Naked Empire

"You men all had family and friends-a community of people. I had no friends and could have none because my mother and I had to run from my father my whole life to keep from being caught. He would have tortured and murdered me had he caught me-the same as he would have done with you. I could have no childhood friends, so my mother gave me Betty. Betty was just newborn; we grew up together. Betty chewed through her rope because I'm the only family she's ever known and she simply wanted to be close to me.

"I was banished from everyone for my crime of birth, just like your ancestors. You all know the injustice of such banishment and you know its pain. And now you foolish men would banish me from your acceptance because I have red hair and a goat as a pet? You are spineless cowards and hypocrites!

"First you poison the only person in the world brave enough to end our banishment from the rest of mankind and now you fear me and reject me because of silly superstitions. If I did have magic, I'd burn you all to a cinder for your cruel attitudes!"

Richard put a hand on her shoulder and drew her back. "It will be all right," he whispered to her. "Just let me talk to them."

"You tell us that you're a wizard," an older man in the back called out, "and then you expect us to believe it's so-on faith-because you say it is, while you claim that we should not hold to our beliefs, such as our fear that she could be a witch with her familiar, because it's held only on faith."

"That's right," another said. "You claim your belief is in real magic, while you dismiss our belief. A lot of what you say makes sense, but I don't agree with all of it."

There could be no partial agreement. To reject part of the truth was to reject it all. Richard considered his options, how he could convince people without magic, who could not see magic, that real magic existed. From their perspective, he seemed guilty of the same error he was telling them they were making. How could he demonstrate a rainbow of color to the blind?

"You have a point," Richard said. "Give me a moment and I will show you the reality of the magic I talk about."

He motioned Cara closer. "Get me the warning beacon," he said in a confidential tone.

Cara immediately took off down the hill. He saw that Jennsen's angry blue eyes were filled with tears but she didn't cry. Kahlan pulled her back farther as Richard addressed the men.

"There is more I must tell you-some things you need to understand. I have ended the banishment, but that does not mean that I unconditionally accept you back as one of our people."

"But you said that we were welcomed home," Owen said.

"I'm stating the obvious-that you have a right to your own life. Out of goodwill I welcome you all to be part of D'Hara if you wish- part of what D'Hara now stands for. But by welcoming you back, that does not mean that I welcome people unconditionally.

"All men should be free to live their own lives, but make no mistake, there is a vast difference between that freedom and anarchy.

"If we triumph in our struggle, you are welcome to be free people of a D'Haran Empire which holds a belief in specific values. For example, you can think whatever you wish and try to persuade others of the value of your beliefs, but you cannot act on a view that those who fight to gain that freedom are savages or criminals, even though you expect to enjoy the fruits of their struggle. At minimum, they have earned your respect and gratitude.

Their lives are no less than yours and are not expendable for your benefit.

That is slavery."

"But you have savage ways and engage in violence for a land we have never even seen," one of the younger men said. He pointed an arm back toward Bandakar. "The only land we have ever known is here and we unconditionally reject your love of violence."

"Land?" Richard spread his arms. "We do not fight for land. We are loyal to an ideal-an ideal of liberty wherever man lives. We do not guard territory, bleed for a piece of dirt. We don't fight because we love violence. We fight for our freedom as individuals to live our own lives, to pursue our own survival, our own happiness.

"Your unconditional rejection of violence makes you smugly think of yourselves as noble, as enlightened, but in reality it is nothing less than abject moral capitulation to evil. Unconditional rejection of self-defense, because you think it's a supposed surrender to violence, leaves you no resort but begging for mercy or offering appeasement.

"Evil grants no mercy, and to attempt to appease it is nothing more than a piecemeal surrender to it. Surrender to evil is slavery at best, death at worst. Thus, your unconditional rejection of violence is really nothing more than embracing death as preferable to life.

"You will achieve what you embrace.

"The right, the absolute necessity, of vengeance against anyone who initiates force against you is fundamental to survival. The morality of a people's self-defense is in its defense of each individual's right to life.