Chapter 20: The Third Stone Part 2
Arcadia Oaks, January 17th, 2017
"...and, therefore, we can deduce that…"
The bell interrupted Mr Williams's statement, and the sound of two dozen students standing up droned out what he might've said afterwards. So close to noon, no teacher could expect the students to listen any further - not when the rush to the cafeteria had started already. Usually, James Lake Jr would've felt a little guilty as he filed out past the sighing teacher, but not today. Not when he was about to break into Strickler's house and retrieve the third Triumbic Stone. And, possibly, fight Angor Rot. Without alerting the neighbours or the cops.
He swallowed at the thought. Angor Rot was a monster. A real monster, not just a Gumm-Gumm. Skilled, dangerous, deadly - worse than Bular had been. Jim would know; he had fought both.
"So… do you think we can go to the cafeteria for a meal before we go?" Toby whispered next to him. "I don't fight well on an empty stomach."
"Tobes, you're not going to be fighting," Jim told him. "Not with a broken shoulder."
"I'm not doing well on moral support on an empty stomach, either," Toby replied.
"I'm sure they'll have lunch prepared at the… camp," Jim whispered.
"Have you seen how much the Slayer eats? We can be glad if she's left the cutlery intact. Although AAARRRGGHH! might eat those." Toby frowned.
"I'm sure there'll be lots of leftovers," Jim told him. Toby's nana had cooked enough to feed an army since they started camping. She'd said so herself.
Toby looked around - they were halfway to the spot where they'd meet Claire, and the majority of the students were now at the Cafeteria. "Actually, it's not the food. I feel like I'm letting you down."
"You aren't letting us down," Jim assured him. "You're wounded."
"Yes. I was taken out of the fight by a teenage girl." Toby sounded morose.
"Don't let Claire hear that," Jim told him. He chuckled, but he wasn't just joking. Claire didn't hold much with such attitudes.
"I didn't mean it like that," Toby said. "Dawn isn't a trained fighter."
"She's the Slayer's sister," Jim pointed out.
"And she spends her days chatting online, not beating up vampires," Toby retorted. "Let's face it, I was taken out by a civilian. And now I can't help you."
"It's just a break-in," Jim said. "We probably won't have to fight anyone."
Toby grunted - obviously, he didn't expect things to go smoothly.
To be fair, neither did Jim. But they were well-prepared. Even if Angor Rot was in the house, they would be outnumbering him. Jim, Claire, the Slayer, Willow the Witch - that was four to one. And Jim had fought the Slayer and Angor Rot. Those were good odds. They would be winning that fight.
Jim just couldn't convince himself that they would be winning that fight without losing anyone. Toby almost died to an untrained teenage girl. Angor Rot was anything but untrained. They had to… Was that a shot?
Jim cocked his head. Another shot rang out. And another.
Then the screaming started.
No! Jim turned. "That came from the entrance!" Where was Claire? He started running.
"Do you think that's the cops? Or a school shooter?" Toby asked, already huffing as he tried to keep up with Jim.
"I don't know." Either would be bad, but Jim would actually prefer a school shooter. He could deal with a shooter. The cops could deal with it. But they couldn't deal with…
Just as they turned the corner, a police car flew through the air, landing on its side and rolled over several times before it smashed into the wall of the gym.
"...Glory," Jim spat. "She's here!"
"Oh, no!" Toby gasped.
"We need to get everyone out!" Jim hissed. "Find Claire! And call the Slayer!"
"But…"
Jim glanced at him.
"Don't die, Jimbo!" Toby nodded at him, turned and started running.
Jim took a deep breath and pulled out his amulet.
"For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!"
"WHERE IS THE PRINCIPAL?"
Jim froze for a moment. That was Glory's voice. And she wanted Strickler? Why? He shook his head. No time to dwell on that. He had to stall the hell-goddess until the students had left the school. And he couldn't let her get to Strickler. That would doom Mom.
He turned the corner. "The principal's taking a sabbatical!" he yelled at the blonde monster standing over the remains of the gate. "He's gone to Shangri-La to meditate on his evil nature!"
"Shangri-La? Where is tha… Wait! I know you!"
Well, Jim had her attention. Now he had to survive it.
He slid back around the corner and started to run. Before he had taken more than a few steps, the wall exploded. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Glory step through the hole like the Cool-Aid Man.
"There you are!" She smiled and cocked her head.
Jim took a deep breath. He had to dodge, but she was so fast…
She moved.
Jim threw himself to the side, turning to take her attack on his shield… and saw Glory stumble and fall to the ground before she got going.
"My shoes! You've ruined my shoes! Do you know how hard it is to get decent shoes in this pit?"
Jim kept running. Most of the students would be in the cafeteria and fleeing through the back door. So he had to lead Glory away from there. And that meant… the gym! He dashed around the corner, then along the lockers mounted there, towards the gym. If he could cut through the gym to the storage sheds, he could lure the hell-goddess out of the school. That would…
The sound of metal being ripped apart - training with Draal had left some memories - made him glance over his shoulder. He gasped and threw himself down on the ground just in time to have the remains of a locker sail over his head instead of smashing into his back.
Jim scrambled up and changed direction - running straight away made him an easier target. But cutting across would…
"Stay still so I can hit you!"
Another locker flew towards him. Jim's eyes widened, and he managed to hit it with his sword, cutting it in half - but part of it still slammed into his thigh, sending him sprawling on the ground.
"Yes!"
More metal screeching. Jim rolled over, and looked at Glory, then hastily raised his buckler.
This time, the locker-turned-missile glanced off the shield and lodged itself in the science lab's wall. Jim hoped it wouldn't set off anything as he once more jumped up and ran away - this time into the building.
"Hey! That's cheating!"
He caught a glimpse of Glory limping - or whatever you called it if you tried running with only one high-heeled shoe - after him before he turned into the hallway inside. If the hell-goddess kept being so stupid, he would make it out of the building before she caught up.
He almost lost his footing on a freshly-cleaned patch on the floor, smashing a bucket of soap water into the wall as he slid rather than ran around the next corner and kept going. The exit was just another…
"GotchAHHHH…"
Behind him, Glory crashed into the wall - through the wall. Damn! She must've ditched the other shoe. This was… so not good.
He had to get away - and lure her away. He reached the next corner. But he wouldn't be able to outrun her. Though… Oh!
He kicked the side exit open, then dashed into the chem lab room next to it and dived behind the teacher's desk.
Then he tried to slow down his breathing. If the hell-goddess didn't suddenly grow much smarter than a rock, she should jump to the obvious conclusion and assume he had fled the building.
He heard her steps - stomps - in the hallway as she approached.
"That little bloody freak! How dare he run from me! All I want is my Key!"
Jim held his breath. Glory was just outside the classroom, ranting.
"Oh, that little weasel! He ran away! Where is my KEY?"
Jim jerked when the wall of the classroom suddenly blew up. Glory had found him! He had to…
"Alright!" he heard her mutter to herself. "Back to the principal, then!"
Oh, no! Jim clenched his teeth as he pulled his phone out and started texting Claire and Tobes.
Glory looking for Strickler.
The reply came quickly: On it!
He waited a minute, then slowly got up and out from behind the desk. If Glory had left…
"Gotcha!"
Jim threw himself to the side as the hell-goddess broke through the hole she had made and crashed into the desk, crumbling it against the wall. He scrambled up and raced down the aisle. There was the window, all he had to do…
And he was flying through the air, landing on a lab space, crushing a few beakers before he rolled off and ended on the floor.
Then the pain hit him.
"No more running!" Glory snarled, standing in front of the window.
Damn, she was fast.
Jim coughed and tried to push himself off the floor, but before he could stand, she was in his face again and kicked him in the chest.
He crashed into the wall, his arm smashing the reagents cabinet open, and slid down to the ground, panting and groaning. His chest hurt - breathing hurt. Moving hurt.
"No more running."
His throat was caught in a vice, and he was lifted up, choking. His feet were left dangling, and he kicked out at Glory as he tried to pry her fingers off his throat.
"Where is my KEY?"
She shook him like a ragdoll. The pain was so bad, he tried to scream, but he lacked the air for it, wheezing and choking instead.
"Where is my KEY?" she screeched at him again.
He tried to tell her to go to hell but couldn't get the words out.
"Tell me!"
She was killing him without even noticing it! Jim stopped trying to pull her hand off and started feeling around for something, anything to use against her. Daylight was on the ground, somewhere. But…
His fingers grabbed a bottle and smashed it over her head.
She screamed, and Jim's throat was released. He coughed and wheezed as he fell to his knees, groaning, while Glory stumbled back a step, rubbing her smoking face. Chemicals. He had splattered her with chemicals!
"Oh, you…"
And she was glaring at him, smoke rising from her… burnt face?
"You ruined my makeup!"
Not burns then. Damn. Jim coughed some more and grabbed another bottle. When she reached for him, he threw it into her face and ducked under her arm.
Black liquid splashed over her face, and Glory screeched again, flailing her arms. "What did you do?" She put a fist through the wall, then kicked a chair while he crawled away. "Where are you?"
She was blind, Jim realised. The black substance covered her eyes.
He grabbed Daylight and scrambled away from her as she started smashing the lab up, rushing out of the door - and through the exit. He went left, doubling back towards the gym. If she couldn't see then he couldn't lure her away anyway.
He took the next corner, skidding on the rubble left from Glory's blows, and ran on. Toby should've met Claire by now, and together, they would…
"I assume that this is your fault."
Jim stopped and whirled. Strickler was standing in the doorway to the main building. "What are you doing here? Evacuate!" Jim yelled at him. Then he cursed - if Glory heard him… He cocked his head but just heard the sound of more concrete shattering under Glory's blows.
"We are evacuating. You don't expect me to leave before all of the students have left, do you?" Strickler raised his eyebrows at him.
"I expect you to run at the first sign of danger!" Jim spat. "You're risking Mom's life staying here - Glory was looking for you!"
"Why would she be looking for me?" Strickler asked.
"I don't know!" Jim replied. "Probably because you're the principal, and she wants something from you." He scoffed. "She went to the police station to report her key as stolen."
"Remarkable. Demons are rarely so informed about modern society."
"Yes. Now move before she recovers! I just blinded her - she'll get over that very soon!" Jim hissed.
"I'm touched by your concern."
"I didn't lead her away just so you could throw Mom's life away!"
"Jim!"
"Jimbo!"
And there were Claire and Toby.
Jim shook his head. "We need to leave. Glory's on a rampage. I blinded her, but…"
More sounds of walls getting wrecked.
"Where are you, you bastard? I'll rip your limbs off!"
"And she's mad," Toby commented. "Time to leave?"
But Strickler was staring at them with a frown. "So, this is Glory, the hell-goddess."
"Yes, and she'll rip you to pieces if she sees you!" Toby said.
"And we need to leave!" Jim insisted. Any moment, Glory could round the corner and spot them! And if she caught Strickler, Mom would suffer!
He turned to grab Strickler, but the changeling took a step back. "I'm not falling for a transparent attempt to catch me!"
"It's not an attempt to catch you!" Jim snapped.
"But that would've been a great idea, now that you mention it," Toby added.
"Tobes!" Jim glared at him.
"There you are!"
"Portal! Now!" Jim yelled.
A portal opened in front of them, between them and Glory. A moment later, he heard a dull sound - Glory must have run into it.
"You little witch! I'm going to skin you alive!"
Jim pushed Strickler and Toby through the portal, then whirled - and Claire ran past him.
And there was Glory slamming into the portal again, her hands inches from Jim's face. "You coward!" she screeched, a second before the portal closed.
Jim sighed with relief. If she had been a second faster - or Jim a little slower…
"Ah. Here is your camp."
Jim turned. Yes, they were in their camp in the Shadow Realm. But why…
Claire smiled. "I thought that was a good idea."
Strickler didn't smile any more. Well, he was facing the Slayer and her friends. And Blinky and AAARRRGGHH!.
Shadow Realm, January 17th, 2017
"Hey! It's the evil principal!" Buffy Summers grinned, flashing her teeth at the changeling.
"Don't beat him up," Willow blurted out. "He's tied to Dr Lake!"
"I know!" Buffy told her. As if she'd forget that! "But he's now our prisoner!"
"Well played, Young Atlas," the creepy principal said.
"It wasn't our plan," Jim retorted.
"What happened?" Buffy asked. The plan hadn't been to take prisoners. They were supposed to move to Strickler's house and search it. And maybe kill the evil troll assassin.
"Glory happened. She attacked the school," Claire told her. "They evacuated, but Jim had to distract her while everyone fled. Almost everyone," she added with a glare at the principal.
"She wrecked a school building," Jim said. "I managed to blind her with some chemicals."
"She's vulnerable to chemicals?" Buffy blinked. That would make things easier.
"Oh, we're going to use chemical warfare?" Xander asked. "I've got a few ideas about that!"
"Me too!" Willow chimed in. "What chemicals were they?"
"I don't know," Jim said. "But acid didn't hurt her, just her makeup. And I blinded her by splashing paint or something like it into her face."
"Oh!" Buffy grinned again. "That makes things easier! We need to get some paint! The stickiest, nastiest paint we can find!"
"And some paintball guns!" Xander added. "If we can blind her, she's not nearly as dangerous any more."
"If we can hit her - she's faster than anyone of us," Jim said. He shook his head. "If Claire hadn't been so quick with a portal…"
Buffy grimaced. Glory was too damn fast. Much faster than her. "If we can't hit her, then we need to lure her into a paint trap."
"That won't help if she attacks us," Jim retorted.
"We'll need some mobile traps, then," Willow said. "I've got a few ideas."
"Yes," Xander said with a grin. "I'm sure we can come up with something. In a pinch, Claire can drop a tanker on her."
That would likely be overkill - and were paint tankers a thing? - but Buffy would be only too happy to see the skanky hell-goddess buried under a tanker full of paint. Perhaps add some glitter… Wait. Glory might like glitter! Tar then. And feathers. A classic. Even Giles would approve of that - though he might make some comments about American traditions.
"Although… how did you manage to blind her, Jim? Wouldn't she have blinked to keep the liquid from covering her eyeballs?" Willow asked. "That's a reflexive action, and even humans can usually close their eyes fast enough to protect them from foreign objects coming at them."
"Yes," Xander agreed. "Or from eye drops." He nodded. "I used to go through half a bottle of eye drops if my eyes were dry."
"Moving on from Xander's wasteful use of drugs," Buffy said, "this is a good question. You're fast, Jim, but you're not that fast." She was faster than him - and Glory was, unfortunately, faster than Buffy.
"Uh… It was probably luck," Jim said, frowning.
Buffy clenched her teeth. She hadn't meant to make him feel bad - he had faced Glory and lived, almost unharmed even, and that was something to be proud of.
"No, no - there has to be another explanation," Willow said. She had her resolve face on, so Buffy knew arguing would be pointless. "We know how fast she is, so she should've been able to close her eyes before you hit her with any liquid. If she didn't, then that means she overrode her reflexes - like you should, Xander, when you're taking eye drops - or…" She started smiling. "...she doesn't have the same reflexes humans have!"
"Or she is too dumb for it!" Buffy suggested.
"Reflexes aren't related to intelligence," Willow told her.
"Trust me, I know," Xander added with a chuckle.
Buffy frowned at him. Putting himself down wasn't as funny as he thought it was.
"I concur with Willow," Giles said. "Glorificus's body certainly isn't human, even though it looks like a human female. It wouldn't be improbable that it lacks reflexes - or other inherently biological aspects of the human form."
"What does that mean in Californian?" Buffy asked.
"It's not a human body, just a facsimile of it," Willow not-explained.
"It just looks like it," Xander said. "But it might just be a doll that acts human. Mostly."
"An imperfect simulation," Willow said. "Mimicking human behaviour without the underlying biological processes. And since she is nigh-invulnerable, she wouldn't have any need of such protective reflexes."
Ah. Buffy nodded. "And we already know that she can't think as quickly as she can run, or she wouldn't keep running into portals."
"Yes." Jim nodded as well. "She couldn't react quickly enough to avoid running into it. Even though she could run so fast, I couldn't see her move."
"Indeed!" Blinky beamed. "If the body is a construct, like a golem, it would only react as its creator had wanted it to. And if they, being used to being invulnerable, had no need for certain reflexes, then they wouldn't have thought of it.
"So, our odds of luring her into a trap just improved!" Xander smiled widely.
"Technically, our odds didn't improve - they stayed the same. We simply weren't aware of the odds," Willow pointed out. "Although now that we know of this weakness, we can adjust our plans, which should improve our odds, I guess." She pouted while Xander grinned.
"I would applaud your deductions," the evil troll principal cut in, "if such conclusions shouldn't have been obvious from the start."
Buffy blinked. "Right. Change of subject: What do we do with tall, grey and evil here?"
"There's never a carbon-freezing chamber around when you need one," Xander said.
"Oh, right!" Toby nodded. "That would be great!"
"A valid suggestion - if you ignore that the slightest mistake could cause my, and, therefore, Barbara's death," the changeling replied.
"You've watched Star Wars?" Toby blurted out.
"Isn't that against the rules for evil supernatural beings?" Xander added. "Unless it was research for more evil plans. You aren't building lightsabers, are you?"
The evil troll laughed at that! Bad guys shouldn't laugh like that. Buffy glared at him, but that didn't seem to impress him, either. Smug bad guys you couldn't beat up were the worst!
"I would think imprisoning him would be the obvious choice," Giles said. "Doesn't Trollmarket have facilities to imprison criminals?"
"They might kill him!" Jim protested.
"Troll 'justice' is often quite brutal," the principal said.
"Not as brutal as Gunmar," Claire told him with a glare.
"And nothing you wouldn't deserve," Blinky said.
"Can you exile him to some other pocket dimension?" Willow asked.
Claire blinked, then shook her head. "No. It's all the same realm."
"We could maroon him on a desert island," Xander suggested.
"That won't hold him," Jim objected.
"Depends on the island," Xander retorted. "I'm sure Willow knows of islands too remote to let him escape."
"That would merely mean that, should I attempt to escape anyway, I might kill myself in the process, dooming your mother, Young Atlas. And I can assure you that I would attempt to escape, seeing what punishment awaits me in case you turn out to be successful." The troll principal cocked his head slightly. "Quite the conundrum, I suppose."
If looks could kill - well, human looks, a few demons had literal killing eyes - Jim would have killed the troll for that. And his mother, so it was a good thing he couldn't kill by looking. But the troll was right - this was a problem. "Willow! Can you seal him up or something?" Buffy asked.
"Uh…" Willow pursed her lips and didn't meet Buffy's eyes. That wasn't a good sign. "Most of the spells I know about sealing up someone are, well… complicated."
"And dangerous," Giles cut in. "They generally require a sacrifice."
"Yes," Willow admitted. "And depending on what curse he used, being sealed up might affect Dr Lake somehow."
"How?" Jim asked.
"I don't know." Willow shook her head. "I'm sorry, but this situation wasn't covered in any book I've read."
"Without knowing what spells you might use, I cannot be of any assistance either," Blinky said. "Generally, we tend to deal with criminals in a more permanent manner, using secure prison cells until punishment can be meted out. This would require more research."
"I don't know anything about it, either," Tara spoke up.
Buffy really wanted to wipe the smirk off the evil troll's lips. He was worse than Snyder!
"It seems we're at an impasse, then," Strickler said.
James Lake Jr pressed his lips together at the smirk on the changeling's face.
"We can still lock you up, jerkface!" Toby retorted.
"Without a cell?" Strickler shook his head. "Even if you had a cell, I wouldn't be bereft of the means to retaliate."
"What?" Toby blinked.
"You would hurt yourself to hurt Jim's mom?" Claire blurted out.
"With execution awaiting me, I have nothing to lose." Strickler tilted his head.
"We can make it hurt," the Slayer hissed.
"Which would hurt Barbara."
Jim looked over his shoulder. If Mom wandered over… but she was back at the camp, with Toby's nana and Claire's parents. Or examining Mrs Summers.
"You getting turned into troll paste by Glory - or getting your brain sucked out - would hurt her as well," the Slayer retorted.
"Indeed, it would. And I appreciate the lengths you went to to protect me." Strickler smiled in that annoying manner of his.
Jim took a step forward, getting into his face. "We only protected you because you're tied to Mom." If Strickler wasn't tied to Mom, Jim would cut him apart.
"Nevertheless, you risked your life for me. Ironic, isn't it? My worst enemy, protecting me with his life."
"We could capture him in enchanted air - immobilise him without hurting him," Willow suggested.
"I would still be able to hurt myself. As history shows, many prisoners have managed to commit suicide to escape their plight," Strickler told her.
Jim balled his hands into fists and clenched his teeth. He really wanted to hurt the changeling. But he couldn't.
"We can't let you go. Not with Glory looking for you, and you being aware of our camp," the Slayer said.
"You should've considered that before transporting me to this place."
"We didn't exactly have enough time to pick an alternate location," Jim told him.
"A lack of planning, then." Strickler sounded as if he was criticising a student's answer to a question in class. "Although if you transport me back to Arcadia Oaks, I can assure you I will avoid this Glory in the future."
"And plot against us," Claire spat.
"As you make plans to deal with me - which you are doing in front of me."
"Well, if we had a way to keep you locked up and away from us, we wouldn't need to make plans to do so, duh!" the Slayer replied.
"Again, an obvious oversight - in hindsight, at the very least."
"If you weren't tied to Jim's mother…" The Slayer looked as if she was about to punch the changeling anyway.
Jim took a deep breath. "Glory threatens all of us - the entire world," he said. "If we can't beat her, our whole conflict is meaningless."
"I dare say even Gunmar wouldn't be pleased if our world ends up ravaged by demonic hordes from all the hell dimensions of the universe," Mr Giles commented. "Most of those seeking to end the world take a dim view of others attempting the same in different ways."
"That presumes that Glory is as dangerous as you claim. And while I have seen bouts of extraordinary physical prowess, her mental capability didn't impress me very much," Strickler said.
"You don't need extraordinary mental capabilities to threaten the world," Willow objected. "She wants to return to her home hell dimension, and doing so will destroy the world as a side-effect."
"We have documentation, if you doubt our claim," Mr Giles said.
"Ah." Strickler smiled. "It's good to finally meet a more civilised opponent. The death threats and righteous anger get tedious after a while. Proof of a shared interest is much more effective to gain cooperation, isn't it?"
Blinky looked ready to kill Strickler as well, Jim noted. "Whatever good the cooperation of a changeling working for Gunmar is," the troll said with a scoff.
"If we truly share an enemy, you might just find out how much I can bring to the table."
"You're just Gunmar's lackey," Blinky replied. "If you fail or anger him, or if he feels like it, he'll kill you himself."
AAARRRGGHH! nodded. "Failure means death," he said in a solemn tone.
"My continued existence is proof that I have yet to fail him."
"Why are you working for Gunmar, anyway?" the Slayer asked. "Big bad evil guys like him always betray their minions. Do you really think he'll reward you in the end? If you survive at all?"
"It's a better deal than what we changelings can expect from anyone else," Strickler replied. For once, he wasn't looking as smug as he usually did.
Jim bit his lower lip. He didn't want to do this, but… "And what if you were offered a better deal?"
Strickler's eyebrows rose. "And what are you suggesting, Young Atlas?"
"You help us against Glory, we leave you be afterwards - as long as you don't keep working for Gunmar," Jim told him.
Claire stiffened next to him, then turned to nod at Strickler. "You wouldn't be the first changeling."
"I'm a bit more prominent than a changeling replacing a toddler," Strickler retorted.
"While I question the wisdom of making deals with the likes of you, intellectual honesty forces me to point out that my dear friend Aarghaumont was one of Gunmar's best and most well-known - and feared - generals before his defection," Blinky said.
AAARRRGGHH! nodded. "Yes."
"And he was welcomed by Trollmarket with open arms." Strickler sneered.
"Actually, we imprisoned him at the start," Blinky replied. "Something that's still on the table for you."
"How very diplomatic of you," Strickler told him.
Jim cleared his throat. "Look, what exactly do you expect to receive as a reward from Gunmar? Power? Protection? Acceptance?"
The changeling glared at him.
Jim shrugged in return. "We know how Gunmar treats your kind. Not-Enrique told us."
Strickler scoffed. "Unlike the little turncoat, I've proven my worth."
"Until you make a mistake. Or just fail Gunmar," Jim told him.
"Yes!" the Slayer chimed in. "Big bad evil guys like him never stay loyal. As soon as you're not useful any more, you're toast."
"And you're only useful as long as there's a human society to infiltrate," Claire pointed out. "Once Gunmar wins, what use does he have for changelings any more?"
"I can do more than merely pass for a human," Strickler retorted.
"And does Gunmar need that? Or will he consider you a threat?" Blinky shook his head. "And what will happen once you fail him? The more skilled you are, the higher the expectations you will have to meet."
AAARRRGGHH! nodded. "True."
"And I may have killed Bular, but he was working with you," Jim added. "If I die fighting Glory, who will Gunmar turn to for his vengeance?"
"Jim!" Claire gasped. "You're not going to die!"
"Well, in a world where Gunmar won, I'll be dead," Jim told her. "A hypothetical world, I mean."
"Smooth," Toby whispered next to him.
"In any case," Jim went on, "do you honestly expect to live long in a world ruled by Gunmar?"
Strickler scowled in return. "I have survived for a long time on Earth; I think my chances to survive under Gunmar are better than you claim."
"But are they good enough to roll the dice?" Xander asked.
"And what alternatives do I have?" Strickler asked, still glaring at Jim. "Even if you could protect me against Gunmar and the Order of Janus, the only reason you haven't killed me is that my life is tied to the life of Ba… your mother. Why would I trust you not to kill me as soon as this isn't the case any more?"
So, there was a way to break the spell! Jim smiled.
"Because we're not the bad guys?" the Slayer asked. "Look at Spike! He tried to kill all of us several times."
"Oi! I never tried to kill your mum, Slayer! Or your sister. And your mum tried to kill me with a fire axe."
"Well, he tried to kill most of us several times," the Slayer corrected herself. "Happy now?"
"Yes."
"Anyway… where was I going?" she asked.
"You were explaining why we didn't kill Spike yet," Xander told her.
The Slayer nodded. "Right. And: not helping, Xander. Anyway, we haven't killed Spike. Even though we could've, easily, when he needed our help. And we don't keep him chained up in Giles's bathroom any more, either!"
"And I've killed far more people than you did, I bet," Spike added.
"Really not helping," Xander whispered.
"You know we're honourable," Blinky said. "We've proven that."
Strickler stared at them, then looked at Jim. Jim straightened in response and met his eyes. "I would be amenable to a truce until this problem with the hell-goddess is solved. But I want your word of honour, Trollhunter, that you will not betray me."
"Unless you betray us first," Claire cut in.
Well, that was probably the best they could get. But could they trust the changeling? What if he took another hostage? Like Toby's nana or Claire's parents? Jim frowned. That would be par for the course for Strickler. And they still needed the third Triumbic Stone, which was in Strickler's house… Wait! The stone - the Eye of Gunmar - was in Strickler's home. Why? Did Gunmar trust Strickler to keep it safe? No. He would want it transported to the Darklands and guard it himself. Or place it in his head or something.
"Jim?" Claire asked.
He raised a hand. Strickler keeping the stone for Gunmar made no sense. So… Jim smiled. "I've got a counter-proposal: You hand the Eye of Gunmar over to us, and we protect you from Gunmar and won't attack you or imprison you even after Gunmar is defeated. You'd get a pardon from Trollmarket and us."
"Jim!" Claire gasped.
"Don't tell him our plans!" the Slayer blurted out.
"Master Jim! I fear that that wasn't wise!" Blinky protested.
Jim kept looking at Strickler, though, and ignored them. They could go get the stone anyway, no matter what Strickler did.
Strickler's eyes had widened, then narrowed. For a moment, he glared at Jim. Then he chuckled. "Well played, Young Atlas. You plan to make sure that I cannot go back to Gunmar."
Jim nodded. "Whether you give it to us or not - if he finds out that you kept his eye from him…"
"Oh! Of course - you hid it from him! He doesn't know that you have it!" Claire nodded.
"You betrayed him?" Blinky asked, sounding surprised.
"It was insurance, of sorts," Strickler confirmed. "I am not as naive as you may think I am. I assume your new allies were responsible for finding its location."
"Uh-uh." Willow nodded. "Your wards are good but not good enough."
"Perhaps you do have a better chance to defeat Gunmar than I thought," Strickler said. "Very well - I accept your offer, Trollhunter." He held out his hand.
Jim shook it. He would've squeezed it harder than needed, but that would've hurt Mom.
Strickler smiled. "So, I shall be staying here for the foreseeable future, then."
Jim nodded. "Yes. I'm sure Mom will like to talk to you."
Seeing Strickler wincing was very satisfying.
So they didn't get to beat up on the evil troll. Well, Buffy Summers had already known that, what with the curse that linked the troll to Jim's mom, but she was disappointed anyway. Something about the smug expression on the troll's human face just made you want to smash his teeth in.
Jim shared that sentiment; Buffy had seen his expression during the talk. But deals were deals, and Stickler was Jim's problem. Still, they hadn't yet settled another question: "So… where does he live, then? We're not going to steal another trailer, are we?" Not for an evil changeling, a least.
"Spike has room in his trailer," Xander said.
"Oi! It's a classic caravan; it has room for two - in the same bed. And I'm not gonna sleep with him!"
That was a good argument. Buffy still grinned at Spike. "Oh, come on! Two dudes together in bed is hot!"
"What?" He gaped at her, and she giggled at his face. "Hell!"
Willow giggled as well. And Giles's lips twitched in that manner of his when he found something funny but didn't want to show it.
"We can put up a tent for him," Xander said. "Makes it easier to keep an eye on him, too."
"Right. I can put up some spells," Willow added.
"Uh…" Jim grimaced. "No curses, right? Remember, what he suffers, Mom suffers."
"Of course not!" Willow replied. "Just a few spells to track him. Oh! We need to test them so we know if they also track your mother! I don't think they'll do unless we're using sympathetic magic. That might do the job."
"A tent. Well, I presume I should be fortunate not to be left sleeping under the elements," the changeling said, shaking his head.
"This is the Shadow Realm. We don't have 'the elements' here," Claire told him.
"Although the temperature can vary, and certain areas might have some approximation of weather patterns depending on who influences them," Blinky cut in.
Buffy frowned. "We might get rain here?"
"Such effects are generally limited to specific areas under the influence of strong magical forces," the troll explained. "The shadows of monumental events, for example."
That sounded weird. Buffy nodded anyway. "As long as we don't have to deal with rain and cold here, I'm fine." It wouldn't do to style your hair and then get caught by a rainstorm outside. And going by the one camping trip with her parents when she had been in elementary school, it would be wet and cold even inside a camper.
"I think we should worry about the weather once we have the Triumbic Stone in our possession," Giles said. "Mr Strickler?"
The changeling nodded and then looked at Claire.
With a frown, she opened a portal to his house.
"Hey! Is your assassin troll there as well?" Buffy asked.
"I ordered him to guard my home," he replied.
"Goodie! We might be able to kill him, then!" She grinned and cracked her knuckles.
"That won't be necessary," the changeling told her. "I control him."
"Really? You can force him to betray your boss? Soon-to-be-former boss?" Buffy asked.
"Yes."
That sounded way too confident, in her opinion. Such deals rarely ended well for anyone.
"How? Are you magically controlling him?" Jim asked.
"In a manner of speaking, yes."
"Mind control is of the bad," Willow said with a deep frown. Tara nodded in agreement.
"It's not mind control. I merely hold something that is very dear to him."
"You got his beloved teddy bear as a hostage?" Buffy joked. When the changeling rolled his eyes, she added: "You're not holding his family hostage, are you? That would be evil."
"No. I am holding his soul hostage."
Buffy blinked. That sounded… "Well, do you mean literally or in the churchy way?"
"Capturing souls is also of the very bad!" Willow chimed in. Tara had gone pale.
"Indeed." Giles looked grim.
"Would you prefer to have the most feared troll assassin running free? He already harbours great disdain and enmity versus the Trollhunter." The changeling tilted his head and raised his eyebrows at her. Buffy once again felt the urge to hit him.
"Let's get the stone and avoid Angor Rot," Jim said. "We can talk to him later."
"Are you planning to make the same offer to him that you made to me, Young Atlas?"
Jim turned to frown at him. "No one should be forced to fight for Gunmar."
The huge, silent troll nodded slowly but emphatically.
Buffy smiled at the way the changeling pressed his lips together. "We could house you both in the same tent," she suggested.
Oh, that face! Point Buffy!
