Fahren al-Heit - Tuskers

My Sho companion, Kage, is very tentative, I am merely scared. I try my best to appear confident. Those words of the battlemages that have gone before echo in my mind "You are stronger then you think". I try to draw from their timeless assertion. Down the hallway two Tusker Guards stand. We have cleared the room of Drudge Raveners, next is preparation.

The Tusker, the ultimate exercise for the practitioners of the magik arts. These beasts are brutal in every form, male to rampage. I have seen a Crimsonback catch a warrior of the 40th level unawares and lay him low. The interesting thing is this, they are mage fodder and melee doom. I can dispatch one with a few well chosen spells, A melee warrior whose level of proficiency is equal to my own will stand toe to toe for an amazing length of time before the outcome is decided.

I have killed Tuskers before, but never face to face, never without an others aid. The key is in preparing oneself. Using the bane spells on the gauntlets, leggings and coat of my armor, these creatures never attack the head or feet. One must then use the protections of life magic bludgeoning, and the all around useful Armor spells. Next comes the place you will make your stand, having a creature attack your backside is risking too much. Just as a melee uses the walls and corners to their advantage so should a mage. Its a lot to keep in mind.

When I first came to Dereth, I was taken to the Plateau Village. There Tuskers ran me down, since that day I have longed to be the master of their fate. The twelve roads teach us "Let your vengeance be swift, and take no pleasure from it." I'm sure Yasif ibn Salayyar had never faced down a tusker. 

My protective spells are all in place next comes the most difficult part for me. Regaining mana. It is my greatest weakness. Time and again my patients would end and I would rush into the fray feeling my ability to drain the life forces of my foe would suffice. Equal times I have ended up in the long purple tunnel. This time my foe forces my weakness to give way. I am at my peak of power when I throw a single spell to make the its fur burn even hotter. I quickly dash around the corner to hopefully trap the Tuskers fellow, these brutes tend to run a straight line when angered, this will cause them to make wrong turns and even comically run at a wall in the hopes of breaking through it. Kage begins his assault on the other, though it is currently seeking me out it will turn on him soon enough.

There it stands half a head taller then me, its dark eyes locked in a crazed stare, its muscles ripple under the swath of hair that covers its body, and odd armor offers it some protection from physical blows. It issues forth a grunt that demonstrates its bloodlust, the worse of these guttural utterances is the deep rumbling laugh. I will not be using physical blows. I summon the powers and begin to drain its health down; this replaces my own as its blows rain down upon me. I turn to its endurance and drain its stamina; a clever spell of mine will use this to replenish my mana. Finally a single fire bolt, the most powerful I can throw with dependability. I'm surprised it doesn't ignite the brute's breath. With a backwards heave it is finished. I note Kage is firing flame bolts again and again. Suddenly fearing for him I join the battle. We make quick work of the 'monkey' as mages like to call them.

We cheer and yelp, our pride is great, we are one step closer to being full battlemages. A feeling of superiority clouds my mind. With this Tusker dead our prowess is second to none! The spawn of Raveners snaps me back to the dungeon. I quickly begin the now routine series of spells as four of them gather around me. My mana is a bit low, but my draining will suffice. The first Drudge falls. I start on the other, draining its stamina to replenish my now dangerously low mana. In unison the three fire whirling blades into me. I stagger backwards, now my life is in jeopardy. I launch a spell at the drudge, with the slight onset of panic I make it vulnerable to fire again, this was a waste of my mana and more importantly time. I need to land a drain spell or I will be dead. A fizzle issues forth, NO, not now! The second spell launches but the Drudge resists it. A spear jabs through the plates of my armor and strikes a deadly blow. Bleeding and my vital energies all ebbing I try one final time to replenish my mana by draining its stamina. No, wait, I needed to drain its health! A second error, this one costs me my life.

At the lifestone less my most precious items, I note how quickly I had fallen. Such is life on Dereth.

-F (Gahru'n BM)