"You've got a bunch of problems," said Nemeth. "You're not good at trust falls either. Even worse than that, you're just so slow. I don't see how you are able to keep your job guarding the temple when you can't even handle a little kid like me. If I were your boss, I would fire you."
"How disrespectful of you," replied the Troll Warrior. "I'm not slow at all. I am a great and proud warrior like most trolls are!"
"You can understand me!" exclaimed Nemeth. "Oh, and you can talk back to me too. This is just lovely! How about I give you the benefit of the doubt? I'll give you one free attack on me with your spear. Come on! Attack me! Give me your best shot! Stick me with that spear and made me bleed!"
The Troll Warrior attempted to pierce Nemeth's throat with his spear. Nemeth's hands quickly moved from his sides and caught the spear on its shaft, just a few inches below the sharp tip.
"Just as I suspected," said Nemeth with a serious tone. "You really are too slow. The only other way I know of to prove you're such a great warrior like you claim you are is if you can overpower me. Let's have a test of strength shall we?"
Nemeth began to push the spear away from him back towards the Troll Warrior. Nemeth snapped the tip of the spear off with his hands and jammed it into the throat of the Troll Warrior. The Troll Warrior panicked and pulled the tip of the spear out of its throat. Blood began pouring out of the Troll Warrior's throat and it gasped for air. The wound was too deep and Nemeth watched as the creature collapsed to its demise. He glanced over at the Troll Warlord and saw that it was still standing in the same position guarding the treasure chest. Nemeth walked back over to the three Troll Warriors that were laid out from the fall. Nemeth walked on top of each of the Troll Warrior's chests again.
"Now you three are a special bunch," said Nemeth. "You saved me from what could have been a fatal fall. But I also think you may have broken a couple of my ribs. Two of your friends are dead. Your leader looks like he's too scared to face me so he just stands by that treasure chest. What shall I do with you?"
Nemeth drew his sword and clasped it with both hands. One by one, he severed off the heads of the three remaining Troll Warriors. Nemeth's boots were now soaked with the blood of the dead Troll Warriors. Nemeth wielded his shield with his right hand. Jaida flew close to Nemeth.
"Master, we are running out of time!" exclaimed Jaida. "There are so many more rooms in the temple. We need to find a way to get to Terazhul and Vulpes as quickly as possible!"
"You're right," replied Nemeth. "This temple feels like it doesn't have an end to it. But I've got a plan that I think you'll love. Now watch it unfold."
Nemeth turned his attention to the Troll Warlord and began strolling calmly towards the creature.
"You're not much of a leader now are you?" asked Nemeth. "You didn't come to the aid of your underlings and now they're all dead. You also had ample opportunity to flee but you didn't. That must mean you're either really stupid or there's something really good in that treasure chest. Now move aside stupid so I can take that sweet treasure."
The Troll Warlord lunged forward with his spear. Nemeth deflected the attack with his shield causing the tip of the spear to break off. The Troll Warlord tossed the broken spear aside. Nemeth put his sword and shield away. Nemeth delivered a two front kicks to the Troll Warlord's stomach causing the Troll Warlord to lean forward. Nemeth tackled the Troll Warlord to the ground. Nemeth pressed hard on the left shoulder of the Troll Warlord with his right hand to keep the creature grounded. Nemeth delivered a series of hammer fists to the Troll Warlord's face with his left hand causing it to be stunned.
"Master, open the treasure chest now!" shouted Jaida. "Do it while the Troll Warlord is stunned!"
Nemeth dismounted the Troll Warlord and darted towards the nearby treasure chest. Nemeth rubbed his hands together with excitement and then opened the treasure chest. Inside the treasure chest, he saw a broad sword and a new sheath. He put his old sword, old sheath and his shield into the Infinite Backpack. He pulled out the broad sword and gripped it tightly in his left hand. His body emitted a bright orange glow for about 10 seconds. He began to examine the new sword. It was as lightweight as his old sword, although slightly longer. It had the most beautiful design he had ever seen for a sword. The sword had multiple sockets going up and down the blade and scattered across the handle and guard as well.
"Looks like I've got myself a brand new sword," said Nemeth pensively. "I'm going to love testing it out!"
"I detect that this sword is made from Estrellium!" exclaimed Jaida. "For some reason though, I am unable to identify the name and the origin of this sword. I am truly sorry master."
"What are these sockets on the sword for?" asked Nemeth.
"You can place various objects in the sockets," replied Jaida. "From the shape of the sockets, it looks like they should be filled in with various gemstones."
"Gemstones?" questioned Nemeth. "What good would gemstones be in this sword?"
"Watch out!" exclaimed Jaida. "The Troll Warlord is regaining its senses!"
"Jaida, I need you to hide!" shouted Nemeth. "Hide now!"
Jaida disappeared inside of Nemeth's body causing him to glow momentarily. He grabbed the new sheath out of the treasure chest. He put his new sheath over his shoulder. Nemeth rotated his wrist several times trying to get a feel for his new weapon. He banged the edge of the sword couple of times on the ground. The Troll Warlord finally arose to its feet after the pummeling that Nemeth gave it.
"Put the sword back into the treasure chest!" commanded the Troll Warlord. "You have no right to steal that sword or anything else in this temple!"
Nemeth pointed the sword at the Troll Warlord. He began to inch closer towards the Troll Warlord. The Troll Warlord cowardly walked backwards until finally he was backed up against a hedge maze wall. Nemeth pressed the tip of his new sword against the throat of the Troll Warlord. The Troll Warlord began to tremble with fear.
"Listen up and listen very closely," demanded Nemeth. "Let's quiet our voices down and talk rationally."
"Whatever you say," replied the Troll Warlord quietly. "Just don't kill me."
"Sidle along the hedge maze until you reach the corner," said Nemeth quietly. "I'm going to sidle along with you. If I sense even for a second that you are going to attack me, I promise you that I will kill you. Now start sidling."
Nemeth tilted his head towards the right to indicate the direction that he wanted The Troll Warlord to move towards. The Troll Warlord started to sidle along the hedge maze. Nemeth locked eye contact with the Troll Warlord and sidled along with him. Nemeth kept his sword pointed directly at the Troll Warlord's throat with every sidestep they took. After about 45 seconds, they reached a corner of the hedge maze.
"Tell me what Terazhul knows about what is going on in here," said Nemeth quietly. "Can Terazhul see us or hear us now? Be honest or you'll suffer consequences far worse than your underlings did."
"Terazhul cannot see or hear us," replied the Troll Warlord quietly. "Terazhul is very busy. I can communicate with Terazhul if I need to. I don't always get an instant reply from him since he is so busy."
Nemeth reached into his backpack with his right hand and retrieved two Transmutation Potions while still pointing his sword at the Troll Warlord's throat with his left hand.
"Tell Terazhul that you've captured an intruder," said Nemeth quietly. "Tell Terazhul that you need to bring the intruder to him immediately. Do it now."
"Master Terazhul!" shouted the Troll Warlord. "I have captured an intruder lurking in the temple. I need to bring the intruder to you immediately."
Nemeth smashed one of the Transmutation Potions in the face of the Troll Warlord while looking at his own body and thinking of images of himself. Nemeth chugged down the remaining Transmutation Potion while looking directly at and thinking of the Troll Warlord. In less than 15 seconds, Nemeth had transformed into the Troll Warlord and the Troll Warlord had transformed into Nemeth. The real Nemeth who now looked like the T
roll Warlord grabbed hold of the fake Nemeth.
"Bring the intruder to me immediately!" echoed the voice of Terazhul. "Step into the portal and enter my chamber."
A portal that was brown and green in color opened up near the treasure chest. They both walked into the portal and were teleported what appeared to be the topmost level of the Great Temple of the Forest. The portal then sealed up.
Chapter Eleven
Looking around the room, it appeared that they were inside of a giant redwood tree with the top portion hollowed out. In the center of the room was another large redwood tree that extended for hundreds of feet into the sky. One look and Nemeth could see that it dwarfed any of the buildings at Lord Dragomir's Academy. Around the room were large puddles that contained a variety of different colored liquids. Large plumes of black smoke began to appear just left of the tall redwood tree in the center of the room. Approximately 20 seconds later, Terazhul and Vulpes emerged from the plumes of smoke. Terazhul was overjoyed at the sight of one of his Troll Warlords tightly gripping Nemeth. However, he didn't realize that the two Transmutation Potions were used and were still in effect.
"You've done a magnificent job capturing that intruder," said Terazhul. "You will be well rewarded for your good deeds my troll brother. Wait, something isn't quite right. What is going on here?"
The effects of the Transmutation Potions began to fade. The fake Nemeth transformed into the real Troll Warlord. Soon after, the fake Troll Warlord transformed into the real Nemeth.
"Surprise!" exclaimed Nemeth. "Remember me?"
Nemeth held the Troll Warlord tightly around the waist with his right arm. Nemeth drew his sword from its sheath with his left hand. He reached over the Troll Warlord's left shoulder with his sword. He placed the blade of the sword under the chin of the Troll Warlord and slowly slit the creature's throat. Blood gushed out of the open wound onto the sword, all over the Troll Warlord and onto the grass below. Nemeth removed his right hand from the waist of the Troll Warlord and placed it upon the creature's throat. Nemeth pushed the Troll Warlord's lifeless body off to his left side and watched as it collapsed to the ground. Nemeth gazed at his right hand which was covered in the Troll Warlord's blood. He stuck out his tongue and licked some of the blood off his hands and then smeared the rest on his armor.
"That tasted a lot better than I expected it to," said Nemeth. "Jaida, you can come out now."
Jaida magically reappeared out of Nemeth's body and began to float above him and move from side to side.
"What are your thoughts about your troll brother now?" asked Nemeth. "He failed to guard the treasure chest containing this sword, which by the way works just perfect as you just witnessed. He also allowed me to skip countless levels of this temple and come straight to you."
"I remember you little boy," said Terazhul. "You're one of those little brats from Lord Dragomir's Academy. You were the one who made that sad attempt at attacking me. When you realized that you stood no chance against me, you ran away from me like a pathetic coward. But something's changed about you. You've obviously become insane. You've foolishly broke into my temple, killed many of my guards and now you dare to step foot in the same room as me? You should have tried harder to kill me back at the academy when you first saw me. The Forestial Corruption spell that I casted continues to plague the land and has made me an unstoppable force. I only have one final decision to make. Should I drain your energy and give it to myself or just send you into oblivion? I won't let you know my decision this instant, but you'll know soon enough!"
"Jaida, how am I supposed to kill Terazhul and Vulpes?" whispered Nemeth nervously.
"You need to get your confidence back up," replied Jaida quietly. "When you were fighting your previous battles, I could feel the confidence radiate from you. This battle shouldn't be any different."
"But I'm just a kid!" whined Nemeth. "Terazhul and Vulpes are too powerful for someone like me!"
"Use everything you have in your arsenal," continued Jaida. "Aren't you forgetting something? Tienna gave you an amulet to wear for good luck. You never put it on. Now would be a good time to start."
Nemeth reached into his backpack, retrieved Tienna's Amulet and placed it around his neck.
"I'm going to need to get an overall threat score and overall threat level from both Terazhul and Vulpes," said Nemeth. "Can you please do that?"
"Here is what I know about Terazhul and Vulpes," replied Jaida. "Terazhul has an overall threat score of 175,000 out of a possible 1,000,000 points. The overall threat level to you from Terazhul is high. Vulpes has an overall threat score of 122,500 out of a possible 1,000,000 points. The overall threat level to you from Vulpes is moderate. The good news is that enough time has passed that I can cast the Sunburst Lullaby spell again. You just need to tell me when you want me to cast it. Also, I'm going to give you a little advantage. I'm going to cast my Crescent Shield spell on you. It will reduce any damage that you receive by one quarter."
Jaida cast the Crescent Shield spell on Nemeth. The spell caused several rings of purple light to envelope his body and then vanished. Nemeth pulled out his bow and quiver of arrows. He readied an arrow on his bow and fired at the head of Vulpes. The arrow soared through the air spanning the 45 foot distance between them. The arrow narrowly missed Vulpes' head, instead piercing the right side of its body. 19 arrows were left in his quiver. Terazhul's hands started to glow green. The arrow that had pierced the body of Vulpes was magically removed and soared back toward Nemeth's head who narrowly avoided it by flopping onto his back. Nemeth got on his knees and put his bow and arrows away. He performed a headspring to get to his feet and wielded his sword and shield. Terazhul began to charge after Nemeth. Nemeth showed no fear and stood his ground. He held his head high and focused directly into the malevolent eyes of Terazhul. About 15 feet away from Nemeth, Terazhul pulled back on the reigns attached to Vulpes causing them to come to a halt.
"Terazhul, listen up!" shouted Nemeth. "You know that any type of combat between us is going to end up as a stalemate at best. I have something important to tell you. I'm sorry about what I've done. I shouldn't be fighting you. Instead, I should be praising you for the destruction you caused back at Lord Dragomir's Academy. Stealing the Ambrule and poisoning everyone at the graduation party was brilliant. Then you cast the Forestial Corruption spell in the perfect location. That was even more brilliant. Nobody knew what was going to hit them. I thought you were doing wrongful things at first but the truth is you did all the right things. I was nothing more than a slave when I was at that corrupt academy. Every single person there hated me and lied to me about my family and my past. They were all jealous of my talents and I now know they are all beneath me. I propose a truce between us. Think about what we can accomplish if we work together!"
"I don't trust a single word out of your mouth boy!" shouted Terazhul. "I wasn't the one responsible for stealing the Ambrule that caused those stupid kids to become so intoxicated. In fact, I'll never tell you who did that. I'm merely responsible for casting the Forestial Corruption spell. I wanted to be more than just a guardian of this temple for the rest of my life. I wanted to be an unstoppable force and that is what I've become. Besides, a truce would never work. You should know very well that trolls and humans do not co-exist well in this world. In fact, they can NEVER co-exist. I am deeply insulted by your ruse. Now shut up and face the consequences for your actions!"
Terazhul turned around and began to move at a moderate pace in a counter clockwise circle around the tall redwood tree in the center of the room.
"What do you think you're doing?" asked Jaida with great concern. "I thought you were really going to side with Terazhul!"
"I'm just trying to play some mind games with Terazhul," said Nemeth. "I thought trolls were supposed to be much dumber. If I had gotten him to agree to an alliance, I can only imagine how easy it would have been to kill him. Alright, it's time for a big battle here. Let's go Jaida!"
Nemeth dashed clockwise aro
und the tall redwood in the center of the room until he came within a safe striking distance to Terazhul and Vulpes. He jumped into the air and attempted a diagonal slice with his sword at the head of Vulpes. Terazhul blocked this attempt by throwing a spear at Nemeth. The spear deflected off of Nemeth's shield and the tip broke off. Nemeth missed his own sword attack and landed on his feet but only a few feet away from the mouth of Vulpes. Vulpes' had horrendous breath that smelled like rotting carcasses. Nemeth performed a series of backflips and then pressed his back up against the giant redwood. Terazhul made a second movement counter clockwise around the tall redwood in the center. Nemeth stayed close to the tall redwood and began to move counter clockwise around it as well. What Nemeth saw next was a huge surprise to him. There was a hole carved out in the base of the tree large enough for Nemeth to easily walk in and out of.
"I hope this is a complete tunnel from one side of the tree to the other," said Nemeth. "Come on, please be a tunnel! Please be a tunnel!"
He jogged through the carved out pathway in the tree and made it out to the other side. Terazhul had just made it around tall redwood tree for the second time.
"Where are you boy!!!???" shouted Terazhul. "You cannot delay the fate I have chosen for you, so surrender to me now!"
Nemeth heard Terazhul travel around the tall redwood for a third time in a counter clockwise direction. Nemeth gripped the handle of his sword tightly and waited for Terazhul to come around. When Nemeth heard Terazhul approaching, he emerged from the hole and sliced at the rear left leg of Vulpes. The sword produced a deep cut about half-way through Vulpes' leg causing blood to pour out and some bone and muscle to be exposed. Vulpes howled in pain. Nemeth made his way back into the hole in the tree. Terazhul's pace slowed down a bit due to the damage inflicted on Vulpes' left leg. However, Terazhul continued to circle around the tree.
The Orphan Wars (Book One) Page 17