Chapter 4

Zedd arrived back at the inn just after sunup, having ridden all night. Martha greeted him, telling him she had insisted Richard get some sleep. He had tried to resist, but when she pointed out that he wouldn't be able to search for Kahlan once he collapsed, he relented and was sleeping now.

"Unfortunately, this can't wait; I have to speak with him." Zedd made his way up to Richard's room and entered without knocking. He found him asleep on the bed; Kahlan's wedding dress in his hands.

"Wake up Richard. I have news."

Richard immediately sat up. "Zedd? What is it?"

He sat on the bed next to Richard. "I went to speak with Tyra at the apothecary shop in Marley Glenn. She said that several days ago, three women came to see her, looking for some herbs."

"Wait. Zedd. This Tyra woman is the one who had captured Kahlan and turned her over to that wizard, Grantham. How can you trust anything she says?"

"Tyra and I came to understanding. I told you she is young and inexperienced. She was desperate for help. Unfortunately, she didn't' have anyone to guide her away from the likes of that Grantham. But she has since come to see the light. You remember she did help us in the end, telling me the truth of what she'd done."

Richard conceded and asked Zedd to continue.

He went on, "One of the herbs they were looking for is Dacrim. Used on its own, it would put a person into a deep sleep. They wouldn't be able to wake; but if they somehow did manage it, they wouldn't be able to move. They would feel a great weight pressing down upon them." Zedd paused before continuing, "This herb has another use; one that can only be used in conjunction with a certain spell. Then its effects are very different."

"How so?"

Zedd looked hesitant to explain but went on, "If this Dacrim herb is used on a person with a…particular spell…it would make that person go into a dreamlike state; awake, but not really conscious, allowing them to be controlled by those who cast it.

Perplexed, Richard asked "What is this particular spell it's used with?"

Zedd leveled a somber look at him "The spell can only be cast on women. It's called a 'descendants spell'."

Richard's eyes urged him to continue.

"A descendants spell sits inside a woman, lying dormant, completely unknown to her or anyone else until it is awakened. There is no way for her to know she carries it."

Following his words closely, Richard asked "And what causes this 'decendants' spell to be awakened?"

Zedd paused and leveled a look into Richard's eyes. "That's the frightening part of it." He rested his hands on Richard's shoulders gripping them firmly. "The spell is only awakened when she conceives a child."

Richard felt as if a great blow had struck him in the stomach. Were it not for Zedd gripping his shoulders, he would have pitched face first into his lap. He tried to take a breath needing to fill his lungs, but the air wouldn't come. His mouth hung open as he tried to breathe, the room spinning around him. He grabbed at Zedd's arms for support as they held him up.

As if needing to say it aloud in order to truly believe, Richard rasped out, "Are you telling me Zedd, that Kahlan had this descendants spell, and that it's been awakened?"

"I believe so Richard."

Richard blinked rapidly, trying to stay focused and take in the enormity of what this meant. Kahlan was with child. She was carrying their child and he had no idea where she was or even where to start looking for her. He found enough voice to ask Zedd how the spell worked.

"It works like a beacon. Once she conceives, it's instant. Those who planted the spell within her would immediately know that she now carries a child and they would know exactly where to find her. They don't require the Dacrim herb to find her, but it makes the task of taking her that much easier. Kahlan, as the carrier of the spell, would simply go with them. She wouldn't put up any resistance. "You and Kahlan were together for the first time not long ago. If she conceived a child then, they would have had plenty of time to track her here, even with stopping in Marley Glenn for the herbs."

"So you believe they used this herb to make all of us sleep, while Kahlan, who had the descendants spell, would, in her dreamlike state, simply go willingly with them?"

"That's about right. She's not necessarily willing, but she's powerless to work against it, she would go even though her mind would wish otherwise.

"She took her wedding flowers, Zedd. Why would she do that?"

"Though she's not fully aware of what's happening around her, something as profoundly important as her wedding could spark through to her. She likely saw the flowers and took them, not really knowing why." His words weighed heavy on Richard's heart.

"What do you make of this, Zedd?" Richard pulled from his pocket the piece of gossamer fabric he'd found on the tree.

Zedd examined the fabric, rubbing it between his fingers. "I can't say for sure, but it looks like a piece of a prayer dress…the kind used by the sororal women."

"Who are the sororal women?"

"Before his death, they were the devoted sorceresses of Darken Rahl."

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