“So they are planning on taking the familiars and closing the bridge?”

“Yes, my Dark Underlord,” Usurna said. Her loyal guards would prevent anyone from getting in, but even so, she was nervous. After all, she was reporting the end of all of Gunmar’s dreams to him.

“Assist them,” Gunmar said. “Gather the impure and your own allies, but you will not strike until it is time.”

“When will that be?”

“When the humans have opened the bridge and crossed over.”

“But—why would they?”

“They will. They will have no choice,” Gunmar chuckled. “And they will leave the Odinson on the wrong side of the bridge. I will kill these… Avengers who enter my realm, and you will open the bridge that I might leave. If not that, then you will praise the ones who return, for they will in truth be working my will.”

“But… But the Odinson!”

“He is but one being, even if he is a god,” Gunmar said. “And your main goal will not be to simply strike him down but to slay all in Heartstone Trollmarket. Once you leave, you will tell all that the Trollhunter betrayed us, that he worked with the Odinson to slaughter all present…and with no other witnesses, save for those under my control…”

“I see. It will be as you command.” Usurna didn’t see. She didn’t know how he would get the Trollhunter into his realm, but it was not her place to question Gunmar.

And who knew? If she was lucky enough, she might be able to lay the body of Thor at his feet…

The first step was bringing in Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner’s equipment. Jim had warned Director Fury that even with the approval of the council, they probably wouldn’t want a lot of humans tromping around, and so the Director had only brought those who absolutely had to be there for the setup, with Trolls doing the heavy lifting.

Not that Director Fury was too trusting. It turned out that the aircraft carrier they were on could fly and was now hovering just south of Arcadia. Not only that, but teams were in the sewers, checking to make certain no remaining changelings were trying to get down that way.

They have a flying ship. Of course. Jim shook his head at that and watched as they set up the fetch directly in front of the Bridge. It was locked into a frame, immovable, and the place Claire would stand had been marked out.

“They will not forgive you, Trollhunter,” Angor told him. He’d just appeared behind him with that creepy stealth of his.

Jim didn’t jump like a little girl. He was exercising, and that was the story he’d keep with.

“As much as I would like to disagree, Master Jim, Angor is correct,” Blinky said. “You placed the council, and especially Usurna, on the spot, as it were.”

“Well, I promised.”

“And in two years, will you keep your promise?” Angor asked.

“Indeed, you could…” Blinky sounded more desperate. “Master Jim, you embarrassed Usurna, and she will not forget. These children are important, but you do not have to be a human sacrifice for them, especially since they will be safe. You could always…”

“If humans only obey Troll law when it suits them, then there will never be a real peace,” Jim quietly said. He grinned. “Besides, I still lasted longer than any thought.”

“Not I, M—Jim.” Blinky closed his eyes. “You have short enough a time on this earth. You should not throw it away.”

“But I’m not.” Jim tried to subdue the part of him that was gibbering about what might happen. “I’m doing what the Trollhunter is supposed to do—it’s for life, remember?”

“I have not been able to forget that since the first moment I saw you, Jim,” Blinky said. He patted him on the shoulder. “And I have not told you how proud I am nearly as often as I should.”

“Okay, kids, trolls, and heroes, we’re ready.” Mr. Stark gestured at the fetch. A rod of metal was sticking into it, the other side emerging into the Darklands. “Sensors show nobody is close to it right now, so Jarvis, unleash the horde.”

“Right away, sir,”

From boxes around the chamber, a positive cloud of whispering disks rose, the trolls around them stepping back. The tide poured into the fetch, somehow never getting in each other’s way.

“We’ve got telemetry,” Bruce said. Above him, a 3d map was projected, growing ever larger. “Weird gravity, but we’re compensating.”

“A map of the Darklands,” Blinky murmured. “Amazing.”

The map kept growing as everyone watched it. Claire was bouncing up and down. “C’mon, please…” she murmured. Jim and Toby went to her.

“They’ll find him,” Jim said. Claire didn’t say anything for a moment, then hugged Jim tightly.

“I hope so…” she whispered. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen him…”

“They’ll find him,” Toby repeated. “I mean, they’ve already done one thing that I thought was impossible.”

“What?”

“Vendel’s being polite.” Toby gestured to where Vendel and Nick Fury were in a deep conversation. Scarily enough, they’d hit it off.

“Ya—”

“Got human lifesigns,” Dr. Banner said, and abruptly a window opened, showing hundreds of babies in floating cribs… being tended to by goblins.

“Right.” Tony was all business. “Claire, get over here. We need to put out the beacon.”

Claire walked up, Angor next to her. “Remember, do not use anger. Use your purpose, Apprentice.”

“Right…” she murmured. “Get Enrique back.” She stared at the image from the drones, then at the fetch and pushed.

It took nearly a half minute, but the gate opened, and Tony sent the beacon through.

“I—I can feel the beacon!” Claire said. “I can hold the portal.”

“Good. Tell us if anything starts to change,” Tony said. “Jarvis? Baby carriages ready?”

“Yes, sir.”

Jim really wanted to know why Tony Stark had a bunch of hovering baby baskets lying around. Even he couldn’t build something that fast. Could he?”

“But first…” Stark said. “Some party favors for our goblin friends.” And with that, several slightly larger objects rose up on repulsors and flew through the gap.

Flying guns.

“Ready?” Tony asked.

“Yeah.” Claire closed her eyes and focused. “You’re coming home. You’re coming home today.”

And with that, the goblins suddenly were attacked. Bolts of concussive force, UV light, dazzlers striking them, while other drones linked together into cradles, picking up the giggling, cooing infants and rapidly moving them to the gateway Claire had projected via the fetch. One after another, each one was deposited into a crib that was then sent shooting up to the surface, where Barbara and a band of SHIELD medics awaited them.

Jim blinked. They even were playing… Lullabies?

They kept going, one after another, as Claire focused, the portal never wavering.

“Director, the helicarrier just reported—Stricklander has just lost his human form,” Black Widow said.

“So it’s working…” Hawkeye murmured.

“But where’s Enrique?” Claire asked. “We’re almost to the end…”

“There’s still a few more,” Tony said. “We can get him…”

But he wasn’t with any of them. Claire, without letting her concentration lapse, looked over at Dr. Banner. “Where is he?”

“No other—wait, there’s one now.” Dr. Banner looked puzzled. “It looked like it was being shielded. But how the hell…they didn’t know we were…”

“I know far more than you realize, fleshbag.” The voice was deep, not coming from the chamber but from the sensors of the drones. A great troll had appeared, walking out of a cavern that had just… appeared. “And it was easy enough to hide from your sensors, especially when I only needed to hide one infant fleshbag. His hand opened, and in it was Enrique. “This one. The newest one.”

“I’ve gotta—”

“No.” Angor put his hand on Claire’s shoulder. “You cannot maintain two portals at once. If you attempt to portal the child out, you will lose this link.”

“But I still have the fet—”

“It took you 30 seconds to establish a portal through the fetch,” Captain America said. “He’ll know the moment you try. We need to talk this out.”

Claire didn’t say anything, just held the staff, tears starting to pool in her eyes.

“So you have a child,” Fury said quietly. “We have the gateway, and once it’s destroyed…”

“I will have no reason to keep the child alive. I know the fleshbag sister is there. I know far more than you expected.”

“Seems we have some security leaks to plug,” Fury said.

“Do you know what it is like to devour an infant…” Gunmar rumbled, and Jim realized that he wasn’t talking to anyone other than Claire. “They squall, in terror and later in pain, perhaps thinking their parents or their sister can protect them. But they never do. I had taken their offspring. They. Never. Even. Noticed. You never noticed, and when you did, you trusted in the Trollhunter. He promised you to return your brother, and yet here we are.”

“And what does that gain you?” Fury asked.

“Maybe nothing, save to forever taint your victory.” Gunmar smiled. “If you are holding me here, forever, what else do I have to lose… Unless you were to give the fetches to the order and release them. After all, they can no longer do you harm.”

“That’s not going to happen.” Fury said.

“He’s going to kill him, he’s going to kill him…” Claire held the staff as steady as a rock, but her legs had gone out from under her, leaving her sprawled in her position, eyes wide, tears spilling down her cheeks. Jim took her by one arm, Toby by the other, trying to hold her. Jim could feel her violent trembling as Claire stared at the image on the monitor, of her brother in Gunmar’s hand, the talons curving up around him like a cage.

“Then I have nothing—”

“Yes, you do!” Jim shouted. “You have everything to lose.”

“And what do I have to lose?” Gunmar asked.

“Your respect—Gunmar the Black, the troll who killed a child and yet was too afraid to face the murderer of his son!” Jim let Toby hold Clair as he stood up, calling Daylight to him.

“It’ll be okay, Claire. It’ll be okay,” Toby was repeating. Behind him, Blinky was standing, four arms clenched, fury on his face as he stared at Gunmar’s image.

“If you hurt Enrique, you’re right. We can’t stop you,” Jim said. “But I’ll efface every memory of you until everyone, troll, and human knows you as a terrified coward that hides to this day. Human children will have Gunmar the Cowardly dolls that they play with.”

“You dare!” Gunmar growled, and the hand he held Enrique in twitched. Jim heard a terrified whimper from Claire.

“I dare because your first demand wasn’t that I face you. Is vengeance for your son worth so little?”

“You wish me to be—”

“Gunmar the Black. I, Jim Lake Junior, Son of Barbara Lake, Trollhunter, Bular Slayer, challenge you. I will enter the Darklands, and there we will fight, after you give Claire’s brother back.” A tiny part of Jim was gibbering, but it had been beaten into silence by his sheer, incandescent rage. Gunmar was no different from any other bully, someone who took joy in who he could hurt.

And Jim hated bullies.

“And when we fight, I will end you.”