The Situation With the Mines

Calum stood with his companions at the entrance to Orgel, the town famous for its mines. The sun shone high in the sky. Calum had expected the town to be filthy, but it looked like a regular town from first glance.

“It’s midday, but it doesn’t look very lively. Do you think everyone’s underground?” Calum asked, noticing the emptiness of the town.

“Now that you say it, there should be more people here,” Kia agreed.

Erik pushed past the group and strolled into town. “Whatever the reason, I doubt it’s good.”

Calum followed Erik, Tilaya and Kia trailing behind him. A chill crept down his spine. The town was in perfect condition, but no one was around. It was as if the town was in stasis. “We aren’t at the border anymore and there’s no sign of a struggle, so there wasn’t an attack…”

Movement behind a window in a house on the other side of the square drew the attention of the party. The door opened, and a middle-aged man ran out to meet them.

“The hero! Thank goodness you’re here.” He stopped in front of the group and bowed. “Please, follow me into my home. There’s something we need to discuss.”

Calum looked to his companions for their input. All three nodded, willing to hear the man out. He turned back to the man. “Alright, lead us to your house.”

“Thank you, hero. Come with me.” He led the party into the house he ran out of. The man closed the door behind them, followed by the curtains.

The house was small, with few decorations. There was a table in the center of the room, surrounded by chairs. Against the wall rested a few larger chairs. In the corner was a small kitchen. A door sat in front of the kitchen, blocking the view of the rest of the house.

“This town needs your help, hero.” He faced Calum, a desperate look on his face. “It happened three weeks ago.”

“I knew there was trouble…” Erik crossed his arms, leaning against the wall.

Tilaya stepped forward. “Please, tell us what happened.”

He paused for a moment. “The miners headed into the mine early in the morning, as they usually did, but they came running back a couple hours later, saying there were monsters harvesting oxite.”

“Oxite?” Calum furrowed his brow. ‘Why would monsters be harvesting magic crystals?’

“What kind of monsters?” Kia asked.

“Goblins, mostly. A few orcs. I have heard of a terrifying monster, but no one knows what it is. The witness only said his partner was grabbed suddenly and pulled to his death.”

Calum continued to ponder his question. “And they’re all in the mines?”

“Yes. Not a single monster has left the mines the entire time they’ve inhabited them.” The man sat down, rubbing his forehead. “My son was a miner… Never made it back…”

“We’ll clear the monsters for you,” Calum assured. “And we’ll try to find your son.”

“Thank you, hero… Thank you…”

“I hope you don’t mind me asking, but are you able to give my friend here a magic staff?” Calum motioned to Tilaya, who awkwardly waved to the man.

“There’s not one available, but I can have one made. I know the blacksmith well. Consider it a token of our appreciation for your help,” he replied.

“Thanks. Her staff was destroyed by an ogre, and she really needs a new one.”

The citizen pulled out a map and gave it to Calum. “You’ll need this to navigate the mines. It’s easy to get lost in there.”

“We’ll make sure your town is safe.”

The man smiled and waved as the party left his home. Once they were gone, his smile sank into a frown. “Do take care…”

…

Calum led his group into the mine at the back of town. Tilaya summoned a ball of light in her hand to ensure everyone could see. She walked by Calum, while Erik and Kia followed behind them.

Calum glanced back at his group. “Everyone, be on the lookout for any movement. We don’t know how many monsters there are, or even where they are for that matter.”

“No monster can sneak up on me,” Erik laughed. He looked at Kia through the corner of his eye. He still didn’t trust her, even though he was grateful she healed Tilaya.

“That’s only true if you’re looking for them. Even a goblin could attack you without you realizing when you’re busy staring at me,” Kia remarked.

“Calm down,” Calum ordered. He paused, studying the path around him. The cave split in five directions. “According to the map, the highest concentration of oxite is accessible if we take the second path to our left.”

The groaning of goblins echoed from the dark passageways ahead. Calum grabbed his sword, ready for enemies to appear. The sound grew louder and louder, until five small dark-green skinned creatures ran into the open area. The goblins ran at the party, baring their fangs. They were dressed in leather armor, and all of them held shortswords.

“Attack!” Calum rushed forward, crossing blades with one of the goblins. Kia fought two goblins to his left, and Erik fought the other two on the right. Tilaya stayed back, holding the light.

The goblin swung low, forcing Calum to jump. He landed behind the goblin and performed a downward thrust. The goblin spun around and blocked the attack. It growled at Calum and kicked his stomach, causing him to stumble backwards.

The goblin charged him, ready to slash him from the side. Calum easily dodged with a roll and sliced the goblin’s foot. The grotesque creature roared and charged at Calum, seething in rage. He easily blocked its attack, sending its sword flying. A boot to the chest sent the goblin to the ground, and Calum finished it off by piercing its heart. As he tried to flick the goblin’s blood off his sword, he checked the progress of the battle. 

Erik had a few cuts in his clothing, but thanks to Tilaya’s healing, he wasn’t injured. The bodies of the goblins he fought lay lifeless on the ground by his feet. Kia had the bodies of her opponents stacked and she was cleaning the blood off her daggers with a piece of leather she stole from one of the goblins.

“Good work, team. Let’s head out. We need to be quiet, or else we will be swarmed by goblins.” He led them through the tunnel he had pointed out previously. Calum grabbed the map and studied it. “We should arrive at a staircase soon. If we follow it all the way down, we should reach the deepest part of the mine. That’s supposedly where the largest pocket of oxite is, and where the biggest threat will most likely be.”

The stairs soon came into view, and the four silently made their way down. Tilaya dulled the brightness of the light to where the steps were only barely visible.

The group made it to the bottom of the stairs. Whether the goblins didn’t notice them or they were waiting in ambush, Calum didn’t know.

A tunnel sat in front of them. Calum turned to his comrades and whispered. “This tunnel should open into a cavern. That’s where we’ll find the monster we’re looking for.” Kia, Erik, and Tilaya nodded.

The party entered the tunnel quietly. The tunnel only stretched for a kilometer until they found an opening to a cavern to the left. Calum led the others into the cavern. The massive chamber was speckled with crystals that emitted a soft purple glow.

A large pool of dark liquid rose from the earth. Out of the liquid rose a giant clawed amphibious hand, then another.

“Is that…?” Calum breathed.

The giant creature leaped out of the liquid and landed, shaking the earth beneath it. The red frog-like monster eyed the party hungrily.