Three days later

I stared blearily at the page of notes in front of me. I had already extracted another, larger glob of poison from Tylee's sister. I had spent the first day carefully crafting recipes, then testing them. None had ended with an efficacious curative. Any alchemical mixture, when created properly, gains the ability to hold essence. If improperly prepared, the stuff leaks straight out. None of my creations were able to hold even a memory of essence.

The second day, I had begun haphazardly throwing things together, still to no avail. On the third day, today, I was reduced to glumly looking over my current failures or prodding at a small sample of the poison.

I sighed and stood up. I walked over to the window and watched the small stream that wound its way through the tranquil garden located in the rear of the Arefina manor. I spotted Tylee walking through the garden, her features hard as always. Her expression was complemented by the rough training garb she wore, a leather tunic and breeches.

As if sensing my presence, she looked up to the second story window which gave me my vantage point. Her golden eyes met my own steel gray ones and she held the gaze, a hand laid gently on the blade which I was continuing to... alter. I raised a hand and she nodded in return, before continuing her walk. She had probably been training with her blade forms in the practice field and had decided to wander about before returning to the house.

I absently tapped my heart and head, the two locations in which the poison had most accumulated in Megaine's body. I had already determined that the poison itself was magical in nature. There was no question about that. Unfortunately, even the codices which Tylee had procured for me gave no hints as to the origin of it.

I wandered back to my bench and looked down at the flask of black liquid which had so vexed me. Glaring at it, I picked it up and swirled the vile stuff. Frustration and anger built up over days filled my body, and my grip tightened. Before I realized what I was doing, the flask shattered in my grip.

Pain radiated through my hand from several embedded shards. I sighed and began plucking them out. After that was attended to, I bent down to retrieve the larger shards of glass and began gingerly grabbing them. My movements put my injured hand over the black substance, and I watched with mild interest as a drop of my blood splashed down on the curiously cohesive puddle. The blood floated like oil on water for a moment, then seemed to be sucked right into the puddle.

I stopped, looked at my hand, then intentionally let another drop of blood fall onto the puddle of poison. Same effect.

Cautiously, I lowered my injured hand towards the poison. When I got within a couple inches, it began to contract. No, it wasn't just contracting, it was reaching. The bundled stuff began heaping up towards my injury, and I pulled back instinctively, causing it to settle again to the floor, waiting patiently for another drop of my blood.

I wasn't dealing with a poison. This was alive. It was a parasite.

I quickly dressed my wound and used a syringe to collect the spilled creature off of the floor. Injecting it into another flask, I swept up the remaining broken glass and settled down to stare at the creature. Now that I knew what I was dealing with, a whole world of possibilities had opened up.

Curiously, I ignited a small amount of essence into white magic and touched the edge of the flask. The creature pressed itself entirely against the glass, trying to get at the healing energy, even through the non-reactive prison. I moved my hand to the top and released the magic into the flask, causing the oily thing to quiver as the power swirled into it. When the last drop was gone, it went inert again, becoming a pool of liquid which I swore was slightly larger than it had been.

This thing was amazing. Scratch that, it was amazingly horrifying.

I capped the flask and placed it on a flat surface in the very center of my desk, where it wouldn't accidentally fall to the floor. I had no idea how this thing moved around in the wild, but I was unwilling to find out without keeping it within direct visual contact.

That done, I quickly jotted down a list of several ingredients and stepped out into the main house. After a little searching I found Raila, one of the maids.

"Miss Raila," I said quickly, presenting her with the paper, "Could you have someone head down to the market and get these ingredients for me? They may have to go to the Collegium's dispensary for a few of the items."

She curtsied, "Of course Master Dyre."

I thanked her and made my way back up to the room in which Megaine was resting. Vesk didn't bother to stop me, but he did try to kill me with pure hatred as I stepped diffidently into the lady's room. I couldn't see a lot of good things about Vesk, but he was certainly loyal to the Arefinas. Well, at least to Duke Arefina, who was still conspicuously absent from the manor. Tylee had failed to elaborate any further on his absence.

Stepping up to the bed of my patient, I silently tapped the right side of my face. I groaned as the white magic flared to life, and had to take a moment to center myself before reaching out and touching the sleeping woman. I tightly controlled the flow of power, bending it to my will to keep it from reaching Megaine's heart. For about a dozen seconds I held it there, feeling the attrition of the power as it desperately sought for injuries to heal.

Then I felt it, the dark tendrils of the parasite. It had sensed the power of white magic and had slipped into her blood, where it was carried by her own body towards the powerful healing magic. Slowly, then with shocking speed, the white magic was sucked into the creature. I saw Megaine grimace slightly.

Pulling back, I let the last of the white magic fizzle out of existence. Once essence had been converted into magical power, it could not be returned to such, and I was unwilling to walk around holding on to even the lightest scrap of the stuff. I realized belatedly that my hand no longer hurt from the wounds I had received earlier.

"Master Dyre." Came a calm voice from behind me.

I jumped, spinning around. Tylee was standing several steps away from me, regarding me calmly.

"L-lady Arefina!" I yelped.

She regarded me seriously, "I was informed that you had sent Raila to the market for more materials. May I assume that you have made some sort of progress?"

I nodded briefly. Apparently she hadn't noticed my use of white magic. It was both a relief and another burden upon me. In some ways, I wished that someone would find out. Though when I thought about it more carefully, I supposed that things were better this way.

"Your sister hasn't been poisoned," I explained, "She's been infected."

She raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to continue.

"It's a parasite of some kind," I continued, "From what I can tell, it is capable of consuming white magic."

"How did you arrive at this conclusion?" Tylee asked.

Oof, another fumble. Zero for two today, I was doing great. I thought quickly.

"Let me show you." I said, buying myself some time.

I quickly led her back to my lab and performed my little blood trick on the parasite. It responded greedily to the stuff, then went inert when I withdrew the meal. Acting on instinct, I then asked Tylee to channel some of her own magic into the thing. As she did, the creature reacted in kind, growing slightly larger again as it absorbed her power.

She turned to me, a look of disgust on her face, "I see now. Do you have a plan to deal with this creature?"

I nodded enthusiastically, "Yes. Well, somewhat."

"Somewhat?" She asked.

"Now that I know what I am dealing with, I can create a poison that will kill the creature," I said, "The problem will be finding and developing one that won't kill Megaine as well. Targeted poisons are very good, but they can have side effects, especially in the dose that I will need."

She nodded thoughtfully, "Your plan has merit. What do you need?"

"Time and money," I replied, "Even if I come up with solution, the treatment will probably be a long one, and I have no idea how the creature will respond to being poisoned. It has a rudimentary sort of intelligence, and it may not appreciate being killed."

"Raila will take some time to return," Tylee said, "I would appreciate it if you would accompany me outside. Bring your staff."

"I could get started with formulations-" I began to protest.

"You have been in this room all day for three days," Tylee interrupted me, "I am not an alchemist, but I know what fatigue looks like when I see it. Though there is fire in your eyes, it is laid over a deep emptiness. I would not have you make a mistake now, after you are so close to developing a cure."

I acquiesced.

Tylee led me through the gardens, her movements more languid than the purposeful stride that I was used to. It was easy to keep up with her when she was not moving with purpose. It was also faintly distracting to me, as it was utterly at odds with her usual personality.

"I would speak with you somewhat," She hesitated, "As a friend, Ethan."

I glanced around, then shrugged, "You have my attention Tylee."

A warm smile drifted onto her face as I spoke her name, "It is good to hear my name again. It reminds me of the time I spent among the sisters. I admit that I had seriously considered not bringing you here for that purpose. I am trying to leave my life as a knight behind. Now, I am glad that I chose to heed the voice in my heart."

We had stopped by a small pond filled with brilliantly colored fish. I glanced over at her and saw the deep sorrow behind that warm smile. I suddenly felt a surge of affection for Tanna and her family. While they were bothersome, their antics were always inclusive to me. Here, Tylee was a statue kept high on a pedestal. She could only be gazed upon with awe.

She was alone.

"What about your father?" I asked, desperately searching for something to distract her from that emptiness.

Her gaze sharpened, "My father is moving among the nobility, buying time for us and seeking a suitable match for me."

I blinked, "A what?"

She turned to face me, "I am the last surviving daughter of this house. I must marry and produce an heir in order to secure our future. Father is looking for a politically and magically suitable man who may stand with me."

Something about that made my stomach tighten into knots.

"What about Megaine?" I asked, "We're very close to a cure."

"We are still very weak right now," Tylee said, "And the cold reality is that while I do have hope for my sister, no other member of the nobility does."

Floundering, I said the only thing I could think of, "What can I do?"

The goddess Orianna had laid a charge on me, and I was unwilling to let myself fail after such a short time.

She sighed, "Truly? I do not know. I know that your presence brings me peace Ethan. I fear though, that your assistance is only putting you in danger. I am loath to ask more of you, as your death would... dishearten me."

"I won't abandon you Tylee." I said, meeting her eyes and trying to convey my earnestness, "Even if everybody else has. I won't always be by your side, I want to live my life too, but you can rely on me when you need me most."

"Your loyalty is admirable Ethan," She said, the warmth in her voice genuine, "But perhaps you should take heed to the actions of the noble houses. They know Arefina is being targeted, and are unwilling to bind themselves to a slowly sinking ship."

"Then we get to the bottom of the conspiracy against you!" I declared.

"You speak such a complicated thing in such simple words," She said sadly, "Do you not think that I have not bent all of my resources to discovering who would benefit most from targeting my family?"

I held up a finger, "But now we have a clue. The parasite is not a normal weapon. Anyone could buy poison from the right alchemist, but very few people would have access to this kind of creature. I have a feeling that the person behind this isn't doing it for the first time."

Tylee's face grew hard, and I could see calculations running through her head, "Of course..."

"The Adventurers' Guild and the Alchemists' Guild are pretty heavily entwined," I said, "I can speak with the guildmaster here and see if any adventurers have run into a creature like this. That would give us a clue as to where we should start."

New fire ignited in Tylee's eyes, and grinned, "I see that my faith in you has yielded more than I hoped, friend Ethan. Orianna has surely brought us together and blessed our meeting."

More than you know Tylee.

"Come!" She said suddenly, "If you wish to descend into danger with me, then at least allow me to instruct you in the art of the battle."

I held up my staff, "This has always been good enough for me."

She nodded, "Of course. But I will teach you to turn that glorified club into the song of death itself."

I followed her, her steps now purposeful, and swift enough to send me scampering after her. On the whole, it was very unfair that she could move so surely and with such haste. I was taller than her by a good twelve centimeters.

We came to the practice grounds and Tylee exchanged her sword for a staff of similar length to my own. For the next hour, she instructed me in the art of being hit. I also managed to pick up some skill with the staff in return for my bruises. Her strikes were always measured enough to hurt, but not cause lasting damage.

"Enough!" Tylee called, her voice hard, "Raila should have returned by now."

"You," I gasped, my stomach aching from her last blow, "Are a cruel teacher."

She grinned, "As a knight, I was taught that every five injuries received on the training ground would prevent one in the real world. I rarely went to bed without bruises."

Great. Sadistic warrior nuns.

"Isn't it hard to injure a geomancer?" I asked warily.

"My instructors took special care to hit me harder than the others." She replied.

"Remind me to never join the sisterhood." I noted dryly.

"Unfortunately," She said, "You are ineligible to join the ecclesiastical ranks of Orianna. I am certain that the Seekers of Tyr would be willing to take you on though. You would certainly be a match for any middling soul."

"Hard pass." I replied instantly.

"There are few who take up the calling," She replied with equanimity, "But you should know that my house would sponsor you if you were to seek such a calling."

"Still no." I responded, "I like being an alchemist. It involves a lot fewer bruises."

She smiled at that, "Let us retire inside then. We have played, but now there is work to do."

Only you would call this sort of thing play Tylee.