Chapter 3
"Challenger! Hurry! Something's happened to Roxton!" Marguerite shouted through the tree house. Challenger came running up to the main level from his lab. Malone and Veronica had brought Roxton in on the stretcher. He was tied down and convulsing.
"Oh dear. Come on, get him onto his bed. We are going to need a DNA sample and blood. If he has taken in an outside substance, I will need to see a disfiguration in his genetics. Veronica, I will need you in the lab with me for a few moments."
Veronica left with Challenger and as soon as they were in the lab he spoke to her in a low voice.
"I don't think there is anything that I can do. If he keeps convulsing he may kill himself from the shock. I'm worried that it may be a poison from our world." He said.
Veronica sighed. "I have the container it was in. Maybe I should take it to the Zanga village and talk to Assai, she might know something."
"That's a good idea. Spend a few hours there and find out everything you can. I'm going to see if we can do anything to slow down the decaying process."
Veronica went to the main level to get Malone to go with her, but instead she saw Marguerite huddled over Roxton's motionless body. She hated seeing the heiress so defenseless. She called to Malone, took the poison and left.
They reached the Zanga village in a matter of hours. Malone went off with Jarl, Assai's husband and Veronica went off with Assai. The women sat down in a shaman's hut and spoke with him. Assai spoke to him in their tongue, and although Veronica knew the language fairly well, she didn't know what was being said. As the two Zangas finished, Veronica turned to her friend worriedly.
"Assai, what did he say? Can we help Roxton?" She asked.
Assai took a deep breath. "The poison is actually an ancient Vantu curse. It is called the Black Death and will kill the person slowly and painfully. If he survives, he shall become permanently immune. Only one cure is known, and it is not likely possible to do, and it doesn't always work."
"Well, what is it? We have to do everything we can!" Veronica cried.
"His soul mate. He must drink her blood. She must also be immune to the poison. We do not know if Marguerite is immune, or even his soul mate. Even then it still might not work. The poison is only a myth to the Zanga and the cure is not always the right way to help those who are infected,"
Veronica was somewhat shocked at Assai's statement. The Zanga girl didn't know Marguerite and Roxton horribly well, but she knew of the romance between them. Still, it would break the young jungle girl's heart if they weren't soul mates. Veronica stood, hugged Assai, and left the hut. She grabbed Malone and told him the story.
"That's great! We can tell the others and Roxton will be alright!" Malone exclaimed. He didn't like Marguerite very much, but he never wanted to see her like this.
"Malone, Assai said it might not work, plus we don't know if they are soul mates. We might just be giving Marguerite false hope."
Malone sighed and suggested they head back to the tree house. They trekked through the jungle and when they finally made their way home, didn't want to go inside.
"Malone, do you think we should tell them? I've heard Marguerite and Roxton talking before. She seems to think that they won't be together and that they will both be hurt. What if she tries the cure and it fails? How do you think that would make her feel?" Veronica asked nervously.
Malone turned to her and took her hands in his. "We have to try, for Roxton's sake. We have to do everything in our power to help him. You know very well that he would do the same for any one of us."
Veronica nodded and the two of them got in the elevator and ascended to the main level. The sight was heart wrenching. Marguerite was still huddled over her lover and crying. The younger residents of the tree house looked at each other grimly.
"Marguerite?" Veronica asked gently. "Has he changed at all?"
Marguerite turned and shook her head. He keeps shaking violently. Challenger says that he's in pain because of it. He says that if he doesn't stop soon, we have to...h-have to...He said that we might have to kill him." She said weakly.
Veronica went down to her room. She couldn't even imagine what Marguerite was going through. Losing the man she loves is too much for Veronica to observe.
Malone felt as if his heart was being torn in two. Silently, he moved downstairs to Challenger's lab. He saw the scientist looking over dozens of phials, each with a different substance. Off to the side was the container Branston made Marguerite drink from. He took it and went back upstairs. 'Why didn't I see it before?'
"Marguerite, did you drink any of this?" Malone asked frantically.
"Branston made me. He literally shoved it down my throat and made me swallow. I didn't think anything of it at the time. Why?" She replied.
Malone brushed a hand through his hair. "I saw this when I left to find myself. There was a tribe that was close to the Vantu. They believed that magic could be contained in any substance. I saw this my firs few days there." He grabbed on of his journals and opened it. He showed Marguerite a picture of the liquid she was forced to drink. "It is known as an Amnesia Serum. After a certain amount of time, the person who took it would lose all their memory, and I don't know of a cure."
Marguerite pulled away from the unconscious Roxton and looked up at Malone. "Why hasn't it worked yet?"
"I think how much you take and your natural immunities to certain illnesses matters. It is very lethal, too. When I was in the village, I saw a man who had taken it. He had taken the serum about a year before. He died within a week, painfully. There is no cure that I know of."
Veronica heard their conversation and came up to the main level with Challenger. Challenger was troubled and it showed.
"Marguerite, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that Roxton is in a coma that he can wake from at any moment."
Marguerite jumped up. "That's great!"
Challenger hated what he was about to do next. "Yes, but the longer he remains unconscious, the less likely he will ever wake up."
"Challenger! Hurry! Something's happened to Roxton!" Marguerite shouted through the tree house. Challenger came running up to the main level from his lab. Malone and Veronica had brought Roxton in on the stretcher. He was tied down and convulsing.
"Oh dear. Come on, get him onto his bed. We are going to need a DNA sample and blood. If he has taken in an outside substance, I will need to see a disfiguration in his genetics. Veronica, I will need you in the lab with me for a few moments."
Veronica left with Challenger and as soon as they were in the lab he spoke to her in a low voice.
"I don't think there is anything that I can do. If he keeps convulsing he may kill himself from the shock. I'm worried that it may be a poison from our world." He said.
Veronica sighed. "I have the container it was in. Maybe I should take it to the Zanga village and talk to Assai, she might know something."
"That's a good idea. Spend a few hours there and find out everything you can. I'm going to see if we can do anything to slow down the decaying process."
Veronica went to the main level to get Malone to go with her, but instead she saw Marguerite huddled over Roxton's motionless body. She hated seeing the heiress so defenseless. She called to Malone, took the poison and left.
They reached the Zanga village in a matter of hours. Malone went off with Jarl, Assai's husband and Veronica went off with Assai. The women sat down in a shaman's hut and spoke with him. Assai spoke to him in their tongue, and although Veronica knew the language fairly well, she didn't know what was being said. As the two Zangas finished, Veronica turned to her friend worriedly.
"Assai, what did he say? Can we help Roxton?" She asked.
Assai took a deep breath. "The poison is actually an ancient Vantu curse. It is called the Black Death and will kill the person slowly and painfully. If he survives, he shall become permanently immune. Only one cure is known, and it is not likely possible to do, and it doesn't always work."
"Well, what is it? We have to do everything we can!" Veronica cried.
"His soul mate. He must drink her blood. She must also be immune to the poison. We do not know if Marguerite is immune, or even his soul mate. Even then it still might not work. The poison is only a myth to the Zanga and the cure is not always the right way to help those who are infected,"
Veronica was somewhat shocked at Assai's statement. The Zanga girl didn't know Marguerite and Roxton horribly well, but she knew of the romance between them. Still, it would break the young jungle girl's heart if they weren't soul mates. Veronica stood, hugged Assai, and left the hut. She grabbed Malone and told him the story.
"That's great! We can tell the others and Roxton will be alright!" Malone exclaimed. He didn't like Marguerite very much, but he never wanted to see her like this.
"Malone, Assai said it might not work, plus we don't know if they are soul mates. We might just be giving Marguerite false hope."
Malone sighed and suggested they head back to the tree house. They trekked through the jungle and when they finally made their way home, didn't want to go inside.
"Malone, do you think we should tell them? I've heard Marguerite and Roxton talking before. She seems to think that they won't be together and that they will both be hurt. What if she tries the cure and it fails? How do you think that would make her feel?" Veronica asked nervously.
Malone turned to her and took her hands in his. "We have to try, for Roxton's sake. We have to do everything in our power to help him. You know very well that he would do the same for any one of us."
Veronica nodded and the two of them got in the elevator and ascended to the main level. The sight was heart wrenching. Marguerite was still huddled over her lover and crying. The younger residents of the tree house looked at each other grimly.
"Marguerite?" Veronica asked gently. "Has he changed at all?"
Marguerite turned and shook her head. He keeps shaking violently. Challenger says that he's in pain because of it. He says that if he doesn't stop soon, we have to...h-have to...He said that we might have to kill him." She said weakly.
Veronica went down to her room. She couldn't even imagine what Marguerite was going through. Losing the man she loves is too much for Veronica to observe.
Malone felt as if his heart was being torn in two. Silently, he moved downstairs to Challenger's lab. He saw the scientist looking over dozens of phials, each with a different substance. Off to the side was the container Branston made Marguerite drink from. He took it and went back upstairs. 'Why didn't I see it before?'
"Marguerite, did you drink any of this?" Malone asked frantically.
"Branston made me. He literally shoved it down my throat and made me swallow. I didn't think anything of it at the time. Why?" She replied.
Malone brushed a hand through his hair. "I saw this when I left to find myself. There was a tribe that was close to the Vantu. They believed that magic could be contained in any substance. I saw this my firs few days there." He grabbed on of his journals and opened it. He showed Marguerite a picture of the liquid she was forced to drink. "It is known as an Amnesia Serum. After a certain amount of time, the person who took it would lose all their memory, and I don't know of a cure."
Marguerite pulled away from the unconscious Roxton and looked up at Malone. "Why hasn't it worked yet?"
"I think how much you take and your natural immunities to certain illnesses matters. It is very lethal, too. When I was in the village, I saw a man who had taken it. He had taken the serum about a year before. He died within a week, painfully. There is no cure that I know of."
Veronica heard their conversation and came up to the main level with Challenger. Challenger was troubled and it showed.
"Marguerite, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that Roxton is in a coma that he can wake from at any moment."
Marguerite jumped up. "That's great!"
Challenger hated what he was about to do next. "Yes, but the longer he remains unconscious, the less likely he will ever wake up."