Chapter 10: Dragontail Moss Fever.

Morning swept across Alfard in a golden sheen. Kalas opened his eyes and stretched. Xelha yawned beside him and sat up. They would be setting out on their own search soon. Savyna had arrived shortly after them and Gibari was expected to arrive any day. There was a knock on the door and two servants brought Kalas and Xelha their breakfast.

Xelha thanked the servants and she and Kalas sat down to eat. "How long has Lyude been missing?" asked Kalas through a mouthful of sausage.

"A little over a week now." said Xelha. "After breakfast I think we should go see Alyssa. Skeed mentioned that she was looking awfully down."

"Disappointed that she's not in on the search most likely." said Kalas.

"Well of course she couldn't help. She is pregnant after all."

Kalas choked. "Wh...what!" said Kalas through gasps.

"Were you paying any attention at all yesterday?" asked Xelha. "Skeed told us about it when he was telling us about the circumstances that Lyude disappeared under."

"Awful fast, isn't it?" said Kalas.

Xelha laughed. "I doubt they were expecting so soon, but you don't curse a gift when it is given. Besides..." Xelha went silent.

"What?" asked Kalas.

"I was just thinking...maybe that child will be all she has left of Lyude when this is over..." said Xelha. "I'm really worried about him, Kalas."

Kalas looked at Xelha with annoyed disbelief. "C'mon now, Xelha. You're not normally the doom and gloom kind of person. He'll be fine."

"I'm sorry Kalas." said Xelha, "I just feel so much malice here yet... I have a terrible feeling about all of this. Some of the power of the ice queen still lives in me and it's telling me that there is something very wrong about all this."

"You're just letting yourself get too worked up about it is all." said Kalas. "Some idiot wanting to get a proposal through probably took him. He is the only thing standing between Alfard and a new Empire."

"That's not exactly true." came a voice behind them.

"Hey, who invited you in here?" asked Kalas turning to Skeed.

"I knocked. You didn't hear me." said Skeed. "Even with Lyude gone, the council of Alfard still stands. My brother put a lot of work in fortifying this government and it won't be so easily destroyed."

"Yeah, I guess he would have made sure his work was protected." said Kalas. "So what are you doing while he's gone."

"Trying my utmost to smother these ridiculous proposals." said Skeed seating himself wearily. "Since Lyude's disappearance many of the council members have revealed their true colors. My desk is filled with all kinds of proposals and suggestions from the council and underlings of the government. Some point toward a replacement for Lyude, others point towards another Empire."

"Don't waste any time do they?" commented Kalas through another mouthful of sausage.

"As if it were planned." said Skeed. "Which I don't doubt it was. As my brother well knows by now, doing the right thing often comes at a personal price."

"That is something that Lyude knows very well." said Xelha sadly. "It cost him so much to join us in the fight against Malpercio."

"Yeah, and then that whole thing with the Organ of the Flame." said Kalas.

"Yes, I'm not at all convinced that final ordeal didn't leave him unaltered." said Skeed. "His eyes seem to burn at times. It's like watching flames reflecting in them, but there is no source. I notice it most when he's angry or adamant about something."

"Yeah, we noticed that the first time we saw him after Christov forced him into becoming Alfard's maestro." said Kalas. "He's still showing that?"

"I don't think he can help it." said Skeed. "In fact, I doubt he even knows about it."

"I agree. I doubt he has any idea that he does it. It is really strange." said Xelha, "Let's go see Alyssa."

Lyude woke that morning drenched with sweat. His red hair was plastered to his face and he was shivering uncontrollably. He felt awful. The damp, fetid cell was very unsanitary and Lyude had finally gotten ill, he assumed it was the chill that did him in.

He rolled over with a moan and saw a shadow fall over him. "Wondered if that was going to happen." muttered the prisoner turning Lyude onto his back and looking into his fevered, half coherent eyes. "Should never have put us in this cell, not if they wanted him alive..." the man's eyes shifted again and he crouched in the corner hugging his knees. "I don't see it...I don't see it." he repeated to himself over and over.

Lyude coughed and curled up, feeling the fever rage through his entire body. Nausea swept over him and he forced it down. Flickering in and out of consciousness he lay there quietly, feeling his temperature rising more and more. Lyude moaned softly sweat pouring from his brow. After several minutes, the prisoner returned to Lyude's side and touched his brow. "He's got it all right...Dragontail moss fever that is. Best way to fight is to lose sometimes, right boy?" he chuckled bitterly under his breath. "And you'll most likely lose your life to this...takes a strong one to fight off that sickness."

Lyude turned his head, his eyes closed. The prisoner left him and returned with their water and brought the liquid to Lyude's lips. The cool liquid trickling down his throat seemed to evaporate in Lyude's burning insides. It felt as if he was being cooked from the inside out. Urden came in a few minuted later, under orders to bring Lyude to Braddock. He swore when he saw Lyude's condition and the plant growing only a few feet away from the minister's feverish figure. "Gravar!" Urden shouted harshly, Lyude winced, brow furrowing at the noise. Gravar appeared in the door and cursed under his breath at the sight of the moss. "When did we get that stuff down here?"

"Never mind that right now. Get the other prisoner out of here while I attend to the minister, we have to act quickly before he roasts alive."

"Oh, that would be a pity." muttered Gravar as he seized the prisoner and escorted him roughly from the room.

Urden slid Lyude gingerly away from the moss and looked him over. He only seemed partially coherent and it seemed that the moss already had a good hold on him. "I'm so sorry about this, boy." he whispered. Lyude groaned his fevered eyes flickered to Urden's face and he turned his head away wearily.

Urden lifted Lyude gently and cradled him in his arms as he stood up and carried him from the room. Dragontail moss was very rare and grew wild only in Alfard. It was the deadliest plant known to man and caused a slow and painful death to the victim if not treated properly and quickly. Lyude's temperature had already risen into the danger zone.

Ignoring Braddock completely as he carried Lyude through the hall past his employer, he carried his charge straight to the infirmary. There was little time, Dragontail moss fever literally burned a person up from the inside, the lucky ones died of dehydration before their insides were consumed by the illness.

A quarantine was immediately set up and Lyude was placed in a white, sterile room. Urden was charged with treating him since he was already exposed to the illness. He could only hope that his slight contact with the plant had not made him ill as well.

Braddock was furious. He had plans for that boy and he wasn't going to allow him to slip away so easily. He shouted orders to the doctors and paced angrily before leaving the room in a huff.

Lyude shifted where he lay on the pristine white cott. He was surrounded by ice that was rapidly melting around him. Urden was mixing a medicine for him and adding ice as it melted. He finished mixing the herbs and poured the mixture down the boy's throat. They would know within a day if he would survive the ordeal. Urden paced the room. That moss had not been there when he had put Lyude in the cell, it had been planted, Urden was sure of it. Someone did not want to see the minister survive.

Urden sighed and sat down. He didn't know why he was brooding on it so heavily. He now knew his employer didn't intend for Lyude to live after he was done with him. Still...he had a job to do and he had to do it. He had to obey, Lena and the boys depended upon it. One of their sons was still imprisoned. The older of the two. He couldn't help but feel guilty for aiding in the boy's capture. From what he could tell, the Minister's only crime was being burdened with power.

He placed a cool cloth on Lyude's forehead and leaned back in his chair for a nap.

Kalas and Xelha knocked on Alyssa's door, but there was no response. Worriedly, Kalas opened the door. Alyssa was gone. Kalas and Xelha exchanged a glance and both came to the same thought. What if she had decided to search anyway? As they passed the kitchens they heard a large crash and both ran inside to see what was the matter. Alyssa was picking up a large pot she had apparently dropped. She returned it to the sink and continued to scour the pot furiously.

"Oh, there you are, Alyssa!" said Xelha, "We were worried."

Alyssa paused in her scrubbing and turned to them. "Why are you working in the kitchens?" asked Kalas. "Isn't that the servant's job?"

"We've tried to get her to go, but she insists on staying and helping." said an exasperated cook. Alyssa sighed, "I..I just need something to keep me busy. The longer I sit, the more I brood and it's all I can think about. Keeping busy is the only thing that's keeping me sane right now." said Alyssa brushing back her ebony hair from her face, her dishpan hands were red from scrubbing so hard.

Xelha embraced Alyssa as tears began to form in her eyes. She sobbed harder into Xelha's shoulder hugging her friend back as if desperate for support lest she collapse. The trio walked over to a table and the cook brought Alyssa some tea. This only upset her more. Lyude had always brought her tea to calm her when she was upset about something. Now it was only a painful reminder. Still, she took a sip and the warm liquid soothed her aching throat. She nodded her thanks and dried her eyes with her apron. "Thank you." she said. "I'm sorry about all that, I'm just so worried."

"It's fine." said Xelha kindly. "We're all worried."

" I want to thank you for coming." said Alyssa. "You truly are wonderful friends. Lyude is fortunate to have all of you."

"We couldn't just stand by." said Xelha.

"Don't worry, Alyssa, we'll find him." added Kalas.

"I know you'll do your best." said Alyssa. She shook her head angrily. "I should be out there too. He's my husband. I should be doing more than just sitting around here doing nothing to help with the search."

"No way!" said Kalas, "You can't risk that kid!"

"I know that!" said Alyssa putting her face in her hands, "But still, I can't help but feel I'm failing him in some way. If it weren't for this child, I'd be out there right now. I miss him so much." she dried her eyes and stood up. Well, wringing my hands about it isn't going to solve anything." she said scolding herself. "Skeed thinks that it was someone within the government. If I must remain here, I'm going to insist on sitting in on every meeting. I'm going to keep an eye on those council members and see if I can't learn anything from that. I refuse to just do nothing."

"That's not a bad idea." said Xelha. "From what I hear though, there's a lot of discord going on. It would be difficult to determine who was responsible and who wasn't."

"I have to try. If we can find out who is responsible, we may be able to find Lyude before any serious harm comes to him."

"The Great Mizuti not sure if this be the right Oasis." said Mizuti looking over the sands doubtfully.

"This is the closest Oasis to the wreck and it's on the heading that Alyssa gave us." said Ayme impatiently. "This is it."

"Yeah, too bad the sandstorm covered up any evidence that might have been here." said Ricco.

"Hey, what's that?" said Matthias heading toward the lone pool of water. He picked up a dart that was floating near the edge of the pool.

"Yep. Looks like this was the place." said Folon. "Looks like Lyude literally got their point."

"Oh, shut up you idiot." said Vallye. "Did you really think anyone besides you was going to consider that humorous?"

"Well, pardon me for trying to lighten the mood a little." Folon stuck his tongue out at her and crossed his eyes.

"Childish fool." muttered Vallye rolling her eyes.

Matthias sighed. "Doesn't look like we're going to have much luck here." he said sadly. The sandstorm covered up everything that may have given us a clue."

"So this was all just a waste of time?" said Vallye bristling.

"Well no. I don't think so. I think we can safely discount the surrounding area as a base of operations."said Matthias. It's not much, but at least it's a start."

"The Great Mizuti likes Matthias' attitude. It be chipper, hopeful, helpful!"

"Ugh..." muttered Ayme. She was getting a headache listening to this kid.

"Besides." said Matthias. "Can't you figure anything out by the dart?"

"Hmm...maybe." said Ayme. "If it's of Imperial design it may point us to the weapon used at least. Dart guns like the one a dart like this one may have come from are rarely used and were only issued to a few select units. It may narrow down the search considerably. Good thinking."

Ricco nodded. "Well, I think we've spent enough time just standing around here. We should continue the sweeps of the desert. Maybe we'll get lucky and find some sort of clue."

"I'll go back to the fortress and have the dart analyzed. Once I'm done there, I'm going to ensure every single member of the Alfard government has a tracking device pinned on them." said Vallye.

"The Great Mizuti and Ayme will continue sweeping desert." said Mizuti levitating above the sand with her legs crossed in front of her.

"Oh goody." said Ayme under her breath. "How did I ever end up babysitting?"

"The Great Mizuit's ears be sharp, perceptive, flawless, but they did not catch what you said." said Mizuti.

"I said I can't wait." said Ayme with a forced smile. "Let's get moving.

Urden opened his eyes and looked over at the Minister. There was no change. At least his temperature had stopped it's steady rise. The ice surrounding Lyude had completely melted, the water around him warm from his unusually high body temperature. Urden slipped his hands under Lyude's bare shoulders and sat him up sliding his other arm under his legs and lifting the boy from the cot. He then laid Lyude on another cot beside the one that had been specially prepared to cool him and drained the water from the basin like cover.

"Ice isn't going to do you any good now." he said softly. "All up to you now, boy." said Urden. He wrapped Lyude comfortably in a blanket and sat down. "Time to let the thing run its course."

About an hour later, Lyude suddenly stopped breathing. Urden started, but settled back into his seat. Staring intently as Lyude's face drained of color. He glanced up at the clock and began counting in his head. "Come on, boy...come on..."

Two minutes passed. Lyude lay lifelessly. Urden began to get antsy. "It's taking too long..."

Just as Urden rose from his seat to cover Lyude's face, Lyude's eyes shot open and he gulped in a huge breath of air. Panting weakly Lyude began to cough violently, black smoke issuing from his lips."

Urden smiled. "Well done."

Lyude closed his eyes still breathing heavily and coughing up clouds of smoke. He opened his eyes again and looked into Urden's now expressionless face. "Wh...what?" he began slipping into another fit of coughing.

"You were suffering from Dragontail moss fever." said Urden.

"That would..."Lyude coughed again. "Explain the smoke." Lyude sighed ruefully.

"The heat has to escape somehow, Minister." said Urden with a nod. "I was beginning to wonder if you were going to revive, but I see the Pheonix root has done it's duty."

Lyude coughed again, only a small amount of smoke escaped him that time. "Dragontail moss? I thought that was extinct."

"You and just about everyone else." said Urden. "We thought that had been destroyed twenty years ago. Seems some specimens survived though. Here." said Urden handing Lyude the top of his uniform. Had to remove it to cool your body temperature. Lyude sat up weakly and got the shirt on, too weary to concern himself with the vest. His boots were gone also, but at least now he was decent.

"Once the cell has been sanitized and the moss removed I'm afraid you will be returning to your original staying arrangements."

Lyude did not reply his mind was elsewhere. Phoenix root. Just as rare as Dragontail moss itself it's healing qualities were astronomical. It shut down the systems of the body and made the patient as dead until the illness within them died as well. If it took too long for this to be accomplished, however, the patient would die. He had been fortunate, it appeared. Numbly, he felt as Urden placed a hand on his shoulder and forearm leaning him back against the pillows. Lyude released a soft sigh and allowed his eyes to fall closed. He turned on his side and drifted back into slumber.

When Lyude woke again he was indeed back in his cell. As was his cell mate. "Didn't get out of it so easily, did you boy?" chuckled the man. Apparently, he was in one of his less lucid loops.

Lyude's boots were back on, as was his vest. He stood up and stretched his legs experimentally. His former weakness seemed to have dissipated. He felt fine now.

"Going to do something other than sleep now?" asked the prisoner with a grin.

Lyude sighed. He realized he had spent a great deal of his imprisonment asleep. Though that was hardly his fault. Still it likely made him appear to be weak.

"Any suggestions?" asked Lyude seating himself cross-legged across from his fellow prisoner and leaning his chin on his hand. His crimson eyes studied his unbalanced companion and he raised his brow, giving the man a friendly smirk.

Seemingly a bit puzzled by this attention, the prisoner pulled his legs up in front of him and looked back at Lyude pensively. "Not much to suggest now, is there? The cell here may be made of stone and mortar, but the outer casement is metal. Allowing me to have a knife is more of a mockery. No matter how many stones I loosened, I could never burrow through to freedom. So no, there's really little to do but sit and rot...sit and rot..."

Lyude shook his head. The man's sanity seemed shaky at best. He seemed to drift between coherent and unstable thought. Lyude wondered just how long he had been here, but decided against asking him at this stage. For now there was little more he could do aside from what the crazed prisoner had suggested. Sit and rot.

Urden turned from the scene in the cell shaking his head. "So close, yet so far apart"

Ephraim Kun: Yay! I'm always happy to see a new reader. Have you read my other stories here? This one is actually a

followup toanother fanfic I've submitted hereand it may get a little confusing if you don't know the past story.

Crazygirl:Thanks as always for your review. I hope that the fic continues to get more interesting for you!

TFRiD Queen: No problem about the absence. I'm just glad to see you back. Thanks for the review. We'll see how much

longer Lyude has to endure this separation.