unforgiving dusk || trollhunters

Chapter 4

Since his last encounter with Bular, he had no clue how he was going to find a new safe space again. His dreams were his only safe place in this horrid dimension and now he had nothing.

The tension and exhaustion he felt for the last couple of weeks was absolute torture beyond compare. He felt as though he was going to pass out any given moment, but then Bular would torment him with one of his loved ones fighting him, and people yelling at him for failing.

He'd beg for a normal dream again. A dream of his mom and friends smiling and laughing, a warm and welcoming home. If he could go on another adventure with Toby or see Claire again that would be the very thing that pushes him through this hell.

He will get out of here and he will see them again. The first thing he's going to do once he's back home is going to be taking a relaxing shower to calm the tense muscles in his body.

Relaxing at this point in time is a big ordeal for Jim; the moment he's calm his mind is flooded with memories of his dreams. At this point in time, he couldn't tell if they were dreams or hallucinations.

Sometimes he's fully awake but he sees parts of his dreams play out in front of him, over and over like a broken record.

There was an image of a large being in front of him earlier; a sky blue with shards sticking out of its back and large horns coming from the top of the head. He feels as though he should remember who this was, be he couldn't.

It's also causing him a great disadvantage in battle. He can't focus because he's exhausted and almost every strike that comes within a hair's reach sends him into a memory of Draal trying to kill him.

Speaking of battle, he listened to the approaching footsteps of the guards as they made their way over to his cell. He was not in the mood for this today, so he decided to just get it over with so he could get back to his cell and get lost in his thoughts again.

Standing up with a heavy sigh made his body tremble, walking up to the entrance as the crystals made way for the guards to enter. Instead of dragging him to the arena itself, they simply guided him there.

Why would they let him walk on his own this time? He didn't know and he didn't want to find out right now; he can do that later. He was surrounded by three guards, two at his sides and one behind him just in case the hunter wanted to slip away unnoticed.

The walk there seemed to take forever and every footstep Jim counted seemed farther apart from each other as they approached the arena. Honestly, Jim is sick of fighting guards or beasts for Gunmar's entertainment. He is well aware they are trying to break him, but he is not going to let that happen. Not willingly.

For once they had to wait for the door to open before them, either that or Jim had walked faster than he normally had. Inside was not the sight he thought he would see.

Gunmar was crouched over the remains of fallen guards, but not the same ones Jim had taken down. These were almost crumbled to dust; he had done this on his own. He had his reasons, and the main one had arrived in the arena moments ago.

Turning to the hunter and the three guards, he held something in his hand, "Hold him still," was his command, his eye glowing brightly with a sinister plot in his head. He was curious what this would do to a human, very curious indeed.

The guards grabbed his arms and the one behind him his head. They held strong against his struggling and tugging.

All Jim could do was watch as Gunmar approached him steadily, kneeling in front of him with the outstretched hand. In his palm, there was a small pile of what seemed to be dark purple dust.

He didn't waste a moment, blowing the dusk into the hunter's face and taking a step back to watch the human cough and wheeze.

The guards let him drop to his knees to gasp and cough the dust out of his lungs, taking that moment to retreat out of the arena and let the doors close behind them. They didn't want to end up like the previous guards who stayed in there with the hunter.

The ancient voice seemed to bury into his skull, scratching and clawing at the strings as he spoke, "How do you feel, hunter?"

Jim let out a growl of annoyance mixed with frustration, opening his eyes slowly. He could see his own reflection on the floor, his eyes were an odd, glowing sunset yellow. The rage he felt within himself was something astounding; he wanted-- needed to break.

Annoyed with the lack of a reply, Gunmar slammed his fists down in front of Jim and roared, "Speak up!"

At that moment, something inside Jim snapped. He summoned the Eclipse Sword into his palm with a battle cry that would shame generations of warriors.

Not a moment did he waste to slash at the fist of the one who tried again and again to control him. He's been letting this anger built up for the last three weeks and now he finally has a proper outlet for it.

To say Gunmar was impressed would be an understatement. That little bit of gravesand does this to a human? He should do this to the hunter more often, perhaps even keep him in a constant state of the aggression he was feeling now. He would be the perfect dark champion for them to rule.

Jim may have been fast, but he couldn't even land a single hit on Gunmar. The gravesand made him feel enraged; it greatly affected his accuracy. Gunmar would fix that soon enough though.

After he let Jim have his fun, he sent the boy tumbling back a few yards with a single punch, "You hold the power of generations-- centuries of Trollhunters and yet you can't even land a single hit? How weak." his laughed seemed to roll from him.

Jim's helmet formed over his head as he charged at him again, his sword ready to cut through metal and stone alike. He was stopped in his tracks as he was lifted off the ground by the horn on his helmet.

Gunmar let out a snort of amusement as he watched the struggling human, "Troll and humankind rely on you? They won't last a day."

Jim's anger only grew stronger as he tried to strike at Gunmar's wrist, "I'll end you!" his voice had changed drastically at that moment and his eyes burned with a fury Gunmar never knew a human could possess.

The eyes are what caught Gunmar off guard momentarily. They were, for a split second, an exact copy of Bular's; filled with untapped rage and force, an unquenchable thirst for battle and violence.

The hunter used this moment to his advantage and slipped right out of Gunmar's hold, landing on his feet with a heavy thud and a scrape of the Eclipse sword against the dark floor as he raised it again.

Gunmar had to react fast, dodging the blade with a moment to predict his next move before Jim could come to it. He caught the blade without so much as a flinch, twisted it out of the hunter's deathly hold and threw it to the other side of the arena. The sword lodged itself into the wall for a moment before it disappeared from their sights.

The dark armour dimmed for a moment as Jim summoned the Glaives out of his thigh plates, twisting them between his fingers and getting into a stance from where he could attack Gunmar from a different angle. His body showed focus and fear, but his eyes said anger and revenge.

Revenge was such a strong craving; its been known to drive humans and troll alike into a state of insanity. What would do it to the Trollhunter?

Gunmar was ready for a battle, summoning his sword and raising it high as they charged with battle cries that echoed through the entirety of the Darklands.

Soldiers in the corners of the dark realm flinched slightly and turned their heads to the source of the sound, wishing whatever pour soul was facing Gunmar in his angered state a little bit of luck.