Chapter 51: Assessing the damage

Givontair:

Luke and I stare at the mess before us. The river almost has a dam made from waste and trash. More than that, the ground around the river is also littered. I run a hand through my hair.

"Do you know any runes which can help with this?" I ask the runesmith.

"No, sorry. If we are to clean this, it will have to be manually. Although, if the runes in Amestavora keep on dumping their waste here, I don't think we will have much success," at Luke's words, my frown deepens.

"Just whose idea was it, to dump the waste here?" I hiss at the runesmith. He shrugs.

"Amestavora is an old settlement. There was a time, when the forest was untamed. Countless poisonous snakes lived in the area. I think this was just an attempt to get rid of them," I pray to whoever is listening for patience. This is the worst excuse for polluting a river that I have ever heard.

"The healthy people will have to help. Still, you are right, that redirecting the runes in all the houses is a priority. But the question is: redirect them to where?" Luke shifts in his spot after hearing this.

"Well, there is always the old dumping ground. But there are undead beings in there. Ones that can use the runes to get into Amestavora," Luke says.

"And you thought that you can tell me just now?" I try to rein in my temper, but it is hard. This man should have taken me there, and not here. "Since when are the undead in the old dumping ground?"

If Sorix is the one who caused this, I am going to make him clean his mess.

"A couple of centuries," Luke says. "It actually got better, when the Dread Lord collected the beings. Now that he returned them to the dumping ground, I suppose the place will be as dangerous as before his intervention."

Now, more than ever, I wish for a priest of Harika to come and save the day. That ship has sailed, however. Why did Sorix have to kill the old priest? I know he was sick, but that doesn't mean that I am not peeved at his actions.

"Seeing as you have a Dread Lord in your party, why not use him to fix this mess? The undead can collect the trash, and then he can rein in the undead of the old dumping site," Luke's plan is simple, yet doable.

 The problem is, Sorix won't cooperate, if he doesn't get something out of this. I feel unwell, at the thought of offering myself up as a prize.

"We can do this without Sorix. For all that there is an outbreak of kidney infection, there are still plenty of people who are healthy in the town," with that, I turn around. Luke follows me to the gates. A guard exits his tower, and comes to us.

"Healer Givontair, did you fix the cause of the outbreak?" The elf asks. I shake my head.

"This is something that the entire town should help with. Where can I speak to everyone? Do I need to get an approval from the mayor first?" The guard seems a bit disgruntled, at me not being able to solve the town's problem. Still, he takes out a parchment, and hands it over.

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"Go to the town hall, and show this to the guard posted outside of it. You might want to watch your steps as you climb the tree," I ponder at his warning, but don't let it slip that I find it odd.

 What is so dangerous about climbing an oak tree? And how come the town hall is in such a tree? Amestavora has 3,471 elves living in it. Just how are they going to fit?

My head is filled with questions. The major one gets an answer, as Luke leads me to a giant of a tree. I try to find its top, but can't seem to be able to.

"What sort of tree is this one?" I ask the runesmith.

"A kopadu tree. It grows only in places, where elves live. It is usually the very first tree, which is planted," Luka says. I look at the branches that are positioned almost like a ladder. They don't look sturdy.

"Is there a lift?" I ask Luke. He shakes his head.

"Look, if you don't want to climb, how about you turn into a dragon and fly up?" Luke asks me.

"My tail is damaged. My balance is no longer the same as when it was whole," I clarify. Luke whistles.

"Just what managed to bite a chunk off your tail?" I smile, showing off my pearly whites. "Oh... you, did it? But why?"

"To stop the spread of poison," I say. I shift to my dragon form next. Even like this, I still can't reach the top of the kopadu. Yet, I can see a building and bridges. Also, I feel someone climbing on my back.

"Wow, you are massive, you know that?" Luke says, as he begins to climb over my neck. I let him, and position my head, so it can serve as a bridge for the elf. When he gets on a platform, I rise one of my paws, and place it on the same platform. The wooden construction shifts to the side. I hear groaning noises.

Without much delay, I shift back into my human form. My right hand is the only thing keeping me in the air. With one swift movement, I take a hold of the platform with my left hand. Then, I swing back and forth, and jump.

The platform creeks again, once I land on it. Luke begins to applaud me.

"You should really stick around for the Harvest Festival. We seldom get to see acrobatic tricks," I shift on my feet, and then go to Luke.

"So, where is the town hall, exactly?" I ask my guide.

"Ten stories up," at these words, I groan. Just why did the elves make it this high?    

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