedai advisor." Sheraine sniffed. "He needs seven of them."

"Oh, Moiraine would love that," I muttered, but not softly enough.

"What does Moiraine Sedai have to do with the Dragon Reborn?"

I looked at Sheraine as I considered my answer, but I was drawing a blank. So, instead, I shook my head and turned my attention back to flying. "Sorry, you'll have to ask the Amyrlin."

Thankfully, that seemed enough as Sheraine said nothing more and instead turned her attention to the console.

With some help from Gemiad, they searched through the information Camazothrir had gathered in that short time. Even before Caemlyn came in sight, they had their answer. Rand had only raised his banner on top of the Stone two days before, and he'd conquered the Stone with the help of the Aiel.

That, at least, gave me a good reading on where about we were in the timeline now. Siuan was still the Amyrlin. Whitecloaks shouldn't have invaded the Two Rivers just yet, and Rand hadn't left for the Aiel Waste.

It did mean that Rahvin had installed himself in Caemlyn by now, which only grew my worry for my people. In the original timeline, there had been no newspapers, and he'd contended himself with political games. But he was from a society that would have had mass media, he'd know their power. I would have to caution Norar not to dig into "Lord Gaebril".

With fresh caution, I checked that the Camazothrir's Night Veil was running. Though a Forsaken would almost certainly count as a Worthy Foe and so be able to pierce the obscuration. If he saw the godwalker, that is.

So I came in low from the east, Caemlyn bedecked in red and gold as the setting sun illuminated the city. I dipped the godwalker up to pass over the walls and headed for the only place in Caemlyn where I could hide a godwalker.

We passed through the barrier that hid my mansion and angled for a landing behind the house. Even with folded wings, Camazothrir barely fit, but nobody would be able to find the godwalker here.

Sheraine frowned at our surroundings visible on the screen. "It's been some time since I visited Caemlyn, but there shouldn't be an estate like this in the New City. And is that one of your creations pruning that bush?"

With a groan, I stood up and let the seat retract into the floor. "There was a serial killer who'd hidden this place centuries ago. I took the place from him and went about fixing the place up."

Sheraine placed her right hand on her hip. "For once, could you give me an answer that doesn't leave me with more questions than I started with?"

"He was called the Butcher," Gemiad spoke up, hands coming up to hug herself. "It-It-He took me, but Ron rescued me. He was from another world, like Ron, but he'd gone insane. He also had strange powers over shadow."

"But not a darkfriend," I said, heading that off. "In fact, he was terrified of the Dark One. Desperate to leave this world before the Last Battle. But as Gemiad said, isolation had turned him mad, so he couldn't figure out how. He was killing people to try and force a way open."

"I see," Sheraine said, who then bit her lip. "No, I'm still left with several questions, but I gather then that this vessel will be safe here from prying eyes for at least the night?"

"As far as I know," I told her with a shrug. That didn't stop the questions, of course, as the Aes Sedai wanted to know just exactly what the Butcher could do and where he was from. And just how many other people had entered this world?

I didn't have too many answers, not enough to satisfy her, as we made our way through the quiet streets of Caemlyn. Little daylight was left, but even in the early evening, Caemlyn was supposed to be a busy place.

Instead, what people we came across kept their heads down and stopped their conversation if we came too close. There were also more guards in the street, most of them bearing a full white lion on their surcoat rather than the normal lion's head.

They marched through the streets as if they expected attack from every angle. More than once, people near us slipped away into dark alleyways when they heard a patrol coming closer.

"I don't like this," Gemiad said. "I've never seen Caemlyn like this. Even last year, when winter wouldn't relent, people were angry, not afraid of each other. And Queen Morgase never had this many guards patrol like that. Their uniforms are different, too."

"The news of the Dragon Reborn will have frightened many," Sheraine said. "It will have caused much upheaval as well. This may be one example. What do you think, Master Shen?"

"We'll find out soon enough. The paper's offices are just around the corner," I said. This didn't feel quite like what I remembered from book 3, but Mat had been here 2 weeks ago or so. I do recall that he'd set off a rumor campaign. Could that have elicited a more repressive response from Rahvin?

We rounded the corner, only for us all to come to a stop. The building still stood, but every door and window on the ground floor was nailed shut. And it just felt empty. "Maybe Hagaidhrin moved the Caemlyn Times to a new building? We were selling more copies every week," Gemiad said.

"No," I said. "There was still plenty of space. And if we needed more rooms for writers and the like, we could rent those nearby." I took a step forward, then another. There was a piece of paper nailed to the door.

"Master Shen, Ron," Sheraine hissed. "Leave it be. Clearly, something is wrong. We shouldn't linger. Ron, are you listening?"

My strides only picked up the pace, and Gemiad ran after me, with Sheraine following at a more sedate pace. I ripped off the paper, though I'd already seen the most important words.

THIS NEWSPAPER IS SHUT ON ORDERS OF QUEEN MORGASE.

Gemiad gasped when she caught the writing herself. "I take it this wasn't expected," Sheraine said. "And we don't know enough. Come with me then, I may be able to find some information. Though looking like this it will be harder."

"No need," I told her, crumbling the proclamation in my hand. Closing my hand, it burst into flame.

"Don't move!" Someone shouted, and I turned around. Queen's Guardsmen were pouring out of the tavern across the road, others from nearby alleys. "Ron Shen and Gemiad Fand." The man who spoke had a square jaw and a faint scar peeking out from underneath his surcoat. "You're all under arrest, by order of Lord Gaebril and Queen Morgase."