.Discipline
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Oros the Wise
On a day which hardly seemed peculiar at all, the villagers were sweeping up after the most recent invasion (there had been at least three within the month) and griping to each other about the need for protection. The sneevil war parties carried box after box back and forth from the junkyard to their primative cardboard fortress. On the horizon a lone grey stone tower jutted up into swirling clouds of the ever shifting azure skyline. Moss and vines from the nearby forest had begun to creep across the tower, masking the runes etched into the intricate stonework and obscuring the monument's true purpose.
Within this tower there stood two figures, the first a tall, aged man with a shaven head and a braided gray beard which fell to his waist. His eyes were of a shimmering green and he wore silvery robes which fell elegantly across his wiry frame, in his hands he held a battered tome which he kept in a metal sleeve, likely to prevent further damage to what precious knowledge was held within.
The second was shorter and much more youthful than the first, appearing to be around the age of ten, his most striking features were his pale blue skin and piercing eyes, crimson across the entire surface. Although he was human in shape these features seemed to suggest something was not quite human about the boy, he looked confused as he stood in front of a swirling pink astral gate build into the side of the tower. He wore a simple black tunic which had an awkwardly sewn hood affixed to the collar. He was thin enough that the tunic draped off him, looking quite ill-fitting as if he had planned to grow into it.
"So, child, are you aware of why you were summoned to my tower in these woods?" the silver robed man asked as he looked the boy up and down.
"No. Actually I'm quite confused. Who are you, old man? And what do you want with me?" the boy replied, seeming angered and puzzled.
"Firstly, I would request you don't refer to me as 'old man', I find that quite impersonal. My name is Oros Kalathar and I am one of the high magi under the employ of King Slugwrath. You are here because you have been seen to be practicing magic in these woods, black magic too, I believe it was. The Dark Tendrils of Lamahan." he told the boy, stroking his beard curiously and furrowing his brow.
"I can explain, you see..." the boy started before being interrupted.
"There is no need to explain, child. You have shown great promise. It is very rare that a child of your age is able to master such complex control of the mana flow. Tell me boy, who is your teacher currently?" he inquired.
"T-teacher? I don't have a teacher, unless you could count..." the boy said, stopping before he could finish his thought.
"Unless you could count WHO, boy?" Oros asked, seeming impatient.
"He calls himself Dusk." replied the boy, dragging his feet slightly.
"Dusk? Could you take me to this wizard? A tenebromancer, I would assume by the moniker, no? I wish to speak with him." Oros asked.
"Well that's the thing..." he said gingerly. "Dusk is right here. Inside my head."
Oros gasped as if in disbelief and donned his half-moon spectacles, frantically flicked through the tome in his hands until he had found a chapter entitled 'Legends of the Elemental Planes', he didn't say a word to the boy for a good three minutes while he reread a story he was already loosely familiar with, periodically marking passages of interest with a green-plumed quill.
"Egads child!" he said as he looked up from the book in front of him. "I had heard rumors. Never did I think they actually succeeded." he sighed as moved closer to inspect the boy. "Yes, yes. You show various signs of dark mana corruption ; the tainted skin, the red eyes, I assumed that it may have been temporary or you were a mixed breed of some sort. Clearly this is not the case. No wonder you have show such an aptitude. You are currently housing one of the Grand Spirits of the Darkness Elemental Plane." Oros remained calm but his eyes betrayed a great concern.
"Not to be nosy, child, but you haven't had any... other symptoms, have you?" he asked, flicking back through the book. "Such as... 'a strong urge to consume raw or living meat, the ability to innately speak languages such as undead, drowish and infernal, increased sensitivity to bright light and an aptitude for dark ma... well we already know you have THAT." he chuckled to himself.
"Well," started the boy. "I like my gorillaphant steak rare, I get horrible sunburns, I suppose. I've never talked to an undead before. We all run away when they come to the village. I heard they couldn't speak. Hehe. They just go Arrrooooooo, don't they?" the boy said, with a cheeky smile on his face.
"I'm very surprised you have managed to contain the spirit for so long without experiencing stronger side effects." Oros told him. "Very interesting. What do your parents think of 'Dusk', child?"
"I haven't really told them yet. They don't seem to care about me much since I got kicked out of school for fighting. I swear I can't even remember it!" whined the boy, rubbing his eyes.
"Hmmm... and what if I told you I could get you into a more... specialized school. Under certain provisions and restrictions, yes, but this could be done. You see, as a high mage of the king's court I have many duties, one of these is teaching at the Swordhaven Academy of Magical Studies. I could get you onto the enrollment list given your very special circumstances. Tell me boy... what is your name?" Oros asked, a glint in his eye.
"Dalarai Delrix" the boy replied.
"Well, Dalarai, I shall visit here every three days to help you practice your magic. By the time you are thirteen you should be skilled enough for a full scholarship. How very exciting." Oros chuckled to himself with glee. "I shan't take no for an answer, boy! If I don't keep an eye on you Dusk could become a very real threat, the more you grow the more his power will grow inside you... without my supervision you would need to be placed in the royal dungeons or executed and you wouldn't want that, would you?"
"No sir." Dalarai replied coyly. "I will take your offer. I've always wanted to learn real magic!" he told Oros smiling.
"Then it is settled. I shall summon you here again in three days for your next lesson. Keep practicing what you know in the meantime. Do not let my trust in you be ill-founded." the gruff old wizard said as he waved a hand and flung the boy back through the portal, taking him to a forest clearing just outside of his village.
Dazed and confused the boy stood up to find it was now night; the moonlight bathed him as a voice in his head whispered, A good choice, kid, learn magic, get more powerful, there's no use just sitting around. I'll teach you the stuff that old codger won't, you know, the FUN magic. But you know I can only talk to you at night, so you're going to have to get used to sleeping through the day. That's a plus, isn't it? You don't have to talk with all of those worthless humans. Especially not those parents of yours, they don't care about you... Not like I do. Hehehehehe.
< Message edited by .Discipline -- 11/13/2011 10:12:59 >
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