.

..

He was going to die, and the little troll, now a grown young adult troll, knew it.

During his life, he had experienced lots of obstacles. These things had broke part of him, deeply, some sharp pieces has even fell into the darkest of the abyss of his own self... but with someone who understood him, someone who had experienced the same pain, he had believed that he had his place by his sides. That he had found a family.

Why did he always have to have his family taken away from him? Mom was gone, Dad too, even Grandma.. Everything was his fault.

It was when this troll adopted him that he felt trully alive again. They were a family. He had grown up alongside this old man; He had taken so many things from him! Whether it's how to hold a fork or how to create a super sophisticated underground bunker to protect himself from unknown dangers... He owed him everything. Without him, he wouldn't even be alive, or even feel his muscles hurting and sweat on his forehead as he sprinted to the hospital at full speed.

It was the first time the gray troll entered an hospital. The scent of medicinal plants slightly irritated his eyes, which were already filled with tears. As a young teenager, he was stoped by an adult, a doctor working there;

- What are you doing here? Are you lost ?

- I'm looking for Pops, he whispered, panicked, I was called, I was told he was not g-going well...

The doctor fortunately understood and led him to a room, leaving him alone. The teenager threw himself on his best friend's body lying on the hospital bed, tears flowing abundantly down his cheeks as he hugged him;

- Pops ! Are you okay?? Is your lung doing okay !? What's going on ??

The old troll took his hand in his, reassuring the young troll in front of him. He was tired, fighting the disease for several months now... seeing his young friend at his last moment was a blessing. After all... it was a miracle that life granted him to love again, this troll in front of him was a miracle. This gave him the strength to smile. To feel happy again, even at his last moments.

- Son... I'm so happy to see you here with me... he whispered in a hoarse voice.

So broken and weak, his hand clung to his fingers trembling and so fragile;

- P-Please, don't let go... I need you!

- My boy... listen to me.

He looked up at him, the tears did not stop.

- P-Please... please don't...

- I have to... I have to leave... you brought me happiness, I wil never thank you enough for that... and I want you to promise me something ...

He was cold, he was shaking.

- What is it?

- My boy... you are a full grown man now, look how you grew up... promise me, promise me that you will continue to grow.

The emotion were taking over him, his heart could have let go of him because of how much in pain he was in the moment. Could he continue to grow? Life would be so dark without anyone by his side...

- I-I'm not sure I would be able to do it without you...

- I know you'll be able to... don't hide, live. You, I know, you, I know that you can find happiness, you just have to keep growing....

He pressed his cold hand against his son's warm chest, a last sigh of happiness left his lips seeing how this once little troll hiding under a mushroom in the storm had grown. It was with this feeling of great pride that the magnificent journey he had lived had come to an end.

His hand slipped, and with it, another piece of debris from the teenager's heart.

He had come out of the hospital room in tears that day. It was the first time she had seen him cry.

- Are you okay?...

- I don't need your pity, Princess !

<< ~ × ~ >>

Let's go back to the village, a few hours earlier, before our two companions were attacked furiously by many, violent grossums hungry for blood anf flesh... You know when Barb found out what happened to our two favorite trolls fighting for their lifes?

She was frozen like a block of ice in front of the tube of glue that was spinning in the current, her eyes wide as plates. On the edge of the cliff, the red-haired troll could clearly see fingerprints and pink hair in the dirt. It was not the traces of a battle, but of a troll who had desperately been clinging to life with certainly one weight in addition to her own. She had understood in a few seconds the truth of what had happened before her coming; her friend and the silence troll had fallen into the crazy river by accident, and had now disappeared into the rapids.

Her breath was already doubling in speed, panicked and she even felt slight nauseated; Poppy or Branch had surely get too close to the cliff for some reason she wasn't aware of, and somehow the ground had fallen in pieces under their feet, leading them to possible drowning... But they weren't necessarily dead, were they? There was still hope! Perhaps they had survived the current. She had to cling to the idea that they were still alive, just like her friend who was hanging, desperate, to that cliff edge earlier.

The queen of rock did not stay a second longer to do nothing and ran by herself towards the visibly less dangerous side of the river; the quiet part where the two trolls had not had the chance to be taken away, that, she did not know.

- POPPY!! BRANCH!! Barb carried her hands as a megaphone near her mouth, screaming the names of the two missing, GUYS!! WHERE ARE YOU, ANSWER ME!!

She was looking, looking, looking... Behind the trees, bushes, gigantic rocks near the shore and even in the forest near the beach of white sand. Not a single footprint, no blood stain, drop of water, not even a sign of a passage of a living creature except for some turtles.

- Squeeeek ? A little turtle with an adorable look leaned his head to the side when he saw a rock troll on his beach... Strange.

The more the minutes passed, the more panic was floating on the young queen. She didn't even take the time to ask the turtles for help and went back to the other side of the river, to where Branch and Poppy had last been seen. Her hands were feeling sweaty, and the sun was dazzling her. She wanted to chase away the light by carrying her hand as a cap above her eyes, only to feel something wet on her cheek... No! No question of being vulnerable and showing her panic! Branch and Poppy needed her to be strong, worthy of her crown, damn it!

She pressed the pace, returning to the point where the river was separated in two sections... She soon arrived at the place where wooden planks were placed on the floor. She grabbed a random object on the table to keep her hands busy; It was at this moment that Barb noticed the rapids that intensified a few meters away... Less than a doubt, if by some miracle his companions had survived, they had not escaped serious injuries.

It would therefore need an emergency team. She could not save them alone; trolls should team up to find them.

Well.... let's say she got the message to her communauty pretty loudly.

- GUYSSSSSS !!!!!

The young queen of rock was running at full speed to the joyful and unconscious village of Trollstopia, her heart pounding; the sun was still up high in the sky, showing well the sweat on her forehead; she was stressed, terrified now and her whole body could prove it. Her thoughts had caught up with her... If Branch and Poppy had fell into the river who knows what injuries they must be suffering of!! After all the older leaders and Branch himself had mentioned how much a current like this had the strength to drown even a techno troll in its natural element!! What will happen to two trolls who had no opportunity to breathe underwater???

In the village, they were preparing Flowers Day which would take place in a few days. The pods were delicately placed on the branches of the trees, well at the sight of the rays of the warm yellow sun. It was a complicated task; you couldn't place just any flower in any place! Some species would not be able to grow side by side or needed more sunlight or water than others. It was also necessary to make sure that their combined colors in the end would be pretty! The trolls wanted the show to be out of the ordinary.

The peace was disturbed by the young queen who arrived screaming, out of breath and frightened. They, who thought that a rock troll was the perfect example of indifference and the heart of volcano stone, seeing their queen herself arrive in panic was a rather destabilizing shock.

- THEY NEED OUR HELP! She was screaming non-stop., Where are the other leaders?? She shouted to every troll she met, Our friends are in danger!!

- Barb!

Fortunately for her, King Trollex and DeltaDawn were the first to make their way through the crowd of trolls that was gathering around her, without daring to cross the barrier of terror that her soul had formed around her. The king of techno trolls had not hesitated to hug her to calm her down as Delta tried to calm her panic attack;

- Barb, name me 5 things you can see, girl.... 5 things you can see!

- I-I'm alright! I d-don't need your help! Barb was trying to push off Delta, They do!!

- Why are you looking at her like that?? Go get the other leaders, she asked to see us ! Trollex frowned at the trolls who surrounded them with fish faces, protecting her friend from the judgment she was undergoing.

Only a young classical troll went to look for the rest of the team that led them at the clear order of King Trollex. The mertroll and the centaur were trying to understand in all this chaos what had been able to put the young queen normally so strong and proud in this state... It was a noticeble first time.

- Hey! Stop judging her bunch of idiots! A familiar voice defended her.

It was Carol, just the presence of the girl reassured Barb.

It was when the other tribes leaders arrived that the red-haired lilac troll regained some control of herself... King Quincy, king of Funk, was leaning towards the band that has formed with concern;

- What's going on here? He asked kindly.

- I have no idea, King Peppy had admitted, Barbara, explain to us what happened, will you?

How could she tell her friend's father that his daughter may have died drowning? Barb shook her head in fear, which worried the group even more;

- Barb? Essence insisted.

...

-... I-It's Poppy and Branch! They fell in the crazy river !

Words flew over the crowd with huge worries... Their princess was in danger?? Dead perhaps? Panic was spreading at the speed of the rapids that had taken away their friend. Quincy had to recall for order;

- Enough! It's enough, come on ! No reason to let go of your horses !! ... Without wanting to offend you, Mayor DeltaDawn.

- Meh, I don't mind, the mayor shrugged, not even upset.

Trollzart exchanged a nervous look with Trollex. Quincy turned again to Barb who was taking a deep breath to be able to explain, trying to control her panic all by herself. King Peppy didn't seem to believe it, staring at the void trembling.... The old King Thrash had the strength to squeeze his hand, understanding his fear.

- My Poppy.... He whispered, desesperated

- Can you elaborate more clearly? The King of Funk asked.

Barb gave a sorry look at the pink troll's father and continued her story.

- I went at the place where Branch had installed his construction equipment for the barage... She pointed to the object she had taken from the table of the grumpy troll (Prince D had snapped it away from her hands in a few seconds to observe it more closely) and then I had a bad feeling... There was no one, my dude! Not the trace of a critter and all I found was traces on the edge of the cliff and scrapbooking material in the river...

Everyone gasped quietly, worried.

- I-I'm pretty sure that... That.... She tried to finish her sentence....

-... BRANCH PUSHED HER IN!!!

A country troll had not hesitated to accuse the gray troll of such an act. He seemed to be calm, while being angry... A frightening expression I assure you.

- Nonono... Queen Barb is just exagerating! A rock troll laughed, She's trying teach us the bad example.

- What?? Why would she lie about that?? He classical troll replicated, She's your queen, how dare you!

- What if Poppy stomped on Branch cause of how he stomped on her invitations ?

- What?? How can you stomp on that big grumpy guy??

- Maybe they just went fuck in the woods ya know-

- Poppy is actually a sea monster and she killed the gray freak!! Oh wait she ain't a techno troll-

- WHAT DID YOU JUST CALLED ME YOU LITTLE SH-

- Branch is actually a trollagon.

- WHAT.

- NO WAY!! BRANCH IS KEEPING HER IN HIS FUNNY ROOM WE GOTTA SAVE HER!!

The discussion was becoming a huge and uncontrollable useless argument about what really happened to Branch and Poppy. It didn't help Barb feel better... Of course she was responsible for this panic, what kind of queen was she?? She just wanted to help Poppy and Branch but she was so panicked and frightened, so much short of ways and words that she was not even able to reassure the trolls who crushed her under the weight of their words, she had lost all her confidence... With shame, she hid her face in both hands. The other leaders were trying as best they could to stop the growing panic.

- OKAY ENOUGH!!!

Barb was suddenly carried away towards Carol who had just screamed at everyone to be silent. The rocker had grabbed her queen's hand to reassure her, Barb blushed slightly, surprised by her friend's gesture;

- She just told you that our friends are in danger and all you do is argue?? What are you waiting for?? Prepare research teams!! Anything, they need us!

Finally there was a little more order and the leaders of music took in hand the formation of many research teams, applied to different areas of the big forest of Trollstopia to find the missing duo. Carol turned to Barb with concern;

- Are you okay? I've never seen you like that before...

Embarrassed, Barb let go of her hand;

- Uhm... Yeah sure, totally fine, she assured, You didn't have to do that, it's not your role...

- Even the most awesome troll can't do everything on her own, Carol patted her back to tease her, Don't worry, girl, we're going to find Poppy and your brother.

Barb couldn't help but make the most stupid laugh in the world has her taste in front of her best friend, covering her nose that had just made a pig's sound, Carol raised an eyebrow, amused;

- Oh you heard the rumor? Barb felt completely stupid, Branch is not my brother, she confirmed to Carol.

- You could have told me that earlier! Carol laughed, I thought he was serious with his story of a 'guitar plug in the bottom of the earth's crust' !

The two young women laughed together... A simple moment with this troll was enough to calm her down... It's true! Most of the time she would offer her cheese in cane but Carol could be a real heart to confess deep thoughts and feelings to. Barb had known Carol for a few years but there had always been something more they shared... they couldn't put their finger on it, but Carol had this talent to make her feel better, and it was reciprocal.

- ...

- Hey Barb ? Prince D came to cut off their moment, look at that...

The two rock trolls turned to Darnell, who was still holding the object that Barb had taken away with her in her panic; a blue remote control with an antenna that the troll with the giraffe body had just put back in place. The machine made a strange noise, flashing alertly. Barb raised an eyebrow curiously;

- What is so important about it?

It was just a broken remote control... Branch was right. No one would realize its value, right?

- I believe that with this look, this remote control belonged to a funk troll ship, the prince explained against all expectations, some pieces of it for sure I would say... if you found it on Branch's table it is possible that... it's a theory.... it has a Branch hand made tracking system.

That's it !! There was their solution ! Maybe an object that at first glance wasn't so special could in fact play a big role! Appearances could be missreaded after all.

- Do you think?? Is there a way to make him show the right direction? Carol asked.

- If we connect it to the main ship it will be able to give us the exact point on a map, their friend explained to them, And possibly, this little wonder will be able to show us Branch and Poppy's localisation !!

- YES !! The two rock trolls screamed their victory, jumping in joy.

But it was when a big drop of rain crashed into Barb's pointy nose. The trolls who were around raised their eyes to the sky with concern... Having lived in the forest all their lives, they knew that rain that was beginning to fall, while the sun was shining a few minutes earlier, was not a good sign. Not a good sign at all.

- Oh what now?? Barb got annoyed, scared a bit even though she didn't show it as Darnell looked at some weird funk technology.

- Oh no.... He murmured when his machine started to make loud beeping sounds.

A storm was coming.

A HUGE storm.

In fact storm wasn't the good word.

.... a hurricane would be the appropriate word.