Name: Sapphira Calren
Origin: Cairhien
Age: 168 (Born 58 years after the Dragon Reborn's departure)
Height: 5' 2" or 157.5 cm
Weight: 122 pounds or 55 kg
Hair: Waist-length, wavy black
Eyes: Gray
Began channeling at 16
Raised to Aes Sedai at 37
Base Strength: 41
Total Strength: 91
Water: 10
Air: 8
Sprit: 6
Fire: 5
Earth: 3
Talents: Unweaving, Healing, Warding
Sapphira was the daughter of a Cairhienin soldier in the capital city itself. She was their only child, and while she did not have a perfect life, her family was comfortable. Her father was gone when he had to be, which left Sapphira the time to get to know her mother well, the two of them as the only ones in their house learned to spend a lot of time together, and became close. She made many friends among other soldiers' children, and so content was she with her life that she decided that she would marry a soldier, although her father could not always be around, as long as there was peace he was close enough. Soldiers were paid well, and Sapphira thought that if she was happy as a soldier's daughter, she could be happy as a soldier's wife. Living in Cairhien she grew up around the Great Game, and though she disliked it, was trained anyway, there was never much call to use it, Sapphira never once met a nobleman, but her parents, like everyone in Cairhien, believed it was a necessary skill, and so she learned it. Sapphira loved her life for the most part, she had fun and excitement, and everything was as she wanted it. Like all young girls, she dreamed of the day she would meet a handsome man who would sweep her off her feet. One day she would be married and have children and build a life and a family.
Her life changed drastically when it was discovered that the Shaido Aiel would attack the country. It had happened before, years ago, in the time just before Rand al'Thor, some fifty or so years before Sapphira's birth. Sapphira did not really know much about that time, most of what she knew of history came from about twenty years after that, during the time of the Dragon Reborn. What could overshadow that in matters of historical importance, after all? She went with the soldiers of course; her mother went as a camp follower, refusing to be left behind as her husband went to risk his life. This was the first time Sapphira ever really had any hardship in her life. Now, every time there was any rumor of fighting, Sapphira worried that her father would be killed or that the Aiel would make their way to this camp and kill her or her mother. She spent enough time in the camp itself with her father that she came to know some of the other soldiers. She noticed one man among them who talked very little; he intrigued her to no end, so finally she decided to speak with him. Zekieal, his name had been, and they became friends, until he mysteriously disappeared after a decisive victory over the Shaido.
She let herself get back to her life; the disappearance of one odd friend could not keep Sapphira from her life. They returned to the city and once again she reveled in the city life. It taught her a bit about Aes Sedai, and she even saw a few from afar, but she never really thought about those ageless women. At sixteen, she was sitting at a meal in an inn with a few of her friends when one of them entered. Sapphira and her friends noticed, but none of them knew she would change their lives forever. Even before the Aes Sedai chose a table, she made her way to Sapphira's, thankfully leaving the dangerous-looking man behind to choose a seat. She knew she had to respect this woman, so Sapphira stood and curtsied when the ageless woman arrived at their table. The Aes Sedai told Sapphira and one of her friends that they could channel saidar and that she would be taking them to the Tower in two days' time. Sapphira was shocked, she could channel? She did not want to though! She just wanted to grow up, get married in a few years and build her family. She did not want to leave her family, her mother and her father, and all her friends. This was where she was comfortable, her whole life was here, how she could simply uproot herself and make a new life among strangers, people she did not know and did not want to know. She did not protest though, the Aes Sedai's tone made it very clear that she would brook no arguments. The only thing even close to good Sapphira could see in any of this was that she would have a friend along with her, at least there would be someone from her life here. She returned home to tell her mother and her father. It was a tearful goodbye, but they all realized that it was necessary, and so Sapphira left, promising to return as soon as she could.
The journey to Tar Valon was uneventful, though as time progressed both Sapphira and her friend became more excited- and nervous -they were going to be Aes Sedai! Once they reached the Tower, Sapphira and her friend found less and less time for each other, eventually growing apart completely. Novice life was far too busy to maintain a close friendship. There were some women Sapphira saw much of, unfortunately her friend was not one of them, despite the fact that they arrived in the Towers at the same time. They had few classes together, and very little training. Sapphira was shocked to see another familiar face in the crowd of the Tower, Zekieal had come here too! She quickly learned from him that the "Asha'man" who had been spoken of after that battle had been him, in his first instance channeling. She was surprised to learn that he was here to learn to control saidin, but she was glad that there was another familiar face. Despite the fact that they were in entirely separate parts of the Tower, leading totally different lives, Sapphira saw much more of Zekieal than she did many other people, so their friendship blossomed. They formed a friendship much tighter than that which they had had in the camp, and Sapphira found herself missing her friend from Cairhien less.
They pulled off several pranks together, and faced the punishment side by side, although Zekieal appeared to be quiet and reserved, Sapphira learned that he could be quite fun with a little prompting. Sapphira loved having fun, and there was no one she could convince to join her as easily as Zekieal. Sapphira admired the man, the effort he put into everything was amazing, he progressed in his saidin training with an ease that Sapphira envied. She had no feelings for the man, beyond friendship, but their friendship was true, Sapphira knew that she could talk to her relatively new friend about anything, and while he was not always the best with words, he was always willing to listen. His hard work prompted Sapphira to really apply herself to her novice training. Hard as she worked, she could only do so much, and training took a long time for a novice, no one could dispute that. After ten years as a novice, Sapphira was called to the Three Arches to face her fears. She passed through them, and came out on the other side Accepted of the White Tower.
She settled into the role quickly, demanding respect of those below her. About the same time she was raised, Zekieal was called to his Arches as well, and also passed. Soon after their raisings, Zekieal mentioned that he had already decided that he wished one day to be a part of the Red Shen- the very one Sapphira meant to join -she knew she had found her partner. She and Zekieal approached the Red Shen together, and were accepted as much as Tower tradition allowed. They began training with each other intensely. It was hard, but it only ingrained the knowledge that he would complement her perfectly in the future. Sapphira dedicated herself to learning all she could about the Red Shen, and quickly found that the Reds told very little information, even to people who planned to join them one day. Probably a wise decision, what if she and Zekieal were Darkfriends trying to get information? Most of her questions got, "That is for you to know when you earn the shawl," or some such variation. It irritated her to no end that she could not know, but it only made her work harder toward her raising. She enjoyed the new freedom given to the Accepted, and learning all she could about her future Shen.
After eleven years, she was summoned for her raising. She was shocked, one day she was just living her life as usual, studying, training, and learning, and all of a sudden she was deemed worthy to become Aes Sedai. The test was hard. So very, very hard. She had certainly not expected the Aes Sedai to put her life in danger again. The Accepted test was one thing, but hadn't she already proved herself? Of course, this was a different kind of proof. Still, surely there was a better way- one that did not involve the risk of death! Sapphira passed though, and Zekieal was summoned to his test the same day. He too passed, and they were accepted as Aes Sedai and Asha'man of the Red Shen. That was not all though, they had to prove themselves to the Reds. In a somewhat less dangerous test, Sapphira and Zekieal proved that they trusted each other, and worked well together, and were approved as the newest partnership within the Red Shen, and swore their new Oath.
They earned respect in their Shen and gained say quickly. They worked hard to find and destroy Darkfriends, and were often successful, much to the approval of other Reds. From the beginning, it was clear that they were dedicated to their work, as Reds must be, and that they had the skills they needed to cleanse the world of the Dark One's servants. Forty-five years after earning the shawl, Sapphira was raised to Sitter of the Red alongside Zekieal, and represented her Shen in the Hall. She proved herself worthy of the responsibility, and twenty-five years after her appointment to the Hall, she became the Head, and Zekieal the Rei of their Shen.
They ran the Shen together continuing to smooth out the wrinkles in its design, it was a fairly new addition to the Towers after all. Sapphira was happy with her position, her years as Aes Sedai had taught her that not everyone got to be a Sitter or Head, and she would have been happy without any rank. Sapphira made a few friends within her Shen, and though they were few they were close. She trusted all Reds, she was certain no Darkfriends could be members of the Red. Outside of the Red, she was no exception to the rule that Reds had few friends. She could tolerate most people, but in general, she found them tedious in their daily lives, what could be more important than destroying Darkfriends, after all? And, there was no guarantee that those outside of the Red were not Darkfriends, the Black Ajah was still publicly denied, but no Red believed that it did not exist, if they did not, what possible purpose could any Red have in the Towers? True, most Reds were gone much of the time, but the fact that they spent any time within its walls meant that they believed that Aes Sedai, Asha'man and Gaidin were not out of the Dark One's reach. She had changed quite a bit from when she was sixteen, she knew that very well. She still quite liked to have a good time, but rarely indulged in this anymore. Far more important was tracking down Darkfriends and extending the influence of the Light around the world. The change was a natural one though, and she never had any real desire to go back to the way she had been before. The less trusting, more calculating person she had become was as easy to be as the social butterfly she had been when she was younger.
Years of Head of Shen prepared Sapphira for a future position, twenty-five years after taking the highest position in her Shen, Sapphira was appointed to the Amyrlin Seat and Zekieal to m'Hael. They began their rule of the Tower with confidence. They work together to more completely combine the Towers, and increase the Aes Sedai and Asha'man's influence in the world. Since being raised to Amyrlin, Sapphira's zeal for destroying Darkfriends has simmered. It is still there, and can be brought back in force at times, but she has learned that not everything else is tedious, and has made several friends outside of the Red Shen. Thirty-six years as the most powerful woman in the world have tempered Sapphira into a much kinder woman than the Tower had previously seen. She works hard to be open to anyone in the Towers, and to keep her rank from swelling her ego. Kind as she may be, though, she is strict, and is more than willing to take a situation into her own hands, if the need arises.
Sapphira spent her time after being raised to Amyrlin making sure that the daily monotony of reports and meetings would not drive her mad. She finally found the way, and spent the time after that enjoying her position. She made fairly regular trips into Tar Valon as a personal reward for her hard work. She enjoyed the city, it was a wonderful way to relax, almost a small vacation, if only for a few hours. Though it was close, Tar Valon became one of Sapphira's favorite places to visit when she finished with her work and had the time. She found that it was not hard to fall somewhat back into her old disposition, although she cannot be described as a social butterfly, it was much easier for her to go back to associating with people outside of the Red than it was for Zekieal, who never quite got the hang of it.
About thirty years after Sapphira gained the Staff and Stole, the Towers hosted a festival to be envied. The Feast of the Dragon was always a holiday, but one year the Towers decided that extravagance was needed. An entire week was dedicated to celebrating the Dragon Reborn, and the hope of learning of his victory soon. The week went smoothly, until the last night. The culmination of the week was to be a truly unforgettable masquerade. It was, in fact, unforgettable, but not in the way Sapphira would have liked. Soon after it began, the Shadow attacked. Death and injury abounded that night, and the Towers still cannot say for certain who brought the Shadowspawn to the city that night. It was a huge disappointment, and a terrible mistake. Much time since has been spent finding ways to make sure that in the future such a thing will not occur. After the Feast, things took some time to settle down, but finally went back to normal, thankfully.
Some years after that, her life was shaken up again. Zekieal disappeared, no one knew where he went or why he left, not even Sapphira had been informed that he was leaving. At first, everyone assumed that he would be back within a few weeks, it was not unheard of for someone to take an impromptu vacation, it certainly was not wise for the M'hael to do so, but that was beside the point. Months passed though, and there was no sign of Sapphira's partner. Finally, the Black Tower decided that they could wait no longer, the M'hael was arguably the most important Asha'man, just as Amyrlin was for Aes Sedai. They had to replace him. Sapphira understood the need, but at the same time she did not want it to happen. Replacing Zekieal meant that Sapphira had to step down too, because of the secret Oath they had taken, that all Reds took. Finally, it became very clear that she had a decision to make, she would have to announce her resignation soon. She loathed the idea of it though, there was so much more that she wanted to achieve for the Towers, so many more things she could do as their leader. Eventually, she decided that her only option was to unswear the Oath. She knew Zekieal was still alive, and that he would strongly disapprove when he found out, but she could see no way around it. She approached the Red Shen, and although they also did not approve, they granted her request and allowed her the use of their Oath Rod. She has not stopped missing her best of friends, and although he has been replaced as M'hael by Rialt, she often wishes he would return, approving of her decision or not.
Although she did not like Rialt, she had to approve of the Black Tower's choice of replacement, he was a dutiful and reliable man and since his ascencion he has been far more bearable than before. On top of everything else, before Rialt was named M'hael, the Towers received a group of strangers, claiming that they were from the White and Black Towers in a mirror world, and asking for the help of this world's Aes Sedai and Asha'man. Shocking as it was, Sapphira had to work closely with Rialt to decide what, if anything, they could do for these strangers. How it will all turn out, she is not sure, but she trusts that it will all be for the best, even if it is another lifetime before she gets to see her old partner again.