Kryster's+Quest

It was a mild evening when Kryster left his home and started toward forbidden territory- the centaur was about to leave New Hintheria and enter the borders of Old Hintheria, a place where he was forbidden by law to be. As fact, neither he nor any other centaur from New Hintheria was allowed to leave except to fish. Kryster, however, had left many times to visit the Great Library in secret and had consistent enough luck to never be found out.

The path ahead of Kryster was a long one, and certainly a difficult one for him to choose to walk. He had never been to Old Hintheria and had never had an interest in going. It was only for the sake of his country and of his community that he should take his own life in his hands and travel to the center of Old Hintheria in pursuit of an answer to the sickness running rampant in New Hintheria.

The truth was that Kryster knew only two things for sure about Old Hintheria. The first was that racism and segregation were still very prominent. The second was that there was a religious leader named Apostolate Núl who was also a very skilled apothecary.

Apostolate himself wasn’t expecting Kryster. He was busying himself, readying a lesson for the members of his church.

Three days later, Apostolate was delivering a particularly moving sermon and Kryster was opening the last door to separate himself from the person he was looking for. A ray of sun stretched across the floor but was broken by the shadow cast by a centaur completely unfamiliar to Old Hintheria. 100 sets of eyes turned toward Kryster, the only dark centaur in the room. Luckily for Kryster, everyone was too shocked to react.

Worn and tired, Kryster ignored their stares and pushed on. He needed to speak to Apostolate immediately. He got to the front of the church, raised his tired head, and set his eyes on Apostolate's.

"Are you Apostolate Núl?" He asked, his voice wearied.

"What do you mean by entering this church?" Apostolate demanded, ignoring Kryster's question. "Your kind is not allowed!"

"I am Kryster Xen, from New Hintheria. I have come to you to seek help. Many members of my country have fallen ill and nobody can explain why. We need a skilled apothecary to help us sort out and heal the sick in my country. Are you Apostolate Núl?" Kryster asked again.

"I am, but I don't think you understand. I don't consort with your kind," Apostolate replied in a distinctly biting tone. "Leave this place so I can move on with my sermon."

"I won't leave until you come with me. I don't think you understand, Apostolate, that many centaurs come and go between our regions without the government's knowing. If one of these people should be infected by the illness spreading across my country then your own could very easily become affected. If that's not enough initiative, think of this: the only people who have been stricken with this illness thus far are light centaurs and figuring out a cure on them would save your own people a lot of time. There have been five deaths that I am aware of and seventeen cases are seeking a cure in the hospital as we speak."

Kryster's speech was convincing enough to render Apostolate speechless, not because he felt for Kryster and his people, but because Kryster raised a great many points. The ignorance Apostolate held (albeit not by choice) was overshadowed by the apothecary in him who was never able to turn down the opportunity to cure a disease.

After a moment of sizing each other up, Apostolate turned around and waved Kryster on to follow him. "Let's go to my chamber and discuss this further." Kryster followed Apostolate to his chamber and stood at the front of his desk while Apostolate got behind it. He pulled a large book off a shelf and opened it. "Tell me about this disease. What do those affected present with?"

"It starts with a fever in the head but eventually spreads to the rest of the body. Once it reaches the hooves, they start splitting more quickly than a normal hoof might. Body hair starts to shed. The patient gains an infection that acts as though it's immune to everything. Then, the eyes go blind, and finally the person dies. It runs at different speeds in each patient. The first one to die lost his life in a matter of three days. The second person, seventeen days. It's never the same," Kryster explained.

Apostolate listened intently, then started flipping through his book. "It sounds like..." He moved a large chunk of pages. He settled on one at last and started scanning it. "No. That's not it." He started flipping through the pages again. The process repeated. After searching without result for a considerable amount of time, Apostolate closed the book and started grumbling.

"I told you this isn't something that we've seen before. It's a new disease and that's why we need you. Will you help me or not?" Kryster demanded, becoming impatient.

"What do you do for a living?" Apostolate asked.

"I battle for a living. That has no relevance to this situation. It doesn't change the fact that there is a disease spreading across my country and you're the only one who I know can help. Will you do it or not?"

"I won't. From what I can tell, this is hardly a plague. It's likely a series of coincidences. It hasn't affected many people at all from what I can tell. Come back when half of your population is dead. Otherwise, I'm going to have to ask you to leave my chamber so I can go back to my sermon." Apostolate started walking out but Kryster remained firm.

"I will not leave until you help me."

"You asked for my help at the start. I might have reconsidered had you not decided to demand it. I'll expect you to be gone when I return." With that, Apostolate turned and left. When he came back a while later Kryster was still there.

"It would appear as though your expectations have failed you. I am prepared to stay here until you give in. I'll sleep on this floor if I have to," Kryster informed Apostolate calmly.

"That's the problem with you dark centaurs, especially the ones from New Hintheria. You get a false sense of entitlement and you start to think the light centaurs are your equals. Or worse. Your lessers. If you're prepared to sleep on my floor until I relent, then I'm prepared to carry your unfed corpse out of my chamber."

"I hope none of the members of your church see that. If I recall correctly it is okay to dismiss a dark centaur but it is not acceptable to let any centaur die. You preachers get away with a lot but do you think you could get away with this? And before you answer that, keep in mind that I'm a very well known centaur in my country and I will be looked for."

Apostolate attempted to stare Kryster down but it was met with no results. Finally, he broke eye contact. "We leave in the morning. I'll have someone bring you a ration of food. I will stay with you no longer than a fortnight."

The next morning the two men set off on foot toward New Hintheria.

"You'll have to pretend you're from my country. Our policies are much more strict," Kryster warned.

"What do you mean by that? Old Hintheria is just as exclusive, if not more."

"I guess I'd find it more easy to believe that if I hadn't gotten through your borders and into your church so easily. Walk faster. We're running out of time," Kryster urged, trying not to chuckle.

When the men finally arrived in Axel, Hintheria, Kryster brought Apostolate directly to the hospital being used for the infected centaurs. They entered the room being used for quarantine and Apostolate was immediately taken aback by the appearances of the patients. All were light centaurs, a quality he didn't believe was true when Kryster had first approached. Beyond that, he'd never seen such sickly looking centaurs in his life. Their very appearances were only overshadowed by the pathetic moans being produced from their mouths.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Apostolate uttered in absolute shock.

"I did. Can you cure them?"

"I've only seen a sickness like this once in all my years. I can heal them but I'll need a few ingredients and you'll have to get them for me. I can keep them alive until you come back with what I need, provided you hurry, but I will not be able to heal them unless I have three important things. I need the skin of a newborn lamb, bark from a glowing tree, and tears from a brastien bear. These elements are all very important but I have no time to explain why. Go now." Kryster nodded with urgency and left to find the ingredients he needed. The only problem was that he had no idea where to find any of the things he was told to get. He opted to go home, if only to see his family for a while before he would have to leave again and to tell his wife, Synno, what was going on.

As soon as he got to his home, he was greeted by three sets of hooves racing toward him. He hugged his children but there was no time for him to visit. He had to leave, but first he had to speak to his wife.

"Where have you been?" Synno demanded in a hushed tone.

"I went to Old Hintheria to-"

"Old Hintheria? Kryster, I know you have that thing about not being restricted by your country but I'm sure even you could agree with me when I say going to Old Hintheria was the stupidest thing you've ever done!" Synno exclaimed, cutting him off.

"Let me finish!" Kryster shouted as a gut reaction. He made himself calm down before continuing. He looked at his wife, who was glaring at him with her arms folded. "I went to Old Hintheria to find an apothecary named Apostolate. He came back with me to see if he could help cure the people who have started to get sick from the new disease."

"We don't need someone from Old Hintheria here, Kryster, I thought you would know that! They can't bring anything good here! How could they? Their society is so twisted and corrupt that I'm not even sure how someone may have even considered taking a moment of their day to talk to you long enough to come here and help you in your personal mission to meddle in problems that aren't yours!"

Kryster stared at her, hurt. "You know why I did this, Synno. I don't want our children to get sick and I certainly don't want you to get sick. This town could break under this new illness and you expect me to sit down and let it happen? We both know I can't do that."

"If this town breaks, then good riddance. We can find a new town. You're not to be held personally responsible for the members of this town."

"I don't care. I won't let my friends-- your friends-- our children's friends die because I chose not to do something that I knew I could do."

"What is it you're going to do?" Synno asked.

"Well I brought an apothecary in who said he could heal them and now I'm about to go get the ingredients he needs to do so. That's what I'm going to do, Synno. Can you really say that you don't want me to?"

"I can." Synno looked down and shuffled her hooves.

"Why? Why are you against this? Tell me one good reason and I'll stay home and I'll never think about it again."

"Because I miss you." Synno glanced up at him, tears in her eyes, but set her sights back on the floor. Kryster walked over to her carefully and put his arms around her.

"I miss you too. I'll stay home tonight, I swear it, but you of all people will understand why I have to leave tomorrow."

Synno nodded against his shoulder and sighed softly. "Okay."

Kryster held his wife like that for a long time before they finally pulled apart and started to prepare dinner for the kids, who had been reading quietly in the other room for the duration of their parent's confrontation.

After dinner, for the first time in a long time, Kryster was able to properly tuck his children and himself in to bed. The next morning, he woke up early to leave. He ate a quick breakfast, readied his travel bag, wrote a note to Synno and the children, then set off with no direction in mind. He thought about the first ingredient, the skin of a newborn lamb. He lived in a city surrounded by other cities, all of which were surrounded by more cities and every city had a farmer except for Axel. He would have to find a farmer who had sheep, one of which being a newborn lamb, and was willing to sacrifice said newborn for nothing so people in an unrelated town could stay alive. It was already apparent to Kryster that this would be a difficult task.

He turned his thoughts over to the next ingredient he'd need. Bark from a glowing tree. He'd never seen a tree that glowed before. He was starting to wonder if Apostolate was even sane, but Kryster couldn't consider that to him without risking his immediate departure.

As for the third ingredient, that would be easy to get. He was very familiar with brastien bears. He'd hunted them on more than one occasion, and never failed to get brastien tears on him in the process of bringing it back and cleaning it. He decided he would start by gathering the brastien tears. He passed through all the cities until he was met with forest, then started seeking his prey.

It seemed to take hours of wandering quietly through the forest before Kryster finally found one, but when he did, he was so relieved that he immediately took aim and fired his arrow at the beast. It pierced the trunk of a tree and the sound of impact drove the bear to run away. Kryster chased after it and loaded another arrow, then took fire, but it only landed on the ground behind his target. He tried and failed once more, then threw his bow to the ground angrily. He hadn't missed a shot in years.

He wiped his sweating face, defeated, and started collecting his arrows.once he'd gathered up the three he used, he realized that he never picked his bow back up. When he looked back at the place where he'd dropped it, he was greeted by the sight of the bear he was after gnawing it angrily. Kryster's eyes flashed. He pulled an arrow out, gripped it tightly, and ran for the brastien bear. He stabbed it through the back with the arrow and it dropped. He kicked the animal, then reclaimed his newly destroyed bow. The tears were starting to leak. He forgot to bring something to catch them in. He hurriedly shifted everything onto his back, then held his hands in a cup to catch the tears, hoping it would work. He had no other choice and he was already wasting time.

He made his way to the nearest town very carefully, lest he spill, and tapped on the door of the nearest house with his elbow. When a centaur arrived to open it, he smiled charmingly. "Do you have a bowl to spare?"

She smiled then went back into the house. When she returned, she held a bowl out to him. He let the tears fall from his hands into the bowl, then took it from her. "Thank you."

Before he could walk away, she stopped him. "What is it that you just put in my bowl, by the way?"

"Brastien tears," he responded, hoping she wouldn't ask him to elaborate.

"Why do you need brastien tears?" she asked, as if to spite his internal wishes.

"There's a bit of an illness being carried out in Axel as of late and we need these for the cure," Kryster answered, trying not to seem annoyed.

"Oh! What kind of illness? Maybe I can help! One time, I was hospitalized with this terrible infection in my-- well, anyway, the doctors used brastien tears mixed with a few other things and it cleared it right up. I can try to find out what those other things were if you like. It'd only take me a minute," she offered.

"It's okay. I already know what else I need and this disease doesn't concern that region of the body in any case, but thank you for your offer," Kryster replied, managing to save face.

"Are you sure? What else do you need?" the woman asked.

"I need the skin of a newborn lamb and bark from a glowing tree," he told her.

"Oh. Nope, that's not the same stuff. The stuff they gave me was brastien tears, snake blood, and... oh shoot, what was that third ingredient?" She started tapping her hoof and thinking intently.

"I'd love to know but I really need to leave. Perhaps you can tell me when I return your bowl?" Kryster asked, trying to seem genuine.

"It's right on the tip of my tongue. Just hold on. I'm pretty sure it was a hair or a fur of some kind. What types of creatures live around here?" She started listing off the various animals that roamed New Hintheria.

"I need to leave now," Kryster urged.

"No, now you wait. I've almost got it figured out and I'm letting you borrow my bowl so you can wait until I finished. Now be quiet while I think."

Defeated, Kryster waited in front of her while she listed off all the possible animals, and even some of the impossible ones. After what felt like forever, she finally gave up. "I can't seem to think of it. Oh, well. I guess you can be on your way."

"Thank you for letting me borrow your bowl. I will bring it back to you as soon as I can," Kryster responded, relieved.

"It's nothing. Good bye."

With that, Kryster took off with his bowl of tears and started very carefully toward his house once more. Once he got there, he passed his children and his wife and went straight to the kitchen to put it down. His family followed him in to the kitchen.

"What's that, Daddy?" His daughter, Lucera asked.

"That is a bowl of brastien tears. They're very important to me and you shouldn't touch them." He patted her on the head. "None of you should. Okay, boys?" His twin sons nodded.

"Good. I can't stay for very long but I promise once I get everything I need I'll be here as long as you want me." Everyone smiled but they all knew that was a lie. Kryster was too duty bound. He always had some kind of a mission he had to complete. The sentiment was good, however, and it was always enough for his family that he tried. "Is dinner ready?"

"It's probably ready to come out of the oven now." Synno stepped over to the dome shaped fire pit and opened it, then slid a large chunk of meat out and onto a plate.

They sat down at the table and waited for Kryster to carve the meat into pieces. They all felt, if only for a moment, like they were a normal family once more. It was short lived, however, as Kryster still had a lot of work to do. He needed the bark of a glowing tree and it seemed reasonable to think he might find one more easily at night. He kissed his wife and hugged his children, then set off for the woods once more after grabbing a chisel in anticipation of the bark being difficult to remove.

He carried a torch with him, assuming he would be able to see the glowing from far off. As the night wore on, however, it became more and more apparent that there was no such thing as a glowing tree or that they simply were not in New Hintheria. Under the cover of the overcast sky, he started to notice the gradual lightening of sunrise. Being the scholar he was, Kryster decided the next step would be to research.

He went to the local library before even bothering to go home because he knew he needed answers, and fast. As soon as he got there, he greeted the librarian and asked for anything he might have on mystical, enchanted, or otherwise glowing trees. He was pointed to a section in the library dedicated to just that. He shook off the question of why a centaurish library would need a whole section devoted to glowing trees because, in this instance, he certainly needed it, and started looking.

He pored through books for hours but couldn't seem to find the answer he was looking for. He knew he needed bark from a glowing tree but there were no books about trees that actually glowed on their own. He, frustrated, opened another book and started looking through impatiently. He grabbed a large chunk of pages and flipped them- and there it was.

//"The bark of a glowing tree will appear normal in all ways unless in the right circumstance. The sun must rise in the east, but exactly so. It cannot rise northeast or southeast. It must rise in the east. That is the first condition. The next, the sun must set in the west and be followed by a moon that rises in the same place and is also full. The night must be clear of clouds or else the moon may not take full effect on the bark and the tree will not glow.//

//The removal of glowing tree bark is very difficult. It requires a lot of power to be able to displace and take bark from a glowing tree. The tool doesn't matter, only the man. Glowing tree bark will only keep its potency for a short time. It will glow for three days once removed but will dim gradually as the days wear on. The dulling process will happen faster if the bark is exposed to the light of day.//

//Glowing trees look exactly like normal trees in the light of day and in the darkness unless the aforementioned circumstance comes to fruition.//

//If you are planning to gather bark from a glowing tree, you must be aware of how sharp the bark becomes and take precaution. Even the softest touch on the edge of the bark will leave you bleeding. Anything more could cause you to die."//

He rubbed his forehead, aggravated. He'd find the newborn lamb before the glowing tree. He might have to. Who knew when the next sun and moon cycle might meet the set requirements? It could easily take years for the sun to reset itself directly to the east and for the moon to be full on that same night. All of that, along with the persistent cover of clouds over New Hintheria was making it seem impossible for Kryster to complete his task in time to prevent the sick from dying and the healthy from becoming sick.

He put his books back carefully, ever the kind of person to respect a library, and returned to the librarian's desk. He asked for a lunar calendar and was obliged. As soon as he received it he put it on a table and started looking for the date. The moon wouldn't be full for another three weeks. Kryster was fit to cry. He needed the cure and he didn't want to wait for the sun and the moon and the weather to synchronize to get it. His friends were sick.

He slammed his fists on the table then pushed his hair back, trying to keep his tears in. He'd never been someone who needed instant gratification before but this situation was vastly different. The only thing he could think about was his family. He'd never be able to live with himself if one of his own got sick. He rolled up the calendar and returned it, then set off to complete the next part.

Kryster was naturally wary of his next task. New Hintheria had a vast and ever growing population of centaurs within its borders. Food was plentiful, luckily, but there was always the chance that the country's good fortune would change. Farmers were very protective of the things they grew to sell, especially the animals, meaning it would be next to impossible to find one willing to sacrifice the skin of a newborn lamb. He set off toward the farmer's circle, trying to think of a pitch good enough to get a farmer to give up the money that his sheep would bring him.

That, of course, was completely dependent on whether or not any of the farmers even had a newborn lamb. Kryster was debating going back to the hospital and asking Apostolate if there was any other option or substitute to the ingredients he still needed but ultimately decided to press on. His own pride prevented him from accepting defeat and certainly wouldn't let him tell Apostolate of all people that he had failed.

He reached a farm and knocked on the door. It didn't take long for a man who appeared similar to Kryster to open the door.

"Hello. How are you today?" The man smiled.

Kryster smiled immediately in return. He had been feeling deprived of friendship and it was nice to have a smile cast in his direction, if only for a moment. "I'm well, thank you. How are you?"

"I'm alright. What's your name? I'm Boden, by the way."

"I'm Kryster. This is going to sound strange but I'd like to talk to you about-"

Kryster was stopped when Boden spoke again, cutting him off. "You're not one of those old-faithers, right? I keep telling you people this country was built on Ardivan's assembly and, dammit, it's gonna stay that way. Get on to Old HIntheria if you don't like the way things are done around here!"

Kryster stared at Boden for a moment, confused, before pointing to the dark hair on his head. "I promise I'm not a... wait. Are people really trying to get us back to the ways of Old Hintheria?"

Boden huffed. "Yeah. They've been knocking on my door every day. They don't seem to understand why I don't want to listen to them." He pointed out his own black coat of hair. "Seems like some of us dark centaurs are joining up with them too. I can't fathom why, I think they're lying about it, but as far as they've told me, that's what's going on."

Kryster furrowed his brow in confusion. He never expected that there would be a reversion to the old ways. It was, after all, in the treaty that they would never go back. He shook his head. This wasn't what he was there to talk about. "Have any of your sheep recently given birth?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Oh. I'm sorry. That was really sudden. Let me explain. In the center of Axel, there's a disease being spread. We have a skilled apothecary working on a cure but he says he needs very specific ingredients that I'm trying to gather and, well, one of the ingredients is the skin of a newborn lamb. I'm just wondering, I suppose, if any of your sheep have given birth, or if you know someone whose sheep have," Kryster explained.

"I'm not sure of anyone else but none of my sheep have had any babies recently. I'm not sure how easily you're gonna find someone to give one up, anyhow."

"I guess I'll just have to use my power of persuasion."

"Good luck. I can hardly persuade my neighbors to put their animals in the barn at night. Those animals are spoiled, but that's not the point. I doubt you're gonna get a newborn from anyone around here. Well, a newborn lamb anyway. They might give you their kids instead." The man raised his voice to say, "The sheep are more important to them anyway!"

"That may be true, but would you have given me your own newborn sheep if you had one?" Kryster asked.

"Well..."

"With the way you talk about your neighbor's apparent greediness, I just have to wonder."

"Well yes. If I had one I'd give it to you, but I don't." Just then, the soft baaing of a young sheep echoed through to them. There was a brief pause. "You can have my sheep. Come with me."

Satisfied at the sudden ease with which he could complete this task, Kryster gathered up his new lamb and brought it home alive, not sure when he wound need its skin or of its staying power. He walked triumphantly into his home with the lamb and brought it to the back yard. He tied it to a tree by a rope he'd found and turned around to see his family. He was surprised to see that they were all waiting just behind him, watching him deal with their newfound livestock.

"Kryster, love, why is there a goat in our backyard?" Synno asked.

As if their mother's words had granted them permission, his children ran to the goat and started petting it.

"It's part of the recipe that I need to make for Apostolate to heal everyone," Kryster explained, but this wasn't enough for Synno.

"This is getting ridiculous. First, you're gone for days on end, then you come home with some bowl of water you call tears, and now we have to take care of a newborn goat? All to save a few isolated instances of some random disease that will probably play out within the week?"

"It's bigger than that. I know it is. Please just trust me. I need to do this. You know I need to do this."

Synno folded her arms and looked away. Kryster put his own arms around her. "I'm sorry. I just... this is important."

"More important than your own children?"

"They're the reasons this is important at all. Listen. I'll be home for three weeks, but then I have to set off for the last time and gather one more thing. Then I'll be home for good, I swear it."

"How long can I believe that, Kryster? It seems like you're always gone lately, always off doing something for somebody, and never home to spend time with me or the kids. I miss you."

Kryster didn't know how to respond. He simply held his wife close to him and waited for the emotion to pass.

Three weeks later, Kryster had successfully kept the lamb alive with Apostolate's advice. Kryster watched the weather closely. It was the first completely clear day in months and the sun rose exactly in the east. He waited through the day, desperate to finish gathering his ingredients. When the sun finally set, it was time for him to depart. The moon shone brightly through the forest, filling Kryster's path with light, but that wasn't the only thing illuminating the way. Before long, Kryster spotted something that glowed a bright golden yellow color.

He moved toward the light and pulled out the tool he brought to carve the bark from it. He was unsure of how much he needed so he gathered as much as he could fit in his leather satchel and moved on. What he didn't realize was that, as he walked home with triumph on his face, the glowing bark was slowly cutting through the leather and falling out. By the time he got back to his home once more, he only had five large pieces left of the forty seven pieces he'd collected in varying sizes.

That was the first time Lucera heard her father curse.

Kryster stormed into the kitchen and threw his satchel on the table, causing the fragments to shatter and scrape lines in the rough wood. He ran to the backyard to check the goat, which was fortunately still alive. After he'd confirmed this fact, he realized that he hadn't checked the bowl of brastien tears since he brought them home. He hurried to the kitchen and checked the bowl but there was nothing inside. His eyes widened.

"Everyone get in here now!" Kryster hollered.

His children rushed in to the kitchen. He held up the bowl. "What happened to this?" Kryster demanded. "What happened to the water in this bowl?"

There was an almost confused silence as his children looked at each other, unsure of what was happening.

"Did any of you touch them?" He asked, getting angrier. "Synno! I need you!"

"I didn't touch them, daddy," Lucera told him timidly.

"Are you sure? Because something happened to the contents of this bowl and I need to know what immediately."

"I don't know," one of his boys responded. "None of us touched it."

"I won't get mad at you if you did, I promise, but I need to know what happened to the contents of this bowl and if any of you know where they went you need to tell me now," Kryster told them sternly.

Synno finally stepped into the kitchen. "What's wrong?"

"This bowl. It had the tears in them that I needed. Where are they?" Kryster asked hurriedly.

"Oh, those? I put them in the ice box. Why?"

Kryster's mouth fell open. He scratched his neck. "Oh." Embarrassed, he started gathering the shards of bark that had strewn across the table and onto the floor. His daughter moved to help him but he stopped her immediately.

"Don't touch those! Do not touch those, Lucera. How about you three just go out and play, okay?"

Lucera's eyes widened and started welling up. Soon, she was crying hysterically. She ran off. Kryster started after her but stopped. He needed to pick up the bark and get everything to Apostolate immediately. He could apologize later.

Once he gathered every piece that he could find, he places them carefully in one of his own bowls, hoping that the wood would stand up to the abrasions it would most definitely receive. He then took the bottle of tears from the ice box and went to his back yard to collect the goat, which his daughter was hugging tightly and crying on. He put his things down and walked over to her.

"I'm sorry, Lucera. I didn't mean to yell at you." He put his hand on her shoulder but she shrugged it off and turned her head away from him. "This isn't about me yelling at you, is it?" Kryster asked.

Lucera shook her head then whimpered softly. Kryster pulled her in for a hug. She struggled until he released her, then started running away again. Kryster looked at his hands, then in the direction of Lucera's path. His only daughter was upset with him. He felt like a terrible father. He felt even worse when he finally decided to carry on with what he was doing. He picked his things back up, got the goat, and trotted off to the hospital.

When he got there, he found Apostolate at a desk and put the ingredients down on top of it. "I found everything."

Without saying anything, Apostolate started looking them over. After carefully inspecting each object, he made eye contact with Kryster. "This goat is too old, these tears are too cold, and this bark is dulled."

"You- I- you said the goat could be under a month old! That goat was born three weeks ago! And you said nothing about keeping those tears cold! Nothing! And dulled!? It's shining as brightly as it did when it was attached to the tree!" Kryster spluttered.

"This goat was two weeks old when you gained it. I asked for a newborn because if it was brand new it would still be young enough when you got everything else. It's your own fault for not following orders," Apostolate replied casually, as if Kryster had skinned a deer improperly.

"I spent three weeks bottle feeding that goat milk that I bought with my own money so it would be ready for you!" Kryster ejected furiously.

"Well what about my bark? You forgot to keep it hidden from the sun, didn't you?" Apostolate asked, picking up the bowl of chipped bark.

"You said nothing about hiding it from the sun! The book said-" Kryster stopped. The book did say. Kryster himself had forgotten. He didn't know what to do. Anger was bubbling inside of him. He felt like he was going to burst. He stared Apostolate down, seething.

"It doesn't matter. I cured them anyway. I sent you off to get these things as a distraction. I didn't want you to hover over my shoulder, breathing my air, the whole time I was curing your friends. It worked, they're better, and we can all be happy."

"What."

Kryster lunged toward Apostolate, who stepped to the side, but Kryster wasn't going to give up. He had so much pent up rage that was coming out all of a sudden. He followed Apostolate's motion, rearing back and punching him solidly on the jaw. Apostolate stumbled sideways but swung back, eager for a chance to put Kryster in his place. Kryster dodged it, but barely, and moved forward to uppercut him. Apostolate lunged forward but stumbled and fell forward.

Kryster peered down at him, breathing intensely. "You're not above me." With that, Kryster picked up the goat and left once again. He didn't bother to gather information about the disease, and he certainly didn't bother to see if he'd done lasting damage to Apostolate. It shouldn't matter. After all, they were in a hospital. Kryster's next move was simply to go home and to apologize.