This is the second part of the finale. Things are heating up quickly. You´ll find the last part tomorrow...
Oh, I´ll properly tell you tomorrow, but: thank you all for the kind words I received on this work. You wouldn´t believe as how much your comments were always spurring me on!
Warning: You know me, but I need to remind you: I love my angsty angst! Oh, and - character´s death...
Welcome to "The Long Broken Chains Weekend!
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When Rahl entered the dining hall, followed by his Mord Sith, Dennee had already taken place at the head end of the table. Behind her he acknowledged four men of the home guards, though, looking more attentively, he easily counted more standing in the shadows along the walls, watching over the scene silently. Rahl had no doubt that some of them, if not all, were confessed and ready to fight to their deaths if only the Confessor gave a wink. He raised a brow in smug amusement and shortly lifted his hand. Immediately the women in red leather came to halt, the last ones inconspicuously retreating a bit and quickly melting into the shadows of the marble pillars, too.
In front of the table a few men were kneeling, their heads low, their gazes shifted to the floor and... what was that? Were they... crying?
A little bewildered Rahl seeked for Dennee´s gaze and found the Confessor staring at him with features chiseled into polished ice, her eyes flashing indignantly.
"This! Is entirely your fault, Rahl!"
Raising his hands in pretended innocence he smirked. "Why, I swear, I didn´t touch them!" Taking a closer look he recognized the men. They were the confessed soldiers Dennee had sent to Comorra in order to guarantee Cara´s return to Aydindril. Obviously they had reported their failing, devastated that they hadn´t been able to fulfill their Mistress 'command.
Approaching, Rahl showed an amused grin. "Would you please explain yourself, Dennee?" His voice was close to purring.
While Dennee stood, Richard rushed eagerly to her side, hoping for a sign that his service was needed. Rahl raised a brow as he watched his brother. .
"We had a deal, Rahl. How dare you showing up without my prize?"
In that moment the door opened and a few guards led the Mother Confessor and the sorceress in. Hearing her last words, Kahlan´s eyes shot instantly to her sister; frowning as she felt tension sickening the air. Reluctantly she followed Nicci to Rahl´s side.
The fact that Rahl ignored their entrance did little to calm her frayed nerves. Apparently Dennee hadn´t told him of her charade. Yet. But the gnawing feeling, that Dennee was unpredictable, still caused her stomach to clench nervously.
Back in her rooms she had spent the time pacing, trying to claim control on her troubled mind. Nicci had watched her, patiently listening to all her spoken out thoughts of self-reproaches and worries. Until Kahlan had slumped into her chair at the fireside und silenced. Staring into the flames, her face painted by exhaustion and deep concern. Finally she had hid behind her palms and whispered desperately: "Spirits, please! I just pray that Cara is alright…"
Nicci sighed.
"She is Mord Sith!" as if that was reason enough to calm Kahlan´s worries.
The brunette had looked at her. Her eyes shimmering with tears she didn´t allow. Her hair swaying slightly as she shook her head.
"I had no right to send her here… She is alone and surrounded by furtiveness! She risks her life! For me! What if she wasn´t able to convince them to follow her? …If Dennee gets her… she will not hesitate to confess her!"
Her gaze had gone lost in the flames. "I will die along with her if that happens…" Her lips pressed into a thin line she had fallen silent. There was nothing more to say.
Nicci´s eyes narrowed.
"Enough, Kahlan! Pull yourself together! There is no sense in dying before we even know what happened to them. Cara is not alone after all. Jona is with her. And as far as I know her, your Mord Sith is probably swaying her hips in front of some home guards right now, leading them to fight for you!" She leaned in and put a hand on the Confessor´s cheek, forcing her eyes to meet her own fierce glance.
"Your sister isn´t the one you remember, Kahlan! I´ve been close to the Keeper for a long time. I know what the Underworld does to formerly innocent souls. You´ve lost her! Long ago. Try to accept it.
But for you, as for the Midlands, it´s not yet over. You WILL destroy that bracelet, you WILL bring him down! So don´t you dare giving up now." Her hand had settled on Kahlan´s arm, pressing tightly, and her gaze had held a burning passion, that didn´t allow Kahlan to just resign. The Confessor had looked into her eyes, almost thankful for the arshness od her words, feeling her strength slowly wrapping around her own mind, until she felt strong enough to claim some of Nicci´s passion for herself and finally she had nodded.
"You are right. My sister isn´t any more. I need to let her go…"
... Though, entering the dining hall and seeing Dennee, she instantly knew she couldn´t…
Dennee had no eyes for them. Her icy glare still bored holes into Rahl who apparently kept completely unimpressed.
"Mistress?" With a whine one of the men lifted his head, tears running down his cheeks.
Dennee stared at him disgustedly. Her voice sounded like a hissing snake.
"I told you you´ll stand with your life… You failed! Now follow my order."
Assuaged, the man smiled, as did his companions. And without a sound their bodies went limp, life drawn out of them by an invisible power.
Kahlan winced.
Rahl still watched untouched, only his eyebrow twitched mockingly as he shifted his gaze to Dennee.
"Are you questioning my honor, Confessor? I said you´ll get your revenge on Cara. I do not remember promising I´d drag her here personally."
"Which means?"
"That there is no reason to worry. I will give you what you crave for."
A frown blossomed on Dennee´s face. Her face hard, her chin pushed forward, she demanded answers.
"So, where is she? You´ve had her already chained! But my men reported she escaped from the dungeons…"
Rahl smiled leniently.
"Well, I think we have some more things to discuss first… Take a seat and let´s have dinner."
A growl erupted from the Confessor.
"I´m not in the mood to play your games, Rahl. Do I have to remind you that you are guest in my house? My hospitality might be easily pushed to its boundaries." Her eyes never leaving his she twitched her hand briefly. Richard straightened and gripped the Sword of Truth. Its steely ringing, his cold gaze, directed at Rahl as he pulled it halfway out of its sheath, as much as the muffled sound as the home guards straightened as one, made the air suddenly brim with threat. The Mord Sith instantly pulled their agiels, their low whining adding to the already charged atmosphere.
For a very long heartbeat Rahl and Dennee stared at each other while their open hostility made the air sizzle around them, none of them willing to break their stand.
Kahlan stood with gritted teeth; unable to do something against the shiver running down her spine she held her breath, feeling trepidation choking her up, making it difficult to inhale. She almost expected them to start bloodshed at any moment. But finally Rahl let his shoulders relax and shook his head towards the Mord Sith, who reluctantly sheathed their weapons; though their tense muscles kept ready to go into action, their eyes kept narrowed, flickering between Dennee, Richard and the home guards.
"Ah, Confessor! Why so distrusting? I assure you, your... prize...awaits you.
You shouldn´t think that little of me, you know? See, Cara hasn´t just escaped then. I allowed her to escape. And in close company of one of my Mord Sith even..."
Kahlan blanched as she felt the little hairs on her neck raised in a sudden icy chill. Her hand on Nicci´s arm squeezed tightly, while the blonde sorceress furrowed her brows at his studied casualness.
"Since you told me of that odd little relationship between your sister and my Mord Sith… I watched them closely in the dungeons of Comorra, and witnessed their perverse affection… and I decided to not put a leash on my lapdog, but let her walk herself to Aydindril. It was obvious that she was going to reappear as soon as her Confessor arrived. I´d easily collect her here without dealing with her annoying resistance on our way. And," his priggish smile now reappeared on his very smug face. "…what shall I say? It worked as I planned."
Nicci could feel Kahlan´s hand tremble on her arm and tried to give her an admonishing glare without drawing Rahl´s attention. For a moment she was startled by the look on Kahlan´s face, though. The Mother Confessor was close to lose control, her eyes wide and shimmering, her lips parted and her breathing heavy ; she was the very picture of someone loosening the ground beneath her feet.
Rahl, however, just nodded to his closest Mord Sith, who instantly turned and walked to the entrance, opening the door and calling someone in.
Just a moment later Nicci heard a low, deep, hag-ridden moan that fell from Kahlan´s lips as Jona entered the hall, a triumphant smirk on her lips; dragging a chained and collared blonde behind her...
"Cara..." Her voice was nothing but a barely audible whisper of despair. Kahlan felt close to break down. She didn´t bother the open gloat on Rahl´s face as he watched the blonde. She didn´t notice how Dennee´s features suddenly started gleaming in greedy anticipation, her face literally contorting into a mask of feverish, sadistic lust. All she saw was the blonde Mord Sith, bleeding from her temple, collared and beaten; her hands bound with rough ropes, stumbling into sight with the savage expression of a caged lioness.
"We found her close to the Mother Confessor´s chambers, as I assumed. Angry and defiant as always. She hasn´t lost a bit of her crabbiness. Two of my best Mord Sith have died in attempt to chain her." He turned to face Nicci as he continued with something in his voice, a peculiar sing sang, that twitted the sorceress and her assumed friendship with the brown-haired girl.
"Though dear Jona here was able to take her by surprise; oh yes, I was right! She has weakened; in former times she would have never considered one of her sisters a trusted friend... Well, isn´t it funny, that now, that she´s started to trust, it´s the first time that she´s truly betrayed?..." He smirked at Nicci, whose face was set in stone, only her eyes delivering what she felt in this moment; eyes that said – I should have known better than to ever trust you... – as they settled on Jona with bitter disgust.
"To her knees!"
Jona wrenched at the chain while the Mord Sith at her side kicked the blonde into the hollows of her knees. She fell down with a groan, her eyes flashing fire, her bound hands instinctively darting to her side, seeking for her agiels; only to find the sheathes empty.
Kahlan´s breath caught as she saw Cara biting her lower lip in order to center herself.
"Hand her over to me!"
Rahl raised his brow and turned at the growled demand, as if he had already forgotten about the Confessor, who had made a few slow steps forward as Cara had entered, and straightened; barely able to control the urge to wrap her hand around the blonde´s throat. His brow twitched amused.
"Not so hastily, my dear… You know the old saying? - Quid pro quo, Confessor! Tell me, where is the wizard?"
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The city lay wrapped into twilight; it was that time when colored images turn into shadows, when first forebodings of nightmares sneak around corners that, just a few moments before, held laughter and light and now threatened to drown in darkness…
The two figures on the walls walked side by side. Their eyes travelled warily along the near bushes and trees that seamed the main road out of Aydindril. The fires of the campsite glowed in a not too far distance, the unavoidable noises that a thousand men produce came flowing with the light breeze that bloated her hood. She shuddered inwardly, fully aware that these noises were not real, that they seemed to be put out to soothe those ears, listening closely; expecting them.
"Do you really think he can cope with all three city gates?" Verna didn´t look like she trusted Jackson´s abilities entirely. They had left the young wizard apprentice on the city walls to the north, where they hoped the smallest risk lay buried. Rahl´s troop had settled outside the south-eastern gates. And that would be where they´d start their attack. Given that Cara was right and Rahl felt confident enough to not expect much resistance. Zedd sighed.
"We have no other choice then to trust his powers, Verna. He´s got the minor gates to hold up. I just hope he has spent enough time practicing while I´ve been away. The spell I´ve put out isn´t too complicated to not been supported by an apprentice´s hands. Let´s hope the best."
His pale blue eyes wandered along the walls to settle on the shadow of the Keep that towered over them in a distance; deep worries sweeping over his features.
"I´m much more concerned about that Connor. I still have no idea what he´s putting on in the Keep. Since he left the Palace I can´t help but feel my stomach grumble. There´s something's lying ahead we are not at all prepared for..."
Verna nodded. She had the same feeling of some dark foreboding that she couldn´t name; she too felt her insides trembling with faint anxiety... Her gaze swept over the streets she overlooked from their stand, watching the people down there. Wherever her eyes settled she found peasants walking or standing in small groups, talking, seemingly enjoying themselves, though it was already late evening and sunlight long turned into shadows, eating the colors away; slowly delivering the peaceful city to darkness. Looking closely, she acknowledged the hidden glances people shot to the walls and their tense moves. Every now and then some would change their positions as if consciously deciding to approach the gates to the south and the east of the town´s surroundings.
She remembered Benjamin´s confidence when talking about the resistance. But she hadn´t expected him to even understate their amount. Since early evening they had gathered silently, more and more of them emerging from varying districts of the town. By their ways of moving around and by their clothes she could easily differ between simple peasants and noble men. There were merchants as well as servants. And she knew that Benjamin would send as many soldiers as he was confident he could do without in the Palace.
A tight smile appeared on Verna´s lips, when she observed a few smaller groups of men, three or four at a time, leisurely and pointedly unobtrusive walking between the gates. Their odd behavior, their non-talking and their heavy cloaks despite the warm evening air held something suspicious. Verna tugged at Zedd´s sleeve, pointing towards them.
"It has already begun…"
With his fingers clenching nervously the old wizard watched how the people in the streets gathered around them, circling them in an indiscernible distance, ever so slowly trapping them in their middle.
"Hey guys! It´s a nice evening, isn´t it?" The jovial sound of the voice was only faintly heard on the walls. A bear of a man, member of the blacksmith-guild of Aydindril, stepped towards one of the strangers, clapping his shoulder comradely and tugging at his cloak. "Much too smooth for such a heavy cloak…" Zedd winced as he saw him ripping the cloth off his shoulders with a sudden yank, revealing the dark red leather armor of Rahl´s troop. Unforeseeably fast the blacksmith grabbed both sides of his head and, with a hard jerk, he snapped the soldier´s neck before he or his companions had a chance to react. Beside him his fellows had already sheathed their swords and killed the soldiers, who were short taken and gave no appreciable resistance. The same happened to the other four little groups of intruders. There was barely a fight, the killing went silently and the corpses were drawn to the main gates to be piled up there, ready to be set aflame by Zedd´s fire as soon as the troop would try to invade.
With a grim smile on his lips the blacksmith shifted his head towards Zedd and Verna, who stared back from the top of the walls. He raised his chin and hit his fist to his chest. The greeting of a soldier, prepared for the battle.
Their foes would get a nasty surprise...
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"I´ve sent a falcon to inform you about Zedd´s intention to meet Kahlan in Comorra. If you haven´t caught him… ", Dennee shrugged arrogantly, "…well, I do not think it important. Connor is absolutely capable to take his place. He will be a worthy substitute at my side."
Rahl looked her over with an odd mixture of disbelieving and increasing anger.
"Are you really such a goose, Confessor?" He shook his head, then swept his arms around as if embracing the entire hall and huffed audibly. "Do you really think all of this serves to give you what you want? That I want the wizard to support you?
This is not about you, Dennee. Take a step back and look at the bigger picture…" He watched her as she stood with her brows deeply furrowed; something close to anxiousness sneaking into her glare.
"I am. Lord Rahl! The least that bothers me is the silly little pettiness of a resurrected confessor.
I´m going to take my place on the first chair of the united realms of D´Hara and the Midlands. I´ll have the one and only Mother Confessor at my side and I will appoint a governor for the Midlands… though that will not be you!" A smug grin curled his lips.
"You… will stay at your sister´s side; as it should be. Once she´s Lady Rahl she´ll need her personal maiden..." He watched her blanch and smirked.
All the while Cara had kneeled in the middle of the hall with tightly clenched jaws and fists, covertly taking in the situation from under deeply furrowed brows. She checked the positions of Rahl´s Mord Sith, counting eight of them, one had taken hold of the end of the ropes that bound her hands. The blonde let her gazes wander along the walls, acknowledging every man who stood warily between the pillars, mentally dividing them in friends and foes. A light shuffle from behind her made her turn slightly, seeing a flash of red leather blinking from the shadows. A whiff of a smirk crossed her face, before she straightened and focused on Rahl and Dennee.
"Now, do you finally recognize your own fatuousness? Confessor?" Her voice cut the air with scoffing sharpness. "Did you really expect a maniac like Rahl to have the honor of loyalty? To even know the meaning of the word? Look at you now, dunce! After all it´s you who has been tricked! As it had to be expected!" She laughed bitterly. "How one single woman can be that daft I will never comprehend..."
Dennee loosened her glare from Rahl to narrow her eyes on the blonde, her hands twitching at her side as if hardly restraining from wrapping around her throat.
But before the Confessor could make a move Jona jerked viciously at her chain to silence her. Rahl gave the girl an approving smile.
- Cara! No! Do not nettle her. She will not take it…
Kahlan had sought rescue behind her Confessor´s mask, though she breathed heavily. Her mind whirled. How had Rahl been able to trap her?
Why had Cara allowed herself to be chained?
Kahlan clenched her hands into fists, her nails digging sharply into her palms. It made her blood boil to see the blonde chained; she couldn´t fathom that that could have happened... The Cara she knew would have fought to her death before anyone would have put a collar around her neck.
Slowly the Mother Confessor felt her heart sinking into the viscous lake of guilt; realizing that all, the blonde had done, she would have done for her; she was the only reason why Cara wouldn´t want to rather die than get chained.
Her mouth was dry. The blonde Mord Sith had shot her a brief glance when she entered, a flash of jade green that had instantly marked her soul for all times; but now she avoided her eyes, as if she didn´t want her to look at her misery. She swallowed against the thick lump in her throat that caught her breath.
If only she had a weapon...
Her eyes shifted to the men in the shadows. She needed a sword, a knife;
Anything that would allow her to bring Rahl down and get to the blonde.
Nicci had put her hand on her arm, gripping firmly, but Kahlan didn´t even notice. The sorceress tightened her grip, feeling Kahlan´s urge to move.
"Stay here!" she all but hissed. "We need to wait for the right moment. You MUST bring him down first, Kahlan. If you put passion before reason you´ll have no chance to save her!"
"I... can´t wait..."
"You must! He is still in control of my Han; you´ll be dead before you reach Cara!"
Kahlan stared at her, her eyes shimmering a clouded blue, her brows furrowed, hesitating. She gritted her teeth in attempt to stay focused; her lips pressed into a thin line; finally she surrendered, offering a faint nod, before her glance returned to her Mord Sith.
Just in this very moment, when their eyes met, a fleeting smirk played on Cara´s lips and she gave her a short blink from fiercely glowing eyes, before her features fell back into frustrated rage.
Kahlan felt her heart flip as she stared at the blonde incredulously. She couldn´t believe it.
The sudden realization that the blonde just pretended the beaten victim struck her unexpectedly. Her knees buckled briefly, in the back of her throat a lump fastened with knots, her stomach suddenly danced. She swallowed hard, before finally she moved to let her eyes sweep along the walls, searching for a hint that would approve her assumptions, but found nothing suspicious. The brunette huffed through gritted teeth against her nervous uncertainty as she tried to focus on Rahl´s and Dennee´s keen argument.
Dennee had turned back to Rahl, appraising his words; her face put on her Confessor mask, though her low voice held a slight tremble that was far from royal highness.
"I warn you. You are stripped from your powers Rahl; you cannot deny me my place on the first chair. You are here, in the lion´s den; my guards can take you down easily, your Mord Sith won´t stand against them. They are far outnumbered. And in the Keep, Wizard Connor has an attentive eye on your troop. He has some magical surprises for them in case they dare attack. And you know how...sensitive... D´Harans are reacting to every magic?" She leaned closer, her fierce stare burning into Rahl´s, pointedly spitting her words. "They will run. Like hares!
So, no worries! Aydindril is thoroughly prepared against your betrayal."
Confusion blossomed on her features when Rahl´s expressions turned into a grin that slowly increased until finally he laughed out loud.
Then suddenly, while his steely eyes held Dennee´s stare, he jerked his arm up and pointed to one of the wide windows to the south.
Abruptly Nicci writhed in sudden pain, her hands flying to the collar around her neck as a splendid blue flash erupted from Rahl´s hand and shot out over Aydindril´s roofs, dipping the city for some long moments into an eerie blue light, before his hand finally dropped and the flash ceased, leaving Nicci, who had fallen to her knees, gasping for air. Still holding Dennee´s eyes, which had widened and filled with trepidation, he pursed his lips and snarled pleasurably:
"You´re wrong, Dennee!
It´s ME who is prepared! ... In this very moment my men are entering your precious city. They will take Aydindril and hand it to me on a silver plate.
It´s your people who will run like hares when Wizard Connor will teach them a magical lesson as to who will be their new leader...
Oh, and you shouldn´t rely on your guards, Confessor. My men are just about to enter this hall and together with my Mord Sith they are extremely eager to kill all of you in case you decide to be foolish enough to compete with me..."
Some home guards behind him moved, not waiting for the Confessor´s order; he didn´t look at them but stretched his arm and swung it along and hot blue flashes pinned them to the spot, while their faces contorted in pain.
As did Niccis...
The air in the hall had fallen thick. Tension wrapping tightly around every one´s mind.
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Zedd and Verna stood rooted to the spot as the blue shining dipped half Aydindril into its eerie light. Every movement inside the walls stopped, heads lifted to the sky to stare in shock and wonder.
Then, all at once, the storm broke out.
From between the trees and bushes masses of Rahl´s men stormed the walls, branding against the two main wooden gates with determined weightiness; only shortly they hesitated as they found them still closed, but when Zedd, with the twist of a hand, made the main gate swung wide open, their wave followed immediately to flood the opening. The first men already stumbled into the small heaps of corpses piled up there, and Zedd waited a long stretched moment until he raised his hands and, putting all his might into it, he sent the first massive flash of wizard´s fire straight into their lines.
A wall of flames built up among the trapped soldiers, setting two dozen of them and the corpses aflame. They screamed in pain and shock, and, running blindly, some bodies among them flickering like living torches, the ones that survived the first heat stumbled straight into the lines of the resistance. Swords and axes found their aims in a merciless battle as they hacked indiscriminately their way. Soon blood was coating the place.
Verna had her hands lifted, murmuring sounds in an ancient voice that seemed incoherent words, but they were taken by the breeze and swept to the ground outside the walls. In their wake the earth began to tremble and shudder, rippling the surface of the road and yanking at the grassland that seamed it. First stones were lifted into the air, and then small rocks joined their dance. Bushes, ripped from their roots, flew against the hundreds of men and horses that came still galloping from the trees.
The Sister of the Light seemed to shimmer in an orange glow as she stood on the walls, tensed to her limit, her hands sending earthquakes against the foe. The sight of her shining figure was ghastly enough to cause the first lines of Rahl´s men to rein their steeds, but soon the power of the ones behind them dragged them along. Flying rocks crashed into bodies, ripping bloody holes into their bulk; yet, it wasn´t enough to stall the assault.
Inside the walls the resistance, long accompanied by soldiers on massive horses, who had hurried to defend the walls when the blue lightning had erupted, had formed a wide barrier against the attack; Zedd was sending flash after flash of magical destruction, his face crunched with the effort, his breathing already coming ragged.
"They are too many. We need to close the gate!"
Verna struggled to get out of the haze her incantation had wrapped her in and nodded. She stepped close to Zedd and together they managed to push a massive blow of tightened air against their attackers, enough so, to cause a gap between their lines that allowed Zedd to swung the gates close, blocking the echelon.
For an instant the world seemed to stop as if everyone held their breath at the unexpected interruption of the battle. But within a heartbeat the air exploded again into howls and shouts, yelling and shouted orders.
Rahl´s men used the time to form up their lines before they would run against the walls. Archers gathered in their first rows, small heaps of dry branches were piled up and ignited.
Inside, Zedd watched the resistance gathering their casualties, dragging them out of the muddled combat zones, filled with corpses of men and women and horses. Too many were left, lying in pondering blood, empty eyes staring into the sky.
"We won´t be able to stop them. Much too soon our powers will be depleted, and then they´ll overrun us."
Verna looked down to the streets of Aydindril, watched the men and women clenching their hands around their weapons. Benjamin had seen to it that the armories of Aydindril had been opened by his men and many a swords and lances and bows had found their ways into the hands of innocent civilians. They seemed more then resolved to fight for their freedom.
But would all they could give be enough?
In the meanwhile more soldiers had arrived from the Palace. Their horses stamped their hooves in nervous impatience. Feeling the threat, smelling the scent of blood and fire, they knew that they were expecting an attack...
Zedd had stepped to her side. His eyes washing over the crowded streets, he wrapped an arm around the woman.
"Rahl has only a small troop of maybe a thousand men. Don´t worry Verna; Aydindril will stop them! Most of them might lack the experience, but they all own the brave hearts of heroes..."
In this moment they both heard it. A sound like a growl of an enormous beast, a flutter as if of thousand wings, a piercing shriek that echoed from the walls and made their ears burn.
Zedd turned slowly, his eyes widening as he looked up to the Keep; his features contorted into a mask of consternation.
"Bags! ...What... in the name of darkness is that?"
Verna´s eyes widened in shock as she blanched. She stared at the dark green glowing fog that erupted from the Keep, moving as if a living creature, continuously changing its shape as it grew into the sky, welling up from the roof in an endless stream. In its edges there were giant claws, the upper part appearing like a massive callow skull with an atrociously torn snout, baring eerily shimmering green fangs, streaks of green ragged fog wavering thickly around the spot that could have been its neck, resembling a lions mane and, shining in a lighter, lucid green, enormous wings seemed to sprout from its back.
Slowly the figure reclined, as if inhaling a deep breath, and then it pushed forward, covering half the hill of the Keep, and it roared...
The earsplitting sound washed over them like a thunder filled with torrid splints of fire and thousands of needles that bored deep into their skin.
On both sides of the walls people fell to their knees, pressing their hands to their ears and howling in pain. Some found blood running from their ears, a few suddenly jumped to their feet and started running their heads blindly against the walls. Horses reared up, screaming in pain and fear, their eyes wide in panic. Kicking hooves stumped on ground and bodies as they tried to flee. Within a second chaos ruled the site.
When the beast´s voice ebbed, they saw some rags loosening from its foggy shape, rolling and swaying down the hill, transforming into eerie figures, half birds, half dragons, talons splayed from terrifying wings, giving shrill shrieks that seemed to settle right into their mind and rip at their consciousness.
Verna suddenly moved, grabbing Zedd´s arm and tugging him with her as she started to run.
"Verna, what..."
"He´s awakened Rhagdar-Rhass! The Evil! ... The Soul-Demon..." She ran as fast as she could, heading towards the Keep.
Stunned Zedd stalled his steps for a second but stumbled as she jerked fiercely at his sleeves and hastily he rushed to run at her side, frowning as he watched more frazzles of green fog loosening from the creature and rolling down the hill, changing their forms while approaching, transforming into eerie weird beasts with wings that seemed to singe the air with their flutter, flying towards the walls while stretching sharp claws to rip men apart... He heard screaming erupting from the battle field...
"Rhagdar-Rhass?"
"It´s the creation of death. The dark wizards developed it to erase all of the living in case they would lose the war. But soon they lost control over the beast and so they banned it into the Deep Nothing that lies behind the Old World. It should be buried there for all times!" She had almost lost her winds as Zedd jerked her to a halt.
"You mean… THIS is the Demon of Souls? I´ve heard of it. It´s frightening every living creature to death, setting horrifying images and voices into their mind, ripping them apart from inside out. They rather kill themselves to escape... But... Verna! It cannot be true that he brought it to the Midlands! It would have destroyed everything in its wake! How is it possible..."
Verna looked at him. She would have smiled at his horrified expression. If she were not that horrified herself.
"You don´t understand, Zedd. He hasn´t brought it on his way through the Midlands. He must have brought pieces of the magical barrier to the Deep Nothing and he found a way to connect them with their origins, so that he could break through and thus opened a channel for Rhagdar-Rhass. There is only one way that this can happen: he must settle himself into the barrier, allowing the beast to use his body. He is the channel! And thus, he is Rhagdar-Rhass!
Zedd, we need to get to him and kill him, before he kills us all!"
"He will detect us before we get close enough!"
"That doesn´t matter. While he is bound in the barrier, he has to focus on the beast to not lose control..."
She watched him nodding his understanding.
"Well then, let´s not waste time with running my old legs to stumps." Zedd tried a lopsided grin as he lay his arm around her; and with a twist of his free hand he lifted them both and made them levitate just a few inches, turning towards the Keep. Gaining speed, they soon vanished into the night...
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Dennee´s gaze flickered to Kahlan, frowning, narrowing her eyes on her as if trying to assess what her sister would do in her place. Briefly Kahlan felt her helplessness washing against her; The feeling so familiar; reminding her of earlier times, lifetimes ago, when Dennee used to hide anxiously behind her, hoping Mistress Sanderholst´s first rush of anger over another silly childish escapade rained down on her mostly; and she could feel her heart soften ever so slightly; almost wanting to reach out and wrap Dennee into her arms, to protect her like she always had...
Though, instead she watched as her sister´s gaze shifted to Cara and hardened. Grey eyes burning in an icy hatred as they met her own glance again; and the moment her lips parted Kahlan knew she was going to sell her out...
"Well, if you´re so well prepared, Lord Rahl... You certainly long noticed that my beloved sister, your wanna-be bride, and your sorceress muck around with you?"
The words she drawled tripping with scorn, she shifted her eyes to Rahl and relished as he frowned deeply, obviously not knowing what she spoke of.
"Or haven´t you realized until now, that Kahlan is as much herself as she´s ever been? Can it really be that they tricked you?" Her features lightened as her smirk grew, shooting her next words like pointedly set arrows into his smugness.
"Now look there! Who would have expected this?! Lord Rahl, the proud and omniscient, all-powerful leader of the mighty realm of D´Hara! Made look like a fool! By two women he so thoroughly has under control. Tricked by his pet-sorceress and her biggest enemy conspiring together...
No doubt they´re planning your downfall, Rahl!
Who knows what else happens without your knowledge...
Tell me, if it is so easy to trick you, how do you want to be sure that Connor isn´t just another traitor in your own rows?"
Rahl´s eyes had narrowed into small slits as he now turned ever so slowly, looking between Nicci and Kahlan, already feeling hot fury surging inside of him as he watched the sorceress straightening in unconscious defiance; and then, suddenly, with a forceful drive, he backhanded her, laying all his strength into the blow.
The impact lifted Nicci a few inches; she flew as if hit by one of Zedd´s air-tightening blows, before her body crashed to the floor; a faint crack could be heard as ribs broke.
Instinctively Kahlan made a step towards her to defend her, as she had grown used to during the past weeks; but Rahl had already his fingers digging painfully into her arm, grabbing her, pulling her close with murderous violence. Kahlan tried to flinch as his breath brushed against her cheeks, but his livid eyes, burning in a feverish rage, took her hostage; she found strong blue shining in there - borrowed power of Nicci´s Han – that seemed to erase every thought of defense, while his free hand hauled out, preparing to deal a blow that would certainly not only break her jaw. She saw it coming, but felt unable to move the slightest bit. For the length of a heartbeat Kahlan had the strange feeling as if time slowed down. She could hear the thundering of her own heart like a muffled war drum, felt herself blinking and the weight of her lashes rest heavily on her cheeks, and somewhere, deep inside her she could feel the dull roaring of her power, struggling to come alive, to warp against its prison, to break through the bonds of that collar and raise a storm...
From the corner of her eyes Kahlan saw Cara turning, saw her eyes widening as she realized Rahl´s intentions, saw her lips forming a "No!" and felt her own eyes brimming with tears.
- "Forgive me, love..."
In the next moment a hundred things seemed to happen at once...
The door yanked open and nearly thirty men pushed inside; Rahl´s men in the stable tracts had only waited for his sign to enter the Palace and, leaving a trail of blood in their wake, they now hasted to their Master´s side, swords already smudged with blood from their rush through the Palace.
"NOOOW!"
Cara yelled and spun around and kicked the Mord Sith holding the rope into the stomach. As if by magic a dagger blinked in Jona´s hands. She swiftly cut through the ropes around the blonde´s hands that were held up, while from the shadows behind Berdine and Raina came flying to Cara´s side, each one dropping an agiel into the blonde´s hands and instantly building up with their own agiels; ready to attack the line of Rahl´s protectors.
They faced a densely wall of red leather and whining agiels, barely acknowledging a whirl of white behind Rahl´s Mord Sith as Kahlan finally squirmed under his grip and tried to fight his brutal force.
Cara heard Dennee shout out to Richard: "Get them!" and saw him rushing to where Rahl and Kahlan were raveled in a deadly embrace. While Dennee, flanked by six of her confessed, made her way to come for her.
"Jona, go get to her! Protect the Mother Confessor!" And while Jona rushed to strike her way with both her agiels Cara prepared to meet her deadly enemy...
The home guards, already throwing themselves into the fight, seemed to divide their lines; half of them rushing to Dennee, grimly striking against women in red leather and soldiers in D´Haran armors, immediately engulfed in forceful strikes and blows, blindly decided to defend their Mistress; while the rest of them headed straightly to the midst of the battle, aiming for Rahl and entirely resolved to free the Mother Confessor. The sounds of battle soon filled the air.
Kahlan was still barely able to block Rahl´s blows, her mind struggling against the thick curtain his borrowed power weaved around it. She saw Rahl´s teeth blinking as he snarled; she heard the sounds of battle, singing steel and whining agiels mingling with screams into a melody so very familiar; coming as if from afar; as if trying to rock her to sleep; she desperately called on her power to get her mind clear, to swipe the magic away, to get out of the numbness.
Rahl seemed oblivious to the heated battle around them. He felt confident for his men and Mord Sith to bring it to a swift end without the aid of himself and the sorceress´ Han. He focused on that face in front of him he hated so much, shooting sparks of magic into the brilliant pools of her eyes, fascinated as they burst into tiny silvery stars when they crashed into their blue, dragging his power back and slamming it forward again, feeling her numbness growing as her defense slowed. A sneer settled on his face. He didn´t care anymore if she survived eventually to be his bride; for now, all he wanted was to teach her a lesson of mastery and power she would never forget. He didn´t see Nicci crawling close, didn´t acknowledge her glare as she tried to get to her feet, didn´t even hear her heavy panting as she forced her hurting body to get upright.
Though the moment he decided to dump a blue flash into her and finally break her, Kahlan screamed. The sound swelling into a short, keen crescendo of pain.
Confused he stared at her. Knowing that it wasn´t his own power that made her bent over, feeling an odd pain erupting from his wrist, he shifted his gaze behind her, only to realize Nicci´s stretched arm; he heard the clangor of bursting steel and watched appalled the collar around Kahlan´s neck shattering into pieces; hot flashes of blue shimmering Han now meeting Kahlan´s bare skin, burning a searing mark into her nape.
Her scream ebbed as Nicci´s arm dropped and the Confessor´s own power roared to freedom, washing fiercely though her blood, filling her limbs with new strength and took the lead of her mind. The might of the sensation caught her breath and her eyes, just clouded and close to breaking, now radiated an unearthly blue that threw dark midnight sparks to him as she met his glare.
His hand was still tightly gripping her arm as she straightened to face him.
Out of the turmoil behind them suddenly Jona appeared at their side. Blood staining her face like gruesome paintings she held her two agiels in one hand, stretching the other one, holding a dagger towards Kahlan, but before she could put it into the Mother Confessors hand she saw Richard breaking through the fighting men, the Sword of Truth glowing a deep orange as he lifted it high into the air to strike with all his might, his eyes beaming in a barbarous passion as he prepared to do as his Mistress had ordered.
"Kahlan!" Her scream mingled with Nicci´s who watched wide-eyed how the sword briefly stopped at the highest point as if considering the reason to strike, but then lowered in a deadly blast.
From the corner of her eyes Kahlan noticed the orange glow dashing down, if heading for her of Rahl she didn´t know but instinctively she warped aside, against the resistance of Rahl´s arm that clung to her, until she was suddenly free and a sharp pain hit her side.
She fell and rolled over her shoulder to come back to her feet in a swift motion, feeling a hurting fire in her side. Confused her gaze went down, searching for the source of it, and found blood all over; for a moment she felt her heart freeze, gasping appalled at the sight.
Rahl´s fingers were still digging into her, his arm clenched in a cramp. But what was clinging to her was just the tyrant´s forearm. Where formerly the elbow would bind it to its upper part was now a bloody mass. Kahlan looked back to him and found him standing behind her, staring at the dripping stump where the sword had cut his arm off, a bloodcurdling moan erupting from his throat, while his eyes slowly shifted to meet her in stunned horror.
Kahlan eyed him coldly, slowly plucking his hand off of her and turned, ignoring Richard who was already squirming at the whining end of Jona´s agiel and searched for Nicci. She found the sorceress crouching close, still panting from the massive blow she had gained before. Though, acknowledging Kahlan´s trophy in her hand, her glance filled with dark appreciation. The brunette twitched her brow, her eyes whirling with black, and, tossing the blood-dripping piece of flesh and bones to her feet, she growled: "He´s yours!"
Not waiting for Nicci´s reaction she bent, wincing as a flash shot up her chest from where the blade had met her own flesh after cutting through Rahl´s limp. Though, with her power whirling free in her veins she succeeded to ignore it.
This was not the place to feel pain. Not the time to feel it.
Cara was somewhere in the turmoil, and Dennee!
She felt almost as if she could hear her Mord Sith calling for her. She grabbed the sword Richard had dropped as Jona came upon him and didn´t lose any more time…
Behind her, Nicci had picked up the forearm, stroking gently, with almost loving tenderness over the small blood-smeared bracelet that was forged around the wrist and sneered, slowly shifting her gaze to Rahl, who stood as if paralyzed, staring terrified at his hand that clutched to the stump, watching his life´s liquid sputtering from frayed veins. When he finally noticed the sorceress´ glare he shook his head with frightened wide eyes.
"No!" he breathed, stepping back; which gained him a mocking laughter.
"No worries, Rahl" she drawled. "I´ll burn… the wound…" Nicci glared at him and waved her hand and this time it wasn´t a flash, but a wall of blue shimmering light that shot towards him. "As I will… burn… your guts…
and the rest of you…"
Her features grew calm and peaceful as she watched how in a cloud of blue flames Rahl, the tyrant, finally ceased to exist, his flesh turning into ashes until the hungry flames sighed satisfied a final hiss and then died slowly…