Spellborn

The troll looked at her and laughed.

"Human," he said. "Did you seriously think you could stumble into my lair with your little pigsticker and hope to defeat me?"

"Well, no, actually," Melody said calmly. "I didn't think my sword would have any affect at all."

The troll sat back on his haunches, regarding her, a confused expression creasing his hideous features. He reached one hooked, clawed finger up and scratched his warty nose.

"Hmph," he decided. "Well then, why are you here?"

"Oh, make no mistake," she said, smiling her most disarming grin. She pulled off her helmet, shaking out her chestnut hair. "I am here to defeat you."

At that the troll tossed back his head, his laughter ringing throughout the cave.

"What did you expect to do, human?" the troll wheezed when he finally managed to stop laughing. "Walk in here and charm me to death?"

"Oh, no, not at all," Melody said, pulling off her gauntlets.

"Are you going to undress completely? Let me assure you that we are not compatible in that regard. You would not survive the experience."

"Don't be silly. I only need to remove my gauntlets to defeat you."

The troll looked at her, speechless.

"What, do you mean?" he finally asked. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You aren't a mage, are you?"

"Do I look like a mage?" Melody asked.

"You are not wearing the robes they traditionally wear, nor do you appear to have the facial tattoos they generally have to indicate rank and allegiance," the troll observed. "But I did not reach my age and girth by accepting appearances at face value."

Melody watched as he proudly displayed his gut, the girth of which was, indeed, quite significant. And the scraggly hairs on his head were quite grey, so she assumed what that meant in her own race meant something similar in the trollish race.

"Your craftiness is somewhat legendary," she admitted, "and was significant in my decision to seek you out. You are quite infamous, you know."

At those words the troll smiled, an unpleasant sight at best. His teeth were yellow and rotting, broken here and there, and occasionally missing completely, each and every one crooked and misaligned with its neighbour.

"I have worked hard at my reputation," he preened. "You have to, you know. Becoming infamous takes a lot of effort. You think it's easy to eat an entire flock of sheep in a sitting? Carrying off maidens? Ransacking villages alone? It's no easy feat. And making sure you receive the credit for the atrocities is quite a nightmare."

"I'm sure," Melody agreed. "Which is precisely why I'm here to defeat you."

"I grow weary of this," the troll decided, and picked up his huge spiked club, swinging it with surprising speed.

Melody stopped it with her bare hands. The club shattered as though it was made of the finest crystal.

Melody smiled a grim smile.

"Ever heard of the spellborn, oh infamous one?" she asked.