Stone of Tears by Terry Goodkind Page A

that says something about the one from D’Hara who would shadow the world by counting shadows.”
    “That’s very good, Nathan. Can you remember more?” She knew he probably remembered it word for word, but he liked to be coaxed. “It would be a tremendous help to me.”
    He eyed her a moment and then nodded. “ By winter’s breath, the counted shadows shall bloom. If the heir to D’Hara’s vengeance counts the shadows true, his umbra will darken the world. If he counts false, then his life is forfeit. ”
    A forked Prophecy indeed. This had been the first full day of winter’s season. She didn’t know what the Prophecy meant, but she knew of it. This one was the matter of much study and debate down in the vaults, and worry over which year this Prophecy might came to pass. “And which fork has the Prophecy taken?”
    His face turned grim. “The worst one.”
    Her fingers fumbled with a button. “We are to fall under the shadow of this one from D’Hara?”
    “You should study the Prophecies closer, Sister. The following Prophecy goes on to say: Should the forces of forfeit be loosed, the world will be shadowed yet by darker lust through what has been rent. Salvation’s hope, then, will be as slim as the white blade of the one born True. ” He leaned closer and whispered. “The only one of darker lust, Sister Margaret, would be the Lord of Anarchy.”
    She whispered a prayer. “May the Creator shelter us in his light.”
    His smile was mocking. “The Prophecy says nothing about the Creator coming to our aid, Sister. If it is protection you seek, you had better follow the true fork. It is in that way He has offered you a glimmer of hope for defense from what will be.”
    She smoothed the folds of her dress on her lap. “Nathan, I don’t know what this Prophecy means. We can’t follow the true and false forks if we don’t know what it means. You said you know those forks. Can you tell me? Can you tell me a Prophecy on each fork, one that leads each way, so we may follow their path?”
    “ Vengeance under the Master will extinguish every adversary. Terror, hopelessness, and despair will reign free. ” He peered at her intently with one eye. “This one leads down the false fork.”
    She wondered how it was possible for the true Prophecy to be worse. “And one of the true fork?”
    “A close Prophecy after the true fork says: Of all there were, but a single one born of the magic to bring forth truth will remain alive when the shadow’s threat is lifted. Therefore comes the greater darkness of the dead. For there to be a chance at life’s bond, this one in white must be offered to her people, to bring their joy and good cheer. ”
    Margaret pondered these two Prophecies. She didn’t recall either. The first seemed simple enough to understand. They could follow the false branch, for a ways, anyway, from this one. The second was more oblique, but seemed as if it could be deciphered with a little study. She recognized it as a Prophecy about a Confessor. The reference to “one in white” meant the Mother Confessor.
    “Thank you Nathan. This will make the false fork easier to follow. The other, the true fork, will be a little harder, but with this Prophecy to lead the way, we should be able to reason it out. We will just have to look for Prophecies leading away from this event. Somehow she is to bring happiness to her people.” She gave him a small smile. “It sounds as if maybe she is to be wed, or something of that nature.”
    The Prophet blinked at her, then threw his head back and howled. He rose to his feet, roaring in laughter until he coughed and choked. He turned back to her, his face red.
    “You pompous fools! The way you Sisters strut around as if what you do is meaningful, as if you even knew what you were doing! You remind me of a yard of chickens, cackling to one another as if they thought they understood higher mathematics! I cast the grain of Prophecy at your feet, and you cluck and