Missing and extended scenes of Wheel of Time - TV series

2x08 (Story C) - A peaceful moment

Withher lack of sleep and the use of Saidar, Moiraine has reached her limits.Luckily, Lan is there to catch her.

Quote: "Above the Watchers shall the Dragon be proclaimed... bannered cross the sky in fire." (Moiraine)

Trembling, Moiraine kept her arms raised above her head. Saidar pulled at her strength, weakening her with every passing second. Yet, she couldn't stop. Whoever was on that ship had channelers with them who had shielded someone. If Moiraine was right, and it had been Rand, she couldn't allow any of those channelers to survive. They could try again or do worse – attacking and shielding her.

A shiver moved through the Aes Sedai's body when she remembered the feeling of being shielded. For months, she hadn't had access to the One Power, feeling miserable. Light, she never wanted to feel like that again.

Angrily, Moiraine pulled at Saidar, drawing more though her body was already at its limit. She couldn't risk another shield.

The fire jumped from one ship to the next, setting everything on fire and destroying it utterly. Was there even a living person left? The Cairhien woman couldn't tell from the distance.

At least one ship had sunken, and it couldn't take long until the rest would follow them. The fire rampaged for a while now, though Moiraine had lost track of time.

Suddenly, the gentle touch of a hand on her arm broke Moiraine's concentration. Her vision blurred when exhaustion hit her hard. The combination of using Saidar and lack of sleep took its toll on her. Light, that wasn't good.

Blinking, the Aes Sedai felt her Warder's presence beside her, so she lowered her arms. Lan must have defeated all his opponents if he pulled her out of her weave. Tiredly, Moiraine turned her head to look at Lan.

"They're retreating," he said softly.

Sighing, Moiraine's eyes found the bodies of the dead Seanchan lying in the wet sand. She tried to count them, but the bodies became a blur before her eyes. Lan's grip around her arm tightened – holding her upright as if he feared she would collapse any moment – so he must have noticed how unsteady she was on her feet.

They had lived without the bond for six months, yet it seemed like Lan hadn't forgotten how to read her. Hopefully, Moiraine would be just as good as him. Yes, she had noticed him thinking about Lanfear earlier, but what if she missed something important?

When she felt the Malkieri's eyes on her, the Cairhien woman

freed her arm and faced the water again. Her fire weave had died, but she could see some ships still burning in the distance. No one tried to weave a new shield, so all channelers were either dead or swimming for their lives.

Someone had received a shielding in Falme. If I'm right, it had been Rand. Did he survive? Was I fast enough to save him? Or did the Forsaken kill him when they noticed what I was doing?

Moiraine's eyes moved from the water to the tower. Falme. The Dragon Reborn. A phrase from the Karaethon Cycle came to her mind.

"Above the Watchers shall the Dragon be proclaimed... bannered cross the sky in fire."

She looked at Lan. They both had read the Karaethon Cycle countless times, though she probably more often than him. Was it time to announce Rand as the Dragon Reborn?

When the time comes, raise the banner.

Lanfear's words rang in Moiraine's ears. They hadn't made sense in the Ways, but now...

Lanfear has planned this. She wanted me to be outside of Falme so I would see the shielding. And since she knows I would do anything to protect Rand, she predicted I help without interfering in the actual battle. Which means... it has been Lanfear's plan to save Rand. The boy must be alive.