Dramatically I whisper through the gramohpone: I have returned...
I am back everyone! You probably have heard about the writer's block curse and yes, that curse made me it's bitch, but funny enough it didn't go the way I expected. I had written around bloody 10 chapters and for some reason I didn't want to post them and now, months later, I finally realized why. I didn't like where I was going with it HA! So, with great grieve but for some reason making me excited again, I am busy rewriting the chapters. It was for the better though, I'd rather have quality over quantitiy and the most important thing: I want to have fun writing. I'm doing this because it makes me feel happy, so I try to keep that going.
I want to thank the people who left a review! I have no idea how to reply, but thank you so much! I appreciate that you like the story so far. The person who called me a hoe, you are amazing. I laughed my ass off, you sexy bitch.
That all said, here is chapter 8. Enjoy!
WARNING: violence, sexual violation and swearing. A'ght, good luck! Enjoy!
Chapter 8:
Angor stood in front of the mirror of the bathroom again, not really knowing what he was doing there. After Draal had left, he stopped sleeping at all, the risk was too great. Draal did stop talking too him, only checking up at him at night, which was good. It meant the guard wouldn't be in danger, but Angor still took no chance in falling asleep. Draal would still be in the house and the assassin had no idea what he was capable off if he took the chance of sleeping. Maybe he should ask for one of those chains like Gunmars, that could keep his range limited, may he fall asleep anyway.
One upside was, now that he didn't sleep, he didn't gain more injuries. His whole body still ached from the damage already done, but it was at least stayed at that. Angor had made a make shift sling from a shirt he didn't wear a lot, trying to keep his broken arm from moving to a bare minimum. It still hurt like hell and after a few days it started to swell up. Angor didn't see it as a good sign, but seen the circumstances, he wasn't going to risk showing it.
The biggest downside from avoiding sleep was that he felt himself becoming delusional. Lately everything had slowly turned in one big haze, while he started losing sense of time. Sometimes he'd notice the sun was shining or if it was night out, but that was only if he momentarily snapped out of it. After a few days he started seeing things in the corner of his eyes, things that weren't supposed to be there. Mostly shadows, sometimes he heard voices. One time, it even looked like one of his gollums whispered to him. It was almost like he was capable of magic again, making the statues come to life again. Would've been nice if he could do that again.
The assassin stood in front of the mirror, not making eye contact with his reflection. He had no idea how long he was standing there, just hazily staring into nothing. He couldn't get a grip on his thoughts, just jumping from one point to another. What was he supposed to do again?
'Hello, my champion.'
Squeezing his eyes shut, he tried to shut the voice out. He'd heard that voice a couple of times now, knowing all too damn well who it was, but he refused to listen to it. From all the delusional voices, he hated hers the most.
'Look at me…'
Still refusing to open his eyes, he leaned over the sink, squeezing his good hand tight around the edge. He wanted the voice to leave him alone.
'I can help you, Angor. Open your eyes and look at me.'
Angor sighed, tiredly opening his eyes and looking in the mirror. He expected to see his own reflection, hoping it would keep him grounded from the voice pestering him. What he saw instead was Morgana staring back at him, her bright green eyes glowing, long red hair draped down, falling past her shoulders. She gave him a warm smile but her expression seemed to be sad.
He blinked a couple of times, trying to make the hallucination go away, but Morgana stayed right where he found her.
'I'm real, don't you worry.' she mused, putting her hand on the glass, giving him a worried look. 'My poor Angor, how he has hurt you.'
'Wh..what?' Angor stumbled over his words, his brain to sleep deprived to function correctly. Was this woman real?
'Gunmar. He has found a way to get his revenge on you.' Morgana continued, trying to keep her words loud and clear, trying to get through the thick curtain of mist going through Angors mind. 'I just can't stand seeing you suffer like this any longer. I can help you!'
'You…' Angor replied, trying his best to focus on his words. 'don't care about me… Why?'
Morgana longingly looked at him, her smile not reaching her sad, emerald eyes. 'You have served me well for centuries, how could I not care? One fight between us won't keep me from caring about you.'
Angor lowered his head again, looking at the sink he was leaning over. 'You… lie…'
The assassin felt his eyes slowly closing. He was just too tired. It didn't faze him anymore that his former master was standing in front of him. He didn't care about the pain, Gunmar or the prison he was in. He felt his mind shutting down as all he wanted was to get some sleep.
'It's okay, my champion.' Morgana's voices seemed to fade, echoing through his mind. 'Go to sleep. I'm right here.'
Angor felt himself sink into darkness, loosing his senses while he slowly descended further and further into the deep.
'I'll take care of you…' a warm voice told him from far away, before the last rays of light turned dark. Angor was gone.
'Draal, are you still with us?'
Draal snapped out of his thoughts, looking at the Barbara who sat across of him, her face showing a bit worry. They were having dinner at the dining table together with Walter Strickler, who basically lived here nowadays. The changeling moved in a while ago, helping the Barbara to take care off all the once kidnapped babies. Luckily, after a few months, they had found nice homes for all the babies. The Barbara and Strickler both showed much care for all the children, but thought it was better to give the babies a safe home, far removed from all the troll business. The little ones had been through enough. Strickler decided to stay at the Lake house after their bond grew in a relationship once again.
Draal, living in the basement, could now actually join dinner, after the Barbara found out about trollkind and Draal himself turned human. The son of Kanjigar thought that human food wasn't for him once he joined the nightly dinners, but that was before he found at that the Barbara just was an awful cook. The moment Jim cooked something up, Draal was sold on whatever he made. The trollhunter couldn't eat his recipes anymore, but he still enjoyed making it for his mother and friends.
This time it was Walters turn, while Jim was away to tend to business in new Trollmarket. It was dark out, making it the only time he could actually freely move around outside. It wasn't bad food, Draal had to admit, a bit plain, but he wasn't going to complain. He brought his focus back to his plate, scooping up some peas on his fork.
The low rumble of thunder in the clouds could be heard, announcing that a rainstorm was heading towards Arcadia. Luckily, they were sitting comfortably inside the house, not having to worry about it.
'Yeah, just thinking about work.' he grumbled, trying to get the peas from rolling off.
Walter poured some water into his glass, raising an eyebrow. 'Don't you have a day off today? Why think about it now?'
Draal just shrugged, not really motivated to explain what was going on. Strickler wouldn't agree with him anyways, why bother.
'Well, Draal does have to deal with two highly dangerous criminals almost every night.' Barbara defended, taking over the carafe from Strickler. 'Dealing with high risks does tend to keep the mind occupied.'
Walter smiled at her, admiring her intelligence. 'It is a lot different then teaching, that's for sure.'
'No, I'm used to risks.' Draal answered. He wasn't called Draal the deadly for nothing. 'I guess one just got to my head lately. I'm trying to not take it personal, but sometimes I forget how twisted he is and when I get reminded again...'
He sighed, rubbing his hand through his hair, not wearing his fishermans hat at the dinner table. Apparently is was shown as 'rude' in human customs.
Barbara kindly smiled at him in understanding. She had to deal with some criminals in the hospital herself, some coming in with life threatening injuries. Most of them treated her kindly, having endured a rough life with tough choices to make, but sometimes there were some who were just… off. Those rare patients acted like they meant good will, but suddenly showed their bad intentions when the doctors least expected it. Luckily, those were heavily guarded, not putting the doctors and nurses in too much danger.
'I think it's amazing that you try see the good in people, Draal. I get why you would be chosen next in line to be the trollhunter.' Barbara said to him.
Draal appreciated her support, giving her a small smile. He could see where Jim got his kind personality from.
'I can only assume you are talking about Angor Rot, as Gunmar literally exhales more psychopath then carbon dioxide…' Strickler remarked, casually taking a bite from the mashed potatoes.
Draal uncomfortably swallowed his peas, feeling a bit exposed by his observation. It shouldn't be a surprise though, Strickler knew the two criminals better then anyone else on the dinner table.
'Uh, yeah…' he confessed, trying to keep his eyes on his dinner plate. 'He didn't seem to show any sign of violence lately. I guess I just-'
'Draal, listen to me.' Walter calmly interrupted him, putting his utensils down on the table and folded his hands in front of his chin. 'The moment I lost control over Angor Rot, he showed me what kind of violence he is capable of. He is soulless. He has no empathy. Becoming human is not going to change him.'
It wasn't much like a lecture or a scolding, but more of a reminder. Draal filling the roll as guard put him in a dangerous position and Strickler needed him to realize who he was dealing with.
The rain slowly started to tick against the windows, increasing in a fast pace.
Draal scowled, looking up to face him. He understood what the changeling was saying, he was not wrong, but there was just one question that kept him from siding with Stricklers opinion.
'Then why did he sacrifice himself to save Arcadia?'
Strickler opened his mouth to answer, but stopped, not actually knowing what to say. He frowned in thought, his chin on his folded hands. 'Why did he indeed…'
Suddenly, the sound of Draals phone went off, filling the dining room with a boring, electronic melody. He still had to change it to something he preferred, but his obligations kept him to occupied to think about it. He got it out of his pocket, to check who it was. Seeing it was Aaargh, he immediately picked up. Calling during a shift didn't mean good news.
'Aaargh, what's wrong?' he said, his posture turning serious.
'Draal… Got knocked out. Gunmar not have chains!' he heard Aaargh say on the other side of the phone, the sound of rain rattling in the background.
He immediately got up from the dining table, leaving a confused Barbara and Strickler behind, marching towards the coat rack to get his jacket. 'Where are you now? I'm heading over. Did you call Jim?'
'I'm ok. Outside house. Jim no answer…' Aaargh said, sounding upset.
'That's ok, I'll come to you. Gunmar can't leave the house, if Jim doesn't answer soon, we'll deal with the bastard ourselves.' Draal assured him. He tried not to think about the fact that Angor was now alone in the house with Gunmar on the loose. Although, if Draal was quick, maybe the assassin already stabbed the big man a couple of times, slowing him down enough for Draal and Aaargh to put him back in the chains. How did he got out of those?
He put his phone between his ear and shoulder, trying to put on his black, denim jacket.
'Draal?… I made mistake.' Aaargh continued.
Draal frowned in confusion, shifting his phone to his other ear, pulling the jacket over his other shoulder. 'What do you mean?'
'Angor Rot… he escaped. Don't know where he is.'
With wide eyes he let go of adjusting his jacket and froze, not believing what he just heard. This could not be possible.
'He did WHAT?!' he suddenly burst out. 'How?!'
'I'm… sorry…' Aaargh set, voice drowning in guilt.
Draal frustratingly ran a hand through his blue hair again. This wasn't happening. In his side vision, he could see Strickler and Barbara approach him, noticing that something bad happened.
'No… don't blame yourself, Aaargh. It could've been any of us.' Draal sighed, holding the back of his neck with his hand. 'Change of plans. Keep guard over the door and try to reach Jim. I'm going to look for Angor.'
'Okay…' Aaargh sadly replied, hanging up. Draal cursed under his breath, while he put his phone back in his pocket, grabbing his black fishermans hat from the coat rack.
'What happened?' Barbara asked worriedly, holding Stricklers arm for comfort.
Draal looked at them, his face showing his mood was just as bad as the weather outside. 'Angor Rot escaped the Prison house and Gunmar is unchained.'
Strickler and Barbara gasped at the news, their faces showing the same questions as Draal. How did they manage to do that?
'I'm going out to look for Angor.' Draal said, buckling up the shed of his sword to his back, opening the door after. Just before he headed out into the pouring rain, Strickler stopped him.
'I'll drive you. We can scout more area by car.' he said determined.
Draal nodded in agreement, letting Strickler lead him towards the car, the rain hitting them heavily, getting them soaked in mere seconds.
'Keep the door locked, Barbara!' Strickled yelled through the rain, opening the door of his car. Barbara worriedly watched them leave, as the sound of the engine started and lights quickly moved away, disappearing into the darkness.
The sensation of pain slowly returned, pulling Angor back from the dark plain he was floating in. Hearing the rumble of distant thunder, he felt himself kneeling down, holding something cold and smooth in his hands. Wasn't his left arm in a spine? He couldn't recall how he got in this position, his head was spinning trying to think about it. Did he fall asleep again? It still felt like he hadn't for days, his mind still hazy and all over the place. He slowly opened his eyes, wondering what he had in his hands.
He frowned in confusion. In his hands, he saw the opened end of a silver chain, glowing softly in the dark room he was in. He recognized the chains as the one that held Gunmar in place. As the realization slowly kicked in, he looked past the chains, to see the large feet that the chain once belonged too.
Angor heard a low chuckle rumbling above him. His heart started to quicken as he reluctantly looked up to see from who the laugh came from. An ominous glowing eye stared back, as Gunmar stood over him, grinning ear to ear. Angors eyes widened, as the situation fully sank in. He was in the backroom, kneeling in front of Gunmar… who he just released from his chains.
'I told you you would pay...' Gunmar grumbled. 'Dog.'
Angor immediately let go of the chains and shot backwards, trying to create distance between them, ignoring the burning pain of his arm. Gunmar only had to take a few quick steps to close the space between them, bending over to grab the assassin. Angor quickly moved, feeling his body reject every move, pushing himself up and rotating around Gunmar, throwing all his weight into wrestling the big mans legs off the ground. It worked, as Gunmar roared, falling backwards with a huge thud, shaking the floor. Angor jumped forward to avoid getting crushed by the weight of the big man.
He got up, planning on getting out of the backroom in search for weapons, when Gunmar shot up, got on his knees and grabbed the assassin by the ankle. The big man janked him back, making Angor fall over forward. He catched himself with his hands, feeling his broken arm scream in protest. Seeing his vision turn white for a moment, he felt Gunmar pull him back to him. The assassin rolled on his back, using his free leg to kick the big man in the face. Gunmar catched it, pulling him even closer, towering over him. Angor frustratingly used his good hand, balling it into a tight fist, hitting Gunmar in the throat. Gunmar tried to roar in pain, but choked on the damage Angor did to his windpipe. Still, he didn't stop, ignoring the pain, he grabbed Angors wrist and pushed it back on the floor. Using his own legs to keep the assassins in place, he grabbed Angors broken arm, squeezing it hard. It was Angor's turn to roar in pain, stars returning with a vengeance.
Holding Angors arms in a tight death grip, Gunmar slowly got closer, observing his prey, who breathed heavily in pain. The big man grinned, enjoying every moment of the sight he saw beneath him. He put his mouth against his captive's ear. The assassin tried to pull his head away, Gunmar's hot breath on his ear filling him with disgust.
'Unfortunate that Morgana couldn't stay, but you will suffice…' he growled in the assassins ear.
Angor turned cold as he felt his heart sink in his shoes, wanting anything but to be here. He knew Gunmar was violent and being near him meant death, but there was something different in the way he acted. The dangerous man got too close. Far too close. It made Angor sick in the stomach.
Suddenly, Gunmar let go of his broken arm, grabbed him by the hair and aggressively kissed him right on the mouth, pushing his body fully on to him.
All the sirens went off in Angor's mind. He didn't know what Gunmar was trying to pull off but everything in him screamed to get the hell out of here. He heavily struggled against him, but he couldn't budge in Gunmars grasp. Not being able to move his limps, he used his other weapon. Angor bit Gunmars lip hard, instantly drawing blood, not letting go.
The big man roared, pushing Angor's head back, releasing his arm to hold his mouth in pain. The assassin wasted no time, shooting his good arm up towards Gunmar, aggressively poking his eye. Gunmar screamed it out, letting go of his hair and shot up, back on his knees. Being distracted enough, Angor had the chance to quickly scan around the room. He saw they were close to the doorway to the kitchen. He grabbed the edge of the entrance, putting all his strength in pulling himself out from under Gunmar.
He got up and ran for it. He didn't get far though, as a large hand grabbed him by his hair and yanked him to the right, smashing his skull against the kitchen counter. Angor fell on his stomach on the kitchen floor, seeing white and feeling blood drip down past his face as white, hot pain shot through his head. He felt the world around him turn as he heard heavy footsteps head towards him.
'How dare you bite me! You need to learn how to behave, slave!' Gunmar roared at him.
Angor breathed heavily, trying to orient his surrounding. His head turned, feeling himself getting nauseous. He had to get up. If he didn't, Gunmar could continue with whatever it was he wanted and he couldn't let it happen. He cursed himself, how did he get in this situation?
Head for the door, Angor.
Morgana's voice echoed through his mind, making him stop his racing thoughts.
You can get through. Use my magic.
Magic? He didn't have any magic anymore, how on earth could he get through Merlins barrier?
I shared a piece of my soul with you, remember? Use it!
Hearing Gunmar reach him, Angor decided. In a split second, he used the element of surprise, kicking Gunmar right in the gronk nuts. Gunmar's scream went a few pitches higher, as he sank to his knees.
Angor got up and raced towards the exit only to collide straight into the barrier. Cursing, he tried to push through a couple more times. He should have known this wouldn't work, but he was getting low on options.
Looking behind his back, he saw Gunmar was getting up. Feeling fear take him over, he quickly turned back around and started to smash his shoulder into the barrier.
'Just. Open. Damnit!' He growled with every collision.
Use my magic, Angor!
'How?! I don't sense it!' Angor yelled into nothing. Gunmar was slowly getting closer, looking absolutely livid.
Then let me in.
'What?' Angor breathed, leaning against the barrier.
LET ME IN. I can get you out!
Let her in? That was the most stupid thing he could ever do. But if he declined, he was sure Gunmar was going to have his way. He had to choose. Now.
'Fuck...' Angor moaned, hearing Gunmar only a few steps away from him, making him more sick every second. 'Fuck! FUCK IT, FINE!'
Hearing Morgana laugh lowly, he saw his sight turn black. He felt himself fall through the barrier, colliding on the harsh, stone pavement of the porch. Heavy rain fell on him as his vision immediately returned.
Hearing an outraged roar behind him, he quickly turned around on his back. A flash of lightning filled Angors vision, followed by rumbling thunder as Gunmar screamed, his face red with anger, smashing his fist against the barrier.
'MORGANA!' he screamed. 'WE HAD A DEAL!'
The barrier stayed strong as the big man couldn't get through, throwing all his force into it. Angor looked at him with wide eyes, lying breathless on the porch, the rain completely drenching him in no time. He didn't know if the barrier was going to hold, but Angor wasn't going to stay and find out.
He got up with much difficulty, feeling his whole body moan in the process. His arm felt like it was on fire and he felt a screaming head ache thump inside of his skull, blood still dripping down, blurring his left eye's vision. He slowly walked away, trying to keep his balance. He had no idea where he was going, but he didn't care. As long if it wasn't this house.
Draal tried to look through the window of the passenger seat, finding it hard to see clearly with the heavy rain pouring down on the car. The wipers of the windshield were on their fastest setting, working their hardest to give Strickler just enough view to keep going. They were driving over an empty road through the woods, having already checked the center of Arcadia.
'It is impossible to see!' Draal said in frustration. 'We won't find him this way!'
Strickler sighed, agreeing with the blue haired man. They did cover a lot of the area, but the rain made it very difficult to see the details.
'We should head back and wait for the rain to stop.' He offered. 'He could be deep in the woods for all we know. I can't get there by car.'
'No! The longer he is out there, the further he is going to get!' Draal shot back, turning himself back into the seat, facing Strickler. 'I will not let him get away.'
Strickler shook his head. 'No. I'm turning around, we are just wasting time this way. When we reach Jim, he can scout out the area's we can't easily reach.'
'No! I want to keep going!' Draal objected.
'Draal, think about this for a second!' Strickler frustratingly shot back at him, not looking at the road. 'We won't find him this way!'
Draal looked at him for a second, still holding a frown firm on his face. 'Then stop the car.'
Strickler looked at him like he just lost his head. 'What? No! You'd just get lost in this weather!'
'I'm going to keep searching.' Draal stubbornly kept going. 'Stop the car.'
Strickler sneered in anger. 'Why are you trolls always such insolent, foolish, little-'
'Strickler, stop the car!' Draal yelled, this time more in shock then barking an order.
'What?' Strickler turned his eyes back on the road just in time, seeing a figure cross over the road. He quickly stomped his foot on the break, making the car stop with it's tires screeching all the way. Shutting their eyes, preparing for impact, they stopped abruptly, not hearing any collision with the car.
Strickler opened his eyes, trying to see who was crossing this abandoned road on this hour and in this awful weather. His mouth opened in shock when the headlights of his car brightly shined upon a man, staring back at the car. The man's was soaked to the bone, white hair sticking across his face. Even through the heavy rain, his face and clothes were covered in blood. Strickler wondered what happened to him.
'What the… is that Angor?' Draal uttered in disbelieve.
Strickler snapped his head towards Draal, who stared at the man with the same shock as his.
'Is that him?!' he asked dumbfounded.
The bloodied man stared at the headlights for a moment, before slowly turning around and continuing to head over to the other side of the woods. His steps were slow, not seeming to show any signs on actually acting like a fugitive.
'What is he doing?' Draal quickly opened the door, heading out of the car. Unshedding his sword, he ran passed the headlight towards Angor. Stopping behind the assassin, he addressed him.
'Angor Rot, stop!' holding his sword steady in his hands, trying to blink the water away, as the rain was blurring his vision. 'You are not allowed outside the Prison house. You are coming with us.'
Angor didn't stop, nor did he speed up either, not even showing any signs of hearing the guard bark his orders. Draal lowered his sword a bit, looking at the assassins back in confusion.
'Angor?'
No response. It looked like he didn't even noticed Draal was there.
Worry slowly creeped into Draal. This wasn't what he expected. He thought Angor would fight or go on a rampage, leaving a trail of dead bodies behind him, but what he found instead was Angor himself being injured and unresponsive.
He put his sword back in it's shed and walked over to him, grabbing him by the shoulder, forcefully turning the man around. Angor stopped walking by this, suddenly looking Draal in the eye, like he just noticed that someone was trying to reach out to him.
'Can you hear me?' Draal pushed on, trying to make clear eye contact with him. Something was really wrong with him.
Strickler had gotten out of the car as well, noticing the situation wasn't as dangerous as they expected. The rain already ruining his entire physique, he approached the two men, observing the assassin, hiding behind Draal. He wasn't going to take the risk, looking back at their history together.
'Draal?' Angor just asked. He finally seemed to notice that Draal was there, but it looked like he couldn't quite see him clearly.
'I think he hurt his head somewhere. He seems out of it.' Strickler said over Draals shoulder, not being able to hide his astonishment. This was the first time Strickler got to meet Angor after the war, not having seen his human form yet. The changeling had a hard time believing that the dangerous Assassin, who he once had to run over with his car more times then he could recall because he ended up on Angors killing list, was standing in front of them in the rain. A human, bloody mess with fear in his eyes.
Draal ignored him, putting both hands on the assassins shoulders, trying to keep his full attention. 'Angor, what happened?'
Angor's glowing eyes suddenly shot from place to place, trying to recall the events of what happened this night. It was hard to think, he had no focus, no sense of ground as his head kept turning and aching.
'Hey, it ok!' Draal calmly said, softly shaking his shoulders. 'I won't hurt you.'
Flashes of the event came rushing back to Angor. Morgana in the mirror. The chain glowing in his hands. Gunmar pinning him to the ground. Falling through the barrier.
'I…' he started. Why was it getting hard to breath again? 'M-Morgana. She… Gunmar… he tried to… I didn't… I didn't mean too.'
Strickler appeared from behind Draal, fear forgotten, his face dead serious. 'Morgana? What about her?'
'She… the barrier… I didn't mean to.' Angor tried to continued, he was finding it harder and harder to keep his balance.
Draal couldn't believe what he was seeing. In front of him stood a wide eyed man, not fully there, showing signs of being… afraid? The Angor he knew was stoic, sarcastic and barely showed any emotion at all. Didn't he try to kill Draal just a few weeks ago? Or… was Draal missing something? The assassin was acting odd the last couple of weeks.
He couldn't keep the man in the rain. It was better to get him some help, he didn't look like a threat at the moment.
'Come on, let's get you out of the rain.' he started, nudging Angor to come with him.
'No!' Angor suddenly pulled away, taking a few steps back from them. 'No, I'm not… I'm not safe for you.'
Now Draal was really getting worried. He held his hand up, trying to slowly approach him once again. He didn't know what was going on but he wasn't going to give up. 'Angor… come on, you can explain me later. Let's just get you some help, ok?'
'I'm not…' Angor started to sway more and more. His head slowly making an 180. 'I'm not…'
The sound of heavy rain started to fade again, the world turning as Angor started to loose his grip on reality.
'Oh, I think he's going to fall down!' he heard Strickler say somewhere far in the deep.
The last thing he heard was the echo of someone worriedly calling his name, as he felt his legs give up. He didn't notice hitting the ground as he once again, descended into the darkness.
Jim came running around the corner, getting weird and shocked looks from people he passed by in the hospital. His troll form was a sight to see indeed, but Arcadia was slowly getting used to the fact that weird creatures ran around the streets from time to time, so he decided to just take the risk after he heard the news. It was hard to believe that one of the prisoners had escaped and one got out of it's chains, thinking Merlin's magic would be solid proof, but apparently nothing is impossible with those two.
After Aaargh got a hold of him, Jim immediately went over to the Prison house to check on him. Luckily, Aaargh seemed to be alright, accept for a bump on his head. Jim went into the house, to find a raging Gunmar wrecking the place from what was already left of it. Jim chained him up once more, hoping it would hold until they found a better solution. After seeing all the blood in the kitchen, Jim could only assume that things had gone catastrophically wrong.
He saw Draal and Strickler sitting in one of the many rows of chairs the hallway had to offer. This luckily wasn't the intensive care unit, telling that the situation wasn't life threatening, but after hearing what happened, Jim wasn't so optimistic. When he approached, the other two men looked up. They both seemed tired, having to stay up all night, searching for the fugitive. Both still having to dry up from the heavy weather, looking ruffled and damp.
'Are you guys ok?' Jim quickly asked, not showing any signs of fatigue from just running a few miles towards the hospital. Being a troll had it's perks.
'We are alright, young atlas…' Strickler tiredly replied. 'Just waiting for Barbara to come back with the results.'
Jim's jaw dropped after hearing that. 'You let my mom alone with him?!'
'It's quite alright.' Strickler assured him, holding his hands up. 'We made sure he got sedated before we let her get close to him.'
'I don't think that was necessary…' Draal grumbled. He had been silent for a while, too busy trying to put the puzzle pieces together.
Jim assumed Draal blamed himself again, knowing that he held great pride in his responsibility of guarding the Prison house. Jim decided to sit next to him, just in case he wanted to talk about it. As he tried to get comfortable in the chair, he waited together with the others for his mom.
Eventually, Barbara walked towards them from across the hall, having a stern, worried look on her face. Board in her hand, she stood before them, adjusting her blue scrubs, while they curiously waited on what she had to say.
'He's going to be alright.' Barbara started. 'He has some broken bones, bruised ribs and a heavy concussion, but he'll live.'
The news seemed to be a good one, but her face didn't seem to show that she was so happy about it.
Jim frowned at this, knowing that there was more to the story. 'Is there something else?' he asked.
Barbara frowned as she looked at her board, scanning through all the notes she made on the observation. 'It's just… a lot of the injuries didn't happen overnight.'
Draal looked up, confused by what she was saying.
'It looks more like…' Barbara started, doubtedly looking over at Jim for a moment. She didn't really like to share information like this with her son, who is a minor, but as the trollhunter, he had the right to know. She decided to continue. 'It almost looks like he got tortured! He's covered in injuries, some are new, but most of them already started the healing process. Not to mention that his broken arm got infected, concluding that it happened at least a week ago, maybe longer.'
Draal shot up from his chair. 'What? There were no signs of Gunmar being unchained before tonight!'
'Fuck, let go of me!' 'I don't want you here. Leave!'
Before his eyes, he saw the moment play out where he last spoke with Angor. His arm was broken when Draal tried to grab him, that's why he reacted like that.
Something clicked after hearing this. Angor had been shutting down the last few weeks, acting different then he usually did. Suddenly only wearing long sleeved clothing and pants. He was slow, even fell asleep on him that one time, Angor normally wouldn't even get closer then six feet. After they stopped talking to each other, it looked like Angor didn't even notice he was there, staring at nothing, but Draal thought he was ignoring him.
'This… is all my fault.' Draal uttered. How could he be so stupid. How could he let this happen right under his supervision. 'Something twisted is going on in that house and I was totally oblivious of it.'
He felt the touch of a warm hand on his shoulder. He looked over his shoulder, to see Jim looking at him seriously. 'Let's not make assumptions before we know what's going on, Draal. For all we know, you could've done nothing about it.'
Staring back at him, Draal stayed silent. If only he knew, Draal thought.
Strickler suddenly stood up, slapping his fist into his other hand, like he remembered something. 'Didn't he mention something about Morgana?'
'That witch?!' Jim sneered, letting go of Draal's shoulder, putting his hand in the air. 'Why am I surprised? Of course she has something to do with it.'
'What would she want with Angor? He basically betrayed her.' Draal ask in confusion.
'Didn't you mention his soul was in a ring, or something?' Barbara asked, switching her gaze from Draal to Jim. 'Maybe she got it?'
Jim shook his head. 'No, the inferna copula got destroyed. He's got no soul at all.'
'He could easily be working together with the witch again. Struck a deal, got himself out of the Prison house.' Strickler offered.
'Maybe.' Jim folded his arms in thought. 'But that doesn't explain the torture thing.'
Strickler scoffed. 'This maniac used his own life stone to make a gollem army! If Morgana needed blood magic, he'd be prepared to saw of his leg.'
'Are you saying he did it to himself?' Barbara gasped, putting her hand on her chest in shock.
'Why are you all already assuming they are working together?!' Draal interrupted. 'What if he had nothing to do with it?'
'Well, what do you think happened?' Strickler confronted. 'You have been guarding the Prison house for months now, so you have more insight on recent events then any of us!'
Draal couldn't reply at that, as he silently scowled at Strickler. He couldn't tell the details without explaining about the truce. Draal already failed Angor enough, he couldn't also break his promise of exposing their agreement. What was he going to say? They fell asleep after they watched a movie together and the next thing he knew, there was a knife on his throat, but Angor didn't act like he knew what he was doing? That Draal had this suspicion because he'd got to know Angor a lot better the last couple of months, because they've been casually hanging out when he was on guard duty? Draal sighed at how it sounded, now that he actually looked back at his recent choices. Man… he really had rocks for brains.
The group stood there for a moment, silently pondering about the mysteries of the Prison house. A nurse passed by, rolling a sleeping patient in a wheelchair, the rubber wheels, squeaking through the hallway. Through the windows of an open, vacant hospital room, the storm clouds slowly had made it past Arcadia, making way for a morning cadet blue sky, announcing that the sun was almost coming up.
Jim noticed the change of color, looking outside the window for a moment. 'I have to go soon.' Jim sighed. 'We better make a decision of what to do with him now. At least for the time being.'
Strickler tiredly nodded his head. Having stayed up all night, they should catch on missed sleep and Jim needed to get home before sunrise. 'The Prison house won't do anymore, now that we know that he can get through the barrier.'
'New trollmarket?' Draal offered.
'No.' Jim shook his head. 'The other trolls don't know that he or Gunmar are alive. If they find out Angor Rot is in their midst, hell would break loose.'
'The hospital won't do either.' Barbara stated. 'I don't want my patients involved with whatever is going on.'
Ruffling his hand through his hair, Jim frowned. 'Where are we going the put him then?'
'In the ground, he will be dead in a moment anyways'
The group looked up towards the voice in surprise, as suddenly Merlin walked passed them, apparently already aware of the break out, opening the door Barbara just came through, casually entering the room. It took a moment before anyone knew how to react on this sudden turn of events.
'What?!' Draal eventually reacted baffled, chasing the wizard into the room. 'Wait, you can't just kill him!'
Jim followed him in, supporting Draals objection. 'Yeah, we don't even know what is going on yet!'
Merlin halted in front of a white curtain that divided the room. A slow, steady beep of the heart monitor appeared from behind it showed that Angor still was out cold.
'I do.' Merlin sternly said, turning around. 'That troll got out of the Prison house, because he has a part of Morgana's soul.'
Both the jaws of Draal and Jim immediatelly dropped, standing speechless in front of the wizard. Not giving any further reaction, Merlin rolled his eyes and continued.
'I sensed a familiar magic break through the barrier. Only Morgana is advanced enough to break my incantations. She must've revived him by sharing a part of her soul, what also means her magic. Channeling into that part of her soul, she must have weakened the barrier, getting him out. Possession, I assume.'
'But why help him out?' Jim ask baffled.
Merlin sighed, lowering his grey eyebrows into a frown, showing his frustration about how they couldn't make the connection that easily. 'Her curse on Arcadia bridge must have extremely weakened her. Having an untouched reservoir, she can tap the magic out of her servant.'
Draal let out a breath, the realization sinking in. 'He is her back up plan…'
'Indeed, great job on finally getting it.' Merlin grumbled before turning around and shoving the curtain aside, standing in front of an occupied hospital bed. Behind Merlin, Draal could make out a hand wrapped in a cast. 'If she can make contact with this soul fragment, I can extract it and use it to make contact with her, finding her location. Unfortunately…'
Merlin held his hand up, green magic slowly appearing around it, calmly swaying around his fingers. 'He won't survive the process.'
'No!' Draal shot forward, grabbing the wizards wrist. 'He is under my supervision. I won't let him be killed by you!'
Merlin clearly got offended by the rough approach, staring at him like Draal just lost his head, treating a mighty wizard like that. 'I don't see why it is necessary to keep him alive. I've heard you lot just say you don't even know where to leave him!'
'Because-' Draal started, wanting to continue his defense, but stopped after he saw the state of the man lying in the hospital bed in front of him. The assassin already looked like he was in awful state in the woods, but seeing him in full view, only made it worse. Barbara must have removed his shirt to tend to the wounds, showing what Angor had been hiding for all those weeks. From what the blanket didn't cover, his arms and torso were covered in dark bruises, showing different colors from different healing stages. Some where big spots, others were the shape of big hand prints. The cuts and bite marks must've been behind the bandages, but also those were far too many then Draal could accept. His broken arm was covered in a cast, holding it in place. When Draal finally looked at the assassins face, he saw the man had his eyes closed, slowly breathing, his mouth opened slightly, showing a big gash in his lip. The blood on his face was wiped away, showing stitches on the side of his temple.
Draal let go of Merlin, still staring at the sight with wide eyes. How could he let this happen? How could Draal not notice something as extreme as this? Why didn't Angor say anything? Draal balled his fist, as hundreds of questions filled his mind, getting overwhelmed by the feeling of guilt.
'Because.' he lowly growled, turning his head towards the wizard. 'he deserves a second change. He proved himself on the Arcadia bridge, he can do it again.'
Merlin didn't seemed faced by his determined knightly attitude, opening his mouth to object.
'If you want to kill him, you will have to kill me first.' Draal added, keeping his eyes locked with the wizard, interrupting him. Jim marched over to stand in between the men.
'Ok, let's not escalate thi- oh shit…' He paused not expecting to extreme state of the assassin. He gaped at the sight for a moment.
'I will find a way to make this better, I promise!'
Shaking his head and pulling his gaze away, focusing back on the others. 'I-is there another way to find Morgana, without killing him? I just can't let you do this.'
Once again, Merlin let out an old, tired sigh, holding the bridge of his nose between his fingers. 'People and their childish morals…'
Letting go of his nose, he grumpily looked over at Jim. 'I can search the soul while it remains in Angor Rot, but I will have to do it in intervals or he won't survive it. This will take a lot more time. Time that Morgana can use to get to Angor or find some other cruel way to get her magic back.'
The trollhunter frowned in thought for a moment, trying to contemplate the choices he had. Finally he looked up and nodded once towards Merlin. 'We'll take our chances.'
'Fine.' Merlin angrily huffed, putting his hands behind his back. 'But one of you will keep him under tight surveillance. If he shows even one sign of possession, I will take the soul, understand?'
Jim and Draal both nodded in agreement, relieved that Merlin agreed to at least hold out the killing a bit longer. Merlin grumpily waved his hand once more, making a golden ring appear, holding a shiny, glowing red ruby. Merlin took it in his hand, while roughly pulling Draal towards him by grabbing his wrist.
'As you were so passionate on keeping him alive…' the wizard grumbled, shoving the ring on Draals finger. 'You can continue your 'supervision' over him.'
Before Draal could react, the wizard turned towards the still unconscious Angor, putting two of his fingers against the assassins throat. Green light shone once again and as he removed his hand, a golden line appeared around the neck.
'With this, he can't reach further then around 25 feet.' he explained before abruptly turning around, marching towards the door. 'Because of your little heroic morals, I have to actually prepare the spell, so I will give you notice when I start the first soul search. Do try to not let him escape this time, will you?'
Merlin passed through the door, ignoring Barbara and Walter while he disappeared from view, his footsteps slowly fading while he walked down the hallway.
'25 feet?!' Draal asked dumbfounded. He stared at the ring, his brain still needing time to process.
'What happened in there, Jimbo?' Barbara quickly went into the room after Merlin left, followed by Walter.
Jim turned towards his mom, staring at her for a moment with big eyes.
'I...uh…'An awkward smile appeared on his face, not really knowing how else he had to put it. 'I think Angor will have to stay with us for a while…'