Years Ago

As Darken Rahl requested, I had been eating inside the palace for a few days. I never felt like going back to the cave immediately after eating, so I took full advantage of my ability to wander around freely. I've always been a tad on the morbid side, so on the particular evening in question I decided to take a stroll through the catacombs.

For some bizarre reason, I felt…psychologically disturbed in the Rahl catacombs. I had a notion that, somewhere down the line, there was a mass-murderer Rahl with split personalities. It wouldn't have surprised me in the slightest. For the most part, the place was devoid of any living being except me. That is, until I came to one particular tomb. The engraving upon the archway read "Panis Rahl."

Darken Rahl's father.

Inside the tomb, there stood a man. He was wearing a dark green cloak. It was hooded; I couldn't see his face. Upon hearing my footsteps, he turned to face me. In a quiet voice, he asked, "Airmid Foxglove!?!"

I cocked my head. "No; she was my mother."

He nodded in comprehension. "Ember Sardonyx. So you come to aid Darken Rahl?"

"Yes, I do." I raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?"

He didn't answer me. Instead, he ran his hand lightly across the edge of the coffin.

"There was a prophecy," he began, slightly scratching at a crevice on the coffin, "that Panis Rahl would conceive a second son. This one would destroy the first…Darken Rahl."

I took a step further into the room. "I know of this prophecy."

His shadowed visage turned to me. "Do you know what came of it?"

"All I've heard are rumors," I whispered. I knew the rumors were true, however; Zedd had informed me of that.

"Allow me to tell you. Panis Rahl saw the evil tendencies of his eldest son, and opted to ensure the prophecy came true. Using his magic, he disguised himself as a young man and courted the daughter of Zeddicus Zu'l Zorander, the powerful wizard. They bore a son together." He looked at the ground. "In a fateful moment of foolishness, he boasted the birth of the prophesized son to Darken Rahl. In sheer fury, Darken Rahl killed his father."

We were both silent, for an almost uncomfortable amount of time.

"This casket is empty."

That had me confused. "Pardon?"

He nodded. "A Mord-Sith used her breath-of-life to resurrect him. He fled, and no one has heard of him since."

I smiled knowingly. "Until now, Panis Rahl."

He chuckled. "You're just like your mother; you can see right through people."

I sighed forlornly. "I'm not so sure about that…if Darken Rahl is deceiving me, luring me into a false sense of trust, then he's doing a damn good job."

He touched my arm. "He's not, Ember. Believe me; I should know. He respects and trusts you on account of your ancestry; we were both close with both of your parents. I only saw you but once, when you were only a baby…your mother told me you were usually with your grandparents, as far away from D'Hara as possible."

I looked down. "She didn't want me to get tangled up in a family affair of good versus evil…yet, here I am."

"Ironic, huh? Stuck between Darken Rahl and Richard Rahl—I mean, Cypher."

I looked at where his eyes most likely were. "It's not easy, Panis."

He exhaled slowly. "I know. It wasn't exactly easy to decide whether or not to go out and fulfill the prophecy, either. But I fear I must leave; I've spent too much time here already. Farewell, Ember Sardonyx."

"Farewell, Panis Rahl," I replied, turning to leave.

"Oh, and Ember?"

I pivoted rapidly. "Yes?"

I'm pretty sure, through the shadow of his hood, I made out a wink and a smile.

"He's falling for you, however out of character it may be."

And with that, he vanished.

THE END.