The night came and went with little in way of consequence, and so did another. In the intervening time, a day was spent taking care of the wounded and discussions on how to protect the survivors. The next day after dawned to find a small party approaching the ruins of Kuamket from the south. Consisting of Gatón from the southern swamp tribes led by the messenger that had been dispatched only days ago. The proximity to the southern swamps ensured that their arrival would be quick.

They could not, however, anticipate the devastation that now opened up before them. Shaman Salora Garona of the village of Danadom was among the group, being the person sent for by Forbasa. By the Gods, what could have done this? She thought in some confusion, though a part of her deep down knew already. After all, only a few shamans were entrusted with the stories about Humans and the distant past, one from each of the tribes. She was the one trusted to keep the knowledge for the swamp tribe, and so when Forbasa's messenger had arrived, and told her that Forbasa was calling a meeting of her and three other shamans from the other tribes, Garona knew what that had meant.

Now, before her, she saw the worst fears of her and her colleagues made real. Below lay the village of Kuamket- or rather, it's ruins. Beside her, the messenger, Rano Halruto, was in even greater shock, since he had only left a few days ago, and everything was normal. Now, the houses lay burnt, the fields trampled, and no one was in sight. Taking another look around, Garona noticed something else on the north side of the village. Are those wagons?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the collapse of the herald Halruto, who had just noticed his family's small farmhouse and barn had been burnt to the ground. The sobs that came from the young gatón caused Garona to kneel beside the youth and comfort him. "Young man, I am sure your family must have made it out in time. After all, I see no graves nearby. No graves at all, in fact..." Which made her worry even more. Either everyone was killed inside their houses while they slept, or the bodies have been disposed of... But Gatón bury our dead in the fields, and I see nothing indicating that. Either way, something was not right and she was suspicious because of it.

Garona was even more worried because of the members of her party, which included a young adolescent who had gotten sick of something that Garona couldn't cure, though Forbasa might know of one. Knowing it was a relatively short trip, she had decided to take the child and her father and brother along with her apprentice. Garona was responsible for them, and now she worried that they had traveled for naught, but even worse, they were in mortal danger of a kind that even she only had a nodding acquaintance with.

A noise from the party's left drew all of their attention, even the mourning messenger. All tensed and the three males from Danadom gripped their bows; the only weapons that the Gatón had plentiful experience with. Garona herself stood slowly and gripped the hilt of the ceremonial dagger she affected. If it were to be a fight, then they would sell themselves dearly, and certainly die. Her thoughts were dark now and she wondered if she would see her home again.

Fortunately, the noise turned out to be a young gatón male who was walking through the bush. He came into the open near the new arrivals and held his hands to his sides, palms outward, to show himself unarmed. "Hello, you must be the ones from the south."

"Aye, that we are." Replied Garona, relaxing a bit, hoping this wasn't a trick of bandits that were known to prowl about. "And who might you be?"

"My name is Jahni Wayon, from what was Kuamket." His voice had no irony or sour emotion in it at the reference to the destruction, though his face twisted a bit, and his ears went back to indicate his displeasure. "I was set to be on watch here for anyone approaching the village. After I saw Rano there, I knew you to be our guests. I can take you to where we have set up camp, for the time being."

"And how are we to know if you are truly of this village or not? You could be a bandit seeking to prey on the unwary."

The young gatón hesitated and thought for a second, but it was not he who answered. "It's alright, shaman Garona. I recognize Jahni, and he is no bandit, as my family lived near his." Said the herald Halruto.

Garona paused to think for a minute as the others from Danadom turned and looked at her, though Halruto looked to Jahni in hope that was so evident that Garona thought she could feel his thoughts. She nodded to her companions, and then spoke to the newcomer. "Very well; Let us go, for we are tired and one of us is ill." She indicated the young gatón who lay on her stretcher, which had been put on the ground when they had heard the noise Jahni had made.

He nodded. "I am sorry to hear that, though shaman Forbasa is alive, so he can certainly help, along with-" Jahni cut himself off, realizing that mentioning van Horn would probably sound strange, and maybe cause the others to mistrust him. "Along with some of our other guests."

"Other guests? I though we were the closest."

"You are, but... Some Lupar came into town a few days ago, seeking shelter for a time. We gave them a berth on some fields before..." Jahni's voice trailed off and his eyes drifted to his left, where the village ruins lay in mute testament to the awesome power that leveled it.

Garona nodded, understanding. "Very well. We shall follow you." And with that, the small group left to join the other Gatón and their friends.

They came upon the encampment slowly, so as to not arouse alarm at their passage. On the way, they came across another picket. This time, it was a lupar, which surprised Garona, despite the waning Jahni had given them only a few minutes ago.

"Hello, Jahni. I take it these are the Shaman's guests that were supposed to come?" Asked the young lupar female, who seemed not fully-grown, yet had a good five centimeters over Garona's height.

"Yes they are, Yora, some of them, anyway. Seen anything of interest?" Replied Jahni for the small group of gatón.

"Nothing new, though I did hear that Vanhorn was supposed to be out with a hunter this afternoon."

"Alright, thanks." Jahni said quickly and somewhat nervously. He had hoped that the Shaman could explain the presence of the human, yet he wondered if the people he escorted would not see van Horn before they got to the cave. At least that metal wagon of his is covered up, the young gatón thought to himself. It was still amazing to behold that a simple covering could mask such a commanding presence, yet the camouflage worked better than any Jahni had seen. He then noticed that the others were waiting for him to indicate when to move again, and he embarrassedly waved them on, to the subtle amusement of the lupar.

Garona, for her part, wondered what had made the young gatón nervous, but put it out of her mind as they started to hear the typical noises of any camp or small village. Sounds of people chatting, things being moved, and even the smells of cooking, which made Garona's stomach rumble. The party from Danadom had left in the middle of the early morning from their previous campsite after being awakened to the noises coming from their sick charge. Being only a day's travel had made them hustle to reach Kuamket without stopping to eat, so that they could at least try to help the sick girl. Now, however, Garona wondered what could possibly be done in a camp of a people who had fled the devastation they had seen.

They emerged into the open area near the cave that was now serving as an impromptu village common. Garona took in the situation quickly with her yellow eyes, quickly noting the lupar that walked among the gatón, and the fact that there weren't that many of either race. At the latter part, her heart sank a little, and she felt the growth of fear in the back of her mind.

Garona shook her head to clear it. I have a patient that needs attention, mulling over things can wait until later. She and Jahni led her apprentice and the micro-family towards the cave entrance where, predictably, they found Forbasa. He looked up and managed a small smile at his friend and colleague.

"My dear Salora, it's been far too long." He said as he raised himself up on his cane tiredly. The last couple of days had taken their toll, and he had spent little enough time resting.

Garona stopped in front of him, and bowed. "I wish it was under more... Favorable circumstances." She spoke slowly, unsure of what exactly protocol called for in such a situation, or if indeed protocol even still had any impact.

If there was, Forbasa dismissed it with a wave of his hand. "Please, dear, don't bow. I would have to reply, and you know my old back can't take much more of that." He said as his smile grew on his face as he let real warmth into it.

She mirrored his smile with one of her own. That is, until the bearers of the sick girl caught up, reminding Garona that there was serious business afoot. "Revalo, I would love to chat, but I have a problem that I hope you can help with." She indicated the girl on the stretcher with her hand.

Forbasa nodded. "Very well, bring her inside. We have a treatment area set up for the victims of the attack just inside the entrance."

They all entered the cave, where Garona saw, for the first time, the victims. All of them had burns of one sort or another, though a lupar at the end seemed unhurt, until one looked closely enough to see his leg splinted. Garona didn't comment, but instead looked for a spot so that the girl's relatives could lay her down on. Silently, she found one and indicated it to the bearers, who placed her there with the gentlest of care; an indication of their family ties.

Forbasa came up soon after, and kneeled down to feel her vitals despite his advanced age and tired condition. "What is her name?" He asked.

One of the gatón who had carried her responded. "Her name is Salina. She is my daughter."

Forbasa looked up. "Might I ask your name, then?"

"I am Eduno Farnslar. This is my son Tano." Farnslar indicated the young gatón standing behind him, and the youth nodded in greeting. "We came in hope that you could help my daughter."

Forbasa nodded silently, then turned to the adolescent lying on the floor of the cave. His next words were addressed to his colleague. "What are her symptoms?"

"High fever, pain in the abdomen area, an inability to keep down any food." Garona responded. "I've tried the usual herbs, but I've seen no response, other than to settle the feelings of pain. Late last night, she woke us all with loud moaning. I think it's gotten worse."

"Any unconventional treatments?" He asked, and Garona knew he wouldn't exactly disapprove, since he himself was known for being unconventional, especially for an elder shaman.

"I tried using the root of the kavao tree by grinding it up and putting it into a drink for her." Garona talked of the plant most used to dull pain for cuts. "It seemed to help a bit, but the underlying cause seems unaffected."

Forbasa stood slowly and went silent, his tail slightly wagging to express displeasure at his lack of understanding, though not a lack of knowledge. "I have seen this before. Last year a good man lost his life to this. I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out what the problem was, but all I've learned is that it must be something to do with a strange internal organ."

Garona cocked her head, and her tail went up in a questioning pose. "What is so strange about it?"

"It seems to do nothing at all, yet when I examined the man who died, I noticed the area around the organ was discolored. When I felt around, it was missing."

"Missing?" The disbelief was audible in Garona's voice. Forbasa grunted and spoke again. "Apparently so, though I have my doubts and suspicions. Though I might know someone who might know what we are dealing with..." His voice trailed off as he wondered what he would tell Garona. Well, might as well just have Vanhorn come here and show her himself, was his thought.

Forbasa turned towards a female gatón sitting near a pair of lupar. They had been talking when Garona and her party had entered, but had quieted down along with everyone else. "Alexis, would you please go and get Doctor Vanhorn?" He asked.

"Yes, shaman." Alexis said as she got up and quickly made her way through the cave and out the mouth.

Garona had some hope, then. The Lupar weren't always known for their medical expertise, but maybe one of their doctors somehow knew more. At least, she thought this 'Doctor Vanhorn' would be a Lupar, since Shaman Forbasa was as learned in medicine as any gatón. "This 'Doctor Vanhorn,' he is good, I take it?" She asked.

"Yes, quite good. Though I've had little to judge his abilities on, considering I've never seen anyone like him work before." Forbasa said in reply. Garona was puzzled. "I don't understand, you've never seen a lupar doctor work before?"

"It's not that," said Forbasa, "it's just that I've never seen a human work before."

With the mention of that name, the stories of which she'd learned as a child popped into her head, which she shook in disbelief. "Revalo, this really isn't the time for jokes."

"I didn't know my species was a joke." Announced a voice in gatonese that came from the cave entrance. Garona turned around and got a shock even bigger than seeing Kuamket in ruins. There stood a being she had only imagined, a creature that the stories of which had given her nightmares as a child. He stood taller than anyone else in the room, and his furless skin and lack of a tail made him stand out all the more.

An audible gasp came from her fellow travelers, though only she knew what the human truly was. "I... I don't believe it." Was all she could muster for the moment. "The stories... They cannot be real."

"I assure you they are." Said Forbasa with a dead seriousness, as van Horn strode over and paused before the newly arrived gatón. He stuck out his hand and said," Allow me to introduce myself. I am Doctor Earl van Horn."

Garona just looked at the human's hand, uncomprehending. "Clasp hands, Salora, it's a tradition with them," Forbasa said with sympathy for Garona. The latter slowly stuck out her hand and reached to clasp the human's. His hand felt warm and soft, though it was calloused enough from his recent work. Van Horn pumped up and down slowly, and then withdrew his hand. "Sorry, but it's a habit of mine to introduce myself with a handshake," he said apologetically.

"It's... alright." Garona was still in somewhat of a shock, but now recovered some of her manners. "I am Salora Garona, shaman of Danadom."

"Pleased to meet you." Van Horn said and gave a bit of a smile in welcome. Then it went away and he became serious. "Shaman, Forbasa," he paused after shaman, realizing that there were two now. "Alexis told me that there was sick one here. Am I to take it is the new lady laying on the floor?"

"Indeed she is. Her name is Salina Farnslar, and these are her father, Eduno, and her brother, Tano." Forbasa indicated each with a wave of his hand. "And... I don't believe we've had the pleasure to meet your apprentice, Salora."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Forgive my rudeness." Garona was still trying to get back into a normal way of thinking with the human standing there. "This is Kalo Gran, my second apprentice. Harl is still at home taking care of things."

Forbasa nodded, then went into an explanation of the distress in the cave for van Horn. The latter simply stood quietly, stroking the two-day stubble on his face. "I may be no medico, but this is common enough that many of my people know what it is." He paused to gather the gatonese words he'd need to explain.

"This organ you've mentioned, it is in humans as well. We call it an 'appendix,' and on occasions, it can become infected and inflamed." He turned then and went to a white box that Garona hadn't noticed sitting on the ground before. She then realized that it looked like nothing else in her experience, yet the human opened it up and rummaged inside, clearly knowing what to look for.

Van Horn grabbed the hypospray in this kit, and the vial of anti-infection antibiotics that were included in medikits to help wounded who might have injuries too widespread or large to be properly disinfected. Carefully, he used the vial to fill the hypospray all the way up.

Garona, as interested as she was, still had a question. "How can it get infected? Salina wasn't cut, nor did she eat anything unusual."

"An internal infection of an appendix does not need such a route of transmission." Van Horn was starting to use English words again, though the context was enough for Garona to understand most of it. "See, the appendix is part of the immune system in the body. Its main purpose is to absorb sicknesses, so that the immune system can focus in and annihilate germs before they can harm the rest of the body."

Garona and Forbasa both looked a bit overwhelmed, though at least Forbasa had had a talk with van Horn about the 'immune system' the day before. "So, if that is its purpose, why does it fail now?" He asked.

"Well, nothing is perfect," van Horn said as he came back and kneeled beside the gatón on the floor. "Even a powerful organ can succumb from various, unpredictable reasons."
"Then how come the thing disappeared when I examined the man who died?" Forbasa asked with concern.

"Well, if the infection is not defeated normally, then the appendix grows large from inflammation. If left uncured, a person's appendix can literally burst, spreading deadly infected tissues throughout the patient's body. In such cases, a burst appendix is fatal, unless the patient is lucky enough to be in a well-stocked hospital with a good staff. Even then, recovery is not assured." Van Horn finished his statement by injecting the antibiotics into the female gatón's arm.

The news that young Salina might die, even with the greatest medical help, disturbed Garona. She decided to ask a question to keep her mind busy. "Then what can you do to treat her? What did you do just now?"

"For the latter, I just gave her a shot of antibiotics. The antibiotics let her body locate any sickness, letting her immune system to focus in and kill the damn things quickly." He took out the empty bottle from the hypospray, and tossed it to the newest empty kit serving as a trash can. "As to the former question, giving her antibiotics and making sure she is well taken care of is about all I can do. I am, unfortunately, not a medical doctor, and even if I was, the conditions here are... Less than perfect." He spoke diplomatically, seeking to not offend his hosts.

Forbasa nodded. "Then let us hope this will help." He turned toward the cave entrance, and motioned for Garona to follow. "Salina is in good hands, my dear Salora. Now we should talk, don't you think?"

She nodded and turned towards the father and brother of the patient. "I will leave for a few minutes. Please be assured, that if Shaman Forbasa trusts this man with his own villagers, than I am sure the human can do as well as I can." She said this to them so they would not fret, though such emotions were beyond them, for the moment, as in shock as they were.

Turning, Garona followed Forbasa out of the cave. You have a lot of explaining to do, my dear friend.

Outside, the clearing had grown more somber with the knowledge of the sick girl in the cave, for a tightly packed camp has no secrets. Garona followed behind Forbasa until they reached a stump away from the camp that was near a large hillock. There Forbasa sat on the stump to rest himself, then he indicated a rock that Garona could sit on, and she did.

Once seated, she began to speak. "Revalo, what is this? What is going on? I come here for a meeting that you only hinted about in your letter, then I come to find your village destroyed, lupar staying with you and a... A... A Human, of all things, working here!"

Forbasa sat and waited for the initial outburst to pass. "My dear Salora, I understand you are surprised. However, I brought you here because of events that are now in motion."

"What events?" Asked Garona. She patiently listened for several minutes as Forbasa told the tale of the last few days. At the end of it, Garona just sat there, too stunned to talk as she mulled over what Forbasa had told her, along with her memories of nightmares as a child learning about the humans and their fearsome power. "If what you say is true... Then is this the Krannasha?" She asked, referring to the name that the gatón had for the end of their world.

Forbasa tilted his head. "It depends on what interpretation you would have of those stories. I've always favored the idea that they meant that our world as we know it would end, not end period." He rotated his head back up and looked Garona straight in the eye. "But despite what this may or may not be, the fact remains that the other tribes, and certainly the shamans should be alerted to the events and their portent. Especially if we find that action may be required."

Garona thought over this for a second. "I suppose you're right." She said quietly, still trying to digest the information that a day only recently begun had brought her. "I do ask what might be done of the lupar here?"

"Their leader and I have talked, and we've agreed for the time being that they can stay here with us. So far, they've been helpful, being larger than us gatón they can carry more. Not to mention, they seem eager to prove to us that their culture is not as barbaric as we see them." Forbasa finished with a slight grin.

Garona nodded at that. Before she could think of anything else to say, the human came from the cave entrance carrying one of those white boxes she had noticed. He walked towards them and stopped. "Hello, mind if I pass through?" Van Horn asked with politeness.

"Certainly, I think we are finished here for the time being." Replied Forbasa as he lifted himself off the stump. Garona followed suit out of deference, though she wondered where the human was going, since all that was around was a hillock. Then, to her surprise, the human walked to the hillock, put down the white box, and pulled up the side of the small hill. She realized it must be a covering of some sort, with a disguise so good that she hadn't noticed it before now.

Yet, even as van Horn lifted up the cover, she began to see the telltale traces that showed it to be not a real mound of dirt, but a fabric of some sort. Van Horn hitched up the part he had lifted and picked up the used medikit, carrying it with him as he went to the door, again having it open upward, which again surprised Garona. She looked towards Forbasa, but he just stood quietly, so she turned back to the human, who was even now disappearing into the strange maw.

"What...?" Again, words failed her.

"It is a kind of conveyance that he used to arrive here. It also contains a number of interesting gadgets." Forbasa spoke from knowledge, not only in the trip they had taken in it, but also because he had asked to see the inside again, which van Horn had been happy to allow. "Perhaps if you go and ask, doctor Vanhorn would let you take a look."

Garona turned to look at Forbasa, her ears perked in caution, yet she knew Forbasa to be a decent man. Turning towards the vehicle, the lady gatón felt some of her forty-one years disappear as her curiosity took over.

Reaching the door, she paused and heard the human rustling about inside. Slowly, she stuck her head through the doorway and took in the sight.

"Hello," came the human's voice from her right, and she turned her head to take in the sight of the rear compartment open and van Horn striding out from the back where he was keeping the old boxes for eventual burial. "Can I help you?"

"I, ah, I just wanted to see inside, if you do not mind." Garona was a bit nervous, talking as she was to a creature that she had thought unreal until earlier this day.

"No, I do not mind, though you'll find it a mess." Van Horn replied and waved for the gatón shaman to climb up. Garona did so with trepidation, though her curiosity was truly in command now. She gazed about the forward cabin, noting the seats up near a set of windows, each of the two having all sorts of strange and unfamiliar gadgets in front of them. To her right was a pair more of the funny-looking seats, each sitting by a shelf on one side of the compartment, and what looked like cabinets made metal were hanging from the ceiling, apparently attached to it.

She then realized that the entire place seemed made of metal, save for a few parts, like the seats' cushions. What kind of expense must go into creating this? Her thoughts went from one side of the spectrum to the other, but one thing kept coming back:

With things like these, what can we hope to do against these invaders?