Chapter 319: The pills work.

They reached the surviving cluster of structures in the furthest end of the settlement. The largest building was half-buried in ash, but the reinforced door was still standing.

Zyra gestured to Bullet. "Do the honors."

Bullet grinned, flexed his shoulders, and hoisted his right leg. "Open sesame." He kicked the door so hard it tore right off its iron hinges, flying inward and crashing onto the floor with a cloud of dust and splinters.

"Hold it right there!" Bullet yelled, trying to sound terrifying as he stomped through the doorway, gun raised high.

A weak, high-pitched voice echoed from the dark corner of the room. "Please, don’t hurt us."

Zyra rushed in behind him, her blade ready, but stopped dead in her tracks. Lying in a haphazard pile near an upside-down long table were fifteen people. They were covered in soot from head to toe, looking like overcooked sweet potatoes.

One elderly man with a scorched beard slowly sat up, coughing a tiny puff of black smoke out of his mouth. He looked at Bullet, then at the shattered door on the floor, and sighed. "Young man, their was no need for you to break the door. As you can see we are all powerless and sick."

Taylor lowered his gun and looked at the elder "Pardon us, Senior. These are not exactly ’knock first and be polite’ days."

Zyra arched a brow and spoke. "What happened here?"

"We were attacked!" the old man wailed, throwing his hands up. "Three hours ago! A giant red feathered beast appeared in the sky, spat a fireball at our town and flew off toward the north." He shuddered. "I am afraid that it is headed to Grimmark, its were those without disease ran off to."

Etania grimaced, "Oh no, what if that thing is destroying settlement after settlement?! It’s not going to pull over and take a nap! It won’t be long before it shows up right on our doorstep and turns our house into a bonfire!"

Zyra set her bag on the wooden table with a thud. Slowly, she unlatched it and pulled out several small, velvet-lined cases stuffed with pills. "Calm down, Etania," She said, popping open the first case. "If its the same bird beast I am thinking of, then we are safe. It has already paid a visit to the factories and it was defeated but I cannot say that it will not return." She had to assume it was the same King bird beast because she had not seen it on the cameras today morning.

"It what?!" Etania gasped, clutching her chest like she’d just been struck by lightning.

"Yep. Tried to burn the whole place down with a fire that burns hotter than the fire we are accustomed to." Zyra added dryly.

The men in the room immediately exchanged wide-eyed, terrified glances.

Taylor slammed his fist onto the table. "That’s it! We hunt it down and finish it off before it stumbles into Beast Valley or Rose Water! We roast that overgrown chicken!"

"Hold your horses, hero," Zyra scoffed, tapping the side of a pill case. "It’s a King beast, not your everyday eagles that mutated to breathe small fires. Before engaging it, we have to make a plan and ensure we are equipped to survive the fight. But first, we test these pills on the sick."

They prepared a makeshift medical tent, handing out the medicine.

Zyra got a megaphone, cleared her throat, plastered on her best fake, trustworthy smile, and declared, "Greetings, everyone! Do not fear. We have just arrived from the Great Capital! The Divine maiden and the high government officials sent these miraculous pills specifically to contain the plague!"

People came out of hiding, one at a time. Most were very suspicious. Since when did the government care about those in the wildlands?

"We are not here to arrest you or forcefully conscript you into the army. Our race must deal with the effects of the flood and plague first." Zyra added. "We have to survive."

The sick people were desperate for a cure, and they moved closer. They stared at the tiny, strange-looking pills in their palms but nobody moved.

"Uh, is it supposed to smell like burnt grass?" a young man whispered, pulling his hand back.

Bullet stepped forward, crossing his muscular arms. "Look, folks, let’s be real here. You’re sitting around covered in boils, looking like toasted walnuts. You’ve got nothing to lose! You could die in a couple of days, or you could swallow this pill. At least the instant-healing pills give you a fighting chance. Eat up!"

"Way to be gentle, Bullet," Taylor muttered under his breath.

An old man sitting on a woven mat let out a raspy cough. He looked at his swollen, sore-covered hands, then up at the group. "Fine. I’ll go first."

He threw the pill into his mouth and swallowed hard.

Silence fell over the room. Everyone leaned in, holding their breath.

Suddenly, the old man’s face turned bright, tomato-red. He puffed out his cheeks, flailed his arms wildly, and started wriggling his hips like he was doing an awkward dance. "Hot! it’s spicy! I feel like I swallowed a molten rock!"

Zyra’s eyes went wide. She whipped her head toward Beauty and whispered frantically, "Beauty! Is he supposed to turn into a cooking pot?!"

Beauty squeezed her eyes shut and giggled nervously.[Well... these pills were technically refined for beasts, but they’re mostly harmless to humans! This is my first time seeing a human actually swallow one.]"

"Damn you beauty’!" Zyra shrieked in a hushed whisper.

Before Zyra could panic any further, a strange popping sound echoed through the building. The ugly, black boils on the old man’s hands shrank, smoothed out, and dried out. Within seconds, the sores on his arms, face, and neck melted away into spotted but healthy skin.

The old man stopped his frantic jumping. He stared at his hands, touched his cheeks, and suddenly leaped three feet into the air. "It worked! My ancestors, I’m cured! I feel like I’m twenty again!" he shouted, doing a quick victory jig.

Zyra let out a loud, triumphant laugh, wiping a fake speck of sweat from her forehead. "Ha! It actually works!"

Seeing the old man practically glowing with life, the rest of the sick didn’t hesitate. They shoved the pills into their mouths like candy. Within minutes, the sound of sighs, cheers, and popping boils filled the air. There wasn’t a single sick person left in sight.

Etania’s eyes welled up with tears of joy. She dropped straight to her knees in front of Zyra, pressing her hands together. "Oh, Divine Maiden! It worked! A true miracle from Heaven!"

The cured villagers looked at Zyra, then at Etania, and immediately dropped onto their knees, banging their foreheads against the dirt floor.

"Thank you, Divine Maiden!"

"Praise the Divine Maiden! Sent by the heavens to save us!"

Zyra stood frozen, her left eye twitching slightly. She let out a long, exhausted sigh and dragged a hand over her face. She had spent the last three days explicitly begging Etania to stop calling her the Divine Maiden, but talking to Etania was literally no different than talking to a stubborn brick wall.

"Yes, we thank the Divine maiden in the capital. Now, everyone, please stand up, my knees hurt just watching you," Zyra sighed, turning her attention back to the elder. "So, old man, where’s this Grimmark?"

The elder raised his hand high, beaming with energy. "Follow me, Divine Maiden! I’ll personally lead the way!"

Zyra groaned softly, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Lead on, just please stop saying ’Divine Maiden’. The Divine maiden is in the capital."

"Yes Divine maiden." He answered with an innocent smile.