"If you ask me again if I've found anything, I swear to the gods I'll chop you up and eat you for dinner," Samantha said warningly, looking at her brother.

The two of them were in Laveau Hall's library, searching through piles of dusty books and old cases, to no avail. The library was impressive, though, even by her standards- which were high, considering she had lived in both the Wind Castle and Joie Hall. It was a huge room with a high, vaulted ceiling and two floors of books, arranged in neat aisles that cut around a large space in the middle filled with tables and chairs. Walkways cut through the space on the second floor, connecting one side of the room to the other.

Adrian looked unimpressed with her threat. "I just don't see the point of this. Kaly assigned us to the research part of the mission, but in the five days since it was announced, we have literally found nothing. Nada."

He was right, but Samantha was never going to admit it. "Your Spanish sucks," she said instead, turning her nose up. "Besides, what else are we supposed to do? We have to wait for Sophia and those two to get back."

Loren's voice drifted from the far side of the aisle they were in, barely discernible despite the quiet. "I think we should try to focus. There has to be something related to the case."

Adrian frowned at Samantha. "Hey, didn't Kaly tell you to meet with Rousseau's team?"

Her eyes widened. She'd forgotten. "Shit." Scrambling to her feet, she began to race down the steps of the library to the first floor, asking a passing Elementale for directions to Rousseau's team.

Rousseau himself seemed to be waiting for her as she skidded to a halt at the entrance to the hallway, gasping for ear. Jesus Christ, Laveau was big.

"Ms. Corentine," he said, and his voice was thick with a French accent. "I've been waiting for you. Please, sit."

She did, lowering herself into the seat across from him. Rousseau wasn't a big man, but he was intimidating: white hair, pale blue eyes, stern wrinkles deep-set into his skin. He wore horn-rimmed glasses, his eyes startlingly large behind them.

"I heard you were searching for information about the Aurore case," Rousseau said, steepling his finger before him. "What are you looking to gain from me?"

Samantha shifted, uncomfortable under his scrutinizing gaze. She forced herself to look him in the eye. "Just anything you can tell me," she said. "Anything you or your team found out when investigating the case?"

He leaned back, exhaling. "Keep in mind we were only assigned this case for a couple of days, and I will not be able to tell you much."

"Anything you can is fine," Samantha said quickly.

Rousseau's chair squeaked under him as he leaned further back, his eyes so pale Samantha began to question if he was blind. And then she automatically wonder if it was rude to think that way. "Most of our investigation consisted of research through the archives and the volumes in the library," Rousseau finally said, looking Samantha directly in the eye. "We didn't find much, like I said, but we were able to discover some parts of Aurore's history."

Samantha leaned forward, in case she missed a part of his words. "Did you hear of the Kiran Rebellion?" he asked, looking over his horn-rimmed glasses at her. She nodded; Kaly had taught them the Kiran Rebellion in first-year.

Looking satisfied, Rousseau said, "Seven centuries ago, Jilian Ardere rebelled against her father, the King, with half the kingdom at her side. If you remember, he had wanted to use the Fire Stone for himself." Samantha nodded again. Jilian had overthrown her father, set herself as Queen, and hidden the Stone in an attempt to prevent others like her father from finding it.

"A few weeks ago," Rousseau continued, "My team and I found evidence that the Stone had been found, by a mortal explorer two centuries ago. In Aurore."

Samantha frowned. "Where did you find this?"

"Buried under a stack of old case files. He took it and re-buried it somewhere in the town, in an attempt to hide it from smugglers and the like, but he died before he could dig it up again. That stone is the only thing related to Elementales in a hundred mile radius from Aurore. It may be the reason the Viperi are there."

Samantha's phone rang then, and she jumped, a flush immediately rising in her cheeks. Fumbling for her phone, she slid it out and checked the Caller ID. Adrian. "I'm sorry, I have to get this," she apologized to Rousseau. "Thanks, though."

Pushing back her chair, she exited the hallway, putting her phone to her ear. "What is it? I just talked to Rousseau and he actually-"

"They're back," Adrian interrupted, his voice crackling on the other end. "Valentino, Sophia, and James. They just came back."

❅ ❅ ❅ ❅ ❅

The impact knocked the breath out of her as she rolled onto hard wood floor. She was still gasping, her breath coming out in short, fast pants. There was a burning pain in her side too, and her fingers came away red with blood when she touched it. Nausea rolled in her stomach.

As her surroundings came into sharper detail, Sophia realized that she was in a library, lying on a scuffed oak floor with a balcony to her back. The dim yellow light hanging from the ceiling seemed to flare up for a second, and Sophia sat up, squinting.

There were people around her; she could recognize Kaly, Adrian, Loren, and Samantha, worry lines creasing their faces. She craned her neck, spotting James kneeling beside Valentino's still form, talking urgently with Kaly. Samantha glanced up when Sophia sat up, rushing over in a flurry of brown hair and gray clothes. "Sophia! Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

Sophia struggled to stand, the Armouri blades still clutched in her hands. She reached back, gasping as a sharp pain shot through her side as she slammed one sword into its sheath, the other one still gripped in her hand. "How's Valentino?" she asked, rising unsteadily to her feet.

Samantha glanced behind her, mouth set. "He'll be fine. Kaly thinks the blade of the knife is made of the same metal Viperi claws are made of, though, so they're taking him to the infirmary for now." She shot a quick glance at Sophia's side. "You should probably get cleaned up."

Sophia ignored her, striding towards the others, all circled around Valentino and James. James was kneeling beside the other boy, tension evident in the lines of his body. Sophia realized with a start that he was still holding the Fire Stone, the blood-orange glow of the stone seeping through his fingers.

They all looked up when Sophia approached, but she ignored them, gaze dropping down to the wound the knife had made in Valentino's chest. The sight made her want to gag. The skin where the knife had punctured it was ragged and gray, streaks of dark purple emerging from it like spidery veins. The bleeding had stopped, though the wound was still raw and red, the skin around it coated in crimson.

Sophia realized she had probably made a noise in her throat, because James turned to look at her, worry lines visible on his face. "Are you hurt?"

Sophia's breath rattled in her chest, her gaze still trained on Valentino, but she just shook her head. "Don't worry about it."

James's sword was still gripped in his hand, as though to prevent it from shaking. He looked pale and weary, his gaze unfocused and drifting from place to place. There was anguish in his eyes, well-hidden but still visible to Sophia. He gave her a quick once-over, and she could see him taking note of her injuries. Rising to his feet, he placed the blade of his sword gently on her skin and whispered, "Percuro."

Immediately, the pain vanished, the wounds closing up and leaving fresh scars in their place. Sophia felt her body sag, tension she didn't even know she had seeping out of it the way she imagined water evaporated in air. Moving to stand in front of her, Samantha removed the remaining sword from Sophia's hand and slipped it into its sheath. "Get cleaned up," she said firmly, gaze steady on her. "You'll feel better, I promise."

Sophia, dragging her gaze from the gruesome wound, nodded, feeling distinctly separated from her body. She felt as if she could see her body moving, and yet her mind felt detached from it. She barely even felt herself moving, taking lurching steps towards the team's hallway.

Samantha was right; the shower did make her feel better. Sophia peeled off her dirtied lightsuit, scrubbing the blood- both wet and dried- from her body and watching the water run red with it beneath her. The warmth of the water seemed to bring feeling back into her bones, her mind beginning to awaken from its shock.

Samantha was waiting for her when she came out, speaking into her phone with a soft, urgent voice. She looked up when Sophia came out, abruptly ending the call.

"Was that James?" Sophia asked, feeling droplets of water slip off the ends of her hair and soaking the material of her tank top.

Samantha nodded. "Singh took the Fire Stone; she's taking it to Asteri, to the Principatus." She hesitated. "There was something about the Viperus's blade that seems to slow healing mystiks, but James said they're beginning to work. Valentino's not awake yet, but the wound isn't looking so bad anymore." Sophia nodded. This was good. Samantha continued, "James and Adrian are with him now, but the medics are going to be taking a look at him soon. Loren and Kaly took a Gateway back to Aurore-"

Sophia's voice lashed like a whip through the air. "What?"

"They wanted to assess the field, see if anything was left there including the Viperi. They took a few Elementales from Rousseau's team as well, though, so they should be fine."

Sophia hoped so, but she didn't respond. Fatigue was beginning to rush over her like a wave, pulling at her like a rope. Samantha must have noticed her eyelids beginning to droop, because she said, "Get some rest. We'll talk in the morning."

Sophia didn't argue, crawling into bed and drawing the covers tightly over her. Exhaustion wiped her mind blank as sleep pulled her into its depths.

A/N: hi!! hope you guys enjoyed and please don't forget to vote and comment <33 thank you!!

dedication: this one goes to haleylevan02!! thank you again for your consistent votes and comments haha :))