The Troll King (The Bowl of Souls Book 9) (37 page)

The gnome’s gaze became thoughtful. “Allowing the existence of such a creature has its dangers, but I find the possibilities of this new trollkin race . . . intriguing.”

The journey back to KhanzaRoo was an uncomfortable one for Mellinda. Her meeting with the gnome warlord had proved quite frustrating. She was forced to change the timeline of her plans. Some of the changes were quite drastic. It also didn’t help that she was continually jostled this way and that by the jerky moves of the trollkin that carried her.

She had made the palanquin herself using the power of the rings. The poles that the trollkin gripped and the frame that she sat on were molded from pure ironwood. The cushions were fashioned from modified moss fibers as were the woven mesh sides and the gauzy roof that kept her out of direct sunlight. If only she had time to smooth out the path through the swamps. Unfortunately, speed was more important than comfort.

To make things worse, her two Trollkin followers were disturbed by the things they had learned during the meeting. They continually asked her questions. Was it true that she created the Troll Mother and that the Troll Mother was loyal to her? Did this make Mellinda their real god?

She told them that she had indeed been there when the Troll Mother was created, but assured them that she was not their god. Mellinda had been tempted to tell them that she was. After all, if they started worshipping her, she would have to answer a lot fewer of their questions. But she had to consider what effect this knowledge would have on the rest of the trollkin upon their return.

The people still did not trust her completely and such a revelation would likely incite rage and turmoil. The Troll King at least would see this claim as blasphemy. She was already aware that the way she had left KhanzaRoo had left doubts in the king’s mind. Shoring up the king’s faith in her was one of her first priorities. There were a couple ways to go about doing this, but she was still undecided on which course of action to choose. Arcon was little help.

“
You do realize that no matter what you choose, you’re not going to convince him to march his entire race to the edge of the swamps and do battle
,” the mage said.

She gritted her teeth as the palanquin was jolted to the side, one of the trollkin stepping in a muddy hole.
I am fully aware of the difficulty
.

Aloysius had given her a tight timetable to keep. On the day of the negotiations, she was to have the trollkin army at the edge of the swamp awaiting his command. Then, when the time was right, he required Mellinda to stage a demonstration of the Troll Mother’s power. This was going to require the Mother to extend her reach in a way that the behemoth hadn’t done since the fall of KhanzaRoo. In order to make that happen, Mellinda was going to need the Troll King to convince her to do it.

Remember how you wedged yourself into Aloysius’ good graces
? Mellinda asked Arcon, a reckless idea entering her mind.

“
You mean when I was forced to sleep my way into a meeting with him
?” Arcon replied. “
You promised me that you wouldn’t do that. If that’s your plan, be assured, I will no longer be well-behaved
.”

That was not my thought
, Mellinda replied with irritation. She had abandoned that plan some time ago. The Troll King was far too focused on the future of his people for seduction to work.
I was thinking more along the lines of how you convinced him to make you a steward in training
.

“
You mean when I barged into his office and nearly got us killed
?” Arcon replied.

Boldness was what you called it back then
, she said.

Arcon snorted. “
Yes, well I don’t see how it applies here. The Troll King isn’t so fond of that sort of recklessness
.”

He is not the one we have to convince
, she replied.

“Mellinda?” said one of the trollkin, interrupting her thoughts. He was currently carrying the front end of the palanquin. “I’ve been thinking.”

She forced her voice to remain reasonable. “Have you, Felberon?”

Felberon was one of her most loyal followers. He was the bulky half human with the ears and tail of a dog. He had asked her to remove the tail once, but Mellinda had refused. She found the way it wagged when he was happy adorable. She had regretted that decision when Aloysius had noticed the oddity of it.

“Well, me and Welven have,” he amended. 

“Don’t bring me into this,” Welven replied. He was the trollkin with the feathered back and shoulders. Mellinda had rebuked him thoroughly for asking too many questions the day before.

“But you were thinking about it too!” Felberon insisted.

 “See, we heard you say . . . Uh, when you were talking to that gnome . . .” The trollkin’s voice was filled with uncertainty and Mellinda had an inkling of what the trollkin was trying to bring up. There was one glaring question that neither of them had asked yet. She had been thinking of the best way to reply when they finally did. “You said that the Mother took our souls from someone else and put them in us.”

“That is true,” she said.

“Then who were we?” Welven asked. “Before we were us, I mean.”

“I do not know,” Mellinda said. “You may have been a Roo-Dan shaman or a Roo-Tan farmer. Perhaps even a stranger from outside of Malaroo who travelled too far into the swamps and was consumed. But in the end, it does not matter. Those memories are gone. You are trollkin now.”

“I think I was Roo-Dan,” said Felberon. “I know too much about how they do things.”

“I’m not sure,” said Welven. “I know lots about the Roo-Tan and Roo-Dan, but I don’t remember liking one more than the other. I wonder if I had a family waiting for me. Do you remember having children, Felberon?”

“I don’t remember anything really,” Felberon replied. “What do you think, Mellinda?”

Mellinda had seen her previous answer as a catch all and had hoped that they would be mollified. “These questions you have are understandable,” she said in a consoling manner as the two lumbering trollkin jostled her again. “But they are irrelevant. Do not be confused by the past. You have a new people to care for and you have me to help you do it.”

Felberon continued like she had said nothing at all, “Do you think this tail I got is because I had a dog with me when the Mother swallowed me? I know a lot about dogs.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Welven said. “What? You think I have these feathers because I was swallowed while carrying a bird? Pfft! Most of us have some weird parts of animals in us. You think we were all just walking around with pets?”

“It was just a thought,” Felberon grumbled.

“
You may have to kill these two before we get back to KhanzaRoo
,” Arcon observed. “
They can’t be trusted to keep quiet about everything
.”

He had a valid point. The two trollkin had promised to say nothing about the gnome scholar and his plans, but she didn’t think it was possible for them to keep the rest of it secret. If she still had her old powers, she could make them forget. Unfortunately that wasn’t an option.

No. I may need them
, she replied.
Besides, the things they know would be impossible to keep secret for long anyway. Many of them already suspect how the Troll Mother made them. The important thing is that we don’t allow it to get out of hand
.

“
What will you do if they decide to rebel against their god
?” Arcon asked. “
They may want their old lives back
.”

Which is why we still need the Troll King. The Troll Mother was smart enough to create him for this purpose. When the truth is known, his people will look to him for guidance
.

Mellinda’s arrival in KhanzaRoo was met with much excitement. The Mother had been busy while she was gone and there were over a hundred viable new trollkin waiting for her ministrations. The Troll King wasn’t there when she arrived, but he had ordered her brought directly to the old hospital where these newborns were being housed.

Before going inside, she gathered the closest of her followers and gave them instructions. Rumors were going to spread and she wanted to control what was said.

She entered the hospital worried about being overwhelmed, but was pleasantly surprised. The Troll Mother was getting better at her work. Most of the deformations were minor and a few were merely cosmetic. Even so, it took her all night to heal the defects.

By the time her work was finished, Mellinda was exhausted. She longed for a few hours sleep before enacting the next step in her plans, but Murtha was waiting for her at the hospital’s exit. The part-dwarf’s mood was dour. Evidently the rumors had spread faster than expected. The Troll King wished to speak with her.

Mellinda told Felberon and Welven to stay behind and followed Murtha across the city. She was not looking forward to climbing the long staircase to the king’s throne room and was relieved when Murtha led her to the High Priestess’ gardens instead.

The Troll King was waiting for her in Solitude. He sat in the lone chair, staring across the calm green waters of the lake. The water was clearer than the last time Mellinda had been there. She could see the mound of the Mother’s womb resting not far below the surface.

The Troll King looked every bit the leader that the Troll Mother had intended him to be. His jaw was strong, his gaze contemplative. His burns had all healed and somewhere his people had found him a new garment. This one was a deep purple and had a golden clasp at the shoulder.

He didn’t acknowledge their arrival right away and Murtha raised an arm, indicating that Mellinda should wait. Time dragged on. Mellinda tapped her foot impatiently for several agonizing minutes before he stood and turned towards them. He waved them forward and Mellinda noted the fury in his mismatched eyes.

“I hear that you had an eventful journey,” he said.

Mellinda gave him a deep curtsey. She lent her voice a sultry rumble. “I did, oh king. It was most enlightening. I learned things that will be most helpful for your people.”

“Helpful?” he said and some of the anger in his eyes entered his voice. “This people may very well fall apart because of what you learned!”

She feigned ignorance. “I have no idea what you are speaking about. I merely solved your little fire problem.”

That surprise bit of information had the effect she had been hoping for. He blinked in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“It has been weighing on my mind since that horrible incident at the old hospital before I left. Whether or not a trollkin’s slime was flammable seemed a random occurrence at first. But I have discovered that there are a series of glands just under the skin that can be manipulated,” she smiled eagerly. “It took some study and experimentation, but not only can I make a trollkin’s slime non-flammable. I can make them resistant to fire.”

“You can?” the anger in the Troll King’s eyes had evaporated.

“Oh yes,” Mellinda assured him.

“You disc-covered this on your journey?” Murtha scoffed.

She nodded. “It’s why I took Felberon and Welven along.”

“
You sly one
,” Arcon said approvingly. In actuality, she had discovered this secret a few days before she had left, but she had kept it to herself until an ideal time for the reveal came along. A time such as now.

“I can now make this change in every one of your people,” she promised. “I already did so in all of the newly born trollkin I fixed today. Isn’t that exciting news? Fire can no longer be used as a weapon against your people.”

He smiled. “Our greatest weakness erased. This news could very well have saved our people.”

 “If there are still a people to be saved, K-king,” Murtha said. The part-dwarf was disturbed by the sudden change in the king’s demeanor. “What about the lies she has been spreading about the Mother?”

“I have told no lies,” Mellinda said. “I discovered the truth about where the Mother was getting your souls. This is crucial information for your people to know.”

“We did not want to know this!” Murtha hissed.

“Yes you did,” the king said. “We have all wondered about our origin. I just wish that I had been the one to reveal it to them. The people are . . . disturbed.”

“I apologize for that, my king,” Mellinda purred. “I intended to tell you myself, but I was busy with the newly born. I did not know that my servants would speak so freely to the others before I had the chance to do so.”