The Return of the King
Walt groaned as he woke up. His chest was tight and sore, every deep breath burned. Forcing his eyes open, he saw the royal bedchambers in the Avalon Castle and Barbara sitting by his side on the bed.
"Easy, Hon," She gently helped him sit up, "We just finished fixing your ribs. Three of them were BROKEN."
"And you had a pretty bad concussion to go with them," His mother sat on his other side.
He winced, "Sorry, Love. I really thought I had them. I'm still not quite used to the limitations of the human body."
"I know, Walt," Barbara leaned against his shoulder, "But you HAVE to be more careful. I don't want to lose you."
He sighed and rest his cheek on the crown of her head, "Was anyone else hurt?"
"Yes and no. The Arcane Order have Douxie...and he's in Nari's body…" Barbara admitted, "But no one else is hurt!"
Walt stared at her in horror.
"Ok. I know that sounds bad but-"
He groaned and covered his eyes with his free hand.
"You said no one else was hurt?"
"That's right. Some bumps and bruises but nothing more. Nearly everyone else had armor or stone skin."
"What about the civilians?"
"They're shaken but not hurt," Morgana explained, "Most of the explosion was contained in the subway tunnels. We were able to pass it off as a gas leak."
He nodded, "Thank heaven for little miracles."
The room went silent for a moment. Then, Morgana lifted his hand and smiled down at him shyly.
"You look like you could use something to lift your spirits."
Walt smiled at her wanly, "I don't know, Mum. They're pretty heavy."(1)
She bit her lip, "Before I tell you, you have to promise not to tell Angor."
Walt chuckled and tried to sit up more, "Ok. I prom- wait. Mum? Not tell Angor what?"
She glanced at Barbra and looked back, "You'll see in about six months…"
He stayed at her, eyes growing wide. Barbara laughed. (2)
"Mum? Are you pregnant?"
"I am. I only found out for sure a few days ago."
Something clicked. Walt shot up, broken ribs all but forgotten.
"Wait. You went into battle!?"
"I already chewed her out," Barbara put a hand on his arm.
"Well, I'm chewing her out again!" He snapped, "Do you realize what could have happened!? You could have been hurt! Your BABY could have been hurt! You could have mis-...Mum. There is SO MUCH that could have gone wrong…"
"I know, Wally. But you were already five down with everyone who stayed to help out in Heartstone. I couldn't ask to-"
"Yes! You could have! Or you could have swapped places with Liza! You can fly, too!"
"Jim had just lost his grandfather! Can you imag-"
"Exactly! Can YOU imagine how he would feel if anything had happened to you last night!?"
Morgana hung her head, glare aimed at her feet rather than her son. Walt rubbed his eyes.
"It was one thing when we all knew what we were getting into. How to help each other. But you didn't tell ANYONE. Not me. Not Barbara. Not even ANGOR. He should have been the first to know, Mum. And not just because, I'm sure, it's his. He was the ONLY other person on your team last night. He should have known so he could get you out if need be. Or help if something went wrong…"
The room went silent once more.
"I'm sorry, Mum. I just...I don't want to lose you again. We just got you BACK…"
She chuckled, "Walt, I've been back for almost a year."
"That's nothing compared to how long you were gone."
She nodded and crawled onto the bed beside him. Walt pulled Barbara closer and rest his head on his mother's shoulder.
"We should head out soon," Barbara murmured, nuzzling closer, "Claire kind of panicked when she told Jim and then HE started panicking."
Walt chuckled and shook his head, "Alright. We still need to figure out our next move, anyway."
Barbara nodded and she and Morgana helped him to his feet. Together, the three went down the hall and into the Hall of the Round Table. Nearly all the Trollhunters and the Knights of New Avalon were assembled and waiting.
"Da!" Jim lunged forward and hugged him around the ribs.
"Oof! Young Atlas. Ribs. Still hurt."
"Sorry, Da. Claire just made it sound like you were on your deathbed or something."
Walt grinned, "You're not getting rid of me that easily."
Jim grinned back and led his parents and grandmother to the table. Morgana made her way around to Angor's side and grabbed his arm. Walt looked around.
"Where are Blinky and Bular?"
Jim shuffled, "I...I evacuated Heartstone. I sent them with to take care of everyone until I come and get them. The twins and Toni are with them, too."
"What?"
"Someone's trying to get at the heartstone," Elizabeth held her arms as she spoke.
"I wasn't going to leave them all there unprotected but I'm needed here more. There's no point in protecting Heartstone if Ancient Demigods are just going to destroy the world."
Before anyone could say anything, Douxie or, rather, Nari in Douxie's body, leapt across the table, chasing Archie and Stardust.
"I was told…" Walt muttered, "But I don't know what I expected…"
Merlin caught the sprite, rescuing the familiars. He kept one arm around Douxie's shoulders and guided Nari back to the Table.
"Nari? Do you have any idea where they could have taken Douxie?" Walt leaned on the table for a second.
She shook her head and clasped her hands in front of her, "I do not. Many of our keeps and lairs have been destroyed over the centuries. I may be able to tell you where some of them were but I have no way to tell you which one they could have taken him to. I do not even know if I would be able to feel for him since I am in HIS body and currently have HIS powers…"
Walt nodded, "That's ok, Nari. At least he was able to buy us some time. And it's not like trying to find and save someone is the hardest thing we've ever done."
She nodded but stepped closer to Merlin nonetheless. A chime rang through the hall.
"Oh! The portal!" Aja leapt to her feet.
"Someone is coming over from Akoridian 5!" Krel bound after her and opened the portal.
The glowing blue portal opened up and they were all buffeted by the wind it caused. From within the swirling vortex stepped Karl Uhl.
"Onkel Karl!" Mary bolted forward, brothers hot on her heels.
The man chuckled and caught the three teens as they slammed into him. Unlike when he left, he was now clad in a black Akoridian space suit, a series of rings on his chest displaying his rank as the human ambassador.
"It's good to have you back, Karl," Otto pat his shoulder.
"It's good to be back, Otto."
"But why ARE you back?" Lenora hugged her brother, "We weren't expecting you until Christmas."
"Failkov and Coranda sent me. Aja and Krel explained vvhat vvas going on and they thought you could use a little backup. Vervatos vvill be here later and Zadra has the fleet on standby. If it comes down to it, vve'll just hit the titans vvith a laser from space."
"Um. That's currently not an option," Walt put out one hand to stop Merlin from attacking Karl, "But we'll keep it in mind."
Karl eyed the wizard and nodded slowly. He grinned and turned back to his family.
"I did bring presents, though!" He handed a glowing blue pacifier to Otto and Lenora, "This one is for Antonia. It glows in the dark," He clipped a bright glowing hair clip into Mary's neon hair, "This one is for you and it has your name on it in the Akoridian alphabet. It has many functions, including producing a shield."
"Danke, Onkel Karl! It matches my new hair!"
He handed Eli, and Toby glowing blue rings big enough to fit around their wrists, "These are for you two. They bluetooth to your phones and have many other features like Mary's hair clip. Such as a telescope and a flashlight."
"Cool Beans."
Karl grinned and turned to Morgana, "This is for you. Claire and Krel designed it but it had to be built on Akoridian 5."
He handed her a glowing blue prosthetic hand. Taking it and putting it on just as she had with her old one, she found it turned and moved just as smoothly as the one given to her by the Arcane Order.
"Thank you."
"It is magic and technology, though. So you do have to be a little more careful vvith it."
"I'll have to remember that. But thank you nonetheless."
Karl nodded and turned to Walt, "Last one. This one is for you. It took a bit of vvork but I think vve finally figured it out."
He handed him a glowing blue and black amulet. Walt could only stare at it, reading the incantation over and over in his mind.
"It's not sentient like the Daylight Amulet was," Krel explained, "But Douxie and I found a way to make it hold and release armor like that one."
Walt smiled softly and held up the amulet, "For the good of all, midnight is mine to command."
Nothing happened.
"Um...Maybe you said it wrong?"
"For the good of ALL, Midnight is mine to command!"
Nothing.
Morgana and Merlin stepped forward and inspected the amulet.
"Was any magic used in this?" Merlin turned to the young prince.
"It wasn't needed," Krel shrugged, "It's pretty much just a tiny controlled wormhole. The same technology that was used to create the larger one."
"That could be what's holding it back," Morgana turned the amulet over in her hands, "It needs something magic to center it. Like my hand and Douxie's mini Heart of Avalon."
"But where would we find something with that much magic power?"
"The stone in Excalibur could do it."
They turned and stared at Mary.
"I mean, if the Lady of the Lake created it with pure magic like the rest of the sword it would, right?"
Morgana nodded and looked up at her son, "She's right about that."
"But the sword is still stuck in the stone," Walt rest his thumb against his chin, "And, from what I've heard, no one has been able to remove it yet."
"You could do it."
They turned to Claire this time. The young enchantress bowed her head and blushed.
"I mean, if only the true King of Avalon could pull the sword from the stone then, as the Heir of Avalon, Mr. Strickler should be the one who can, right?"
After a moment, Walt found himself smiling, "Alright, Kids. We'll give it a try."
The teens cheered and led the way out. Excalibur and it's stone stood in a small pavilion between the High School and the Castle. The teachers and parents had all agreed that only seniors would be allowed to try and pull the sword. Not that that had stopped nearly every other student from sneaking out to try, anyway.
Now, however, the Trollhunters and their family crowded around the stone. Walt licked his lips as he stepped up. He grabbed the hilt and pulled with all his might.
He stumbled back. The sword was still lodged firmly in the stone.
"Well, that was anticlimactic," Seamus sagged, "I thought for su-"
A soul wrenching scream tore through the air. Nari collapsed to her knees, clawing at her temples.
"Nari!"
Walt and Merlin dropped to her sides, Barbara not far behind.
The sprite screamed again, tears rolling down her borrowed cheeks. She looked up at Walt, eyes glazed over.
"Trollhunter make nine! Kryosphere make right!"
She screamed again and collapsed, sobbing and dry heaving. Merlin pat Douxie's shoulder gently.
"W-What just happened?" Eli squeaked.
Walt stood up, allowing Barbara to take his place by Douxie's side, "The Arcane Order have Nari."
Panic broke out.
"Where!?" Jim stepped foreward, "Where did they take her? Douxie! You were THERE!"
"Young Atlas!" Walt grabbed his son by the shoulders, "Deep breath. Calm down. Let Douxie recover for a moment. You saw what Nari went through during the switch back. Imagine how Douxie is feeling."
Jim growled again but took a deep shaking breath and nodded. In a couple minutes, the young polymorph was calmed down and the young wizard was able to sit back up.
"New York," Douxie whispered, "They were in New York. But, th-they don't stay there. Not after they open the Seals."
"Where do they go, Hisiredoux?" Merlin helped his apprentice to his feet.
"I-I don't know. The...The Titans each…"
"It's alright, Douxie," Walt squeezed his shoulder, "Let's get back to the castle. Maybe we can figure out where they all are with a modified tracking spell."
Archie gilded forward and nuzzled into his person's chest.
"Wait!" Eli was still standing by the stone, "What was it Nari said? Right before they took her. 'Trollhunter make nine'?"
"And 'Kryosphere make right'. Why?" Walt turned back to his nephew.
"Well...what if it has something to do with how to get the sword out?"
The family turned back to face the young fairy. All but Douxie, Merlin, and Karl, who continued on their way back to the castle. Walt reached into his pocket and pulled out the new amulet.
"That's an excellent point, Eli. But nine what? I can't think of anything there...are...nine…" The Trollhunter trailed off, looking from the amulet to his siblings.
"Walt?"
He was counting, "8...9. There are nine of US. Three changelings, our three spouses, and our first three children. Nine."
"But, Da," Jim pointed over his father's shoulder, "There aren't just nine of us anymore. There's...a lot more than nine."
Walt turned around. Morgana, Angor, Arrrgh, and the rest of the kids were still standing there. He counted again and grinned.
"You're right, Jim. There are much more than nine. There are eighteen of us."(3)
He pocketed the amulet again and leapt back onto the stone, "Everyone gather around. Put a hand on the stone."
Once everyone had a hand on the stone, Walt grabbed the sword once more. He pulled with all his might and hoisted the sword above his head. It exploded with gold and green light. His family was thrown back. When the light faded, not just with the stone but dressed in glittering golden armor. Shining emeralds adorn the crown and breast of the armor. A long flowing green cape cascaded down his back, much like his mother's armor. Jim burst into a wild grin and tears rolled down Barbara's cheeks.
"I guess you won't be needing the amulet now," Krel chuckled.
Walt looked down at his new armor, then at the amulet. He smiled. He pulled the crystal from the hilt of the sword and handed it and the amulet to the Akoridian prince.
"Would you mind fixing it anyway? I may not need it but there are others among us without armor yet who could use it."
Krel grinned and nodded. He took off towards the castle. Walt sheathed his sword and put an arm around his wife.
"Let's head back to the castle. I have a plan."
They didn't take more than a few steps before Steve and Darcy crashed into them, tugging their armor on as they ran.
"We saw the light and-"
They gaped up at their teacher. Walt chuckled and toyed with is cape.
"Do you like it?"
Darcy recovered first, "Y-Yeah. It's amazing. But...I thought you couldn't do that anymore."
Walt frowned, "Do what?"
"CHANGE."
He blinked at her, "Change?"
Without waiting for a reply, he pulled off one glove. He stared at the serpentine hand. Jim laughed. Walt laughed shakily and looked up at his mother.
"How? What changed?"
"It must be that whatever magic is in the sword overpowered the Arcane Order's magick."
Walt chuckled. He wiped his eyes and took a deep breath. Closing his eyes, he knew there was something he needed to try.
"Walt!"
Barbara leapt back as he shifted into his human form. The one he had used for nearly a thousand years.
"You're a changeling again?" Nomura gaped at her brother.
"No just a changeling," Jim's grin never faded, "He doesn't have a familiar now. He's a changeling POLYMORPH."
Walt chuckled and hugged his son tight. Liza shuffled closer to her brother. To her, it had been only a few months ago that the two of them had been the only polymorphs on the planet. Now, she feared she might lose track of them all before long.
LLB
"Alright," Walt leaned on the Round Table, "The Titans were moved when they opened The Genesis Seals. Do we have a way of locating them?"
"I believe that would be a job for me," Merlin waved a hand over the map on the table.
Little illusions appeared on the map, almost like holograms.
"That's Nari in Brazil and making her way North," Douxie pointed to the smallest figure.
"And Skrel in Greenland, making their way South-West," Mary touched the little image with one finger.
"And Belrok in the South China Sea heading...West?" Jim made a face at the final Titan.
Walt nodded, "Alright. And does anybody know where the Kryosphere might be located?"
"I don't but Dad does," Archie tucked his head under Douxie's chin, "I can, at the very least, get the location from him."
Walt leaned back and nodded at the map. He was silent for a moment before turning.
"Do we have any way to figure out where they're heading? They're clearly going somewhere."
Merlin scratched his chin and waved his hand again. Dotted lines appeared on the map, following the trajectories of the three titans. They converged right over Arcadia.
"Of course," Jim groaned, burying his face in his hands, "Where else would they be going?"
"But why?" Lenora asked, "Last time they needed to come here to get Mum and Walt. Why would they need to return here to remake the world?"
"Energy," Morgana wandered over to the shelves at the sides of the room, "They'll need a really strong energy source to power the reboot."
"Ok. So what's in Arcadia that…" Seamus trailed off and glanced over at Jim.
The young market leader just shook his head, "Why? Why is it always our Heartstone that attracts the crazies…"
"It's the biggest," Elizabeth gasped, "And it was at the center of the map, remember. I bet they're the ones who've been trying to get at it and causing the Earthquakes."
"The price of living in the center of the world," Seamus shrugged, "I guess that's why the added spells didn't do as much as we wanted."
Jim nodded again. His father sighed and put a hand on his shoulder.
"We won't let them get it. We'll stop them before they even reach the state," He straightened and looked over the assembled team, "Belrok is currently the least of our worries. As long as the lava titan is in the water, it's contained. I propose we break into teams and tackle the other problems before they make landfall."
"Toby?"
The young Akoridian was standing at the window facing the High School. He had his new bracelet held to his eye and a look of terror painted over his face.
"Barchen? Are you alright?"
"I-I know who they have going after the Heartstone…"
His parents moved to his side. Lenora took the ring and the color drained from her face.
"Jay?" Barbara took a step forward, "Who is it?"
"Roland," Otto growled, arm firmly around his wife.
Elizabeth snarled and her eyes glowed amber. Jim put a hand on her arm.
"Is she ok?" Douxie stepped up to her other side.
"Yeah. She just really wants to kill a man."
"But she doesn't get to."
"What!?" Elizabeth rounded on Walt.
The new polymorph didn't even flinch, "YOU are what he wants. Or, what he needs to get what he wants. You and Antonia."
"He's after ze child of a polymorph and a fairy. Ze easiest vvay for him to do zat is to get you," Otto turned Lenora away from the window.
Elizabeth growled again but turned her glaire to the table.
"That brings us to our teams," Walt waved everyone back, "I want every team to have a shadowmage who can get everyone out in an emergency. Each team takes on a different enemy or task then returns here. Otto, Eli, Draal, and Mum. You four are on Team Roland. Mum, I want you to stay in the castle so Krel can come to you if he needs help with the amulet. Douxie, you Nari better than anyone else here. Take Lenora, Jim, Claire, and Seamus and bring her home to us."
The wizard nodded and hugged his familiar once more before gathering his team.
"Barbara, take Merlin, Nomura, and Liza and go with Archie to talk to Charlie and get the Kryosphere. Mary, Angor, Stardust, you three are with me to take on Skrel. Dress warm. Toby, you and Arrrgh lead the rest of the Knights of New Avalon and evacuate Arcadia. Take everyone to the West side of the valley, past the river. They should be safe there. When you're done, come back to the castle. Another team will probably be back by then." He sighed and looked over his family, "I won't lie, everyone. This isn't like our past battles. This isn't just Arcadia or a tyrant bent on world domination. The Order are more powerful than any of our past enemies. I want everyone to be extra careful. Mages, keep a constant communication charm to the castle. Shadowmages, if anyone gets hurt, bring them directly to the castle. I don't care if it's a broken arm or a twisted ankle. I'm taking no risks. Mum, I trust that you can handle any injuries until Barbara returns?"
"Of course."
"Perfect. Now, let's take care of this before Belrok reaches land. We'll all meet back here before we tackle them."
Everyone nodded their understanding. They said their goodbyes before breaking off. Otto gathered his team by the window; Barbara created a portal at Archie's demand; Douxie waved his team closer to work on their strategy; Toby climbed on Arrrgh's shoulders and they led their team out. Walt took a deep breath and put an arm around Mary's shoulders. They would have to grab parkas before they went to face Skrel. And they would need to find something that would fit Angor.
LLB
1) You know, this line in the movie was pretty much a testament to how much time Jim must have been spending with Walt and Barb. That joke was awful.
2) I needed something to replace Stricklake engagement! But, honestly? I've been planning this baby for a while. I just expected to wait until the end to announce it. But here they are and now they're important so here we go.
3) I had to work around a few things since I have way more than nine characters at this point. Hell, I have a lot more than eighteen. Not counting the babies, there are actually nine more characters!