"We have right on our side. The Creator is on our side. When we un-leash the power of Orden we will wipe the blasphemy of magic from the world. We will make all men bow down before the teachings of the Order. All men will submit to divine justice and be of one faith.

"It will be a new dawn for mankind, the dawn of the age of man without magic to taint men's souls. All men will rejoice to be part of the glory that is the cause of the Order. In that new world of man, all men will be equal. All men can then dedicate themselves in service to their fellow man, as is the will of the Creator."

"Yes, Excellency," Sister Armina said, eager to find an opening to worm her way back into his favor.

"Excellency," Sister Ulicia ventured, "as I've explained before, while we may have many of the elements needed, as you have so rightly pointed out, we must still have all three boxes if we are to accomplish the goal of accessing the power of Orden for the cause of the Fellowship of Order. We still need that third box."

His grisly grin returned. "As I told you, I was there in Tovi's mind. I may have an idea about who was involved in taking it."

Sisters Ulicia and Armina looked not only surprised, but curious.

"You do, Excellency?" Sister Armina asked.

He nodded. "My spiritual advisor Brother Narev had a friend he had dealings with from time to time. I suspect she might be involved."

Sister Ulicia looked skeptical. "You think a friend of the Fellowship of Order might have been involved?"

"No, I didn't say a friend of the Fellowship. I said a friend of Brother Narev. A woman I, too, have had occasional dealings with in the past on Brother Narev's behalf. I think you may have heard of her." Jagang arched an eyebrow at the woman. "She goes by the name of Six."

Sister Armina gasped and went stiff.

Sister Ulicia's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Six . . . Excellency, surely you don't mean Six, the witch woman?"

Jagang looked pleased by the reaction. "Ah, so you know her."

"I had occasion to cross paths with her once. We had a talk, of sorts. It was not what I would describe as a pleasant conversation. Excellency, no one can deal with that woman."

"Well, you see, Ulicia, that's just one more area where you and I differ. You have nothing of value to offer her but your boneless carcass to feed to those with a taste for human flesh she keeps back in her lair. I, on the other hand, have a pretty good grasp on what the woman needs and wants. I'm in a position to grant her the kinds of indulgences she seeks. Unlike you, Ulicia, I can deal with her."

"But if Richard Rahl or Nicci put the box in play, that can only mean that they are now in possession of it," Sister Ulicia said. "So, even if Six really did once have the box after Tovi, it's now out of her grasp."

"So you think such a woman will abandon her burning desires? All the things she lusts after?" Jagang shook his head. "No, it will not sit well with Six that her plans were . . . interrupted. Six is a woman who will not be denied. She does not treat very kindly anyone who gets in her way. Am

I correct, Ulicia?"

Sister Ulicia swallowed before nodding.

"I expect that a woman of her dark talents and boundless determination will not rest until she has corrected the injustice, and then she will have to deal with the Order. So, you see, I think everything is well in hand. That one of those two criminals, Nicci or Richard Rahl, put that box in play will mean nothing in the end. The Order will prevail."

Sister Ulicia, her fingers folded tightly together to stop them from trembling ever since she first heard the name Six, bowed her head. "Yes, Excellency. I can see that you do indeed have everything well in hand."

Jagang, seeing her defeated demeanor, snapped his fingers as he turned his attention toward one of the shirtless slaves standing back near the entrance to the royal tent.

"I'm hungry. The Ja'La tournaments start today. I want a hearty meal before going to watch the games."

The man bowed deeply from the waist. "Yes, Excellency. I will see to it at once."

After he'd run off to see to the task, Jagang gazed out over the sea of men. "For now, our brave fighters need a diversion from the difficult work. One of the teams out there will eventually win a chance to play my own team. Let's hope the team that eventually wins the right to play my team is good enough to at least make my men break a sweat in beating them." "Yes, Excellency," the Sisters said together.

Jagang, looking annoyed by their groveling, gestured to one of the special guards as the man marched by. "She's going to kill you first."

The man froze, panic in his eyes. "Excellency?"

Jagang tilted his head to indicate Kahlan only a half step behind him and to his right. "She's going to kill you first, and you deserve it."

The man dipped his head deferentially. "I don't understand, Excellency."

"Of course you don't-you're stupid. She's been counting your steps. You take the same number of paces each time before you turn to march in the opposite direction. Each time you turn you look to check on her, then march away. "She's counted your paces. When it's time for you to turn, she doesn't have to be looking in your direction because she knows exactly when you will turn. She knows that just before you turn, you'll check on her and see her looking the other way. That will put you at ease.

"When you march up to us from the right and turn, you pivot the same way each time-to your right. Each time you turn, the knife on your belt at your right hip is on the side closest to her."

The man looked down at the knife on his belt. He covered it protectively with a hand. "But Excellency, I wouldn't let her get my knife. I swear. I would stop her."

"Stop her?" Jagang snorted a brief laugh. "She knows that she is but two strides from the spot where you turn, two strides from snatching your knife right out of its sheath." He snapped his fingers. "Quick as that, she'll have your knife. You probably won't even realize it before you die."

"But I would-"

"You will look to check on her, see her looking in another direction, and then turn. By the time you've taken your third step, she will have your knife. It will then be but an instant before she rams the entire length of the blade into your tender right kidney. You'll be as good as dead before you know what hit you."

Despite the cold, sweat beaded on the man's forehead.

Jagang glanced back at Kahlan. She showed him only a blank expression devoid of any emotion.

Jagang was wrong. The man would die second. He was stupid, just as Jagang had said. Stupid men were easier to kill. It was harder to kill smart, attentive men. Kahlan knew each of her special guards. She made it her business to learn everything she could about each one of them. The other man marching before the tent was one of the smartest among her special guard.

Wherever she was, she always analyzed the situation and envisioned how she would implement an attempt to escape. This was not the time, or place, but she still had thought it through.

She wouldn't kill the stupid one first, but she would take his knife, just as Jagang had said. Then she would turn to the smart one because he was more watchful and his reactions were far quicker. The special guards' task was to prevent her from escaping; they weren't supposed to use lethal force against her. When the smart one came at her to tackle her, she would already have the knife and would use their closing momentum as she spun toward him to slash his throat. She would sidestep his falling dead weight to his left side, spin, and plunge the knife into the kidney of the stupid fellow, just as Jagang had suggested.

"You have me dead to rights," Kahlan told the emperor in a flat tone.

"Well done."