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sorceress-coffee · 1 year

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RoA Ch 36 Grand Theft Otto

Ao3 Link

RoA Disclaimer: The Trollhunter universe and characters don't belong to me. River, Eri, Eemeli, Ms. Kamaria/Sylvina, Garridan, Ganieda, and the Eclipse Guard are my own characters (List is subject to change as the story progresses). The lore is a mix of old Arthurian legends, ToA cannon lore, and my own that I've developed for RoA.

Notes:

If anyone is interested, I have a playlist on Spotify called 'River of Arcadia Phase 3' if you would like to listen to it. 'Atlas Falls' by Shinedown is a recent addition and seems to fit RoA very well. There are playlists for River, Phase 1 and Phase 2 as well. River's playlist hasn't been updated since I began separating it into phases.

A stakeout the night after we almost drowned was not how I was planning on resting up. Blinky and Claire were sitting up front with binoculars, watching the street as we tried to lay low in the car. I don’t even want to know where Blinky found it.

To my right Toby was munching on as many gooey and sticky snacks as he could now that his braces were off as of this morning. NotEnrique took a spot on my lap as he was bickering with Blinky, wanting to see exactly what kind of changeling we were up against. Draal took the spot on my left, mostly there to make sure I didn’t fall asleep, recovering slower from being a magical battery than Claire was. Whatever happened when our magic melded seemed to give her an extra boost once she slept off the initial exhaustion.

“Do we even know who we’re looking for?” Claire’s question snapped my attention back to the stakeout.

Blinky was watching a police officer pick up litter before walking off. “It appears Strickler corresponded with a German named Otto Scaarbach.”

NotEnrique snickered, pulling himself up from my lap to the back of Blinky’s seat, “That’s his name? Might as well call him ‘Mr. Evil Man.’”

I rolled my eyes, leaning my head back against the headrest, “I know we’re trying to find the cure, but Strickler’s old associate is probably the last Changeling to hand it over.”

“How do you even know he’s going to be here?” NotEnrique asked, laughing as Blinky used ‘interneted’ instead of emailed.

“Silence, you impudent runt.” Blinky huffed, watching the streets as he explained. “I interneted him as Strickler, asking to meet.”

“Again, didn’t he abandon Strickler?” I asked, trying to point out the obvious issues with this plan.

“She has a point, Galadrigal,” Draal huffed, feeling like we were wasting our time with Otto. “The reason Strickler had to come to us for help was because the Janus Order kicked him out. You think one of them will show up to meet him now?”

Blinky pouted, “With Angor gone, Strickler’s presence itself is no longer a threat to whoever he’s around, with that, his contact may believe it worth trying to meet with Strickler. But, when he discovers he’s been stood up, he’ll lead us back to the Janus Order.”

“Couldn’t we have asked Eemeli for directions?” I sighed, unsure why we couldn’t have an easy win for once.

“Sorry, moonlight,” Notenrique chuckled, sitting back down, “Not every Changeling working for the Janus order has ties to every hideout, besides, neither of us were here long enough to be invited before switching sides.”

“If anyone’s hungry, I’ve got peanut brittle, popcorn, marshmallow goop, and 16 flavors of bubble gum,” Toby interrupted, partially trying to cut the tension, mostly just distracted with no longer having braces.

Claire rolled her eyes, looking into the backseat, “We get it Tobes, you just got your braces off.”

“Oh,” Toby chuckled, patting his cheeks, “Did you notice?”

“Keep goofing off and you’re going to need them again,” I huffed, trying to keep his snacks from overflowing the entire backseat.

Claire and Blinky spotted a very suspicious man heading for the streetlight.

Peering past Draal, I rolled my eyes, “Trench coat and fedora, so not suspicious,” I snarked, grabbing Midnight’s collapsed form.

“Slip out quietly,” Blinky instructed, keeping 2 of his 6 eyes on ‘Mr. Evil Man.’ “One false move and we might spook him.”

“Right! Follow him back to the Janus Order. Piece of cake, let’s go!” Toby grinned, throwing his door open and immediately falling out, slipping on all the bubblegum he had pulled out.

Wincing, I turned to see Otto flinch at the noise, trying to locate the cause of it.

Calire shushed Toby as he fell again, letting out a loud yelp, effectively scaring off Mr. Evil Man. “We can’t lose him. You drive, Blink. River, Toby and I will follow on foot.”

“One magic enhanced Changeling chase, here we come,” I huffed, flashing out of the car to avoid Toby’s gumballs everywhere, “Draal, make sure he doesn’t kill anyone with his driving.”

Draal laughed, jumping into the passenger seat as Claire got out, Blinky speeding off before he could respond.

We quickly began following Otto trying to keep a quiet distance, only being ruined by the candy dropping from Toby’s bag. As Blinky drove past him, Otto disappeared, “Can changelings teleport?” I asked, looking around quickly, snarling as I spotted the trench coat heading into a street blocked off for construction. “This way.” I took off sprinting, it seemed Mr. Evil Man knew someone was following him, might as well give him something to try running from.

I could hear Claire telling Blinky we had a new plan, one captured Changeling coming right up. Teleporting in front of Otto, my right eye glowing blue as the markings from my troll form glowed orange with magic, “Not exactly blending in there, are you?” I asked, his eyes going wide at the sight of daylight, he turned down another street, prolonging the chase.

Toby came flying by using his warhammer as a clever mode of transportation. And he ran into a truck. Wincing I saw the warhammer slam into his face. I really hope he knows my taunt about needing braces again was a joke.

Claire paused, letting the other’s know Toby was down. I kept running for Otto, if we were going to have a chance at saving Jim, this was it. Blink boxed the alley in as we approached, slowing down in case Otto tried anything.

I could feel energy near us shift and the sound of spray paint. I grabbed Claire’s shoulder before she could ambush anyone innocent. Walking around the dumpster myself, I eyed how the kid was using the spray paint, noticing how thin the paint looked. “If you actually knew how to use that, you’d know to shake the can first.” I glared down, still on high alert as the teen turned to face me. Shock written on his face before he pushed past me, running into the street.

“Where’s Mr. Evil Man?” Claire asked, watching the kid run.

I kneeled down, picking up the paint can, recognizing it immediately. “If I had to guess, that was him.” This paint was only sold by Ms. Kamaria, and I was the only one who purchased it.

“What do you mean? That wasn’t the guy we were chasing,” Claire looked down, trying to figure out why I was so fixated on the paint can. “River, what’s wrong?”

Draal came running over from the car, worried when he saw I wasn’t making a move to get up. “Why did you bring your paint?” He asked, recognizing the can as well.

I turned the can upside down, snarling as I looked over the bottom, my initials were marked, plain as day, something I did with all my paints in case I misplaced them, a habit I was terrible with growing up. Over the initials someone drew a sun. “The bastard either broke into the house or school to get this.”

“Wait, you thought that was Otto and you let him go?” Claire asked, “This was our one shot!”

I shoved the can against her chest, as Toby and Blinky finally caught up, “This means he knew we were the ones that messaged him, and he still came.”

“Maybe the information James and Eemeli are leaking is working?” Blinky asked, trying to dispel the tension.

“He is gauging how desperate we are for the antidote,” Draal snarled, not liking that Otto was either in my paint supplies at school, or worse, in my room at our home.

“River,” Toby winced, holding his face, “I think I broke my jaw.”

I winced, hovering my hand over the side of his face and pulling back feeling the extent of the damage, “Sorry Tobes, I don’t think you’ll want malformed bones. It’ll be best if you get that looked at by a professional.”

Claire handed the paint back to me, sighing. “We should head out, it’s not like we’ll be able to find him again anytime soon.”

With that, we all split up. Blinky took Claire home before returning the car to wherever he stole it from. Draal and I walked Toby home, making sure he got some ice on his face before heading out.

As we approached the front door, I snarled, feeling on edge knowing Otto could have broken in.

Uncle James opened the door, confused on why Draal and I were just standing on the porch. “I’m guessing the stakeout didn’t go as planned?”

I handed him the paint as Draal and I walked in, flopping down on the couch.

Sighing Draal ruffled my hair before explaining the can to Uncle James. “With all of us being at the learning dungeon or Trollmarket, it wouldn’t have been hard for him to break in.”

“I haven’t smelled anything off, even in his human form he’d give off a strange scent.” Uncle James explained, trying to help calm my anxiety.

Could something cover that though? My eyes widened as I jumped to my feet, running up the stairs and straight for my room. As soon as I opened the door, the stench of fresh paint filtered into the hall. Shuddering, I realized the yellow paint Otto had used tonight was covering the walls of my room. He had literally left a mark, letting us know he was here.

Suns were painted everywhere. It seems Changeling’s were loyal to more than Gunmar.

“Bushigal!” Draal snarled, running in after me, he covered his nose as he took in the paint covering my room.

Uncle James winced, peering into the doorway, “That would explain not being able to smell him,” Walking in, he glared at the larger of the suns painted. “He really had to drive it in, didn’t he?”

“Why would he do this?” Draal asked, not connecting the dots as fast.

“Morgana,” I seethed, letting my claws out and slashing through one of the suns, feeling irritated and violated at having anything to do with her in my room. It was bad enough I had the painting, now stuffed in the back of my closet, that Ms. Kamaria said I needed to make.

“The Janus Order works for her, I thought they were agents of Gunmar?” Draal asked, pulling me from the walls before I could do any more damage.

“To be an agent of Gunmar is to be an agent of the Eldritch Queen, which is why Garridan and I worry about finding the order in Arcadia.”

“Great, so here or the Darklands, I’m a liability,” Growling, I stalked out of the room, not wanting to see the damned suns any more.

Draal frowned, following close, “Are they hunting her?” He asked James, worried about being stuck in his fleshy form, unable to protect me at the moment.

Uncle James shook his head as we settled in the living room again. “My reports state that it is unlikely, at this point, I think it’s more of a calling card. They’re telling us they have what we want.”

“Think they’re willing to negotiate?” I asked, rubbing my temples. I knew Otto showing up to meet with Strickler was too easy.

“I think you’ll have to be part of the negotiation. They know we have the bridge, they know you’re capable of opening it, to some extent. If they want Gunmar released, us opening the bridge to save my son is their best bet. However, targeting you for the negotiation means you may have or can get something they need.” Uncle James explained, showing us reports from his spies stating that, other than Eemeli, there aren’t Witch Hunters assigned anywhere near Arcadia.

“Other than myself, what could they want?” I asked, irritated that we had more questions than answers it seemed.

“A sample of your blood, possibly a stone made of your magic. Honestly, with the information I’ve been given, it could be anything.” He sighed, looking over at Draal and I. “Why don’t you two get some rest, Draal and I can fix your room while you’re at school tomorrow. I’ll keep watch over the house tonight.”

I went to argue but Draal’s hand on my shoulder cut me off, “You’re still exhausted from stealing Killahead Bridge, and after tonight you’ve overdone it,” Even in his fleshy form he could tell I pushed well past my limits tonight. “Besides,” He was cut off by a yawn, also exhausted from our last few adventures, “until I turn back to normal, I’m stuck needing sleep.”

I nodded, heading down to the basement without argument. I flopped face down on the nest, wanting nothing more than to bash Otto’s skull in at the moment.

“You’re angry,” Draal got into the nest with me, nuzzling the side of my face. “And you’re plotting murder or dismemberment.” He chuckled, running his fleshy hand through my hair, taking the braid out so he could play with it, something he realized helped to calm me down.

“Is it showing?” I grumbled, flexing my fingers. I couldn’t feel Eclipse running along my skin, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t leaking out.

“Not literally,” Draal nudged my shoulder, gently pushing me until I let him roll me onto my side. “But you are pouting.”

I puffed out my cheeks, glad I had control on the Eclipse magic since my revelation with NotEnrique, still mad at the damned Changeling that vandalized my room. “I want to bash his skull in,” I admitted, not liking that the Eldritch Queen was basically plastered all over my room.

“Murder it is,” He chuckled, pulling one of the blankets up, “Now, I’m happy to help, but I don’t think killing our only contact that is seeking us out would be wise.”

My brow knit together, eyeing Draal, “Who are you and what have you done with my mate?” I asked, teasing him.

Barking out a laugh, Draal tugged me close, making sure I had room to move, “I’m filling in for Vendel until her Highness-lady gets kicked out of Trollmarket.” He snickered, knowing we couldn’t go to Vendel due to the Tribunal’s edict.

I groaned, hiding my face against his chest, nuzzling my head up under his chin. “Remind me to bash her head in with that stupid crown she wears, maybe I can use it on Mr. Evil Man too.” I snickered, yawning as Draal and I curled up.

“Will do, but for now, I think you’ll have to settle for dismembering them in your sleep, love.” Draal chuckled, kissing the top of my head. Between our conversation about kisses and him being turned human twice, he’s been increasingly fond of the gesture.

I drifted off before I could respond. Once again, my dreams lead me to a shadowy castle. The corridor I was in looked like the one from my memory of Douxie finding me for my nap. I wandered the halls aimlessly, surprised at how detailed the dream was. A presence made itself known behind me, softly tapping the middle of my back. I turned quickly, having to look down to see a green fae-like creature with antlers.

She giggled softly, waving me to follow her. Odd, I don’t think I’ve dreamt about her before. Deciding to follow, we headed in the opposite direction that I was wandering. She couldn’t be a memory, magical beings weren’t able to freely roam camelot’s halls.

“You’re out of place,” The creature spoke sweetly, looking back with a smile on her face.

Confused, I frowned, “This isn’t a memory?”

“Shadow realm, strange for moonlight to dream here,” She spoke, again, gesturing to the dark halls. Now that she mentioned it, when I last dreamt of the castle it was also dark.

“That doesn’t sound good,” I went to pull the strings of my hoodie, a nervous habit, instead my hand met metal. Looking down, I could see a dark dress, similar to the one in the locket portrait of my family, a metal chestplate the only difference. “That’s new.”

“Memories are shifting,” The creature turned, touching the chestplate, suddenly the metal darkened, the dress I had been wearing was replaced with a shorter red robe, a hood falling over my head. “My memory.” Was all she stated, turning back around and leading me out of the castle.

I stopped short, seeing that we were in fact, in the shadow realm. “I can’t.”

Turning back the creature took my hand, smiling softly. “Taking to memories.” She explained. As soon as her hand touched mine, a comforting warmth spread through my chest.

“My memories, but,” I winced, remembering Angor Rot taunting me about a broken mind, and then when mom pulled up the memory of her death, saying it was messed with. “What if they’re wrong again?”

She smiled, pulling me off the castle grounds and flying off into the Shadow Realm, “Not wrong, taken. Changed.” We flew over memories of battles, forests, Troll villages, and caverns lined with precious gems. “Hidden here, by Morgana.”

I flinched at the name, feeling dread overtake my senses. “No!” I yelled, pulling from the creature, “I’m not letting her mess with my head ever again!”

The creature quickly came to my side, making sure I didn’t drift too far from her so I wouldn’t be lost in the shadow realm. “You are little light,” She spoke softly, using the name Merlin had called me, “She will not hurt you. I won’t allow it, I promise.” Determination filled her eyes, reaching her hand out for me once again, letting me choose.

Slowly, I reached out, settling my hand in her’s. I couldn’t understand why, but I knew if this creature made a promise, it was binding. “Okay, I trust you.”

Smiling softly, we floated down to an island cast in shadows. The only thing of note was the large cave we were heading towards.

“Why would she hide my memories in a cave?” I asked, surprised they wouldn’t be hidden in the castle.

The creature tilted her head in thought, “Primordial magics rest here as they do in your home. This was only place powerful enough to hold your memories at time.” She explained, hand ghosting over the cave wall, causing thousands of illuminating flowers to bloom within, casting green and pink lights over the shadows. “Only place strong enough to hold her.” She pointed up ahead.

My grip on her hand tightened as I saw a woman fully covered in gold armor trapped inside some sort of crystal. “That’s really her? That’s Aunt Gana?” I winced as gold flooded the cave, worried I had somehow released the one being I was truly terrified of. Instead, a golden figure matching the woman in my memories of Aunt Gana appeared, no armor or malice in sight.

Smiling softly, she dispelled the shadows surrounding us. “I had hoped you would reach this place one day, little light.” She spoke, all the harshness and vile I was expecting was nowhere to be found.

A thought struck me then, “You didn’t call me ‘Sunshine.’” I confronted the spirit vessel, confused on why there seemed to be two completely different versions of the Eldritch Queen in front of me.

Morgana’s spirit let out a sigh, turning back to look at her trapped form. “We are the same, though our imprints are from different times. The being you know as the Eldritch Queen was corrupted over time,” She looked to the creature guiding me, nodding to her. “Magic as ancient as the beginning, influenced and corrupted the body you see trapped. I believe your teacher warned you, perfection is not for everyone, it could hold some back,” she waved to the creature, “and destroy others.” She motioned to her armored from once again.

Dread filled me, if this version of Morgana could see me, then so could the one behind her. “You’re able to spy on us?”

She shook her head, pulling out a pale blue orb, it looked like condensed daylight. “I only know what Merlin has offered to tell.”

“Why would he tell you anything? You’re the reason his sister is dead, you separated our family. Hell, you’re the reason I’m in this time!” I snarled, the orange of my spirit-form being overtaken by Eclipse’s red.

Instead of answering, Morgana simply shook her head, “It’s not the time, nor my place to answer those questions.” She reached into the armored body, pulling out an orb of pale blue magic. “This is why you are here. I’ve been guarding these for over nine centuries.”

“Why guard something you stole?” I was so confused. Why would Morgana help me at all? If she took them, why would she give them back?

“I protected them, little light. She stole them,” She sighed, referring to her trapped form. Turning and holding the orb out to the creature guiding me. “They will return slowly so as to not overwhelm your mind, however,” She pulled a small droplet of magic from the orb, handing it directly to me. “This is the one you’re worried about the most. Ganieda’s final fight with the Eldritch Queen. When you feel you are ready, break the crystal. Until then, keep it close, little light.” I carefully took the raindrop of magic, watching it solidify in my grasp. With a final smile, Morgana, no Aunt Gana, began to fade. “I hope to meet you again, under friendly circumstances.”

I shot up in the nest, breathing hard and covered in sweat. What kind of nightmare was that?

Draal instantly woke up, sitting up slowly so he wouldn’t startle me. “Love, what happened? Are you alright?”

“I don’t know,” I winced, hands clenched so tight that my fingers were digging into the flesh of my palms. “A nightmare I think.”

Frowning, Draal took my hands. Slowly he rubbed the right one until it loosened up then began working on the left. As he loosened my left hand, a glowing raindrop fell, landing between us on the blanket.

“Were you in the mana pools?” He asked, carefully picking up the raindrop, just in case it was rigged to explode.

“Oh, no,” I flinched back, realizing exactly what it was. “Don’t break it, I,” I fumbled, trying to wrap my head around what happened. “Dreaming in the shadow realm, little green antlers, memories!” I yelped, trying to keep myself from panicking. I had come face to face with Morgana, the one from my earliest memories.

Draal’s hand froze, careful not to apply too much pressure to the crystal. “Love, you’re not making sense. What do you mean? Were you in the shadow realm?”

I nodded, carefully holding my hand out for the crystal, Draal carefully placing it in my palm. “I don’t know how. I thought I was dreaming of memories, then this little green fae-creature came up, she was so tiny!” I tried reeling my thoughts in, “She told me I was in the shadow realm, should have been obvious with how dark everything was,” I shook my head, trying to think straight. “She took me to where Morgana sealed my memories.”

Draal snarled, pulling me close. Any mention of the Eldritch Queen set him off. It seemed every time we tried to distance ourselves from her, she had a way of crashing back to the forefront of our worries. “It led you astray? How did you come back?”

Shaking my head quickly, I looked down at the crystal in my palm. “She didn’t. We, well, I saw Morgana, two of her actually. The one we’re terrified of, and the one I grew up with.” Holding up the crystal to him again, I frowned, unsure what to do with it at the moment. “The creepy one is sealed in some sort of prison, but the one I knew, she was protecting my memories from being destroyed.” Sighing, I really hated how complicated everything seemed to be getting. Between Merlin’s prophecies and Morgana in general, I didn’t know who was making it worse at the moment. “Something happened to her, she’s split. When she and the creature gave me my memories, she pulled this one out. It’s about mom’s final battle.”

Draal nuzzled the top of my head, having patiently waited for me to figure my words out before responding. “Have you seen it yet?”

“No,” I sighed, curling up against him. “She said the memories would return slowly so they wouldn’t overwhelm me, but she gave me the choice on this one. All I have to do is break the crystal when I’m ready.” I paused, carefully setting the crystal inside the family locket, wanting to keep it close. “What if I’m never ready?”

“One day, you will be.” Draal assured me, wincing as light filtered in the tiny basement windows. While he was human we kept the covers opened slightly to judge the time of day better. “For now, it is probably best to get ready for the learning dungeon. Your uncle and I will take care of the mess upstairs. Take this time to relax, you have most of the day to not worry about magic and monsters.” He chuckled, helping me out of the nest.

Smiling, I kissed his cheek. “Thank you, love.” Flashing up to the second story bathroom, I focused on the clothes I wanted from my room and got to work on cleaning up for the day. Once washed and dressed, I pulled my hair back into a high ponytail and teleported downstairs just in time to see Uncle James and Draal head up stairs.

Grabbing my backpack, I chuckled seeing Eemeli and Claire arguing in his car, slipping into the backseat, I looked over at Toby’s house, “Are we waiting on Tobes?”

Eemeli snickered, taking off before answering, “Nope, Nana said he was at the dentist. One day without braces and he manages to break his jaw.”

“I’m surprised Draal isn’t coming along,” Claire glanced back, having gotten used to our temporarily fleshy Draal accompanying us to school. “Is everything okay?”

“Other than finding out where Mr. Evil Man got the paint from? Yeah, we’re fine. Draal and Uncle James are fixing my room.”

“Wait, you actually ran into Otto?” Eemeli yelped, looking at me through the rearview mirror.

“Told you so,” Claire stuck her tongue out at Eemeli. I’m guessing that’s what they were arguing about. “Wait, what happened to your room? He broke into your house?”

“Yup,” I snarled, sitting back and trying to keep my composure. “After talking to Uncle James last night, I realized the only thing in the house that could cover his scent was probably paint fumes. When I got up into my room, it was covered in spray paint suns. The walls, ceiling, hell he even covered my bed in the fucking things!” So much for composure.

Eemeli stiffened, “That’s not good, they’re calling you out specifically, why waste their time though? You could literally turn them to stone if they tried to even touch you. I don’t think they have the facilities to hold you hostage. Not to mention you’re unlikely to hand over anything to them.”

“That’s just it though,” Claire sighed, realizing last night was a total setup for us and not the other way around. “River would do anything to get Jim back, except go into the Darklands herself. If they want something highly specific from her, and they know we’re desperate, they may think she’ll hand over whatever they’re after.”

“Not completely wrong, though at this point, I’m starting to question if I’m any more dangerous in the Darklands than I am out here. If I have to help power the bridge and if Gunmar does manage to escape, what’s to stop him from using his soul sucking sword on me right there?” I huffed, having been worried about the thought since Jim and I managed to open the bridge together.

“Like Draal will give him the chance,” Eemeli snorted, parking at school. “Come on, let's go play human teenagers for a few hours. Who knows, maybe seeing Steve’s bruised face will cheer you up.”

I groaned, “I can’t believe Draal suckerpunched him after Toby said he wasn’t worth it.”

Clarie giggled, “You’ve got to admit, you’ve got one protective hubby.”

“I thought we were still using fiancé,” I laughed, shaking my head at her antics.

“Is there really a difference for trolls?” She asked, genuinely curious.

I paused at our lockers, “I have no idea, from what Draal explained there’s not-courting, courting, challenging, and mates.”

“See, you’re basically married.” She teased, grabbing her books.

We split off to our classes after that. Art was pretty uneventful. After Eri crashed the first show, we were working on individual pieces for a makeup show. I was planning on using the painting I had done of Ganieda in the mana pools for that, instead I pulled out a new canvas and began working on a dark background, mimicking the cave from last night’s dream. Something itching in the back of my mind.

Instead of Morgana, I began outlining three different creatures. The first was the little green fae-like creature that had guided me through the shadow realm, surrounding her in flowers, her body giving off a pink and green glow. By the time the bell rang for the next class, I only had some basic shapes down for the other two figures, still unsure about them.

Eemli and I walked out to the lockers to see that Toby had finally made it to school. The students around us apparently had a lot to say about whatever the dentist had to do for his broken jaw.

“Hey, Tobes,” I opened my locker, glaring at a yellow spray painted sun. Stuffing my mother’s grimoire in my backpack, I slammed the door shut. “How’d your appointment go?”

“You can hardly notice it,” Claire winced, having her first period with Toby.

Toby pulled back from his locker, closing it roughly before turning to face us. His entire face was encased in metal bars connected to his face. I’m really wishing I was comfortable healing bones now. “I look like somebody tried to build a cyborg, then gave up.

I grasped Toby’s shoulder, wincing at all the nuts and bolts carefully holding the headgear in place. “I can talk with Vendel later and see if there’s a magic option, that way you can get that off faster.”

Sighing, Toby nodded, picking up his bag. “I’m just going to head to class, this day can’t get any worse.” He walked off, even more dejected as the teens around him pulled away at the sight of his face.

“Seriously? It’s just medical equipment, Eli didn’t even faint at the sight of my eye the first time I came to school without the bandages.” I huffed, heading with Claire to our next classes.

Claire shrugged, “Human teenagers, not exactly the most logical people on Earth.” She snickered, heading into her class.

Growling softly, I headed to my science class with Eli, slamming my books on the desk we shared.

“Everything okay?” He asked, ignoring Steve as he shoved past us to his desk.

I nodded, plopping down into my seat, “Having trouble understanding the way teens think.”

Eli chuckled, keeping quiet as the class began, “You say that like you aren’t one.”

I shot him a pointed look before glancing down at the little notes he kept making about me. Alien was the forerunner, not surprising with Eli’s obsession with science and space. “Let’s just say that isn’t the right track.”

Eli grinned, crossing out his alien notes, now making small notes on different cryptids and creatures. Witches, werewolves, and vampires were now tied, I wonder if there are werewolves and vampires, might ask Draal about that later.

Steve shoved past Eli after asking to use the bathroom, glaring at us as he headed out. That boy had a serious hang up over Jim.

“Any other info you can give?” He whispered, hiding the notes whenever our teacher walked by.

I hummed in thought, this might give it away but hey, even Draal’s been routing for Eli to guess it. “We’re very connected to crystals.”

Eli’s eyes grew wide, circling ‘witch�� before going through a list of creatures off the top of his head that could also be connected to crystals, fairies were the only other thing he could list. “You wouldn’t happen to have a pair of wings would you?”

I grinned, picturing Strickler’s troll form as a tiny fairy. “Personally? No.”

Before Eli could ask, the bell rang. “We can continue this later.”

As we walked out I spotted Darci running off in tears as Toby dropped Claire to the floor. “What the hell happened?”

“No Darci!” Toby tried to follow her only to run face first into a locker. As he sat up on the floor he let out a gasp, horror taking over his expression.

“What is going on?” I asked Claire as we quickly went to Toby’s aide.

Claire sighed, upset that she inadvertently hurt her friend. “Toby’s headgear is picking up local radio signals, if you lean close enough to his mouth you can hear it.”

I sat next to Toby, leaning in to hear a woman’s voice, “Nineteen. Seventy-six. Thirty-five. Eleven.”

“It’s numbers?” I asked, confused on what he was listening to now.

“Don’t mess with it,” Toby yelped, “I think Blinky is gonna wanna hear this for himself.”

Now that’s interesting. “Think you can last the rest of the day with whatever that is playing?” I asked, helping him to stand.

“Yeah,” He groaned, not excited to have whatever that was playing on repeat.

As the day wore on, Toby looked more and more like he was gonna snap. “Tobes, have you considered writing down whatever you’re hearing?”

Toby gave me a dull look, opening his notebook to pages that started off as notes and quickly devolved into the message he was hearing. “It happened in every class. I’m just glad I can somewhat focus on Gun Robot. If coach shows this in class again I’ll have it memorized.”

I smiled, glad he was trying to keep his spirits up, even if whatever was happening was slowly driving him insane. It’s like wearing permanent headphones and having no control of what you’re listening to.

Eli sat with us, glancing at Toby’s notebook before opening his own on my desk. “So, about earlier, am I close?” He whispered, keeping the book hidden from Claire and Toby’s eyes.

I looked down to see ‘witch’ written in bold letters, and notes upon notes of why Eli thought that was correct. We really haven’t been as subtle about our Trollhunting as we thought.

I nodded slowly, smirking, “You’re sort of half right. Wrong term but that’s a cultural thing.”

“Half right?” He asked, confused about what he was missing.

“That’s my mom’s side of the family.” I grinned. With that, Claire and Toby went stiff, trying to look at whatever Eli was showing me.

Shaking my head, I waved them off, “Don’t worry, it’s between me and Eli.”

They settled down, but for the rest of class they couldn’t help but cast questioning glances whenever Eli would ask an ‘invasive’ question, and I’d give an honest answer, including that I don’t own a cauldron but I do work with potions from time to time, but that’s not what I’m limited to.

“Are we gonna talk about that?” Claire asked as we were waiting for Blinky and Draal on the roof of the school, Blinky said something about getting a better signal and the staff wouldn’t find us up here while they were closing down the school.

“About what?” I asked, reading through an anatomy textbook and mom’s grimoire to see if I could find a spell for bones specifically.

Toby huffed, plopping down next to me, “That magic talk with Eli. Or did you forget all about your conversation in history?”

“Oh,” I closed the books, looking at Toby and Claire, “Right, that.” I pulled the strings of my hoodie, thinking of how to tell them, deciding blunt was the best option. “Eli’s seen a lot of things we thought no one noticed. He knows Jim is involved somehow. He’s caught us teleporting off of campus, and my eyes glowing. After the battle with Angor and things were really rough, he put two and two together. So, I promised if he could guess what it was, well, what I was, then I would explain the things I could that wouldn’t put him directly in danger. Then he asked about Jim’s involvement, I told him that would have to come from Jim, if he decided to tell him.”

“So he knows you’re a wizard?!” Toby gasped out, careful not to hit his headgear.

“Who knows about Lady River?” Blinky’s voice pulled our attention to him and Draal’s human form climbing the ladder to the roof.

“My friend Eli found out,” I shrugged, “We haven’t been very subtle.”

Draal chuckled, knowing it was only a matter of time, “Does he know everything?”

Smiling, I shook my hand in a so-so manner. “He knows about what my mother’s side of the family is. Nothing specific and nothing that would put him in direct harm.”

“He knows magic exists! That you’re a wizard!” Blinky yelped, starting to panic, “That puts him directly in harm's way!”

“No, knowing me at all would put him in harm’s way,” I argued, knowing that if the Janus Order wanted info on me, they could ask almost anyone I came into contact with. “The same goes for mom, Ms. Kamaria, hell, even Stuart the taco truck owner.”

Blinky pulled his jaw from the floor, slowly accepting my reasoning. “You haven’t divulged any information on Master Jim have you? You promised master Jim you wouldn’t tell anyone”

Draal stiffened, knowing Blinky was about to be torn into, he took a step back from the troll.

Snarling, I got in Blinky’s face, glaring into his six shocked eyes. “Listen well Blinkous. I promised Jim that I wouldn’t tell mom about him being the trollhunter, or ANYTHING about who I AM. I never promised him I wouldn’t tell ANYONE else. If you ever try using my word against me again, then make damn sure you know EXACTLY what I said, or Deya help me, you’ll be a matching statue of Unkar the Unfortunate.”

Blinky paled as much as a terrified blue troll made of stone could. “I see,” he squeaked out, clearing his throat to recover. “Yes, of course. Apologies, Lady River. I did not mean to offend you.”

I huffed, nodding at him before plopping down near the edge of the roof. “You’re here for Toby. Have fun with that.”

Draal came and sat next to me, our feet hanging off the back side of the school roof. “I honestly thought Blinky was going to be a statue after that insult.”

Pouting, I nudge my shoulder into his, looking out towards the mountains a few miles off in the distance. “I thought about it. But you can’t always be my impulse control, gotta do it myself sometimes.”

“Your inner Vendel came out,” he snickered, pulling me into his side, keeping his arm over my shoulders. “The old goat would be proud.”

“That I tore Blinky a new one, or that I told Eli I’m magic?” I smiled, leaning into the hug.

“Mostly Blinky,” He grinned, knowing Vendel would blow a gasket if he found out another human might be on their way to Trollmarket. “I’m proud of you though.”

“Draal, the troll irritated by the mere presence of humans, proud that another might be joining us,” I giggled, thinking back to our first meeting. “Your time as a fleshy has really changed your views on us, huh?”

“No,” He smirked, leaning over to smoosh his face against my temple in his more troll-like ‘kiss’, “you and the trollhunter have changed my mind. Your fleshbag mother as well. She is terrifying.”

Grinning at the ‘kiss’ I turned to look over his human face, “Thank you, it means a lot, love.”

“Great Gronka Morka!” Blinky’s cry drew our attention back to the three other beings on the roof. Claire was pulling Toby around by his headgear, Toby about to fall over at any moment while Blinky held what looked to be a handmade gramophone speaker to his mouth. “Tobias, I believe your headgear is picking up the secret transmissions of the Janus Order!”

“That would explain the ‘Janus initiative’ part,” I huffed, Draal getting up from the roof's edge and offering his mechanical hand to me. Smiling, I took his hand and let him help me up, heading over to the others.

“Where two faces meet.” Claire recited, wondering why that was important.

“It could be a secret combination,” Blinky speculated as he and Claire continued to pull Toby back and forth.

“Why does that phrase sound familiar?” Draal asked, rubbing at his beard in thought.

‘Where two faces meet’? It did sound rather familiar. I used the hand Draal wasn’t holding to grasp my locket.

“Or lead us to a passage in a book,” Claire was throwing ideas back and forth with Blinky, each idea more unlikely than the next.

“Or coordinates!” Toby tried to shout, tired of getting yanked back and forth.

“‘I hope you and Jim never see where two faces meet.’” I recounted the ending of my father’s letter from my 19th birthday, the day I found out exactly what I was. “He was talking about the Janus Order!”

Toby pushed away from Blinky and Claire, coming to stand with Draal and I, pointing to me as I had my revelation. “They’re coordinates! They lead to someplace here in Arcadia!”

“That would explain why your father was worried you’d stumble upon them,” Draal grinned, turning to Toby. “Good job fleshbag.”

“How do you propose we figure out where these coordinates lead?” Blinky asked, “I don’t believe I have any updated maps of this area.”

“Don’t need it,” I grinned, entering the numbers Toby gave me into the navigation app on my phone, “And with that,” I grinned, turning my phone to show Blinky. “We have our location. And I know exactly where it’s located.”

“Can you teleport us that far?” Draal asked, not wanting to waste time, knowing Mr. Evil Man could be a problem if we didn’t deal with them soon.

Nodding, I grabbed Toby’s hand, Blinky and Claire quickly grabbing onto us, I teleported us to Ms. Kamaria’s store.

“Your art store?” Toby asked, confused.

Ms. Kamaria came up behind him as he looked around confused. Bopping him on the top of his head with her cane, she turned to look over Blinky and Draal, snickering at Draal’s form. “Again?”

“Not from Gatto,” He huffed, glaring the old woman down.

Blinky was confused, “Lady River, I do not believe we are in the right location.”

“No, we’re in the location I had the strongest emotional connection to that was near the coordinates.” I explained, showing him the location was extremely close to us.

“And the little shop keeper?” He asked, not having met Sylvina in this form.

Ms. Kamaria smirked, “Does your mind age too fast Galadrigal?”

“Sylvina!” Blinky jumped behind me, obviously scared of whatever Ms. Kamaria could do to him.

Shaking her head in amusement, Ms. Kamari turned her attention to me, sighing softly as she looked across the streets to where the coordinates showed. “I’m assuming it’s time you see where two faces meet.”

“You knew where they were?” Draal snarled, irritated that we didn’t think of coming to the wild spirit for guidance now.

“No, but I had my suspicions, spirits are not all knowing, unless we know what we are looking for, or who.” She grinned, shooing us out of her store as the last cars of traffic left town. “Keep your guard up, the Janus Order uses underhanded tactics, as you have learned.”

Nodding, I led the others across the street to another shop. “And here we are.”

“A travel agency?” Claire asked, confused why the Janus Order would use this as a front. “These places still exist?”

Nodding, grabbing onto the others, I teleported us inside the door.

“Keep quiet,” Blinky instructed in a whisper.

As we slowly walked further into the agency, Toby began to dance and hum along to whatever music he could hear. Everyone turned to shush him as Draal whacked his headgear, effectively shutting off whatever music he was hearing.

Looking around, Blinky fell into trainer mode, giving us directions. “Scour the room. Look here, here, here, and here.” He used all four hands to point in different directions. “This place might hold a clue to the location of the Janus Order.”

We began looking through different sections of the agency, I began carefully pulling books off the bookcase, wondering if this would be like our adventures of breaking into Strickler’s office. As a halfling, could I open a Changeling lock?

I could hear Toby and Claire talking about the fetch, apparently with the headgear, Toby couldn’t look inside, and Claire was too scared to see the place her brother was held captive until we stormed the Darklands for Jim.

“Let me see,” I huffed, taking the Fetch from Toby.

Claire grabbed my arm, trying to stop me, “Wouldn’t that be in direct violation of your word?”

“Do you honestly think my shoulders will fit through this thing?” I snapped, irritated at how many people were questioning my word today.

Her hand dropped quickly, taking a step back from me. “I guess not.”

I stuck my head through, looking around, I realized this was the cell they had been keeping Jim in. “Where the hell is he?”

“Little witch,” A voice spoke, one I never thought I’d hear again. “So the Trollhunter spoke true.” Looking up, I could see the green glow of Nomura’s eyes through one of the holes.

“One second,” I snarled, pulling my head out. “Toby, throw as much food as you have on you into the fetch right,” I moved, making sure it was far enough back in the cell that if Gunmar’s soldiers brought Jim back, they wouldn’t notice it. “Here.”

“What’s going on?” Claire asked as Toby took the fetch and did as instructed, emptying all his snacks and untouched lunch into the fetch.

“We found Jim’s cell, and someone else.” Looking at Draal, I took a seat near the cleared off bookshelf. “Keep looking, I have words for a very specific Changeling.”

Draal nodded, understanding exactly who I was referring to.

Closing my eyes, I focused on Jim's cell. Feeling my body fall away, I opened my eyes, staring down Nomura’s glowing green orbs.

She sneered at my presence, eyeing my orange spirit-form. “You’ve changed, witch.”

“And you’re locked away just like Jim, why?” I asked, in no mood for games or dodging questions. I floated into her cell, catching the changeling off guard.

Eyeing me for a moment, she huffed, sitting back against the cell wall she shared with Jim. “Gunmar had to punish someone for the death of his son, he needs little Gynt alive for you to have a reason to open the bridge.”

“Jim mentioned that Gunmar knew we were coming.” I sighed, feeling as if things just got much more complicated with Nomura involved. “‘Little Gynt’?”

“‘In the hall of the Mountain King,’ the hero boy of the story is referred to as Peer Gynt.” She explained, looking me dead in the eyes.

“Careful,” I snickered, “If you name something that usually means you’re attached to it.”

Nomura let out a gravely chuckle, wincing as she grasped at her chest, she was still injured from whatever punishment Gunmar put her through. “I’ve heard that’s the case with humans, would explain Stricklander’s attachment to you two.”

“Sit still,” I huffed, kneeling next to her.

Snarling, she tried to pull back. Far too weak to move more than a few inches, she glared over my form. “What do you think you’re doing, witch?”

“Well, I was trying to heal you, but if you prefer, you can stay in pain.” I huffed, hands on my hips as I scolded her like a child.

Shock was the first emotion Nomura truly showed during our conversation. She slowly nodded, allowing me to get closer once more.

I laid my hands carefully on her shoulders, pouring my healing magic directly into her. I could feel her tension ease as her wounds were healed until she could sit up straight.

“Better?” I asked, pulling back from the changeling, allowing her space once more.

“Yes,” She eyed me carefully, “what do you wish in return?”

I opened my mouth to deny her request, pausing as my eyes trained on the wall behind her.

“He’ll be back,” She spoke, realizing the only thing I’d ask is for information on Jim. “Not for a while though. The guards dragged him off right before you decided to ‘pop in’.”

Nodding I sat back, eyeing her as I thought over the injuries I could feel when I was healing her. “Do you,” I paused, wondering if Draal might snap if he knew what I was about to ask, Kanjigar will for sure. “Do you want a way out?”

Nomura studied me as if I had suddenly grown three heads. “You can’t be serious.”

“Do you want a way out?” I asked again, not sure how long I could wait for her reply.

She let out a cackle, holding her head in one hand as she stared at me with disbelief. “What are you?”

Smiling slightly, I shrugged, “Honestly, that list keeps growing.” I stood, giving her a slight bow before standing straight, head held high. “I am River Marie Wyllt. Merlin’s heir. Daughter of Lady Ganieda and General Garridan. Half Changeling.” I snickered as her mouth fell open at that, “And as far as the last Tribunal meeting, I am officially the leader of the Changelings of Arcadia. I know, I know, I never do anything simple, do I?”

Nomura kept opening and closing her mouth, trying to process everything. “No, no you do not.” She settled on, shaking her head. “I’m also starting to believe Draal has a type he’s not aware of,” she snickered. Standing, she circled me slowly. “So, if I do take your offer, would that make me one of your ‘Changelings of Arcadia’?”

“Only if you want to stick around without the trolls giving you a hard time.” I laughed, knowing full well Nomura could care less how the trolls viewed her.

“I’m not going to have to call you ‘my lady’ or ‘my queen’ am I?’ She asked, amused at the offer now that she knew it was serious.

I gagged, already hating the idea, “For the love of Deya, please never call me those again,” I shuddered, mind going straight to her highness-lady. “I’m about ready to commit regicide whenever I enter Trollmarket, that is a pedestal I will gladly jump off of.”

Nomura seemed to think over my answer, nodding to me, “Very well little Isolde. I will keep watch over the Trollhunter as best I can, while you work on the path out.”

Why did I feel like the new name was a dig at my previous request? “What, no questioning my word? My honor? Anything?” I asked, surprised Nomura agreed so easily.

Letting out a chuckle, I think my surprise was all Nomura needed to know the kind of weeks I’ve had since Jim crossed into the Darklands. “I’ve had plenty of talks with little Gynt, if you give your word, you’ll make it happen. Come hell or high water it seems.”

“Flooding the Darklands, not a bad idea,” I teased. “Then you have my word, even if I have to come in myself.”

“Curious, the Trollhunter said you promised the opposite.” Her eyes narrowed.

I shrugged, “I promised I wouldn’t come into the Darklands when we were all supposed to be storming this place together, I also promised due to the threat of the Eternal Night. Now, with how close the Janus Order truly is, it won’t matter what side of Killahead I’m on. My existence is enough of a threat.”

Snorting, Nomura gave me a sharp-toothed grin, “Truly a changeling, finding cracks in agreements and promises.” Thinking over my statement she nodded as my form began to fade, “wait for the phone to ring, you’ll know what to say.”

My brow furrowed at her words as I awoke in the travel agency once again, she caught on quickly. “Where’s the phone?” I asked, slightly groggy from the length I was able to stay in the Darklands.

“Phone?” Draal asked, helping me to my feet, it looked like the others were still tearing this place apart. “What happened?”

“Tip from Nomura,” I explained, looking over the room.

“Evil lady?!” Toby gasped out, glad he wasn’t able to stick his head through the fetch now. “What tip?”

“She said to wait for the phone to ring, and that I’d know what to say.” As I finished speaking, a phone on the back desk began to ring. Quickly walking over to it, I glanced at the others before picking it up. “Hello?”

A woman’s voice sounded through the phone, “Welcome to Omni Reach Travel. Where would you like to go?”

Where? Thinking back to my father’s letter and the transmission Toby picked up, I took a deep breath before answering. “Where two faces meet.” The call cut. Was that the wrong answer? Hanging up the phone, I glanced back at the others, shrugging.

The floor under us shook and slowly began to lower. We were standing on an elevator! Draal steadied me as we all took in what was happening. “Looks like she was right.” He huffed, glancing up as we sank deeper below Arcadia. Murals of Killahead bridge and the Darklands stretched on as we kept going.

“What are we going to do?!” Toby panicked, not wanting to face a horde of changelings with just us five. “We have to get out of here!”

“It’s too late to turn back now,” Blinky shushed him. “We must face what’s before us with courage and, beyond all else, a warrior’s dignity.”

“I thought the first rule of Trollhunting was to always be afraid,” I quipped, still irritated with Blinky’s earlier comments on the roof. Out of all the people who wouldn’t question me, Nomura was like, second to last on my list. Gunmar was probably last.

Toby yelped as we came to a giant mural of Gunmar, falling back into the desk chair as we reached what looked like elevator doors. Changelings were very advanced compared to Trolls.

“Welcome to the Janus Order,” a robotic female voice greeted us as the doors opened, revealing a hallway lit by a statue of an eye, the iris changed out with two side profiles of faces, one troll-like and the other human-like. Scratch that, I think Changelings are a bit too over dramatic, looks like Strickler got it honestly.

I pulled Toby up as the pathway lit up section by section. “Keep quiet, we don’t know how close anyone is.”

Blinky rubbed his stone chin in thought. “The Janus Order. This must be one of their bases of operations. By Gorgus, we were seeking a trail of breadcrumbs and wandered straight into the baker’s oven!” He panicked slightly, a little too loud for my liking as we exited the elevator.

“You think?” I asked sarcastically.

Draal nuzzled my cheek, holding my hand tight as he took up watch over my left side. “You seem calm.”

“Otto wanted negotiations with me, now he gets them express delivered to his doorstep.” I shrugged, at this point, Changelings were no longer the boogeyman Trolls pretended we were, even if the majority was working for Gunmar.

“We will have to improvise to keep Lady River safe, the antidote must be in this building.” Blinky seemed to ignore the part about the negotiations, or he was just ignoring me specifically at this point. “We’re in the den of spies, so try to walk lightly. Now fan out.” He ordered, taking off on his own before anyone could stop him.

“He does realize we have no idea how large this place is, right?” I asked, glaring at Blinky as he disappeared around a corner.

“Not a clue,” Draal rolled his eyes. “And neither do they,” sighing as he caught the last glimpses of Toby and Claire rounding another corner. “So how do you want to do this?”

“I was gonna go the direct approach seeing as that’s what Otto did,” I sighed, heading in the same direction as Claire and Toby. Before we could catch up, they walked through a door that locked behind them.

“You could teleport after them, but if there are changelings on the other side, they’d recognize you right away.” Draal offered, smirking as he saw the mischievous glint in my eye. “Direct approach?”

Grinning, I teleported us to Claire and Toby, “Since we were invited, shouldn’t we try asking for Otto?” I suggested as Toby was petting a tapestry, startling him enough that he ripped it down, revealing a communication room filled with changelings. “There you go,” I snickered.

Claire marched over, using a thick Spanish accent to yell at Toby as a woman ripped her mask off and marched over to us. “You’re right, Don Carlos.”

I arched a brow at her, confused by the charade.

She slapped the back of Toby’s head, “The Janus Order deserves a bigger banner than this toilet paper.” Was that supposed to ease the marching Changeling or insult her? “All hail Gunmar!” On second thought, we might be down two Trollhunters soon.

The woman approached us, eyeing all four of us. “I don’t recognize you four. What command post are you from?”

Claire glanced back at me and I only shrugged. She started the charade, she could finish it.

Draal glanced between the changeling and me, confused on how she didn’t recognize me.

Squeezing his prosthetic, I tried letting him know I thought it was suspicious too.

“Tapachula, Mexico.” Claire answered, hoping confidence would work here.

“You,” The changeling glanced back at me before looking down at her clipboard. Oh yeah, she definitely knew. “Must be the new transfer, Esmeralda!”

“Si, I am she,” Claire answered, not realizing her charade was already over.

“Esmeralda! Oh!” The changeling began to fangirl, “This is a huge honor!” The other changelings looked around the room, looking like they were just as confused as I was about whatever the hell we were watching. “You were the one who destroyed the dam and killed hundreds of fleshbags to protect our base!” She quickly shook Claire’s hand, glancing back at me again.

“Ugh, that was a crazy day.” Claire answered, obviously having no clue what the woman meant. “Not gonna lie, they had it coming.”

“You’re late for your orientation,” The changeling smiled sickly sweet, ushering us all further down the hall. “I’ll take you there now.”

Draal and I followed silently, either she was going to trap us or take us to Otto. Turns out, there was an actual changeling orientation. She handed us matching black masks and directed us to our seats.

“Well this is awkward,” I held the mask tight as we settled in our seats. Watching Strickler on a giant screen, the film looked ancient as it was now discolored. “Never thought I’d be seeing him again so soon.” The way the film played out, it looked like one of those silly documentaries you’d show elementary school students.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Otto speaking with the changeling that lured us here. Looks like I was also right, she brought us directly to Otto. My attention was pulled back to the screen as Strickler began to speak of the Pale Lady. I could feel my sclera change at the mention of the Aunt Gana I was most familiar with, the murderous rage witch.

“We gotta go,” Toby grabbed our attention.

Looking past him, I could see security and Otto smirking at us, their eyes going wide at the sight of my sclera. Since Strickler had no idea until he went rogue, they wouldn’t know either.

Every changeling around us turned, eyes glowing gold as they glared at our group. You know, Otto may want to talk to me, but Draal and the others? They might want them dead.

I grinned, sclera glowing bright for the changelings to see, “Adios!” I grabbed the others and teleported out of the room in a random hall.

“What happened to the direct approach?” Draal asked as we began to run, going to look for Blinky.

“He wants me, don’t know what they’ll do to the rest of you.” I explained quickly. “I can come back once I get the rest of you out of here!”

“Stop them!” The woman yelled, apparently I teleported us closer to the orientation room than I had meant to.

“You’re tired,” Draal pointed out, seeing the irritation on my face. “Spent too much mana in the Darklands.” He remarked, having seen the change in my magic when I healed Nomura.

“I’ll decide if it was worth it later,” I huffed, heading back towards the elevator, keeping Toby and Claire in front of me.

They came to a halt as the P.A. system announced that there were intruders in Wing B. Two changelings stood between us and the elevator. Before they could get close, Toby threw the remainder of his gumballs on the floor, causing the changelings to slide past us and hit the Janus Order sign. Claire opened a shadow portal behind them, causing them to fall out who knows where.

We quickly ran and hid behind the statues of well known changelings, listening as the mob from the orientation room passed us.

NotEnrique came by, waving us into a room.

Claire and Toby took after him, before Draal followed, I grabbed his wrist, sniffing the air. “Not him,” I snarled, we hadn’t stopped to get NotEnrique on the way, and he didn’t know where the Janus Order hideout was, if I was correct about Otto, Claire and Toby had just followed him.

“We’re still going,” Draal pulled me up, tense now that he knew for sure we were walking into a trap. As we entered the room, Otto was tying up an unconscious Toby and Claire to chairs, next to an already incapacitated and bound Blinky. “Bushigal!” Draal let out a yelp as the woman from before knocked him out, having expected us to follow behind.

Snarling, I quickly stood between the female changeling and Draal’s unconscious form. “You fucked up.”

“Really, now?” A thick German accent asked from behind. “It seems all your allies are out cold, and you’re surrounded by changelings that are actually loyal to Gunmar.”

I glanced back to see a smug smirk stretching over Otto’s face. While smug, he was still cautious as he pulled Draal’s unconscious form to another chair, tying him up with the other Teens. “Gunmar? And here I thought he was a means to an end.” I snapped my teeth at the female as she drew closer, gloved hands carrying metal shackles.

Otto seemed taken back by my answer, nodding to the female changeling. “If you want your friends to survive until they wake, you best behave.”

“Really?” I grinned, knowing he was avoiding my question. “Well, if you don’t want to talk about her, I might as well play along.” Glaring at the female in front of me, I held out my wrists, allowing her to close to the iron cuffs around them, instantly burning my flesh.

Looking up, the female changeling seemed to be shocked that I hadn’t reacted to the burns, glancing over my shoulder to Otto. Burns from Daylight hurt much more than iron burns ever could, that or it’s because my stone skin was helping my fleshy form.

I turned to face Otto, glaring down the changeling that led us on a chase specifically to send me a message. “When it comes to negotiations, you’re not very subtle about who you want to speak with.”

Otto glanced at my wrists, color draining from his face as he realized the iron was definitely burning my skin, and I had yet to react or acknowledge it. “What are you really, Sunshine?”

“You know, if you’re going to use Morgana’s name for me, then you really can’t ignore my questions pertaining to her, can you?” I tilted my head in confusion as Otto and the female Changeling went stiff, turning swiftly to a vintage record player with a gramophone speaker.

“Do you think because you hold her favor that you can speak her name?” The female changeling snarled, holding a sharp object to my back. I assumed the sharp object was a blade.

“Favor?” I snarled, teleporting behind her, quickly slipping my bound wrists over her head, pulling back till the iron was held tight to her throat. “I call her Morgana because she is my aunt, and that is her name. If you don’t want to hear it, that’s your problem.”

Otto put his hands up quickly, glaring at the changeling that I know had in a chokehold. Good thing I wasn’t holding a gaggletak to her throat. “Now, now, Sunshine, there’s no need for violence.”

Giving him a blank stare, I pointedly looked at each of my friends he had knocked out and tied up. “You really want to go with that? Fine.” Even as the burning from the shackles intensified, I poured my magic into my hands, grabbing the female changeling’s face. I focused on the feeling of falling asleep and poured the magic directly into her. Not a moment later, the changeling passed out, slumping out of my hold and down to the floor. “Now for you.” I bared my teeth at Otto, letting my right sclera burn.

Otto seemed to choke, the glow of my eyes catching him off guard again. “You’re truly a changeling?”

“‘Halfing’,” stalking forward, the least I could do is answer a question or two before I tore him apart. “You know my mother, my father on the other hand? General Garridan.” Is it bad that I found the look of pure horror on Otto’s face funny? Probably.

“The heir of Merlin is half changeling,” He let out an exasperated laugh, backing us as I drew closer. “And you fight as the human Trollhunter’s pet?” He sneered, trying to get a rise out of me.

I grinned, tilting my head. “The trollhunter is my cousin by blood. Tell me, has there ever been a ‘halfling’ trollhunter before?” This news seemed to scare him just as much as I had. “Don’t worry, Strickler only found out after you abandoned him. Now, this ‘pet’ business, what put that in your head?”

“You’re stronger and older than the Trollhunter, yet you take orders from him,” Otto glared, trying to take charge of the conversation again. “We know he’s asked you to lie to your guardian after he almost got her killed.”

“Stricklander and Angor Rot almost got her killed, not Jim.” I snarled, the burns were starting to get on my nerves.

“So you’re fine with lying to her?” Otto smirked, thinking he hit a nerve. The bastard did, but I didn’t have to let him know that. Just needed to keep him talking till the others woke up.

My grin turned malicious, my iris narrowing as I allowed more of my trollish features to slip through the glamour. “Aren’t all changelings exchanged with their human counterparts as babies? Did you ever feel bad about lying to the family that ‘raised’ you?”

Otto stiffened, not expecting his questions to be thrown back in his face. “If you’re half changeling, why do you fight the Pale Lady? Why turn your back on your people?” He sneered, sounding almost desperate.

I lunged, picking him up by his collar and holding him off of the ground. “She tore my mother apart in front of me as a child, used me as a bargaining tool to kill Merlin in their final fight, and separated my father and I from our true time. Take your pick.” My right iris glowed blue with daylight, a silent threat to the changeling hanging in my grasp.

“If you turn me to stone, you’ll never get the antidote,” Snarling, he tried pulling away from my hands.

I dropped him suddenly, my grin replaced with a dead stare. “Then stop wasting my time and patience and start negotiating. You wanted to speak with me directly, so what the hell do you want?”

“That simple?” Otto glared at me from the floor, knowing on his own he wouldn’t be able to stop me, not while he was cornered.

Snarling, I thought of the burns on my wrists and the feeling of fire. I know I’m pushing it, but scaring this jerk would be worth it. My hands lit up as I pulled on the Eclipse magic, black flames spread from my palms up over the iron cuffs, melting them off of my wrists.

Otto stared at the puddle of molten iron bubbling between us in shock.

“Never seen a wizard use their brain?” I rolled my eyes, flicking off what little iron remained on my wrists. “Now, about that antidote.”

“Why do you want it?” Otto asked suddenly.

I thought Eemeli and uncle James fed all the information out. “To cure Arrrgh.”

“Why?” He pressed, eyes finally shifting from the iron puddle to me.

Tilting my head, I tried to get a read on whether he was fishing for lies, or if he hadn’t gotten all of the information. “Let’s get straight to the point Mr. Evil Man,” I walked back over to my friends, seeing the first stirrings of them waking up. “You want a chance to free Gunmar, so you can free Morgana. And don’t try lying to me, I’ve already spoken with her.” I glared, over my shoulder, seeing he was about to interrupt me. At my words, he snapped his mouth shut hard, eyes wide in shock. “Gunmar has Jim captive, and because of that, we can’t open the bridge, and no, I can’t open it on my own.” My jaw tightened, realizing how much changelings withheld information from each other, even when they’re on the same side. “So, your only hope of getting Gunmar, is that antidote. We heal Arrrgh, Kanjigar uses him as a vessel, and we open the bridge. So, I’ll ask again. What do you want?”

Otto seemed to contemplate my words for a few moments, “Are you guaranteeing my Lord’s freedom?”

I arched a brow at him, “No.”

He seemed to have expected it. “Once we deal with you friend, I will tell you what I want in exchange for the antidote.” He got up, heading straight for Toby.

Glaring, I stood between them, snarling at Otto, “You think I’ll let you touch him?”

Otto held his hands up in defense, “Perhaps I misspoke, I meant that I would deal with how you tracked us down.”

Toby and the others began to wake up, all coming out of their sleep induced fog quickly as they realized they were tied to chairs. Draal seemed to notice Otto and me first.

“If you lay a hand on her, I’ll gut you open like a fish!” He snarled, pulling on his restraints.

Turning, I went and stood by Draal’s side, mostly to keep him calm until I had answers.

“My deepest apologies,” Otto smirked, moving the record player near us before turning to Toby. “You must understand our irrational fears when discovering intruders crashing our private party.” He tried to seem threatening as he waved his finger towards the rest of us. Deya, I miss Strickler’s overdramatics compared to this. “You did not get an invitation.”

“You’re not like the others, are you?” Claire asked, trying to pull Otto’s attention from Toby, confused on why I wasn’t stepping in. “You changed into NotEnrique.”

Otto’s form was surrounded in light before the teen we caught in the alley stood before us. “Yes. I am a changeling polymorph. I can take the form of anyone. It was surprising to realize that the heir of Merlin saw right through it.”

“Next time, don’t use my paint.” I glared, keeping my hand on Draal’s shoulder.

Otto chuckled, turning back into his normal form. “One of the perks of being the Grand Commandant.” He picked up a screwdriver, heading back for Toby.

“I don’t care who you are! You can torture us all you want, we’re not talking!” Claire glanced at me, hoping I would jump in.

“I’ll talk!” Don’t listen to her!” Toby tried to bargain, terrified of what Mr. Evil Man could do to him. “I have loose lips! I’m a chatty-fatty!”

Draal glanced up at me, having no idea what those sequences of words meant. I shrugged, mouthing ‘later’. At least he was calm now that Otto didn’t seem to be threatening me directly.

Claire scoffed, turning a full glare at me, “Aren’t you going to do something?”

Leveling her with a blank stare, I lifted one of my wrists for her to see the fresh burns. “Already did. Congratulations, you’re not dead.”

“Lady River, I don’t believe this is the time for jokes!” Blinky panicked, surprised that this seemed to be the one time I wasn’t running into something head first.

Otto shushed the others, shaking his head, “So much noise.” Turning his eyes back to Toby I zeroed in on the polymorph changeling. One wrong move and I’d turn him to stone. “Now, let us discuss what we should do with you.” He turned to the record player and began winding it. Distorted music was playing, then Morgana’s voice began to speak through the gaps in the music.

A cold chill ran down my spine, my grip on Draal’s shoulder tightening as I realized this was the Morgana trapped inside gemstones, not the one I grew up with. This was the voice of the woman who tore my mother apart.

A malice filled voice whispered out, just loud enough for me to catch whispers in the old tongue, “Sunshine is the key, keep her happy and I will be free.”

Otto nodded, seeming surprised by the words, yet willing and ready to follow them without question. So, he really didn’t care about Gunmar, he just needed the warlord to free Morgana.

He pulled out the screwdriver again, going back to Toby. “It seems there is a change of plans.” He smirked, looking over to me, “The Janus Order would like to propose a trade.”

So that’s why he wouldn’t answer the question. He had to wait for her to tell him what to do.

“A trade for what, Mr. Evil Man?” Blinky asked as Otto walked past him. A changeling outside of the room, reached in, handing Otto a book similar in looks to ‘A Brief Recapitulation of Troll Lore’ Vol. 1, I haven’t had a chance to read the other volumes yet.

Thumbing through the book, Otto paused, “The antidote for creeper’s sun. Correct me if I’m wrong, Sunshine,” he looked over at me, waiting for a moment before looking back at Blinky, “but you’re stone friend, Arrrgh, needs this.” He smirked, knowing the only reason he had that bit of info was because I told him.

“What’s the catch?” Calire asked, glaring up at Otto.

“Such a clever one,” Otto said sarcastically, getting into Claire’s face. “For the life of your friend, we wish only Vendel’s walking staff.”

“A piece of the Heartstone,” I interrupted, “Why do you want that?”

“His staff is sacred!” Blinky broke in, glaring at Otto, “It was forged from the center of our Heartstone!”

“And therefore, exceptionally rare,” Otto brushed Blinky off.

“Not to mention, potentially powerful, given to the right person.” I sighed, having a bad feeling where this was going. If I was right, we’d all but be handing over an energy boost to Gunmar, if the similarities we share run that deep. I can draw more magic from the hearthstone now that I’ve somehow merged with it. Since he was born from one, could he draw similar powers from another?

“Consider it a one-time offer,” He grabbed a standard dental tool for removing braces and headgear, and returned his attention to Toby.

Toby began yelling out, trying to get away from Otto as the changeling began removing his headgear. The others wincing and looking away.

“Torture?” Otto smirked, holding Toby’s headgear up, “This is just to take the headgear off. We can’t have you listening in on our secrets anymore, can we? Besides, we’d never hurt friends of Sunshine, the Pale Lady wishes to stay in favor with Lady River.”

Toby licked over his teeth, sighing in relief as he realized he wasn’t going to be torn apart. “Thank you.”

Otto untied the humans and Blinky, ordering the Changelings outside to escort us back to the surface. “One last thing, Lady River.”

I glanced over my shoulder, glaring at the polymorph. Now what?

Otto’s face split into a sadistic grin, “You have given me much to think over, and I do hope I have given you something to think on as well, yes?”

Instead of responding, I turned and followed the others back to the elevator. A masked changeling taking us on a slow ride back to the surface.

“What was that about?” Draal asked, staying on my left and eyeing the changeling.

I glanced at our escort, smirking, making sure to speak loud enough for them to hear. “Seems like Otto didn’t get all the information, which means someone here is withholding valuable information. Strickler wasn’t the last traitor Otto had to worry about.”

“And the other part?” Claire asked, tone clipped as she was still mad I hadn’t stepped in earlier.

“Otto’s under the impression I’m fine with being some sort of ‘pet’, fighting alongside his master’s enemy. I gladly informed him that Jim and I are related by blood. If one of us is a halfling, so is the other.” I explained, shrugging off her anger. She can be mad at me all she likes, the only thing I care about at the moment is figuring out a way of getting Vendel’s staff without him knowing it’s us.

Glancing at the changeling, Claire elbowed me in the side, “Why didn’t you do anything?” She whispered. Apparently she wasn’t okay with me passing over her anger.

“I did, you were unconscious.” I glared down at her, irritated now.

“The changeling on the ground?” Draal asked, glancing between me and Claire.

I shrugged, trying to ease my own tension, “I got bubbles down, figured I’d give knocking someone out a try.”

Humming, Draal looked down at my wrists, having noticed the burns while he was threatening Otto. “Iron?”

“Shackles, they honestly thought that would hold me.” I winced, mind tuning back into the pain I was still in. I should deal with that.

“It should have,” Blinky interrupted, eyeing the burns on my wrist, “Iron hurts magic, it’s why trolls, changelings, and sorcerers can’t escape iron cages, unless you had something like the shadow staff on you, but even then, you wouldn’t have enough magic to use it.”

“I melted them,” I shrugged again, healing the burns just enough so that the pain wasn’t too noticeable. Blinky got one thing right, you’re really drained of magic after coming into contact with iron.

“Melted?!” He gasped out as the elevator came to a stop. The changeling waited for us to get off of the platform before heading back down. “How in Deya’s name do you melt them?”

“Fire wasn’t hard, Eclipse made it easier.” I huffed, holding my palm out, focusing on the flames again. Black fire came to life in front of Blinky’s eyes.

“Whoa,” Claire leaned over, anger seemingly forgotten at the new spell. “You can make shadow flames? Can I do that?”

“SHE shouldn’t be able to do that!” Blinky gestured to all of me, exasperation filling his tone. “Shadow magic does not conjure flames, that’s elemental magic!”

“And yet I’m holding black flames,” I huffed, my ‘rule breaking’ making Blink slowly go insane.

Blinky huffed, glaring at the flames, “Right, because nothing about you can be normal? Can it?” He asked, not having meant it as an insult.

I winced, pulling back from Blinky quickly. Closing my hand to extinguish the fire, I started walking towards home.

“Not cool,” Toby huffed at Blinky, following after me, Draal close behind him, staying back long enough to growl in Blinky’s face. “River! Wait up!” Toby ran up to my right, knowing Draal prefers to be on my left now. “Look, Blinky was being a jerk. There’s nothing wrong with you.”

I looked down at him, right iris glowing red as my emotions ran rampant, “Isn’t everything?” I asked, moving to walk faster.

“No, it’s not!” Toby ran in front of me as we reached the dirt path that would take us to the back of my house.

Surprised at his outburst, my steps faltered coming to a stop. “Toby, everything about me is wrong!” I snapped, red lines glowing over my arms. “I’m in the wrong time, I was raised the wrong way for what I am, I’m using the wrong magic, I use said wrong magic the wrong way. Hell! Depending on who you ask, I’m on the wrong side of this war. So tell me, how is all that not wrong?!” I gestured to all of me, the red and black of my Eclipse magic showing, even through my clothes.

“Because you’re you!” Toby huffed, refusing to back down. Apparently a wizard on the verge of a mental breakdown with fluctuating magic was less terrifying than Otto with dental tools. “You don’t do normal, sure. But, normal to who? A bunch of teenage humans? Trolls stuck in tradition? Changelings that run on deceit, who’s only goal in life is to free the witch that hurt you?” He asked, crossing his arms over his chest as my face fell in disbelief. “You’re not human, you’re only half wizard, and you’re half changeling. You’re different and you get to do things your way!”

“My way?” I asked, shaking my head, “There are rules to magic, to everything.” I tried to argue with him, but apparently Toby wasn’t going to hear it.

“Rules written by people that didn’t know you would happen, rules that apply to how they do things. What about the rules to being a Trollhunter? Rule number two is to always finish the fight, every troll before you and Jim took that as killing their opponent, and what do you two do? We have a gnome living in my Nana’s dollhouse,” He gestured to Draal, “Your husband is still breathing and not a pile of rubble at the bottom of whatever surrounds the forge,” Huffing, he pointed his finger in my face, “You spared and befriended a changeling witch hunter who was hunting you, you trusted NotEnrique before anyone else, and you safely escorted Strickler out of Trollmarket when everyone else wanted to kill him!”

I blinked, staring at his finger in my face. Truly at a loss for words.

“So, yeah.” Toby shrugged, pulling his hand back. “You may be different, but you’re the only person who’s gotten this far. If Blinky thinks that’s a bad thing, or if Claire wants to be a jerk, whatever. You have me and Draal. I’d say Jimbo, but I still think you want to give him a left hook on sight.”

I rushed Toby, hugging him tight. Draal grasped my shoulder, just letting me know he was there.

Tobes was right. It doesn’t matter what others think, there’s no one else like me. “Thank you.”

#draal x river #trollhunters fanfiction #tales of arcadia fanfiction #River of Arcadia #season 2 #episode 3 #grand theft otto #draal x oc #River Marie Wyllt #Chapter 36 #Phase 3

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