Warheart by Terry Goodkind

the right thing to do, what others don’t see is that our altering events directly endangers the Grace itself.”
    Cassia clearly wasn’t satisfied with the answer. “How does it do that?” she pressed.
    â€œThe Grace may seem simple,” the witch woman said, “but it is complexity beyond what most people could begin to understand. The demon understands such things. By using forces within the Grace, he seeks to destroy it. For example, he used Richard’s lifeblood to breach the veil. Things such as that endanger the stability, the balance, of the Grace and therefore of the world of life.
    â€œIt is the same way with a witch woman. It would be difficult to explain the tenets of our existence to one who is not specifically gifted as a witch woman, but take my word for it that restrictions exist for me just as they exist for you.”
    Cassia looked first to one side and then to her sister Mord-Sith on the other side. “We have no restrictions. Except to follow orders.”
    â€œDoes your Agiel work?”
    â€œWell, no.”
    â€œThat’s because it needs the bond to the Lord Rahl in order to function. That’s a restriction. That’s why your Agiel doesn’t work. Even if it does, there are restrictions to how it works. For example, you can’t use it on a Confessor–unless of course you want to die a horrific death.”
    Cassia stared down at the meat on her stick without answering.
    Red gestured around herself. “My restrictions have to do with the nature of all things, and they exist for sound reasons. One of those restrictions is that we can, if we choose, use what we find of events in the flow of time to help those involved understand the choices they have in the events that are to unfold, but we are not free to directly take part in those events we see. You might say that our place is to be advisors.
    â€œIf we directly, personally, take part in that flow, take actions ourselves, then the balance is destroyed because we would be acting on what we see. That is an unbalanced use of power, and all power must be balanced or it can be destructive. We could lose much more than we could ever gain.”
    â€œYou acted with Emperor Sulachan’s forces,” Cassia pointed out. “The Mother Confessor said that you killed them.”
    â€œThat was different. That army of half people took a route that brought them into the sanctuary of my home. That is sacred ground. That changes everything.
    â€œOnce they came, they intended to rip my flesh from my bones and devour it, thinking it possessed my soul and they could take it for themselves. They would have killed me to steal something that is not able to be stolen.
    â€œThe balance within our nature allows for us to respond to a direct threat to our lives.” The witch woman’s expression turned icy. “My valley pass ran red with their blood,” she said in a chilling, quiet tone. “Their corpses lay in heaps and mounds, food for my worms.”
    Cassia finally swallowed her bite of rabbit. “Your worms?”
    â€œDon’t ask,” Kahlan told the Mord-Sith under her breath. “So you killed them all?” she asked Red, wanting to get back to business.
    â€œAll but one.” Red looked up from the memory. “I’m afraid that it left the pass a bloody mess. Their blood ran in rivers and covers everything. And that is to say nothing of all the viscera and rotting corpses. The stench is quite unpleasant, I can assure you. Hardly the place to receive guests until they are all turned to nothing but bleached bones beneath the grasses. Besides, by coming here I met you somewhat in the middle and that saves you precious time.”
    Red looked deliberately at Nicci. “You expressed a concern about time. I saw the flow of time, of course, and I knew the urgency of why you would come to me, so I thought to help you by meeting you partway.”
    â€œThat