[IMG]https://picload.org/image/rpocagri/markerjaelnec.png[/IMG]
[h3]Outside the southern gates of Zerul City[/h3]
“Someone… what?” Thomas asked with renewed uncertainty, clearly confused by Domhnall’s description of their soon to be arriving acquaintance, but Jaelnec spoke before the boy even had time to finish those two words.
“Claw is coming after all?” he asked, equally surprised and pleased with the news. “How do you- actually, never mind that. That’s great news.” He turned to Thomas. “Claw isn’t human, in case that wasn’t clear from Domhnall’s description. He’s, uh… best way I can describe him is as a cross between a tarke and a Melenian, only instead of being catlike he’s more wolflike.”
“Uh…” Thomas seemed completely lost, struggling to keep up with the unexpected developments he had to deal with during his supposedly simple task of receiving William’s allies. “Okay, I guess I’ll… pass that description on, and let them know that this creature isn’t dangerous.”
“But the Withering?” Jaelnec asked eagerly, his enthusiasm picking up further as his hope soared at the thought of successfully ending the plague. “You said he cured it? How?”
“You can ask him yourself, he’s in the city,” Thomas suggested, immediately more comfortable once the topic changed to what he had expected to talk about. “But the short version seems to be that he went to Mount Zerul after he started showing symptoms, and for some reason his health started improving until all trace of the Withering was gone. Apparently he’s convinced that he was saved by ‘Lord Djubei’, of all things.”
“The mountain? It could have been the Ice Clan, somehow…” Jaelnec mused, but the other quickly shook his head.
“He assured us that he didn’t have any contact with anyone there, and that he stayed at the foot of the mountain. He said… he said the [I]fog[/I] cured him, and that the fog came from Djubei.”