T3ddyBearL0ve-Haha, thank you! I love hating on Eunice. It is kinda funny/sad how we love torturing the main character, isn't it? Don't worry, Jim's going to be doing some exciting stuff in the coming chapters…
merendinoemiliano-Thank you!
Jim started, "I can explain-"
"Yeah, I bet you do," Carbak retorted, crossing his arms. He scowled. "Maybe you should start with the fact that you're not actually an amnesiac?"
"I-I know, it looks bad." He sighed. "It is bad. But after I recovered from the gravesand, I had no idea what was going on. I was hurt, confused, and scared. I had no idea what kind of trolls you guys were, so-so that seemed like the best option." He hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry."
Carbak's expression softened ever so slightly. "I don't blame you, kid. I think it's time to tell me the truth, though, yeah?"
Jim nodded. These berserker trolls had taken him in without a second thought. Sure, Carbak could be prickly, but he really did care about his well-being. He deserved the truth.
He took a deep breath to calm his nerves and told him everything. That he was Merlin's champion known as the Trollhunter, the trolls from Dwoza had migrated to the United States as well, the destruction of Trollmarket. He even summoned Daylight, much to Carbak's astonishment and delight.
After for talking what seemed like hours, he finally got to the Battle of the Eternal Night. Carbak's jaw dropped when Jim recounted his victory over Gunmar.
"Y-you're telling me…" he said hoarsely, "that a skinny troll like you slayed the King of the Gumm-Gumms."
"I'm not that skinny!" Jim protested. "But yeah, I did. Morgana was banished to the shadow realm or killed-no one's really sure. And since the Heartstone was drained of all its energy, we had to leave Arcadia to find a new one. Everything was going great until we were attacked by golems and a gravesand bomb exploded in my face. Then I-" his voice cracked the horrific things he had done to his friends flashed through his mind. "Then I woke up here."
"I can't believe it," Carbak murmured, staring at the ground. "Bular and Gunmar dead, Morgana gone…it sounds too good to be true." He looked up at Jim. "It still makes no sense how you didn't know you were a berserker troll. Every troll knows his own kind. Unless that was an act too?"
"It wasn't, I-" he hesitated. Carbak had accepted everything he had told him so far…but would he accept Jim if he told him what he used to be? He couldn't take that chance.
"Kid," Carbak said softly. "Whatever it is, you can tell me. I promise I won't hurt you or get mad. Besides, you're the one with the flaming magic sword," he winked.
Jim smiled weakly. He really did have no choice, did he? Bracing himself for the worst, he blurted, "I was a human. I had a normal human life, until I became the Trollhunter. Everything was fine, then-then Morgana and Gunmar were back, and Merlin told me it wasn't enough to be human. So-so I made the choice to transform into a troll." He sat back and covered his eyes. "And of course it had to be the most bloodthirsty troll there is."
He sensed movement, then Carbak was sitting next to him. He gently put his hand on Jim's shoulder. "Jim, that's-that's horrible. I'm sorry you had to sacrifice so much. No one should have to go through that."
Jim slowly lowered his hand. "So you're not upset that I used to be human? You're not going to kick me out or anything?"
He chuckled. "Why would I be? Not all fleshbags are bad. You have a good heart, Jim. I wouldn't force you to leave."
Jim beamed and hugged Carbak, burrowing his face in his shoulder. The troll stiffened before returning the hug. He patted Jim's back awkwardly.
Jim broke away from the hug and looked away. Despite Carbak's offer, he couldn't stay. He had to save his friends. He couldn't afford to hide.
He stood up, and Carbak stared at him questioningly. "I…thanks for understanding, Carbak. You've helped me with a lot." He rubbed his arm. "But I have to rescue my friends."
"What?!" Carbak shot to his feet. "Are you out of your mind? You heard that woman; there's hundreds more changelings and golems in there!"
"I don't care. I'll defeat them all if I have to."
"What if you lose control, huh?" he demanded. "Even though there's no more gravesand, you're still a berserker troll. You could kill the very people you're trying to save! Unless you want to have that on your conscience-"
"I know!" Jim snapped. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I know. I'm a danger to them too. But they're in more danger there than they are with me, so I have to go."
Carbak stared at Jim long and hard. Finally, he sighed in defeat. "If this is what you really want…follow me." He strode out of the cave.
Jim followed him. Outside, the main street of Dwoza was dead silent. All the shops were shuttered closed, and no troll wandered around. It was kind of creepy.
He felt the sudden urge to keep his voice down. "Where is everyone?" he whispered.
"Either sleeping or hunting," Carbak replied. "I chose a quiet time to talk to you." He veered from the main street and into a narrow alley. "This way."
After walking for another fifty feet, they approached a tall, metal door with a lever. With a grunt, Carbak pulled on the lever and the door slid open. Beyond the door was a-
Jim's eyes widened. "Is that-is that a gyre?"
The familiar wheeled contraption dominated the small cavern. It was smaller and looked more rickety than the one in Trollmarket, but it wasn't in bad shape.
"Sure is," Carbak said proudly. "We built it when we first moved here, in case we needed a quick getaway. When we overheard the Janus Order was constructing their headquarters in Illinois, we decided to build a route to it as well, just in case we caught them doing anything too fishy. Trust me, they have no idea about it."
"Illinois?" Jim muttered. "Well, at least it's closer to New Jersey…"
Silence fell between the two. Jim had no idea what to say. A thank you? An apology? Even though he had met Carbak so recently, he already felt like a friend.
Finally, Carbak broke the silence. "See ya, kid." He slapped Jim on the back. "Hope everything goes well out there."
"Y-yeah," he laughed. "Thanks." He put a foot on the ladder, then stopped. He whirled around the face Carbak. "Come with me," he said.
Carbak blinked, taken aback. "Wh-what?"
"You heard that lady," Jim continued. "There's going to be a lot of enemies when I get there. And to be honest, I'm not sure I can take them all on my own." He held out his hand. "Why don't we get you and the rest of the berserkers up there? We can get rid of the Janus Order once and for all, and you could come with us to New Jersey. We'd make a better Trollmarket than you have now." He grinned.
Carbak's gaze lingered on Jim's hand before flicking back up to his face. Excitement and eagerness painted his face, but the one that overpowered it all was fear. He dropped his gaze and stepped back. Jim's hand fell limply to his side.
"I'm sorry, Jim, but we-we can't," he said. "We can't take that chance. I'm really sorry."
"Oh." Jim tried to not let his disappointment show, but it was impossible. He had really thought…but he couldn't blame him. He barely knew Jim, after all.
He turned away and climbed up the ladder. Before he pushed the button to activate the gyre, he looked back at Carbak one last time. "Thank you," he repeated. "For everything. I know I shouldn't ask any more from you, but…just think about what I said, okay? If a young berserker troll like me is willing to go out there, shouldn't you?"
Carbak opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again. "I'll think about it, Jim. That's all I can promise." He raised his hand in farewell.
Jim waved goodbye before pushing the button on the board. The gyre whirred to life, the gears spinning faster and faster. He glanced at Carbak's tormented face one last time before setting his eyes on the tunnel ahead.
Claire, he thought. I'm coming for you.
Then the gyre shot off into the dark, dragging Jim along with it.
A/N: GUYS THE TEASER FOR RISE OF THE TITANS IS OUT PLEASE GO WATCH IT I'M SO HYPED AHHHHHH!
Oh and Jim's gonna be doing some rescuing I guess in the coming chapters lol. Thanks for reading!