#colver

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In the air, there was the stench of sulfur. It danced through the mass of darkness in a plane unknown to most, other than the entity that currently resided there. He was trapped, chained here by a deity far stronger than himself. A weak rat in comparison. His dry tongue flicked from his cracked jaws, long and snake-like, attempting to sooth the mange that irritated his skin.

How long had he been here? He stopped keeping track long ago. He suffered, toiling in endless torment from one he thought he could trust to give him what he wanted. He was a fool; he felt, with no chance of escape.

One day, a mysterious energy tore through his prison, only the width of a claw’s mark. But it was enough. He leapt through the tear, blinded by sunlight. A transformation tore through him, but he was so used to pain it felt like nothing. He collapsed on long grass, a mass of soft, red fur.

Only one thing was on his mind, a word grasped out of the fresh air he was not used to filling his dusty lungs. Colver.

~~~~~

Thebas perched on a stone just above the surface of the water. A thin film wavered over their skin, giving the little axolotl the ability to breathe for short periods of time.

They unfurled their notes, grabbing a newly dried quill from their pack. “Experiment… Failed.” Thebas sighed, marking an ‘X’ down next to the spell they’d recently attempted. “Did I really think I was strong enough to summon a protector?” They slumped across the rock, appearing like a mass of speckled pink Jell-O. Thebas was so entranced by their own thoughts that they didn’t hear the soft padding of paws coming in their direction from the pond’s edge.

“What are you doing out of the water, small friend?” A booming voice startled Thebas to their feet; they balanced easily on two, quickly reaching for the tiny dagger at their hip and pulling it from its loop with a flourish.

The dagger was centimeters away from a damp black nose, attached to an abnormally large red fox. “Who are you?” Thebas countered, trying to appear as large and brave as possible while faced with what appeared to be danger.

A low chuckle sounded from the fox’s jaws. “Rude to answer a question with a question, isn’t it?” He sat, curling his bushy tail around himself. “My name’s Colver.” His eyes sparkled with an energy strange to Thebas; it seemed magical, but of a source he did not recognize. “And you?”

“Thebas.” They responded quickly, not letting their guard down as the fox eyed the notes that had scattered when they jumped to their feet.

“A magician?” Colver daintily stabbed a claw through one of the scraps of paper, bringing it closer to his eyes as Thebas protested.

“Give that back!”

Colver laughed again as the small creature bounced on their tiptoes, fitfully attempting to grab the paper back. His laughter quickly disappeared when he eyed the scribbled writing. Summoning spells? Colver thought, recognizing the ancient text. Was this the creature who had freed him from his prison?

“-Hey! Are you listening?” Thebas trumpeted, having leaped onto one of Colver’s front legs and climbed to his shoulder.

He was so taken aback by the note’s contents he hadn’t noticed Thebas’ journey. “Were you never taught manners?” Colver sighed, flicking his shoulder to jostle the axolotl.

Thebas clutched at the fox’s fur as to not be launched wayward. “You stole from me!”

“What does that have to do with manners?” Colver rolled his eyes, returning the note to the haphazard array. He peered at Thebas. “You practice magic?”

Thebas nodded, their gaze wary as Colver eyed them. He looked hungry.

“I have a spell I can teach you… In exchange for a favor.” Colver’s eyes were intense, enough so that multiple pairs seemed to flicker on his face, all blinking closed at the same time.

Thebas lowered the dagger slightly. “What favor?”

Colver laid down in the grass, clearly unfazed by the consistent threat of the tiny weapon. “I’m looking for… A magic amulet.” He lied coolly, easily spinning a tale for the adventurous axolotl. “It was lost centuries ago; it holds a deep magic few can master. I must find it before someone else, someone who wants to use its power for evil.” In truth, Colver simply wanted to dispose of Thebas once they were a bit farther from the pond. If he disposed of them, he would be free of his prison. Colver was in the body of a mortal being, he knew one day he would expire. But that was far better than being held in the unending darkness.

The axolotl’s eyes widened as they listened to Colver’s story. Thebas seemed like a child in a toy store with how giddy the idea made them. An amulet? A magic amulet? Power free for the taking? What could they accomplish with this power? The possibilities were endless! “I’ll agree to your terms, on one additional condition. Come with me.”

“Hmmm?” Colver was a bit surprised by the offer. It was bold for someone who had just been pointing a toothpick sized dagger at his nose. “That’s fine, I’ll accompany you.”

Thebas nodded, returning the dagger to the loop on their hip then hoisting themself up between Colver’s shoulder blades.

“Now, the spell.” Colver stated simply, eyes closing as he concentrated.

Pain seared through Thebas’ chest. Had they been tricked? They keeled forward, writhing in the fox’s neck fur. Something inside them was changing. It hurt. Thebas cried out as soon as they had the air to speak. “What did you to me?” They croaked, a new sensation building inside them.

“I gave you lungs for outside the water. You can adventure now on land for an unlimited amount of time.” Colver had a bit of a smug look on his face. “They will revert back to normal when you enter water. Each time it will hurt, but you must learn to manage the pain if you wish to become a stronger magician.”

Thebas stared back at the fox, brazen with somewhat misplaced bravery. “I will.” They agreed, anything to become stronger. To prove to anyone who’d told them ‘no’ that they could adventure the world and conquer those who wished to do wrong.

Colver’s ear flicked triumphantly. “Grab your things and we’ll be off.”

It didn’t take long for Thebas to collect their items and shove them back into their pack. They scampered around like a mouse, making sure to grab every item they’d hidden in the surrounding area. Thebas did not have many possessions to their name, but that made getting ready for adventure so much easier. Quills, blank papers, maps of the area, spells they had tried, spells they had not tried, and a small multicolored gemstone they used to channel their magic.

Colver invited Thebas onto his back, the axolotl still a bit out of breath from the transformation. The pair started their journey together.

In truth, Colver was a bit charmed by the bravery of Thebas. It was a trait he wasn’t expecting, and one he thought would be entertaining. Maybe… Colver would keep them around longer than he had planned.

Thebas, unsuspecting of Colver’s plot with their excitement for adventure settled between the fox’s shoulder blades, crossing their back legs as they pulled out scraps of paper and aligned them together to form a map.

A sly, eldritch fox.

A trusting, adventurous axolotl.

Friends? Foes? The universe did not know quite yet. Nonetheless, it was time for the duo to be off. To explore. To discover more about the land… And about each other.

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