After screeching the nastiest epithet in the Goblin language at the top of his voice, Ratchet stood up and dusted himself down.

He was in an underground cavern. The walls, made of some dark blue stone, gave off a ghostly blue aura that illuminated what would otherwise be pitch darkness. He could hear water dripping from a long way above him.

He looked around for his machine but it was nowhere to be seen. Adding another expletive, he ran to the other side of the cavern, his bright yellow eyes darting around as he searched. The cavern was massive. He soon discovered that he was actually on a ledge, one of a series of balconies that ringed a hole that extended upwards and downwards further than he could see. In the middle of the hole was a spiral staircase. There must be a top and a bottom, then, he mused. He looked down into the abyss and saw that the light grew stronger and brighter, collecting together in a cobalt pool. The ledges were dotted with tiny alcoves in the walls. Intrigued, he walked up to the wall of his own ledge, found an alcove at random and threw a stone into it. It clattered off the side of the rock but did not fall back out. He shrugged and poked his head into it. Maybe his machine was in there...

Something made him turn around.

A figure had entered the room, climbing down the staircase. It was a tall human in dark plate mail that seemed to glow that same otherworldly blue as the stone. He hadn't made a sound when he descended the stair. It was more a feeling in the air, a feeling that made Ratchet's fur stand on end. He sniffed. Goblins could smell when something was out of place. This thing smelled powerful. The whole cavern was reacting to the power, coming alive with it. He hid in the alcove and watched the human. If he had noticed Ratchet, he showed no signs of caring. He stopped on the stairwell and looked around, a thoughtful look on his face. The glow was becoming brighter. Suddenly, Ratchet realised that he could hear a noise that was gradually growing louder. It was some kind of music. The energy seemed to pulse to the rhythm of the music, flaring up as the tune became louder. The aura around the man flared up as well, sprouting tiny azure fires that played over his hair, shoulders and fingertips. Ratchet's fur was itching so much that it was driving him mad but he could not bring his eyes away from the dance of the flames. The music was getting into his head as well. It appealed to him on a primordial, informational level, as if it meant something that he understood without thinking.

Then the man erupted completely into flames, the smaller fires whirling around his form, joining with others that had risen up from the floor. His armour appeared to have dissolved. The light grew brighter and brighter until Ratchet was worried he would be blinded. He put his goggles on to shield his eyes but it was no use. He could no longer see a thing...

Then the music faded away and so did the light. He shook his head and opened his eyes again. The cavern looked different. There were stalactites, a pale blue moss grew on the ground and tiny hedgehog-like creatures scuttled in and out of the alcoves.

After a few minutes, he concluded that it was safe to leave his hiding place. He headed towards the stairs again. His machine obviously wasn't in this room at all - the alcoves were too small for it to fit in. The only exit he could see was the staircase.

As he approached the stairs, a pair of red eyes peered out of the darkness and a voice called out to him.

"Identify yourself, intruder!"

--

Five Dark Dwarves stepped out of the shadows. One was female, the others were male. They were dressed quite casually for Dwarves, obviously not for mining or war. Ratchet tensed up. He had met Dark Dwarves before. They shared a long history with Goblins, fighting side by side back in the Dark Ages when both races fought on the side of the Greater Devils. They wanted to be accepted in general society as well as Goblins but humans were less tolerant of them. Dark Dwarves had a society and an attitude to morality that was even less understood than that of Goblins. Most humans simply didn't believe that they weren't evil, especially with their dark blue skin and glowing red eyes. It didn't help that they were still at war with the other Dwarves.

"Its a Goblin!" said the woman, looking surprised, "You don't see Goblins down here!"

"Well, I'm a little lost..." admitted Ratchet, blushing. The woman was beautiful by Dark Dwarven aesthetic standards. Her skin was the colour of the stone, her long, thick auburn hair intricately plaited, her eyes the colour of a roaring inferno. She had a broad, honest smile. Ratchet grinned, showing off his teeth. "I'm Ratchet. Nice to meet ya!"

"Greetings, Ratchet." she said politely, "My name is Helga Landstalker. As for where you are... you're in the Odegan caverns, under the Gudo mountain range."

Ratchet had no idea where that was, except that it was a long way away from Malorie. In fact, he thought it might be on a different continent. Synbios is going to turn me into a rug, he thought, frowning.

"Okay." he admitted, "I'm very lost. You haven't seen my machine around here, have you? Its big, steam-powered and..."

"... smells like someone's been stoking the furnace with the remains of dead things?"

"And it has my charts in it." he finished, blushing again. He was hoping nobody would notice. He had been VERY low on fuel and it WAS the middle of a battlefield. At least they didn't notice what I filled the boiler with, he thought.

"Its safe." she assured him, "We found it lying around so we gave it a polish and put it away where it wouldn't get damaged. Its an ingenious piece of work, isn't it?"

"Thank you." he grinned, "I made it myself."

"Oh? How fascinating! Its a good job I told Angus not to strip it down for scrap metal."

"Could I have it back now?"

"Oh, of course. I'll lead the way right now. Boys, turn around."

A couple of them grumbled. One of them, an older-looking Dwarf with a particularly long beard who wore glasses, looked around carefully.

"The ghost's been out again." he reported.

"Ghost?" asked Ratchet, his whiskers twitching. The man nodded.

"This cavern's haunted." he explained, "Has been since before our clan claimed it as our home."

"Any idea why? Did something happen down here?"

"I have no idea. And I'm supposed to be the clan historian... but this place is very old, boy, it had its own ancient history long before we moved here."

"Sorry for being nosy but... I think I saw the ghost."

"Everyone's seen the ghost." he said, shaking his head, "Don't worry, boy, it won't hurt you. Its the least of your problems down here."

"What do you mean?"

He said nothing but his eyes smouldered. With an irritable wave, he gestured for the woman to lead the way.