New Episode: 3.08 - "Trust"
Disclaimer: This is a fan-produced creation and is not affiliated in any way, shape or form to the official TV show Legend of the Seeker. Neither the characters nor the universe belong to us, and we are making no money from this whatsoever.
Previously on Legend of the Seeker:
Episode 3.01 - "Tremors"
Episode 3.02 - "Restoration"
Episode 3.03 - "Madness"
Episode 3.04 - "Found"
Episode 3.05 - "Night"
Episode 3.06 - "Choice"
Episode 3.07 - "Doubt"
*~*~*~*~*~
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The Merry Band had traveled all through the night, so the weak light of dawn revealed weary faces. The Blood's army marching on Aydindril wouldn't wait, not when its prize of the Mother Confessor was waiting so helplessly...at least, that was what Richard seemed to think. Since Kahlan was without warning, he feared for her safety, even with all of Aydindril ready to protect her.
Before they crested another hill, he turned and addressed them. "Aydindril's only a few hours off, but we don't know where the Blood will be situated. We can't put all our eggs in one basket by making only one direct move. I think we should split up and have a back-up force in readiness."
Zedd nodded. Ever since Darken and his cohorts had allied with them, the wizard's support of every word from Richard had grown more obvious and stubborn. "I will lead the back-up. From there I can sense what magic, if any, this horde is using, so that I may counter it."
"Kahlan is the Mother Confessor, she can handle herself," Darken briefly protested. "If you must go into danger, do it yourself, brother. I will go with the wizard, along with my Mord'Sith."
"Cara deserves to be warned," Dahlia countered, a hand at her hip twitching. She didn't ask for his permission-it was the only way she could get away with this. "I will go with Richard."
The Seeker's hard grimace tightened just visibly. Dahlia's blunt truths were not what he wanted around him.
"And so shall I," Nicci's clear cool voice rang out. In her long black dress and with the faint glitter in her eye, it seemed more like a threat than a show of support. "I'm weary of the sidelines. I deserve more." Without waiting for anyone's response, she stepped over to stand by Dahlia and Richard.
Zedd frowned. "Richard, will you-"
Richard swallowed hard, but a short nod of his head put an end to any waffling on the split. He trusted the two women enough. "We'll try to find a way inside the city, then. Zedd...just be ready if something happens that we aren't expecting."
The wizard nodded his assurance, and flicked his head to the side, indicating that his group should start off again towards the city.
"Just out of curiosity..." Darken offered before following Zedd, scornful eyes fully meeting Richard's. "What do you intend to do? What can we, even all seven of us, possibly accomplish? Our combined talents are hardly significant enough to provide a true reinforcement, not at this late hour."
Richard's face epitomized determination. "Aydindril won't know what hits it. I need to give them something, anything, to offset that."
For a moment Darken stared. Then, with an indifferent shrug of his shoulders, he turned to follow the wizard. This was not his mission.
Gripping the hilt of the Sword of Truth, Richard nodded to the unlikely pair of women who were to accompany him as he walked into a storm of danger for Kahlan. "We still have to move quickly. By now they have to have the city surrounded..."
**
Kahlan, Mother Confessor of the Midlands, sat tall on her throne in the Council Hall of Aydindril. Against the advice of both her sister and her Mord'Sith, she clasped her hands loosely in her lap and waited for the envoy of the Blood of the Fold. Her spurned advisors, sister and Mord'Sith, were nowhere to be seen, but Kahlan's calm did not ripple. She needed no one to perform her task.
Noble men and women in dress robes and gowns populated the public area of the chamber, as did all city officials who could manage to steal away from their work, filling it with a jewel-toned rainbow of velvet and silk and brocade. The Mother Confessor's appearance was rare, and something like this had everyone alight with murmurs. Some tried to look unaffected, but most succumbed to occasional-or in some cases, constant-straining to get a better look at Kahlan's appearance and manner.
The messenger standing at the entrance finally bowed. "General Tobias Brogan and escort, come to see the Mother Confessor."
Kahlan nodded. "Come forth."
Tobias, a bulky man even without his armor and billowing red cloak, didn't bow as he took several solid steps before standing in the center of the room. The audience of commoners craning to see this momentous occasion gasped at the insolence. Tobias had more-feet planted a shoulder's width apart, back straight, jaw set, he looked straight at Kahlan with defiance.
The crowd expected a chill put-down from Kahlan to start things off, and many a face betrayed surprise when she didn't even look annoyed. Bearing still calm, she asked, "Are you going to make your case or not?"
Tobias cleared his throat. When he spoke, his voice sounded like iron scraped across gravel. "As I understand it, the Mother Confessor's job is the protection of all people."
Kahlan simply nodded again. "Yes. Continue, please."
"The Blood of the Fold also has that goal in mind," Tobias continued. "We seek to restore safety and equality to the people of the Midlands. Which is why we are here to ask that the Mother Confessor's power be taken away from her."
The chamber exploded in a sudden uproar of outrage at the boldness. Kahlan merely met his eyes, hers as hard as granite.
**
ROLL CREDITS
**
Cara tapped her fingers impatiently on her thigh as she waited in the shadows. The rest of the palace bustled above her, not quite oblivious to the uncertainty permeating the city but not quite concerned either. Cara stood in its heart, shrouded in a secrecy she should never have had to wear.
Dennee finally approached her, black Confessor's dress billowing behind her. "Kahlan is seeing the 'ambassador' now." She sighed. "I tried to talk to her one last time, but I have no idea what she's thinking. She's not in a talkative mood."
Cara's jaw tensed, her arms crossing over her chest. "And the troops?"
"They've seen the army outside our walls." Even in the dark, the cold light in Dennee's eyes was not that of a peacemaker like her sister, but of one who was ready to war for peace. "They have no reason to trust the Blood of the Fold, so they do not."
"Good." Cara's pose didn't lose any of its resolve, but somehow became more open. "This may not be D'Hara, but you might turn out not to be idiots yet. If Kahlan won't order them to defense, we will."
Dennee nodded, and beckoned Cara to a table where a lamp flickered brightly. "I have a map of the city and its defenses..."
**
"Is that it?" Kahlan asked once Tobias had finished his explanation of the Blood's worldview.
"What else need be said?" the man countered. "Magic is not necessary to your survival, nor anyone else's, and it causes unending trouble. Any unselfish, thinking person would submit to its removal."
"Mother Confessor!" one of the guards started to protest, incredulity broad across his bearded face.
Kahlan raised a cool hand, not removing her eyes from Tobias. "So you intend to kill me?"
Tobias managed a convincing show of shock. "Oh no, Mother Confessor. We have the means to remove your powers without even hurting you. It is all just as it should be, merely removing the unnatural taint to restore your humanity."
Still, Kahlan made herself unreadable to him. "And that is all you seek? No power struggle or demands?"
Tobias shook his head. "We merely want to see everyone equal."
Brow narrowing, Kahlan sat back in her throne, resting her palms over her crossed legs. Despite her drawn face, her physical reaction was ambiguous enough that everyone in the room held their breath. Her final words disappointed them in that regard. "Thank you for stating your case. I will now retire, and will give you an answer later."
Tobias, however, didn't seem concerned. He didn't bow his head as Kahlan rose, tipped her head once to the assembly, and then departed. A respectful silence held until the door shut behind her, and in the bustle that followed, only one man remained silent. Tobias' glare, though, spoke all his words for him.
**
"Yes mistress," the Lieutenant of the Home Guard said as he saluted, nodding his respect to Dennee before hurrying off with a clank of his armor to do her bidding.
The Confessor turned back to Cara, toying with a tiny dagger in her hand. "That's the gate accounted for. Kahlan won't even notice unless she's trying to establish her own defenses for the city."
Cara nodded slowly, eyes holding Dennee's intently. Finally she said, "I've lived my entire life for war. I assumed you had not." Gesturing around, as soldiers passed along orders and hurried to the defenses, she raised an eyebrow.
Dennee's chin went up, but she answered simply. "After Kahlan and I escaped our father and made our home in Aydindril, one of the older Confessors took a D'Haran general with her power. Kahlan asked to be taught everything he knew. Everything I know is what she told me later."
Arms loosely crossed over her chest, Cara hummed gutturally .
"Kahlan used to know better," Dennee said, regretfully. "It was Kahlan who taught me that there are some places where mercy and tolerance aren't allowed."
"Any war situation," Cara was quick to answer.
Dennee's gaze narrowed. "Where innocent people are in danger."
Cara blinked, amended herself awkwardly. "Yes. That."
But Dennee didn't glare. She just nodded, and took another deep breath. "Let's make sure we have that, as much as we can."
**
Candles burned fitfully in the Confessor's dining hall as Cara finally entered. Kahlan had been pacing, but turned on the Mord'Sith's entrance, lips tight. "You weren't at the meeting with the Blood of the Fold." Disappointment saturated her words.
"You're the Mother Confessor," Cara answered, shrugging. "I thought not to interfere."
"I thought to you I was-" Kahlan cut off her own hasty words as Dennee followed a few moments after Cara. She carried on as if she'd said nothing. "Let's eat."
There was a vague discomfort as the three women took their seats at the table, serving up the minor feast prepared for the leader of the entire Midlands. Kahlan's chair was no less a throne than the one in the Council Hall. She looked regal and now distant, eyes clouded for a few moments.
After a full two minutes of the silence, Dennee broke it. "You met with the Blood?"
Kahlan nodded, plate empty despite the fragrant food filling the table. "They wish to take my powers from me."
Dennee's fork hit her plate in shock, while Cara snorted automatically.
Kahlan agreed flatly. "No, of course I'm not going along with that." She glanced down into her glass of wine as she took a sip.
With Kahlan's eyes diverted, Cara and Dennee shared a swift look. Perhaps the Mother Confessor had her confidence back, they seemed to hope.
"But." As if in answer to their unspoken thoughts, Kahlan looked back up and let the single word hang for a few seconds before continuing. "I'm not sure a lesser extreme of their philosophy is all that bad for the people..."
Thankfully, Kahlan's tone did not invite discussion. Cara and Dennee sat and ate their supper, unspeaking. They did not regret their earlier actions.
**
Lunetta wrung her hands in her skirt, pacing Tobias' tent as she waited his return. He was so unpredictable. Had Kahlan not known her face, she would have been right at his side, prepared to protect him. He thought he was fine without her. She was not so sure.
The tent door flapped open, and Tobias ducked as he came inside.
"Oh Tobias!" Lunetta exclaimed, smoothing her skirt in relief.
"Don't act so surprised to see me, woman," the general growled. He unclasped his red cloak, tossed it on the back of a chair, and sat down with a grunt.
"Well?" Lunetta asked, circling to the other side of the table.
Tobias rubbed his hands together slowly, cracking each knuckle as his dark countenance surveyed the table before him, staring at nothing.
Lunetta gnawed the inside of her lip. "Tobias? Brother?"
"I can't believe you made me perform all that today," he murmured under his breath. Then, with a flick of his hand that almost snuffed the candle on the table, "We will take the Mother Confessor in her city by force."
His sister made a small noise of regret. "Oh Kahlan..."
Tobias snarled. "We gave her a chance to be reasonable. She turned us away, as I always expected such a creature of evil would do. The forces are ready...tonight we use our advantage."
"I was hoping she could change," Lunetta whispered. But then, swallowing, she nodded. "But the evil must die so that the good can thrive. I understand, brother. Does she expect us to attack?"
Tobias frowned. "I don't know... Surely she has heard of our cleansing of other villages. But she treated me and my guards as if we were peaceful. So perhaps not. The ways of evil are strange to me." He rose to his feet, eyes starting to light from within, anticipation bright in them. "Tonight, we shall cleanse the heart of the Midlands itself."
Lunetta looked up at him, then reached out and touched his arm, almost worshipful.
**
As evening fell, the forest north of Aydindril became darkened by tangled shadows. A last glint of sunlight illuminated the city, making it shine like red-gold instead of snow, gleaming through little gaps in the trees as Richard, Nicci and Dahlia moved towards the treeline.
The Mord'Sith had somehow made her way to the front of their small procession, and suddenly whipped up one gloved hand to halt them in their tracks.
Richard and Nicci instantly crouched, eyes darting about to see what Dahlia had stopped them for. "Blood of the Fold?" Richard asked under his breath as he moved up to join Dahlia.
She gave him a curt nod, indicating the meadow just beyond the trees, leading up to the tall white walls of the Confessor's city. "They have the place surrounded. It is designed to look like a friendly encampment, but it is not."
Richard peered out, Nicci just behind his shoulder as she also examined the situation. He could see tents and soldiers-no siege equipment, but as Aydindril was not renowned for its qualities as a fortress, that didn't mean anything. The little flashes of red capes among the assembled Blood of the Fold troops looked like splashes of blood. It was what they foretold.
Nicci commented, arms across her chest, "We cannot make it through that without being caught."
"Indeed." Dahlia nodded her agreement. "And it might even prove useless. If the Confessor's forces are aware of the army, we might not even have any information to offer."
Richard, frowning, finally stepped between the two women who seemed to have forgotten him. "What they'll need in any case is something to slow the army down."
They gave him flat looks, and Dahlia said. "Oh, so, Seeker, you have cavalry waiting to ride in and save the day?"
His gaze narrowed in slight annoyance. "No. But maybe we have something else."
Nicci took a moment to consider his words, then blinked. "Me."
"What?" Richard hadn't expected that.
"Richard, have you forgotten that I'm the most powerful sorceress in the world?" Nicci's lips curved in a slight smile. "If Kahlan's troops are unprepared, my magic can most certainly buy them the time."
"You're in a radahan for a reason, witch," Dahlia muttered sharply, shifting her weight.
"She's right," Richard said, tipping his head.
"And if I tried anything, that Mord'Sith would block my magic and probably have her weapon at my heart before I could take one step back."
The sorceress' eyes on Richard seemed open. His searched, hesitant. "Why would you do this?" Dahlia seemed like she wanted to know the answer too.
Nicci smirked, but her tone was straight-forward. "Perhaps someday I will be in need of a certain Seeker, and will want to have his trust?"
"It doesn't matter," Dahlia said before Richard could answer. "She can distract them, and I can keep her in line. There, have your distraction."
Richard still hesitated, his eyes locked with Nicci's.
**
Dusk was falling. Tobias walked from his tent and found the young woman who'd broken into the city only two days before. "Well?"
"It still be working for us," she said, nodding. "The pristinely ungifted one's blood still lets us through."
Tobias stood a little straighter, eyes red-hot in the light of a torch. "Then tell the troops. Now."
**
"Where's Kahlan?" Cara asked without turning around, watching the city below from the balcony. Moonlight spilled over her, making her hair gleam like silver in the night.
Dennee didn't question how Cara knew it was her. "In her room, resting."
"Hmm." Cara drummed her fingers on the edge. Her eyes followed a few of the soldiers on the near ramparts, and the guards patrolling the inner gate below.
"You don't just want her to come back to herself because she's a skilled fighter," Dennee said, letting out a short breath.
Turning towards the other woman, Cara frowned a little. "I don't-"
A sudden clash of metal below made both women look over the edge. Moonlight glinted off drawn swords and the red capes of the Blood of the Fold.
"They're in the city already!" Dennee cried, eyes wide.
A roaring battle cry, emanating from troops within and without the city, overwhelmed the empty night air. The Blood of the Fold was attacking Aydindril. And somehow, they were already within its walls.
**
"What's going on?" Jennsen Rahl looked up with fearful eyes as Lunetta Brogan entered her tent.
The general's sister came forward, taking the younger woman's hand and patting it, deep conflict in her expression. "They attacked us. We...we had to fight back. You need to stay here."
Jennsen looked confused, but in her ignorance she trusted Lunetta and nodded. Lunetta stayed by her side, uneasiness in her eyes whenever Jennsen was not looking.
**
"Confessor, we don't have enough forces back here!" the captain of the Home Guard reported to Dennee, fingers itching to get back to the fray. "They were already in place near the Palace, they're attacking right below us. We'll be overwhelmed, and the Confessor's Palace will be taken, before they even breach our walls."
"No!" Dennee snapped at him, waving her hand towards Cara. "You, go with him down to the front line, hold them back."
"But Confessor, it's hopel-" the captain started. Dennee's iron look shut him up quickly, and he nodded and ran back to his men, unsheathing his sword again.
Cara drew her agiels, and gave a smiling grimace as the pain prepared her for battle.
Dennee stepped in front of her first. "Cara." She swallowed, but didn't waste time. "This isn't a death sentence. I can't exactly forgive what you did to me and my son, but it's long gone. I'm sending you there because I know I can trust you to succeed."
Lips pressed in a tight line, Cara nodded. Then, with a flash of teeth, she ran towards the loudest shouting and clashing of steel, calling back over her shoulder. "You won't be wrong, Confessor."
**
"The attack started from within," Dahlia reported, as the night lit up with the sounds and sights of a pitched battle. "But the troops outside are going to break through if they can."
"Trust me, Richard," Nicci said, an almost playful smile on her lips. "I know you have the key to this radahan. Let me save your dearest Kahlan and her people."
Richard's brow furrowed. "How do you know that?"
"Darken Rahl is a sensible man. He shows less confidence when he holds less control. I've noticed a change." The sorceress' eyes glittered. "And you have made it clear how much you desire to be in control of all of us."
Clenching his hands at his sides with a sigh, Richard gave her one last look before letting out a rough breath, pulling the key from his vest and walking over to Nicci. With a click, the collar was in his hand. Dahlia wheeled to keep her eye on the dangerous woman.
Nicci inhaled sharply, her whole form seeming to glow in the sudden return of her Han's powers. She walked to the edge of the trees, black dress melting into the rest of the night. Dahlia seemed on edge, not sure. Richard hoped to the Creator he was right.
Raising her hands to the sky, Nicci gathered the air around her into a swirl of dry leaves and dust that made her hair and the fabric of her dress flap wildly. Round and round she spun the air, and Richard and Dahlia shared a look, both of them unsure of what to expect from this. It was like she was gathering a cyclone to her, except like her it was stationary.
Across the meadow, there was a loud boom as the Blood of the Fold rammed into the main gates of Aydindril. Cries and shouts from inside added to the chaos below, as the massive force began its strike against the heart of the Midlands.
Nicci, hands still raised, was calling out words that Richard and Dahlia couldn't hear. The air spinning around her tall form crackled with magic. Then, in a massive push, she sent it in an enormous wave out towards the city. Richard almost asked in panic what she was doing, afraid it would harm both armies. But he had no need to fear. She was, after all, the strongest sorceress in the world.
Outside the walls, the Blood of the Fold's men all collapsed in heaps, unconscious but looking dead. The Aydindril forces on the outer walls still stood. Nicci also collapsed. Richard ran to her side with the radahan, snapping it once again around her neck as he checked her pulse-weak, but beating.
Inside the city, though, the magical wave had not penetrated the stone. "They're still fighting," Dahlia called. "One of the small gates near the Palace has been broken in, I can see. I need to find Cara."
Richard nodded. "Go! Protect her and Kahlan. I need to guard Nicci."
**
Cara broke a soldier's nose with the heel of her agiel, spinning around to stab another in the gut. She hadn't gotten out of the People's Palace yet; it was where the fighting was most harsh, the Blood of the Fold trying to beat down the Home Guard and break through into the courtyard. Cara had vowed to herself that not a single enemy would even pass the threshold.
Blow after blow rained around her, some from friends, some from foes. Everyone attacked her straight on, her position changing too swiftly for them to do otherwise. Like a red dacra, she flew through the air, taking down enemy after enemy without breaking a sweat. She was Mord'Sith. This was her playground.
"Cara!"
She raised her head as the woman's voice broke through the chaos. It wasn't Dennee, or Kahlan. Gritting her teeth, Cara charged through the Blood of the Fold at the gate, bursting out of the Confessor's Palace at last to stand in the square. To her astonishment, Dahlia was running up. A fleck of blood on her cheek told Cara that her sister of the agiel had seen battle on her way into the city.
"Have they breached the main gates?" Cara demanded, brow furrowing. Questions of 'why are you here?' could wait until the emergency ended.
"They didn't have to, they came through one of the smaller ones just over there," Dahlia said, waving towards the wall not far off. "And Cara, they're infiltrating the back door into the Confessor's Palace-how many guards are inside?"
Cara's heart skipped a beat. How could they get past the magic? Despite the seeming impossibility, she shook her head. It was possible. And worse- "Not enough." She gripped Dahlia's shoulder, glaring into her eyes. "Help them hold this gate! I'm going to Kahlan."
Dahlia didn't say a word, just nodded once and ran to take Cara's place, flailing into the troops of the Blood of the Fold with her screaming agiel.
**
Kahlan sensed something out of place. Her room, safely lodged deep in the Confessor's Palace where it was not vulnerable to shallow attacks, was too silent. Somehow she sensed that it was not peace. Lacing herself back into her Confessor's dress, she frowned, not knowing what was going on.
A door slammed nearby, and her look of displeasure deepened. If there was some kind of conflict, Dennee should have sent for her, not tried to deal with it herself. "Dennee," she growled under her breath as she looked for her daggers. They were not on her nightstand, nor on the table across the room.
Another door opened, but it was much closer. It was the servant's entrance to her room. Suddenly cautious, Kahlan searched for her daggers again. She didn't want to have to use her power if she was infiltrated. She wasn't sure if she wanted to use it ever again.
A slight rustle of movement told her someone was sneaking in. Her candle had burned too low to provide more than a faint hint of light. The shadows were dark, twisting and cowering in every part of her chamber. There was no window. She couldn't see an intruder in the dark.
One hand clenched, and a quick noise behind her made her wheel and turn, arms raised defensively. A meaty hand grabbed an arm and dragged her forward, spinning her around to wrench her arm behind her back. Fear gripped her, but not panic-she stomped back on the intruder's foot, trying to elbow him into letting her go.
"Not so hasty, Mother Confessor," the man sneered, wrenching her arm again, carefully avoiding the reach of her hands. "Now, let's go strip you of this magic you use to enslave."
But before he could say another word, a harsh gurgle escaped his throat. His grip lessened, and he fell away from her. His body crumpled to the floor, blood beginning to pool around it. Shocked, Kahlan turned.
Cara held out her hand, flipping Kahlan's bloody dagger so that the Mother Confessor could grab the hilt. Her eyes were like molten fire, even in near-pitch-darkness.
"Cara," Kahlan breathed. "I could have had him, I could have taken him." It was more a reassurance to herself than anything.
"I doubt it," Cara snapped. "I can guess what happened here. You went first for your daggers, even though the situation was ill-suited to them."
Kahlan stared at her. "I-"
Cara seemed upset about more than just the attack on Kahlan. Before she could say another word, the Mord'Sith was in her personal space, eyes blazing as she nearly spat. "You've actually given these murdering lying bastards the benefit of the doubt. You're the Mother Confessor, and you saw the destruction they wreaked on Ebyssinia, but because of your own fears you decided that maybe their ideas weren't so bad. Well you're wrong. And I think deep down you know it."
"Cara, I-"
Again, Cara cut her off, speaking more words at once than she ever had before. "You are a Confessor, Kahlan. It is who you are. Fools and idiots are not allowed to take your identity from you, any more than you could take my agiels." She shook Kahlan's shoulder. "Your city is under attack. We are all doing what we do best. I hope the Mother Confessor will as well. We need her."
And then in a frustrated movement, Cara was gone, rushing out to combat again. Kahlan looked down at the bloody dagger in her hand. The darkness of her nightmare melted into the rest of the shadows, and her eyes narrowed. Her other dagger rested on the chair that Cara had been standing by. Both weapons in hand, single-mindedness emanated from her as the Mother Confessor followed her Mord'Sith to war.
**
Tobias lay where the magic had knocked him and all of his men senseless. With a jolt he sprang up, awake. Terrified and furious all at once, he looked around at his troops coming to their senses, and then up at the walls.
In the few minutes they'd been unconscious, the battle had turned. The troops of Aydindril knew what they were doing, and drove hard against the Blood of the Fold still within their walls. The main gates were opened, but only so that men could flee, escaping the fierce homeland defense. There was no way the retreating Blood could rally now. Tobias stared for a moment, a rush of humiliation coloring his face.
**
Nicci's eyelids fluttered open. Her head lay on Richard's lap, and for a moment she frowned, not knowing what was going on. But then she felt the radahan, fingers reaching up to touch the silver band about her neck.
"It worked," Richard said.
"Of course it did," Nicci said, annoyed that he would assume otherwise. She pulled herself achingly to a seated position, for the sake of her dignity.
He cocked his head. "I never know if I can trust you, Nicci."
She didn't change her expression, nor remove her gaze from his.
Richard's lips twitched. "I don't know if that's what you wanted or not-I don't know what you really want out of life, Nicci. But you lost all our trust. Except for tonight."
Nicci brushed some blonde hair from her face, voice cool when she spoke. "I would not have survived long in this collar if all of you had been slain while defending Kahlan."
Richard dropped his head, shaking it as his lips curved slightly into a weary smile. "Nicci..."
Her voice became quieter. "Yes, I have my reasons, Richard. Let me have them."
Glancing up, Richard searched her gaze. But then he simply nodded. After everything, he would still give her this privacy. They could not start into the battle now, so Nicci and Richard sat quietly together, looking out into the night as Nicci silently cherished the gift of caring she'd just been given.
**
Standing in the dark on the far side of the city, Berdine finally smirked and looked back at Zedd. "See? Battle is over, nothing unexpected. I told you we wouldn't be needed."
"So you too trust in my little brother and his plans?" Darken's dry voice drifted out.
Berdine straightened. "I did not mean, my lord-"
"I don't want to hear it," Darken said with a weary sigh.
"They were lucky," Zedd rumbled. "If Nicci had not struck then..."
"We wouldn't have been knocked unconscious," Raina said, irritated, tapping one boot on the ground.
Zedd snorted, amused by the Mord'Sith's reaction to such a weak way of being blocked from battle.
Darken merely sighed.
**
"Fall back!" Tobias shouted to his troops, even though they hardly needed the instruction. He waved his arm, angry. "Fall back!"
Horses neighed and wagons rattled as they pulled away from the city. The Aydindril troops were heartened, and after driving the Blood from within their gates they had archers line the outer walls, picking their enemy off as they retreated.
Lunetta ran up to her brother, eyes wide. "Tobias, what happened?"
"We bit off more than we could chew," the general growled, mounting his horse and turning to look back. Troops half-marched, half-ran. Aydindril looked smug, if an inanimate object could, as it lay still well-guarded. "They weren't supposed to have those defenses."
Lunetta reached up and laid her hand on his knee. "The people will understand. We did not attack to harm them, only to remove the Mother Confessor because she would not do what was right."
Tobias hissed, wheeling his horse back around to go after his troops. "And we lost Aydindril. Get in your wagon, Lunetta!" Fuming, he spurred his horse on.
**
"They're leaving," Zedd said, as they descended towards the city. "Retreating with their tails between their legs. I knew Kahlan could hold them off."
"They are not gone yet," Darken said in a low voice. "Quiet, wizard."
"Yes, we won't be safe until we're finally inside," Berdine muttered.
In the dark, Zedd managed a brief fire symbol to the walls, letting the troops know to not fire upon them. The chaos of retreating troops lay only a little ways off, and Zedd crouched as he moved his group along the wall, headed towards the gate where they could enter the city and find shelter.
Zedd saw the flicker of a dress among one of the wagons, and frowned. He didn't think the Blood recruited women into their army. Glancing over, he saw Lunetta and remembered her, and his eyes widened as things started to make sense. Staring at the woman who had toyed with Kahlan's mental defenses, he almost didn't notice the other woman she was helping into the cart.
He did a double-take once he did, catching the glint of red hair in the torchlight from their wagon, and then gasped.
"Jennsen?" Darken whispered, equally surprised.
They stared as Lunetta and Jennsen got into their wagon, and then were gone with the rest of the troops, fading into the night to go somewhere where they could regather and change their plan.
"Let's get inside the city," Raina encouraged, impatient.
"Yes, let's," Zedd said slowly, still staring after his granddaughter and the enemy she traveled with.
**
"Keep a double watch," Cara ordered up to the Home Guard on the wall. It amused her slightly when they agreed as if she was their commander.
The city had suffered only a few damages, overall. Not as many troops were lost as Cara feared, and the men seemed to relish their victory even if it was incomplete. No one would be sleeping tonight, not with excitement still filling the city, making it feel alive.
Dennee walked up to Cara at last, after dealing with other responsibilities. Her face seemed drawn, pensive, but no longer masked. When she looked at Cara, it was not merely for Kahlan's sake that the active hatred was gone.
"Well," Cara said.
"Well," Dennee answered, as if it was a question. "If I learned anything tonight, it's that I can trust Kahlan in your hands, Mord'Sith."
Cara nodded briefly, voice quiet. "You can."
The Confessor shook her head, but then turned it into an answering nod. "And that matters more than our past. As a sister, I have to make that decision."
"I understand." Cara hadn't yet put up her defenses; her voice was simple.
"Cara?"
Both women turned to see Kahlan coming from the palace, dress spattered with blood.
"Kahlan, what happened?" Dennee exclaimed.
The Mother Confessor frowned. "I was fighting, after Cara rescued me. Dennee, Cara..." She moved closer, brushing back her hair and giving them each a chagrined look. "I'm sorry. For what I did to you both. I didn't realize-"
"Say no more," Dennee said with a smile, stepping in to fiercely hug her sister. "Sometimes we lose ourselves in the darkness of our lives. You're not to blame."
Kahlan smiled, holding her tightly before finally pulling back, strength on her face again. "I'm just glad nothing was lost." Her eyes flew to Cara's. "And were it not for you, I might not have found myself until it was too late..."
Cara shrugged.
"No, don't do that," Kahlan protested with a chuckle. "Thank you. Cara." Her smile, the particular smile that she gave to Cara alone, filled the cool night with warmth.
"Mother Confessor, allies approaching," called the captain of the Home Guard.
All three turned, confused until Kahlan saw Zedd. "What are you doing here?" she asked in astonishment.
The wizard came up and embraced her. "I'm glad you're safe, Kahlan. When we saw that the Blood of the Fold was coming here, we feared you would have been caught off guard."
Cara and Dennee couldn't help but share a look.
"Now we've defeated them in a way, what should we do, Zedd?" Kahlan asked, brow furrowed.
Richard and Nicci came in just after Zedd and the others. Kahlan barely looked his way before returning her eyes to Zedd, waiting for an answer. The Seeker had been about to run forward and hug her-instead, at such a reception, he stopped with an unsure expression. Dahlia glanced over her shoulder and nodded to him. There was no surprise on her face.
"Have the Midlands take them down," Darken said, waving one hand.
Kahlan glared at him.
"We can't," Cara said. When everyone looked at her, she pressed her lips together. "I'm not insulting your troops, Kahlan...I'm just saying, the Blood of the Fold are zealots. They don't win with armies, they win with opinions.
"It's true," Richard said, finally pushing his own insecurities behind duty as he stepped forward. "They just need to stay alive for long enough, and they think the people will join their cause. It's possible."
Darken grimaced. "They won't do nothing while they wait."
"He's right," Cara said. "No army, even an army of idiot idealists, will just stay idle."
"They'll go after more magical beings like us," Dennee said quietly, eyes on Kahlan. "There's so many in the Midlands alone..."
Zedd nodded slowly, arms over his chest. "This is a war they're waging, but not against any one nation. They're waging it against magic. We need to gather our troops-not soldiers, but all those beings who the Blood will attack. Wizards, witches, sorceresses, night wisps..."
Kahlan stood like iron, looking as if she'd never been anything but that. Her eyes turned to Cara, but she was speaking to them all. "We've been defensive and passive for too long. Now is the time to make some first steps of our own."
Zedd nodded, before a dark frown wrinkled his face further. "And I think first, we need to get to Shota."
A wave of uneasiness passed through them all. With how unpredictable she could be, no one wanted to see the witch-woman again. And yet...their lives had never been about what they wanted. They all prepared themselves for the next step in their quest.
**
TO BE CONTINUED ... on June 4th!
The Virtual Season is on hiatus as we prepare for the remaining six episodes - but stay tuned; this comm won't be quiet in the mean time. :)
If you'd like join us in creating this virtual season, head here to volunteer.
Thank you all for your patience. :)
Previously on Legend of the Seeker:
Episode 3.01 - "Tremors"
Episode 3.02 - "Restoration"
Episode 3.03 - "Madness"
Episode 3.04 - "Found"
Episode 3.05 - "Night"
Episode 3.06 - "Choice"
Episode 3.07 - "Doubt"
*~*~*~*~*~
*~*~*~*~*~
The Merry Band had traveled all through the night, so the weak light of dawn revealed weary faces. The Blood's army marching on Aydindril wouldn't wait, not when its prize of the Mother Confessor was waiting so helplessly...at least, that was what Richard seemed to think. Since Kahlan was without warning, he feared for her safety, even with all of Aydindril ready to protect her.
Before they crested another hill, he turned and addressed them. "Aydindril's only a few hours off, but we don't know where the Blood will be situated. We can't put all our eggs in one basket by making only one direct move. I think we should split up and have a back-up force in readiness."
Zedd nodded. Ever since Darken and his cohorts had allied with them, the wizard's support of every word from Richard had grown more obvious and stubborn. "I will lead the back-up. From there I can sense what magic, if any, this horde is using, so that I may counter it."
"Kahlan is the Mother Confessor, she can handle herself," Darken briefly protested. "If you must go into danger, do it yourself, brother. I will go with the wizard, along with my Mord'Sith."
"Cara deserves to be warned," Dahlia countered, a hand at her hip twitching. She didn't ask for his permission-it was the only way she could get away with this. "I will go with Richard."
The Seeker's hard grimace tightened just visibly. Dahlia's blunt truths were not what he wanted around him.
"And so shall I," Nicci's clear cool voice rang out. In her long black dress and with the faint glitter in her eye, it seemed more like a threat than a show of support. "I'm weary of the sidelines. I deserve more." Without waiting for anyone's response, she stepped over to stand by Dahlia and Richard.
Zedd frowned. "Richard, will you-"
Richard swallowed hard, but a short nod of his head put an end to any waffling on the split. He trusted the two women enough. "We'll try to find a way inside the city, then. Zedd...just be ready if something happens that we aren't expecting."
The wizard nodded his assurance, and flicked his head to the side, indicating that his group should start off again towards the city.
"Just out of curiosity..." Darken offered before following Zedd, scornful eyes fully meeting Richard's. "What do you intend to do? What can we, even all seven of us, possibly accomplish? Our combined talents are hardly significant enough to provide a true reinforcement, not at this late hour."
Richard's face epitomized determination. "Aydindril won't know what hits it. I need to give them something, anything, to offset that."
For a moment Darken stared. Then, with an indifferent shrug of his shoulders, he turned to follow the wizard. This was not his mission.
Gripping the hilt of the Sword of Truth, Richard nodded to the unlikely pair of women who were to accompany him as he walked into a storm of danger for Kahlan. "We still have to move quickly. By now they have to have the city surrounded..."
**
Kahlan, Mother Confessor of the Midlands, sat tall on her throne in the Council Hall of Aydindril. Against the advice of both her sister and her Mord'Sith, she clasped her hands loosely in her lap and waited for the envoy of the Blood of the Fold. Her spurned advisors, sister and Mord'Sith, were nowhere to be seen, but Kahlan's calm did not ripple. She needed no one to perform her task.
Noble men and women in dress robes and gowns populated the public area of the chamber, as did all city officials who could manage to steal away from their work, filling it with a jewel-toned rainbow of velvet and silk and brocade. The Mother Confessor's appearance was rare, and something like this had everyone alight with murmurs. Some tried to look unaffected, but most succumbed to occasional-or in some cases, constant-straining to get a better look at Kahlan's appearance and manner.
The messenger standing at the entrance finally bowed. "General Tobias Brogan and escort, come to see the Mother Confessor."
Kahlan nodded. "Come forth."
Tobias, a bulky man even without his armor and billowing red cloak, didn't bow as he took several solid steps before standing in the center of the room. The audience of commoners craning to see this momentous occasion gasped at the insolence. Tobias had more-feet planted a shoulder's width apart, back straight, jaw set, he looked straight at Kahlan with defiance.
The crowd expected a chill put-down from Kahlan to start things off, and many a face betrayed surprise when she didn't even look annoyed. Bearing still calm, she asked, "Are you going to make your case or not?"
Tobias cleared his throat. When he spoke, his voice sounded like iron scraped across gravel. "As I understand it, the Mother Confessor's job is the protection of all people."
Kahlan simply nodded again. "Yes. Continue, please."
"The Blood of the Fold also has that goal in mind," Tobias continued. "We seek to restore safety and equality to the people of the Midlands. Which is why we are here to ask that the Mother Confessor's power be taken away from her."
The chamber exploded in a sudden uproar of outrage at the boldness. Kahlan merely met his eyes, hers as hard as granite.
**
ROLL CREDITS
**
Cara tapped her fingers impatiently on her thigh as she waited in the shadows. The rest of the palace bustled above her, not quite oblivious to the uncertainty permeating the city but not quite concerned either. Cara stood in its heart, shrouded in a secrecy she should never have had to wear.
Dennee finally approached her, black Confessor's dress billowing behind her. "Kahlan is seeing the 'ambassador' now." She sighed. "I tried to talk to her one last time, but I have no idea what she's thinking. She's not in a talkative mood."
Cara's jaw tensed, her arms crossing over her chest. "And the troops?"
"They've seen the army outside our walls." Even in the dark, the cold light in Dennee's eyes was not that of a peacemaker like her sister, but of one who was ready to war for peace. "They have no reason to trust the Blood of the Fold, so they do not."
"Good." Cara's pose didn't lose any of its resolve, but somehow became more open. "This may not be D'Hara, but you might turn out not to be idiots yet. If Kahlan won't order them to defense, we will."
Dennee nodded, and beckoned Cara to a table where a lamp flickered brightly. "I have a map of the city and its defenses..."
**
"Is that it?" Kahlan asked once Tobias had finished his explanation of the Blood's worldview.
"What else need be said?" the man countered. "Magic is not necessary to your survival, nor anyone else's, and it causes unending trouble. Any unselfish, thinking person would submit to its removal."
"Mother Confessor!" one of the guards started to protest, incredulity broad across his bearded face.
Kahlan raised a cool hand, not removing her eyes from Tobias. "So you intend to kill me?"
Tobias managed a convincing show of shock. "Oh no, Mother Confessor. We have the means to remove your powers without even hurting you. It is all just as it should be, merely removing the unnatural taint to restore your humanity."
Still, Kahlan made herself unreadable to him. "And that is all you seek? No power struggle or demands?"
Tobias shook his head. "We merely want to see everyone equal."
Brow narrowing, Kahlan sat back in her throne, resting her palms over her crossed legs. Despite her drawn face, her physical reaction was ambiguous enough that everyone in the room held their breath. Her final words disappointed them in that regard. "Thank you for stating your case. I will now retire, and will give you an answer later."
Tobias, however, didn't seem concerned. He didn't bow his head as Kahlan rose, tipped her head once to the assembly, and then departed. A respectful silence held until the door shut behind her, and in the bustle that followed, only one man remained silent. Tobias' glare, though, spoke all his words for him.
**
"Yes mistress," the Lieutenant of the Home Guard said as he saluted, nodding his respect to Dennee before hurrying off with a clank of his armor to do her bidding.
The Confessor turned back to Cara, toying with a tiny dagger in her hand. "That's the gate accounted for. Kahlan won't even notice unless she's trying to establish her own defenses for the city."
Cara nodded slowly, eyes holding Dennee's intently. Finally she said, "I've lived my entire life for war. I assumed you had not." Gesturing around, as soldiers passed along orders and hurried to the defenses, she raised an eyebrow.
Dennee's chin went up, but she answered simply. "After Kahlan and I escaped our father and made our home in Aydindril, one of the older Confessors took a D'Haran general with her power. Kahlan asked to be taught everything he knew. Everything I know is what she told me later."
Arms loosely crossed over her chest, Cara hummed gutturally .
"Kahlan used to know better," Dennee said, regretfully. "It was Kahlan who taught me that there are some places where mercy and tolerance aren't allowed."
"Any war situation," Cara was quick to answer.
Dennee's gaze narrowed. "Where innocent people are in danger."
Cara blinked, amended herself awkwardly. "Yes. That."
But Dennee didn't glare. She just nodded, and took another deep breath. "Let's make sure we have that, as much as we can."
**
Candles burned fitfully in the Confessor's dining hall as Cara finally entered. Kahlan had been pacing, but turned on the Mord'Sith's entrance, lips tight. "You weren't at the meeting with the Blood of the Fold." Disappointment saturated her words.
"You're the Mother Confessor," Cara answered, shrugging. "I thought not to interfere."
"I thought to you I was-" Kahlan cut off her own hasty words as Dennee followed a few moments after Cara. She carried on as if she'd said nothing. "Let's eat."
There was a vague discomfort as the three women took their seats at the table, serving up the minor feast prepared for the leader of the entire Midlands. Kahlan's chair was no less a throne than the one in the Council Hall. She looked regal and now distant, eyes clouded for a few moments.
After a full two minutes of the silence, Dennee broke it. "You met with the Blood?"
Kahlan nodded, plate empty despite the fragrant food filling the table. "They wish to take my powers from me."
Dennee's fork hit her plate in shock, while Cara snorted automatically.
Kahlan agreed flatly. "No, of course I'm not going along with that." She glanced down into her glass of wine as she took a sip.
With Kahlan's eyes diverted, Cara and Dennee shared a swift look. Perhaps the Mother Confessor had her confidence back, they seemed to hope.
"But." As if in answer to their unspoken thoughts, Kahlan looked back up and let the single word hang for a few seconds before continuing. "I'm not sure a lesser extreme of their philosophy is all that bad for the people..."
Thankfully, Kahlan's tone did not invite discussion. Cara and Dennee sat and ate their supper, unspeaking. They did not regret their earlier actions.
**
Lunetta wrung her hands in her skirt, pacing Tobias' tent as she waited his return. He was so unpredictable. Had Kahlan not known her face, she would have been right at his side, prepared to protect him. He thought he was fine without her. She was not so sure.
The tent door flapped open, and Tobias ducked as he came inside.
"Oh Tobias!" Lunetta exclaimed, smoothing her skirt in relief.
"Don't act so surprised to see me, woman," the general growled. He unclasped his red cloak, tossed it on the back of a chair, and sat down with a grunt.
"Well?" Lunetta asked, circling to the other side of the table.
Tobias rubbed his hands together slowly, cracking each knuckle as his dark countenance surveyed the table before him, staring at nothing.
Lunetta gnawed the inside of her lip. "Tobias? Brother?"
"I can't believe you made me perform all that today," he murmured under his breath. Then, with a flick of his hand that almost snuffed the candle on the table, "We will take the Mother Confessor in her city by force."
His sister made a small noise of regret. "Oh Kahlan..."
Tobias snarled. "We gave her a chance to be reasonable. She turned us away, as I always expected such a creature of evil would do. The forces are ready...tonight we use our advantage."
"I was hoping she could change," Lunetta whispered. But then, swallowing, she nodded. "But the evil must die so that the good can thrive. I understand, brother. Does she expect us to attack?"
Tobias frowned. "I don't know... Surely she has heard of our cleansing of other villages. But she treated me and my guards as if we were peaceful. So perhaps not. The ways of evil are strange to me." He rose to his feet, eyes starting to light from within, anticipation bright in them. "Tonight, we shall cleanse the heart of the Midlands itself."
Lunetta looked up at him, then reached out and touched his arm, almost worshipful.
**
As evening fell, the forest north of Aydindril became darkened by tangled shadows. A last glint of sunlight illuminated the city, making it shine like red-gold instead of snow, gleaming through little gaps in the trees as Richard, Nicci and Dahlia moved towards the treeline.
The Mord'Sith had somehow made her way to the front of their small procession, and suddenly whipped up one gloved hand to halt them in their tracks.
Richard and Nicci instantly crouched, eyes darting about to see what Dahlia had stopped them for. "Blood of the Fold?" Richard asked under his breath as he moved up to join Dahlia.
She gave him a curt nod, indicating the meadow just beyond the trees, leading up to the tall white walls of the Confessor's city. "They have the place surrounded. It is designed to look like a friendly encampment, but it is not."
Richard peered out, Nicci just behind his shoulder as she also examined the situation. He could see tents and soldiers-no siege equipment, but as Aydindril was not renowned for its qualities as a fortress, that didn't mean anything. The little flashes of red capes among the assembled Blood of the Fold troops looked like splashes of blood. It was what they foretold.
Nicci commented, arms across her chest, "We cannot make it through that without being caught."
"Indeed." Dahlia nodded her agreement. "And it might even prove useless. If the Confessor's forces are aware of the army, we might not even have any information to offer."
Richard, frowning, finally stepped between the two women who seemed to have forgotten him. "What they'll need in any case is something to slow the army down."
They gave him flat looks, and Dahlia said. "Oh, so, Seeker, you have cavalry waiting to ride in and save the day?"
His gaze narrowed in slight annoyance. "No. But maybe we have something else."
Nicci took a moment to consider his words, then blinked. "Me."
"What?" Richard hadn't expected that.
"Richard, have you forgotten that I'm the most powerful sorceress in the world?" Nicci's lips curved in a slight smile. "If Kahlan's troops are unprepared, my magic can most certainly buy them the time."
"You're in a radahan for a reason, witch," Dahlia muttered sharply, shifting her weight.
"She's right," Richard said, tipping his head.
"And if I tried anything, that Mord'Sith would block my magic and probably have her weapon at my heart before I could take one step back."
The sorceress' eyes on Richard seemed open. His searched, hesitant. "Why would you do this?" Dahlia seemed like she wanted to know the answer too.
Nicci smirked, but her tone was straight-forward. "Perhaps someday I will be in need of a certain Seeker, and will want to have his trust?"
"It doesn't matter," Dahlia said before Richard could answer. "She can distract them, and I can keep her in line. There, have your distraction."
Richard still hesitated, his eyes locked with Nicci's.
**
Dusk was falling. Tobias walked from his tent and found the young woman who'd broken into the city only two days before. "Well?"
"It still be working for us," she said, nodding. "The pristinely ungifted one's blood still lets us through."
Tobias stood a little straighter, eyes red-hot in the light of a torch. "Then tell the troops. Now."
**
"Where's Kahlan?" Cara asked without turning around, watching the city below from the balcony. Moonlight spilled over her, making her hair gleam like silver in the night.
Dennee didn't question how Cara knew it was her. "In her room, resting."
"Hmm." Cara drummed her fingers on the edge. Her eyes followed a few of the soldiers on the near ramparts, and the guards patrolling the inner gate below.
"You don't just want her to come back to herself because she's a skilled fighter," Dennee said, letting out a short breath.
Turning towards the other woman, Cara frowned a little. "I don't-"
A sudden clash of metal below made both women look over the edge. Moonlight glinted off drawn swords and the red capes of the Blood of the Fold.
"They're in the city already!" Dennee cried, eyes wide.
A roaring battle cry, emanating from troops within and without the city, overwhelmed the empty night air. The Blood of the Fold was attacking Aydindril. And somehow, they were already within its walls.
**
"What's going on?" Jennsen Rahl looked up with fearful eyes as Lunetta Brogan entered her tent.
The general's sister came forward, taking the younger woman's hand and patting it, deep conflict in her expression. "They attacked us. We...we had to fight back. You need to stay here."
Jennsen looked confused, but in her ignorance she trusted Lunetta and nodded. Lunetta stayed by her side, uneasiness in her eyes whenever Jennsen was not looking.
**
"Confessor, we don't have enough forces back here!" the captain of the Home Guard reported to Dennee, fingers itching to get back to the fray. "They were already in place near the Palace, they're attacking right below us. We'll be overwhelmed, and the Confessor's Palace will be taken, before they even breach our walls."
"No!" Dennee snapped at him, waving her hand towards Cara. "You, go with him down to the front line, hold them back."
"But Confessor, it's hopel-" the captain started. Dennee's iron look shut him up quickly, and he nodded and ran back to his men, unsheathing his sword again.
Cara drew her agiels, and gave a smiling grimace as the pain prepared her for battle.
Dennee stepped in front of her first. "Cara." She swallowed, but didn't waste time. "This isn't a death sentence. I can't exactly forgive what you did to me and my son, but it's long gone. I'm sending you there because I know I can trust you to succeed."
Lips pressed in a tight line, Cara nodded. Then, with a flash of teeth, she ran towards the loudest shouting and clashing of steel, calling back over her shoulder. "You won't be wrong, Confessor."
**
"The attack started from within," Dahlia reported, as the night lit up with the sounds and sights of a pitched battle. "But the troops outside are going to break through if they can."
"Trust me, Richard," Nicci said, an almost playful smile on her lips. "I know you have the key to this radahan. Let me save your dearest Kahlan and her people."
Richard's brow furrowed. "How do you know that?"
"Darken Rahl is a sensible man. He shows less confidence when he holds less control. I've noticed a change." The sorceress' eyes glittered. "And you have made it clear how much you desire to be in control of all of us."
Clenching his hands at his sides with a sigh, Richard gave her one last look before letting out a rough breath, pulling the key from his vest and walking over to Nicci. With a click, the collar was in his hand. Dahlia wheeled to keep her eye on the dangerous woman.
Nicci inhaled sharply, her whole form seeming to glow in the sudden return of her Han's powers. She walked to the edge of the trees, black dress melting into the rest of the night. Dahlia seemed on edge, not sure. Richard hoped to the Creator he was right.
Raising her hands to the sky, Nicci gathered the air around her into a swirl of dry leaves and dust that made her hair and the fabric of her dress flap wildly. Round and round she spun the air, and Richard and Dahlia shared a look, both of them unsure of what to expect from this. It was like she was gathering a cyclone to her, except like her it was stationary.
Across the meadow, there was a loud boom as the Blood of the Fold rammed into the main gates of Aydindril. Cries and shouts from inside added to the chaos below, as the massive force began its strike against the heart of the Midlands.
Nicci, hands still raised, was calling out words that Richard and Dahlia couldn't hear. The air spinning around her tall form crackled with magic. Then, in a massive push, she sent it in an enormous wave out towards the city. Richard almost asked in panic what she was doing, afraid it would harm both armies. But he had no need to fear. She was, after all, the strongest sorceress in the world.
Outside the walls, the Blood of the Fold's men all collapsed in heaps, unconscious but looking dead. The Aydindril forces on the outer walls still stood. Nicci also collapsed. Richard ran to her side with the radahan, snapping it once again around her neck as he checked her pulse-weak, but beating.
Inside the city, though, the magical wave had not penetrated the stone. "They're still fighting," Dahlia called. "One of the small gates near the Palace has been broken in, I can see. I need to find Cara."
Richard nodded. "Go! Protect her and Kahlan. I need to guard Nicci."
**
Cara broke a soldier's nose with the heel of her agiel, spinning around to stab another in the gut. She hadn't gotten out of the People's Palace yet; it was where the fighting was most harsh, the Blood of the Fold trying to beat down the Home Guard and break through into the courtyard. Cara had vowed to herself that not a single enemy would even pass the threshold.
Blow after blow rained around her, some from friends, some from foes. Everyone attacked her straight on, her position changing too swiftly for them to do otherwise. Like a red dacra, she flew through the air, taking down enemy after enemy without breaking a sweat. She was Mord'Sith. This was her playground.
"Cara!"
She raised her head as the woman's voice broke through the chaos. It wasn't Dennee, or Kahlan. Gritting her teeth, Cara charged through the Blood of the Fold at the gate, bursting out of the Confessor's Palace at last to stand in the square. To her astonishment, Dahlia was running up. A fleck of blood on her cheek told Cara that her sister of the agiel had seen battle on her way into the city.
"Have they breached the main gates?" Cara demanded, brow furrowing. Questions of 'why are you here?' could wait until the emergency ended.
"They didn't have to, they came through one of the smaller ones just over there," Dahlia said, waving towards the wall not far off. "And Cara, they're infiltrating the back door into the Confessor's Palace-how many guards are inside?"
Cara's heart skipped a beat. How could they get past the magic? Despite the seeming impossibility, she shook her head. It was possible. And worse- "Not enough." She gripped Dahlia's shoulder, glaring into her eyes. "Help them hold this gate! I'm going to Kahlan."
Dahlia didn't say a word, just nodded once and ran to take Cara's place, flailing into the troops of the Blood of the Fold with her screaming agiel.
**
Kahlan sensed something out of place. Her room, safely lodged deep in the Confessor's Palace where it was not vulnerable to shallow attacks, was too silent. Somehow she sensed that it was not peace. Lacing herself back into her Confessor's dress, she frowned, not knowing what was going on.
A door slammed nearby, and her look of displeasure deepened. If there was some kind of conflict, Dennee should have sent for her, not tried to deal with it herself. "Dennee," she growled under her breath as she looked for her daggers. They were not on her nightstand, nor on the table across the room.
Another door opened, but it was much closer. It was the servant's entrance to her room. Suddenly cautious, Kahlan searched for her daggers again. She didn't want to have to use her power if she was infiltrated. She wasn't sure if she wanted to use it ever again.
A slight rustle of movement told her someone was sneaking in. Her candle had burned too low to provide more than a faint hint of light. The shadows were dark, twisting and cowering in every part of her chamber. There was no window. She couldn't see an intruder in the dark.
One hand clenched, and a quick noise behind her made her wheel and turn, arms raised defensively. A meaty hand grabbed an arm and dragged her forward, spinning her around to wrench her arm behind her back. Fear gripped her, but not panic-she stomped back on the intruder's foot, trying to elbow him into letting her go.
"Not so hasty, Mother Confessor," the man sneered, wrenching her arm again, carefully avoiding the reach of her hands. "Now, let's go strip you of this magic you use to enslave."
But before he could say another word, a harsh gurgle escaped his throat. His grip lessened, and he fell away from her. His body crumpled to the floor, blood beginning to pool around it. Shocked, Kahlan turned.
Cara held out her hand, flipping Kahlan's bloody dagger so that the Mother Confessor could grab the hilt. Her eyes were like molten fire, even in near-pitch-darkness.
"Cara," Kahlan breathed. "I could have had him, I could have taken him." It was more a reassurance to herself than anything.
"I doubt it," Cara snapped. "I can guess what happened here. You went first for your daggers, even though the situation was ill-suited to them."
Kahlan stared at her. "I-"
Cara seemed upset about more than just the attack on Kahlan. Before she could say another word, the Mord'Sith was in her personal space, eyes blazing as she nearly spat. "You've actually given these murdering lying bastards the benefit of the doubt. You're the Mother Confessor, and you saw the destruction they wreaked on Ebyssinia, but because of your own fears you decided that maybe their ideas weren't so bad. Well you're wrong. And I think deep down you know it."
"Cara, I-"
Again, Cara cut her off, speaking more words at once than she ever had before. "You are a Confessor, Kahlan. It is who you are. Fools and idiots are not allowed to take your identity from you, any more than you could take my agiels." She shook Kahlan's shoulder. "Your city is under attack. We are all doing what we do best. I hope the Mother Confessor will as well. We need her."
And then in a frustrated movement, Cara was gone, rushing out to combat again. Kahlan looked down at the bloody dagger in her hand. The darkness of her nightmare melted into the rest of the shadows, and her eyes narrowed. Her other dagger rested on the chair that Cara had been standing by. Both weapons in hand, single-mindedness emanated from her as the Mother Confessor followed her Mord'Sith to war.
**
Tobias lay where the magic had knocked him and all of his men senseless. With a jolt he sprang up, awake. Terrified and furious all at once, he looked around at his troops coming to their senses, and then up at the walls.
In the few minutes they'd been unconscious, the battle had turned. The troops of Aydindril knew what they were doing, and drove hard against the Blood of the Fold still within their walls. The main gates were opened, but only so that men could flee, escaping the fierce homeland defense. There was no way the retreating Blood could rally now. Tobias stared for a moment, a rush of humiliation coloring his face.
**
Nicci's eyelids fluttered open. Her head lay on Richard's lap, and for a moment she frowned, not knowing what was going on. But then she felt the radahan, fingers reaching up to touch the silver band about her neck.
"It worked," Richard said.
"Of course it did," Nicci said, annoyed that he would assume otherwise. She pulled herself achingly to a seated position, for the sake of her dignity.
He cocked his head. "I never know if I can trust you, Nicci."
She didn't change her expression, nor remove her gaze from his.
Richard's lips twitched. "I don't know if that's what you wanted or not-I don't know what you really want out of life, Nicci. But you lost all our trust. Except for tonight."
Nicci brushed some blonde hair from her face, voice cool when she spoke. "I would not have survived long in this collar if all of you had been slain while defending Kahlan."
Richard dropped his head, shaking it as his lips curved slightly into a weary smile. "Nicci..."
Her voice became quieter. "Yes, I have my reasons, Richard. Let me have them."
Glancing up, Richard searched her gaze. But then he simply nodded. After everything, he would still give her this privacy. They could not start into the battle now, so Nicci and Richard sat quietly together, looking out into the night as Nicci silently cherished the gift of caring she'd just been given.
**
Standing in the dark on the far side of the city, Berdine finally smirked and looked back at Zedd. "See? Battle is over, nothing unexpected. I told you we wouldn't be needed."
"So you too trust in my little brother and his plans?" Darken's dry voice drifted out.
Berdine straightened. "I did not mean, my lord-"
"I don't want to hear it," Darken said with a weary sigh.
"They were lucky," Zedd rumbled. "If Nicci had not struck then..."
"We wouldn't have been knocked unconscious," Raina said, irritated, tapping one boot on the ground.
Zedd snorted, amused by the Mord'Sith's reaction to such a weak way of being blocked from battle.
Darken merely sighed.
**
"Fall back!" Tobias shouted to his troops, even though they hardly needed the instruction. He waved his arm, angry. "Fall back!"
Horses neighed and wagons rattled as they pulled away from the city. The Aydindril troops were heartened, and after driving the Blood from within their gates they had archers line the outer walls, picking their enemy off as they retreated.
Lunetta ran up to her brother, eyes wide. "Tobias, what happened?"
"We bit off more than we could chew," the general growled, mounting his horse and turning to look back. Troops half-marched, half-ran. Aydindril looked smug, if an inanimate object could, as it lay still well-guarded. "They weren't supposed to have those defenses."
Lunetta reached up and laid her hand on his knee. "The people will understand. We did not attack to harm them, only to remove the Mother Confessor because she would not do what was right."
Tobias hissed, wheeling his horse back around to go after his troops. "And we lost Aydindril. Get in your wagon, Lunetta!" Fuming, he spurred his horse on.
**
"They're leaving," Zedd said, as they descended towards the city. "Retreating with their tails between their legs. I knew Kahlan could hold them off."
"They are not gone yet," Darken said in a low voice. "Quiet, wizard."
"Yes, we won't be safe until we're finally inside," Berdine muttered.
In the dark, Zedd managed a brief fire symbol to the walls, letting the troops know to not fire upon them. The chaos of retreating troops lay only a little ways off, and Zedd crouched as he moved his group along the wall, headed towards the gate where they could enter the city and find shelter.
Zedd saw the flicker of a dress among one of the wagons, and frowned. He didn't think the Blood recruited women into their army. Glancing over, he saw Lunetta and remembered her, and his eyes widened as things started to make sense. Staring at the woman who had toyed with Kahlan's mental defenses, he almost didn't notice the other woman she was helping into the cart.
He did a double-take once he did, catching the glint of red hair in the torchlight from their wagon, and then gasped.
"Jennsen?" Darken whispered, equally surprised.
They stared as Lunetta and Jennsen got into their wagon, and then were gone with the rest of the troops, fading into the night to go somewhere where they could regather and change their plan.
"Let's get inside the city," Raina encouraged, impatient.
"Yes, let's," Zedd said slowly, still staring after his granddaughter and the enemy she traveled with.
**
"Keep a double watch," Cara ordered up to the Home Guard on the wall. It amused her slightly when they agreed as if she was their commander.
The city had suffered only a few damages, overall. Not as many troops were lost as Cara feared, and the men seemed to relish their victory even if it was incomplete. No one would be sleeping tonight, not with excitement still filling the city, making it feel alive.
Dennee walked up to Cara at last, after dealing with other responsibilities. Her face seemed drawn, pensive, but no longer masked. When she looked at Cara, it was not merely for Kahlan's sake that the active hatred was gone.
"Well," Cara said.
"Well," Dennee answered, as if it was a question. "If I learned anything tonight, it's that I can trust Kahlan in your hands, Mord'Sith."
Cara nodded briefly, voice quiet. "You can."
The Confessor shook her head, but then turned it into an answering nod. "And that matters more than our past. As a sister, I have to make that decision."
"I understand." Cara hadn't yet put up her defenses; her voice was simple.
"Cara?"
Both women turned to see Kahlan coming from the palace, dress spattered with blood.
"Kahlan, what happened?" Dennee exclaimed.
The Mother Confessor frowned. "I was fighting, after Cara rescued me. Dennee, Cara..." She moved closer, brushing back her hair and giving them each a chagrined look. "I'm sorry. For what I did to you both. I didn't realize-"
"Say no more," Dennee said with a smile, stepping in to fiercely hug her sister. "Sometimes we lose ourselves in the darkness of our lives. You're not to blame."
Kahlan smiled, holding her tightly before finally pulling back, strength on her face again. "I'm just glad nothing was lost." Her eyes flew to Cara's. "And were it not for you, I might not have found myself until it was too late..."
Cara shrugged.
"No, don't do that," Kahlan protested with a chuckle. "Thank you. Cara." Her smile, the particular smile that she gave to Cara alone, filled the cool night with warmth.
"Mother Confessor, allies approaching," called the captain of the Home Guard.
All three turned, confused until Kahlan saw Zedd. "What are you doing here?" she asked in astonishment.
The wizard came up and embraced her. "I'm glad you're safe, Kahlan. When we saw that the Blood of the Fold was coming here, we feared you would have been caught off guard."
Cara and Dennee couldn't help but share a look.
"Now we've defeated them in a way, what should we do, Zedd?" Kahlan asked, brow furrowed.
Richard and Nicci came in just after Zedd and the others. Kahlan barely looked his way before returning her eyes to Zedd, waiting for an answer. The Seeker had been about to run forward and hug her-instead, at such a reception, he stopped with an unsure expression. Dahlia glanced over her shoulder and nodded to him. There was no surprise on her face.
"Have the Midlands take them down," Darken said, waving one hand.
Kahlan glared at him.
"We can't," Cara said. When everyone looked at her, she pressed her lips together. "I'm not insulting your troops, Kahlan...I'm just saying, the Blood of the Fold are zealots. They don't win with armies, they win with opinions.
"It's true," Richard said, finally pushing his own insecurities behind duty as he stepped forward. "They just need to stay alive for long enough, and they think the people will join their cause. It's possible."
Darken grimaced. "They won't do nothing while they wait."
"He's right," Cara said. "No army, even an army of idiot idealists, will just stay idle."
"They'll go after more magical beings like us," Dennee said quietly, eyes on Kahlan. "There's so many in the Midlands alone..."
Zedd nodded slowly, arms over his chest. "This is a war they're waging, but not against any one nation. They're waging it against magic. We need to gather our troops-not soldiers, but all those beings who the Blood will attack. Wizards, witches, sorceresses, night wisps..."
Kahlan stood like iron, looking as if she'd never been anything but that. Her eyes turned to Cara, but she was speaking to them all. "We've been defensive and passive for too long. Now is the time to make some first steps of our own."
Zedd nodded, before a dark frown wrinkled his face further. "And I think first, we need to get to Shota."
A wave of uneasiness passed through them all. With how unpredictable she could be, no one wanted to see the witch-woman again. And yet...their lives had never been about what they wanted. They all prepared themselves for the next step in their quest.
**
TO BE CONTINUED ... on June 4th!
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Thank you all for your patience. :)