Ok… seriously… did anyone else thing Rahl was TOTALLY OOC in the season finale? Really pissed me off…

Anyway, this story will continue to take place shortly after "Bloodline."

-----

Kahlan and Zedd watched from a short distance away. The Commander and several of his confessed troops walked along the main road towards the People's Palace. Richard walked behind the general, his arms and upper body bound tightly. In order to convince Rahl that the seeker truly had been captured, the general would have to bind him as tightly as he would any other prisoner.

As they neared the People' Palace, Richard began to struggle. The general caught on to the ploy and returned Richard's struggling with jerks on the chains that bound him. Richard stopped his struggling to look at the scene in front of him. The palace rested on the side of a cliff. It was surrounded on all sides by trees. There was only one opening that Richard could see. Within this opening, there we upwards of thirty guards. Several of the people standing at the entrance to the palace appeared to be Mord-Sith, Rahl's personal bodyguards. Although Richard's experience as the prisoner of Denna, a Mord-Sith, had taught him to handle his pain, Richard didn't like the idea of being reminded of that lesson.

The palace appeared larger and larger as they got closer. New spires and pinnacles appeared on every side. Richard was too caught up in the glorious palace to notice the crowd at the gates part. Four people stepped to the front of the row of guards. Two additional Mord-Sith, Rahl's head general, Agramon, and Lord Darken Rahl himself.

Rahl watched as the small garrison stepped onto the grounds of the palace.

"Welcome. I see that the rumors are true. You have indeed captured the seeker. Now, do you expect me to believe that you have done this without Kahlin's power of confession?" Rahl said with a grin.

Richard's mouth fell slightly open. Rahl had figured them out before they had even gotten to the palace. Apparently he had underestimated Darken Rahl's intelligence. Richard's mind raced as he tried to come up with a solution to his predicament.

"Kill the garrison. Agramon, take the seeker to the dungeon," Rahl ordered as he turned and headed back into his palace.

Richard watched as Rahl disappeared into the castle along with two of the Mord-Sith. He struggled to get free as the guards slaughtered all the men in the garrison, even the few who had not been confessed. Agramon had taken the chains that bound Richard. Although he was much older than most of the men Rahl kept in his employment, he was deceptively strong.

After struggling for a short while, Richard tried to attack Agramon in order to free himself. With his hands bound behind his back, the best he could do was to use his legs. Agramon saw him coming. With one quick hand to the back of the neck, Richard was on the ground, passed out.

-----

Richard opened his eyes slowly. There was not much more than a few dim candles so it took little time for his tired eyes to adjust. It quickly became painfully clear where he was. The dungeon was obviously under ground. Water leaked from cracks in the mortar. It was not enough to drink but Richard tried nonetheless. He had no idea how long he had been passed out but he knew how hungry and thirsty he was. The cold, wet rock felt good on his tongue but did little to quench his thirst.

After attempting to make himself more comfortable, Richard turned around to take a look at his surroundings. The rock was bare except for a few patches of moss. The few dim candles were in the hallway rather than his cell. His hands were still bound but they were now more loosely bound and in front of him. The chains were attached to a large rock in the center of the room. This was quite discouraging. He would have to get a guard to come close enough before he could try anything. Richard sighed as he leaned against the damp wall and began to think about how he was going to get out of his current situation.

-----

Kahlin watched as an older man, obviously one of Rahl's highest ranking men, took hold of the chains that bound Richard. She had worried about this for days. She knew it was too risky to send the seeker into Rahl's grasp as a prisoner. She knew Rahl was a smart man. She should have known that Rahl would figure out what they were trying to do.

"What now?" Kahlin said softly, staring blankly at the slaughter going on in front of them.

Zedd signed heavily, "I don't know. We're going to have to let Richard get himself out of this one alone. Maybe he'll get lucky."

"There isn't anything we can do to help?" Kahlin pleaded, turning to Zedd, trying desperately to hold back a tear.

Zedd sat down on the grass, "Not that I know of. I'm sorry Kahlin. Even a confessor and a Wizard of the First Order are powerless against Rahl's defenses. "

-----

"What would you like us to do with the seeker, my Lord," Cara, one of Rahl's Mord-Siths, asked.

"I will deal with him myself. For now, leave him in the dungeon. I want him starving and dehydrated before I begin training him," Rahl replied as he stared out a nearby window.

"You are going to train him yourself my Lord?"

Rahl turned to face Cara, "I want it to be painfully clear who won this battle. Now, go tell your sisters of the agiel to continue working with the new girls. We are not making enough progress with the older ones."

"Yes my Lord," Cara replied, "But that young one. She is doing very well. She should be ready within a few days for the second breaking."

"Yes," Rahl replied as he turned back towards the window, "Yes she will. Has her mother finished training?"

"Not yet my Lord. We are very close though. The mother should be ready in time. Have you decided who will be killing her?" Cara said, a bit of anticipation and excitement in her voice, hoping Rahl had chosen her.

"I will take care of the mother myself," Rahl said, touching the hilt of the dagger on his belt.

"Yes my Lord," Cara said sofly, a bit disappointed, "We will have her ready for you."

Cara left the room disappointed but excited. It was always enjoyable to watch Rahl torture someone. He rarely took such a hands on approach to training the new Mord-Siths. Something about this girl had apparently captured his attention.

But there was also the young woman, Jeneva. Cara had never seen Rahl take such an interest in someone so useless unless he was planning to bed her. As far as she could tell, however, Rahl hadn't laid a hand on this woman. Cara entered the dungeon where the girls were kept as she muttered to herself, "What is he planning?"

-----

Ok, there you go. I hope I will be able to keep writing this. I'm still so furious about the season finale. I really wish I could un-watch it. *sigh* Oh well.

Let me know what you think! Your reviews keep me going with this project!