Chapter 4 - Thank the Light for Modern Boots!

  Once Taija had decided that she needed to go to Caemlyn there wass no point wasting her time. Ramshorn had been good to her, but it was quickly becoming stifling.

  She'd avoided answering too many questions about where she came from simply by claiming amnesia, although she still hadn't worked out the exact word for that in their language, assuming it had one.

  Taking her cue from Aleksi's obfuscation of where he found her and his clear fear of anything to do with the Power, Taija certainly don't mention anything about the stasis box.

  Aleksi had needed a bit more of an explanation, but at the same time she wasn't going to reveal too much to him. He'd saved her life and had earnt some trust and a lot of gratitude for that. However, he was also clearly uncomfortable with anything to do with the Power and Aes Sedai and she just didn't know how he'd react to the truth.

  So once Taija got him alone she told him one more partial truth, still pretending that she didn't really know where she came from.

  "Aleksi, I'll forever be grateful for what you've done for me, I owe you my life."

  He grimaced, "I can already hear the 'but' coming."

  "Yes, I'm sorry." She smiled gently, "but I need to leave." He really wasn't great at controlling his facial expressions. Taija could see him fighting to keep the hurt from his face so she hurried on. "I need to find out what happened to me, where I came from, where my people are and I can't do that here. You saved my life, Ramshorn has been good to me, but I need to know…"

  She'd never been a great liar, but Aleksi did seem to believe her. It probably helped that it was nothing but the truth that she needed to find out what had happened to her.

  He sighed deeply, "I'd hoped that… no, of course you need to go. I understand." Suddenly he was all business, "where will you be going? When do you plan to leave? Have you thought about supplies?"

  =====

  Over the next few days Taija got ready for her journey. She knew it would be a long way, further than she'd ever had to go under her own steam and she felt woefully underprepared.

  Normally she'd just Travel, making the journey in seconds. However, that was a lot more difficult when she knew nothing about Caemlyn or even where she was.

  She'd tried opening gateways to a few places she was familiar with once she was back on her feet. Adanza, Jalanda, Tzora even the Hall of the Servants, but every single one had failed, fizzling out in a bright flash of sparks and dissolving flows.

  It had been a risk even trying that. Once her head was in the right place she'd placed a tied off web on herself concealing her ability to channel and started spinning her webs inverted, but given how little she knew about the world as it stood, blindly Traveling somewhere could easily get her killed.

  She'd gotten enough of an idea of the geography there to skim in Caemlyn's general direction and if any of the villagers could have given her a good enough description of the place she could likely have just opened a gateway to the city. However, without even vaguely knowing what she might find at the other end, she wasn't willing to Travel further than she could see.

  So that meant she needed to do things the hard way. She could always skip-Travel, using gateways within her line of sight to speed things up, but even that would be risky if anyone saw her.

  It was an intimidating thought, heading out into the unknown, on foot, but she had no choice.

  =====

  Supplies turned out to be easier than Taija had feared. Aleksi and the villagers' kindness was hard to believe. They didn't have much, but they still give her food, a pack, even clothing. Although she couldn't say she enjoyed wearing their simple, scratchy dresses.

  Apparently Elena had had to cut her out of her clothes after Aleksi found her. She'd commented on the strangely coloured 'men's' clothing that was apparently very difficult to cut and Taija had had to feign ignorance. So using her own clothes wasn't really an option.

  The only thing that seemed to have survived coming with her was her boots. Taija knew she'd be grateful for those soon. Well worn in and built to last, she was going to need them if she'd be walking as much as she expected.

  ======

  While she was getting ready to go, Taija continued to try to find out as much as she could about the world she was in. It was deeply frustrating that the villagers didn't know much about life outside their little region, but they told her what they could.

  Taija heard about other great cities, Tar Valon (a nest of witches and darkfriends according to some), Cairhien (and the story of Laman's folly), Tear and Illian (coastal cities united in mutual hate with an unassailable fortress in Tear) and Ebou Dar (apparently they stabbed each other over nothing and the women wore huge dagger necklaces). It was all very surface level, but at least it gave her some names of places to try if Caemlyn couldn't give her what she needed.

  On the history of Andor and its geography she learnt a lot more. About how Queen (President? Maybe dictator?) Morgase had been a good ruler, how there was a crisis before she took charge and some basic history of the nation. Taija also heard about at least some of its larger cities, Whitebridge, Aringill and Baerlon and to her surprise, one of the villagers actually turned out to have a map of the country.

  It looked like something out of a museum, hand-drawn and she was sure a lot of artistic licence had been taken, but it at least gave her a reasonable idea of where everything was and the main rivers, mountains and forests. Nothing looked familiar to her unfortunately, but maybe if she could actually see these Mountains of Mist she'd recognise them. She always did like hiking.

  =====

  When the day of Taija's departure arrived, she was surprised to see a large part of the village's population lined up to see her off. In the grand scheme of things she hadn't spent very long there and she couldn't say she'd particularly enjoyed that time. However, that wasn't their fault. It was still an emotional moment for her to say goodbye to these people who, despite having almost nothing by her standards, had been so kind to her.

  There was one notable absence from them though. Taija hadn't seen Aleksi all day and looking around now she still couldn't find him. He was the one she owed the most to, so it felt particularly sad that he wasn't there.

  Taija considered delaying until the next day, but eventually with a small sigh she hefted her pack onto her back. In the end she needed to get going, she needed to find a way home. Whether someone chose to say goodbye or not, she was still alone wherever or whenever this was.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Just as Taija turned to leave she heard a commotion from just out of sight. She hesitated and a second later Aleksi came jogging round the corner, panting for breath with a pack and bow on his back and a staff held in his hand.

  Slowing to a saunter he came up to her with a casual grin that was slightly ruined by his heavy breathing, "I couldn't let you go off on your own like that, you might end up needing to be rescued again!" He paused, "anyway I've always wanted an adventure."

  Despite herself Taija burst out laughing, this she had not expected. There were so many reasons to tell him absolutely not and to go home. He'd probably slow her down. No, he'd definitely slow her down.

  He also had no idea what he was getting himself into. He seemed to have a bit of a thing about aes sedai, which could be awkward. He also clearly had a crush on her which could be even more awkward, especially given the age gap. It wasn't that he was bad looking, but he was in his early twenties and had never left his village.

  Regardless of all the good reasons to say no, Taija just smiled. "Well let's go then!"

  Never mind the local knowledge and someone to watch her back. This world was a lonely place for Taija and she considered him her first and only friend here.

  =======

  Travel without technology or the Power was… well it was dull. Taija hadn't thought it would be all that bad. She used to go on long hikes in the mountains, although never for weeks at a time, and she'd always enjoyed them. Here though the scenery was boring, other than her boots her clothes sucked and there were no showers at the end of each day.

  The first few days were fine, but Taija's mood worsened as they went. She got rained on. She couldn't use the Power to clean herself as much as she wanted to due to Aleki's presence so she felt dirty and carrying a heavy, uncomfortable pack left her feeling more and more tired. Perhaps she wasn't as recovered from her injuries as she'd thought.

  All this made her increasingly grumpy as they trudged on. There were good moments, people being incredibly kind to strangers. The occasional inn that Aleksi paid for, even though she knew for a fact that he didn't have much money. The taste of freshly cooked rabbit that Aleksi shot with his bow. But… mostly it was a grind.

  Taija regularly fantasised about being in a car. With leather seats and air conditioning. Even a long-distance bus would do.

  Or alternatively, she could just skip-Travel her way to Caemlyn to avoid the risks of Traveling somewhere unfamiliar. Opening a gateway to the horizon, stepping through and then repeating. She'd probably be there in a day or two at most. The only thing stopping her at that point was how Aleksi might react, she didn't even care about the other locals.

  Much as her journey wore on her, Taija was still glad of the company Aleksi brought. Long days walking or riding on the back of a cart gave her the chance to get to know him better. He really was a nice young man, telling her the stories of his people, about life growing up in Ramshorn and enthusing about finally getting to go on a proper adventure.

  The slow travel also gave Taija the chance to learn more about the world and improve her grasp of the language there. People still gave her odd looks and, despite Aleksi's assurances she could tell she had a strong accent. As far she was concerned their language just sounded mushy and it was hard to properly imitate some of the sounds.

  During the journey Taija gradually, tentatively asked Aleksi about Aes Sedai and "witchcraft", using the stasis box and her need to know where she came from as excuses to bring up the topics.

  Away from the box and the village he was a lot more willing to talk, but she wasn't sure how much he really knew and how much was just myths or prejudice. He told her about how Aes Sedai ruled the world from the shadows and smote their enemies with their witchcraft, which really didn't sound right. While he knew they used the One Power, the words saidar and saidin didn't seem to mean anything to him. She also learnt that they were based in Tar Valon where they pulled on the strings of rulers around the world. Apparently they couldn't tell a lie, but would twist words into a knot and turn the truth on its head.

  More implausibly Aleksi said that the male Aes Sedai broke the world and now there were only women, all male channelers were apparently insane and dangerous. He wasn't quite clear what that involved but it seemed to be some apocalyptic event in the distant, almost forgotten past. Maybe something did happen. Taija wasn't even sure if this was her world or a parallel one, so who knew what the truth was. She supposed that maybe it was the end of the War of Power, but given how little he seemed to know about it, it was probably more of a creation myth than actual history.

  One thing that Taija couldn't get straight was whether Aleksi thought Aes Sedai were darkfriends or not. He seemed to think that they were untrustworthy and manipulative, but while he called Tar Valon a nest of darkfriends and witchcraft he didn't seem to think that individual Aes Sedai necessarily were. It was all a strange contrast to her world where "servants of all", one term that seemed to have carried over to the local language even if its meaning had been lost, were hugely respected.

  These conversations also led to Aleksi asking more about Taija and her background. She dodged and deflected about her exact circumstances, but told him about her life in broad strokes. Growing up in Adanza, working as a 'scholar' and fighting in a war.

  Taija thought she did a good job of obfuscating the truth with her claims of amnesia. Regardless, he was faultlessly kind and didn't push her to say more than she wanted to, which just made her feel more guilty about lying to him. Of course she had good reasons to do it, but he'd been nothing but open with her and was actually walking several hundred kilometres to help her. It didn't feel at all fair that she was repaying him with obfuscation and lies.

  ======

  Aleksi had expected going on an adventure like this to be more exciting. He'd never traveled anything like this far from Ramshorn and soon he was going to see Caemlyn of all places. One of the greatest cities in the world! For now though, his feet hurt and he couldn't really think of the endless days of walking as anything other than drudgery.

  Of course that was relieved somewhat by Taija, the reason he'd come in the first place. He glanced over at her. She was still scowling, her mood really hadn't improved since they got caught in the rain that morning.

  He could have gone to Caemlyn any time of course, but she'd been the trigger. At first he'd been terrified of her, given where she came from, but it had quickly become clear to him that she really was harmless. Just a nice lady who seemed to be lost after much hardship. Yet there was clearly an adventure to be had at the same time.

  Her mysterious origins, the injuries she'd had, the strange language she'd spoken, all harsh consonants, they all intrigued him. Even the clothing Elena had cut off her had been like nothing he'd seen before.

  He'd been disappointed when she'd said she needed to leave for Caemlyn, but not really surprised. It hadn't been a difficult decision to go with her either. Someone needed to protect her from a world she was clearly clueless about. She was tough, but she was still just a small woman, hardly able to defend herself from bandits or worse. He'd entertained fantasies of marrying her for a while, but her lack of interest quickly became clear. That didn't stop him from wanting to go with her though.

  Even the stories she'd told as they traveled had been fascinating. She claimed to have forgotten so much, but he was pretty sure she was lying about most of that. She clearly didn't know how she got to Ramshorn, but she was running from something. There were so many signs of it. There was the nervousness on her face when she was asked too many questions. Also the way she'd jump at any loud noise, whirling to face it with impressive speed. Even how difficult it was to sneak up on her was apparently a sign according to old Moki, who'd spoken a lot with the guards on visiting peddlers' caravans. They all told a story of a painful past.

  His theory was that she'd been betrayed in some way. Maybe a noblewoman whose evil father tried to force her into an unwanted marriage until she'd fled. Perhaps she was from Shara? That might explain the language and her ignorance, sending her to Ramshorn when he tried to punish her. It was as good an explanation as any.

  Hopefully soon she'd feel she could trust him enough to tell him her story. Until then, he'd help her reach Caemlyn and maybe find some of the answers she was looking for. After that they'd see.

  =====

  In the end the journey was actually quite uneventful and as they got closer to Caemlyn Taija found herself traveling down a proper, paved road. It was still very rough by her standards, but it and the gradually increasing volume of fellow travelers told her that they were getting close.

  It wasn't long after that that she saw something on the horizon that slowly resolved itself into the walls of a sprawling city. Taija had never seen anything quite like it. Huge, shining-white, stone walls stretched for kilometres, punctuated with looming guard towers. Buildings crowded up against the walls and gleaming spires towered over them from the inside. It was hard to believe that this city had been built by people who didn't seem to have even heard of steam engines or concrete. Regardless, she knew that if it had been around in her world the city would have been known everywhere. As a tourist attraction if nothing else.

  Looking up at the shining walls, Taija mentally rubbed her hands together, this was a proper city and no doubt she'd have a much easier time finding answers here. The first thing she was going to do, once they'd found some accommodation anyway, was visit their biggest public library!