Disclaimer: I don't own Trollhunters or any of its characters!
Hey! I'm back with a new chapter. Thank you for all the reviews and favorites! It really means a lot to me. :) I'm almost done with this part of the story. I'll be writing up Becoming Part 2 soon enough.
Becoming: Part 1 (III)
"You cannot be serious," Atlas remarked, disgusted by the disguise laid out on the bench. "I'll look ridiculous."
"Ah, come on, it's not so bad." Toby picked up the mascot head. "The Mole is awesome sauce. And, I mean, it's not like you can go around dressed like that."
He looked down at his outfit. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You stand out too much, dude." The boy pointed out. "You look like you're about to go into battle or something. Not that the badass black armor isn't totally sweet. Like seriously, are those daggers real? Oh, sorry, went on a tangent there. You just need to be a little less of this." Toby motioned to the half-breed's entire body.
His nose crinkled. "You just gestured to all of me."
"Exactly! What? Don't look at me like that. Listen, you only gotta be in the mascot uniform for a few minutes, dude. You said you wanted to get back to the sewers, right? Well, we need to get through the schoolyard first." Toby threw him a thumbs up. "After that, you're home free."
Atlas sighed, "I suppose you're right."
Grumbling, the teen pulled on the body of the costume, zipping under the front. He prayed Stricklander never found out about this. Or heaven forbid, Nomura—Atlas suppressed a shudder. Toby lifted the head and put it over the half-breed's own. It was snug and smelled of human sweat and body odor, but it covered him.
Toby gestured his thumb towards the door. "We better hurry. The Gym teacher will kill us if he finds out we're borrowing this."
"Stealing. We're stealing, Toby."
The boy stopped walking. "Hey," he started. "You know my name, but I never caught yours."
"That's because its classified."
"Ah, come on, dude. I swear I won't tell anyone." Toby remarked. "Besides, you said you were gonna help me find my friend, right? We're partners now."
He flicked his tongue against his front teeth, uncertainty flooding his mind. The human—Toby—was strange. Though he had been scared before, the boy was now looking at him with expectant eyes, not a single speck of disgust or distrust within them. Perhaps he'd been wrong about humans. Maybe there was some good in their species after all.
Still. Atlas bit the inside of his cheek.
Dare he trust this small human with such information?
Well, he reasoned, it's not like I have any social media accounts to speak of. And who would believe the boy if he decided to blow his cover?
"Atlas," he finally relinquished.
"That's a cool name." said Toby. "Very Greeky."
"This is only between us, you understand." He said to the boy. "If you tell anyone, I'll kill you."
"Ha, ha, very funny." Toby laughed, then paled. "Wait . . . seriously?"
Atlas smirked, pushing his back against the door.
Outside, teachers were gathering students into groups of twenty, if that. School had technically ended, so many of the humans were already on their way home, causing arguments to break out between the faculty and parents.
Atlas stiffened when he caught sight of his mentor, joking with a group of students and teachers. Stricklander was well-versed in human body language, his stance welcoming and open.
Toby walked quietly behind him, unlocking his bike while Atlas stood guard.
The color drained out of his face when the Changeling's gaze suddenly flickered over to his own. Was he on to Atlas?
No. His interest turned to another. Atlas let out the air he'd been holding in. Toby's disguise held, for now at least.
Taking a sharp left, his shoulders loosened; he was no longer in the man's field of vision.
This area of the school was much emptier, lockers lining the walls. There were a few students here and there, but not nearly as much as before. His attention fell on two particular humans, a large blond standing over a smaller, black-haired teen. The taller one had a menacing smile, his stance hostile while the smaller human backed away in terror, dropping a few books along the way.
Just walk away, Atlas told himself. Let the humans figure it out themselves. It has nothing to do with you.
In front of their watchful eyes, the larger human chuckling as he picked the smaller up by his collar and stuffed him into one of the lockers.
"Uh oh," Toby said behind him. " It's Psycho Steve. Poor kid. May he rest in peace."
"And the rest of you let him do this?" Atlas questioned dryly.
"If Psycho Steve's terrorizing him, he's not terrorizing me." Toby commented. "Let's go before he notices us."
Atlas clenched his jaw.
Logically, he understood Toby's reasoning. The human did not want to draw attention to himself (and by extension, Atlas himself).
Emotionally, however, was a different story.
Troll, Human, Changeling; bullies were a constant and no one did anything about it. The half-breed spent many a time the object of some Changeling's scorn, be it due to his closeness to their leader, or his unlucky origins. As a child, he'd put up with it. As he grew into himself however, he learned to fight back—not directly of course, but by using their own ways against them. Smack the half-breed in the hallway? He'd serve it back twice as hard during their "fitness examinations", a fancy word for the Changelings' so-called fight club.
While smaller and weaker than most, Atlas learned to fight dirty and fast, even spitting in his opponents' faces if it meant he could get a leg up on them.
Atlas' nostrils flared, pupils dilating. His mind flashed to his first fight; Bular beating him to a bloody pulp, the taste of fear and blood on his tongue. Even now, a long pale scar decorated his stomach, 'complimented' by small marks from his so-called brethren.
He stepped forward. Toby, noticing the boy's change in direction, started hissing softly, "Atlas? Atlas! No!"
"Okay, one more time, dweeb-face." The boy—Psycho Steve—sneered. "Tell me about these 'creatures' and maybe I'll let you out."
"Or, you can let him out right now." Atlas suggested dryly. "I mean, you know, that would be the humane thing to do."
"Humane would be—" The human started to say as turned around, then with stepped back a tad in surprise, not counting on the other's height.
Though short in comparison to other Changelings, he definitely had a few inches on this Psycho Steve and that was more than enough to make the human more cautious. The costume's added height didn't hurt either.
"Who the hell are you?" Steve asked, balling his hands into fists.
"Someone who thinks you should stop this," Atlas said, crossing his arms. "As in, right now."
"Ha! Screw off, loser," he retorted, slamming a fist into the locker behind him. "So, where were we? You were telling me about those monsters you saw this morning, with fangs and-" He hit the locker a second time. "What did you say?"
The boy yelled, "T-they had stone for skin! At the canal near Arcadia Bridge."
Atlas inhaled a sharp breath.
A human had seen the battle. This was bad. He needed to report this to Stricklander. What if there were others besides Atlas and the boy who had seen the fight? It would not bode well for the Janus Order if a video or photo came out from the incident.
If humanity discovered them—
Catastrophe wouldn't even begin to cover it.
"Stone for skin? Man Eli, you're hilarious. Maybe you should get your glasses checked. Hey, how about you let me do that for you?" Chuckled Steve.
Atlas stifled a growl, putting another foot forward. "Look, human, Psycho Steve was it? Seriously, just let him out. This is childish. "
"What did you call me?" The human said, face reddening. He moved to grab the front of Atlas' disguise, but the other side-stepped. "Or you'll do what, Mole-boy?"
Okay. This was getting on his last nerves. The half-breed peeled the humans fingers off of his outfit easily, then lightly pushed him away. Apparently, he put a little too much force in the action, because the boy hit the locker behind him with a loud bang, opening the locker with the trapped boy on accident.
The other students in the area (including the bully's two friends) began to chant, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
"Just let him out, human. That's I'm asking."
Unfortunately, Atlas merely made the human angrier. "You! You asking for a beating, Mole? I will wreck you! Let's go!"
A door slammed open. Walking out, a large muscular human called out to the group. "Palchuk, what the hell is going on over here? Why aren't you out front with the rest of the team?"
Steve jerked up, rubbing the back of his neck. "Uh, sorry, sir. I got distracted."
"Practice doesn't stop because of a fire drill, Palchuk."
He gestured with his thumb, reopening the locker containing the small human. "I was, uh, helping Eli, here."
"H-hi, Coach!" Eli answered.
"He was stuck in the locker." He gave the boy's head a little nuggie. "Ha, ha. Silly Eli."
The large man hollered, "Get in here! Now! You and I are going to have a talk."
Sticking his finger into the taller boy's chest, Steve whispered, "Friday, at noon. You and me."
As the blond walked away, he made a minute hand gesture with his index finger. "Tick-tock. Tick."
Atlas lifted an eyebrow. Was everyone in Arcadia obsessed with being overly dramatic?
He watched as the human named Eli struggled to pull himself out of the locker. Feeling generous, he grabbed the boy under each forearm and picked him up and put him on his feet.
"Thank you," Eli said, looking up at him in awe.
"No problem, human." Atlas remarked.
He threw out his hand. "My name is Eli. And you are?"
The half-breed looked down at the gesture, unsure of how to respond.
"I'm A—" Shoot. His eyes widened. Shit, shit, shit. What should he answer with? "Ah, James . . . Lake?"
Toby threw him a cross-look, his lips drawn into a thin unreadable line. Still, the other teen did not comment on Atlas using his missing friend's name. "Yep. This is my best buddy, Jimbo. He's uh, new to the school. Trying out for that mascot position. He's even got the costume! Super passionate about mascoting, this dude."
"Yes, very passionate."
"Oh, cool," Eli stammered, looking down at his shoes. "You know, for some reason, your name sounds familiar."
"Uh," Atlas started, turning his head to Toby.
"He lived here a long time ago. Went to live with his dad in, uh, Vermont? Canadia? Right, Jim? You've been living it up in the Great White North, eh? Eating all that maple syrup and moose burgers, right? Eh?"
"Uh, yes." Atlas remarked, then added, "Eh."
Eli smiled, nodding vigorously. "Well, it was nice to meet you. See you around."
The moment the boy left, Toby punched him in the arm.
"Ow," Atlas said, though more out of surprise than any actual pain.
Toby stuck his finger in the half-breed's face, frustration in his brow. "I can't believe you used my best friend's name. That was low, dude."
"It was all I could think of," he confessed.
The human sighed, shoulders dropping. "It's . . . ugh, it's okay, I guess. Sorry, it's kind of a hard subject for me to talk about."
Atlas picked up the human's bike, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "No, I shouldn't have said it. You were right. I . . . apologize."
"It's cool, dude. What's done is done." The boy said, accepting the bike. "Besides, you're going to help me find him, right?"
He laughed nervously, "Yeah . . . of course."
His stomach dropped, suddenly remembering his duty.
The boy had no idea who Atlas truly was. It was nice, to be treated like an equal, even if it was a human.
Guilt bubbled up in his throat. The moment he gave the amulet to Stricklander it would be over for humanity, Toby included.
It was inevitable.
Atlas shouldn't feel anything. Humanity had already destroyed much of the world. Why should he care about what happened to their kind?
He should feel proud, excited even. Finally, after so long, he would be able to make his mentor and father-figure proud. Nomura will be ecstatic for him. The others would finally welcome him with open arms.
And yet, for some reason, he wanted to throw up.
Atlas said his goodbyes to the human at the entrance to the canal tunnels, waving as the boy disappeared up the slope to his home.
Home.
Pulling off the mascot head, he pulled back his sweaty bangs, relishing the cool breeze. He zipped off the rest of the costume with much gusto, nearly gagging at how human he smelled. It would take several showers to get the odor off of him.
He folded the outfit and stuffed both it and the head inside a small, rarely used tunnel high above the waterline. It was unlikely to rain tonight, but better safe than sorry. At some point, he would have to return the stolen property to the school.
Today had been an adventure. He had found the Amulet of Daylight and met his first human. He also made a deal with that same human.
Which brought him back to the item in his pocket. Atlas reached inside, feeling the cold biting metal of the amulet. Atlas turned a sharp corner down one of the wider tunnels, looking around to make sure no one was around. Once the coast was clear, he drew it out, examining the mysterious object.
"How are you doing? I'm Atlas." He said, chuckling. "You said something about James Lake? Do you know him? Hello? Anybody in there?"
Atlas sighed, "And now I'm talking to an inanimate magical object. Smart, Atlas. Real smart."
Why was this James Lake so important? Why had the amulet said his name?
Could a human really be a Trollhunter?
He snorted. Really, Atlas? A human Trollhunter? Are you nuts?
He was pretty sure the Amulet of Daylight was made for those of Trollish blood, since it was literally crafted to protect other Trolls against Gumm-Gumms.
He shook it again. "Come on, you stupid piece of junk. Talk again, or I'm giving you up to the Order."
Something thumped down from behind.
Atlas jumped back in alarm, tripping and falling into some runoff water. His armor clanged against the cement.
Six glowing eyes stared down, blinking owlishly.
"Now!"
Two large arms grabbed him from behind, lifting the teen up.
Atlas growled, kicking at the unknown beast, however it was to no avail. As his vision adjusted, so too did his earlier suspicions.
He'd been followed.
Of course! Back in the showers. Humans couldn't move that fast or that quietly.
But Trolls could.
"Oh, wonderful! We've found you. Quick, we need to take him back to Trollmarket, before Bular discovers us." The shorter one remarked. "Greeting, young Changeling! I am Blinkous Galadrigal, but you may call me Blinky. Now, Master Atlas was it? Or is it Master Jim?"
"Let me go!" He growled. "I'll kill you!"
"Oh, Master Jim, I'd rather you not." The six-eyed Troll remarked. "You would be without a trainer and let's face it, you are going to need a lot of help as the next Trollhunter."
"Hi," the Troll holding him said.
Atlas screamed angrily, wiggling about.
"It's AAARRRGGHH! Not AHHH!" The large one said, then showed him three fingers. "You miss. Three Rs."
Atlas yelled again, his claws desperately trying to find some sort of weakness in the creature's stone skin.
"Hmm." Blinky remarked.
"He says 'Ahhh' a lot." The larger Troll shook him. "Broken?"
"It's more of a yelp, I believe." He reasoned. "A Changeling greeting, perhaps. Though, he doesn't look very Trollish."
Four arms began studying his body, two across his face and the others onto his restricted hands and feet. The one called Blinky's eyes perked up with interest.
"Hmm. Skin is firm and solid, yet I detect cartilage underneath, much like a human's. How fascinating. And AAARRRGGHH!, look at this. Neither yellow or green sclera nor red or slit pupils. I've never seen a Changeling without them. Rather unusual blue eyes. There aren't many Trolls with this color either." A finger tapped on his lower fangs. "His tusks are prominent, but small, rather like a child's."
Atlas gulped, shuddering at with the Troll's pushiness.
"Pointed and long like a Troll's. Ah. Now this is quite a curiosity." His hands stopped examining the teen's ears, then ascended to his horns. "Fascinating! The skin changes to what I believe is monazite." He tapped on them. "Quite solid too. I haven't seen someone with these kind of horns since we were back in the Old World. You're quite lucky, young man. These kinds of horns are quite sturdy, though I'm sure you already know that. Oh, and look here! His little claws match!"
His face paled, he started to shiver. "S-stop it. Please."
Blinky lifted his hands away immediately. "Oh! Oh, I'm so sorry. That was terribly intrusive of me. I should have asked for permission. You see, I'm a scholar so sometimes I get carried away."
"Blinky." AAARRRGGHH! remarked. "No excuse. Not nice."
"Yes, my dear friend is right." The Troll bowed low. "My deepest apologies, Master Jim-Atlas. I've no excuse. I disrespected your bodily autonomy and that was wrong of me. My deepest apologies."
Atlas looked between the two Trolls. "So . . . does that mean you'll let me go?"
The Troll laughed, "Oh, heavens no! And let you take the amulet straight to Bular?"
His brows knitted in a sharp V, body stiffening at the remark.
Blinky brought his hands together, clearing his voice. "Master Jim-Atlas, you have been chosen."
He threw the two a look of puzzlement.
Surely they didn't mean him? And Jim-Atlas? What was up with that?
"Hmm," AAARRRGGHH! cocked his head to the side. "Blinky, looks confused."
Atlas yelped as the large Troll moved him higher off the ground. "Stop it, you overgrown rock!"
"Uh, AAARRRGGHH!, my good fellow, would you mind?" Blinky asked. "We need a moment of some solemnity."
AAARRRGGHH! tilted his head to the side. "Hmm? 'Solembily'?"
"It means serious and dignified."
"Hmm." The large one sounded it out, "Dig-oo-nified."
"P-P-Put me down, please." Atlas asked, not enjoying the lack of ground beneath his feet.
"Oh, my apologies " The Troll settled him back to the floor, his grip loosening to cover the boy's shoulders. Atlas moved around a bit to test the larger, but his hold was firm and unyielding. He'd need to think of a way around this.
"Now, where was I?"
"Master Jim-Atlas. Solembily. Dig-oo-nified." AAARRRGGHH supplied.
"Yes, Thank you." Blinky said, coming closer to the two. "Master Jim-Atlas you have been chosen. It is a great honor amongst our kind. The Amulet of Daylight challenges you to cast off your previous ways and ascend to the most sacred of offices of Troll-kind."
"You're crazy. You're both crazy," Atlas said, shaking his head. "And stop calling me that. My name is just Atlas. Atlas."
Not Jim. This was all a case of mistaken identity.
"Orifices? What orifices?"
"Offices," Blinky said, ignoring the boy, which irked him. "It means responsibility. As you already know, a vast civilization of trolls lurking beneath your very feet, hidden from view."
"You mean Trollmarket," Atlas said, eyes wide.
He'd heard of it. What Changeling hadn't? An entire metropolis of Trolls underneath Arcadia. It was why the Janus Order built their main base here after all. He wondered if the hearthstone was truly as beautiful and grand as they said? If the roads were truly lined with precious gemstones and the water was as pristine as the crystalline structures that formed the city.
No Changeling had ever seen it and lived to tell the tale. Stricklander had told him stories as a child about the place, about how once Gunmar returned that they would conquer Trollmarket and claim it and the rest of the world as their own.
"Oh, good. You know of us then." Blinky said excitedly. "And it is now your charge to protect them. For you, Master Jim-Atlas, are the Trollhunter."
"No, no I can't be." Atlas said. "I'm Atlas. You've got it all wrong. I'm not this Jim or whatever. James Lake: he's the guy you want. Not me."
"If I were not there, I might have believed you," Blinky remarked.
"You were spying on me?"
"No, not on you, exactly. I was watching Kanjigar." The Troll paused, mouth closed. "He was a dear friend of ours."
"Good friend." AAARRRGGHH! mumbled.
Atlas looked away, "I'm sorry. About your friend. Bular is a monster."
"Indeed," Blinky said, giving the boy an interested look. "But what's done is done. Now, I saw the Amulet react to your touch several times today, Master Jim-Atlas. You recognized the name, this James Lake, did you not?"
"How did you know—" Atlas gripped his head, panic setting in. "Stop it. No, you're wrong. I can't be. There must be some sort of mistake. You're lying. You have to be. You just have to be."
The Troll put a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. "I know this is very difficult to process. However time is of the essence. This honor is yours to accept."
AAARRRGGHH! leaned down, giving Atlas his chance. He jackknifed down and twisted out of the larger Troll's reach underneath his legs.
The blue one tried to reach for him but Atlas was faster. He jumped, using the mossy one as a spring board to a higher tunnel.
Instead of going after him however, they merely watched him, barely moving a muscle.
Blinky put all four arms behind his back, a solemn expression on his face. "So, what say you, young Changeling?"
"I-I don't know." Atlas said. "But you're wrong. I can't be the Trollhunter."
Blinky regarded the floor, shoulders lowering. "So you will give the Amulet to Bular then, I take it?"
"I-no. I don't know." He admitted.
"You must make a decision soon, Master J—Atlas. It choose you for a reason."
Atlas clenched his teeth, arms wrapped around his body. "I-I need to go."
He walked down the tunnel, trying to ignore the storm of thoughts developing in his mind.
So even more people knew about the fight. Trolls from Trollmarket. What was he going to do? He clutched the Amulet so tightly his knuckles cracked.
Blinky's voice echoed in the distance, to Atlas' dismay. "Great Gronka Morka, what are we doing to do? A Changeling child is going to be our next Trollhunter. What was Merlin thinking? "
"Wait and hope." AAAARRRGGHH answered.
"Yes, but for how long?"
How long indeed.
Atlas glanced down at the Amulet. He wanted—no, needed to know. Taking a sharp left, he headed down the tunnel, the opposite direction of the Order.
This was all a big misunderstanding.
It just had to be.
