Page 39 of Legends of Sorcery
“On the count of three?” she asked.
Arion nodded. “Okay. One. Two. Three.”
They both dumped their buckets over the unicorn lying on the ground. He jumped up on all fours then reared back on his hind legs as he snorted. They couldn’t tell if he was angry or hurting. They jumped back as the beast stomped and stammered around and then collapsed to the ground.
“Oh no! We killed it!” Valaria shrieked.
The unicorn whinnied and thrashed around on the ground then stilled.
“Just wait and see what happens,” Arion said as he pulled Valaria back and out of reach of the animal.
A few moments later the unicorn rose and shook. He pranced around them and nudged Arion with his muzzle. Cautiously he reached to stroke the creature and rested hand to feel for the dark magic.
“It’s gone,” he whispered.
“What?” she asked.
“The darkness. I can’t feel it on him.”
“Are we sure he was infected to begin with?”
Arion shrugged as he removed his hand and watched as the unicorn trotted off away from there.
“He looked like all the others.”
“I agree, but let’s try again and this time check to be certain first, okay?”
After the second unicorn was cured and they were confident that water was working, they filled their buckets and slowly walked to the stables so not to spill any of the water. Callia had become too important to both of them not to cure first.
The guards looked at them like they were crazy.
“We have water here for the unicorns,” one of them teased.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Theod asked.
“You’ll see,” Valaria assured him.
Arion was almost giddy with excitement as they dumped the water over her. He hated seeing the pain it caused but knowing the end result made it all worth it. Soon Callia was up and neighing as she stomped around happily.
“You found a cure?” Theod asked reverently.
“Yeah, together, Valaria and I found a cure,” Arion said proudly. “I need someone to run back to tell Zallon. He should be here to witness this.”
“Where did the water come from?” a guard asked.
“The Falls of Healing Water,” Valaria said. “We thought it was odd that the unicorns were no longer there when typically, it was their favorite place of all. Arion thinks that’s because their magic is similar and they are drawn to it, but with the dark magic coating them it repels against it and hurts them if they try to go near.”
“So that’s it?” Theod asked. “Just pour water from the falls over there and they are instantly cured?”
“Yes sir. I guess Healing Waters was appropriately named, we just never knew it,” Arion said.
Over the next several days the entire village of Gavalon showed up with buckets to assist and for weeks beyond the Falls of Healing Water was a popular place to hang out drawing people throughout the kingdom there in hopes to cure anything that ailed them.
The unicorns were saved, and a feast was thrown in Arion’s honor. Peace was restored to the Kingdom.
Still there was one looming question that weighed heavily on Arion’s mind: a curse such as that had to have been placed by someone, but if there were no more druids or people of magic remaining in Gavalon, and Zallon hadn’t done it, then who would have the knowledge or power to plague the unicorns in a such a way?
He knew they had to remain vigilant because someone wielding dark magic still walked among them.
