Fanfic:One Power Basics for Lirievin

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One Power Basics for Lirievin
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A Lesson

Lirievin had been wandering about the Tower although it wasn't strictly allowed it was only her second day here and some of the Aes Sedai were being more tolerant of her then the other Novices around. There was just so much to see and do here Lirievin had no idea where to start. Passing through an open Hallways Lirievin looked up at the sky and suddenly realized the time of day. I'm going to be late! She thought. Quickly checking her surroundings to get a bearing on where she was Lirievin turned in the opposite direction that she had been heading and picked up her pace.

Alternating from a walk to a slow jog (She didn't want to run while passing an Aes Sedai as that didn't seem like Novice behaviour) Lirievin made her way towards the classrooms. Today would start the first day of her training and she couldn't wait. Turing around one final corner Lirievin saw the classrooms and sighed she had made it and she didn't think she was late at all.

Peeking into one of the empty classrooms Lirievin didn't see an Aes Sedai so she fully opened the door and went and sat down in one of the chairs where she would have a good view of the doorway and the Hall outside. The last thing she needed was not noticing an Aes Sedai and potentially disrespecting her.

We Meet Again!

Carra walked into the classroom, hair down in loose waves past her shoulders and her dress pristine. What was different that as a teacher, Carra actually wore her shawl. The long Red Tassel's were a novelty, and opened a door for questions but also added a severity to her position in the Tower. The Red Ajah was not well liked by most and her choice rubbed many the wrong way.

However, Carra was not like most Red Aes Sedai, and she wanted to keep a positive reflection in the classes she taught.

The Novice entered and she was please to have met the girl before. Lirievin was a kind girl, and she had been happy to take her on as student. Provided that the girl was willing, Carra would continue as her teacher in many other things.

"Good, you are on time." Carra started and stood behind a chair in front of the girl. "I hope you remember me also, Lirievin." She said formally, "I am here to teach you how to touch Saidar. Before we begin, I need to know what you have been taught before this. I was told you came here with Aes Sedai, I believe, did they give you any instruction?"

The Lesson begins...

Liri stood up quickly as Carra walked into the room and gave her a small curtsey; taking a good look at her Red Shawl. Carra was the only member of the Red Ajah and that was something completely new. The strength Carra must have had to makebe the only Aes Sedai of a new Ajah made Liri admire her even more.

"Good morning Carra Sedai" she said with a smile. She was glad that it was Carra who was going to be her teacher she knew that she would feel more comfortable having already met Carra.

Although starting to talk about Saidar made Lori's heart jump. She remembered touching it and the man seemingly came back to like. Liri knew it was impossible but it was an odd feeling.

"I didn't get any lessons from the Aes Sedai that accompanied me here but I have touched Saidar once before. I was learning with Heria and a man came in and he must have been close to death. I don't know what I did but he was fine after I touched him..." Liri blurted out. She had kinda rambled but she figured her needed to tell Carra everything

The Lesson Begins...

Carra could not help but be a little impressed. "You may have a touch of Healing talent in you, Liri. It isn't a common talent as not all can heal. I use herbs and other remedies myself. I will have to introduce you to a Yellow some time."

"Now, sit and listen. If you pay enough attention you just might survive this. If not, then you would be a complete waste of my time."

And for the benefit of filling the Novice with just about all the information she can to see what she retained..

"Now, you are here today to learn one of the more essential aspects of becoming Aes Sedai. It is not the whole of being an Aes Sedai, but only those with the skill and the strength will be able to attain the shawl. You will Not channel unless in the presence of an Aes Sedai or Accepted, with their permission. Should I find you disobeying you will find yourself in a very uncomfortable situation even before I send you to Illyria Sedai for punishment. Understood?" She waited a moment for a nod of acceptance and then continued. "The feeling of Saidar is so immense and addictive that you might be tempted to take in more than you can safely handle. This could result in a myriad of bad consequences, among them hurting or killing others, hurting or killing yourself, or even worse yet, Stilling yourself. An Aes Sedai or Accepted there with you can moderate the amount you attempt to handle, and ensure that your flows don’t go out of control."

Clearing her through a little, Carra took a seat in front of Liri. "Now that I have that out of the way, today I will be instructing you in the basics of Saidar and the primary theory and basis behind it. Tomorrow I will be guiding you through the first steps of how to Channel followed by basic weaves."

"The True Source is made up of two complementary parts: Saidin, the male half and Saidar, the female half. Only women can touch Saidar and only men Saidin. Most people cannot sense or touch the True Source, only two or three percent of all the people in the known world have the ability to touch the One Power. When a person draws from the Source and controls its flows to achieve a desired result that is called channeling.”

“But what exactly is Saidar? Well, many people would give you just as many answers on that question. The White Ajah has debated about this for years to no real avail. But what it seems to be is the very essence of energy in all things, even life itself. When a woman channels, she takes threads of that energy, the One Power, and weaves them to perform various tasks. For example I could use the Power to lift the book over there,” Carra then embraced Saidar and channeled the simple weave of Air at a book on the far shelf, causing it to float over and in front of the Novice, “Lift your hand, it floats in mid air, due to the simple weaves of Air that now hold it. You will be able to do that and much more very soon with the help of Saidar.

"Now back to our lesson. There are five different threads to the One Power, known as the Five Powers. They’re named after the elements their energies manipulate: Air, Earth, Fire, Water and Spirit. People who have the ability to channel typically have a greater natural ability deal with one or two different threads. Some rare individuals have a great ability with three of the threads. And even during the Age of Legends, according to some tomes we have, it was extremely rare to find someone who could handle four or five of the elements very strongly.”

“Typically, men were more adept with Fire and Earth, while women were more adept with Water and Air. Both were equally strong in Spirit it seems. But do not let this mislead you. Many girls believe that just because men are usually stronger in Fire and Earth, that they’re stronger over all. My Intro teacher told us “There is no rock so strong that water and wind cannot wear away, no fire so fierce that water cannot quench it or wind snuff it out.” Remember that if nothing else.”

“As I said before, the use on the One Power is addictive. The act of channeling makes a person feel more alive, so much that life without touching either Saidar or Saidin seems only a pale shade of what life should be. It is because of this reason that channeling is dangerous - drawing too much of the One Power can at the least sear the ability to channel out of a person, at the worst it can kill. Or as any channeler will tell you, at the least kill you and at the worst sear the ability to channel out of you forever. That is how sweet the feeling is that you will experience. You must learn how to remain strong in the face of that temptation. That is why girls who can learn are brought to the Tower. Even if they do not have the desire to rise to the Shawl, they MUST learn to control the urges lest they will hurt themselves or those around them.

“There have been times in the history of the Tower that Aes Sedai have been cut from the Source as punishment. This process, known as severing, is called Stilling.” She passed Liri a notebook, one of several was kept with in the room for things such is this. “You must memorize all of those. Every night before you turn in ask your roommate to recite them to you three times and you’ll know them by heart in no time. I might ask you later, at random to tell me of one, though that is not the only reason why it is essential for you to know them. Only by remembering our past mistakes can we succeed in not repeating them. Learn from them so you do not have to pay the price of their foolishness.”

Crossing her legs and leaning back in her chair, Carra paid close attention to the Novice’s features. They told of much and were very expressive. Poor girl will have to learn to school those features some day. "That is the end of the lesson for the day. If you have any questions I will be more than willing to answer them. When you return tomorrow, before we start I want you to tell me what you remember.”

Trying to Remember

Liri nodded when she was suppose to nod and attempted to take in all the information Carra had just given her; she wasn't sure she would be able to remember it all. Getting up from her seat Liri tried to keep her head straight with everything she had just been told. "Thank you Carra Sedai. I will do my best to remember." She said before giving Carra a curtsy and heading back to her dorms, this was something she needed to sleep on.


Waking up the next morning Liri started reciting the information Carra had given her yesterday. The True source was made oftwo parts. Saidin was for females.. no males Saidin was for males She thought making a mental note to remember that. While she dressed Liri went through the rest of her lesson. Saidar was for females.. there were five different threads to the One Power and so on. Soon it was time for her to leave so Liri walked out the door and to the classroom she had been in yesterday.

After opening the door Liri saw Carra sitting in a chair quite close to where they had been yesterday. Walking over Liri curtsied and wished her a good morning. After she had sat down Carra asked her what she remembered from the day before.

Taking a deep breath Liri recited what she remembered. "The True Source is made up of two halves. Saidar is one half that only females can touch and Saidin is the half only males can touch." Liri allowed herself to smile on the inside she had remembered! "There are 5 weaves the make up the True Source; Fire, Water, Earth, Air and Spirit. Each one controls that for which it is named. Anyone who can channel must be careful as channeling can become addictive, it makes you feel alive and you miss it when it was gone." Liri continued adding one last thing. "Oh, and as a Novice I can not channel unless and Accepted or Aes Sedai are around and give me permission to do so." She finished off hoping she remembered everything.

Now for the Hard Part

Tea sat waiting for Liri on the side of the room, but Carra had no doubt that it will stay untouched as it had the day before. After sitting Liri recited what she learned and Carra gave a nod of her head. "Very good. Much of this will become second nature to you, as all repetitious things do. Let's move to the floor." Carra stood and brought Liri over to a pair of large pillows adjacent to each other and sat in the one that was of a white and red color.

"Well done, now listen carefully. Yesterday you learned the basics of Saidar and how it functions. Today I will be teaching you how to touch Saidar. To embrace it and allow it to flow through you. I will be teaching you how to pull more into yourself and how to push it away so that only a trickle flows through you." Carra's voice grew cold with a warning as she continued, "Control is absolutely vital when embracing Saidar. Although we embrace it, submitting to it and allowing it to flow through us we must not allow it to consume us completely. I can not stress this enough, nor emphasize how vitally important this is.

"I want you to make yourself comfortable, move around any way you wish. You may lie down or sit up or stand. I would recommend sitting myself but whichever feels best for you is alright. I will start by taking you through the most simplest of Novice Exercises. Comfortable? Good. Now close your eyes and breath deep." Carra intoned with a gentler voice. It carried through the room as a soft echo, she watched her student carefully as she continued. "Now, clear your mind of all thoughts but a single rosebud. Picture it as clearly as if you were holding it in your hand. Once you have the image firmly in your mind, begin to picture the sun on the rose, warming it. The rose begins to open to the sun, yearning for its warmth and light. Now, imagine that you are that bud, those petals are part of you, a shell, if you will. Inside is something you have only just found out about, a talent; you only vaguely know of it and wish to show the rest of the world and understand it deeper yourself by revealing it. Imagine the sun enveloping the rosebud that is now you; the light of the Creator as He watches you develop the Light-given gift He has blessed you with. The world watches, the Creator waits and the tightly-closed bud slowly opens to thrive in the nurturing sunlight.”

Now for the Hard Part

Liri almost felt proud of herself that she had remembered everything correctly. It wasn't hard but it was a lot to remember and she knew she would do her best to continue to get the information right and practice remembering it.

With Carra's instructions Liri moved towards the cushions and sat upright in one crossing her legs then smoothing her skirts over the; for her this was the most comfortable position. Listening to Carra talk Liri cleared her head of all her thoughts, images of home and her room here kept popping back in but after a minute Liri had pushed them away. Then she continued picturing a rose bud in her head. Liri waited until she could imagine all the detail of the rosebud, each petal soft and lush. Slowing adding to the scene in her mind Liri pictured the sun and the warmth it's light gave. She could see the rose bud begin to open itself to the light; basking in it's warmth. Slowing the rose bud opened until it was fully open, then Liri tried to fuse herself and this rosebud, it became part of her and her a part of it; she felt the warmth of the sun she had pictured warming her as it warmed the rosebud.

So Very Close

"Well done! Again." And Carra continued the exercise until the novice had a good grasp of Saidar and was able to release it when Carra asked it of her.

"Next. Before I start teaching you how to actually channel we need to teach you how to control how much Saidar you are touching. If you can only hold a trickle you can still light a fire but even that trickle takes control to maintain. With out that control, well. Coming from the borderlands I am sure you know what an uncontrolled spark can do in the wrong place."

"To day we will be working on what is called Pushing and Pulling. This is an exercise that will help you control how much Saidar you are using and help you gain a better understanding of how little Saidar is actually needed to achieve a weave or how much is too much for you to handle. Let us begin, embrace Saidar using the same exercise as yesterday, only you will go through the motions without me telling you what to do." Carra waited for her to have a steady hold of Saidar, which took a while but eventually she did, and then continued.

"Imagine a barrier that would cover the fire, to help keep it from burning too hot. With that barrier, I want you to slowly place it over the heat, the light, so that only a trickle of its warmth can be felt. Good. This is called Pushing as you are pushing away Saidar. Slowly, allow that barrier to pull away -Slowly!- You do not want to injure yourself! Pull on that warmth, the light, and allow it to fill you as that barrier moved away. You can feel yourself holding more power within you. Very good. Again, I want you to Push and Pull Saidar until I tell you to to stop."

Pushing and Pulling

Liri sat listening intently to what Carra was saying. She did know the importance of control so she could only imagine what would happen if she couldn't control her channeling. She hadn't really heard any stories and she wasn't sure she wanted to. Now that she had starting being able to hold Saidar she knew she wouldn't want to stop. Even the little bit she could hold currently made her want more.

Waiting for her command Liri took hold of Saidar again. It kept getting easier for her which was good. But Liri knew she had a long way to go. Closing her eyes to easier imagine what Carra was saying Liri slowly pictured the barrier, and saw it going over the fire. Then she moved the barrier up allowing herself to feel more of the heat. She kept repeating the exercise over and over. Se was getting the hang of it. It wasn't impossible but it was hard.

Your First Weave

"And now carefully push Saidar away and let go."

Carra finished up the lesson, pleased with her progress. From struggling to even touching Saidar to now able to competently push and pull Saidar for the most part was commendable. She did wonder if she would learn better from another or if the novice just didn't want Carra to get the better of her. Carra's pride kept her from asking.

"Here, drink." Carra passed her a satchel of water she had brought with her. "Take a moment to relax as I show you a weave. Pay attention to what I am doing because you will have to do it after. The one thing you will notice now that you have touched the One Power is a glow around me. You will see this around every Female Channeler. As you become more in control of Saidar the more you will notice those that are stronger and weaker than yourself. It is taboo to speak of one being stronger or weaker, and an Aes Sedai weaker than you is still Aes Sedai and can tell you to kiss her toes and you will have to because she is Aes Sedai. You and I, we have yet to reach our full potential so it is difficult yet to guage our full potential. Don't forget this, for you just may be stronger then you think, but never take on more then you can feel you can control. To take on more will see you burnt out and a great deal of time wasted."

She let the girl drink a little more before continuing. "Ready? I'm going to show you your first weave. We are going to create light. We use two elements to create it. Air and Fire. Do you remember what colors they are?" Carra waited for the girl to respond, "Right. Now watch carefully." Carra embraced Saidar and for the benefit of Liri purposely pulled all five threads of Saidar for Liri to see the colors. Letting the three she did not need dissipate, she used Air and Fire and tied it into a neat little pretzel like knot. She didn't let go of Saidar as she instructed Liri to follow her lead. "Now you try. Remember, only Air and Fire and start with only a little Saidar to start. It is easier to feed into a weave then to pull power away."

Creating Light

Liri nodded as Carra gave her the instructions but part of her was so excited to actually start channeling. She had thought about this since she realized she could channel and she was really excited to finally be able to do something.

Watching intently as Carra formed the weave first Liri tried to take in every detail of what she was doing. It didn't seem hard but Carra had also been doing this for a lot longer then she herself had. When Carra finished the weave Liri took a deep breath to calm herself. Slowly she opened herself to Saidar and pulled Air and Fire. Which those she tried to do the knot she had seen Carra do but failed. Shaking her head at her failed attempt Liri calmed herself again and tried again. This time she worked slower and she completely the weave! Smiling mostly to herself Liri looked to Carra to see what she had to say

Complete, and a Pass!

Carra gave a nod as she inspected the weave with an smile. "Well done. You will get better with practice, but this was just your first weave of many. The more you channel the more efficient you will become. Although the tiredness doesn't go away. As time passes you will get stronger but you will find yourself tiring after channeling a lot. I'm sure you wished you were weak so you could skip out, but considering you could even weave a thread after all that pushing and pulling you are certainly strong enough to become Accepted. How quickly, that is up to you."

Carra stood from where she sat, ready to catch the girl should she stumble upon standing. "Go, take a walk and reflect on what we have done here. There is a little time before the next meal and I have already arraigned for you to have the evening free of chores, just for today. Use it wisely."