Title: Resurrected
Summary: Episode addition to "Resurrection." Dennee, Richard/Kahlan.
Rating: T
Dennee opened her eyes, gasping for breath. It was a foreign sensation to have to breathe again.
As she gulped in lungfuls of stale air, she looked around her new surroundings.
One moment she'd been in the Underworld, the next moment she'd found herself lying on top of a slab of cold stone. Shackled to it, she realized as she tried to move her arms and legs.
A blonde woman she'd never seen before was leaning over her, looking at her with concern.
"Who are you? Where am I?" Dennee asked.
"Everything's all right," the woman reassured her. "I'm a friend. I've summoned your spirit from the Underworld."
"What have you done to me?"
"I've given you another body. Another chance at life," she replied.
"Why?" Dennee demanded.
The woman smiled. "So you can take vengeance on Cara, the Mord-Sith who killed you."
"How do you know about that?" she asked suspiciously.
"She told me herself. Bragged about it, even."
The woman released the shackles binding Dennee's wrists and ankles and retrieved her shoes.
"Cara just left," she continued. "If you leave now, you can catch her and avenge your death… and your sister's."
"Kahlan is dead?" Dennee whispered in horror. "The Mord'Sith killed her too?"
"Yes," the woman confirmed. "Go quickly now. Once you've killed Cara, come back here, and I'll help you start a new life."
Dennee moved quickly, stealthily, as she tracked down her quarry. The Mord'Sith appeared to be heading towards a glade just east of Carthran Lake.
Her mind was racing. She'd never forget the face of her killer.
She and Finn had been lulled into false sense of complacency during their brief, quiet life on Valeria. They'd thought they were safe, far off the coast and hidden by magic, but Darken Rahl's sorcerers had located them somehow, and he'd sent a team of Mord'Sith to hunt them down.
She should have known he'd stop at nothing to acquire a male Confessor. Even now the memory of it cut her to the quick.
Finn had fought bravely, but there had been too many of them. In the end, she'd had to drown her baby to keep them from taking him.
Then they'd killed Finn and then her.
Even death hadn't brought her any peace or relief.
She'd been kept apart from her baby boy in the Underworld. She hadn't been reunited with her mother and the other people she'd loved in life.
She'd seen Finn again, but he hardly counted. Released from Confession, he'd sneered at her. Mocked her, taunted her.
She'd known that her death would break her hold over him, but it had still stung, after all they'd shared.
And after the tear in the Veil, she hadn't seen him again. He'd jumped at the chance when the Keeper had offered to return him to the land of the living as a baneling.
She'd never expected to come back to life herself.
But now she could have her revenge. To Confess her killer and watch her die in excruciating pain.
Her new body was unfamiliar to her, but she still remembered how to fight. Righteous anger gave her all the strength she needed. She gripped her daggers, waiting for her chance…
Dennee couldn't believe it. Kahlan was alive!
But her joy at reuniting with her sister was tempered with fury. She couldn't believe Kahlan was now allied with the Mord'Sith who'd killed her.
Why didn't Kahlan try to avenge my death?
Kahlan pulled her aside.
"I nearly killed Cara when I learned what she did to you," Kahlan admitted.
"Why didn't you?" Dennee asked.
"Richard. He needs her. She's proven herself a loyal ally. I struggle every day with what she did to you. A part of me still wants vengeance, but I've had to put those feelings aside. She isn't the person she was when she led that mission to Valeria. She's changed."
Dennee scoffed in disbelief.
It was a bitter pill to swallow.
"Kahlan!"
They turned to see the Mord'Sith and the wizard walking over to them.
"Something's wrong," the Mord'Sith said grimly.
"What is it?" Kahlan asked.
The Mord'Sith held up her Agiels. "My Agiels, their magic – it's not working."
Kahlan reached out to grasp one of the Agiels.
"There's no pain," she said in confusion. "How can that be?"
"The Agiels get their power from the Mord'Sith's bond with the presiding Lord Rahl," Zedd told her.
"Richard," Kahlan gasped.
"If the bond has been severed, it can only mean one thing…" the Mord'Sith said ominously.
"Richard's dead."
Kahlan had her Confessor's mask on, but Dennee could see the devastation in her eyes. She knew her sister too well.
For the moment, she'd have to set aside her own feelings.
If Richard was truly dead, only the Mord'Sith would be able to revive him.
She had to help them. She owed it to him. Richard had stood up for her when no one else had. He'd chosen to help Kahlan rescue her from that D'Haran prison when Mother Confessor Serena had deemed it too dangerous. And he'd known how to get the baby to turn when he'd been in the wrong position and had ended up delivering the baby himself.
He'd even defied Serena when she'd wanted to drown the baby. He'd saved him.
More importantly, Richard was the only one who could save the land of the living from the Keeper's destruction.
Dennee knew her duty.
Vengeance would have to wait.
From a distance, they watched as the Seeker passed by on horseback, leading his army behind him.
"How do we get him back?" Kahlan asked Zedd.
He frowned. "I'm not very familiar with this kind of dark sorcery, but I do know that this Richard will have to die for the true Seeker to live again."
"We'll find the sorcerer who brought back Dennee, force him to do the same for Richard," the Mord'Sith said confidently.
"Where is this sorcerer?" Kahlan asked.
"He must still be at the palace," Dennee said, trying to remember what he'd looked like.
Kahlan brightened. "You can get in. They know your face."
Dennee nodded. "I'll find him and Confess him."
"I doubt Denna was planning on letting you live if you came back. I'll go with her," Zedd interjected.
"How will I explain you to the guards?" Dennee asked him.
He smiled. "I'm sure I'm not the first old man they've seen in the company of a pretty young courtesan."
"And Richard?" the Mord'Sith asked. "We can't attack an entire legion."
"We'll track them until they make camp for the night, then slip in and find him."
"Then what? Kill Lord Rahl and simply walk off with his body?"
"If we have to," Kahlan said grimly. "If we have to."
Dennee could tell how rattled Kahlan was, though she tried not to let it show. The cold reality was that they'd most likely have to fight him and kill him without damaging his body too much.
She only hoped he wasn't irrevocably lost.
As predicted, she and Zedd were easily able to get back in to the palace that housed the brothel. Unobtrusively, they slipped back down into the dungeon where she'd woken up.
"What are you doing here?" a raspy voice asked suspiciously. She turned around.
It was the sorcerer.
"I was told to come back after I'd killed the Mord-Sith," she answered truthfully.
"She's dead?" he asked.
Dennee nodded. "The woman who revived me said that she would help me start a new life."
She glided towards him, but he moved away, keeping his distance.
"She did ask me to give you something," he said, grabbing a dagger.
Zedd appeared from the corner of the room, chanting an incantation, and the sorcerer froze, dagger in mid-air.
"He's all yours," he told her.
Dennee reached out and grabbed his neck, unleashing her power. Behind her, the wizard chanted again, undoing his immobilization spell.
The sorcerer dropped to his knees. "Command me, Confessor."
Dennee looked at him. "You will restore the Seeker to his body and the woman who belongs to this one."
"I will do as you say, Confessor, but the elixir is very rare. There's only enough left to cast the spell one more time. I can only bring one of you back."
She turned to look at Zedd over her shoulder in consternation.
If there was only enough elixir to cast the spell once more, she was trapped in this body permanently.
The candles flickered as the sorcerer lit them in preparation for reviving Richard.
The Mord'Sith walked over to Dennee. "May I speak with you?" she said softly.
She looked at her warily.
"I just want you to know I regret what I did in Valeria."
Dennee looked away, then back at the Mord'Sith. "I can't accept your apology."
"I needed to say it anyway," the Mord'Sith said.
The last thing she'd ever expected was for the Mord'Sith to apologize for killing her.
She believed that people could change for the better, but so much, so quickly?
In her experience, that kind of transformation only happened with the Confessed, and it only lasted as long as they were under Confession. After they were freed, they inevitably reverted to their old ways.
But Richard clearly believed wholeheartedly that the Mord'Sith deserved a chance to change, and he'd given her the benefit of the doubt.
It wasn't too surprising, considering that he was an eternal optimist and always saw the innate goodness in people. From what Kahlan had told her, he often rushed in to help others because he could never just stand by and allow people to be preyed upon. It wasn't just the impetuosity of youth. What seemed like impulsivity on the surface was actually driven by his desire to stand up for people who needed help but couldn't help themselves.
Dennee admired his dedication to defending the innocent.
It was why he'd even believed a male Confessor could grow up to be good.
Even though they'd told him that male Confessors couldn't control their powers and would eventually go mad, he'd insisted it was barbaric to kill an innocent babe. He believed too strongly in the sanctity of all life to honor the ancient ways.
Being a Confessor was about certainty, but Richard didn't believe in absolutes. He frequently defied convention and declined to conform. He wasn't afraid to take risks, and through sheer determination and persistence, he was often able to accomplish what no one else could.
He always forged his own path, and he made them question all their assumptions.
Maybe he really could inspire lasting change in a Mord'Sith too.
Dennee watched, scandalized, as Richard tenderly grasped the back of Kahlan's neck and kissed her soundly on the lips.
She knew Kahlan loved him with all her heart and that he loved her equally, but it was still a shock to see them kissing so passionately in front of everyone. It went against everything they'd been taught as Confessors. She was surprised that Kahlan would allow him to kiss her with such intimate familiarity.
It obviously wasn't the first time, either. From the Mord'Sith and Zedd's lack of reaction other than relief, she surmised it was a commonplace, everyday occurrence to them.
It did leave her wondering, what else had her sister been up to with him, exactly?
She couldn't bring herself to judge Kahlan, though. She'd learned from personal experience that all they'd been warned about was not so dire as they'd been led to believe.
And it was definitely proof that they'd managed to bring Richard back, Dennee thought wryly.
No other man in his right mind would voluntarily touch the Mother Confessor, much less grab her and kiss her like that.
"She says you're welcome to stay with her and raise the boy as your own," Richard said as Kahlan finished talking to Lucinda's mother and hugged her warmly.
"You explained I'm not really her daughter?" Dennee said doubtfully.
He nodded as Kahlan walked over to them.
"She said the boy needs a mother," Kahlan said.
Dennee looked at the baby Richard held in his arms. "He reminds me of my son."
"I'm sure Lucinda would be very grateful," he said.
"I'm not sure how I feel about living another woman's life."
She looked at Kahlan.
"Maybe I should go with you, help with your quest."
Kahlan shook her head. "It's too dangerous. I've already lost you twice. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you again."
"You'll be safer here. No one will know who you are," Richard added.
"I've ordered him to stay and protect you in case anyone does threaten you," Kahlan said, inclining her head over her shoulder towards the D'Haran soldier she'd Confessed earlier.
Dennee nodded. In her heart, she knew Kahlan was right. This was Kahlan's quest, not hers.
Kahlan still felt guilty about leaving her behind, she knew. She wanted to protect her as best she could.
And Richard felt guilty that he hadn't been able to protect Lucinda, that she'd died because she'd been trying to help him.
If it would assuage their guilt, she'd live this life for now.
She could do that much for them, at least. And for Lucinda.
"When you need me, you know where to find me," Dennee said solemnly.
She and Kahlan hugged goodbye.
"I'm so happy to have you back, little sister," Kahlan said, smiling widely.
Richard finally handed her the baby, and she cuddled him close to her chest.
They looked back and waved one last time…
And then they were gone.
She was alone again, but she was used to that by now. At least she had Lucinda's mother to support her.
She hoped none of the neighbors had known Lucinda too well. She didn't know if she could convincingly pull off the disguise if anyone questioned her too closely.
With any luck, no one would get suspicious. People these days tended to keep to themselves. The war had taken its toll on everyone, and many didn't want to get too close to others.
If she had to, they could always pretend that the D'Haran soldier had fallen in love with her and that she'd decided he'd be a good father to her son.
And it gave her some measure of comfort that she would know Kahlan was still alive, as long as the soldier remained Confessed.
Dennee cradled the precious bundle in her arms. Edrand was his name. He wasn't a Confessor.
He wouldn't grow up to be an abomination.
She had desperately wanted to believe that without that without anyone else around to corrupt him or be corrupted by him, her baby boy would be safe.
But she couldn't stop thinking about what Kahlan had told her of the alternate future Richard had inadvertently traveled to, where she'd birthed a son who'd ended up destroying the world.
By all accounts, Kahlan had done everything possible to cultivate the good in her son. He'd been given every advantage, given unconditional love.
But it still hadn't made any difference in the end.
Dennee was also beginning to understand why Kahlan believed the Mord'Sith wasn't the same person anymore and genuinely regretted her actions. After all, the Mord'Sith had traveled to the alternate future as well and had been deeply shaken by the devastation she'd witnessed there.
Maybe the Mord'Sith had saved her from a worse fate down the road, she reflected somberly. Kahlan had ended up trying to kill her own son, and when that had failed, he'd executed her himself.
Would that have happened on Valeria too?
It would have been more merciful to use the Quillion to absorb his Confessor powers instead…
At that moment, Edrand began fussing, trying to grab the shoe off his foot. Dennee began rocking him side to side, hoping it would settle him down. He managed to pull it off, but she was able to catch hold of it before it dropped on the ground.
Even so, he seemed rather pleased with himself. His laughing and burbling made her smile.
It was comforting to be alive again and have a baby boy to love again. After having been trapped alone in the Underworld for so long, holding him in her arms felt like a balm to her soul.
As so many others of their kind had through the ages, Dennee had chosen a mate early on. It had been a sensible, practical decision – one that also reduced the likelihood of forming unwise attachments. As Confessors, they could never know love with a man, but at least they could enjoy the satisfaction of motherhood and pour everything they had into their daughters.
Little had she known, her most cherished dream of becoming a mother would turn into a nightmare. She'd never even considered the possibility that she might give birth to a boy.
Now that she'd been restored to the land of the living, she would have to go through it all over again in the future – choose a new mate who was qualified to sire the next line of Confessors, the endless cycle of pregnancy and childbirth…
It was even more crucial now that she and Kahlan were the last of their line.
When it was safer, she'd have to return to Aydindril and her Confessor duties.
Until that day arrived, she'd hide out here and try to start over.
Being brought back to life was a gift, and she wouldn't waste it on regret over what she couldn't change.
For now, her only duty was to love and care for little Edrand. He would give her new life purpose.
The End!