Chainfire: Chainfire Trilogy Part 1

According to the Sisters, if their side was to prevail over the dark forces arrayed against them, it would only be if Richard led them to victory. Prophecy said that without him all would be lost. Their prelate, Annalina, had spent a great deal of her life manipulating events to make sure that he survived to grow up and lead them in this war. Ann's hopes for everything they held dear, to hear her tell it, rested on his shoulders. At least Kahlan had thankfully taken the fire out of Ann in that regard. He knew, though, that many others still held the same view. He knew, too, that his leadership had galvanized a great many people who longed to simply live free.

Richard had been down in the vaults at the Palace of the Prophets and had seen some of the most important and well-guarded books of prophecy in existence. He had to admit that some of it was pretty uncanny. Nevertheless, his experience had been that prophecy seemed to say whatever it was people wanted it to say.

He had personal experience with prophecy involving Kahlan and himself, especially those prophecies of Shota, the witch woman. As far as he was concerned, prophecy had proven itself to be of little value and great trouble.

Richard forced a smile. "Nicci, you're sounding like a Sister of the Light." She didn't look to be amused. "Cara will be with me," he said, trying to ease her mind.

He realized, after he'd said it, that having Cara with him hadn't stopped the arrow that had taken him down. Come to think of it, where had she been during the battle? He didn't remember her being there with him. Cara didn't fear a fight; a team of horses couldn't drag her away from protecting him. Surely, she must have been close beside him, but he just didn't recall seeing her.

He picked up his big leather over-belt and fastened it around his waist. He had gotten the belt and other parts of the outfit, which had once belonged to a great wizard, from the Wizard's Keep, where Zedd now stood guard, protecting the Keep from Emperor Jagang and his horde from the Old World.

Nicci heaved an impatient sigh-a glimpse of a stern and implacable side of her that Richard knew all too well. He knew, though, that this time it was powered by sincere concern for his well-being.

"Richard, we simply can't afford this distraction. There are important things we need to talk about. That's why I was coming to you in the first place. Didn't you get the letter I sent?"

Richard paused. Letter — letter — "Yes," he said, at last remembering. "I did get your letter. I sent word to you-with a soldier Kahlan had touched with her power."

Richard caught Cara's brief glance up at Nicci-a surprised look that said that she didn't recall any such thing.

Nicci appraised him with an unreadable look. "The word you sent never found me."

Somewhat surprised, Richard gestured toward the New World. "His primary mission was to go north and assassinate Emperor Jagang. He was touched by a Confessor's power; he would die before ever abandoning her command. If he couldn't find you, he would have gone after Jagang. I suppose it's also possible that something happened to him first. There are perils enough in the Old World."

The look on Nicci's face made him feel like he had just offered her further evidence that he was losing his mind. "Do you honestly think, even in your wildest imaginings, that the dream walker can be so easily eliminated?"

"No, of course not." He pushed the bulge of a cooking pot in his pack back into place. "We expected that the soldier would probably be killed in the attempt. We sent him after Jagang because he was a murdering thug and deserved to die. But I also thought that there was a possibility that he might succeed. Even if he didn't, I wanted Jagang to at least lose some sleep knowing that any of his men could be assassins."

He could see by Nicci's too-calm expression that she thought that this, too, was no more than part of his elaborate delusion about a woman he had dreamed.

Richard recalled, then, what else had happened. "Nicci, I'm afraid that shortly after Sabar delivered your letter we were attacked. He died in that fight."

A furtive glance to Cara brought a nod in confirmation.

"Dear spirits," Nicci said in sorrow at hearing the news about young Sabar. Richard shared her sentiment.

He remembered Nicci's urgent warning in the letter about how Jagang had started to create weapons out of gifted people, as had been done three thousand years before in the great war. It was a frightening development that had been thought impossible, but Jagang had discovered a way to accomplish the task by using the Sisters of the Dark he held captive.

During the attack on their camp, Nicci's letter had been knocked into the fire. Richard hadn't had the chance to read the whole letter before it had been destroyed. He'd read enough, though, to understand the danger.