A sudden series of explosions nearby drove him backward, and he glanced over his shoulder. Their relief had arrived. Gawyn raised his sword to Sleete as the man took up position with Piava Sedai's Warder to guard the area.
Gawyn joined Egwene and Silviana as they left the battlefield. He could feel Egwene’s growing exhaustion. She was pushing herself too hard, insisting on joining too many shifts.
They made their way across the trampled grass, passing a group of Illianer Companions charging into the fray. Gawyn didn’t have a good enough view of the battle as a whole to know where specifically they were needed. He watched them go with a hint of envy.
He knew Egwene needed him. Now more than ever. Fades slipped into camp at night, bringing Thakan’dar-forged blades to take the lives of Aes Sedai. Gawyn kept watch personally when Egwene slept, relying on her to wash his fatigue away when it overwhelmed him. He slept when she was in conference with the Hall of the Tower.
He insisted that she sleep in a different tent each night. Once in a while, he convinced her to Travel to Mayene and the beds in the palace. She hadn’t done that in a few days. His arguments that she should check on the Yellows, and inspect the Healing work, were growing thin. Rosil Sedai had things in hand there.
Gawyn and the two women continued on into the camp. Some soldiers bowed, the ones who were not currently on duty, while others hastened toward the battlefield. Gawyn eyed some of these. Too young, too new.
Others were Dragonsworn, and who knew what to make of them? There were Aiel among the Dragonsworn, which made sense to him, since all Aiel seemed basically Dragonsworn to him. But there were also Aes Sedai among the Dragonsworn ranks. He didn’t think much of their choice.
Gawyn shook his head and continued on. Their camp was enormous, though it contained virtually no camp followers. Food was brought in daily through gateways in wagons—some pulled by those unreliable metal machines from Cairhien. When those wagons left, they carried away clothing for washing, weapons to be repaired and boots to be mended.
It made for a very efficient camp; one not heavily populated, however, as almost everyone spent long hours on the battlefield fighting. Everyone but Gawyn.
He knew he was needed, and that what he did was important, but he couldn’t help feeling wasted. He was one of the finest swordsmen in the army, and he stood on the battlefield for a few hours a day, killing only the occasional Trolloc stupid enough to charge two Aes Sedai. What Gawyn did was more like putting them out of their misery than fighting them.
Egwene nodded farewell to Silviana, then turned her horse toward the command tent.
"Egwene . . " Gawyn said.
"I only want to check on things", she said calmly. "Elayne was supposed to have sent new orders".
"You need sleep".
"It seems that all I do these days is sleep".
"When you fight on the battlefield, you are easily worth a thousand soldiers", Gawyn said. "If sleeping twenty-two hours a day were required to keep you in good enough shape to protect the men for two, I’d suggest you do it. Fortunately, that isn’t required—and neither is it required that you run yourself as hard as you do".
He could feel her annoyance through the bond, but she snuffed it out. "You are right, of course". She eyed him. "And you needn’t feel surprised to hear me admit it".
"I wasn’t surprised", Gawyn said.
"I can feel your emotions, Gawyn".
"That was from something else entirely", he said. "I remembered something Sleete said a few days back, a joke I didn’t understand until now". He looked at her innocently.
That, finally, earned a smile. A hint of one, but that was enough. She didn’t smile much these days. Few of them did.
"In addition", he said, taking her reins and helping her dismount as they reached the command tent, "I’d never given much thought to the fact that a Warder can, of course, ignore the Three Oaths. I wonder how often sisters have found that convenient?"
"I hope not too often", Egwene said. A very diplomatic answer. Inside the command tent, they found Gareth Bryne looking down through his now customary gateway; it was being maintained by a mousy Gray whom Gawyn didn’t know. Bryne stepped to his map-littered desk, where Siuan was attempting to bring order. He made a few notes on a map, nodding to himself, then looked to see who had entered.
"Mother", Bryne said, and took her hand to kiss her ring.
"The battle seems to be going well", Egwene said, nodding to Siuan. "We have held here well. You have plans to push forward, it seems?"
"We can’t loiter here forever, Mother", Bryne said. "Queen Elayne has asked me to consider an advance farther into Kandor, and I think she is wise to do so. I worry that the Trollocs will pull back into the hills and brace themselves. You notice how they’ve been pulling more of the bodies off the field each night?"
"Yes".
Gawyn could sense her displeasure; she wished the Aes Sedai had the strength to burn the Trolloc carcasses with the One Power each day.
"They’re gathering food", Bryne said. "They might decide to move eastward and try to get around us. We need to keep them engaged here, which might mean pushing into those hills. It would be costly, normally, but now . . ". He shook his head, walking over and looking down through his gateway onto the front lines. "Your Aes Sedai dominate this battlefield, Mother. I’ve never seen anything like it".
"There is a reason", she replied, "that the Shadow did everything in its power to bring down the White Tower. It knew. The White Tower has the ability to rule this war".
"We’ll need to watch for Dreadlords", Siuan said, shuffling through papers. Scouting reports, Gawyn suspected. He knew little of Siuan Sanche, despite having spared her life, but Egwene commonly spoke of the woman’s greed for information.
"Yes", Egwene said. "They will come".
"The Black Tower", Bryne said, frowning. "Do you trust the word from Lord Mandragoran?"
"With my life", Egwene said.
"Asha’man fighting for the enemy. Why wouldn’t the Dragon Reborn have done something? Light, if all of the remaining Asha’man side with the Shadow . . ".
Egwene shook her head. "Bryne, I want you to saddle up riders and send them to the area outside the Black Tower where gateways can still be made. Send them, riding hard, to the sisters still camped outside the Black Tower".
"You want them to attack?" Gawyn asked, perking up.
"No. They are to retreat back as far as it takes to make gateways, and then they are to join us here. We can’t afford any further delays. I want them here".
She tapped the table with one finger. "Taim and his Dreadlords will come. They have stayed away from this battlefield, instead focusing on Lord Mandragoran. That lets them dominate their battlefield as we have this one. I will choose more sisters to send to the Borderlander army. We will have to confront them eventually".
Gawyn said nothing, but drew his lips tight. Fewer sisters here meant more work for Egwene and the others.
And now, Egwene said, "I need to . . ". She trailed off, seeing Gawyn’s expression. "I suppose I need to sleep. If I am needed, send to . . . Light, I don’t know where I’m sleeping today. Gawyn?"
"I have you in Maerin Sedai’s tent. She’s on duty in the rotation after this, so that should give you some hours of uninterrupted sleep".
"Unless I’m needed", Egwene reminded him. She walked toward the tent flaps.
"Of course", Gawyn said, following her out, but shaking his head toward Bryne and Siuan. Bryne smiled back, nodding. On a battlefield, there was little that would absolutely require the Amyrlin’s attention. The Hall of the Tower had been given direct oversight of their armies.
Outside, Egwene sighed, closing her eyes. He put his arm around her, and let her slump against him. The moment lasted but a few seconds before she pulled back, standing up straight and putting on the face of the Amyrlin. So young, he thought, to have so much required of her.
Of course, she wasn’t much younger than al’Thor himself. Gawyn was pleased, and a little surprised, that thinking of the man did not provoke any anger. Al’Thor would fight his fight. Really, what the man did was none of Gawyn’s business.
Gawyn led Egwene to the Green Ajah section of camp, the several Warders at the perimeter greeting them with nods of respect. Maerin Sedai had a large tent. Most of the Aes Sedai had been allowed to bring what housing and furniture they wished, so long as they could make their own gateway for it and use their own Warders to carry it. If the army had to move quickly, such things would be abandoned. Many Aes Sedai had chosen to bring very little, but others . . . well, they were not accustomed to austerity. Maerin was one of those. Few had brought as much as she.
Leilwin and Bayle Domon waited outside the tent. They had been the ones to inform Maerin Sedai that her tent was being borrowed, and that she wasn’t to tell anyone that Egwene was the one using it. The secret could be discovered if anyone asked around—they hadn’t hidden themselves while walking here—but at the same time, someone asking where the Amyrlin was sleeping would draw attention. It was the best protection Gawyn could arrange, since Egwene was unwilling to Travel each day to sleep.
Egwene’s emotions immediately turned sour when she saw Leilwin.
"You did say you wanted to keep her close", Gawyn said softly.
"I don’t like her knowing where I sleep. If their assassins do come looking for me in camp, she might be the one to lead them to me".
Gawyn fought down the instinct to argue. Egwene was a cunning, insightful woman—but she had a blind spot regarding anything Seanchan. He, on the other hand, found himself trusting Leilwin. She seemed to be the type who dealt straight with people.
"I'll keep an eye on her", he said.
Egwene composed herself with a breath, then walked to the tent and passed Leilwin without saying a word. Gawyn didn’t follow her inside.
"The Amyrlin seems intent on not letting me provide service", Leilwin said to Gawyn in that telltale Seanchan drawl.
"She doesn’t trust you", Gawyn said frankly.
"Is one’s oath worth so little on this side of the ocean?" Leilwin said. "I swore an oath to her that none would break, not even a Muyami!"
"A Darkfriend will break any oath".
The woman eyed him coolly. "I begin to think she assumes all Seanchan to be Darkfriends".
Gawyn shrugged. "You beat her and imprisoned her, making her into an animal to be led by a collar".
"I did not", Leilwin said. "If one baker made you foul bread, would you assume all of them seek to poison you? Bah. Do not argue. There is no point. If I cannot serve her, then I will serve you. Have you eaten today, Warder?"
Gawyn hesitated. When had he last had something to eat? This morning . . . no, he’d been too eager for the fight. His stomach grumbled loudly.
"I know you will not leave her", Leilwin said, "particularly under the watch of a Seanchan. Come, Bayle. Let us fetch this fool some food so that he does not faint if assassins do come". She stalked off, her large Illianer husband following. The fellow shot a glare over his shoulder that could have cured leather.