Chapter 84 - Conspiracies (4)

After spending some time calming Simon down, and reassuring him that he was not affected by the drug, Mian brought the old Beastkin out of the room, and straight to the meeting room where the others were. They were still planning what to do, although their plans had taken a weird turn after they discovered Simon.

They needed to wait for him to wake up, before they could question him, and make their plans according to the information that he might possess.

Mian knocked lightly on the door to the meeting room before pushing open the door slightly.

"He's awake." He announced before fully opening the door and leading Simon inside.

"Patriarch!" The representative from the Bolvar Tribe shot up to his feet the moment he recognized Simon. He rushed around the seat he was seated at and approached Simon. Simon nodded to him, having also recognized him, before taking a seat close to his tribesman.

He noticed everyone's eyes were fixed on him, so he raised his head and met them with his own daunting gaze. He scanned everyone there, and noted that the most powerful people in the room were a Werecat with dark fur and a splash of red atop his head, and a... Monkey?

Mohawk's lip twitched ever so slightly hen he noticed Simon staring at him in a questioning manner. He could guess that the old man was most likely comparing him to a monkey at that moment. He could not really blame the man, though. After all, there was very little chance that he had come in contact with a Wereape before.

"Now, please can someone tell me what is going on here? Young Mian has explained the bare basics, but he did not explain too much. All I know if that none of you here are under the control of that nasty drug that the Henshaws were cooking up!" Simon exclaimed.

His words piqued the interest of everyone there. So he knew about the drug? At least, they knew where they could start their questioning now.

"Before we answer any of your questions, let us make it clear that we have questions of our own. Are you willing to answer them for us?" Mohawk asked.

"Yes, yes, sure. In fact, you can go ahead and ask a couple of questions first." Simon nodded. He seemed to understand the severity of the situation, and how confused they all were by how they looked at him so strangely.

"Good. First question." Mohawk nodded and began asking his questions, "How did you end up in the cellar of this place?"

"Well, that... From young Mian, I am already aware that you all know of the Herder Drug. Well, it all started about two months ago. I have an ability that lets me spot anything dangerous to the health and minds of people around me. It is strange, and I do not know how to explain it to you. Anyway, my ability made me notice that there was something wrong with my tribe's water source. I kept an eye on it for a while, and even tested it in various ways, but nothing bad happened." Simon began explaining.

"It was strange. Very strange, but I still decided to keep on monitoring it for a while longer. About a month ago, though, I was poisoned. My body only just barely managed to fend of the effects of the poison, and that is when they struck. Those bloody Henshaws." He gritted his teeth as he recalled the memory of how they had attacked him.

"By that time, whatever it was that had been in the water had begun infecting my people, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. It was just a slight change, but before I could do anything about it, the Henshaws noticed that I was unaffected and took me out. Then they must have brought me here after that. I only remember waking up in a cell and being tortured over and over again just to satisfy the sick urges of some bastards who hated my kind."

"I see." Mohawk nodded when Simon was done with his explanation. The man had basically answered most of their questions with his story, so there was little more to ask him.

"Now, I have a question." Simon spoke up again. "How is my tribe? Did the Henshaws attack my people?" He turned to the representative from the tribe and directed his questioning gaze toward him.

"No, the tribe is okay. The Henshaws did not attack us. At least not directly." The man shook his head.

"What do you mean not directly?" Simon asked.

"The drug that the Henshaws had used is called the Herder Drug. Its effect was to weaken and subvert the minds of demi-humans and Beastkin alike. They used it on multiple tribes, packs and cities in order to gain an army to take over the continent." Mohawk answered his question.

"Luckily, we were able to find out and respond accordingly." Han added and the others nodded. If it had not been for Mian and his own son, then the Belmun Pack would have surely still been under the control of the humans, and they would not have made this much progress in their mission.

Simon sat in silence as he let his mind soak up the information that he had gotten.

"How are my children?" He suddenly asked.

"They are doing fine. Ezra has stepped up into the position that was left vacant after your supposed death. Freya, well, she is still a child, and while your death must have affected her, she is doing well. I can not say the same for Caesar, though. He took your 'passing' quite hard." Han answered the man. "He is doing a bit better now, though."

"Caesar..." Simon sighed. "He has always taken things rather hard and serious. I hope he holds on until the matters here have been settled."

"That is a good way of thinking. Now, let us get back to our planning. With you here, we should be able to have a wider perspective.." Mohawk announced.