Amaranth loved the north. It was cold, it was gritty, and it was wild. What she didn’t like was hearing about epidemics afflicting poor animals. She didn’t like being ordered around, either, but she was going to meet Moliira this time, so it wasn’t so bad. All in all, she was ready to get some work done. First point on the list? Find Moliira. The rendezvous point determined by the triune goddess left some room for exploration, so when Amaranth came to the general area and didn’t immediately spot her, she transformed into an eagle and took to the sky.

She circled the area a few times, letting out the odd screech while searching for Moliira. While the rendezvous point was relatively bare, dotted only by gentle rolling plains, the odd bush, and an occasional stone. Right next to the clearing, however, due east, there was a dense evergreen forest, and southwest of the clearing was a lake with reeds stretching nearly half a mile inland on shoals that never seemed to get shallower or deeper as you traversed them. Furthermore, the hills to the northwest were dotted with large boulders. All in all, nearly every approach to the clearing was thick with cover.

Finally, Amaranth got sick of flying around in circles, and decided to land. She morphed into her human form, sat down on a stone, and had a swig from her flask. She decided she might was well build a fire, and so set about the task of collecting dry twigs and leaves, as well as a few stones. Within five minutes she had a small fire going. And so she sat, and waited.

It would have been far too simple to meet the girl where she had agreed to, and Moliira wanted to get a sense of just who she was dealing with.  And there was something she could use Amaranth for, though it would take a bit to get to that point.  For the time being, she wanted to see just what made this girl of Angela's vast brood was capable of doing.  She scouted from the air, which was good.  Too many plunged into situations without having any idea as to what might be coming for them.  And once the fire was going well, it was then Moliira decided to reveal herself.

Stepping out from the heath behind the girl, Moliira spoke so she wouldn't be too startled.  "It's good to see you again, Amaranth.  And thank you for coming.  I thought this task might be of interest to you," she said, before pulling a teapot out of her pack.  With a quick gesture, it filled with water, and Moliira left it by the fire to brew.  "And I get lonely too, doing things on my own isn't always fun," she added with a chuckle.  To anyone who didn't know her, the drow looked to be dressed as a ranger of the surface world.  Two slender swords rested on her hips, but her hands never strayed towards them. 

But with Amaranth, Moliira did not have to hide herself.  Tiny sparks arced between strands of her silvery hair, and her eyes danced with the coming storm.  "I brought you a friend to meet, too.  This is Nerys, the Hiafae showed me where to find her," Moliira said as she gestured to the white wolf with calm brown eyes that emerged from behind a tree.  The wolf was still slightly thin, and she walked with a slight limp.  But it was clear the wolf trusted the drow entirely when the wolf silently went to her side and stared at the girl for a few moments.  "So, what did Angela tell you of what we're doing here?" Moliira asked, scratching the wolf behind her ears.

Amaranth whipped around at the sound of a voice behind her, but came at ease again when she saw who was the source of the voice. “There you are, auntie,” she said with a smirk. “Still invisible until you want to be seen.” She shifted over so Moliira could prepare tea without her being in the way. “I don’t like killing innocent beasts, but… Disease must be quarantined for the betterment of all,” she said, addressing their task with stoic calm. Eventually, however, she smiled. “Yes, it can get a bit lonely sometimes,” she confirmed, referring of course to her own reclusive lifestyle.

As Moliira introduced the wolf, Nerys, Amaranth cocked her head with interest. She morphed into a wolf herself, and paced over to her. Amaranth’s wolf form was relatively large, particularly when considering her petite human form, but her demeanour was curious, friendly. She greeted the wolf in its own fashion, sniffing and wagging her tail. Her ears twitched as Moliira spoke, indicating she was still listening. She took some time before replying, however, preferring to establish proper rapport with Nerys first. Eventually, after about half a minute or so, she morphed back into human form.

“Mother told me that some disease has afflicted the fauna here,” she started, going about explaining what she knew in a methodical manner. “From what I gather, it started with the herbivores, but the spread has been slow. But now, predators are picking up the disease from their prey, and it’s spreading much faster in the carnivorous life here.” She sat back down, doodling in the dirt. “If the afflicted wildlife isn’t culled, the disease could wipe out a number of packs and flocks, disrupt the entire biosphere. Next year, we could be witnesses to a population boom which will only serve to spread disease faster. We could be looking at an epidemic that threatens Canelux’s entire ecosystem, in the outermost consequence.”

Amaranth sighed, and laid down on the ground, pondering. “It is unlikely - nature is likely to stop the spread before it reaches that severity, but…” She remained silent for a few moments more. “If the disease spreads to humans - which we should find out if is possible - a pandemic is not out of the question. And either way, this region is in considerable danger.” She turned to look at Moliira again. “Not that I’m concerned. Between my mother and present company, two thirds of the triune have taken an interest in this. Which leads me to the conclusion of my little train of thought,” she said, sitting up again. “I’m assuming you have some kind of plan. What is it?” she asked, lazily running her hand through the grass to make it dance.

She grimaced only slightly at "auntie", a title she was likely never going to get used to being called.  But between Angela's seemingly endless brood, and Rosen family as a whole, Moliira knew she was considered family.  So it was something she dealt with.  "It pains me too, but there is something strange about this disease.  It cannot simply be cleansed out of the beasts," she explained, her voice somber.  There had been something tampering with the illness, a force she hadn't gleaned just yet.  But Moliira would.  She always found the prey she hunted.

The drow was quiet at Nerys and Amaranth introduced each other, the arctic wolf taking her cues from Moliira.  The girl was clearly not a threat, so the friendly gestures were returned.  Moliira nodded at what her niece spoke of, that was mostly what she knew of.  But she wondered just now much the girl had discerned from the information at hand.  "So where do you think that this disease started?  There is always an origin, a cause to a disease.  Even one that's been tampered with," Moliira asked.  Amaranth had an affinity for nature, which endeared her to Moliira.  She was curious if the girl would find the same answer that Moliira had already come to.

"And you're correct.  It isn't bad now, but unchecked it will be.  And I want to contain it before the birds pick it up, and spread it to Parvpora," Moliira added, making a face.  If it made it to the other continent, there was no telling what could happen, and how it would mutate.  The tea was done now, and the drow poured them each a cup.  The smell of mint was strong, something Moliira found helpful for clearing her nose and waking up the rest of her senses.  "But before we go, tea first.  Are you learning anything about herbs from your mother?" Moliira asked before taking a sip.

Amaranth pondered a short moment when moliira asked about ‘ground zero’. “I suspect the disease started somewhere densely populated to have spread this fast. The nature of the spread also suggest some intelligent design - the disease’s traits are too new and diverse, natural mutation seems unlikely,” she began, giving it another second of thought. “Uhm, it spreads between different kinds of mammals, and seems to thrive mostly in carnivores - yet it can affect herbivores as well. And it is symptomatic in all of them.” She pondered for another minute, but as far as suspects went, she drew a blank. “Diseases don’t spread from predator to prey, however. So it started with a herbivorous species.” She thought for a moment more. “To spread a disease like this as fast as it has been, I’d start with the food sources.” She waved her hands, and conjured various vegetables from the ether of the Sundering Gardens, a somewhat special variety of the Create Food spell. “Roots, berries… The food the most prolific prey animals share. If those are clean, we test the water. If none of those are the source, we can begin contemplating natural mutation,” she concluded, hoping the answer satisfied the goddess.

Amaranth sat down and happily accepted some tea, adding a few drops of nettle extract to blunt the minty aroma - she preferred her food and drink a bit more gamey. She had a few sips before answering Moliira’s question. “Mother has mostly taught me earth-related magic. Herblore is something I prefer digging up myself, so to speak, but the library in the Sundering Gardens has certainly been of great help.” She had a few more sips before elaborating. “Beastlore was always my specialty, though. It’s why I became a skin-changer in the first place. I have enough knowledge about herbs to cook and brew basic potions - or poisons if need be - but I know animals even better.” She drained the cup about halfway, enjoying the taste and relaxing effect of the brew. “Which reminds me, we should probably not allow Nerys to hunt before we’ve determined the nature of this disease. That is, unless you have some odd magic to inoculate her. I’m afraid I don’t have anything of the sort, only basic healing spells,” she finished, before draining her cup. “Shall we?”

The drow only listened as the girl talked, she was mostly interested in seeing just what she already knew.  And it was pretty clear that Amaranth had a good head on her shoulders, as well as a clear outlook on things.  She nodded, with a rare smile of approval.  "Very good.  Though I will add one thing.  It did start with the herbivores, and only in the last few days has spread to the predators.  Which tells me that it cannot be the water, since they have to drink as well.  Predators and prey do share water sources, and there are only two around here.  So it has to be somewhere in the food," Moliira explained, but she was glad.  Amaranth was smart, and it would serve her very well.  Moliira would be there to help her along, nature always needed its defenders.

She nodded, what she knew would still be of help.  "It's always good to know a bit of herblore, especially if you plan on being out in the wilds for a long time.  If you want to learn more of poisons… I can teach you.  But not yet.  they are hard, the poisons of my people.  And you need a more practiced hand," Moliira offered.  Drow sleeping draughts were useful, and she didn't mind extending that knowledge to her niece.  Rubbing the ears of Nerys, she chuckled.  "Ahead of you, child.  She already fed before we left Maral'hal.  So, why don't we head into the thicket?  I know there are a few fruit trees there we should probably start with," Moliira suggested.  She waited for Amaranth to make the rest of her preparations before setting off on foot into the woods.

The woods were quiet, and for now, Moliira didn't bother with being stealthy.  She wanted to find a sign of anything out of the ordinary first, and she had a feeling that whatever tainted the disease wasn't here anymore.  "If we can scare the animals away, at least for a time, I think that will be better.  I do want to try and capture one of the infected for a closer look," Moliira explained.  Perhaps there was a way to cleanse the disease, but she wasn't counting on it.

Amaranth followed Moliira into the thick vegetation of the evergreens, keeping an eye out for relevant foodstuffs, while silently cursing herself for missing how the water couldn’t be the infection source. She took pride in being several times more intelligent than her savage appearance would have people believe, and so it stung. Amaranth thus burned with a desire to make up for it - to keep focus and do the job right, hopefully impressing Moliira. When the goddess mentioned keeping animals at bay while also wanting some samples, Amaranth jumped at the chance.

“That, perhaps, can be arranged,” she said, skipping a few paces ahead of Moliira. “I’ll give you a bird’s eye perspective. If I see any critters, I’ll swoop down for a better look,” she said, and morphed into an eagle, taking off to circle overhead.

For the first couple of minutes, there was next to nothing Amaranth could spot from the air. The occasional rabbit and squirrel were jumping around, but they looked healthy. After some time, however, Amaranth spotted something - a fox, milling around in a disoriented fashion, chirping wildly. Amaranth let out a cry in eagle form to let Moliira know she had spotted something, and gave chase.

The poor fox’s reflexes was not what it used to be. It didn’t see Amaranth until her talons had already given it a good pinch in the flank, sending it into a frenzy. The terrified animal began to run - an almost drunken beeline away from Amaranth. Amaranth flew in such a pattern as to send the animal straight into Moliira, and after a brief minute, the goddess saw the animal and loosed.

Amaranth morphed back into human form, just as she landed next to the fox. It was plain that the animal had been very sick - its fur had been all but drained of colour, the eyes were bloodshot, and the snout had swollen to twice the usual size. The rest of the poor beast was skinny - morbidly so, in fact. But perhaps most curious of all the symptoms was that the arrow wound was swelling, even postmortem. Pus was oozing out as though the heart was still beating, but the animal itself was without a doubt dead. Amaranth sat next to the beast, altogether puzzled.

“This doesn’t make sense… The animal is dead, how can the body be reacting to the impact? How can pus still leak?” Despite her best effort, Amaranth couldn’t figure out why. She looked to her divine travelling companion, her look one of complete confusion. “Any ideas?”

Watching the girl shift made Moliira smile, she was glad that one of Angela's brood was more aligned to her own realm.  It was a bit odd being an extended part of the large family, but people like Amaranth helped bridge the gap.  It was quiet, and Moliira had expected that.  Sick animals tended to stay away from each other for the most part, and healthy ones had already fled.  She trailed after the eagle in silence, spreading her senses through the earth to try and discern the cause more thoroughly.  But the traces were too faint, and spread too widely.  She needed a specimen to examine.

And Amaranth was able to provide.  She quickly put the poor creature out of its misery, and waited for her niece to rejoin her.  The fox's symptoms were very strange, and she didn't say anything at first to the questions.  Nerys kept her distance from the dead creature, a lip curled in disgust.  The wolf was smart enough to tell when something was very wrong.  She pulled on a pair of fine leather gloves before kneeling to examine the dead fox.  "Edema causes swelling.  But that is a symptom, not the cause.  I think we can both tell this is not a natural disease, not with the color drained," Moliira finally said, carefully parting the fox's fur.  She was searching for more signs, more clues as to what was going on.

"See how the skin is dry and cracking too?  I believe that the disease causes swelling of the mouth, where it was first contracted, preventing the poor animals from being able to eat.  So they slowly starve to death.  A cruel fate.  I think someone took a simple disease, and manipulated it.  But why?" she said, her voice becoming a low growl for a moment.  There had to be a purpose to this, a reason for the death spreading through nature.  But she had yet to find the trail.  But Moliira knew she would find the source of the disease, and the person behind it.  It was only a matter of time.

She quickly stood and wrapped the fox's body in lightning, incinerating it on the spot.  There could be no risk of the scavengers finding it, and spreading the disease further.  "Lets find the source of the disease.  I will make the cure from that," she said, voice low and cold as the north wind.  She set off into the woods, trusting Amaranth to follow.

Amaranth watched Moliira dissect the poor critter, with a sad expression. She was a fierce girl, and had no qualms about hunting, but much like her aunt did not approve of random killing of animals, nor cruel, inhumane practices. Amaranth’s brows furrowed, as she pondered the possibilities. “Drained colour, postmortem bodily responses… Our worst case scenario is probably a necromancer.” She thought some more. “If this got into the granary of a major city… This forest could be a testing ground,” she continued, with a frown. She flexed her fingers, pondering. She looked up at Moliira with a determined nod. “If you can make a cure, I could try to inoculate the flora here.”

Amaranth followed Moliira closely, traversing the rough terrain with unsurprising ease. Despite keeping her eyes and ears open, it took a long time before she noticed anything peculiar - more than an hour. When she did, however, she felt it immediately. She stopped walking, clasped a hand over her mouth, and gagged. Something pugnant was in the air, a nauseating magical presence unlike any she had felt before. At a glance, the area looked fine, but much of the flora was covered in a thick, foul aura. For a moment, it completely overpowered Amaranth’s senses - for about a minute or so, it was the best she could do not to throw up. When finally she regained composure, she couldn’t help but state the painfully obvious. “Here. This is the place,” she said, still trying hard to keep her stomach under control.

The words that her niece spoke made much sense, but did not bode well.  And it aligned well with her own thinking.  It was a deeply disturbing thought to the drow.  "I think we have the worst case scenario on our hands.  There is nothing in the natural world that could cause this, so we are looking for someone who is meddling with the natural order of things.  We need to end this before it gets worse," Moliira said, her voice cold and calm.  But it was clear she was on the hunt, and she always caught what she hunted.  Nerys growled softly before moving along with her mistress, and the trio moved through the terrain quickly after the fox was taken care of.  She was silent while they moved, and Moliira's kept moving.  There had to be something here.

The smell hit her only moments before her niece, and her wolf let out a low growl.  She handed her niece a large chunk of candied ginger once the girl spoke.  "Here, eat small pieces of this.  It will settle your stomach and keep your senses sharp," the drow said, speaking in a low voice.  She wasn't convinced that they were not alone here, no necromancer worth their coin would leave a testing ground like this completely unguarded.  The river moving through the area led to civilization, and this would be a perfect place to both test and release a foul sickness.  "And keep your eyes open.  You know I'm weaker outside of my home.  But I think I have an idea," Moliira said.

Her nimble fingers started to weave a spell, and the winds around the trio began to kick up and swirl around them.  Moliira knew she had to contain the tainted vegetation before she could incinerate it, since she did not want it to escape.  Plants started to pull out of the ground, whole by the roots, and dirt still clung to some of them.  But the taint seemed mostly contained to living matter, which was a relief.  Dirt could be a true pain to cleanse.  "The winds will hold the vegetation in place, so I can properly dispose of it.  But I need to concentrate," she said, her brow already furrowed.  The tangled mass of vines and plants started to lift into the sky and away from the river, and Moliira held it in place with one hand.  With her other hand, she started a careful weave of electric energy to incinerate the tainted plants.  It would just take time now.