Surrender
Senzo had only been gone from Kai's cell a few minutes before he returned with the Overlord.
Kai felt as though his mind was crawling through a pit of mud; a result of confusion and the sedative he'd been given in Prengda. Overlord...he's here. So I am on the Dark Island? He knew it was impossible. His arms were still bleeding from his sword fight! It takes a week to get to the Dark Island. I can't have been bleeding the entire time. Sure, someone might have reopened my wounds, but that's an outlandish 'might' because-
Kai lowered his head to the floor, moaning softly. His head was a bit foggy, probably due to the sedatives still working their way from his system.
"So, Sanguine," Overlord said, stepping into the cell with Senzo close behind. "Did you enjoy your vacation?"
The rattling fear in Kai's bones competed with what little courage he still had. I'm trapped. There's no way out of these chains. Overlord could do whatever he wants to me, and I wouldn't be able to fight back. He wanted to curl into a very small ball under his borrowed cloak and disappear. But fate would not be so kind.
"What do you think of my Cimmerian Knight?" Overlord asked, tracing his finger along Senzo's shoulder. The boy remained impassive under his touch.
In the end, both Kai's courage and fear resigned themselves to dark corners of his muggy mind, leaving foolishness in the spotlight.
"Pitiful," Kai said, raising his head. "He doesn't know how to handle a sword. He had the element of surprise, and I still beat him without breaking a sweat."
Overlord did not look surprised by this bold- foolish- statement. He faced Kai, regarding Senzo with nothing more than a contemptuous sidelong glance. "He's only a boy, Sanguine. A full ten winters younger than you, at least. You can cut him some slack,
yes?"
He bent down and lifted the cloak from Kai's naked body, shaking his head. "He has too much compassion for his own good. I'll break it out of him eventually." With a flick of his wrist, the cloak fluttered into Senzo's face, and the entangled boy staggered backward.
Kai felt the heat rise up his spine. This had to be a bad dream.
Yes, that's it. He got hypothermic in that blizzard and fell unconscious. I'm not really here. I'm under a foot of snow on the side of the road. This is a nightmare that will end with my death in just a few more minutes.
"You're probably wondering how you got onto the Dark Island so fast," Overlord said. "I'm not going to tell you." He rested his palm on the pommel of his Blade. "But since I'm feeling charitable, I'll allow you one other question."
Kai looked up at Overlord's face. The dark, wicked, green-eyed face that had sneered down at him one too many times. The face that once belonged to a human named Lou, but was now dominated by a monster.
"Why me?" Kai asked. "Why did you bring me back to this evil place? What plans do you have for me?"
Overlord went into a squat, staring deeply into Kai's eyes. "That was three questions," he said. "But they are tied so closely, I can answer them with one question of my own." He took Kai's chin in his hand and stroked it. "Do you know what I feel when I look at you?"
Kai resisted the urge to pull his face out of Overlord's grasp as his heart rate accelerated.
Then Overlord slapped him.
"I despise you," he snarled. "I despise every human that's ever walked this earth. My kind was destined to rule. Humans have no right to command this world. That's why you're here. I want to make you and all your kind suffer."
That slap had packed so much power it might as well have been a punch. Specks of light swirled in Kai's vision. He struggled to keep his head from dropping to the floor again.
"Cimmerian," Overlord snapped. "Get your men and prepare to leave. I need the other prisoner."
"Yes, Master." Senzo rushed from the room, footsteps echoing down the corridor.
Overlord stood and began to pace slowly; thoughtfully. "I need to punish you for trying to escape me," he said. "And also for stealing my Besai from me. How quickly did she die, Sanguine?" He looked at Kai's earring. "New lover already? Or are you just clinging to the past."
"You wanted me to escape," Kai said, avoiding the Besai question. "You wanted me to start that epidemic on the mainland. Shouldn't you be rewarding me?"
"Reward?" Overlord laughed. "Did you do what I wanted? Yes. But you did it rebelliously. You fled from me, doing my will without realizing it. That's not how rewards work."
Overlord kicked Kai's side with a yell of frustration. "You carried out my retribution for Garmadon's rule, worm. But now you must be punished for your motives."
Inexplicably, he calmed himself and knelt beside Kai again, dipping his finger in blood from Kai's arm. "I dare not hurt you," he said, painting a red line across Kai's collarbone. "Not physically, anyway. You're much too..." His finger stopped on the left side of Kai's chest, right over the tattoo. "...beautiful."
Kai jerked back, mind clearing in an instant as adrenaline flooded his blood. Escape. Escape. Got to escape!
Overlord looked amused by Kai's reaction. He gazed at Kai's body lustily, and a smile playing his lips.
Kai stared back at the Overlord, breathing hard. He'll hurt me. He'll hurt Besai and Ahlie. He'll hurt Cole and Jay and Zane.
He's the reason Nya's dead.
With a shout, Kai lunged at the Overlord, lifting himself to his knees and pushing his body forward with all the power in his legs.
The chains stopped him inches from Overlord's face, and he was slapped back onto the stone with a grunt of pain.
Overlord licked his bloody finger with a smile, leaning forward. "So, Sanguine," he purred, breath hot on Kai's neck, tickling his ears. "How should I punish you?"
Terror filled Kai's being, and he shirked from Overlord's touch, still pulling at the chains.
"You like that sensory deprivation tank?" Overlord asked. "The darkness...the silence...the feeling of your sanity slipping into the dark water, and the fear of it never returning?"
"No," Kai said. The chains were taut around his hands as he jerked.
"All right. Hmm...sensory overload. We haven't done that yet. Bright lights, bright colors, loud noises. The overwhelming sense of claustrophobia, the need to shut everything out because the sensations are tearing your mind apart."
"N-No."
"Starvation," Overlord said. "Feeling your body eat itself alive for days. Weeks. Months. But...no, that takes too long." He set a leisurely hand on Kai's back and traced each of the vertebra in his spine, starting at the neck, ending at the tailbone.
"All of these take too long. I am a busy man, Sanguine. I have no time to waste. And if I'm going to spend time punishing a prisoner without marring his skin, I might as well have fun with it."
As Kai yanked the chains one last time, he realized something.
There was no way out. He wasn't strong enough to escape. No one would come to save him, either. Not any of the prostitutes outside, and certainly not Senzo. They might hear noises- screams, desperate pleas for help, for an end to this unholy madness- but they would pass this room by without giving him a second thought.
You're all alone, Sanguine.
"Excellent." Overlord's voice was melodic; soothing, even. A voice that demanded to be heard, to be obeyed. "You're mine, Sanguine."
Something about that voice...
"Mine alone. My Sanguine. Don't resist your master."
...No... The words did not make it past Kai's lips.
"I'm so glad we're finally on the same page," Overlord whispered. He undid the chains on Kai's legs, then turned his prisoner onto his back.
Kai wanted to shut his eyes; to, if only in his dreams, escape this awful reality.
But there was no escape.
Overlord felt his way up Kai's body, agile pianist fingers quivering with excitement.
"You're mine," he said. "You agreed to be marked, and now I have claimed you for my own."
He cackled, breaking the gentle, hypnotic flow of his words, and brushed Kai's hair from his left ear, fully exposing the earring.
"D-Don't." Kai stretched his neck, trying to get his face out of reach. It was no use.
Overlord undid the simple gold ring and threw it over his shoulder, where it fell into the corner with a few timid plinks, like water into a pool.
Plink.
Kai shuddered.
Overlord snaked his hand down to the tattoo again. "Bear this punishment knowing I hate you with every fiber of my being," he growled, sealing Kai's lips in his own.
It was then, Kai decided, that his mind truly started to unravel.
Nobody cares, Sanguine.
A frustrating day passed in Cyrus' fortress. Nindroids had been sent out to search for Kyle and Kai. But as Cyrus had feared, no one in homes and inns along the Northern highway and branching side roads had seen them.
"We'll just have to wait," Cyrus had said over lunch that afternoon. "I'm sure Kyle is fine. But Kai..." His expression had grown dimmer. "...you'll just have to wait. He's either alive and sheltered somewhere, or he's long gone."
That was the problem, see. Directly after dinner on the night they'd arrived, Kai's Blade had stopped glowing. And in the same instant, the feelings emanating from the Blade- that Kai was alive, and the sense of urgency- fled Cole's mind. That could only mean one thing: that Kai was no longer connected to the Blade. Had Kai traveled out of range? Not likely. Was Kai buried and dead in that snowbank where they'd found Moonsong in the first place?
Cole grit his teeth.
Cyrus insisted that his Nindroids had thoroughly searched the area for miles around Prengda, finding no bodies. But Hosts be damned if those confounded pieces of machinery hadn't missed something in this blizzard.
Chedva slept peacefully in a sling on Cole's chest as he swept the rooms of Hall Four. She was a warm, comforting little thing, keeping him from falling too deep into his anxiousness. Because of Chedva, Cole had the strength to believe that Kai was not dead, despite all the signs. Yes there's a blizzard, and none of Cyrus' Nindroids can find him, and his Blade is not responding. But that doesn't mean he's dead. Not at all.
He'd been repeating it for many long hours now, and still the words felt hollow. But it helped a little bit to say it.
His broom slid along the floor with a rhythm inside his head. His feet danced around furniture and equipment in one room after another. The steadiness calmed him. It also kept Chedva from waking up and crying again. She was taking one of her rare naps, and Cole desperately wanted her to stay asleep. So that meant swinging gently, humming lullabies as he worked.
Everyone in the compound had jobs, be it laundry collection, meal making, or in Cole's case, sweeping. The little twelve-year-old girl who usually did this had taken ill a few days ago: the antidote hadn't worked on her. So someone else had to do this chore while she died a slow, painful death in that room with scores of other dying men, women, and children. Liana, who was in charge of divvying out duties in the compound, had set her sights on Cole as the girl's replacement.
And that was the end of Cole's freedom. He now slaved for Liana. Not that he didn't deserve it, after what he'd put her through.
Cole gripped the handle of his broom a little tighter, concentrating on its rhythmic strokes across the floor, pretending that all this dust and dirt were his worries and stress. He was pushing them away. They were cluttering up his mind. Impeding his ability to function.
So he swept them away. Just like that.
Or at least he tried. Each new room revealed new dirt to be swept away and new thoughts to be blocked out.
When his mother and sister had died, there had been certainty. He'd seen the carnage left behind. There had been no doubt. That didn't make the grief any less, but at least he hadn't been plagued with uncertainty, as he was now.
Is Kai dead? Is he lost? Or is he alive and safe somewhere, just waiting for the storm to blow over? Gah! I want to get out there and search for myself!
He heard the soft patter of footsteps outside his current room- a large bunking area for about twenty people- and he turned to face the intruder.
It was Besai. She poked her head around the doorframe like a timid child, eyes wide and...empty. It was the familiar expression all slaves on the Dark Island adopted. Eyes filled to the brim with fear. Submission. Acceptance that bad things happen, and the only thing to do is to ignore as best she could and keep trying to survive.
Cole briefly wondered if his own eyes had once looked like hers.
"Can I help you, Besai?" he asked. Chedva started to wake up, so he went back to sweeping, getting back into that rhythm. She settled down again.
Besai shook her head. She took a step into the room, and Ahlie toddled after her, smiling brightly.
"I am...lonely," Besai said. "I want to be with someone."
"Hmm." Cole bent low to get the broom under a bunk. "What about your sister? Is Merv busy?"
"She is with Jay."
"Ah. I see. Your accent is getting better, Besai. Good job." Speech therapy was one of the things that Cyrus provided for all of the refugees: if they learned to speak like a Ninjagian, they would have far less trouble finding jobs and husbands when they finally left the fortress.
"Thank you." Besai scooted onto a bunk and tucked her legs under her, smoothing her dress. "I work hard to it."
"Cole!" Ahlie squealed, wrapping her arms around his legs. "Cole. You Cole."
Cole gently shook her off and continued working.
"Daddy. Daddy?" She lost her balance and fell to the floor. Unconcerned, she crawled over to Besai and pulled herself back up. "Daddy."
Besai picked her up and kissed her forehead. "He'll be back soon. Okay?"
"Otay. Otay." Ahlie giggled. "You mommy."
Her laughter rang like a discordant bell in Cole's ears. It went against the atmosphere of their conversation.
If only we could all be as carefree as a child.
Cole finished making his dirt pile, then scooped it into a pan. "I'm sorry," he said. "Maybe we'll find Kai again. But not until the blizzard's ended. Just...try not to give up." He went for the door.
"Ghe!" Besai said, thrusting out a hand. "W-Wait."
Cole turned. "Yes?"
Besai accepted a sudden hug from Ahlie, clinging to her for a moment before speaking. "Does Kai love me?"
The question left Cole speechless for a few heartbeats. Where had this question come from?
"...Yes, Besai. I think he did...does."
Chin low, Besai covered her face with a hand. "How would you know?" Her voice wavered. "Does he say it?"
"Well, he doesn't really talk much about anything." He set his broom against the wall and approached her. "Hey. Are you all right?"
Besai let her hand wander into Ahlie's curly ginger hair, revealing twin streams of tears from her eyes. She sniffled.
"Besai," Cole said, sitting on the bed. He took her hands. "Why are you crying?"
"He can't leave me," Besai sobbed. "I can't be alone."
Cole squeezed her hands. "Kai loves you with all of his heart," he said. "He wouldn't leave you. Just be patient, all right? If he's alive, he'll come back."
Besai's breathing was cut short, and she gripped her chest with a cry of pain.
"What is it now?" Cole asked, bewildered.
Her voice was strained. "Eet's...all right." She pressed her eyes shut, chest still not moving. "Normal. I can do thees."
"Does your chest hurt?" Cole asked. "Your heart? Besai! I can't help you if you're-"
She pressed her face into his shirt. "I am fine! Eet's just...what's the word?"
"Heartburn?" Cole suggested. He felt both Chedva and Ahlie's bodies squished between them. "Um...Besai..."
Finally, Besai let in a tentative breath. "Heartburn. That's the word?" She let him go, breathing more deeply. "It's gone. I am sorry."
"It's...okay," Cole said.
Ahlie climbed off Besai's lap and tumbled to the floor. Getting onto all fours, she crawled to the broom and pushed it over with an echoing Crack!. Startled, she looked back at the two adults on the bed. She tittered.
"I am sorry for wasting your time." Besai doubled over, wrapping her arms around her belly. "You can go. I won't bother you again."
"No, no. Talk to me anytime." Cole stood and grabbed his broom. Chedva stirred again, raising her tiny pink fist from the sling. Her skinny fingers clenched and relaxed in rapid succession as she whined.
"Awake for good, then, are you?" Cole caught her hand. "Let's go get you something to eat." He looked back once at Besai- who had not moved- then left the room. He shut the door to ensure that Ahlie would not escape.
A few women passed him in the hall; it was nearly bedtime. Likely they were on their way to the center where the younger children played until their mothers were done with their allotted chores.
Besai could have put Ahlie in there. Her job was as a nighttime nurse for the remaining plague victims. But...wait. That shift started after dinner, didn't it? Cole looked back at the closed door. Why isn't she there now? Did Cyrus give her the night off because of Kai?
Chedva yowled, waving both arms in the air.
"I hear you," Cole said. "Yeah, yeah. Let's go."
Zane threw a scroll over his shoulder, then rubbed his temples. Two days had passed since his conversation with Misako. Every spare minute of his time had gone to research, trying to find a cure for Garmadon's ailment. Still there was nothing.
One books had contained information on a plant that could cause its victim to disconnect from reality for a short time, resulting in irrational thoughts and a lack of self-control. The effects wore off after only a few hours, however, and did not account for the changing eye and skin color.
The same went for hypnotism. The offender could make his victim do whatever he pleased for a length of time, but that eye color problem just kept popping up.
But then there were legends about gods who cursed mortals who displeased them. Zane would be tempted to believe this if the god in question were not the First King. Why would their savior, who had overseen and protected their island for nearly seven hundred years, put a curse on one of his own descendants?
"My Lord."
Zane turned to see the female servant that had been attending to him the whole afternoon. "Gita. Did you find anything?"
"Nothing much, My Lord," Gita said, setting an armful of books and scrolls on the table next to another larger pile. "I apologize."
Zane looked at the teetering stack with dismay. That could take me hours! "It's all right," he said. "Thank you. Ah, please run and fetch me some tea. Or coffee. Tea. I-I don't know, something...strong."
He plucked the first book from the stack and slapped down on the space before him, sighing.
"Yes, My Lord." Gita hurried off, slippered feet making less sound than a...
Zane rubbed his temples some more. No similes. He was much, much too tired for thoughts on how much noise a servant's feet made.
Eventually, he worked up the courage to open the tome to the first page. He'd asked Gita to find information from the lower archives regarding animal poisons. Insects, birds, mammals, and reptiles, it was all contained here, if Gita was to be trusted. And as head librarian, she certain was. Trustworthy, that is.
Gah, there he was, getting off track again.
So. This treatise was about snake venoms. Zane recognized this particular volume; he'd read it once or twice before. It was an antique book, if the pictures were any indication. Photographs, they were called. Imagine that. Lord Julien had been intrigued by the science of capturing light and making these miracle pictures, but other things- like running a province and getting old- were consuming too much time to look into it much. The mystery behind making these miracle photographs would have to stay lost for a while longer.
Zane skimmed pages mindlessly until Gita returned with a steaming cup of black tea. He downed it in a few gulps, then requested more. She returned with the entire teapot and continued to fill his cup time after time until finally he reached the final section: the Great Devourer, so named because it never stopped eating. It was always hungry, always hunting.
It also had an extraordinary venom that had boggled the scientists of its day. An amazing mix of sedatives and hallucinogens that left the mind pliable for a short amount of time, typically ten to fourteen hours. The irises of the victims were known to turn green. Even after the venom left, the eyes remained forever altered. The change was hereditary, which meant that any offspring of the bitten man, woman, or animal would also have green eyes for many generations.
This bit had always fascinated Zane, considering that the line of the First King had green eyes; it was incredibly rare for a man outside the First King's lineage to bear that mark.
Zane picked up his pen and made a few notes about the relevant symptoms and the name of the book.
Was this it? Was this the poison he'd been looking for?
Zane marked a big X next to the Great Devourer notes. No, this couldn't be it because the effect were supposed to wear off after an extremely short amount of time. Garmadon had been ill for weeks before Zane finally tried healed him. Also, Garmadon's eyes were red, not green.
"Good work with this one, Gita," Zane said. "It presented some interesting theories."
"Thank you, My Lord."
"Now. Would you kindly go and put it back where you found it?"
Gita took the thick volume from him without a word and retreated down a flight of stairs.
After a deep breath, Zane picked up a scroll and unraveled it. Time waits for no man, or Nindroid. He had to keep searching until he found their poison.
Merv sat beside Jay's bed. That comforted him as he battled this awful cold. His chest was blocked up, his nose was running, and his head throbbed. Every part of his body ached, making it impossible to rest properly.
"You should go to bed, Merv," Jay rasped. "You're probably tired from working all day."
"No," Merv said. She sat on a stool beside his bed, holding his hand. "I don't like eet...it...there."
"Why not?"
"Too many not-know people."
"Strangers?"
"Mmm. Yes. The bunk rooms are too many strangers."
"I...see." Jay coughed, grimacing as his mouth filled with phlegm. He took a cup from Merv and spat into it. "Ugh...I shouldn't have gone traveling with a wet cloak yesterday. So not worth it."
"Yes."
Jay closed his eyes. He imagined his head melting into his pillow, sending him into a world of rest and comfort. Instantly, he relaxed, and his head stopped throbbing. It was a strange method, but it worked. Just breathe. Focus on the breathing.
"I lie," Merv said.
Jay cracked an eyelid, returning to his world of pain. "Pardon?"
"I lie," Merv repeated. "They are not strangers. I like them. But I like you more. I want to be with you." She wrinkled her nose. "Like. Why do you use such a loose word? I like rice. I like flowers. I like you."
"What's the word you're looking for?" Jay asked. "We have a few. Admire, hold dear, love, cherish..."
Merv shook her head. "None of these is it. I...care for you. You are a friend."
"I never thought I'd hear you say something like that," Jay said. "I...didn't think you'd ever forgive me."
A moment of silence.
"What happened to me is not your fault," Merv said. "On that night, I was fighting your hand, trying to go back for my sister."
"I shouldn't have let go of your hand," Jay said. "Then those bricks wouldn't have fallen on you."
"We will speak no more of it," Merv said firmly. "We forgive, and continue on."
"Sure." Jay squeezed her hand. "Thanks."
"Mmm." Merv ran her fingers through Jay's hair. "Yes."
He stopped talking for a while after that. Merv patiently cared for him, providing cups of water, tissues, and general support.
He didn't enjoy being sick, but spending time with Merv almost made it worth it.
"When will we go back?" he asked finally.
"Hmm?" Merv frowned.
"To Keitorin," Jay said. "We could gather Zane, Kai, and Cole and go to the island to defeat the Overlord."
"What?" Merv squeaked. "Why? How?"
"With our Blades, of course! They're the only things that can destroy the Overlord. And the sooner we get down to business, the sooner we can free all of our people."
Merv picked through his words carefully. "Our people?"
"Yes! They're yours as well as mine, Merv. What about your children?"
Merv retracted her hand and pulled at a strand of hair in her face.
"Keest," Merv whispered at last. "They aren't children, they are...keest."
Jay knew that word. It was a derogatory term that essentially meant spawn. It was a word intended to convince the mothers that their offspring weren't human children; they were mere objects in the Overlord's breeding program, produced with about as much affection as one would have for cattle on a meat farm.
"How many did you have?" Jay asked.
Merv shrugged. "I don't recall."
"Merv..."
Merv pursed her lips, looking hurt. "One," she murmured.
"Just one child?" Jay raised an eyebrow.
"I was...very young," Merv admitted. "Too young. Overlord says that because of this, my body has been...broken. I can't have any more."
"Oh..." Jay sensed that he'd breached a sensitive subject, so he backed out. "I'm sorry, Merv."
"Don't be," Merv said. "Eet...it is not your fault." She managed a smile. "You want to go back to Keitorin?
"Yeah," Jay said. "Someone needs to take charge of the island once Overlord's gone."
"You want to...rule?"
"Well, don't look so surprised. I am the heir to the Lordship title, after all. If I can oust Overlord, I can have my land back."
"There's a hope, to be sure," a voice said.
It was Cyrus. He sat in his chair by the door. "Sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to drop this off before I took my nap." He wheeled forward, holding out a thick, leather-bound book.
Jay took it eagerly, propping himself up on one elbow. "You found a new one?" he asked. "Thank you, Uncle. I'd wanted something new to read." He flipped it open, raising an eyebrow. "Or...something really old, I guess. Where did this come from, anyway?"
"It's a remnant of the Third Age," Cyrus said. "I must apologize for not giving it to you you sooner. It's a...history book, if you will. About the Retired God and his reign over this world."
"So...basically, you just gave me a religious testament."
"Many, actually." Cyrus adjusted his spectacles. "I've been studying this volume for years. It's fascinating, actually. You know, this book had been in the making for five-thousand years?"
"Impossible." Jay coughed as he flipped through the pages. Being as ancient as it was, it was difficult to read. Different spellings, different grammar. But this wasn't the first ancient book he'd read, so his learning came back to him after a few paragraphs.
"Many generations of men worked on this tome," Cyrus said. "Kings. Prophets. Middle-class workers. Criminals, even."
"With that much variety, there must be a lot of inconsistencies in the book," Jay said. "Not everyone believes the exact same doctrine. Not thousands of years apart, at any rate."
Cyrus chuckled, patting Jay's shoulder. "You'd be surprised. Give it a go, all right? Start at the beginning, naturally. When you're finished, tell me what you think."
"Yes, Uncle. Thanks."
"You're welcome," Cyrus said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go and rest for a few hours. Good night, son. Merv."
"Night, Uncle." Though he wanted to start reading, Jay forced himself to shut the book. He set it on his nightstand as the door closed; he and Merv were alone again.
"I have an idea, Hrymerv," Jay said.
"No." Merv crossed her arms.
"You haven't even heard me out!"
"I have not need. You said my name in full; that can only mean one thing. You want something crazy."
"Me? Crazy? Never, my dear sister. I'm as sane as they come." Jay chuckled at his own words. "Anyways, would you mind fetching Cole and Pixal? I want to talk to them."
"About what?" Merv asked cautiously.
"Oh, come on. I'm older than you. Don't baby me."
"What do you want them for?" Her blue eyes narrowed.
"It's all right, Merv. I just want to discuss this situation about Kai and Kyle."
Merv was not convinced. One eyebrow went up.
"Fine!" Jay threw his hands in the air. "I want to go out and search for them. Pixal and Cole could help us."
"Us?" A second eyebrow went up.
"Yes. Us. You and me. Together." Jay disentangled her arms and took her hand. "Come on. Please?"
It was like when they were kids. John Keith, the child with no sense of self-preservation who would somersault out of trees, taste the mystery mushroom, and prod colorful, venomous snakes. Hrymerv, the firstborn daughter of a servant in the Keith Keep, careful and logical. She was the one who got them out of trouble. Or, at least, she tried to.
"No, John, I will not crawl into that muddy cave with you."
"Those branches are just a bit thin for you to be climbing, idiot."
"Yes, John, impaling the snail with a stick will probably kill it."
Merv stood, pulling her hand from his grip. "I'll get them," she said. "But only because if I don't, then you will. And I don't want you up right now."
"So you're in, then?" Jay asked hopefully.
Merv scoffed. "No. Why would I do something like that? But if you want to kill yourself out in that storm, I won't complain." She left the room with a swish of skirts.
Ouch, Jay thought. That was cold.