Chapter Two (Part 1)

Abdos was definitely a sight for sore eyes. Glittering white stone buildings rose up on either side of the river like the bleached bones of gigantic beasts. Narrow cobblestone paths led throughout the city, connecting to all manner of homes, offices, restaurants, and so on. In the distance, I could see miles of open fields bordering the river, farmhands hard at work cultivating their crops. An open-air market was set up on one side of the river selling all manner of fruits and vegetables, and there were a few uncomfortably empty stalls that had obviously used to sell fresh fish, but given the situation, they must be banned from doing so at the moment.

There were a variety of creatures living in the god realm aside from the gods themselves. Usually, the creatures that inhabited a particular god’s kingdom were created by that god. Kind of like having a lot of children, but they weren’t related to you or each other, and they weren’t gods. They usually lived very long lives, but they weren’t immortal. Only gods and demigods had that luxury.

The creatures that Nen had created were called Abdosians, in reference to the city they inhabited. Nen had created them with farmwork in mind, so they tended to be muscular and hardworking, even the children.

This was proven to me when I watched two young boys, not more than eight years old at the most, hoist a whole donkey upside down over their heads, laughing at the way it brayed in terror.

Okay…what the actual fuck.

Nen shook his head fondly at their antics and stepped up next to me on the shore of the river, Idris close behind him. The Dawn River was deep, slow-flowing, and filled with a plethora of fish and other creatures. Or, it used to be. As I looked down into the clear waters, I couldn’t spot a single fish swimming by, not even a corpse.

Nen seemed to sense the direction of my thoughts. “I had the fishermen drag all the dead fish out of the water. None have traveled here from elsewhere in the river, which only tells me this part, at least, is still being poisoned. I checked the waters in Lam, but the fish populations are thriving there, so the contamination must be coming from here.”

Lam was Amani’s kingdom, and it was just upriver of Abdos, so if they weren’t experiencing the same problem, then yeah, the poison was being added to the water somewhere between there and here.

Idris frowned and crossed his arms over his chest, peering into the water as well. “Has anyone noticed any strange activity along the river recently? Perhaps someone on a boat.”

That would make sense. If someone was releasing poison from a boat, it would be a lot easier to spread throughout the river without being detected, but Nen shook his head.

“I ordered all boats to dock after we noticed the contamination. No one has been out on the water for days, so if it was someone on a boat, there would have been enough time for the river to flush the poison out by now.”

Well. This was riveting. Really, watching them scratch their heads was mildly entertaining. But it was really hot here and I was starting to sweat through my black, V-neck long-sleeved shirt. Both Nen and Idris were wearing sleeveless shirts, in brown and white respectively. Nen, because he was used to living in hot conditions, and Idris…well, he just wanted an excuse to show off his arms.

Wanting to get this over with as soon as possible, I crouched on the shore of the river to dip my hand in the water. Well, it didn’t burn my skin on contact. That narrowed it down a bit. I sniffed, trying to find a sulfuric odor, but all I picked up was the scent of the water itself, and death from all the fish corpses that had started decaying in there before they were dragged out.

Hmm. Curious.

Not really thinking about it, I cupped some water in my palms and brought it to my mouth, gulping it down without hesitation.

“Rook!” Idris shouted, and I flinched. What was he whining about now? I looked up to glare at him, only to find him much closer than before, on his knees next to me on the shore, looking absolutely horrified.

What? What was his problem? Oh, sorry my king, did I need to ask your permission to do my job or something?

Except, when I glanced past him at Nen, he also looked about ready to grab me away from the river like the water was going to reach out and bite me. I raised an eyebrow at them before looking back to the water. Did they see a crocodile or something?

“Rook,” Idris said again, urgently, “it’s poisoned. Why the hell are you drinking it? Do you feel okay?”

I stared at him, for once so baffled that I forgot to avoid his eyes. Was he stupid or something?

I snorted, letting the rest of the water flow out of my palms. “Relax. I live in the venomous forest. I grew up eating and drinking toxic shit. Whatever’s killing your fishies is hardly a concern to me.”

Idris and Nen both paused at that. Nen seemed to accept it easily, stepping back with a shrug. Idris, however, continued to stare at me with an unreadable expression that I ignored in favor of running my tongue around my mouth, chasing after that odd aftertaste. It wasn’t quite metallic, like blood. It had a bit more bite to it than that. And yet, it was a taste that most people wouldn’t notice. I only identified it because I’d tasted it before.

It took me a moment to remember it. It had been such a long time since I’d encountered it.

“It’s Butterfly Root. It’s native to the swamplands on the outer reaches of the venomous forest. Butterfly Root only grows in water, and as it grows, it releases a toxin that infuses with the water. So, my guess? Someone uprooted a bunch of them and replanted them somewhere along the riverbed. The only question is where.”

Nen rubbed a hand over his jaw thoughtfully. “If that’s the case, then we’ll have to send some teams down there to find it and uproot it. I’m assuming it’s shaped like a butterfly if it’s called Butterfly Root?”

I shrugged, standing up, and Idris followed. Good. It was getting real uncomfortable having him up in my business like that. And I would stick my foot somewhere real uncomfortable if he didn’t stop looking at me like I’d just breathed fire. It was some poisoned water, so what? Overdramatic much?

“Kind of,” I said. “They’re dark blue in color and look like a couple sweet potatoes fused together, but with vines and shit coming out of them all over. I was young when I decided on the name, so sue me.”

“You named it?” Idris asked quietly. I blinked at him, confused, then scowled.

…Did someone suck his brains out his ear or something?

“Do you know of anyone else living in the venomous forest? I named everything in there. What, you think I got a fucking botanist from the mortal realm to come in and tell me what to name shit?”

Idris shook his head calmly. He was always calm with me, no matter how I spat at him, and it just pissed me off more. Get mad, damn it.

“It’s not that. I just wasn’t aware of how well you know the forest. I figured you stayed in your palace most of the time.”

I tsked, turning my nose up at him. “I do. Unfortunately, I’m immortal, so like. I have hobbies and shit. Whatever. Doesn’t matter. You need to find where the root has been planted and get rid of it. Also, sorry Nen, but it’ll probably be another few months before this water is drinkable again. The flow of the river will flush it out naturally, but it’ll take time for this kind of toxin.”

Nen nodded seriously, looking like he expected that, but then a furrow formed between his thick black eyebrows, creating a little lightning bolt wrinkle. “How long would you say it takes to plant Butterfly Root in water this deep?”

I frowned and squinted up the river through the bright-ass fucking sunlight. “About ten minutes for each root? Butterfly Root is pretty hardy and it latches onto where it’s planted without much pampering. But still, given that whoever planted it would have to be fully submerged in the river to do it, I would say that they either are incredible at holding their breath, or they can breathe underwater.”

Idris pursed his lips and nodded. “That narrows down the suspects, then. Nen, you should launch investigations into any residents in your city with water-based abilities, but be quiet about it. We don’t want them to make a run for it.”

Nen nodded and drifted away to speak in low tones to a group of guards that I only just noticed stationed behind us along the river. Nen’s guards wore the signature uniform of Abdos, a light body-hugging one-piece in shades of brown, white, and black with open sections around the waist, the legs ending at the calves. A few wore filmy headscarves to protect their face and neck from the harsh sunlight.

I watched him for a moment and felt a bead of sweat roll down my neck. Gods this weather was fucked. I preferred my temperate forest, even if it was toxic. And now I was bored. Can I go home yet?

Wrinkling my nose, I turned back only to see Idris staring at me. Fuck you want, bitch?

I crossed my arms and glared at him. “Can I go now?”

Idris took my tone in stride, not even flinching. “In a moment. Given that the Butterfly Root came from the venomous forest, I would suggest you also place some guards around the swamp it came from to make sure whoever did this doesn’t come back for more.”

Guards? I didn’t have guards. I had my Sublime Ones, but they stayed around my palace. Idris seemed to know that, however, because he put his hand up before I could open my mouth to chew him out.

“I understand you don’t keep guards. And I know you said you lived alone in the forest, but I know Peace and Wisdom are still there.”

I tensed. Of course, I knew he knew. He was one of the very few people who had seen my two wards, who knew of their existence, because he was one of exactly two gods who had ever been stupid enough to come into the forest to see me. The fact that he hadn’t told anyone else about them in all these years was a fucking miracle. After the… incident all those years ago, I had been so sure that he wouldn’t let me keep them. But he had, for some reason, and he hadn’t brought them up or tried to take them away from me.

But now he had brought them up, in the context of my having guards stationed around the swamp. No fucking way was I letting those two out there by themselves. Sure, they knew how to survive in the forest. They’d grown up there, but they’d had me protecting them whenever they left the palace. They weren’t my guards. They were practically my children.

Idris saw me bristling like a cat about to pounce and shook his head. “Whatever you’re thinking, that’s not it. I wanted to offer a few of my own guards to protect the area. I only mention Peace and Wisdom because I thought they may have noticed someone sneaking into the forest if you didn’t.”

Jaw clenched tight, I restrained the irrational urge to scratch his eyes out for even talking about them. “They wouldn’t have. They don’t leave the palace without me.”

“Even so,” Idris said, “I’d like you to ask. Just in case. I know that you didn’t do this, Rook, but you know as well as I that no one else will see it that way. It’s best we catch the one who did this before something worse than a few dead fish happens.”

I felt myself go cold at that, eyes narrowing darkly on Idris. “Are you suggesting Peace or Wisdom had something to do with this, you bastard?”