Sazil and Artua - Righteous Glade

Artua awoke to the sound of work. Many white-robed mages ran about a squalid tent, packing and unpacking and moving this and that. A ratty white blanket covered Artua as he lay on a squat cot, and the sun shone through with a blinding light. He sat up, swung his legs over the edge of the cot, and stood up. His arm still burned, so he inspected it to see just how badly it was burnt, but it wasn't even there. He stared where his arm had been in amazement, a transparent orange ghost in it's place.

"I didn't know I could do that without trying..." Artua muttered to himself.

"I need to find Sazil" was the only thought on Artua's mind as he burst from the tent. The mages in whites' mouths aghast.

Artua exited the tent only to find himself surrounded by four of Sazil's personal gaurd, glaives drawn and pointed towards him.

Their commander stood in between the front two guards, able to see Artua between the drawn weapons. The sun drew closer to the horizon, tinted the color of oranges and strawberries. Rays of light shone down directly onto the six persons present, highlighting their armor in radiance.

"Artua..."

Sazil stared where Artua's arm should be and found an arm present... though one the color of the western sky. Reassuring himself that this wasn't an illusion, his gaze moved back to Artua's face, focusing keenly.

"You need to explain your past actions... and your current situation."

He nodded his head towards the missing physical limb to show his meaning.

And there Artua was, all his plans had fallen apart, nothing left now but to tell the truth. All of it. Artua told the truth about his childhood, his powers, his immortality. He told of the meaning behind his name, and how he sought Sazil out in the name of pure learning.

"That is why I came here. I wanted to learn."

Artua raised the transparent hand.

"THIS is a mystery even to me. I know it is my power that creates it, but I do not need to concentrate at all to maintain it."

Sazil was split between emotions. He was angry this man, who had so selflessly pledged himself to him, told him complete lies to hide his true abilities. Yet... he was also brimming with excitement. Manipulation of energy like this was unheard of to him. He, being in such high positions in the Magical Kingdom, could guess that the majority, if not all of them, were also in the dark. This man could open doors few others could for them.

If this man intends to follow me, I will lead him back, and let him have lengthy discussions with the inquisitors... provided he remains unharmed and not completely mentally drained...

With that thought the excitement ruptured the anger, and he smiled once more at this peculiar treasure.

"Well then... Is there anything else you wish to tell me? I have little proof that what you say now is the truth."

Sazil raised his staff in a gesture towards the man's remaining upper limb.

"And does that one do any tricks?"

"Like work?" chuckled Artua, "Atleast for now. Although the way things have been going of late, I don't know if I can count on that lasting."

Artua gave a short demonstration of his power, and then discussed all he knew about his own abilities at length with Sazil. He also spoke of the Fire-Lord, of his pact with him, and the apparent breaking of the pact. "I do hope that I don't have to see him again any time soon, I doubt that would be a pleasant encounter."

"Since I've arrived, I have been such a trouble, is there anything I can do to help out?"

Sazil was about to say something, when an idea suddenly struck him.

If this man can control his own life force... perhaps he can override the limit on the staff... in which case, I would never let the inquisitors have him... he'd be a much too valuable asset.

He looked at Artua for a moment, smiled, then motioned for the guards to step aside.

"Yes... come with me."

With that, Sazil turned and stalked off towards a different tent, reminiscent of his command tent, but looking altogether abandoned.

Artua stopped for a moment, contemplating his words. Then proceeded to bound after Sazil who had gotten a good deal ahead of him and was headed to a large tent that appeared to be empty.

As they arrived, Artua felt compelled to ask:

"So, what is it you have in store for me?"

Sazil moved various furniture around within the tent, forming a large enough are for the two of them to move comfortably. He then looked up at Artua, holding his staff in front of him.

"A simple magical experiment... Don't worry, you won't be harmed..."

He looked at Artua's missing limb and realized that he could have offered to regenerate it for him earlier. However, the psuedo-arm of life energy, which he could see much clearer than the others, indeed, clearer than Artua, may prove beneficial in this experiment.

"This staff doesn't allow me to put energy directly through it, but perhaps through you it will. I want you to hold the staff with that hand you have there." Sazil gestured towards Artua's fake arm. "... and I'll take your other hand with mine."

He offered the staff towards Artua, hoping he would accept, as he was eager to reap the possible benefits.

Artua reached out gingerly fingering the staff with his phantom arm. After sensing no immediate danger, Artua grasped firmly onto it. He felt a great vigor from within the staff, strong and massive, just out of his grasp, it almost seemed to pulsate as though it were breathing. Artua then offered his other hand to Sazil.

"I trust you."

Sazil took a hold of the man's other hand with both of his, completing the chain. His eyes narrowed, focused on the staff. If this worked...

"Alright... Now... I'm going to fuel you with something that should be very familiar to you, if your story is true... I want you to push the life energy into the staff, all of it that you can. Are you ready?"

Artua could surely feel the immense amount of life energy in the hands of Sazil, kept in check by a single word.

Artua felt something, a mass of pure energy, of life itself, poised at the tips of Sazil's fingers. Sazil intended Artua to force the energy into the staff, perhaps a recepticle for it. The amount that Artua felt from Sazil was immense, and as novel of a thought as it was, if Artua did not deposit the life-force into the staff quickly enough, he could die from an overdose of life.

Artua readied himself, and then nodded to Sazil. "I'm ready."

Sazil concentrated his power into his hand, his eyes flaring in incoherent flashes of pure white. He began to flow the life energy into Artua, slowly at first, but gradually increasing the load, letting the man get used to the flow. He realized that at any point he could simply force what he was giving to Artua to take all that was within him and store it inside the staff... However, that would defeat the purpouse of the experiment, and he'd be at a loss once more without the Gem.

It's also an act that's beneath me...

Artua braced himself, the energy flowing through him and into the staff. The amount Sazil fed him slowly began to increase. Although the amount was not difficult to convey to the staff, the increasingly negative effect it was having on Artua quickly became evident. It got to the point that it felt as though a bolt of lighting had struck, but did not wish to stop, passing through one arm and out the other. Artua's false arm bega to contort, and his body became wracked with the most horrible of seizures.

Sazil was staring at the waves of light passing through the man and into the staff that only he could see and sense. Using this ability, he immediately noticed the harmful effects Artua was going under. Silencing the energy he was setting, he quickly grabbed the staff from Artua and helped him lay down.

"Are you alright, Artua?"

Artua coughed up a fine mist of blood and spittle.

"I'm fine, although I think a few of my organs decided to migrate a bit."

"Now what was this experiment trying to prove, and how did it turn out?" asked Artua, almost eager despite the pain he was in.

Sazil grinned at Artua. He noticed Artua was in pain, but it appeared that the man had as much intent to witness the results as he. Sazil turned towards one of the open flaps of the tent, making sure they stayed open for Artua to see, and he strolled out to one of the nearby trees. He then slammed his staff towards the tree, creating a shield at point blank on it's bark... and the tree suddenly shattered in the middle, held aloft by only half of it's trunk. Sazil planted a hand on the wound he created, and began to regrow the destruction. After taking only a few seconds, he walked back to Artua.

"This will be the real test, the last was needed to see if this will work."

Sazil helped the man up, handed him the staff, and joined a hand with him again.

"I know it hurt last time, but this only has to occur for just a brief moment to see if it still works. If it does... it's an accomplishment in and of itself. Are you ready once more, Artua?"

"Yes" Artua put down his head with quiet contemplation, awaiting the pain he knew would come again.

Sazil held the staff close to Artua's hand, edging it slowly closer in anticipation for what may come. The result offered a plethora of opportunities, for both himself and for Artua. If Artua did fail this second test, he could at least become Sazil's underling in finding the missing piece to the staff.

To imagine... the conclusion of this simple distance may outline the future of this world...

The scepter stopped just short of Artua's hand. Making sure he could hold the rod still with a sweaty palm, Sazil brought it to the pained man. With the other hand, he fueled Artua with a bit of life energy.

"Now..."

Artua braced his body again, awaiting the flood of life. He knew it would feel like the time before, and had readied himself, but this seemed different. He felt the welling of power, though it was much weaker than the time before, but his body almost seemed... Hesitant... almost like it feared this transaction a second time.

Artua remembered back, back to his childhood, when he was first learning the craft. He would practice, like every other child, simple things like trying to pick up a toy from further than he could reach. As a child, you did not yet know your own limits, and soon exhausted yourself. Not physically or mentally, but you simply became weary. If you kept trying to manipulate it during this weakened state, eventually you fell ill, unable to summon the power at all for a good length of time.

For this first time in almost one-hundred years, Artua felt the sensation, that lingering weariness that made every task more difficult. He girded his mind and body more strongly now, and pushed the life through himself and into the staff. The task was finished, but he was very exhausted now.

"If... I'm going to be doing this more often... I will need to get some practice in... heh..."

Sazil stared at the staff for a moment, his mind devoid of thought. He was stunned, and the realization of what had just transpired pushed deeper into his subconscious. His eyes grew a bit wider, and the full force of meaning this event held jarred his mind. He spun on his heel, leaving behind the exhausted Artua, and thrust the flaps of the tent out of his way.

The waning light of the sun surprised Sazil... indeed, everything around him bewildered him, for his focus was far too centralized. With a sudden thought, he turned to his mageknights guarding the tent.

"He is free to do as he pleases, but keep an eye on him. Anything he asks, bring it to him immediately."

Before the mageknights could even nod in response, Sazil had already turned once more, walking haphazardly away from the tent. He knew not what he was searching for exactly, but he knew the site of whatever he sought would remind him of his intentions. The sight came to him quickly, that of a beautiful young woman tending to the chores of a supply tent.

Abrianna yelped and nearly fell backwards. She had been working tirelessly on getting the cooks their required supplies for tonight's supper. The least she expected when she turned around was Master Sazil standing nearly face to face. She breathed deeply, trying to recover from her fright.

"Ma-... Master Sazil...?"

"Yes.. Abrianna, is it? Once you take those supplies to the cooks, I want you to take a small prepared meal, along with water and wine, to my tent. There will be a man by the name of Artua there, and he will be the recipient."

His commands slowly registered in her mind, and she nodded in understanding.

"If he so wishes to have your company as well, you shall give it to him. Understood?"

Arianna knew what Sazil was asking. The task was not so uncommon. The women in his camp that had no superior duty were often made to lay with prestigeous guests. Abrianna herself had spent numerous nights 'entertaining' such guests. She nodded again.

Sazil turned around and had begun to make his way again when another thought popped into his mind. Again, he stopped and turned around, interrupting Abrianna in her tasks once more.

"Oh... and make sure he knows that you're offering."

She nodded once more, and Sazil turned to leave. With a sigh, she hefted a crate of apples onto her hip and walked back towards the cooks.

Such is the life for free food and shelter, I suppose...


A few of Sazil's personal mageknights began to follow Sazil out of the camp when he waved them back. For once, Sazil wanted to be alone. The mageknights stood their ground in camp, but made sure that Sazil did not leave their sight.

The situation has definately changed, thought Sazil. I need to clear my head and consider my path now...

With that, he wandered into the woods as the sun passed its torch to the moon.