A scream pierced the air in the evening, as Martha had gone to check up on her children to make sure that they were sleeping properly. Usually she didn’t check on such a day, but her gut had called for her to move, and she found her son in such a state.

His bed shook as he convulsed wildly within it, foaming from his mouth. His entire body was red, his skin stretched out as his veins bulged and twitched.

Ami awoke, sitting up in her bed to see her mother’s back, which covered Mika’s body from her sight. “Mother?”

A pair of guards appeared, each with blades drawn, though they found no enemy within the immediate vicinity. One stepped in front of the young miss, and another stood at the miss’ side, blade still in hand.

Amon rushed into the room, his fists entirely black. “What is the matter?” he asked, on edge still though he could sense nothing around them which could threaten him.

“Mika is hurt,” Martha said, managing to calm herself. “Call the doctor.”

“Miki is hurt?” Ami asked, pouting. She tried to step up to her mother to see, but the guard stopped her with a hand.

“Young miss, we should leave the young sir be,” he said, trying to coax Ami away. He had spotted Mika’s form, and it had caused even him to wince at the sight of the young boy seemingly in a great amount of pain.

As the guard stepped out with the young miss, he commanded a nearby servant to fetch the family doctor, who arrived within a few minutes.

Martha wanted to reach out for her son, but she had no idea whether she could. ‘I can’t. What if I aggravate whatever is happening to him?’ “Oh, Mika, my little Mika.”

Amon stared down at his son, watching him as his tiny form continued to writhe. Even now he had half a mind to put the boy out of his misery. ‘Come back to me, my son.’

The doctor sauntered into the room, her sleepy assistant carrying the box full of her supplies. The doctor of the Black Hand family was an older woman, adorned in black robes. ‘Ki deviation?’ She furrowed her brows, reaching down to touch the wrist of the boy. She almost pulled back, feeling how hot his skin was to the touch. ‘What is this?’

“What is the matter?” Martha asked, sitting beside the doctor and her son.

“He seems to be suffering from ki deviation,” the doctor said, though she furrowed her brows.

“Ki deviation?” Amon asked, equally as puzzled. Ki deviation occurred when something went wrong during cultivation, which would cause someone to die, or to be overwhelmed by darkness, which would cause them to rampage. “He does not know our way, and Ami would not have taught him how to…” Amon paused. He retreated away, going to find Ami.

“Mika is going to be okay?” Ami asked the guard, rubbing her eye, yawning quietly.

“The doctor has gone to see him, young miss,” the guard reassured.

“Okay.”

“Ami,” Amon called. “Did you teach Mika how to cultivate?” Something was definitely wrong about the situation, but Amon wasn’t sure exactly what was wrong. Even now, he felt ridiculous asking his daughter such a question. Even if she knew how to cultivate, she wouldn’t have been able to explain it to Mika.

“No, father, it’s a secret,” the girl replied, sitting up confidently. She had sworn not to tell anyone how their cultivation worked.

“Of course, you’re such a good girl, Ami.” Amon placed a hand on her shoulder. ‘How could she have taught him when it required me to assist her for the first week?’ “Go to sleep.”

“Will Mika be okay, father?”

“Mika will be fine,” Amon assured, kissing her forehead.

“Okay.” Ami followed the guard to her own room, which she rarely slept within.

Amon returned to the doctor. “He did not learn how to cultivate.”

“Could it have been that the young sir learnt from one of the guards?” the doctor asked.

“The guards within our family were hand picked by the patriarch and myself,” Amon replied, sternly.

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The doctor let the matter drop. “Then it could be that he was poisoned.”

“Poisoned?” Martha gasped.

“If it is not ki deviation, then it could have been that he was poisoned,” the doctor stated, feeling for his pulse. “It would be best to call an alchemist.”

Amon motioned his head to the guard, who quickly left, taking with him another guard.

“Shadow,” Amon called, and beside him a young woman appeared, as though rising from the darkness. “Make sure they make it to the alchemist and escort the alchemist here.”

“As you wish, right hand,” the shadow replied, before disappearing out of sight, going to support the guards from the shadows, as was her role.

It wasn’t a half hour later when Rio, the young alchemist, appeared. “Good evening, right hand,” she said, quickly taking her place beside the young boy who was still writhing and squirming.

“Good evening,” Amon replied, nodding his head to the guards, who went to sort out the gifts which were required for the alchemist.

Rio took the boy’s hand into her own, focusing on gathering any information which she could use to understand the situation. “It appears to be ki deviation, but I am uncertain.”

“He did not learn how to cultivate,” Amon stated.

Since Mika had used whatever trace amount of ki he had, Rio couldn’t sense it, nor could she sense the foreign mana which lay within him. ‘Curious.’ “It may be that he needs ki, but sending ki into him may kill him.”

Amon frowned. “Is there another way, alchemist?”

“I could create a pill which could assist him, but there is a high likelihood he will become a cripple even if we save his life,” Rio said, writing up the ingredients she required.

Amon stared at the list of ingredients, each of which would be worth at least a single golden talon. Though it was costly, it was nothing compared to the life of his son. Once his own doctor confirmed which ingredients they possessed in the family vault, gaining permission from the patriarch, they were still missing the rarest, and most expensive ingredient.

“A fifty year old silverherb,” Amon said, his frown deepening.

“It is the most important ingredient,” Rio said. “Even if we are missing other ingredients, we cannot miss this ingredient. It is unfortunate that we used the last silverherb in our possession last month.”

Amon crossed his arms, trying to think about how to deal with the situation. ‘Must I beg the other families?’

Martha inhaled deeply, sighing to calm herself before she stood. “I will speak with the ladies.”

Amon wasn’t sure why she needed to talk with the lady, before realising what she was saying. He wasn’t sure if he could mention the head in his position, but he decided against revealing anything in front of the alchemist, allowing his wife to leave.

Martha quickly changed, having sent word to the Moon Moth and Storm Fist families through her servants, who had take with them great gifts. She arrived at the tea house at midnight, ordering some tea for herself and the two others who would come to meet her.

The first to arrive was Vilia Moon Moth, the beautiful woman had skin like pale moonlight, and was the tallest of the three. She was adorned within purple and silver robes, which matched her hair and eyes. “Martha,” she said, taking the woman’s hand in her own as they greeted one another.

“It’s good to see you, Vilia,” Martha replied, before the pair sat down at the round table.

Dalia Storm Fist arrived a short while later, the woman holding as much beauty as either of her companions, though she was slightly more muscular than either of her friends. She had black hair and dark blue eyes, so dark that one could have mistaken her for a Black Hand. “Vilia, Martha,” the woman said, greeting them by holding their hands as they typically did, before she took her place between the pair of mothers.

“I apologise for calling you here so late,” Martha said, holding her cup of tea to warm her hands.

The three always met every week to speak about one thing or another. It was meant to be Dalia’s turn this week, though it was a few days away, and typically the gifts were meant to be trinkets. However, Martha had sent the pair gems, and not just any gems, but spirit gems, each worth at least a golden talon, worth over a hundred times more than the typical gift.

“Mika is…” Martha was unable to say more. “It is said that we require some herbs to try and help him, and even if he is cured, he may still be a cripple. One of the herbs we require is a fifty year old silverherb.”

The pair of mothers almost revealed the shock on their face. They understood that the situation was life threatening if it meant that the boy would be a cripple even after expending a fifty year old silverherb.

‘Did it have to be a fifty year old silverherb?’ Dalia thought, holding her cup tight. She could see the weariness on Martha’s face, and there was no way that she, as a friend or a mother, could see Martha this way. “We possess a fifty year old silverherb.”

“If you are willing to trade for it, I would be in your debt,” Martha assured.

“I will send for it,” Dalia said. To have a Black Hand in her debt was a good idea from a political sense, especially since the three were meant to be allies.

“I will send for the other ingredients,” Vilia said, not wanting Dalia to gain too much political influence over the Black Hands, since it could be used against her family. Balance was meant to be maintained between the three of them, especially since they were one of the big three factions within the town.

“I will not forget your help,” Martha stated, reaching out her hands to take theirs into her own once more.

The Moon Moth and Storm Fist families sent the ingredients with their guards, who were returned with gifts from the Black Hand treasury, a set of weapons, some martial manuals, and some spirit gems.

Rio set to work on refining a pill for the young boy to consume, placing her ingredients within the furnace she had brought, which was almost as large as her, though it was safely stored within her ring. She almost danced as she summoned the alchemist fire, which flowed through the furnace as she continued her dance, and refined the pill he needed.

Mika convulsed harder, causing his mother to gasp once more, but Rio remained focused on creating her pill.

‘What are you doing, you stupid bastard?’ Mika screamed within his mind as he convulsed, all but ignoring the searing pain which filled him. ‘How dare you reveal such shoddy alchemist skills before me! How dare you use such a fine herb for a pill when I only need a year of bed rest? How could you all be so stupid, just because I’m half dead?’