Phantom: Chainfire Trilogy Part 2

"The key," Zedd whispered, as if it were the end of the world. "The boxes must be opened within one year of being put into play. You need The Book of Counted Shadows to open the boxes. That book has to be the key."

"I think so, too," Nicci said. "The thing is, we found information from back at the time of the great war saying that some wizards had made five copies of 'the book that was never to be copied. "

"And you think that 'the book that was never to be copied' was The Book of Counted Shadows!"

"Yes. There is a book of prophecy that says 'They will tremble in fear at what they have done and cast the shadow of the key among the bones. "

Zedd was staring at her as if his world were crumbling apart. "Dear spirits. That sounds like it's from Yanklee's Yarns."

"That's right. The thing is," Nicci said, "all the copies but one were false copies. Five copies — four false, one true copy."

Zedd pressed a hand to his forehead. Nicci noticed that his breathing was faster than normal. He looked on the verge of passing out.

"Zedd, what is it?"

His fingers were trembling. "You know what you said about The Book of Counted Shadows being too easy to steal? That was always my thought too, but not something I consciously dwelled on. It was more one of those thoughts in the back of your mind that never fully surfaces."

"Yes," Nicci said, waiting patiently until he went on.

"Well, when I remembered The Book of Inversion and Duplex, I finally remembered where I had seen it as a boy: the catacombs. I needed it to test this spell, so while you were gone with Richard to the People's Palace I went back into the catacombs and looked for The Book of Inversion and Duplex."

Nicci knew what he was going to say before he said it.

"And while I was searching for The Book of Inversion and Duplex, I found a copy of The Book of Counted Shadows."

" 'They will tremble in fear at what they have done and cast the shadow of the key among the bones, " Nicci quoted again.

Zedd nodded. "All my life, I never knew there was a copy of that book. I had been taught that there were no other copies. I had been taught that there was only one copy. That alone told me how important that book was. But if it's so important, then why was it not in a safer place? That question was what always stuck in the back of my mind.

"That was one of the reasons I was so angry with the council for giving the boxes of Orden away as gifts or favors. I knew how dangerous those boxes were, but no one would believe me. They all thought that the things I told them were only ancient superstitions, or children's tales.

"Part of the reason that no one believed the truth of the danger that the boxes represented was that the book that was needed to put the boxes in play had never been found. Without the book, the boxes were only a fanciful tale." He pointed at the book in Nicci's hand. "In fact, no one ever even knew the name of that book. The title looks to be in High D'Haran. We'll need someone to translate it."

"I can read High D'Haran," Nicci said.

"Of course you can," Zedd said as if nothing could surprise him any more. "What is its name, then?"

"The Book of Life."

Zedd turned nearly as white as his wavy hair. Apparently, he was not yet beyond shock. "The Book of Life," he repeated as he wiped a hand wearily across his face.

"What an appropriate name," he said. "The power of Orden is spawned from life itself. Open the correct box, and one gains the power of Orden — the essence of life itself, power over all things living and dead. They would have unchallenged power. Open the wrong box, and the magic would claim them — they're dead. But open the other wrong box, and every living thing in existence is incinerated into nothingness. It would be the end of all life.

"The magic of Orden is twin to the magic of life itself, and death is part of everything that lives, so the magic of Orden is tied to death as well as to life. And the key is the means to know which box is which. The person opening them can take a chance, but they would be foolish to do so without using the key first, to be sure of which is which."

"Foolish," Nicci said, "like Sisters of the Dark who don't necessarily care if they open the wrong box?"

Zedd could only stare at her.

"So, you were saying that you found one of the copies," Cara finally said when Zedd had fallen silent for a time, lost in thought.

Nicci was relieved that Cara was the one to prompt him when he looked so stricken by contemplation of events so terrible she probably couldn't even begin to imagine them.

"I'm afraid that's not even the worst of it," he said. "You see, Richard memorized The Book of Counted Shadows as a boy. George Cypher feared that the book would fall into the wrong hands, but he was wise enough that he didn't dare destroy the knowledge the book contained, so he had Richard memorize it. After Richard had learned every word, he and George Cypher, the man who had raised him and who at the time Richard believed was his father, burned The Book of Counted Shadows.