Sunday 29th December 2019

Arsenic.

A naturally occurring metalloid, component of the earth's crust. Mostly found and extracted from groundwater. It is often implicated in deliberating poisoning attempts.

Someone had poisoned Sudais. Only Sudais.

There were hundreds of guests and even family members that devoured Laila's food and none of them emerged with a case of Arsenic poisoning even after they had been tested.

The amount of arsenic found in Sudais' system was not normal and he had been diagnosed with Acute Arcenicosis.

Being a king and all, a urine and vomit test was carried out in a jiffy and the only chemical out of normal levels in the evidence was arsenic. Emergency doctors ran around until they administered an Arsenic antidote solution down Sudais' gastrointestinal tract that immediately flushed out the poison, removing all traces and preventing it from being absorbed into his gut.

Just to be on the safe side, Sudais was to be kept under monitoring for at least 48 with added treatments of chelating agents along with potassium supplements transfused into an auto-injector he was supposed to be on for 5 days.

Except for the following morning when Laila had left Sudais who wanted her to make him a fruit nectar smoothie along with his favorite dish, came back into the heavily guarded hospital, and walked into an empty room.

Panic surged through her as she carelessly tossed the bag of food and searched the doors to the bathroom and store in the rather lavish room. She found nothing.

Outside, she spoke to the wall, yelling at the soldiers and royal guards, asking about her husband's whereabouts but found nothing.

In the midst of it, his sisters came in and heard the news that with a heavy heart had to be concealed from the public just like with the poisoning and still find a way to trace Sudais' whereabouts.

His phone was switched off, and so was Tahir's. Tahir was the last man to step into Sudais' room from what Sudais' right-hand man said.

The scales started to balance. Half was that Tahir wouldn't harm him, they were sure or at least hoped so, considering the world was crazy. The other half was them almost pissing at the thought of something terrible happening to him.

Muri and the guys were aimlessly driving and picking dead ends. The women at home were either rooted to a spot, pacing around, looking at the door hoping it'll burst open and Sudais would walk in, shaking and gripping something, or wiping their tears and reprimanding themselves to pray and think positive.

But how could they?

Someone somewhere had been after Sudais' life for a while now, the poisoning confirmed that. The fact that it had been confirmed that Sudais ingested the poison meant it had been planned. Poison not everyone could get their hands on which was also saying a lot about the predator's status. They were powerful, and loaded, since they still hadn't been discovered.

Where was he now?

Was he fine?

Was he drugged and abducted?

How did they get past all the security guarding the hospital and room?

If they did, where'd they take him? What were they going to do with him?

The thought had Laila letting out a, "Hai!" Before clutching her head with her hands, hating the direction of her thoughts.

No, please. It couldn't be.

Sudais was fine, by God's grace. Wherever he was.

Except that belief of hers faded and faded until it disappeared when he was gone for almost the whole day.

A little after asr, after the women had prayed and slouched on their prayer mat, were still praying or were staring into space, Queen Baraka's phone rang.

Picking it, she read the caller id under her breath and released the phone as it had burned her.

That caught attention.

The mother jerked, picking up her phone and swiping it to answer. She instantly croaked, "Jodoma..."

Her fingers splayed over her heaving chest, she listened to what the other end had to say while being under the scrutiny of wide eyes and parted lips that hovered around her.

The call lasted for less than a minute before she was dropping it and cheered, "Alhamdulillah."

Everyone cheered after her, giving each other a hug or a handshake.

Sudais was safe, or so he said and sounded. He was going to be home as soon as he could and then he was going to be answering to Laila on why dafuq he disappeared like that.

Grudgingly, Laila dragged back to their chambers, took a shower, and stepped into comfortable wear before planting herself on the rocking chair she had dragged to the balcony in their room. Her eyes fixed on the gates of the palace with people trooping in and out, she spent the next hour or 2 in silence, calming down.

She was calm, wallahi she was calm.

She was very sure she was until her ears heard sirens, her eyes met and followed the army ford truck car furiously bypassing the gates of the palace to park with a screech where she couldn't see-Sudais' front door chambers.

That was it. Sudais.

Laila's body rose erect at a soundless command, her legs twisted and took her where she'd vent her pent-up anger and worry.

Out their chambers and into his, they banged the door in sync, his rigid body marching to her and she stomped toward his figure that was in a now squeezed-up armless Yer Shara kaftan. The guy didn't even look like a patient.

She put a hand out to block him, "Where did you go?"

"Where is Naja'atu?"

He glared down at her hand, "I will break your arm."

Laila's movements stilled and her mouth went wide, "Y-you...you left and the first person you want to yell and ask for is Naja'atu and that you'll break my arm?"

"I don't have time for this." He muttered, walking past her and disappearing through the door she came in.

Laila scoffed, laughing before dropping the act and stomping behind him. "You don't have time for this? What time do you have? Naja'atu's time?" He ignored her but she wasn't having it, she trailed him and they barged out of her chambers towards Najas. "Is this what this is? Is this how our marriage is going to be? You act all righteous and hypocritical and then you show your true colors the next minute? What is—"

"NAJA'ATU!" He roared, jumping from the first stair that lead to the corridor to the fourth-last one, heading to her room, or at least that was what Laila thought considering she had never been there. "NAJA'ATU!"

In a disheveled form, Naja'atu popped out, holding her fingers against her chest with wide eyes. "Wha-what is it?"

He clapped his hands, ceasing to turn to Naja's figure before he stomped toward her, towering over her.

Voice oddly calm, he asked, "Are you a niece to the governor?"

In a wink, she stepped back, shock striking her and her heartbeat accelerating.

"Are you or are you not-" he paused to follow her eyes to what she was behind him, Laila. "Get out, Laila." He grumbled to his side, not turning back to his second wife until his stubborn first wife listened to him and banged the door out. He turned to his wife, "You better start talking or so help me God i am going to do things we both will regret. Are. You. Or. Are. You. Not. A. Niece. To. The governor?"

She dropped her teary eyes, nodding and sniffing while squeezing her left fingers.

Confirmation hit Sudais.

Daze hit Sudais.

He took a step back, not because he was shocked even though he was, but to prevent himself from doing something he might regret.

"Did you marry me to keep tabs on me for him?"

She meekly nodded, bursting into sobs before she started to shake her head. "B-but listen. He made me...made me do it. I didn't-i did not want to. I was compelled. Please, please Abba. You have to listen t-to me. I begged him," she dropped her arms, shaking with sobs and all Sudais could do was watch her half with anger and half with confusion, "My-my mum. She needed medication...surgery. He said he'd only help...only help if i help him too..."

Sudais shook his head, biting his lip hard and punching his fist into his next palm before shouting, "HE IS SO SELFISH! HE PUT YOU INSTEAD OF ASMA'U ON MY PATH! WHO DOES THAT TO THEIR NIECE?" He stopped to turn to her, "No wonder. Marrying you was too easy. Too easy," And then something hit him, his eyes narrowed at the floor before he brought them to her, "The pact we made before we got married. Was that real? Did you want me to marry and divorce you so you could go marry your ex-husband or was that just a cover?"

She gave him no answer until he roared, "ANSWER ME."

"It was a cover," she sniffled, fiddling with her fingers and not bothering to wipe her tears.

"Innalillahi Wa'inna'ilaihir Raji'un." He exclaimed, pacing back and forth before standing akimbo and throwing his head back, "He was right. He was so right. I am so stupid. All i do is get used," He whipped pink eyes to her, "Did you know he was going to poison me? Or were you the one who even—"

"No!" she jerked her palms up, "No! Wallahi no. He said nothing about hurting you. He only said he want-he wanted to make sure...make sure you weren't going to make a move on him...he said-told me to get you to divorce...Laila and to confide...in me...he didn't say he was going for your life, wallahi."

Sudais' last unruffled nerve hadn't just been ruffled, it had been yanked, squeezed, thrown, and stomped upon. He closed the space between them, painfully grabbing her upper arms. "Divorce Laila? Ni Abbati? The both of you are mad. DO YOU HEAR ME? THE BOTH OF YOU ARE MAD. I am never letting Sadiya go, you though...different case. Ni Sudais Idris na sake ki Naja'atu—"

"No-no-no—"

"—Adamu Magaji saki saki daya!"

"No-please-no-listen abba-no-"

"Pack your shit and g-"

"I am pregnant!"

He ceased, then nodded. "I know, i wondered when you'd tell me. It doesn't matter, you stay until you give birth to my child and finished breastfeeding him or her, and then i'll take them away. You'll never see my child again—"

"No!" She wailed, dropping to her knees and clutching his leg while resting her teary cheek to his white fabric and vibrating with tears. "Please no-i didn't mean to-wallahi i didn't want to."

"But you did," he completed and wiggled his leg out of her grasp, "For some reason, i even pity you. Allah ya sawwaqa maki." He muttered before matching to Laila's chamber.

His steps faltered as he recalled something. Turning back, he headed to his mum's instead. He'd be mad and dying to see him too if he was mama. The woman didn't deserve a heart attack.

And, she didn't get one. All she did after hugging him was asked about his whereabouts which he told her. She froze for almost 5 minutes without a word before she assured him that all going to be okay and he should go to his wife.

He stopped by his mom's lounge to reassure his siblings he was ok before heading back to Laila with more ease now that he was in the clear with his family. Or at least his mum. He had kept her in the dark enough as it is.

Up their chambers, Sudais met Laila furiously rocking on a rocking chair in their room.

She stopped when he closed the door and cleared her throat, "Should i get out of this room too?"

He could hear anger and an underlying threat in her voice that had him throwing his head back and closing his eyes.

"I didn't mean it like that, Boddo. You know-"

"Oh so i am Boddo now? Not Laila?" She asked, standing up to face him. Boddo was for when he was soft. Laila? He had to be furious to call her that.

He sighed and opened his eyes. Rather than answering her question when all he wanted to do was sit down and talk, he explained. "I asked you to leave because i didn't want to reprimand my wife in front of my next wife...ex-wife anyway."

"You once yelled at me in front of—ex-wife? Y-you..." she left her words to hang and he nodded, confirming her thoughts.

"You divorced her?"

"Yes."

Laila was supposed to be glad and believe it, a part of her was. Most of her though wasn't. Many questions were swirling in her head that made her start to pace around and chew her fingers.

"Sadiya."

She ignored him, pacing and chewing harder.

"Boddo, please do me a favor and sit down."

She didn't stop, only went harder but rose a tight face to his figure planted at the edge of the bed. "Why?"

"Because i want to tell you everything but you're making me nervous."

"I am making you nervous?" This man was crazy. Laila groaned, throwing her head back and thinking this was too smooth. What the hell did she not know? "You're too calm for a man who just divorced his second wife. Mind telling me what the hell is going on?"

"Sit down," He set his lips in a tight line, motioning to the rocking chair. "Now."

She glared at him, moving until she placed a quarter of her butt on the vanity and crossed her arms against her bosom. "I'm sat."

Sudais exhaled, wetting his bottom lip for almost a minute, just contemplating how to start going about this.

But well...here it goes.

"Who would want to do this to you?" Tahir asked the question that had been tattooed to his brain since the night before.

"Many people," Sudais shrugged, "But the real question is...who would want to get rid of me so bad? What do they have against me? What do they stand a chance at when I'm gone?"

Sudais let the question linger in the air of the beeping hospital room before he added, "Poison is a coward's game. A woman's game."

Tahir's eyes widened, his head slanting forward in alarm, "You don't think one of your wives..."

He tsk-ed, "No. Not them. Someone more...flesh and blood."

"Your sisters?" Tahir thundered.

Sudais felt the need to thrash his arms in frustration. Mino hated him but Absolutely, "No, Tahir no. My sisters aren't my only flesh and blood," the realization that he had to say it out loud had him sighing, "Think of it. Who is supposed to be where i am now? Who could be where i am now once I'm gone?"

"Bello..."

"Exactly." He let out a breath. "Although not just him, i have 2 primary suspects. But poison? It's a coward, so I'm going to confront him and hear what he has to say."

Tahir lifted a brow, "Soon?"

"Now."

"No...Shugaba no. You're not in a good co—"

"They flushed the poison, i feel fine. Now i need to stop running and being scared and just face reality." He shrugged at Tahir's distant, weighing-the-odds look, "I'm doing this with or without you, and to be honest, I don't even want to drag you in."

"Too bad, no one touches our family and goes scot free. Get up, I'm driving."

Sudais got rid of all the medical attachments on his body and stretched before sliding on his shoes.

"Did you take the pills or anything they gave you?"

Not to worry, Sudais waved the auto-injector from the tray and proceeded to stab it into his thigh, squeeze the hissing liquid into his bloodstream before he tossed it into the trash bin.

He placed a palm on Tahir's shoulder when the man was about to unlatch the door, "No one will know, Tahir. I'm going to make my men outside swear an oath of silence. Don't go telling Mama if she asks you. We need to be sure first."

"I got you, man."

Like Tahir had mentioned, he drove and Sudais sat tapping his fingers the whole ride to his brother's house.

Avoiding every individual that wasn't family, he found himself sticking his palm out in question at the commotion in the front living room before his brother's first wife approached him, wiping her face and roaring. "What are you doing here? What? Why are you here? Haven't you done enough? You took the throne for him and now that you heard he was poisoned you're the first to visit?

Sudais had jerked back, features going wide in shock. Poisoned?

"Poisoned? How? Why? When?"

"Oh please," the woman yelled, stretching an arm to the side, "We both know you're glad he was poisoned. To aniyarka ta bika! We noticed and he will be fine. He will go back to normal," she mostly said the words to convince herself. "So please, we know you're not a well-wisher. I am begging you as a wife, a sister, a mother, and a muslim. Let us be!" She sealed her words with a sob, turning to her family that had been watching and ushering them through another door, leaving only one behind.

Moha. He stepped up to his uncle after his family had disappeared and Sudais immediately shook his head. "No. Moha no. I had nothing to do with this. I am coming from the clinic, I was poisoned too. I had nothing to do with this. You know me. I get angry and impulsive but i could never do this."

Moha rose a palm, "I know Bappa. I know." He glanced back to check for anyone out of place and found nothing, then turned to his uncle. "I don't know why Baba Alhaji chose you even though you do deserve it more than my dad...but for now, please stay away. I don't mean to disrespect you but my mum is putting all the blame on you and my dad is just recovering. We need time to process all this. We also—"

Sudais caught the kid off by placing a palm on his shoulder, "I understand Muhammadu. I am so proud of you."

He hesitated, "You are?"

Sudais nodded with a smile, "I am. You have grown so mature. Even more mature than your aunt Mima."

Moha tsk-ed, "Toh ai i am older than my aunt by 3 years."

"Shut up," Sudais chuckled, "But i mean it Muhammad. I am proud of you for saying this on behalf of your family, our family. I'll stay away. I wish your dad a quick recovery and I'll send everyone at home to come see him."

"Thank you Bappa."

"No, Thank you, Moha."

Sudais nodded before turning around and dropping his smile, his stomps getting louder by the second until they ceased once he was inside the truck car.

"So..."

Sudais shook his head, "It wasn't him, Tahir. He was poisoned too. It can't be him now that i think of it."

Tahir nodded with his face turned towards Sudais. "So...who do you think..."

"It's who you're thinking Tahir," Sudais sighed, slouching into the seat and grabbing the holder above his side of the window. "It's time to see an old friend." The word friend was muttered with so much disgust.

Considering Bello's house and their next destination wasn't far, they made it in a few more minutes with Sdais leaving Tahir in the car again to meet his old...friend.

Weird looks followed Sudais from the few hypocritical people he had to pass who mostly dropped to their knees or squatted to greet him and he mostly waved them off.

A pack of Men left through another door Sudais was looking at from the glass doors of the lounge before it was time for him to go in.

He did, and the first thing he met with was; "I was expecting an invitation to your funeral, not you Lamido." The man said, closing a file to drop beside him and uncrossing his legs.

Confirmed. It was him.

"Ouch," Sudais feigned hurt, holding his fragile heart before planting himself on a couch opposite the man. "So sorry, but I'm here. In the flesh. Healthy."

"Apparently," the man muttered, then mustered a fake smile as he gestured at the tray of drinks on a table, "Please, have some refreshment. You must be exhausted from all the processes you had to go through just to see me."

Sudais gasped, "And risk not sending you to jail? No, I'll pass. I like myself better this way."

The man's fake smile dropped and so did Sudais' facade. They stood in a dangerous starring contest for minutes before the man in a sky blue kaftan chuckled and looked away, taking his Zanna Bukar cap off to reveal his black and grey hair cut into a low cut. "Why are you here, Lamido?"

"Why did you poison me, Governor?" Sudais asked in a casual tone, placing his right ankle on his left knee and spreading his arm on the couch to grab the back of it.

The governor ignored the question and asked another casual one like 2 men at a bar with their women in the bathroom touching up their makeup. "How's my pregnant niece doing?"

"What niece? Who's niece?" Muscles tightening, he wasn't faking it. He had no idea what the aging man was talking about.

The man threw his head back and laughed, clutching his tummy at a point before he composed himself. "God! It's so good to have you back. You're so stupid...so stupid when it comes to women," The man sighed in contentment, "You didn't just think a beautiful woman stumbled onto you looking for a man to marry after being divorced thrice and she still wants to go back to her ex, right?"

Sudais slowly released his hold from the head of the couch and leaned forward with wide eyes and raised eyebrows.

Naja?

The governor chuckled again, shaking his head. "See that face of yours now, i think i like it better than your dead face."

"You used me," Sudais wanted the statement to come out like a question but it didn't. Instead, it twisted and came out as a grumble, "Why?"

"Like i said, you're a fool for women. I saw it with my girl Asma'u. You love and loves makes you weak."

"I don't love Naja." He gritted.

The governor shrugged, "I know. You have eyes only for that princess you somehow bagged. Reason why I haven't gotten anything out of you." he added the last part mostly to himself but Sudais caught it.

Cutting to the chase, "What do you want?"

Anger flashed across the man's features, "For you to shut up."

"Did i say i was going to talk?" Sudais shot, kicking the table that had its content stumbling with cracky and uncomfortable noises. "It's been over 5 years, why the hell would i decide to speak now?"

The man fiercely stared at Sudais and Sudais glared back. "I shut up for Asma'u. You are her dad and i loved her. I don't think i ever got over her until a year ago. And although she left me miserable, she's the reason i became a man. Despite everything she still loves you and can't bare the fact about you doing those things not to talk of what would happen if your family found out. I shut up. I wasn't going to speak but your paranoid self just had to think of ways to get rid of me, didn't you?"

Sudais sighed when the man didn't say anything. He relaxed his muscles and clasped his fingers then inched forward.

"I don't want my family dragged in any of this."

"I don't want to keep poisoning you."

Sudais clapped his hands. "Great. I'm glad we're seeing eye to eye. Would giving you my word that I won't ever say a thing make you pull out of all these shenanigans?"

"You being Lamido complicates things. You have power, people, money, and more on your side. Why should i trust what you say?"

"You are the most paranoid person I've ever met," Sudais exhaled. "I have a family i want to protect. I keep shit forever and no one gets hurt. You get off my back. Shall we put that on paper?"

The man's squinted eyes inspected the man he once called a potential son-in-law before he nodded, "Yes. Let's do that..."

Laila chucked down a bottle of water, placing the bottle on the tray of refreshments and tumblers before she wiped the water off her tight lips down to her forced-out dimples.

She had only one request, "Connect what you just told me with the governor, Asma'u, Naja, and over 5 years back."

Sudais took another deep breath before clasping his fingers and dropping his pounding head.

Stupid.

Like what the governor had called Sudais, it was true. He was stupid but mistook it for love at the time.

But let's face it, with love comes foolishness. It was a buy one get one free package. And Sudais bought it.

The CBN governor at the time, Alhaji Gambo Ibrahim had a beautiful daughter who was dating a handsome son of the Emir of Adamawa, Alhaji Idris Mamman. Their relationship was far to the point their parents knew and had even exchanged greetings and acquaintances one and on.

Sudais was in the final year of his third degree, Electronics and Communication Engineering in Jedda, Saudi Arabia, aged about 27, while Asma'u was taking her Masters of science degree in local engineering in the same university, aged about 23.

Sudais had volunteered to fix one of her dad's computer bugs that most of the fixer men couldn't and did a great job at it. He then offered to fix any problem concerning a computer whether hardware or software as he was good at both and the man thanked him.

After graduation, Asma'u approached him with an offer. Fix her dad's digital problem and he'd get paid for it. He waved the paying part off, they were going to be family in a few months, there was no way he was taking money from his father-in-law for little things he could do even for a stranger.

The man was happy, immediately calling Sudais in and briefing him on the problem along with one of his most trusted men that was good with systems but wasn't as hard as a beast like Sudais.

Sudais was put on a simple task. Recon the security system of a certain network system that was after his father-in-law, digitally and physically. He was doing what he loved, helping, and protecting but digitally. He could spend the day in front of the screen sieving for any information he found in the network he broke in. And when he did, he forwarded it to the man's email without so much as a blink of an eye.

That was until...well curiosity got the best of him and he did more than just maintaining access to the target.

At the most, he got nothing. It was clean. He was just helping the man protect his business.

Shadyyyyyyyy business, he letter went on to admit after he had gone through enough to have him almost throwing the laptop off in shock.

Not only had he been protecting a drug ring business, but he had also almost covered all tracks of the 30billion Naira embezzled from the CBN for his father-in-law and he had protected information about a sex trafficking deal that went successful.

Sudais' brain had shut down at that time, his fingers scratching, clawing, and hitting his head.

When he had calmed down enough to make sense of his surrounding, he rose his eyes to find the man responsible for the things he had discovered at the door.

Stance wide, posture rigid, his fingers were hugging each other behind his back as he started to tsk and walk into the tech room.

"This was what i was dreading, Abba...just this." Alhaji Gambo shook his head in pity but his expression said otherwise. "All i wanted was for you to keep this on until i find a replacement."

"This is not right." Was the only thing Sudais' pathetic self could muster.

The man nodded, "It isn't...For you. Trust me. Which is why I'll let you go now that I've seen how you reacted. I'm sure you don't want to do this anymore, no?"

Sudais shook his head, "No."

The man nodded, clapping. "For the sake of my daughter and the fact that you come from a prestigious family, I'll let you go. Knowing you'll keep quiet and move on like nothing happened, no?"

"I will."

"Great. Thank you for your service. You did...wonderful."

The renewed Sudais would've given the man a punch to his nose but the pathetic one then only got going.

Meeting Asma'u again, he dreaded whether she knew or not, and turns out, she did.

To save herself from being dumped and getting hurt, she hurt and dumped him instead. Calling off her and his wedding and getting married to someone Sudais suspected had been in the game for longer than she admitted the same wedded date of theirs.

With more thoughts, guilt, and sometimes fear crawling at the back of his head, he failed not just his parents but the military and tried to forget by going for another round of studies just to have something else to stress over.

Since his request to leave for another country to study was denied, he settled for Lagos. There, he met an equally, freshly heartbroken Tahir who despite it, was ready to give love another chance.

Sudais drowned his guilt and anger in school, girls-Simi mostly, and adultery which might've suppressed his guilt but did nothing in nullifying his already inherited anger issues and instead proliferated it.

As for Naja, he had stupidly met a woman sent to him from the Galadima. Naja was crazy in love with her ex-husband who had divorced her thrice and she needed to get married to someone again, get divorced before she could return to her beloved. Sudais on the other hand didn't want another wife. Most importantly, he wanted Laila to be his queen, not any other woman. So, they sealed a pact. Marry each other, Sudais doing his part, while Naja did hers by making Laila's life as not-queen miserable to the point she wanted to be queen and that was when their alliance would end and both would part happily.

What Sudais' stupid ass didn't know was that it wasn't a coincidence that he got the offer. In fact, it was planned to keep an eye on him. To see if he'd act out now that he was king.

But like always, he was used...

By the time he had revealed everything, Sudais was seated on a couch pushed against the wall, his feet furiously tapping against the floor, an arm of his on the cap of the couch while he stared ahead, jaw clenched to the point he could feel his teeth readjusting.

Everything was too hard to digest at once but Laila digested it.

She stumbled forward, ceasing to pour water into a tumbler before returning to lean on the chest of drawers at least 6 feet away from Sudais.

Her facial tight, She didn't know what to feel and instead took a sip of the water before resting her eyes on the tumbler as she swirled the water in it.

Through her peripheral view, she glared at him, her heartbeat suddenly surging and making her chest heave heavily.

Channeling all her emotions into rage, she shouted and flung the tumbler hard into the wall beside the couch. The water splashed on the wall and Sudais' rigid figure while the glass exploded before she stomped to him, "YOU FUCKING STAY AWAY FROM ME!" She swiped her palm over her head as she spanned from him, her feet slapping against the cold tiled floor.

"You said For better For worse."

She ceased at his words, glancing to her side as she said, "I did not mean it," before the walls were raging after her vigorous departure.

Four more chapters and we say Goodbye to Sudais, Laila and their chaos!