Chapter 408: In the Hall of the Frost Trolls

The captain of the guard Izgerd, and his frost troll warriors, bowed in front of their king and queen, sitting on their thrones.

“Queen Yala, King Alok, forgive me for the intrusion, but I have brought you Jahn of the Blood Fang and his tribe. They seek an audience with your majesties,” said Izgerd in a formal tone and gestured to the group of goblins standing behind him.

“Welcome to our home, Sylvan friends,” Queen Yala smiled brightly, her sharp fangs giving the smile a terrifying look. “What has brought you to the heart of our mountain?”

King Alok didn’t bother to respond, he looked entirely disinterested in the procession and his deep-set eyes glanced at his collection of artifacts on display throughout the throne room. His giant body was wrapped in a dark blue cloak and unlike the queen, he made no effort to wear his royal garments nor crown.

“Thank you for allowing us into your home, Queen Yala,” Jahn bowed respectfully.

“There were many more of your warriors than usual guarding the mountain’s entrance today,” Aurelia said pointedly as she stared at Izgerd and his guards. “Why is that?”

Yala leaned forward on her throne. “And here I was about to ask you why you were traveling with an orc and a pair of drows. The world is a strange place, is it not? In any case, if you are speaking of the number of our guards then I can only assume you know of our customs, but I don’t recall ever seeing you before. Who are you?”

“I am the emissary sent by the Lunar Elect to deal with the matters regarding the relations between the frost trolls of Grimstone Mountain and the Sylvan folk,” Aurelia said without missing a beat.

Otley looked at her in surprise from beneath the cowl of his cloak. Realizing Aurelia was covering for him, he held his tongue. If the troll monarchs realized he was the Troll Slayer negotiations would certainly break down.

“As emissary, I have studied your customs thoroughly in preparation for this meeting,” Aurelia explained. “So why is it that there were over twenty warriors guarding the mountain’s entrance, instead of the usual five or six? Are you trying to keep somebody out? Or maybe someone inside?”

Yala sighed downheartedly, “It cannot be helped I’m afraid. Grimstone is not as safe as it once was. A few weeks ago we suffered a collapse in one of our mine shafts. The collapse sent countless reverberations through the mountain and attracted skolguls from all around. Our tunnels have been infested with the beasts ever since. We’ve been forced to double or triple our guards in all our key travel routes in order to protect our people.”

“Is that so…?” Aurelia furrowed her brow in thought.

“What’s a skolgul?” Stryg whispered to Jahn.

“They are elemental beasts that lurk in the shadows deep in the mountains. Insect creatures with long carapace bodies and dozens of legs. The larger ones are particularly dangerous,” Jahn replied quietly.

“How large?” Stryg asked warily.

“About 12 meters, though most are only a couple of meters long,” Jahn said. “Best to avoid any of them if you can.”

“Your majesty,” Aurelia said. “If there was a collapse in one of your mines, then could that be why the shipments to Evenfall have stopped?”

Yala nodded regrettably, “We have been unable to mine any of our iron veins ever since the skolgul infestation. There will be no more ore shipments to Evenfall until we can ensure the safety of our people.”

“And what of the last emissary who was stationed here with your people?” Aurelia asked.

“Unfortunately, your predecessor and her guards were among the first to fall in the skolgul attacks. I am sorry we were unable to protect them.” The queen bowed her head in shame.

“I see…” Aurelia said.

“I assure you, we have not forgotten the treaties our people share. My warriors have been fighting tooth and claw against the skolguls in order to reclaim the mines. We have already slain the elders. All that is left are the small beasts, though there are many of them…” Yala’s voice trailed off.

“I take it then that if the skolguls were to all be killed the ore shipments would continue as usual?” Aurelia asked.

“Yes, of course,” Yala nodded confidently.

Still, it’ll take too long… Aurelia thought. The Lunar Elect wanted the shipments to resume as soon as possible; they wouldn’t accept Aurelia’s return or listen to Stryg’s petition if they came back empty-handed.

Making up her mind, Aurelia spoke her plan aloud, “Thank you for the reassurances. If possible, I’d like to help.

“What?” Yala asked incredulously. “Forgive us, but I cannot allow it. It is too dangerous. We have already lost one Sylvan emissary to the beasts. What will the Lunar Elect think of us if we would lose a second emissary?”

“Your majesty, I came here for a purpose; to make sure the ore shipments from Grimstone resume as usual. I will not leave until my mission is complete.” Aurelia glanced at the small party of Sylvan hunters behind her, “I did not come unprepared. My guards are of the utmost skill. Chieftain Jahn is a grandmaster of the spear. We will help your warriors clear out this skolgul infestation and avenge my predecessor in the process. Please, do not deny us the opportunity to avenge our fallen comrades.”

Yala sighed, “Very well. But you have only just arrived, you must rest. Captain Izgerd and his guard will escort you to your rooms. In the morning you may join our frontline against the skolguls. In the meanwhile, I’ll have my cooks prepare a meal for you and your hunters.”

“Thank you, your majesty,” Aurelia inclined her head.

“Ah, and before I forget.” Yala snapped her fingers and a servant stepped into the throne room carrying a small chest. “I’m afraid this was all we could recover from your predecessor and guards.”

The servant stooped down and carefully placed the chest at Aurelia’s feet. Jahn protectively stepped in front of his elder sister and opened the chest for her. Inside were half-burned clothes, a broken spear, and a half-eaten green hand.

“These burns weren’t caused by flames…” Jahn noted.

“Skolgul poison,” Aurelia said grimly.

As the siblings spoke among each other, Captain Izgerd walked over to the king on his throne and whispered in his ear.

King Alok’s blue eyes lit up and he stared at Stryg with sudden interest.

Aurelia closed the chest with a somber expression. “Thank you for recovering what you could. If you do not mind, my guard and I will take our rest for now.”

“Yes, of course. Captain Izgerd show them to their rooms,” Yala said.

“At once, my queen,” Izgerd nodded and marched towards the door, his warriors following close behind.

Aurelia and the others turned to leave when King Alok suddenly spoke up, “Um, excuse me, young drow with the purple eyes!”

Stryg stopped and looked back uncertainly, “Me…?”

“Yes,” King Alok nodded eagerly. “Captain Izgerd tells me you wield an enchanted sword. I’d very much like to hear how you acquired it. If you’re willing to tell me that is.”

Stryg glanced at Aurelia questioningly, “Um?”

Aurelia nodded that it was alright. She subtly pointed at the ice pedestals and their artifacts sprawled about the throne room and whispered into Stryg’s ear, “The king is an artifact enthusiast.”

“He wants to steal my sword?” Stryg asked worriedly.

Aurelia frowned, “What? No. King Alok is known to be an honorable man. Besides, the man is 4 meters tall, what would he even do with your sword? It’d be like a needle in his hands. He just wants to hear about your blade. So just relax.”

“Should I tell him?” Stryg asked, still unsure.

“We should try to keep good relations with these people, so yes,” Aurelia said reluctantly. She didn’t want to leave Stryg alone with the king.

Plum, noticing the look in Aurelia’s eye, abruptly raised her hand, “Excuse me, your majesties. Would you mind if I stick around a little longer as well? I’d love to take a look around your collection.”

“Really?” King Alok smiled proudly, “Well, yes of course, please have a gander. Feel free to ask about any of them, I am quite well versed in the history of each piece.”

“Thank you, your majesty!” Plum bowed deeply. She glanced up at Aurelia from the corner of her. “I’ll make sure Stryg doesn’t do anything stupid,” she whispered.

Aurelia smiled wryly. Perhaps the drow wasn’t as bad as she thought.

“Keep the king entertained, then join us as soon as you can,” Aurelia ordered.

“Yes, First Mother,” Stryg nodded politely.

“Stay safe,” Tauri mouthed silently to Stryg and Plum before following Izgerd out of the room.

Aurelia took one last apprehensive glance at Stryg then left with the others.

As soon as they were all gone Queen Yala got up from her throne and headed for a side door. “Before my husband bores me with his stories for the hundredth time I am going to excuse myself and do literally anything else. Have fun you two.” She waved her clawed fingers to Stryg and Plum, then closed the door behind her, leaving them alone with the king and a few guards.

Plum strolled around the room, glancing at the different artifacts on display. There were all manners of enchanted items, ranging from bronze vases to large ornate axes. “You have a beautiful collection, your majesty,” Plum said with genuine awe. She never would have thought a troll would have such refined tastes.

“Why, thank you, it has taken many years to gather them, but I am proud of what I have. Are you also a collector by chance?” King Alok asked eagerly.

“No, but I've spent many hours reading about such enchanted artifacts,” Plum said.

“Ah, you’re a student of history then,” Alok guessed.

“You could say that,” she smiled.

“Well, I am glad you are here. Perhaps you and I can swap stories about our favorite works at a later time?” Alok stood up from his throne and joined the two of them, his cloak dragging behind him. “For now, I’d like to know more about your companion, if possible.”

“Me? Why?” Stryg looked up at the man thrice his height.

Alok looked him up and down, “Where to begin? You wear a cloak of flowers. An orichalcum ring sits comfortably on your index finger. And you have the strangest eyes I have ever seen. Not to mention that sword. I would very much like to hear about how you came to obtain it.”

“Go on, Stryg,” Plum said assuredly.

Stryg scratched his cheek. He felt odd being the center of positive attention. “W-Well, where to begin…?”

And so Stryg told him of how he found the relic sword embedded in the neck of a long-dead dragon in a cave of lamias. As he told the story Alok listened with rapture and eyes full of wonder.

“So you are the only one who can wield the blade?” Alok asked at the end of the story.

“No. Only Tauri and Plum were cut. Chieftain Jahn and I held the sword just fine. My guess is that it only likes goblins,” Stryg said.

“Hm. Interesting,” Alok nodded sagely. “If I may, could you show me the blade?”

Without a word, Stryg grabbed the relic sword from beneath his cloak and presented it to the king. The blade’s pristine silver edge shined brilliantly in the soft blue light of the throne room.

Alok leaned down and stared at it closely. “I see, it really is a work of Lord Koval.”

“Koval?” Stryg cocked his head to the side.

“What? You didn’t know? Most of the sigils on the blade are faded, but see the clear sigil at the bottom? The one that looks like two entwined wings around a hammer? That is the emblem of Ebon Lord Koval,” Alok said as if it was obvious.