The centaur chieftain smiled as soon as he saw Orisa in the distance. The centaur city stood tall and he could see activity outside the gates. The centaurs and beastmen doubled their pace on their journey to the centaur capital and stopped only for brief breaks. Along the way, they came across beastmen camps that were abandoned following the Purifiactor's activation. Zulgar led his beastmen to grab anything valuable like weapons, armor and food before rejoining the centaurs. The beastman leader wanted to be extra prepared for the future. Between the hunting and what they got from the abandoned camps, the group had sufficient food to last the entire journey. The creature was nowhere to be seen after that night and Zulgar no longer detected the smell similar to the abomination. They had lookouts but the nights were uneventful for the remainder of their journey.
Ilumin was once again soaring far above them looking for any signs of their foes. Except for prey which the beastmen happily hunted down, the Cloud Hawk spotted nothing out of the ordinary. On the previous night, Colet asked Igas to use his Far Sight ability when facing towards the Torpin Stronghold. As the chieftain feared, Igar saw an army of undead marching towards Orisa. The army was filled with undead of many races and they seemed to be in no hurry to reach the centaur capital. Initial estimates put the undead numbers to be larger than the entire population of Orisa when the chieftain left. They at least got confirmation that the undead were marching towards them, whether through the information relayed from the creature or through other means. He had to assume the Soul of Xemir had a way to pull intelligence out of the dead. The slain centaurs could easily provide him with the location of Orisa.
Once everyone reached the safety of Orisa, he would send Ilumin out to give them a rough estimate of the undead’s arrival. Then, he could decide between abandoning the city or fighting with the city walls. More drastic actions might be needed but he didn’t want to think about them. The journey had taken a toll on the centaurs and even he needed some proper rest before he made any decisions that would impact the future of centaurs. Colet looked back and saw the smiles on everyone. They had reached their destination so it was something to celebrate. He restrained himself from discussing the dire situation until the following day. When he faced Orisa again, a group of centaurs galloped towards him.
“Fellow centaurs! Your chieftain has returned home!”
Colet’s smile disappeared when the incoming centaurs stopped with their weapons raised. Even the beastmen and centaurs behind him, having sensed the change in atmosphere, stopped their cheering and reached for their weapons.
“You dare to show your face here, traitor Colet! And I see you even allied yourself with the beastmen! Put down your weapons and Chieftain Ides may spare your life!”
“Chieftain….Ides…..”
The fact that Ides was alive and became the chieftain shocked the centaur. He was certain his good friend went into the stronghold which certainly spelled doom. Even in the unlikely situation his friend escaped, he saw it impossible for the centaur to not only survive the Purificator all alone but also reach Orisa before him. As he processed the information, Zulgar stepped forward.
“Colet, it seems like we are a burden for you. We will go our separate ways here.”
As Zulgar rallied the beastmen to head out, Colet barred his way with his arm.
“No,” said the centaur, “I’m already labeled a traitor and stripped of my chieftain title. I would be a fool to abandon an ally so I can step into an execution.”
“The chieftain knew you would side with outsiders over the centaurs.” The centaur raised his ax. “To all the centaurs out there, you have a choice! Stay with the traitor and be labeled an outcast! Or abandon him and fight for the centaurs! The choice should be easy!”
Colet expected the centaurs to talk amongst themselves behind him but Igas, Actolio and Kallosa stepped forward.
“You have no right to strip Colet of his chieftain title,” said Kallosa “Until you show us proof, we will not believe your accusations.”
“I fought alongside the chieftain against overwhelming odds!” said Actolio. “He has never once betrayed the centaurs.”
“Tell Ides to come forward if he wishes to be chieftain!” shouted Igas. “Only a coward takes the position without due process!”
“You have all been bewitched by Colet! Don’t you dare approach Orisa because you are now enemies of the centaurs!”
Without further words, the group of centaurs headed back towards the gates. Once they were inside the city, the centaur leaders walked over to Colet.
“I thank you three,” said Colet who was touched by their loyalty, “but we still have to figure out what to do next.”
Between the label of traitor by those in Orisa and being pursued by the undead, Colet felt his options were growing more and more limited. His centaurs and Zulgar’s beastmen, while a sizable force, wouldn’t be achieving much on their own. The allies he knew of were dead as the Purificator finished what the humans and undead failed to do. Unlike Orisa, the capitals of the other coalition members weren't protected by the demons. On the topic of demons, he wasn't sure what happened to those protecting the centaur capital. Studying their situation, food wasn’t an issue but the idea of wandering on the plains wasn’t enticing one bit. He looked up to signal to Ilumin to come down but he couldn’t see his companion in the sky. He searched around but there wasn’t any cloud cover to conceal the Cloud Hawk from his sight. He was certain after a minute his companion was no longer flying atop them.
“The abomination’s smell is back now,” said Zulgar. “I’d say we set up a camp nearby and go from there. I’d like my beastmen to be fed if we have to do any fighting.”
Trusting Ilumin to return later, Colet agreed with Zulgar.
