The party had found itself at the Ruins\u2019 entrance, a large gate that towered over everyone. Awe struck their hearts as the archaeologists continued their work. \u201cStaggering!\u201d breathed Arsha. \u201cA kingdom we\u2019ve never heard about appears and it may be where the Order of Ancestry began!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou can see why the Order\u2019s helping out in any way it can,\u201d mused Marianes as she pointed out a pair of Order Members, a merman and a mermaid. Arsha resisted the urge to arch an eyebrow at seeing a mermaid without even sea stars on her chest. She figured it would have been impolite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is so much to learn here,\u201d sighed Arsha. \u201cWe know so little about the Order\u2019s origins. I envy you guys.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYour Highnesses!\u201d called Laverda. \u201cOver here!\u201d Marianes and Arsha swam towards Laverda\u2019s position in what was possibly a Throne Room. He was holding a thick book. \u201cI believe THIS may help us unravel the mysteries of this place!\u201d he guessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow long has it been here?\u201d asked Marianes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor 50,000 years,\u201d revealed Laverda, \u201caccording to the archaeologists.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat should have rotted away and disintegrated,\u201d muttered Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what we figured,\u201d replied Laverda, \u201cuntil the mages discovered an ancient version of a preservation spell on the book.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA preservation spell?\u201d quizzed Arsha. \u201cThat kind of magic is recent! Only 100 years old!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe mages were all over that like ants and started studying it,\u201d chuckled Laverda, \u201cfiguring that, if they could study an ancient spell, our modern twist on it can be improved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat else has been found so far?\u201d asked Marianes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBe patient,\u201d replied a mermaid passing by, the head archaeologist, Moreeta. \u201cWe have to take things slow when digging something up. Any faster and we risk breaking it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026You guys have the most mind-numbing job in all the Realms,\u201d muttered Marianes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs do we diplo\u2026\u201d Laverda then cried out in pain as his hoof struck something. He started clutching it as a medic swam over and helped him lay down away from the object. Moreeta dusted some of the sand away to reveal a man\u2019s arm in ice!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomeone\u2019s buried here!\u201d she called. Arsha examined the ice and recoiled in horror.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s fiend-ice!\u201d she shouted. \u201cGet him out!\u201d The digging crew got the ice block out of the sand and found that the arm\u2019s owner was a bare chested merman! The medical crew took him back to base to get him out of the ice, a result of dark magic, trapping the victim for a long time. Arsha called up her ship. \u201cThis is Arsha, calling Sick bay!\u201d she called. \u201cMarshii, respond!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s the matter?\u201d asked Marshii\u2019s voice. \u201cYou sound like you found a body.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe did!\u201d replied Arsha. \u201cA merman in fiend-ice! We need you here now!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOn my way!\u201d replied Marshii, sounding more urgent. Everyone headed to the base\u2019s infirmary and did what they could to melt the fiend-ice. Marshii arrived, holding her medical kit and leaving her robot legs behind on the Endeavor <\/em>to swim quickly to the scene. \u201cMedical torch!\u201d she directed. A small rod with a red jewel at the end was handed to her. She breathed on it and the jewel spewed a small flame, hot enough to cut steel. She chanted a spell to adjust the flame so it wouldn\u2019t damage the merman inside as she cut him out. She started at the head so he could breathe. As she began cutting, one of the medical staff heard a crack. Then another, and another, until he saw that the ice was breaking at the merman\u2019s fins at the end of his tail. A fissure then traveled up the ice and the merman started moving. With one last powerful thrash of his tail, the ice split off of him and he decked Marshii! The rest of the medical staff tried to restrain him, but it was no good. He was too strong and managed to escape the infirmary. Erga and Troga saw him swim out at top speed. A nurse told them what happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSecurity team, to me!\u201d called Troga. Erga followed him as they swam after the mystery merman. A security team joined them and he was spotted at Central Stage, the main venue where Marianes and her troop do their belly-dance routines. Sadly, such a routine was going on as the merman barreled through the dancers on stage. He was tangled in the mess and the security team arrived to sort it out. He was freed and started punching again. He had a rough time going against Erga. He may not have been the skinniest merman around, but his strength and speed were not to be underestimated. He kept the merman busy until the merman grabbed a dancer\u2019s veil and threw it onto Erga\u2019s head, charging it with magic so it couldn\u2019t get caught in the current and fly as if it went through air. Erga was distracted enough for him to get away and leave the base. He finally got the veil off and Marshii was tending to whatever injuries he suffered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOkay, off to the infirmary with you!\u201d she directed. \u201cIn fact, all of you!\u201d she was addressing the security team as she said that. A bald mermaid of the Order opened her mouth to protest, but Erga stopped her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSister Ransii,\u201d he assured \u201cit would not be good for anyone\u2019s health if we argued with a doctor\u2019s orders.\u201d The mermaid then closed her mouth and was led to the infirmary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Major Palmanar was discussing the altercation in her office with Arsha. \u201cThis merman\u2019s caused a lot of chaos in my base,\u201d she grumbled. \u201cI want answers from him and I want them as fast as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Endeavor<\/em>\u2019s sensors will find this merman, I promise,\u201d assured Arsha. \u201cI just wish I knew why he acted that way in the infirmary.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPerhaps we\u2019ll find out when we find him,\u201d guessed Palmanar. As soon as she said it, a thud was heard outside the office. They got up to check on what happened and saw Laverda collapsed on the floor. Arsha checked his pulse and became worried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cArsha to Marshii!\u201d she called over the communicator. \u201cMedical emergency in the Command Center! Laverda\u2019s just collapsed and his heart rate is through the roof!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ll port you right to the Endeavor<\/em>\u2019s Sick bay!\u201d replied Marshii. A green light surrounded the two and they vanished in a runic circle before it faded from the base entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Arsha and Laverda appeared in Sick bay as two nurses, one Centaur male and one Elf female, helped Laverda up onto a bed. Marshii waved a wand over him and got a reading. \u201cGood heavens!\u201d she gasped. \u201cNo wonder his heart rate\u2019s so fast! His larger horse heart has shut down! His smaller human heart\u2019s doing the work of both!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDoctor, there\u2019s a puncture wound in the skin around his hoof!\u201d revealed the Elf nurse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe same hoof he found the fiend-ice with!\u201d growled Marshii. \u201cBorto, get Elmar and Orthena\u2019s help on this! I want that ice analyzed to see if there IS something in it that would attack a Centaur\u2019s hearts like this!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAt once!\u201d confirmed the Centaur nurse as he made the necessary calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHalnee,\u201d directed Marshii to the Elf nurse, \u201cI need a blood sample to see what kind of disease this is!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, Doctor!\u201d replied Halnee. She took off to get the necessary equipment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat can I do?\u201d asked Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou can wait for results OUTSIDE of Sick bay,\u201d answered Marshii. Her tone indicated she will have no truck with backchat. Arsha stepped outside, letting Marshii do her work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The blood sample revealed that Laverda WAS infected with a virus, a slow acting one that would shut down his entire circulatory system starting with the larger organs. One of his horse lungs had shut down before Marshii cast a medical stasis spell to prevent any other organs from shutting down. It could only last for six hours and the virus had six hours left to do its work once the spell faded. Elmar came in and delivered his analysis. \u201cThe virus DID have its origins in the fiend-ice,\u201d he reported. \u201cAnd I have also concluded that, during the merman\u2019s encasement, it has mutated every year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cImpossible!\u201d snapped Marshii. \u201cI\u2019ve looked up the mutation history of that virus and I can tell you now that it was supposed to have been eradicated! For it to mutate, people would have to have been fighting it for ages! The mutations would be a result of adapting to the newer drugs to that specific strain!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd yet,\u201d observed Elmar, \u201cit mutated WITHOUT such means. In other circumstances, it would make an ideal organism for study.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow can you not be worried about him?!\u201d protested Marshii. \u201cLaverda\u2019s dying and you\u2019re acting like you looked a Gorgon in the eyes!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou mistake me, Doctor,\u201d replied Elmar. \u201cI AM worried for him. I am simply channeling my worry into my duties.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh yeah?\u201d hissed Marshii. \u201cAnd have you made any more insightful observations?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAs a matter of fact, I believe I may have something,\u201d answered Elmar. \u201cI noticed a peculiarity in its genetic structure. As of now, I am unable to determine what that peculiarity is. I believe you have the tools needed to name it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ll see what I can do,\u201d sighed Marshii. She got a bit of the virus safely into a test tube and put it through a rigorous analysis that would take an hour before any conclusions were reached.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The party had found itself at the Ruins\u2019 entrance, a large gate that towered over everyone. Awe struck their hearts as the archaeologists continued their work. \u201cStaggering!\u201d breathed Arsha. \u201cA kingdom we\u2019ve never heard about appears and it may be where the Order of Ancestry began!\u201d \u201cYou can see why the Order\u2019s helping out in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1804,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,94],"tags":[482],"class_list":["post-1977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-three-realms","category-the-three-realms-book-1-her-highness-the-captain","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1977"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1978,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1977\/revisions\/1978"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1977"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1977"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1977"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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