Chapter 37: Deadly Breaths

Kelrian turned around as he heard the loud, deafening sound for the first time. He had never heard such a loud and fearsome roar before so he was curious what kind of creature was able to produce it. His eyes widened, his lower jaw dropped as he saw the winged red creatures in the air.

He had never seen such a creature before. He had only seen drawings of them. These massive creatures had long necks, large snouts with sharp teeth, massive wings and long tails. Their bodies were covered by red scales, only their bellies and the underside of their tails were covered by white scales. These creatures must be dragons. He didn't doubt that.

On the back of each of these mighty creatures sat an orc who was riding them as if it was the most natural thing in the world. The orcs commanded their mounts to attack and the dragons obeyed. Fire came out of their snouts and set soldiers of the Alliance and the ground beneath them on fire. The archers and mages started to fire at these creatures after they had realized that they were not here to have a tea party with them. They wanted to kill them.

The dragon's scales were too thick so the arrows didn't do much. The spells hit them but only slightly injured them. Dozens of elves, humans and dwarves were set on fire but also lots of trolls died in the flames. It didn't seem that the orcs cared that they were roasting their allies.

Lots of groups started to move but that didn't help them to avoid the winged beasts' flames. Verena's group started shooting at a dragon who was floating in the air not far away from them. But they didn't aim at the normally peaceful creature. Instead, they aimed at the orc who was commanding it. Kelrian managed to hit the orc but only in the left knee. The orc didn't die so he was able to make his dragon turn around and spat fire at the group.

Half of the rangers managed to jump into the lake at the last moment, the others were consumed by the flames. It was horrible for Kelrian to watch his comrades burning. Hearing their voices only made it worse. They were still alive but not for too long. Nothing but ashes were left when the fire was done with them. The smell of burned flesh stung in the air.

Kelrian couldn't avert his gaze even though his comrades were already gone. He was too shocked to move. He was standing in the water. His clothes were soaking wet and he was feeling cold. He saw the dragon floating in the air, its head was turned to him. It saw him so did its rider. The orc pulled on the dragon's reins, commanding it to spew more fire. The dragon obeyed.

Kelrian knew he had to dive beneath the lake's surface if he wanted to survive but he couldn't. His body didn't obey him. He couldn't control his body anymore. He was frozen in fear.

Red flames would have consumed his body if a hand wouldn't have grabbed him by the collar of his uniform and pulled him under the lake's surface. He didn't know what was going on but somehow, he managed to regain control over his body. He started to swim, staying beneath the surface. He only came up when he ran out of air. He looked around, noticing that he was in the middle of the lake.

He saw allied groups shooting at the dragons only to get roasted a few moments later. He saw other groups running away in panic. He saw dragons which hovered in the air and did nothing after their rider had been killed. There was a dragon, floating not far away from him. But before it could notice his presence it was hit by a massive ballista bolt.

The bolt pierced through the dragon's chest and impaled it. Loud pained cries and a large amount of blood flowed out of the dragon's mouth. It was horrible to watch as the beautiful but also deadly creature lost height and crashed onto the ground. The dragon didn't move, meaning it was most likely dead.

Kelrian noticed that he was unable to avert his gaze from the creature as he regarded it with widened eyes. He felt a cold hand on his shoulder and another on his face. He broke out of his state of shock, turning his head to look at the person. It was Elena who was the only other person in the lake. He was wondering where the others were. He turned his head, searching them but he didn't find Verena or any of her group members. There was only Elena who had a worried look on her face.

"What are you doing here, Elena?" His voice was quiet and trembled.

"A troll shaman hit me with a gust of wind and pushed me away. I landed in the lake and spotted you so I swam over to you and prevented that you got roasted," she explained. Kelrian stared into her eyes, noticing that she was terrified. And she had every reason to. These deadly creatures could easily kill dozens at the same time. All of their victims died a horrible and painful death.

Kelrian put his hands on her cheeks, speaking soothing words to her as he stared into her eyes. He managed to calm her down, a little at least.

"Where do these creatures come from and why are they fighting for the orcs?" she asked.

"If only I would know that," replied Kelrian. He checked his surroundings once again, spotting more than two dozen dragons in the air and on the ground. The surroundings burned. Trees, buildings and soldiers. Soldiers from both sides.

"We have to get out of the lake," said Kelrian as he turned his head to look at his friend.

Elena's face reflected insecurity. "But what do we do then? We can't fight these creatures"

Kelrian was about to say something as he heard the blowing of a horn in the distance. "That was the signal of retreat," he said, sounding more confused than surprised. "We have to retreat and return to the nearest base."

Elena took his hand, squeezing it softly for a moment. She let him go and started to swim towards the shore. Kelrian followed her quickly and got out of the lake. Their wet clothes disturbed them but didn't hinder them from running fast.

They were near the large bridge in the middle of the lake. They spotted dozens of trolls fighting against dozens of soldiers of the Alliance near the bridge. They also saw other allied groups which were retreating. They fell back and left the fortress as fast as possible.

Kelrian knew he and Elena had to retreat as well but he didn't want to leave those soldiers behind. He had to help them but he had lost his bow when he had jumped into the lake. He had also lost one sword but the other still hung on his belt. It was a miracle that it hadn't detached and disappeared like the other.

He looked at Elena, noticing that she had picked up a spear which had stuck in a human corpse a few feet away from them. The spear was damaged but its tip was still sharp. Sharp enough to pierce through the leather armour some of the trolls wore.

They climbed on the small hill, following the path which led them to the bridge. They killed two injured trolls they crossed on their way. The spear had been destroyed in the progress but Elena had picked up the bow and quiver of a deceased comrade. Kelrian hadn't found an undamaged bow in the near but he had picked up a thick wooden shield which turned out to be pretty useful against the troll weapons. Elena and he encountered a few trolls on their way to the bridge. They killed each of them without getting seriously injured. An arrow had grazed Kelrian's left hip. His left lung, his right upper thigh and his back hurt but other than that he was fine.

He ignored the pain he was feeling whenever he took a breath and put on a brave face. Elena shot arrows as soon as they came close to the bridge, killing several trolls. They had hoped that the soldiers would have defeated those trolls in front of the bridge in the meantime. Unfortunately, they didn't.

Kelrian counted thirty trolls in front of the bridge and seven injured soldiers of the Alliance. The entire ground around the begin of the bridge was covered by corpses. There were elven, dwarven, human and troll corpses but also the corpses of wolves, war bears, dragonhawks, horses and gryphons. A massacre had happened there but the trolls had managed to defend the bridge. They had been outnumbered by the Alliance but then the orcs on their dragons had joined the battle and caused that the balance of power had tipped to the side of the Horde.

Most of Kelrian's comrades who didn't die by the trolls or had been burned by the dragon's flames had retreated. Only a few groups didn't manage to get out yet. The seven soldiers in front of them belonged to them. Kelrian didn't want to leave them behind. The chance that they would survive was low but it existed. The best solution was that all of them would try to escape but that wasn't possible anymore. A small group of trolls had come out of nowhere and surrounded them.

There was nothing he could do for them. He could try to help them and he would love to do that but he had promised Sylvanas to survive. He had promised that he wouldn't die so he had no other choice than moving to the only exit as fast as possible.

He was not proud of retreating but there was no other way to get out alive. He had to leave the seven soldiers to their fate. He knew he would hate himself later but he couldn't break the promise he had given to his general and lover. He was still injured so he couldn't run as fast as he wanted. But Elena grabbed his arm and dragged him with her as she sprinted towards the hole in the wall.

They came closer and closer to the only exit. They could cover the remaining distance within two minutes so they increased their tempo and ran as fast as they could. They were only half a minute away from the hole as two persons jumped from the wall and landed in front of the hole.

The left person was three times his comrade's size. It was a bald dire troll with hands which were a lot larger than the paws of the largest grizzly bear Kelrian had ever seen. Large and thick tusks, which were as sharp as the tips of knives, came out of its lower jaw. Its ugly face was covered in red war paint. Kelrian hoped that it was war paint because there was another explanation why the troll's face and tusks were red. He was hoping that it was not the blood of his comrades.

The troll next to the dire troll was very muscular but not as muscular as his comrade. His entire body was covered by armour which looked much better and firmer than the armours of the other trolls. A necklace made out of human and elven ears hung around his neck.

He was no ordinary Amani troll, even Kelrian had noticed that. It was the same troll Kelrian's father had met and to who he had given the information about Sylvanas' home. The same troll who had told the orcs to attack Windrunner Village and Windrunner Spire. It was no other than Leth'al.

He carried a highly decorated spear which had sharp tips on each side. He whirled said spear around him as he stepped away from the dire troll, signalizing the elves that he wouldn't let them pass. The dire troll cracked its knuckles but it didn't walk towards the elves who had stopped when the trolls had landed on the ground. Leth'al remained on the same spot and whirled his spear around as if he was doing some sort of a spear dance.

Kelrian turned his head a little, noticing five trolls behind them. He looked at Elena, noticing that she was as helpless as he was. There was no way they would get out of this situation alive.

He couldn't believe it was over. There were so many things he wanted to do in his life. He wanted to become one of the best rangers. He wanted to spend more time with his family and his friends. He wanted to spend more time with Sylvanas.

He was only sixty-nine years old which was nothing for an elf. He hadn't even reached adulthood yet. According to the high elven law, he was still a teenager. But that didn't matter anymore. They were surrounded by enemies. Too many enemies. He and Elena might be able to deal with the five trolls behind them but there were much more trolls who regarded them with wide grins on their lips.

He realized he will never able to see his family again. He will never be able to see his mother, his younger siblings and Liadrin again. He will never be able to see Zetai, Elonis or Nathanos again. Not to mention the other rangers he liked.

He will never be able to see Sylvanas again. He will never be able to spend time with the most beautiful woman in Quel'Thalas. He will never see her beautiful face, her warm smile or her golden hair again. He will never be able to talk to her again. It hurt him to imagine how she would react when she would hear of his death. It hurt him so much that he stopped thinking about it.

He didn't want to die. But if he had to, he wanted to kill as many trolls as he could. He turned around as the first troll approached him. He beheaded him before the troll could react. He ignored the frustrated growls of the surrounding trolls as he charged at the next troll and rammed his sword in the troll's chest. He didn't draw his weapon out, instead, he disarmed the stunned warrior and beheaded him with his own axe.

An arrow hit him in the back but that didn't stop the ranger from chopping off most of the arm of an Amani berserker. The warrior howled out as he staggered backwards. He pressed his remaining hand on the stump, his widened eyes rested on his separated limb. The troll couldn't believe he had lost his arm. His head was the next body part which was separated.

Blood splashed on Kelrian's face and uniform but he didn't care. He didn't care about anything anymore. He just wanted to kill as many of these green bastards as possible before he would die. Two more arrows hit him, one in the right upper thigh and one in his right shoulder. But Kelrian's rampage didn't stop.

He slew three more trolls while Elena had only killed three in total. They were injured and surrounded by dozens of trolls. The trolls could kill them easily but they didn't. They could launch themselves on the rangers and end their lives but they didn't. Instead, they remained on their spots and waited for the orders of the person who had just arrived a minute ago.

Kelrian turned his head, looking at the person the trolls were looking at. It was a female troll with long red hair and blue skin. He wasn't hallucinating this. It was right that her skin was blue, unlike all the other trolls whose skin was green. Her hair was made in a sidecut but she also had four long plaits which reached to her waist. Her face was covered with white war paint. Numerous piercings could be found in her beautiful face and in her long ears which were not as long as the ears of the elves.

Even female trolls were taller than male elves but that woman was a lot shorter than the average female troll. She was one head smaller than Kelrian and half a head smaller than Elena. She wore leather clothes which only covered her private parts, the rest of her body was exposed but covered with war paint.

Kelrian was sure she was not a forest or Amani troll. He had never heard of trolls with blue skin, so he assumed she belonged to another troll tribe which must live somewhere else on Azeroth. Maybe she just had been different from birth and belonged to the Amani. He had no clue. He only knew that the other trolls respected her.

Kelrian noticed that his heart was beating faster than it had before since he had caught sight of that troll. He couldn't explain why it beat faster. Was he afraid of her? He was sure that he was not afraid to die. The risk of dying during a war was known to a ranger and he didn't regret that he had chosen that life. He didn't regret any of his decisions. He only wished he could have said goodbye to Sylvanas. He will never see her again and he had not the time to think about the good moments he had shared with her. He wanted to but he couldn't. Elena and he were surrounded by the trolls and there was no way for them to escape.

They would die that day.

They believed that. They believed the strange troll would give the order to kill them but instead, she remained on her spot and regarded them with a small smirk on her bluish lips. She lifted her left hand but she didn't give the order to kill them, instead, she told the Amani trolls to take them and bring them to their temple.

A net was thrown at the elves, which was so heavy that they were pushed to the ground and couldn't get up no matter how hard they tried. Four trolls walked over to them and knotted the net together. Kelrian and Elena were trapped in the net. The trolls had removed their weapons so they couldn't cut the net to get free.

The dire troll walked over to them and picked the net up, putting it on his shoulder. He waited for the woman's order, following her after she had made a gesture with her hand.

Kelrian and Elena were pressed against each other, the cords of the net cut deep in the parts of their skin which weren't covered by their uniforms. They couldn't move at all so the only thing they could do was to look at the surroundings. Corpses were spread all over the ground, some were burned, some were mutilated while others were unscathed.

Lots of trolls, high elves, dwarves and humans had fallen during the battle. Kelrian didn't know the exact number but he was pretty sure both sides had suffered heavy losses. He was wondering where the female troll would bring them and what she would do to them.

He had a bad feeling what the troll might do to them. They were not dead which was a good thing but they were in the hands of a troll which was almost as bad as being dead. Trolls were known to torture their prisoners for fun, rape them or kill them brutally. He was a male so it was unlikely that someone would sexually abuse him but Elena was a possible victim. He was not afraid for himself. He was not afraid what the trolls would do to him. He was afraid of what they would do to her. She was his friend so he didn't want anything bad to happen to her.

Considering the way trolls treated prisoners, Kelrian came to the conclusion it might have been better if the trolls would have killed them instead of taking them captive. The chances were pretty low that anyone would free Elena and him. At least, as long as the orcs were riding on these dragons. The chance that the trolls would make them suffer was pretty high.

At least, they were in the hands of this female so Kelrian hoped that the chances that any troll would violate Elena were lower. On the other hand, he had heard of female trolls who didn't mind that their male comrades would abuse their prisoners and have fun with them.

He could only hope that this woman was not one of those. At first sight, he had noticed that she was different than the average female troll. Not only was she smaller and had a different skin colour, but also her eyes didn't reflect the hatred which Kelrian had seen in the eyes of the other trolls. Nevertheless, was she a troll. It was in her nature to hurt others. Kelrian believed that but he was hoping she was different.

He had already seen enough death on that day so he closed his eyes. He heard the loud victory shouts of the trolls. He heard aggressive-sounding words which were shouted. He could only assume that these trolls were insulting them but he didn't care. He was a prisoner of the Amani trolls, there were much worse things they could do to him and Elena than insulting them.

He heard Elena's uncontrolled breaths and he could feel her hand in his. She was squeezing his hand as if she was hoping it would give her enough strength to not break out in tears. She didn't cry, she didn't even sob so Kelrian assumed that holding his hand helped her to stay calm.

He didn't know how long the dire troll had walked as the shouts of the other trolls became quieter and quieter. He opened his eyes, checking his surroundings. They were in some sort of a corridor which was not tall enough for the dire troll. He had to bend his back and lower his head so it wouldn't bump against the ceiling. He saw a few trolls in the corridor who cheered. The longer the dire troll walked, the fewer trolls they met. After a while, no troll encountered them anymore. They were the only ones who were in the corridor.

The woman stopped after a while in front of a door which was not large and wide enough for the dire troll. He put the net with Kelrian and Elena on the floor, looking at the blue-skinned woman. She said something to him. Something Kelrian and Elena didn't understand. The dire troll nodded at the red-haired woman and walked away.

Leth'al, who hadn't said anything while he had accompanied them, dragged the net into the room as soon as the woman had opened the door. Kelrian was not able to see much, but from what he recognized he assumed they were in some sort of a laboratory. There were a table and many shelves. On these shelves were numerous test tubes filled with different coloured liquids. Many glasses and other weird-looking items stood on the table.

On the left side of the room was a large cage. Leth'al dragged them into the cage and undid the net with a knife, which tip he pointed at them as soon as he had freed them. He signalized them that he wouldn't hesitate to hurt them if they tried anything.

The petite woman entered the room and put shackles around their hands and feet. Elena's leg cuffs were connected to the bars of the right rear corner of the cage. Kelrian's chain was connected to the opposite corner. He was sitting in the left corner near the entrance. The chains were not that short so both prisoners could crawl to the middle and sit next to each other but they didn't because they didn't want to upset one of the two trolls. They already were in trouble so they didn't want to cause more trouble by doing something the trolls didn't allow them.

Both elves remained in their corners and didn't look at their jailers. They looked at their feet, their legs were bent and pressed against their upper bodies. Numerous thoughts came in their minds. They thought about their families and friends, about their loved ones, about their people and about other people who were close to them.

They were depressed. They couldn't believe they had lost the battle. They had expected they would defeat the trolls but they hadn't expected that the orcs would come to the trolls' aid. Not only did they come but also did they bring deadly fire-breathing dragons with them. Nobody had expected that, not even the trolls.

Kelrian was still wondering how the orcs had managed to convince the dragons to join them. He had thought that the dragons were peace-loving creatures who only fought for the good side. He couldn't explain to himself why they were on the side of the logical explanation came in his mind which could justify that the dragons were siding with these murdering bastards. Maybe they had been forced to but who or what would be mighty enough to force creatures like dragons to fight for the orcs. Kelrian found no explanation and he was sure he wouldn't find any.

He lifted his head after a while, noticing that Leth'al was gone and the blue-skinned woman was standing in front of the table. She experimented with liquids which she mixed together with other ingredients. She was an alchemist. Kelrian was pretty sure about that.

At first sight, he had thought she was a shaman. Maybe she was that too. There were a lot of shamanic items and totems which could be found here and there inthe room. He had no clue who she was and what she was going to do to them.

He expected no good things. He was hoping that she wouldn't use them as test subjects for the potions she would brew. He looked at Elena, noticing that she was looking at him. Her face was very pale, her eyes reflected worry but no fear. He didn't know if she was not afraid or if she just didn't show it. But he had the impression that his presence calmed her down a little.

He had to admit that he felt calmer when she was around. He would prefer that he would be alone there and Elena wouldn't share his fate. He would also prefer that both of them would have gotten out of the fortress before the trolls would have caught them.

But he had to accept how things were. They were locked in a cell, not knowing if they would ever get out. They didn't even know if they would survive. They had no clue what this troll had planned for them. The chance, that they would get out alive, was pretty low but it existed. Maybe the Alliance would manage to deal with the orcs and their dragons and then they would come to free Elena and him. The chance for that was pretty low but it was not zero. The worst he could do was to lose hope. He had to stay positive and hope for the best.

He had to hold out and pray to the Sunwell that someone will come and rescue them one day. To achieve that he had to listen to the troll and obey her no matter what she wanted from them. But not only had he to do that. Elena had to obey too. He had no clue how Elena was seeing things. He had to tell her to do whatever the troll wanted from them.

He looked at the troll, noticing that she was still busy with the potion she was brewing in a large black cooking pot. Kelrian started to move slowly without making sounds. The chains and shackles didn't rattle when he moved so the alchemist didn't notice what he was doing. He came closer and closer until he sat next to Elena who had also come closer.

He leaned over, coming so close that his mouth almost touched her ear. "It doesn't seem that this troll wants to violate us. If we do whatever she wants from us, we might not be sexually abused by these green rapists. I rather want to be her test subject and drink every potion she brews than watch you getting violated by these bastards," he whispered.

"The worst that can happen is that one of these potions kills us or cause unbearable pain. But I rather chose that than getting dishonoured by trolls. We don't know what she is planning but I hope she leaves us here and doesn't give us to other trolls," she replied quietly.

"We can only hope that someone comes to free us or that we find a way to get free and escape somehow. Not all hope is lost."

Elena nodded at him. "Not all hope is lost," she repeated.

"As long as they don't ask us about military information which could give them an advantage, I will do whatever she wants from us. I won't betray our people but I want to live. So, I will do what she says as long as it doesn't result in our people suffering.

Kelrian didn't know how much time had passed when the female troll came to them and opened the cell door, placing two plates on the floor. She closed and locked the door, walking back to her table. Kelrian and Elena ignored the plates at first but then Kelrian crawled to the cell door and picked up the plates, returning with them to Elena. He put them between them and regarded them closely.

There was a raw piece of meat, a few pieces of bread and a half cucumber on each plate. There was a strange smell in the air but none of them had a clue why the food was smelling like that. It was not a disgusting smell but it wasn't pleasant either.

Kelrian feared that the troll might have poisoned the food. The first thought which came in his mind was that he shouldn't eat the food. On the other hand, he would starve to death if he wouldn't eat anything the troll would give him. If the food was poisoned, everything would end at least so they would no longer be the prisoners of the trolls. If the food was not poisoned, he will survive, so the chance that he would see Sylvanas again one day would still exist. That chance might be pretty low but it was not unlikely that the Alliance would find a way to deal with the dragons and defeat the trolls and orcs. He had to be optimistic if he wanted to survive the time he and Elena would be held there.

He would never go to see Sylvanas again if he would refuse to eat, so he had to accept the meals the troll woman would give them. He didn't trust her. He assumed that she did something to the food, maybe added one of her mixtures. Otherwise, he couldn't explain to himself why it smelled like that. But he realized they had no other choice than eating the food.

The two elves regarded the plates for a while. Kelrian was the one who did the first move and picked the piece of meat from his plate and took a bite. The meat was tough and tasted weird but it was not unpalatable. It was not easy to chew on but he managed to eat it with a lot of effort. Then he ate the pieces of bread and the cucumber. Elena had hesitated at first but then she took the first bite.

She had debated long if she should do what the troll wanted from her but then she had realized it wouldn't be wise to resist her if Kelrian would do the opposite. She hoped Kelrian was doing the right thing so she followed his example and did what he did. There weren't many other options for them. Either she obeyed the troll and probably served as her test subject or she resisted which wouldn't end well for her.

She trusted Kelrian. She loved him so she did what he would do. If they had to die then at least they could die together. Of course, she was hoping they would get out alive somehow but she didn't really believe that this would happen. Unlike her comrade, she was not an optimist. She assumed the worst which could happen would be that Kelrian would die. She didn't mind dying. She only hoped Kelrian would survive.

The two finished the meal eventually, turning their heads to look at the troll who was still experimenting. Kelrian noticed that Elena was holding his hands but he didn't say anything nor did he pull it away. He allowed her to hold his hand because he didn't know how much time they had left. They could be killed at any minute so he had to make the best out of the current situation. He didn't want to hurt Elena so he allowed her to intertwine their fingers, noticing that it made her a bit happier.

Kelrian didn't know how much time had passed when the troll came to the cage the next time. Minutes, hours or even days could have passed. The troll had left the room at least four times which could mean she could have slept in another room or did something there was no clock in the room, it was impossible to predict how long they had been locked up in this cage. He only knew that he was pretty hungry and thirsty.

The troll entered the cage, regarding her prisoners for a few moments before she handed them two small bottles which were filled with a pink liquid. The troll opened her mouth, starting to speak in the common language with a clearly hearable accent. "I give' ya somethin' ta eat if ya drink da potion in de bottles." Her voice was higher and sounded gentler than the voices of other female trolls.

She had a neutral expression on her face and her eyes didn't reflect hatred, disgust or any other negative feeling. She was the only troll the rangers had met so far who didn't seem to hate the high elves. At least she was not showing that she hated them. Kelrian had no clue what she thought about the races of the Alliance. He could only assume that she wouldn't be fond of them but he didn't notice any indicates which proved his assumption right.

"What if we don't drink your potion?" asked Elena, staring into the troll's yellow eyes.

"Den ya will starve ta death. Ya only get food if ya obey."

"What is this liquid?" the elf with the turquoise coloured hair asked.

The troll was silent.

A loud sigh escaped Elena's lips. She was about to say something but then she felt Kelrian's hand on her shoulder. She turned her head, looking at him. He gave her a nod, signalizing her to stop discussing with the troll. Elena frowned at first but then she nodded and looked back at the troll woman who regarded her curiously.

"At least tell us who you are," demanded Elena. She ignored the questioning look Kelrian was giving her. She didn't let go of Kelrian's hand as she continued to stare in the troll's eyes, signalizing her that she was not afraid of her. The corners of the troll's lips formed a small smile. She put her left hand on the right cheek of the brave elf, caressing it carefully. The troll's skin was warm but felt strange. Her three-fingered hand stroked her skin.

The troll stared into Elena's eyes who didn't avert her gaze. Kelrian was regarding the two females with a frown on his forehead. He was not sure what was going on there. If he wouldn't know it any better, he would say that the troll liked Elena. But she was a troll and Elena was a high elf. There was no way a troll would like a high elf, not to mention find her attractive. Kelrian could only assume he was imagining this. There was no explanation for what he was seeing in front of him.

He tilted his head a little as the troll averted her gaze and looked at Kelrian. "Ma name is Sen'za."

"So, Sen'za. What are you going to do to us and what is in this bottle?" he asked.

"I won't do ya any harm if ya do what I say. If not... Dis won't end well for ya ."

Kelrian nodded his head.

"An' stop askin' questions about what ma potions do. Just drink dem an' I will promise no otha troll will touch ya," she replied.

Kelrian exhaled loudly. "We will do it. I hope you will keep your promise."

Sen'za didn't reply to him. She just pointed at the potions, signalizing the elves to drink them. She drew a small book which was bound in leather from her belt. She opened it and walked to the small table next to the cage. There was an inkpot with a quill. She took the quill and pressed its tip against the paper, ready to note something. She lifted her gaze, giving the elves and expecting look.

"Wat are ya waitin' for? Drink it," the troll commanded, her voice sounded slightly annoyed.

Kelrian's gaze fell on Elena who gave him a nod and a small smile. He returned her nod and removed the stopper. The pink liquid had a sweetish smell. The taste was not different. It was very sweet and tasted good. Kelrian noticed that his skin started to tingle but other than that, nothing happened. It seemed that nothing in his appearance had changed because Sen'za didn't write anything down in her book.

He looked at Elena, noticing that nothing changed for her. He had no clue what they had just drunk. It could be poison or something else. He had no clue what it was nor did he know when the effect would occur. If it had an effect. Nothing notable had happened so far. Time passed. None of the three persons in the room knew how much time had passed.

Sen'za was still standing there, the quill's tip was still pressed against the paper. The troll woman was still looking at them but her neutral expression had changed over time. Her new facial expression reflected annoyance.

"Why is nothin' happenin'?" asked the troll loudly.

Kelrian assumed that the question was not directed at him or Elena so he remained silent while he looked at his friend who gave him a curious look.

Sen'za looked at the empty bottles then she looked at the elves, cursing under her breath. She shook her head, speaking to herself in her mother tongue. She started to walk circles in the cage,muttering something in the common language the humans, dwarves and high elves spoke to communicate with each other.

"Why does dis not work? I combined all de necessary ingredients in de right orda. Somethin' went wron' but wat?"

She stopped walking after a while. She stood in the middle of the cage and looked down at her prisoners. "It has ta work."

The elves remained silent.

Sen'za's thoughtful expression was replaced by a determined expression. "Maybe de notes are not complete. Maybe da catalyst is missin'. I can only hope dat it works if one of ya do de first step."

"What you mean?" A small amount of confusion was reflected by Kelrian's voice.

"I want ya ta kiss each otha," the troll responded.

Kelrian's and Elena's eyes widened. "What?" they asked in unison.

"Ya heard me correctly. Connect ya lips and kiss."