The Wheel Turns Anew: A Wheel of Time Fanfiction

Chapter 15- Betrayed

He stepped off the Skimming platform, Amanda and Daniel right behind them. Through no small amount of luck, the gateway opened into an empty building. Stacks of boxes stood in the bottom level of what looked like an old warehouse. He coughed on some dust as he bumped into a stack of boxes in the dark, and channeled Air, sweeping all of the dust out of the building and into a pile. He felt Daniel channel, and saw a ring of lights appear around the man.

Edwin saw him look around, and quickly noticed a door.

"Over there," he said, pointing at it. "That looks like a way out." He saw Daniel look towards the door, and saw the older man nod.

He walked over to the door, pulling it open and looking around. He must have liked what he saw, because he went through and motioned for them to follow.

Amanda made to follow him, but Edwin put a hand on her shoulder

"Wait a second." He whispered. Something felt wrong. It had been nagging at him since they left the apartment building, but he couldn't place his finger on it, even now. But something felt off about Daniel, something wrong.

"Channel saidar." He whispered. "Don't do anything, just hold it and be ready to use it if you have to." He could see the question in her eyes, but he ignored it and he could feel the goosebumps telling him she did as he said. He still held saidin, and could hear Daniel turning the door handle. He grabbed Amanda and kissed her, hoping it looked convincing.

"You guys coming or-" He cut off as he saw them. Daniel coughed, and he stepped back. Amanda's face was flushed, and he could feel that his wasn't much better. She leaned on him, and it felt good to have her there.

"Yeah, sorry. We uh...got distracted." He said, sheepishly. Daniel's laugh caused him to shake his head.

"Well come on then you two lovebirds." He said, motioning for them to follow him. Edwin nodded, and as he walked after him, he felt Amanda grab his hand. He linked hands with her, and a thought came across his mind, the reason why this Daniel seemed wrong.

Whoever this Daniel was, he wasn't as strong as he was. Daniel was nearly as strong as Edwin himself, and this imposter was nowhere close. He thought Amanda might have been stronger than him as well. They walked through the door, and he felt a shield try to slam its way between him and the Source as Air blasted him and Amanda apart.

He was holding as much of saidin as he could safely, and he had a feeling Amanda did as well. The shield bounced away easily, and he heard the fake Daniel shout out.

"Careful! I couldn't shield him! The girl's out but he's-" He spun on the fake Daniel, and wove Spirit, slicing at the the mask. A tall man appeared, dark, with dyed blue hair and dark eyes. His voice changed as well, becoming deeper and sounded like gravel.

Edwin spun more Spirit and Air, slamming a shield on the man, Air binding him tight. He saw Amanda on the ground, and pure rage flowed through him, threatening to sever him from saidin. He wove pure Fire at the handful of men around her and himself, and they were burned to ash in an instant.

He scooped up Amanda, and channeled for a Skimmer, running through and slamming the portal closed. He sat on the board, and wove saidin, trying to figure out the weave for Healing. He wove Earth, Spirit, Water and a touch of Fire, and dipped it into Amanda, feeling confidant. He watched her shudder and gasp, and shouted in joy as she sat up.

She looked around, taking in their surroundings. "Where are we going? Where's Daniel? Wait. What did you do to me?" He sat through her questions, and tried to answer them.

"We're Skimming away from D.C. That wasn't actually Daniel, it was some imposter who tried to trap us. As for you, I Healed you. It was a little risky but it worked." He could see it all working through her mind, and he sat back on the board. The board stopped and a portal opened into a forest.

He stepped out, feeling so tired. He seized saidin again, and wove Earth, creating a small shelter for the two of them. He saw Amanda step into the woods, and he could tell she wove Air to gather firewood. He saw it settle into a pile, before a small fire burst to life. from the wood itself, giving more heat.

He crawled into the shelter and lay down, using his backpack as a pillow. He felt rather than saw Amanda lay next to him, and he drifted off into a troubled sleep.