Chapter Text
Jim was falling. Fast. He had watched nearly all his friends take damage from Bellroc atop their immense titan before being tossed like a ragdoll from the cliff. Wind whistling loudly in his ears, hair whipping in front of his eyes, he had somehow caught onto Excalibur. Following his instincts, he stabbed his sword into the stone.
He was hanging from the side of a giant titan. And he was alone. Every ally - every friend who’d supported him through the battle - and through the past few hectic years - was either down below or taken from him. His eyes started to sting at the thought of Strickler and Nomura, of Vendel and Draal.
With a surprising amount of upper body strength, Jim pulled himself up until he caught hold of a ledge and climbed again onto the surface of the titan.
Yea, Jim was physically alone, but not a single one of those he lost would have wanted him to doubt himself.
“Bellroc!” He shouted, his voice rough with anger. “This isn’t over.”
“Trollhunter,” the demigod snarled before lunging at him.
Shit.
Jim took off at top speed, panting as he ran.
“Come on, Stuart!” He groaned, “Where are you?”
Jim leapt over a crack in the titan’s rocky landscape, Bellroc following easily. He spun on his heel to find them sending flying fireballs directly at him.
Though he blocked and dodged the attacks with the skill of a trained warrior, Jim was on the verge of collapsing. His muscles ached as he jabbed excalibur repeatedly - nausea settled in.
Bellroc hit his side in a swift stabbing motion.
“So weak,” they began to chide him, tossing his small body into the air, “so disappointing,” Bellroc’s spear collided with Jim’s midriff, “You are unworthy to face a god, child.” Jim’s body smacked against the ground.
His vision blurred.
It felt like everyone but Jim had always known he was a hero. His journey only confirmed it in the eyes of his family and friends - in the eyes of his mom. Sure, his loved ones were upset each time he sacrificed himself, but they seemed to come to expect it. They weren’t really surprised both of the times he underwent drastic transformations just to give his friends a fighting chance. In short, Jim’s protective, altruistic tendencies made him a template for heroism. His friends knew it and, though he used to doubt it, he knew it too.
He was gasping for air at this point; every miniscule movement was agony.
Bellroc gazed down at the fallen hero. “The world is but seconds away from a glorious rebirth. Don’t spend that time here. Go. Embrace your loved ones for the final time.”
Jim would have scoffed if his body could have managed it. How fucking ironic.
He grunted. “No, I’m right where I need to be.”
“Then you will die alone.” Bellroc’s face was void of any pity. “You have no amulet, no armor. And yet you still think yourself a hero?”
For a moment, Jim’s bravado fell. He glanced down at his hand, doubt creeping in from the far corners of his mind. Vendel, Draal, Strickler, Nomura, even Merlin. That motherfu- FOCUS JIM. He made a fist.
“The amulet didn’t make me a hero. I already was.” He rose slowly to his full height and stood with his back straight, a dangerous edge in his stare.
“Hmm - such hubris.”
Jim yelled and threw up his arms to block his face as Bellroc sent a blast of lava. He shuddered and shut his eyes tightly.
That… should have hit me. That probably should have killed me.
He blinked, looking up to find his new amulet floating in front of him, shielding him and spinning in a shower of brilliant blue sparks.
No. Way.
He straightened his posture, throwing out a hand.
“FOR THE GOOD OF ALL” he yelled, “DAYLIGHT IS MINE TO COMMAND!”
Jim felt weightless as the amulet pulled him into the air. Strength unlike anything he’d known surged through him suddenly. The pressure in his ears popped as his chestplate slammed into him.
The power Jim felt only grew as pieces of armor floated into orbit around him. This didn’t feel like the other times he’d summoned his armor, but maybe it was because this amulet was new?
His muscles felt like they were on fire and every bone in his body was stiffening and loosening randomly. Excalibur re-materialized in his hand as the final pieces of his armor snapped into place. Jim crashed back down to the ground heavily before raising his head and sword together to face Bellroc.
He stood slowly, a different yet familiar kind of energy filling him as he blocked a blast from Bellroc, who looked like they’d seen a ghost.
“Ha! Is that all you got?” Was it just the adrenaline or was his voice a bit deeper?
Readying his sword once more, he lunged at Bellroc. Morale restored, Jim fought desperately in an intense battle, though every few seconds he thought he caught a confused look on Bellroc’s face. The clanging sounds of sword against staff filled his ears as he used the last of his strength to knock Bellroc over.
In one swift movement, he sliced their staff in two and let the edge of his sword hit the ground. He stood over Bellroc, breathing deeply as they furiously shouted “NO!”
“Your turn,” Jim scowled as he dragged Excalibur, “give up.” He held the sword to Bellroc’s neck.
It surprised him a bit when Bellroc, laughing gleefully, replied “It’s too late. The world will be remade as you have been, boy.”
Huh?
Taking advantage of Jim’s apparently distracted state, Bellroc picked up a broken piece of staff and stabbed it firmly into his side, forcing him to his knees.
Doubled over in pain, Jim’s vision started to blur again. He could distantly hear Bellroc begin what sounded like a chant as their shape lifted off the ground. Suddenly, a blinding ray of blue light caught Bellroc, and they dropped from the air.
Jim reached for his sword.
“My… my magic. I’m powerless.” Bellroc whispered.
Thank god for weird alien technology.
“Don’t worry” Jim grunted, pulling himself up with his sword.
Jim had known that feeling countless times. He’d been told he’d fail from the moment he’d picked up the amulet. But 15 year old Jim Lake Jr’s jaw would drop if he saw where he was now.
He almost laughed. 3 years of this shit. He lifted Excalibur and swung.
“YOU GET USED TO IT!”
Lava flowed freely from Bellroc’s form as they fell backwards from the cliff of their own creation. Jim stood over the edge, watching, processing. The demigod’s body exploded mid-air and the titan began to fall, forcing Jim to jump towards the ground.