The campfire cracked and hissed, throwing its smoke into the night air. The Crimson Calling alone around it.
Alexis sat near the flames, hat brim low, a copper coin working its way over his knuckles. Across from him, Ca’armine’s red cloak caught the firelight, while Rask sat rigid, a soldier even when still.
Ethelred’s words about troll-powder still hung in the air, fragments of theory and half-formed warnings. Alexis let them fade, then leaned forward just enough to set his shadow across the fire. His voice carried evenly, with the kind of weight that didn’t need raising.
“You’ve heard what we’ve seen,” he said. “Trolls. Powder. What it does. That’s the measure of it so far.” The coin paused between his fingers, then rolled again, catching a lick of firelight before vanishing back into shadow.
He studied the two newest men in the group, letting the silence stretch a breath longer than comfort. “What about you? Raiden’s people don’t waste time. Do they know more about this enemy?”
The fire popped. The coin clicked once against his ring before disappearing back into motion. Alexis didn’t move otherwise, just watched them across the flames, steady and expectant.
Rask looks at Ca’armine to see if the priest wishes to speak first. Seeing Ca’armine’s expression, Rask takes a breath and responds.
“I have never fought trolls, I have heard that they are in the horde but the thought that one, or even more, were loose near the Copper Hills Fort is… concerning. Near East pass fort too, right? Was Barra a troll? No matter.”
Rask takes a quick breath.
“I know what every child in northern Aegir knows, and the army told me pretty much the same thing: Trolls are cursed not to die, if they get ahold of you they will eat you. their thick flesh regrows, burning them, using acid at least slows the regeneration, and will maybe even kill them, there seemed to be some debate about that, Mage Eye didn’t seem so sure… Anyhow, that’s what I know. There are a few different tales, that trolls are orcs or ogres that chose to be cursed in order to be champions for evil gods, that trolls are greedy men and even dwarves cursed for their insatiable appetites.”
“I’ve never heard of troll powder. I have know men that act like this Lear you have talked about… Some use a bit of blackroot, but no, I’ve never heard of troll powder… There are potions and ungents that regrow flesh, even lost limbs… perhaps those are made from troll powder?”
Rask looks to Ca’armine to see if the priest has gathered his thoughts.
“I believed that trolls were a myth used to scare small children,” he says with a shrug. “Since joining you all, I have seen many things that, in my youth, I would have thought the same– imagination-driven tall tales to serve some other purpose.”
He shakes his head.
“If we have to fight real trolls, I will fight beside you. But I don’t know anything that will help us defeat them.”