Infection

Burgh de Rott, Night:

The silence in Burgh de Rott was deafening, it was the same every night, as soon as darkness came everyone headed into their homes and fell silent. There were never any noises in the night, save the usual snapping from deep within the swamps. Nobody dared to step outside during the latest hours of the day, and if they did they would be very subtle. In his poor excuse for a bed, Ernest rolled over on the hard ground shrugging off his thin piece of cloth which he used for a quilt. He muttered as he twisted and turned, but it made no sense at all.

Burgh de Rott, Morning:

As day came, all the villagers still slept apart from Dirth who was on his feet and walking around his village.

"What a glorious day," Dirth muttered sarcastically. From the other end of path a figure came into view; it was Edward.

"Dirth! Dirth! Come now!" Edward exclaimed.

"What in Saradomin's name is wrong boy?" Dirth asked.

"Something's happened to Ernest, come and view him with your own eyes!" Edward replied looking pale.

"Right then, where is he?" Dirth asked.

"Follow me," Edward said. The two of them ran up the path towards Ernest's home. Outside the small shack were a crowd of people, all nervously looking through the window while Tamron and two other men pushed firmly against the door as if trying to trap whatever was inside.

"Out of the way!" Dirth yelled at the crowd who scattered immediately. Dirth peered through a small space in the boarded up window to see Ernest clawing at the door, his skin was pale green and his eyes were distinctly red. "Dear Saradomin," Dirth murmured stepping back from the window.

"What's happening?" Luna asked as she watched Tamron pushing firmly against the door.

"It's Ernest, he's gone green!" Edward exclaimed walking up to her.

"Green? What do you mean? How can a man go green?" Luna asked horrified.

"There's only one answer to this," Dirth said, "I've seen this in only one other place, and that's Mort'ton."

"The Mort'ton disease?" Edward asked.

"Yes, the disease that turned the majority of the population into the walking dead. They stand tall and green with their arms outstretched, they look exactly like Ernest," Dirth said.

"But how could the disease reach us? We would have had to come in close contact with one of them afflicted folk to the north," Edward said.

"No Edward, that disease didn't spread by touch, the old stories speak of a strange gust of wind carrying the curse went directly to Mort'ton," Dirth said.

"But we haven't had anything of the likes here," Edward said.

"Well it looks like the virus has mutated, and it's become airborne again," Dirth said. Upon finishing the sentence, the door holding back the afflicted Ernest snapped and the pieces of wood that made it up fell to the ground. Tamron was face-to-face with Ernest, who grabbed him and swung him aside, causing Tamron to fall to the ground unconscious. Luna ran to him, touching his forehead; it was cold.

"Dirth! What are we going to do?" Edward asked nervously.

"That's a rather good question, but I must admit I do not have an answer," Dirth said.

"Dirth, there were stories long ago of a cure for this virus, maybe we could rediscover this cure and then we may be able to stop this infection from spreading," Luna said, her hands holding Tamron's head.

"That's correct! I do remember hearing of such a remedy, but first I believe we must deal with this foul creature," Dirth said.

"Maybe we could send it unconscious," Edward suggested. Dirth slowly edged towards a large piece of building stone which lied among a pile of rubble. He grasped it and clenched it firmly in his had, and turned towards Ernest. With a firm blow, Ernest collapsed on the ground, eyes wide open. Dirth suddenly turned his attention to Tamron, who lied unconscious on the floor. Luna was attending to him, but there was little she could do for him.

"Luna, you must leave him for a brief while. We shall take him to a place where he can rest safely until he awakes, and I'll appoint someone to attend to him," Dirth said.

"May I stay by his side during this time?" Luna asked.

"As you wish, but know this: he will be in a state of shock when he awakes and may have sustained unknown injuries, so be very careful," Dirth said.

"And what are we going to do with Ernest?" Edward asked, eyeing the afflicted creature that had replaced Ernest.

"Edward, do we have any type of chain? And I promise that we will find a cure for him, but first we need to keep him under lock and key," Dirth said.

Burgh de Rott, Half an hour later:"

Luna had been appointed as Tamron's carer, and Ernest had his hands wrapped in chain as well as his body which was chained to the wall of the Wanderer's home.

"So I must keep this creature in my own home, you say?" The Wanderer asked.

"Yes, and you shall also need to take a look through your texts and tomes in order to find some kind of cure for this disease," Dirth said.

"For Saradomin's sake, this is preposterous! First I am appointed the job of protecting that thing, and now I have to find out a cure that is probably long-forgotten and crumbled into dust!" The Wanderer snapped, slamming his hand on his table.

"Well at least you'll be assisting us for once," Dirth said. And with that, Dirth and Edward exited, closing the door firmly behind them.

"There's no rest for the wicked," the Wanderer muttered as he delved into the piles of books upon his shelves. He retrieved a book with a dark brown cover with pale yellow writing. "What do we have here?" The Wanderer asked rhetorically as he examined the book. He flicked through the pages, it was a potions book, but the Wanderer had read the book from cover to cover many times, and had never found the potion to cure the disease. The Wanderer realized that the illness wasn't known across the world, as Morytania was very much under quarantine. Perhaps there was some kind of book that detailed the history of Morytania, which would hint at the remedy.

Burgh de Rott, One hour later:

Luna was still by Tamron's bedside, awaiting his recovery from his unconscious state. She held his hand, it was cold.

"Wake up, please wake up," Luna whispered into his ear. Tamron did not stir. Luna clenched his hand tighter and planted a kiss on his head. From outside, Edward had watched the whole thing through the window. He lowered his head sadly, slipping away into the shadows. There was a knock at the door, Luna looked up. "Come in," she said. Dirth entered carrying a bowl of nettle tea, which he placed on the table next to Dirth's bed.

"How is he?" Dirth asked.

"He has not moved an inch, I am beginning to fear for his life," Luna answered, feeling a lump in her throat.

"Does his heart still beat?" Dirth asked.

"Yes, I can feel it," Luna replied, placing her hand upon Tamron's chest.

"Then he lives. Tamron values life, as much as anyone else in this village, and he will not give up on it so swiftly," Dirth stated, putting a hand on Luna's shoulder. "Get him to drink the nettle tea I have brought, it will help awaken him." Dirth then exited, heading towards his home.

In his home, the Wanderer studied the pages of yet another book. The thin paper that the pages were crafted from tore easily, so the Wanderer had to be especially careful when turning the pages. This book was an incredibly accurate guide to Morytanian history. As the Wanderer read on, he came to a chapter detailing the small town of Mort'ton. The book spoke of the disease that afflicted the town, but there was no cure listed. Reading on, the Wanderer discovered that the book did not state a cure. Placing the book back on the shelf, he spotted a small piece of paper hanging out the back page. The note was written scruffily, perhaps rushed, and it spoke about the cure to the Mort'ton disease. It required only tarromin and ashes, and could be made immediately. The Wanderer grew herbs, so he had a supply on him. He retrieved a tarromin from his shelf and placed it inside a vial of water. He then grabbed the vile and headed towards the center of the village where there would be ashes from now extinct fires. He sprinkled a pile of ashes into the vial which frothed and turned a pale shade of green. The Wanderer then ran into Dirth's home, and placed the vial on his desk.

"Look! I've made the potion," the Wanderer said.

"Yes, I see it," Dirth said gripping it firmly with his hands.

"Get your hands off! Tarromin is difficult to obtain so I don't wish for you to break it," the Wanderer snapped taking the vial off of Dirth.

"Well then, why don't you give our dear friend Ernest the potion and relieve him of his affliction," Dirth said.

"As you wish," the Wanderer said leaving. He made his way back to his home. The light breeze made the hairs on a person's neck stand high, but not the Wanderer, he was not bothered by the cold. Arriving back at his home he bent down to Ernest who was still slumped out the front of his home, chained up. Ernest was regaining consciousness, and as he opened his mouth, the Wanderer emptied the contents of the vial into his mouth. The Wanderer then stepped back, should Ernest suffer from any violent side-effects. Ernest's skin however didn't change in colour at all; the potion had failed. "What in Saradomin's name has happened?" The Wanderer muttered, retreating inside his home. "The virus has mutated, so maybe this cure does not work anymore," he continued, placing his vial back on the shelf. Outside, Ernest groaned, and soon there was a snapping of chains as Ernest rose to his feet and stumbled off, chains still tying his hands together. The Wanderer fled from his home to warn the others of what had just happened.

Dirth was sitting down in his home when the Wanderer burst in.

"What is it?" Dirth asked.

"There seems to be a problem, the potion did not work on Ernest, and now he's escaped, having shattered his chains," the Wanderer said.

"What?" Dirth snapped. Another person came through the door, it was Mary, one of the other villagers.

"Dirth, I'm so sorry to trouble you and hope you'll forgive me for intruding, but my husband has got the same affliction that Ernest has," Mary said.

"The virus; it's spreading," Dirth said. There were screams outside as the afflicted Ernest stumbled about outside Dirth's window, seemingly possessed.

"Maybe we need to give the potion time," the Wanderer said.

"No, no. The stories about the cure stated that the potion cured the person immediately!" Dirth snapped. "Now, you're going to come with me and help Luna and Tamron." Edward then stumbled inside, gasping for breath.

"Oh my Saradomin! This village has fallen under unpenetrable darkness!" Edward exclaimed, putting his hand to a scar on his arm.

"Edward, come with me, we have to help Luna and Tamron!" Dirth snapped, dashing off, followed by Edward and the Wanderer who grumbled.

At his home, Tamron was beginning to gain consciousness, and as he looked up he saw Luna.

"What happened to me?" Tamron asked, as his surroundings became clearer.

"You were attacked, and you had a terrible fall, I worried for your life," Luna said.

"You were wrong to worry, I do not give up on life," Tamron said, trying to raise his arms.

"Do not try and rush yourself, your recovery will need to take its path," Luna said, clenching his hand and feeling it; it felt warmer now. "You feel warmer, that's a good sign," she said. From outside were the sound of footsteps, and then a knock.

"Luna! Tamron! Are you in there?" Dirth asked.

"Yes, we are inside, and I bear good news! Tamron has awoken!" Luna exclaimed.

"You will need to come with us, the wretched virus has begun to spread, and at an alarming rate!" Dirth ordered.

"I will need help lifting Tamron," Luna said.

"No Luna, you have no need to worry about me, you've done enough. I shall walk myself," Tamron said, just about managing to get up.

"You must hurry!" Dirth snapped. Tamron and Luna responded quickly and exited the building, and soon Dirth, Edward, the Wanderer, Tamron and Luna were on the move.

"But where shall we go?" Edward asked.

"We shall remain in my home," Dirth said, "We shall decide what to do there."

Burgh de Rott, One hour later:

The virus had claimed many residents by now, all of whom lied unconscious in bed, but soon would turn into a shambling beast.

"Dirth, I believe I have an answer to our problem," the Wanderer said as he sat inside Dirth's home.

"Well then, what is your plan?" Dirth asked.

"I do believe there was an incident such as this here many years ago, long before I arrived any of yous were born," the Wanderer said. "The village would have recorded the cure for this mutated virus and kept it in the history records, all of which are stored in the home of the village leader; here."

"By Saradomin you may have saved us all!" Dirth exclaimed lifting down a large book of historical records.

"I may have saved my own life," the Wanderer said as he began to read the book. Flicking through he reached a date fifty-one years ago. There had very well been an incident identical to what had occurred now. "I was right!" The Wanderer exclaimed as he read on, the ingredients were the same as the normal cure but with an extra ingredient; swamp water.

"But Dirth, are we not at risk to the virus, we have being untouched, all five of us seem in perfect condition," Edward said.

"I do believe that our ancestors received permanent cures many years ago when the virus first hit, the cure is a permanent solution that remains in the body. The virus only attacks the living, and the swamp water deceives the virus by representing the person as something with swamp decay; not a healthy living person," the Wanderer said.

Burgh de Rott, Half an hour later:

The Wanderer added a sprinkle of ashes to the final potion, and now all fifteen potions were prepared. Now, the village could be saved. Ernest strolled outside the Wanderer's home, and Dirth and Edward grabbed the rambling creature that was Ernest so the Wanderer could pour in the cure, which he did. Immediately, Ernest's skin faded to pale white; it had worked.

"Now cure everyone! Every person in the village must be cured!" Dirth yelled, ecstatic with the taste of victory in his mouth.

Burgh de Rott, Night:

The Wanderer placed his last empty vial back on his shelf. His work was done. Dirth then stepped through the door.

"Can I help you?" The Wanderer asked.

"I've come to thank you, for saving us all," Dirth said.

"That, my good fellow, was an act of rescue. I have saved my own life," the Wanderer said.

"You can't deny it though, you've cured everyone, you have saved us all!" Dirth announced pulling the Wanderer into a hug. He then went to exit when he stopped dead.

"What is it?" The Wanderer asked.

"It's suddenly turned cold. And there's something in the air, evil; pure evil," Dirth said looking up into the darkening sky.