Basic Training - (Attn Abaddon, Demi, Chilli and Me) hehe

[Nynaeve]

Ezekiel paced to the right and then back to his left, all the while measuring and examining the new recruits in front of him. They were awakened in the middle of the night, given a few moments to change and then were hurled to the Training grounds. None was notified of the wake up call, naturally. It was one of the things they had to get used to. To abide without questions nor hesitation. To endure both the physical and mental difficulties. To stay alert and wary. To survive.

 

Overhead the sun was just about to come up. Perfect timing. "In these days of mal content and deviousness we stand alone. The Children of The light were blessed by the creator. We see beyond. We make justice in his name." Ezekiel looked up at the sky, the sunrise giving it an orangey shade. "You have willingly relinquished your lives and joined our ranks. Today we will test how true and pure your intentions are."

 

Ezekiel turned his head to the side. "Evelyn, join me if you will." Out of no where, a woman appeared and positioned herself next to Ezekiel. "Evelyn, these are the newest Children. Children, this is your worst nightmare." With the introduction complete, Ezekiel stepped aside, planning to rejoin them at a later hour.

 

 

Ezekiel

The Hand

[Lih-Lyh]

It was still dark over the Fortress when the reveille sounded. Barely awake, the recruits shuffled about, trying not to fidget and looking like they belong.

 

Lingering on the other side of the door where the recruits were Evelyn boded. It was her idea, to weed out the volunteers. Training a Child required time and money, and though they all walk in the Light - it was not practical to take any who want to be a part of their community without the testing day. Once sworn, the Child of Light could be taken out of the Fortress, but the Fortress would never be taken out of the Child. The instructor she had in mind was a fellow Inquisitor since he was quite experienced, but Brandeis snucked away to his hinterland home to tend the gardens, putting her in charge of the training. Evelyn snorted. Who knew that the old hammer-wielding campaigner had such a passion in him?

 

Ezekiel was smiling smugly. Once again his timing was right on, the sunlight streamed through, highlighting a bloody hand on her the cloth that covered her breastplate. Evelyn could not help but to feel amused at what he called her. It was dramatic, but nonetheless true. The Inquisitor was intimidating.

 

Don't frighten them.

 

I'll try.

 

"You are not groomed, nor are you dressed. In the barracks there are parcels for each of you. Pick it up. It contains your equipment. Figure it out. And help each other. Return to me in ten minutes. I will be waiting. If any Child is late or unprepared, penance run for the entire lance-group."

 

When it seemed that all the Children for the morning training had congregated upon the grounds, she raised a heavy gauntleted fist upward. Evelyn spoke slowly and clearly. "Your attention, if you please."

 

She was looking forward to demonstrating the interactives to this bunch. Rabble, some called them, but the Inquisitor liked to teach. The early chill convulsed the group like a streaming banner. It was windy but their teeth chattered with talk too. “Front and centre,” she growled at them then stopped as she saw some of the men fighting smiles at the particular choice of his words. The breastplates the females wore were shapely, including her own. Shaking her head slightly at their form of humour ((watch your diction)), she said softly so that the conversations would fade out as they strained to hear his instructions.

 

"Line up by height, lowest in front. I expect to see neat columns of two." She could see the sudden confusion in their eyes, should we split by men and women? She raised her voice to a piercing volume and in that moment understood why Sergeants always screamed as it seemed to work. "Move!" The certainty in her command gave her an advantage. As they ran to their places, she broke them up so that they were out of their comfort zones and away from their friends. In order to find the group, one must find the individuals of a group. Chaos happened.

 

Unperturbed, Evelyn took the utter disorder all in stride as she whirled suddenly, cloak whipping in the wind to hide her hand from sight as she gave a mighty shove smack at the centre of the man's polished breastplate. That blow from her sent a section of the column into disarray much like a game of glass beads she played while she was surveying the lands in Cairhien. After righting a couple of Recruits so green to the lance she worried that they might put out the eye of their partners if she was to order them to spar, as she eventually would in a semi-melee introduction. However, now was not the time.

 

"Stop!" She pitched her voice over the clatter and most dropped what they were doing. "Is this what a basic formation supposed to look like?" Sigh. "Pick up your equipment. We'll time formations in the afternoon. First, let's do a warm up."

 

"It is understood that you come from all sorts of backgrounds. Some of you have experience in the field. Others of you have never seen a lance before. You start equally here, regardless of the past." She hefted her lance from the rack. It will be heavy to most people unexperienced with the extra weights he placed in these weapons. "This will be your arm. I expect you to be able to stand and run properly with it, as you would interact normally with any of your limbs. It is not, however, an attachment, but an extension of yourself." She read the glazed looks the Recruits gave her correctly. Turning away from what they might be thinking about her so far, Evelyn jogged. She breathed easily as her legs loped over the terrain, and she looped her lance through her elbow where it rested. It was comfortably slapping against her thigh.

 

Others followed, a noisy bunch. She observed as her ears picked up their huffing and puffing. They strained to catch up. She said making sure her voice carried over the wind, "Pair up, and make small talk." Conversations helped a person get into the exercise and it was a less lonely feeling. "Keep in mind that any malicious gossip is not permitted. If your partner is faster, you may fall behind to another partner at your own pace, but stray too far behind and you will lose your way. Once you come into your routine, push the partners ahead of you."

[Guest Abaddon]

Dram ran doggedly near the front of the group. A nameless Child ran beside him, a determined look on his face. Since the impromptu early morning wakeup to the disaster of falling in, and to the beginning of this strenuous run, events were happening rapidly and now was the only time Strongarm had to evaluate and consider them. The lance that was tucked under his armpit in imitation of the female officer leading the group, rubbed and chafed, but like always he hid any discomfort behind his shield of arrogance and contempt. Seeing the Child beside him falter, Dram let a disgusted snort escape his lips before grabbing the man and pulling him along beside him with his free hand. Strongarm did know one thing though, he had the utmost respect for this woman officer. She seemed tougher than any other child he had encountered so far, and she wore the symbol of the Hand of the Light, a division that Dram yearned to join, to finally satisfy his masochistic capacity. He knew that that was where his abilities could be utilized to their utmost, In the Hand he could serve the creator to his hearts content. Seeing the female officer in front speed up slightly, Dram slowly followed suit, letting the child beside him fall behind slightly, but never letting him fall behind enough that he might be reprimanded for it. Strongarm felt alive, truly alive, this was where he belonged. And as he ran across the low sloping ground, in rank and file with his fellow Children he knew he had finally found acceptance.

[Sam]

Last time on Basic Training

 

Bert struggles with demanding fitness regimen, especially on an empty stomach. Ramai and Zoe show up in this unearthly early hour, the latter bemused about her roommate’s unkempt appearance. Dram catches up to Evelyn, who advises him not to let his emotions (hatred) be the motivation that drives him to be a CoL. He loses respect for her, thinking the officer as weak as his soft-hearted peers. After several loops around the grounds, the Inquisitor leads the group to a set of push-ups before calling formation once more – this time after the shuffle is over she tells the lance-group to stand in the heat, letting those who have not pushed themselves hard enough to sweat to swelter, and to compose a paragraph on the reason they want to be CoL and report to her office after lunch. She pulls on her gloves and goes to her favorite tree.

 

Evelyn wakes, refreshed from a nap under the shade. She goes to the classroom and is surprised by Dram, who seems eager to prove his worth. The Inquisitor crumples up his essay and deposits it in the iron basket situated in the centre. Bert gives her a small parchment, piquing her curiosity – she sees Because written and orders him back into his seat as they waited for the rest of the class to clock in. Some recruits in the lance-group decide to keep their papers, but she does not call them down for it, thinking the reasons should be best kept private to the individual.

 

Once her students gathered, Evelyn opens with the basics of questioning the self and co-operation in assisting others. She then listed a few rules concerning taking excellent care of one’s weapons, and respecting each other. Making sure that she was understood, she went and dragged a seemingly random Child from their midst. Leading them out of the classroom despite some sort of dislike that the others harbor for her unfairness she bothered making no explanation of the penance for the entire lance-group, until after she made the boy run in front.

--

“This recruit has exhibited behavior unworthy of a Child. A Child always respects the fellow Child, regardless of whether s/he is of another background – differences in opinion will either be conducted in a quiet respectful manner, or not at all. Again, let not your emotions make your decisions, for that is not only folly, but dangerous. The most dire time one would need to stand strong and remain calm, collected, enlightened is when the Child strays from the Light, and presents a danger to others in the community, as well as himself.” Evelyn boded. It was almost sun-down, and she had trained this batch roughly – exerting both physical and mental pressures to antagonize them. She should help them a little now. They should change for the ceremony soon. “As his lance-mates you have the responsibility to watch out for places he could be led easily, be tempted to go wrong. You have the duty to report another Child if s/he exhibits this sort of troublemaking conduct. We are no stronger than the weakest link, and right now as the recruits you can either start helping each other out, or offer praises for the fish-food together. For punishment, another set of push-ups, then report to the Hand for your induction Oath, those of you who want to continue. And best luck – I’ll be seeing you soon.”

 

“Count on it.” The Inquisitor assured them with a smile.

 

OOC: If this is alright, then you can continue, Ekeziel.

[Nynaeve]

Zoe looked at her composition and sighed. She hoped she wouldn't be compelled to read it in class. Usually she was rather confident and it was well known that she enjoyed attention, but standing in front of a crowd was beyond her. She had no idea how other people do it and she had no intention to find out.

 

Zoe read her composition once again.

 

I've never had any illusions of greatness. Never have I dreamt about glorious journeys, meeting queens, conquering the world. That is not the life I aspire for. That is not why I joined the Children of the Light. The number of reasons that exist for enlisting can surely match the number of the stars in the sky. Each star as powerful as the next one. There is no point in trying to compare. Trying to check which is stronger or goes deeper. The focus should be on the present and not the past, since what drives me is the need to prove myself, regardless of how I got here.

 

Taking a deep breath, Zoe folded her composition and headed to the training yard where they were supposed to report to. Luckily enough, Evelyn only examined few of the compositions and when Zoe realized that Evelyn respected the Children who preferred to keep theirs private, Zoe stated the same, feeling rather relived.

 

Zoe respected Evelyn even when she did, what seemed to some, outrageous deeds. She was trying to scare them off. To send the boys and girls back home and keep the men and women. Listening carefully to the rules Evelyn stated, Zoe nodded at each, engraving them in her mind. Respect seemed to be the key word. Maintaining a relaxed manner, letting the mind take over and not emotions, being true to the cause, helping each other. All of it made sense.

 

It was obvious that Evelyn was finishing up. The sun was starting to go down. "We are no stronger than the weakest link, and right now as the recruits you can either start helping each other out, or offer praises for the fish-food together. For punishment, another set of push-ups, then report to the Hand for your induction Oath, those of you who want to continue. And best luck – I'll be seeing you soon. Count on it."

 

Everyone went down to the ground and started with the push ups. Zoe couldn't wait for Ezekiel to return. She was ready to take the oath.

 

 

 

Zoe

Child

[Guest TheDemigod]

Bert slowly made his way to the training yard to do his pushups, eyeing his fellow children-to-be as he walked. He could see Zoe, lost in her own thoughts, Dram, defiant as ever, and Ramai, trudging along, not looking too wooried nor too excited. Bert sighed. He hated pushups. And he was getting cold feet. Devote his life to an order fighting for the Creator? He supposed that was all nice and well, but his life! He was barely a grown man, joining up would rob him of so much. He glanced at Zoe. But then again, he'd most certainly get something out of it, whatever it might turn out to be, he had no idea of. Finding a decent spot he lowered himself to the ground to do his pushups.

 

1 pushup

 

Eh, it wouldn't be all bad. It had been a fun run this far, and he was sure it couldn't get much worse.

 

2 pushups

 

The training wasn's all that fun, but that would all stop when he was raised to a child of the light. Wouldn't it?

 

3 pushups

 

His arms were already stinging. Bert cursed under his breath and wished he hadn'd eaten that slice of cheese cake he'd hidden under his bed.

 

4 pushups

 

This wasn't so hard. Being a child would certainly be harder. Harder!? Bert groaned, whether from the pushups or the promise of more tiring tasks, he didn't know.

 

5 pushups

 

Ah well, he might as well swear the damn oath and get it over with.

 

Bert finished the rest of his pushups trying not to think to much.

[Twitchy]

Before everyone was doing push-ups and having second thoughts, the run to the barracks and training yard was full of drama and friendships…

 

 

 

Tuc wheezed loudly, and the man running next to him glanced at him unhappily. His name was Bert, or something ridiculous, and Tuc could realize that Bert seemed strangely attracted to him. It was probably the eye patch; everyone loved his eye patch and would ask him how he got it. Of course, when he told them the truth, that his eye was plucked out by a raven, they stopped talking to him and went to find new friends… Tuc was determined to make Bert his friend, and grinned at him, but the grin was somewhat ruined when Tuc stepped in a ditch and flew headfirst into the girl running ahead of him. Zoe looked back angrily and “hmphed” Tuc grinned, and she softened up a bit, then turned back around and kept running. Bert nudged his side and pointed at her behind. Tuc let out a muffled laugh and spent the rest of the run watching Zoe run.

An hour, three vomits, and a couple of blisters later, the hopeful Children stopped running. Zoe collapsed on the ground, Bert purposefully collapsed on top of her, and she pushed him away.

 

“Ugh! What are you doing!” Bert yelped as he was pushed back, but his tired legs wouldn’t work properly so instead he tumbled into Tuc. Tuc, who was on the verge of collapsing, did so when Bert fell into him. The three recruits lay there in a jumble, when Evelyn walked to them slowly. Her mouth tightened and her brow furrowed slightly.

 

“Get up, it’s time to go to the barracks, only five miles away.” She said briskly and curtly. Tuc groaned, and tried to push Bert’s weight off of him. Bert moved slightly, and Tuc heard a sound coming from his throat. Getting up, he looked at the tired man.

“…Are you…Crying?” Tuc said cautiously to Bert, who looked at him with puffy eyes.

 

“I, er, no, of course not…,” he wiped at his face hastily, “Why would I be crying?”

 

Tuc laughed, “There’s no crying in the Children of the Light! Get up, we need to run to the barracks.” He offered a hand to Bert, and, hesitating, he took it.

Hauling him up with a grunt, he motioned to Zoe, “C’mon, lets get moving to the barracks, get yourself up, I already used up all my energy on Bert here.” Bert nodded happily, and Zoe sniffed and struggled to get up.

Tuc sighed, and held out his hand to her too. She took it with a smile of gratitude, and the three of them were off, jogging and coughing to the barracks. After all, it was only a five mile jog, they’d already gone five-hundred feet, how far could five miles be? After all, five is less then five-hundred.

[Guest Far Dareis Mai]

What a bunch of dandies. Sorcha had been up early, before dawn. She found that she had a hard time sleeping. She supposed it was her new surroundings. She was so used to the sound of waves, and the rocking of the boat, that sleeping on solid ground was a little weird for her. But no matter, she was accustomed to little sleep. Getting up and readying herself, she heard the wake up call and moved to the training grounds.

 

The man, Ezekiel was there, looking mighty pleased with himself. Sorcha wasn't sure what to think about that, so she let it go. She had gotten the impression that Children of the Light found themselves to be on a different playing field than those who were not in fact Children themselves. This didn't bother Sorcha, precisely. Her mind was filled with thoughts of picking off Aes Sedai one by one.

 

The woman, was another matter entirely. Sorcha found she liked her tenacity. She was sure this woman could wipe the floor with the lot of them blindfolded, and her hands tied behind her back. The very thought brought a smile to her face.

 

Sorcha was not strong. She was lithe, and agile...but hefting the heavy lances was not her strong suit. She knew that this line of work was not for her. Evelyn obviously saw the same, but didn't give her a hard time with it. Sorcha's strength was in stealth, and sublety. She would leave the meat shielding to the men here.

 

Thinking about her companions, Sorcha wanted to laugh out loud at times. They were temperamental, young like herself, and funny. She did not care for the way Bert and Tuc ogled Zoe while they were running, but she didn't see that there was anything she could do about it. So she followed silently, keeping her eye out for the officers in charge, making sure she did nothing that got her doing more pushups. Light, but she hated pushups....

 

Sorcha was no writer. Her thoughts were malformed, and uneloquent. Thankfully the woman did not require every student share their writings with the group. Throw her in a pit of fighters, and Sorcha would be right at home with her daggers. Make her stand up in front of a group of people and read aloud something she had written--she was defeated. After the woman had a few read theirs aloud, she dismissed the group, to get ready. Sorcha got up and followed Zoe back to their rooms. She had not the chance to get to know her earlier, but that would have to be rectified.

[Nynaeve]

IC:

Ezekiel pursed his lips in contemplation as all the recruits started to fall into formation. Holding his hands behind his back he took a close look at the poor excuse of soldiers that were standing in front of him. They all seemed worn out even though they had time to compose themselves after the long day with Evelyn. That pleased Ezekiel. None of the recruits was close to being prepared. They needed to be handled roughly if they expected to survive the battle against evil.

 

Ezekiel's cloak flapped in the soft breeze as the sun started to set down, giving the sky a reddish shade. Folding his arms, Ezekiel cleared his throat to quiet the mild chattering between the Children. They obviously lacked discipline and respect. They were about to undergo one of the oldest customs. The first Oath. A firm tie to the Fortress and the cause.

 

Increasing the usual volume of his voice, Ezekiel spoke ceremonially. "We meet when day ends and night begins to seal your commitment to the Light. Please, repeat after me." Raising his eyes to setting sun, Ezekiel recited. "By the Light and my hope of salvation and rebirth, I swear fealty to The Children of The Light. I vow to serve, respect and grant obedience to the high command. In the name of the Creator, I swear it."

 

 

 

OOC: Ok people, post yourself taking the oath and what feelings you feel when you swear it....and consider this requirement done. Way to go! you've all been brilliant :D

 

 

 

Ezekiel

The Hand

[Guest TheDemigod]

Bert stood straight. Or as straight as his overly painful back would allow him to stand, which was, he hoped, just straight enough. He looked about himself nervously. His fellow children-to-be seemed so composed, so orderly, so not tired and sleepy. Bert wondered how they did it. Directing his gaze, once more, to Ezekiel, Bert drew a breath and tried straightening some more. It didn't work quite as he wanted, but merely hurt. Ezekiel started preaching. Bert stood attention as he heard the old man recite the oath, the oath that would bind Bert to this organization for the rest of his life. He supposed he could always desert if things got ugly, but he hoped he wouldn't have to. He drew his breath again and started on the oath. "By the Light and my hope of salvation and rebirth, I swear fealty to The Children of The Light." So far so good, though a part of Bert hoper the Creator wasn't listening. "I vow to serve, respect and grant obedience to the high command." So long freedom. "In the name of the Creator, I swear it." All done. Bert felt... Happy. He was now a child of the light.

[Twitchy]

Tuc reached the oath site and collapsed on the ground, panting for breath. The small rocks on hard ground dug into his hands, but he didn't care, all he cared about was sleep and maybe a nice stein of ale. A Child-To-Be kicked him in the side and whispered fiercely for him to get up, or they would have to run more. Tuc got up, and he got up fast. Forcing his shoulders backwards and his neck straight, he stared at Ezekiel blankly. The old man's throat looked like a rooster's gullet, but Tuc shook that thought from his head as the man began to speak. "By the Light and my hope of salvation and rebirth, I swear fealty to The Children of The Light. I vow to serve, respect and grant obedience to the high command. In the name of the Creator, I swear it." Ezekiel spoke slowly and carefully, like words were important or something. Tuc shrugged, and repeated the words, because that's all they were after all...words. However, when he finished, a weight seemed to settle over his shoulders, and Tuc tried to shake it off like he had so many times before, but it wouldn't leave. Fright began to set in, thinking that he'd been tricked into using the One Power unwittingly, even though Children were supposed to hate everyone that used it. Suddenly, he heard Bert talking in his ear, and realized that the weight on his shoulders was merely Bert's hands. Relief flooded over Tuc, they were just words. But words that made him a Child of the Light.

[Guest Far Dareis Mai]

Sorcha repeated solemly, "By the Light and my hope of salvation and rebirth, I swear fealty to The Children of The Light. I vow to serve, respect and grant obedience to the high command. In the name of the Creator, I swear it." In saying those words she felt for the first time that she actually belonged somewhere. She felt as though she had a purpose, of working toward something bigger than the seas, or the land, or even all the people. She felt proud, too. She was a Child of the Light, and the witches were going to burn. She glanced at the ragtag bunch of people around her, and stifled a small sigh. One boy looked as though he had been hit between the eyes, and the others looked at though they didn't care at all about what just happened. Sorcha wasn't entirely surprised, but rather disappointed. Perhaps training would teach them.

[Nynaeve]

Zoe swallowed hard. It finally dawned on her that this whole experience was starting to take a shape. They were all about to make a commitment. At this point, there was no turning back. Taking the oath meant something. And although Zoe was nervous about making that step, she was ready for it.

 

"We meet when day ends and night begins to seal your commitment to the Light. Please, repeat after me." Zoe tensed a bit and placed her hands behind her back, clasped together. Looking at the sky, she repeated after Ezekiel. "By the light and my hope of salvation and rebirth, I swear fealty to the Children of the Light. I vow to serve, respect and grant obedience to the high command. In the name of the Creator, I swear it."

 

Zoe let out a sigh of relief after she was done saying the words. It felt like a weight had been taken off her chest. She felt reassured now that the deed was done. It was time to move on. It was time to start the real work and Zoe was looking forward to it. She craved to prove herself.

 

 

Zoe

Child

CoL

 

 

[chillimous]

Ramai's brows knitted as the order to give the oath was given. His mind raced, and there was but one option for him; not to say the oath at all. As the other members of the group spoke the words in unison, they each betrayed individual motions and a grim smile came to his face. His own mouth moved in unison, but the only noise was the low drone that people might interpret as him muttering the vows. It would suffice.

 

Clasping his hands behind his back, he clenched tightly. His stomach was a hole as the daunting feeling overwhelmed him again. The only thing stopping his off hand from shaking was the solid constriction of his other.

[Nynaeve]

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