It was a strange thing being the patient instead of the physician. Hiroaki had to stop himself from telling the others what to do as they flitted about, tending to his injury. Most of the damage had been blocked from his feeble spell, thank goodness, but he still had several small deep tissue lacerations, including a nasty one his deltoid. It would be a while before he could properly move his right arm.

He felt dazed, but not due to any physical injury. His mind was still trying to catch up with the events that had brought him here.

Sozen an Accursed, and all the information Kyoko knew. How was this all linked together?

One of the physician's assistants brought him a cup of water. He took it clumsily with his left hand.

"Thanks," said Hiroaki, already back to his thoughts before he'd finished the drink. He couldn't calm down. As he closed in on a theory that may bring everything together, the thoughts would scatter to the winds. His brain needed rest.

That thought managed to stick to the surface. He'd only woken an hour ago. This was no time to be thinking about heavy things.

He was just about to start settling in when a knock came at the door.

"Yes?" said Hiroaki.

It opened, a physician entering along with five others. They were young, carrying bags and weapons coated with sand. Hiroaki didn't recognize them but assumed they must be important if they had come here to see him. He sat up and tried to smile through the throbbing in his chest.

"Can I help you?" said Hiroaki.

"They're from the palace," said the physician, gesturing at the group. "It's the help King Kuu sent us to assist with the Shuemans rot."

Hiroaki couldn't keep the incredulity from his face as he stared at them. What? Only five people? What could they accomplish with a mess this big? And it had just gotten bigger. Stars.

"I guess it's better than nothing," grumbled Hiroaki. "Show them around the place and get them situated. We'll brief them on how they can help us and…"

No, that wasn't right. They couldn't trust their research. If Sozen had been an Accursed – and Hiroaki knew from his own eyes that the man had been one – then the research couldn't be trusted. The man had his hand in every aspect of the rot including the research. They'd need to start from scratch.

Hiroaki resisted the urge to hang his head and let out a sigh. Possibly months' worth a research would now be unusable because of Sozen.

"I'll debrief you tomorrow," said Hiroaki. "A lot has changed, but I'm glad you're here to help. For now, just rest and recuperate from your journey."

"We actually have a few questions for you first," said the one in the front. He had shoulder length curly hair and several days stubble on his chin. Hiroaki could sense this man had light magic. Everyone did in fact, save the strange person in the back dressed from head to foot in a brown cloak. Not even this person's eyes were visible.

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?" said Hiroaki's physician. The other assistants were filing out, anticipating Hiroaki's need to rest. "As you can see, Mage Ogata is recovering from a grievous wound. We had an attack here recently."

"Sorry, it really can't," said the man. "We're on a time crunch, and it won't take long, we promise."

"It's fine," interrupted Hiroaki when his physician looked like he might argue. "I'll rest once they leave. You can see to your other patients. I'm sure there are plenty that need your help."

The man pursed his lips but nodded in respect before following everyone out. It left Hiroaki alone with this new group of people.

"So, what can I help you with….?"

"Horiuchi," said the man, giving his name. He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. "And she's the one that actually wants to speak to you."

She?

The person completely covered in a cloak stepped forward, revealing a spear strapped to their back. Then they threw back their hood.

It was a woman, with sharp eyes and a well-defined jawline. Raven black hair had been pulled back into three different bunches, twin bangs hanging free down the sides of her face and brushing her collar. Had Hiroaki been fifteen years younger he would have gawked at how beautiful she was.

"Kyoko," said the woman, and her voice was just as sharp as her eyes. "I want to talk to her. Can you get me access to her?"

"Kyoko?" said Hiroaki. "Sure, I guess, why do you need my help with that?"

"Because she's been put on quarantine and I doubt anyone would let me near her without permission from someone near the top."

That was news to Hiroaki. "Quarantine?" he said "Why would she be in quarantine? Unless… did her illness act up again?"

The woman's eyes narrowed to dangerous slits and Hiroaki felt the hairs on his neck stand up.

"She's sick?" she said. "What's wrong with her?"

"Not sure," said Hiroaki. He felt the desire to answer all this woman's questions as best as he could. He'd never been good at standing up to aggressive women. "We've done lots of tests and it resembles a few things that we've seen here, but we've had no definitive results save distance from whatever gave her the curse she currently has." He couldn't tell this woman more without revealing confidential information about the seeds.

Wait... if this woman didn't know Kyoko was sick, why was she looking for her?

"What do you want with Kyoko?" said Hiroaki, suddenly feeling hot from the number of people in the room he didn't know. What if they were associated with Sozen as well? He wished he hadn't sent his physicians away.

"I'm a friend," said the woman. Her gaze had changed, eyeing Hiroaki with puzzlement. "They haven't told you, have they?"

"Told me what?"

"It's all over the city by now, but if you just woke up, I guess they decided not to strain you with more information."

"Tell me what?" he repeated, frustration growing.

Horiuchi was the one to answer. "Kyoko is under arrest due to her association with the Accursed."

Hiroaki's head swam. "But..." he stammered. "She wasn't friends with him. She tried to warn us about him. He wanted to kill her. Whatever association she had I doubt it's anything bad." Especially considering how nice the woman was.

"What are you talking about?" said Horiuchi. "He didn't try to kill her, he protected her from the other Accursed."

Now Hiroaki was confused. There was another Accursed?

"I think he doesn't even know that much," said one of the other men. His face was young, voice higher than it should be for his age. "Maybe he doesn't know about Cain or Sozen."

"What about them?" Hiroaki was starting to get very annoyed. "Look, can you just tell me what's going on?"

"The city is in an uproar because of a fight between two Accursed that happened in the center of it," said the woman. Her eyes were unblinkingly focused on him, watching his every flinch. "Sozen was trying to kill Kyoko, but Cain managed to save her. He was outed as an Accursed and arrested after his relic was taken away. Kyoko is in quarantine and you are the only person we can get to that can give me access to her."

Hiroaki blinked, processing everything.

"Cain's an Accursed?" he said. "But then… how did we not? Why would she-" He put a hand to his head, the room spinning dangerously. Pain shot through his lungs with each gasp. He could feel his pulse in his head, vision blacking out

Hiroaki opened his eyes.

He was staring at his hands, hunched over his bed. Something was soothing his clammy forehead as strength in the form of light magic was being softly streamed into him.

Hiroaki swallowed back nausea, looking up to see the young man standing beside him, a hand hovering over Hiroaki. A jewel-encrusted ring was glowing softly as light magic expertly wove a soothing spell into him. The man gave a happy smile.

"Feeling better?" he said.

"Yes, thanks," said Hiroaki. "Umm, your name?"

"Maru,"

"Maru, yes. That was just a lot to take in…. how do you all know about all of that?"

"Like we said, it's all over the city," said Horiuchi with a shrug. "Along with other crazy rumors, but we managed to sort through them and this is the only plausible conclusion. Most people think Sozen wasn't an Accursed."

"He was one," said Hiroaki firmly. "I saw his magic. I heard him talk about his companions. He meant to kill us all because he wanted to kill Kyoko. But if Cain was an Accursed… Shoot. It looks like we got stuck between their power struggle."

"No." The woman's voice cut through the room, sure and powerful. "If Cain is who I think he is, it's not a power struggle. It's nowhere near that simple."

Dark fringe fell forward as she stared at the ground, muttering to herself. Then her eyes snapped back to him.

"Mage Ogata," said the woman. "Kyoko and Cain are going to be put on trial in three days, along with another man called Hikaru. It's likely they'll all get a death sentence."

A death sentence? Well, it made sense. Cain was an Accursed, which meant he was evil. But Kyoko? Was she evil as well? And Hikaru? Just what in the world. If that was true than Hiroaki was completely blind. He liked them both.

"We want to help Lady Kyoko!" said Maru passionately. "We know she's not evil. It's just the Accursed really don't like her since she keeps messing up their plans."

"Wait, Lady Kyoko?" said Hiroaki, looking in astonishment at all the men. It all clicked as he remembered someone else that called Kyoko with a title. A man who had worked at the palace. "You all know her, don't you? You all worked with her. In the capital."

"That's a long story we don't have time to get into," said the woman, cutting of Horiuchi's answer. "Basically, yes, we all know Kyoko and more about this whole situation than you do. We want to talk to her and find a way to either prove that she's innocent or get her the heck out of there."

This was too much information. It was starting to overwhelm him again. Hiroaki closed his eyes, concentrating on breathing deeply.

"Mage Ogata," came the woman's voice, and it had a bit of hesitance to it, the change noteworthy compared to its previous force. "You knew Kyoko, which means you probably met Cain. Do you think they're evil?"

Hiroaki opened his eyes, revealing a room of eyes staring at him intently. He saw hope, uncertainty, but most of all, he saw determination.

These people… He had no idea who they were other than people sent from the palace. They'd arrived here in the middle of a storm that Hiroaki was sure would just grow worse and went straight to him to get to Kyoko. Because they knew her. They wanted to help her.

"I… don't know about Cain," said Hiroaki slowly, eyes lowering. "The only thing I do know is that he would kill to protect Kyoko and that he's dangerous. His aura when he's panicked…" Hiroaki shuddered at the memory of when Cain had barged into the clinic with Kyoko. It surprised him how calm he could be in crazy situations like that but couldn't pull himself together right now.

"And Kyoko?" said Horiuchi. "What about her? Will you help us prove her innocence?"

"You're from the palace," Hiroaki deflected. "You're supposed to be helping us cure the rot."

The woman suddenly stomped her boot in frustration.

"Mo! Don't avoid the question," she snapped, "Knowing those two, they came here looking for your help. Crap hit the ceiling before they could explain everything, so I will do it for them. They probably came here to see if you could find a way to remove the contract between Cain and the Dark Djinn."

Hiroaki's mouth went dry. Remove the contract from an Accursed? No one had ever even thought of such a thing.

"How do you—"

"Because it's what your father was originally researching," interrupted the woman. "And it's all that Kyoko has ever been trying to do. Remove the curse, contract, or whatever evil it is inside of K— inside of Cain. The woman is a physician to the core if I have ever met one and she would not rest until she found a way to heal him."

Hiroaki felt as if he'd been hit with a sandbag. So Kyoko had met his father before. And he'd been trying to remove the contract from Cain? How… just what was going on at the palace that they would even think or try that?

The woman leaned closer, eyes narrowing. Hiroaki leaned back out of reflex.

"If they didn't leave immediately, it means something happened or they were still trying to determine how to ask for your help," continued the woman. "Which means they trusted you. If Kyoko trusts you, then I'm willing to give you the chance to prove yourself."

"Um, that's not how the saying goes Kanae," said Maru nervously. "It's; 'If Kyoko trusts you, then I trust—' "

"Shut it, Maru," snapped the woman. Kanae was her name then. Her attention hadn't left Hiroaki's for a second. "What do you say, Mage? Will you help us or not, because I don't have all day to sit here and argue about why you should."

Hiroaki swallowed. Things were still confusing, and he had no idea what to think about anyone anymore. But he did know several things; Sozen had been an Accursed. Kyoko had protected Iizuka using her own body as a shield. Kyoko worked hard despite being told to rest several times. Kyoko put others first before her own safety. Kyoko was kind.

And Cain was completely in love with her.

Suddenly, Hiroaki felt like he could see them clearer. See a glimmer of the depth hidden behind exchanged glances and spoken words. They had something sweet, something beautiful. He couldn't see any malice behind it. Kyoko would never serve the Dark Djinn. Would she?

They're trying to break the contract.

Hiroaki's heart pounded in his chest. If he had an Accursed here maybe... Just maybe he could do it. He could find a solution his father hadn't been able to find. A way to break the contract between Accursed and Djinn.

Make his father human again.

"I'll… see what I can do about getting you to speak with Kyoko," said Hiroaki. "It will be hard since I can't leave here until I recover."

Relief blossomed in the face of the men. Kanae however, didn't look as mollified.

"You'll help us?" said Maru. "Really? Oh good, I was so worried."

"Yes, I'll help you," said Hiroaki. "As for the trial, we'll need to come up with a good counter argument. Just being an Accursed is damning enough to get him killed. But we can't let Cain die."

Otherwise, Hiroaki wouldn't have a way to test spells.

"We'll need to prove his good character," said Hiroaki. "Prove that he's not going to hurt us. We've already got a good example where he saved lives, but after this battle, people will forget about that… you said most people don't believe Sozen was an Accursed?"

They nodded.

"Then that's where we need to start. Find evidence that Sozen was tampering with research but make sure to keep anything you find within this group. I have no idea who was working with Sozen and who wasn't. This way, it will also be a good cover since you're here to help us with the rot anyway. Two birds, one stone."

"You really think that's going to help?" said Kanae flatly. "Proving Sozen was evil doesn't make Cain appear to be any less evil."

"It's the best I got right now. I'll see what else I can think of after I get some rest. In the meantime, it gives you something to do."

Kanae stared at him long and hard, those eyes seemingly sharp enough to cut into him and see straight into his soul.

"Fine," said Kanae. "Do what you can to get me access to Kyoko, then we will do your little research project."

Kyoko was dreaming. She knew it instinctively, but she didn't feel like it. The sand beneath her toes felt gritty, the air hot and dry. Real. Alone in a desert sea in nothing but a white dress. In this nightmare, she'd somehow gained consciousness. Was that even possible?

"Hello?" said Kyoko.

No one answered. Why had she called out? It was her own head. She was alone.

She picked a direction and began walking.

At the crest of a hill, she stopped, eyes widening. That was the palace. Why had it manifested itself in here? It was probably some subconscious desire to be home or something while she felt lost. Still, alone without the surrounding homes and structures, the place felt eerie. It jutted out of the sand like a lone husk in the desert.

Kyoko found herself at the base of the palace, knowing she had walked the whole way but unable to remember the actual trip. Things just… seemed to happen here. Change. The way they did in dreams without notice.

"Kyoko."

Her heart leapt in her chest. She recognized that voice.

Kyoko spun around, finding herself in the throne room. It was quiet, eerie, empty of souls and decoration. Only the shell of the once beautifully decorated space was left. Her eyes fell where the throne should have been.

A small flame, unsupported by any visible fuel hovered inches above the gleaming floor. It flickered, weak as if dying.

Her steps didn't echo as she slowly approached. The walls ate the sound, taking without giving back. Kyoko stopped, then knelt beside the little flame.

"…Rosa?"

The flame continued to flicker.

"That's you, isn't it?" said Kyoko, something building inside of her. "I can feel you, you're… inside of me. How… What happened? I thought you were dead."

"No time," said Rosa, but her voice didn't come from the flame. It came from Kyoko. From the walls, the floors, from all around. "-Strong. You must get—for me to return. You—" Her voice kept cutting out.

Wind buffeted the little flame, threatening to extinguish it. Kyoko cupped her hands around the flame to shelter it.

"Rosa, wait, I can't understand you," said Kyoko. "What do you mean strong? Do you mean magically? Physically?"

"The darkness dampens you," said Rosa. "Dampens me I— Don't have time to explain. You must destroy them. To stop it all-"

"Destroy what? What must I destroy to bring you back?"

"The relics," said Rosa. "To save Ashuron. To stop—"

A powerful gale whipped across the room. Kyoko cried out, hair slapping her face as it pushed her away.

"No!"

But the flame was gone, extinguished by the cold wind.

Kyoko bolted up, every inch of her covered in sweat. The chill of isolation lingered in her bones sending goosebumps up and down her arms. She rubbed at them, trying to find warmth, to find that small flame she'd found within the dream.

Rosa's alive. She's in me.

Kyoko hadn't the faintest idea how that had happened, but she knew it was true. Somehow at Rosa's death, the demi-goddess had entered… fused… done something to Kyoko. That was what had been causing the nightmares. That was who had felt powerless, distraught, and trapped. Those nightmares hadn't been Kyoko's. They'd been Rosa's.

The implications of these facts were not something she was equipped to handle. Her mind chased theory after theory, trying to identify what this meant, how it had happened and what she needed to do.

As Kyoko rubbed her shoulders, her hands hit something tough. It took her thoughts from their rabbit hole and brought her conscious back to the outside world. She pulled her hand away to uncover red skin connecting with jagged crystal.

That's right. The marks. The illness… Kuon!

She would have jumped up, but her legs were chained, as were her hands. She was tethered to a bed. The room was plain with no decorations or other furniture save a chamber pot in the corner. The bars on the single door confirmed her suspicions.

She was in prison. Mind, it was nicer than most, but it was a prison nonetheless. It reminded her of the isolation rooms they placed unstable patients. Even the cuffs were designed to block her magic.

Great. Just… freaking great. It wasn't bad enough that she was sick. Now she was trapped, useless, and carrying around the freaking demi-goddess of the entire kingdom! She had no idea what had happened to Cain. Oh goddess… what if she was locked up because Cain went crazy? Had he killed more people?

Kyoko didn't dare step down that grim trail, instead focusing on something else. Rosa. The dream. It had to have been real. But if it was then that meant Rosa was still alive in a sense.

It was good news. Wonderful in fact. Amazing and glorious that the demi-goddess was alive. It meant she could come back and save Ashuron. Maybe even help Cain destroy the contract with the Djinn. But under the strain of yet another monuments load, Kyoko's spirits snapped.

Why had this happened to her? Was it not enough that she was preoccupied with her lover's darkness to be his strength and keep them afloat? She didn't even know if he was alive, or worse; rampaging through the city and killing everyone he met. Now she had this as well? The weight of an entire kingdom's history and religion resting within her soul with no clear way to resurrect it.

The first tear that fell was hot with her anger, the second cold with her distress. Several others followed, each with their own mixture of confusion, rage, and isolation.

After several minutes of unrestrained crying, Kyoko felt... well, not better, but in more control. She'd adopted the bare template of her cells to declutter her emotions. It had worked, but the effect had left her empty.

Kyoko stared at the wall, waiting.

Eventually, sounds came from outside and the door opened.

Two people entered. She didn't recognize the first, but the vest and pin identified him as a physician. The second person was probably one of the last people she had expected to visit her. The hood of their embroidered cloak was up, but Kyoko recognized that delicate chin. There was only one female that had the money to afford such an elaborate cloak. Chains of gold hung from the shoulders where layers of fabric ended in thick trimming.

Kyoko kept her gaze on the cloaked figure even as the physician worked. (How did she feel? Was there any pain? Did she know where she was?) She answered each question, keeping her own list of questions to herself as she waited for the man to do his work and get out of here.

After several tense minutes where the man took her vitals and gave her medicine that she knew would not help, the man bowed out of the room, shutting Kyoko inside with her visitor.

Silence fell.

Kyoko was the first to break it.

"Is he okay?" she asked.

Itsumi's eyes peeked out from under her hood. Within that steely gaze, Kyoko was unable to comprehend the emotions within. Whether Itsumi was here as a friend or foe was completely uncertain. Kyoko couldn't find the strength within her to care which it was.

"He's alive," said Itsumi. "He surrendered right after you passed out."

Light. A shred of it entered Kyoko's heart as emotions trickled back in.

"Where is he?" she said.

"Locked up."

"Can I go see him?"

"You can't go anywhere."

"Please, I need to," urged Kyoko. "It's important." She needed to talk to him about Rosa. She instinctively knew that by sharing the knowledge it would lessen the strain on her heart. The weight felt unbearable alone, but with another, she might find the strength to find a solution.

Itsumi still hadn't lowered her hood or taken any steps closer to Kyoko. The emotional distance between them was obvious.

"No," said Itsumi. "You will not be going anywhere, and no one will be coming to see you. You're both under the heaviest guard this city can place."

"Then just stick us together in the same cell," said Kyoko. "It makes no sense for you to spread out the defense when you can just put us in the same place."

"Is that all you care about?" snapped Itsumi. "What is wrong with you? He's an Accursed. You—I don't even understand. How can you be so selfish?"

"Selfish?" Kyoko was stunned. How could throwing away the life she'd built at the palace, traversing across treacherous sands and encounter all sorts of dangers while trying to keep Cain from falling be considered selfish?

"How are you not being selfish?" scoffed Itsumi. "People got hurt, Kyoko. Homes were destroyed, your husband's a flaming Accursed and all you can think about is 'where is he? Is he okay? I have to see him. I worship the cursed ground he walks on.' "

The mocking tone grated on Kyoko's ears. She gripped the sheets as anger began to form in the pit of her stomach.

"He saved me, and the other physicians from being killed by another Accursed," said Kyoko. "Sorry if you've never seen a battle before, but news flash, there are casualties, especially between Accursed."

"You're terrible." Itsumi looked horrified even as she said it, the realization dawning as she stared. "How can you be so callused? Those are people's lives."

"And this is reality," said Kyoko. "We are at war with the Dark Djinn. People die."

"And you don't care who that is as long as it's not Cain?"

"No I—" Kyoko's throat constricted as shame immediately clogged it. The memories of those that had died floated to her mind. The bodies she'd passed in the palace after the attack. Rosa disappearing in her hands. Chiori, whose body she had never seen. A captain's scream as his essence was ripped out. Julie's broken legs. Aya's blank stare. Her dad's grave. Faces whirled until she finally had to close her eyes to stop the spinning.

"You don't care about us," said Itsumi. She was working herself up, voice getting louder and faster with each word. "All you care about is how useful we are. You don't care if we get in trouble or if we get hurt. You're selfish. You're horrible. If it wasn't for you Hikaru wouldn't be involved and now he's—"

Itsumi gave a sob. The sound opened Kyoko's eyes as she caught the start of tears rolling down Itsumi's face. The anger was completely gone now, replaced with sheer grief.

"He's going to be killed," she whispered. "All because of you. Why did you have to get him involved as well?"

Itsumi bent her head, the hood covering her face as she rubbed it vigorously.

"You… love Hikaru," said Kyoko. It explained the anger and grief. Heck, even why Itsumi had started talking to Kyoko in the first place. She'd seen it before; women getting closer to the women their romantic interest associated with. They did for the sake of comparing, learning about and very often sabotaging those same women to secure the relationship with the romantic interest.

"Why is he going to be killed?" said Kyoko.

"Why? Because you pulled him into this," said Itsumi. Her anger was back, head high as the remains of her distress glinted on her cheeks. "He's sitting in the same dungeon as your husband because he said Cain was 'good', that he trusted and wanted to help you, even when he knew Cain was an Accursed. He'll get the death sentence for betraying the kingdom and there's nothing that can do to stop it from happening."

So, Hikaru hadn't denied knowing Cain was Accursed. It made Kyoko happy, but she wondered if claiming ignorance would have been a smarter choice strategically. At least one of them would have been safe.

But what made Kyoko's stomach twist were her accusations. So many people had died from the start of this mess. Was there any way she could have prevented it? Was there- No, she'd had this conversation with Kuon after hearing about his past. Dwelling in guilt would not help anyone, especially Hikaru.

"I know I've made mistakes," said Kyoko firmly, mostly for herself. "But Hikaru made his choice, as have I. I don't regret involving Hikaru. I'm just sorry we've caused him so much trouble."

Hikaru had made his choice. Made it the second he'd knelt in front of Kyoko to give his pledge. They'd both known this was a potential outcome and they had both accepted it.

Itsumi stared at Kyoko for several long seconds, the emotions slowly narrowing to a point of hatred.

"You only care about yourself," she spat. "I was completely fooled. I thought that we could be…"

She didn't finish. Itsumi turned on her heel and marched out the cell door, barking for the attendant to lock it back up.

The key grated in the lock, signaling Kyoko's isolation. She laid back on the sheets, staring at the blank ceiling.

Cain, Hikaru, Rosa. Just… how were they all going to get out of this?

Thanks so much for reading!

For those watching the date, sorry for being late. I was actually done with this chapter on Saturday, but due to life, I was unable to even open the document again until today. Also, Im0ut0 is on vacation but she'll be back for the next update.

Speaking of next update…

Next update: I'm moving this week, so the next update will be delayed by at least a week, maybe two.

Kay, thank you all for the love, reviews and all the other things. See yah!

-Blushweaver.