Carrying the Cure part 3 of 3
They left the bay, and the Wavecutter turned south while the Ghostmaid sailed west. As they left the island and the undead behind, the wind got stronger and turned into an outright storm, so that there was no sleep to be had for the friends.
Fortunately, the Ghostmaid had endured many bad weathers like this one and the crew was used to situations like that, so that the ship rode the church-high´waves with ease. Then, around noon, wood crashed against wood. In the middle of the storm, the Ghostmaid had crashed into another, much larger ship.
The storm raged on and as everyone on board pulled out their weapons, the crew of the larger ship was still not to be seen. Then, ropes came down over the rail and all of a sudden, bloated corpses with cutlasses between their teeth slid down.
The elves stayed calm. It almost seemed as if they had expected an assault like that, and they faced the attackers with an air of cool determination in the storm. Unlike the soldiers on the island, these undead were mindless raging beings, and soon they were repulsed.
As the last of the Zombies was defeated, their ship sank. Still surprisedabout the calm reaction of the elves, Niklas turned to Khemaitas:"What was that?"
The elf ushered the adventurers into his cabin, where they were safe from the storm outside:"We call them Bloodzombies."
He leaned back in his chair:" There are many dangers that we who sail the blood sea must face. The taint of Khadum has changed many once harmless creatures into horrible monsters, like the pisceans, for instance. Then, there is the unpredictable nature of the weather and many pirates make their home here as well.
"However, some of the threats here are more subtle, and all the more deadly because of it. Sometimes, you don't have to get into actual contact with the blood of Khadum. It's proximity can be enough.
"There is a sort of a mold which attaches itself to the hulls of ships.This slimy substance, which we call "blood barnacles" can imbue the crew of an infected ship with the spirit of Khadum, instilling a mindless bloodrage. Once the process started, the sailors are doomed, since they will slaughter each other to the last man, woman and child.
"However, it doesn't end then. A while after their demise, they rise again. They are still full of hate and rage, however they concentrate their hatred on everything that lives... These are the bloodzombies. Fortunately, all we have encountered so far are brainless, and since we are used to fighting worse foes, they are not much more than a nuisance for us. And don't worry- once the sea has calmed, some of us will dive under the ship and remove all barnacles, should there be any.".
The rest of the journey was uneventful. The weather calmed down, and once the small damages caused by the Zombies woodwarping abiliy were removed and the hull was cleansed, they rode on a swift breeze homewards.
Back in Mithril, Niklas gave a report to his superiors and introduced himself to Barconius, the legendary leader of the Knights of Mithril. Upon hearing that the warchief Donnangar was in town, Barconius had a short conversation with the orc. It was the first time that the two legendary heroes encountered each other, and in spite of the general goodwill, there were still many differences, and the meeting was held in a polite but cold atmosphere.
There was no time to loose, and so they rode on to the Gravelfist encampment on the day after their arrival in Mithril. There, they were welcomed by Gortak.
Donnangar handed the robe of the archmage to the blind prophet, who was delighted upon hearing about their exploits. Gortak carefully explored the runes on the robe with his fingers, and after a short moment of contemplation he put them on.
He turned to the adventurers:" I can not thank you enough. You have given us something we thought we had lost forever: hope. Now come with me, my friends, for I shall adress the tribe.".
After Gortak had summoned the Orcs and the herbs were boiling in a large cauldron, he raised his voice, and again, his frail body was forgotten and his words were heard everywhere in the encampment:" At last, the cure for the plague has arrived. And not only that. Donnangar and our newfound friends have brought us even more! A future!
"They brought us a grain which will survive here in the plains. No longerwill we be dependant on herding and raiding. We will plant the seeds and harvest in the autumm. This will provide us with food and even more seeds for the next year- and with each year, we shall be more prosperous than before!
"In time, we will be able to build a civilization like our ancestors had, and we shall no longer be denied what the humans have: Cities and Empires! Once we have established a new nation here in the plains, nothing will stand in our way when we take our deserved place among our neighbors!"
There was a loud roar and the orcs clapped their hands and stomped their feet. When the noise had died down, Gortak continued:" None of that would have been possible withuot these members of the divine races here. So, let it be known that from now on, all five of them shall be treated as Orcs of the Gravelfist tribe. They are free to stay with us, and they are protected by our laws. If they are harmed, the one who harmed them shall be treated as an enemy of the tribe."
Again, the orcs roared in agreement, even though the roar wasn't quite as loud this time. There was much backslapping and at the big celebration in the evening, with beer, hurlg, which was a beverage made of fermented animal fat, and meat, the orcs made the heroes feel as members of the group.
For the uprooted heroes, who were either orphans or had lost touch to their homes long ago, it was a beautiful night. Here, among those savages, they had found unlikely friends. And these were friends, who even made them feel like part of a real family. It was a night in which mutual respect finally turned into trust and friendship.
The next morning, messengers were send to the other tribes in order to deliver the cure, while not mentioning the grain, and the heroes went to Mullis Town were they handed the cure over to the king. They received a small reward and since the king made sure that the leaves were put into all the wells, the plague disappeared as quickly as it had come.
Now that everything was said and done, Trepat and Ben returned to the Gravelfists. They had decided to stay with them for the time being, while Jan, Niklas and Torn rode to Mithril. There, the Paladin and the monk joined with their orders and Torn rented an appartment in Shack Street.
The next few months, Trepat and Ben spent with the Gravelfists in their wintercamp, which was just a two days ride from Mithril. Jan served in the ranks of the armed forces of Mithril, and he patrolled the CorradaCorridor or served on guard duty at the fortress or the gate. Niklas stayed in themonastry most of the time, where he trained his mind and his body, and Torn was getting accustomed to the new town and it's opportunities for easy money.
Donnangar rode out to a small hill one morning. There were two bundles strapped to Plainsrunner, his faithful dire wolf. With carefulelaboration, he unwrapped the first package, which was filled with wood. He then build up a small furnace with stones and he used mud to close the holes between. Into this little construction, he put the wood, and lit it. Thenhe added the bones he had found in the pyramid and covered it all with a special powder that made the small fire hot enough to burn the bones to ashes.
Then, he sat down, and when the evening came, and the fire had burnt down, he kicked down the furnace. Immediately, the wind picked up the ashes and dispersed them over the plains. Donnangar waited a little longer, and when the last of the ashes was gone, he rode home.
Charkovar had found his final resting place at last.
---edited since some errors occured after formatting ---
