Barely outside the walls of Fort Avernum, Brother Theo said, "If we mean to travel together, perhaps it would be prudent for us to learn more about each other, and what we want to accomplish."
"What I want to accomplish," said Jynx, "is to find a way out of here."
"Yeah, and the sage said that's not possible," said Brynja, "so what else would you be doing?"
"I guess, I'd want to keep studying magic," said Jynx. "That's what I did up there before . . ." She stopped, looking up at the far distant roof of the cave.
"Who knows," said Ansel, "maybe you'd be the one to find a way out of here. Me, I figure I'll do some exploring, maybe find a way out that way."
"But Thairl said there isn't a way out," said Rudel.
"Don't matter," said Ansel, "I still wanna look. You want to come along?"
"Guess it beats hanging around just accepting being thrown down here," said Duncan.
"Well, I never been one to just stay in one place," said Brynja, "so you go traveling, I'll go along too--safety in numbers and all that, you know."
"Why are we going to Silvar, anyway?" said Jynx.
"Well, according to Tor," said Ansel, with a nearly triumphant look, "they've got the cheapest food without going to Mertis."
"Guess that's a good reason," replied Jynx.
"You know what I'm wondering," said Brynja, "does the fungus always glow like that, or is there something like day and night?"
"Should've asked Thairl," said Jynx, "but he'd probably just have something else gloom and doom to say about it."
"Yeah, he was cheerful, wasn't he?" said Duncan with a laugh.
"What did that sign say--almost fifty miles to Silvar," said Brynja. "We're going to have to rest before we get there, aren't we?"
"Probably," said Ansel, as they rounded yet another stalagmite. "Holy shit!"
The others started to ask what was the matter when they, too, saw a dozen small orange-red figures scrambling over the lichen and mushroom covered cave floor toward them.
"I don't think that's a welcome committee," said Jynx.
"Me neither," said Ansel, looking at his dagger with an expression of disgust. "Hope this thing can cut their hides."
The moment for finding out whether the stone daggers would be sharp enough was soon upon them, and the little orange-red men were upon the brave band, swarming over them while brandishing daggers of their own. Jynx noted that the goblins' daggers were nearly all stone, as well, so hopefully Ansel's concerns about their own daggers wouldn't be a well-founded concern. Battle was joined in earnest, before any further thought could take place.
One of the goblins stabbed out toward Rudel, catching his arm before the red-haired man could dodge, opening up a rather significant flow of blood. Meanwhile Brother Theo, praying he would be forgiven and that his aim would be true, sliced out a small piece of one goblin's shoulder. The goblins were dressed in some filthy garments, apparently a cloth made from lichen or cavewood, though one had on a fairly nice piece of leather atop his rags. Rudel struck back, calling upon a magical energy to catch a goblin aflame, and screaming and writhing in pain, the goblin fell to the cave floor, and a moment later was still. While one goblin stabbed at the air near Brother Theo, another stabbed Ansel, who howled in pain as blood gushed from his thigh. Another goblin stabbed Brynja, whose shriek of pain split the air. Duncan and yet another goblin stabbed at the air, and then Brynja retaliated against the goblin who had opened a gash in her arm, striking true, though the goblin yet stood. Meanwhile, one goblin grazed Duncan's thigh while another stabbed ineffectually at the air near Brother Theo. Another of the swarming goblins grazed Jynx's arm, and she felt hot tears sting her face as she tried to keep her wits collected against the pain. Then, reciting a chanted spell, she caused the goblin who had hurt her to burst into flames just as Rudel had done a bare moment before. This goblin, too, fell to the ground screaming before death silenced it. Ansel, not to be outdone by the arcane magics of his companions struck out with his dagger, catching one goblin across the neck, slicing and killing the creature so quickly that it had not time to scream. Three more goblins stabbed the air in rapid succession, failing to draw the blood of the companions.
The fight continued as one goblin stabbed at Rudel, who managed to dodge out of the way before being struck, but then another goblin stabbed Ansel, opening a deep tear in the leather baldric and the skin beneath. Thrown off by the pain, Ansel managed to find only the air near his foe, as another goblin stabbed at Brother Theo, who found divine favor allowed him to miss the blow. Jynx, still off-centered from the injury she had suffered, summoned up another burst of flame which turned the goblin from orange-red to red, though it still stood despite the blisters rapidly forming upon its skin. Brynja's injured foe missed her, and while Jynx's newly injured opponent missed her, Duncan and another goblin both struck home, ripping into each other's flesh. Brynja failed to connect at all this time as she stabbed at her goblin foes, and while one goblin missed Duncan, another one caught Brynja, and she staggered back, looking almost unable to stand, while Rudel called on another burst of arcane flame to toast the goblin near him, the pain scream and death throes following quickly upon one another.
As the odds started to edge toward even, two of the goblins stabbed and missed their respective targets, while a third struck Brynja, who dropped to the ground whimpering with pain. Brother Theo took a mighty chunk out of the air, while Rudel, seeing that Brynja was in trouble, summoned more arcane flames to light up the goblin who had just injured her, and with a scream, that goblin also fell to the ground and moved no more. While one goblin managed to find Brother Theo's flesh, the rest of the fight was a magnificent punishment of the air, save for Jynx's summoned flames that engulfed another goblin, dropping him dead upon the cave floor.
Summoning up strength despite his injuries, Ansel stabbed out at the goblin near him, felling the creature at last, evening the odds with the goblins since Brynja was no longer in condition to continue the fight. These odds seemed to not be to the liking of the goblins, which turned on their heels and began to flee, leaving the new arrivals the luxury of tending to their wounded as Brother Theo moved to Brynja's side, praying for the divine favor which would heal her wounds. Jynx gasped at the sight of Ansel's injuries, and Rudel moved over to the larger man, chanting his own prayers, and the worst of the wounds of Brynja and Ansel knit together.
Rudel and Brother Theo turned to Duncan next, and then continued their prayers until all had been attended to, though the exhaustion of the fight remained as a reminder that it had not been a simple walk to the next city.
Still looking a little pale from the effects of his now-healed injuries, Ansel said, "Let's eat something before we continue on our way. It's been awhile since we left that fort." He looked back down the road the way they had come--the walls of Fort Avernum were no longer visible.
"How much further do you suppose it is?" said Jynx, taking a bite of the mushroom-meal bread and cave cow cheese, and then she squinched her face up in a grimace at the taste of the food. "I don't know if I want to get used to this stuff," she added.
"May as well," said Duncan. "If it wasn't going to be a long time before we even have a chance of finding our way out, most everyone would have left already, I would think."
"What I think," said Ansel, stripping the leather armor off the dead goblin and taking its metal dagger, "is that I will take these things. There's a big hole in that baldric Tor gave me. Maybe we can get it patched in Silvar, but I'd rather have something without a big hole in the meantime"
"Sounds fair enough to me," replied Rudel. "Probably should gather up all their daggers--maybe we can sell them or something when we get to Silvar."
"And at the least," said Brynja, her voice shakily reflecting her near-death experience, "we won't be leaving them for the goblins to get back"
"That's right," said Jynx, moving over to pry stone daggers out of the hands of the fallen goblins. "Every dagger we leave could be used against us in the future if we don't try to keep that from happening. At least," she said, thinking that she hoped she were not too optimistic, "in the hands of humans, they shouldn't be used against us in the future."
"At least, not if their means of keeping order works," quipped Duncan.
Remembering the mention of the Abyss, Jynx just shuddered.
The meal passed quickly enough, for none wanted to linger over-long, getting water from the river to wash down the bread and cheese rations, and then they began on their journey once more.
A fairly sturdy lodge stood alongside the road some time later, with a sign neatly posted.
"Wayfarers lodge," read Jynx, "Silvar 24 miles west, Fort Avernum 25 miles east. Gods, I feel like I've gone fifty already."
"Sounds like a good stopping point to me," said Ansel, "and a whole lot better than sleeping out in the wild where the goblins can sneak up on us."
They walked up to the door of the lodge, and first knocked on the door, and then pushed it open. The windowless lodge was one large room, apparently unoccupied, a stout cavewood beam to latch the door. A ladder in the center led to a cupola with windows that might be opened to ascertain that it was safe before emerging. Some twenty empty bunks and two long tables provided furnishings for the room.
"Self-service, I guess," said Brother Theo, after a quick look around.
"So it would seem," said Rudel, moving over to a piece of paper that was pinned down on one of the two long tables. Reading aloud, he said, "The wayfarers lodge is for all people of peace to use as a resting place on the journey between Fort Avernum and Silvar. Please leave the place as you have found it, and may the gods be with you as you travel where you will."
Exhausted from the travails of the day, after barring the door the six companions found beds, and one by one collapsed into deep slumber thereupon.
The fungal light looked unchanged when they awoke again, and after a brief meal at the table, they made another check through the cupola, and finding the area seeming to be untraveled, they opened the bar of the lodge and left it, closing the door behind them, just as they had found it.
It had been another hard day of travel when they finally came within sight of the walls of the city of Silvar. Fortunately, they had not encountered more goblins or other fell beasts, and made their way to the guarded gates of the city.