Frogsnorts was a welcome sight as they touched down. The castle loomed in the distance and dragons flew overhead, and the kids couldn't help but smile as they recalled their previous visits to the site. They were unsurprised at the handful of wizards that met them as they disembarked, wands drawn and pointed.

"Chill out guys, we're just here to see Stumblesnore," Digit said.

The wizards looked between each other, indecision in the air. Finally, a man stepped forward.

"We'll trust you, but only because we know that you have helped him before. You'll excuse us for escorting you there, can't be too cautious nowadays," said one, sliding his wand into its holster, the others following suit.

They followed him to the castle, flanked on all sides by the other wizards, and waited for Stumblesnore to greet them. Motherboard subtly looked around, feeling the magic of the site tingling against her skin. It was comforting, promising safety and rest, and she was glad. She had a good feeling about this part of their search, something telling her they'd find something worth pursuing.

The group soon found themselves ensconced in the the halls of the castle, winding through the passages to Stumblesnore's office. They were ushered in immediately upon reaching it, the old wizard looking more grim even than when the crumpets had failed. Marbles ushered Motherboard into a seat, both ignoring the old professor's stare.

"May I ask what has brought you here? And who this young lady is?" he asked.

The kids and Digit shared a look before turning to look at Marbles. He sighed, placing his hand on the woman's shoulder.

"As I'm sure you know Hacker currently has control of Cyberspace. He broke into Control Central and attempted to shutdown Motherboard. Luckily the cybermates contacted me and I was able to save her using the backup I had installed ages ago."

The older man's eyes widened as he realized what that meant.

"So this is?"

"Yes. Though I wish our meeting were under more pleasant circumstances," Motherboard said with a smile.

Stumblesnore all-but collapsed into his chair.

"Well, this certainly explains your unexpected arrival. But what brings you here? I'm afraid should Hacker choose to take over even Merlin himself can't stop him in his current insanity."

"Actually, we were hoping you had heard of a mineral called Alganite," Motherboard said. "We've found excerpts in old books telling of its healing powers and, well…."

"You were hoping it could heal you," the old wizard finished knowingly.

He didn't need to be told the woman was ill, he could see it in her marginally rigid posture, the way she'd occasionally clench her fingers as if in pain, and the slightly glazed look in her eyes.

"Yes, it is of utmost importance that we find it quickly so that we can defeat Hacker," Marbles said.

"Well, we'll see what we can find. If you two would like to follow me," he stood, coming around the desk. "You four may explore the castle if you wish. I believe Shari is in one of the potions rooms."

"Thank you, sir," Inez said, all but dragging her friends away.

She didn't like the tension in the office, how it wasn't said but was implied that Stumblesnore, and possibly Merlin, were their last hope at finding the Alganite.

Shari was indeed in one of the potions rooms, happily chatting with Dodie as she stirred together an assignment. She jumped when the four walked in, not even Dodie noticing them.

"What are you doing here?" she asked after calming down.

"We're here with Motherboard and Doctor Marbles to look for Alganite," Jackie said.

"But I thought—"

"Everyone does," Matt interrupted. "But it's not true. Doctor Marbles saved her life. But she's still sick, so we're trying to find the cure."

"Which is Alganite? What's that?" Shari asked.

"Some special mineral some old books mentioned," Jackie replied.

"Stumblesnore agreed to help find it," Inez said. "I'm pretty sure this is Motherboard's last possible chance."

They grew quiet, recognizing the truth in her words.

"Well can we help at all?" Shari asked.

"Actually, I think you can," Inez said. "She's not really feeling well, and hasn't been for a while, ever since we left Control Central. I was hoping there might be a potion she could take?"

Shari brightened, grinning.

"I'm sure there is! Dodie, can you help me look?"

"Quick as can be, watch and you'll see!" the pink dodo replied, fluttering over to a book and beginning to flip through it.

"And Matthew," Shari said, batting her eyes, "since you were so helpful the last time, can you please grab the ingredients once I find the spell?" Inez and Jackie rolled their eyes, no longer annoyed by the young witch's behavior but unsurprised it was still continuing. "Jackie, will you help me measure the ingredients? And Inez, would you measure out proper doses into vials?"

Nodding, they went over to the table, Matt heading to the supply cabinet.

"Hey what about me?" Digit asked.

"You can help Dodie search, please," she responded, lost in her own book.

Digit obliged, happy to help his friend. They chatted back and forth, catching up and telling Dodie and Shari all about what had caused Hacked to rise to power so suddenly.

"We weren't sure if it would work, but then—"

"I found it!" Shari yelled, cutting Inez off. "This should help with all her symptoms."

"That's great, Shari! What is it?" Jackie asked.

"Releiver Dolores et Sanabat Omnes," she read out, stumbling over the words.

"Um, what?"

"I'm not sure, but the instructions clearly make a pain potion. It's worth a try isn't it?"

"If it can help Motherboard I say we do it," Digit said.

The others nodded, and Shari began listing ingredients. They got to work, each hoping they would be able to help the woman still fighting for not just herself, but all of Cyberspace.

"So this Alganite, what exactly does it do?" Stumblesnore asked as he led them deep into the the library.

"According to our research it can heal any injury or sickness, no matter how grave or deadly," Marbles answered.

"I see. Well," he stopped in front of a vast towering shelf filled to the brim with books, many coated in a thick layer of dust from years if not centuries of disuse. "If there is anything to be found it will be here. Oldest books on the far left, newest on the far right. At least that's how it's supposed to be."

They split up, Marbles going to the right and Stumblesnore to the middle, leaving Motherboard the oldest section to traverse. Before the old wizard could pass she laid a hand on his shoulder, causing him to turn.

"Thank you for this. You have no idea what it means to me."

"On the contrary, my dear. I understand perhaps too well."

She tilted her head slightly in confusion, but quickly righted it, the rush of vertigo accompanying the motion nearly causing her to fall. Her stomach flipped, but a deep breath helped her regain control. She clenched her eyes shut, embarrassed and frustrated all at once. She hated the virus, hated how weak and useless it made her.

When she opened them she found Stumblesnore lightly gripping her shoulder to steady her, eyes gentle and understanding.

"We will find something to help you, I promise," he said, releasing her and going to his choice of books.

"I hope so," she breathed out, practically feeling her strength drain the longer she stood.

She forced herself to the far side of the bookcase, reminding herself that it was Cyberspace on the line, not just her life. Now if only she could keep that thought in mind until they found the Alganite.

"Do you think it'll work?" Jackie asked as they stared down at the bubbling pink liquid.

"I'm honestly not sure," Shari replied, biting her lip. "I've never made anything like this before. Most of my potions are spell reversal potions or ones to help strengthen a spell."

"If it's wrong what happens?" Inez asked. Shari didn't answer immediately, and the younger girl looked at her. "Shari? What happens?"

"Well there's a chance nothing could happen, or…"she trailed off, not wanting to deliver bad news.

"Or what?"

"Or it could go very, very wrong."

They shared an uneasy glance, spirits dampened with the knowledge that they could do more harm than good.

"Well we have to take the chance," Matt said. "She's hurting, if we can give her something to help, even if it might not work, we have to try."

"But Mattie, the risk," Digit objected.

"We have to!" he yelled, startling his friends. "We have to."

"Matt," Jackie said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down."

"I'm fine!" he snapped, jerking his arm away.

But tears were shining in his eyes, and his cheeks were beginning to flush. He stomped off, leaving his friends to watch his retreat.

""Do you think we should go after him?" Inez asked.

"I'll go talk to him," Shari volunteered, just a little too quickly.

She rushed out before the girls could call her out on it, but they both rolled their eyes.

"Do you think he's okay?" Digit asked.

"I think he will eventually. This is hitting him hard, just like all of us," Inez said.

"Matt might not say it, but he really loves Motherboard. We all do," Jackie added. Digit nodded. "Well we might as well start portioning this out. If it does work we'll need a bunch of it."

They set to work, carefully pouring the potion into little vials under Dodie's supervision.

Matt stomped down the halls of the castle, upset and frustrated for more than one reason. On one hand he was ashamed to have been caught almost crying twice now since the whole mess had started. But on the other he was so angry. It wasn't fair that Motherboard was so sick, was dying. And everytime they thought they found a way to help her it didn't work, or it had a chance of hurting her more!

He kicked at the wall, wincing as pain radiated up his foot. He dropped to the floor, sliding his back down the wall and hiding his face in his hands, allowing a few tears to fall. This was his mom! Well, as good as really, and he was powerless to help her! At home when his mom needed help with something on the farm he was always able to find a solution, like the fence for the pig pen, why couldn't he now? He felt useless. He could only imagine how the girls felt.

Footsteps caught his attention and he rapidly began to wipe his face, desperate to erase the evidence of his tears. He looked up just as midnight blue shoes with curved toes stopped in front of him.

"Matthew, are you okay?" Shari asked gently.

"I don't know," he whispered.

"Well do you want to talk about it? That helps sometimes."

"I just….I feel so useless. Everytime we think there's a cure or that we can help her it goes up in smoke! At home I can always find a way to help my mom when she needs it, why can't I do the same for her?"

"Well, things are a little different in your world aren't they? I mean, there isn't anyone like Hacker there or anything like what's happening here?"

"No, not really."

"Well then I suppose it makes sense that things here can't be handled the same way."

"I guess, but…." Matt trailed off.

"But what?"

"Shari, Motherboard is basically like another mom. I want to help her so badly, and I can't."

He began crying again, startling the girl who had thought him to be so brave and unafraid. She hesitantly and awkwardly patted his knee, sinking down onto her knees in front of him.

"It-it'll be okay," she said, sounding unsure even to her own ears. "You've always defeated Hacker before."

"But this isn't just about Hacker! She's dying, Shari. If we don't find the Alganite she's going to die, and then it won't matter if we stop Hacker or not."

"She's not going to die, Matthew."

"How do you know?!"

"Because, you're not going to let her, you, or your friends, or Doctor Marbles. You're going to help her." She tentatively slid around to sit beside him, hesitantly wrapping her arms around him. "Besides, there's others who want to help you. Like me."

Her words held a bit of something different, something more intimate, and Matt tensed. He knew Shari liked him but he just didn't feel the same. He wiggled a bit, breaking her hold and scrambling to stand.

"We should um, get back and help," he said, this time blushing for an entirely different reason.

"Oh, uh, yes, I suppose we should," she agreed, trying to mask the disappointment in her voice. Rubbing the back of his neck, he extended a hand to help her up. "Actually, can you give me a few minutes? I'll be there soon."

"Uh yeah, sure."

He walked away, masking his relief at putting some space between them. Shari sighed. She had hoped he would understand that she meant something other than her encouragement, but perhaps not. She liked Matt so much, why couldn't he see it?

"Any luck?" Doctor Marbles called down to the others.

He had to admit, the books he was reading were impressive, but far too modern (if the sixth century could be considered modern) to have any pertinent information about the Alganite. He actually had a slight headache trying to form above his eyebrows from the constant shifting topics.

"Nothing here, I'm afraid," Stumblesnore said, respelling his latest tome.

"Motherboard?"

She didn't answer, and he leaned around and looked her way, frowning at what he saw. She was cradling a large book, squinting as tried to make out the ancient print, but a light flush had risen on her cheeks, and if he looked closely he could see the occasional twitch as shocks raced through her system, not to mention the slight trembling he doubted she was aware of.

"Motherboard?" he asked again, this time gaining her attention.

"Hmm?"

She looked up, eyes exhausted.

"Have you found anything?" he asked gently.

"I'm not entirely sure. This one seems promising, and so does that one." She nodded toward another, smaller book. "If they were just a little more legible."

She sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose as her headache flared and thrummed painfully at her temples. Marbles frowned, worried she was going to make herself worse, wear herself to exhaustion.

"I think this might be enough for today," he said. "Professor, is there a room we might be able to rest in?"

"I'm fine!" Motherboard uncharacteristically snapped, startling even herself. A beat of silence reverberated around the room. "I'm sorry," she whispered, dropping her head. "I just...don't want to give up so soon."

Doctor Marbles crossed the room, gripping her gently by both shoulders.

"I know, but you're not well. You're shaking, and you're burning up. I really think you should rest, at least for a few hours."

She shook her head.

"I need to keep searching. There has to be something in one of these books."

Marbles sighed, knowing there would be no reasoning with her.

"Very well. Perhaps I can lend my assistance in deciphering their information. My section seems too new to be of any use anyway."

He sat beside her, taking up one of the books she thought might be helpful. She smiled gently at him, thankful he knew her so well. She didn't know what she would do should something ever happen to him.

She winced as a particularly painful jolt coursed through her system, responding to her little outburst. Inwardly she knew her friend was right, she needed a break. Between the pain and the encroaching exhaustion the words seemed to swim on the page, blurring in and out of focus. But she wasn't about to admit that to anyone. If she could keep running Cyberspace as a computer that constantly cut out or had issues relaying important messages, she definitely could hide how she was feeling.

Giving her head a slight shake to clear it of the haze that was beginning to attempt to envelope her every waking moment, she dove back into her book, oblivious to the concerned look the two men shared.

"Matt, you okay?" Digit asked as the boy walked back into the room, evidence of tears on his face, though it was obvious he'd tried to clean them away.

"I guess," he answered.

The three friends shared a look.

"We can talk later if you want to," Inez said, giving him a sympathetic smile.

He nodded, serious as he usually never was.

"Did you finish bottling the potion?" he asked, noticing the line of vials across the table.

"Yeah, just put the stopper in the last one actually," Jackie said. "Should we find Motherboard?"

"I don't know, what if she's busy?" Inez asked.

"Yeah, maybe her and the Doc have found some clues!" Digit interjected. "Don't wanna interrupt that!"

"Well there's really only one way to know for certain," Shari's voice echoed from the door. They turned to face her, and she grinned. "We find her and ask."

Marbles was truly worried now. They'd been at it for a few hours now, and about an hour had passed since he'd tried to get his friend to rest. The shaking had grown worse, she was nearly shivering, which meant her fever was spiraling higher, and every once in a while she'd hiss quietly through her teeth as though she were in pain. But she had yet to give in to her body's demands, steadfastly continuing to search for the Alganite.

He was just about to insist they stop for the day, physically carry her out of the library if he had to, when the kids came rushing in carrying a small pink vial. They slid to a halt a few feet away, obviously seeing exactly what he was.

The woman looked up as they entered and gave a small smile, though it was tight and drawn, and they could see she was in pain.

"And what have you five been up to?" she asked.

"We um, we made this," Matt said, gesturing to the bottle Digit was carrying.

"It's a, well it's supposed to be, a healing potion," Shari said, shocked not only by the ruler's physical form, but how sickly she looked.

"Which one did you brew?" Stumblesnore asked, knowing full well she hadn't ever made one before.

"Releiver Dolores et Sanabat Omnes," she answered.

His eyes widened. That particular potion was very tricky, and extremely volatile. One wrong ingredient or measurement could ruin the whole batch, and cause some nasty side effects. However he didn't want to worry the woman any further, so instead he held out his hand, silently asking for the vial. Digit handed it to him, anxiety clawing up his back as the man's face grew serious.

Stumblesnore opened the vial, relieved when it didn't explode. He swirled the contents, checking for unorthodox colors or color changes, another sign it had been brewed incorrectly. It stayed the same cotton candy pink throughout, and once the potion settled he wiped his finger around the rim, tasting it. Cherry was the prominent flavor, and he smiled, replacing the cork.

"Well done Spotter," he praised, passing the bottle over to Motherboard.

She eyed it warily.

"And this will help?" she asked, not quite trusting the bright liquid to do anything other than upset her stomach.

"It should, it's a very powerful healing potion," Shari told her confidently.

"It will not cure your virus, but it may alleviate some of the less pleasant symptoms," Stumblesnore supplied.

"And this is completely safe?" Marbles asked, mustache twitching in his nervousness.

"Well, as with any medication there is a chance something could go wrong, but Shari has indeed brewed it correctly, so it's as safe as it can be under the circumstances."

Motherboard nodded, though she still wasn't entirely sure she wanted to drink it. Her head chose that moment to pound particularly painfully, and she found herself uncorking the vial. Taking a deep breath, she brought it to her lips and tilted her head back, delicately draining the contents in one swallow, pleased to find it didn't taste as odd as it looked. The potion tingled as it made its way to her stomach, the feeling not unpleasant, and the kids watched her closely, eager for her reaction.

She waited a few moments, aware the effects should be instantaneous, but felt no different than before. Glancing at the children, most of them hers, she couldn't bare to tell them it hadn't worked, not when they looked so hopeful.

"That's better, thank you," she lied with a smile, happy to hear their shouts of joy.

The loud cries only served to cause her headache to worsen, her stomach flipping at the new level of pain, but she kept it hidden, determined to have them believe they had helped.

"All right! Way to go, Shari!" Matt yelled, pumping his fist in the air.

The young girl blushed, embarrassed at being the center of attention.

"Thank you, Matthew. And thank you Inez, Jackie, and Digit for helping me. I never could have done it alone."

"No problem," Jackie said with a grin.

"Hey, do you guys want to visit Dunforth? He's grown so much since you last visited."

They agreed and raced out, more easily able to enjoy themselves now that they thought Motherboard felt a little better. She watched them go, smiling after them and glad they could still have some fun in the hell their reality had become. Her CPU thrummed painfully, her head throbbed, and she felt like she was on fire, but she'd do anything to see them happy, including lie.