Chapter 85: The Troll Quest

Chapter 85: The Troll Quest

The Troll Quest is about to begin!

Kurt stares at the Troll Queen. He raises an eyebrow. “A troll quest?”

“Yep,” the Troll Queen replies cheerfully. “You go through levels and if you get through a level you go to the next one. There are five levels. If you fail, well, I guess you die. Oh, and unless otherwise stated, using magic in the games means instant failure! Let’s start!”

The entire area suddenly vanishes. The giant dollhouse disappears, replaced by a cave with three separate paths. The Troll Queen is nowhere to be seen, but her voice echoes through the space.

“Choose a path. Only one is right.”

Kurt and Joe look at the three options.

“I think we should go to the left path,” Kurt says.

“No, we should definitely go to the right path,” Joe replies.

“Left.”

“Right.”

“Left!”

“Right!”

Kurt exhales. “How about we just go to the middle path as a tie-breaker?”

“No!” Joe snaps. “That’s stupid! The middle path is always the wrong one! No one ever sets up a one-right-answer decision and then sets the middle option as the correct one!”

“Fine!” Kurt says. “Let’s just play Rock, Paper, Scissors then!”

In unison, they say, “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot!” Kurt chooses paper and Joe chooses rock. Kurt wins.

“Left it is,” Kurt says.

Joe glares at him. “If it’s wrong, I’m going to be angry with you…”

They walk down the left path. A stone door slams shut behind them, and a sign appears in front of them. It reads, “You picked correctly!”

Kurt smiles and pats Joe on the back. “See, Joe? You should listen to me more often.”

“Yeah, yeah… I get it,” Joe replies with a grumpy expression.

***

They move forward and soon reach the second level. It resembles a young girl’s bedroom. Two life-sized dolls stand motionless in the room.

“Punch the two dolls,” the Troll Queen’s voice instructs.

They cautiously approach the dolls. Nothing happens at first. Kurt and Joe raise their fists, and suddenly the dolls form energy balls and begin throwing them.

“The dolls are attacking!” Joe shouts.

“We don’t know how strong they are,” Kurt warns. “Take care not to get hit!”

After dodging repeatedly, they manage to get close and each land a punch. The dolls disintegrate.

“You cleared level two! Congrats!” the Troll Queen says. “But it only gets harder from here!”

“Bring it!” Joe shouts with confidence. “We’re ready for anything you throw at us!”

A door opens at the end of the room.

“You may proceed now.”

With nothing left to do in the room, Kurt and Joe step through, heading to the next section.

***

Kurt and Joe enter a completely empty gymnasium. They stand around, waiting for anything to happen.

“Uh, helloooooo!” Joe shouts. “Are you going to throw a game at us or what?!”

Munching sounds echo overhead for a few moments before the Troll Queen says, “Huh? Oh right! Yeah! Sorry about that! Welcome to level three!”

Kurt and Joe stare blankly.

“Is… is she eating something right now…?” Kurt asks.

“Probably…” Joe mutters.

“Let’s see…” the Troll Queen starts. “Got it! Flying hoops!!”

Six floating hula hoops appear in three rows.

“Hula hoops?” Kurt says in confusion.

“I’m beginning to lose my ability to take her seriously…” Joe adds.

“Oh yeah, and water filled with vicious sharks!” the Troll Queen shouts cheerfully.

Most of the floor turns into churning water filled with sharks, leaving only a small circular platform beneath them.

“How fun…” Kurt mutters.

“And finally, some balls to throw!”

A box of dodgeballs appears.

“Just explain the rules already!” Joe shouts, losing his patience.

“Throw the balls through the floating hoops to score points. The front row hoops are worth 100 points. The middle row hoops are worth 300 points and the back row hoop is worth 500 points. You need 3000 points to win. If you miss three times, you get to swim with the sharks. You have five minutes! Go!”

“Five minutes is plenty of time!” Joe shouts with confidence. “Let’s go for all the easy ones!”

“Sounds like a plan!” Kurt shouts while grinning.

Kurt and Joe then each take a dodgeball, and then throw them successfully at the 100-point hoops, which puts them at 200 points out of the 3000 needed to win.

Joe fist pumps. “See? Piece of cake!”

Kurt and Joe continue to throw the dodgeballs through the 100-point hoops and soon get to 1400 points. Joe throws another dodgeball at the 100-point hoops, but then all three 100-point hoops disappear. His ball continues until it lands in the water.

“What the hell!?” Joe yells. “Where’d they go?!”

“Ooooooh! Looks like you have your first miss!” the Troll Queen shouts with excitement. “You’ve got less than four minutes left too!”

“That’s not his fault!” Kurt protests.

“Yeah! You cheated me out of that successful throw!!” Joe yells.

“Blaming me!?” the Troll Queen asks with a laugh. “You’re the one who missed, not me!”

Joe clenches his teeth, his anger rising.

“Calm down,” Kurt says firmly. “She’s just trying to get to you. She’s just messing with us, just like every other time.”

“You now have less than three minutes left!” the Troll Queen announces.

“We don’t have time to argue with her, so let’s get going,” Kurt urges. “Go for the 300-point hoops!”

They both successfully throw a dodgeball through the 300-point hoops, which brings their score to 2000 of the needed 3000 points.

“2000 points!” Kurt shouts. “Only 1000 left!”

“Your time is half up!” the Troll Queen announces, fully entertained.

They throw again. Another pair of successful shots that make it through the 300-point hoops, bringing their score to 2600 points.

“Only 400 more points!” Joe shouts. “Let’s finish this!”

Joe begins another throw at the 300-point hoops.

“No, Joe, don’t!!” Kurt shouts.

Too late. The 300-point hoops vanish mid-throw. The ball splashes into the water.

“That’s your second miss!” the Troll Queen says brightly. “Less than two minutes remaining!”

“Damn her!” Joe growls.

“You should have realized she was going to pull that same trick again,” Kurt says sternly.

“I was just hyped to beat this stupid game!” Joe says. “Give me that ball! I’m hitting the 500-point hoop and ending this!”

Kurt hesitates. “That one’s much farther away. Are you sure you can make it?”

“Hells yeah, I can!”

Joe throws the ball straight for the 500-point hoop. As the ball nears the hoop, the hoop suddenly darts sideways, flying wildly around the room.

Kurt and Joe watch in shock as the ball splashes into the water.

“That’s Joe’s third miss!” the Troll Queen declares. “Into the water you go!”

“Damn you!!” Joe yells.

The part of the platform beneath Joe collapses, dumping him into the water. Sharks immediately head toward him.

“Joe!!” Kurt shouts.

“Forget about me!” Joe yells back. “You’re still on the platform! You have to hit that hoop!”

“You have less than one minute remaining!” the Troll Queen announces.

“I’ll fight off the sharks long enough for you to win!” Joe adds. “Hurry!!”

Joe begins punching sharks as they lunge at him.

“Alright!” Kurt says, grabbing a ball. “Don’t you dare die before I finish this!”

He watches the lone hoop zip erratically through the air.

He thinks, “Because it’s moving, I have to lead the throw. Can I even do this?”

“Here it goes!!” he shouts.

He throws the ball, trying to lead the hoop as it moves. He fails to accurately lead it and misses the hoop as a result.

“That’s Kurt’s first miss!” the Troll Queen announces. “Only 40 seconds left!”

Kurt grabs another ball, sweat dripping down his face as his nerves rise.

“Let’s try this again!!”

He throws the ball and once again misses the hoop.

“That’s Kurt’s second miss!” the Troll Queen announces. “Only 30 seconds!”

Joe balances on the head of a shark with its mouth wide open, trying to eat him. Other sharks are trying to get as close as possible to chomp him.

“Hurry!! Damn it!!”

Kurt grips the final ball. More sweat drips down his face as his heart pounds in his chest.

“Only 20 seconds left!!” the Troll Queen announces with extreme enthusiasm.

Kurt thinks with urgency. “I need confidence! Hesitation will only make me fail!”

He takes a deep breath, even as the Troll Queen begins the final countdown.

“Only 10 seconds left!”

“I can do this,” Kurt says aloud. “I know I can!”

“Five seconds!!”

Kurt throws the ball as the Troll Queen counts.

“Four! Three! Two! One!”

The ball is finally properly led and goes through the hoop with only one second left.

“Congrats!” the Troll Queen cheers. “You cleared the level!”

“Yes!!” Kurt shouts victoriously.

The sharks vanish instantly. The water drains away, returning the floor to normal. Joe sits down on the floor, breathing hard with exhaustion.

“That was… way too close,” he pants.

“It sure was,” Kurt responds.

“Congrats on clearing the third level!” the Troll Queen says with excitement. “But you must proceed to Level 4!”

Joe groans. “Level 3 was exhausting enough. I don’t even want to know what she has in store for the final two levels.”

A door opens at the far end of the gym.

“You may now proceed,” the Troll Queen announces.

Joe pushes himself to his feet. “Let’s just get this over with…”

They head for the door together.

***

Soon, Kurt and Joe end up in an area that looks like a cloud in the sky.

“The sky? And we’re standing on a cloud?” Kurt asks.

“Don’t you just love clouds?! They look so fluffy!” the Troll Queen replies.

“But you can’t stand on real clouds,” Joe says.

“Don’t sweat the details! These are my clouds and I can make them have whatever properties I want! Anyway, for this level, you must simply cross to the other end of the cloud, which is a distance of about 50 feet.”

“That’s it?” Kurt asks.

“That’s it.”

“What’s the catch?” Joe presses.

“There is no catch. The only rules are that you can’t use magic and both of you must finish. Now begin!!”

“Careful, Joe,” Kurt says. “We don’t know what tricks are going to be involved.”

“I know,” Joe replies. “Though standing here isn’t going to do us any good. Let’s move.”

The part of the cloud behind them starts to dissipate, and they notice it.

“It looks like we won’t be given time to plan anything,” Kurt says. “The cloud is slowly vanishing starting from behind us.”

Joe yells, “We have no choice! Start running!”

Kurt and Joe begin running. Joe steps on a button hidden within the cloud fluff. The cloud starts dissipating faster, and at the same time, Kurt steps on another button that stuns him and keeps him from moving. Joe stops and turns back toward him, shouting, “What are you doing?! Get moving!”

“I can’t move!” Kurt shouts in reply.

Joe watches as the cloud dissolves faster. “Damn it!”

He runs back, grabs hold of Kurt, and starts pulling until the stun wears off. Kurt regains full movement, and they barely avoid falling off the dissolving cloud.

“That was a close one! You’re halfway there!” the Troll Queen announces.

Both Kurt and Joe step on buttons at the same time. The cloud’s dissipation suddenly accelerates, faster than they can run.

“Oh no!” Kurt shouts.

“You’re nearly there!” the Troll Queen announces.

Just as they are about to reach the end, Joe trips on a hidden piece of metal and falls as the cloud beneath him vanishes. Kurt reaches the edge and grabs Joe’s arm, becoming the only thing keeping him from falling.

“That was also way too close!” Kurt says somewhat loudly. “But don’t worry! I got you!”

Kurt starts pulling Joe up when Joe notices something drifting toward him.

A feather floats through the air and begins tickling Kurt’s chin.

“What!? Why!? We cleared it!” Kurt shouts, trying to stop himself from being too ticklish.

“Stop trying to cheat us out of— Wait!” Joe realizes. “She said that we BOTH must finish! Damn it! That’s the catch!”

“Correct!” the Troll Queen confirms. “It’s not over until both of you are up!”

The feather rubs along Kurt’s chin, making it harder for him to keep pulling. He struggles to hold back laughter.

“Hold it in!!” Joe commands. “Don’t lose to a damn feather!!”

“I’m… trying…!”

Kurt laughs briefly and loses his grip for a split second, but he recovers before Joe slips free.

“Come on!!! Do it!!!” Joe encourages. “Give it everything you’ve got!!!”

With a strained shout, Kurt pulls Joe up completely. The feather vanishes.

“Congrats!” the Troll Queen says with a cheer. “You have cleared Level 4! You may now head to the final level!””

“I’m not a fan of these continuous close calls where I’m about to die, but you have my thanks,” Joe says.

“You’re welcome. Let’s just head to the last level and put an end to this.”

A door appears out of thin air and opens. Kurt and Joe step through.

***

They find themselves back in a cave.

“Are we back where we started?” Kurt asks.

“Nope!” the Troll Queen announces. “You could say the final level is the end of the cave that you started in. Complete this level and you will get back to me!”

“What do we do now?” Joe asks.

“I will start by saying that using magic in this level is allowed,” the Troll Queen says. “Other than that, the objective is simple. Run for your life!”

“What!?” Kurt and Joe shout together.

The ground beneath them collapses. They land on slanted ground as a rumbling sound echoes behind them.

“What’s that sound?” Kurt asks.

A giant boulder rolls toward them.

“Oh no! Run!!!” Joe screams.

They sprint down the slope as the boulder rolls after them.

“Didn’t we just complete a level where we run for our lives!!!?” Kurt screams.

“You think she cares!!?” Joe screams back. “Just keep running!!”

“I hate to say this but the boulder is faster than us!!”

“At least we can use our magic for this one!! Attack the boulder with your aura!!”

Kurt unleashes Aura Whips at the boulder, but they have no effect.

“Well, that sucks!!” Kurt yells.

“There’s a dead end up ahead with a right turn just before it!!” Joe yells. “Get ready to turn!!”

“Right!!”

They make the turn just in time. The boulder slams into the dead end and stops. Kurt and Joe slow to a halt.

“We made it…” Joe says while catching his breath.

Another rumble follows.

“Another one!?” Kurt shouts. “The ground is still slanted here!”

“There’s no way a boulder comes from where we came from with that one blocking it!”

“Then where…!?” Kurt freezes. “Oh no….”

A second boulder rolls uphill toward them.

“That’s literally defying physics!!” Joe screams.

“It’s the Troll Quest! There are no laws of physics here!” Kurt yells.

“How do we avoid it?!! We’re about to be sandwiched in between two massive boulders!!”

“Wait! The ceiling is higher here! Since the boulder is rolling uphill from a lower elevation, we could do a running jump and leap over it!”

“It’s worth a shot!!”

They run straight at the uphill-rolling boulder.

“Jump now!!!” Kurt screams.

They leap over it and land safely, but the boulder stops, then begins rolling downhill after them.

“Seriously!!?” Joe shouts.

“And it’s rolling faster downhill than the first one did!!” Kurt points out, screaming.

They sprint again, but the boulder closes the distance.

“I don’t have an answer for this!!” Kurt yells.

“If only there was a way to use our magic to move faster…!! Wait!! That’s it!! I have an idea!!” Joe yells.

“What is it?!!”

“I’m going to use my Weather Magic and turn this slope into a water slide!!”

“That’s perfect!!”

“Massive Downpour!!”

Rain floods the cave. The slanted ground becomes water slide, sending Kurt and Joe sliding faster than the boulder can roll.

“This is actually awesome!!” Kurt shouts.

“Yeah, I’m sure it would be great at a water park without the damn boulder chasing part!!” Joe shouts back.

They slide into a hole at the bottom of the slanted cave.

***

They land back in the room where they first met the Troll Queen. She stands there, having been waiting for them.

“Congrats on completing the Troll Quest!” she says with excitement.

“I didn’t have time to think during the quest,” Kurt says, “but I’ve figured you out.”

“Oh? What do you mean by that?”

“You use a type of Area of Influence magic. Users like you don’t channel magic from their own bodies. You’re probably defenseless in a real fight. And I know who you are. You’re Sandy… Sandy Rockswell. A girl from my hometown who disappeared over two years ago.”

Sandy’s expression softens, lowering her eyes with a bit of sadness. “So, you really did figure it out…”

“I don’t know why you’re here, but if you’re willing to come back, we could use your power to defeat Daykona.”

Sandy looks at Kurt, conflicted.

Kurt and Joe made it through Sandy’s Troll Quest! Will she help them defeat Daykona?!

Chapter 85 END

To be Continued in Chapter 86: Udana’s Pursuers