This is a shorter…uh…short story that sets ups the main story of TEWOJ told through these short stories detailing the adventures of Prince Algor and his friends. Enjoy Meeting the Slime Elder Magi.
The sheets were a mess as Prince Algor tossed and turned. Darkness crept over his mind. Shadowy figures with sinister grins surrounded him in his dreams. Jalldoon spun in the air in the center of their circle as their claws spread over the planet. Jolting awake with the swimming vision of a future terror still on his mind. There was an undeniable urge to get out of the castle. Hopping out of bed, he took his humanoid form and slipped on his baldric.
Downstairs there was coughing coming from Toron’s lab, and a thick billow of smoke coming from inside. With a mighty kick, Algor knocked the heavy wooden door into the room, only to discover a stunned Toron and King Valdar sitting in a cloud of smoke.
“Al, what in the hells are you doing?” Toron asked, placing the mouthpiece of the large hookah the two Slimes had been smoking out of on the table.
“I saw smoke coming from under the door, and the coughing. I was trying to help.” sitting in a chair, Algor took in the whole situation. Toron and his father had been smoking Willie Root.
“My son, everything is fine. We were simply reminiscing about old times.” King Valdar hopped from the chair, the considerable weight of him splatting on the floor. “It is about time for me to get some sleep. Preparations for the royal feast begin tomorrow, and a Ruler needs his beauty rest,” he said with a chuckle. As he went around the destroyed door, he looked at his son with a smile that made his bushy mustache twitch. “Algor, make sure you help Toron fix this before you turn in.”
As the two Slimes picked up the door and placed it back on the hinges, Toron looked vexed. “Al, didn’t you go to sleep a few hours ago?” he asked as he sat back down and took a long pull off the hookah, exhaling a cloud of pink Willie Root smoke.
Algor put his feet up on the table. “I’m having these visions of terrible things. Evil things. I’ve gotta get out of the castle for a bit. I’m going to take a walk out on the grasslands. Maybe swing by the ruined tower and see if Leera is around. I haven’t seen her in a while,” the Prince said, taking a pull off the hookah.
“Al, it’s late. You can’t just be wandering around outside alone. We just got back here. Can’t you just relax until morning at least?” Toron asked before adding, “Of course you can’t. Why do I even ask?”
“I don’t know, Tor. I would have thought you had learned that by now,” Algor said with a wink.
Toron frowned. “Well, if you’re going to go, at least let me go with you so I don’t toss and turn worrying all night.” He took one last puff from the hookah and jumped from the chair.
Algor knew arguing with Toron would not work. “Let’s go, buddy, but if Leera is around, you’re gonna have to find an excuse to leave, though.”
“You got it, Al.” Toron refilled his flask with wine, and they headed out into the night.
The moons were full and high in the sky over the Inari Grasslands as they made their way down the dirt road. It was late, but Leera, much like Algor, slept little when she was home. That was one of the many things they had in common. They had met a couple of years previously during the Grogglin civil war, and over the course of the adventure had grown quite close. So much so that Algor had convinced his father to sell her the tower that sat on the land above Slime City. It was the ruins of an old wizard’s tower, and Leera had made it her home mainly to be closer to Karnok for the work, but also to be closer to the Prince. Even in the darkness, the tower’s jagged silhouette stood out against the flat plains ahead.
There was a faint hum that made Algor stop suddenly. “Shhhh did you hear that?”
Toron pointed a tendril at a cluster of rocks. “Look! Over there!” A blue glow emanated from behind the stones. Toron took the form of an axe as Algor crept up to the rocks, and peeking over the edge, there was a Slime with a lone eye hidden behind a hood and long beard. His body shimmered and waved as if made of pure energy.
“Ah, Prince Algor, and Toron Smelg. I see you have received our mental summons.” His voice echoed inside the Slime’s heads and the surrounding area.
Toron slipped back into his normal blob form. “Mental summons? Who in the hells are you?”
The strange slime flickered a bit. “I am a friend. You have much to learn, Master Toron. With your discovery of the Slime Tablets of Creation, you have brought the eyes of the Slime Elder Magi upon yourselves. It is time that the prince learned of his destiny. You will come with me.”
“Whoa there, sir! Let’s hold up a min-”
The Magi started chanting, cutting Algor off. As the chant intensified, there was no chance to protest. Everything swung wildly as if a whirlwind had tossed them through the air. Their soft, slime bodies stretched and pulled in the teleportation’s force.
When the scene in front of them swirled back into view, they were standing before a cave in a small wooded clearing. Now there were three of the Magi standing before them, chanting. They spoke in unison as the chanting slowed. “We are the Slime Elder Magi, and it is time you learned your purpose, Prince Algor.” Their voices echoed throughout the cave, coming back amplified. It was loud.
Toron winced. “Guys, it’s late. Some of us have been up drinking wine for hours. Can we take it down a notch, please?”
“That’s what you get for drinking so much, Tor,” Algor chuckled.
“Anything you wish, Toron.” The Magi spoke at a lower volume. When their voice didn’t boom around the entire area, they were far less intimidating.
They spoke of being part of the first group of Slime life to spring up on Jalldoon millennia ago. How the gods had charged them with cataloguing the various magics of the world, and watching over all of Slimedom during the many long years of their lives. The rift created by Master Boshak and his evil Slimes had been a turning point for the planet. Coupled with the evil of Baron Dracktholme and various other amassing warlords, Jalldoon was entering a dark age. Feeling the discovery of the Slime Tablets of Creation, they knew it was time for Algor to shoulder the burden of his destiny. The Magi had sent dark visions of the future to show him what was in store if he didn’t stay the course. They knew things they had no business knowing.
Algor was stunned at the breadth of information they laid on him, and the weight of it all hit hard. “I don’t know if I’m strong enough for this. There has got to be some kind of mistake here.”
The Magi shared a glance between themselves before answering, “No, Prince, there is no mistake. You are crucial to the fate of Jalldoon. Let this not be a burden. We believe you are more than capable of doing this.” The tone and words of the Magi radiated calmness.
Toron took a long swig from his flask. “He won’t be alone. I’ve watched over him since he was a wee lad, and I’ll stay by his side until my last breath.”
The Magi chuckled in unison, “Master Smelg, your expertise is a welcome addition to the defense of the planet. For now, however, it is late, and you both need rest. Study the Tablets, and go about your business. We have much work to do and will be in contact soon.” The Magi chanted again. After everything swirled away and their malleable bodies twisted and contorted, the world reappeared just outside the entrance to Slime City.
Algor let out a long sigh, “I need to be alone for a bit.”
Toron tipped back the last of his flask. “Yeah, take all the time you need, Al. You know where to find me.”
Knowing ancient entities such as the Magi were watching over them was a comfort, and even if things were about to become a lot more complicated, the Slimes went to sleep with a strong sense of hope.
Back at the Lair of the Magi, the three ancient Slimes spoke in conclave around a cauldron. “Soon the filth of this planet will be cleansed. Jalldoon will once again be pure.” A cloud sprang from the cauldron, and the voice of a woman spoke. “Has it begun?”
The three Magi replied, “Yes, master.”
In a tree above, a frowl hooted, unaware it was watching the beginning of significant changes for the planet Jalldoon.
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