Servant of the Serpent (Serpent's War Book 1) by Jason Halstead

legs and feet, causing a fresh bout of swearing from the troll. He managed to shove it into the light and then jumped back and started hopping up and down.
    “Thork?” Corian asked.
    The troll ignored him and ran past him to the river. He jumped and tucked his knees up before splashing into the river and sending up a deluge of water that splattered Corian. Bonky chuckled from where he stood on the far side of the campsite.
    Corian rose and stared into the river, concerned about the bizarre green monster's behavior. Bubbles rose seconds before Thork’s head burst out of the water. The troll waded ashore and climbed out. He grinned when he looked at the elf.
    “Are you all right?” Corian asked.
    Thork nodded and rubbed his hands against each other. His burnt skin peeled away and fell off, revealing unharmed green flesh beneath it. He held up his hands and then jerked. The troll tried to twist to his right and then his left but couldn’t manage to look behind him. He reached back and floundered for a bit until he cried out and jerked his arm back around. He held up a long-nosed sawfish that had managed to swim between his armor and try to take a bite out of him.
    “Stupid fish,” Thork said. “Yous bite me, Thork bites you. Thork wins!”
    Corian watched the troll open his mouth and eat the fish, raw and alive, in two bites. The troll chomped and then swallowed him down before belching and turning to Corian.
    Corian shook his head. He had no idea what to say.
    “Yous should go,” Thork said. “Dem splisskin isn’t da bestest hosts.”
    Corian’s eyes widened and he nodded. “Right, um, thank you. I think.”
    “Yep, yous’s welcome. Good luck wif da snake bashins!” The troll gestured to the goblin and turned away.
    Corian watched the troll turn and walk to the east. Bonky followed him and between the forest and the rising sun, they disappeared from the elf’s view in less than a minute. He stood still until the rising sun broke free of the trees, making sure the troll was really gone.
    Corian glanced around the small campsite. Had all of that really happened? Had he met a troll? A troll that saved his life twice, crippled him, and then healed him? Corian looked down at the dagger he still held in his hands. It was real. The dead alligator was real too. He shook his head and tied the dagger to his waist. He had no idea what or who Thork was, but he knew he was more than just a swamp troll with a pet goblin.
    Corian slipped his bow off his back and tested his string to make sure it was dry. Satisfied, he slung it over his back and turned north. He had a long ways to go and not nearly enough time. He started forward, breaking into a jog and finding clear sections of forest and game trails to help him move as fast as he could. His body felt good. Not exactly rested, but he had no aches or soreness he could find.
    Corian crossed the road that led east from Glennduril shortly after noon. He slowed to sip from his skin a few times or when the bushes or ground grew too difficult to run through. Seeing no one near on the road, he pushed on to the north and soon was jogging through areas seldom visited by elves. Deer and coyotes watched him as he ran past them. He startled a black-furred hunting cat as it made ready to leap on the back of a wild pig that was drinking from a stream.
    Corian wanted to stop and marvel at the things he saw in the deep forest, but he knew he had to run on. By nightfall, the rising ground turned to hills. Flowers lit up, glowing in the dark and attracting nighttime insects. In some cases, the bugs became trapped and eaten. For others, it was a means of spreading their pollen.
    Other lights in the darkness bobbed and weaved in the distance. Corian had heard of the disembodied lanterns in tales told of men trailing after them in the darkness and never returning. Wisps, they were called. Or forest lights. He made sure he kept his eyes focused on his path so he didn’t risk becoming enchanted