The Path of Daggers
Prologue
The Answer to the Question
Jermin Lossar chuckled softly to himself. How ironic that he, who had given so much to
the world, given so much pleasure to others, was living out his life in complete isolation.
His career and fame were fulfilling to a degree he never would have imagined, and it
would have been perfect except for his one failure. For the thousandth time, he cursed
the Student. His one failure. The one Student he could not teach. He had long since
forgotten the Student's name; he only thought of him as the Student.
Jermin had lived his long and prosperous life in a small, sleepy town. The students came
to him, he taught them the wonders of his craft, and they left, enlightened, to spread joy
in the world. The goings-on of the world did not touch his life. When rumors of evil and
war began to appear, they seemed far away and insignificant. Stories of monsters,
Friends of the Dark, and a supremely evil being called the Dark One walking the earth
seemed just that, stories.
Then the terrible day came when his studio door burst open and there stood his Student.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. "Why aren't you about practicing your corrupted
art? You only sway ignorant fools who don't understand. Even your Aes Sedai craft
couldn't help you learn the real art." He nervously fingered his medallion. "Even with
Al'cair'dieb you created only garbage." Their final parting had been so acrimonious that
Jermin, fearful for his life, had invested much of his fortune in a highly illegal anti-
channeling medallion.
"I am not Aes Sedai!" shouted the Student as he grinned evilly. "I am now Chosen!"
"What is that supposed to mean?" Jermin asked.
"It means that you are doomed!" The Student eyed his medallion. "And even that trinket
won't save you now!" He pressed a button on a small box in his hand. There was a
bright flash of light and Jermin knew no more.
He was in this very room when he awakened and had been for . . . how long? Time
didn't seem to have any meaning here. Sometimes his imprisonment seemed only a few
weeks, other times it seemed like centuries. Four walls and a few bits of furniture. He
had pounded on every square inch of floor, ceiling, and walls and all seemed to be solid
stone. Yet, every time he slept, the chamber pot was clean and there was food and drink.
Without his beloved Al'cair'dieb he knew he would have long since gone mad. He had
been clutching it when the Student laughed and pushed that button. He chucked softly
again. Was he going mad?
Suddenly, there was a sound behind him. He turned and fell to his knees in terror. The
creature standing before him was like nothing he had ever imagined. Fully eight feet tall,
it was dressed all in black. It looked more or less human except for the head which was
pasty white and . . . had no eyes! Even so, he could feel it looking at him and the look
struck terror in his heart.
"Come," it said. "It is time."
As the creature turned, Jermin saw that a door had appeared where previously there was
only stone. It opened the door and beckoned for Jermin to walk through. As he passed
the door frame, Jermin shuddered. Whether from some subtle change in reality or elation
at finally leaving his prison he could not tell. He found himself in a short corridor with
another door at the end. As he approached the door, it opened and a man walked through.
Jermin was even more shocked at his appearance than the creature's. It was the Student!
He was even carrying that odious harp that he scratched and scraped, producing an awful
cacophony that no intelligent being could tolerate. "You!" The Student saw him and the
blood drained from his face. "No!" he said as, without thought, Jermin brought
Al'cair'dieb down on his head with all his might.
The door quietly snicked shut. Jermin felt the last vestiges of his sanity slip away as he
saw that Al'cair'dieb, the most magnificent flute ever made, was damaged beyond any
hope of repair. "Must avenge. Must avenge." He muttered to himself.
The creature walked past him and picked up the Student's body. "Good job," it said.
"Time to go." And walked back into the room. Jermin followed, complacent, and still
muttering.
"I'll let you spend some more time in here with your friend to keep you company. Then I
have another job for you."
"Revenge."
"There's another fellow I want you to meet. Big guy. Red hair and gray eyes. You'll
recognize him when you see him. Your so-called student was teaching him, and he's a
lousy flute player, too."
"Must die. Must die."
As the door faded away, the creature smiled. It was like seeing Death smile.