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The Brave Troll Bravik

Written by: TiranMaster

Bravik the strong, Bravik the brutal, Bravik the savage killer... that's what the troll had once been known as, and it was a past he'd long turned his back on. The great beast sat under the old stones in a cave he'd lived in for nearly five hundred years now, the world outside was constantly changing, but the troll was constantly pushing for better. It had been long since any sentient creature had met its end at his powerful hands, he only took the lives of dumb beasts bred for consumption, otherwise Bravik stayed deep within the peaceful quiet of his cave. He took a deep breath, eyes closed, black marble skin flexing like water with every movement. Many people considered troll-kind to be disturbing monstrous things, but honestly they had an odd sense of beauty within their bestial forms.

Once Bravik had considered himself ugly, when he was young and bloodthirsty, to be ugly and fierce was the way of the warrior. Only the ugly beasts could be truly monstrous enough to murder and pillage, and such Bravik had been... but now in his wiser years he knew better than that. Trolls were beautiful in their own way, carved by the ancient magics of the world, their skin made of rock, but molded into strong forms able to bring down mountains. With him growing larger and stronger with every passing year Bravik himself was an incredibly tough troll that many of the troll armies would love to have, but Bravik would fight no longer.

The night outside was quiet save for the chirping of bugs, most trolls went out at this time to find animals to eat, people to kill, and things to claim for themselves. Personally Bravik was perfectly fine with just relaxing in the dark of his cave and relaxing, allowing his muscles to relax. Even without exercising constantly as he had in his days as a warrior Bravik was built like a fort, his muscles ripped, his every aspect looking prepared to kill if he were to be attacked, the troll was the perfect killing beast.

If one were to look upon the troll they might think of him as a rhinoceros, he had one protruding horn from his muzzle, his eyes set deep into his face, though unlike any rhinoceros had a pair of horns wrapping around his cheeks. He had obsidian black skin, inlaid with several green glyphs from his days of fighting, permanent marks given to him by troll mages. If Bravik could he would get rid of those marks in a heartbeat, but he had no magic of his own and did not trust any mage near himself to see if they could be removed. The glyphs were made specifically to give him great strength, to protect his body from harm, and to give him greater rage than anybody was capable of. Bravik feared that rune the most as it took the slightest provocation for him to go into a blind fury, he'd once been bucked by a passing stag, only a small thing... but he'd ended up slaughtering a herd of the dumb creatures in his anger.

Many trolls had aspired to be Bravik, a few foolish ones had even seeked him out in his years of solitude, trying to goad him into fighting or training them. It didn't take long for them to get scared off though, Bravik was powerful, almost unnaturally so. He'd taken to the magic of the runes better than any before him, they were etched deep into his soul, making him into a dangerous weapon. Just thinking about fighting flared up the magic within and made his muscles flex with incredible might, Bravik could crush stones easily, boulders were nothing, and he'd been known to level a few mountains when he was younger. Now Bravik could likely topple mountains with ease, but he wasn't to be like that, he wouldn't be a warrior for the troll-kind any longer. The leaders thought him a dumb beast, they thought that he would obey any command mindlessly... no, he was a thinking troll, the same as the rest, and he refused to kill any longer.

Bravik held his position on the floor for a great many hours, normally he could go for weeks without moving, once going a whole four months before standing up. For the most part he didn't need to eat, the magic of one of his runes sustaining him, but of course even he grew bored every now and again. Eating was good for him, he didn't need to, but it helped keep his mind active and reflexive enough to not become some dumb brute of a rock. Tonight though Bravik needed to stand, he'd been allowing himself far too much time to mope around about old things he'd done far in the past, he was no longer the same troll that had entered this cave so long ago filled with rage and confusion. He'd achieved a certain amount of clarity, it had taken many years to beat back troll instinct, but he'd become a far calmer person.

Standing up Bravik opened his eyes revealing a cool blue orb with a yellow dot in the middle of each eye, his eyes easily able to see in the darkness. There was nothing in the cave with him, occasionally a bear or a pack of animals was known to take up residence in his cave since the troll never really came up on their natural senses as anything but a large rock. Normally Bravik left them in peace, but once in a while he'd been known to consume the odd bear or two, they were awfully tasty after all. Licking his lips with a slight grating noise Bravik took a deep whiff of the air, it smelled of frost and grass, likely winter was on its way soon. Bravik loved the winter, that was the perfect time for him to escape his self-imposed prison, that was when there were no humans wandering about to see a troll out in the open.

Lurching towards the exit of his hole Bravik had to push aside some newly grown bushes out of his way, apparently Mother Nature had been hiding his spot for a while now. "Thank you," he whispered to the spirit of earth. Bravik hated being interrupted, and some of the youthful trolls were truly aggressive idiots, the sort that never lasted long in this world. Likely if Bravik hadn't learned so early in his life of the wrongdoings he would've ended up dead himself, instead though he was older than most elders in his old troll tribe.

Walking out into the thick grasses of the forest Bravik enjoyed allowing his clawed feet to sink into the ground, ripping up some of the grass and dirt and gouging holes into the ground with ease. Even with years of disuse the troll's claws hadn't dulled a bit, more than likely they were sharper now, trolls did not weaken with age, they grew with it. Bravik had heard rumors of a troll that had lived for centuries who'd become as big as a mountain, able to rock the world with his steps, such a creature was called a titan. Bravik pondered on what would happen if he were to ever reach that age, would he lie about and watch the world move on around him, or would he make himself into some sort of god...? He wasn't so humble to think that he wouldn't give a thought at least, but it wasn't exactly something on his mind at the moment.

The darkness of the forest surrounded him, but it wasn't able to hide anything from the powerful night vision of a troll, he was able to see for hundreds of feet in any direction. Animals scampered about, though most were asleep by this time of night, and the troll had never once stepped out into the sunlight to see creatures of the day, trolls were infamously bad with sunlight. Bravik had friends who had been foolish enough to step out into sunlight, he pondered if their statues were still standing to this day.

Bravik was so enraptured in his surroundings and the sensory overload of being in a moving world once more that he missed the shimmer of a glamour nearby, something he'd been very good at spotting when he was younger. The owner of the glamour watched on with wide eyes, he'd heard rumors of a troll around these parts, an ancient creature hiding away... but he'd never seen a troll before. Over the last few hundred years they'd managed to hide themselves away, rumors of a great war two hundred years back indicated that a great number had been killed off, so for one to be hiding so close to his home... well it was mind boggling. Part of the mage wasn't sure he should be doing this, after all he was only a mortal creature, powerful and magical, but this monster before him was an immortal magical creature who would far outlive him.

Completely unaware of his guest Bravik walked about, stretching his back, and standing at his full fifteen feet height. It had been a good amount of time since he'd last walked about, so long in fact that he hadn't realized that rocks had been forming on his back. They chipped and clicked while they fell off of his skin, a few good stalagmites falling away and breaking on the ground below. "Been a while," he chuckled in a deep bassy voice. Bravik flinched at the sound of his own voice, he hadn't spoken in a very long time, always speaking in his head with himself. Part of him was a bit surprised he remembered the common tongue so well, years without speaking rusted other creature's minds... perhaps that was the difference between normal sentients and the magical trolls.

The world was truly a beautiful place, even more so when Bravik spent so much time locked away from it, he pondered if it was time for him to rejoin the world of the living. Trolls could've changed while he was locked away... unlikely, but it was a possibility. Bravik knew that it was only five hundred years locked away in that cave though, he had an innate ability to properly predict time, a quirk of being able to put himself in a sort of stasis for long periods of time. Not that Bravik had done that too much during his time in the cave, he'd gone there to reflect on himself, not sleep for hundreds of years.

Stepping out of the divot in the landscape Bravik focused his eyes into the distance, his eerie yellow eyes piercing through the darkness and tracking down some small animals. Part of him thought about hunting them down, it wouldn't take much time, hell it might not even take a minute to grab a few of the skittering creatures... but no, that's not what he was here for. Bravik wasn't sure why he was so impatient right now, but he knew that staying still wasn't right at the moment.

Looking up into the gorgeous starry sky above Bravik stretched out, long movements, his horn nearly brushing a low hanging tree branch. He was aware of something though now... one moment he'd been fine, but the next he'd suddenly had a feeling... somebody was watching him. It was a sixth sense every warrior developed, and though it had taken a little bit for his to kick in he now knew it to be true, he whipped around and looked for the one watching him. It only took a few seconds for his eyes to see the glamour, his mouth pulled back into a sneer of rage, his fangs clenching tight and his runes starting to burn brighter. "Calm down... calm down!" he growled to himself. Already the rage was boiling bright, like he'd been angry for hours rather than a few seconds, it threatened to send him into a frenzy.

Managing to push down the bloodlust he stared at the blur of magic, his fingers sliding into threatening claws, his posture set for battle. "Get out into the open, magic user, don't think you can deceive me! Reveal yourself, or prepare to..." he hesitated before saying die. He didn't want to kill, he'd left that life behind, so he just allowed the sentence to peter off. He would have to determine the threat of this mage before he did anything drastic, it never did much to kill a magic user at first provocation, not all of them were bastards... though a good number was among their ranks.

At first the mage hesitated, he wasn't sure he should reveal himself... but the monster before him could easily chase him down. There were many stories of trolls being extremely agile despite their size, and this brute could probably take him down in three strides. So despite his own hesitation he allowed his glamour to fall and reveal himself, a young human, likely just entering his twenties. Bravik's eyes narrowed in disgust, he'd been hoping for an elf at least, they had some courtesy towards his kind. He'd met far too many human mages who were full of themselves, even at such a young age, despite himself his eyes grew dark and menacing. "H... hail, troll, I am Rocklien Anders, I have come to request your aid," the mage asked nervously.

Bravik calmed down a bit at the sound of serious doubt in the young man's voice, he wasn't too full of himself at least, he had enough sense to be worried. The troll cast his gaze about looking for other mages, they often came after trolls in packs... but this one seemed to have come alone. "What is it you want, Mage Anders, I am not one to suffer foolish humans! You may have magic, but I am a creature of magic who can easily tear you apart. Do not think me easy to play with." The troll's every word carried a warning, he was not about to be tricked by any mage, one did not grow to his age without having some self-preservation instincts.

The young man's eyes widened at the sight of the troll's glowing eyes, his heart pounding fast, the troll could hear it from even this distance. Bravik pondered if he should just chase the mage away now so he could return to his basking in the moonlight... though he was also a bit curious. It had been long since the troll had last spent any amount of time with another living creature, or at least a sentient one. "There is a nest of d... demons near my home, troll. I am not strong enough to defeat them by myself, and my master... he passed several years ago. I am my village's sole protector, yet I cannot protect them from the threat that they pose. I came here because I heard of a troll living around here, since there have been no reports of travelers being killed about I thought that you might be a good troll." Rocklien's voice steadied a bit as he had worked himself into explaining himself, but Bravik's eyes never lost their dark gleam.

"Demons..." Bravik pondered over the word, he hated demons, he'd had to fight a few in his younger years. They were disgusting vile things, often summoned by dark trolls or foolish casters, they were born straight from the seven hells below. Some were tempters, some just berserking brutes, all of them were evil though. Personally Bravik didn't want to be near a single one of them, the last time he'd fought them one of his closest allies had been turned into a dark troll, tainted beyond words. That was one of Bravik's last battles in fact, and as such he was not inclined to fight such things for concern over his own soul. "I refuse," he said flat out.

Whatever the young man had been prepared to hear apparently that was not it, his eyes widened, his mouth forming in an oh of surprise. "P... please, troll, hear me out-"

"No, you hear me out, mage. I am not a pet, not something to be called upon, I am a proud troll. I have decided to live much of my life in solitude to get away from fighting, I have dedicated my eternal life to peace. I have no intention of fighting again just for some humans, you have such short lives after all, a human life is nothing but a blink for a troll. I can live for many centuries more without trouble, to throw myself into a human conflict with demons is asking for trouble." Bravik was a bit surprised by his own newfound loquaciousness, he'd hardly spoken a work in these last five hundred years, and now here he was telling the human far more than he'd intended.

For a long few moments the mage just stared at him in desperation, he attempted to form a few words... but they kept falling out half spoken. When he went quite Bravik thought they were done, he started to turn away and walk out of the clearing intending on finding a new hiding spot when the human finally brought up another line. "The demons were once trolls!" Bravik froze and turned ever so slightly, glancing back at the human with a scowl. "There are legends about the tower, legends of how a great group of trolls once performed a magical spell in an attempt to coat the sun permanently in darkness. Their spell failed though, and they were all turned to stone... they've recently reanimated though, turned into demons... or at least that's what I think. There are no signs of a recent demon summoning, they just... appeared!"

What Rocklien said was the truth, he hadn't seen the demons yet, but he knew of their adverse effects on the land. They were tainting the crops, they'd managed to turn some of the local wildlife into hell's minions, simple cows becoming bestial monsters. He'd studied up enough on the ancient tower to know the story of the troll statues there, and it was the only thing that made sense in his opinion. It looked like the troll would turn away... but surprisingly he faced the human once more, eyes narrowing. "Troll demons..." Bravik growled. Such things were... abominations, dark trolls were bad enough, but demon trolls were beings of magic filled with hell's energy, capable of causing much destruction.

Though Bravik didn't want to do anything but go back to the peace of his caves... this could not be allowed to go on. Such a thing could affect the entire world, there were prophecies in ancient troll texts of demon trolls causing the world's end. Of course many different cultures had such prophecies, but this didn't make the threat any less. Bravik pondered on this for a while longer, slowly kneading the ground with his great claws. If he were to ignore this it could be catastrophic, for the human world along with the troll world, no doubt these troll demons would come after trolls to infect more of them. So despite all of his misgivings... Bravik let out a long and deep sigh, a sound that was remarkably similar to that of a powerful wind blowing through a cave.

Finally Bravik's eyes cooled back to their regular color, focusing on the mage before him, the man staggering back slightly. "Show me to this tower, I will remove the problem... and then you are to leave me alone. Understand, mortal?" Bravik growled. Rocklien's face slid into one of relief before he nodded several times, gesturing for the behemoth to follow him before he ran towards the edge of the woods. Bravik fell forward onto his forearms looking remarkably apelike as he walked in a fast pace, his mind already racing with possibilities on how this could go wrong...

***

The pair moved through the night in darkness, Bravik taking in the sights with a silent wonder, it had long been since he'd traveled this far past the cave he'd been living in for so long. The world seemed the same... and yet different, more vibrant, the chill in the air turning the leaves on the trees oranges and yellows. Animals bounded about out in the darkness, most asleep for the night, but a few foxes, owls, and other night time creatures made their ways through the darkness. Bravik had to pause and admire a few of them, the young mage glancing back in confusion when he no longer heard the heavy treading of the troll. "Please, we must keep moving," the young man pleaded.

"Do not rush me, human, it has long been since I've last strolled these lands." It was obvious that Bravik's guide wasn't pleased with that answer, but the troll didn't particularly care. This young mage was taking for granted that he had a troll following him, he was perfectly sentient and not one to be pushed around like some dog. Taking a deep whiff of the air Bravik could smell the approaching frost on the wind, nearby livestock from a farm, some roasted meat someone was likely preparing for a late night meal. Bravik stayed completely stock still for a moment, completely unmoving, it looked like Rocklien was growing mighty uncomfortable with staying still for so long. So despite the troll's own inclinations to observe this new world around him he relented and turned to follow behind the young magic user once more.

The pair made haste, it was nearing the middle of the night, assuming that Bravik could make the problem disappear fast enough he should have plenty of time to make it back to his cave in peace. Rocklien was a very quiet young man, Bravik had figured that out early in their companionship, but what the troll didn't care for was the odd sense he got off of the young man. Trolls were very good at sniffing out deceit, and so far Rocklien hadn't said one false thing... and yet he still didn't trust the young man for some reason.

It took them a little over an hour to make it to the tower, Bravik could've made it far faster if he'd been able to carry the young man this far, but the mage had refused such an offer vehemently. So now they stood before the tower, overlooking a village a couple miles away, the tower was very tall, ancient, and smelled of corruption. The troll nearly gagged on such a scent, it was the smell of tainted air, dead meat long rotted, the brief scent of brimstone, and the unmistakable musk of sex. "Demons are definitely here," Bravik growled. His eyes glowed ominously, he knew that these ones were particularly bad as the magic was thick here.

"I will unseal the tower," Rocklien said as he started towards the door. Bravik rose an eyebrow, the young mage had sealed the tower? When he asked as much of the young man Rocklien froze for a second before turning back, a guilty look on his face. "My master sealed the tower, long before any demons resided here. He said that this place was evil, tainted by ancient magicks, he didn't want to risk anything escaping from it. Thankfully he left the key spells in one of the books for me to find, it took a bit of research but I should be able to break the seal."

Bravik scowled heavily, the nearby land was indeed tainted, so the corruption must be heavy if the magic is managing to get out through such a seal. Part of him wanted to leave, the troll demons were sealed, that should be good enough... but now that he was here the troll could see the grasses nearby becoming infested with hell plants. Small demonic flowers that carried extremely tempting scents, the kind that would make someone go insane, or drive them to murderous acts. It took Rocklien a couple of minutes with many complex phrases and drawn symbols on the thick iron door, but soon Bravik could feel the release of a powerful spell. The tower seemed to grow even more intense at that moment, he had to cover his mouth when the scents grew even worse, rancid odors that would've made most people gag. Rocklien did just that, rushing away to a nearby bush and losing his dinner.

"Stay here, mage, I will take care of this," Bravik announced once the mage had regained his composure. As he thought the cowardly young man didn't bother to argue, it was written on his face that he was scared. Bravik didn't blame him as he himself was nervous, troll demons were not ones to be trifled with. Starting towards the door Bravik pushed it open with ease despite the great rusted hinges that resisted being opened, it had been a very long time since anybody had entered the tower. Upon opening the door a great rush of dust hit the troll, he let out a deep snort, tucking his body down he had to maneuver to get inside of the tower. Thankfully the interior was huge... in fact it was far larger than it should be, as if it had been enchanted to be so.

Standing up at his full height Bravik growled deep in his chest, the interior was dark, even to his eyes. He was able to make out vague shapes of ancient furniture, bookcases, and old discarded meals. It was obvious that this place was a troll fort at some point with how large everything had been crafted, more likely than not this place had been enchanted to be larger just for trolls... perhaps it had been a human fort first? That would explain the small door, Bravik started to turn around to speak to the mage... and then watched as the door slammed shut. "W... what in the?!" he started.

Bravik rushed to the door and attempted to open it, but as soon as he laid his hands on it a powerful blue spark struck out at him. "Gods damn!" he snarled. The pain was excruciating, a magical barrier had been placed upon the door... he was locked in. "No! Let me out of here, mage!" Slamming on the door only caused Bravik pain, and there was no reply from the mage outside. What was worse was already Bravik could hear something moving further within the building, the demons, they were taking notice of his presence.

Runes flared up on Bravik's body, he was already pissed off, but now with his runes active he was growing increasingly infuriated with every passing second. "Have to... stay calm..." he growled deep in his chest. If Bravik let the rune's magic take over he would be blinded with rage, unable to control himself, he would toss himself at the demons and be slaughtered... or worse. Thankfully the other runes were coming in handy, his strength was increasing, a magical barrier formed on the surface of his skin, and his eyes were able to see through the darkness.

Preparing himself for anything Bravik decided to disregard the door for now, that would be saved for later, for now he needed to focus on what lay before him. Starting forward the horn on his muzzle scraped the roof a few times, obviously though this place was made for trolls it hadn't been intended for trolls of his age. Usually around his age trolls were either elder warriors relegated to large barracks, or generals of troll armies. His eyes flicking about the place Bravik kept an ear out for any movement, more often than not trolls were the most dangerous in close quarters as they moved so fast and had so much mass to throw around. While they weren't exactly the best at stealth it didn't matter when a troll could literally bring the roof down on someone's head.

"New comer..." a deep voice rung through the building. Bravik froze, it was unmistakably the cadence and tone of a troll... but it carried the evil of demons. An uncomfortable sound that tore at Bravik's sanity, such was a part of the danger of any demon. "You have come to join us? We can sense that you are troll kind, you will make for a great addition to our pack. We will escape this prison soon, and enact our will on this plain for our masters." Bravik glanced around attempting to catch a glimpse of the owner of the voice... but there wasn't anybody around him. Apparently with this being the demon trolls' domicile, they could speak to him from wherever... that didn't bode well.

Not bothering to answer the voice Bravik continued on, avoiding fallen furniture, noting a few broken trolls lying about. Perhaps trolls killed by the demons, or something else happened to them... whatever the cause he didn't have time to think about that. A demon attacked him, he came out of nowhere, one minute Bravik was alone and the next a monstrous creature was leaping out at him. Bravik was larger than this one, but the power behind the demon troll's strikes were unworldly, creating a few cracks in Bravik's barrier. Managing to get a hold of the demon's hands they were soon standing face to face, pushing at each other in an attempt to gain an advantage over the other.

The demonic influence was obvious, this troll's body was mutated, burly, demonic script scrawled upon his stone skin. Normally troll skin was rock like, and yet it always carried an odd suppleness that differentiated them from the rocks in the ground. This demon's skin was just dead, stone through and through, all the suppleness robbed from it. His skin was deep green, pulsating with an otherworld energy, his eyes without pupils, just pure black. His fangs were chipped and jagged, looking less like the proud teeth of a troll and more like that of a whimpering goblin. "Accept our energy, brother! We have become so much more with demonic energies, we can taint this world, we can make this world into a living hell!" the troll roared with laughter. He was insane, completely insane, his breath smelling of the same rotting stench Bravik had smelled outside.

Though the troll's body had been manipulated with demonic energy Bravik's runes proved stronger as he slammed the troll down to the ground, it took a bit of effort, but he was able to pin the demon down. Looking down on the troll Bravik was repulsed by what the demonic energies had done to one of his kind, he could see that this used to be a warrior like himself, runes on his body... but with the demonic script inscribed they'd been tainted. The power rune was stronger now, but it caused a degradation of the mind, likely how the demons had twisted him so. His defense rune had been converted into another power rune, likely how he had managed to hold Bravik off for so long.

The brute might've looked rather like a bear at one point, albeit one with horns, but any similarities had been worn down to look more serpentine, that of a demon's. Normally demons were scaled serpentine creatures, Bravik had seen enough to know that, and it was obvious that from the corruption that the demons were forcing their own features upon the proud face of the troll. His black orbs glimmered with bright rage, the demon was fighting as hard as he could to get free... but Bravik had had enough. So with one pitiful look Bravik ended the demon, the stone shattering under his fist.

Green wisps of energy escaped from the now unmoving stone form, pieces of rubble bouncing across the ground while the demonic energies flowed out from him. Bravik touched one of the runes on his forearms, one he didn't use often, a purification rune. It was made to protect warriors from the effects of demons, and so the green wisps vanished shortly after appearing. Now that the demon was gone Bravik picked up the troll's right arm to examine his purification rune, as he thought it had been converted into a corruption rune. Once touched against the skin of another creature it would release demon energy into the body, Bravik spat before tossing the stone aside. "I'm sorry, my brother. I hope in the afterlife you may reclaim your prior glory," he whispered.

Then Bravik was off once more, he now kept his purification rune active constantly, he didn't want another troll getting the drop on him and touching him with that accursed rune. Walking away from the fallen demon Bravik couldn't help but ponder on who that troll had been before his corruption, perhaps a proud warrior of a tribe, someone dragged into this by magic users? Part of the reason Bravik had left in the first place was due to the magic using trolls, they were extremely self-serving, worming their ways into the top ranks of troll tribes. They tended to be the ones pushing for war, so they could be the strongest magic users, and so they could stay in control of the warrior caste.

Just thinking about magic users made Bravik growl deep in his chest. At one point in his life they'd attempted to make a rune to completely rob a troll of their senses, making them into mere slaves to the magic users, it had almost worked too. That is until Bravik found out about it, they'd been experimenting on a few of his fellow warriors, he'd noticed they'd grown increasingly quiet, only letting out grunts and growls. The troll had managed to find out what was happening through a few of his contacts and had put a stop to it, destroying a few of the mages in his own tribe, and with that he'd decided to leave the tribes. The mages had just wanted destruction, and they'd made the warriors' runes to ensure that for selfish gain.

Now Bravik had a chance to make several mages pay for such deeds, to be fair they were now demonically corrupted, but he didn't care. They'd been planning on entrenching the world in permanent darkness, not a wholly bad idea in his opinion, but the world would be negatively impacted by such a change. His thoughts were paused when a pair of trolls came out of the darkness, looking at him with those eerie darkened eyes, pupils worn away by the demonic presence. Their proud forms molded under the powers of the demons that had tainted them so, serpentine features looking at him with need, they wanted to turn him into one of them. "Join us, brother, to embrace the darkness is our birthright. Trolls were made to be creatures of magic, we absorb the darkness so much better than so many other species. We can be warriors of hell, to bring this world to its knees," one of the pair hissed.

The other was already rushing down Bravik, apparently he had no qualms about injuring Bravik before they tried to taint him. Magic sparked on the troll's body before demon flames spat out from his splayed hands, Bravik managed to dodge them just in time. The flames were hotter than any regular flame, the fire easily burned through a stone pillar a few feet behind Bravik. "Trying to kill me?!" he snarled. The berserk rune was going full force now, Bravik didn't wait for the trolls' response, he pounced on the one that had sent out his fire.

Bravik had no qualms destroying this creatures, he made short work of the troll who'd used up quite a bit of power summoning the fires from hell. While the stone pieces were bouncing across the ground after a brief meeting of the troll's face with Bravik's fists the other troll was now just grinning wide, eyes glimmering an ominous green. "Join us, Bravik," the troll purred. Freezing up Bravik looked to the troll, his muscles rigid now, how did this demon know his name? "Yes, I know you, six hundred years ago we fought together in our youth on the walls of Ralian against a horde of corrupted trolls," the demon purred.

Looking at the troll Bravik tried to look past his serpentine features, picking out the few remaining parts of him that resembled a normal troll. A pair of goat horns still somewhat remained, and his chest had several familiar scars from those battles... "Toloc," Bravik breathed. An old friend, one who he'd shared many drinks with in his youth, one that had spat on the demon trolls so long ago... now one himself. "Toloc, you... no... how did this happen?!" Normally Bravik would be driven into a blind fury, but his sense of loss was too great, even with so many years between their last meeting he'd considered Toloc a great ally.

"Following our great battles I was told to stay at this tower to protect a group of mages, they were said to have great plans for troll kind. I hated the idea, to protect mages," his face pulled into a deep scowl. It looked like even after being corrupted he still despised mages just as much as Bravik. "I was forced to stay in this accursed tower for one hundred and forty two years protecting them, beating off intruders, forced to never leave through a rune the mages constructed and put on every warrior in this building." He showed the rune, it had been worn away by time so its effects were worthless now, but it looked like it had been gouged into his skin rather than the normally light chiseling they were given.

Seeing his friend like this was truly heartbreaking, to think that Bravik could feel such intense emotions after so long locked away, it was shaking him to his core. "After so long I'd assumed the mages would've stopped at some point... but then they finally committed to the spell they'd been brought together to cast."

"Blacking out the sun," Bravik answered.

"Indeed," Toloc said with a sneer. "They thought they could change the rules of the world, and so in their foolishness they opened a portal directly into the seven hells. Every troll within this building was immediately turned to stone, we were frozen for hundreds of years, the demons whispering into our ears, tainting our personal life forces. I lasted quite a while I can promise you, they were constantly showing me images of the world burning at my feet, promises that I will become one of the great rulers of this world when it became hell, moments of me fucking like an animal in rut." Bravik noticed the troll's vent opened up to allow his cock to press out into the air, his large shaft looking oddly distorted now that the demons had remolded his body.

"You can still come back, Toloc, shamans have saved demon touched trolls before," Bravik promised. He could smell the air was heavy with the other male's musk now, he realized that his old friend was looking at him with lust, as if he were some particularly attractive female.

A deep chuckle rumbled through Toloc's chest, his eyes glinting dangerously, his large hand reaching down to stroke his shaft. "Oh that's just the thing, Bravik, why would I want to? Most demon touched are turned rather fast, which gives them time to recover, but I was locked away with the rest of my kin for hundreds of years, constantly tempted, our minds rewritten to the demons' liking. I don't want to be a normal troll anymore, Bravik, I was given the greatest gift. I have power beyond any troll, my new body once it is complete will be unbreakable and will even stand up to the sun's rays. Most of all though..." Bravik unconsciously stepped back at the look of pure desire in the other troll's eyes. "I will fuck, fuck like I never have before. The demons taught me of the pleasures of the flesh in ways I never thought possible. I want to fuck you, Bravik, and I want you to fuck me," he growled.

Suddenly Toloc was rushing towards Bravik, his body swelling up in preparation for the attack. His eyes widened moments before Bravik swung though, and he vanished into darkness just before Bravik's fist made contact. "Toloc, come back!" Bravik snarled. His friend was lost, it was clear from the manic words he spoke that he'd long ago broke... so he would put his dear friend out of his misery.

"Come deeper, old friend, come deeper..." Toloc's voice echoed into the distance, when Bravik looked about for his friend though once more there was no sign of him. It didn't seem like a smart idea, a trap could be set further within, and most likely it was... but it wasn't like he had much of a choice. So he followed, deeper into the tower, up flights of stairs, prepared at every turn to be attacked... but none came. The demons were quiet, uncomfortably quiet, every now and again he would see a shattered statue here or there. Sometimes he thought he saw something moving out in the darkness, but it turned out to be nothing.

It felt like Bravik was climbing the stairs long into the morning, part of him pondered trying to go back down... but he knew he had to save Toloc. To free him from the prison of the demons' clutches, he would never let a friend go through such a thing forever. So he continued, his claws digging into the ground, his purification rune active at all times. The thing that concerned the troll is that he'd not used this magic power in a long time, he needed to be careful that his body didn't shut down the rune out of disuse. Glancing at it every now and again he was reassured when it didn't seem to stutter at all. Going further into the tower even with his purifying magic Bravik could feel the demonic energies coming from above, getting closer and closer, tickling his skin even through the shield.

Finally after so many flights of stairs, an overwhelming sense of darkness looming over him... Bravik stepped out onto the roof. For a moment he froze, he could see the sun, he'd never seen it before but it didn't take a genius to tell what a blazing ball of light was. What surprised him though was that it didn't turn him to stone, it didn't hurt him at all... indeed it was because of a great orb of darkness surrounding the top of the tower. Generated by the void hovering in the middle of a circle of mages, they were all made of stone, Bravik could see that at once. What frightened him though was the demonic forms they had, they weren't moving, but they had long lines of demon script all over their bodies. They were hardly recognizable as trolls, their bodies draconic looking, huge forms towering over Bravik himself.

He was shocked that he hadn't seen them from the base of the tower they were so large, though that was likely due to the magic surrounding the place. "Meet the mages that started all of this," Toloc chuckled. Suddenly he was before Bravik, standing just before the void of darkness that led to the seven hells, Bravik felt a shudder down his back at the sight of the damned thing.

"They're... not active," Bravik noted.

"Oh yes, they're still being formed by the demons. They've already broke, long ago, they were the first in fact. But they're the focus of the demons, due to them being great wells of power the demons are turning them into the perfect demons. They will be used to break down the walls between this world and the seven hells, it's only a matter of time before they're finally released from their stone shells. They will be great, evil, and very dedicated to the demons of the seven hells." Toloc ran a hand over one of the statues, Bravik noticed that the touch elicited a wave of dark green energy that ran down the troll's hand and entered his nose, the warrior arching in pleasure. "Oh yes... they will be very great..." he growled in a deeper tone.

Now Bravik knew what he needed to do, he could not allow the mages to break free, he would break them before they could ever start their dark magicks. He started forward towards Toloc, he was the first problem in his way... and then the demons fell upon him. The trolls had been hiding out of sight, waiting for him to make a move, and as soon as he'd started they were pouncing on him. One on one Bravik could easily handle them, but four corrupted trolls hit him from behind and pinned him down, two on his arms, one of his legs, and one pinning down his back. "Let me go!" he roared. He was struggling against his captors, swinging with all of his strength, but it wasn't enough, not against the four of them.

"Oh we'll let you go soon enough, Bravik, but before we do that we need to make sure that your defenses are down," Toloc purred. He strolled up to Bravik and leaned down over his purification rune, he reached down and traced demonic script over it, the troll hissed in pain as it burned through the mark. One moment he had a shield, and the next it fizzled out, and Bravik was completely bared. Suddenly Bravik was being pounded by demonic energies, he let out a roar of pain while the trolls climbed off of him, Toloc reached down and picked him up with ease. "There we go, now there's no more struggling," he chuckled.

Bravik wanted to fight, he wanted to punch Toloc in his face... but he had to use all of his energy fighting off the powerful demonic waves hitting him. They were so strong, trying to dig into his skin through the runes on his body, it was taking everything he had to not fall into their sway. Words were whispered in his ears, seductive voices, promising him everything he ever wanted in return for giving in. "D... damn you..." Bravik growled deeply. Everything hurt, the demonic power was like being run through lava, it was attempting to change him like it had changed his fellow trolls.

While Bravik was in torment the others seemed to be enjoying the feeling of being so close to the demonic hole, they were basking in it, he watched as a few of them strolled up to the rift and looked deep into it. Whatever they saw was apparently very exciting as several of them popped erections at the sight of it, turning back to him with pure black eyes and huge grins on their faces. "Do not worry, Bravik, our masters have great plans for you," Toloc promised. Bravik shook his head, gritting his teeth, trying to stand up but finding every movement akin to trying to push through tar.

Out of everything though Bravik was shocked when Rocklien Anders came strolling up the stairs with a smile on his face. "Fantastic, you pinned him down," the young mage purred. His entire demeanor had changed from earlier, he'd seemed so timid and weak before, but now he strolled about with visible glee. Even under the immense pressure of the demonic power he was thriving in a way that no mortal should've.

"He wasn't so difficult," Toloc chuckled mockingly. Bravik was bristling with rage, he didn't understand what was going on, but he planned on showing both of them the full brunt of his fury. Despite everything Bravik started to stand, both troll and mage looking a bit surprised at the movement. "I suppose he has more strength than I was expecting..." Toloc and Rocklien both watched as he staggered under the pressure, starting towards them with slow cumbersome steps.

Dredging up his strength Bravik glared at the two, his eyes dark with his fury, runes burning bright with his magic. "W... what is going on here?" His voice was deep and bassy, a growl that would've scared a dragon, he was furious. The troll warrior might have been in isolation for a long time, but he was no whelp to be messed with.

Rocklien sneered at him before flicking his fingers towards Bravik, and the troll fell to the ground as gravity increased tenfold. The stone under Bravik actually cracked from the pressure while the mage approached Bravik, confidence in every step. "Oh it's quite simple, Bravik. When these trolls opened up the rift to the seven hells it stands to reason that such an opening would be quite the easy way for demons to make their way through. The sad thing is that demons don't last for long in this world since it's not quite hospitable, so say a young mage wanting to prove himself decided to try and enter the tower and locate the source of some dark magic..." Bravik's eyes widened in shock while Rocklien's eyes darkened to black orbs, his smile turning up into an inhuman visage. "It was quite easy to take over young Rocklien's body, he was walking up to the tower and then I took a leap out of the portal and entered him. Now I'm running the show, and he's my pawn in here."

"That's why I couldn't tell he was lying... he didn't know that he was being controlled," Bravik murmured. He'd thought the young mage was very earnest, it hadn't made sense why he would deceive the troll unless he didn't know he was lying.

"Indeed!" The young man's face turned into a bright grin, though it was still creepy with his eyes black as night. "I implanted some false memories in Rocklien's head and then sent him after you, I knew you were hiding out in the forest due to your troll magic. I'm shocked it was so easy, all it took was a little prodding and you came here with the heroic notion of saving the world from troll folly," the demon preened.

"Why? Why bring me here?!" Bravik snarled. If the mage had left him alone he would've been none the wiser, or at least until the demons started spreading from the tower.

It was Toloc's turn, he grinned as he walked up beside Rocklien both of them looking down on him. "Until the mages are released from their transformation we need a leader, a troll strong enough to be turned completely. None of us are strong enough, we don't possess the ability to contain the demonic magic all at once. This demon was put into a mage's body as a scout, so that he could find a proper troll able to harness the power. He found you, Bravik, and I have to say that I'm quite excited for you to become our leader, you'll make a great demon." It was clear from the gleam in the other trolls' eyes that they were all excited by the prospect, and Bravik did not like that at all.

Though he wanted to deny such a thing out of the hope that he might be released, Bravik completely understood what they were saying. He'd always been able to synch up with magic very easily, the mages had said so when he'd first been given his runes, he had a lot of magical potential. That only made this worse as two trolls picked him up, Rocklien releasing the magical hold on him. "Toloc, do not do this, think of our people!" Bravik pleaded.

"What about our people, Bravik?!" Toloc snarled. "They wage war constantly, the mages try to control us so that we're always at each other's necks. Troll kind is on the decline from the constant warring, soon enough trolls will be dead! This is our chance to unite our people under one force and then we can make the world ours!" Despite how wrong all of this was... Toloc was right, trolls were killing one another for nothing. He couldn't accept allowing demons to control them though, they had been locked in the seven hells for a reason, and they would turn the trolls into their slaves as much as any other species.

"It's time, bring him to the rift," Rocklien commanded. The trolls started dragging Bravik towards the dark portal, the pressure of the demonic energy growing unbearable. Bravik didn't know what they intended to do, but he wasn't going to like it. Struggling did nothing though as his entire body felt like unmoving rock, it was like the demon energy was causing his body to stiffen up. Though with how all of the other trolls had such rocky bodies now it likely made sense, they didn't say anything as they made their way closer to the black hole, their eyes glittering with glee.

"Stop this! My kin you need to free yourselves, leave this tower and seek out a shaman!" Bravik pleaded. His words fell on deaf ears as they halted before the rift, Rocklien moving up beside it on one side while Toloc took the other side, both looking at him with amusement. "This will be the end of troll kind if we allow this!"

Toloc gave him a pitying look while Rocklien rolled his eyes, a surprising thing to see when his eyes were currently completely black. "Put him in the rift," Rocklien commanded. Before Bravik could comprehend what the demon said he was tossed by the trolls straight into the rift... and his entire existence shattered.

***

Nothing made sense, colors were inverted, the world kept spinning, and Bravik was in constant torture. The demons didn't have bodies that made sense, sometimes they were made up of liquid, other times they were made of gas, once he swore he saw one consisting of writhing bugs. At all times though they were torturing him, pouring their dark energies into him, speaking in his mind. There were so many different languages, guttural, soft, lustful, but they all made sense to the troll. The demons made sure of that, he needed to learn, to be their tool in the material world.

" YOU WILL OBEY. YOU WILL FIGHT FOR US. YOU WILL BE OUR WEAPON. YOU WILL BE THE LEADER OF THE TROLLS." Bravik tried to curse them, attempted to fight them off, but it was no use. The demons had taken his voice, they had inserted an obedient voice, one that only agreed.

"Yes, my masters. I will obey, my masters. I am your pawn, my masters." No matter what Bravik did he agreed, though internally he raged against them. Bravik wasn't sure how long he'd been there yet, it felt like an eternity, he was growing larger, he knew that, though he didn't know if it was from time or the demons' influence. They were constantly touching him, hurting him, changing him. His skin was growing dense and rocky like the other corrupted, his runes turning a dark red, their meanings being twisted by demonic script.

A few times Bravik thought he saw the real world again, he saw himself being thrown in, moving so very slowly... falling into the dark void he now lived in. He pondered for those brief moments if it would've been better to die, to fall in battle... and then the demons had him again. They broke him so many times, one minute he would be fighting and powerful, the next he would be whimpering and bowing to their needs. Time was so odd in this world, disjointed, like he was bouncing between multiple versions of himself at different times. He wondered if he'd ever get out of this hell, to be released, though he knew that when he left... he wasn't going to be himself anymore.

Already their words were sinking into his head, promises of leading the troll army, of being the rulers of the world, of turning all of troll kind into the demons' army. Bravik knew they were lying, they were demons, of course they were lying. It didn't matter though, their words were working, they were turning him. He grew larger still, his horns were being worn away, his skin being molded, his body flush with their corruptive energies. He came so many times, being fucked, fucking others, sometimes he thought he could see the mages. They were huge, monstrous beings, their minds completely gone from the millennia of being tormented. Their time was almost here, they would be released and would release darkness upon the world like they'd first intended... but for the demons' purposes, not their own.

The demons... his masters were very pleased with his progress, Bravik didn't remember when he'd started meaning his obedient words, when he'd stopped fighting, when he took their touches with moans of delight. Thousands of years, hundreds of thousands, Bravik didn't know how much time had passed... he didn't care. The troll didn't want to go back, he loved this existence, and they'd made him love this. They promised that soon enough the world he'd come from would become like this, he would make it into this existence of pain, pleasure, and misery. Before the troll probably hated this... he couldn't remember it anymore though, he didn't remember a lot in fact, he just remembered his masters.

Finally after so long, the troll was ready, he'd been stripped of everything he was, everything he'd held dear, now he was theirs. " YOU ARE READY. GO INTO THE WORLD, WE WILL COME THROUGH SOON ONCE THE BEASTS ARE READY." The beasts, the leader looked over at the things that used to be the mages, he scowled in disgust. They were disgusting putrid things, but they would be used by his master as siege engines. " PREPARE OUR ARMY, SLAVE. WE SHALL GIVE YOU A NEW NAME TO GO WITH YOUR NEW EXISTENCE AS OUR TOOL, FROM THIS DAY FORTH YOU ARE BYAZL, GO WITH OUR POWER, TOOL!" Byazl bowed before his masters before he started towards the exit, he'd known where it was for a long time, he could've walked out long ago... but why would've he done that?

***

The goliath of a beast that stepped out from the portal mere seconds after Bravik had been thrown in made all of the trolls outside bow low in terror, this was no creature of their world... it was a demon. Byazl was enormous, almost taller than the mages, his eyes a pair of bright red burning orbs, his skin marred with decades worth of demon script. He belonged to them, he was one of them, he growled deep in his chest as he peered down on the puny creatures he'd once been so akin to. "My army," he growled. The words that came out were in demon tongue, the tongue of this world was far past him now, but all of the trolls understood him and stayed low in submission.

Byazl looked close to a dragon in looks, his skin having taken on a scaly texture, though no dragon had such a lifeless color to their scales. He was pitch black in appearance, spikes protruding from his shoulders and down his back. To say that he looked ripped would be a great understatement, one that he would likely crush someone for, he had mounds of muscle that grated as he moved. Long gone was the softness of his old body, he had been made into a creature that could be hit by hellfire and laugh it off, he burned with an aura of evil that dwarfed all of theirs. The demon looked down to see his beta, he had known him before in his previous life... but his name was gone. "Beta, relieve me," he growled.

For a moment his beta looked confused, and so Byazl let out a snarl of annoyance before he grabbed the smaller male and thrust him upon his shaft. The troll let out a whimper of pain but didn't do much else while Byazl rammed his rod into the small creature. With his demonic powers he was able to make sure his beta didn't break apart, but at that moment he didn't much care what the small troll had to say as he focused on the scout. "Scout, you are to find the nearest troll encampment, we will march out once the moon rises," he commanded.

He could see the demon growing enraged, but Byazl wasn't to be messed with, especially by a pitiful demon in a human skin. With a wave of his hand the demon slammed to the ground with a shout of shock and pain, he attempted to fight back but Byazl was far too much for him. After a few minutes of weak struggling he finally submitted, bowing his head to the ground. "Yes, my liege," he said in the demon tongue. Byazl nodded before he continued fucking his beta, soon orgasming with explosive results, the smaller troll inflated ever so slightly before much of the demon's hissing juices leaked out from his ass and hit the ground.

Pulling his beta off of his shaft Byazl put the troll down, though the beta fell to the ground in shock. "Prepare yourselves, warriors, we will move soon! For our lords' glory!" he chanted.

"For our lords' glory!" the trolls chanted back. With that they started about to prepare for the night's hunt, and Byazl looked out at the world still covered in sunlight. Soon enough that light would disappear forever, and he would be in the embrace of his lords once again... that thought made him hard once more. Once his beta had stopped whimpering they would go at it again, Byazl had learned much in his time in the seven hells... he would teach his beta much.