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And then there was silence. He opened his eyes. The wizard’s fire was gone. Zedd wasted no time. Already he was throwing a handful of magic dust. It sparkled as it came. Richard saw something coming from behind him, magic dust from the witch woman. It shimmered like ice crystals, taking the sparkle from Zedd’s dust, and slammed into him.
Zedd stood frozen, unmoving, one hand in the air.
“Zedd!”
There was no reply. Richard spun to the witch woman. She was no longer his mother. Shota wore a wispy dress with variegated shades of gray across its gauzy surface, its folds and loose points floating in the light breeze. Her full, thick hair was a wavy auburn, her smooth skin flawless. Almond eyes shone up at him. She was as beautiful as the palace that stood behind her, the valley around her. She was so attractive, it almost took his breath away, and would have, were it not for the rage he was feeling.
“My hero,” she said in a voice that was no longer his mother’s, but silky, clear, easy. A sly smile came to her full lips. “Totally unnecessary, but it’s the thought that counts. I am impressed.”
“And who is this supposed to be? Another vision from my mind? Or is this the real Shota?” Richard was enraged. He recognized all too well the anger from the sword, but decided to keep the weapon out.
Her smile widened. “Are those clothes really you?” she teased. “Or are they something you wear for a time, to serve a purpose?”
“What’s the purpose of who you are now?”
Her eyebrow lifted. “Why, to please you, Richard. That’s all.”
“With some illusion!”
“No.” Her voice softened. “This is no illusion, it’s the way I appear to myself, most of the time anyway. This is real.”
Richard ignored her answer, pointing up the road with the sword. “What have you done to Zedd?”
She shrugged, looking away with a demure smile. “Merely prevented him from harming me. He is all right. For the moment anyway.” Almond eyes sparkled up from under her eyebrows. “I will kill him later, after you and I have talked.”
His grip on the sword tightened. “And Kahlan?”
Shota redirected her gaze to Kahlan, who stood still, pale, her mouth trembling, her eyes locked on Shota’s every move. Richard knew Kahlan feared this woman more than she feared the snakes. Shota frowned; then it melted back into her coy smile as she returned her gaze to him.
“She is a very dangerous woman.” Her eyes flashed with knowing that went well beyond the years she appeared to be. “More dangerous than even she knows. I have to protect myself from her.” She shrugged again, deftly catching the corner of a floating wisp of her dress. When she did, the rest of the dress settled down, as if the breeze had died. “So I did that to keep her still. If she moves, they will bite her. If she doesn’t, they won’t.” Shota thought a moment. “I will kill her later, too.” Her voice seemed too gentle, too pleasant for the words she spoke.
Richard considered using the sword to take off the witch woman’s head. His rage demanded it. He visualized it powerfully in his mind, hoping Shota could see it, too. Then he put the fury down a little, but still at the ready.
“And me? Are you not afraid of me?”
Shota gave a little laugh, a smile. “A Seeker?” Her fingers went to her lips as if to try to hide her amusement. “No, I don’t think so.”
Richard could barely contain himself. “Perhaps you should be.”
“Perhaps. Perhaps in normal times. But these are not normal times. Otherwise, why would you be here? To kill me? You have just saved me.” She gave him a look that said he should be ashamed of himself for saying something so stupid, then walked around him, one full turn. He turned with her, keeping the sword between them, although she seemed unconcerned by it. “These are times that demand strange alliances, Richard. Only the strong are wise enough to recognize this.” She stopped, folded her arms, appraising him with a thoughtful smile. “My hero. Why, I can’t remember the last time anyone thought to save my life.” She leaned toward him. “Very gallant. It truly was.” She slipped an arm around his waist. Richard wanted to stop her, but somehow he didn’t.
“Don’t flatter yourself. I had my motives.” He found her easy manner unnerving, and fiercely attractive. He knew he had no reason to feel attracted to her. She had just said she was going to kill his two best friends, and by Kahlan’s manner he knew it was no vain boast. Worse, he had the sword out, the sword’s anger out. He realized that even its magic was being bewitched. He felt as if he were drowning, and to his surprise, was finding the experience pleasant.
Her smile widened, making her almond eyes sparkle. “As I said, only the strong are wise enough for the alliances needed. The wizard wasn’t wise enough; he tried to kill me. She isn’t wise enough; she would also. She didn’t even want to come here. Only you were wise enough to see that these times demand an alliance such as ours.”
Richard struggled to maintain a level of outrage. “I make no alliances with those who would kill my friends.”
“Even if they try to kill me first? Have I no right to defend myself? Am I to lay down and die, because it’s your friends who would do the killing? Richard,” she said, shaking her head with a frown and a smile, “think about what you are saying. Look at it from my eyes.”
He thought about it, but said nothing. She gave his waist an affectionate squeeze.
“But you were very gallant. You, my hero, have done a very rare thing. You have put your life at risk for me, a witch woman. That kind of thing does not go unrewarded. You have earned a wish. Anything you want, simply name it, and it will be granted.” With her free hand she made gliding motions in the air. “Anything, on my word.”
Richard started to open his mouth, but Shota put a finger gently to his lips. Her warm body, firm beneath the thin dress, pressed against him. “Don’t spoil my opinion of you by answering too quickly. You may have anything you want. Don’t waste the wish. Think it over carefully before you ask. It’s an important wish, offered for a reason, and perhaps the most important wish you will ever have. Haste could mean death.”
Richard was seething, in spite of how strangely attracted he was to this woman. “I don’t have to think it over. My wish is for you not to kill my friends. To leave them unharmed, and let them go.”
Shota sighed. “I’m afraid that would complicate things.”
“Oh? So, your word means nothing?”
She gave him a reproachful glare. Her voice had a hint of harshness to it. “My word means everything. I simply want you to know it would complicate matters. You came here for the answer to an important question. You have a wish coming. You have merely to ask the question as your wish, and I will grant it.
“Isn’t that what you really want? Ask yourself what’s more important; how many will die if you fail in your duty.” She squeezed his waist again, her beautiful smile returning. “Richard, the sword is confusing you. The magic is interfering with your judgment. Put it away, then think again. If you are wise, you will heed my warning; it is not without reason.”
Richard angrily thrust the sword back into its scabbard to show her he wouldn’t change his mind. He looked back at Zedd, standing frozen in place. He looked over at Kahlan, snakes writhing all over her. When their eyes met, his heart ached for her. He knew what Kahlan wanted him to do; he could see it in her eyes: she wanted him to use the wish to find the box. Richard turned away from her, unable to witness her torment another moment. He regarded Shota with determination.
“I’ve put the sword away, Shota. It changes nothing. You are going to answer my question anyway. Your life, too, depends upon my knowing the answer. You have as much as admitted it. I’m not wasting my wish. To use it to get an answer you already intend to give me would be a waste of my friends’ lives. Now, grant my wish!”
Shota regarded him with ancient eyes. “Dear Richard,” she said softly, “a Seeker needs his anger, but don’t let it fill your head to the exclusion of wisdom. Do not judge too quickly action
s you do not fully understand. Not all acts are as they seem. Some are meant to save you.”
Her hand came up slowly to the side of his face, reminding him again of his mother. Her gentleness made him feel calm, and somehow sad. In that moment, he felt his fear of her wane.
“Please, Shota,” he whispered, “I have made my wish. Grant it.”
“Your wish, dear Richard, is granted,” she said in a sad whisper.
He turned to Kahlan. The snakes were still on her. “Shota, you made a promise.”
“I promised I would not kill her, and that she could leave. When you go, she may go with you, I will not kill her. But she is still a danger to me. If she remains still the snakes will not harm her.”
“You said Kahlan would have tried to kill you. That isn’t true; she guided me here seeking your help, the same as me. Even though she intended you no harm, you would have killed her. And now you do this to her!”
“Richard,” she touched a finger to her chin, thinking, “you come here thinking me evil, didn’t you? Even though you knew nothing of me, you were ready to bring harm to me, based on what you invented in your head. You have committed to belief that which you have heard from others.” There was no malice in her voice. “People who are jealous or afraid say these things. People also say that to use fire is wrong, and that those who use fire are evil. Does that make it true? People say the old wizard is evil, and that people die because of him. Does that make it true? Some of the Mud People say you brought death to their village. Does that make it true, because fools say it is so?”
“What kind of person would try to make me think she was my dead mother?” he asked bitterly.
Shota looked genuinely hurt. “Do you not love your mother?”
“Of course.”
