"You over-exert yourself, Highness," Hiroko's attendant protested as she knelt beside the pallet of the sick woman. The building, usually an office of the Riceflower Province Tax Authority, had been converted into a makeshift ward for the last week, filled with pallets and bedrolls occupied by the injured.

At first, most of the injuries had been trauma: broken bones, cuts, bites, the effects of the tower breach itself. Over the past week, some of them had healed, some had died, and some had been helped by Hiroko and others with skill at healing. Now, the ward, which two days ago had been nearly empty, was filling again, this time with victims of a sickness.

Hiroko felt the woman's forehead. She was warm, her skin clammy. The woman looked up at Hiroko and tried to say something. Hiroko shook her head. "Just rest," she said.

The sort of disaster that Vardin City had seen always brought with it illness. People were without homes, crowding together wherever they could. Sanitation systems were disrupted, and the decay and rot from the night of the tower breach took time to clear away. That gave plague plenty of opportunities to take hold.

Hiroko wasn't a healer; she had no talent with green lux beyond using is to weld other lux colors together. Green was the foundation of almost all healing techniques. But this was a variant on a blue lux pattern she knew intimately, the one she'd practiced a hundred times back in the broken tower with Chang-li and Joshi. Those memories felt so distant now, like they belonged to a different woman, one with more paths in life open to her than Hiroko had. No matter; the pattern remained, whatever else she might have lost.

Hiroko channeled blue lux. The pattern was simple to her now, though it had taken a few tries on the first few patients to get the right pattern. This plague was caused by thousands, perhaps millions, of tiny, invisible creatures that invaded the host's body and made them sick. Hiroko would never have believed it possible if she couldn't see it herself with her talents. But since she knew the cause, she could reverse it. These tiny creatures, like every other living thing, took in lux. Hiroko could use that.

She spun the pattern and laid it against the woman's face, where it clung for an instant before sinking in. Hiroko maintained her weave, cycling lux out of her right hand into the weave she'd inserted into her patient's body, pushing it through until it emerged again. There, she gathered the lux up with her left hand and cycled it back into herself. The pattern sought out the tiny hostile creatures and insidiously offered them traces of lux. Desperate for more sustenance, they opened themselves, and then she struck, pulling their own lux out of them and leaving them tiny shells, devouring thousands at a time. Their lux returned to her, replenishing what she had given off.

Hiroko kept up the pattern for long minutes as the tiny creatures fought against her. Sweat dripped down her face as she concentrated. Her attendant was plucking at her shoulder, but she ignored the older woman. Stopping her weave now could be disastrous. At last, her enemy was depleted, the last few creatures exploding in bursts of lux. Hiroko withdrew her weave and sat back on her heels, breathing deeply.

The patient looked up at her, eyes a little clearer, and managed to say, "My lady, whatever you did, I feel much better."

"You must rest," Hiroko told her, patting her on the shoulder. "Drink plenty of broth and tea. And don't try to get up for at least two days, or you may suffer a relapse." Hiroko's technique didn't heal, it merely removed the attackers. The woman would need to let her own body repair the damage.

"Yes, my lady." Gratitude crossed the woman's face, and she said, "How can I ever repay you, Princess?"

"You don't need to repay me," Hiroko said. "This is what the empire does for its loyal citizens, and I am pleased to have been able to help you." She turned and rose, her attendant shadowing her. There were three other plague victims in this ward, as well as several other injuries. Hiroko considered her own reserves, then decided she could try to heal the worst of the plagues.

As she passed a man groaning on a pallet, he reached out a hand and tugged at the hem of her robes. Her attendant instantly hurried forward, kicking the man's hand away. "How dare you touch our Princess?"

"Please," the man said. "My leg, it's shattered. Can you help me?"

Hiroko studied his injury before reluctantly shaking her head. "I'm sorry, no." This was a wound that would respond well to a green lux pattern woven by a more adept healer that perhaps incorporated red as well, to encourage his bone to mend. If she had more training in using green… but for now, Hiroko knew she couldn't help everyone. Only some of the patients here suffered from an ailment that answered well to her patterns. Though it hurt her to see others in need, she would not waste her own strength helping those who were beyond her ability. She turned away, even as the man pleaded with her.

Now the whole ward was a clamor, begging her for help. Hiroko halted. Her attendant seized the opportunity. "My lady, we should return later. We're agitating them."

Regretfully, Hiroko nodded. With an uproar like this, she wasn't going to be able to help anyone. Her concentration was destroyed. "Very well," she said. "Let's go." She made a note to see if her attendant could have the plague victims consolidated in one room where she could treat them without offering false hope to others.

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As she crossed the yard, she crossed paths with Jai-lin, Lady Min's brother and member of the Gem Court. He bowed deeply. "Princess Hiroko, I have not seen you out much lately."

She shook her head. "I've been busy since the tower break."

"As have I," Jai-lin agreed. "My brother and sister have had me running a hundred different errands. Perhaps now that things are returning to normal, the Gem Court will be able to function once more. It's been such chaos around here. I could do with an evening of poetry and song, couldn't you?"

Hiroko couldn't imagine relaxing while so many here in the city still suffered. "Your sister's been very busy, hasn't she?"

He nodded and fell into step beside Hiroko. The attendant glared daggers at him but could hardly object. He was another member of the Gem Court, after all, as well as, in a complicated way, connected with Hiroko since his sister was married into the same sect Hiroko still intended to join.

She decided to practice her connection pattern. With the increased lux density in the air, she wasn't concerned about running out of lux. She was a little surprised to see that she did indeed have a tenuous line of connection to Jai-lin. He was much more firmly anchored to someone else not far from here. Hiroko studied the link.

"Is your sister here?" she asked casually. There was a second link as well, not nearly as strong, leaning off in the same direction.

"She and my elder brother were in a meeting. I meant to speak with them, but they've been closeted all day," Jai-lin said, confirming Hiroko's suspicions. "Oh, she said she wanted to speak with you as well." He frowned. "Yes, I suppose it might have been about the Morning Mist Young Masters leaving town."

Even though Hiroko had been warned that Joshi was planning to leave, it brought her up short. "So they've gone."

"Yesterday," Jai-lin confirmed. "I suppose that's normal for young masters, training journeys and all that."

"Of course it is," Hiroko snapped.

He eyed her. "I heard some rumors going about that you'd thrown over Young Master Joshi."

"Ridiculous." But that brought Hiroko up short. She had been so wrapped up in her ministry of mercy, she'd forgotten to think about her future. "Good day to you, Jai-lin," she said abruptly and set off directly for the Court of Gems chambers here at the Governor's Palace.

Hiroko ignored her attendant's remonstration as she strode right for the Dowager Pearl's offices. The door was slightly cracked. Hiroko pushed it aside and barged in. The dowager was seated on a mound of cushions, sipping tea and looking out over the palace courtyard. She whirled, upsetting her tea. Her eyes widened. "Princess!"

Hiroko raised her hand. "Revered Pearl, I have neglected my social duties the past few days. I have been occupied with other matters."

"Yes, yes," the dowager said impatiently. "Visiting the sick and such. I've heard good things, Hiroko. You're doing well at managing your influence."

"I have spent time thinking about what you have said to me about my future," Hiroko told her, infusing her words with every ounce of strength she had in her body. "My position as an imperial princess of high birth is more important now than ever. The people's faith in the empire is shaken. They must see we are strong. Therefore, I have informed Young Master Joshi that our marriage is to be postponed until he has achieved the rank of the Peak of Spiritual Refinement."

The Dowager Pearl's eyes flew open. She stood up and snapped at Hiroko's attendant. "Leave us." The woman bowed herself out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

"What are you talking about?" the dowager asked in a low voice as Hiroko approached her.

"All of our previous reasons for hurrying my marriage are obsolete now," Hiroko said. "Prism Eri's grand play has failed. She may try something else, but it won't involve me. I do not intend to break my betrothal," she added. "On the contrary, Young Master Joshi has taken up my challenge and left on a training journey. Once he has achieved his rank, he will return for me." She wished devoutly that her words would come true, though she had her doubts about them. At the very least, she would not have herself or Joshi be the butt of gossip.

"Princess," the dowager said, "I admit, matters have been unsettled as of late. I can understand if you are concerned about your future. We might well consider calling off your engagement. Many Indigo Princes and Princesses do not marry until they are considerably older than you."

Hiroko shook her head. "My previous engagement was ended before it had truly begun," she said coldly. "I will not have a second betrothal overturned." That, at least, was true. She didn't think she could take the humiliation. Joshi would return for her. He had to. Or she'd go after him herself. "However, I do not wish my fiancé to be the only one who advances. My time here has shown me I have a rare talent that should be nourished. This isn't the place for it. I wish for you to make arrangements for me to be tutored in the use of blue lux. Or shall I ask the master of Morning Mists to help?" Hiroko added as the Dowager Pearl's face darkened.

That had the effect she wanted. The dowager straightened up and adjusted her robes. "Certainly not. Once you have joined his sect, perhaps, but the kind of training you're speaking of requires more than a little care. I shall make arrangements. Yes, you are right."

"I think it's time I moved on from this tower," Hiroko said. "I would very much like to here what the options are," and she enjoyed the way the dowager looked at her then with dismay, then fading to amusement and respect.

"Naturally. I will present you with options," the dowager agreed. "Did your fiancé indicate how long this training journey would be?"

Hiroko tilted her head as if such a thought meant nothing to her instead of being the sort of thing keeping her up at night. "Can anyone say how long it takes to reach the Peak of Spiritual Refinement? Young Master Joshi is a cultivating genius. I think we all know that. But still, he is only a few months into his current ranking. It may take him some time, and I will not neglect my own training."

"Of course," the dowager said. "I will consult with the officials here. My own duties may not allow me to accompany you. You understand."

Hiroko shrugged as though it didn't matter to her. "We all have our ways of serving the empire," she said. "Thank you for your aid, Revered Pearl." She bowed her head then, before the dowager could say anything else, and left the room to seek out someone who could arrange for the plague victims to be moved to their own ward.

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