We passed a few of the larger rooms like the last, and each time, we slowed enough to examine them properly.
Finally, we came upon a massive cavern, though this one was not a neatly lined and timber-supported room that had been mined out. It was a natural cavern. The sound of picks at work filled the air alongside a few voices. It was surprising how far we had to go before anyone came into sight. Sound traveled easily off the stone walls, and the cavern curved in on itself as it continued to descend.
Hana peered around the corner, then tiptoed back to let Alysand and I know what lay ahead.
“A whole team of miners is up there, maybe twenty of them. At least five guards as well, but something else. Some of the miners look different. They are trow I think, but… but they are huge and don’t really look right. I don’t know. Let’s just be ready for anything, okay?”
As Hana turned to leave, an idea came to mind. Rather than bumble into a huge group of creatures, it seemed best to use our heads a bit. “Wait, let’s try something different,” I said, waving the two over to my position.
I told them my plan and we set about preparing.
A minute later, Alysand called out in a ratkin voice that was so accurate it was shocking. I fought back a laugh as his shrill voice filled the cavern. “Invaders! We kills them for masters!”
The sound of heavily armored guards hustling our way echoed off the walls, sounding like no less than an army. I waited in my position, standing like the badass I was in the center of the path around the corner. They saw me at once as they came around the corner. I taunted them, and predictably, they reoriented themselves and charged. Six guards this time, but still not enough.
As the distance closed, I heard an arrow whistle past me and bury itself in a ratkin’s eye. It fell and knocked over one of its brothers in the process. I hefted my axe, preparing to strike the first enemy in line as Pachi flashed from her hiding place. She tugged the rear guard back to the ground just as he was struggling to regain his footing. Two down, four to go.
At last, the Ratkin Lord swung his sword as me. I caught the blade on the end of my axe and landed a kick to his breastplate. He stumbled back, and as the second opponent came at me, wielding two shorter swords, I used Sunder again. My axe bit through his block and severed his arms above the wrist. Another swing sent his head thumping on the ground before his body.
The one I’d kicked had recovered and now swung at me again, this time with more skill. I winced, expecting the blow to fall, but an arrow sprouted from his neck and he fell in a heap at my feet, clutching the arrow with both hands like it was something precious.
The third looked down in surprise as his companions fell around him, and I bashed him in the face with the butt of my axe. The beast’s skull caved in and he fell, his limbs spasming.
Tejón charged the last, and I winced as I watched the ratkin slash at his head with a sword. A loud clang sounded, and sparks filled the air. Tejón mauled him and cut off his scream. I breathed easy when I noticed the sword blow had left only a white scratch on one of his bone plates. He was one hell of a pet.
Alysand walked up beside me and laughed. “At this rate, I will have fun watching you four dispatch everyone we find. I’m almost thinking I should have stayed back in Benham.”
We searched the bodies again and found more coin. This time, one of the guards had a handful of gold rivets on him, which made me smile. Cash is king. Afterward, we walked around the bend where the party of miners was, their picks now silent. Several of them saw the result of the fight and picked up their gear to sprint away. However, five of the zealous miners wielded their picks and charged us, followed by three figures that gave me pause. Massive trow goblins, swollen and disfigured, rushed us with an oversized pick in each hand.
Twisted Trow
Level 20
HP: 5012/5012
Abilities: Tackle, Smite, Frenzy
The zealots were dispatched quickly, but as the hulks behind them approached, I couldn’t help but admire their power if not the odd configuration of their bodies. Each was well over seven feet tall and as proportionately thick in the arms and legs as their diminutive counterparts. The twisted trow must have weighed four or five hundred pounds each, and as they tromped toward me in iron-shod boots, I felt the ground shake.
They looked pained, though. Their bodies quite literally twisted, whether by magic or some other means. Perhaps that was how they had gotten so big.
“Incoming!” I shouted and lifted my axe to block a pickaxe from skewering me. Though I caught the implement on the edge of my axe, the sheer force of it pushed me to my knees. The monster lifted the next one to finish his work, so I rolled to the side to buy myself some time.
Play time was over. I buffed myself with Guardian of the Wild and then the party with Berserker’s Boon. New power flooded my veins.
Status Effect: Guardian of the Wild
Guardian of the Wild: Buff 1 will grant +10% Strength and +10% Constitution when fighting against a creature with any of the following status conditions: deranged, diseased, possessed, or evil. Buff 2 activates when serving in a protective role within a group, granting +5% to all attributes. Buffs will apply as Guardian of the Wild 1 and 2, respectively. Duration: 5 minutes. Cooldown: 30 minutes.
Status Effect: Shield of
