"One would think with the abundance of healing magic practitioners, plagues are no longer a serious worry. In that, one would be both right and wrong. Known plagues from the past could indeed usually be eradicated without issue by competent healers. On the other hand, new, never before seen plagues, whether they be natural or man made, would always take their toll before a solution was found… if there was any to be found." - Professor Doctor Mallard McFowler, foremost expert of medicines, on a guest lecture on the Levain Institute of Higher Learning, circa FP 521.

Near Fort Desaric

Western Ptolodecca

Lichdom of Ptolodecca

6th day, 4nd week, 3rd month, year 80 VA.

"Are you sure there is no more to tell about this plague, matriarch Fareesa?" Mallard asked from where he was seated across the elven matriarch. The group that marched to the Shadow Forest from Tohrmutgent was far larger than the elven delegation that had arrived. Half of said delegation was staying in Tohrmutgent, with only the matriarch and the hundred year old returning.

Marching alongside them were tens of thousands of skeleton soldiers, the Bone Lord having agreed to their request and sent out several cadres of mages, escorted by a good five thousand heavy infantrymen and archers. These forces would secure the forest, now officially ceded as a part of Ptolodecca, and keep its inhabitants safe from any further aggression. Just their presence should normally be enough to deter any adventurism on Elmaiya's side, but the Bone Lord had not taken chances and sent troops in great quantities.

"I am afraid so… sir Mallard," replied the elven matriarch. "I have told you everything I can discern about this plague, to the best of my knowledge, as well as what the other shamans have told me before my departure. They might have discovered some new things by now, but for those we will have to ask them once we arrive."

"Hrmm… it is indeed a perplexing illness then," commented the old duck as he rubbed the underside of his beak with one wing.

All the information the elves offered - and they offered quite a lot of it too - about the plague has been perplexing so far. The information had been gathered from their best shamans, most of which were of Life or Nature affinity, and to their report, it was as if the illness rejected their attempts to cleanse it.

They also specifically reported how life affinity magic seemed to be rejected by the illness somehow, and how it affected those with Death affinity as well as those with affinities derived from it the worst. The symptoms were also strange, as if the victims' own mana became harmful to their bodies.

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For those reasons they had suspected that the plague might have been man made in nature, and probably even targeted at the elves in particular. To help find a way to handle the plague, amongst the group that returned with the elven delegation were two dozen of the best healers in Tohrmutgent, in every affinity capable of healing. None of the elves had joined the expedition however, as the risk of them catching the plague themselves were deemed too great. For the same reason, the healers who had gone were mostly unliving, with the rest being volunteers.

Aideen had naturally been amongst those who had gone, as she was unliving, and was one of the best mortality affinity mages around. Ariadne had also volunteered for the task, now a middle-aged woman with grandchildren of her own. Mimia had wanted to join as well, but they deemed it risky since she was a half elf, and thus she stayed behind.

What had worried the healers the most was how the plague seemed to incubate without any symptoms whatsoever, before suddenly striking with ferocity. That made it difficult to detect the plague before it became serious, and even the delegation were worried that they might have inadvertently brought the plague with them.

Isolation had not helped, as the plague had spread from region to region in the forest unimpeded despite the strict quarantine measures taken when the elves had first detected it. That it had started from the area bordering the Elmaiya Empire had naturally pointed suspicions that way, and Myrddin had also instructed his agents in the empire to search for information that might pertain to this unusual plague.

They passed by Fort Desaric, the westernmost fort in Ptolodecca that was built to guard against elven raids, and rested the night in its vicinity. When they marched the next morning, however, their numbers had swelled by another five thousand, as the garrison of the fort added half the stationed heavy infantry and archers to the group.

Naturally, they considered the possibility of it all being an elaborate trap by the elves, which was why they had sent troops in excess. If it was a trap, the excessive number of troops should be enough to fight their way out.

Another two days into their journey - it would have only taken one and a half days of marching to reach the forest from the fort under normal circumstances, but the heavy rains had turned the ground muddy and slowed them down - passed before the shadow forests came into sight.

There they actually found themselves welcomed warmly, if with some visible reluctance. The soldierly part of the group continued their route, through the forest towards the area that bordered the Elmaiya Empire.

As for Aideen and the other healers, they asked to be shown to people who are suffering from the plague, to immediately go to work without delay, without even resting first.

The elves mostly lived in treehouses atop the great trees of the forest, with only a few huts at ground level. The healers were thus led atop the trees, climbing up rope ladders to find nothing less than a city built just under the forest's canopy, at times built atop intertwined branches, at other times carved directly into the trees themselves.

They were directed towards a large structure, what looked to be an audience hall of some sort, probably a place where the elves gathered for rituals and the like. Inside the structure, were thousands of elves, lying down atop thin woven mattresses, while a much small number of healers were visibly busy running to and fro as they tried their best to alleviate their patient's suffering.

Without a word, Aideen and the other healers who had volunteered for this mission strode inside, and immediately went to work.