The Sentinels And if the house just keeps on winning

"hope holds us over the brink. tragedy pushes us off of it." arcturus supplied, musing.

poisoning the mind was the work of wolves clever with words, wolves who intimately understood the nature of their victims better than those they manipulated. arcturus did not profess to be that clever - he wore his heart plainly on his pelt in many ways. "maybe the leaders have an ambitious son, and the mentor plants it in the leader's mind that the son is looking to overthrow him.

and the same goes for the son - perhaps the mentor suggests his father is going senile, and will dispose of him out of fear of losing his throne?"