994: Mariam Roan and Jon Cartwright are married.
997: Early that morning, Mariam and Alain go down to tend to Armiger. They find the mule dead, with its head split open. It is clear that it has been dead for several days, as there are maggots crawling on the corpse. They notify Sienna and Eckard, and a search begins for the creature. Laughing Bear uses Beast Summoning to confirm that all the animals are what they seem to be. Matthew asks Dairn about his pets, which turn out to be perfectly normal baby umber hulks. Sienna talks to the crew, asking each of them questions that only they can answer, and Mariam does the same for the party. Everyone is now travelling in twos. Moreau has locked himself in his cabin, and Alain uses the wand of charisma to coax him out. As it is a holy day, Alain, still holding the wand, convinces everyone to attend a service at noon. Dairn makes an altar for the occasion, and Margaret, still sheathed, is thrust into it. When all have joined hands, Alain realizes that something is wrong with the energy flow -- the thing must be inside someone. He goes to each person and blesses them. When he reaches Gurtha, the daughter of Sienna and Eckard, she tries to get away. Alain holds her down, and her head splits open as the intellect devourer claws its way out. Several of the crew jump overboard in fear. Mariam grabs Margaret, and is taken over by her. The intellect devourer tries to dig its way into Alain, but Margaret is able to kill it first. Afterwards, Margaret puts down the sword to heal Alain, which allows Mariam to regain control. As the crew, stunned, begins to clean up the mess, Moreau totters off for the first untroubled sleep he's had in days.