Immortal

by T Nisbet

We talked for quite a while after that, mostly about life in Fairview. Even though thoughts of her incredible body pressing into mine were never far from my mind, I was able to relax and find comfort in holding her while we talked. It was intimate in a way I never expected, never dreamed of.

  It wasn’t too long after I felt her slip into sleep, that I said some prayers and gave in to sleep as well.

  I woke up to Ivy’s fingers tracing the lines on my stomach. I opened my eyes and watched her for a moment as she looked at the defined ridges. She bit the side of her bottom lip in that coy, sexy way women sometimes did. I got the impression she liked my abs and felt my face turning red. I yawned deeply and stretched.

  “Wake up sleepy head,” she smiled, snuggling against me and kissing my neck.

  “What time is it?” I groaned, glad she was there.

  “A hair past a freckle,” she laughed, rolling away from me to the other side of the bed and getting up.

  I looked over in time to see her before she disappeared inside the bathroom with her clothes on her arm and shut the door. Sure, enough my name and number where there in red against the white fabric that hung down to the middle of her waist. She had on matching white jockey-type underwear that fit tightly around an astonishing butt. Her lightly tanned legs were muscular without losing their shapeliness.

  I was blown away. How on earth could anyone not notice a figure like that, magic or no magic. I heard the water pouring down inside the bathroom and levered myself upright in bed. I felt embarrassed and at war with myself for the thoughts I had regarding Ivy. Could our friendship survive the things I found myself wanting to do with her?

  The sun was barely up. I swung my legs out of bed and pulled my pants and boots on. The pants were tighter than usual, but the boots fit perfectly. I grabbed my tunic top and tried to pull it on over my head, but couldn’t. Somehow it had shrunk even more than the pants.

  I put on my sword belt and the buckle fit into the same slot it had before. Adjusting the belt I started wondering if the lady who did our clothes had somehow shrunk my tunic.

  Ivy came out of the bathroom looking a little shaken.

  “Are you okay?” I asked worried.

  “I’m okay,” she said hesitantly. “But you look upset. What’s wrong”

  “The cleaning gal did something to my pants and tunic. The pants barely fit, and I can’t get the tunic on now.”

  Ivy looked me up and down and whistled lightly.

  “Jake, you really are getting buff.”

  I shrugged, looking down at myself. I didn’t feel any different, like heavier or slower. I knew I looked bigger in the copper mirror, but it wasn’t like I was a freak or anything.

  “I mean…” Ivy bit her bottom lip as she walked towards me. “You have always had a great body Dear Heart. When you took off your shirt at Huntington Beach to go body surfing at the end of summer, all the girls had a fit. But now… I don’t know what to say…you’re bigger and more defined than I’ve ever seen you.

  “Really?” I said

  “Oh yeah,” she said, putting both her hands on my chest and looking up into my eyes smiling.

  It was hard to concentrate with her smiling at me that way.

  “I… I think I’m going to need a new tunic, unless you want me to walk through Brighton like this,” I laughed nervously.

  “I’ll go ask Gill.” Ivy said kissing my cheek. “Be right back.”

  Once she left I went into the bathroom and looked at myself again. Was it possible I was bigger? I flexed one of my arms and stepped away from the mirror in shock. My biceps were quite a bit bigger, noticeably bigger than yesterday. My shoulders were bigger as well. My stomach was absolutely ripped.

  I started to panic. How could this be? I liked what I saw, but what if it didn’t stop? I turned around and looked at my back. There was no way people were going to believe I wasn’t on steroids, absolutely no way. How was I going to explain it to my parents? I shook my head. There was so much to explain, where was I going to start?

  Someone knocked on the door. I went over and opened it, peering out. Gill stood there comfortably.

  “Good morning Jake,” he said grinning at me. “What seems to be the problem?”

  I opened the door and let him in.

  “My tunic doesn’t fit me anymore,” I said uncomfortably.

  “Really?” Gill said looking me over. “You are gaining weight, no doubt about it. Put it on and we’ll go get another one that fits better.”

  “You don’t understand. I can’t even get it on.”

  “Oh…” he said looking at me more closely.

  “I’m not complaining Gill. But honestly, I haven’t been doing anything to gain muscle at all. If I were just getting fat, I wouldn’t be worried, but I’m not getting fat, just more muscular. I’m not lifting or loading carbs, in fact, most of the time I am hungry. Unless that food you’ve been giving us has something strange in it, there really isn’t an explanation,” I rambled, shaking my head.

  Gill laughed.

  “Is that such a horrible problem, my friend? I’d call it a gift actually.

  “What if…”

  Suddenly it hit me. The gifts! Was this one of the gifts that went along with Immortality? Sir Nisbet told me that the gifts were different for each person. He said I got to choose some and others just happened.

  “What?” Gill asked, obviously confused by my stopping in the middle of a sentence.

  I didn’t know what to tell him.

  “Can you get me another tunic please?” I asked.

  He laughed again.

  “Of course, Jake. Give me the old one for a frame of reference.”

  I walked over to where I’d set it and picked it up. I shrugged as I handed it to him.

  “Sorry Gill, this whole thing kinda has me jumpy.”

  “If getting bigger and stronger equates to being jumpy. I hope I start getting a little jumpy as well,” he laughed, heading for the door. “I’ll be back in a bit. Ivy was worried about you. I’ll tell her it’s okay on my way out.”

  “Thanks Gill,” I said, as he closed the door.

  Toby walked in a few minutes later without knocking.

  “Damn Jake-O, you are getting buff!” he said gawking at me. “Forget playing quarterback, you’ll be a linebacker soon. Hey you’re taller too.”

  I groaned as he forced me to stand back to back with him.

  “No doubt about it bud. You’ve gained an inch, maybe two!”

  “It’s kind of scary Tob,” I said, walking over and sitting on the edge of the bed.

  “Hell, if I had a six-pack like that you wouldn’t hear me complaining,” he chuckled. He must have seen the look on my face because his laughter died abruptly.

  “What if it doesn’t stop, Tob. What if I just keep getting bigger and bigger until I’m like this gross body builder dude with no neck and no penis!” I complained. “I think this is one of those gifts Sir Nisbet spoke of. I just wonder whether I can stop it.”

  “You mean those gifts you can choose or decline? Didn’t you tell me he said some gifts just happened? How can you tell the difference?” he said sitting next to me on the bed. “Hey… did you?”

  “Did I what?” I asked, not knowing what he was talking about.

  “You know,” he smiled lecherously. “You and Ivy…”

  I punched him in the arm since Carla wasn’t around.

  “No, we didn’t.

  “Ouch!” he grimaced. “I like it better when Carla does that.

  I smiled, remembering lying with Ivy on the bed.

  “Nothing happened that way, Toby. But honestly man, it was the best night of my life,” I sighed.

  “Oh brother, you’re caught, hook, line and sinker,” he smiled slamming his beefy shoulder into mine. “Feels good, doesn’t it?”

  I nodded.

  Gill returned with another tunic top after an hour or so. I put it on and the three of us made our way out to the main room and joi
ned Bronn and Guldan for breakfast.

  “There’s not a Blood Elf to be found, I tell ya,” Bronn was saying to Guldan as we sat down.

  “They’ve left all the cities so as not to risk a banishment of their army. A good tactic just in case the stones are powerful enough,” Guldan nodded.

  “It means there are no spies either. Which works to our advantage,” Gill added.

  Both Guldan and Bronn nodded acknowledging us.

  “Mother mercy!” Bronn said, coming to his feet, staring slack-jawed at the hammer on Toby’s belt. “I’ll be a pimpled goose egg.”

  “Bronn, Guldan, this is Toby,” I said, introducing them.

  Bronn looked at me, furrowed his brow, then laughed looking at the huge hammer on Toby’s belt again.

  “The old bastard.”

  “Pardon?” Toby said, offering the burly dwarf his hand.

  Bronn reached across the table and shook Toby’s hand.

  “My apologies giant, some pieces of a very old puzzle just came together.”

  “Nisbet?” Guldan smiled lazily as we sat down.

  “It seems the old knight was a lot more cunning than I gave him credit for, and I gave him a lot of credit,” Bronn laughed.

  “How so?”

  “Remember when he took my sledge?” Bronn leaned back in his chair, his head shaking in mirth. “It hasn’t appeared in several millennia, and now, out of the blue, here it is on the belt of a giant human who is in the company of the lad he bequeathed his immortality too.”

  Guldan chuckled.

  “That has Nisbet written all over it,” he said shaking his head wryly.

  “Exactly, I feel his hand in this, the old schemer. He made plans upon plans. I wouldn’t be surprised if we weren’t involved in them for a millennia or more to come.”

  I saw Toby look down at his hammer lovingly, then sigh. He unhooked the huge sledge from his belt and set it across the table before Bronn.

  “Here ya go,” Toby said, trying to smile as he offered the weapon to Bronn.

  Bronn smiled warmly and shook his head.

  “Nay giant, I wouldn’t ruin a plan of Sir Nisbet’s for all the gold in Thunderhome. It is yours now. Besides I’ve become rather fond of this axe o mine.”

  Toby smiled back at the dwarf and retrieved the hammer, attaching it once more to his belt.

  “Now I’ve seen everything,” Guldan said sarcastically.

  “What mean you by that remark?” Bronn said angrily.

  “Nothing, it’s just you’re a bit possessive is all.”

  Bronn growled. Guldan just laughed.

  The girls came down a few minutes later and joined us. Gill introduced them to the Bronn and Guldan. Guldan stood and bowed formally to them, then left to see to our horses and the wagon. The Inn keep’s wife brought breakfast to us smiling brightly at Ivy and I.

  Chp. 29

  “Ready to get back in the saddle, Tob?” I asked as we exited the Inn, having thanked the Innkeeper and his wife for our stay. Toby rolled his eyes and grunted.

  A wagon filled with small casks sat on the road before the inn. It was slightly longer than Coach’s old wagon and was pulled by a team of four gray mules. I thought of our pack lost in the fire and suddenly it hit me. Ivy’s pack! It had been on the wagon too. I felt the color drain out of my face. The Cardinal Ruby had been in her pack.

  I left Toby’s side and hurried over to Ivy who was accepting her horse from a blushing groom.

  “We’re screwed Ivy,” I whispered frantically.

  She put a hand on my chest.

  “What’s wrong Dear Heart?” she whispered back.

  “The stone. It’s gone! It was in your pack, in coach’s wagon.” I groaned. “Without it, this whole stupid thing is ruined!”

  Ivy smiled up at me then ran her hand through my hair.

  “It’s in my pocket.”

  Relief blossomed in my chest and I hugged her tightly.

  “At some point you’re going to need it back, you know,” she smiled as I let her go.

  “Mount up, let’s get going,” Guldan said from the back of a black horse, the hood of his black and red cape pulled low over his head.

  Bronn released the brake on the wagon and started the mule team forward. The rest of us mounted our horses and followed.

  Brighton wasn’t nearly as large a city as Lockewood, but it was still pretty big. After an hour or so we exited through the southern gate and put Brighton behind us. Guldan rode beside Bronn and the wagon, the rest of us followed behind.

  As the sun rode up in the sky towards midday we stopped at a junction of three roads and ate some dried fruit and biscuits. We had long ago left the farms and orchards that had given way to the grasses of the plain. Bronn tapped one of the casks and offered us some of the sweet orange brandy we were transporting to Grimshome. The four of us declined, opting for water out of our canteens.

  “Those two roads to the east, lead to kingdoms of Alissia, and Kri’Stin,” Gill said pointing. “This one, to Mozgul and Thunderhome.”

  “Is Mozgul far?” Carla asked.

  “No, this road travels west along its northern border,” Bronn offered, “Several roads intersect this one leading into their blighted kingdom.”

  “We will undoubtedly meet up with patrols before we reach their lands, so be ready,” Guldan interjected.

  “Ready for what? I don’t even have a pocketknife. What am I suppose to do?” Carla complained.

  “You could always cut them with sarcastic words, or a sharp comment,” Toby offered.

  “Very funny,” she grumbled. “I’m serious. Everyone else here has a purpose but me. She started pointing at us: Handsome guard, Immortal, Immortal, yet another Immortal, mage, big gay giant… and me, nothing.”

  I couldn’t help laughing at the look Toby gave her. He could see she was upset though, so didn’t tease her back. Ivy reached out and took Carla’s hand.

  “Mother said you were important, Carla, and mother is never wrong,” Ivy smiled.

  “Bet your Dad loves that,” Toby said under his breath loud enough for us all to hear.

  Ivy giggled.

  “He plays a lot of golf.”

  When we finished eating Guldan called us together, and we gathered around him near the tailgate of the wagon.

  “From here on, if you need to speak to me regard me as ‘mi lord’. Not that it matters, but I’ll likely be hating it as much as you do,” Guldan offered shaking his head slightly.

  Bronn laughed.

  “It’s true, he will.”

  “It’s a necessary component of our deception,” Guldan continued. “Mage, if we are stopped for whatever reason, I need you to be to my side and behind a few feet. Let me know what they are thinking if possible. Jake, you will act as champion if the need arises. A traveling blood elf merchant would have need of one.”

  I nodded, hoping I wouldn’t have to fight anyone wielding one of those wicked blades.

  “This is a different society you are entering. Power alone rules. If something can be taken, it usually is. A merchant traveling with a force of highly skilled warriors would be expected. The more powerful the merchant, the more powerful the force.”

  He pointed at Carla.

  “Carrying no weapon will mark her as a target, give her a blade.”

  Without thinking about it I drew the Zil’kris out of my leather bootstrap and offered it to her.

  “By the child!” Bronn nearly shouted stepping forward to see the blade more clearly. “What other wonders will you produce lad?”

  I shrugged.

  Guldan snickered.

  “Perfect! Wear that in the front where any who look upon you will see it. No one will dare to meet your eyes if they see that blade child. It marks you as one of the Viznara, the blood priests of the Mozgul. They are greatly feared by all but the king of the Dark Elves.”

  Carla smiled and accepted the Zil’Kris from me, attaching it to the front of her chest with
a leather thong.

  “Demonic shape shifters I say!” spat Bronn. “They are an abomination.”

  “That they are, and more I’m afraid,” Guldan agreed absently. “Looks like our party just got quite a bit stronger in any event. Remember, defer to me and don’t talk unless I give you leave to do so. Our ruse depends on it. Do you understand?”

  We all nodded.

  “Put on your hoods and pull them low,” he said, then smiled mockingly at Bronn. “It’s time my vertically-challenged friend. Let me help you with the chains.” He turned away from us and walked towards the back of the wagon.

  “I hate this part,” Bronn growled, following Guldan. “Always gotta chain the dwarf.”

  We continued along the road for quite awhile before we saw anyone. As the road curved slowly to the west, the grasses grew shorter and shorter. Several hundred yards ahead another road intersected with the one we were traveling on. At that intersection a group of black clad riders sat upon their horses waiting for us.

  Ivy rode forward as instructed and said something to Guldan I couldn’t make out. He nodded to her and she withdrew a bit more.

  As we approach them their leader raised his hand signaling us to stop. His features were pale, but not as pale as Guldan’s. He was dressed entirely in black as were the others and wore five thick scars in a perfect row down his high cheekbones.

  “Xanshir mak pri?” he laughed evilly, joined by his men.

  “A slow death at the hands of King Zildian is what you shall receive if you would have his wine I think,” Guldan said casually as if he were in a park getting ready for a picnic.

  The blood elf’s sinister smile faded and he spat on the road beside his mount. “Common tongue? Grizith le ropanzi mobenus!”

  “Funckra pij lajiliz,” Guldan answered slowly.

  One of their group dismounted and walked towards us.

  “Kill him quickly, Champion,” Guldan ordered indifferently.

  What the hell? My breath caught in my throat. Just like that? Kill him? I knew I couldn’t hesitate. There was no time to argue or discuss it. I forced myself to take a breath and answered praying my voice wouldn’t crack.

  “Yes, mi lord,” I said dismounting, hoping my hood was low enough that they couldn’t see the fear on my face.

  The blood elf walking towards us smiled and unsheathed a wicked looking serrated blade. I drew Gwensorloth out of its scabbard and walked around the wagon towards the elf. He was several inches shorter than me and was dressed in a similar fashion to Guldan. As we closed the distance between each other I thought about all the innocent people that would die because of the blood elf invasion, and a grim determination swept over me.

  Drawing closer, he suddenly sprinted forward and leapt at me swinging the nasty blade in a great arch towards my neck. Rather than give ground and attempt to parry the slashing blade, I stepped forward, and pivoted to the side, ducking beneath his whistling blade, slicing through the back of the elves’ knee with Gwensorloth. As he started to fall I knocked his blade out of the way, then flicked Gwensorloth across his neck. A curtain of red sprayed out of his severed jugular. He was dead before his body touched the road.

  I stood over his body for a moment completely shocked at how easily it had been to take a life. A strong sense of urgency filled me and I realized I needed to keep in character.

  “Mi lord?” I said, turning to bow before Guldan, awaiting his next order.

  Guldan smiled at me as if I had swatted a pesky fly, then looked at the their leader shaking his head.

  “Lajisna purti disma?” he drawled seeming more and more bored as he sat there. “Rizji?”

  The leader bowed reluctantly, then ordered his men to move aside.

  “Advance!” Guldan said to us and nodded to their leader, then started his horse forward.

  Trying not to show how nervous I was, I cleaned Gwensorloth on the fallen elves chest, dragged the blood elves’ mutilated body off the road so the wagon could pass, then returned to my mount. Toby’s hands shook as much as mine did when he handed me my horse’s reins. I took a deep breath and mounted.

  I kept my eyes lowered beneath my baggy hood and listened to my horse’s hooves clattering against the paving stones until we had past the war party and turned south onto the road leading into Mozgul. After we had put some distance between us and the blood elves guarding the road, I let my nerves go and drew some deep breaths, tears streaming down my face beneath my hood. I was shaken. The knowledge I’d gained made it so easy to take a life. I hated myself for it. Killing the blood elf was different than defending my friends against the plainsmen. This was more like a murder.

  “Holy shit!” Toby whispered beside me. “You made that look frickin easy.”

  “Not now, Tob.”

  Bronn turned around on his seat in the wagon.

  “Well done, lad,” he said offering me a wink then turning back towards the road ahead.

  I nodded, accepting his praise, glad that no one could see the tears running down the cheeks beneath my hood. This wasn’t starting out very well.

  Guldan rode back next to the wagon, and Ivy returned to our group behind it.

  She pulled alongside me.

  “Are you okay, Jake?” she whispered, obviously shaken.

  I nodded, though nothing could have been further from the truth.