The (sort of) Dark Mage (Waldo Rabbit)

by Nelson Chereta

  Alice crossed her arms over her chest and began to tap one foot. “Darling, you are not alone. I am always going to be at your side. I am your wife until death parts us. I will never abandon you, no matter how much trouble you are in or how badly you behave. I have faith in you. You are clever and brave, and I know you will find a way to solve our problems no matter how bad they look. So try to be a little more cheerful, all right?”

  “Fine then, I will try and sound more jolly.” He began wiping some dirt off his not so pristine robes. “I suppose we may as well start searching again. At least we’re in a good place for it.”

  The herb shop was located right near the main gate of Baden Hill.

  Within Middleton the hills, all of them, were filled with iron ore. These hills provided easy access, and were all being mined heavily. Each of them was pockmarked with mine entrances, and roads had been dug into the sides, twisting all the way from top to bottom. Goblins worked in those mines, filling up carts with loads of ore to be hauled down to the forges.

  At the base of each hill were brick penitentiaries where the goblins were crammed together. Except for those needed to pull wagons, none of them were every allowed to leave their dirty, overcrowded facilities. They labored until they died, and were then devoured by their hungry mates.

  Surrounding these brick buildings was a wooden stockade, twenty feet high with several archers’ towers rising a further ten feet. The towers were always well manned. At the first sign of any sort of revolt they would fill the ground below with arrows and shout the alarm. There were thousands of goblins, each stronger and more violent than any ordinary man, the people took the threat of an uprising very seriously. Each stockade had a single massive gate that shut every night from sunset to sunrise. Dozens of guards served it during the day time, and could shut and bar it in a matter of a few minutes.

  Ringing the outside of each hill was a series of forges. All day massive fires burned, they took the ore and separated the precious iron from the useless rock. They made bars of raw iron that were then sold to the various blacksmiths all over the city, who turned them into swords, nails, horseshoes, and all other manner of goods.

  Since most of the monsters in the city were to be found in the confines of these hills, they were where Waldo had focused his efforts. Each day, he and Alice would follow the same route, visiting every hill as they tramped all over the city. They would stand in front of the open gate and Waldo would peer in, hoping to spot a distinctive aura. With so many monsters though, it had been like staring into a bonfire. If there really was a Great Monster working among all those goblins it was impossible to tell.

  “We’ll start here today and go visit the others like we usually do.”

  Alice nodded. “I’m sure we’ll find what we’re looking for today.”

  “That would be nice.”

  “You said you would be merrier dear.”

  He turned to her and gave a wide, obviously false, smile. “Better?”

  “I see someone wants to get kicked again.”

  He stopped smiling and just continued walking up to the open gate. Over the past week the guards at the various hills had gotten used to the sight of him and Alice coming by to peer inside. None of them had possessed the nerve to actually go up to him and ask what he was about. They had simply stood back and watched, most of them preferring to focus on Alice rather than him. People didn’t try to converse with a White Mage if they didn’t absolutely have to.

  Waldo got to the gate with Alice on his heels. He was about to cast his detection spell when he saw something that took his breath away.

  “Will you look at that?” He gasped. He stood there, rooted to the spot, his mouth hanging open.

  “What is it?”

  There before them was a creature standing at least eight feet tall and weighing five hundred pounds or more. His head was as bald as an egg and there did not look to be a single hair anywhere on his body. The only clothing on him was a burlap sheet that was tied about his waist and covered him to the top of his knees. His chest, arms, and shoulders were all exposed. His body was all hardened muscle and his pea green skin was glistening under the morning sun. The hands looked big enough to wrap around a man’s skull. The face was flat and broad, with a big square jaw and a pair of floppy ears like a dog’s. Two yellow tusks jutted out of his lower lip.

  “An Ogre! The Great Monster I was sent here to find!”

  Alice silently nodded, he was certainly that. There were shackles and thick iron chains on his neck, wrists, chest, and ankles. As he walked he pulled three ore carts linked behind him. During their search she had often seen individual goblins struggle to pull one when it had a full load. The ogre was pulling three of them; each piled high with ore, and didn’t seem to be having any trouble at all. He looked to be as strong as he was ugly.

  She was reminded of the stories she’s heard about ogres. They were said to spit people and roast them over open fires. Their favorite treat was human skin, and they would peel people as if they were apples. They ate babies and children in single gulps and liked human intestines. Ogres could snap trees in half, and their hides were so thick and tough ordinary swords could not pierce them.

  Given the stories she’d heard about Dark Mages and succubi, Alice knew the ones she’d heard about ogres were likely to be exaggerated. But the tales always had some truth to them. Were they really going to bring this beast with them? Would they be able to trust him? If he turned on them would she be able to protect Waldo? Such a monster would definitely help against a lich, but only if he could be controlled.

  Waldo, for his part, did not have any doubts. As the dozen or so guards watched he ran right up into easy reach of the monster. The ogre came to a sudden halt as Waldo blocked his path.

  “You’re magnificent!” Waldo was waving his arms about jumping all around trying to look at the ogre from every possible angle.

  “Your arms are like tree trunks! Your chest is like a brick wall. Your skin is beautiful; I don’t see a mark on you. Show me your teeth.”

  The ogre’s big grey eyes blinked. “Erk?”

  “Your teeth, show me your teeth.”

  The ogre hesitated, but eventually did as he was told. He peeled back his lips to reveal a wide set of flat yellow teeth about his two tusks.

  “Excellent, the teeth are good, that means the bones should be good as well.” Waldo then pointed to the burlap. “And look at that bulge! You’re filled with virility, absolutely made for breeding! When I get you home I will put you to stud and keep you rutting nonstop! I definitely want you! You must belong to me!”

  The guards heard every word. One of them made a circle with one hand and quickly jammed a finger in and out of it. Several of them chuckled softly and whispered some jokes to one another. The only thing that kept them from laughing out loud and making some rude comments was fear of upsetting a White Mage.

  Alice could feel her face going beet red. She was very sure there would be some new rumors going around town. “Darling what are you saying?”

  “Don’t worry Alice; I’m not going to use flowers this time. I’ll just give him a kiss and make him mine.”

  “Erk?”

  She closed her eyes and put a hand to her face. “Please stop talking now.”

  “What? Am I not being cheerful enough?”

  The ogre grunted out what might have been a laugh. “Gronk like little man in white dress.”

  “These are robes, not a dress.”

  “Gronk like, they very pretty.”

  “Well I am glad you think so, not that it really matters.” Waldo crossed his arms over his chest and tried to sound stern. “I am going to become your master and you will be my obedient servant. Your body will be mine and you will obey me without question. I will be hard on you sometimes, but I expect you to take it without complaint. In return I will see that your needs are taken care of.”

  The ogre gave a deep throated chuckle, while the guards struggled not to laugh out loud. />
  Alice shook her head. “Darling, people are going to get the wrong idea.”

  “How?” Waldo asked. “I just want to buy him and make use if that big, strong body. I already have lots of ideas of just what I can do with him.”

  “Wonderful, that’s just what a wife wants to hear.”

  The sergeant in charge of the gate guards at last approached. Despite all the chains, Alice noted he made sure to keep well clear of the ogre. He gave Waldo an uncertain bow. “I beg pardon, but you need to step aside so that this beast can deliver his ore to the forge.”

  “Is his owner here?”

  “Beg pardon?”

  “His owner, is his owner here? I want to buy him.”

  “You serious? You really want to buy this thing?”

  “Of course I am serious, do you have any idea just how valuable an ogre in his prime is? Bring the owner here so I can buy him.”

  “All right,” the sergeant slowly nodded. “The owner lives nearby.” He looked at the monster. “In the mean time you deliver your load. We’ll see who you belong to.”

  The ogre gave a nod and grinned down at Waldo. “Gronk hope to belong to pretty man.” He began heading towards the nearest forge again, the chains tightened and the carts began to roll along behind him.

  XXX

  As the sergeant left to fetch the owner Waldo took Alice aside to have a quiet conversation with her.

  “All right, as soon as we meet with the owner I need you to look into his eyes and Charm him.”

  “What? No! I’ve already told you I am not going to do that.”

  “Then how are we going to acquire my new familiar?” Waldo asked reasonably. “You know how much coin we have. Do you think we can buy him? Do you think you can swoop down and carry him off in the middle of the night?

  Alice frowned. They had a decent amount of money saved, but ordinary livestock (horses, sheep, and cows) were very dear. She didn’t know the market price for monsters, but was willing to bet they cost even more. Just the thought of trying to lift that massive beast into the air and over the stockade made her back ache.

  “There is no way we have enough to buy him, and you can forget about me flying him out. Even if I somehow managed it there would be search parties after us. You can’t have an ogre go missing and expect people not to notice.”

  “Then what alternative is there? Alice, I need to have him by my side. When we meet my grandfather again, not if, when, having his strength at my command might be the difference between living and dying. The whole reason we came here was to find him. I am not leaving Middleton without that ogre.”

  She began to chew her lower lip.

  He had a point. If they were going to face his grandfather again having such a monster might save them.

  “Can you really trust him though? He’s huge and frightening.”

  “Have you forgotten your reflection when you had horns, claws, and bat wings?”

  “That’s different,” she said primly. “No matter what I look like, I have a sweet and gentle nature.”

  Waldo slowly rubbed his back side. “Yes, I was thinking that when you kicked me.”

  “You were asking for it. The difference is I would never chew on your intestines or peel off your skin for a snack.”

  No, Waldo thought. You would just crush me to death as I sleep. “Once I have bound him to me with a contract he won’t be able to hurt either of us. A familiar cannot do any physical harm to its master or refuse any direct command.”

  Alice lifted a gingery eyebrow. “Is this the same one you used on me?”

  “I obviously made a mistake with yours, I am sure I will get it right this time.”

  “That doesn’t fill me with confidence darling.”

  “I will definitely manage to keep him under control. I can’t leave here without him.”

  “Fine,” she sighed. “I know how important this is to you, and I have faith in your ability.”

  “So you’ll help me? You’ll Charm his owner?”

  “Yes, but just this once! I don’t like stealing from people or controlling them. But since I don’t see any other way I’ll agree to do it this one time.”

  “Good. As soon as he belongs to me I’ll perform the binding ritual. We’ll get our things from the Inn and be on our way to Norwich.”

  “Fine, just remember not to make it a chaste kiss.”

  They waited fifteen minutes for the sergeant to return with the owner of Baden Hill and all of its workers.

  “I understand you want to purchase my ogre.” An old merchant woman said to him.

  Waldo shut his eyes. The Dark Powers hate me.

  Chapter 38

  Negotiations

  Carin Anders was the head of her merchant house. She stood just over five feet and did not weigh ninety pounds, her hair was completely grey and tied up in a bun. Carin had inherited the position when her husband had died seven years ago. As a product of the merchant class she had not a drop of noble blood in her veins. Carin had spent her entire adult life bargaining and making deals as she also raised four children.

  While the nobility held a stranglehold on political power in Lothas it was the merchant houses that controlled the banks and much of the economy. There were many sorts and kinds of power. The power of the purse was not as highly respected as that of the sword. But it was real enough. Merchant House Anders was one of the richest in Lothas, with many holdings here and in other lands. Though she belonged to a lesser class, Carin Anders had more wealth and more influence than the majority of nobles. She still had to bow to them in public and acknowledge their superiority. In private though, they often came to her with hand extended begging for loans and favors.

  Carin was sixty three, with eleven healthy grandchildren, and a position with more real authority than all but a handful of women in this land.

  While not the sort to come running at a summons, when her sergeant had explained who it was asking for her she had decided to come.

  The power of Avalon was very different from that of the local nobles or even of the King. There were all sorts of rumors about the White Mages. Their wealth and political influence were not to be despised, and that was not even considering what they could do with their magics. You did not make an enemy of a White Mage if it could be at all avoided.

  So here she was, standing outside the gate to Baden Hill. Before her was a young man in white robes and a very beautiful red head, both with most unusual eyes.

  “I understand you want to purchase my ogre?”

  To her surprise he closed his eyes and there was a pained expression.

  “Of course, it couldn’t be that easy,” he muttered.

  “I beg your pardon?”

  He looked at her hopefully. “I don’t suppose there is a man I could discuss this with?”

  She placed her hands on her slender hips and tried not to sound irritated. “I am the owner of all those who labor here. None of them may be sold without my permission, if you are uncomfortable dealing with me I can have one of my subordinates speak to you instead. However any agreement you come to with him will not be valid unless I approve it.”

  “Wonderful,” he sighed.

  Her eyes narrowed slightly. She had dealt with a few White Mages before. They usually demonstrated much better manners. “I am not in the habit of negotiating with strangers. It is customary to introduce yourself before trying to do business with someone.”

  “I am Waldo Rabbit,” he nodded to the woman at his side. “This is my… wife, Alice Rabbit.”

  Despite the slight hesitation, his wife smiled radiantly and performed a graceful curtsey. “I am honored to meet you.”

  “The pleasure is all mine,” Carin lied. “I am Carin Anders, owner and head of Merchant House Anders.” She lowered her head respectfully to Waldo. “Now Master Rabbit, would you be more comfortable discussing this matter with a man instead?”

  “That depends; if your man wanted to just give me the ogre at no charge would you a
llow it?”

  “No, and if he did I would fire him. I run a business Master Rabbit, not a charity.”

  He nodded. “Then I suppose I will just have to deal with you. Do you know you are the first person in this country to call me, ‘master’ without being told to?”

  “Some of us try to have good manners.” Carin noticed his wife grimace but there was nothing from the husband.

  “I agree, most of the people here are very uncivilized.”