Raelle was in her room working on homework while Jim was in the backyard, training with Draal. It had not been long since Raelle's kidnapping and rampage on her birthday. Raelle glanced over the statue of her gargoyle self, and so many things went through her mind. But the main thing was where the Kilahead bridge was located. Raelle knew they must have hidden it somewhere in Arcadia after the fight with Nomura. And Raelle was brought there.
Raelle decided to take a break from school and work on her Witcher training. She walked away from her desk and sat cross-legged in the middle of her room before closing her eyes. Raelle inhaled through her nose and exhaled through her mouth, focusing on her breathing.
Minutes went by, and nothing happened. Raelle was about to give up when she had an idea. Raelle grabbed her phone and began playing one of her favorite songs: Warriors by Imagine Dragons.
"As a child, you would wait and watch from far away. But you always knew that you'd be the one that work while they all play. In youth, you'd lay awake at night and scheme of all the things that you would change, but it was just a dream. Here we are, don't turn away now (don't turn away). We are the warriors that built this town. Here we are, don't turn away now (don't turn away). We are the warriors that built this town."
Raelle listened to the lyrics as she slowly felt a familiar sensation. Suddenly, Raelle's eyes glowed white, and her consciousness was transported to the InBetween. Raelle opened her eyes and found herself among the statues of previous Witchers. She walked toward the statue of Alvara before moving on to the others. Each inscription on the pedestals allowed Raelle to know a little about her previous lives. Raelle began to wonder if she could live up to the name of Witcher.
Raelle turned around and looked toward the archway of the temple. Raelle thought that perhaps this time will be able to venture out of the temple and explore the surroundings. She took a deep breath before walking toward the entrance, and the white light appeared again, blinding her. When Raelle opened her eyes, she was back in her room.
"Ugghhh, when I am ever going to get past level one?" Raelle groaned.
There was a knock on Raelle's door followed and heard her brother's voice.
"Hey, Rae. Can I come in?" Jim asked.
"Sure," Raelle replied.
Jim opened the door and walked into his sister's room.
"Everything ok?" Jim inquired.
"I guess. I tried going to the InBetween, and every time I try to leave the temple, I get sent back here. And it is super annoying. How was training with Draal?" She asked him.
"It was ok. I was a bit distracted, and Draal asked me what was wrong. I told him that I was nervous and scared about kissing Claire at the rehearsal tomorrow. At first, Draal was confused by what kissing was and then disgusted after I explained it to him."
"That sounds kinda funny," Raelle laughed, "Go on."
"Anyway," Jim continued, "Draal told me about this totem called a 'Grit-Shaka' and that it makes you fearless. And then he gave it to me."
"Can I see it?"
Jim pulled the Grit-Shaka out of his pocket. At first, it appears to be a common necklace with a pendant shaped like a fanged mouth has a glowing green crystal within it.
"Woah. Jim, are you sure this is safe for humans?" Raelle asked, "I mean, we don't know what kind of effect troll things have on humans. We got lucky with the Furgolator."
"Hey, I'm willing to take any chances I can get not to mess things up with Claire. Again," Jim said.
"Fine, but if this backfires on you, and it will, I'm gonna give you a big, fat 'I told you so'."
"Night, Rae," Jim chuckled.
"Night, Jim," Raelle said as her brother left the room.
Raelle slightly hoped that her brother would come to his senses and not use the totem before its too late.
The next day at school, Coach Lawrence was teaching class instead of Mr. Strickler. Coach Lawrence pulled down the projector as speaking to the class.
"Mr. Strickler's out today, so I'm subbing. He asked me to fill in to teach you some history. So without further ado, I present Gun Robot 3!"
He walked away and dimmed the lights, an image of a cowboy standing in front of a large robot on the projector screen as the students cheered. Coach Lawrence sat at Mr. Strickler's desk and began reading a book.
"Gun Robot 3"
The movie announced as everyone went silent. As Claire watched the movie, Mary leaned over and whispered in her ear as Jim watched with a frantic look, nothing settled him as today was the kissing scene.
"So, today's the big day," Toby said happily, "El smoocho, doth yonder."
Jim ignored him and quickly opened his backpack, gazing at the Grit-Shaka as Toby asked a certain question that could easily scare Jim further. Having bad breath.
"Got any breath mints?" Toby asked, holding some up.
"I got sweaty palms. What if I do it weird? What if I can't breathe? Look at her. Look at her! How can she be so calm?" Jim questioned before he groaned and threw his head down.
"Jim, relax. Claire is probably just as nervous as you about the kissing scene, and is playing it cool," Raelle told her brother.
Seconds later, Mary Wang stood next to Jim, pointed at him, and said, "Coach Lawrence? Jim took my seat."
The poor boy looked frightened.
"Lake, give her back her seat," Coach Lawrence yelled from behind a book as he relaxed.
Jim stood up, glaring at Mary as he walked off, only to hit the desk beside him, almost knocking a desk on its side and startling the boy sleeping in it.
"Hey! Weirdo," The boy insulted as Jim quickly gathered himself, Claire had looked away, shy to face him. The two sat in awkward silence before Jim nervously laughed.
Claire only responded by biting her eraser again and looking away. He let out a soft sigh before turning to Toby and shrugging.
"Talk to her!" Toby whispered, using his hands as a puppet.
"You got this!" Raelle whispered to her brother and gave him two thumbs up.
Raelle and Toby continued to watch as Jim turned and looked at Claire. Jim inhaled, ready to speak, but nothing came out. He turned away and rested his chin upon his hand. Claire gave a quick side glance as the hum from the totem caught Jim's attention. He reached into his bag and slid the necklace out, not letting her see it.
The two looked at one another separately before Jim gently put the necklace around his neck, a weird sensation running through his body as his eyes flashed a different color before returning to normal.
Jim cracked his neck before getting a sly grin and turning to Claire, "So... this is awkward, right?" He started, seizing her nervous habit, "Stage kiss."
"And they say comedy is hard," Clarie added in a small voice.
"I know, right?"
"Can you believe it? It's like the whole school is suddenly interested in our play."
Jim slyly moved his desk next to Claire's, their three friends watching from the back.
"Full disclosure, Toby even gave me breathe mints!" Jim whispered to Claire, causing her to giggle with a snort.
Claire quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment from the sudden noise. Jim let out a laugh before they both started laughing.
"Whoa!" Toby said with shock before he looked at Mary, who was not interested in anything but the screen. Toby did the same thing to his desk that Jim did before resting his hands behind his head.
"Hey, Mary! You got a date for the play? You do now," Toby draped an arm around her chair.
"I'm in the play, you dork. Don't gross me out," Mary said.
Toby moved his desk back and sat awkwardly in his seat, "Noted."
"At least you gave it a shot," Raelle told her friend, "And, besides, there are plenty of girls in the school."
After class, the trio was outside by their lockers. Toby bent down as he struggled to open his locker.
"These things are like bear traps," Toby groaned.
Jim walked up beside Toby, blowing his fist and lightly slamming it against his locker, the small door creaking open as he placed his bag inside.
"Whoa, you opened your locker on the first try!" Toby exclaimed.
"Neat trick," Raelle commented.
"Guys, it's the Grit-Shaka," Jim said happily, gesturing to the totem around his neck.
"That thing has a name?" Toby pointed to the Grit-Shaka.
"It's like a courage totem. Draal gave it to me for the kissing scene today, and, oh, man, Tobes! You should've heard me with her in class! I was killing it!"
"Wait, wait, wait. I'm sorry. Time out, time out. Draal, our Draal, is helping you with chicks?" Toby questioned.
"It's supposed to make you brave, but, man, I am feeling really good!" Jim started punching the air, "It makes me feel like I can do anything."
"Jim, I think you should take it off. At least, until you need it for rehearsal," Raelle suggested.
"What? No way!" Jim said, "This thing is incredible. Who knows what I can do with it."
Toby tried punching his locker but didn't succeed at opening it. Once Jim lightly pounded his fist into his best friend's locker, it opened.
"Wow. It made you cool," Toby said.
"Huh," Jim turned to look at his friends with a smile, "I'm not just cool. I'm crispy.
"High-five!" Jim said, passing Darci and Mary, who rejected his offer for a high-five.
"Whatever," Mary scoffed.
"Crispy?" Toby and Raelle repeated.
"This is going to blow up in his face, and I'm going to give him a big, fat 'I told you so'," Raelle said.
Later in the cafeteria, Jim, Toby, and Raelle are in line at lunch waiting to be served food.
"So, what's the special, Judy?" Jim happily asked, "Besides that lovely smile on your face."
The lunch lady had no happy smile, instead, it was a miserable frown.
"Chicken Surprise," She answered, causing Toby and Raelle to gasp.
"Chicken Surprise? No one orders that," Toby said.
"It's like a death sentence! Jim, you'd have to be crazy to eat it," Raelle told him.
Jim ignored Toby and Raelle's warnings and held his out the plate confidently, "Bring on the surprise!"
Judy poured the nasty slop onto his plate, Jim not even phased as he walked away. Toby looked at the lunch lady before holding up two fingers.
"Make it two?" Toby said.
Toby walked away from the line, following Jim. Raelle looked at the lunch lady, waiting to see if Raelle wanted the Chicken Surprise.
"No, thanks. Unlike those two, I don't have a death wish. Or at least, want to spend an hour on the toilet," Raelle said.
"Wise choice," Judy told her.
Not long after lunch, Raelle stood outside the boy's bathroom as Jim and Toby were each inside a stall busy with 'getting rid of their lunch.' The two had been in the bathroom for a long time, and Raelle could practically hear every groan they made from misery. Suddenly, Jim burst out of the bathroom with his arms in the air.
"I feel incredible!" Jim cheered before he ran off.
"I can't imagine why not. I mean, you pretty much emptied your entire stomach," Raelle said.
For the rest of the school day, Toby and Raelle were busy keeping track of Jim as he went on a courage-filled rampage all over school. At one point, Jim was in Miss Janeth's class, confidently but incorrectly answering a question on the board when it wasn't his class. And then he was in the Teacher's Lounge, pouring himself a cup of coffee, which bothered Coach Lawerence and Señor Uhl because he was a student. Then at some point, Toby and Raelle lost track of him.
Toby and Raelld headed to Claire as she stuffed her items in her locker. Toby was careful with his movements as the food had never settled with him.
"Hey, Claire, have you seen Jim?" Raelle asked, "Toby and I lost track of him."
"Yeah, what's going on? Everyone's talking about him. He's been all over school making a spectacle of himself," Claire said.
The loudspeaker blared as the three looked up, hearing Jim's voice.
"Hey, everybody, Jimmy Lake here. Just a quick reminder for everybody to keep it crispy. Also, I taught myself bass guitar in the band room. This one goes out to my Juliet."
Toby scoffed and facepalmed as Raelle rolled her eyes. Claire gasped at the word Juliet before he started strumming the guitar and singing, rather terribly, but his voice wasn't too bad.
"When our lips meet, fireworks!" Jim sang until his song was interrupted by a door opening, and the Principal's voice was heard.
"How'd you get in here? Give me that thing!" Principal Levit demanded.
"You can't stop the passion, man! - You can only fuel the fire!" Jim yelled through the intercom, arguing with the Principal.
"Yeah? Watch me!" Principal Levit argued back, fighting for the mic. Claire scoffed angrily before stepping away as Toby and Raelle watched the speaker and then her.
"This is bad," Toby said.
"As I knew it would be," Raelle said.
In the Hero's Forge, Aaarrrgghh has a strained face as he lifts a large platform from the stone ground.
"Higher. Just a little higher," Blinky instructed Aaarrrgghh, popping out from beneath the rock that had left a gaping hole.
"Arms hurt," Aaarrrgghh said.
"Focus on how much Master Jim's and Mistress Raelle's arms will hurt should this training equipment malfunction."
Blinky and Aaarrrgghh's task was interrupted when Toby and Raelle ran into the Hero's Forge.
"Blinky! Blinky! Wingman! We've got trouble!" Toby yelled with a panicked voice, "It's Draal. I mean, it's Jim. But it's Draal's fault."
"Did Draal kill him? Never should have consented to Draal supplementing Master Jim's training," Blinky wondered, standing in the vast control panel.
"Draal didn't kill him," Raelle said.
"Draal gave Jim something. It's like a totem. It's making Jim crazy," Toby told Blinky and Aaarrrgghh.
"Crazy?" Aaarrrgghh asked, struggling to keep the rock up.
"Yeah! It's like he's drunk or something," Toby said, "He's completely without fear or impulse control. And he's totally "crispy"."
"Jim said Draal called it a Grit-Shaka," Raelle informed Blinky as he crawled out from the hole he was in.
"No fear," Aaarrrgghh said before he slammed the rock down.
"That's how it works on Troll physiology," Blinky explained before questioning, "But how will it act on a human?"
"Probably make them act like a jerk jock from an 80s teen movie," Raelle said, "Because that is pretty much how Jim's acting."
Raelle felt her phone vibrate which meant she had gotten a text. She took out her phone and looked at her messages.
"Uh, guys, Jim just texted me that he's getting a tattoo here in Trollmarket," She informed them, "We got to stop him before it's too late. I, for one, do not want to explain why Jim has a troll tattoo to my mom."
"Then there's not a moment to lose. Follow me!" Blinky exclaimed before he, Aaarrrgghh, Raelle, and Toby rushed out of the Hero's Forge.
The four soon saw Jim, his blue jacket tossed to the side, leaving him in his white t-shirt as a buff troll stood behind him with a large hammer and a chisel.
"Give me a tattoo of a broken heart. With a crack in the middle. And make it weep," Jim told the troll, but as he was about to pound the metal into Jim's plushy flesh, Blinky interrupted them.
"Cease this madness!" Blinky quickly yelled out, pushing a troll from his view.
"Hey! Perfect timing, buds! Let's all get tats!" Jim excitedly said as he laughed and stretched his hand out to them, "Fellowship! High-five?"
"If you would give us a moment," Blinky mumbled to the Troll, who walked off. Since they were leaving him hanging, Jim gently patted his hand against his own as Blinky facepalmed, "Great Gronka Morka, it's even worse than you said. Master Jim, the Grit-Shaka."
"Ha, ha! Cool, right?" Jim pointed to the totem before his voice deepened, and he pointed to Blinky, "I mean, crispy."
"I was thinking more along the lines of "unholy" and "disturbing"," Blinky said.
"Dangerous!" Aaarrrgghh added as he pointed at Jim. Jim protected his necklace.
"That, too. Master Jim, that is a Gumm-Gumm totem, reason enough to be wary of it. But the fact that you are a human makes its effects unpredictable!"
Jim's eyebrows dropped when his friend put a stop to his fun.
"And that necklace is not a good look for you," Toby said, pointing an accusing finger.
"Yeah," Raelle agreed, "It's turning you into a jerk!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What is this? An intervention?" Jim pulled the giant hand of the Tattoo troll near his back, but Blinky quickly pushed it away.
"If need be," Blinky said.
"Well, need not be! I'm fine. I am better than fine. And if you want the Grit-Shaka, you're gonna have to take it from me," Jim stood up, the amulet clenched in his hand behind his back.
"Come on, Jimbo," Toby sighed, "We don't have to go there."
Jim quickly pulled the amulet before speaking the incantation weirdly.
"For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command! Holla!" Jim yelled as he was pulled from the ground and circled in metal, the armor connecting piece by piece as he grinned. Once he finally landed, he moaned happily before landing a pose.
"But we just did. Ok, I guess we're doing this," Raelle spoke, rolling her eyes in annoyance and transforming into her gargoyle form.
"That's right! Uh-huh! I just went there!" Jim cheered as he stood with satisfaction.
Aaarrrgghh growled as he shoved Blinky gently out of the way before advancing toward Jim.
"Be gentle with him," Toby told the giant troll.
Jim watched as Aaarrrgghh advanced before diving out of the way with an achieving laugh, knowing that the giant troll had missed him.
Aaarrrgghh roared as he looked to see that his target wasn't captured. He dove again, but Jim jumped from him, stepping on his back before landing directly behind him with grunts.
"A-ha!" Jim excitedly yelled before taking off.
"Grit-Shaka has changed him, indeed. Master Jim was never this nimble," Blinky punched the air a few times before looking at Toby and Raelle with a smile. While Toby only glares at Blinky, Raelle glares and growls at the four-eyed troll.
"I mean, this is terrible!" Blinky nervously stated with Raelle's terrifyingly red eyes glaring at him.
Raelle growled once more at the troll before joining Aaarrrgghh in chasing after her brother.
"Jim!" Toby called as he and Blinky joined the chase.
"Master Jim, I beg you, do not lose yourself!" Blinky yelled, chasing him down, "Master Jim, I beg you, do not lose yourself."
"Lose? I found myself! And I wasn't even looking for me."
The four chased after Jim as Trolls watched them in wonder as if to know what was going on.
"The Grit-Shaka's effect on you is false, which makes it dangerous..." Blinky warned. Jim dodged on coming Troll as his mentor followed, "You should always be afraid! If Bular attacked you in this state you would not be able to defend yourself. "
Jim quickly turned the corner and jumped off a small ledge. The four followed as Aaarrrgghh quickly set Toby on his back.
"Oh, yeah? I'll show you. I'm not afraid of Bular! I'm not afraid of anything!" Jim responded, "Wait a minute."
Jim caught sight of a few gnomes resting on a small shop canopy. He laughed as his sword appeared, and he jumped, letting his sword pull on the cloth before letting it go, causing the gnomes to fly with a cheer.
Blinky let out a scream as he watched the gnomes fly toward him. Two landed beside him while one had used his face to land on. Blinky lifted the small creature off with a scream, watching as the gnome yipped and struggled in his grip with angry chatter.
"Scum of the Earth!" Blinky yelled before throwing it. He wiped his face from where the gnome had touched before gasping as a small crowd gathered around Jim, listening to him.
"I'll show you! I'm not afraid of anything! I-I-I will fight Bular. I will end him today!" Jim lifted his sword high before running off.
"Jim!" Toby called out, hoping down from Aaarrrgghh.
"He is going to get himself killed," Raelle said.
"That went poorly," Blinky perked up, realizing something, "Fortunately, Jim has no means by which he can locate Bular."
"That's not exactly true," Toby quickly said, causing Blinky to panic.
Toby and Raelle quickly left Trollmarket and went to the one person in Arcadia where Jim could go to know where Bular is at.
Toby and Raelle reached Clarie's house and saw no sign of Jim, meaning that he was already on his way to face Bular. The two snuck around the house and peered up at an open window for NotEnrique's room.
"NotEnrique!" Toby called, "Have you seen Jim?"
A sudden flash of green was seen in the window as NotEnrique popped his head out the window in his changeling form.
"Hey! Get away! You're gonna blow me cover!" NotEnrique yelled in a whisper.
"Come on! Did you tell Jim where Bular's hiding?"
"If a bloke wants to commit suicide, who am I to stand in his way?" NotEnrique dropped from the window.
"Where did he go?" Toby asked.
"I can't hear you," NotEnrique said as he sat on the side of his crib.
Raelle was getting annoyed by NotEnrique and decided that she had reached her limit of being tolerant of annoying people. Raelle transformed and flew up to the window. She dug the claws on her feet and right hand into the side of the house.
Raelle reached her left hand through the window and grabbed NotEnrique by his scruff before pulling him out.
"Listen to me, you little raccoon. If Jim gets killed, then Bular and Gunmar win. This means that you can kiss goodbye to all the luxuries you have here when Arcadia becomes Gum-Gum central," Raelle told the changeling before holding him out above the far below ground, "Now, you are going to tell us where Jim is!"
"Okay! Okay, Warrior Goddess! I told him that Bular is hiding out in the sewers under town," NotEnrique confessed.
Pleased with the answer, Raelle tosses NotEntrique back into his crib through the window.
"Good baby," Raelle said before jumping down and landing next to Toby as she returned to her human form, "You go tell Blinky and Aaarrrgghh. I'm going to go ahead and search the sewers. I'll call you if I find Jim."
"Got it."
The two teens ran off in opposite directions. While Toby ran toward the canals, Raelle ran toward town. Raelle knew that time was of the essence because it was only a matter of time before Jim found Bular and possibly his demise.
Raelle quickly found a manhole before removing the cover and hopping down into the sewers. Raelle quickly transforms but does not move from her spot as she realizes she does not know how to find her brother. An idea soon came to Raelle's mind before she put it to the test.
Raelle inhales before exhaling high-pitch purple-colored sonic sound waves. The sound waves traveled through the sewers, bouncing off the walls. Raelle listened closely, waiting for what her echolocation would find. A few moments passed before the sound waves returned to Raelle, allowing her to know the location of Jim.
Raelle quickly sprung into action and ran on all four to her brother. Raelle used her echolocation every few seconds to know her brother's location as he moved. When last using her echolocation, Raelle discovered that Jim was fighting with Bular. But Bular had managed to knock Jim down during the fight. Raelle's pace quickened as she raced to save her brother from his stupidity, Bular, or both.
Raelle soon saw her brother and Bular in a large open, dome-like area of the sewer. Jim crawls back as Bular steps toward him with his sword in hand, causing Raelle to run faster than she ever had before. Bular lifted his sword high, preparing to take the life of another Trollhunter. Bular swung his sword down on Jim, but his sword did not hit the human Trollhunter. Raelle stood between Jim and Bular with one of her armored wings shielding herself and Jim from Bular's sword.
"The Witcher!" Bular growled in anger.
"The one and only," Raelle retorted before sending Bular back with a push from her wing, "No one messes with a Lake and gets away with it!" Raelle turns to her brother, "Are you ok, Jim?"
"I'm ok now that your here, but I think I would be better if we got out of here," Jim replied.
Bular roars, gaining Jim and Raelle's attention. Jim looked at the dark troll, afraid, while Raelle stood ready to fight him. As Bular jumped, ready to catch his prey, Toby tried harder than ever to lift the manhole.
"For the glory of Merlin!" Toby screamed as he finally opened the hatch and flew back.
The light shined through the hole as Jim shielded himself, Bular's face catching the sunlight. Bular growled as Jim watched him back up, but the beast suddenly roared, causing Jim to flinch.
From one of the pathways leading to the dome-like area, Blinky and Aaarrrgghh finally found Jim, Raelle, and, unfortunately, Bular.
"Master Jim! Mistress Raelle!" Blinky called out before they started running to aid the boy.
Unfortunately, a goblin was above them. The goblin removed a manhole, letting light fall in front of them, preventing the two trolls from reaching Jim and Raelle. Blinky let out a scream as the goblin left them trapped behind the light source.
"Master Jim! Mistress Raelle!" Blinky yelled.
Bular circles Jim and Raelle. The two stay in the light as it is their only protection. The evil troll roared as Jim finally stood up beside his sister. They try to keep the furthest distance possible between them and Bular while staying in the cage of light.
"Jim, grab my hand! Come on!" Toby holds his hand down, trying to save his friends, "Rae, fly out! You can do it!"
"Toby, I can't!" Raelle told her friend, "My wingspan is too big to fit through the hole."
Jim tried jumping high, but sadly it wasn't enough. Bular still circled him and Raelle, but the tip of his sword was dragging near the heroes' feet.
"I can't reach! The armor! It's too heavy, Tobes!" Jim said.
"Pathetic that you meet your end in a sewer, Young Atlas. And you bring such shame to your predecessors, Young Artemis, " Bular said.
Jim and Raelle's mouths dropped at the mention of the nicknames that only one person in their whole lives ever called them: Mr. Strickler. The two began to realize that their teacher was working for Bular.
"Master Jim! Mistress Raelle! You must get out of there!" Blinky screamed at them.
Jim and Raelle looked at their mentor. Bular used the distraction to lift his sword with a yell before stabbing the concrete where the two once were after dodging any killing blow. Raelle and Jim rolled from the sword to the other side, but Bular was quicker. The two ran in the other direction before turning around. They watched Bular roar and prepare his sword.
Bular swung, but they jumped back. Bular swiped again, but they jumped back even further. The Trollhunter and Witcher looked above before facing Bular once again. They quickly realized something that could help them.
As Bular swung again, Raelle grabbed Jim and flew back. The blade became deeply wedged in the concrete, causing it to get stuck. Jim and Raelle watched as Bular tried to yank it out.
"Jim, Raelle, grab my hand! Now!"Toby yelled from above.
"I lost the Grit-Shaka," Jim started as he placed his metal foot on the blunter side of the blade. Raelle returned to her human form, and Jim pulled the amulet from his chest, revealing his no longer protected human body, "But I can still be brave."
Bular roared in anger, finally pulling the sword from the ground that Jim was balancing on. As Bular threw the now free sword, he had also thrown the two teens into the air. Jim quickly grabbed Toby's hand, and Raelle grabbed Jim's leg.
Toby pulled his friends out of the sewer with a little struggle but managed to get them to safety. They were close to being pulled back down by Bular. Toby managed to get them out, and Raelle did not hesitate to kick the circular cover back onto the manhole frantically.
Bular roared before he was fully covered up. Jim, Raelle, and Toby watched the now silent manhole until Bular's fist appeared, punching the cover-up into the air, startling the three teenagers but couldn't get out.
They shrieked before dropping back, groaning after the heart-racing event. The three teens lay on their backs, breathing heavily.
"I know we just escaped death and all," Raelle sits halfway up and turns to her brother, "But, I told you so, Jim."
Jim breathed heavily before sitting up halfway and spilling the news to Toby, "Strickler's a Changeling."
"I never trusted him," Toby said, sitting halfway up and breathing heavily, "Also, you've been a real turd today."
"And I smell like one, too," Jim sighed, "Thanks for saving my neck. I owe you guys one."
"Yeah, great. Just don't ever say "crispy" again."
"Deal," Jim held his hands up, causing Toby and Raelle to smile before the three high-fived as a car pulled up, and the driver honked their horn.
"Hey! Move it!" The driver yelled.
The three teens stood up and ran off the street to the sidewalk.
Late that night, Raelle lay on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Raelle realized that Mr. Strickler must be the 'boss man' NotEnrique told them about. She wondered why her Witcher sixth sense did not alert her that Strickler was a threat.
"How could I be so stupid?" Raelle muttered to herself.
Raelle got off her bed and walked to the bookshelf near her desk. Raelle grabbed her yearbook from last year before she opened it and flipped through the pages until she stopped at the page with the teachers. Raelle looked at the picture of Strickler, and her eyes glowed red. She growled before shutting the yearbook and throwing it at the wall.
Raelle felt anger coursing through her veins and knew it needed to blow off some steam. Raelle transformed into her gargoyle form and perched herself on her window sill before flying away.