Greywolf - Trolls

We left the encampment before the light of the sun had even touched the sky, with the two Lycaons, who had already scouted out the troll's den, leading the way.

Lycaons had a wolf's head on a muscular, man-like hairy body naturally hunched over, their hands much like Asena's except their claws were longer. Meaning they couldn't wield a weapon or use a tool. But they wore thick leather armor with small steel rings sewn on, and with claws like small daggers, they didn't need weapons if they could get in close.

They were also intelligent, and while their harsh voices were hard to understand at first, my ear soon got used to their speech. Castor was slightly smaller than his brother, Pollux... or Fenris, as he was calling himself, and had the better nose. He motioned up towards the top of the slope we were climbing. "The troll cave's just beyond the top of that ridge. I'm catching troll smell from a day ago, but no later."

"Many bones outside cave," Fenris added. "Body of child with throat torn out, not eaten."

"Not eaten?" Fenris nodded, and Asena frowned. "Trolls will first tear out their victim's throats, and then either drink the blood or share it with their children, but once the body's drained dry they begin eating the flesh."

"Maybe it wasn't hungry."

Asena looked at me and snorted. "Trolls are always hungry." She hesitated, but I knew that look: the amount of mana in her body was getting really low. It's no wonder she's been so grumpy. "Alright, let's go take a look." The four of us quietly padded up the hill, avoiding the stunted trees and brush until we reached the top and peered over.

It was a flat area extending a good way on both sides, with a cliff face in front of us about a stone's throw away and a cave entrance just big enough for an adult troll to squeeze through. Bones were scattered everywhere, stripped of all flesh and smashed open for their marrow. A cracked skull grined at me from beneath a bush as Castor sniffed the air. "All I smell is old troll, at least a day old. Nothing fresher."

Fenris pointed his clawed forefinger at a bush near the opening. "Child there."

I followed his finger with my eyes. The body of a little girl was sprawled out across the branches of a scrub bush, with blood on her stained white dress from the jagged hole in her throat, yet no other marks. The only sounds around us were the whirring of insects and the chirp of birds in the trees. The stink of troll would be noticeable even by ordinary humans, but it wasn’t overpowering, as it would be in the cave. Shite, I hate trolls.

"Alright," Asena said, "we're going to use the same plan that's worked before. Greywolf enters the Grey and pops out just long enough to catch the troll's attention, then runs, popping in and out of the Shadowlands as the troll chases him. Once it's out in the daylight, the three of us attack it. while Greywolf hangs back." The two Lycaons nodded, and I took a step forward.

Asena grabbed me by the back of my armor. "No heroics," she growled. "I mean it."

It was my turn to snort. "Against a troll in its own cave? I don't think so." I tried to step forward but she was still holding on. "What?"

"Some of your back plates are cracked like a mirror hit with a fist. I need to find some leather strips and had a mage transmute them so the cracked ones can be replaced."

"What about that mage you found in the city of Kath? All he wanted was for me to recharge his mana stones."

Asena shook her head. "We're not going back north again, or west. We're heading south towards Bactria, and hope Muzen doesn't send spies to trail after us."

"We should at least return the body of the little girl to her parents."

She glanced at the corpse, then back my direction. "We'll see."

I knew better than to push her on this, and simply nodded. Castor and Fenris sniffed the air as Asena let me go, and the four of us headed towards the cave entrance, stopping a short distance away. Asena pointed at Castor, then her ear, and then at the cave. The Lycaon shook his head and she gave me the nod.

Drawing my katana from its sheath, I opened a gateway to the Shadowlands and stepped through. Color bled from the world as I did a full circle with the katana raised. Everything remained still, Asena and the Lycaons now shadows as detailed as the trees and bushes.

Only the bones and the child's body remained as they were. The dead were alive within the Shadowlands, the skull watching me with sad grey eyes as I walked past it towards the cave entrance, and the shadow of the bush holding the little girl's corpse. Most of the time the dead remained where they were, and I was sure this time wouldn't be any different.

The corpse sat up. I leapt sideways, turning towards her with my sword out, for in the Shadowlands the dead had the power to rise up and attack the living. No, she's remaining where she is, making no other move except to point at the cave entrance with her hand. I nodded, showing her I understood, and she nodded back, the eyes plucked out by carrion birds replaced by grey orbs in her eye sockets. She watched me as I turned back towards the cave and walked inside.

In the Shadowlands, the light remained constant no matter how far underground you went, and I could see all the way down the passage. And this tunnel just keeps going. At least I can't smell anything yet, because the troll stench is going to be awful. Lucky me.

Tendrils of the Grey crawled around the rocky floor like questing snakes, a few floating through the air past me as the passage widened into a large open area where the troll was sitting in front of a fire. It was as tall as Asena but spindly, with long arms... Son of a Etruscan whore: There's three more smaller trolls about my size, sitting around the fire as well. Shite! Asena was fierce, and I was sure the Lycaons were too, but they wouldn't be expecting four at once. I need to warn Asena- Wait, what was that?

A Shadow creature laughed from somewhere deep within the cave, a burbling, insane sound answered by two other voices. Night Hags? Shite! Do they know I'm here? The voices continued their insane cackling as one voice rose above the rest. "Shadow-walker, I can taste the scent of your blood. You will be the feast."

"The feast," the other voices called out. "The feast!" Shite, open the portal, open the portal. An oval of darkness lit by a dancing fire appeared and I ran through it as insane screams echoed in the Shadowlands behind.

Color returned to the world as the rancid stench gagged me. Four creatures glanced up with surprised looks on their squat faces as I moved for a few moments with inhuman speed, slashing the largest across the face with my katana. It bellowed, knocking one of the smaller trolls into the fire as I ran past them into the passage towards the cave opening, my body slowing down as time seized me in its grip once more.

Loose gravel, I'm slipping... don't fall, please don't fall. The trolls were bellowing behind me as their claws scraped on stone. The opening's close, don't panic... shite, it's right behind me. Asena's voice shouted, "Call the Grey, call the Grey!" I could feel a troll's hot breath on my neck as color bled from the world.

"The feast, the feast!" Bony fingers shattered Artifact back plates from my armor as I ran out of the cave past Asena, my body going through the Great sword, that she was swinging one-handed, as if I were a ghost. Castor and Fenris were suspended in mid-leap. The Night Hags clawed at me again as I opened another gate and flung myself through it.

Color returned as I tripped and tumbled forward, knocking the wind from my lungs as I hit the ground hard. I need to move, join the fight, but I can't breathe... That's better, I'm getting my wind back... wait, where's my katana? It must had flown from my hand when I landed. I rolled to my knees facing the cave.

The large troll was down with its neck almost severed, but one of the smaller troll was wrestling Asena for her sword, while Castor and Fenris were ripping apart the second. Shite, the third one's avoiding the fight and looking at me. Get up and find the sword. I scrambled to my feet as the troll started running towards me... There's the katana, sticking out of the dirt. I raced over and ripped it out of the earth with its point out as I turned around.

The troll impaled itself on the blade as it knocked us both to the ground. It screamed, spitting bloody froth, and with my right hand I pushed the sword inside to the hilt as it bit down on my shoulder. Its teeth dug in despite the Artifact plates, making me yell in pain, but it’s bite wasn’t strong enough to break bones. It let go to bite again as I pulled out the Artifact dagger with its sideways facing elk horn handle from my belt, and shoved it through the creature's eye.

The monster threw me off as it clawed at its face, ripping out the black knife blade and throwing it to one side as it staggered to its feet, green and yellow gobbets of gore spewing from the gaping hole. It bellowed as it lurched at me, but then dropped to its knees, curling up into a ball as it fell onto the ground.

Movement flickered at the corner of my eye and I turn, but it was only Fenris, racing over to help me. The other three trolls were dead. He ripped out the last troll's throat with his claws as Asena pulled out an Etruscan gladius she used as a long dagger and began carving out the creature's hearts. I sat back on the weed choked ground to watch, wincing from the pain and trying hard not to show it as she finished with the first three and walked over to the last, pulling my katana from its chest and throwing my sword onto the ground beside me. Then she rolled the creature over onto its back and cut into its chest like a butcher would a cow.

I watched with the same horrid fascination as always, Asena spreading the ribcage wide open with a loud crack before cutting out the creature's heart. It resembled a normal heart except for the green growths covering it like large emeralds, the nodules glowing even in the bright sun. Asena got to her feet and placed the heart with the others under a thorn bush, then wiped her gladius on the dead child's clothes before cleaning her steel sword. I stood up and retrieved my katana. Wotan's blood, this shoulder really hurts, but I need to clean the ichor off the Artifact blade before it pits.

Fenris bent down to retrieve my knife, holding it as best he could as he came over to meet me. His gaze dropped to my shoulder. "You're hurt."

"It's not too bad," I replied, wincing as I reached out to take back my knife. "By tomorrow it'll just be bruise marks." Taking both weapons, I walked over to the child's body, and even though I knew her spirit was gone, I bowed. "I promise to bring you home to your parents, but right now I need for you to suffer a small indignity so the troll's blood won't pit the blades."

I began cleaning both blades as Asena called out, "Greywolf, what happened to your back?"

"Three Night Hags," shuddering despite myself. "I meant to warn you about the small trolls, but there wasn't time."

"They made it a lot more fun than I thought it would be," Castor said, wiping his claws on the child's dress as he looked at my armor. "I think you're bleeding into the leather."

I gingerly sheathed the katana as Asena loomed behind me. "Turn around."

"It's not that bad-"

She spun me around as I stifled a gasp, her fingers already unbuckling my chest armor before pulling it off and tossing it aside. There was a dark stain on my faded black arming tunic as I pulled it off. "Most of its teeth couldn't get past the armor," Asena's fingers probing the puncture wounds as I winced, "but its fangs did. What did I tell you about staying out of the fight?"

"No one told the troll."

Asena only grunted as she let go of my shoulder. "You'll be fine in a couple days, but I should still bind this up."

"I get pack," Fenris growled, "and Castor bind wounds." He motioned towards the pile of troll hearts. "Should eat while fresh."

"He's got a point," Castor told her. "The sooner you take in the mana, the better you'll feel."

Asena frowned. "But with your claws-"

"I've learned to adapt over the years. Go ahead and eat, I've got this."

Asena didn't hesitate but headed for the hearts she'd piled together, while I started walking towards an outcrop of rock not far away. "It's better if we leave her to eat in peace. It's kind of disgusting."

I reached the outcrop and sat down, Castor's wolf head looking over his shoulder as the sounds of ripping flesh began behind us. "Yech, I see what you mean. Why doesn't she roast them first, or make a stew?" I stifled a laugh and he looked back at me. "What's so humorous?"

"Apologies," I replied as he sat beside me. "It's just that I never expected you to be so civilized."

He assumed the haughty manner of a noble lord while raising his muzzle into the air and giving an indignant sniff. "I'll have you know I'm a highly educated monster." He looked so ludicrous that, despite my shoulder, I burst out laughing, which he joined in. "Actually," he continued after a moment, "my father's a noble of the Caucasi kingdom, north of the Eastern empire province of Armentia, and we had a tutor who taught us Greco-Roma and the Greek classics. Not that we paid much attention in our youth."

He sounded almost regretful. "Castor, you can tell me to go to the goddess Hel if you don't want to answer, but what's it like being Lycaon?"

He shrugs his muscular, hunched over shoulders. "Literally being a human in the body of a monster. Pollux and I were the youngest of five boys, and our father told us to make our fortunes in the wide world as we were two Lycaons too many for the nobility to handle. So we guarded caravans like you and Asena were doing, until we met Karl and he took us in." He motioned out towards the far off plumes of rising smoke from the camp's cooking fires. "The People of the Eternal Sky accepted us as no civilized folk had ever done, and Pollux was even talking about getting married... or, at least he was."

I recognized the slight growl at the end of his words for concern and not anger. "He introduced himself to me as Fenris, and showed off his tattoo like it was a badge of honor."

Castor sighed. "He's changed. We used to be close as twins, but now he’s talking like a savage, and I'm by myself while he's found himself new brothers among Amazonia’s Chaldean Wardogs."

On the slope off to my right came the sounds of crackling brush. That’s likely Fenris, dragging Asena's pack. "You could always leave the White Horde and join us. It'd be nice to had someone else to talk to."

He gave me a truly wolfish grin. "After the stories I heard last night, I imagine so. She sounds, ah, interesting to live with."

I couldn't help but snort. "You've got no idea. There was this one time-" From behind me, Asena began cursing in Germanic and I spun around. "What's wrong?"

She was down on her hands and knees, shaking her head like a baffled bear. "I finished the troll hearts and stood up, but then everything began spinning." I scrambled to my feet and raced towards her as she added, "I think those trolls were sick."

"Not sick," Lys' voice said from behind me, "just poisoned."