#Heartstone Trollmarket

[toa-archive]

One more Trollmarket related thing to keep you going for now! This is another piece showcasing the Heartstone Trollmarket gateway of the film that never made it to the tv version. This particular art is by Rémi Salmon!

His site is still doing mysterious things at the time of typing so enjoy :)

[thegurlwhoisntthere]

Trollhunters au where everyone in Arcadia who’s grown up there has some kind of inherent magic about them, although some have more than others.

This is kinda inspired by Your Future Hasn’t Been Written Yet by Sakon76 on ao3, in the sense that people generally have a type of magic that they’re drawn to and can become really good at, but some people can learn other types and become a Jack of all trade master wizard type thing.

Some types of magic in the fic are smith magic, techno magic, shadow magic, and winter magic. There’s more but some get into spoiler territory if u haven’t read it and are going to so…

Anyway, in this au any kind of magic you can think of probably exists here and in Arcadia, everyone is capable of at least one of them, with varying levels of power and breadth (amount of magicks they’re capable of), although most of them don’t know it.

For example, Toby is good at troll types of magic, geomancy mostly, with a hint of smith magic. Before he knows about magic he’s drawn to rocks as we can see in the show. He would probably be really talented at geomancy, but struggle to do anything or than lower level smith magic

Claire would be an example of someone more powerful. Even before she ever knows about magic, she’s weirdly aware of her surroundings, almost like she has a six sense. She’s always been able to see better in the dark. When she does learn about magic she picks it up surprisingly fast and the only reason she doesn’t branch out beyond shadow magic right away is because she doesn’t know she can, but she always wants to know more.

Everyone else would fall into similar types:

Jim would be really good at potions (cooking), but have a hard time with literally anything else. This makes be Trollhunter, needing to cleave stones, kinda suck and super stressful.

Mary, would be really good at the software portions of techno magic. She’s also good at weaving and energy, but she’s less powerful with them because she’s not as interested in them. She could probably have a similar breadth to Claire (maybe smaller), but less power because unlike Claire, she’s not interested in much more.

Eli would also be good at Techno magic, both the software and hardware and a few other things, but he’s not that powerful. Most of his abilities come from the fact that he’s genuinely just skilled with tech.

Steve and Darci are harder to figure out, but I think it would hilariously if Steve was really good with plants, but has no idea.

Like, he doesn’t even have to try to get plants to like him, and he has no idea because he’s never thought about it. His parents were not plant people and he’s not friends with plant people, before and after he learns about magic, so he’s just going around with some powerful plant magic and no knowledge about it. They land in Camelot and suddenly plants are sprouting where he walks??? There’s higher magic levels 900 years in the past, which is messing with his uncontrolled magic, but they don’t know that. I just want copious amounts of confusion.

And finally, Darci. I have no idea what kind of magic she would have. Is there such a thing as Dance magic??? Chill vibes? Wind? Who knows? Whatever it is, it’s cool and she’s good at it. Ooo maybe, like Empathy and aura reading? And wind could work with dance? Maybe? Idk, but I think her powers would be more subtle than the others.

These are only, like, the main teenagers in Tales of Arcadia that I’m pretty sure grew up in Arcadia, but this would apply to all the other kids and the adults that grew up here.

Btw, I don’t think I mentioned, the reason it’s only people who grew up in Arcadia is because of the Heartstone. It’s literally huge and radiates magic so powerful it actually affects the humans living above it.

[az-daniels-yeeter]

Arcadiatober Day #28: Children

[wheretwofacesmeet]

[shiranai-atsune]

I hope they built another Soothscryer in the New Jersey Trollmarket.

(If so, considering that Draal's soul now resides there with his dad, Jim could come to see him anytime. They could've had an off-screen reunion. Then when Jim ends up spending too frequent time there, Draal would help Jim come to terms with Draal's death)

I like to believe this.

[winter-leftovers]

Til The End Of Eternity || Chapter three: Win Lose or Draal (3/?)

(Douxie Casperan x f!reader)

Summary: Y/n is trying to figure her life out but is going to be hard since her brother is the new trollhunter and she is plagued by dreams and feelings she doesn’t understand.

Chapter Summary: Jim wins a new ally.

Word count: 1046

Warnings: nop

(Season 1 Episode 6)

Song?: Glory And Gore by Lorde

Previous — Next

Masterlist

Trollmarket was beautiful. The underground city was full of colorful lights, even with the market empty the place looked alive. Immediately, Y/n’s eyes found the heartstone. The gigantic cristal and it’s warmth light left her completely speechless, even made her forget, for a moment, the possibility of her brother dying.

“Where’s everyone?” Y/n asked. She was excited to meet Jim’s new friends and the creatures his book depicted.

“Probably waiting for the fight” explained Toby.

“Oh, right” she took her eyes from the heartstone and looked at her brother “Don’t worry if you die I’ll bring you back” she joked.

Jim gave her a half smile. They were both terrible at hiding their fear.

“Master Jim! Welco-ah! Witch” Blinky stopped mid greeting.

“Blinky! This is my sister Y/n!”

“Oh! My apologies, I must've confused her with someone else!”

“You know a lot of humans?” Y/n lifted her eyebrow confused.

“Oh…well” Blinky’s arms fell down to his side but he put them back up fast “Come on, master Jim. A…great warrior always…shows up in time…” he started pushing Jim to the hero’s forge.

At the forge all the trolls were already excited, filled with the rush of battle.

“Hey, I… I want you to have this” Jim gave a letter to Y/n and another to Toby.

“What’s this?” Asked Toby.

“It says everything I want to say”

“You promised me tacos”

“Now is not the time for lunch, Tobes” Jim scoffed.

“Last week, the three of us went for tacos. I paid. You said, ‘Next time on me’ You’re going to get this letter back unopened after the fight, and when you get back, we’ll get tacos”

“He’s right, Jim. You owe him tacos” Y/n smiled.

“Tacos sound good” Jim laughed.

—

“Draal, son of Kanjigar, son of Tarigar, Draal “the destroyer”, come forth.” Vendel, the white troll announced.

A spiky blue rock started rolling down a path, jumping in the air transforming into a big blue troll with six horns.

“That’s Draal?” Y/n whispered to Toby “He’s huge”

“Yeah” he sounded as worried as her.

“And now, Draal’s combatant, James Lake Jr, son of…Bar-bu-rah. Come forth human trollhunter”

The crowd started booig the second they saw Jim.

“Fight from your heart, Master Jim. It’s strong, stronger than any rock” screamed Blinky.

They close the arena and Blinky said quietly to himself “And certainly, stronger than mine”

But Y/n heard him.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.” she reassured “He has to”

Y/n could hear Toby, Aaaarrrgghh and Blinky speak but she couldn’t pay attention to anything they were saying, only the troll trying to kill his brother.

“And, I am Jim, son of Barbara and the amulet choose me”

The flying axes send Draal over the edge of the arena.

“Yes! He did it!” Celebrated Toby.

“It’s not over yet” explained Blinky.

“He has to finish the fight” completed Y/n without taking her eyes off her brother. She had studied the book all night alongside Jim. She knew what her brother had to do next, what the crowd was asking him to do next, they were screaming for death.

Jim grabbed his sword and Y/n closed her eyes. She couldn’t look at her brother killing someone.

Suddenly the crowd was booing again. Y/n opened her eyes and saw her brother standing next to Draal.

“Look, I may not have followed your rules, but neither did the amulet when it chose me. Right now, over our heads, changelings are in Arcadia..”

Fear and confusion filled the room.

Blinky and Toby ran to Jim before he could unveal the secret.

“What is he talking about?” Screamed Vendel.

“You’ll need a Trollhunter who doesn’t have to live in the shadows. This is a time to work together. They’re building the Killahead—“

“STOP! Say no more! We must leave this instant!” Blinky grabbed Jim by the arm.

“Killahead” Y/n repeated. The word left a metallic taste in her mouth.

—

“Oh, praise! You’re alive!” Toby hugged Jim like he would disappear

“And sore. Ease up” Jim chuckled

Aaarrrgghh and Blinky were called by Vendel before they could celebrate the trollhunter’s victory.

“He opened the letter” Y/n laughed.

“I can tell”

“I didn’t” Y/n smiled and gave Jim back the envelope “You can tell what you wrote if you want but I can’t read the words you thought would be your last message to me”

Jim took the letter and smiled back at her.

Y/n turned and started walking. The tears were escaping from her eyes and she didn’t want to be seen like that, especially now, when they were celebrating.

—

“Remember just a normal teenager and his older sister and their normal life” Jim said more to himself than to Y/n.

“Hi, mom. We’re back!" said Y/n while she took her jacket off. A shiver ran through her spine.

‘Strickler?’ She thought. The same uneasiness she felt when she met him was running through her spine again.

She walked behind her brother and saw that it wasn’t Strickler with her mother but a woman.

“In here. Jim, guess who brought tea?”

Jim stopped in front of the woman that was accompanying her mother. Y/n recognised fear flashing in her brother’s eyes but his face suddenly shifted back and started kicking Nomura out. Y/n wanted to stop his brother but Barbara passed out before she could do anything.

“Mom?” She ran to her mother.

“That speech was very moving” The woman left the table “Too bad she won’t remember it when she wakes up and find your body”

She grabbed Jim and threw him to the kitchen.

Y/n hug her mother trying to protect her from the fight.

“What’s going on?” She screamed.

“Go upstairs!” Jim told her sister.

“Jim I won’t …”

“Go!” He screamed while grabbing his backpack looking for the amulet.

She went and hid in the bathroom, her brother quickly joined her.

The troll whistled a song letting them know she was close.

“Not creepy at all” whispered Y/n.

“Yes! Thank you!” Jim grabbed the amulet from behind the mirror.

Before the troll could open the bathroom door someone grabbed her. Y/n and Jim shared a look and went out to investigate. In their backyard, Draal was fighting the troll.

“What are you doing here?” Screamed at the woman-troll.

“Delivering you pain again, Nomura” Draal answered, shielding Y/n and Jim “Do not touch the Trollhunter”

“Suddenly you’re honorable? Sorry to hear about daddy. Bular always liked the way he screamed”

The fight started again and quickly finished when Draal threw Nomura through the air.

“You were right”

“So, you’re not here to kill me?” Jim asked with his sword in his hand.

“Not kill. Protect” Draal looked at Y/n. She smiled at him.

Jim thanked the troll.

Draal quickly started to walk around the house looking for a place to stay.

“Since I can’t go back to trollmarker I’ll stay here, guard your home”

“I don’t think my mom would be down for that” said Jim.

Draal went downstairs to the basement. Eating a piece of coal and taking a couple more out of the heater he said “This is nice. Here I shall protect you, your witch and your fleshbag mother, Bar-bu-rah”

“What did you call me?” Y/n started walking up to him half confused and half offended. Why were the trolls calling her a witch?

Jim stopped his sister from fighting his new protector “Mmmh close enough” he laughed.

“Your mother will awaken soon. I protect. I don’t clean”

Y/n rolled her eyes and went upstairs along side Jim.

[albentelisa]

Hi there! So what do you think would happen if Jim had been the one with Shadow Magic, and Claire was the Trollhunter?

Jim does work for Morgana herself, but it's not willingly.

Hi! Another angsty ask, I say.

So, if Jim works for Morgana, but unwillingly, I would say it is because Morgana possesses Barbara in this AU. Jim will do everything to protect his mom, and it's not that far-fetched to imagine that she might show that it's easy to injure or even kill Barbara if Jim misbehaves (and Morgana loses nothing because it's just a vessel for her).

Morgana also feels some twisted attachment to Jim in this AU (he is her apprentice and she sees him as kind of her child). However, her love only brings Jim more suffering.

Angor Rot is also there and acts as both Jim's partner during the missions and his master/sparring partner when it comes to fighting. Angor is sympathetic towards Jim - they are in the same situation, after all. Initially, he tries to help Jim run away (as Angor thought his bindings were looser), but after some time he realizes that Jim puts his mother before himself. Nevertheless, Angor keeps thinking about the escape plans and is rather annoyed that Jim refuses to cooperate most of the time.

Morgana of this AU is rather suspicious of Stricklander as she questions his loyalties. She only contacts other changelings who seem to be more loyal to her. Walter meets Barbara when she isn't under Morgana's control and eventually falls in love with her. However, later he deduces that something is wrong with her (mostly because he learns that Jim is a shadowmancer who helps Bular without much enthusiasm). Strickler abandons the Janus Order eventually to fight for Barbara's (and to some extent Jim's) freedom and joins forces with Claire and her trollhunting team.

As for Claire, Jim learns about her new role right away and is crushed. After all, his feelings for Claire are among the few bright things he still has in this world (another one is his friendship with Toby). Jim tries to hide the information from Morgana, but she already knows. That is why Jim begs Morgana to give him the mission to recover the amulet - it is his way to protect Claire from harm. Jim gets closer to Claire, faking that he has a plan, while also sabotaging everyone else's attempts and secretly protecting Claire from Bular and changelings. Angor Rot is on his side in this charade - he sees it as a way to get out.

Jim joins Claire's trollhunting team as a part of his plan. He reveals that he can do some magic (just not the shadow type). Toby also gets involved, though, by accident, as Jim would prefer not to drag his best friend into the mess he is part of. Jim gets close to Blinky too and his time at the Trollmarket is full of hope (though, he feels uneasy around the Heartstone without knowing why).

Bular is the one who reveals Jim's secret to Claire, and she is furious, thinking that Jim played her feelings just to get the amulet (as they are dating already by that time). Toby is also angry and lost, not sure what to do and if he even knows a thing about his friend. It's where Strickler comes into the picture, revealing everything he knows (and he has gathered more than enough info).

From that point, Claire and her team look for a way to free both Jim and Barbara. Angor helps behind the scenes, and Claire accidentally learns that Douxie, whom she only knows as a waiter, is a wizard, so she begs him to join her team too. Together, they find a way to expel Morgana from Barbara's mind, so Jim feels he is free. Angor also gets his soul back at last.

It's not the end though, as at this time Gunmar is roaming free, and Morgana uses more loyal changelings. She also doesn't give up on Jim, trying to possess him directly this time and getting control over his mind.

Similar to canon, Claire and Toby (but also Barbara and Blinky) travel to the depths of Jim's mind and wake him up. Like Claire in the canon, Jim fights Morgana inside his mind, finding the courage to break the bonds with her and protect his mind for good.

[avirxy]

I find the bitten curse in First Frost so interesting, like the whole being forced to shift because of the weather is such a good concept, but is it just the weather specifically or could anything trigger it, like if Claire were to go into someone's house and it was really cold. Also it hasn't been stated yet but was Morgana the one to create it, or was it another sorcerer, was it Merlin? Love your fic btw!

Thank you!!

It’s naturally the weather, the seasons, fall, winter/early spring, going into a cold place would make anyone shiver, so like stepping inside on really hot summer day and it’s cold wouldn’t have any affect on her. Underground she’d change due to the temperature, or the magic in Trollmarket it’s naturally more potent due to the Heartstone. Though I guess if one went deep enough into the crust of the earth it’d start to get hotter because of the core but I’m just talking about surface level caves.

And it was Morgana that cast the curse! But she didn’t create it! Those are two very different things.

[spacetime1969]

TOAxDC anyone?

I've been a part of the MariBat fandom for years now, and more recently become a part of the BatPham fandom since it grew into a full fandom of it's own.

In all that time I have been sitting on an idea for another crossover with DC that I think has just as much potential to become something entirely its own.

So, allow me to present the idea of Tales of Arcadia x Batman, which I've been affectionate calling the BATHUNTER crossover in my head.

More ramblings and fic recs under the cut.

So, first and foremost:

We have a bat bait, blue eyed, black haired, protagonist with trauma. Comparing this to the other two fandoms we've already hit the ground running.

We also have a reason for them to be in Gotham. At the end of Trollhunters we have Claire and Jim going with the trolls to find a new heartstone in New Jersey. Gotham is in New Jersey.

The trolls traveling across the country and founding New Trollmarket right in the Bat's territory doesn't even require an explanation beyond 'They found the new heartstone under Gotham City.'

The opportunities for identity shenanigans are still just as present as ever. If you stick to the full canon of the Tales of Arcadia universe, sans the time travel reset, then Jim, Claire and possibly Toby are both human and the bats could meet them as human civilians and as vigilantes who go around with glowing face covering armor and the ability to just disappear.

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of canon past the first half of wizards. So I like the idea of Jim using a glamour mask to go to school while being a vigilante in his half troll form. Make the bat's even more confused.

I also feel like the dichotomy between the three rules of trollhunting and Batman's usage of fear as a weapon and no killing rule would be fascinating.

Just:

"Fear heightens your senses. Fear keeps you alive. Arrogance gets you killed."

-vs-

“You prefer to call me Batman. But the reason you can never escape me … is that my name is fear. And I live within you.”

“Always finish the fight.”

-vs-

"Heroes should never kill a villain, no matter the depths of his villainy."

They would probably agree on rule three, though: “When in doubt, always kick them in the gronk-nuts.” Since Batman identifying weakness in both his teammates and villains is a whole thing.

Lastly, the potential for bio-dad aus is fascinating to me. Specifically, not with Bruce as the bio-dad, but with Commissioner Jim Gordon.

For anyone who hasn't happened on Jim Gordon's backstory, allow me to give some context. Jim Gordon's wife was named Barbara Eileen Gordon. They had two children, Barbra Gordon and Jim Gordon Jr. Barbara Eileen divorced Commissioner Gordon because she wanted to get her son out of Gotham.

From what I understand, in canon she keeps the name and eventually moves back to Gotham after her son becomes a serial killer and inmate of Arkham Asylum.

But this is an AU, canon is what ever we want it to be and Jim Lake being the biological kid of Commishionre Gordon and little brother of Barbra Gordon aka Oracle has some real potential in the right author's hands.

Fic Recs:

Loose Lips, by NerdofSpades

Batman wants answers. Jim wants to be left alone, so he can go back to his not so normal life. Too bad those two things aren't at all compatible with each other. At least Jim gets some new friends out of all of this. Probably. Maybe.

One of my favorite fics in general. Jim becomes friends with the Young Justice team while trying to convince Batman that he's 'just a civilian'.

three teenagers are loose in gotham (what will they do), by clayr_of_the_lillies

sometimes you become a vigilante deliberately. sometimes its twitter's fault. aka a tales of arcadia/batman crossover that wouldn't leave my mind.

Very funny and well thought out. I particularly like this interpretation of Gotham's trollmarket and the friendship between the trollhunters and the batfam.

In Their Blood, NerdofSpades

Barbara Lake saw an uncomfortably familiar pattern in the behavior of James Lake Junior. She saw it in almost everything he did these days. She had seen it in her friends growing up. She had lived it herself. She just wasn't sure how to help him, so, instead, she calls in a friend.

Another fun one by NerdofSpades. Barbara, having been Batgirl, recognizes Jim's behavior in herself. It's a shorter one but still a lot of fun

I'm also working on a couple of my own fics set in this crossover, but their still WIP for now

[melongraph56]

Roles and Relations (Part 1: Main Characters)

Yogscast: Tales of Arcadia AU

as the title suggests gonna be talking about the roles the yogs have in the au and their relation to each other. considering these guys as the main characters for now since they have the most content I've thought of so far lmao. but for sure most of them are set as main characters in the au. expect this to be revised in the future. also enjoy the bullet-points, I do not have the energy to write short cohesive paragraphs

boba

main protagonist

first human trollhunter

currently a full-time highschool student

chased after fairytales all her life only to find out it was all real, most of those stories anyways

always fascinated by honeydew's tales and xephos's skills and strengths

littlewood

first trollhunter

died at the hands of israphel before the heroes sealed him away in the darklands

lives as a spirit inside the amulet to guide boba about what it takes to be a trollhunter

has a very strained relationship with rythian

like a son to swampy

xephos

mentor of boba

training her to wield the sword of daylight since he is a skilled "swordsman"

considered as a hero to trollkind for his battle against israphel

works as a curator in the observatory

before boba got the amulet, xephos accidently revealed his identity and how old he actually is to her when they asked where he got his naval jacket from (what a fool)

best of buds with honeydew and lalna

honeydew

mentor of boba

teaching her troll history and customs even though some of his stories are a bit too farfetched

one of the mighty heroes of trollkind for banishing israphel to the darklands

would spend a lot of his time in the deep dark looking for powerful gemstones

currently obsessed with modern human things

best of buds with xephos and lalna

lalna

technically a mentor to boba but he's more of an emotional anchor since he's more "human" than his best friends. the cultures and emotions of trolls and akiridions are drastically different from humans

mentor of nano

was an apprentice to fumblemore

has a descendent, lalnable (might change his name?)

best of buds with xephos and honeydew

struggles to keep a job down, always broke. has to rely on nano's income most of the time

finds rythian as an annoying roach

nanosounds

apprentice to lalna, learning spellcasting and artificing from him

has a twin sister, echo. nano is the older twin

manages the noodle shop in town, has tried to give lalna job opportunities there but he's at a point of being blacklisted from the establishment. both as a employee and patron

hopes no evil changeling finds her and be terminated or worse turns her in to the evil changeling cult, especially by her sister

rythian

the antagonist to our heroes

a champion to jean ("the queen") and follows her every command

skilled assassin in combat, stealth, and sorcery

has many titles some of the most notable, "slayer of trollhunters"

absolutely hates lalna and littlewood's guts

redemption arc inbound

zoeya

leader of trollmarket and protector of the heartstone

would look up to honeydew sometimes for elder troll wisdom, though it's not always the best advice

indebted to lalna for making her robotic arm, after the attack.

has been paranoid since, expecting him to show up again to finish the job.

like honeydew she's obsessed with human things, specifically their machinery, as well as akiridion technology since it's so advanced

would join in lalna and xeph's conversation about the topic whenever she wasn't too busy

[pinkytoothlesso11]

Do you have any headcanons of Morgana?

Hmmm I don't really think much about her if I'm being honest, but here's a few!

Morgana came into her magic pretty late compared to other wizards, such as Douxie. She's actually in her thirties during Camelot and only stops aging after she's trapped in the Trollmarket Heartstone. She would have anyway stopped aging, but most of her centuries were spent trapped, so she never really matured, her mind stayed trapped in a way too.

I think it's very hard to keep your sanity if you can't move your body and only have yourself for company. So I imagine despite Morgana finding ways to semi communicate with her changelings, she went a little mad during all the centuries she was imprisoned. That explains how crazy she was when she was eventually freed.

Morgana actually cared about Douxie quite a bit, she considered him almost a younger brother. But the fact he didn't question or defy Merlin or Arthur when he KNEW they were wrong frustrated her to no end. So she eventually clumped him with Merlin and Arthur to soothe her conscience when she fought against him in Wizards.

[toa-archive]

Decided to split up the artwork that turned up over the weekend in part as wanted to focus on THIS thing first:

Brunch Studio has a now hidden page where they go into detail of what they did for Trollhunters (Both og film and TV) including creating the Trollmarket set design. Which is neat because some of Rémi Salmon's work was saved from whatever his website is doing! Another of the artists mentioned on there is Fabien Ouvrard. Through some tracking down I managed to uncover his instagram and later his artstation account. The first had some cropped work from Trollhunters whereas his artstation didn't... Until Saturday.

Being able to have a proper look at this thing managed to figure out it is in fact the shooting board for the below video:

Not entirely sure if it was part of a pitch, a spec or what just that it's incredibly cool.

If you really zoom into the Shooting Board you find this image which given the other artwork is very possibly Christopher Zibach.

The matching image on the reel is a pretty easy one to ID, Geoffroy Thoorens dated back in 2014. The trolls beforehand are a bit more of a mystery though there is a suspicion who they might be which we'll come to shortly.

Next zoom in is this which the artbook confirms is Zibach.

Whereas the Reel is Thoorens again, also 2014. It's likely this is an overpaint of Alfonso Blaas' version because of the remarkable similarity.

From the zoomed in stills again this one can absolutely confirm is Zibach because it was on tumblr with an instagram redirect.

Broken tumblr posts can't stop me:

The next transition gets a bit more in the air seeing as it's a composite. From what I've been able to figure out:

Alfonso Blaas - Trolls, he has them all uploaded separately and they're painted over Headless Studios linework

Christopher Zibach - Heartstone

Geoffroy Thoorens likely had a hand in the rest as he does have those funky gem bridges on his artstation which have not really shown up elsewhere. It could be a mixture of him, Blaas, Ouvrard or even other artists too!

After that is a bit of a mystery. On the shooting board it's clearly Zibach so somebody must have made their own version of it. When that happened they added Blinky and Toby in the process.

With nothing for the sweeping in to GO AWAY shot it like was based on Fabien's sketch using the above Zibach as a reference.

The Heartstone went through all sorts of weird and wonderful transitions though being in water with the posing did show in Zibach's shown below. According to the artbook and comparing to the reel it looks like that particular image was drawn by Dominique Lewis possibly with Thoorens's background, difficult to tell.

Will try and contact Zibach to just double check it is his work on the Shooting Board. Other than that it's been incredibly neat seeing some brand new work (If small), sketches and an excuse to watch that video again.

[bastet-c-haddock]

For Everyone reading my Cyberpunk AU and asking "Who's this Neala character?" well, here's your answer:

Neala, the Gumm-Gumm Hound, is my Tales of Arcadia Fan Character. Firstly created in 2018 as I watched Part 3 of Trollhunters and later developed further as Wizards was released.

Her first design was inspired by Draal and Nomura. Though I didn't intent to make a FanChild by that combination, I purely liked Nomura's agile sillouhette and Draal's Spiky body. Of course, at the end, I put my own spin on it and so, Neala was created.

From the start, I knew I wanted them to be a warrior, obviously this fact would make her an outcast, or at least, not a part of Heartstone Trollmarket. For a moment, there was the idea of making them a Changeling, but the idea was scraped once I had a narrative of her role on "Eternal Night"

It started out as a "New Challenger enters the fight" situation, where she would arrive umpropted and ready to face Gunmar and the Gumm-Gumms, but the "Mary Sue" approach was changed for something much more altruistic.

Redemption.

Here, the exhiled Gumm-Gumm train got going.

You can find the first version of her story HERE!

She was "Gunmar's Champion", a loyal fighter adopted and raised by the Skull Crusher as a bloodhound, but once Morgana came into the picture, giving Gunmar the power to make anyone into a mindless slave, Neala fled.

Inspired by Argh! She abandoned Gunmar as well, but instead of refusing to fight, she just fought for centuries in the shadows, helping Troll-kind in places where the Trollhunter wasn't an option, akin to Angor Rot before becoming Morgana's Champion.

Once she knew of the Human Trollhunter, she moved to Arcadia Oaks. Her mission remained the same though, protecting her kin, while also being a hidden support for the newest Trollhunter.

As much as this concept seemed good, it felt a bit...Mary Sue-esque. But at the time, I had no chance of fixing it, nor the vision to see what could be better. So, I let her rest, while still using her as a guiding force on "Dashed Hopes" my Cyberpunk AU. Where she serves as Krel's messenger and spy.

After a while, some ideas started to pop-up in regards to them. How I wanted them to be, their motives, everything. And so, I had a new backstory for them.

She was a Gumm-Gumm commander, pretty much as before, she was raised into a bloodhound by Gunmar. Previously, her personality was pretty neutral. Having some level of consciousness regarding the world outside her home. My reimagining of their personality was making them rough, stronheaded and arrogant. A soldier who knows their value, their skills and their goals, which, of course, align to the ones of their king, who they see as a role model before everything falls.

Once Morgana comes, Neala doesn't fully trust her. She's a human after all, she might be tricking their king into a trap. A suspiscion half way confirmed by the Slaving Ability bestowed into his sword. They challenged the witch, demanding her the truth before Gunmar cut it off and sent Neala to rescue Argamon.

On their way there, they thought of the implication of their king becoming a puppet to a witch. Then and there, they became a ghost, dissappearing into the night, no longer a Gumm-Gumm, but not a Pacifist either. A Renegade who would dismantle human kingdoms and tribes to return what was robbed from their kind.

For centuries, they did it. Becoming a hero for troll kind when Angor Rot became another puppet for the Eldritch Queen. But as Humans became more abundant and poweful, Neala wasn't enough to fight against them. And so, they did the minimum to keep trolls out of human sight to avoid a purge, like Arthur did in their times.

As they knew about Jim, the new Trollhunter, they were ready to hunt him down until they saw him defeat Bular. There, they saw both were on the same team, and so, Neala became a hidden ally.

In regards to their design, I cut their hair down, as well as most of the spikes, since it made their design a bit noisy. Kept their clothes short and mostly form fitting so their sillouhette was agile no matter the version.

To Read their updated story: The War is Coming ~Part 1.

Keep going!

Gumm Gumm territory was always hostile, but it has become more so since the human King started to hunt Troll-kind. Everyone is eager to grab that fleshbag and tear him to pieces, eating him is an option too, but meat is not my kind of meal if I'm being honest. Gunmar must not know though, he already has enough on his claws. War is coming, tensions are growing, and we might not be enough to face Camelot's army. We have to make each of us count on the battlefield when the time comes...

Battle after battle, we've won followers, soldiers, trolls aware of the sacrifices needed to recover what's ours, and still, not all of them join the cause.

Dwuoza has become the sanctuary for those who still want to hide, those who aren't willing to fight against Arthur. Weakness, fear, cowardness, training rips those feeling to shreds, I should know...

I was taken by Gunmar when I was a youngling, my memory of how is really fuzzy, the only thing I remember is my name. "Neala", Champion. Gunmar sticked to it and, from then on, I became his. A warrior, a conqueror with no mercy, just like Bular, his son. Still...it might be giving him to much credit.

Despite us both been raised by him, Bular's always been the one to beg for his father's praises, as if he deserved them. A soldier, and over all, a prince, should know respect is earned. Each time your weapons are weilded against an enemy, is an oportunity to proof your worth and earn respect from your King. Having said that, it's pathetic. Seeing the son of the Skull Crusher begging like a spoiled child is just pathetic. When will he learn his actions speak louder than his words? Hell if I know...

While he goes asking for his father's praises, I stay in camp, training. Handling this blades is no easy task, their iron blades and black stone handles make them a weapon able to be thrown or handled, but the ability required for them is forged by discipline, strength, aim and, not to mention, acrobatics. Those are unusual amongst trolls, just certain kinds can manage such a dynamic fighting style.

My hooves slide through the ground, each choreographed by my instict. I pirouette and jump with my tail as a balancing force against the lightness of my body and the weight of my blades. I spin them by the handle, feeling how my claws click each time the black stone hits them slightly, letting me know I'm in control. The silence of my coordination exercices is broken by steps, heavy and small steps from some group of soldiers.

Once they arrive, I could feel there were three or four cadets who stopped once they saw me on the training ring.

-Good evening, gentlemen- I say before handling my blades properly, ready for anything. -Came for a round?- I ask, confident. A challenge is always good, especially for them.

They start to garbble and mumble trying to decide if fighting me is wise. After all, they have seen me at the battlefield. I can easily face a knight squad and win without a scratch. Some time later, they wield their spears, challenging me -Very well then.- I reply as they sorround me -Better make it quick, I gotta patrol the gate- Cracking my neck before taking a deep breath. Then silence...

3...2...1!

A soldier charges at me, as I avoid, leaning to the side to they can run pass me. With a spin and a help from my blade, I spin swiftly to knock him with a kick of my hoof. As he trips into another soldier, I grab his spear with my tail to block an attack from.a third brute. Quickly, I push the attacker with my body and blades to suddenly turn and throw one, towards the last rookie, making him stop dead on his tracks. At a moments notice, I appear behind him, sweeping him of his feet with a fast sweep of my hoof. Like that, four of them were down -You still need to work on your stands! Focus your weight into your legs to ground yourselves.- some feedback won't hurt them as I pick my weapons and go to the entrance. They grunt as a response -Maybe next time- I reply, leaving the ring with a smile.

-Champion?- a familiar voice comes from behind me, Bular. I turn around and sheith my blades.

-Prince...- I answer, cold but respectful.

-My father asks for your presence. I'll take your place at the gate- he tells me, indiferent, almost a little annoyed. I nod making him believe I didn't notice his disagreement to the order.

Soon, I arrive to my king's throne room. A dark cave with a natural window that lets him know what happens in his domains. It's intimidatimg, no matter how many eons I've spent alongside the Skull Crusher inside this place, a chill still runs through my spine each time I step in here.

-You called for me, your majesty.- I say as I kneel before the black troll in front of me. He has something on his claw, admires it. Looks like some sort of mask. Despite my constant talk about being the Black King's Hound, I'm still outranked. Not only by Bular, the flesh and bone of my lord, but by the tribute brought to him shortly after me: a gray and green brutish creature in Gumm gumm armor, Argamon, the Kruuvera Champion. Who stands right beside him, like a dog waiting for orders.

As of now, I'm the only one who he speaks to.

-Commander...- the lord says to me, in his deep rough voice. It shakes every spike of my body. -I've heard my soldiers understimate your skill...- he questions me, I lower my gaze in annoyance. Though the ones from before knew who they were talking to, others aren't as wise.

-When they arrive, they tend to mock me. But they learn what is best for them in no time.- I answer, secure with a light growl. My arrogance made me stand from other soldiers, since it has pushed me to be smarter, more skillful and cunning than the rest. Some may say I am a weaker image of my lord, a shadow of his grandeur, but not one as dark as Bular is.

-I see...- he turns around and throws me the mask he was looking at. I catch it in the air, handling it so I can see it too. It resembles those often wore by the rest of the army. Dark with green highlights at the edge of each twisted horn, but this one, aside from its smaller scale, had no muzzle and no backside.

-My lord?- I ask, confused. It is small for his size, it would barely fit me. Made of black metal, yet hollow and light. Given how rough our troops were while fighting, I think this little mask won't stand a chance once push comes to shove. I look back at my King, expecting his reply.

-My son is my living image, he commands where he stands. The Butcher, the humans call him. Just the mention of him can make a batallion tremble.- growls in victory as he comes closer, speaking seriously, looking at me with his cold and lonely eye. -Argamon is our tank, a moving fortress with no fear. On any battlefield, his strength is our weapon.- signaling the brute, now behind him, as it responds to the words spoken about him with pride. -You are my top commander, my bloodhound, fierce and loyal. A lethal assassin.- even though his voice is severe, he speaks with a certain fondness. -Your presence, reputation and that helmet should make them quiver and hear your every command.- growling in triumph as I look at the metal at my claws once more. Thoughtful.

-Wear it, and you'll be my general in the war to come.- His growls become threatening. Refering to the Human King with rage and thirst for violence. But what he says, makes me jump as I realize...

Finally Arthur drew the last straw. The war is coming.

Years of tensions, of disgrace and lies have come to a climax. The time has come to reclaim what is ours...

Looking back to my lord, I nod and put on the mask, it sits on my actual horns, letting me see while darkening my gaze. I unsheith my blade, trying to look at my reflection, despite the carving at the spine of the weapon at my claw. Now, I look like one of them. Humans may think of me as a demon, and I would let them think so. I'll rip their lives to shreds until darkness consumes them, as we rise to victory.

I Look once more at my majesty's eye, he nods lightly, approving my decision. A moment later, he asks me to stay there to see Argamon train, he'll need that, more now than ever.

Some hours run by, the sparring continues when, suddenly, a messenger comes with some news from the Gate.

Bular has been captured by the King's men.

To be Continued...

[bluheaven-adw]

Eclipse, Moonlight, Shadow Portal, KLEB 😊

I had this all typed out and accidentally hit something and lost it 😭

Eclipse: angor rot. I got this one previously.

Moonlight: gnome chompsky!

Shadow portal: heartstone trollmarket, but a side trip to Stuart's taco truck because I want to try a diablo maximus breakfast burrito and some tacos

KLEB

yay! Ok... Jim surfs and is halfway decent at it. Not in any serious capacity, like he doesn't own his own board or anything, but Arcadia is close to the coast and it's probably something they did on summer break. Because you can't tell me that this kid who rode his shield down a steep and bumpy rock wall with easy skill and perfect balance while summoning and then throwing his glaives at Nomura, has never once been surfing.

[wheretwofacesmeet]

[lovedropletsdreams]

Lost time - 1970 | Hisirdoux Casperan

Plot : You’ve known him for almost a thousand years, he’d known you for a few centuries when he should’ve known you the same (Hisirdoux Casperan x reader)

Word Count: 1.2k+ 

Warnings: none

A/N: it’s not as long as the previous one but I hope they offer the same enjoyment to you guys as it did to me while writing these, thank @prismarts for being such a dear to help me beta read this, any suggestions and feedback are welcomed :D

Taglist: @furblrwurblr @prismarts @alovesongshewrote @castle-of-my-dreamsj

So, the miracle happened. You woke up. Full of confusion obviously, imagine waking up in the middle of a what? A cave, surrounded by trolls, looking at you with curiosity. Wait, is that piece of heartstone under your nails, what. One troll approached you, you assume he was the leader, from the looks of it. He introduced himself as Vendel. You struggled to get up, it felt like you hadn’t used your legs in a very long time. You wanted to introduce yourself, but your throat was parched. Vendel stopped you and signed to the other trolls to bring you to a room following him.

In there, he gave you a glass of water and said, “I know who you are, apprentice of Merlin. Centuries ago, he brought you here in dire need, and told us he needed the heartstone to help you,”.

And that’s where you learned that you are in the Trollmarket, home for the trolls, along with what transpired within the time you were unconscious. Merlin found a way to embed you in the heartstone which synergizes with your magic and helps to save your life due to its healing properties. You realized Merlin left the fact that you are Camelot’s princess, seeing Vendel address you as Merlin’s apprentice. And you chose to keep it that way, you remembered your last wish, for nobody to remember the princess of Camelot, you.

You spent several years in the Trollmarket, getting back on your feet. It was not easy, at first, the trolls were wary of you, a human. You tried hard to get yourself back on your feet. Over time, seeing your determination and your attempts to befriend them, they opened their hearts around you. There are still some that disagree with your existence in the Trollmarket, but they didn’t do much aside from snark and pranks here and there. Vendel, however, was different, you can feel his indifference to you, true, you being human plays a part in his dislikes but you find out he really is just looking out for every troll. As a leader, he must stay composed at all times, something you learned being the figure back in Camelot. But he found your talent at life magic interesting and decided to teach you how to utilize that magic better. Within your years in the Trollmarket, you learned how to do your magic better and some basic combat training. You also learned about trolls better, their habits, their likes and dislikes, and many more.

But you always miss the sun, sure you get out sometimes to help the trolls either with hunting or escaping from the Gumm-gumms, but it was always at night. You missed the smell of the grass in the morning, the way the sun warms your skin, you missed life in the daylight. So, after several years, you decided to embark on a journey, to see the world, and see how much of it has changed.

And boy, how much has it changed. You felt like a fish out of water, you felt like a newborn where you have to learn anything, including how to clothe yourself to match with the people (well you know, trolls are not exactly the right example of how a human should be dressed).

About Camelot, you’ve heard about the battle of Killahead from the trolls, along with the things that happened within the time you were in a coma, but hearing from humans, however, turned it into another story. Funny how things could change one or another, especially the ones supposedly with you in it. But neither mentioned the information you wanted the most, about a certain wizard’s apprentice. You wondered how Douxie had become. You remembered how he was dreaming to be a master wizard, is he one now? Or did he find a new dream?

You’ve spent most of the years living in the daylight, being with other people’s company that just comes and goes, seeing how things changed. But you also like laying low and enjoying teas from cafes, a hobby you found quite familiar yet comfortable in a way. Not to mention the things you’ve learned, both magic and nonmagic stuff, learning always excites you.

Then come the 1970s

It was quite an interesting year, any era would do the same to you, fascinating how an era could create changes within the people. But this one is different.

You were in a bar, something that you were not used to, but enjoyed from time to time, not because of the drink, no, the drink was just an accessory to you. You enjoy the environment, the feeling of rowdiness, how people bonded on nights with the liquid truth, or just the fun. You didn’t quite remember the name of the place really (is it moonlight? Moonlit? Moonacre? Alas the name just keeps slipping away)

And there he is

The 1970s was something in Douxie’s experience, meeting the Beatles (great lads with great music, he always said), the fashion is something he could get used to. Tonight, however, he just wanted to relax with some familiar faces and Archie.

You almost ran to him, you almost called his name, and you wanted oh-so-badly to run into his arms. But you didn’t, you remembered the thing you don’t want to recall the most, the memory spell. There’s no way he’d recognize you. The spell was meant for permanent activation. Instead, when he and Archie took a seat (fortunately) near you, you just tried to listen while taking a look at him. He looks a tad older (considering almost 900 years have passed, but ehh who’s counting), he changed his hair, it looked pretty cool with those blue streaks, it suits him. His laugh, god, how much you missed the sound of his laugh, how much you wished that you were the one he laughs with.

You swallowed the bubbling tears rising up your throat and drank your beer, which turned out to be a bad idea since the drink’s bitter and you dislike the feeling. But somehow the bitterness just makes you laugh at your own condition, bitter drink for the bitter one.

That laugh made Douxie’s head turn. It was not loud, barely heard by anybody else, but there was something to your laugh and he heard it. He catches your eyes and you quickly turn away, but then you heard the sound of the chair being dragged in front of you.

“Hi, I’ve never seen you around here, you new here love?” that smooth endearment causes you to look at him, did he just, call you what now? The Douxie you knew never used endearment, he was too shy to do it, he was a moppet (with a man bun ;) ) did you mishear him?

A hand waved in front of you, “you alright love? Do I have something in my face?” he smiled

You did not mishear.

“No, uh, I’m alright, good” you tried to calm yourself by drinking, bad move. You choked on your drink instead.

“Woah, slow down, careful…” he said softly patting your back

Great, you just embarrass yourself, seconds after meeting him. This wasn’t good. You put your hands covering your heated face. “I- I’m sorry, I—“, then you heard him chuckle, lips lifting to a soft smile.

He took your hand that was covering your face, and his hazel eyes once again found yours

“How about we repeat the introduction again, I feel like we put ourselves in the wrong shoes, we could put our better shoes this time, what do you think?”

Maybe this is your second chance?

“Let me introduce myself once again, I’m Hisirdoux, Hisirdoux Casperan, you can call me Douxie, nice to meet you!”

“I’m (y/n) (l/n), Nice to meet you too Douxie”