The Jade Mage: The Becoming: Volume 1 (47 page)

Elizabeth’s eye lids fluttered in response to his kissing her hand, and she smiled warmly. Not willing to succumb, she retorted, “Well Sweetie, the next time you want my attention maybe you should just ask. Or, you could be a man and just make a move yourself! It’ll be less painfull for you that way.” She tried to sound insulted, but instead Tartum thought he heard her purring.

Unable to control his desire any longer, he pulled her into his lap and kissed her. She melted into him, and they began to intertwine. Gently, Elizabeth pushed him away. She had tears in her eyes and spoke so quietly, Tartum almost opened himself to the magic so he could hear her. He wasn’t sure if her words were for him or herself.

“When I heard what happened to you I thought, for a moment, I had lost you. I know the training is hard and that death is very possible. I’ve had friends die in the tests before, and I didn’t lose a wink of sleep over it.” She took a shaky breath before continuing, “I could barely breathe when I heard you were hurt. Rashlarr and Vaund will walk on eggshells around me for weeks after the thrashing I gave them for not intervening sooner.” Her tears were now freely flowing down her cheeks as she looked up at him. Tartum had never seen a woman more beautiful than she was to him right now, and her words made his heart sing and hurt at the same time. Unable to reply, he just looked at her.

“If you ever make me worry about you like that again, I’ll kill you.” She said. “I love you too much to lose you, and if anyone is going to kill you it’s going to be me. Do you understand, Sweetheart?”

Feeling tears forming in his own eyes, Tartum used all of his considerable will to get control of himself. After a moment, he spoke, “Yes dear, I understand.” It was the only response he could muster.

It was enough. Elzabeth threw herself at him with a furvor Tartum didn’t think possible. The rest of the day was spent physcially expressing their love for each other.

...

Walking into the training area, Tartum took stock of its condition. The debris from his previous battles had been cleared, and it looked as if someone had tried to clean up the scorch marks on the walls and floor. The spots where the green flame remnants from his fireball spell had burned still warped the floor’s surface, and there was still a huge crater in the wall. The hole that marked where the final bird man had met his death was gone. The floor had been repaired and had left no trace of its passing. Tartum was a little disappointed to see it was gone but figured it was for the best. He would hate to be tripped up by the crater during his next battle and be made into a snack for whatever beast they put him up against.

Looking over at Rashlarr, he wasn’t surprised to see, not only Vaund at his side, but Jeth as well. They all looked up when Tartum arrived, and Rashlarr motioned for him to join them. Tartum took a moment before joining them to cast his dome spell. He figured if he was going to be in this room, he had better be prepared for everything. Rashlarr nodded his approval, Jeth seemed disgusted. After finishing his spell, Tartum walked over to them.

It was Rashlarr that spoke first. “Morning, Jade Mage. I see your injury has left you no worse for wear. The scar suits you, makes you look older.” He said. Tartum had seen the scar on his face the night before. It ran across the bridge of his nose and beneath his right eye. At first he thought it was hideous, but after coming to terms with it, and with Elizabeth saying it made him look rugged, he was beginning to like it.

Nodding to his master, Tartum allowed himself a smile. He was in a good mood today, but it was hard to stay jovial when he knew that he would face another life or death battle within the next few minutes. The mix of emotions was making him feel numb inside.

“Heh, looks like you got sloppy while fighting simple Avians, and now you have a constant reminder of your stupidity, huh, recruit?” Jeth was seething about something, and his unexpected insult surprised Tartum. He recovered quickly, and his anger was made apparent in his response.

“Yea, says the guy wearing the eye patch.” Jeth went white with rage; he just stood there staring daggers at Tartum. Refusing to back down, Tartum met his gaze and returned it with one of his own. Rashlarr broke the stalemate.

“That’s enough you two. Tartum, show more respect, and Jeth if you can’t handle the retort then don’t start the banter.” He said. He sounded irritated but it was tempered with worry. Tartum wondered if he was worried about Jeth attacking him, or if he was worried about him attacking Jeth. Tartum found the drama of the moment irritating, he had a battle today, and Jeth’s presence was troubling.

Tartum quelled his anger at Jeth by focusing on something else he had said. He had called the bird men Avians. At least now he knew what to call them. It was a simpler name than he would have expected, but knowing what his opponent’s race was called somehow helped him cope with his last fight. The shame he felt from dropping his guard and almost getting himself killed still wasn’t sitting right with him. Not knowing what to call such a memorable opponent kept the thought on his mind, and Jeth had inadvertently helped him to find closure. The irony was enough to put a smile on his face.

Jeth broke his gaze and walked over to the wall to collect himself. Smirking, Tartum turned his back on Jeth and looked over at Vaund. “I wanted to thank you for saving my life again, Vaund. I’m in your debt. Is there anything I can do to repay you? This is what, three or four times now you’ve saved my life?” Tartum said, smiling at his friend.

“You’re welcome, Tartum. There is something you can do for me actually.” Vaund said. He looked up at Tartum before he explained, “You can stop getting so damn hurt. It’s killing me to have to heal you so often!” Laughing, Vaund clapped Tartum’s shoulder, good-naturedly. Seeing Vaund smile and laugh made Tartum happy, and he nodded his agreement.

“I’ll try harder to not get myself killed. I hope I don’t disappoint you.” Tartum said mockingly. It was good to feel like an equal for a change amongst these men.

“See that you do!” Vaund responded.

Turning his attention back to Rashlarr, Tartum waited to be told how he was going to be tested today. Rashlarr was being his usual mysterious self and gave Tartum very little to go on.

“Have you replenished your spell components, Apprentice?” he asked.

“I have Master, but I need more sapphires. I’m still not allowed outside the compound and the couple I do have are from Elizabeth’s personal stash.” He replied.

Rashlarr nodded and reached into his own pouch that contained sapphires. He pulled out a small handful that made Tartum’s eyes bulge. “Here you are, Apprentice. Put them to good use.” he said.

Looking at the pile of sapphires he held, Tartum guessed his master had just given him twenty stones. He was speechless for a moment and then stammered out his thanks, “Thank you, master! I...thank you!” he said.

Waving off his gratitude, Rashlarr said a word of command, and the barriers reappeared inside the room. Tartum took a breath and prepared himself to face his next opponent.

“This will be your final test as my apprentice. Your opponent will be the strongest you’ve ever faced, and I won’t lie to you, Tartum, few casters ever survive this test, let alone pass it. Use everything you know to defeat what’s coming. It will not be easy.” Rashlarr told him. Tartum had never heard anyone sound as cryptic as Rashlarr sounded now.

He began to walk towards the center of the room when Jeth stopped him. “Tartum! Wait a minute, I’m sorry for before. I have some things on my mind, and I spoke without thinking. Sorry about that. Listen, I’m here to appraise your progress, and if you survive this test then I’ll approve you for the final stage of your training. Good luck, recruit! I know you’ll do great!” and with that Jeth held out his hand for Tartum to shake. Wary of this man, but not wanting to shun his uncharacteristic kindness, Tartum shook his hand. Jeth hurried back to where Vaund and Rashlarr were standing, and as soon as he joined them, the magical barrier rose up, keeping them safe while Tartum battled for his life. Confused at Jeth’s sudden support, Tartum walked over to his position. Jeth was an enigma to be sure; he wished he could figure him out before he got him killed or worse.

After a few moments the wall near Tartum’s crater opened, and a huge mass came waddling out. It was humanoid in appearance but immensely larger. It was easily nine feet tall and six feet wide. It had a small wisp of hair on its otherwise bald head, arms like tree trunks, and hands that looked like they could encompass his head with room to spare. Its body was massive, with a belly that was so round and distended Tartum wondered how the creature was able to move with any kind of coordination. Its legs were almost twice as thick as its arms and just as powerful. The only solace Tartum took as he assessed his opponent was that he looked like he was as stupid as he was enormous. His eyes were close together and from what Tartum could tell he had four teeth left in his mouth, each shaped like a small boulder made from yellow and brown wax. It was the smell that gave away its identity. Pungent, acidic, and with a strong overtone of sewer rot, Tartum knew the thing before him was an Ogre.

He had heard stories about ogres in his youth, and they had terrified him. The stories said that they ate children, leveled entire villages, and destroyed crops. It was said that their skin was like boiled leather and that arrows and spears barely scratched them. The stories also mentioned that it took an entire army just to take down a few of them, and even then, the casualities they inflicted were horrendous. Ogres were the alpha bullies of the world, and if you ever saw one it was usually right before it killed and ate you; not necessarily in that order. If the stories he had heard as a child scared him, seeing one in real life made him want to relinquish control of his bladder. Just looking at it, Tartum knew that no amount of bashing with his staff was going to do anything but anger it. Tartum holstered his staff on his back. If he was going to kill this brute, he was going to have to rely completely on his magic and his wits. He hoped they would be enough. The creature looked around and saw Tartum. Squinting at him, he seemed to be trying to figure out what he was. Finally, it put both of its huge hands on its belly and laughed heartily.

“This! This is what you feed to Gurth!? HAHAHA! I no ask for shiny green man, I want cow or horse! Maybe moose! Green man? Him have no meat on bones to fill Gurth’s belly!” it bellowed to no one in particular. Looking over at Rashlarr and the rest of them safe behind the barrier, it continued, “Fine! I will mash and eat green man. Afterwards, you bring me moose, deal?” The ogre looked worried that his deal might be rejected. Tartum knew that it wouldn’t be. After a moment, he was confirmed correct, as Rashlarr nodded his agreement. Tartum thought he was going to puke.

“Ok then, Green man! Save Gurth trouble and get in mouth! Gurth chew fast so mashing quick! Come, Green man! No make Gurth chase you!” the ogre said. Tartum had taken cover behind a barrier while the ogre had been sealing his deal with Rashlarr. Now as he hid, he began trying to think of how best to go about killing the ogre. When he heard it make its ultimatum, the audacity of its demands angered Tartum, and he took out a handful of sulfur.

“Doctay-von-we!”
Tartum began, and stepped out from his hiding spot. If this ogre meant to eat him, he was going to have to do it on fire. The ogre had equipped himself with a club that looked more like a tree trunk than a weapon. It didn’t matter to Tartum; it wouldn’t be much use to him once his fireball set him ablaze.

“Beath!”
he called out, and the fireball flew from his hands and straight at the ogre’s disgusting face.

“Oh! This one fights Gurth! Gurth like Green Man! Green Man give Gurth happy fight time before meal!” he said. As the fireball closed in, Gurth swung his club like a bat, hitting the fireball and making it detonate far enough away from him that it was ineffective. The resulting explosion set the far end of the tree club on fire, however.

Gurth was not happy to see his club on fire, “Oh no! Green man make green fire on Gurth’s boom stick!” The ogre sounded genuinely upset about this fact and licked his grimy hand before trying to put out the flames. The ogre recoiled the moment his hand touched the flames. He stuck his burned hand into his mouth and then inspected it closely. Tartum noticed that the flames had turned his first two fingers black, but other than that there was no damage. The change in the ogre’s demeanor however, was drastic. His face contorted into a rage that made Tartum’s blood curdle. He roared his frustration and pointed his burning club at Tartum.

“YOU BURN BOOMSTICK AND BURN GURTH’S HAND! GURTH MASH YOU AND SLURP YOU OFF FLOOR!” he bellowed and began to advance on Tartum; the look of pure hatred on his face didn’t falter for a second.

If Tartum had been worried before, he was terrified now; reaching into his pouch for a copper rod, he pulled one out and began to cast his spell.

“
Yuik-rena toem-urthma!”
The crackling energy burst from the rod, and Tartum held it at bay just long enough to aim it at the ogre’s enormous gut.

“Za-tan!”
Tartum commanded, and his lightning bolt flew towards the ogre. Without even attempting to avoid the shot the bolt hit Gurth directly in the center of his belly. There was a distinctive “Oof!” as the wind was knocked out of him slightly. Tartum looked at Gurth’s gut, expecting to see a great bleeding hole, but instead saw that the bolt had done almost no damage. There was some slight burn marks and a little bit of blood but nothing close to the damage Tartum had hoped to do. He was going to have to think of something quick if he was going to stop the ogre now.