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Chapter 35– The Flame of Battle.
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"Thunder God, you are amazing! I forgive you for beating me before-" Ulik shouts happily, looking down at the beaten form of Zoltarr floating lazily in the water, dead to the world. Thor really packs a punch. "In fact, you have won my admiration!" He says, coming closer to Thor and patting him on the shoulder, and not like the mean version he did earlier, but an actually friendly gesture.
"Would that I could say the same of thee, Troll!" Thor responds, shrugging off Uliks hand as he turns around to look at Ulik, his expression very unfriendly. "'Tis not thy admiration which I need Ulik, 'tis Jane," Thor says, clearly having not paid attention to his surroundings and more focused on his fight, as he would have noticed me and Felicia kicking ass, and Jane freeing herself and... what the hell?
"Oh, don't worry about me, darling. I've got matters well in hand." Jane says, having somehow gotten onto land and procured herself a spear which she now points the dangerous end of at the Troll King, the tip just on the edge of his neck. How the hell did this happen? Also, I should have kept an eye on her, but once I saw her kick the Troll and jump into the water, I thought she would hide. Not go on the attack.
"Jane! Do mine eyes deceive me?" Thor shouts from across the distance, excitement and bewilderment on his face. Happy to see her safe and sound, outside of the Troll's clutches, but also shocked as hell that she has ended up taking the Troll King captive. He is so ecstatic that he doesn't even notice me and Felicia, who have knocked out all of the trolls, and now we watch on since we don't exactly have an exit out of here.
"I admit this looks fantastic-" Jane says, smugness on her face at having accomplished what she has, but she doesn't take her eyes off of her prisoner. "But it was as hard to accomplish as you'd believe." Was it? Because I would have noticed if it was and come to save you, but you did that with no fuss at all. I didn't even notice. Something isn't right about that.
"After I knocked out the guard on my raft, I swam to shore with no one the wiser. And since all of these trolls were more concerned with watching your fight with Zotarr-" Jane begins to explain to Thor, looking back at him with a smile, taking her eyes off the king. I expect him to try something, but he doesn't, just looking fearfully at the spear. Maybe because Thor is watching.
"Nobody saw me sneaking up on the king until it was too late. I managed to grab his spear and use it against him." The Troll King irks at that, but when the spear cuts a little into his neck with Jane being inattentive, he flinches backwards.
"'Twould seem thou are a different woman these days, Jane," Thor says, a smile on his face and his hands on his hips. He looks at her proudly. "Methinks, a more exciting one." He says, and I get a feeling seeing her in a position of power like that, like a warrior, is ticking a box for him.
"By the seven rings, Thunder God!" Ulik suddenly calls out, his voice shocked. "Look at Zotarr!" He points a meaty yellow sausage finger forward to point at the defeated Troll Supreme in the water. Zoltarr's helm is wholly destroyed, revealing beneath it a mechanical metal face. Naturally, everybody comes to the conclusion that Zoltarr the Troll Supreme wasn't actually a troll.
"So, the giant ally was a construct, forged in Geirrodur's furnace, as he once forged some of the material used in my mallet, Mjolnir," Thor concludes, looking down at his lifeless opponent.
"'Tis a lesson 'Twould be well for us to remember, Ulik-" Thor directs at the Troll, looking at him with a frown on his face. "In war as well as in love, things are never what they seem." He says, his gaze now panning over to Jane, who is still standing there with the spear held tightly in her hands.
Ulik isn't paying any attention to Thor's words, more focused on tying up the defeated Troll King. He doesn't even care that he no longer has any leverage over Thor and that Jane, myself and Felicia are now free. I suppose he got what he wanted. The Troll King and Zoltarr the Troll Supreme are both now defeated, and there is nothing in his way to be the leader of all the trolls.
The battle beneath the earth is ended, and having been aided by a most unwilling Thunder God, the monstrous Ulik now stands supreme in the troll netherworld. At least, that's what he thinks, given his shouts.
"Thus ends the reign of the Troll King, Geirrodur!" He roars, and as if commanding his men, the surrounding trolls that we thought out for the count get up again and rise to their feet, coming closer to congregate around Ulik and completely ignoring us. "And, ere long, the surface world as well shall cringe before the unmatched might of Ulik The Invincible!" He finishes, hefting his battle-axe up and to the roars of his minions, which seems to hype him up even more. He really does feel invincible, even though he actually did nothing.
"Now, Asgardian, let us make haste to combine the two troll armies so that the world of mortals shall fall to us all the sooner!" Ulik commands Thor in his hubris and arrogance, expecting the Asgardian to fall in line and obey for some reason. He really does feel on top of the world right now, doesn't he? "We will attack before the day is-" Well, he might be strong, but he certainly isn't that clever if he didn't expect the response Thor would give.
"I say thee nay, Ulik!" Thor says, adamant. His will firm and his muscles tense, no longer having to hold himself back or obey with Jane now free. I see his eyes trail over to Felicia and me, and I subtly nod at him to say we are fine, and he nods back before refocusing his gaze on Ulik.
"What? You dare to defy me!?" Ulik roars, lifting his arms up and flexing as if that would compel Thor to obey. I myself see what is about to happen, and knowing that these two are very much out of my league, I grab Felicia's hand and make sure to retreat to the safest corner of the cave to avoid the fallout. I see Jane is still over by Thor holding that spear, but I don't make a move to bring her over, either. She isn't my concern.
"Thou basest, most brutish of fools! Didst thou truly think the Son of Odin could ally himself with the likes of thee!?"Thor roars back, hefting his hammer up in anger. Damn, Thor, that was some grade-A trash talk. Seriously, it makes me want to learn to speak like these dudes, even if it feels like it will be more trouble than it's worth.
"For so long as your trolls held my beloved Jane, a hostage-" He starts to walk menacingly forward. "For just so long could our ill-starred alliance endure!" He proclaims, bringing that alliance to an end and readying himself for a proper fight, on equal parts. No tricks this time.
"Now Jane is free, and our comradeship is at an end!" Ulik starts to approach as well, while all of the other Trolls stay away. I guess this is a sort of duel thing, and they know to stay away. They know their place. "Or dost thou fear to face me, lacking an army at thy back?" Thor calls him out and gives one more reason for the trolls not to get involved. A good strategic move, calling on his arrogance.
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"Step forward, dolt, and you shall see!" Ulik roars, insulted. He hefts his battle axe up and gets into a stance, battle ready.
"Jane, the Troll is a foe most formidable. Flee thou to the outer caverns, whilst I-" Thor tries to convince Jane to leave, and I notice that he did not try and send her to us. Well, Thor doesn't know us, so I guess that makes sense. Can't just trust his beloved to people he hardly knows. I am surprised Ulik is letting them have this talk, but for some reason, he is. Honour, is it? Even though he had none when he kidnapped Jane and used her as leverage.
"I snatched Geirrodur's own spear away and held it to his throat, darling." Jane doesn't let Thor finish and tells him that. Gierrodur glares at them from where he is tied up. "Do you think I will leave you now?" She says, her expression is unrelenting. She really is in love with him, and she isn't about to leave. Also, I get the strange feeling that the spear is affecting her somehow because I don't think she would behave like this otherwise.
"Thou speakest a'right. 'Twas a request unworthy." Thor says though I see his eyes glance at the spear as well. It seems he's clicked on that something isn't right but has deemed it not crucial at the moment and so agreed to her request.
"Now, have at thee, devil-"Thor jumps forward, landing a few meters away from Ulik and readying his hammer for battle. "The God of Thunder stands ready!" He declares. I guess there was some kind of etiquette to this or something because Ulik was just waiting for him there.
"In your own oft-used words, so be it!" Ulik shoots back, pointing his massive battle axe ahead at Thor.
"By the seven rings, if you'll not march at my side-" He says, and then he suddenly lunges forward. "Why then, you will lie at my feet!" One of his hands reaches towards Mjolnir, trying to grab a hold of it while the other swings his axe at Thor. Unfortunately for him, Thor is quick enough to react, and Mjolnir comes flying up. With the sound and fury of twin thunderbolts striking in midair, a hammer forged by mystical means meets a battle-axe wrought in shadowed hell.. with a result unexpected only by Ulik.
"Didst thou hope for better, troll?" Thor quips as the top of Ulik's hammer breaks off and goes flying to embed itself into a cavern wall. The shaft remaining in Uliks hand is now useless, and the top of it is smoking, with wafts of smoke leaving it. I think Thor may have used a little lightning in his blow.
"Then, Ulik will have done with war tools of unproven metal!" The Troll says, flinging the useless piece of metal away. He then jumps forward again, heading for Thor's midsection.
"Ulik's greatest weapon is his-" He begins as he plows into Thor, wrapping his arms around his waist and beginning to drive him back. "Immortal strength!" Thor's feet start skidding against the stone and kicking up debris as Ulik pushes him back. I think he is trying to push him back into the river, thinking he will have the advantage there. Foolish, Thor is a God of Thunder, and water conducts lightning.
"Thor, too, is not without strength, Ulik." Thor doesn't even let Ulik complete his goal as he brings his fist down on top of Ulik's head with a mighty thomp. And staying in theme, Thor did it with a hammer fist. The dude straight Donkey Kong punched him, smashing the top of his head. It must have hurt, given the wails Ulik lets off.
"M-My head-" Ulik completely forgets about the battle and lets go of Thor, clutching at his own head with his eyes screwed shut. "It resounds with the echo of a thousand thousand bells!" He cries out, hunching over as he roars, as if the screams will somehow rid him of the pain.
"'Twas a lovetap merely, dog of darkness-" Thor says, insulting the guy once more. And then his whole body tenses, and I can see each and every single muscle in his frame begin to move and flex as he advances on the immobile Troll. "Compared to that which is to come!" He shouts, charging forth with Mjolnir. The God of Thunder has put his immortal all into this shattering blow of blows, with the result that even Ulik's massive bulk is hurled, like a lead before a storm, into the winding underground river... to be swiftly lost from sight.
I am serious. The guy sunk like a rock. The blow must have sent him unconscious. Also, the water down here is clear as anything and looks like the purest water I have ever seen, and yet, Ulik has disappeared into its depths. Very strange. There is something off about that as well. It's uncanny, not something that stands out but something that is definitely unusual. I wouldn't have noticed it otherwise.
"Troll should rule where troll doth belong, not brave the wrath of an Asgardian Born," Thor comments at the river, obviously directing it towards the defeated Ulik. "Thus was it written. Thus shall it ever be!" Thor says, and I guess there is some lore or something that says Asgardians are naturally above Trolls and that they are forever cursed to live underground in the shadows. Damn, no wonder Ulik is so pissed off.
"Thor! Look out!" Jane suddenly screams, and I can see why. Instead of diving into the water to try and rescue their ruler like regular minions would do, the surrounding Trolls instead start to surround Thor and Jane.
"By the girth of Volstagg! Ulik's hordes return-" Thor exclaims, suddenly looking very troubled. "And they do cry out for a God's blood!" I am guessing this would be no problem for him if he was above ground and had the skies lighting to call on, but he doesn't. Plus, there is a whole army coming for them, and I bet Thor is more worried about Jane than about himself, and so he can't do any area attacks for fear of hurting her. And if he goes melee, then he won't be able to protect her fully.
He is in a predicament, and I could probably help him out of it. Or at least help him somewhat. And yet, I stay back and watch from my corner along with Felicia. All of the Trolls seem to have forgotten about our presence in all of the anger and are completely ignoring us. I am sure Thor can handle this, and we will just wait for him to finish.
"Yet, I have done battle with such grotesqueries since time out of mind-" Thor's worried face completely disappears as he declares that to the frightened Jane. "Nay, since time itself was a name and concept unborn!" He says, really stretching there. I mean, seriously. The dude is claiming to be older than everything here. I guess he is just flexing for Jane.
"Always, the victory hath belonged to Thor, the true scion of Odin-" And then, he throws his hammer, Mjolnir, forward. "And to the wondrous weapon which is called Mjolnir!" He shouts as the aforementioned hammer begins to fly all about the place, smashing into Troll after Troll and laying them out for the count. Damn, I must be bad at reading faces or something because that was easy as shit for Thor.
"The spear, you ignorant gargoyles!" The tied-up Troll King Gierrodur begins to roar. "Only regain my spear, and the day yet shall belong to Trolldom Assembled!" He demands, and yet his words don't have much of an impact, given that he is tied up on the floor while he commands his subjects. "Get the spear! Your king commands you!" Yet even so, the Trolls continue to advance on Thor, his hammer not doing much to slow the tide.
"AH! My thanks, Geirrodur." Thor suddenly thanks the king for some reason. "In sooth, it did sole perplex me that Jane's sheer courage did prevail against thee before." Uh, translation, Thor was confused why Jane was suddenly so strong and courageous enough to best the Troll King... I think.
"Now, the mystery resolves itself, famed by thine own frothing lips!" He says before ignoring all of the Trolls and turning towards Jane. "Jane! The spear, quickly!" He calls, reaching his hand out for it.
"Here! But, I still don't see what-" Jane hands it over the plain-looking spear with no fuss, and Thor takes it in hand before taking a javelin expert's stance. And then he launches it, sending it clear over all of the Trolls.
"That, beloved, is because thou dost look with mortal eyes upon that which is older than the world. Just as mine own Uru hammer doth yield up power beyond reckoning..." The spear continues to fly through the air as Thor explains, and I notice that it is heading for the water. My spider sense is starting to go off, and so I quickly grab Felicia, who has been strangely quiet throughout all of this and begin to move over to Thor, using my spider powers to travel along the walls.
"So the shaft of even a Troll King may be possessed of certain magical properties-" He says as the spear finally begins to dip and falls to the water. "Which, mingling madly with the murk-filled waters of a sorcerous stream-" The spear hits the water, and as soon as it does, bolts of... something start flying about.
"May cause upheavals as gargantuan in scope-" There is a sudden boom as the river literally sets itself on fire, and an overwhelming heat begins to overpower the room. Knowing that now things are getting really dangerous, I hop off the wall and finally reach Thor. "As they be unpredictable in nature!" He says, very calm given the hell he has released.
And unpredictable they most assuredly are! For, even as the earth-shaking roar resounds through the depths, the subterranean river itself seems to catch fire. A fire so fierce that it causes the cavern walls themselves to begin to melt and flow!
"Stand thee back, my beloved, and avert thine eyes! You too, cat warrior and man of bats." Thor says, using his arm to wave us back. I wonder for a moment how he knew my name before I realise I am a man with the cowl of a bat, and Felicia does have a whole cat vibe going on. "Brave thou truly art, yet I'd not have any mortal bear witness to what must follow!" He says, urging us to look away and yet we cannot. None of us.
We all stare on in transfixed horror as the whole of the vast natural labyrinth becomes a blazing inferno before which the terrified Troll flees pell-mell. But, whether they flee and if they shall survive, even a god knows not. And one they leave behind, forgotten. And we all can't help but watch him as he suffers, not able to help at all. The flames were too fierce.
"Come back, you filthy-" Gierrodur, the Troll King, begins, the flames already begging to travel up his body. "COME BACK! PLEEEEASSE!" He forgoes his etiquette and begins to scream for help as he is devoured by the flames. We all finally averted our eyes. None of us talk after that, and Thor is strictly business.
He reaches out and pulls Jane close as he then offers his other arm to me, but getting the cue, I pull out some cable from my utility belt as tie it around his arm and grab on firmly as I pull Felicia into my side. Thor nods, and then, we are instantly moving. A hard-hurled mallet propels us immediately upward and out of the raging, all-engulfing nightmare below, and we head back the way we came, the flames burning beneath us.