Her pout turned to a beaming grin. Lee ran over to him, threw her arms around his leg, put her head
on his knee, and hugged it tight. He mussed her hair.
"Wait," Zedd spoke up. "Lee, come here." She went around the table. "My old cat has been
complaining that he has no children to play with." Lee stole a peek toward Kahlan's lap. "Do you
know of any children he could visit?" .
"Really? Well then, he will stay here for a visit."
Richard looked up. "Emma, could you do me a favor? Do you have any traveling clothes Kahlan
could borrow?"
`for my clothes, and her legs are too long, but the older girls have things I think would work
nicely." She smiled warmly at Kahlan and held out a hand. "Come on, dear, let's see what we can
find." Kahlan handed Cat to Lee and took her other hand. "I hope Cat won't be a bother. He insists
on sleeping on your bed with you."
As they left the room Emma knowingly shut the door.
"Well, you know the conspiracy my brother was talking about? It's worse than he knows."
Richard pulled the Sword of Truth from its scabbard and laid it on the table between them. The
polished blade gleamed. Chase leaned forward and put his elbows on the table, lifting the sword
with his fingertips. He let it roll into his palms, inspecting it closely, running his fingers over the
word Truth on the hilt and down the fuller on each side of the blade, testing the sharpness of the
edge. He betrayed nothing more than mild curiosity.
"Chase, you've seen this sword before," Richard admonished. "You know what it is."
Richard peered back with equal intensity. "It was given to me by a great and noble wizard."
Zedd leaned forward, a small smile on his thin lips. "I'm the one who gave it to him."
"We don't have much time," Richard said. "I need to know some things about the boundary."
"Richard, do you know what my job is?"
Chase shook his head. "Do you know how to get rid of wolves?"
The boundary warden shook his head again. "That might get a few, but more would be born, and in
the end, you have just as many. If you really want to have fewer wolves, you hunt their food. You
trap rabbits, so to speak. It's easier. If there is less food, fewer pups will be born. In the end you
have fewer wolves. That's my job. I hunt rabbits."
"Most people don't understand the boundary, or what we do. They think it's just some stupid law
we enforce. Many are afraid of the boundary, mostly older people. Many others think they know
what's best and go up there to poach. They aren't afraid of the boundary, so we make them afraid of
the wardens. That's something real to them, and we keep it real. They don't like it, but out of fear of
us, they stay away. To a few it's a game, to see if they can get away with it. We don't expect to
catch them all; we don't really care. What we care about is scaring enough of them so the wolves in
the boundary won't have enough rabbits to get stronger.
He sat back at the table, leaning forward on his elbows. "Ultimately, there is only one whose orders
we will follow, because our cause is a part of his larger cause. That one is the true Seeker." He
picked up the sword in his big hands and held it out to Richard, looking him in the eyes. "I pledge
my life and loyalty to the Seeker."
Richard and Zedd both shared in the telling of all that had happened. Richard wanted Chase to
know it all, to understand that there could be no half efforts, that it had to be victory or death, not
by their choice, but by Darken Rahl's. Chase looked from one to the other as they spoke,
understanding the seriousness of what they were telling him, appearing grim at the telling of the
story of the magic of Orden. They didn't have to convince him of the truth of it; he was a man who
had seen more than they would probably ever know. He asked few questions, and listened
carefully.
The door opened, and Kahlan and Emma stepped into the light. Kahlan was outfitted in fine forest
garb, dark green pants with a wide belt, tan shirt, dark cloak, and a good pack. The boots and waist
pouch were her own. She looked ready to live a life in the woods. Still, her hair, her face, her
figure, and mostly her bearing, spoke that she was more.
Chase lifted an eyebrow.
"What can I do to help you, Richard?" Chase -finally asked.
"The pass across the boundary. I know about it, I just don't know exactly where it is, and I don't
have time to search." Richard didn't have time to play these games and felt his anger rising.
"Chase! Answer the question!"
Richard thought about the children. Chase was used to danger, but this was different. "That isn't
necessary,"
Everyone waited while Richard considered this a moment. Chase didn't bluff, and time was dear.
Richard had no choice. "Chase, we would be honored to have you with us."
On their way out, Emma handed Zedd a bundle. "Fried chicken," she said. He gave her a big grin
and kissed her forehead. Kahlan gave her a hug and promised to see that the clothes were returned.
Richard bent and gave Emma a warm embrace. "Be careful," she whispered in his ear. She gave her
husband a kiss on the cheek that he accepted graciously.
Kahlan eyed all the weaponry. "Do you think you will need all those?" `
The small company, Chase leading, followed by Zedd, then Kahlan, with Richard bringing up the
rear, settled into a comfortable pace through the Hartland Woods. It was a bright autumn morning
with a chill to the air. A hawk wheeled in the sky over their heads, a sign of warning at the
beginning of a journey. Richard thought to himself that the sign was totally unnecessary.
Hardwood forests gave way to stands of ancient pines. Passing among them was like traveling
through a canyon. The trunks soared to dizzying heights before the limbs branched out, and
Richard felt small in the deep shade of the old trees. He had always been at ease traveling. He did it
often, and the familiar places they passed made it seem to be just another trek, but this trip was not
the same. They were going 'places he had never been. Dangerous places. Chase was concerned, and
had warned them. This alone gave Richard pause, for Chase was not a man to worry over nothing;
in fact, Richard had often thought he worried far too little.
Zedd was already into the chicken. Periodically he would toss a bone over his shoulder. After a
while he thought to offer a piece to the others. Chase declined, as he kept up a continual scan of
their surroundings, paying particular attention to the left side of the trail, to the boundary. The other
two accepted. The chicken had lasted longer than Richard thought it would. When the trail
widened, he brought his horse up with Kahlan's and rode next to her. She took off her cloak as the
day warmed, and smiled over to him with the special smile she never gave anyone else.
The old man squinted up at it, then peered back at Richard. "That idea has already .come into' my
head. I think there might be, but I want to wait a while longer, until we are farther away from
Chase's family. I don't want to lead a search to them."
They rode until long after dark before making camp for the night in a stand of pine, and were on
their way the next morning as the sky lightened behind the mountains of the boundary. Richard and
Kahlan both yawned as they rode. The forest thinned, with open patches of meadow, bright and
green and smelling sweet in the sunshine as they traveled through the hill country on their journey
south, the road taking them temporarily farther from the mountains of the boundary. Occasionally
they passed small farms, their owners making themselves scarce when they saw Chase.
They crossed a stream that flowed out of the mountains, the water churning sluggish, cold, and
muddy. Chase stopped and sat, watching off into the shadows. The rest of them waited, looking at
one another and toward the boundary. Richard recognized the dead smell of the vine drifting in the
air. The boundary warden led them a little farther, then got off his horse and squatted, studying the
ground. When he rose, he handed the reins of his horse to Zedd. He turned to them and said simply,
"Wait." They watched him disappear into the trees as they sat quietly. Kahlan's big horse shivered
flies off its hide as it nibbled grass.
"What is it? What did you find?" Richard asked.
He mounted, turned his horse, and urged it into a run, its hooves kicking up clumps of sod "Get
moving!" Chase yelled back over his shoulder. As he disappeared through the trees Richard saw
him reach up to a short sword strapped over his shoulder and pull it free. He knew Chase was lying.
He wasn't going to bury anything. Richard didn't like to let his friend go off alone like this, but
Chase spent most of his life alone out here by the boundary, and knew what he was doing, what
was necessary to protect them. Richard had to trust his judgment.
As the three rode on through the boundary woods, rock outcroppings grew in size and twisted their
route one way and then the other. The trees became so thick that the sunlight was all but banished
from the still forest, the road a tunnel through the thicket. Richard didn't like how close everything
felt, and as they moved quickly along they all kept watching the deep shadows to their left.
Branches hung across the road, forcing them to duck under as they passed. He couldn't imagine
how Chase cold travel through a wood this thick.
Off to their left, in the distance, came howling, something like a ,wolf pack, only it wasn't wolves.
It was something from the boundary.
Unable to stand it any longer, Richard pulled his horse to a halt, and faced the woods. Chase was
out there alone with the beasts. He couldn't bear any longer to let his friend face it alone. He had to
help.
"He may be in trouble. We can't let him do this alone."
"Right now, his job isn't to be boundary warden; it's to get us to the pass!"
Richard was incredulous. "You expect me to let a friend get himself killed if I can help prevent it?"
The sounds of howling were getting closer,
Richard stared at his old friend. "But maybe we can make the difference."
"Zedd is right," Kahlan said. "Going after Chase is not the brave thing to do, going on when you
want to help is."
She looked at him evenly. "I would have you go on."
He glared at her, not knowing what to say. The shrieks from the woods were closer. Her face
showed no emotion.
Richard was angry at the two of them, and at himself. He kicked his horse out ahead, taking the
lead, not wanting to talk anymore. They left him to his thoughts, let his horse trot ahead. It made
him angry that Kahlan would think he could leave her like this. She was no boundary warden. He
didn't like it that saving them might mean letting them get killed. It didn't make any sense. At least
he didn't want it to make any sense.
He wanted to tell them he was sorry, that he was just afraid for his friend, but he couldn't. He felt
helpless. Chase would be all right, he told himself. He was the head of the boundary wardens, not a,
fool, and he wouldn't go into anything he couldn't handle. He wondered if there was anything
Chase couldn't handle. He wondered if he would be able to tell Emma, if something happened to
her husband.
He wondered if Chase would return before nightfall. Should they stop for the night if he didn't? No.
Chase had said not to stop. They would have to keep going, all night if necessary, until he rejoined
them. He felt as if the mountains were looming over them, ready to pounce. He didn't think he had
ever been this close to the boundary. ' As concerned as he was about Chase, his anger faded.
Richard turned and looked back at Kahlan. She gave him a warm smile, and he returned it, feeling
better. He tried to imagine what the woods here had looked like before so many trees died. It might
have been a beautiful place, green, snug, safe. Maybe his father had come this way when he had
crossed the boundary, traveled this very road with the book.
The woods were getting gloomier. Richard hadn't been able to see the sun for the last couple of
hours, but there was no doubt it was setting. He didn't like the idea of traveling these woods at
night, but the idea of sleeping in them seemed worse. He checked to make sure the other two were
staying close.
"Someone tampered with the bridge. It will support the weight of a man, but not a horse. Looks like
we're going to have to get wet."
"Well, do you have a better idea?" Richard asked.
Zedd sat up tall on his horse, held his arms out straight to his sides, palms up, tilted his head back,
breathed deeply, and closed his eyes. Reluctantly, cautiously, the other two crossed the bridge. On
the other side they turned their horses and looked back. The wizard's horse began walking across
unprompted while Zedd continued to hold his arms out, his head tilted back and his eyes closed.
When he reached their side, he brought his arms down and looked at the other two. Richard and
Kahlan stared at him.
Zedd smiled. "Maybe you were." Without looking back, he snapped his fingers. The bridge
collapsed into the water with a crash. The beams groaned as they were torn apart from one another
in the current and swept downstream. "Then again, maybe you weren't. I couldn't leave it like that.
Someone might come across and be hurt."
They continued down the dismal trail, watching the woods as they went. Richard wondered what
else Zedd could do. He let his horse pick its own way in the gathering darkness, wondering how
much longer this dead world went on, or if the road would ever take them away from it. The night
was bringing life to the place, strange calls and scraping noises. His horse whinnied at things
unseen. He patted its neck reassuringly and checked the sky for gars. It was hopeless; he couldn't
see any sky. But if gars came they would have a hard time surprising the three of them, as the
canopy of twisted, dead limbs and branches would prevent a silent approach. Maybe the things in
the trees were more of a threat than gars. He didn't know anything about them, and he wasn't sure
he wanted to. He realized his heart was pounding.
Richard pulled the Sword of Truth free as he leaned forward and pressed his legs around the horse,
spurring it into a gallop. His muscles tensed as his horse raced down the road. He didn't know if
Zedd and Kahlan were keeping up with him, and in fact he never gave it a thought. His mind
focused on trying to see ahead in the darkness, trying to see anything that might come at him.
Anger was slipping its bounds, heat and need coming forth. Jaw set tight, he charged ahead with
lethal intent. The sound of his horse's hooves on the road prevented him from hearing the thing in
the woods, but he knew it was there, knew it was coming.
At the last instant he realized it was Chase, holding up an arm to halt him, the silhouette of a
flanged mace in his fist.
"Chase! You scared the wits out of me!"
Chase turned his horse and took off at a gallop, the rest following. Richard didn't know if
something was after them or not. Chase didn't act as if there was about to be a fight, but he did tell
him to keep his sword out. Richard kept a wary eye over his shoulder. They all hunched their heads
down in case there were any low branches. It was dangerous to run the horses in the dark like this,
but Chase knew that.
Richard sheathed his sword and pulled up close to the others. "What was that all about?"
"I was worried about you. I heard the howling. I was going to come and help. Zedd and Kahlan
talked me out of it." Richard thought Chase would be angry, but he wasn't.
Richard felt his ears burning. He knew they were right, but it didn't make him feel any better about
not helping a friend.
His face was cold stone in the moonlight. "Yes. One of my men. I don't know which one." He
turned back to the trail and rode on in silence.
"Kahlan, if it had been you, I would have come after you," he said, meaning more than the words
he spoke.
When the other two, back from tending the horses, came into the firelight, Richard could see that
the scabbard strapped over Chase's shoulder was empty, the short sword missing. One of his battle
axes and several long knives were gone, too. Not that this left him defenseless-far from it.
Richard tossed a stick in the fire. "Chase, what were those creatures that were after us? And how
could anything go in and out of the boundary?"
were more than I've ever seen together before."
"Why are they called heart hounds?"
Zedd dished himself a bowl of stew and handed the ladle to Kahlan.
Chase shrugged. "Well, I've never sat real quiet in the dark next to the boundary, just to find out if
they could hear my heart beating." He took another bite of bread, looking down at his chest as he
chewed. He pulled the heavy mail away from himself. There were two long ragged rips in the
chain. Broken pieces of yellow teeth were jammed into mangled links. The leather tunic behind it
was soaked with hound's blood. "The one that did this had the blade of my short sword broken off
in his chest, and I was still on my horse at the time." He looked back to Richard and raised an
eyebrow. "That answer your question?"
Chase took the bowl of stew from Kahlan as she handed it to him. "They have something to do with
the magic of the boundary; they were created with it. They are' the boundary's watchdogs, so to
speak. They can go in and out without being claimed by it. But they're tied to it too, and can't go far
from it. With the boundary weakening, they've been straying farther and farther all the time. That
makes traveling Hawkers Trail dangerous, but to go another way would add a good week to the
journey to Kings' Port. The cutoff we took is the only one that veers away from the boundary until
we get to Southaven. I knew I had to reach you before you passed it, or we would have had to
spend the night back there, with them. Tomorrow, in the daylight, when it's safer, I'll show you the
boundary, how it's weakening."
"They are tan," Kahlan said softly. They all turned to her. She sat staring into the fire. "The heart
hounds are tan, with short fur, like that on the back of a deer. They are seen everywhere now in the
Midlands, having been released from their bonds when the other boundary failed. Crazed with lack
of purpose, now they even come out in the daytime."
"Great," Richard said under his breath. "And what else does the Midlands have that is even worse?"
Kahlan's eyes were in a faraway place. "Darken Rahl," she whispered
Moonlight illuminated the open land between where he sat and the boundary. It was an expanse of
gentle hills, a few trees and small streams; a pleasant-looking place, considering how near it was to
the grim boundary woods. Of course, the woods had probably been pleasant at one time, too, before
Darken Rahl had put the boxes in play, and started the destruction of the boundary. Chase had said
he didn't think the heart hounds could stray this far, but if he was wrong, Richard intended to see
them coming. He ran his hand over the hilt of his sword for reassurance, fingering the word Truth
on it, tracing its raised letters absently while he scanned the night sky, vowing not to let the gars
take him by surprise again. He was glad he was given the first watch, since he wasn't sleepy. He
was fatigued, but not sleepy. Still, he yawned.
Unexpectedly, Kahlan, her cloak also wrapped snug about, slipped up silently in the darkness and
wedged herself tight against him for warmth. She didn't talk, simply sat close. Stray wisps of her
silky hair touched the side of his face. The handle of her knife jabbed into his side, but he didn't say
anything for fear that if he did she would move away. He didn't want her to move.
She smiled back. "All wizards do."
As he scanned the valley for any movement, he could feel her eyes on him. He looked back at her.
"Aren't you sleepy?" She was so close he didn't have to speak in much more than a whisper.
He wished she would lay her head on his shoulder, but she didn't. "About what?"
He knew she had meant much more than she said, just as he had. He looked into her eyes, felt her
breath on, his face.
He held the gaze of her green eyes for a long time. She didn't look away, but her eyes filled with
tears. More than anything he wanted to put his arms around her and kiss her.
"Yes it is. Either you do or you don't."
For a time it seemed she was going to tell him something, tell him her secret.
He desperately wanted to hug her close. He ached to taste her soft lips. But he was inexplicably
getting the same feeling he had had before he crossed the bridge. It was a strong feeling of warning,
stronger than his desire to kiss her. Something told him that if he did, it would be crossing one
bridge too many. He remembered how the magic flared when she had touched his hand as he held
the sword. He had been right about the bridge, so he didn't put his arms around her.
He knew that whatever was going on in her head, he had no say in it. He couldn't force her. It was
something she had to handle herself.
She smiled and could only nod, too close to tears to speak. She kissed the end of her finger and
pressed it against his cheek, then slipped back into the night.
The night was so still that Richard felt as if he were the only one awake in- the whole world. Stars
flickered, looking like Zedd's magic dust frozen in place as the moon stared silently down at him.
Not even the wolves sang tonight. Loneliness threatened to crush him.
The thought of her hunters, the quads, and Darken Rahl made his anger heat. He wanted them to
come now so he could put an end to the threat. He hungered for them. His heart pounded. His jaws
clenched.
Richard slid the sword back into its scabbard, put back the anger, feeling the gloom seep through
him once again as he resumed his scan of the countryside and sky. He stood and walked around to
relieve the cramps in his legs, then sat once more against the rock, inconsolable.
"What are you doing up? It's not time for your watch yet."
"No, thanks. About the cheese, I mean. I could use the friend part, though."
"I see." Zedd laid the cheese on a rock.
"Good girl," Zedd said under his breath.
"I said she's a good girl. We all like her. But Richard, she is other things, too. She has
responsibilities."
Zedd leaned back a little. "It's not for me to say. She is the one to answer that. I would have thought
she would have done so by now." The old man put his arm around Richard's big shoulders. "If it
makes you feel any better, the only reason she hasn't is because she cares for you more than she
should. She is afraid of losing your friendship."
"Richard, she is a wonderful person, but she is not the one for you. She can't be that."
Zedd plucked something off his sleeve as he spoke, avoiding Richard's eyes. "I gave my word I
would allow her to be the one to tell you. You will just have to trust me; she cannot be what you
want. Find another girl. The land is awash with them. Why, half of all the people are girls; there are
plenty to pick from. Pick another."
"All right on one condition," Richard added as he scanned the boundary woods. "You answer one
question, honestly, toasted toads honest. If you can answer yes, then I will do as you ask."
"One question."
Richard turned his fierce eyes to the old man. "Before you married your wife, if someone-tell you
what, let's make it even easier for you to say yes-if someone you trusted, a friend, someone you
loved like a father, if that person had come to you, and said pick another, would you have done so?"
"I thought as much."
Richard's voice was calm, quiet. "You said it yourself. I am the Seeker. There is a way, and I will
find it."
"Then what am I to do?" Richard asked in a broken whisper.
"Just be her friend, Richard. That's what she needs. But you can be nothing more."
After a few minutes the Seeker, a suspicious look in his eye, pushed away, holding the wizard at
arm's length.
Richard shook his head. "You came out here as wizard, away from the others, to counsel the
Seeker. Now, tell me why you're here."
Richard took his hands from Zedd's shoulders, but continued to hold his gaze. "I know that. A
Seeker cannot put himself at risk when by so doing he puts everyone else at risk."
"When you named me Seeker, you took the bad with the good. I'm new at the responsibilities of the
position. It's hard for me to see a friend in trouble and not help. I know I can't afford that luxury
anymore. Consider me reprimanded."
"How could anyone fight on his side? Darken Rahl wants to dominate everyone, to be the master of
all. How could they fight for him?"
"Some of them think that when RAI wins, he will smile on them, and they will be rewarded, and so
they are as ruthless as he to gain his favor. Some are simply blind to the truth and fight for the lies,
they hear. And some find, once that guiding light is lit, that they are wearing chains, and then it is
too late." Zedd smoothed his sleeves down his arms as he sighed. "There have always been wars,
Richard. Every war is a murderous struggle between foes. And yet, no army has ever marched into
battle thinking that the Creator had sided with their enemy."
"I am quite sure that Rahl's followers think we are bloodthirsty monsters, capable of anything. They
will have been told endless tales of their enemy's ruthless brutality. I'm sure none of them know
much about Darken Rahl except what they have been told by Darken Rahl." The wizard frowned,
his intelligent eyes sharp. "It may be a perversion of logic, but that makes it no less threatening, or
deadly. Rahl's followers need only to crush us, they don't have to understand anything else. But for
you to win, against a stronger foe, you must use your head."
Zedd gave him a meaningful look. "No. I never said you couldn't kill Darken Rahl; I said you
couldn't use the sword to kill him."
"Zedd," he asked quietly, "have ,you had to do that? Have you had to let innocent people die?"
"I'm sorry, my friend." Richard wrapped his cloak tighter about himself, chilled from without and
from within. He looked back out over the still landscape, then back at Zedd. "I met the night wisp,
Shar, before she died. She gave her life to get Kahlan here, so others might live. Kahlan also bears
the burden of letting others die."
"Makes my problem about the two of us seem pretty small."
Richard made another scan of the countryside. "Zedd, one more thing. Before we reached your
house, I offered Kahlan an apple." '
"Yes, I know that now, but I didn't at the time."
Richard looked at him sideways. "It isn't what she said, it's what she did. She grabbed me by the
throat. For a moment, I could see in her eyes that she was going to kill me. I don't know how she
was going to kill me, but I'm sure she was going to do it. She hesitated long enough for me to
explain. The point is, she was my friend, and she had saved my life several times, but in that instant
she was going to kill me." Richard paused. "That's part of what you are saying, isn't it?"
Zedd's stare burned into him. Richard was stunned. "I . . . I don't know." "Well, you had better
know that you could, or you have no business going after Rahl. You won't have the resolve to live,
to win. You may be called upon to make a life-and-death decision instantly. Kahlan knows this, she
knows the consequences if she fails. She has the resolve."
Zedd shook his head slowly. "Don't flatter yourself, Richard. She had her hand on you. Anything
you would have done wouldn't have been quick enough. All it would have taken is a thought on her
part. She was in control and could afford to give you the chance to explain. She made no mistake."
"The point is, even though I wouldn't, if I did, you have to be prepared to act. You have to have the
strength to do even that, if necessary. The point is that even though Kahlan knew you were her
friend, and wouldn't hurt her, when she thought you were trying to, she was prepared to act. If you
hadn't quickly made her believe you, she would have."
The wizard leaned back, frowning, and without a hint of emotion in his voice, said, "In a
twinkling."
"Still want to be Seeker?" Zedd asked.
"Scared?"
Zedd patted his knee. "Good. Me too. I would worry only if you were not." The Seeker gave the
wizard an icy glare. "I intend to make Darken Rahl afraid too."
Richard gave a mental shudder at the thought of Kahlan killing him just for offering her an apple.
He frowned. "Zedd? Why are all red fruits in the Midlands deadly poison? It isn't natural."
Richard's frown deepened. "That doesn't make any sense."
Richard's . eyes were wide. "If you found it, how did he get hold of it?"
Richard swallowed. "Zedd, you couldn't have known." He thought that maybe the old man was
going to yell, or cry, or storm off, but instead he only shrugged. "Learn from my mistake, Richard.
If you do, then all those lives won't have been lost for nothing. Maybe their story can be a lesson
that will help save everyone from what Darken Rahl will do if he wins."
"All magic has limits. This had a limit of distance from where it was used. It stretched as far as
where the boundary between Westland and the Midlands went up. The boundary couldn't be put up
where any of the poison spell was, or Westland would have had magic in it."
Zedd smiled. Richard thought it an odd thing to do, but he was glad to see it: "Thinking like a
wizard, my boy. Thinking how to undo magic." He frowned in thought as he looked out into the
night again. "There might be a way to remove the spell. I would have to study it and see what I
could do. If we can defeat Darken Rahl, I intend to put my mind to the task."
Zedd smiled and gave Richard's back an affectionate rub.
Richard thought about what needed to be done, about Panis
"I need you to do something, wizard. I think it is time for us to disappear. Rahl has followed us
long enough. What can you do about that cloud?"
So, I will have to do something else." He contemplatively drew his finger and thumb down the
sharp sides of his jaw. "Has it
Richard thought back, trying to remember every day. Most of the time he had been in a fog over his
father's murder. It seemed so long ago. "The night before I found the snake vine, it rained in the
Ven, but by the time I got there, it had cleared off. No, no rain. I don't remember it being cloudy
since my father's murder. At least, nothing more than a few high, thin clouds. What does that
mean?"
"How could he move the clouds away?"
"Then why don't you put a stronger spell on it to attract other clouds; before he realizes it, it will be
lost, and he won't be able to find it to try to outdo your magic. If he does use stronger magic to
move the clouds away to find this one, he won't know what you have done, and the stronger spell
that pushes the clouds away will break the hook."
"No, thanks. I already have one impossible job."
"Zedd! That's your cloud rock!"
The wizard's finger stirred faster and faster until light came forth, sparkles and colors, swirling
around. He continued to stir, mixing and blending the light. There was no sound, only the pleasant
smell of a spring rain. At last the wizard seemed satisfied.
Unsure at first, Richard stepped into the light. It tingled and felt warm against his skin, as if he were
lying in the hot summer sun without clothes, after a swim. He let himself bask in the warm, safe
feeling, gave himself over to it. His hands floated outward from his sides until they were horizontal.
He tilted his head back, took deep breaths, and closed his eyes. It felt wondrous, like floating in
water, only he was floating in light. Exhilaration soaked through him. His mind felt a buoyant,
timeless connection to everything around him. He was one with the trees, the grass, the bugs, the
birds, the animals all around, the water, the very air itself; not a separate being, but part of a whole.
He understood the interconnection of everything in a new way, saw himself as inconsequential and
empowered at the same time. He saw the world through the eyes of all the creatures around him. It
was a shocking, marvelous insight. He let himself soar into a bird that flew overhead, saw the world
through its eyes, hunted with it, hungry and needful, for mice, watched the campfire below, the
people sleeping.
Zedd's hands sprang forward, loosing his magic dust. It swirled about Richard, glittering fluidly,
until he was at the center of its vortex. The sparkles tightened their rotation and gathered at his
chest. With a tinkling sound like a crystal chandelier in the wind, the dust climbed away into the
sky as if climbing a kite string, taking the sound with it as it went, higher and higher, until it
reached the cloud. The cloud took in the magic dust and was lit from within by roiling colors. All
across the horizon lightning flashed, ragged streaks ripping this way and that, called forth, eager,
expectant.
"Zedd," he whispered, "now I know why you stand on this rock all the time. I've never felt anything
like that in my life. I had no idea."
"It makes a difference?" Richard asked in amazement.
"Zedd, why did you have me do that? It wasn't necessary. You could have done it."
"I don't know. Different. Relaxed. More clearheaded. I guess not as overpowered, not as
depressed."
"Thank you, Zedd."
Zedd help up his hand. Out of the darkness, the piece of cheese he had thrown away floated back to
him
He led the other three off the trail through an open tract of long-dead spruce, the silver-gray
skeletons standing bare of all but a few branches and an occasional wisp of dull green moss. The
soft ground was littered with the rotting corpses of the former monarchs. Brown bog weed, its
broad, flat leaves laid down in haphazard fashion by past storms, looked like a tangled sea of dead
snakes underfoot.
Chase led the way for Zedd and then Kahlan, with Richard following behind, watching over them
as they twisted their way along. Visibility was limited to less than a few hundred feet, and even
though Chase didn't seem to be concerned, Richard kept a sharp lookout; anything could sneak up
close before they would be able to see it. All four swatted at the mosquitoes, and except for Zedd,
they kept their cloaks tight for protection. Zedd, who shunned wearing a cloak, nibbled on the
remnants of lunch, looking about as if on a sightseeing excursion. Richard had an excellent -sense
of direction but was glad they had Chase to lead them. Everything in the bog looked the same, and
he knew from experience how easy it would be to become lost.
Richard watched Kahlan's .body sway as she rode, her shoulders moving to the horse's rhythm. He
wished he could take her to places he knew of in the Hartland Woods, secret places of beauty and
peace, far back in the mountains, show her the waterfall he had found, and the cave behind it, have
lunch by a quiet forest pond with her, take her into town, buy her something pretty, take her
someplace, any place, where she would be safe. He wanted her to be able to smile without having
to worry every minute if her enemies were getting closer. After last night, he felt that the first part,
his fantasy of being with her, was just an empty wish.
Richard looked around, there were still in the middle of an endless, dead, dried-up bog. He didn't
see any boundary. It all looked the same in every direction. They tethered their horses to a fallen
log and followed, Chase a short distance farther on foot.
"I don't see anything," Richard said.
"That's it?" Richard felt a little let down.
As soon as Chase had pushed the stick in as far as he dared, it jumped violently. There was no
sound. He hauled it back and returned to the others. He held the splintered end of a now eight foot
stick toward them. The end was covered with slaver.
Zedd seemed bored. Kahlan was not amused. Richard was astounded. Since he seemed to have an
audience of only one, Chase grabbed a fistful of Richard's shirt and dragged him off. "Come on, I'll
show you what it's like." Chase locked his right arm together with Richard's left as they proceeded,
cautioning Richard, "Go slow, I'll let you know when we've gone far enough. Keep hold of my
arm." They walked ahead slowly.
"Easy now," Chase warned. They pushed against the green sheet as they stepped slowly ahead.
Richard could feel. the pressure of it against his body.
With the next step the green sheet of the wall changed suddenly. "Far enough," Chase said, his
voice echoing. The wall had become darkly transparent, as if Richard were looking into U deep
pond in the dark woods. Chase stood still, watching hire.
Inky black shapes wavered in the gloom on the other side of the wall, specters floating in the deep.
Something closer and faster moved nearer to them. "The hounds," Chase said.
Voices that murmured his name.
He felt a sudden, unexpected stab of loneliness, felt the solitude of his life, of all life. Why did he
need the pain when they were waiting, waiting to welcome him? Never alone again. The black
shapes drifted closer in the gloom, calling to him, and he began- to see their faces. It was as if he
were looking through murky water. They came closer. He longed to step through. To be there with
them.
Richard's heart pounded. His father called out to him mournfully in a long sorrowful cry. His arms
thrust out, trying desperately to clutch for his son. He was just beyond the wall
Safe. Forever.
Then he was being pulled away from his father.
The green wall came up suddenly in place of the darkness as he was pulled back. Chase was
dragging him away from it, through the green light. The world returned with a sickening jolt. The
dry, dead bog returned.
Chase leaned over a little, searching his eyes. "All right?"
Terror raced through Richard's mind as he realized how close he had come to stepping through the
wall, to death. He had been totally unprepared for what had happened. If Chase hadn't been there
holding on to him, he would be dead now. He had tried to give in to the underworld. He felt as if he
didn't know himself. How could he have wanted to give himself over to it? Was he that weak? That
frail?
Kahlan was there, waiting for them, at the edge of the green light as they emerged. She swept her
arm protectively around his waist and tugged him away from Chase. With her other hand she
grabbed hold of his jaw, turning his head, making him look at her.
He nodded, and started to remember the trails.
"You bastard!" she screamed. "Why would you do that to him!" Throwing all her weight into it, she
slapped him again, her hair tossing across her face. Chase didn't try to stop her. "You did it on
purpose! How could you do that!" She swung at him a third time, but this time, he grabbed her
wrist in midswing.
She jerked her hand away, glaring at him, her chest heaving. Some of her hair was stuck sideways
across her face.
"That's no excuse! You could have warned him!"
"You could have told him!"
"Enough!" Richard said, his head clear at last. They all turned to him. "A day has yet to go by when
one of you three doesn't scare the wits out of me. But I know you all have my best interests at heart.
Right now we have more important things to worry about. Chase, how do you know the boundary
is failing? What's different?"
"Chase is right," Zedd offered, "I could see it from here."
Zedd shrugged. "It's hard to tell."
"It will last at least two weeks. But not more than six or seven."
"I don't have that kind of power."
"How should I know?"
Chase thought about the question. "Not that I know of."
"Caring is different from knowing," Richard said. "I don't think we should be standing here, and I'm
worried he might know where we're going."
Richard gave her a sympathetic look. "Do you think it was your mother and sister you saw when
you were in there?"
"It's impossible to say. No one really knows all that much about the underworld."
"Richard is right," Chase said. "And we have to get to Skow Swamp before nightfall, before the
heart hounds come out. 'It's the only safe place between here and Southaven. We'll reach Southaven
before tomorrow night and will be safe from the hounds there. The next day we will go see a friend
of mine, Adie, the bone woman. She lives near the pass. We need her help to get through. But
tonight, our only chance is the swamp."
Zedd's fingers threw fire over their heads. It shrieked past and vanished. Another black appendage
struck out at the wizard with lightning speed, knocking the old man through the air. Richard hooked
a foot around a branch on a log. Rotten, it tore from the stump. He twisted his body around, trying
to dig his heels into the ground. His boots slid across the wet bog weed. He jammed his heels into
the earth, but wasn't strong enough to hold the two of them from being dragged across the ground.
He needed his hands free.
Kahlan lunged, throwing her arms around him, holding tight. The sinuous black thing wrapped
around her legs undulated, getting a stronger grip on her. She screamed as it squeezed. Richard
yanked the sword free, filling the air with its ringing.
Anger flooded through him. Richard's worst fear was coming to pass; something was trying to take
Kahlan. The green light brightened. Being hauled across the ground, he couldn't reach the thing that
pulled them. Kahlan held him hard by the waist; her legs were too far away, and the thing that held
her legs was farther still.
She was too terrified to do it. She clutched him tightly, desperately, panting in pain. The green
sheet came up as they were dragged in.- The buzzing was loud in his ears.
He tried to pry her hands from his waist. The trees of the bog started to fade into darkness. Richard
could feel the pressure of the wall. He couldn't believe how strongly she held him. On his back,
sliding across the ground, he tried to reach behind himself to pull her wrists away from him, but
could not. Their only chance was for him to get up.
Her head pressed against his stomach as she clutched his body. Kahlan looked up at him, her face
contorting in pain as the black thing squeezed. She screamed, then let go.
Kahlan's feet were at the wall, the dark thing enfolded tightly around her legs, compressing and
pulling. He brought the sword up. Murderous need surged through him.
Without looking to see what else was happening, Richard pushed his arm under her waist and lifted
her in a single motion, scooping her off the ground. He held her tight against himself and held the
sword toward the wall as he retreated from the boundary. Backing away steadily, he watched for
any movement, any aggression. They left the green light.
"The others, where are they?" she asked in a panic. "We have to find them."
"Stay here!" he yelled far more angrily than required, pushing her to the ground.
Richard's mind raced, trying to think what to do. He couldn't lift Chase with one arm, and he didn't
dare to put the sword away. He did know he didn't want Kahlan to come help, he wanted her to stay
safely away. Getting a good grip on the warden's leather tunic, Richard started dragging him. The
slick bog weed eased the effort somewhat, but it was still difficult, because he had to go around
several fallen trees. Surprisingly, nothing attacked. Maybe he had hurt it, or killed it. He wondered
if it was possible to kill something already dead. The sword had magic. Richard wasn't sure what it
was capable of; he wasn't even sure if the things in the boundary were dead. He finally reached
Kahlan and Zedd, and dragged Chase close. The wizard was still unconscious.
Richard scanned around. "We can't stay here, and we can't leave them. Let's put them over the
horses and get out of here. We'll look to their wounds as soon as we're a safe distance away."
Richard helped Kahlan up onto her horse. He could tell that her legs hurt more than she would
admit. He gave her the reins of Zedd's horse, mounted up, took Chase's horse, and then carefully
got his bearings. He knew they would have a hard time finding the trail; the mist was getting heavy,
visibility limited. There seemed to be ghosts watching from the shadows in every direction. He
didn't know if he should lead or follow Kahlan, didn't know how best to protect her, so he rode
beside her. Zedd and Chase weren't tied down and could easily slip off the horses, so they had to
take it slow. The dead spruce looked the same in every direction, and they couldn't go in a straight
line because they had to cut back and forth around fallen trees. Richard spat out mosquitoes that
kept flying into his mouth.
"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Kahlan asked. "It all looks the same."
"Do you think we should stop and tend to them?"
Kahlan looked around, worried. Richard gave thought to having her wait with the other two while
he went ahead and scouted for the trail, but dismissed the idea, as he was afraid he might not be
able to find her again. They had to stay together. He started to wonder what they would do if they
couldn't find their way out before dark. How would they protect themselves against the heart
hounds? If there were enough of them, even the sword couldn't hold them all off at once. Chase had
said they had to get to the swamp before nightfall. He hadn't said why, or how the swamp could
protect them. The brown bog weed was an endless sea all around, with hulks of trees aground in it
everywhere.
Shadows from the brush among the oaks watched them. He told himself it was his imagination that
made the shadows seem to have eyes. There was no wind, no movement, no sound. He was angry
with himself for being lost, despite how easily it could happen in this place. He was a guide; getting
lost was unforgivable.
"What do you think we should do?" she asked him.
Kahlan agreed. They worked quickly to lash their friends to the horses. Richard changed Chase's
bandage, and cleaned up the wound a little. The mist was changing to a light rain. He fished around
in the packs, finding the blankets, and removed the oilcloth they were wrapped in. They put a
blanket over each friend, then covered them with the oilcloth to keep them dry, crisscrossing rope
over it all to hold it in place.
"Thank you for saving me," she said softly. "The boundary terrifies me." She looked sheepishly up
at him. "And if you remind me what I said about not coming after me, I'll kick you." She smiled as
she looked up from under her eyebrows.
He smiled back at her and pulled up the hood of her cloak, stuffing her hair into it, to keep her dry
in the rain. He pulled up his own hood and they started off down the road.
When the day's death began stealing away the soft gray light, they still had not reached the swamp,
and there was no way to tell how much farther it was. Off through the tangled woods, they caught
the sound of howling. Their breath caught in their throats.
The colors of day were washing out into a sullen gray as night approached. Rain pelted his face in
small, cold pricks, heated and mingled with sweat, and ran down his neck. Richard watched the
bodies of his two friends bounce and jostle on the horses, hoping they were tied down securely
enough, hoping they were not badly hurt, hoping they would be conscious soon. The ride couldn't
be doing them any good. Kahlan didn't turn or look back. She bent to her task, her dark form
hunched forward over the horse as it ran.
Kahlan's horse disappeared over the edge of a drop. Richard reached the brink of the sharp slope
and saw her again, descending into a bowl in the earth. The tangled tops of trees spread out into the
distance, at least as much of it as he could see in the mist and dim light. It was the Skow Swamp, at
last.
The road narrowed into a trail that struggled to remain above the black water, making it necessary
to slow the horses for fear they would break a leg on the roots. Richard saw that as Kahlan's horse
passed, the surface of the water rolled in lazy ripples as things moved under it. He heard the hounds
at the top of the bowl. Kahlan turned at the howls. If they stayed on the trail, the hounds would be
at them in a matter of minutes. As Richard looked around he pulled the sword free. It sent its
distinctive ringing across the murky water. Kahlan stopped and looked back to him.
He thought it a slim hope, but could think of nothing else. Chase had said they would be safe from
the hounds in the swamp, but hadn't told them how. This was the only thing he could think of.
Kahlan didn't hesitate. She led her horse right in, pulling Zedd's behind. Richard followed close
after with Chase's, watching up the trail, seeing movement through gaps in the trees. The water
seemed to be no more than three or four feet deep, with a muddy bottom. Weed broke from its
anchoring and floated to the surface as Kahlan's horse waded through ahead of him, making steady
progress to the island.
Dark bodies wriggled in the water, just below the surface, heading toward them from every
direction. Some lifted their heads, flicking red tongues out into the damp air. Their dark brown
bodies had copper-colored splotches, almost invisible in the gloomy water, and barely disturbed the