34 - Finding Courage

Kai clapped his head and screamed, “Nooo!” He fell to his knees. Kicked from his own dungeon. It was…almost too much to grasp. How could he have let this happen?

Thump. The liar hadn’t run off to confront the invaders; he’d somehow run to the Admin Room to boot Kai. But how had he gotten into Admin?

Kai froze with a horrid new thought: the system hadn’t naturally locked everyone out of the private areas; Thump had done it. He’d set the system up to lock people out while he still had access. Now everyone, including little children, were at risk to whatever had entered the dungeon. They hardly had any defenses yet. Everyone could die!

Kai became frantic with worry. How could he have been taken in by Thump so easily? How had he allowed this to happen? Scrabbling to his feet again, he rushed through the forest to the cave entrance. Barely slowly at the idea that the invaders might be ahead, he ran down the tunnel.

The drop-down door was closed. Whoever was in the dungeon was now locked in. Unfortunately, as Kai pressed on the door, banged it with his fist, and even kicked it, hurting his toes, the door refused to budge for him. He slumped against the wall. “No. How could I mess up so bad?” A tear trickled from one eye.

He was such an idiot. Letting himself get sucked into trusting someone like Thump, who only thought of himself. Now others were going to pay, probably the ultimate price.

Self-pity was overtaken by sudden anger. He threw himself at the door, pushing it with every scrap of strength in his little body. He needed to get inside! He needed to get to Admin! He screamed, “Open, damn you!”

As he poured his willpower into the effort, a digital clock display came into his vision. He blinked in surprise. It was a timer, counting down.

26:45

26:44

26:43

He sank to the ground and sat on the dirt. He was locked out for twenty-six more minutes. Who or what had gone inside? How bad would things be before he could get back in?

He hung his head. If he got back inside in time, he’d try to help. But maybe this whole situation was proof that he wasn’t good enough to do this, not to be in charge of other people’s lives. He couldn’t even tell good people from bad. Maybe it would be best if he somehow handed the dungeon over to Yellow Flower or Rush. Or just let that scummy Fizzlesplooge guy reclaim the dungeon.

Kai scoffed with more self-pity, “I was an idiot to believe in myself.” He focused on the timer again.

24:01

24:00

23:59

Another minute passed while Kai’s anxiety rose. Then a rumble and the scraping of stone caught his attention. The door began to rise. Kai jumped to his feet.

A pair of green feet came into view. Then, a red-haired head ducked under, and a female goblin came out with a desperate expression, which only made her red-rimmed eyes and general sense of despair worse. She carried a double-moon-bladed axe and did a double-take at seeing him standing there. “You!” It was the goblin who’d seemed to be grieving since arriving.

Kai looked back and forth between her and the rising door. “How did you—?” He went for the entrance, but an invisible field prevented him from entering the dungeon. “Dammit!”

She frowned. “You can’t get in?”

He sadly shook his head. “No. I’m locked out for another…twenty-one minutes and change.”

She bunched a fist. “But you’re the Dungeon Master, aren’t you? The real one? Not…my father? I mean, Chief Thump.”

“He’s your father?” Kai’s mouth worked, but he kept wanting to say something disparaging about the hob.

“Yeah. He’s—” She choked up. “He’s a…butt boils! He’s a terrible goblin!” It appeared that saying that out loud had surprised even her. She shook that off and met his eyes. “You have to stop him!”

Kai threw his arms up. “I can’t! I need to get to the Admin Room. But he somehow locked me out until that timer runs out. I have no idea how.” He blushed and dropped his arms. “No, that’s not fair. I didn’t spend enough time studying the dungeon system. I don’t know how it all works.”

“Oh.” She looked away.

He assumed she was disappointed in him, which he figured was deserved. “How did you get out? Didn’t something get into the dungeon?”

“I was in the, what do you call it, the back section of Floor 2. Where we’re supposed to be safe. I came out and saw the humans going down to Floor 3. Luckily, they didn’t see me.”

“But—” Kai eyed her axe, confused. “How did you know I was out here?”

She looked away. “I didn’t.”

“Then…?”

She took a deep breath, then looked back at him. “I recognized those humans. They’re the ones who attacked us. Drove us from our new home. They…” She swallowed hard but forced herself to continue, “They killed many of us. My father sent my little brother to fight them. I wanted to help, but he dragged me off. And the others who are here now. I didn’t see what happened to my brother. Or Peanut. They’re probably dead, but—”

“But you want to see for yourself.”

“Yeah. Maybe…maybe it’s stupid, but if they’re somehow alive out there? Injured maybe? Even if they’re gone, I need to see.” She furiously wiped away tears.

“I understand.” And he did. “But…don’t they need you here too?”

She shouted at him, “You don’t think I know that?” Immediately, she realized she’d snapped and pulled back. “Sorry.”

“It’s ok. This is all my fault anyway. I never should have trusted Thump. I’m a horrible Dungeon Master. People are going to die because of me.” He looked down. “Maybe I shouldn’t even try to go back in. I’ll probably just find a way to screw up and make everything worse.”

There was a long pause. Then she let out a long breath. “You can’t run away.”

He looked up.

“I can’t either. You’re right; they need us.” She hefted her axe. “This isn’t your fault. Not for trusting someone. It’s my father’s fault.” She snarled, “He’s a manipulative sewer roach. That’s why we had to leave the Great Warren. His turds finally caught up to him, and he burned too many people. He basically got kicked out and then forced us to go with him.”

“So he makes a habit of this.”

“Yeah. And when we finally managed to set up a new home, those humans attacked us. He’s the biggest and strongest of us by far. But did he fight? No! He ran away. Like a coward. After sentencing my brother to death. After abandoning everyone. I hate him!”

Kai impulsively wanted to give her a hug, but the anger on her face and the axe in her hand caused him to put a pin in that idea for later. “The humans. They were bad? Strong? Stronger than Thump?”

She pulled herself out of her anger. “Maybe. They killed fast. There are three. Steel weapons.”

Kai nodded. “Probably adventurers.” He looked at the timer.

15:33

15:32

15:31

Kai focused on the girl. “What’s your name?”

She blinked at him, then shook her head. “Firebell.”

“Oh. Cool! Like fireball.” He imagined her standing, feet spread wide, in all her green and red glory, a nasty-looking fireball in each hand, and a devilish glint in her eyes. ‘You dared hurt me and my family? Then prepare to watch your world burn! Fireball! Fireball!’ She cackled wildly, and the air hummed with the power of her mana. The villains around her screamed and turned to pillars of gray ash before bursting and floating away on the wind. Black smoke filled the sky. Firebell smugly regarded the dead before holding up her smoking hands and blowing on each like they were a pair of six shooters. Badass.

“It’s a kind of flower.” She touched an earring.

“Ah. Still cool.” He looked through the opening to Floor 1. “If I can get to the Admin Room, maybe I can…I don’t know. Do something, I hope. At least get the private areas open so people can flee. But…I’m still locked out for fifteen minutes.”

Her lips pressed together. She looked him in the eye. “We need time.”

He nodded, not thrilled about that.

“I need to buy us time.”

He grew confused. “You do? You can?”

She rolled the axe in her hand. “Ok.”

He saw her determination and became alarmed. “Ok?”

She took a deep breath. “Ok. I can do this.”

He slid between her and the dungeon entrance. “Wait, wait, wait. It’ll be dangerous. Really dangerous. You said these guys were killers.” Kai tried to think of some other idea.

Hunching her shoulders, she stepped past him into the entrance, the invisible field doing nothing to stop her, and now he couldn’t do anything either. “I’ll be goblin about it. I’ll figure something out.”

Kai reached out and tried to grab her shoulder, but the invisible barrier prevented it. “You can’t fight them!”

She put on a fierce look. “I’ll do what I have to.” Chin high, she lifted the axe with both hands. But she hesitated. Her features softened as she looked over her shoulder at him. “If you survive, please, go look for my brother. West of here, a couple of days’ walk. Peanut, too, she’s—” She looked forward again. Her spine straightened, but there was a tightness in her voice that meant she was near tears when she said, “Tell them I loved them.” Then she marched over the pit trap that didn’t react to residents, going right up to the stairway down. She peeked around the corner, then slunk into the stairwell on silent bare feet.

Kai helplessly pounded his little fist against the invisible barrier.

13:47

13:46

13:45

*

Vance

Vance crept down the tunnel in a crouch, his body tense and ready for trouble, his weapons in hand. His eyes swept the floor for signs of traps or trouble. It was just packed dirt as far as he could tell, with plenty of footprints. He was pretty sure there were both goblin and kobold prints. He wasn’t entirely certain, of course, because he was a total greenhorn going off what he’d learned at the academy, and had no real-world experience until now. Not that he’d ever admit to that uncertainty.

At the end of the tunnel, he came to an open stone doorway. Maybe whatever door had been here in the past had rotted away. He looked through the opening and saw a single room lit by two burning torches. A very small chest rested against the far wall. He tsked. “I don’t like small chests.”

Peckle innocently piped up from behind, where he was positioned at Feckle’s back. “Really? I do. Though, really, I’m all about the booty.”

Feckle half-shrugged behind his shield. “Ahh, I’m partial to large chests myself. Although…some thick thighs…?” He threw Peckle a knowing look.

Peckle mused, “Yeah, that’s fine. But a nice, juicy—”

Vance hissed, “Oi! Dumb and dumber. Can we act a little more professional here and shut the fuck up before you idiots get us all killed?”

Both appeared abashed and resumed more serious poses.

Vance shook his head and resolved to ditch them after this trip. He was far better off solo. Sidling up to the corner of the opening to the room, he ran his gaze all over, looking for danger. He activated [Detect Traps], a basic skill for exactly this kind of scenario. His level wasn’t high enough to reveal really cunningly hidden mechanical or magical traps — yet. But the more he practiced, the better.

A faint glowing outline appeared on the floor. Possible pit trap or pressure plate. He studied the walls for tell-tale holes where darts or spikes might come out once triggered. He didn’t see any. Anything that might drop from the ceiling? …not that he could spot. He sheathed his rondel and pulled out an extendable rod. With it, he probed the suspicious section of the floor. Nothing happened. Too advanced, maybe. He extended a foot and put just a hint of weight on the square. Then a little more.

The floor fell away, revealing a pit trap full of spikes. When Vance cautiously peered down, he saw bones and a wet glint, possibly a slime or ooze. With agile ease, Vance danced around the pit and over to the other side. No further traps sprang. He waved the others forward.

Facing the stairs, he squatted next to the small chest. He probed it but disturbed nothing. Pocketing the probe, he reached out and lifted the lid. The chest wasn’t even locked. Inside was… “A few coins and rotten pie?”

Feckle thunked down nearby after jumping over the trap. “There’s pie in the chest?”

Peckle ran and jumped, barely clearing the pit. He took hold of his bowstring again. “If there’s food in the chest, doesn’t that mean someone’s been here?”

Feckle was peering down into the trap. “Someone was here.”

Peckle joined him. “Think that’s their pie?”

Vance regarded the mouldy pie with further uncertainty he didn’t care for. “Is that corpse human down there?”

Feckle shrugged. “Dunno. Hard to tell.”

Vance plucked the few coins out of the chest and pocketed them. It might be next to nothing, but he’d be damned if he’d leave any loot behind. “Maybe goblins make pie, and they’re so stupid they thought it was treasure.”

That caught Peckle’s interest, and he wandered over and craned over Vance’s shoulder. “Could be really good pie, if they think it’s a treasure. How mouldy is it? Meh, doesn’t look so bad. Just scrape it off, hey?”

Vance snapped the lid shut. “Peckle. Don’t eat the cursed pie.”

Peckle continued to stare at the chest. “You think it’s cursed?” He sniffed. “Smells ok.”

Feckled patted Peckle on the shoulder. “I don’t think you can smell curses. Besides, what if you eat it and it doesn’t agree with you, and there are no toilets in this place?”

Peckle finally straightened and regarded the chest with mild disappointment. “Yeah, guess so. Oh. That’s probably why the dung holes outside.”

Vance closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Ok, Peckle. Go ahead. Eat the pie. If it kills you, more glory for the rest of us when we don’t have to share. We’ll toss you in the pit too. I’m not hauling your ass back to the city.”

“All right, all right. Point made. I’ll not eat the pie then. Was just…curious is all.”

Feckle elbowed his friend. “Let’s hit Madelain’s when we get back to the city?”

Peckle brightened. “Oh, that’s a good idea. Yeah. Lots of great buns there. Good baked goods too.”

Vance mentally told himself not to kill Peckle for being an idiot. Then he had a better idea: if Vance were ever uncertain about traps, he’d send Peckle in first to spring any. Focusing on the job at hand, he silently crept into the stairwell. One cautious step at a time, he descended.

Perhaps if he’d been experienced, he’d have moved faster. After all, the goblins they’d fought had been super weak. But this was regarded as a very dangerous area, and they’d come across some truly nasty monsters in the forest. It seemed highly plausible that such things might be living in here. Although the fact the entrance was so small and there were goblins here made him think there shouldn’t be anything too dangerous. If they ran into something too strong, they’d just make a run for it. Maybe he’d sacrifice Peckle to whatever monster came for him in order to buy time. That thought perked him right up, and he smiled.

As all three entered the stairwell, stone rumbled, and a deafening crash shook the ground.