"Thank you for staying with me."

Teija didn't meet my eye as she alternated between measuring out portions of ingredients for an alchemical mixture and stirring the boiling rice. She had only gotten another hour or two of sleep, but it had clearly done her some good. I hadn't realized just how much being alone had affected her. It made sense, though, given her situation when we first met.

Still, I couldn't just stay in this room with her forever. It was cutting into my time exploring enough already. Having to double back to camp every day to sleep meant I could only explore so far. I needed to find someone else to stay with her. Someone to keep her safe.

"I'm going to focus on looking for the Smith you mentioned." I said, flipping pages of the journal without seeing them. "Do you remember where you last saw them?"

She hummed thoughtfully as she tasted some of the rice, then portioned some out into the rough wooden bowls. We still didn't have utensils of any kind. Just another thing to look for or cobble together.

"Direction is strange here. I know there was a fountain, though. Running with clear water. It was in the middle of a room with four halls connecting to it. We filled our waterskins there, then went our separate ways."

She handed me a bowl of rice and an empty waterskin.

"Actually, if you find it today, could you fill ours up? It takes a lot to boil rice and make potions, and I don't want to, well… recycle."

"Well, it would add a flavor to the rice at least."

She gagged at the idea, then we laughed together for the first time. It felt good to smile, even if it wasn't a good joke.

"I'll keep an eye out." I promised, scooping some of the rice into my mouth with my fingers. It was bland and overcooked, but it was hot and filling. And I hadn't had to make it.

[Find a source of fresh water]

"Thank you. Oh, I have something for you while you're out there."

Teija took a stoppered vial from her lab, filled with the same red liquid that had healed my back.

"That pouch you brought me had enough ingredients for me to make a simple healing potion. I thought you could use it more than me, since you're going out there on your own. There is a certain type of vine, strangleroot, that I saw growing out there that I can use to make more, but I don't recall exactly where. It looks like this."

She handed me a clipping of a thorned vine that glowed softly to my [Arcane Sight].

"You find it around decaying bodies and fresh water. They absorb nutrients from the corpse, you see."

I nodded thoughtfully and handed it back.

"Do you think we could cultivate it if we have enough clippings?"

She grimaced distastefully, but nodded.

"We could. It takes a lot of fresh water, though, so we would need easy access to it. And… bodies."

We have plenty of those, at least.

"I'll see what I can do. Fresh water though… that may need us to move our camp to be closer to it. If I can find us a safe place."

[Find a source of strangleroot]

[Find a more suitable camp location]

I packed my books and supplies away, preparing to be gone. Teija didn't turn from her task of stirring bubbling substances. There was a moment, as I was leaving, that I thought she was going to say something. But she hesitated, then turned back to what she was doing.

I didn't have time to deal with it. Not if I was going to find fresh water and a Smith who may already be dead. I hefted my pack and novice staff.

"I'll be back in a few hours."

Teija remained silent.

The corridors were empty. More so than I had ever seen them. Normally, a pair of goblins would have attacked me within half an hour of leaving camp, but today, the halls were quiet. Could Wulthark be behind it? Trying to tempt me into handing over the tome with a taste of peace? The lack of attack gave me the chance to study the journal's map as I travelled. While it provided useful insight into the dungeon's construction and design patterns, none of the hallways matched what I was seeing. For all I knew, the next corner could be the edge of the map, or it could have been carried for miles after the original owner dropped it.

I froze as I heard two pairs of shuffling footsteps, accompanied by the whining grunts of the goblin language, around a corner. Looks like the halls weren't completely empty after all. I placed the map safely in my inventory and summoned the tome, eager to test out the new magic it gave me access to.

The two goblins saw the light before they came around the corner. I wasn't about to douse my only way to see in the dark against creatures who didn't need it and stopped just before crossing. I heard a whispered conversation, then saw the tip of one huge ear poke around the corner, followed by a goblin's face. It met my eye for an awkwardly long moment, then disappeared back around the corner. Another hushed conversation, comically loud.

They aren't the sharpest creatures, these goblins.

"Human, no fight." One of them said, stepping around the corner with its hands spread wide. I say stepped, its companion shoved it out.

I kept my staff and book up, but didn't attack the creature.

"Chief Wulthark say no fight. You bring book?" The goblin seemed confused at the question, but clearly didn't see any wisdom in disobeying orders.

"I'm still considering his offer. No fight."

Another rapid discussion.

"Okee. Think fast. No fight."

That declaration spurred on the two goblins' confidence, emboldened by my promise not to fight. The other stepped from around the corner, a hideous creature I could only assume was a female, and the two walked past me without a second thought. I turned, following them with my eyes and staff, expecting a surprise attack, but the two goblins had forgotten I was even there. They had picked up their conversation from earlier as though I had been an interesting, but worthless, rock on the road, unworthy of further attention.

Such strange creatures.

Wulthark had clearly come through on his promise to give me time to consider my options. Good. That would give me time to explore. I had enough to do without worrying about constant goblin attacks. Best take advantage of it while it lasted.

I met two more goblin patrols before I found anything worthwhile. Each had offered the same exchange. No fight. Had I decided yet? I had little time to decide. Then they wandered off, doing whatever they did when they weren't attacking defenseless humans.

My journey was slow and steady. I took the time to sketch out a rough map of my own using a piece of cloth and a charcoal pencil that had come with the journal. It wasn't nearly as neat, or accurate, as the mysterious author's, but it was good enough for now.

[Cartography skill unlocked: Made a map.]

A faint echo brought my head up, and I stopped walking to listen. A boy was crying, somewhere further along. It was hard to hear in the tunnels, but I was certain. I packed the map away hurriedly and broke into a run. Hadn't Teija said the Smith had a boy with her? I could only hope Wulthark's temporary truce extended to those I had yet to meet personally.

I found the boy, barely eight, cowering in a corner, crying and clutching a toy horse fiercely to his chest. Two goblins were standing over him, improvised blades in hand and quarreling with each other. One was waving its blade at the boy while the other was, oddly enough, waving its own at the first goblin.

They only noticed my approach when I was almost on top of them. Surprising, considering I was moving at a full sprint with a glowing staff in my hand. The first goblin looked at me, at the boy, then at the blade in its hand and back at me. It blinked owlishly for a moment, gears turning slowly. Then it seemed to decide and dropped its sword to the ground, waving its arms placatingly toward me.

"No fight! No fight!"

The second one turned pale as it looked at me, then grudgingly lowered its sword, though it didn't drop it. I kept my staff up, ready to channel power through it at a moment's notice. The boy didn't even notice, just crying loudly in pure terror.

"Get away from him!" I channeled power through my staff, ready to blast them if they tried anything.

"No fight!" The goblin repeated, and the two shuffled away from the boy slowly, getting out of the way of the boy and me. "Boy lost. No hurt! No fight! Take boy!"

If it was a trick, it was a damn convincing one. The talkative goblin looked ready to soil its loincloth. I jerked my head to the side, away from the boy, and the goblins took it as a sign to scramble away from us and into the dark without a look back.

That went well. I thought. Now to deal with a crying kid.

I was fairly certain I hadn't been good with kids before I ended up here. Judging by my great discomfort at the moment, at least. I let the power fade, keeping the light active, and slowly approached the boy.

"It's okay, you're safe now."

The boy quieted down a little, sniffling and wiping his eyes to see me more clearly. He never once let go of his toy horse.

"Are. Are they gone?" I nodded and slowly kneeled down to be at the kid's eye level. His eyes were big and brown, the same tone as his scraggly hair.

"Yeah, they're gone. What's your name? Mine is Ciaphas."

Was that my name? I hadn't known what I was going to say when I'd asked the boy's name, just running on instinct. The name had slipped out, but it felt right. Natural. The boy stared up at me for a moment.

"I'm Philip. You're too tall to be a goblin."

He said it so matter-of-factly it threw me off.

"Well, that's… good? I'm not a goblin." Like I said, I wasn't good with kids.

"I thought they were going to eat me. Sonja said they would eat me if I strayed off. I didn't, though! Horse did, and I didn't want him to get in trouble, so I came with him to bring him back. And then the goblins came."

Philip held up the horse, half-proud and half-accusingly. Someone had crudely carved it from wood, and its once lovingly paint had faded after years of heavy use.

"Sonja? Who's that?"

"She's nice! You'll like her. She gives me food and hits the goblins with her hammer if they get too close. Come on, I'll show you!"

The boy grinned broadly, showing off a gap left by a missing tooth, and ran off heedlessly into the darkness. My head spun as I tried to keep up with the boy. Now that the imminent danger had passed, he seemed to have recovered from his terror immediately. He held out the horse as he ran, bouncing it up and down with his steps as though it ran alongside him.

I'm smiling.

The smile faded as soon as I noticed. I needed to make sure the boy got back to his caretaker before he got himself into more trouble. Still, a small warmth remained.

The young boy didn't take me far, but his pace made it difficult to keep up. He seemed to know the hallways by heart and, unlike myself, didn't need to rely on the small radius of my lit staff to see where he was going. I almost lost him a few times, and each time I could only follow the pleased giggling up ahead.

Eventually, we stopped at a dead end. Part of the rough had caved in, and someone had used the dead end as a storage area for detritus and trash. The pile almost reached the roof. A woman stood in front of it, looking in our direction as we approached. Something about the blockage tugged at my mind, calling out to me. There was something special about it. I just didn't know what.

Is that my [Investigate] skill activating?

"Sonja! Sonja! Look who I found!"

Philip slammed full-speed into the legs of a tall, muscular woman with red hair. She barely noticed the impact, and swept him up with her left hand, holding him to her chest.

"Philip!" Her voice was stern, laced with concern, and had a musical lilt of an accent. "What have I told you about running off?"

She noticed me for the first time as I came to a stop, leaning against a wall and puffing heavily. I hadn't expected following the boy to be as hard as it was. He seemed to be tireless. Sonja turned subtly, keeping her body and thick blacksmith's hammer between me and the boy.

"Who are you? Why were you chasing him?" Her eyes blazed, and I held my hands up in a gesture of peace and self-preservation.

"That's Kai!" Philip said, cutting my name off at the first syllable. "He's not a goblin!"

"I can see he isn't a goblin." Sonja said, barely registering the boy's words. Her eyes didn't stray from the glowing tip of my staff. "Who are you?"

"My name…" I gasped, still fighting for breath. "Is Ciaphas. I found Philip cornered by goblins and drove them off. I'm a friend."

[Found the Smith.]

"You are no friend of mine." She said. Her voice was as hard as her eyes. She would kill me in a heartbeat if she thought I intended to harm the boy. I gripped my staff a bit more tightly. Philip squirmed in her grip, but she didn't let him go. I saw hesitation in his eyes. Sonja's fear was getting to him.

"I'm a friend of Teija. She told me a smith and a boy were here in this dungeon and I thought you may be in danger." In seemed foolish in retrospect, now that I saw the woman. I was more in danger than she was.

"I knew the man who carried that staff before you. He would not have parted with it willingly. How did you get it?"

Maybe trying to find this woman wasn't a good idea. I started backing away.

"He was dead when I found him, killed by goblins. This may have been a mistake. I'll just leave you to it."

Sonja's grip on her hammer tightened more, and I saw violence in her eyes. I didn't want to fight her, certainly not when she was so protective of the child, but I wouldn't sit back and let her kill me, either. I backed further down the hall.

"Sonja!" Philip whined, grabbing her hammer hand with both hands and trying to push it down. "You're being rude! Kai helped me save Horse from the goblins! And he knows Auntie Teija!"

"You're too trusting, Philip." Sonja said, but she lowered her hammer and her stance relaxed. "Forgive me, stranger. This place is dangerous to the foolish and the naïve. Does the alchemist live?"

I relaxed partially, but didn't lower my staff until the smith slipped her hammer back through a belt loop. When I did, she lowered Philip to the ground, and he tackled me. I stumbled under the blow.

"Yeah, she's fine. A little frightened, but unharmed. She and I have a camp at a dead-end close to here. It's not much, but we have a fire and food, as well as some medicine. You and Philip are welcome… to join us."

I trailed off. The woman was clearly a solitary survivor, and I suspected she wouldn't take kindly to me prying into her affairs too heavily. I was going to have words with Teija about what constituted important information. A rush of emotions played across the woman's face. Relief, regret, anger.

"I am glad to hear she is okay. She worried me after she went off with that rat, Torrel. I wish I could have protected her from him, but I would not allow Philip to be near him. He was a cruel man, and I am glad he is dead. Sunfather forgive me."

Sonja touched her hammer as she said the last, as a priest may touch a holy symbol. Religious, then?

"As for your offer, you are kind, but I will not take Philip through these halls. We already have a safe place, and I have gathered some supplies. Now that the rat is dead, Teija will need protection. She is welcome to join us, if she wants to…"

She hesitated, glancing briefly at the boy still hugging my leg and squeezing his little toy horse tightly. Her lack of an offer to me rang loudly in the quiet. I didn't take offence. I was a stranger, and she was clearly trusting me more than she was comfortable with just by allowing Philip to be near me. Inviting me to stay would simply be too much. Judging by what little I had seen of this place, and what I could infer about the other men I knew of so far, I couldn't blame her.

"I understand. I'll pass on your message. Our camp isn't safe, and I would feel better not leaving her alone while I looked for a way out of this place. If you change your mind, my offer will always be open."

I knelt down to meet Philip's eyes and rubbed his hair.

"Be good for Sonja, okay? Keep Horse out of trouble. I may not be around to help you with the goblins again." Philip frowned, his expression far too serious for such a childish face.

"You're going? But you just got here. You can stay with us! You can make a bed and put it next to mine and tell me stories."

"No, Philip." Sonja said, gentle but firm. Her eyes, however, were still hard as they watched me. "He can't stay here. He has work to do."

"That's right," I said. "I have to watch out for your Auntie Teija, right?"

Philip nodded, a knowing look in his eye now.

"That's good. Auntie Teija is nice, but she's a fraidy-cat."

"Philip! That's not nice!" Sonja admonished, but his words squeezed a laugh out of me.

"You're not wrong. Be good, Philip. Maybe we'll meet again."

"Perhaps." Sonja said, her tone clear that she hoped we would not.

I hefted my pack and staff, preparing myself to leave.

"Teija mentioned a fountain nearby, running with fresh water. Do you know where it is? I could use some directions."

"No, I don-"

"It's near our secret place!" Philip interrupted, and Sonja squeezed her eyes shut.

So she had intended to hide it from me. Rude, especially given how rare potable water had been to find, but I tried not to hold it against her. She had Philip to watch out for. They must have set up their own camp close to the water source, and didn't want strangers near it.

"I see. In that case, could I trade you some goods for filling our waterskins? I'll stay here if you like." Sonja nodded slowly.

"I will see if we have any to spare. What do you have to trade?"

"It's not nice to trade for water, Sonja." Philip whispered. "You said the Sunfather wants us to share what we can with the righteous and you're being mean."

Sonja's expression became pained. I had clearly stumbled into the middle ground between two of her convictions. It gave me a certain amount of vindictive satisfaction. I took out the healing potion that Teija had made. I was loath to part with it, but the water was more important right now, and if I could find more strangleroot, she could make more. Besides, they may need it more than I did if something were to happen.

"A healing potion that Teija made. I can attest to their effectiveness. This to fill our current waterskins, and your promise to trade for more water next time we need it."

Since you're keeping it for yourself.

Sonja took the potion from me and tested a drop on her finger, then her tongue. She nodded and handed the waterskins to Philip.

"Go fill these up for me, Philip. Then come right back."

"Okay!" Philip said, a bit too loudly for comfort, and disappeared through a gap in some of the detritus. Odd.

I kept my distance from the woman, and one hand on my staff, as he disappeared into the darkness. I didn't entirely trust Sonja wouldn't attack me or drive me off while the boy was elsewhere, and I couldn't afford to lose our waterskins.

"I am sorry, stranger. Ciaphas." She clearly meant it, her tone rough. "Philip was right when he said the Sunfather will disapprove of my actions by denying you shelter. But I cannot risk Philip's safety. That little boy is the only goodness I have seen in the place since my awakening, and I won't risk him for anything. I can't."

"I understand." I really did. "You do what you feel you have to. I'll pass on your offer to Teija, and if she wants to camp with you instead, I will escort her here, then leave. Honestly, it would be one less thing for me to worry about. Knowing she was safe."

"Thank you. For understanding. You are a good man, and I am sorry I cannot help you."

Will not.

Shuffling footsteps drew our attention, coming from behind me in the direction I had come. Many footsteps. Sonja's hammer was out before I could even turn around.

"You were followed."

Yeah, no shit.

Her eyes darted down the corridor as Philip had gone, and then back to me. Her expression was unreadable, and I wished I knew what she was thinking. That I had brought them here? To run into their camp, blocking the way and leaving me to fend for myself? To offer me safety and take me to where Philip had gone? I couldn't tell.

The footsteps grew closer. I estimated somewhere between five and ten. More than I had ever seen in one place. Could I take that many in a fight and survive? Was the smith decent enough in a fight to risk her death? Philip's?

"Go." I said, turning away from the woman. "Go to your camp before they see you and hide it. Protect Philip. I will take care of it. As you said, they followed me so they may not know where you have made camp."

"I cannot. Damn me for a fool, but I cannot. That is one betrayal too many in the Sunfather's sight. I cannot leave you to die." Her tone was anguished.

"I won't. I'll be back for my waterskins when I deal with them. Now go."

I'm such an idiot.

I decided for her by walking towards the approaching footsteps. Sonja cursed behind me, then withdrew. I activated my [Mage Armor] and [Shield]. She was long gone by the time the goblins came into sight. Sure enough, there were more than half a dozen of them, led by Wulthark and each better equipped than any I had fought previously.

"I take it by your passage through our territory and the mutilated bodies of my kin that you have refused my generous offer?" Wulthark asked, his voice a sardonic hiss. He held his staff at the ready, and it glowed with power.

"Mutilated bodies? What are you talking about?" I had killed no goblins since our meeting and certainly hadn't mutilated any.

"Lies." He hissed. "You humans always lie. I offer you peace and you slaughter my people like dogs. No more. Kill him, take the book, then find the others."

[Wulthark's Offer expired.]

[Survive the Deepdark Tribe's attack]

So much for diplomacy.

The goblins charged me in a rush, and I backpedaled to buy myself time. I launched [Firebolt] after [Firebolt] into the rush. One fell, scorched and screaming, but the others kept charging with weapons raised and shouting battle-cries.

[Goblin Skirmisher killed. Exp gained.]

My defensive spells absorbed the first few blows, allowing me to fire off more spells, but there were simply too many of them. They surrounded me, relying on their superior numbers to wear down my defenses. And it was working. There was a flash of blue light and a bolt of lightning slammed against me, disrupting my [Shield] and burning my retinas. I cried out in pain, covering my eyes with the arm holding my staff, and a blade slipped into my side. My defensive spells were already failing.

"Secure the book!" Their leader shouted. "Kill him, but bring me the book."

Right. The book. I focused on the spells inside it, ignoring the pain in my ribs as best I could. Pages flipped past, caught in some unseen wind, and stopped on one in particular. I channeled magic to my staff and slammed the bottom into the ground.

"[Cause Fear]!"

A wave of foul energy burst from me, centered on the point of the staff, and rocked through each of the goblins surrounding me. My attackers all fell back from me a few paces, unsettled by the sudden display of power and the sheer wrongness of the magic. Their eyes bulged and rolled hideously in terror. Their fear bought me a few precious few seconds, and I used them to flip to the next spell. The head of my staff glowed a sickening green, and I reached out with it to brush a goblin across the chest.

"[Drain Life]."

The effect was instantaneous and horrific. The goblin screamed in pain and its arms, legs, chest, even its face withered. As though it had wandered a desert for weeks, even though it was only a second. As it grew weaker, I could feel myself getting stronger. The pain in my side vanished and I could feel the itching of flesh knitting itself together. Despite the healing, my stomach roiled. The magic was greasy, nothing like the healing potion I had consumed. It was something darker. Still, I didn't have the luxury of choice at the moment.

[Your health has been restored.]

[Goblin Skirmisher killed. Exp gained.]

"Kill him, you fools!"

Wulthark fired off another bolt of lightning, but I avoided it this time. Still, it was enough for the other goblins to shake off their terrified stupor, and the crowd pressed against me once more.

The next few minutes were a panicked frenzy of motion. Dodging, blocking, striking, casting. My health and focus drained as the fight dragged on. It came as a surprise when the last desiccated goblin fell to the ground at my feet, and only silence followed. I spun, keeping my staff up in defense, but I was alone in the hall. Wulthark must have fled when the fight turned against them, leaving his people to die.

[Level up. 2 Ability Points Available. 1 Skill Point Available.]

Whatever strength had been keeping me on my feet during the fight fled. I collapsed against the cold stone wall and slid to the ground, laying my staff across my knees. Sweat poured down my face and my eyes still ached from the blast of lightning. I blinked a few times, watching the colorful lines dance across my vision.

"I… came out to help…"

I startled, fumbling for my staff, then recognized the voice. Sonja had sneaked up on me as I was resting. She'd traded her blacksmith's hammer for one obviously meant for combat. Its head was thick, and it looked too heavy for me to lift with one hand. She hefted it easily though, her other arm covered by a large round shield, emblazoned with a simple gold sunburst on a black background.

"I appreciate that." I said. "Do you have that water, by any chance?"

Her blurry form moved, and she held something out to me. Hopefully, my vision would return soon enough for me to return to camp. I thanked her and gulped the cool, clean water. Delicious.

"Drink as much as you like. I will refill it before you leave."

How generous.

I nodded and drank more, then splashed some against my face to wash the blood away. My blood. My spells didn't leave the kinds of wounds that bled. Gods, I needed to bathe. Sonja took a seat next to me, and we shared a companionable silence for a few minutes. I couldn't tell if Sonja was just content to share my company, was watching for more goblin attackers, or if she was making sure I actually left when I was ready to. Either way, she seemed far more amiable to my presence than she had when she was running me off.

"I owe you an apology, stran- Ciaphas. I have allowed myself to become too hard in this place. Too cruel. It was justified against Torrel, but you are a kind man and it was wrong of me to treat you as I did."

I heard a soft clink of glass on stone. The potion?

"You do not have to trade for water.. The Sunfather has blessed us with plenty, and I am happy to provide you with as much as you need."

"Decided I'm not so bad after all?" That may have been a bit much, but I thought I had earned the right to be a bit upset.

"Forgive me." Was all she said. We lapsed back into silence.

Eventually, the spots in my vision faded, and I stood, ready to make my way back to my camp. I'd had my fill of exploration for the day, and then some. Now I just wanted a hot meal and sleep.

"Thank you for the water, Sonja." I said and held my hand out to her. "It was a pleasure meeting you and Philip."

"And you, Ciaphas." She clasped my wrist without hesitation, squeezing tightly. There was an apology in that grip, too. "I will pray for your safe return."

I gathered what useful supplies the goblins had, mostly scrap leather and metal with a few food rations of… questionable quality, and headed back to camp. I'd made no progress in my mission to find water or a secure camp location. Looked like I would see more of Sonja after all. I also noticed that my newest objective had yet to be updated. Did I have to hunt down Wulthark in order for it to go away? Or was the attack still ongoing?

[Your camp is under attack.]

My blood ran cold, and I started sprinting back to my camp, heedless of any patrols that might be along the way.

Teija!