merendinoemiliano-Thank you!

No one-Thank you so so much! I'm really glad you liked it and that I managed to surprise you. Yeah, as impactful as her death would've been, I like Zoe too much to kill her off lol. But I'm happy I got you for a second lol. I think you'll find Jim's reaction, well…something will happen, that's for sure hehe. And thanks, I really appreciate it. I hope this chapter will be worth your wait!

Jim had fought countless horrifying monsters in his relatively short life. He thought nothing could get worse than Bular, then Gunmar showed up. After Gunmar, it was Morgana. Then the Green Knight. Now, it was the Arcane Order.

He should really be used to this by now. Used to 'oh no, the world is going to end,' used to villains wanting to end him in the most agonizing way possible. But he wasn't. It still terrified him. The fact that it was Bellroc, the one who had voiced his worst fears to him…that didn't help at all.

A mass of clouds rolled over the ocean and over the fire titan, obscuring it from view. Jim relaxed ever so slightly.

"What do we do Jim?"

He jumped. "What? Oh, um-" He looked at Toby and the others, who were staring at him expectantly. Right. He was their leader; he couldn't afford to freak out like this.

He straightened. "See those?" he said, pointing to the fighter jets flying in formation. "We can't do anything while they're in the air. We'll wait until they're gone-who knows, maybe they can do some damage. Then that's when we'll make our move, and-"

"I say!" a reedy voice shouted, "What is the meaning of this?"

Jim turned around so fast he almost gave himself whiplash. He gasped as he saw who stood in front of them. Or maybe he should say what stood in front of them.

It was a troll, but not like any troll Jim had ever seen. His skin was the same pale green as jade-in fact, he looked like he was made of the very stone itself. Gleaming golden patterns danced across his skin. Jim swore swords stuck out of his back, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out why someone would let weapons stay pierced in them.

"Are you deaf?" the troll demanded, molten gold eyes narrowing at them. "Or do I have to make you talk?"

Jim finally found his voice. "No, no, we can talk!" He eyed the dozens of armored, dark red trolls behind the jade troll. They bristled their dual-ended blades at him, and he gulped. "I'm, um, Jim Lake, and I'm the Trollhunter-"

"Zong-Shi," Charlemagne snarled as he pawed the ground. "Finally came out of your hole, I see?"

The troll-or Zong-Shi-flicked his gaze over to Charlemagne. "Charlemagne," he chuckled. "My old foe. Never thought I'd see you again."

"How do you know this troll?" Blinky whispered to the dragon.

"He is a trolldragon, not a troll," Charlemagne corrected, his eyes never leaving Zong-Shi. "He is the leader of the trolldragons in this city. He is obsessed with avoiding death, and as such, never leaves his own palace if he can help it. Coward!"

"Am I coward for wanting to live?" Zong-Shi asked. "No, I think not. But I am not here to argue with you, Charlemagne."

He strode forward, his shimmering robe swishing around his feet. "That thing," he said, nodding at the titan looming in the distance, "is close to the bridge which my and my people abide under. Much too close."

Horror dawned on Blinky's face. "And if the titan destroys the bridge…"

"My home, and the rest of the inhabitants in it, will be lost," Zong-Shi finished solemnly. "I do not have enough time to evacuate everyone. If the bridge goes, my people go as well. As much as I despise saying it…" his face crinkled like he had bit into a sour lemon. "I need your help."

"And we'll give it to you," Jim answered automatically. "I know there's beef between you two, but a Trollhunter answers every call."

"A what now?"

"Are you serious-never mind," he sighed. "Just wait for my signal."

He looked up at the jets firing missile after missile at the titan. Chunks of steaming rock would crumble from the titan, but as quickly as they were destroyed, they would piece themselves back together again. This was going to be harder than he thought.

The jets zipped close to the titan, which turned out to be a fatal mistake. With one massive swing, the titan knocked all of them out of the air. The jets spiraled through the air before crashing into the ocean in fiery explosions.

Zong-Shi took a step back. "Take all the soldiers you need, 'Trollhunter.' I will observe from afar."

"Putting others' lives on the line for your own sake again?" Charlemagne snarled. "That's just what I'd expect from you."

"I can just as easily order my men to fight you, you know-"

"Guys, guys!" Jim shouted, interrupting the two. "This is no time to fight each other. We have bigger problems at hand. So can you chill for just like, two minutes?"

Zong-Shi crossed his arms, and Charlemagne looked away in shame. Jim took that as a yes. "Aiming for the titan itself isn't going to do anything, as the jets showed us. We gotta take out the head of the beast-I mean, the titan." He still hated that word. "We have to target Bellroc."

"How do you propose we get up there, master Jim?" Blinky asked. "Charlemagne cannot carry us all."

"You're right. Maybe we could-"

Out of the corner of his eye, something electric blue zipped through the air. An all too familiar Akiridion ship swerved around the titan before landing in front of them. The trolldragons bared their blades, but Jim held up a hand to calm them down. Uneasily, they lowered their weapons.

The door to the ship opened, and Jim grinned at the sight of Aja, Eli, Krel, and Steve. Sure, they were bruised and scraped up, but it could be a lot worse. At least they were okay.

"Guys!" Toby exclaimed as he and Jim jogged over to them. "You're here! That means you got Nari back, right?"

Aja shook her head. "No, we didn't."

It was then Jim realized how dejected and exhausted they all looked, especially Steve. The poor guy was a wreck, with puffy red eyes. He refused to meet Jim's gaze.

Dread tightened its grip around Jim as he noticed one crucial member of their team missing. "Where's Nomura?"

Everyone flinched and dropped their gaze.

He could barely hold down his panic. "Where's Nomura?"

"She's gone, Jim," Steve blurted out, finally raising his head. An ocean of guilt swam in his eyes. "She's gone because she saved us."

It was like someone had rammed a fist in Jim's stomach, knocking all the air out of his lungs. It wasn't possible. She couldn't be-gone. She's one of the strongest people he knew. There was no way. He couldn't accept it.

"You're joking right?" Toby asked, his voice abnormally high. "You're-this is just a stupid joke, right?"

"I wish it was," Krel said. "But it's not. I'm sorry."

See you around, little Gynt. Nomura's words rang in his head. No-her last words. He would never see her again. Never see the one who saved him in the Darklands. Never see the one who trained him to fight Gunmar. Never see the one who helped him embrace his troll nature.

Never again.

Aja's voice pierced through his thoughts. "H-hold on, I'm getting something!" She gasped, her face alighting with joy. "Yes! The secret weapon is here!"

Blinky frowned. "Secret weapon, you say?"

A shimmering blue portal opened in the night sky behind the titan. An enormous machine the likes of which Jim had never seen plummeted into the ocean. Not just a machine either, but a mech. And one that looked an awfully lot like-

"I am Gun Robot," a monotone robotic voice boomed from the sleek mech.

"No freaking way," Toby whispered. "No. Freaking. Way! Oh my gosh oh my gosh!"

"You're welcome," Eli said with a smirk.

"Wha-you built this?!" Toby cried, whirling towards Eli. "You built a whole Gun Robot?!"

"It took a while, but yes, yes I did." He gestured to the mech, a proud twinkle in his eyes. "Now sit back and enjoy the show."

A barrage of missiles flew out of the mech and blasted towards the fire titan. While the titan held up its arms to protect itself, a pair of huge engines popped out of the mech's back. It rammed into the titan, sending up plumes of water six stories high. The behemoths grappled each other, exchanging blow after devastating blow.

The others whooped in celebration, but Jim couldn't join in. How could he? He had just a lost a close friend, how was he supposed to be happy now? How was anyone happy now?

"You fools!" Zong-Shi screeched, silencing the others. "Why would you bring that-that metal monster here? In front of my home?!"

"What are you talking about?!" Aja demanded.

Jim's blood ran cold. Oh no. The titan and the mech were slowly but surely fighting their way towards the bridge. Blasters fired from the mech's shoulder, but it hardly slowed the titan down as it yanked them out easily. While the mech staggered from the hit, the titan wrapped its rocky arms around its torso and launched it into the air.

The mech skidded to a stop and forced itself to its feet. The gears in its arm shifted and groaned as it transformed into a giant blaster. It aimed it at the titan.

Horror shot through Jim. "Wait, wait! Tell whoever's driving it to stop!"

"Why would I tell Varvatos to stop? He has a clear shot!" Aja shouted.

"But if he misses, the consequences would be devastating! There are people on that bridge, Aja! People! Trolls are under it too. You can't do it!"

"I'm not telling him to stop, and that's final!"

A neon-blue beam of energy boomed from the blaster. It struck the titan dead-center. It stumbled, before ultimately falling right on the edge of the bridge.

"No!" Jim and Zong-Shi screamed in unison.

The titan shook itself before clambering to its feet. The beam had created a smoking crater in its chest, but it seemed unfazed. It waded towards the mech, and their battle ensued.

Jim had had enough. The damn blaster hadn't done anything, and for what? A bridge that was barely standing with dozens of terrified people on it-

He blinked. The bridge was still standing. Some of the road had crumbled into the sea, and an unsafe amount of cables had snapped, but it was still there. Maybe, just maybe, he had enough time to get the people off the bridge and repair some of the damage. At least make it stay standing long enough to get everyone, trolls and humans alike, to safety.

"I'm going to get on that bridge," he announced, and everyone's attention snapped to him. "Zong-Shi, start evacuating your people just in case it goes. Argh, Toby, Charlemagne, Blinky, get the humans off it and to safety. I'm going to try to fix some of those cables. If anyone else wants to actually help instead of causing more damage," he glared at Aja, "feel free to join me."

He summoned Daylight and dashed to the bridge, not checking to see if anyone was following his orders. He was too full of fury to care.

As he ran, his footsteps got heavier. His body surged with newfound energy and strength. Without even looking at himself, Jim knew he had turned back into a troll. Good.

He finally reached the bottom of the bridge. Without a moment's hesitation, he slung Daylight across his back and launched into the air. His fingers dug into the concrete, and he started scaling the bridge like a spider.

Once he got to the top of the bridge, he flipped over the railing. His eyes widened. Oh, this was bad. Very bad.

It was a miracle the bridge was still standing. Countless fires burned from toppled cars. Broken cables littered the ground. Smoke choked the air, making it nearly impossible to see. Then there was the giant chunk of road missing from when the titan had smashed into the bridge. Even now, bits and pieces of concrete continued falling into the sea.

Something heavy landed behind Jim, making the ground shake. He whirled around, sword at the ready, only to relax when he saw it was only Argh, Blinky and Toby on his back. "Hey, guys."

"Hiya, Jimbo!" He didn't miss how nervous Toby looked. "How's it going?"

"What do you think?" Jim snapped, shoving down the pang of guilt as Toby flinched. "Not good. We have to keep this bridge standing at all costs. But just in case, I want you to evacuate the people. I'm going to try to put some of the cables back up."

"Oh-okay. Will do. Um, good luck, I guess-"

But Jim was already gone. He grabbed one end of a cable, located the other end, and looped them together in a sturdy knot he had learned in Boy Scouts. He found another broken cable and tied it to the other end. Before long, he had lapsed into a pattern. Find the cable, tie a knot, repeat. Sometimes one piece was shorter than the other, and he had to shimmy up the unbroken cables to reach the other end. Other times he had to strain with all his might to tie the pieces together. One time he almost fell off the bridge himself climbing up a cable.

Slowly but surely, he started to see a difference. The bridge stopped groaning so much, and he finally felt like it wasn't going to immediately collapse anytime soon. He leaned against an upturned car and wiped his face. He was worn out. But hey, at least it was all done-

The mech slammed into the bridge. Jim gasped as the ground quaked underneath him, but the wobbly cables held. He looked up at the mech and paled. This wasn't looking good.

The mech was severely damaged from the fight. Lava was splattered across it, melting the metal and circuits underneath. It could do nothing as the fire titan-still in perfect condition-punched it again and again. The bridge trembled violently with each blow. The mech sunk deeper into the concrete, cracking more pieces off the bridge.

Jim fisted his hands in his hair as he watched as all his labors come undone. The cables he had worked so hard to fix snapped like string. The bridge groaned under the weight of the mech, threatening to collapse at any moment.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

Then in the distance, he heard it. A faint, high-pitched cry. Someone needed help-his help. He might not be able to save the bridge, but he'd be damned if he couldn't save even one person.

He turned away from the mech's beatdown and sprinted to the source of the cry. He leaped over an abandoned car and froze at the sight before him.

An SUV leaned precariously over the edge of the bridge. Over half the car hung hundreds of feet over the unforgiving ocean. He could see at least four people in it, all of them crying and screaming at the top of their lungs.

Jim forced himself to remain calm. It wasn't that bad; he could easily grab the car and drag it onto the bridge, there was no reason to panic.

Another earth-pounding boom rattled from behind him. With it, the bridge crumbled apart even more-including the piece the SUV was on.

Shrieks echoed from the car as it plummeted toward the ocean. Jim cried out and dived after it. His left hand just barely managed to grab the car's bumper. With the other, he gripped the edge of the bridge.

Oh, God this sucks, Jim thought as his muscles started trembling. He only had troll strength, not superstrength. This would be hard even if he hadn't been switching forms and straining to tie thick metal cables together.

He gritted his teeth and lifted with all his might. The car rose a few inches before his muscles failed him, making him nearly drop the car. He panted, sweat dripping from his forehead and stinging his eyes. What was he supposed to do?!

"Help!" he screamed, his muscles burning like a forest fire. "Argh, Blinky, anybody! Help!"

But no one came. He was utterly alone.

What was he supposed to do?! He couldn't swing the car up, couldn't lift himself up. All this strength, and for what? These people were going to die, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. It was going to be his fault.

He looked down at the car. Terrified faces stared back up at him. One was a little kid. He couldn't have been more than six. His dark eyes gazed into Jim's blue. There was fear in them, yes-but also the tiniest glimmer of hope.

Jim seized onto that spark of hope and held it close to his heart. This kid knew he was the only one who could save them. He believed he could do it. And Jim would. He was going to get these people out of here.

He already lost Nomura. He wouldn't lose anyone else.

With a strength he didn't know he possessed, he heaved the SUV onto the bridge. He pushed himself up without a second thought. He flexed his muscles, feeling more energized than he had in a long time.

Jim's ears pricked up as a cable snapped. More and more followed it, the metal lines falling uselessly to the ground. Cracks zigzagged across the cement. They needed to get out, now.

The people in the car, which looked much smaller now for whatever reason, hadn't exited it yet. Good. It would make this a whole lot easier for him.

He picked up the SUV and tucked it under his arm, too focused on the mission at hand to consider how he was even doing such a feat. He naturally fell on all fours as he charged forward. He grimaced as screams sounded from the car. He wished he could give them an easier ride, but there was simply no time. They were smack in the middle of the bridge. If it collapsed now, they would fall into the ocean. Even Jim couldn't save them from that.

He veered around gaping holes in the bridge, sometimes jumping clear across them if they were too big. The cement fractured under his pounding feet, but he ignored it.

I just have to get out of here, he told himself as he trampled a car. I'm so close, I can feel it. Just hold out a little longer-

Bellroc's battle cry, so piercing that even Jim heard it, filled the air. He couldn't resist. He glanced back and immediately wished he hadn't.

A giant glowing ball of heat hovered above the titan's chest. With a shriek, the titan released a boiling stream of lava at the mech. It burned right through the metal hull, destroying everything underneath. There was no way the mech was going to survive that.

The bridge collapsed under the weight of the mech.

And apparently, neither was the bridge.

The mech and millions of tons of concrete plunged into the ocean. The rest of the bridge crumbled away rapidly, the cracks travelling closer and closer to Jim.

He didn't allow it to reach him. He launched himself off the bridge, targeting the docks far, far below. Cars and massive boulders of concrete fell with him. The spray from the tidal wave the mech caused splashed his back, and the wind howled in his ears. He braced himself for the impact.

His feet slammed and broke through the concrete. Jim clumsily stepped out of his mini crater and gently set down the SUV. He stared at the car for a moment before deciding to open the doors for them.

After a few seconds, the man behind the wheel-Jim assumed the father-stepped out. The rest of his family hesitantly followed suit. They gazed at Jim with wide eyes, but there was no fear in them. Just confusion and wariness. Then, after staring at him long enough for him to start to feel uncomfortable, the father gave him the barest, imperceptible nod. He placed his hand on his wife's shoulder, used his other hand to squeeze the hand of the young girl, and steered them away. He had hardly gone more than three steps before he realized someone was still missing.

The little boy still had his head craned up to look at Jim. Wonder sparkled in his eyes. He reached out a small hand and placed it on his armored arm. Jim had the sudden urge to hold his breath, as if he might accidentally blow the boy away if he breathed too hard.

The father said something in Chinese, and the boy reluctantly retracted his hand. He walked backward, his eyes never leaving Jim. Finally, he spun on his heels and ran to catch up to his family, wrapping his hand around his mother's.

Jim slumped to the ground, not quite believing what had just happened. He had always wondered how someone outside Arcadia would react to him. He had believed with the utmost certainty they would either run away from him, screaming, or try to kill him. Which was a fair response, really-he had done the former when he first saw Blinky and Argh.

He had never thought what just happened was even a possible reality.

"Uh…Jim? That-that you, buddy?"

Jim turned to face Toby, Blinky and Argh standing behind him. "Yeah, it's me."

He glanced to the bridge, which couldn't even be called that anymore. The titan strode through the waters, as if nothing had happened. He sighed, more tired than anything. "So much for trying to save the bridge, am I right Tobes?"

"Totally," Toby squeaked.

Blinky interjected, "Don't be too despondent, master Jim, for we were able to get all the humans to safety. By any chance, are you, ah…" he hesitated, as if he didn't know what to say. Unusual for him. "Are you particularly angry at this moment?"

Jim raised a questioning eyebrow. "Maybe before, but not now. Why?"

"No reason! You're just, ah, how do I put this-"

"You're a big troll again!" Toby blurted out. "Like, from when you had the shard from last year!"

He frowned. "Not funny, Tobes. You know I don't like talking about that."

"Not lying," Argh confirmed. "Big like Argh again."

"You too?" Jim said, exasperated. "Come on, Argh, don't…" his voice trailed off as he considered Toby's exclamation. The sudden smallness of the car, how easy it was to carry it like it a feather…and then the time stone. A stone that had already pushed Jim's body back into humanity. Why couldn't it push it forward?

Icy cold fear crawled up Jim's throat. It couldn't be…he didn't want to know…but he had to make sure.

He slowly looked down at his armored hands-hands that were much, much bigger than they should be. Hands that both had four, clawed fingers.

All the breath felt like it had been knocked out Jim's body. No, no, no, no. This wasn't possible. But it is. Shut up. Just accept it. He wouldn't! He couldn't be like this, not again! He wanted out, now-

He gasped as a tingling sensation flooded his body. The power in his veins ebbed away, along with his stature. He looked up at Argh and Blinky, who were much taller than they had been a second ago. He glanced down at his hands again, just to make sure. For the first time, he nearly sobbed in relief when he saw five fingers on each hand.

"Jim…what happened?" Toby asked. "How is the big guy even back?"

"I-I don't know," Jim whispered. "I don't know."

But there was one thing he knew for certain-his worst fear and Bellroc's words had come true.

The beast had returned.

.

.

.

The way back was an eerily quiet one. Everyone was much subdued after Varvatos's failed attempt to stop the fire titan. Although, Jim noted sourly, hardly anyone seemed bothered by the loss of the bridge.

Jim, Blinky, Argh, and Toby hadn't had time to properly freak out about the return of his beast form before Aja showed up in her ship. She had whisked them off to Zong-Shi, who had wanted to thank Jim. Even though the bridge had been destroyed, his efforts, along with his friends, had given him enough time to get a majority of his people out.

"Our home may be lost," Zong-Shi said, his eyes shining, "but we can start anew. We were able to save so many. Thank you, Trollhunter. And…even you, Charlemagne."

"Yes, well, don't mention it," the dragon huffed, but there was no real malice in his voice.

Jim leaned back on Charlemagne, the cool air ruffling his hair. He had insisted on riding the dragon back to Camelot, saying that the ship was too full to carry him. But in all honesty, he just really needed the peace and quiet. Charlemagne must've sensed it too, because he was silent as he flapped onward, keeping pace with the ship.

So much had happened. Too much, really. He didn't want to think about the beast, but it kept springing up unbidden to the forefront of his mind. Why? Out of all the cruel hands fate could've dealt him, why did it have to be that?!

He didn't realize he was clenching his fists until he felt a sharp pain in his palms. He relaxed his hands with a hiss. Tiny crescents of blood shone in the moonlight. Great.

How could that thing have returned? Jim thought as he gazed at the stars. He was only able to turn into the beast because of the shard, but it was long gone. He knew it too-he hadn't felt its tug since last summer. So how?

That damn time stone, he spat mentally as he glared down at his amulet. Stupid magical piece of-

He was still calling the time stone some pretty colorful names as Camelot soared into view. His spirits lifted as he noticed the castle was in almost perfect condition. That meant something good, right? It had to be.

Charlemagne flapped to a stop on a balcony. No sooner had Jim's feet touched the ground then someone threw themselves at him.

"Jim!" Claire cried, hugging him so tight he thought he might explode. "You're okay!"

Pure joy sang through Jim's veins as he laughed and whirled Claire around. "And you too!" A few happy tears slid down his cheeks as he set her down and stroked her face. She beamed back at him, and for the first time, he forgot the world was ending.

"We got him, Jim," she said breathlessly. "Douxie finished him off. Skrael's dead!"

"What?!" He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Skrael-he's gone?"

She nodded eagerly. "Yeah! The titan went with him. So if you kill the wizard, the titan goes too. How about you?"

Jim's face fell. She instantly noticed, the jubilee from her face disappearing. "Not so good for you guys, huh?"

He shook his head wordlessly.

"Did we…" she swallowed. "Did we lose anyone?"

Fresh tears sprang in Jim's eyes. "Nomura," he whispered. "I…we lost her to Nari."

"Oh, Jim…" Claire hugged him again, gently this time. "I'm so, so sorry. I know how much she meant to you."

His body shook so violently it was hard for him to hug her back. "Th-thank you," he said hoarsely.

He buried his head in Claire's shoulder as he cried. He hadn't even had time to process Nomura's death before running off to save a bridge that he couldn't even save…the full weight of her being gone just finally hit him. She was his enemy, his prison cellmate, his mentor. But most importantly, she was his friend.

And now she was gone.

"Hey, Jim," Claire said softly after a few minutes. "Everyone's inside."

"Huh?" he said, his voice cracking. He looked up. Sure enough, the courtyard was empty. He hadn't even noticed them leaving.

"They probably went into the main hall," he said, drying his tears. "We should join them."

Claire frowned. "Are you sure you don't need more time? We could sit this one out-"

"I can't." He didn't let her finish. "Nomura wouldn't want me to stop. I can pull through for her sake."

"Then I'll stand by you," she said, squeezing his hand. "Until you're strong enough to stand on your own again."

He nodded. They stepped out of the moonlit courtyard and into the shadowy depths of the castle. Voices in the distance reached Jim's ears. They didn't sound angry, just…frustrated. He soon found out why.

"What are we supposed to do with Bellroc then?" Aja demanded. "Persuade her that what she's doing is wrong too? Yes, I don't see how that could go wrong! I'm changing the coordinates right now."

"Aja, Nari isn't like that," Douxie's voice protested. "I should know; I spent the last year with her!"

Jim and Claire entered the main hall. Everyone instantly fell silent, causing the tension already present in the atmosphere to skyrocket. Blinky, Toby, and Argh stared at Jim, but he refused to look them in the eyes. The beast was the last thing he wanted to deal with right now.

He cleared his throat. "So…what's up?"

"I'm trying to convince magic man to not do something stupid," Aja huffed.

"Jim, she's got it all wrong," Douxie pleaded. "I want to talk to Nari myself. I know she's still in there-we can't attack her because she's not herself! I just have to break her out of whatever spell she's under."

"And what if you fail? We can't afford losing you too."

Something icy formed in Jim's heart. "You didn't seem to have a problem with losing lives in Hong Kong."

Everyone gasped. Aja pivoted to Jim slowly. "What did you say?"

"You heard me," he said coldly, ignoring Claire's desperate whispers to stop. "You didn't care about the humans that were on that bridge, much less the trolls that lived under it. No, you just burst in guns-blazing, expecting everything to work out according to plan."

"Of course I cared!" she exclaimed. "But in times like these, we have to take calculated risks."

He laughed then, and even to him, the sound was terrifying. "'Calculated risks?' That's what you thought that shitshow was? No, that was blindly throwing everything you had, totally oblivious to all the others our battles affect."

Aja took a step toward him then. Her face was calm, but there was a storm raging behind her eyes. "Jim, I know you're upset that we lost, but it was the best option. Varvatos had a very good chance of succeeding, so I took it. We just underestimated the titan's power."

"That's what you think I'm upset about?!" Jim cried, oblivious to how he now matched Aja in stature. "Really?! It didn't register that people could have died because of that mech? Oh wait, I don't have to! Because guess what-it did! Or maybe you don't care about that, since it was only trolls who lost their lives, and not humans."

"I care about everyone living on this planet!" Aja yelled, striding up to him until her face was an inch away from his. "Don't you ever assume otherwise! But I knew that mech was our best shot at taking down that titan. Battles come at a cost, Jim. I thought you of all people would know that."

"I do know that! And I also know when the risk isn't worth the potential consequences! That's why I wanted you to back off, Aja. Win or lose, the fight between that mech and Bellroc would've been catastrophic. Why couldn't you have seen that? Or at the very least, why didn't you listen to me?!"

"What, you think I have time to hold conversation in the midst of battle?!" Aja shouted, her face pinched in anger. "If so, I'm sorry I didn't discuss things civilly with you, Trollhunter! But I wasn't going to let an opportunity like that slip by because something could go wrong!"

Fury unlike anything he had felt for a long time reared its ugly head. It crackled inside him, and it took all his strength to not punch Aja right then and there. From the corner of his eye, he could see Toby frantically shaking his head, but he ignored him. He was too angry to care.

"Well something did go wrong Aja!" Jim roared. "Things were already bad, but that mech made it so much worse! We lost lives! We-what're you doing?"

Aja had taken a step back, her hand hovering over her serrator. Confused fear danced in her eyes. Jim looked around the room, hopelessly lost. Everyone one else in the room wore the identical expression of shock and fear. He glanced back to Claire, who looked more worried than afraid.

"Jim," she breathed, "what…how-how are you like this again?"

Then it hit him. No, no, not again! He raised his trembling hands to his head, and as his fingers brushed against the extra pair of horns, he knew his worst fears were confirmed. A tidal wave of panic rose inside him, making it hard to breathe. Everyone knew now. They all saw the monster he had been trying to forget for so long.

"Hey Jimbo, it's okay, it's okay." He blinked and looked down at Toby, who was by his side. When did he get there? "Just calm down. We're not going to hurt you."

"But I-but I could hurt you," he gasped out.

Toby shook his head. "No, you're not," he said so sincerely Jim almost believed him. "Let's take some deep breaths, huh buddy? Real easy. In and out. In…and out."

Jim breathed in time with Toby, and somehow, that really did help to calm him down. By the time he was at his sixth breath, he had slipped back into his half-troll form. It was quiet for only a few seconds, but to Jim, it felt like eternity.

Aja broke it first. "What in the name of Seklos and Gaylen was that thing?" she said softly.

That thing. Jim's whine devolved into a whimper as he turned back human.

"That wasn't anything, it was just Jim," Toby retorted. "Just another, um, side of him."

"Wait…wasn't that what Jim turned into when he had an evil rock in his heart?" Krel asked. "I thought we took care of that last year."

Aja looked dumbfounded. "You…you've all seen this before?!"

"Most of us, yes," Blinky answered. "But it's not something we, or especially master Jim, like to discuss, now is it? Besides, like the prince has said, we thought we had taken care of that long ago."

"And we did," Jim butted in. "For some reason, the time stone thinks the-the beast is just another form I have, and I think I turn into it whenever I'm feeling very, um, emotional."

Aja crossed her arms. "Jim, I was already worried about you not having control over your human and troll forms before, but I shrugged it off because at least you were comfortable with both of them. I thought you could handle it. But with this third form, this 'beast'…I'm not so sure anymore."

"What are you saying?" Claire said, her voice low and dangerous.

She raised one pair of hands to placate Claire. "Look, all I'm saying is that maybe…maybe Jim should sit the rest of this out if he can't control himself."

The room exploded into protests. Blinky and Toby were absolutely furious and shouting at the top of their lungs. Claire looked like she wanted to punch Aja. Varvatos just looked excited that everyone was yelling.

And Jim? He didn't know what to think. This was all too much way too fast. But maybe Aja was right. He hardly had any control over his half-troll and human forms before, and now that the beast was thrown into the mix-something he despised with every fiber of his being-he just didn't know anymore. Maybe it would be better if he just-

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" Zoe shouted.

Just like that, everyone stopped yelling and zeroed in on Zoe. She brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Thank you," she said calmly. "Now, I believe Douxie has something to tell you all."

The wizard looked horribly embarrassed. "Er, thanks Zoe." He cleared his throat. "I know Jim's state is something you guys want to talk about, and this is probably a really bad time, but I can't not say anything, so-"

"Oh, stop blabbering and tell them already."

"Fine! Fine." He took a deep breath. "Nari's titan is right below us."

A/N: Guys I'm so so sorry for this late update! I know it's been over two months now, but like I said in my update in my last fic, life has been CRAZY. To summarize, the holidays, an independent project, and deciding to take a creative writing minor (which is fun but whoops more work) have all kept me so busy I've hardly had any time to work on this. Oh yeah, and guess who got covid? That's right, lil lucky old me, which made me very very behind in schoolwork. So yeah, hectic times for me lately. But also like I said before, I kinda got my schedule figured out now, so regular updates should be back on track.

You know, this chapter was really hard to write for some reason. It wasn't writer's block; I knew what to write and all, but it was just so hard to actually WRITE it, you know? I think it came out alright though. I hope so anyway lol.

And no, I don't think I wrote Aja out of character. She's a fighter, and a stubborn, impulsive one on top of that, so yeah, she's not going to think about consequences as much as Jim does. And, since she's Akiridion, I don't think she understands the implications of a whole freaking civilization under a bridge. She just sees an opportunity to beat Bellroc, and she takes it. So in a way, both her and Jim were right-she should've thought more of the lives on and under the bridge, and Jim has to realize you have to take risks in battle, and that she thought she was doing the right thing.

Oh yeah, and jumbo Jimbo is back! Except this time, there is no corruption to worry about. Jim just has to watch his temper a little more carefully now lol. I'm actually really excited that the beast is back without dark magic, because there are so many fun (and angsty) directions to take this in. I've got some pretty epic things planned already.

To those of you still checking in after that two month wait (again I'm so sorry) thanks for sticking with me and this fic! It means a lot, it really does. I'll see you in the next update!