Wizard's First Rule - Terry Goodkind [154]
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.”
Toffalar’s face hardened. “We do not call gatherings for outsiders.”
Kahlan could tell that Richard was getting angry and straining to control himself. She didn’t move her head, but her eyes swept around, gauging where everyone was, especially the men with weapons, in case they had to fight their way out. She didn’t judge their chances of escape to be very good. Suddenly, she wished she had never brought him here.
Richard’s eyes were full of fire as he looked around at the people of the village and then back to the elders. “In return for bringing you the rain, I ask of you only that you do not decide right now. Consider what manner of man you find me to be.” He was keeping his voice calm, but there was no mistaking the import of his words. “Think it over carefully. Many lives depend upon your decision. Mine. Kahlan’s. Yours.”
As Kahlan translated, she was suddenly suffused with the cold feeling that Richard was not talking to the elders. He was speaking to someone else. She suddenly felt the eyes of that other on her. Her own gaze swept the crowd. All eyes were on the two of them; she didn’t know whose gaze she still felt.
“Fair,” Toffalar proclaimed at last. “You both are free to be among our people as honored guests while we consider. Please enjoy all we have, share our food and our homes.”
The elders departed, through the light rain, toward the communal buildings. The crowd went back to their business, shooing the children as they went. Savidlin was the last to leave. He smiled and offered his help in anything they might need. She thanked him as he stepped off into the rain. Kahlan and Richard sat alone