The Elder was wearing jade robes like usual that matched his skin and made him look more like a paper doll than a three-dimensional being. Ropes of silvery hair whipped around his face as he landed before settling on his shoulders with more calmness than I felt. His phantasm eyes spanned the scene in front of him for a split second, and then his lip lifted in a sneer of derision.

“We are working hard, I see,” he commented rudely.

Zuran got to his feet gracefully, and the hoard of sand I’d tossed at him fell from his lap in a shower of shimmery golden grains. I clambered up too, much less elegantly than he had, and disregarded the fact he’d destroyed part of my castle. Sandcastles weren’t a priority anymore because, if the news was good, we’d probably celebrate and, if it was bad, Zuran would likely demolish the rest.

“You have news of Venan?” Zuran asked. I noticed he chose not to address Sevani’s snide remark, which I appreciated because a fight with an Elder was the last thing he needed right now.

“I do,” Sevani said. “Let us convene inside.”

“Has he been cleared?” Zuran pressed, stepping forward in earnest.

Sevani’s eyes narrowed. “I will tell you what the Council has decided if you will kindly join me indoors,” he firmly said. It was phrased as a simple statement, but I knew by his tone he meant it as an order.

Zuran bristled, his shoulders squaring slightly, but he didn’t argue. “Then, indoors we will go,” came his tight-lipped reply. He turned toward me and extended an arm, and, as I stepped forward, he looped it around my waist. Sevani eyed us critically, but I didn’t flinch or shrink back in shame. The Elders may have held a lot of power, but they weren’t going to tell me who I could or couldn’t date.

We entered the hospital, Zuran and I first with Sevani following. Initially, nobody looked up, but when Sevani breezed past us to take the lead toward the conference room, his sweeping robes captured the attention of the pair of healers bending over a Novai. They stared after us, and I heard them muttering something to each other in A’li-uud. Antoinette was assisting Dr. Griep with taking another patient’s vitals, and she noticed the Elder’s presence too.

“What is he doing here?” she mouthed to me.

I jerked my head pointedly toward Zuran and mouthed back, “His brother.”

Her lips formed an O, and she nodded in understanding before turning back to Dr. Griep.

The conference room was as dark as always, but Sevani lit the torch in the corner so I could at least see his and Zuran’s faces. Once we were all seated, Sevani at the head and Zuran and I on either side of him, I folded my hands in my lap and waited. The tension was palpable, and Zuran was practically turning turquoise from gritting his teeth so hard.

“The Council has made its ruling in Venan’s case,” Sevani began. He spoke with the same kind of grandeur as Vi’den, but he sounded much less friendly doing it. If I had to equate the two A’li-uud to something, Vi’den would’ve been the college professor who genuinely wanted his students to succeed and Sevani would’ve been the drill sergeant whose goal was to break everyone down so he could build them back up the way he wanted.

Zuran leaned forward. “And?”

With a poorly-hidden grimace, the Elder said, “He has been cleared of the murder charge.”

I felt a swoop of joy, and I swiveled my gaze from Sevani’s crude face to Zuran. A grin was slowly spreading over his thin, carved lips. His sugar-white irises were flickering a reflection of the torch flames, but I could see smugness swirling deep within his pupils. This news not only validated Venan, but it also validated Zuran. He was able to boast a big, fat “I told you so” without argument, though I hoped he wouldn’t because I doubted Sevani would receive it with any kind of grace.

It was very clear the Elder had not voted in favor of Venan, and his displeasure in the ruling dominated his shimmering face. His mouth was turned down sharply enough to create deep creases along his cheeks to his chin, and the pearliness of his eyes was marred with smoky disapproval. He glared at Zuran as if it had been him instead of the Council to make the decision, but the glower was also a warning to Zuran not to brag. His fingers tapped the table top irritably.

“Have you released him yet?” Zuran inquired. I was glad he asked a reasonable question instead of gloating.

“Yes,” Sevani answered shortly. “This morning.”

If he’d been a human, I could’ve imagined Zuran pumping his fist and jumping into the air to click his heels together with happiness at that moment. Like a guy who’d finally gotten that promotion he’d worked so hard for or a guy who finally got a date with the woman he’d been into for months. He was utterly glowing. He probably could have competed with the blue light in the underground lair for the title of “brightest in the room.”

“And everything is as it was?” Zuran continued.

Sevani crooked a brow. “I should think not. An Elder is dead. Dhal’at is without its leader.”

“But Venan will retain his rank in the militia?”

A muscle ticked in Sevani’s jaw, and I heard his teeth scraping together. “Venan will return to his post in the same position, yes,” he replied. He sounded far from satisfied with the outcome.

Zuran nodded. He was definitely satisfied with the outcome, elated even. He sat back in his chair and propped his arms up behind his head like he was lounging, much to the annoyance of Sevani, who made a small snarling noise in his throat. I didn’t know if the Council member thought Zuran was being disrespectful—which, to some extent, maybe he was—but I knew Zuran wouldn’t care either way, and I didn’t blame him. Venan wasn’t my brother, and I’d never even exchanged a word with him, but I was thrilled. I never felt Venan deserved to be in prison in the first place.

“Well, I certainly appreciate your making the journey to tell me,” Zuran said with a grin. His hubris was radiating from him, and he met my gaze. I saw the familiar glint in his eye. He wanted Sevani to leave because he was going to use my body for celebration. Hot slickness pooled in my panties, and I suddenly too wished the Elder would get up and go.

“That is not the only reason I have come.”

I heard car brakes squealing on pavement in my mind, and my arousal was immediately tamped. Zuran still sat with his hands behind his head, but he’d become still. I hoped our good news wasn’t about to become the preface to something awful.

“As you were told upon receiving your assignments here, treatment facilities have been established all across Albaterra to research and cure this Novain disease,” Sevani told us.

“Mutacorpathy,” I interjected.

He turned his gaze toward me without moving his head. “Excuse me?”

“Mutacorpathy,” I repeated. “It’s the name we came up with for the disease.”

For a minute, his eyes blazed with my interruption, and I wondered if I’d overstepped my bounds. Then, he inclined his head slightly and said, “Mutacorpathy. Anyway, those staffed at these various facilities have, like you, been compiling data about the illness to establish common symptoms and development in the hopes of identifying a potential treatment, or cure if possible.” He was speaking directly to me as if Zuran wasn’t in the room, though I preferred to think he did so because I was the one with the medical experience rather than because he was trying to snub Zuran. “Like you, the others have been unsuccessful. After speaking with you at the trial, the Council decided it was time to look into other options.”

“What other options are there besides doing everything possible to stop it from spreading to others and progressing in those who have it?” Zuran asked.

Sevani looked at him reluctantly. It was clear the Elder would have rather pretended Zuran didn’t exist. “That was the topic of discussion in our latest Forum,” he returned. “And we have come to an agreement.”

“And what might that be?”

With a grim expression, Sevani announced, “The Council has decided that an A’li-uud representative, you, and a medical expert working on the case, you,”—he turned to me—“will be sent to the Novai mother ship.”