“Good news is, you’re not going to die,” Fertile Desert said in a calm voice, lifting her hoof from my chest. “Either you didn’t consume all the poison, or the dosage was carefully measured.”

That matched what I had read on the fortune cookie I’d just broken open. ‘Get some rest, and the pain will leave your chest!’ had been written on it. I know I only have a limited number of them, but this felt like the right time to use one if you ask me.

“So you know what poison it is?” Rapt Glance asked, a shimmer of relief on his face.

“Yes, I think so.” She said and leaned back up. “The symptoms match, and after I had a hint of what I was looking for, I was able to notice the smell in her breath.”

“Tell us!” Dad growled.

“Marsh horsetail, more specifically, the juice of the stalks.” She turned to me. “Paralytic in smaller doses, deadly in higher ones. To have this much of an effect, you’d have to have eaten at least three stalks though. And since I told you what they look like…” She’d warned everykirin to not eat them when we had arrived at the swamp, explaining that they looked like an upside down broom with some pinecones at the top, “I doubt you would have eaten them deliberately.”

“No, I didn’t!” I mumbled. “But how do we cure me?”

“That’s where we come to the bad news.” She pulled back her ears and tucked her tail. “I am able to cure you, but not anytime soon.”

“But she needs to fight this duel!” Bliz yelled angrily. “You need to fix her now! Not in a few hours!”

“I know! But I can’t do anything about it!” Fertile Desert ducked and began rummaging in her bag of herbs. “I can reduce the symptoms a bit and make sure she is back on track after only one night's rest, but, I can’t just magically fix her!”

“If it was something Fiery ate, at least that excludes the poisoned weapons possibility,” Rapt Glance threw in, directed at Dad. “Fe-Dee could smell it in her breath, so it had to have been eaten or drunk!”

This seemed to have a calming effect on Dad, but then the gears in his head turned and he swung his head around to Rapt Glance. He grabbed him by his throat, ignoring the panicked “Hey!” by him and addressed Fertile Desert in a darker, angry tone.

“How long does it take for those stalks to work?”

“Uhm, that depends…” She replied, a bit intimidated by what she was seeing. “Given how full Fiery’s stomach was before, the likely level the stalks were processed to, the…”

“How long?” Dad half roared at her, blowing smoke in her direction.

“Sometime between fifteen minutes and an hour!” She yelled quickly. “If the stalks were ground and consumed on an empty stomach, they would have nearly immediately caused symptoms, if eaten raw as part of a full meal, more like an hour, or even a bit longer, before the symptoms showed up!”

“Fiery only drank one cup of medicine in the last few hours!” Dad growled darkly. “And it was given to her by you!” He closed his claw more firmly around Rapt Glance's throat.

“Wasnnnn’t… me!” Rapt Glance tried to squeeze out. He tried to open Dad’s claw with his hooves, but to no effect. Hecticly, he whipped his tail around and even tried to use his magic to break free.

“Dad!” I mumbled. Darn poison! “Dad!” I tried once more with a bit more force in my voice. “It can’t be him!” I waveringly rose to my hooves and claws. Fertile Desert rushed to my side, supporting me. “Dad!” I made my way over as best I could. “Dad! My merriment never would betray me! They are not able to!”

“It is true!” Bliz shouted as well. “Nokirin of the merriment would try to poison her! Please, Mr. Big Softy! Let Rapt Glance go!”

“The evidence points to him though!” Dad growled. He lifted Rapt Glance higher so that he was now eye to eye with him. “Did you poison my daughter?”

“No! I… did… n‘t do it!”

He hung in Dad’s grip for a few more agonizing seconds before he was dropped to the ground. The second he landed, he began coughing heavily while clutching his throat. Fertile Desert exchanged a look with Bliz and they swapped places so she could care for Rapt Glance.

“The drink is the only option if you consumed those stalks!” Dad whipped the ground with his tail in anger. “If none of your merriment could have poisoned it, someone else must have slipped them in!”

“The only,” Rapt Glance coughed for a moment, “the only kirins helping me make it were also from our merriment.”

“Who?”

“It was a team effort in the infirmary. Fee-De here,” he rubbed over her back, “crushed the cattail and added a few spices. She also heated it up on the stove for a moment after Timeless Blossom had fetched the milk and added a few drops of ginger.”

“That is true,” Fertile Desert confirmed. “And the heating process would have neutralized any poison from those stalks!”

“That means it had to have been added after the heating process,” Bliz threw in.

“There was also,” I had to take a seat again, “there was also the kunzite within the mix.”

“Yeah, right,” Fertile Desert nodded. “Windswept Granite crushed them for us. We’d already stitched some of the bite wounds on his side closed so he had to stay at the tent anyway. He was restless and offered his help.”

Before Dad could continue his interrogation, Allerian landed next to us. “I have checked your opponent's weapons, no sign of any poison, or anything else suspicious for that matter.” He looked around. “You guys don’t seem to be surprised.”

“Was the drink,” I quietly explained. “Able to figure that much out.”

“Someone has poisoned Fiery via the medicine she took before the fight!” Bliz growled. “You have to call off the duel!”

“That is horrible!” Allerian stated. “Who would do such a thing?”

“We are not sure yet,” Bliz retorted. “But we will figure it out eventually! Couldn’t be one of us, that much is clear! But the how and who is still up in the air!”

“If it was none of Fiery’s merriment, then one of Candid Diversion’s minions must have snuck it in,” Dad declared. “Either them, or,” he flicked his gaze over to where the third army was still gathering, “one of the townsfolk. Though I do not see how either of them could have snuck past all of my daughter’s kirins.”

“Wait, these are just theories,” Allerian raised his paws. “Do you have any proof?”

“Fee-De was able to identify the poison that was used,” Rapt Glace said. “She also smelt it in her breath, so we are positive on the how and with what.”

“Oral application of marsh horsetail stalks,” Fertile Desert explained. “Given the time it needs to affect the victim, it had to have been consumed within the last hour. Therefore, by deduction, only the cup of medicine Fiery drank fits the criteria.”

“That’s good to know, but I need proof that Candid Diversion has something to do with it. I can’t call off the duel if you can’t prove he is part of this.”

“You can’t be serious!” Bliz shouted, stomping her hoof. “Fiery was poisoned! You can’t let the duel continue!”

Agreeing mumbling and growls followed her statement.

“It is not that simple! This is not some tavern dice game!” He flared out his wings and wildly gesticulated in the air. “This is two leaders of opposing armies each fighting for the right to rule by very strict and predefined rules! You both are oathbound to stick to it,” he lowered his claws and wings again, “No matter what else is going on.” He pointed at me. “You've been poisoned. That is indeed bad, bad but your problem if you can’t prove anything! I know,” he stated again, raising his claws in a calming manner when the growls around him got louder, “Candid Diversion is the creature who benefits from it the most, so he is the main suspect! But! He counts as innocent as long as you can’t bring forth any proof!”

“I will not allow this duel to continue if he is a suspect who may have poisoned my daughter!” Dad roared. “To dust with your rules! I am a dragon! I know the importance of rules and the binding of promises! However, no one so obvious to have done it will benefit from such an underclawed play! Someone has betrayed the duel! My daughter will not stand for such treachery!”

“What treachery?” Now Candid Diversion demanded to know. Unnoticed by us, he had made his way over and stepped next to us. “What kind of treachery are you talking about?” His gaze landed on me. “And you look terrible! What is going on here?”

“You poisoned my daughter!” Dad roared at him while making an attempt to rush towards him. Only the quick intervention of Bliz, Rapt Glance, and Fertile Desert, who all rushed into his way, prevented the situation from becoming worse.

“Poisoned?!” Candid Diversion exclaimed, shocked. I couldn’t tell if his reaction was true or not. “I didn't poison her! What foul accusation is that?”

“We know that she has been poisoned!” Bliz loudly said while trying to push Dad backwards, away from Candid. “We know the poison, and we know how she got it into her body!”

“We only need to figure out who did it!” Fertile Desert added.

“And you think I did it?”

“Well,” I snorted, trying to get some sense into my tongue again. “Who else profit from poisoning me?” My voice came out very mumbled and hard to understand.

“I didn't do it! Our judge checked my equipment. It was free of anything untoward! That’s why I came over in the first place! To find out what's going on here!”

“Nice story!” Bliz growled. “But we all know you are the only one who has the incentive and the will to do it!”

“This is nonsense!” Candid Diversion either played the innocent very well, or… A pinch of doubt came to my mind regarding if he really had done it.

“You will not benefit from this!” Dad stated clearly. “I forbid this duel from continuing till we have proven your guilt!”

“But I am innocent!” Candid stomped a hoof. “I had nothing to do with this! And the rules of our duel are crystal clear! You have no say in this, Mr. dragon!”

A sudden push by Dad forced my three kirins towards Candid, who quickly took several large steps back.

“Don’t you intimidate him any further, Mr. Big Softy!” Allerian had suddenly found the courage to speak up. “He is right about the rules! If you do, or if you sabotage this duel in any way, Fiery counts as having lost it!”

With a loud cough, Caustic Mercy announced that he wanted to say a few words. Being a priest of Hades, it was guaranteed that he would garner at least a bit of attention. “It indeed seems unwise and not justified to let this duel continue with one of the main challengers being under suspicion of having used poison on the other.” He let his words linger in the air for a moment to let them have more of an effect. “However, this is a problem that can be solved right here and now.”

We all looked at him.

“If you really are innocent, and willing to prove it, I can help with that.”

“I… am innocent.” Candid stated, though with caution in his voice. His face clearly displayed the fear he held for a priest of Hades.

“Then you would surely be willing to swear to it while your hoof rested upon Lord Hades altar? Or better said, in the absence of one, on the tip of my staff?” He slowly pulled it out of, what looked to me, thin air. The gesture was not wasted on many of us.

“I don’t want to be cursed or anything,” Candid said slowly. “This doesn’t sound like a good idea, putting my hoof on that staff. I am also not a follower of Hades.”

“This doesn’t matter,” Caustic assured him. “You don’t need to believe to face the consequences, which would be quite devastating, if your sworn truth is instead a lie. On the other hoof, no negative consequences shall befall you, neither for your lack of faith, nor your hoof on the staff -” He paused for a second. “- if you are innocent of the crime you are being accused of.”

Now our gazes switched to Candid. Truth be told, even I would fear laying my claw on that staff, innocent or not!

As was to be expected, he hesitated.

“Seems like you are guilty after all!” Bliz growled.

“I am not!” He looked at Caustic Mercy and his staff. “I just have… respect for Hades and his priests.”

“Respect is in order,” Caustic Mercy agreed. “I can assure you though, no harm to you shall follow if you speak the truth while your hoof is on the staff. You have my word as a priest of Lord Hades.”

“I see it as my duty to inform you,” Allerian intervened, “that you don’t have to do this, Candid Diversion. While there might be a suspicion about your involvement in all this, there is no real proof speaking against you yet. Even if you deny to swear this as truth while touching the staff, no one has the right to deny you your duel at this point.”

Surprisingly, this had the opposite effect. Candid Diversion face hardened. His stance became more firm. “No! I won’t let any doubt linger over my honor!” He stepped forward. “I had nothing to do with any of this! I suggested this battle to save our merriments! I will not allow any shadow of doubt to remain about my honesty!” He looked straight at Dad. “And I wouldn’t poison half a child to have an advantage in a fair duel! I will claim the right to be the winner of this duel with fair means!” His gaze wandered to Caustic Mercy. “If you swear I have nothing to worry about if I speak the truth, I will swear, with my hoof on the staff, that this wasn’t my doing!”

“Very well,” Caustic Mercy nodded. “So be it!” He raised his staff into the air, and with one swing of it, a black blanket rolled out before him. He then stepped forward and placed his staff upright in the middle of it. “Candid Diversion,” he said formally, “place your hoof on the top of the staff Lord Hades granted me, swear you have nothing to do with the poisoning of Fiery Leadership, and you shall not endure any negative consequences. If you speak the truth.”

Candid Diversion stepped forward.

“Be aware though,” Caustic Mercy spoke up one last time. “If you don’t tell the truth, your body will fall to the ground, lifeless as dust before the last breath has even left your lungs.”

Candid Diversion gulped. He stepped onto the blanket, staring at the black staff before him. He stretched his hoof out, hovering above its top for a second. I derived a pinch of satisfaction at seeing the bloody bandages around his wrist. “If I do this, if I free myself from any shadow of doubt. No one -” He looked at Dad “- will question my right for this duel to continue. If I have proven my innocence, by the rules we are bound to, the duel will continue.”

Dad’s gaze moved over to me. It was clear that he knew what this would mean should it be the case that Candid Diversion was indeed uninvolved in this. He growled unhappy. He had warned me about this. I had given my word to fight this duel. Pacta sunt servanda! As much as he may want to, he couldn’t kill Candid DIversion just because he claimed me. His claws dug a furrow in the grass beneath himself.

“My daughter has given her word. I will honor her agreement if you are proven to be innocent,” Dad finally admitted.

Candid Diversion nodded, before looking at me.

I really had to fight an inner struggle to not express my displeasure, but, as unfair as it seemed, if he really was innocent… it was his right to demand this duel continue. If only I had phrased the rules better! Or had put more thought into what could have gone wrong! I couldn’t change it now though. One's word was one of the most important things you could give! Even it was inconvenient at the moment. Very inconvenient. This rule had also saved Mom’s life. Twice if we were to be nitpicky…

I sighed weakly. Then nodded.

“Good,” Candid Diversion said and placed his hoof on the staff. Instantly, all of us could feel a new presence among us. Hades, Lord of the Underworld, was listening it seemed.

“I, Candid Diversion, hereby swear the following! Until our judge for this duel, Allerian, came to me to inspect my equipment, I had no clue nor wisdom about the poisoning of Fiery Leadership! It was not done at my bidding, nor with my blessing! I neither ordered it, nor had any knowledge of it before Allerian came over a moment ago!” He paused and considered his words carefully. “And if some of my kirins had approached me with the idea of poisoning her, I would have denied them going forward with it! This I swear! And may I drop dead if this is a lie!”

After his last words, Candid Diversion looked into the sky. His gaze determined, his posture mostly steady, but his tail remained close to being tucked.

On this day, however, no strike of lighting hit him, nor did the earth below him open to drag him into the underworld. Not even the darkness or whispers of Hades temple appeared out of thin air. In fact, nothing happened at all.

Ponyfeathers…

*

The uproar following Candid Diversions declaration was loud and angry, but ultimately nonviolent. Nocreature dared to doubt Hades' judgment of his innocence.

Whoever had poisoned me. It hadn't been him.

“Well, with that out of the way,” Candid Diversion gave a slight nod to Caustic Mercy and stepped off the blanket. “It is time for your surrender now.” He stopped in front of me.

“No one said anything about surrendering!” I pressed out while I rose wobbly to my hooves and claws again. “I still can scratch your eyes out, if I have to.” It was an empty threat. I knew I could barely stand. but there was no chance I was just going to submit to him!

I could clearly read in his face that he thought the same, and so did Calmly, while Roary at least supported my will to fight.

“Come on!” I nodded in the direction of the center of the ring. “What are we waiting for?”

Not only him, but many creatures looked at me with pity in their eyes now.

“We don’t have to do this,” he said. “Let me just claim you and get it over with.”

I stumbled towards the center of the ring. “If you insist on fighting our duel…” I stopped and caught my breath. “Even though you know someone poisoned me. Then I will… not spare… you the bad conscience!”

“Claiming a poisoned teenager in a formal duel does throw a bad light on your reputation,” Caustic Mercy stated. “Though, that is to be expected of an azure I suppose.”

Candid Diversion threw a glance over his shoulder back at him. His gaze shifted to the ground for a few seconds before he straightened himself and followed me.

“If you treat my daughter badly, I will kill you.” Dad growled, bringing his head close to Candid Diversion. “I will not harm you for claiming her, since that was your deal, but I will impale you like a cheese stick if you let something happen to her!”

“No threatening!” Allerian said quietly, rubbing over his wing joint.

“This is not a treat! It is a promise!” Dad spit a lance of fire into the air. “The duel will be honored, but this I say as her father! Mark my words, kirin! I will hold you responsible for my daughter’s well being! Don’t even think about sending her into danger!”

“You couldn’t even protect her from being poisoned!” Candid Diversion spat back. “You failed at protecting her! This is on you! Not me!”

Dad burst forward, his claw raised and his fangs glittering in the sun. Half an inch, he came to a halt half an inch in front of Candid Diversion’s face. His wing spike was twitching back and forth due to the inner battle he was fighting.

“Pacta sunt servanda!” Candid Diversion held Dad’s gaze and his head high. “I don’t intend to harm your bornling! But the rules are set, once I claim her, she is mine to command as I please!” He snorted. “But I will promise you this, Dragon! I will investigate who poisoned her! Be it one of your creatures or mine! And they will have to answer for their actions! This underhoofed play has no place in my merriment!”

Both Dad and him stared at each other after this statement. Only after the better part of a minute did Dad slowly retract his claw and closed his snout.

Without another word, Candid Diversion turned around and continued on his way, coming to a halt opposite me.

“Allerian!” He shouted.

Hesitantly, Allerian flew over and took position above us.

“Are both of you ready?” He asked mirthlessly.

We both nodded.

“Well, you know the procedure.” He plucked out a feather and threw it into the air.

Driven by the wind, it danced through the air. Almost playful, it rose and descended till, with some grace, it landed on top of the grass.

Both Candid Diversion and I stood there, motionless.

“Uhm, you may continue your battle,” Allerian made clear after a moment.

“I know,” Candid replied.

“What are you waiting for?” I wondered. With effort, I raised my wings. They felt like they weighed a ton. “This is what you wanted!” I had to spit on the ground. My breath was slow and heavy. “I would have… beaten you! Whoever… did this to me… saved your rule!”

He didn’t reply immediately. Instead, he looked to the side, towards the azure-mare holding his flag.

“Hey! I am here!” I mustered a growl.

Ignoring me, he kept his gaze on her, whatever she was to him. Only when she nodded did he turn back to me with a sigh. He didn’t say anything though, he just raised a hoof and waved me over to make the first move, still with pity in his eyes.

I stormed forward. Or to be more accurate, I stumbled slowly in his direction. I covered the small distance without falling to the side and even managed to lift my claw for a strike.

He just stepped to the side.

I tried again with my other claw. And once more, he just stepped aside.

“Come on!” I panted in anger. “Fight me!”

Another swing of my claw followed, and another. He kept his distance with ease. We proceed this way, me attempting an attack and him, him just avoiding me like a ventalas would avoid a dragon. In just a few minutes, my strength was depleted and I had to take a seat, followed by me laying down on the grass.

Only then, when I had no power to fight any further, did he step next to me. He didn’t attack me though. He simply took a seat as well.

“You know, I had imagined this moment a little differently.”

“Me too,” I replied.

He rubbed over his nose. “Conquer your merriment as a leader of my army, overwhelm you with wit and strategy. That was what I had in mind. Or, when the situation changed, beat you in a fair battle, kirin versus kirin, azure versus azure.”

I rolled on my side to look him in the face. “Like when you told… your kirins… to break my legs…?”

He scrunched his face. “Yeah, not my best moment.” He took a few seconds to look over both of our merriments, watching us silently. “I guess you’ve also done some things you normally wouldn’t have even considered before since the Call hit you, right?”

“I surely… wouldn’t be out here… weeks away from home… in the middle of nowhere… for sure.”

“You know what I mean. The Call has changed some things. Not all for the worst, sure, but still. A month ago I wouldn't have thought I would ever lead an army of kirins. Not to mention be trying to rebuild an empire on my own.”

I coughed.

Candid Diversion looked at me. “You need some rest. Best for us to get this over it.” He rose up and brought his head closer to mine. “I will find whoever poisoned you, I can assure you that much. I am quite sure it wasn’t one of my kirins, so since you have some other species in your merriment as well, I think I best start with them. If there is anything you want to tell me about your merriment while you’re still not claimed, now’s the time.”

“Let yourself be… surprised.” I was able to form a small smile. “Wait till my… mom hears about you claiming… me.”

The look of bewilderment on his face was priceless. He didn’t know Mom. He was also not sure if I’d lost it by now or not, given I was poisoned after all.

In the end he just shook his head and pressed his forehead against mine.

*

I laid next to the living room table. The comforting smell and feeling of home around me. If I didn’t know what would follow, it would have been quite relaxing.

Slowly, I crawled to the main corridor. Candid Diversion, along with his two advisors, stood there, waiting for me. With some grim satisfaction, I noticed his unicorn advisor didn’t look any better than me. He had a bandage around his chest and he needed the wall to not fall over. Soon after my arrival, Calmly and Roary entered the main corridor. Calmly crawling as I had, while Roary, at least, stood on his claws, though his wings hung limp by his side and his claws scratched over the ground as he moved.

“If you would be so kind as to step aside,” Candid requested. “This fight is over and we all know it. Nobody but us is watching anymore.”

“Not a chance,” I replied, pulling myself up by using my claws on the nearest wall.

“I get it!” Candid Diversion groaned. “You have your honor filly! No one doubts that! But this is becoming ridiculous!” He swept his foreleg across the whole lair. “No one is watching anymore. There is no need to prove anything. Just let us pass and let me claim you.”

I knew he was right. Any resistance I put up would be completely senseless. Still, I had to do this for myself! I wouldn’t just submit to my fate!

I raised one claw threateningly.

“Apt Tactician, would you be so kind…?” He asked.

His azure advisor stepped forward. She just pushed Roary into one of the connected rooms, ignoring his attempts to scratch over her scales as she did so. Once he was fully inside of it, she gave him another push, and he landed on his tail. She was even so polite as to close and lock the door behind her when she came back. Soon after, I heard Roary start slashing at the door. It was a solid door though, and Roary was not in any condition to smash through from the inside.

“It will not hold forever, he is an azure after all, but for our purpose, it will do,” she said.

“Very well, I agree, it should provide us with enough time. Let’s move forward.”

On their way, they of course passed by Calmly. While Candid Diversion and his azure-advisor just passed her, his pony-advisor stopped.

“Hitting me with a spear, huh?” He lifted a hoof to give Calmly a kick, but when Candid Diversion noticed, he forcefully roared him down.

“Don’t you dare!” he shouted. “We will not stain our honor by attacking a helpless opponent!”

“But she…”

“Silence! This is not our achievement! Someone else did the work for us, so we will not exploit it more than we have to!”

His advisor snorted.

“Sorry about that,” Candid Diversion said in my direction. This little incident didn’t stop him from sending his azure to stand on my claw while he passed by though. Despite my condition, I elected to bite her claw, but all I got was this same gaze of pity everyone had given me lately. I didn’t even crack any of her scales.

“Would you mind…?” He asked, with Apt Tactician just nodding. She took a seat with my fangs still around her claw and waited. Helpless, I had to watch as the other two made their way towards my room.

“He is a good leader, you will see,” the azure said to me. “And he will find who poisoned you.”

I continued nibbling on her claw, till, a moment later, I felt a new presence in my inner core and the world faded into a blur.

***

Author's Note

Hey guys! So, tried to speed up my writing a bit!
I hope the chapter holds up to the standart even with only half of the usual writing time

Let me know if something is out of the usual, and I hope I can hold up the pace as well