Juxta, Magi

by Porter, Geoffrey C

  The God of War whispered in his ear, "The name of that blade is Burk Ar." Juxta put up a shield around himself and around the cat. The necromancers cast lightning down on him in unison. Almost too much for Juxta to hold back. Half the lightning hit the cat, and Juxta called on the God of War for strength. His God answered him, "Stop protecting the cat, and you'll have enough strength to fight back."

  Juxta growled. "No." He fell to one knee. He summoned more power than ever before, and it blinded him.

  The Dragon's Fire ring on Balron's dead finger called out to him, Juxta!

  He crawled over to it taking it off the corpse and putting it on his finger. "This is mine!"

  Timothy made it to the first necromancer in the line. The necromancer tried to draw his blade in defense, but Timothy moved first plunging the great sword through its heart. On his left, an ogre advanced on him, and he cut the beast's head off with one fell swoop. Then he charged at the next necromancer in line. This one tried to block with his curved knife, and Timothy plunged the great sword through both the knife and the necromancer's heart. He frothed at the mouth, raging, moving on to the next opponent and the next. The necromancers still focused on Juxta.

  The Dragon's Fire ring lit with energy like an old friend to Juxta. His power amplified, and he started throwing great balls of white and silvery fire at the necromancers facing him cutting them down one by one. Still, he faced many ranks of necromancers, and he started to tire. The necromancers began to focus their lightning on Timothy giving Juxta more breathing room to slaughter them. Timothy raised his own shield, but he couldn't withstand the onslaught and go on fighting. He fell to the ground on one knee, bracing himself with the great sword.

  "Use the great sword as a lightning rod," Juxta shouted. "Suck power out of their very offense."

  Timothy raised the sword high into the air, but nothing happened. Timothy put everything he could muster into maintaining his magical defense. Ogres started to close in on him. Juxta called on the God of War to put up a defense around Timothy. It would ward him from all physical attacks. They would merely be deflected.

  Ogres started closing in on Juxta, and he had to start striking them down with balls of red fire and lightning bolts. The necromancers didn't seem to be tiring. If anything, they seemed to be growing in strength with each passing moment. The God of War whispered to Timothy, "The shield will only hold for so long. You must stand and fight." A half dozen ogres pounded the shield protecting Timothy.

  In the throes of rage, Juxta swore he heard Simon call out, "For honor and glory!" He turned to look, and Simon and his cat Rollin stood at the edge of the circle of ogres. The cat merely fell to the ground likely in as bad or worse shape than Juxta's cat. Simon started striking down ogres and necromancers with Shad-Ra. Juxta put up a magical shield around him.

  Timothy's magical powers slid over the edge. He paused in thought, I'm going to die. These creatures he faced must be destroyed for what they planned to do to him. Power started to flow into him like from a well. Boundless power. His first thought poured more power into his magical shield, and it held strong. He rose to his feet and noticed the ogres pummeling the cube shield the God of War had placed on him. He lashed outward with the great sword cutting great slices from the ogres. Three ogres took a swing at him as his shield gave way. He cut through the center ogre's blade and through his heart. The other two ogres sliced into his flesh on each arm, nothing too critical, and he cut them down with lightning, blasting their skulls and brains like melons. His bloodlust made the cuts in his arms seem trivial, but the magi in him came first, and he healed his arms. Then he looked around for the closest necromancer or ogre to kill.

  Juxta prayed again to the God of War, "Give us spirit warriors, my master."

  A slight tingling sensation of dark magic began to creep up Juxta's fingertips, and Juxta shrugged off the sensation. The dark magic began to pulse in the veins in his hands and creep up into his wrists and forearms.

  Great sheets of lightning crashed overhead. A half dozen spirits rose from the ground, lumbering men over six feet tall with wild, long hair and flowing beards. They wore hard leather armor in critical places and wielded great two-handed swords. The spirits charged the line of ogres and necromancers and started hacking them down.

  Necromancers and ogres alike started to run away. Juxta and Timothy cut down many of them with lightning and fire until none could be seen. Timothy blazed with power. He just stood there looking over the field of the dead. He whispered a prayer of thanks to the God of War.

  Juxta grabbed the last of the Druid's Wine and took it to Simon's cat. He knew better than to go close to it. "It's Druid's Wine. It may help Rollin." The cat coughed up more blood than Juxta's cat.

  Simon took the wine and said, "Thank you, can't you heal him?"

  "I tried one chant on my cat, but it did nothing. If you can convince the cat that I can get close to it, I could try and lend it strength."

  Simon sat down next to the cat trying to get it to drink the wine. It lapped a little of it up. Simon petted and petted it. "You have to let Juxta put his hand on you. He's going to try and heal you…"

  Juxta approached Rollin, but the cat started growling. Juxta moved ever so slowly covering the last of the distance between him and the cat. He put his hand on it, and the cat still growled but didn't claw or bite at Juxta. He lent great strength into the cat, and the animal went to sleep. Juxta asked, "How did you find us, Simon?"

  "When Matthew told us Balron struck again, I merely told Rollin to follow your scent. It was a long ride. I hoped to reach you before the battle. The cat is going to die, isn't it?"

  "I don't know. I need to feed strength to mine now."

  "Look to your apprentice, too," Simon said. "He's standing there and staring…"

  "The cat first. Timothy has become a master. He can wait."

  Juxta went and fed all the strength he could to his cat. He had to get rest himself. He looked at Timothy. "Come join the rest of us. Make a camp with Simon. Keep a fire burning and put up a ward."

  Timothy turned and walked slowly. "Master, the power is almost too much for me, and it's building up all the time…"

  "You now cast from the heart. You're no longer my apprentice. You're a master now. The power is a burden. Don't resist it. It'll only make things worse." Juxta turned to Simon. "I can't thank you enough for coming and joining us."

  "Many years passed since I faced the forces of Balron," Simon said. "I'm getting a little old for it, but I'm hurt you didn't invite me and William."

  "I'll keep that in mind next time, my friend."

  "Since when do necromancers cast lightning?" Timothy asked.

  Juxta shook his head.

  "I've seen them do it before, but that was in hell," Simon said.

  Juxta waved his hand at the dead. "Look at their stomachs. Opened up, and stitched closed. We were fighting corpses. Balron must be summoning the spirits of necromancers from hell. This is why he craves the crown and great sword so desperately, so he can raise a massive army of these undead necromancers."

  Chapter 42

  Chosen one feeds on the souls of the damned. - Cinder Parchment.

  Simon's cat, Rollin, died before nightfall that day. They buried it. They didn't have many coins between them, and it took close to two weeks to walk back to Lynken. They ran into an armed group of ogres wanting travel papers. Timothy lashed out with fireballs torching them where they stood. The ones that ran he cut down with lightning.

  On their return to capital city, Juxta called on the God of War. "Master, we have vanquished Balron. Isn't it safe for Lisa to come out of hiding?"

  "What will you do, Juxta? Go to their compound and knock on the front gate? They won't let you in to talk to her… And you must avoid killing any priests no matter what your reason…"

  "I'm not going to kill any priests…" Juxta paused then, thinking. "I'll ask Robert to go and find her and talk with her. Perhaps he can convince her it's safe to return to me
."

  Robert agreed to go, and the God of War showed him which compound Lisa hid in. Robert darted off.

  *

  Balron woke in a dark place, so dark he faced blindness, or he was in a cave deep underground. His heart thumped in his chest, and the ground he lay on was cold, wet, and hard. He touched the cold ground with his palms, and it carried him back to his days as a mortal. He tried to cast a simple light spell, nothing. He couldn't summon power at all. He stood up and started to feel his way around. He identified three passages leading away from the chamber. He picked one and started walking keeping his left hand along the cave wall to stay on course. He started to grow thirsty and hungry. Balron relished in just being human for the longest time, but the hunger and thirst became an annoyance. He walked on through the cave.

  Fatigue started to get the better of him, and he curled up into a fetal position on the cave floor and tried to sleep. He woke up to a growling stomach and dire thirst. He started walking again following the left wall. As his thirst and hunger grew, he upped his pace. Fatigue got to him, and he slept. He counted the days by how often he slept. Once he counted into the teens, he started to lose track. His hunger and thirst weighed heavily on him. He could hardly sleep and found himself just resting on the cave floor and then walking for as long as he could.

  After what had to be close to a month, he awoke, and a faint glow of light further down the passageway warmed his view. He took off in a run towards it, praying for food, water, or just daylight. The light got brighter, and he stepped into a large cavern. The light came from below from an expanse of water. He stepped into the wetness and knelt in the pool drinking deeply. The light flickered. Fish swam about casting light. Balron waded deeper into the pool trying to catch a fish. It took him a while, but he caught one of the little ones in his fist. He bit the head off and spit it out. He bit into the flesh and chewed up scales and bones. It satiated his hunger a bit, and he caught another fish and ate it, then more. After the tenth fish or so, his stomach was full for the first time in an eon, and it felt good.

  He slept by the edge of the pool. Balron dreamed of vanquishing Juxta sending him to hell. He awoke and ate more of the fish, yet he was careful not to eat all of them. He couldn't be sure if the fish lived outside of the pool or not. He looked around, and two passageways led away from the cavern, one of which went back the way he had come. He entered the second passageway and started walking keeping his left hand on the wall to guide his way.

  Weeks passed, and Balron marched on. Part of him wanted to give up--to just sit in the cave and wait to die, but no matter how thirsty and hungry he became, he didn't seem capable of dying. Every "morning" when he awoke, he would try and summon power, yet nothing happened.

  *

  Robert caught up to Lisa at the priest's compound to the north of Lynken proper. He materialized in front of her. "Hello, Lisa."

  "Robert! How did you find me?"

  "The God of War showed me the way," Robert said. "Balron is banished. You could come out of hiding, and return to Juxta…"

  She shook her head. "Juxta prays to the elder gods now?"

  "He's a disciple of the God of War…"

  "Interesting." She rubbed her chin for a moment. "How's the cat?"

  "The cat is fine. He's fully grown now, and he won't let anyone ride him but Juxta."

  "I bet he'll let me ride."

  "There's only one way to be sure." Robert grinned wide. "Come to Lynken and see."

  "I need to speak to the other priests about this. If I'm returning to Juxta, I'll be at his house within a week. If I'm not there, I'm not returning to him. Go tell him this."

  "Fair enough, Lisa. I'll convey your message." Robert darted away.

  Lisa went to the head priest and explained that she wanted to rejoin Juxta. The head priest shook his head. "It may be a trap set by Balron."

  "I don't think so. If Balron knew where I was, he could storm the compound with ogres and necromancers…"

  "True. What of Luther? Will you take the child with you?"

  "No, I intend to keep him secret from Juxta. I was hoping the priesthood would continue to watch over him. If I can work things out with Juxta, then I'll tell him about his son. It has been many years since I even laid eyes on Juxta."

  "You know the priesthood will watch over Luther. If you're looking for my blessing of you rejoining Juxta, I won't grant it, but I'll grant you leave of this place and bid you a warm farewell." The high priest sighed. "Juxta's a warlock. He practices dark magic. It's against the teachings…"

  "He's not an evil man."

  "Go to him."

  With Prince Matthew staying at the castle and Timothy at his fiefdom, Juxta cooked his own breakfast. On the sixth day after Robert returned, a knocking on the door filled the house with sound. The cat leapt to its feet and darted for the entranceway. Before Juxta could make it halfway there, the cat went, "Merrrrow!"

  Lisa poked her head inside the door and shouted, "Hello!" The cat almost knocked her down putting his front paws on her shoulders and licking her face.

  Juxta shouted, "Down, cat, down!" The cat started to rub up against Lisa's leg and purr.

  She bent down to the cat and started petting him. "Hello, Juxta."

  "Lisa… My love…"

  "You haven't aged."

  "I've aged a little. Just not like a normal man would. You're as beautiful as ever."

  "Thank you, Juxie."

  "Do I get a hello kiss?"

  Lisa stepped forward and embraced Juxta in a kiss.

  Juxta asked, with a wide smile on his face, "Where's my son?"

  Lisa said, "You know about Luther?"

  "Is that his name, Luther?"

  "Yes. He's safe with the priesthood."

  "I'd like to meet him, of course," Juxta said.

  "In time…"

  *

  After weeks of walking, a glimpse of light in the distance caused Balron to run. The light got brighter and brighter. He burst out of the cave into full sun, and it blinded him. A great bellowing voice thundered. "You didn't just come out of my mine!"

  Balron thought quickly, and his voice rasped, "I've been trapped therein!"

  "Die!"

  A great ball of fire hit Balron and consumed his flesh. He died screaming and writhing on the ground.

  *

  After three days of near bliss, Lisa sat at the dinner table moving pieces of food around in circles.

  Juxta said, "What's wrong?"

  "You aren't aging… I am…"

  "Well, Magi's long life is attributed to their binding their life force with that of a tree when they forge a mage staff. Perhaps if you forged a mage staff, you would have long life as well…"

  Lisa stabbed a piece of chicken and set down her fork. "It doesn't involve praying to the elder gods does it?"

  "No, it's a simple Druidic chant, well, three different chants. You'll have to memorize them."

  "It's dark magic," Lisa said.

  "It's life magic…"

  "We'll try. I'll start memorizing the chants after dinner."

  "Excellent," Juxta said.

  Within a few days Lisa had the chants memorized, and in the morning they proceeded to the groves. The cat let them both ride at the same time. They made it to the trees, and Lisa started the first chant with Juxta granting her mage power.

  Break the Peace, Awake

  Wake the Ancient, Take

  The trees came alive in their minds. Lisa started the second chant and one of the oldest trees in the grove granted her a limb for a staff.

  Give the Rift, Gift

  A Branch, a Branch

  Lisa thanked the trees and fed them power through the third chant.

  Green of Spring, to be Seen

  New Life, from Strife

  The sun marched across the sky as the grove grew and flowered.

  On the way back to Juxta's house, Lisa asked, "This power you granted me. It was supposed to go away with the casting wasn't it?"
r />   "Yes."

  "It's still with me."

  Juxta thought about it. He decided he would have Lisa cast lightning when they got home to burn up the extra mage power. He explained the rudiments of the spell to her and set up a melon on a spike for her to destroy. She blasted it then another and another. She turned to Juxta. "That didn't help, if anything the power increased each time I cast the lightning."

  "Strange. Give it time…"

  That night Lisa tossed and turned. She couldn't get any rest with the power coursing through her veins. On the morrow Juxta contacted Robert who had been helping Prince Matthew with his studies at the castle. Robert hissed. "What have you done?"

  "We want to age at the same pace, Robert. I helped Lisa forge a mage staff…"

  "Fool, mage power is poison to women! Didn't your master teach you anything!"

  Juxta said, "What are you talking about?"

  "It'll drive her insane. The power will consume her mind, and she'll lash out at anything and everything around her. All masters warn their students of this!"

  "Hebron died in the war. He didn't get the chance to finish my training, and Kirl must have assumed that Hebron taught me!"

  "The mage power will grow stronger within her until it consumes her mind and body." Robert sighed. "I know of no way to stop it from happening once it begins other than death."

  "There must be a way," Lisa said. "I can't believe there has never been a female magi."

  "Believe it, mistress…"

  *

  Balron awoke to considerable pain. Still, he tried to summon power as was his habit on waking. A trickle of power flowed, and he thought at first that it must be a delusion caused by the pain. He held his hand out and tried to conjure light. Light sparkled out of his palm. He smiled. He looked around at the cavern. It was the same cavern that he had started in.

  His thirst drove him to choose the passageway that led to the water and the fish. With the light, he made good time, although fatigue caught up to him faster. The pain in his flesh slowly ebbed away. The light spell got easier and easier to cast with each new day.