“What is that?” Oré asked looking past Enkerai to the horrific scene before them.

“I-I’m not sure,” Enkerai stuttered.

Before them was a small group of around a hundred grooperds, all thin and mangy, and all surrounding the body of a much larger creature. Enkerai covered his nose and stepped closer. The animal appeared to be similar in size and shape to a horse but had ginger fur and patterns similar to the grooperds around it. It was thin and clearly starved, but worst of all, it was covered in bruises and cuts. One particularly nasty looking cut to its stomach appeared to be infected, worms could visibly be seen crawling in and out of the mottled flesh. Perched on its leg was the grooperd that had led them there.

“I think I see what this is,” Oré whispered in between short breaths, “It must be some sort of Queen grooperd.”

“A queen?”

“Well, you saw the way they moved like a swarm, it’s kind of like how insects and bugs do. The rest of the family must have no idea what to do with their leader out of the action.”

“And these injuries…” Enkerai pointed to the many infected gashes on the beast.

“They look like they’re from a blade.” Oré muttered, “How strange. Maybe the Burmaan townsfolk did this?”

“The townsfolk?”

“Well, there aren’t many other settlements nearby.” Oré scratched his head, “But why exactly they did it is another question altogether… maybe there was a culling?”

“No, that can’t be it… ” Enkerai shook his head, “the man at the gate said the large numbers work in their favour. Or in other words: the more the merrier. What I’m wondering is why these grooperds are here when there are so many around Burmaan.”

“Wait, didn’t the guy at the gate say they were a defense mechanism?” Oré’s eyes narrowed, “That means they wanted them there, they may even have brought them there.”

“And if the grooperds operate in family groups,” Enkerai began to catch on, “and those family groups centred around the queen then that means…”

“The Burmaan townsfolk have the other queens!” the boys shouted in unison.