Chapter Text
As far as he can tell, Jim’s reckless-yet-barely-thought-out plan seems actually to be working. Ever since he reset the timeline to the day he got the amulet, he’s been able to live a somewhat normal lifestyle. Well, as normal as it can be with a best friend who’s a trollhunter. Ok, maybe not that normal.
On the bright side, with the lack of his ‘sacred obligation’, Jim could now balance the play, stay atop his schoolwork, and be the trusty sidekick Toby needs him to be all at once. However, he did have to admit to himself that meeting Blinky and Aaarrrgghh again for the first time, with neither having remembered the previous timeline, was a painful reminder to the former Trollhunter of what he’d sacrificed for this second chance. With him no longer being the Trollhunter, Jim’s mind would initially wonder whether he and Blinky would have the opportunity to develop the bond they had previously.
But was he truly not the Trollhunter anymore? Jim found himself asking quite often, the weight of his new amulet heavy in his pocket. The amulet that held Excalibur – and still does something that he’d found out after summoning it along with the armor. Despite the paradoxical nature of two amulets co-existing, Jim had remembered a precedent of when both he and Deya technically wielded the amulet back during the Camelot time travel, so he took a guess that it shouldn’t be too big of a deal, at least he hoped so.
Regardless of whether he was a Trollhunter or not, he was Toby’s best friend first and foremost. Jim had resolved to use his knowledge from the future to help Toby throughout his journey, knowledge that became especially helpful in surviving Bular’s ambush attack again where the two had narrowly escaped death when they found safety in Trollmarket.
Just like last time, the presence of two humans had created a stir among the residents which was only slightly subdued when Jim produced a bag of stinky socks as a peace offering.
“How’d you know that’d work, Jimbo?” Toby had asked as they made their way to the hero’s forge.
Jim had only shrugged in response, “Just some legends I heard. I never thought they were actually real until a few days ago. I thought that they were mythological like goblins and fairies.”
“Ah, but goblins and fairies are very much also real, Young James,” Blinky said. To that, Jim had hidden a small grin.
Before Tony could digest that information, Draal had made his appearance again. It took all of Jim’s self-restraint and a reminder that Draal was currently hostile towards them, as seen through his scathing remarks about Toby and his fellow ‘flesh bag’, not to hug the big guy.
The Soothscryer had once again remained undecided about the new human Trollhunter and they had left it at that before returning to the surface.
It was on his fifth trip to Trollmarket that Jim was able to find a moment to break away to the Hero’s Forge. Placing his hand in the Soothscryer, Jim shut his eyes and prayed for it to work.
As nothing happened, frustration crept through his mind, but then it suddenly snapped shut and Jim yelled in shock before he was pulled into the Void.
Landing hard onto the Void Forge, Jim sat up, dusted himself off, and took in the familiar sight of it with the blue spirits of previous Trollhunters encircling him.
“Intruder!” One exclaimed.
“It’s him! The human!” Unkar’s whiny voice, Jim noted.
“He’s not the trollhunter.”
Jim sighed. While he had missed the Hero’s Forge, he hadn’t missed these annoying stone heads. He tiredly pulled out his amulet and recited the incantation, allowing the Magi-Tech armor to encase him. A cacophony of noises sounded out and Jim winced as the voices flooded his ears.
“Silence!” a familiar voice ordered. One of the Trollhunters materialized in front of Jim and appraised him. Kanjigar’s critical gaze took in the human boy’s appearance before settling on the hilt of Excalibur: “How is this possible?”
“Which part, this?” Jim indicated to his amulet, “Or this,” he said as he summoned Excalibur to appear in his right hand.
Another figure materialized and Jim whipped his head around at the voice, “Both.” Deya
The older troll bent down to examine the amulet and scoffed, tapping onto its face, “Just when I thought it couldn’t get any more fancier. What did you even do to it?”
“Destroyed it.” A collective gasp. “And remade it… two years in the future.” Jim braced himself for protests; instead, he was met with silence.
A silence which was finally broken when another Trollhunter called out, “Hah! I was right! Time travel is real. Pay up, everyone!” A few more voices groaned.
Deya began to encircle Jim, looking him up and down as she moved around him, “Hmm. You seem familiar.”
“In the other timeline, I time-traveled back into Camelot with some friends. We bonded over confinement and jailbreak,” Jim explained.
A look of recognition crossed her face and she cracked a smile, “Jim?” He nodded. Deya grinned, “You’re so small! And… human?”
“Long story.” Jim mentally noted that this timeline’s Deya still knew him. That must mean that the Camelot Time Travel will happen again, he surmised.
Kanjigar interjected, “It seems that this ‘long story’ that will repeat itself apparently.”
“I came back to fix things. I hoped that Toby becoming a Trollhunter would be the first step.” He caught Kanjigar’s angry expression, “Before you say anything, Toby is worthy of this sacred mantle. If you can’t take my word seriously, it should be proof enough that the amulet chose him this time around.”
Whatever Kanjigar was going to say, he didn’t. After a moment where Kanjigar was quiet with contemplation, he asked, “What is the reason for you to time travel? What did the future come to?”
“Too much,” Jim said, “Bular to begin with, Gunnar’s release. Morgana being unsealed and creating the Eternal Night, followed by an extraterrestrial usurper from Akiridion 5. The destruction of the Heartstone and the wrath of three primordial beings, the Arcane Order. And lastly,” Jim’s face softened to sadness. “Many heroic lives were lost. Including your son, Draal.”
An uproar sounded out amongst the collection. Kanjigar was too shocked to say anything, and Deya seemed to be the same.
“ENOUGH!” Jim stabbed Excalibur through the floor of the void, creating a large tremor and effectively silencing the Council. He looked up to face the apparitions, his eyes blazing with determination. “Argue and deny it all you want. But I’m going to do all that I can to prevent it, to prevent the end of Earth and potentially the universe. But to do that, I need help.”
Deya shook off her shock from earlier and nodded, “What do you need from us, Jim?”
“While I try to work behind the scenes for things to fall into place, I need you to help Toby. Train him as a Trollhunter and help him become.”
“Alright, young James Lake,” Kanjigar said. “However, we require regular updates – As often as possible.”
“Deal.”
After returning to the Hero’s Forge and deactivating his armor, Jim glanced around and silently celebrated his victory in convincing the Council of Elder Trollhunters to take his side. Just as he was about to run off, he heard a deep cough.
Whirling around, he felt something hard knock the top of his head. “And what on Gronka’s green earth did I just witness, human?”
Jim chuckled awkwardly, “Haha… Hi Vendel.” He looked up as he sheepishly rubbed the sore spot on his head, “This was a bad time to catch you, wasn’t it?”
“My workstation. Now.”
“Yes, Master Vendel.”
Vendel glanced owlishly at Jim as he slowly digested the information that he’d been given. He held up a magnifying glass to inspect the armor that the young human had donned and tapped at the amulet. Jim snorts, “Deya did that too.”
“Deya?!” Vendel’s voice shot up an octave, “You spoke to Deya the Deliverer?”
Jim shrugged, “And Kanjigar. They all believe me.”
The old troll sighed, placing his magnifying glass down and leaning against his staff. “I would normally find it impossible to believe this; I should be. Time travel? How preposterous. But…” He glances at the amulet, “A piece of evidence of the truth is right in front of my face.”
“Let me be clear about this; You were the Trollhunter in the previous timeline,” Jim nodded, seeming to be that he’s doing much of that today.
“I suppose I still am a Trollhunter. In the previous timeline, I had a team. Team Trollhunters.” Jim confirmed. He braced himself for the upcoming lecture.
“Outrageous! The Trollhunter works alone!” Vendel roared as he sized up Jim. The stony creature huffed down at the other, the hunch doing nothing to diminish the height difference.
“There is strength in numbers, you came to accept that,” the boy countered, “We need as much help as we can to combat the Arcane Order. This includes convincing others to switch sides and to grow our own allies.”
A tired sigh filled the room. Standing back down, Vendel rubbed his stone forehead, “I suppose I can’t do anything to deter you, young Trollhunter.” Jim smiled and once again nodded. “I suppose you’ll be off to tell Blinkous then?”
“No.” Vendel looked up in surprise at that. “Blinky needs to focus on training Toby. While there may be two amulets this time around, we need Toby to grow. We also need the other trolls of Trollmarket to accept Toby as their Trollhunter, not confuse them.”
Vendel took in Jim’s tired and conflicted expression. “You would sacrifice the bond you shared with Blinkous and the other trolls?”
“If it means Toby has a better chance as a Trollhunter.”
“Hm. How noble. Idiotic. But noble.” Jim snorted at the backhanded compliment.
He pondered a thought before he reluctantly asked, “Don’t you have questions about your future?”
Vendel shook his head, “To know the future is a burden that weighs heavily on one. It can be a blessing and it can be a curse. But from what I gather from your tone, something grave has happened to me. I won’t enquire what it is-“
“You die.”
The old troll blinked slowly. He gripped his staff for support and took deep breaths. “How?”
Said troll noted how the human would, or should have, shifted uncomfortably on his feet before finally answering, “Queen Usurna. We found out about a changeling spy within Trollmarket and she-”
“Lies! She has ruled the Krubera benevolently for centuries,” Vendel angrily protested, his staff and voice raised. “How dare you insinuate anything like… like this!”
“It’s true! With your death, she allowed Gunmar back into Trollmarket and has been plotting his escape for a long time. She drove the good trolls out and allowed many to be turned by the Decimaar Blade.” Jim argued, his voice level but his words heavy and laced with anger, “She was responsible for the Kruberan younglings’ so-called ‘kidnappings’ and handed them over to be child soldiers for Gunmar. Vendel. Listen to me, it’ll only be a matter of time before she turns on Trollmarket. Again.”
The steely look in his eyes made Vendel hesitate to refute the claims. After a moment of reflection, he huffed, “What will you have me do?”
“Nothing. We can’t let her know we know or suspect anything in case that disrupts the timeline too early.” Vendel nodded grimly before moving to walk toward his workbench. “One more thing?” The young boy asks with uncharacteristic reluctance.
“What is it now, human?” Vendel tiredly turned back around.
He watched the human nervously fidget and debate within his own head before saying, “Can you help make Draal lay off Toby?”
“That, I can’t do. Draal’s anger is understandable, immature, but understandable. He’s not a dog that I can leash.” Vendel was getting tired of this human and his never-ending requests.
“Well, thanks anyway, Vendel,” Jim smiled warmly before ducking out to leave. Vendel stared at where he was before shaking his head and returning to his work. He could only hope that his faith in the Trollhunter wasn’t misplaced.
“Will you stop trying to kill me?!” Jim exclaimed, narrowly dodging Draal’s rolling form by rolling to the side.
The troll sneered down at him, “I thought you wanted to talk.”
“With words!” Jim protested, continuing to dodge his opponent’s attacks.
“Words are for humans. This is the trolls way.”
Jim scoffed and slid beneath Draal’s legs, “Bushigal. It’s ‘Draal the Deadly’ way.”
The two continued to play cat and mouse before Jim managed to turn on the Hero’s Forge, using his knowledge of the training course to hide from Draal’s line of sight. “Draal. Don’t challenge Toby for the amulet,” Jim called out from a hiding spot.
Draal swerved his head to look for the origin of his voice. “Don’t tell me what to do, fleshbag.”
“I get it. You miss Kanjigar and he misses you too. But killing Toby won’t bring him back,” Jim said, “Kanjigar is already proud of you, and he watches over you and wishes you safety.”
“What do you know?!” Draal leaped to a crevice within the main mechanism and grabbed Jim by the throat, dangling him off the edge.
Jim scratched at Draal’s hands and struggled for breath, “I’m… I…I’m from the future!”
Draal’s grip loosened slightly in confusion, “What?”
“For the good of All, Daylight is mine to command!” Jim quickly recited, his armor encasing him and blinding Draal, who accidentally drops him.
“What sorcery?!” Draal roared, taking off after Jim, but he was cut off by a swinging axe. He swore in trollish and glanced at the soothscryer and then back at Jim.
Jim grinned and called out from above, “Race you to the top!” He jumped up and focused on summoning his glaves to use as climbing picks. To his surprise and relief, they materialized in his hand. Draal widened his eyes before growling.
“I will not be bested by a fleshbag!”
Scattered memories of Merlin’s tomb flickered in Jim’s mind, and he found himself carelessly laughing as he raced the blue troll to the top. Just as he went to deactivate the soothscryer, he watched a swinging axe force Draal to lose his footing and begin to fall. Jim quickly deactivated the mechanisms and sighed with relief as the flooring rose, and Draal tucked himself into a ball to manage the impact.
Draal groaned as he sat back up before his eyes narrowed at Jim, who carefully approached him. “I demand an explanation or else I’ll pummel that soft skull in.”
Jim, for the second time in the day, did his best to explain. “I’m from two years in the future,” He held up a hand when he noticed Draal’s mouth open, “Let me finish.”
Draal closed his mouth and grumbled.
“In two years, a world-ending apocalypse brought by three… very powerful and ancient beings will cost us many lives, both human, trolls, and more. However, that was only the end. I’ve come back in time to fix the past. To prevent horrible things from happening again, other than the Arcane Order.”
“Why should I believe a word you say?” Draal said, sizing Jim up.
“Before the fact that two Trollhunter amulets exist is evidence enough. If you don’t believe me, why don’t we summon the Council of Elders… if that’s possible?”
Draal softened at that. “You… spoke to my father?”
Jim smiled back at him. “I did, and I meant it; he’s very proud of you, Draal.”
A soft smile graced Draal’s face before his expression hardened, or Jim thinks it did - it’s difficult to tell with trolls, his tone becoming more demanding, “And why are you telling me this? What use is that?”
“As I said. I want you to leave Toby alone. But I want you to train him to be the Trollhunter.”
Draal growled and stepped forward, “How dare you-“
“Draal. You trained me in the previous timeline. Watch,” Jim grabbed a nearby training sword and repeated the exercises Draal had integrated into him all those years ago. Draal frowns, recognizing the fighting stances.
“That… is the technique my father passed down to me,” Draal admitted. He huffed. “Fine. I believe you. But why should I train the other one? He has Blinky and Aaaarrrgh.”
“As much as I love Blinky and Aaarrrgh… they’re not the best to train Toby in hand-to-hand combat.” Draal snorted and glanced at Unkar’s statue. Jim follows his gaze and chuckles as well.
After a long pause, Draal unfurled his arms and held out his hand, “Fine. I will train Tobias the Trollhunter for battle, you have my word.” Jim smiled happily and held his hand out for a handshake, surprised at Draal’s gentleness in holding his hand. As they cease the handshake, Draal asks, “And you trust my word?” His voice was colored with amusement.
“You’re an honorable warrior who will uphold his principles to the grave. You were my trainer, you were my friend, and you saved my life quite a bit until the very end,” Jim looked at the troll with a grim and serious expression.
“Was my death honorable?”
The human was caught off guard by the question, and his face softened to a look of sadness, “The most.” He should have expected that to be Draal’s primary concern.
Draal took a shaky breath before nodding and smiling, “Tell me your plans to train the Trollhunter, and I will determine whether I will agree to it or not. But first,” He clapped Jim’s back, causing the young boy to cough and splutter, “I need a drink, let’s also see whether this human’s weak stomach can keep up.”
“Oh, you’re on.”
And if anyone in Trollmarket had anything to say about the odd sight that was Draal and the new fleshling sharing a dubiously made drink in the tavern while cracking jokes and swearing in Trollish? They didn’t say it and just curiously watched from afar. Including an old, hazy-eyed troll.