Human at birth, troll by design. Destiny had a sense of humour and made her something else.

Habel is beyond excited. She has reached her changing day. Turning twenty-one brings new life, new responsibilities, and a new body. She will finally be a full-fledged member of her community—a troll.

Since the great cataclysm, every person was born in human form and transformed into their adult form the day they turned twenty-one. Habel is no different. She was born to a set of troll parents, raised in troll society, and watched her siblings transform from unchanged to trolls.

Tonight it is her turn, but while she transforms, things do not go precisely to plan.

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Born Human Part 1

Copyright © 2020 by Viola Grace

ISBN: 978-1-989892-50-3

©Cover art by Angela Waters

All rights reserved. With the exception of review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the express permission of the publisher.

Published by Viola Grace

Look for me online at violagrace.com.

Born Human Part 1

Habel Trollblood Book 1

By

Viola Grace

Part One: Trollblood

Habel ran across the rooftops with her siblings and the other unchanged. Her fingers couldn’t dig into the tile like Vanel’s and Miiba’s could, but she kept up. Racing the dawn was an ancient right of passage for those who were going to change. Habel would be able to see one more sunrise without protective gear.

She jumped from one roof to the next in their settlement, landing as lightly as she could. The sky was going from midnight blue with stars to a pale purple as they ran, and then, they reached the outcropping that overlooked the ravine where the empty track twisted through.

Habel stood with her family and the others she had grown up with, watching the dawn approach. “Last morning.”

Vanel smiled. “It is. Last time you will be able to see it with your own eyes. Tomorrow you will be a member of the community with all that goes with it.”

Miiba muttered behind her lower fangs, “You can finally help me with the trading station properly.”

Habel laughed. “As opposed to me moving all the shipments into place during daylight? Fine. You get to watch me work from now on.”

Vanel snorted. “Miiba, she is going to be Korwin’s apprentice, not yours. You don’t have a right to control her work hours or habits.”

Miiba huffed. “I am the eldest. I have a say in what she does or doesn’t do.”

Habel grinned and kept her gaze fixed on the horizon, watching the colour change. “I will deal with it when we figure out what kind of troll I will become.” She stretched out her hand toward the coming dawn, and Vanel extended his wide, claw-tipped hand next to hers. Miiba sighed, and she did the same; her slender, blade-tipped hand looked huge next to Habel’s human digits.

The light brightened, and she saw their hands waver. She sighed. “Go on, I will meet you back inside. Get to shelter.”

Miiba nodded and left her, but Vanel remained next to her with his protective lenses in place until his skin was feeling the effect of his skin crackling.

Habel smiled. “Easy, Vanel. I can do this. It is my last morning. I need to think about what is going to happen tonight.”

“You are a strong one, Habel; I bet you end up in controlling class.” Vanel put a hand on her shoulder.

“I will kick your ass into the shelter, so yeah, I am feeling controlling. You are powdering up. Go.” She waved her hands at her brother, clasped the hand he held out to her, and then turned back to the sunrise.

She looked to the sides, and there were only two unchanged left with her, but they covered their eyes and turned back toward the shelter when the light got too intense.

Habel stood in the blaze of light and let it wash over her, her face tilted toward the sun. If this was her last dawn with her skin feeling the heat, she wanted to feel all of it. Making sure that she was alone, she took her boiler suit off and stood naked in the daylight, her last day as a human.

Today she was twenty, tonight she would be twenty-one, and as happened across the globe, she would transform into the magical creature that she was meant to be. If she wasn’t a troll—and she hoped she was—she wished to become a goblin or giant. She already knew the languages of all the creatures who walked in the darkness, had friends in both nearby communities, and was familiar with their social structures.

The sun touched her, and she felt the warming on her skin until the rays were starting to sting a bit on the chalky bronze of her body. She got dressed again, laced up her boots, and walked to the shelter. Everyone was gone. She headed down the steps into the darkness and entered the tunnels. Her skin still smelled like sunlight as she walked the concrete corridors where her people were winding down for the day.

It took her half an hour to jog through the main corridor to the area owned and run by her family. The preparations were already underway for the ceremony, and her mother looked at her with a sleepy smile. “How was the morning greeting?”

Habel smiled. “I am going to miss that.”

Her mother came up to her, all four of her tusks gleaming with the silver bands on the lower ones denoting her status of matriarch. She snuffled at Habel’s neck and sighed. “I love the smell of sunlight.”

“I know. It will be kind of sad that I can’t deliver it to you again.”

Haladen lifted her head and ruffled her hair. “I am glad I could smell it this last time.”

Habel smiled back. “Love you, Mom. Now go to bed. I will work on the final arrangements and the snacks.”

“These are formal feast items that are considered lucky for those who are here to witness your transformation.”

Habel grinned. “Whatever. You look exhausted. Have a nap; I will wake you in five hours so you can pretend you did all the cooking.”

Her mother folded her in a careful hug. “That’s my girl. Don’t forget to meditate during your preparations.”

“I won’t. Now, shoo.”

Her mother lumbered off to her chamber, where Habel’s father was probably already snoring. It was a good thing that the sound put his wife to sleep like a lullaby.

Habel looked around, made a mental list, and got to work on the preparations and decorations for her transformation day. She was the only one awake during the daylight hours and didn’t sleep much in the evening. This was when she got things done.

Her mother looked her over and smiled. “There should be plenty of room for you to grow in this. Are the laces loose enough?”

Habel looked at herself in the mirror. “They are fine.”

“How about your braids. Too tight?”

Habel took her mother’s hands and held them away from her head. “They are fine. Plenty of room if my skull expands. I am fine, Mom. Go and sit down with the others. I will be in when I am summoned.”

Haladen sighed. “You look lovely. When your skin greys over, you will look beautiful.”

“I hope so, but I could never be as lovely as you, Mom.” Habel smiled and squeezed her mother’s hands.

Haladen pressed a kiss to her forehead and then left. Habel was alone to wait until the hour of her birth.

She looked at herself in the mirror and lifted her arms. The panels of leather that covered her were laced at the sides for concealment, but they were threaded in such a way that when she gained her full size, they would fit her comfortably. Right now, she looked like a child playing dress-up, which she was. She held her arms out and twirled, the long laces spinning out as she moved. The two braids that held her hair off her face were the ones that she had watched Miiba wear when she was younger. Vanel’s hair had been braided into the traditional crest.

She had watched both of her siblings go from the dusty brown skin that they had been born with to the glorious metallic grey that her family was known for. She was looking forward to her moment and her change.

Habel stood and pressed her palms together, humming softly to focus herself. She had been doing it all afternoon when the excitement got too intense. She had half an hour to herself before the chanting and summoning started.

She hummed and started dancing, stepping, and twisting to the music in her mind. Her sister said it was weird, but her sister was out in the ritual area with all of the others. Her dance was her own.

When her body was warm and her humming had stilled, she heard the chanting start. It was time.

She pushed her hair back over her shoulders, stood straight, and walked out of the preparation room and into the chamber filled with friends, family, and her upcoming community. It seemed that everybody had shown up tonight.

Habel moved toward the spot that had been marked by generations of her people. Seven hundred years of trolls had gone from human to night dwellers on this spot. Her mother stood with her chief’s frown and the metal staff studded with gems that was her right and mark of responsibility. “Habel, are you ready to complete the change as all who are born to this world complete the change?”

Habel smiled and nodded. “I am.”

“Will you abide by the form that the fates have given to you and live in the ways and customs of that new form?”

“I will.”

“Are you prepared to become a citizen of this world?” Haladen smiled.

“I am.”

“Then, as this is your twenty-first year, accept the judgment of the fates, and take on your new form.”

Her mother raised the staff and brought it down on the floor precisely. A string of light moved from the impact point of the staff to the groove under Habel’s feet. The ground warmed up, and she stood with her back straight as the spark lit the fire, and the fire consumed her soul. Her humanity was gone in a roar of flames, and all that was left was light.

The cries of distress got her attention, and Habel looked down at her hands, looking for the claws. Glowing pearl skin and elegant hands were all that she could see. Her body was still small, her feet were delicate and pale, her entire body was still human-shaped. What the hell?

She looked to her mother, and Haladen was turned away. Tears formed. Her mother had turned in disgust. A second later, her mother had swathed her in a cloak and lifted her in her arms. “Come on, Habel. It isn’t safe for you here.”

Being carried like an infant wasn’t something she was used to. Still, there were shouts that sounded angry as her mother sprinted through the halls and flipped her over her shoulder to climb the ladder to the surface. Once they were at the surface, her mother cradled her again and ran for an unused portion of the settlement. She was running for access to the rail system.

“Mom, what is happening?”

“You are not a troll, baby.”

Habel nodded and swallowed. “What am I?”

“Something else. You are definitely something else.” Her mother was moving with slightly hesitant steps, but she got them into the shed that had a door that opened onto the monorail track.

Once inside the shed, her mother set her on her feet. Habel pulled the cloak back, and her mother gasped.

“I have heard about people with eyes like those. I never thought to see one in my lifetime. Habel, you have to touch that switch.” Haladen whispered, “Now.”

Habel turned and grabbed the switch that her mother was referring to. At her touch, it started to glow, and the energy charged the room they were in.

“What is happening?”

“We are now locked in until they come for you. Our people will not be able to come in, but I can’t get out. It’s a good thing that I never made it to the buffet.” Haladen chuckled.

Habel pulled the cloak around her to hide her glow from her mother’s sensitive eyes. “I am sorry that you don’t even have goggles.”

“Oh, Habel. Don’t be sorry. I just had to get you out of there before the xenophobia took over. The glow is awkward, but you are just as beautiful as I imagined you would be, just in a very different way. Your eyes are rainbows, dearest.”

Habel touched her cheek. “I feel really pale.”

“Touch your ears.”

She slid her fingers to her ears, and she found points. She laughed. “That is right, at least. They are not as big as I would like, but they are pointed.”

“You are an elf, sweetie. You are taller than you were by about a foot. Almost a respectable height. Your skin is iridescent to repel radiation, your eyes can see on a multitude of spectrums, your ears can hear for miles, and you will never age from this day onward.” Haladen smiled. “Or so the legends say. No one here has seen an elf for ages.”

Shouts were coming from the top of the ramp. “Mom, why are they coming after me if I am leaving?”

“They want to hold you for ransom. Once the elders saw what you were, they knew that they could hold you for ransom. The elves would pay any price to have another of their kind. They don’t breed, so the changed are all they have.”

The shouting was irritating Habel. She was trying to have a conversation with her mother, and they were interfering. How dare they?

Habel went to the glowing door, and she touched it, stroking the wood softly and asking it for a moment.

Her mother yelled, “Habel, no!” but it was too late. Habel was outside and looking up at the people who should have been her community.

She spoke softly, but the tone reverberated to those she talked to. “Why are you here?”

Her uncle Cornadon looked at her with his lip curled. “They will not take you unless they pay.”

She cocked her head. “I am a citizen now, protected by the laws of this place. Were you not at the ceremony?” She removed her cloak and set it aside.

“It doesn’t count for those like you!” He roared.

She looked at him and whispered, “Hush!” The blast of sound knocked him back into the rest of the crowd.

She looked them over and spoke calmly. “Tonight is my last night with my people. With my mother. You would turn it into something twisted and violent? I don’t think you understand what I have changed into. I am not a new troll; I am the dawn.”

The fire that had been pushing at her veins burst through her skin in bolts of light that blinded her relatives and knocked them back. She counted to five, and then, she pulled the light inward again. With a smile to the only one who had been wise enough to cover his eyes, she waved farewell to her brother and returned to the building where her mother waited.

She was leaning against her mother’s shoulder, her body completely covered by the cloak again, when she heard a hum coming from the distance. “The train is coming for me.”

“I know. Thank you for letting me stay with you.”

Habel smiled. “I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else. Well, maybe Vanel but not Miiba. She would have whined through the whole thing.”

Haladen nodded. “Did you hurt them?”

“Well, I am sure that it hurt, but they will recover. Uncle sure looked surprised when I used sound on him.”

Her mother chuckled. “That is because you aren’t supposed to be able to. It is a troll gift, not one that anyone has heard of in an elf.”

“Oh. That explains the surprise. Well, they all got a bit of a tan, and Vanel was there to see me off.”

The sound was getting closer. It was a whirring hum that was moving quickly. Habel asked, “So, what are you going to do without me?”

Her mother hugged her close. “I will be bereft, but I will continue on. I will also console your father. He is going to miss you.”

“I know. I am going to miss all of you.”

Her mother whispered, “Not for long. They will take your memories the moment that you arrive. I am very glad that I had this time with you, though. It will give me some brightness to the darkest nights. I will consider you my favourite star, Habel.”

Habel smiled. “And I will consider you my mother night for as long as I can.” She gave her mother a huge hug and was nearly crushed in return. The humming grew louder and ceased. Her ride was here.

She looked toward the door as it opened with a hiss. A bright figure stepped out, and in a commanding tone, he said, “Unhand the one of my kind, troll.” He sent out a dazzling burst of light.

Habel squeezed her mother. “Eyes closed and don’t interfere.”

Her mother nodded, kissed her forehead, and let her go.

Habel got to her feet just as the other elf stepped forward, his hand out to grab her. He paused, and she kicked his feet out from under him, sending him to the floor with a thud.

She calmly removed the cloak and placed it in her mother’s lap.

“Now, elf, might I remind you that you were speaking to a woman and her child. Use some fucking manners.” She stood over him, and he stared up at her before getting lithely to his feet.

“You are not going to arrive wearing those skins.”

She looked at his sneer, unlaced her clothing, and folded it, setting it on the floor. “Goodbye, Mom.”

As she walked out of the chamber, she asked the elf, “Are you going to get the goddamn lead out, or are you going to stare at my ass all day?”

She heard her mother’s laugh as she sashayed into the monorail capsule. Her companion stomped into the chamber after her, and he slammed his hand against a patch on the wall. The door closed, and she watched the troll settlement disappear in a matter of heartbeats.

Habel looked at her companion, but he was digging through a box that was fixed to the front of the compartment. He pulled out a long swath of fabric that was nearly transparent. It was saved from that fate by a lot of embroidery.

“Put this on.”

She frowned and took the embroidered silk. “No.”

“What?”

“I said no. There is supposed to be another layer under this to keep the skin from getting scratched by the embroidery. May I look?”

He frowned and then stepped aside. She found the piece she had been looking for in a few seconds. The small square of silk unfolded into a flaring chemise. “There we go.”

She slipped the underlayer on and then the overlayer on top. He was staring at her.

He cleared his throat. “How did you do that?”

“I have siblings. Fighting is a normal instinct when dealing with them. I am Habel, by the way.” She smiled and took a seat on one of the four chairs in the compartment.

“Artuan. You are Habel for this journey. You will be renamed when you arrive at the tower.”

“I know. My mother told me. She also said that I will lose my memories of my home.”

Artuan smiled. “You will have a new home with beauty and grace. The tower is exquisite and has withstood a thousand years since the cataclysm that shattered humanity.”

“We know about that, too, you know. Trolls know where we came from. That is why we are all born human. The world rewrites us to her purpose.”

Artuan was staring at her in shock. “Yes, she does.”

“How long have you been at the tower?”

“Six hundred years. You are the first call I have had in quite a while.” He sat across from her, and he cocked his head. “I do not recall a collection quite like this. Was that really your mother?”

“Of course. She is our clan leader as well. She was my hero, my companion, my counsellor, and a great cook. She has three children—two daughters and a son. I was the youngest child of Haladen. I am the youngest child of Haladen.”

He said softly, “Are you trying to tell me or remind yourself?”

She looked at him calmly with her hands folded in her lap. “Both.”

He laughed. “Fair enough. Well, we have a journey that will take a few hours. May I offer you some water or some food?”

“Both would be welcome. I missed my transformation party... for some reason.”

He nodded and told her about some of the beautiful sights she would see when they arrived at the tower. She watched as the green expanses passed the sides of their vehicle, and she wondered where the tower actually was. How far could they go in just a few hours, and would she ever find her way home?

The food had been good. It wasn’t to a troll’s taste, but her new body decided that she liked the bright acidic flavours of the fruits and vegetables.

She looked at him and cocked her head at his dark crimson locks. She held up a handful of blue hair. “Why did this happen?”

He smiled. “You transformed. You changed; you just didn’t remain a troll. Elves wear all the colours in nature. You are wearing the colours of the sky. Your eyes are also remarkable. It seems like you won’t have a problem harnessing your light.”

She paused. “Um, my what?”

“The light. The power that we unharness in times of need. It is the power that all elves can summon to various extents.”

Habel nodded. “Oh. That. Yeah, I think my mom mentioned that.”

“Did she? How odd. I didn’t think anyone outside of our community was aware of it.” Artuan smiled slightly.

“Well, my mother is chief, and she reads. She reads everything and has access to a lot of records and documents that others don’t.” Habel didn’t want to tell him that she had already found her voice and her light. Men weren’t generally fans of surprises, and strange men she couldn’t get away from were something she wanted to avoid irritating.

She chose a distracting tactic. “How long did it take you to get to the settlement?”

“From the time the chime rang out, it was two hours until the pod was outfitted to travel and then three hours to reach the settlement. We will be at the tower in under an hour.”

Habel nodded. “Thank you. How often do you head out to pick up new elves?”

He blinked. “You are the first one in over a hundred years.”

She stared.

Artuan smiled. “You will be addressed as Novice when your mind has been blanked. Your memories of your past life will be stored in our archive for safekeeping. You will be taken to your quarters, and after you have rested, your training to join our community will begin.”

Habel smiled and looked through the windows as dawn raced them to the spire that she could see in the distance. That had to be the tower. The beacon of light blazing from the top kind of gave it away.

“So, I just have to forget who I am and where I am from?”

Artuan nodded. “Just as all of us had to give up our pasts to embrace our future. You will be cared for. No one will take advantage of your state as a novice. You will be with your people now. You will be safe to learn and flourish.”

“As long as I forget who I am.”

“Correct. Ties to the rest of the world will only hold you back. Think of it as a fresh start.”

She watched the compartment they were in slow as they approached some kind of station. A large crowd was assembled, and they looked like a field of flowers. Hair in every colour in the rainbow was present. They stood together in small groups, and their clothing was graceful and vivid. Flowing lines and elegant gowns. Graceful tunics and high boots with some kind of legging for the men. It was almost a caricature of sexual dimorphism. The men looked like men and the women like women. Whatever had shaped them had used the same stamp.

A man and woman waited nearest the pod as it slowed to a halt. The woman carried an orb in her hands, and the man waited with his hands folded.

Habel ran her hands down her dress and got to her feet. Artuan smiled and held out his hand.

“What am I supposed to do?”

“Put your hand in mine or place it on the back of my wrist.”

She nodded and opted for the wrist. “Ready.”

He hit the door release with his free hand, and they stepped out onto the platform while the viewing crowd gasped.

She waved at them. “Hello.”

The man with the white hair stared at her. “You speak Elvish?”

“Um, yes. I speak six languages. I learned this as a dare when I was twelve, so my diction will not be good. I thought it was a dead language.” Habel smiled slightly.

The man smiled in a strangely helpless way. “Of course. I am Joren, this is Niika, we will take your memories now.”

She nodded, took a deep breath, and stepped forward, away from Artuan. Niika swayed toward her and handed her the glass orb in her hands. “Think of your life and your people. Tell it your name. It will do the rest.”

Habel fought a tear, looked at the expectant crowd, who looked just as she did, and she looked at the orb. “Habel born of Haladen by Ormieth. Troll daughter and greeter of the sun.”

The orb glowed, a bright rainbow began to emit from the crystal, and soon, a kaleidoscope of her memories played out faster and faster until the vibrating orb shattered.

She yelped as her palm was cut, and Niika moved toward her with worried eyes. “What do you remember?”

Habel looked at her and put a blank expression on her features. “Was I supposed to remember something? Excuse me, my hand hurts.”

Joren smiled and took her by the damaged hand, holding the cut up. “Of course, it does. Come with me, Novice. Niika and I will help you settle once we repair that injury.”

“Injury?”

Niika smiled as they walked into the building. “Yes, Novice. You were injured.”

She looked at her palm. “I think it is better now. It doesn’t hurt.”

Joren looked at her, and he paused. “Lucky you. It has healed. Well, I suppose we shall show you to your quarters. You need rest after your trying day.”

She asked Niika, “Who were all those people that we passed coming in?”

“They wished to welcome you to our community.”

“Oh. Well, I am glad I am lucky then.”

Joren frowned. “What do you mean?”

Novice smiled brightly. “I will get to meet them all over again tomorrow.”

Her two escorts smiled and led her deep into the tower and her chambers halfway up. When they left, she walked to the balcony of the huge room and stared at the bright light of the sun, her skin easily able to manage exposure. Her balcony overlooked the track that had brought her here, and she could see the distant path that could lead her home if she could ever bring herself to return.

For better or worse, she was now an elf; she just had to figure out what that meant while pretending that she didn’t know who she had been. Habel had her work cut out for her, but she could always rise to a challenge.

Her dress fluttered in the breeze as she looked out at the landscape that she had never seen from this vantage point with light streaming around her. She was an elf now, but how long would she have to pretend that she didn’t remember her life from before? Well, at least time was on her side.

Author’s Note

This is the first of five chapters of the Habel Trollblood book, Born Human. I needed a project that would let me create installments. This one seems to fit the bill.

As a side note, each book is the same length as a comic book, so that is my current fascinated interest project... Habel may be showing up in a drawn format sooner rather than later.

It wasn’t my intention to get all weird on folks, but I needed to do something in a different-than-usual style for myself, and this qualified.

Thanks for reading,

Viola Grace

About the Author

Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.

An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around, and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.

In real life, she is now engaged in beekeeping, and her adventures can be found on the YouTube channel, Mystery Bees Apiary. Just look for the cartoon kittens.

Table of Contents

Part One: Trollblood

Author’s Note

About the Author