Was it Worth it?

The room had at least twenty boys in it, each lying face-up on the floor, skin tinted a ghastly gray. Most were unconscious. A few moaned, wishing sleep would overtake them. Each had a woman beside him, caring for his body to ensure that it would Transform properly.

But not Cole. He was alone, fully awake, and in agony; unlike the other boys, he had not been given drugs to ease the pain.

Sage spotted him from across the room, and her hands flew to her mouth. She weaved quickly around other bodies until she reached him on the far side, and she knelt next to his head.

She placed a tentative hand on his cold cheek. Cole flinched from the slight pressure. She had never, ever seen him as fragile as he was now. Never as weak, or as in need of her support.

I am not strong enough to support him, though! What am I supposed to do?

Sage began to weep, pulling away.

This was it. This was the last time she would be able to see him. Soon, his mind would break and he would be wholly under Overlord's control. And she could do nothing but watch, helpless.

As she thought this, another group of ten boys was carried in from the Transformation room, skin ashen, bodies limp. In the next few years they would grow into strong, mindless, invincible men for Overlord's army.

Cole opened his eyes and squinted in the dim light. He looked straight at Sage, desperation in his gaze. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he breathed, body quivering from the intense burning as his skin was taken by stone.

Sage shushed him, tears dripping from her chin. "It is all right," she sobbed. "I...I am here."

With excruciating effort, Cole moved his hand until it touched hers.

Sage fondled it, hardly able to see through the tears. His hand was cold, like the rest of his body. Small, gentle, strong, calloused. The hand that used to stroke her hair, hold her tenderly. Now feeble and trembling in hers.

Cole seemed to want to speak. He opened his mouth a crack, making a strangled noise. But he shut it again, exhaling, a single tear escaping his eye.

Sage kissed his fingers. "A messenger came to me from Overlord," she said. "I can take you back to our cell tomorrow, after you have been through the second treatment."

Cole stiffened.

"I am sorry," Sage whispered, chest quaking with her sobs. "You are doing so much to keep me safe. I feel so...useless."

Cole listened with a sad look in his eyes. He seemed desperate to say something.

Sage leaned in and planted a soft kiss on his stony lips. "I know, you want me to run. But...I cannot. Not while you are here, in need of my help."

Finally, Cole took a deep breath and whispered a string of barely coherent words: "He will kill you."

Sage touched his cheek again. "Who? Overlord?"

Cole nodded faintly.

"Not while you obey him. He will not kill me."

Cole shook his head.

Sage considered this for another moment. For as long as Cole was able to serve, Overlord would keep Sage alive. It was as simple as that.

Unless...

Sage met Cole's eyes, the truth smacking her like a bolt of lightning. "You...will soon be unable to fight his will, no matter what," she said breathed. "So there will be no need to keep me around as motivation to obey."

Another nod.

Sage wiped her eyes, but they became blurry again after only a moment. "Please, no. Do not make me leave you. I cannot."

Another tear slipped from Cole's eye. His expression was earnest. Sorrowful. Intensely heavy, pained, and pleading.

"Yes," Sage said, nodding. "I must think of Chedva. She does not deserve to die because of our foolish convictions. But," she stroked his hair, "it is such a long journey to the western coast. I do not think I can make it."

Cole raised his hand and touched hers again. "Run," he whispered. "Soon."

"Not right now," Sage cried softly.

"No, no..." Cole wheezed. "Wait a few days. But you must go…eventually."

Sage nodded. "I will," she said, tears splattering onto Cole's cheek. "When...when you cannot control your mind any longer, I will run."

"Thanks." Cole managed a feeble smile, eyes glimmering wetly. "I love you, Sage..."

Sage kissed him again, lips lingering on his for countless seconds.

She had been nothing before Cole saved her. A useless, infertile woman whose only purpose was caring for children that weren't her own. Laughed at by stone warriors, pitied by the other slaves.

Caring for Cole those first months after his arrival...that had been Overlord's way of punishing her for her uselessness. She had been forced to tend the wounds of a boy who hated her, himself, and the rest of the world. Who would sooner strike her down than offer her kind words.

The love that eventually bloomed between them was nothing short of a miracle. It might not have happened at all, if not for Varasach's peacemaking.

How had Sage ever lived without Cole? He was a part of her. He made her feel safe and complete.

Not only that, but he loved her. Loved her more than she deserved. More than she'd ever dreamed anyone could love her.

And here he was, clinging precariously to the last threads of his sanity, begging her not to leave until he'd slipped completely.

Sage released his lips, putting no more than an inch between them. She could feel his breath pass through his lips, lukewarm. Not quite alive, not quite dead.

Sage's body suddenly felt very weak, and she slumped to the floor beside Cole, her weeping suppressed: she had to stay strong, for Cole as well as herself. She couldn't afford to have a breakdown now.

"No matter what happens," Cole murmured, "no matter what I do, please just know that I love you."

What had she ever done to deserve a man like him?

Plink.

Besai closed her eyes, heart pounding fast in her chest. Just breathe... Breathe... Breathe... I am safe. I am in control.

Plink. Another water droplet shattered on her forehead.

This is nothing you haven't battled before. You are fine. It will be over soon.

It was difficult for Besai to keep her head cool while in Chamber Four. She hated the harness that kept her head immobile, allowing the plinks to crash down on her skin. In the same place. Continually. For hours on end, again and again and again.

Plink.

Had it really been hours? Besai could only guess. The room was blacker than Overlord's soul, and she had no way of telling the time.

Why was she in here? What had she done to deserve this punishment?

Plink.

Besai could remember a few times when she had rebelled. There was one time nearly eight years ago that she'd refused to let the Overlord come into her bedroom. And so he'd locked her in with no food or water; at that time, they'd had to fill the tubs manually with water from the well, so she'd had no plumbing in her room to drink from.

After a week, Overlord had opened the door and taken her straight to Chamber Four. Being as weak as she was, she hadn't lasted more than three hours before she had a panic attack. Hardly able to breathe, paralyzed with terror, and crazed from not being able to drink the water that fell on her face, Besai had been untied. And to her surprise and confusion, Overlord treated her kindly. He helped her eat and bathe, and then left her to rest for most of the day in her bed.

Plink.

But Besai was not being punished for something as blatantly rebellious as what she'd done then.

...In fact, Besai had no clue why she was here. What had she done?

What was it Overlord said? she wondered, staring out at the darkness. He was frustrated that Kai and I were trying to mend our relationship.

Plink.

Was that what this was about? Overlord, for some reason, did not want Besai and Kai to be close. Which was strange, since Overlord was the one that put them together in the first place.

It cannot- will not- happen! Overlord had screamed in her ear.

It cannot happen...

It seemed that Besai had two choices: let Kai go and give the Overlord what he wanted, or...

Or...fight back.

Plink.

Besai thought of Cyrus and his tireless passion. His love for helping people, his knack for leading. His brilliance.

Besai knew that without the Knights, Overlord would reign forever. Each of them had a special talent that set them apart: Jay's desire to help others. Cole's loyalty. Zane's determined, logical mind.

Kai's ability to encourage and lift up his friends, always seeing the best in them. His gift for taking hopeless, destitute nobodies like Besai and bringing out their best. Making them confident. Making them want to fight with him.

Beads of hot sweat trickled down Besai's forehead.

Fight.

...Could she?

Could she fight?

Kai had given her so much. He had lifted her so high, only to stumble himself.

Dare she defy the Overlord? Dare she, knowing full well the outcome of such disobedience, try to help Kai?

Besai felt the earring, held loosely in her palm, and the thumping in her heart reached a thundering crescendo.

Kai had helped her. He had loved her!

And he loved her still. Their talk several hours ago proved that much. He would tear the world apart- no, more than that: he would fight the Overlord- if it meant keeping her out of harm's way.

So didn't that mean Besai should do the same?

She closed her eyes in the darkness, realizing that the plinks had stopped. That meant Overlord would be in here soon to untether her and bring her back to Kai.

Why was Overlord doing this? If he wanted them apart, why not just...keep them apart?

Besai found it best not to dwell on that question: when it came to Overlord, she tried to take things as they were, not as they should- or could- be. The point was that Overlord said he would bring her back to Kai. And that's what mattered. Because she needed to keep trying.

There was a loud, echoing click in the chamber, followed by a wash of torchlight. Besai squinted to mute the light as Overlord strode into the room, playing with a ring of keys. He seemed...distracted, eyes sparkling with satisfaction.

He stood over Besai, smiling warmly. "Are you ready to get out?" he asked in the Dark Tongue.

Besai's first instinct was to nod, but the brace kept her head in place. "Yes," she answered.

"Very good," Overlord said, kneeling on the damp stones. He slid one key into a shackle on her ankle, unlocking it. "And what are you going to do when you get out?"

Besai wasn't sure how he wanted her to answer. "Whatever you command," she said, hoping that would sate him.

Overlord nodded, unlocking the remaining three irons on her ankle and wrists. He did not seem to notice her closed palm. "I want you to go to Sanguine," he said. "And I want you to make something very clear to him."

"Yes?" The brace released Besai's head, and she allowed Overlord to help her sit up.

"You are his slave," Overlord said. "You are beneath him, as you are beneath me. What do you think that means?"

Besai wiped her wet, tangled hair from her face. "That...we are not friends. There is distance between us." Sit quietly until summoned. Do not speak unless you are spoken to.

"That's right." Overlord stroked her hand fondly. "And if you step out of line again, try to become his companion, what will I do?"

"You will...punish me."

"The punishment must fit the crime," Overlord said. "And the crime of befriending your master, of making yourself feel as though you are his equal, is very severe." His eyes wandered to her belly. "And your weakness is so, so exploitable."

Besai paled.

"You know I will do it." Overlord's voice now a sinister whisper. "I've done it before."

He had done it before.

Besai closed her eyes as a wash of memories threatened to drown her. The shooting pain as he had beaten her. Over and over again, hitting her side and her stomach until she was barely conscious.

And that night, she had miscarried her third child. A tiny baby girl that fit in her palms, so beautiful and...innocent. And so very dead.

"Y-Yes," Besai whispered, voice shaking. "Yes, I understand."

Her weakness.

It was a terrible weakness, and one Overlord had eagerly pounced on the moment he saw it:

Besai loved her children. She went to such great lengths to protect them, even when they did not care for her- like good slaves, they were apathetic, not caring who their parents were. But Besai cared deeply, and Overlord was not afraid to use that against her.

"Ah, yes," Overlord said, snapping his fingers. He laughed softly. "I'm sorry, but it entirely slipped my mind until now. There's been a lot on my plate."

Besai knew this tone. Her heart began to race, her eyes wide with horror.

"You escaped. That, of course, is against the rules." Overlord stood, pocketing his keys. "It was only fair that I did something in return."

"No," Besai whispered, "please, no!"

"My words exactly, when you left me." He regarded her with a cool, thoughtful smile. "Your son is dead."

The words took a while for her to process. She felt hot tears roll down her cheeks. A hard lump of emotion choked her. Her hands began to shake on her lap.

Alyx. Her only little boy among four other girls- five, counting the miscarried one. Dear, dear Alyx, with his bouncing ginger curls and round, rosy cheeks. Only six winters old. As old as Besai had been when the Overlord made her his slave.

She would never see him again.

The grief fully sank in then, and she doubled over, shaking with sobs.

"Was it a fair trade?" Overlord asked gently. "Two months with your lover, in exchange for Alyx's life?"

Besai opened her mouth to scream out the unfairness of it all, but the ball of emotion grew too twisted.

What have I done? she thought, teardrops splattering against the stone, reflecting the torchlight. What have I done?

Merv's shelter turned out to be a cave not unlike Cole's: a natural dome set in a hill, nearly invisible from the outside.

"John found it years ago while chasing a poisonous snake," Merv said to Pixal, eyes distant as she recalled the memory. "One moment he was there on the rocks, and I was calling for him to leave it alone. And the next thing I knew...he was gone. Fell right into the cave."

Pixal followed her inside, Jay barely lucid in her arms. He did a lot of groaning as he was jostled, body wet with rain and sweat.

The cave was very dark inside- it was the middle of the night, after all. Somewhere Pixal heard water trickling; a musty smell hung in the air. Stones and twigs crunched underfoot. Her hair almost brushed the ceiling. She was about to turn on her light, but Merv got there before her.

Merv had in her hands an old, warped candle and dirty flint. Her face twisted in a mixture of sadness and regret as she turned in a circle, taking in the one-room cavern. A children's playhouse. A secret fort, perhaps.

It looked like more than a few animals had taken up residence here in Merv and John's fifteen year absence. Tufts of fur and old, crusty animal waste clung to what looked like a nest made out of a pile of blankets in the corner, shredded by sharp teeth and claws.

Some of that dung actually looks pretty fresh, Pixal noted, watching the dark corners carefully for signs of movement. Hopefully whatever was here isn't coming back.

Random items- toys, wooden swords, baskets- lay strewn across the floor. Whether they had been scattered by animals or if the children had left them like that, Pixal did not know.

But it was eerie, standing here. She felt as though she were standing in a morgue. John's morgue.

Being here somehow made it real for Pixal. Jay really was a lord. He really had, at one point in his life, lived here on this island: a small child with a spunky, fearless attitude frolicking in the trees, chasing poisonous snakes, living like there was no tomorrow.

There were tears in Merv's eyes as she set the candle on a scratched-up children's play table and crouched down, picking up a doll. She touched the painted smile on its face with a shaky finger.

"I miss him," Merv whispered.

"Who?" Pixal approached her.

"John," Merv answered. "I never thought I would miss his annoying, childish energy so much. But I do. He's changed so much, I..." Merv broke off as the tears came, and she closed her eyes.

Pixal set Jay on the floor and started gathering the old, tattered blankets. "I'm sorry," she said. "It must be hard, watching someone you love change like that. But..." She sighed, hating herself for the words. "...everyone has to grow up." Though, it's not like growing up has helped Jay any…

"Not John," Merv said. "He was supposed to stay like that forever. He was...kind. Always smiling. But it was a real smile. His heart has become so heavy, he has forgotten how to even smile!"

Practically the opposite of Lloyd, Pixal thought, struggling against a rolling wave of emotion. That kid…never stopped smiling.

To distract herself, Pixal sorted the blankets: some were usable, and she set them aside in a folded stack. Others were trashed, and she tossed them in a pile to burn.

"Gather anything burnable you don't want to keep," Pixal said. "We need to start a fire."

Merv hesitated, then nodded. She reverently set the doll on a shelf and made a pile of broken chairs and dead grass, carried in by animals to make nests.

Pixal picked up a few wooden swords and moved to toss them into the fire pile. But Merv snatched them away. "Please," she said. "Not these."

"Okay. Sorry." Pixal said disarmingly; she did not want to face an angry Merv again. She raised her arm, and Suki landed, shooting her pile of burnable scraps with her lasers. The scraps obligingly burst into flame, and Pixal continued to add to it, smoke escaping through the entrance in the wall behind her.

"You can sort the stuff," Pixal said. "I'll take care of Jay, get him warm and dry."

Merv hesitated, face flushing, but nodded. She probably wanted to care for Jay herself. But someone had to get that fire going strong, and Merv would not allow Pixal to sort the clutter.

Pixal gently moved Jay closer to the fire, then wiped his wet hair from his face. His skin was warm. Dangerously so. If the fever continued down this course, then soon...

Well...Pixal tried not to think of that.

Not again. I can't lose him. Not after Lloyd.

She unbuttoned his vest and shirt and pulled them free, drying his skin with one of the blankets.

Seeing Jay's body like this kindled many emotions inside of her: Sadness. Anger. Confusion.

Why is Jay doing this to himself? she wondered, frustrated as she ran the blanket along the prominent ridges that made his ribcage. His sunken belly, his protruding hips.

He looked more like a skeleton than a living, breathing human being.

Pixal ran the blanket across his face, the skin around his eyes dark, his cheeks hollow. His neck, so slender she could-

Pixal froze. Oh, by the First King, she swore. Her voice came low and soft. "Merv, come here."

Merv set down the toy horse she'd been examining. "What?" she asked, approaching

Pixal touched the mark on Jay's neck, her confidence waning. This was why Overlord hadn't made a fuss about their escape. This was why the keep hadn't been better guarded against them. This was why Jay had gotten the fever so suddenly, when it had seemed like he was already over his cold.

Merv saw the tiny mark, and she paled. "A needle," she whispered. "Overlord injected a needle in Jay's neck. But when?"

"I don't know. While we were unconscious after Senzo captured us? Damn..." Pixal's uncertainty quickly turned to dread. What had Overlord put in Jay's bloodstream? And would it...kill him?

"He...doesn't usually kill people like this," Merv said shakily. "It might just be a harmless drug, intended to make him sick enough to hinder our escape." She sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than anyone else. With a trembling hand she brushed Jay's hair from his face, already wet again from sweat. Pixal could tell she was fighting more tears.

Merv stood, taking a deep breath. "I'm going out," she said. "I must harvest some plants for medicine."

"Do you think you know what's wrong with him?" Pixal asked hopefully. "Is it curable?"

Merv's hesitation deflated Pixal's confidence again. "I...don't know," she said. "But at the least, I should be able to find something to slow his deterioration. Send Suki with me, in case I run into trouble. I'll be back in an hour."

"Sure," Pixal said as Merv scrambled out of the cave's narrow entrance, back out into the midnight rain, Suki following awkwardly: the exit was too narrow for her to fly out.

"I'll just...sit here. I guess." Pixal sighed, spreading out a blanket by the fire, then moved Jay on top of it. She wadded up another ratty blanket for his pillow, then wiped his face dry. Unlike when she had examined him on the day of their arrival to the Dark Island, Jay did not look peaceful and relaxed. He looked to be in great pain.

"Don't die on us, okay?" Pixal whispered. "You're stronger than this. We need you."

Jay's only reply was a sharp, pained intake of breath. He slumbered on. Pixal sat back, finding herself, for the first time in many seasons, praying fervently for the First King's protection and guidance. Heaven knows they needed it.

Besai entered her- Kai's- room with her eyes still moist from her crying. It was hard to come to terms with the knowledge that her son was dead, though she'd known from the beginning- in the back of her mind, a cold whisper meandering through the air of her dreamland with Kai- that it was a possibility. That Overlord would have no qualms about killing Alyx. Especially if he was in a bad mood, and...

Besai swayed unsteadily on her feet as she shut the door behind her, turning her eyes to Kai's bed. Alyx's death had probably been gruesome and bloody. But he had only been six! Unable to defend himself; incapable of realizing what he had done to deserve such dreadful rage from the Overlord's whip. Or fire. Or...

Besai tried to compose herself. She really did try, with all of her being. She was only a few strides from Kai. She had to stay strong for him as he worked through his trauma. There was no time right now to think of Alyx.

No time to…

Besai's knees buckled, and she fell, sobbing silently into her free hand- the one not holding the earring.

What a fool she was. What a fool. Why had she left Overlord while he still had such so much to take away from her?

She deserved it. She really did. But Alyx...he'd been caught in the middle of it, with no more control over his destiny than a leaf tumbling in the wind.

And now, if Besai stepped out of line again, Overlord would kill her baby. Just like before.

Calm down, Besai, she told herself. Overlord does not have eyes everywhere. You can still be close to Kai. Just...cautiously.

Taking careful, deep breaths, Besai wiped her eyes with her sleeve and looked up. Kai sat on the bed, shirtless. Possibly entirely naked; she couldn't tell from her vantage on the floor. He did not seem to have noticed her presence, his gaze far away, facing the wall to her right.

Besai recognized that look. Well, she'd never seen it on Kai, but it was common for the slaves. A disconnected stare, mind asleep and body wide-awake. Tense. Knowing something bad was bound to happen, but not having the emotional capacity to cope with it.

Besai spared a peek at the door over her shoulder. Overlord might still be nearby, listening. So she stayed quiet, tears falling onto her lap as she opened her palm, fingering the earring. She polished it with her skirt, removing the crusty blood until her reflection shined on its tiny surface.

She was a mess. Hair wet and frazzled, eyes red and swollen. She touched her cheek, realizing that her freckles were fading. She'd never had many to begin with, since she'd been in the keep most of her life, but...well, she'd always had those freckles. They'd been there since her childhood. Since before Overlord seized the island. Her months in the snowy, sunless Ninjagian winter climate had made quick work of her skin.

"A father," Kai whispered, and Besai looked up.

Kai blinked, struggling against his invisible bonds. Then finally he moved his head. He met her eyes. "I'm going to be a father. Just like I'd always wanted. I'm just..." He paused, blinking again, slowly. "...I'm sorry that you're the one who has to do it."

Folding her arms over her belly, Besai swallowed. "What...do you mean?"

"You shouldn't have to carry the seed of a worthless whore like me," Kai explained. "You deserve so, so much better. I shouldn't have done this to you."

Hopefully Overlord was busy elsewhere, because Besai could not help herself. She rose to her feet and approached the bed.

And then she kissed him.

Kai seized up, holding his breath as Besai pressed her lips to his. It was a short kiss, lasting only a few seconds, but when she pulled away, Kai was trembling, filled with fear. Finally remembering how to breathe, he gasped softly, then exhaled.

"Don't do that," he said.

Besai covered his shivering shoulders with a blanket, fighting more tears. "Don't worry," she said, remembering what Kai had said to her on the day they first met. The words that, at the time, she hadn't understood, but had never forgotten. "You're safe. Don't be afraid, you can...trust me." Her voice faltered at the end, and she closed her eyes, crying into Kai's shoulder. Trust. A concept Besai had been unable to comprehend before meeting Kai. The knowledge that there was someone out there that would never break a promise and hurt her, no matter what.

How did their situation get switched like this? There had been a time many months ago when she'd been the whore on the bed, afraid of Kai's touch as he draped a blanket over her shoulders. He'd whispered words of comfort to her in the language she'd once known in her childhood.

And now, here she was, trying to dig him out of that same pit.

Overlord cannot win, she told herself. I must preserve our marriage. I must do my part in this war, and keep Overlord from his goals.

"I won't give up on you, Kai," she whispered, wrapping her arms around him. "We can fight this together."

Kai gripped her arm, eyes moist, but he did not reply.