Fate of Camlan

by A. T. Gilbert

  “Stop,” I command in a harsh whisper.

  MadMachine glances at me and stands up a little straighter before continuing. “We heard about your herd,” he repeats. “We wanted to see for ourselves if the legends were true.”

  “What are you doing?” Erinocalypse says with a groan.

  “Silence,” Derryth says. “Your lies will not help you. Your flattery is hollow and transparent and you are wasting my time.”

  The great centaur strides to the far end of our row. SteelFeather and Balderdash13 exchange a glance, but both remain silent and waiting. 88EGG88 continues to struggle against her captor, and is periodically rewarded for her efforts by a smack to the back of the head from the centaur guarding her.

  “Tolius,” Derryth says. “What is your purpose in bringing these useless creatures to my herd?”

  “We witnessed these two,” he indicates our magic wielders, “casting spells and believe them to be responsible for the illness that plagues our kind.”

  “What?” Erinocalypse exclaims indignantly. “We never—”

  “Silence,” Derryth booms again. “What evidence do you bring against them, Tolius?”

  “We detected magical effects across the whole party when we came across them in the forest. We believe if they can enhance other travelers, they certainly can harm our herd.”

  “Wait, now—” ElJugador protests.

  “What is your request?” Derryth says, over the insistence.

  “If it pleases Your Highness, I believe they should be put to death for their attacks on the herd.”

  Chapter 35

  “They didn’t do anything,” I yell, over Tolius trying to silence me. “We didn’t do anything!”

  “No more lies from you, human,” Tolius scolds.

  The other dozen or so centaurs that are under the oak tree with us advance a step or two, weapons held ready, threatening. We are all still tied up and at their mercy, but I’m not going to go out without a fight. The leader of the group of warriors that captured us now accuses us of magically attacking the herd. How or when I have no idea, but whatever he got into his head seems to be enough to call for our execution.

  “I’m not lying. He was lying.” I gesture to MadMachine with a tilt of my head. “We had no idea there were even centaurs in the forest, let alone to come look for you. We were just passing through, I swear. I can … How can we prove it to you?”

  “You can’t,” Derryth says. “Our young are dying. Our old are fading. This plague only started in the last week when humans like you began appearing in the realm. Darkness is spreading throughout Camlan Realm.”

  I swallow hard. This sounds not unlike what Briaris warned us about.

  “The weakest of our herd are being stricken down by a mysterious disease that we have thus far been unable to identify, let alone heal,” she says coldly. “And now you come tramping through my forest using magic to protect and enhance yourselves. Your guilt is apparent.”

  “Heal?” I latch on to that word. “We can heal. We can help. We’re not here to destroy anything or cause any more disease. Please.”

  “Why should I believe you?” Derryth asks. “What possible reason would you have for reversing the damage you have caused?”

  “What reason would we have for causing the damage?” I counter. “Give us a chance to show you we mean no harm, Your Highness.”

  I’m kind of surprised and impressed that TexBadass has managed to hold his tongue the entire time we’ve been in Derryth’s presence. His obvious disdain for the centaurs was bound to get him punished even farther, but he has stayed quiet. It’s not until I look over at him that I realize that is because he hasn’t even been listening.

  “Tex!”

  He blinks a couple times and looks up at me quizzically. “Huh?”

  “Dude. Come on,” I plead.

  “What?”

  “Have you heard anything that just happened?”

  He shakes his head, seemingly unconcerned.

  I sigh deeply, and hear a quiet snicker. At least Derryth seems amused by our banter and not irritated.

  “Dude. Okay. Listen.”

  TexBadass gives me an exaggerated look of focus.

  “The centaurs have a disease spreading through the herd. Do you think you can heal them?”

  He shrugs. “Course.”

  I let out a long slow breath. “Great.” I turn back to Derryth. “Great. See? Please. Give us a chance. Just a chance.”

  She considers for a long pause before responding. “If you can undo the damage done, we may be convinced to consider discussing freeing you.”

  Quest Offered: Save the Herd

  Description: The centaur herd of Dyrnwood has been stricken by a mysterious disease. Discover what the illness is and help them heal. Report back to Derryth to claim your reward.

  Reward: +1200 XP; +50 Fame; Dyrnwood Woven Pants

  I’m not encouraged by his hedging about setting us free, but I immediately accept the quest.

  “We can. We can help. We can—” I gesture to TexBadass. “He can take care of it.”

  “Can you?” Derryth asks. For the first time, she sounds vulnerable and actually interested in what we have to say. I’m not sure if she quite believes my claim, but at the very least she seems inclined to entertain the possibility.

  “We can,” I say again. “Right, Tex?”

  “I already said yes,” he returns grumpily. “They’re just horses.”

  I hope Derryth doesn’t hear that last mutter, but it seems like the commotion around the centaurs untying him has covered the sound.

  “Take him to the infirmary,” Derryth commands.

  “Wait,” I say. “Just him? He can’t go alone. We’re a team. All of us.”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Just one of us, then. Someone to watch his back. You can’t expect us to separate with no thought of each other’s safety or—”

  “Fine,” Derryth says with a dismissive wave. “Fine. You go, then.”

  “But—” MadMachine begins to protest.

  “Stop,” Derryth booms. “I am willing to bend this far and no further. You have this one chance to prove your worth and your innocence and if it cannot be done with these two, we will then move to our next option.”

  I think we can all guess what that option is.

  Cadoc unties my hands, and I rub the raw skin of my wrists for the first time in hours. I flex my wrists back and forth, trying to relax the muscles again. I need to be nimble if I’m going to have to protect TexBadass while he is preoccupied.

  As TexBadass and I are being led away, we get a pinged message from MadMachine.

  MadMachine: Don’t screw this up

  I close out of the dialogue box without responding. I’m tired of him telling me what to do when I’m playing multiple levels above him.

  Four centaurs, all male, all with weapons ready, lead us across the meadow to the infirmary. We don’t speak on the short walk to where the sick centaurs are being cared for. I can’t imagine what kind of disease might be attacking the centaurs that they can’t heal themselves.

  We come to a wide stretch of meadow, near the Bors River, where close to twenty centaurs lie on the ground. Even with all the wide range of coloring the centaurs sport, it’s still clear the affected animals are pale or flush, depending on what symptoms they are feeling.

  Derryth was right; the sick appear to be mostly the very young and the very old. Whatever is attacking this herd is going after the weakest. Though, likely with any other plague, it could hit everyone eventually. While we stand there taking it all in, an adult female centaur staggers up, clutching her side.

  Another older female rushes to greet her. Cadoc holds TexBadass and me by the shoulders, out of the way of this new medical emergency, but we can still watch and listen.

  Name: Alwen

  Level: 49

  Description: This centaur mare is the head of the medical staff for the Dyrnwood herd.

  “Li
ly!” Alwen exclaims. “My dear, come here.” She opens her arms to the sick centaur helping support her as she leads her away.

  “We’ll wait for her to come back,” Cadoc says quietly. “You will not be allowed to simply wander around the infirmary on your own.”

  “Right,” TexBadass says sullenly. “Why let us solve this problem for you?”

  Fortunately we don’t have long to wait before she is striding back between the sick and injured patients toward us.

  “Cadoc,” she says with a frown. “What is this? Are you hurt?”

  Alwen’s horse body has a black and gray coat, with her long hair the same shade of gray, streaked with white. Her air of authority calms me and in spite of all the harsh treatment we’ve had at the hands of this herd, I can’t help but want to trust her.

  “Alwen, my apologies for disturbing your work, but can you take us to Manon?”

  Alwen’s expression mirrored the surprise I felt on my own face. Who was Manon and why was this the first we were hearing of her?

  “I don’t think—”

  “By request of Derryth,” Cadoc said firmly.

  “Well…” She looked at TexBadass and me carefully for the first time. “You’re sure? Very well. Follow me.”

  The point of Cadoc’s arrow poked into my shoulder, nudging me to follow Alwen to this mysterious Manon.

  Chapter 36

  As Alwen, the medical supervisor of the centaur herd, leads us through the rows of sick and injured, I try to walk as slowly as possible, taking in everything we pass. There are centaurs on every side, displaying different symptoms, seeming to be at different stages of the infection. I stall, eager to gather as many details as I can. Periodically, however, Cadoc nudges me forward with his arrow. Though Derryth may want us to heal the herd, she’s not going to make it easy for us.

  We weave between centaurs, old, young, conversations with visiting family, nurses changing bandages. The more patients we pass, the more I begin to recognize the same symptoms over and over. It is difficult to identify at first, since I’m not used to horse bodies, but I soon realize that most of the centaurs are pale with dark circles under their eyes, looking weak, fragile and possibly nauseated.

  I can’t help wondering what makes Manon so special. Maybe she is the worst case? Or the first one?

  Alwen leads us all the way to the far side of the infirmary in the meadow, and a good ten or twelve feet from the next closest patient, when I notice there are freestanding partitions set up in the grass. Weather-worn beige cloth is draped between several wooden posts, creating the only actual private space we have seen in the meadow.

  We stop just before these partitions and Alwen calls out. “Manon? You have visitors, my dear. How are you feeling?”

  “Come in,” a weak voice answers.

  Alwen looks back at us, still not approving of our involvement, but nevertheless gestures us forward.

  “One false move and you die,” Cadoc warns in a whisper.

  TexBadass and I walk to the partition and peer around, crowding in the makeshift doorway. Lying on the meadow grass beyond is a young female centaur, coal black with some white spots here and there. If I were to guess just from her human half, I would say she can’t be any older than ten years old.

  Name: Manon

  Level: 36

  Description: A foal of the Dyrnwood centaur herd and the first to exhibit symptoms of the mysterious disease that runs rampant through the community.

  “Hey there, darlin’,” TexBadass drawls.

  His tone is kinder and gentler than I think I’ve ever heard him. I look at him in surprise, but he only has eyes for Manon. He holds both his hands out in front of him, empty and vulnerable, as though soliciting her trust.

  He takes two steps toward her.

  “How’re you feeling?” he continues.

  He continues his slow steps toward her, and Manon eyes him askance but no one stops him. Soon, TexBadass is standing right by her side, and he squats down to be in her level in the meadow.

  “I’m okay,” she answers warily.

  Just behind us, Alwen clears her throat before saying, “This is Manon. She is Derryth’s only child.”

  Oh great. No pressure on us or anything.

  “Who are you?” Manon asks cautiously as TexBadass gets closer to her.

  “I’m a friend of your mommy’s,” he says. “She asked me to come take a look and see if I could help at all.”

  “Can you?” The hope in her voice is unmistakable.

  “We’ll see.” He reaches out and, without asking, holds his hand to her forehead. “I think so. Why don’t you tell me how long you’ve been sick and how you think this happened?”

  He lifts her wrist, taking her pulse with his fingers as she begins to talk.

  “Our class had a picnic. There are ten of us all this same age, and Professor Moss took us one afternoon over to the Ogwen Glen for a field trip and picnic. We were learning about the lifecycle of fungus and she thought letting us see it for real would help.”

  “That’s a good idea,” TexBadass says soothingly as he then moves to her legs. “I’m just going to check your muscles, if that’s alright Miss Manon. Keep telling your story.”

  The way TexBadass handles her legs, checking the health of her hooves and joints, he must really love his work on his in-laws’ ranch. I’ve never been totally clear on how much this guy actually knows, but just watching him, it seems like a lot.

  “What happened at this picnic?” I prompt her.

  “Um.” She looks at Alwen who nods encouragingly. “We, um … we found something.”

  “Something…?” I try to stay patient, but the girl is evidently stalling. “Like an animal or a plant or …?”

  Manon clears her throat, which then turns into a coughing fit. Tex halts his examination and looks at her concerned, but she soon recovers herself. Her voice when she begins to talk again is rough, as though her throat is raw.

  “Ewan found it first, but I made him step back.” She looks away, as though embarrassed. “I know now I shouldn’t have touched it but … it was so pretty. We found a giant flower that looked completely new. It was a lavender color most of the way through the petals but turned to darker purple nearer the heart. Almost black in the center. When I picked one, a little dusting of the black pollen got knocked off and … I guess I must have breathed it in. I know some got on my hand but I’m sure I washed it off.”

  TexBadass looks at me, rubbing his neck. Manon continues her tale, faster now that the hard part is over.

  “I took the flower back to show Professor Moss. I think a couple of the other kids grabbed one too, and we brought them all back to the herd with us that afternoon. And then,” her eyes well with tears, “it all happened so fast. I’m so sorry. I was already sick by that night, and then my friends were too, and then more people, and then…” She trails off, and looks down.

  “How long ago was this picnic?” I ask.

  “Just three days ago.”

  “I see,” TexBadass says, standing. “You’ve been a very brave girl. I’d like you to rest now, but I’ll be back soon.”

  He strides to the opening of the privacy curtain, grabbing my arm and dragging me out with him. Once we are a few steps away, he stops and we put our heads together to discuss it.

  “Can you heal her?” I ask under my breath. I don’t need Cadoc or anyone else to know I have doubt.

  TexBadass nods. “I can, yeah. I think. I just learned a new spell that I think will be the right thing.”

  “That’s great.”

  “Wait.” He holds up a hand, stopping my exclamations. “I haven’t tried it yet. I haven’t had a chance. It might not be strong enough. I might be wrong about the kind of disease this is. I might not have enough power to heal all of them. Don’t get your hopes up.”

  “What can I do?”

  He shakes his head. “I don’t know. Maybe nothing. But be ready, just in case.”

  Chapter 37

>   “Your time is running short, human,” Cadoc says.

  His arrow is pointed right at TexBadass’s chest as we stand in the centaur infirmary. The healer has completed his assessment of the foal, and now he and I are discussing how best to heal the daughter of the herd’s leader from what is a mysterious, deadly illness.

  “I’ve got this,” the healer says, glaring at our guard. “But I need space. Can we move these partitions?”

  Alwen hears the request and immediately protests. “Manon needs to be protected. If the others know she is here—”

  “If she doesn’t get healed, you’ll have far worse news to share with the herd,” I point out.

  Alwen and Cadoc exchange a look. Whatever rules and standards the centaurs have need to be set aside.

  “Look, you have to know this is your only chance. If your medical team can’t heal her, you will have to … what? Wait for another group of travelers to pass by and hope they can help? She could be dead by then. Countless more of your herd could die in the meantime.”

  Alwen looks offended, but Cadoc cuts her off.

  “You have five minutes. No more.”

  TexBadass nods, and rubs his hands together. “Better get started then. Someone help me with this.”

  In no time, the centaur guards, TexBadass and I have pulled the wooden posts up out of the meadow and cast aside the fabric partitions. Manon seems surprised, and maybe even embarrassed, to be in full view of all the other patients in the infirmary, but she doesn’t protest.

  She seems too tired, to be honest. Too weak to do anything but follow instructions and wait for someone else to take care of her.

  “Everyone back up,” TexBadass commands. The centaurs have given up protesting and all take a step back. Cadoc keeps his arrow trained on Tex, but doesn’t make any further move to hinder him.

  I haven’t ever seen TexBadass cast this particular spell; in fact, I’m not even sure what it is. He makes a wide circular gesture with both hands, almost like a windmill, and then slowly pulls both of his hands toward his chest. Once his hands have made it all the way to his chest, he stops, letting out a slow breath and resets.