She shook her head, a little distressed that they didn't even realize they were getting sick. "No, it didn't bite, but it sent it through the air! You must have breathed it in...you were coughing a few minutes ago..." She couldn't speak as another wave of tears spilled over her eyes. As the owl moved in closer, wing reaching to cover her, she froze. She had never had much physical contact in her life and it terrified her a little bit, especially now, knowing that the bird was sick. She almost shied away when there was a small, calming voice inside her head.

It's okay. Comfort is most welcome in times of trouble.

She was so shocked and confused by the new voice that she didn't even notice when the wing draped over her body. She felt warm there, the soft feathers blanketing her black fur. The new voice hummed peacefully and sank into the feeling as well. "Who are you," she breathed as quietly as she could.

I am Ripple and I am here to comfort you. Relax, Caliante. We shall grow to know each other in time. The presence faded away, as if Ripple had retreated to the Inner World with the others (as they probably did) and Caliante let herself relax. Her tears stopped coming in torrents and, for a moment, she felt at peace next to the bird.

But then she realized that she had to do something. She couldn't just cry about having infected Scorch, she had to fix it. The moment broken, she stepped away and faced the owl again. "Thanks, but I need to do something about the sickness. The plague is terrible and I don't know how it will affect you. Hopefully it isn't as bad as how it got us, but, either way, I don't want you to become any more sick because of me." She spoke with a conviction not often found in her voice and she felt approval emanating from the others within her.

"Caliante." "Salvation." "Rusty." "Crack." "Tarragon." "Ripple."

@Scorch

Scorch was confused. Very confused. Crack had sent what through the air? He had breathed what in? And why exactly did that what make him cough? He didn't want to make Caliante more upset, though, so he didn't ask more questions. And she'd stopped crying now. That was good.

Caliante stepped away and spoke again, all tough and determined-like. Wait... Sickness? Plague? Memories of his conversation with Sebastian a few days ago drifted back. He'd been burning plants that were all dead-looking, and Scorch had asked him why, and he'd explained about... the plague. Crack had infected him with WHAT?!

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That evil little bat! Who happened to be inside the same body as Caliante and Salvation, so he couldn't even yell at it! Well, maybe he could, when it resurfaced. Not that it resurfacing was something to hope for, because evil things surfacing at all was bad, but REsurfacing was even worse, because that meant it had surfaced already, which meant more evils. And more evils was bad. "Do - do you have any ideas? On how to stop it?" he asked when he'd mostly gotten control over his thoughts, though his voice was still shaky.

@Umbra

Mongo wasn't entirely sure what had drawn his attention.

Perhaps it was the sound of voices, low and muted as they may be. Or maybe it was something in the air, the Magick that drifted through the air seeming anxious and angry.

But he followed his intuition, long legs leading him to where Umbra and the owl were waiting.

Leaping up onto a boulder, the helmeted fossa looked down on the two. The bird seemed upset, and he couldn't quite tell which of the personalities were in control of the bat's body.

But he remembered the name of one, and so he called out, "Caliente? What's the matter?" However, on the off-chance that Crack was in control, he coiled his muscles, ready to rush in and protect the owl if it was needed.

@Umbra
@Scorch

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

Caliante watched with horror at the thoughts visibally passing over Scorch's face. The thoughts rolling through their expression, clear as day. No, they couldn't panic. They had to stay clam. Ripple said that staying calm was important right now. She took a few deep breaths to steady her heart before she looked at Scroch, her face serious. "I don't know, I'm sorry. I wish we knew a spell that could cure you, but Crack would never allow us to carry such a spell from its element. Perhaps if we found someone who did..."

She paused at a familiar sound, her ears perking with surprise. She turned up and her eyes widened with surprise at the form of Mongo standing above them. But...why was there a skull over his head?

Was it because of the burns Crack had inflicted on him? Or something else? A fashion choice? No, that didn't make sense. It had to be her fault! It was the burns, it was all their fault! Tears collected again at the corner of their eyes. "Oh, Mongo, your face! I'm s-so sorry...I wish I could have stopped it..." She couldn't keep going as sobs took over again, but the calming and soothing presence of Ripple caressed the back of her mind. Caliante, it's okay. Deep breaths. Perhaps Mongo can help.

Following their instructions, she took more deep breaths and managed to calm herself enough to continue speaking. "Mongo, do you know how to cure a disease? Or anyone that knows how to?"

"Caliante." "Salvation." "Rusty." "Crack." "Tarragon." "Ripple."

@Scorch @Mongo

C-Caliante couldn't cure it?

No! That's okay, Scorch told himself. There has to be others. Others who can help me. I'm not going to die. I'm not going to die. A horrible thought struck him. What if he'd infected Caliante and the others? No, no, that couldn't be possible. Caliante would have stopped him from touching her. But he had to make sure...

"Caliante," he began, barely able to keep his voice from shaking. "Are you... Is there any chance I could have infected you?" They'd said... earlier... that they'd almost died. Did the plague cause that? The stress must have been getting to him, as the itchiness in his chest built up again. Scorch hastily moved a wing to cover his beak as he coughed, not wanting to get anything on the bat. More horrible thoughts. Which wing had he used to cover his coughing the first time? Which wing had been touching Caliante? He couldn't remember. Frustration built up, making his eyes wet, but he could blame that on the cough. He didn't want to worry Caliante by crying.

When the itchiness faded, he uncovered his face to see a newcomer, a Gembound with a skull draping over his head. And Caliante was getting upset again. She calmed herself down, though, so maybe she was okay now? Scorch had no idea. This was confusing. It felt awkward to say something now, when Caliante had already asked Mongo a question, but he had to introduce himself, right? "Hi, Mongo. I'm Scorch." There, now they all knew each other's names! And maybe Mongo could help find a cure. Yes, he thought, determined. Stay hopeful. Don't let Crack win.

@Mongo @Umbra

The Fossa was glad to see that he had been right. From the sound of their voice, and the way they spoke, it appeared that Caliante was in control. And then, guilt built in his stomach. She looked near tears, at least from what he could tell, and the sound of her voice. He shook his head, wanting to reassure her. "Don't worry, Caliante. That wasn't you, you couldn't have stopped them."

She asked him a question, and he determined it safe. Mongo leaped down from his boulder to stand before Caliante and Scorch, 'looking' between them. "Good to meet you, Scorch." he said, although he had to take a minute to think.

"I don't know any spells that are capable of it, at least non that I am able to use. However, I've heard of a cat in Eridanus who might know a spell, or might know someone who does." he offered.

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

@Scorch @Umbra

Caliante hadn't expected the question from Scorch and a jolt of fear ran through her body. She whipped around towards the owl and widened her eyes. "Oh, uh, I don't know...I mean, it's possible..." She shivered as she remembered what it was like for them to be infected by the plague. It wouldn't be so bad for Scorch, as Umbra was the vector and it seemed the plague just grew and grew, got worse and worse. They didn't ever want that happening again. She needed to know, now. But she couldn't just ask Crack. Bringing them forward from the Inner World would be a very bad idea.

She reached out for whoever was still listening and found that, for some reason, Rusty was the only one. "Can you ask Crack?" She spoke, not to any of the physical creatures present but to the one in her head. Yeah, but I'm not sure it'll speak. Caliante sighed. "Well...do what you can." He grunted with affirmation and his presence dimmed as he retreated deeper into their subconsciousness.

She blinked, bringing herself back to reality just in time to hear what Mongo was saying. At first, she felt hope leave her, but then a new flame lit itself at the mention of a cat in Eridanus. Eridanus was far, certainly, but there was hope! She felt a buzz of excitement and she crawled closer to Mongo. "Do you know this cat? Have you met them before? What can they do? We need to go!" She turned to Scorch, feeling both guilty and grateful for Mongo's help. "Do you think you can make it? All the way to Eridanus?"

"Caliante." "Salvation." "Rusty." "Crack." "Tarragon." "Ripple."

@Scorch

What? What? No, that couldn't be right. Caliante said that it was possible. Possible that Scorch had infected her. NO! Just because the possibility existed didn't mean he had infected her. He had to hope that she was healthy. Caliante said some more, not waiting for a response, so he assumed she was talking to the others inside her head.

"Eridanus... Cat? Oh! Is Eridanus the place with lots of plants? I met a cat there! He was big and black and used fire. But there are probably other cats, too." Would he get to meet the cat and the dragon again? Oh, this was great! Except having the plague which could potentially kill him and anyone he infected. That part was not so great. Nope, not great at all.

Could he make it there? It was only one tunnel away, and he'd made the journey before, albeit with lots of rest stops. He stretched his wings and walked a few steps experimentally, but the results shocked him so much he almost fell over. His muscles had been sore before, when he'd walked too long in a single day, and he'd been tired, of course, but this was not natural. He'd been taking it easy! Not too much exercise, apart from rapidly backing away from Crack. Could it be the plague? If it was, then stupid plague. Stupid Crack, too, for giving it to him. "I think I can make it," he said hesitantly. "If we take breaks in between. Yes, definitely. Breaks would be really really good. Lots of breaks." Although he wasn't sure how long that would make their journey. Hopefully not too long, he didn't want this sickness to worsen.

@Mongo

Mongo observed the interaction between the owl and the bat, trying to determine their relationship. Had the owl been the victim of Crack? Or was this something far more innocious?

Thankfully, it seemed that Caliante was on track with his plan, but he found himself shaking his head 'no'. "I haven't met this cat before, but I've heard of him. I know there is a spell capable of healing, but I do not know it myself. Even if he does not know it, that area is full of plant mages, surely at least one of them will know it."

He looked back at Scorch, wanting to see the owl's reaction. "Yes, Eridanus is the place with lots of plants." However, the black cat was not who he spoke of. "If you need," he offered, "You can ride atop my back."

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

@Umbra
@Scorch

Caliante stood taller and looked between the two. They would be travelling all the way to Eridanus and she knew that she would go as well. She couldn't just leave the two of them to go there on her own. It was her fault, after all, that Scorch was sick. "I'll fly with you. I'll stay above in case Crack comes back. Then you'll get warning if it decides to swoop down." She hated that she had to have precautions for her own body, but, after all that Crack had done, it was necessary.

She felt a consciousness press up against hers, not attacking, but joining her from the Inner World. I've spoken to Crack. It took a little bit to get it to answer, but we're okay for now. Caliante sighed with relief. She didn't want Scorch to blame themselves for getting her sick so soon after recovering. "Rusty says that we're not sick. But we should still hurry to Eridanus." She opened her wings and leaped into the air, stumbling a bit as she regained the memory of flight. She stabilized after a moment and gained altitude until she was flying above the other two. Hopefully they would get there before Scorch's sickness became too much. And she hoped that this cat would be able to heal them.

*exit

"Caliante." "Salvation." "Rusty." "Crack." "Tarragon." "Ripple."

@Scorch