Promeithious

I have arrived.

The trip has taken three full days, one day more than I had hoped. Twice the wooden wheels of our stage came crashing down to hard upon the rubble and rocks as we climbed up the dry mountain ranges. The stage had only one spare wheel. It had been hot waiting in the Sun the day before while the driver mended the splintered wood. A few of the other passengers complained of headaches, dehydration. I tried to not let on that I was a healer in case they came to me for aid. I feared I would need all my supplies. As I began to look about the town this evening, I knew my fears were not unfounded.

There is only one child who remains unaffected by the illness and three children in one family (d'Oofa) who appear to be in the early stages. The rest of the children are in comas or dead. I passed the cemetery just out of town before we arrived and I could see the fresh, short graves that marked their burial spot. There were some longer ones, just freshly dug amongst them which made me ask if the illness has found its way to the Adults. There was only a sadness and a shaking of heads after I asked this question.

It seems the first stages of the illness as I have witnessed in the youngest of the d'Oofa children is a mild rise in mischievous behaviour. Food fights, stealing of eggs, letting the dogs of their leashes, stealing and hiding the mining tools. The start of the next stage sees a rise in more aggressive behaviour and outwardly shown through constant pinching, punching and pulling as well as severe cases of torturing of animals.

I have not been able to diagnose the cause except hypothesise that there could be some correlation to the recent opening of the South-west mine. The first child became inflicted three days before the south-west cave was breached. Its possible the breach could have occurred before the Miners became aware of the natural cave which is the case 80% of the time, so I am told by the chief miner.

I am spending tomorrow with the d'Oofa children. That should be fun.

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