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"So once that is over, how do I know you won't just kill me off?"
Kaguyo was starting to get spooked now. She was picking up on things that Ainsu had warned her about. "You kill Ashuri, dominate Po-ar..... and then I'm useless."

Aled's presence was almost overwhelming to the young woman. She was still thinking this over completely before answering yes or no. "I'll never be able to be married to Ainsu, though..." Kaguyo whispered, and she could feel her heart sink. "I... I don't know..."
It was a tempting, tempting offer, but she wasn't sure if she could make such a profound vow to someone she didn't love. "I don't know if I could hurt him like that... He's been loyal to me today, Aled..." she whispered. "He means it..."
At least she thought he did. She never knew how he felt about Shinsu, the poor girl... Aled was still covered in her blood, she could smell it.
She wished she could have been there to know.
It didn't matter either way, unfortunately. By this time, if she decided to full-out escape, she had to outrun Aled...
Nearly impossible...
And make it back to the ship on time...
Also, nearly impossible.
Kaguyo was cornered.

"Ainsu...?" Kaguyo found herself answering him on reflex, "Daijoubuka??"
But her gaze always returned to the man before her; it was hard not to. She took a deep breath before looking to Aled.
"Tell me." she spoke quietly, "In the time I have been gone, did anything happen that would have made me kill him?"
In otherwords, did he show any signs of betraying her?
This was the last question she would ask, this much was clear.

One could feel the intensity at which Kaguyo's heart dropped----it was taking absolutely everything she had not to cry. "Then yes, I accept your proposal." she answered him rapidly, "You can keep him in the dungeon for all I care..."
Rebuilding the walls was going to be hard, but she was already restarting again. She moved to walk past him, away from Ainsu and Shinsu. "At least see to it that she gets a proper burial somewhere." she added.
She was too broken to be cruel right now, but she wasn't going to stay that way for long. She felt like such an idiot...
"I should have known better than to trust him." she murmured darkly, although it was more aimed at herself. "I should have known..."

When she returned to the palace, there was one thing Kaguyo hadn't done save one other time in her stay there....
Drink. She went through the storehouses and grabbed multiple bottles, deciding to have a go at them all; miserable wasn't the half of it.
She'd been passed up for a younger woman. Was she really getting that old??
This instance had brought up several questions to Kaguyo's pride and self-esteem; why wasn't she good enough for him?
"b*****d..." she murmured under her breath, starting straight from a bottle. She couldn't find the glasses...
She was too upset. Her shoulders and neck were tense, she could hardly breathe... She felt numb, and the fire of the alcohol was only helping her.
She didn't know what else to do, frankly.

"What the hell do you think?!" Kaguyo snapped, wiping her eyes.
She had gone through a bottle already, and was working on the second; his smile annoyed the hell out of her right now. "I hate him... I hate him..."
She'd been crying, another thing that for all her years under Aled had only happened once....
And, likewise, it had been when she found herself betrayed by Ainsu.
She wanted comfort, now, and this was something she easily found in the bottles. They made her numb to the even deeper wound she'd been nursing all this time.
She wanted to be healed of it.
"I hate him more than I hated you..." she added, sniffling, "I hate him.."
The poor thing was absolutely distraught.

Strangely, Kaguyo didn't shrug his hands away. "I won't let him see me this way..." she broke down sobbing, spilling a bit of wine. She caught this mistake and caught herself from repeating it, taking another long draught. "I don't know if I ever want to see him again, Aled."
Absolutely, utterly heartbroken. "I feel like such a fool..." she wept, "I should have known..."

Taj grimaced and thought carefully. "I don't know.." he answered honestly. "He may have returned to the hideout, or he may be out looking for shards... I just recieve orders."
"Wrong answer." Gwyllion answered, yanking out more of the poisonous guts. "We want you to be positive."
"I CAN'T OFFER ANYTHING ELSE!" the snake hissed, barely able to endure this sort of treatment. Already there were entrails over the ground---the stick had run out of room.
Gwyllion made use of his sword, instead.

Gwyllion laughed as if she was crazy. "Given the damage I've done, we would need someone far more skilled in healing than I am." he reminded her. "I'm a fighter, not a healer."
Taj was in absolute agony--- Gwyllion had already started to cut up his entrails, and blood and acid were leaking everywhere. "Leave him. I know where the base is."