TUM

The land-sweeping quest of the mad conqueror, Kur, came to an end as it seemed he contracted a deadly plague and was nearing the end of his life. His loyal war-drummer, Tum, stayed by his side. Kur’s body withered and welts appeared on his skin more and more each day. In anticipation of his own death, Kur gave Tum his confession. 

“Tum, this is no plague. This thing killing me is not of this world. Many times, I’ve escaped death. Many times, I’ve overcome my enemies against the odds. Many times, I’ve won when the only true outcome was loss.” Kur leaned to his side to look Tum in the eyes. Tum took a pause from finger tapping his beloved drum. “My success in conquest is the result of a deal I made many years ago. Though my life is coming to an end, I am fulfilled, as my journey has been filled with victory. Tum… this ‘gift’ can be passed to you, if you choose.”

Tum saw a dying man and considered the offer an insult at first. Then, he pondered Kur’s words. His life was long and filled with greatness. The only greatness Tum knew was in the shadow of Kur’s deeds.

“Kur, what deity did you make this deal with? If I am to take this gift, I must know that I can find its source and that I can nullify the curse you endure by killing it.”

“I’m proud of you Tum. You were once such a meek little drummer. Look at you now. Under my guidance, you’ve grown so much and you wish to kill something beyond this world.”

“Thank you sir, your leadership and friendship has encouraged me to always strive to create a legacy.”

“The deity you should seek is called Beemon. Though powerful, I believe you can kill it. I believe you can do a great many things.” Kur smiled at Tum, then grew stern. “Tum, do you accept this gift which I am inflicted with?”

“I accept.”

Black and yellow energy flew from Kur to Tum, Kur regaining strength as it transferred.

Tum was invigorated, beating his drum violently to release some of the energy.

“This was the best way.” Kur said solemnly, standing behind Tum. He swung an axe and cut Tum in half at the mid-section. Tum’s face was shocked and angry, he beat his drum one final time as he fell to the floor. Even in betrayal, Kur respected Tum. He buried him outside the fortress with his drum between his top and bottom half.

Lifetimes later, Tum felt a pull. He hadn’t felt anything since being chopped. His body was heavy, but still, he pushed upward against dirt as if magnetized to something above. He emerged in one piece, covered in dirt.

“Bigger than I thought he’d be.” A confident voice spoke to itself. Tum wiped dirt away and shook clean.

“Goura du.” Tum warned in his native language.

“Whoops. Here…” A tall man in a trenchcoat waved a large mace at Tum. “You can call me Tombs, big guy.”

“What is this?” Tum asked, now able to speak English.

“Never done it like this before, but I’ve been looking for you. Not saying it was tough to find you, but I could have done a lot with the last three years.”

“Kur.” Tum stepped forward with fury.

“Kur’s been dead for a looooong time, Tumbo.'' Tombs gave Tum a nickname, by his reaction, the name was sticking. “But I’m sure some of his descendents are around. Heck, I might even be one…”

“My drum.” Tum asked. Tombs pointed to Tum’s belly. His drum was implanted within him, not just physically, but magically. 

“Being resurrected in such a way brings a destroyed body back together. Guess that was in the way.”

Tum reached for his drumsticks, but they were gone.

“Buddy, here. Anything else you need?” Tombs floated two sticks of bones and skulls from graves nearby over to Tum.

With two beats of his drum, the surface of the entire gravesite went flying. Ancient headstones and dirt flew away from Tum, slamming into the buildings behind. Tombs just barely braced himself, his trenchcoat flapping backwards, grinning and easily dodging the debris.

“That’s fun.” Tombs laughed. “Enough getting your bearings. We got a demon to kill.”

Tum’s attention entirely turned to Tombs. 

“That’s right, bud. Beemon made me this way. And story goes, your boy Kur claims you were killed by Beemon in a battle. Judging by your anger at Kur’s name, I’ll assume that was a lie. There’s stories about you, though. I was told it’s all just legend, but I knew you’d be ready for a fight, even if Kur’s long gone. I can smell Beemon’s curse on you. You never shed that.”

Tum gripped his new drumsticks tight. Tombs was right, he was ready for a fight. He felt his clock ticking, he felt Beemon’s curse.

“How do we get to Beemon?” Tum asked.

“That’s the easy part. Before that, we got a couple more bodies to dig up.”

Tum beat his drum in agreement, with a little more control this time. Tombs had a wide grin, feeling the power of the drum through his body. The two were aligned now, and just as Tum once exhilarated Kur with the beat of the drum, Tum would empower his new allies with the vibrations of thunderous, powerful magic.