"Do you know the meaning of the word mutiny?" she asked, in a calm, quiet voice.
Violet and Sunny knew that Klaus would answer, although they were pretty sure themselves what the word meant. "A mutiny is when a group of people take action against a leader."
"Yes," Finn said. "Professor Fletcher taught me the word."
"We are here to tell you that a mutiny will take place at breakfast," said Erewhon. "More and more colonists are getting sick and tired of the way things are going on the island, and Ishmael is the root of the trouble."
"Tuber?" Sunny asked.
'"Root of the trouble' means 'the cause of the islanders' problems,'" Klaus explained.
"Exactly," Erewhon said, "and when Decision Day arrives we will finally have the opportunity to get rid of him."
"Rid of him?" Violet repeated, the phrase sounding sinister in the dark.
"We're going to force him aboard the outrigger right after breakfast," Erewhon said, "and push him out to sea as the coastal shelf floods."
"A man traveling the ocean alone is unlikely to survive," Klaus said.
"He won't be alone," Finn said. "A number of islanders support Ishmael. If necessary, we'll force them to leave the island as well."
"How many?" Sunny asked.
"It's hard to know who supports Ishmael and who doesn't," Erewhon said, and the children heard the old woman sip from her seashell. "You've seen how he acts. He says he doesn't force anyone, but everyone ends up agreeing with him anyway. But no longer. At breakfast we'll find out who supports him and who doesn't."
" Erewhon says we'll fight all day and all night if we have to," Finn said. "Everyone will have to choose sides."
The children heard an enormous, sad sigh from the top of the raft of books. "A schism," Kit said quietly.
" Gesundheit," Erewhon said. "That's why we've come to you, Baudelaires. We need all the help we can get."
"After the way Ishmael abandoned you, we figured you'd be on our side," Finn said. "Don't you agree he's the root of the trouble?"
The Baudelaires stood together in the silence, thinking about Ishmael and all they knew about him. They thought of the way he had taken them in so kindly upon their arrival on the island, but also how quickly he had abandoned them on the coastal shelf. They thought about how eager he had been to keep the Baudelaires safe, but also how eager he was to lock Count Olaf in a bird cage. They thought about his dishonesty about his injured feet, and about his secret apple eating, but as the children thought of all they knew about the facilitator, they also thought about how much they didn't know, and after hearing both Count Olaf and Kit Snicket talk about the history of the island, the Baudelaire orphans realized they did not know the whole story. The children might agree that Ishmael was the root of the trouble, but they could not be sure.
"I don't know," Violet said.
"You don't know?" Erewhon repeated incredulously. "We brought you supper, and Ishmael left you out here to starve, and you don't know whose side you're on?"
"We trusted you when you said Count Olaf was a terrible person," Finn said. "Why can't you trust us, Baudelaires?"
"Forcing Ishmael to leave the island seems a bit drastic," Klaus said.
"It's a bit drastic to put a man in a cage," Erewhon pointed out, "but I didn't hear you complaining then."
"Quid pro quo?" Sunny asked.
"If we help you," Violet translated, "will you help Kit?"
"Our friend is injured," Klaus said."Injured and pregnant."
"And distraught," Kit added weakly, from the top of the raft.
"If you help us in our plan to defeat Ishmael," Finn promised, "we'll get her to a safe place."
"And if not?" Sunny asked.
"We won't force you, Baudelaires," Erewhon said, sounding like the facilitator she wanted to defeat, "but Decision Day is approaching, and the coastal shelf will flood. You need to make a choice."
The Baudelaires did not say anything, and for a moment everyone stood in a silence broken only by Count Olaf's snores. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny were not interested in being part of a schism, after witnessing all of the misery that followed the schism of V.F.D., but they did not see a way to avoid it. Finn had said that they needed to make a choice, but choosing between living alone on a coastal shelf, endangering themselves and their injured friend, and participating in the island's mutinous plan, did not feel like much of a choice at all, and they wondered how many other people had felt this way, during the countless schisms that had divided the world over the years.
"We'll help you," Violet said finally. "What do you want us to do?"
"We need you to sneak into the arboretum," Finn said. "You mentioned your mechanical abilities, Violet, and Klaus seems very well-read. All of the forbidden items we've scavenged over the years should come in very handy indeed."
"Even the baby should be able to cook something up," Erewhon said.
"But what do you mean?" Klaus asked. "What should we do with all the detritus?"
"We need weapons, of course," Erewhon said in the darkness.
"We hope to force Ishmael off the island peacefully," Finn said quickly, "but Erewhon says we'll need weapons, just in case. Ishmael will notice if we go to the far side of the island, but you three should be able to sneak over the brae, find or build some weapons in the arboretum, and bring them to us here before breakfast so we can begin the mutiny."
"Absolutely not!" cried Kit, from the top of the raft. "I won't hear of you putting your talents to such nefarious use, Baudelaires. I'm sure the island can solve its difficulties without resorting to violence."
"Did you solve your difficulties without resorting to violence?" Erewhon asked sharply. "Is that how you survived the great struggle you mentioned, and ended up shipwrecked on a raft of books?"
"My history is not important," Kit replied. "I'm worried about the Baudelaires."
"And we're worried about you, Kit," Violet said. "We need as many associates as we can if we're going to return to the world and make sure that justice is served."
"You need to be in a safe place to recuperate from your injury," Klaus said.
"And baby," said Sunny.
"That's no reason to engage in treachery," Kit said, but she did not sound so sure. Her voice was weak and faint, and the children heard the books rustling as she moved her injured feet uncomfortably.