The path leading to Ruben's camp was a scene of ghoulish slaughter. Goblin corpses scattered the hall and pillar room, killed by various devious traps. The same trap that had injured me yesterday was now buried in the chest of a goblin, while others had torn their hapless victims to shreds, leaving behind an unrecognizable mess.
Bastard.
More goblins littered the hall to Ruben's camp, and they had smashed the door open. Their blood splattered the ground and walls near the entrance, but the room was empty of occupants. There was no help to be found here.
"Sunfather, protect us." Sonja whispered as she stared around in horror.
"Come on. I think I know where the goblins took them."
Two goblins guarded the painted passage leading deeper into the goblins' territory, spears at the ready. We readied ourselves to attack, but they seemed unconcerned. One sneered at me, then gestured with his spear for me to go first.
"Come. Chief waits."
"Is this a trap?" Sonja asked me under her breath.
"Do we have a choice?" I entered first, Sonja half a step behind.
The goblins let us go first, and walked behind us, the tips of their spears occasionally prodding my back. They weren't taking any chances. Two more goblins guarded the door into the staging area, and they opened it at our approach, leading us through the western door. The room I had yet to explore.
I swallowed hard, suddenly uncertain. The room was a large circle, the largest room I had seen so far. They had pushed the furniture to the edges, leaving it open in the center. Over a dozen goblins stood shoulder to shoulder, and Wulthark stood proudly at the forefront, with two hobgoblins on either side. One squeezed Philip's shoulder, a cruel blade pressed against the boy's throat.
"Sonja, Uncle Kai!" His eyes were puffy and tears streaked his cheeks. I couldn't see any injuries, though. And he held Horse tight against his chest with both hands.
"It's okay, Philip." Sonja's tone was ice. "We're going to take you home."
The goblins laughed, but Wulthark held his staff up with one hand and they all fell silent.
"I offered you peace once, Ciaphas." Wulthark said, his tone polite. "Someone murdered my people shortly after and I incorrectly assumed you were the one to do it. I was angry, and I ordered your death. That was a mistake, and I apologize."
"This is an odd way to apologize." I said, struggling to keep my tone even. Did we have any hope of taking this many goblins in a straight fight? There was no sign of Ruben or Helmfrid. I had to assume the goblins had locked them in the cages with the other prisoners. Or killed them.
"It is," Wulthark nodded. "And I apologize for that, too. But you have been so… proactive… in your attacks on my people because of our misunderstanding. I felt I had to get your attention so we could speak on even ground."
"You have it, so speak."
"I broke my deal with you and attacked. You killed the attackers and took your pound of flesh against my people. More than your fair share. I offer you peace once more. Give me the book and leave this place. I will give you the boy and my people will never attack your or yours again. You have my word, in front of the remnants of my tribe."
Those last words caused a wave of angry mutters in the others, but none dared speak against him. I wasn't certain the others shared the same sentiment.
"I saw the paintings along the walls." I said, buying time to think. "Are they why you want it so badly?"
"That's none of your damn-" one hobgoblin roared. It pointed its sword at me, but Wulthark forced it down with his staff.
"Hold your tongue, Rezal." The two glared at each other for a long moment, and the threat of violence hung heavy. But the other backed down. "It is. You have already tapped some of its power, used it against us, and I recognize some of that power from our oldest tales. A powerful enemy used it against us once, long ago, and I would not have it happen again."
"Tell me, so I can understand."
"Ciaphas, what are you doing?" Sonja's voice was hushed, but she let it drop at my look.
The surrounding goblins fidgeted, and Philip yelped in pain as his warden squeezed his shoulder tightly.
"No." Wulthark said. "Our tales are not for your kind, and I have already been far more generous than you deserve. Give me the book and take the boy, or you all die here."
The air in the room was tight, like a building lightning storm. My heart pounded, and I fought the urge to wipe my hands on my tunic to dry them. There was a sudden commotion from the room behind us. A sharp pop and shrieking metal. Wulthark glanced over my shoulder, then gestured to two of the hobgoblins.
"Take four and see what is going on. If the slaves are causing trouble, kill them."
Had Ruben gotten free? There was a second of confusion as the hobgoblins looked between each other, determining who would go. I moved without thinking, channeling magic and releasing it in a burst.
"[Sleep]! Sonja, grease!"
My spell caught Philip's handler by surprise, and its eyes rolled back into its head as it slumped to the ground. The others squawked in surprise, and Sonja quickly threw a vial full of black sludge at the ground under Wulthark's feet. It shattered, and an impossible amount of oil burst from within, splattering the chief and his hobgoblin guards and coating the floor in a thick layer. They tried to step back from it, but lost their balance and fell to the ground in a heap, burying the unconscious hob under them.
"Get Philip out of here!" I raised my staff again and slammed the butt on the ground. "[Cause Fear]!"
A wave of foul magic rolled away from me, tainting the air with a green haze. The lesser goblins flinched away from me as it washed over them, and their eyes rolled wildly. A few tried to flee, and it sparked the instinct in many others, trampling each other in their haste to escape my magic.
"Philip, come on!" Sonja shouted as she rushed toward him, shield and hammer raised. "Get behind me!"
The grease had affected Philip, and he struggled to crawl away from the mass of hobgoblins. His arms and legs slid under him, and he shouted in surprise and pain as one grabbed his ankle, dragging him back. Sonja struck the arm with her war hammer, shattering bone, and she offered the head to Philip for him to grab.
I fired [Magic Missile] after missile into the jumble, aiming at Wulthark but happy with any target my spells struck. I didn't dare to use fire until Philip was far away for fear of igniting the grease. The boy grabbed Sonja's hammer, and she pulled hard. He slid away from the pile like a missile, closing half the distance between us and getting clear from the grease.
"Go!" I shouted, casting another missile into the crowd. "Get out of here. I'll follow you."
Sonja sheathed her hammer and swept Philip up in one arm, keeping her shield up. The door behind us burst open, and I almost struck Teija with a missile as she and Ruben came into view. She held a twisted and smoking padlock in her hand, ruined by some alchemical creation.
"I came to help!" She said, flushed and panting. Ruben had a bloody goblin short sword in his hand, and his eyes darted from side to side, hunting a target.
The hobgoblins had regained their wits and were climbing to their feet, helping the others up and sliding away from the pool of grease. Wulthark was the last to rise, and murder shone in his eyes.
"Bring me the mage!" He screamed, his voice breaking. "Kill the others!"
Two rushed toward me while a third tried to round me and grab at Sonja. Teija was faster than all of us. She slipped one vial free from Sonja's bandolier and threw it in a single, smooth motion. The glass shattered against the lead hob and liquid fire splattered against his chest, spreading to the pool on the floor. The room filled with screaming and sizzling, and Sonja ran with Philip. Teija followed, shouting and gesturing, and the slaves I had seen earlier followed her out, along with the old doctor.
The magical spell holding the goblins back broke at their chieftain's call, and they rushed forward, giving the burning patch a wide berth. Two hobgoblins attacked me directly, and I had to focus on keeping myself alive. I had to trust the others to save themselves. I blocked an overhead chop with my staff and channeled a [Drain Touch]. The second hob scored a deep slash across my thigh and I screamed, then turned the tip of my staff on it. Its arms withered as I took its strength, and I felt the pain dull as the wound healed itself.
"Take Philip." I heard Sonja call, followed by the clang of metal against her shield.
A bolt of lightning crashed against my magical shield, blinding me as sparks danced across my vision.
"You'll die here, Ciaphas!" Wulthark's lightning crashed against my defenses, and I felt them crack under the assault.
I turned away to give my eyes a chance to recover and saw Sonja, standing tall and proud, blocking the doorway with her shield and punishing any goblin foolish enough to come within range of her hammer. The fire threw dancing shadows around her while her armor caught and held the light, making her glow.
An axe slid across my [Mage Armor] and I slammed the butt of my staff against the inside of my attacker's knee. The hob roared as it fell, and I struck it with another [Drain Touch]. It collapsed, staring up at the ceiling and gasping for breath as it lost the strength to stand. I could see Wulthark now, standing amidst the burning oil. His ragged cloak smoldered but did not catch, and he seemed unconcerned by the flames.
The chief slammed his staff against the ground and the stone beneath his foot cracked in a rolling wave towards me. The ground beneath me shifted, and the next blow caught me off balance, knocking me to the ground. My hobgoblin attacker followed me to the floor, and it forced me to drop the tome as I struggled to keep my staff between us, keeping the axe from my face.
"Ciaphas!" Sonja's voice again, followed by a scream as a goblin slipped through her defense, then a wet crunch.
The hobgoblin was heavy, and the weight, combined with its foul stink, made it hard to breathe. Hard to focus. My opponent overpowered my guard, and I let go of my staff, putting my arm between my throat and the axe. The blade caught on my bracer and stuck, not quite biting into the flesh. I slapped my free hand against the hobgoblin's face, casting [Sleep]. The creature went limp immediately, and I shoved him off of me. A quick hack with its axe opened its throat to the bone. I finished the gasping hobgoblin in the same way, leaving one more and Wulthark himself.
[Hobgoblin Honor Guard killed. Exp gained.]
[Hobgoblin Honor Guard killed. Exp gained.]
A blow knocked me to the floor away from my staff, and a heavy boot kicked me in the ribs. I felt something break, and the air rushed out of my lungs. Pain blinded me, and my vision swam as I tasted blood. A hobgoblin stood over me, readying another kick.
"I tried to be nice." Wulthark said as he picked the book up, staring at it in wonder. "I gave you a chance and you spat in my face. You humans are all the same."
Another kick to my now broken ribs, this time even more painful. I wheezed, my lungs too empty to scream, and tried to channel a spell. The magic flowed through my fingers, water through a sieve. I couldn't concentrate. I heard a distant scream. If I could only get the axe, if I could only die, I could do better next time. Wulthark kneeled down beside me. His long fingers grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him.
"You're going to die, Ciaphas. First you, then the others. One by one. And you won't be coming back to stop it." He cackled as my eyes widened, my strength leaving me. "I offered to tell you once. It is the magic in this place, you see. You and I? We're different. Locked in a constant contest of strength. You aren't the first human to come to this place, unable to die. And you certainly won't be the last."
The hobgoblin kicked me again, and my vision faded. Wulthark studied me clinically, as though considering a work of art, then held up his hand to stop another kick.
"I've killed dozens of your kind. Not just humans, but those special cases like yourself. See, I was confused at first. Angry. I could tell by looking at some that they had died before, and yet there they were. Killing my people, stealing my property. Nothing my people did would work against them. Even on the verge of victory, something would steal it away. Until I killed the first one myself."
He stroked my face with thin fingers, long claws leaving scratches. I could hear the sounds of fighting fade as I floated away from it all. I was so tired, too tired to cough as blood leaked into my lung. It hurt to breathe. Wulthark's voice was a sick lullaby as my consciousness faded.
"Whatever power they had, it didn't work against me. All I have to do is lure them here, to my territory, and finish them myself. That's why I'm the Boss. That's why I lead. As soon as you are dead, things will go back to the way they were. All the goblins you've killed, all of my people your animal friend has eaten." He hissed the word as a curse. "They'll be just fine, and all of your people will stay dead. Until the next ones come."
He stood up and took one of the fallen swords from the ground.
"Thank you for bringing me the book, Ciaphas. Your job is-"
Wulthark's sentence cut off with a scream of pain as a butcher's knife buried itself in his chest, just below his throat. An armored figure collided with the hobgoblin holding me down and sent it flying. I took in a ragged breath and felt a cool hand tilt my chin upwards. Teija crouched over me, her cheeks red with exertion and her eyes shone with terror and determination.
"Here, drink this, quick."
Something made of glass touched my lips and I struggled to swallow through the pain and coughs. The potion took effect immediately, and I cringed as my ribs melded back into unbroken bone, thankful for the lack of pain.
"Thank you. My staff…" I wheezed, still hurting too much to articulate. I felt the wood press into my palm, and I used it to push myself to my feet. Some of my strength was returning, but too slowly.
The room was in chaos. Sonja traded blows with the hobgoblin honor guard, blocking each incoming strike with her shield and doing her best to cave her enemy's skull in. Ruben and the male slave I had once fought and died beside fought together. Ruben slashed out at exposed arms and throats with two knives, while the ex-slave held lesser goblins back with a crude spear too small for him. Wulthark screamed as he tried to pull the knife from his chest without dropping either the book or his staff.
"Philip?" I gasped, then coughed and spat a wad of phlegm and blood on the dirty stone floor. The tickling pressure in my lung eased, making breathing easier, though it didn't disappear entirely.
"The slave women took him with them. I told them where our camp was, but I couldn't just leave you here. They should find it easily enough. I told them to follow the smell of burned wood."
She tried to joke, but her voice trembled. I nodded and pushed myself to my feet with the staff.
"We have to get the book from Wulthark. We can't let him use it." I had studied enough of it to know how vile some of it could be. Hell, I had used enough of it myself.
I recast [Mage Armor] and [Shield] as Wulthark threw the bloody knife to the ground. Losing the book had weakened my magic significantly. I could feel how weak my defenses were, and the magic was harder to focus. We stared at each other for a moment, then moved together, the pages in the book flipping on their own. My [Firebolt] was a split second too late to stop him as a bolt of energy shot from his staff to strike the corpse of the burned hobgoblin at his feet.
"[Animate Dead]!"
The fire splashed across Wulthark, but he barely noticed the pain. He watched with sickening fascination as the charred corpse jerked, then pushed itself to its feet. The face had burned away, leaving charred meat stretched thin over blackened bone. Its jaw worked soundlessly, and it moved toward me and Teija with jerking steps.
"Run!" I told her and fired a bolt of magic. The flame caught it in the chest. It didn't even try to defend itself, but it didn't respond to the pain. If it even felt any.
I heard a crunch and Sonja's foe fell. She turned towards us, and I heard her curse for the first time. I could hardly blame her.
"Kill them!" Wulthark cackled. "Kill them all!"
"Get the mage!" Sonja shouted, and she charged the undead with her shield, knocking it off balance.
"Right!"
I instinctively tried to call up [Drain Life], having used it countless times since I had found the tome, but the power failed me. I couldn't cast it without the book, and Wulthark held it in a death grip.
Right, back to basics then.
"I can't wait to see if you will keep your powers when I enslave your corpse!" Wulthark said, and the skull on his staff glowed a familiar green.
I launched a [Firebolt] at the sorcerer, but he batted it aside with his staff. A trick I hadn't seen before. Could I learn to do that? I channeled a [Magic Missile] and prepared to fall back as he charged me. I wasn't prepared for him to point his staff at me and cast something new.
"[Agony]!"
My body convulsed, and I screamed in agony as my limbs shuddered and flailed helplessly under the evil magic. The pain only lasted a moment, but it left me sweating and gasping for air. He used the opportunity to close in, staff glowing green with power. I was all too familiar with [Drain Life] to let him touch me with it. I stepped to the side at the last minute, body aching, and slammed my staff into his knee on his way past. Something snapped, and the mage screamed in pain as he fell to the ground in a heap.
I stepped away, still wary of his spell, and heard a scream. Ruben barged past the last of the goblins, leaving the ex-slave to fend them off alone, and launched himself at the chieftain, trying to bury the knives in his chest.
"Ruben, no!"
Wulthark stopped one knife by blocking the wrist holding it and laughed while the second slid into his stomach. The staff touched Ruben's face, and I saw his look of agonized horror as his body shriveled, leaving skin clinging tightly to bone. The husk fell to the side, dead, and Wulthark's knee popped back into place as he healed from the injuries we had dealt him. Wulthark's spell was far more potent than mine had ever been. Did he have levels too? What was his compared to my own?
The room lit up with a flash of light, and we both turned to see Sonja's war hammer glowing with a light so bright it stung the eyes. She struck the undead with it, and the creation hissed and burned, then crumbled to ash.
"No!" Wulthark screamed, and channeled another spell with murder in his eyes and rose to his feet.
I launched my missile at him, buying Sonja time to recover and bring her shield between herself and the hobgoblin sorcerer.
"The book!" I shouted, and I saw Sonja nod.
Then she charged to meet him.
They collided, and Wulthark absorbed the impact easily. He was as scrawny as ever, ancient and thin, but he seemed possessed by some unnatural strength. Had he taken more from Ruben than just healing? A measure of his strength? How long would it last? Wulthark swept with his staff, still glowing green, but Sonja was careful not to let it touch anything but her shield. Her war hammer still glowed, but Wulthark attacked all the same.
I readied another missile, waiting for my chance to help. Their exchange was swift and brutal. Wulthark may have had that burst of strength, but Sonja was strong and much younger, and whatever blessing she had drawn from her god had given her a strength of its own. They traded blow after blow, unable to get an advantage over the other, and they moved too quickly for me to have a shot that wouldn't risk hitting Sonja and proving a fatal distraction.
Eventually Sonja saw an opportunity and, having come to the same conclusion as I regarding his strength, took a foolish risk. She allowed the staff to slip past her guard and touch her chest; the spell drained her immediately, but she struck with her shield and hammer same time. Her hammer caught Wulthark on the elbow holding the book, shattering the bone and forcing him to drop the book while the shield trapped his staff between it and her body, preventing the hobgoblin from pulling it back. As soon as the book fell from his grasp, the spell ended and the staff lost its glow.
"Now!"
Her voice hoarse from pain and exhaustion. Her plan had cost her dearly, and even the brief spell had drained an alarming amount of her strength. Sweat poured from her pale and clammy forehead, and I could see the tremble in her shield arm as she struggled to hold the staff pinned.
My spell took Wulthark through the heart, and three more followed it. I wasn't taking any chances with the sorcerer. Sonja held on until the staff fell from his limp hand, then kicked it away before letting the hobgoblin fall. She collapsed to the ground, panting heavily as the glow faded from her weapon.
I grabbed the book from where it had fallen in a rush, in case Wulthark was still alive, but I needn't have bothered. The hobgoblin had died somewhere between the first and third shot. The fourth had been overkill.
[Floor One Boss: Wulthark, Sorcerer Chief killed. Exp gained.]
[Level up. 2 Attribute Points Available. 2 Skill Points Available.]
[Floor One cleared. Congratulations.]
[Level up. 4 Attribute Points Available. 3 Skill Points Available.]
