"I do hope there is good reason for this," Aiden spoke as Kesha and Aramith stepped forward, placing a final syringe on the table.
Henndar nodded, and Aiden took a step forward, just to make them aware he was going to speak.
"You claim to be sure Lia's condition is related to...worms? Explain."
Kesha nodded with seriousness and spoke. "I believe you are aware of parasites that are used on people?" It was more of a rhetorical question. " Some parasites kill, others control, others cause loss of power, and some combine all of these to become very lethal."
She paused and pulled out a book she'd borrowed from the library. "The Hollow tongue is one of such parasites. It is very rare but lethal." She paused to be sure they were following. Henndar was calm as usual, but Aiden haswrinkles in his brows as he listened.
"But isn't that parasite used to control a person's actions? These worms even die shortly after they have completed their task," Aiden spoke what tickled his mind.
Kesha nodded in agreement. "That may be so, but have you ever known what effects the Somnium bloom would have on parasites?" Another pause. "Under normal circumstances, the poison would induce sleep in a person, causing the person to fall into sleep for a while before waking up. But if it is introduced into a body that has worms in it, things take a different turn."
Aiden couldn't understand where this girl was going with this. "I find your claims hard to believe." He wasn't looking down on her, just concerned. He continued, "The Hollow tongue stays visible in its host till it is done, then quickly disappears. Samples of Lia's blood were observed, and not a single worm was noticeable."
Kesha nodded again. "That may be so, but in the Glacial Empire, we studied that in detail, experimenting on different animals till we came to a conclusion and understanding of how this works. Allow me to show you." Kesha raised the cloth on the table and there was a caged rat, some containers, and two syringes.
One look at the setup on the table and Aiden was very invested in it. As a medical scholar as himself, learning new things was always his priority, and experiments with rats were very common in that line of work. He immediately had some respect for the girl's knowledge.
She raised a container with some worms, lifting it and eyeing it like a prized treasure as they squirmed within.
She then placed it down.
" Please take note of the kind of presence they have, she pointed at the worms." Aiden of course was the first to move closer to the container. As instructed, he closed his eyes and focused his attention on the worms in the container, taking note of the aura surrounding them. He nodded quietly for Kesha to continue.
She took an empty container and placed it in front, then took the syringe and drew blood from the rat. She poured the blood into the empty container and then took the worms. Carefully, she poured some of the worms into the blood. All were focused as they watched the worms writhing in the blood.
"Now watch," She took another container filled with a murky liquid; the poison from the Somnium Bloom. She poured it into the mixture of blood and Hollow tongues.
All breath caught as they observed the worms writhing more violently and then slowly dissolve into the blood, completely disappearing. Aiden frowned.
"This defeats everything you claimed," he spoke carefully, still focused on the disappearing worms. Aramith, who had seen this the night before, almost spoke, but Kesha gestured for him to stay still.
She didn't say anything, justwaited till all the worms were dissolved before she finally spoke.
"This is what we observed as well when we experimented on the worms. The worms were nowhere to be found. But why don't we test it on this first before drawing conclusions," she gestured toward the caged rat.
She took the rat carefully, then forced some Hollow tongues down its throat. The creature squealed, resisting, but in the end, it couldn't overpower a human.
She let it down and in a matter of seconds, it was frozen with a dazed look in its eyes; the first effect of the Hollow tongue. Next, she took the syringe and drew some of the toxin from the Somnium bloom, carefully injecting it into the animal. It was still for a few more seconds, then fell, unconscious. It wasn't dead, just asleep.
Aiden was the first to realize it. His mouth opened in surprise. This was the same situation Lia was in. Unconscious.
But Kesha wasn't done. She took the sleeping rat and drew some of its blood, pouring the blood into another container.
She placed it beside the first one and they saw no difference between them.
"And for the final test." She looked at Aiden "I hope you remember the presence of the Hollow tongue?"
He nodded and she pointed at the container. Try focusing as much as you can, and you'll notice the worms inside. Aiden focused very hard for almost a minute before he was able to notice the worms.
"What? But how?" Aiden subconsciously took a step back, then approached the container, studying it very well. The worms were there, but not visible. He could even sense them squirming.
Kesha smiled at him. "There you have it, the Somnium bloom's actual effect on people. It amplifies and suppresses the effects of parasites and other poisons."
Aiden's brows creased as he thought once more. " Based on this, that means the poison has no effect on her and so the worms, you claim are the cause of all this?"
"Yes, that is my conclusion," Kesha spoke confidently.
"But how do you know this?" Aiden asked to be sure.
"I can smell things that go unnoticed," she answered.
"hmmm. But still...She would have to consume the worms directly, so how..." Aiden was still thinking.
Aramith, having been an observer for so long, finally decided to say something.
"May I say something?" He asked.
Nothing was said, just the silence that meant he was free to speak.
"I remember the night we were attacked...one of the men mentioned the Hollow tongue."
Aiden nodded, remembering the details of that night more clearly. He wasn't too surprised about the fact that the worms were the cause, but he rather thought of how their enemy was knowledgeable enough to be able to use that.
"Well, this is all up to you now, whether to believe me or not and for you to also decide what you're going to do next." As usual, she sounded confident, speaking as she wanted.
Aiden breathed through his nose, remembering that Henndar had left the decision up to him, deciding not to interrupt until Aiden had made his final decision.
They were able to conclude that all Kesha said was backed by evidence and could be believed, but they still had to take one last look at a sample of Lia's blood to confirm her claims. Henndar agreed to Aiden's conclusion as he trusted him. He permitted him to go on with Kesha to deal with the matter. Aramith on the other hand was asked to stay behind.
"Son?" Henndar spoke after Aramith had sat down. "There is one matter I would like you to think deeply about."
Aramith waited for Henndar to continue. "You see, Kesha came from far away, and strange as it is, she was drawn here by you, and decided to help us in many ways. She has freely shared rare, and expensive information to us, even aiding in the matter of Lia which we were lost on how to deal with, right?"
Aramith nodded, already feeling he knew where the conversation was going.
"Well, during her stay here, I have asked her a few times what she would want in return, and all she said was your name. She has declared that she wants to be by your side, claiming she feels a connection. I hope you are aware of this."
"Yes. Father." Aramith responded stiffly.
"As your father, I also spoke with your mother about this, and we would never force you to agree to anything. You were born with an unknown attribute and no matter how much we searched for information concerning your attribute, we found very little. Maybe in the near future, I may take extreme measures to help with your understanding and control of that darkness." He paused, noticing how Aramith sat straighter at the mention of his attribute. "Kesha found out about your attribute being powerful with her ability to smell things. Though she believes your attribute is that of the damned like she is, she feels she is compatible with you and her decision is final. But," Another pause. "I still tell you to decide for yourself if you want to accept her proposal or not. Your need to think very deeply about this matter. Don't accept because the kingdom might gain benefits from her empire, don't also accept out of consideration of her feelings, and certainly don't accept because you feel rejection might ruin relations between her and people here. Look deeply into here," he pointed to Aranith's heart. "Decide with what you feel there first, then sit down and think deeply about it."
Aramith looked down at his hands clasped together on the table. "I understand all this, but...I also want to know what you would have done if you were in my shoes."
Henndar smiled. "If I were in your shoes?"
Yes," Aramith leaned forward.
"Well, I would have accepted her proposal, thinking of her beauty, background, knowledge, confidence in solving issues, strength, and love for me. That is what I would have considered when I was your age, but I never decided to marry your mother because of such reasons. I did so because I felt a connection in here," he pointed at his chest. "And your mother felt same, but for you..."
"I..understand."
"Okay, so go and think about it. You don't have to decide quickly, but at least give her an answer in at most a month."
"Thank you," Aramith got up, gave a slight bow, then left.
To marry or not to marry. What would he choose?
Henndar on the other hand was still trying hard to figure things about Lia's attack.
Kesha never lied but he still has to add her to the suspects. She was driven by her own will, but certain things didn't add up. The fact that the knowledge of the poison was rare, coupled with her timely appearance to aid in the problem all came out as suspicious.
He wanted to keep her very close in order to assess her.
Though she didn't seem like one to be used by her Empire, he couldn't ignore the possibility that every word, every smile, was carefully placed. After all, lies often wear the face of truth.
Whether she was a serpent or savior, only time would tell.