This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

The journey back to the temporary camp was tense and hurried since they were unsure how many, or if any, of their poisoned allies were still alive.

The third pair, who had returned empty-handed and were likely frustrated by their lack of success, offered to use their own contracts as mounts for everyone and pushed them to the limit, even at the expense of their contracts not being at peak fighting condition for a while.

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Kain could tell they were desperate to prove their usefulness so didn’t refuse. After all, his contracts could rest while they made their way back to the others as quickly as possible.

The beasts galloped across the desert terrain with impressive speed, kicking up a trail of dust. Kain felt the tension in the air, the desperation of their comrades fueling their determination to reach the camp as quickly as possible. Even the typically cold Serena was gripping the reins a little too tightly in tension and worry.

Kain’s mind raced as they walked. They had the antidote—or at least, they thought they did, they still needed to try it to be sure. But the encounter with the guards and the apothecary had left him uneasy.

Something about the way the guard had reacted to the mention of the elderly woman’s grandson, Malzahir, had set off alarm bells in his mind. The political tensions within the tribe were clearly volatile, and Kain couldn’t shake the feeling that they had stumbled into something far more complicated than they had anticipated.

When they finally reached the camp, the relief on their comrades’ faces was palpable. Idrias stepped forward, his expression tense but hopeful. “Did you get it?” he asked, his voice low and urgent.

Kain and Zareth both reached into their space rings, pulling out the vials they had obtained. Kain’s vial contained a thick, green liquid, while Zareth’s held a shimmering, golden substance. The two antidotes were completely different in appearance, and the group immediately noticed the discrepancy.

“Why are they different?” Idrias asked, his brow furrowing as he studied the vials. “Which one is the real antidote?”

Kain and Zareth exchanged a glance, their expressions equally uncertain. “We both got these from different apothecaries,” Zareth explained. “I assumed mine was the correct one, but…” He trailed off, his gaze flicking to Kain’s vial.

Kain shook his head. “I thought the same about mine. The apothecary I went to seemed legitimate, but…” He hesitated, his mind racing. “We need to test them. Quickly.”

Idrias nodded, his expression grim. “We don’t have time to waste. Let’s start with the worst-off.”

They moved to the side of the camp where an injured 6-star Starchaser lay, his breathing shallow and his skin pale. The venom had taken a severe toll on him, and it was clear he didn’t have much time left. Idrias knelt beside him, holding up the two vials. “We’re going to try one of these,” he said, his voice steady but urgent. “But we aren’t sure which one is the correct antidote, it can very well be poison.”

The weakened man tried to laugh to ease the tension but ended up coughing up blood in the process. Once the violent fit of coughing calmed down he weakly joked, “As you can see, I can’t exactly get much worse…”

His attempt at humor did little to lighten the mood. A few of his comrades forced chuckles, but the grim reality of the situation remained.

Idrias’ mood wasn’t lightened in the slightest, but bowed his head solemnly to the other man as a gesture of thanks for being the ‘guinea pig.’

“The guy I bought it from said to give 1 drop for low-level scorpion venom, 3 for mid-level, and 5 for high-level scorpion stings,” Zareth said. Kain also nodded to indicate that he received the same instructions. Although they weren’t sure of which antidote was correct, it looks like the instructions give had gained some credibility though.

He uncorked Zareth’s vial first, the golden liquid shimmering in the sunlight. Carefully, he administered 3 drops to the man’s lips, watching intently for any sign of improvement. The group held their breath, the tension in the air almost palpable.

But nothing happened.

The man’s condition didn’t improve. If anything, his breathing seemed to grow even more labored. Idrias’ expression darkened, and he turned to Kain. “Your turn.”

Kain stepped forward, his hands trembling slightly as he uncorked his vial. The green liquid inside was thick and viscous, its vile scent sharp and resembling a poison more than medicine. He also administered 3 drops to the man’s lips, his heart pounding as he waited for a reaction.

For a moment, there was nothing. Then, slowly, the man’s breathing began to steady. His color returned, and his eyes fluttered open, though they were still clouded with pain. The group let out a collective sigh of relief, their hope renewed.

“It worked,” Idrias said, his voice filled with relief. “Kain’s antidote is the real one.”

But their relief was short-lived. The next injured member of the team, a Pathfinder who had also been stung by a mid-grade scorpion, was given 3 drops of Kain’s green antidote. This time, however, there was no improvement. The man’s condition remained unchanged, his breathing shallow and his skin pale.

A deep frown creased Kain’s brow. Something was off.

The group exchanged uneasy glances, their confusion mounting. “Why isn’t it working?” Serena asked, her voice tense. “It worked on the first one.”

Kain’s mind raced as he tried to make sense of the situation. “Maybe… maybe the venom affects people differently,” he suggested, though he didn’t sound convinced. “Or maybe the antidote needs time to take effect.”

Idrias shook his head, his expression grim. “We don’t have time to wait. Let’s try Zareth’s antidote.”

Reluctantly, they administered drops of the golden liquid to the second injured man. To their surprise, his condition began to improve almost immediately. His breathing steadied, and his color returned, just as it had with the first man.

The group fell silent, their confusion deepening. “What’s going on?” Zareth asked, his voice filled with frustration. “Why did mine work on him but not the first one? And why did Kain’s work on the first but not the second?”

Kain’s mind raced as he tried to piece together the puzzle. Then, it hit him. “They’re both antidotes,” he said, his voice low but certain. “But they’re only half of the cure. The apothecaries we went to—they each gave us one part of the remedy. We need both to fully counteract the venom.”

The realization sent a chill down his spine. The apothecary he had encountered—the one who had seemed so kind and helpful—had deliberately withheld the full antidote. And the guard’s reaction to the mention of Malzahir… it all made sense now. The political tensions within the tribe had spilled over into their dealings, and they had been caught in the crossfire.

“They played us,” Kain said, his voice filled with a mix of anger and disbelief. “They knew we needed the full antidote, but they only gave us half. Perhaps for you they sensed that you weren’t a local and treated the lives of non-tribesmen coldly, if not hostilely. On our end, the deception may have been more politically motivated…” Kain quickly explained the method he’d used to obtain the antidote and the mysterious ‘Malzahir’ that seemed to be a polarizing figure within the tribe.

Zareth’s fists clenched at Kain’s words, his face darkening with fury. “Those bastards,” he growled, his voice low and seething. “They deliberately screwed us over—played with our lives like some sick game. If you hadn’t also gotten the other vial…Damn it!”

Kain couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of the two-faced apothecary. The man had seemed so kind, so helpful, and even defended the old woman from the guard hostile to her grandson, but beneath the surface, he had been plotting against them—and against Malzahir. This was an important lesson for them all, the desert was a harsh and unforgiving place, and its people were no less dangerous.

The group fell silent, the weight of Kain’s words sinking in. They had been duped, and now their comrades’ lives hung in the balance.

Idrias’ expression hardened at the deception but quickly returned to calm, “both healers wished to trick you and only sold one half of the necessary remedy, but thankfully it just so happened that the other person got the other half necessary one. In a sense we are all extremely lucky, their plans would have easily succeeded had this perfect coincidence not occurred.”

The group nodded, still disgruntled by the deception, but after realizing they had the true antidote in full now, they were a little amused at the unsuccessful sabotage.

They quickly combined the two antidotes, creating a new mixture that shimmered with a faint, golden-green hue. Carefully, they administered it to the remaining injured members of the team, their hearts pounding as they waited for a reaction.

One by one, the injured began to improve. Their breathing steadied, their color returned, and their eyes fluttered open. The antidote was working.

But for now, they had won a small victory. The antidote had worked, and their comrades were safe.