An unbreakable bond

Chapter 11

For the next few days, they followed the same rhythm. They woke up, took a quick breakfast, then they were back on their horses, until the sun settled down again, and they had to rest.

Moiraine always sat on the other side of their camp, far away from Nynaeve and her angry gaze. She barely spoke, although Loial tried to talk to her. Her fingers were always moving as if she was trying to weave, but nothing happened. Every night, she was still falling unconscious, and Lan hadn't tried to enter her mind again. Surprisingly, even Nynaeve hadn't asked him to do it again. Although it was obvious that the young woman was longing for new information about Rand.

But before the Aes Sedai was lying down, she had a new ritual. She left the camp and tried to access the One Power. Every time, she returned desperate, although she never complained. But Lan saw the madness in her eyes. He didn't know how long she would keep going on like this. He had seen how Logain had reacted after he had been gentled by Liandrin and the Aes Sedai. The man had been a shadow of himself.

The warder shook his head. He wouldn't allow it that Moiraine would become like Logain. He would protect her. Together, they would find a solution. In silence, he watched how Moiraine left the camp to begin her ritual. Deep down, he knew that this wouldn't help her. She wouldn't break the layer with concentration. He had seen this thing.

When the Aes Sedai returned to the camp, he followed her. She needed to stop with this ritual, and he had to be the one, who had to tell her.

But when he arrived, Nynaeve enfolded the map he had drawn and showed it to Loial. "Have you seen this symbol before, Loial?"

The ogier took the map from her hands, and Lan was surprised at how careful he was with it despite his big hands. "I can't say that I have, and I have seen a lot of symbols in my life. Where have you seen it?"

Nynaeve looked at Lan, who was coming closer. She wouldn't say anything if he didn't want her to. Lan threw a look at Moiraine, who was already lying on her blanket and wasn't listening. She would never ask the others for help, although they really needed them.

"I saw it.", Lan answered sighing "It was burning like fire on a barrier, which prevents Moiraine from touching the source."

Loial furrowed his forehead, then he took a closer look at the symbol again. With his finger, he traced the black lines as if it would help him to recognize them. "It... there is a run hidden. Can you see it?"

"A run?"

"Yeah, I don't know if that was the purpose, but there is the run for protection. Here." The ogier showed Lan the symbol, which looked like a trident. Now, the warder saw it too.

"Let's say that it is the run for protection. What do the other lines mean? Why hide it by turning it into something else?"

"In my opinion, this looks like the letter 'M', which could stand for Moiraine Sedai. And then there is the letter 'L', which could be related to you."

"I'm her warder. How could I help her to touch the source again?"

Again, Loial's fingers moved over the run, while he was thinking. "Protection. Her access is protected by this barrier. Maybe... she can break it when she is in danger. And you... you have to be there with her. She can only break it when you're with her."

"I'm always with her, Loial. But our bond is masked. I don't understand how my mere presence should help her to break the barrier."

The ogier sighed, then he handed the map over to Nynaeve. "I'm afraid, I don't have all the answers you're looking for. I haven't seen this symbol before. You will have to try, Lan."