Lost Bloodline 3 - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Koda’s entire body felt both hot and cold at the same time. His muscles pulsed and twitched while his joints crackled. All that was left of the troll’s head was a bloody crater on top of its shoulders now, a bloody crater with a carved bone club protruding from the center of it.

There was no denying that the legends Samira had told about the power of a troll-slayer were true, Koda could feel the strength surging through his body right now. While it wasn’t as much power as Thera had given him that first day, it was far more wild and unnatural.

The blessing from the goddess had wrapped around and soaked into him over the course of several hours. This felt like he’d been struck by lightning that even now rampaged through his body.

“You had better wash that off before you give it back to me.” Arthene’s drawl cut through Koda’s focus and he flinched, whirling to turn towards her with the club in hand before he realized who had spoken.

Arthene stood in her mortal form, looking just as bruised and battered as Koda was. She had a massive bruise on one side of her face that was slowly swelling her eye closed, and multiple cuts along her torso, but she was smiling down at him. Her hide wrap and skirt were disheveled and her hair a mess, but Arthene was just as beautiful as he remembered her to be.

“Wha?” Koda asked smartly before snapping out of his confusion. The pulses of power still raced through his body and made his movements jerky, but he was slowly controlling them. Stumbling forward, he tried to check Arthene over for major injuries.

“My club. You jammed it down that troll’s throat. I don’t want troll spit on my things,” Arthene said with a laugh, catching Koda by the shoulders. “You did good, my mate. You fought fiercely and conquered your opponent. Oluk’s power will settle given time, it does not like to be possessed by a non-troll, but he set the rules and must abide by them, just as Thera does with her champions and priests being the sources of her power.”

“Hurt?” Koda asked, the jolting energy running through his body making it hard to speak.

“Yes, I got beat up pretty badly. I’d forgotten how tenacious a troll can be, but nothing serious. Come, we should meet with our other mates before they worry. The villagers will need to burn these two before long, or they will draw in other trolls.”

Arthene wrapped an arm around Koda’s bloody shoulders, not caring in the slightest that it made her just as dirty, and guided him towards the hill where their party was even now descending from.

Sienna and Calandra led the pack, moving at a dead sprint that was obviously augmented by the dwarf’s wind magic from how their hair whipped in the wind. The two of them beat the others to Koda by over a hundred yards and slid to a stop to immediately begin fussing over both of them.

Calandra had bandages in hand already, but couldn’t tell what blood was Koda’s and what was the troll’s given the savage way he’d killed it, so she swapped over to Arthene whom she could actually bandage. Sienna fussed over the cuts and Arthene’s bruises, promising to coddle the bear woman while she rested and recovered before turning to Koda and getting her waterskin out to try and wash the worst of the blood from him.

“You two scared me half to death,” Sienna grumbled, her ears flat against her skull and her tail hanging limply behind her. “I couldn’t even see most of Arthene’s fight, and Koda you got so close to being pulped multiple times! That was absolutely terrifying to stay so far back, I don’t want—mph!”

Koda, not wanting to get his redheaded mate dirty, waited until she’d splashed water on his face to rinse the blood off and check him for injuries before he leaned in and muffled her protests with a kiss.

Sienna’s hand immediately went up to grip the tattered remains of his shirt, pulling him in closer to deepen the kiss. Her pointed wolf ears popped upright and her tail began to wag as the two of them savored each other and took reassurance in their mate’s presence.

“Sorry for scaring you, love,” Koda said when they separated, his words still a bit jittery from the lingering effects of the power racing through his system. He was hesitant to reach out to any of his lovers, for fear of hurting them with power he wasn’t fully in control of yet.

“Idiot,” Sienna muttered, blushing cutely before returning to rinsing him off while the rest of their party descended on them.

Samira was the first to reach their group, having sprinted dead out to try and keep up with the two mages.

“That was the most brutal thing I have ever seen! Aegisclaw, you set on that troll like a stone-cracker leopard! I half expected to see you tear off one of its arms and start beating it to death with it!” Samira gushed as she slid to a stop behind his mates.

The caracal woman continued to bounce in excitement, her wide eyes dancing as she jittered from foot to foot.

“Easy, Samira,” Arthene laughed before hissing in surprise when Calandra dabbed at a deeper cut in her hip. “Battle still runs high in my and Koda’s blood. Give us a minute to calm down before you bombard us with questions.”

“Of course, Den Mother!” Samira chirped with such energy that Koda had to fight the urge to flinch. He knew that Samira didn’t mean anything ill with it, but after this fight and the way that his muscles still twitched furiously he was vastly overstimulated. Enough that even Sienna’s soft touches as she checked him over were taxing his ability to be patient.

“Look, Samira. Love the enthusiasm, but you are up here,” Calandra said dryly, holding one hand over her head. “Need you to bring it down here,” she continued, dropping her hand down to about waist level on herself. “These two need time to collect themselves and your people need to deal with the bodies.”

“Aye,” interjected Cyrus, the cougar beastfolk finally arriving with the rest of the group who were looking on in awe at Koda as his fight had been the only one out in the open for them to watch start to finish. “The village also needs to be assessed to see how much damage the trolls have done and what supplies remain. We can send some back to the refugees as well, but we need to secure it first.”

“If you run into any other trolls—” Koda began only to be cut off when Cyrus raised a hand to him.

“We will call for you and the Den Mother first if we do. You have proven your strength to us, troll-slayer. We would be fools to try and engage one without consulting with either of you first. Come! Let us check on our homes!”

Cyrus led his group of a dozen hunters into the village—minus Samira who ignored the orders to follow him because she obviously wanted to hear more from these two first.

“How are you doing, lad?” Todd asked, the fox beastfolk dropping Koda’s pack to the ground and flipping it open to rummage around before producing a fresh shirt. He laid the shirt over the pack for when Koda was ready to change into it.

“I feel like I was stuffed in a barrel and rolled down a mountain. Then struck with lightning,” Koda drawled in such a deadpan fashion that Todd barked in laughter.

“You both look like that happened indeed. I shouldn’t be surprised, given what I’ve seen you and Arthene do in the fights with the Crooked, but it was still glorious to see the savagery of the Pack Lady in action.”

“You should have seen him in the fight against the Crooked warleader and his posse of champions,” Calandra chuckled. “Tore more than one of them clean in half. Arthene was pounding them into the ground like she was driving wedges to split rock. I’m still astonished that your club is holding up like it is, by the way.”

Contrary to her previous demands that Koda wash the club before she’d accept it back, the bear spirit reached over and plucked the weapon from Koda’s hands with a smile, holding the bloody weapon aloft with pride.

“Yes, I am quite sturdy. This incarnation was even more powerful than I am right now too, since it was from a time when I was able to reach my peak of power. We will see that you all have weapons made of my bones soon, as my people deserve proper weapons to protect themselves,” Arthene said with pride before setting the club down at her side, leaning it against her hip.

“We will be honored to receive them. But I think I speak for us all that we would rather you be there on that day, I did not like seeing you two risk yourselves like that.” Hans said solemnly.

The normally jovial bull beastfolk’s brow was knitted in a mixture of worry and determination, his mattock sitting over one shoulder as he loomed at the back of the group.

“Hans is right. You four do so much to protect our people, but you can’t stand against all threats that might come,” Netta piped up, the hawk beastfolk’s feathers flaring out around her head. “This seems like a brilliant opportunity for us to take a step along the road to grow strong enough that we can do more than bring up the rear in your formation.”

Koda wanted to protest, to reassure them that it would be fine, but Arthene spoke before he could. Her words immediately calmed the anxiety that was running through their friends as the ancient primal spirit spoke.

“You will have your opportunity to grow, but you must be careful. There is plenty that can be done to support your people that does not require you to risk yourselves. We will do all we can to stack the deck in your favor, because I would prefer that you stand beside us with pride, but I would rather you stand at the rear than join the honored dead.”

“She’s right,” Calandra grunted, having not stopped in her first aid work as she bandaged the slash on Arthene’s hip. “Moving smartly is the first and best plan. I’ve never fought a troll, but we have two slayers here that have and I’ve been trained in how we are supposed to fight them if they were to attack a town. So don’t let yourselves get down.”

Hannah spoke up next, asking the question that it was clear Samira had been holding in this entire time.

“Were those legends true though? Does killing a troll actually give you its strength?”

“Just ask Koda,” Arthene laughed, glancing down at her lover who still had the occasional tremor run through his body. “He is still digesting the troll’s power. I know you all saw how he ensured his fight was over. Shattering a troll’s skull is no mean feat, regardless of your weapon.”

“It’s real,” Koda grunted, flinching when Sienna gently checked a large bruise on his side to make sure his ribs were not broken. “Hurts and feels really strange, but it’s settling in.”

“How much stronger do you think that it made you? The legends say that it gave the slayers the power of ten men!” Samira chirped, though she managed to keep the piercing tone out of her voice.

“I don’t know about ten men,” Koda said, swaying slightly as another tremor ran through his body. Without hesitation, Sienna shifted to support him while she continued to check him over. “But I was already wickedly strong because I was a champion.”

“The power of Oluk’s blood will turn men into monsters,” Arthene said when Koda did not elaborate. “I could not give you a solid number, but I guarantee that if say… Hans were to perform the feat?” The bull beastfolk twitched, his big head twisting to look at Arthene questioningly. “He’d be able to do what I did with those bison the other day.”

“Those things had to weigh half a ton or more!” Hans protested, his eyes going wide.

“One handed,” Arthene continued, her lips splitting into a grin. “But only because his large ass would form a better counterweight than my delicate one.”

“Den Mother!” Hans protested in a whine as everyone else burst into laughter.

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Once the worst of Arthene and Koda’s injuries were bandaged, their group headed into town to meet up with the Silent Plains hunters.

Samira continued to pepper them with questions about the fight, and Koda learned that Arthene had been forced to dismember her opponent when the wounds inflicted by her claws and teeth were not enough.

Her larger size had given her a momentum and strength advantage, but also made it easier for the other troll to throw her off and pummel her. She’d finished her fight quicker than him, but taken more injuries because of it. Though she assured Koda that she’d be mostly recovered in the morning due to her nature.

“Is there such a thing as healing magic?” Koda asked as they helped stack wood from the ruined buildings on the bodies of the two trolls to start the impromptu pyre for them. Cyrus’ group was still combing the village for any other trolls and cataloging damage.

“There are legends of it, but only from those chosen by one of the primal gods,” Samira piped up, hefting a chunk of broken beam onto her shoulder and trotting over to throw it onto the pile.

“She’s right,” Arthene answered as she dragged over one of the troll’s impromptu clubs. “War was the precept of the champions, while the priesthood would handle healing.”

“So does that mean that Thera can’t have priests anymore? Since I’m her last champion?” Koda carefully lifted a log as thick around as himself over his head and added it to the pile. The motion was easy enough for him, but he was still getting used to the increase in power.

“No,” Sienna answered this time and Koda turned to look at her in curiosity. The wolf beastfolk was preparing a bundle of shaved tinder with her knife to add to the pile, her eyes focused on her work while her ears rotated like a pair of radar dishes to keep track of everyone. “Thera told me that your bloodline carries both paths, you were chosen as a champion because of the battle at hand. Our children will be able to be priests and she can grant them healing powers.”

The mention of children made Koda’s guts clench and a smile slip across his face despite the pain in his body from the fight. With each day that passed since his conversation with his mates, the idea of having children became more and more appealing as he left behind his previous worries of his old life.

We will find a way, Koda thought, his confidence bolstering him.

“Budge up you great, splintery, bastard!” Calandra growled from the ruined stable as she tugged on another beam furiously. Hans, who was standing nearby, reached over to help pull the hunk of wood free and Calandra growled but accepted the help before resolutely dragging the log over herself while Hans chuckled.

“I wonder if having a few little ones will calm down our fierce Cal?” Arthene murmured in Koda’s ear as she passed and he nearly choked.

“Doubtful,” Calandra barked at Arthene, demonstrating that her hearing was as sharp as ever. “Probably make me more prickly with some littles to protect. Chandra’s tits, I want a proper bath.”

“I think that is something we can accommodate,” Samira called as she dumped another load of branches and kindling into the nook Sienna was preparing. “There is a communal bathhouse in the village. Unless the trolls destroyed it, then it would be easy enough to have folk rotate through to wash up tonight. And no one will deny that we’ve earned it.”

“We need to be ready if the trolls come back though,” Koda insisted, pausing to stretch out his back. “There is no way that only two trolls remained in the area after they attacked the village. Didn’t Vysin say it was like a dozen?”

“Allegedly,” Cyrus answered, the cougar beastfolk coming out from between two buildings alone. “My hunters have finished scouting the town. One of the store houses was damaged and broken into, but the trolls didn’t eat much. It seems the herds kept them content for now. If we are lucky, then some judicious hunting will ensure our people stay fed through the winter. If we can keep the village secured.”

“Cyrus, good to see you,” Koda called with a wave as the beastfolk approached. “No trolls lurking in town still?”

“No,” the hunter said with a sigh, his shoulders slumping. “Though I almost wish that there were. If they are separated from their fellows, it would be easier to harry and bring one down, as you and the Den Mother showed us earlier.”

“That reminds me,” Koda paused and held up one hand. “How was it that you recognized Arthene for what she was so easily?”

“That would be Samira’s fault, at least partially,” Cyrus snorted. Speaking her name drew the caracal woman’s attention and she paused to stare in their direction curiously, but when they didn’t call her over, she went back to helping Sienna. “She’s always been intensely interested in the legends of our history. She would always tell stories of the great beasts that served under the Queen of Beasts ever since she was young and pester the elders for more stories whenever she could. There is only one type of creature that we know of which can change from the body of a mortal beastfolk into that of one of the great beasts, and those are the primal spirits.”

“So her shifting gave it away?” Koda asked and got a nod from Cyrus. “Okay, it has been bugging me for a while now. No one recognized her in town when we went to Amberpost, but no one saw her shift.”

“It is unlikely that even the beastfolk of the town would recognize her in that situation,” Cyrus sighed. “Many of our people have lost the old ways and adopted the new. The stories remain strong with us and the others who keep close to the heart of the land though, so bear that in mind.”

“Good to know,” Koda gave himself a shake to get his mind to change tracks. “So, your hunters checked the village. Can you tell where the trolls came in from? If there are more of them and they didn’t remain in the area, they must have somewhere they are denned up nearby, right?”

“I have two hunters following their trail right now to gather information,” Cyrus said with a smirk that made his eyes narrow. “They complained that we let you and the Den Mother claim the easy kills for the power of the troll-slayer, so I will remind them why trolls are feared by our people when they get to see a more up-close view of one still breathing.”

“Fair enough, but what about the count? Do you have any way of telling how many there are, and if one of these troll chiefs is with them?”

Cyrus’ jovial mood fell away into somber reflection and he nodded grimly.

“There are at least eight trolls left, and maybe as many as twice that. The tracks are muddled and we have not had rain recently, so it is hard to tell. But there will be plenty to fight with if we decide to go that route.”