"Mistress Denna." "General Nass." "I wish I could say this was a pleasure." "The Seeker has been tracking me, trying to get his hands on the Box of Orden." "He must be stopped." "You command an entire legion, general." "Surely you can kill one man." "I have received new orders." "You are to capture the Seeker." "And train him." "I thought Lord Rahl wanted the Seeker dead." "Lord Rahl's plans have changed." "Wait." " We're being followed." " Are you sure?" "Zedd!" "You can't help him." "Or yourself." "Oh." "Why?" "Kahlan?" "Kahlan, wake up." "Shh, shh, shh." "It's okay." "It was just a dream." "Everything's fine." "It was just a dream." "It's okay." "I killed you." "Good thing it was just a dream." "What if it wasn't?" "What are you talking about?" "What else could it be?" "A premonition." " You're not going to kill me." " But the Prophecy..." " Shota said I would betray you." " You know what Zedd thinks of her." "We can't trust anything she says." "She's a witch." "A very powerful witch." "One who knows what's written on the halls of Prophecy:" ""The one in white will betray the Seeker. "" "Oh, Kahlan, you could never do anything to betray me, ever." "It goes against everything you believe in." "I'm a danger to you." "Kahlan, I know we haven't known each other long, but in my whole life, there's no one that I've trusted more," "cared about more." "Kahlan, I..." "You what?" " This isn't right." " Why not?" "You don't understand." "You're right, I don't." "This?" "This can never be." "There are two roads to Briamont." "I think we should approach from the south." "I'm not coming with you." "What are you talking about?" "It's too dangerous for me to be near Richard." "Is this because of what that she-devil Shota told you about some supposed Prophecy?" "I know you think Prophecy can be averted." "You tried to do it when you took Richard into Hartland." "But it didn't work, did it?" "Forget what I believe." "You can't abandon Richard." "I'm not abandoning him, I'm protecting him." "From what, exactly?" "You were right." "I do have feelings for him." "Last night, I..." "I almost lost control of those feelings." "If I hadn't stopped myself," "Richard would've been lost forever, and the Prophecy would've been fulfilled." "But you did stop yourself." "Maybe next time I won't be able to." "Oh, Kahlan, you're stronger than that." "You'd never let that happen." "Not on purpose, no." "But how am I to know how the Prophecy will come to pass?" "I could betray him because of a spell or a trick." "All I know is the Prophecy cannot be avoided." "All I know is that the Seeker needs his Confessor." "I've thought of that." "Most Confessors have gone into hiding since Rahl's been hunting us." "A Confessor I know has taken refuge in a settlement a couple days from here." " You took an oath." "I know." "But there are other ways that I can help Richard." "I'm not giving up on him or his mission, but I can't stay by his side." "Your feelings for Richard are what make you afraid, child." "And I can't imagine how hard it must be never to have what ordinary young people have, but Richard is strong too." "And if you tell him the truth, he'll understand." "And you'll find a way through this maze, together." "I know Richard." "If he knows how I feel about him, he won't let it go." "He'll follow me, try to convince me that there's a future for us," "but there isn't." "That's why he can never know how I feel about him." "Promise me, Zedd." "What's going on?" "You can't go." "I need you." " Zedd needs you." " Every minute I stay, I'm a danger to you." "I'd be dead right now if it weren't for you." "You may be dead soon, or worse, if I stay." "Worse than dead?" "What are you talking about?" "This has something to do with what happened last night." "No." "Confessors may be good at reading people, but you're not good at lying." "Kahlan, I'm sorry I kissed you." "I won't do it again if it upset you, but you kissed me back." "That was a mistake." "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't have the same feelings for me that I have for you." "I don't have any feelings for you." "And I never will." "How could you just let her go?" "What would you have me do?" "Spin a wizard's web around her?" "You could've at least taken my side." "There's something you're not telling me." "Lesson 18, Seeker:" "Keep to the path ahead, not the road behind." "Richard, behind you!" "Mord-Sith." "Richard, we can't fight them." "We have to leave now!" "Don't use the Sword!" "Richard, no!" "Get the old man." "We've lost the Wizard." "We have what we came for." "You may call me Mistress Denna." "Are you tired?" "Tell me where my friend is." "When you're asked a question, you'll answer." "Are you tired?" "Would you like to sleep?" "I'm not even gonna close my eyes till I get out of this place." "Then you'll be a very weary boy, because what I have planned is going to make you beg me for the respite of a warm bed." "Tell me where my friend is." "The Wizard is dead." "I killed him myself." "You're lying." "You've never encountered a Mord-Sith before, have you?" "We can capture and control any form of magic that's directed at us." "That's why your friend tried to warn you not to use your Sword." "I turned its power against you, and then I burned your friend to the ground with his own Wizard's Fire." "Does it upset you to learn this?" "Not really." "The old man was getting on my nerves anyway." "Now who's the liar?" "Those belonged to the other men I've trained." "Ooh, It's an honor to add the Sword of Truth to my collection." "I wouldn't grow too fond of it if I were you." "It's just that sort of rebellious attitude that's made you something of a problem for Lord Rahl." "Rahl's days are numbered." "He was going to kill you, but now, in his wisdom, he sees that this would only make you a martyr." "Perhaps turn even more people to your misguided cause." "So instead, he's given me the honor of training you." "No one's gonna train me." "Did you not feel my Agiel?" "The harder you fight, the more painful its magic will become." "And after I've finished training you with it, you'll do anything to please me." "Anything." "And nothing will please me more than to see the Seeker stand at the gates of the People's Palace, and there, before the multitudes, take the hand of Lord Rahl and pledge his undying love and fealty to him." "No." "I'm going to take that Sword, and I'm going to kill him with it." "After I kill you." "I do enjoy a challenge." "Shall we begin?" "What is your business here?" "I'm looking for a friend." "She lives in the village." "This friend, who is she?" "My friend is very fond of white roses." "You're a friend of Lara's." "Welcome." "It's an honor to be asked, but I don't know if I'm ready to be Confessor to the Seeker." "I have faith in you, Lara." "You can do this." "I've made so many friends here." "The villagers, the past few years, they've..." "They've come to depend on me to guide them in their affairs, keep order." "I will give them whatever help they need." "Then I would be honored to serve the Seeker." "Oh, thank you." "Oh." "No." "Saved some rainwater." "Thank you." " I'm Benedict." " Richard." "Why are they keeping you prisoner?" "My daughter." "I was asleep in my bed when those D'Haran animals broke in." "They took me and my youngest, Mariel." "She's only 8." "She's here?" "Oh, she's in another temple." "She's undergoing the Trials." "If she lives through them, they'll turn her into a Mord-Sith." "But she's only a child." "That's how they create these monsters." "They kidnap young girls from their families, punish them mercilessly until there's not a shred of kindness left in them." "Then they teach them dark magic and how to use it to torture, in the service of Darken Rahl." "My daughter's final test will be to kill me." "To prove she's one of them." "Well, maybe we both can't escape." "But if I can keep them busy, you might have a chance." "You don't even know me." "Why would you do this?" "Why did you give me your water when you had so little?" "I know how difficult this is." "It's not easy for me, either." "I consider all of you family." "But the Seeker needs my help." "Kahlan has come to take care of you." "You will all honor and obey her as if she were me." "We will do as you say, My Lady." "Why are these people kneeling before you?" "You must tell the truth, Lara." "Have you used your power to Confess them?" "Yes." "I have Confessed them all." "You've turned these people into your slaves." "And commanded them to ignore their fears." "Kahlan, they drove the D'Harans out of the village." "I gave them a purpose, strength to defend their homes, rebuild their lives." "And become your obedient servants." "I didn't do this for myself." "I did this to help them." "Are you sure?" "No part of you enjoys making these people worship you?" "Do anything that you ask?" "This man, Raph, have you taken him as your lover?" " And how many have you Confessed?" " That is different." "I've Confessed enemies in battle, to protect the Seeker and his mission." "And only when it was absolutely necessary." "Who are you to tell me what I did wasn't necessary?" "I did what I thought was right." "These people are safe now." "They're happy." "Kahlan!" " Zedd!" " Lara!" "It's all right." "He's a friend." "What is it?" "What happened?" "Richard's been captured by the Mord-Sith." "Get up!" "Run!" "Go!" "What are you waiting for?" "Mistress." "You didn't really think Benedict would leave us, did you?" "We're practically family." "I would never betray you, mistress." "I told him everything you said I should." "So everything you told me about your daughter was a lie?" "Oh, no." "That's all true." "But now after being here with us these past few months," "Benedict realizes what an honor it is to have his daughter chosen to be Mord-Sith." " Don't you, Benedict?" " Yes, mistress." "You planned this?" "Why?" "To show you the futility of trying to resist me." "You surprise me, Seeker." "You could have run, might have even made it to the main gate." "But you gave up your one chance at freedom, all for a child you'd never met." " Why?" " To keep her from becoming like you." "Mord-Sith will torture him within an inch of his life." "And when they're done, he'll do whatever they command:" "lie, murder." "They could turn him into a pawn of Darken Rahl." "Richard will resist." "He'll fight the pain, yes, but the magic of their Agiels can break any man." "Not even Richard can hold out against them for long." "I couldn't even try to defend him." "They would've taken my powers and turned them against me." "And without my magic, I'm just an old man in a robe." "There must be a way to save him." "I followed the Mord-Sith back to their temple." "There are dozens of D'Haran guards." "We don't have the men to overwhelm their defenses." " I can get you the men." "No." " Absolutely not." " What do you mean, no?" "She's Confessed everyone in the village." "What?" "You heard what the Mord-Sith will do to the Seeker." " We'll save him some other way." " What other way is there?" "You asked me to take up your mission to protect the Seeker." " That's what I'm offering to do." " You're offering." "Not the people you'd be ordering into battle." "They'd have no choice." "If we have any chance of saving Richard, we have to go now." "I know what you're doing." "Trying to use your mind to escape." "Everybody tries it, but it won't work, because even your thoughts belong to me." "Can you tell what I'm thinking now?" "If I touch you here with the Agiel, your heart will stop." "Now tell me, who were you with?" "Rahl wants me alive." "You said so yourself." "If you kill me, imagine what he'd do to you." "It's called the Breath of Life." "It's used to revive those who die during training." "I was dead?" "For a few minutes." "You were nearly a permanent resident of the underworld." "Now you know not even death will end your torture." "The Agiel is so much more than a weapon." "When I stopped your heart with it, it left a part of me here." "Our hearts, our minds are becoming one." "Soon your only thought will be," ""How can I please my mistress?"" "Then everything will be so much easier for you." "I won't have to hurt you anymore." "Would you like that?" "But first, you have to tell me, who were you thinking of?" "Her name is Kahlan." "Kahlan Amnell." "You're in love with her." "Has she Confessed you?" "Is that why you love her?" "No." "Kahlan would never do anything to hurt me." "And she would never need magic to make me love her." "She didn't tell you." "Tell me what?" "If you and Kahlan were to be together, even once, her power would be unleashed." "It would overwhelm you and destroy your soul." "You would be her slave forever." "That's not true." "You never wondered why she didn't return your feelings?" "A noble, brave young man like the Seeker, so pleasing to the eye of any woman?" "This isn't right." "This can never be." "I can't believe your Wizard friend never warned you." "None of that, boy." "It can never be." "Not with her." "Her..." "Her..." "I don't wanna see you suffer anymore." "I have other duties to attend today, so Constance will be training you." "And she's very brutal." "So I want you to create a refuge in your mind, as you did before." "But you told me not to think of Kahlan." "I want you to think of me." "Richard." "I did what you told me." "I wasn't with her." "I was with you." "You did well." "But there's still a part of you that's defiant." "You're thinking if you grab my Agiel, you might be able to fight your way out." " No." " Go ahead." "Pick it up." "After withstanding so much," "I won't deny you the chance." "I just wanted you to understand that an Agiel causes constant pain to anyone who it touches, even the person who wields it." "Well, if it hurts you..." "I'm sorry." "Don't be." "Pain is the one experience common to every living thing." "It unites us." "Mord-Sith are taught to use pain, to channel it, control it, just as you are learning." "The Mord-Sith and the D'Harans are fearsome, but their swords and dark magic cannot break the love that bonds us." "The battle tonight will be ours." " We will free the Seeker." "Yes." "We will do as you bid, My Lady." "Yes." "I can't let these people be slaughtered." "They'll fight without fear." "The advantage is ours." "You're ordering them into battle against trained D'Haran soldiers and Mord-Sith." "Just because they have no fear doesn't mean they won't be outmatched and killed." "And when that happens, any hope of saving Richard dies with them." "How else do we get Richard out?" "If I can find a way to talk to Richard, get through to him, remind him that he's the Seeker, maybe he and I can find a way out together." "And what if he's already broken?" "Maybe I can get close enough to kill the Mord-Sith who's been training him, break her hold over him." "One hour." "That's all I ask." "If I don't come back by then..." "Oh." "May the Spirits protect you, child." "Mistress Denna, would you allow Constance to train me tomorrow?" "Why are you asking for Constance?" "You prefer her touch to mine?" "Obviously I've been too easy on you!" "Why do you ask for her?" "Answer me." "Because it hurts you to use the Agiel." "I don't want you to suffer any more because of me." "I've never known anyone like you, Seeker." "There's someone at the main gate." "Send them away!" "It's a Confessor." "You must be Kahlan." "Richard's told me all about you." "Apparently, he was in love with you." "But not anymore." "I can see why." "You're not quite as impressive as I'd imagined." "I have a hundred men in the hills ready for battle." "They're preparing to strike this temple." "My scouts tell me that there are only two dozen men in the hills." "And they're not fighters, they're common villagers." "They're not common at all." "Every one of them has been Confessed." "They'll fight to the death to save the Seeker." "If they attack, many will die." "Maybe even you." "I want to avoid bloodshed." "I know how powerful you are." "All I ask is to talk to the Seeker alone." "To say goodbye." "My scouts also observed another Confessor on the hill." "And from what Richard has told me about you, you would never use your power to enslave innocent villagers." "It must have been the other Confessor." "So all I need to do is kill her, and the spell on her followers would be broken." "You made a wise choice, Richard." "I'm very proud of you." "Richard." "Kahlan." "I'm sorry." "I didn't want to hurt you, but Denna's archers would have killed you." "We have to get you out of here." "I don't know if I can leave." "I'm losing myself to Denna." "I tried to fight, but her magic is too strong." "Most of the time, I can't even think." "I do anything she asks me to." "Richard, you can resist her." "She's going to make me stand with Rahl and swear allegiance to him." " You'd never do that." " I might do worse." "I can't defy her, especially when she's near me with her Agiel." "Kahlan, if she orders me to kill you," "I might not be able to stop myself." "I know you." "You're strong enough." " There might be a way." " Tell me." "Confess me." " Richard, I can't Confess you." " You have to." "I'd be destroying everything that you are." "Denna's already doing that." "If you Confess me, I can fight her." "I'd rather be your slave than hers." "You can fight her without magic." "Look inside yourself." "I have." "But when I do, I don't see myself anymore." "I only see her." " Richard!" " Please!" " No!" "No!" " You have to!" "No!" "Shota was right." "You have betrayed me." "I betrayed you by leaving." "If I'd have stayed with you, none of this would've happened." " How much longer?" " Patience." "We gave Kahlan what she asked for." "It's been an hour." "She's not coming back." "I want you to take your men to the left." "No!" "After them!" "My Lady, don't be afraid." "Let's get out of here!" "Run!" "Run!" "Hey, wait." "Wait." "Where are you going?" "The Seeker still needs our help!" "The Confessor is dead." "Her poor slaves have been freed from bondage." "There's nobody left to fight for you." "Before you're executed, you'll be trained by me." "Rest assured, your training will be slow and agonizing." "Of course, Richard can save you this torment by granting you a merciful death, and proving to me, once and for all, that his training is complete." "Kill her." "Do it now." "Do it now." " Kill her." "Richard, this isn't you." " I can't." " Then watch her suffer." "End her pain, Richard." "Denna." "Uh..." "How did you...?" "You taught me how to withstand pain." "We need to get you out of here." "Richard, there's something that I need to tell you." "Denna told me." "Is it true?" "Do you know what it was like hearing it from her?" "Why didn't you tell me?" "I was afraid that if I told you the truth, you'd become scared of me." "Your feelings would change." "Well, why would you care if my feelings changed?" "You told me you didn't share them." "Well, like you said," "I'm not a very good liar." "So now what?" "I'm not sure." "But I do know" "I'm not leaving your side again." "What about the Prophecy?" "I can't think of any worse betrayal than leaving you." "Maybe the Prophecy's been fulfilled." "But Richard, your mission is far more important than any feelings we may have." "That's why we..." "We can never act on them." "We can never let our guard down." "We have to bury them." "Can you do that?" "Well, if there's one thing I learned from Denna, it's how to suffer in silence." "Mistress."