Филип Этанс: The Savage Caves

The Stonedeep goblins, apparently finally inspired, stopped their senseless face down of the Cavemouth goblins and poured like a yellow-skinned tide around the hobgoblin who was trying to kill Lidda.

The hobgoblin whirled on the goblins, brandishing the falchion, and Regdar saw Lidda slip back into the deep black shadows. The goblins fell on the already wounded hobgoblin, and it went down in a mass of javelins, kicks, stone clubs, and tiny little fists.

Regdar rolled away from Rezrex and almost tripped Jozan. On the way, Regdar saw Glnk toss the serrated dagger that had been being held to Naull’s throat. Tzrg caught it, his face still twisted with agony. Before Rezrex could gather his own wits, Tzrg drove the heavy blade into the hobgoblin’s gut. The look of surprise on Rezrex’s face was almost comical.

Glnk jumped to his feet, and when Tzrg’s hand slipped off the dagger handle, leaving it protruding from the hobgoblin’s ample gut, Glnk took hold of it. There was an unpleasant ripping sound as Glnk dragged the blade up and in a long, curving arc, leaving a line of red that exploded outward, spilling Rezrex’s steaming guts to the cave floor.

Spending a night with a tribe of goblins was about the last thing Regdar thought he’d ever do, but after the day he’d had, a little quiet and a chance to close his eyes made the Stonedeep caves seem like the most luxurious inn in New Koratia.

Naull wasn’t badly hurt, and once they got her some water and Lidda carefully cleaned the blood from her face, she hardly looked the worse for wear. In the dim torchlight, deep in the savage caves, it was hard to see the bruise.

“I feel like I let you down yesterday,” she said, as a groveling female goblin slid a plate of fried cave beetles in front of her. Naull suppressed a gag and pushed the plate away. “All that, and I was lying there unconscious.”

Regdar smiled, trying to ignore Jozan who was poking at the wounds on his leg.

“You let no one down,” the fighter said, “and you’ll never have to prove your courage to me again. You followed me down that tunnel, into the thick of the goblins. Your spells have saved all our lives, and your mind… Well, I might be able to swing a sword better than you, but you’re smarter than me.”

The young woman smiled and looked down. Regdar didn’t want to invade her privacy by looking to see if she was blushing. He knew she was.

“Yeah,” Lidda said, swaggering up behind them holding a plate of fried beetles, “get a room you two.” She popped one of the horrid bugs into her mouth and crunched it, smiling. “These aren’t bad.”

Jozan began a prayer to Pelor, and Regdar closed his eyes, shuddering under the warmth of the healing spell.

“That looks good,” the priest said. “By Pelor’s grace, you should only need a second, and we’ll be ready to start the climb out of here. It should be almost midday above.”

The priest looked up into the darkness, the ceiling invisible in the gloom.

Tzrg was limping, his leg healed by Jozan, much to the amazement of the assembled goblins. It would be several weeks before the little humanoid would be fully healed, but the pain was gone, and Tzrg’s gratitude was obvious in the goblin’s simple expressions. Glnk was with him, and he was cradling Rezrex’s magnificent mace in his hands. The chief of the Cavemouth tribe held the weapon out to Jozan, and Tzrg grumbled some words to Lidda.

“They want you to have the mace,” Lidda translated around another fried beetle.

Jozan reached up and took the weapon in one hand.

Glnk smiled and said something to Lidda.

“He’s going home,” she said. “He’ll take us with him, to the bottom of the shaft.”

“Ready for a climb?” Naull asked.

Regdar looked at her, and she winked at him.

“We left our horses in Fairbye,” Jozan said, still admiring the enchanted mace.

“Lidda,” Regdar said, “Naull… is Fairbye on your way to wherever you’re going?”

“They won’t hang you now,” Jozan said to the halfling. “Not without hanging me first.”

Lidda sighed and pretended to wipe a tear from her cheek. “Friends?” she squeaked.

“Friends,” her three friends replied.