Wizard's First Rule (47 page)

Women wrapped in simple dresses of brightly colored cloth sat in the work areas, grinding tava root, from which they made the flat bread that was the staple of the Mud People. Sweet-smelling smoke rose from the cooking fires. Adolescent girls with short-cropped hair smoothed down by sticky mud sat by the women, helping.

Kahlan felt their shy eyes on her. She knew from being here before that she was the object of great interest among the young girls, a traveler who had been to strange places and seen all sorts of things. A woman whom men feared and respected. The older women abided the distraction with understanding indulgence.

Children ran from every corner of the village to see what manner of strangers Savidlin’s hunting party had brought back. They crowded around the hunters, squealing with excitement, stomping their bare feet in the mud, and splashing the men. Ordinarily, they would be interested in the deer and boar, but now those were ignored in favor of the strangers. The men tolerated them with good-natured smiles; little children were never scolded. When they were older, they would be put into strict training where they would be taught the disciplines of the Mud People—of hunting, food gathering, and the ways of spirits—but for now they were allowed to be children, with almost free rein to play.

The knot of children offered up scraps of food as bribes for stories of who the
strangers might be. The men laughed, declining the offerings in favor of saving the tale for the elders. Only slightly disappointed, the children continued to dance about, this being the most exciting thing that had happened in their young lives; something very much out of the ordinary, with a distinct tinge of danger.

Six elders stood under the leaky protection of one of the open pole structures, waiting for Savidlin to bring the strangers to them. They wore deerskin pants, and were bare-chested; each had a coyote hide draped around his shoulders. Despite their grim faces, Kahlan knew them to be more friendly than they appeared. Mud People never smiled at outsiders until greetings had been exchanged, lest their souls be stolen.

The children stayed back from the pole building, sitting in the mud to watch as the hunting party brought the outsiders to the elders. The women had halted their work at the cooking fires, as had the young men their weapons making, and all fell silent, including the children sitting in the mud. Business among the Mud People was conducted in the open, for all to see.

Kahlan stepped up to the six elders, Richard to her right but back a pace, Savidlin to his right. The six surveyed the two outsiders.

“
Strength to Confessor Kahlan,
” said the eldest.

“
Strength to Toffalar,
” she answered.

He gave her face a gentle slap, hardly more than a pat. It was their custom to give only small slaps in the village proper. Heartier ones like Savidlin had delivered were reserved for chance meetings out on the plain, away from the village. The gentler custom helped preserve order, and teeth. Surin, Caldus, Arbrin, Breginderin, and Hajanlet each in turn offered strength and a small slap. Kahlan returned the greetings and the gentle slaps. They turned to Richard. Savidlin stepped forward, pulling his new friend with him. He proudly displayed his swollen lip to the elders.

Kahlan spoke Richard’s name under her breath with a rising inflection and a cautionary tone. “These are important men. Please do not loosen their teeth.”

He gave her a quick glance out of the corner of his eye, and a mischievous smile.

“
This is the Seeker, Richard With The Temper,
” Savidlin said, proud of his charge. He leaned closer to the elders, his voice heavy with meaning. “
Confessor Kahlan brought him to us. He is the one you spoke of, the one who brought the rains. She told me so.
”

Kahlan began to worry; she didn’t know what Savidlin was talking about. The elders remained stone-faced, except Toffalar, who lifted an eyebrow.

“
Strength to Richard With The Temper,
” Toffalar said. He gave Richard a gentle slap.

“Strength to Toffalar,” he answered in his own language, having recognized his name, and immediately returned the slap.

Kahlan breathed out in relief that it was gentle. Savidlin beamed, showing his fat lip again. Toffalar at last smiled. After the others had given and received a greeting, they smiled, too.

And then they did something very odd.

The six elders and Savidlin each dropped to one knee and bowed their heads to Richard. Kahlan instantly tensed.

“What’s going on?” Richard asked out of the side of his mouth, alerted by her anxiety.

“I do not know,” she answered in a low voice. “Maybe it’s their way of greeting the Seeker. I have never seen them do this before.”

The men rose to their feet, all smiles. Toffalar held his hand up and motioned over their heads to the women.

“
Please,
” Toffalar said to the two of them, “
sit with us. We are honored to have you both among us.
”

Pulling Richard down with her, Kahlan sat cross-legged on the wet wooden floor. The elders waited until they were seated before seating themselves, paying no attention to the fact that Richard kept his hand near his sword. Women came with woven trays stacked high with loaves of round, flat tava bread and other food, offering them first to Toffalar and then the other elders, as they kept their eyes and smiles on Richard. They chatted softly among themselves about how big Richard With The Temper was, and what odd clothes he wore. They mostly ignored Kahlan.

Women in the Midlands tended not to like Confessors. They saw them as a menace who could take their men, and a threat to their lifestyle; women were not supposed to be independent. Kahlan disregarded their cool glances; she was more than used to them.

Toffalar took his bread and tore it into three sections, offering a third to Richard first and then a third to Kahlan. With a smile, another woman offered a bowl of roasted peppers to each. Kahlan and Richard both took one, and following the elder’s example, rolled them in the bread. She noticed just in time that Richard was keeping his right hand near his sword and was about to eat with his left.

“Richard!” she warned in a harsh whisper. “Don’t put food in your mouth with your left hand.”

He froze. “Why?”

“Because they believe that evil spirits eat with their left hand.”

“That’s foolish,” he said, an intolerant tone in his voice.

“Richard, please. They outnumber us. All their weapons are tipped with poison. This is a poor time for theological arguments.”

She could feel his gaze on her as she smiled at the elders. Out of the corner of her eye she saw with relief that he switched the food to his right hand.

“
Please forgive our meager offering of food,
” Toffalar said. “
We will call a banquet for tonight.
”

“
No!
” Kahlan blurted out. “
I mean, we do not want to impose upon your people.
”

“
As you wish,
” Toffalar said with a shrug, a little disappointed.

“
We are here because the Mud People, among others, are in great danger.
”

The elders all nodded and smiled. “
Yes,
” Surin spoke up. “
But now that you have brought Richard With The Temper to us, all is well. We thank you, Confessor Kahlan, we will not forget what you have done.
”

Kahlan looked around at their happy, smiling faces. She didn’t know what to make of this development, and so took a bite of the flat-tasting tava bread with roasted peppers to gain time to think it over.

“What are they saying?” Richard asked before he took a bite himself.

“For some reason, they are glad I brought you here.”

He looked over at her. “Ask them why.”

She gave him a nod, and turned to Toffalar. “
Honored elder, I am afraid I must admit that I am without your knowledge of Richard With The Temper.
”

He smiled knowingly. “
I am sorry, child. I forget you were not here when we called the council of seers. You see, it was dry, our crops were withering, and our people were in danger of starvation. So we called a gathering, to ask the spirits for help. They told us one would come, and bring the rain with him. The rains came, and here is Richard With The Temper, just as they promised.
”

“
And so you are happy that he is here, because he is an omen?
”

“
No,
” Toffalar said, eyes wide with excitement, “
we are happy that one of the spirits of our ancestors has chosen to visit us.
” He pointed at Richard. “
He is a spirit man.
”

Kahlan almost dropped her bread. She sat back in surprise.

“What is it?” Richard asked.

She stared into his eyes. “They had a gathering, to bring rain. The spirits told them someone would come, and bring the rain. Richard, they think you are a spirit of their ancestors. A spirit man.”

He studied her face a moment. “Well, I’m not.”

“They think you are. Richard, they would do anything for a spirit. They will call a council of seers if you ask.”

She didn’t like asking him to do this; she didn’t feel at all right about deceiving the Mud People, but they needed to know where the box was. Richard considered her words.

“No,” he said quietly while holding her gaze.

“Richard, we have an important task to attend to. If they think you are a spirit, and that will help us get the last box, what does it matter?”

“It matters because it’s a lie. I won’t do it.”

“Would you rather have Rahl win?” she asked quietly.

He gave her a cross look. “First of all, I will not do it because it’s wrong to deceive these people about something as important as this. Secondly, these people have a power; that is why we are here. They have proven it to me by the fact that they said one would come with the rains. That part is true. In their excitement, they have jumped to a conclusion that is not. Did they say the one who would come would be a spirit?” She shook her head. “People sometimes believe things simply because they want to.”

“If it works to our advantage, and theirs, what harm is there?”

“The harm is in their power. What if they call the gathering and they see the truth, that I’m not a spirit? Do you think they will be pleased that we lied to them, tricked them? Then we will be dead, and Rahl wins.”

She leaned back and took a deep breath. The wizard chooses his Seekers well, she thought.

“
Have we aroused the temper of the spirit?
” Toffalar asked, a look of concern on his weathered face.

“He wants to know why you are angry,” she said. “What shall I tell him?”

Richard looked at the elders, then to her. “I will tell them. Translate my words.”

Kahlan nodded her agreement.

“The Mud People are wise, and strong,” he began. “That is why I have come here. Your ancestor spirits were right that I would bring the rains.” They all seemed pleased when Kahlan told them his words. Everyone else in the village was stone silent as they listened. “But they have not told you everything. As you know, that is the way of spirits.” The elders nodded their understanding. “They have left it to your wisdom to find the rest of the truth. In this way you remain strong, as your children become strong because you guide them, not because you provide them their every want. It is the hope of every parent that their children will become strong and wise, to think for themselves.”

There were nods, but not as many. “
What are you saying great spirit?
” asked Arbrin, one of the elders in the back.

Richard ran his fingers through his hair after Kahlan translated. “I am saying that, yes, I brought the rains, but there is more. Perhaps the spirits saw a greater danger for your people, and that is the more important reason I have come. There is a very dangerous man who would rule your people, make you his slaves. His name is Darken Rahl.”

There were snickers among the elders. “
Then he sends fools to be our masters,
” Toffalar said.

Richard regarded them angrily. The laughter died out. “It is his way, to lull you into overconfidence. Do not be fooled. He has used his power and his magic to conquer peoples of greater numbers than you. When he chooses, he will crush you. The rains came because he sends clouds to follow me, to know where I am, that he might try to kill me at a time of his choosing. I am not a spirit, I am the Seeker. Just a man. I want to stop Darken Rahl, so that your people, and others, may live their own lives, as they wish.”

Toffalar’s eyes narrowed. “
If what you say is true, then the one called Rahl sent the rains, and has saved our people. That is what his missionary tried to teach us, that Rahl would save us.
”

“No. Rahl sent the clouds to follow me, not to save you. I chose to come here, just as your spirit ancestors said I would. They said the rains would come, and a man would come when they did. They did not say I would be a spirit.”

There was great disappointment in the expressions of the elders as Kahlan interpreted; she hoped it wouldn’t turn to anger.

“
Then maybe the message of the spirits was a warning about the man that would come,
” Surin said.

“And maybe it was a warning about Rahl,” Richard answered right back. “I am offering you the truth. You must use your wisdom to see it, or your people are lost. I offer you a chance to help save yourselves.”

The elders considered in silence. “
Your words seem to flow true, Richard With The Temper, but it is yet to be decided,
” Toffalar said at last. “
What is it you want from us?
”

The elders sat quietly, the joy gone from their faces. The rest of the village waited in quiet fear. Richard regarded the face of each elder in turn, then spoke quietly.

“Darken Rahl looks for a magic that will give him the power to rule everyone,
including the Mud People. I look for this magic also, so that I might deny him the power. I would like you to call a council of seers, to tell me where I might find this magic, before it is too late, before Rahl finds it first.”