92

The smell in the room made Rook's stomach turn over, and she turned to Haiven as they entered. "How bad is he?" she demanded. The healer swallowed hard, gesturing vaguely. Rook felt a flash of frustration. "I don't understand those signs," she pointed out irritably. "Is he worse? On death's door?"

Haiven's expression hardened, and she made an obvious motion of writing on a parchment. Rook finally caught on, and she moved quickly to go back into Theo's sitting room to where she knew he had some parchment and a writing utensil. Haiven snatched them from her the second she returned, moving to a table so she could begin scribbling furiously. Across the room, Theo was moaning, and Rook made her way over to where he was weakly thrashing.

"He was stable," Rook pointed out miserably. At her voice, Theo began calling out, but his words weren't making any sense. It was clear that he was either frightened or in pain, and Rook shook his shoulder to try to wake him up from his feverish nightmare. "Theo!" she called. "Wake up!"

He pulled out of her grasp with surprising strength. "Don't!" he shouted, still grappling with his nightmare. "Don't touch her…"

Rook turned to Haiven for help, and the healer finally moved over to let her see what she had written. I can't wake him up. We need more help. I'm leaving to get Iona.

"Will she even help him?" Rook couldn't help but ask. Haiven's expression darkened, and Rook turned back to where Theo was lying. "She doesn't even like him."

Haiven took a minute to scribble her reply. If I ask her, she will.

Rook thought about it and finally shook her head. "You can't go," she realized. Haiven glowered, and Rook continued. "Someone has to stay here with him. It takes way too long to ride to the Hidden Village—an entire half a day by hoofer. Even if you left now, it would take you a full day to get there and then back, and who knows how much more he will decline in the meantime! You've got to stay here to keep Theo from getting worse. I'll send a messenger."

Haiven shook her head adamantly, trying to write out her thoughts. It's got to come from me…

"Then write her the message, and sign it," Rook snapped.

Haiven shook her head. She can't read.

The words caught Rook off guard. Haiven seemed to notice her surprise, and the healer sighed, laboriously writing an explanation.

I only know how to read and write because Theo taught me. Iona doesn't feel the need for written history…or written anything. She may have known how to once, but it was a very, very long time ago, and she claims she doesn't remember anymore.

Rook desperately tried to think of some other plan, still baffled that an Ancient wouldn't know how to read. Haiven continued writing.

You have another healer here. I'm going to go get Iona.

"Ylba's got a different assignment," Rook insisted. "I don't know how long she'll be gone, either. I'll send somebody else, and Iona will just have to listen."

Haiven pushed herself to her feet, gesturing at where Theo was moaning in an obvious 'he needs help!' sort of way. Rook stiffened.

"I'm aware he needs help! That's why you have to stay…I don't know how to help him! I only know how to look for what could be causing this in the first place. You have to stay to make sure he doesn't get any worse. That's why I asked you to come in the first place!"

Haiven looked like she wished she could yell back at her. Instead, she wrote savagely onto the paper, her hands trembling and making the words difficult to read. He needs Iona. If you cared about him, you would want him to get the help he needs.

Tears immediately flooded Rook's eyes, and she stood as something snapped. "Don't you dare!" she shouted. "I'm trying everything I can because I do care about him! Don't you dare suggest I don't!" The tears streamed down her face as she and Haiven glowered at each other. "I'm not saying that he doesn't need more help…I'm saying we can't afford to leave him alone right now, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that not a single other healer in the south is going to help him right now! But even if we drag in a billion healers, none of that is going to change anything if we can't figure out what in Jarule's filthy name is wrong with him!" Rook wiped furiously at her face. "If he's poisoned, then no healer is going to be able to help him…not until we can find what the attacker used. So if it's down to choosing between hoping some ancient Xinta with an attitude problem will even know what's wrong with him, or spending our time and resources trying to figure out what and how someone managed to poison him, I'm choosing the latter."

Haiven just stared at her with a stony expression, and Rook was about to insist once again that Haiven stay put when a voice croaked out.

"…Rook?"

She turned at Theo's voice, and her throat caught as she realized he was finally awake. He didn't look completely coherent, but his eyes were open, at least. For a moment, she just stared, and Theo's expression crumpled.

"Where've you been?"

She swallowed hard, trying to get the lump out of her throat as she reached out to take his hand. "I'm sorry. I've been trying to help," she offered. "Are you…" she trailed off, not even sure what she was trying to ask. Whether he was okay? Whether he was going to make it? He obviously wasn't all right, and asking him morbid questions wasn't going to help anything.

"This fever feels different," he murmured at last. "It's bad, Rook."

Tears filled Rook's eyes again, and she squeezed his hand. "We're doing everything we can," she promised, trying to sound confident even though she was trying not to fall apart. "I'm going to go figure some stuff out with Dynmar, and then—"

"Don't," Theo begged breathily, his gaze clouding as he managed to grip her hand tighter. "Can you stay?"

"Theo…"

"Please," he breathed, and she realized as she studied him that he was scared. Rook's blood ran cold, her mind screaming at her to go. They needed to raid that house, find whatever was used to poison him, and find the cure. However, she found it impossible to pull away from him as Theo's eyes filled with tears. "Just stay with me."

"You need to be resting," Rook tried, her insides twisting with misery as Theo tried to keep a hold of her hand. "I'll be back before you know it."

"I don't want to sleep anymore," he insisted. "Rook…"

"Okay," she relented, unable to stand the despair in his expression. "I'll stay here."

His expression melted with relief, and she gripped his hand with both of hers. With the decision to stay put made, her own mind began feeling foggy. Don't fall asleep, Rook, she chided herself. Don't you dare fall asleep. There's still so much to do.

Despite Theo's desperation to stay awake, he didn't manage to do it for long. However, instead of pulling away like she meant to as soon as he drifted off again, Rook's own mind was overcome with exhaustion. In her head, she had already left the room and was on her way to talk to Dynmar, but in reality, her head was slumped forward as she balanced against the bed, Theo's hand still firmly grasped in hers. As she fell into a fitful sleep of her own, Rook didn't even notice that Haiven had long since left the room.


"Absolutely not," Mahlyn said, her expression stony. "It's the middle of the night, for one, and for another—"

"Look, Rook's already made the order. I'm just letting you know because I had a feeling she wasn't going to," Dynmar said, holding his hands up in apology.

"You follow my orders," Mahlyn reminded coldly. "Not hers. She has no title, no authority—"

"Technically, she does," Dynmar countered. Mahlyn's gaze narrowed to slits, and the bodyguard sighed. "Look," he said at last, his voice softer than ever. "She made it sound like Theo's life is in the balance, and this is something that has to be done in order to swing his fate in the right direction."

The Captain of the Guard stared, her heart immediately dropping. "She has proof he was poisoned? I thought you told me that was just her grasping at straws…"

"I thought it was, at first," he admitted. "But Theo's been being treated for days and he's getting worse, and now Rook insists that Ottan's old home holds the secret to why Theo's health is declining."

Mahlyn shook her head. "That sounds like a wild goose chase," she realized. "Dynmar…"

"Better to do it and find nothing than to not do it with the off chance there was something to be found," he insisted. "I'm bringing a patrol. If nothing else, the men staying there should be brought in for questioning—anyone connected to Ottan these days could be a threat, whether Theodynn's been poisoned or not."

Mahlyn narrowed her eyes. "Dynmar, remember who you work for," she reminded coldly. He winced, but held her gaze.

"Well…as a personal bodyguard, I work directly for the leader, not you," he pointed out. "And I feel obligated to do what I believe is in his best interest." With that he left, and Mahlyn rubbed her temples.

"I should have never recommended him to his position," she muttered to herself. "One promotion, and it's all gone to his head." Part of her wanted to follow him and order him to stand down on principle, but the other half of her wondered if it was worth it. Unless she wanted to arrest him and Rook and force them to stop their current scheming, she knew they weren't going to stop, and if and when Theo got better and found out she had restrained them…

Mahlyn cursed Rook mentally, wishing that the Rulers had never let her accompany their son to the south. Maybe if they knew what was going on…

A sharp knock sounded at her door, and the Captain of the Guard sighed before moving to answer it. She was surprised when she saw a girl she didn't recognize standing outside. Mahlyn frowned, but when she caught sight of the healer marks woven into the girl's tattoos, she realized it must be the extra healer Dynmar had left to fetch a few days ago.

"Yes?" she asked. The girl looked pale, and rather than answer, she shoved a scroll at her. Mahlyn frowned and accepted the scroll. "What's this?"

The girl merely gestured to the scroll again, and Mahlyn finally opened it. She read the heading and frowned. "This is addressed to the Rulers," she realized. "Why give it to me?"

The girl seemed exasperated, gesturing to herself and then pantomiming writing. Mahlyn wasn't sure why she wasn't just talking—perhaps she couldn't? After a moment, the Captain of the Guard looked back down at the scroll. "You wrote this," she interpreted. "I take it you want it delivered to the Rulers?"

The young woman nodded, her relief evident on her face. Mahlyn frowned, ready to tell the young woman that she was the Captain of the Guard, not a messenger, but the healer had already turned to leave. Mahlyn watched her go incredulously. After a moment, she looked back to the scroll in her hand, wondering what the young woman had written out. If it had been sealed, she wouldn't have dared read it, but as it was, she determined it best to figure out what the healer was trying to tell the Rulers before sending it off.

Mahlyn scanned the contents quickly, and the more she read, the more her feeling of dread grew. After a moment, she closed the scroll, having made up her mind once and for all.


The last time Theo had felt this disconnected from reality, he had just been yanked from the departed realm. That fact was enough to cause him to dread his situation anytime he was conscious enough to think about it.

The nightmares continued to disorient him, most of them not making any sense but filling him with fear. Faces flashed by without rhyme or reason. Haiven, his family, Rook…pitted against foes such as Zerek or Evynn. Even Saesh made a few appearances, and Theo was helpless in every scenario. Each time he clawed his way back to consciousness, he became more exhausted, and he was beginning to fear that eventually he just wouldn't wake up.

As he fought to open his eyes now, he knew that this fever was worse than any sickness he had faced to date. He was going to need more serious help…possibly Ninjagoan medicine. As his mind tried desperately to think what to do, he even thought about Raiyn. Hadn't Hershel said that he possessed healing powers? He had healed Tolan, hadn't he? Theo wondered if the child's skills could be applied to sickness as well as deadly wounds. Of course, he wasn't in a good state to request the help himself, and by sending someone else to ask Hershel in his place, the messenger would be apprised of Raiyn's abilities…something Theo had already promised not to reveal.

The leader managed to open his eyes at last, panting in an effort to get enough air. His head was pounding, and he was desperate for something cold to drink. As he wearily tried to turn his head, he realized that Rook was still at his bedside, collapsed on the edge of the bed and fast asleep. Theo studied her in the dim light of the embers in the fireplace, torn between waking her up to beg for something to drink and letting her sleep. Maybe it was just the way the shadows were on her face, but she looked exhausted. Theo realized she was still clinging to his hand with both of hers, and he squeezed her hand gently. She didn't so much as stir, and he wondered how much she had been sleeping. How long had he even been sick, anyway? The days all blended into one dark, nightmare-filled night. Wasn't Haiven around? Or had he just dreamed that she had ever been here?

"Rook…" he managed at last, but she didn't hear him. He squeezed his hand a little harder, but still nothing. Theo sagged in defeat, not having much energy left to try any harder. He stared at the darkness shrouding the ceiling, trying to get himself to stay awake. There was the strangest smell lingering in the room…was that him? He moaned softly, trying not to give into the panic inside. Was he dying?

He fought off sleep as best as he could, and just as he was losing the battle, the door to his bedchamber opened. He turned to see two guards entering the room, and he felt a stir of relief. Now he could get the help he needed without waking Rook.

The guards made their way across the room, murmuring to each other softly, but when they saw Theo staring at them, they both froze. "Leader Theodynn," one offered respectfully. "We didn't realize you were awake."

"Keep your voice down," he managed. "Rook's sleeping."

The guards glanced at each other, suddenly uneasy, but Theo couldn't think much about the look as he struggled to swallow.

"Will one of you bring me something to drink?" he murmured breathlessly. "And the other…"

"Apologies, Leader Theodynn," one interrupted softly, glancing at his companion again. "It's just…um…" Theo furrowed his brow, and the guard finally sighed. "Mahlyn's ordered that we retain Rook."

Theo stared, not comprehending. Was this still some insane dream, after all? In the awkward silence, the other guard cleared his throat. "We were coming in here to collect her," he explained awkwardly.

"Why would Mahlyn order that?" Theo demanded.

"I…assume you'd like to override the order?"

"You think?" Theo muttered. "No one's to touch Rook…no matter what Mahlyn orders. Understand?"

The guards nodded, and at least had the decency to look embarrassed. Theo sank back into his sweat-soaked sheets.

"Good. Now please, someone get me something to drink. And…one of you had better contact my parents. Let them know that I'm sick. At this point—"

"I believe Mahlyn's on her way to the Central Fortress as we speak," one of the guards cut in gently. Theo tried to wrap his brain around what on earth was happening, and what Mahlyn was trying to do, but he gave up after a few minutes. His parents were going to be furious no matter who told them, but he knew his health had reached a point where they needed to know. In fact, part of him wanted nothing more than to see them right now, no matter how upset they would be.

"Water," he ordered. "Now. And one of you go spread the word about revoking Mahlyn's retainment order."

The guards immediately moved into action, and Theo could have cried when he finally got something to drink. By now, Rook was shifting and murmuring in her sleep, but she hadn't woken up. Theo wished he could get her to lie down in a real bed to get better sleep, but he had a feeling that the second she woke up, she would disappear again doing whatever she had been busying herself with the last few days. He didn't doubt it was something important, but he didn't want her to leave again. He continued to study her, barely noticing the servant who came in to light the candles and the fireplace. As the light filled the room, he surprisingly found it harder to stay awake. Eventually, he lost the battle completely.


Rook woke to someone shaking her shoulder, and she started awake in shock. When had she fallen asleep? She turned defensively, not sure what she would find. When she caught sight of Dynmar, her face flushed.

"I'm sorry, I'll be right there. I'll meet you at the stables," she offered, rubbing at her neck. It had developed quite the crick, and she winced at the pain in it.

"Um…we're done with the raid." Dynmar raised an eyebrow. "I came to find you and saw you passed out and figured it would be faster to do it without you."

Rook stared, her insides a mix of shame and anger. "You should have woken me!" she insisted at last, pushing herself to her feet. Her hands were slick with sweat from holding onto Theo, and she gently laid his hand back onto the sheets next to him. He didn't seem to be having nightmares, but had his breathing always been this shallow?

"We found three men at the house, just like you said. All three have been apprehended, and the home is being searched."

"Did you find anything?" Rook demanded.

"The search is still underway, but we didn't find any kind of herbs or poisons during the preliminary search."

Rook cursed under her breath. "You were supposed to bring Ylba," she reminded, rubbing her face.

"We did. I had to go wake her up. You owe me big for that one." He fixed Rook with a long look that she couldn't interpret, and she found herself tearing up again.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what happened," she insisted miserably. "I'll go to the house now…we have to find something!"

"Well…we may have some answers, even if we didn't find any physical evidence," Dynmar offered. Rook paused on her way to the door, turning back to look at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I questioned the three men myself, and one was willing to offer some information. I can't be sure if he's telling the truth, or just trying to save his hide by saying something, but it's a start."

Rook's heart pounded with a sudden hope. "What did he say?"

"He claims he has no idea what's been going on at the fortress itself, just that they've been paying a man named Fazir as the go between. He wouldn't say whether the guard Xen was the traitor, or if there's even more than one, claiming he didn't know."

"Then that's barely anything," Rook pointed out. "Did you at least find the man I left in the cave? No doubt that's Fazir …"

"I searched all the caves in the area you described, and there was no sign of anybody," Dynmar offered apologetically.

Rook cursed loudly, and Theo stirred slightly in bed. She glanced at him, her voice becoming soft but full of anger. "Then we're back where we started."

"If you'd let me finish without interrupting," Dynmar countered dryly, and she turned back to him. "The man did say that Theo had been poisoned—about a week ago."

"Just before he started getting sick, then," Rook realized, her throat constricting. "Did you force him to tell you what the poison was?"

"Claimed he had no idea."

"But it happened here in the fortress," Rook insisted. "Through Fazir and his traitors?"

"That's the part that doesn't quite add up," Dynmar offered carefully. "See, he admitted that they had people in the fortress, even if he didn't know who they were, and he admitted that they were paying this Fazir character to be their go between. Yet he claimed that Theodynn wasn't poisoned at the fortress at all—he said it happened in one of the villages. They paid the village leader to spike his tea."

Rook stared, trying to process the news. Dynmar waited for her to say something, and Rook began pacing as she tried to piece all the little parts together. "You're right…it doesn't make sense," she said at last. "Unless they're only paying for information about how sick he really is…maybe so they can figure out when the best time to strike would be?"

"I asked if there was an invasion planned, and he claimed he didn't think so."

"Could be lying about that. Could be lying about all of it." Rook rubbed her face. "What's weird is why he would lie about how Theo was poisoned while still admitting that they were involved in the process. In fact, it's weird that he would offer information at all—Ottan's crew are notoriously tight-lipped." She glanced up at Dynmar. "Did you torture him?"

He blinked in surprise. "No…but I might have threatened to have him executed if he didn't give me the details. He was a younger fellow…seemed more lackey than mastermind, if you know what I mean."

Rook pictured the young man who had been sleeping at his post by the door. "And he gave all that information up?"

"Said he expected a merciful sentence for his help."

"First we have to see if his help was even helpful," Rook muttered. "It still doesn't make sense that Theo could drink something a week ago that was potent enough to get him to the point he is now, but so slow-acting that it took until now to get him there."

"Ylba has some theories about how it could be possible, but I still don't even know if we trust the snitch or not. He could be so low rank that he actually knows nothing, and felt the need to make something up that seemed worthy enough to be valuable information."

"Right. Where's Ylba now?"

"Her lair. She might have gone back to bed."

"I'll go talk to her about what it could be, then." Rook moved to leave, but Dynmar stepped into her way.

"One last thing," he said, and his tone made it clear that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear.

"I can't really deal with any more bad news right now," Rook countered, side-stepping him.

"Mahlyn's ordered your arrest," he called. Rook stopped dead at the door, wondering if she had even heard him right. Dynmar continued. "Apparently, she thinks there's probable cause for you to have been the one who poisoned Theodynn…and that you orchestrated this whole thing to take over the south."

Rook's chest felt like it was caving in, and for a few moments, she was overcome with the sudden urge to fall apart. Instead, she steeled her expression and whirled on the other guard. "Is that what you think, too?"

"I don't know what I think. It sounds improbable, but I guess not impossible for someone like you."

That stung. "So you're here to arrest me?" She demanded.

He shook his head. "Apparently, Theodynn dismissed Mahlyn's orders, and gave new orders that no one's to touch you."

"He did? When?" Rook glanced back at Theo, and Dynmar sighed.

"It sounds like it all happened while I was gone with Ylba and the patrol…but a few of my colleagues caught me up. Sounds like I'm in hot water as well. So help me, if you get me fired, Rook…"

"Are people going to arrest me, or not?"

"You're safe for now…but I think Theo only bought you a little time," the guard offered.

"What do you mean?"

He fixed her with a long look. "Mahlyn's gone to fetch the Rulership."

93

Ylba barely glanced up as Rook barged into the Healer's quarters. The frizzy-haired oni was muttering over a bunch of different herbs.

"Talk to me, Ylba," Rook demanded. "What do we know?"

"Hello to you too," the healer muttered, glancing up at her. "Have a good beauty sleep?"

Rook scowled. "We're out of time—try to focus for once."

"Not my fault you can't take a joke. Some of us were dragged out of bed in the middle of the night while you were snoring away."

"Ylba!"

"Calm down; I have it narrowed down to two." Ylba squinted at her herb piles. "Maybe three…with a possible fourth…"

"Can you treat him?" Rook demanded, marching over to the counter.

"It's difficult when I don't know exactly what was used to poison him," the healer pointed out as she glanced over at Rook irritably. "I'm operating under the assumption that the lad who spilled his guts was telling the truth. That means that we're looking for something that would have been consumed orally, and the flavor couldn't have been too crazy or it would have been detected. Unless they just told Theodynn that it's just a strange-tasting tea." She fingered one of the piles. "A few of these would mirror fever symptoms, but none are actually strong enough to have gotten him to this point unless it had been consistently re-administered."

"Maybe it's a poison that just gets worse over time?"

"I can't think of anything that would have lasted this long without already killing him. Not to mention, no poison I know of merely mirrors fever—that points more toward an herbal overdose," Ylba huffed. "I believe he was given a heavier dose at first to get the ball rolling, and then smaller doses on a consistent basis in order to keep the poison in his system. Something like that would cause his health to continuously decline, but gradually, exactly how we've seen." Ylba gestured to the different piles. "Each of these herbs is not technically lethal in small doses…but if you ingest too much of any of them over a series of days, your health will decline rapidly. The sicker you are…the easier it is for the toxins to do their damage. In fact, based on his symptoms, my best guess is that it's one of these two." She gestured at a pair of piles in the middle of the counter. One was made up of thin roots, while the other was full of dried stalks and spiky leaves.

"What are they?"

"Technically, they're the same plant—a weed that grows near sniffer caves, for whatever reason," Ylba offered. "In the south, we healers call it 'sun and moon.' The top half and the bottom half are both toxic, but in tiny doses, they can be used to treat certain things. Have too much of either, however, and it can make someone very sick. If someone were to continuously have part of this weed in their system, it would eventually kill them."

"If you've narrowed it down to two pieces of the same plant, then there shouldn't be a problem," Rook pointed out in exasperation. "Just treat him for whatever the cure for the plant is!"

"When you say things like that, you reveal your naivety," Ylba muttered, glancing at her out of the side of her eye. "Allow me to explain why this is a particularly difficult situation: though the top and the root of the plants are both toxic, they are opposite in nature. If someone eats too much of the 'sun'…" she gestured to the leafy stalks… "then then cure is for them to eat the 'moon.'" She pointed to the roots. "Theodynn is clearly very sick—if he was poisoned with one of these, then he would need a large dose of its counterpart to cleanse his system. If I guess wrong, and give Theodynn the part he has already been poisoned with, it could very well prove lethal. In fact, he would probably be dead within an hour of eating it, given his current state."

Rook just stared at the two piles of plants, her stomach twisting as she realized how dire the situation really was. "I just don't understand how someone could still be poisoning him," she said at last, wanting to rip her hair out. "I have the kitchens so closely monitored that the chefs don't even dare use any kind of herb anymore, in case it even looks like poison. Everything he eats or drinks is carefully monitored and has been for days."

"Maybe it's the source of the food or water that's contaminated," Ylba mused. "Like a tainted well."

"But more people would be sick, if it was," Rook snapped. "He hasn't even had tea in the last few days other than the fever tea that Haiven made him…and she makes it by hand." For a moment, Rook's mind latched onto the idea that Theodynn's old flame was possibly involved in the scheme, but she disregarded it quickly. Though Rook herself had ex's that would probably leap at the chance to poison her, she couldn't see Haiven doing so. Besides, she was clear in the East when the trouble even began. "Everything that comes near him is tasted, as well. I don't know how else someone could be poisoning him every day without anyone realizing it!"

"Is he ever completely on his own?" Ylba wondered. "I mean, it's not like you've been with him every moment of the day this last week."

Rook sank into a chair, her frustration reaching a boiling point. To her humiliation, rather than allowing her feelings to spur her to action, she fell apart completely. As she began to sob, she couldn't help but wish that she had broken down in front of anyone else. Ylba watched her cry for a few minutes, but then she turned back to her own task, muttering to herself as she sifted through the different piles. Rook buried her face in her hands as a way to hide her complete loss of control. When aural winds began whipping around the room and disturbing the herbs Ylba was sorting, the healer finally turned to the younger woman in irritation.

"Do you mind doing this somewhere else?" she demanded. Rook felt a flash of defensive anger, and it was enough for her to pull out of her spiral. She tried to get her breathing under control as she stood at last, wiping furiously at her face.

"I don't know how they're getting to him," she finally managed. "But you can bet on Kahzym's last stand that I'm going to find out." She fixed Ylba with a fierce stare. "Get both remedies ready. I'll have your answer to which one to use when I get back."


Cole glanced at Keyda, the blood draining out of both of their faces. The Ruler was gripping the edge of her chair, facing Mahlyn with a severe expression. "How long has he been sick?"

The southern captain of the guard sighed. "Not quite a week."

"And you didn't send word sooner than this?"

"My apologies," Mahlyn offered. "Theodynn ordered we didn't." The Rulers glanced at each other in alarm, and Mahlyn rubbed her face. "It wasn't that bad of a sickness, at first. The fortress healer was treating him, and then he sent for an additional healer. However, rather than improve, it seems his condition has worsened."

"The important thing is that we know now," Cole decided. "We'll head there immediately. Maybe we can bring Syn along. She'll know how to help."

"The reason I came now isn't because I thought our healers incapable," Mahlyn cut in, her expression stony as she brought out a scroll. "It's because new evidence is pointing to poison, not fever."

Cole felt a wave of dread, and Keyda stood. "Then we should leave right away," she insisted.

"What's on the scroll?" Cole asked carefully, and his wife hesitated as she watched Mahlyn pass it to him.

"The healer Theo asked to come to the fortress wrote it, and addressed it to you."

Theo had asked someone to come? It must be Hershel, then. Cole unrolled the scroll, glancing down at the signature before even starting the rest of the letter. He blinked in surprise, something that Keyda noticed.

"Who wrote it?" she demanded.

"It's from Haiven," he offered, still shocked. Keyda went quiet as well as she processed that, and Cole skimmed the letter quickly.

Rulers,

Theo is sick. I was originally told fever, but he keeps getting worse…and I don't think it's a fever at all. People are saying he was poisoned, and I'm afraid that they are right. We don't know who did it, but I knew I needed to let you know it was happening. Mainly, I'm afraid that Rook had something to do with it all. I don't have proof—she just isn't acting the way she should. She barely even looks at him, let alone spends time with him in his weakened state. Instead, she is spending all her time and effort bossing people around and trying to take over the south. She says it is her way of helping, but I cannot help but fear that she has the wrong priorities altogether. Theo told us that around the time he got sick, Rook brought dinner to him. He claims that no one else has ever delivered food to him directly other than that…and it makes me worry. I'm sorry if this worries you. I'm on my way to see Iona as you read this—I am confident she will know how to help him.

-Haiven.

"What does it say?" Keyda demanded as Cole sank into a chair, his heart pounding with alarm.

"It says…" he started, before trailing off. Could this be right? After everything else—everything Theo had assured them off…had Rook really stooped to such a base, criminal level?

"It points to Rook as the perpetrator," Mahlyn offered, shifting her weight.

Keyda stiffened. "Meaning she poisoned him?"

"There's no real evidence…but she has been acting suspicious. I had only just been informed that Theo was even ill, and she was barging into my office, saying that she was now in charge and had the authority to make changes in the fortress."

"What kind of changes?" Cole asked while his wife's eyes flashed murderously nearby.

"I knew it," she murmured. "I just knew…"

"She flooded our guard force with novices, claiming it was the best way to beef up security," Mahlyn explained.

"If anything, that would just put the fortress at more risk," Cole realized.

"We're not going to sit around and discuss what could be happening," Keyda cut in, aural winds already swirling around them. "We're transporting there now."


Nothing in the kitchens…nothing in the servant's quarters, or barracks. Rook gave up on being clandestine, and servants huddled fearfully as the fortress was searched by forces Rook organized from her old recruits. Maybe she was overestimating their loyalty to her, but she was banking on the fact that Ottan's men probably hadn't even known about the group of training recruits to even infiltrate them.

Hours ticked by with no sign of anything that even resembled roots, leaves, or stalks. Rook gave the order for the servants and guards themselves to be searched, and then made her way back to Theo's room for a deeper investigation there. She drank the water from the kettle, but there was no sign of any flavor—Ylba said it would have at least a slight musty taste, almost fungal. The water tasted clear, however, and Rook closely scrutinized the kettle and tea cups that it was served out of.

Theo moaned softly as she tried to search his bed itself for any sign of a stray leaf scrap, on the off chance someone was managing to sneak in here and feed it to him directly while he slept. Though, she knew there was only one person who could have gotten in here with Theo so heavily guarded. While she didn't trust Saesh in the slightest, it really didn't make sense for him to have bound Theo to some I-owe-you promise if he had just been planning to poison him.

After the search continued to come up empty, Rook's frustration made her gaze blur with tears. She began tearing Theo's room apart, searching through drawers and all his clothes, desperate to find something somewhere. Things bounced off the ground or landed in heaps, and she swore as she accidentally smashed a vase. As she continued to scour Theo's room, her mind began questioning everything. Had he even been poisoned? Was Ylba right about the plant, and the continued doses? Was Rook just looking for something that didn't even exist?

"It has to be somewhere!" she shouted as she scoured the disaster she had created. The tears came again, and now that Ylba wasn't around to judge her for them, Rook collapsed into a heap of Theo's clothes. Her sobs echoed around the room as she hugged herself, not wanting to give up, but not knowing what else to try. She tried to tell herself that the search of the fortress staff could yield some results, but even if it did, what if they came too late? How bad was Theo's state, anyway?

Rook looked up at where the leader was lying in bed, and she swore he looked more still than usual. "Theo," she croaked, pushing herself to her feet as she stumbled closer. "Theo!"

He didn't react at all, his breathing shallow. His skin didn't have the sheen of sweat anymore—instead of flushed, he looked pallid, his skin almost grey. Another sob echoed in the room as she shook him, but he didn't even stir.

"If you give up now…" she started, but her throat cut off before she could even finish the sentiment. She sank down onto the bed next to him, and her body begged her to just give up and go to sleep, and let someone else figure out this mess instead. Mahlyn was going to get the Rulers—no doubt they would come right here and take Theo someplace that he could get help. Heck, maybe she should have just tried to transport him to Ninjago to begin with. But if Ylba was right, and the only way to cure the poison was knowing which side of the plant he had been ingesting, then she wasn't sure if any of the white-coat-wearing healers of Ninjago could even help him.

Get up, she ordered herself at last. If he dies because you were too busy throwing yourself a pity party to keep looking for the answers that could save his life, then you'll never forgive yourself.

Rook swallowed hard and dragged her body off of the bed again. The room was dimly lit by candles, and she shook her head as she wiped the tears off her face.

"Even if the answer was right here, the room's too dark for you to even see it," she pointed out to herself in irritation. "Stop being an emotional wreck and light a fire, for Ancient's sake." Having bullied herself into new resolve, Rook headed over to the fireplace, which had long gone cold. As far as she knew, someone had only been lighting it at night to keep Theo from getting too cold, but didn't keep it going all day since the room already was so poorly ventilated and the leader was already overheating. She wasn't even sure what time of day it was right now—maybe someone would be coming in soon to light the fire, regardless. Or…maybe whoever usually did was too busy being interrogated right now with the rest of the servant force.

Something nagged at the back of Rook's mind as she knelt in front of the fireplace. She stared at the ashes and hunks of burned wood, trying to figure out why goosebumps were creeping up her spine.

No one was allowed to bring Theo food or water except Haiven, Rook realized. But a servant was allowed in every night to light the fire.

The goosebumps spread to the rest of her body, and Rook's hands shook as she all but fell into the fireplace, digging through the ashes and wooden husks. After a moment, she went to fetch one of the candles to give herself more light to see what she was digging through. She would use her own aura, except she was terrified she would burn up the evidence she was so desperately hoping was there.

Nobody's been with Theo at night…at least, not the same person each time. If it was in the air, we'd all have been breathing it…but if Ylba's right and the doses are small enough, maybe it's just enough to keep his health spiraling while the rest of us don't even notice…

A smell wafted toward Rook as she dug through the ashes—one that didn't quite smell right. Her mouth went dry as she realized that it was the smell she had been noticing for days, each time she came into the poorly ventilated room. A sickly smell like fever, or decay. Maybe that smell hadn't really been coming from Theo at all. Maybe…

Rook caught sight of something at the back of the fireplace, and her throat constricted. For a moment she froze, and dust and ash particles tickled her nose. She repressed the sneeze as she finally reached out to claim her find—a dried scrap of a leaf, covered in tiny, hair-like spines.

For a moment, she gently cradled the shred of evidence, and then her gaze blurred as the tears started again, but this time, in relief. "It was the leaves," she managed. "He needs the roots, then. We can do this."

She stood, glancing one last time toward Theo before moving to leave his quarters. Her heart was pounding with hope as she headed into the hallway toward Ylba's room, but the hope quickly soured as she realized that an entire force of guards was heading her way, and their expressions didn't look friendly.

"Move," she ordered, holding the shred of leaf close as she glowered at them. "I don't have time for this…"

"Rook, you're under arrest," one of the guards informed her. She narrowed her eyes.

"Theo overrode Mahlyn's orders…"

"These orders aren't from Mahlyn," another cut in coldly. "They come from the Rulership themselves."

94

If Keyda had gone on her own, she would have transported straight to her son. However, considering that she was bringing along two passengers on the transport, she determined it was probably best to merely transport to the fortress itself. It should have been a simple transport, but the Ruler was hit with a dizzy spell the second they arrived, and it was all she could do to stay upright.

"Sit down for a minute," Cole said, obviously picking up on her unsteadiness.

Keyda flushed. "I'm fine," she insisted, but she didn't get more than a few steps before she was forced to stop, leaning against the cold, stone wall to collect her balance.

"What's wrong?" Mahlyn asked. Was it just Keyda's imagination, or did the captain of the guard sound nauseous herself?

"It happens with transporting, sometimes," Cole offered as Keyda closed her eyes to get the room to stop spinning. "The more people someone takes with them, the more of a toll it takes on them." She felt her husband put his hand on her arm. "Do you think you overdid it?" he murmured. "We could find a place for you to lie down…"

"I'll be fine!" she said again, opening her eyes to fix him with an irritable look. "I used to transport our entire family to Ninjago and back, Cole…I can handle taking myself and two others across the same realm."

He smiled gently. "You're not as young as you once were," he pointed out. It earned him a light smack, and then Keyda closed her eyes again as she tried to breathe deeply.

"We need to get to Theo," she reminded. "And we need to find Rook."

"I ordered my guards to restrain her before I left," Mahlyn offered. "So, if they followed my orders, she should be detained somewhere. I just sent someone to make sure it actually happened."

"You ordered her to be locked up?" Cole realized.

"Just until we can figure out what's going on with Theodynn."

"What do you mean, if they followed your orders?" Keyda asked. "You're the Captain of the Guard."

Mahlyn sighed. "Yes…but after your son became sick, Rook set herself up as his replacement."

"That's treason," Keyda snapped, opening her eyes to fix the other woman with a cold look.

Mahlyn seemed uncomfortable. "Her argument was that by law, a leader's council takes charge if the leader is indisposed, and she's the closest thing he has to a council, as she is his only confidant."

"That's a pretty weak argument," Keyda growled.

"Perhaps, but she also pointed out that a leader's spouse would also be legally able to—"

"Are they married?" Cole cut in, the shock in his voice mirroring the feeling flooding Keyda's veins. She froze, her body suddenly feeling cold with dread.

Mahlyn rubbed her face. "Um…'married'?" she asked in confusion.

"Bound," Cole offered, apparently realizing that Mahlyn wouldn't be familiar with Ninjago terminology.

"They couldn't have been," Keyda insisted, as much for her own sake as anyone else's. "He's the Heir, which means to be legally bound, they have to have my permission, and they certainly don't."

"There's been no ceremony that I know of, formal or informal," Mahlyn rushed to say. "But she is the closest thing he has to a partner."

"Whatever she is to Theo, she has no legal power, no matter what she says," Keyda pointed out angrily. "The fact that she was so quick to try to claim as much should have been more than enough reason for you to contact us immediately."

"I am sorry," Mahlyn offered, dropping her gaze. "Theodynn forbade it. He said he would let us know at what point you should be informed. He…also has already made it clear that Rook's word should be taken seriously."

Cole spoke up, his expression hard to read. "You mentioned back at the Central fortress that she flooded the guard force with rookies. Do you think she was merely trying to water down the Southern Fortress ranks?"

"Well…I think the most important thing to note about that choice was that the novices she insisted be instated into the guard force were trained by her, and thus loyal to her."

Keyda's bad feeling just grew worse. "What do you mean?"

"The majority of them value her orders over my own—if it came down to having to pick sides, they would side with Rook. I believe that's the real reason she inundated the southern force with them."

Keyda's eyes flashed, the anger inside displacing the weariness from the transport. Before she could say anything else, another guard came down the hall and joined them in the corridor. Mahlyn immediately turned her attention to the man.

"Is Rook in custody?"

"I'm sorry, Mahlyn," he offered, glancing over at the Ruler's with a nervous expression. "A force did try to apprehend her after you left, but Theodynn countered the order and told us that we weren't to touch her."

"Has the leader improved?" Mahlyn asked in surprise.

"He was awake when the force tried to apprehend Rook. I'm afraid that's all I know. But considering that the Rulers are here now, I took the liberty of sending a force to apprehend her now, since their orders would trump his." He shifted from foot to foot. "I hope that wasn't overextending on my part."

"Not at all," the Captain of the Guard offered grimly before turning to Keyda.

"We need to get to Theo," the Ruler insisted.

"Ryst will show you where his quarters are," Mahlyn offered. "I will personally organize more forces in order to find and catch Rook."

"Do you really think she's going to make it difficult to apprehend her?" Cole asked. Mahlyn's expression clouded.

"I don't know." She turned and headed down the hall, and the guard called Ryst stood at attention.

"Theodynn's quarters are this way," he offered.

"Are you feeling up for this?" Cole asked his wife softly as Keyda straightened to follow him.

"Up to seeing and protecting my son?" she replied bitterly as she eyed him. His expression tightened.

"I just mean I can go check on him if you need to sit down for a minute."

"I just need to see him, Cole. I'll feel better after we do."

He nodded his understanding as he gave up trying to convince her to rest. She forced aside the last vestiges of nausea as they followed the dutiful guard through the winding hallways of the southern fortress. Keyda wished she had spent more time here…if only they had come here to visit Theo more. She could have possibly transported right into his room, if only she had spent more time in it. Instead, they had kept their distance, not wanting Theo to feel like they didn't trust him to take care of himself.

And now he's sick in bed, possibly poisoned…

Keyda's macabre thoughts trailed off as they reached the end of the hallway and turned, and she blinked as she caught sight of a cluster of guards. The guard in front of them frowned as he called out.

"I told you lot to apprehend Rook—"

"We tried!" one snapped back, turning to face him. However, her face drained of color as she realized that the Rulers were with them. "She…um…." The guard floundered.

"She resisted arrest?" Ryst guessed.

"To put it lightly," the guard muttered, rubbing her shoulder.

"Is she making a run for it?" Keyda demanded, her blood running cold. Now that the woman had been caught in the act, it seemed that she was trying to escape…

"She just kept mentioning that she had the answer to the leader's sickness and she wasn't about to let us get in her way."

"There was an entire force of you," Ryst pointed out exasperatedly.

"You don't know what she's like, when she's angry," the other guard responded defensively. Then she turned to the Rulers, casting her eyes downward. "We'll find her. We thought it best to leave a few of us here by the leader's room, in case she came back."

Aural winds whipped through the hallway as Keyda clenched her fists. "Sure, it's easy to claim she has all the answers now, when we've finally caught on to her game…"

"Keyds, go check on Theo," Cole cut in, turning to look at her. "See how he's doing. I'll help the guards track down Rook."

"She could be miles away by now," the Ruler pointed out bitterly. "She can transport…"

"Leave that part to me, and you go be with Theo."

Keyda wanted to argue more, but she was forced to admit that she couldn't be with her son and track down Rook at the same time. It made the most sense to split up.

"Don't go easy on her, Cole," Keyda finally said, eyeing him firmly. "No matter what half-cooked excuses she gives, or how Theo feels about her…"

"I'll handle it," he promised. "And then I'll be back to be with you and Theo."

The Ruler felt another wave of exhaustion hit, and she nodded her understanding. Cole motioned for the lingering guards to come with him, and then the Ruler moved toward the sentries stationed at Theo's doorway. They quickly allowed her entrance, and by the time Keyda had reached Theo's bedroom, she was more nauseous than ever. Was this still the transport lingering? Or was this because of the fear of what she might find? Or maybe the awful smell in the air….

"Theo?" she called, pushing open his doorway. She found him quickly, lying uncovered on his bed. Keyda froze in the doorway when she saw him—seeing him so pallid and weak took her back to too many unwanted memories. He didn't even stir at her call, and Keyda's eyes filled with tears as she made her way across the room. "Oh, Theo…"


"I told you to have both remedies ready!" Rook snapped as she watched Ylba pounding the roots into a poultice.

"That was hours ago…and the effects of the tea wane the longer it steeps. We need it to be fresh if we want the full effect."

Rook studied the mixtures and felt another flash of consternation. "I don't even know if he'll be able to drink it," she murmured. "Maybe…we can burn it? Like they were doing with the leaves?"

"I don't recommend it," Ylba shrugged.

"Why?"

"Again, he's going to need a potent dose."

Rook looked at the roots that Ylba had finally finished crushing. "And what if we're wrong about what poisoned him?" she asked, voicing her greatest fear aloud.

Ylba snorted. "We're not. You got the evidence right there." She gestured at the shred of leaf sitting on the counter nearby. "If you want to do something useful, go get me a snack. It's been hours since I had something proper to eat."

Rook gave her an unamused look, not budging from her place watching the healer work. However, just as Ylba was finally adding the roots to the water she had been boiling, the door to the healer room swung open.

"She's in here!" a guard called, and Rook huffed in frustration. Honestly, she expected them to track her down sooner, but regardless of when they found her, this entire situation was one headache that she really didn't need to be dealing with right now. She turned to tell off the guard, but her mind went blank as she watched another figure follow the patrolman into the room.

The Asahkar looked less than pleased to see her, and Rook forced herself to remain confident in the face of his cold stare. If Theo's father was here, then she knew his mother was as well. With the Ruler's on site, Rook knew for a fact there was no way out of a dungeon cell.

"Figured you'd be here," Cole offered at last. "If you were serious about having the answer to what's going on with Theo."

Rook flushed. "Look, I get that you're here to arrest me, but we don't have time…"

"I'm not really up to listening to your defense right now. What matters most is getting Theo well."

"Then move out of the way." This time, it was Ylba who spoke up. Either she didn't know who Cole was or she didn't care, because the look she was giving him was fit for an annoying bug, not a Ruler of the realm. Cole frowned at her, and the healer gestured to the tea kettle she was holding. "This should set him right. The girly showed up with it just in time."

She pointed a finger in Rook's direction, but rather than look relieved, Cole's expression merely darkened at the mention of Rook. "So…you're the one pushing for this treatment?"

Rook's heart was pounding, and she wished she could calm the panic racing through her. "I don't care what you think about me, but Theo's been poisoned, and I spent all morning searching for the cure—"

"Convenient timing to have found it just when we show up."

Something snapped, and Cole's stance became defensive as Rook eyes and hands lit with aura. "We don't have time for this stupid exchange!" She insisted. "I didn't poison him…no matter what people say, or think…and if we don't get this tea to him now, then he may never recover!" Guards began coming into the room, their expressions tight with concern as they caught sight of Rook's aura manifestation. She ignored them, her gaze boring into Cole's as tears began to fill her eyes. His expression might as well have been carved from stone, and she was overcome with the fear that they would discard Theo's remedy after everything, just because it had come from her. "You have to let Ylba treat him," Rook insisted, her voice breaking. "You can lock me up in the meantime if it makes you feel better…but make sure Theo gets this tea!"

The guards had started to draw their weapons, but Cole motioned for them to hold off. For a few seconds, everyone merely stared at each other, but then Ylba shifted the tea to her other hand.

"Are you going to let me give this to him, or not?" she muttered. "Because if not, then there are fifty other things I could be doing with my time…"

"Stand down, Rook," Cole ordered. Rook narrowed her eyes, but she finally forced the aura around her hands to fade. The Asahkar studied her a little longer before motioning for the guards to apprehend her. It took everything in her not to fight back as she glared at Theodynn's father.

"Are you going to give him the tea?" she demanded.

"It sounds like most of the fortress is convinced that you're the one who poisoned Theo in the first place," he pointed out. "It's why Mahlyn came and got us."

"And you believed her," Rook fumed. "So you're here, focusing on entirely the wrong thing…"

"I'm not sure you're stupid enough to have done this," Cole interrupted. Rook blinked in surprise, and Theo's father continued. "There's plenty of evidence, I suppose…but I can't help but feel like you wouldn't have been sloppy enough to have left this much of a trail, all pointing back to you." He finally shrugged. "Maybe I'm wrong."

"Then you believe me, that I didn't do this," Rook realized, feeling a small spark of hope.

"I don't know if I'd say I'm convinced you're innocent," Cole offered flatly. "Regardless, you're under arrest until we can figure this out."

"Not surprising," Rook muttered. "But you'll give him the antidote?" The guards started to pull her away, and Rook resisted as she stared down the man with Theodynn's eyes. "I wouldn't have tried to kill him—I have nothing to gain from it!" she insisted. "You made yourself clear, before any of us ever came to the south: if anything happened to Theo, it would be my head. So why would I hurt him now?"

"Should we take her to the dungeons?" one of the guards asked. Cole didn't answer right away, staring at the tea kettle in Ylba's hands as the healer groaned dramatically, obviously annoyed by the entire thing.

"Put me wherever you want!" Rook snapped. "But for the love of the First Ones and all their treacherous offspring…give Theodynn that tea!"

"You're sure this is what my son needs?" Cole asked, the question targeted at Ylba, rather than Rook. The frizzy-haired healer gave him a dry look in response.

"I'm sure it will help more than sitting around doing nothing."

"Cole!" Rook shouted, trying to force him to answer her. It felt strange to say his name—she knew it, of course, but she couldn't remember another time she had called either Ruler by their actual name.

It worked to catch his attention, and his gaze flicked back to her as she resisted the guards trying to drag her out of the room. "I'll make sure he gets it," he finally promised. Rook felt a wave of relief, and the guards holding her finally managed to drag her out into the hallway. The fight left her as she prayed that Cole was telling the truth, and not just trying to get rid of her. Part of her wanted to fight everyone off and get the tea to Theo herself, but she honestly wasn't sure if she'd be able to do it. She was pretty good at reading situations, and she could tell that the harder she fought now, the harder everyone would fight back against her. Maybe she'd be able to get to Theo in time, or maybe the entire guard force would take her down before she had the chance…if the Ruler herself didn't murder Rook first. She had never seen Keyda in action, but she had heard enough stories to know that it wasn't wise to pit yourself directly against the Ruler. Well, that ship has long since sailed.

"So, where are we taking her?" one of the guards murmured to the other.

"Let's just do dungeons. She'll be most secure there."

Rook rolled her eyes. She could get away from them, if she wanted to. But at this point, anything but her compliance was going to cause more harm than good. She just had to hope that Cole would keep his word.