“We are not going through that,” Bran said, his tone final.
Liliene peeked around the corner, too curious to restrain herself. It was a town, built in the entrails of the earth. The goblins had houses of wood and straw, totems they seemed to worship, and music played on drums and crude wind instruments.
But it was what was on the other end of the cave that caught Liliene’s attention. A round door made entirely of metal sat untouched, if you ignored the rather rude drawings on it.
Apart from the goblins’ corpses they had left in their wake, they had nothing to show for the delve they had done. Not a single artifact. Maybe Bran and his team would be fine with that. They could just come back later with more people, or pick another ruin. But Liliene’s group had a deadline.
Was that what the ones who truly wanted to study felt like? Liliene pondered. The desperation to pay for their tuition? It probably led more than a few to their death.
No, the deadline wasn’t even the problem. Liliene had been having the best time of her life. She had laughed, found a girlfriend, made love. She had spent the last few days so carefree and happy that she had almost forgotten why she was doing all of this, and that door on the far side of the cavern was a reminder. She had been living her life while her mother wasted away at home, burning the last bits of her energy to preserve her memories.
“We’re going.”
Nex nodded; she wouldn’t contest an order from her Princess.
“Girl, this is suicide,” Bran hissed.
“I understand. Can you escort Laura back? Please.”
“Lili, I can stay. I can—”
“Laura. Please. Just this once. I’ll pick you up when we’re done. Promise,” Liliene said, trying her best to sport a confident grin. “We need you for what comes next, right?”
Laura held Liliene's gaze. She wanted to protest; she really did. She was the one who had refused Liliene’s money, and now her girlfriend was even going to fight her battles. But there was no way Liliene could protect her from a room full of enemies.
“Okay,” she conceded with a sigh. “You better come back in one piece.” Laura kissed the corner of Liliene’s mouth.
“Alright, kid. I’ll escort your girlfriend back.”
Bran stood up, nodded to his team, and turned back.
“I’m not sure what you’re hoping to find in there, but you’re making a mistake. It’s not worth dying for,” he said without looking back.
Laura reluctantly followed the group, turning to look back at her two comrades left behind.
“Nex… How should we…”
Liliene’s original plan had two steps: get Nex to agree to the plan, then get Nex to finish it.
“We can’t charge head-on.”
Nex peeked again, taking in as many details as possible. The buildings, the routes between them and which ones were guarded, the braziers, their location, their numbers. Then the number of hostiles, their weapons, everything. She stopped counting after a few dozen; it was pointless to keep going.
If the braziers were to fall on the buildings, everything would burn, Nex would never have any darkness to work with, the goblins would charge at them for sure, and the two of them would have to retreat or be overwhelmed.
A sigh escaped Nex. She didn’t like the plan she was going to suggest.
“Can you smother the braziers using your blood?”
Liliene pictured it. She probably could, though she’d never take the blood back inside her with cinders and ashes floating in it.
“I’ll do it.” Liliene nodded.
Nex nodded back. “Six will do. Create a dark enough zone for me, and I’ll fight your battle for you, Princess.” She took Lili’s gourd and shook it. “With mine, it should be enough to douse one or two of them. I’m going first.”
She didn’t wait and crouched, moving without a sound. It was as if Nex glided above the ground. She reached the nearest building, just a round structure, where a goblin was taking a piss against the wall. Nex slid her hand over his mouth as her sword pierced his back.
She climbed the building's misaligned planks, reached the first brazier from her vantage point, and emptied her gourd onto its embers. The water sizzled, the fire giving off thick white smoke as it was extinguished.
It was time for Liliene to stop admiring her way-too-competent maid. To think real noble ladies had dozens of Nexs. Lucky them.
Liliene moved in the other direction, taking the right side of the cavern. She pressed her back against the nearest building, not trusting herself to be as sneaky as her maid. When she tilted her neck to look past the curve hiding her, she spotted two goblins sitting, throwing knucklebones on a board. The bigger one of the two apparently didn’t like the result and punched his playmate. Very hard.
“For Mama,” she whispered to herself. She lunged, a crude pike forming with her blood. It pierced the big one, whose eyes widened in shock. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out except a few grunts.
Thump. Thump.
A beating heart. Weakening, but still trying its best. Part of the pike melted. A pump. Not enough. Another one. Liliene felt her blood everywhere in his body. She pulled it back, and the goblin fell, limp. Dry.
The mixture she pulled was dark brown and hard to control. The shapes she attempted to create were all wrong, wavy, leaking onto the ground. It was like that time when she was little and tried to make her first Laura statue.
A few drops fell on the smaller goblin's face, still dazed from the punch, and roused him.
“Shit.”
The spike she made was so soft and flabby it splashed against the monster as a wave that did nothing but make him damp. He flailed his arms around and spat out the blood that entered his mouth.
“Gob?”
A sword pierced him before he could understand what had happened to him. Good thing she still carried her normal one.
“Okay. No fighting with it.”
She had no time to investigate why it wasn’t working properly, so she decided to use their blood to save some of hers. She repeated the process and, this time, dropped the yucky mixture onto the brazier.
Good, she thought, nodding to herself. That was going smoothly.
***
Ten minutes later, back at the cave’s entrance, Laura couldn’t sit still.
“Maybe I should go back…”
“Only promised to escort you back. What you do after that is your business,” Bran said, dismissing her with a wave.
“You’re a jerk, you know that?” Michelle said, her hands on her hips as if she were scolding a child. “Of course the poor girl’s worried sick. We should have stayed with them.”
“Not worth it. They had a chieftain and multiple shamans.”
“Woof,” Bill barked.
“See? He agrees with me.”
“It’s a dog, Bran. He’s barking because I’m shouting.”
“Woof!”
“See?” Michelle said, imitating Bran’s tone. “He agrees with me.”
“Let’s not fight, guys. But I agree with Michelle. I bet they’re just stressed about their tuition. We should have helped them.”
Bran held Roland’s gaze for a moment, said nothing, then turned to Michel. The archer shrugged indecisively.
“Do whatever you want,” Bran finally said, then turned away from the group and rested his back against a nearby trunk. “Being softies will only get you killed.”
Michelle grinned and took both of Laura’s hands in hers. “Come on, let’s support your girlfriend!” She winked.
Laura’s expression softened, and she sniffled. Without thinking, she pulled Michelle into a hug. “Thank you!”
They both jogged toward the cave again.
“We’re going with or without you, guys,” Michelle said to the three guys, then stuck out her tongue at them. It felt good to help youngsters, she thought.
***
The cave situation had quickly gone south.
“Nex, are we going to die?”
All around them, dozens of arrows flew and stuck in the ground, barely a meter from their feet. The building they were taking refuge behind was the only thing separating them from a sea of very angry goblins and a troll.
The troll had smelled spilled blood and spotted Liliene. Who knew they had such sharp noses? Thankfully, they weren’t the brightest of creatures. A simple splash of spilled blood here and there was enough to send him running in circles.
“AARGH!”
Another building crushed. Closer, if Liliene judged by the splinters raining down around them.
“If it’s any consolation, vampires are notoriously hard to kill.” Not that she was eager to test that theory with her Princess.
“How many more braziers do you need, you think?”
Nex focused and tried to extend a domain. It was weak; she was able to feel the goblins’ presence, but she wouldn’t be able to ride it to move herself or Liliene inside.
“I don’t know. Two, maybe three.”
“Alright.” Liliene’s body coiled, ready to spring into action, but she relaxed back and looked at Nex with a timid expression she hadn’t made for years. “Can you pat my head real quick?” Liliene asked, her lower lip caught between her teeth.
Nex’s eyes widened, but her gaze softened instantly. Her hand found the top of Liliene’s head. “Did you just have a stupid idea?”
“Hm. I’m going to do it. Will you… I hope you’ll pull me out when I’m done.”
“I’m going to do better than that, Princess. I’ll buy you time.”
Nex leaned closer but quickly changed her mind. Liliene could guess she wanted something; she just had no idea what.
“I trust you.”
They both stood and ran in opposite directions.
Nex ran toward the brightest areas at first, drawing attention to herself. She cut one goblin in passing and dove behind the next building.
“Gob!” One of them said, pointing toward the building Nex had hidden behind. Another volley came her way.
Liliene didn’t look back and darted toward the closest brazier. She pulled a glob of blood out, didn’t bother to shape it, let it fall over the flame, and kept running. She created another one and left it hanging in front of her like an anglerfish. Arrows rained; she ignored the cuts and prayed. Goblins charged; she cut or pushed them.
Nothing made sense anymore. Liliene had barely any idea where she was in the camp, always running, diving, slashing her way deeper inside the goblins’ territory. She spotted her next objective. She ran toward it and let the globe she was carrying drop onto the flames. Then a club dug into her stomach. She coughed blood as she was hurled backward. The pain came after, and understanding of what happened came even later. Liliene’s body flew, slid against a straw roof, flew some more, and finally stopped after ragdolling inside the building behind.
“Lili!”
She heard her name screamed from afar, but it was only a vague sound compared to the ringing in her head. In the room she fell into, two goblins were staring at her, screaming. She thought it was two, but her vision was so swimmy she couldn’t be sure.
She couldn’t die yet, not like that; but lifting her arms was taking every bit of strength she had left. Besides, she was certain it wasn’t supposed to be bent that way. A crimson spike burst from her bent elbow, missing them both.
Her vision grew black. It wasn’t her consciousness fading, because the black faded to reveal her Nex.
Nex didn’t spare a glance at the goblins as she cut them and teleported Liliene near the entrance.
“You did well, Princess,” she said, carefully resting Liliene’s body against a wall.
Nex’s praise made a small smile bloom on Liliene’s face.
“Is it enough?” Liliene asked weakly. “Win for me, Nex.”
It barely was, Nex thought, but she would have to make do. That part of the cave was hers, but it didn’t go very far, and using her powers would be very taxing on her stamina. But fulfilling her princess’s wish was her raison d’être. She would win.
“Yes.” Nex tapped her sword against the sole of her shoe. “Don’t take your eyes off me.”
Nex walked, taking the center of the dimmest part. The volley of arrows came first. Nex deflected them with quick sword strikes, dodged what she couldn’t deflect, and grabbed a few mid-air for good measure.
Every presence registered, every movement. When the first goblin came in range, a crude spear in hand, Nex appeared behind him, planted her sword in his back, and blinked away. Only after reappearing did she arc her sword to cast off the blood.
Then they came in a wave, seeking to overwhelm. It was a bloodbath. It was beautiful. Nex was everywhere, dancing among a sea of creatures, reappearing anywhere she pleased. Heads flew, punctuating the battlefield with viridian geysers. A few she couldn’t be bothered to cut and teleported against the cavern’s roof, leaving their fate in gravity’s hands.
A club swept low on the ground, lifting corpses and living goblins alike. Nex tilted her head to avoid it, the wood grazing her cheek, and swung her sword against his leg. It bounced.
Before the club could journey downward to crush her, Nex blinked next to Liliene and sighed.
“I’ll need a better weapon.”
Liliene missed neither the beads of sweat matting Nex’s hair against her forehead nor the way she breathed. Her maid was exhausted.
“Nex…”
“Just look at me, Princess. I’ll take care of everything.”
The creature, three times her maid's height, wore thick gray skin covered in pustules. He was naked, save for the loincloth covering his privates. Compared to him, Nex was an annoying mosquito, down to the bites.
Liliene saw her maid slow, her movements growing sluggish. Nex would fight till she dropped, for her, and she’d do it with a smile on her face.
“Nex…” She gathered her strength, filled her lungs, and put everything she had into a shout. “Come back. That’s an order!”
Nex groaned, ducked low under a swing of the massive club, and pressed her hand against the troll’s leg. A four-meter-tall dome of pure darkness engulfed him. But he barely reappeared a meter above the ground; that was all Nex had left. Still, he crumbled under his own weight, momentarily stunned.
Her maid came back on foot, which told her Nex had exhausted her reserves.
“I didn’t blink,” Liliene admitted with a discreet smile. Nex reddened like a maiden. “Let me take care of the big guy.”
Liliene rolled and let her battered body slide against Nex. Without hesitation, she sank her fangs into her neck.
Nex’s blood. Nex’s taste. It was deeper than Laura’s. No, sharper. If Laura tasted like honey, Nex was lemon juice. The kind that gave you goosebumps and made you shiver, yet that you could never have enough of.
“Hmpf!”
The appreciation was spoiled. Liliene’s eyes watered, tears flowing down her cheeks as the first effects manifested. A cracking sound came first, then the pain. Her jaw clenched harder against Nex’s throat as she fought the urge to pull back and scream; each bone slowly unbreaking. One. Crack. After. Crack. The other.
“Lili… Are you okay?” Nex asked, her arms wrapping around Liliene.
“Hm.” Liliene didn’t dare talk, for it would break her concentration. All she could do was weakly nod and keep lapping, hoping the taste would distract her.
“Grum?” a voice resonated; the troll had gathered his wits.
“Gob!”
A few green monsters still alive pointed toward the couple on the ground and aimed for them. Nex took hold of Liliene and made them roll, dodging a few arrows without breaking her Princess’s feeding. Liliene spasmed a few more times; her healing was now complete.
“It’s okay, Nex. Thank you.” Liliene stood and rolled her shoulders. She felt almost brand new.
“Are you sure you had enough? I can…”
“Hm. I don’t think I could ever get enough,” Liliene said and gave Nex a grin. “Be prepared. You’re on feeding duty from now on.”
“Princess…” Nex reddened again.
Liliene decided that was a good expression on Nex. She liked it.
“Lili.” Nex’s voice turned serious. “Stop making weapons. You have one already. Don’t limit yourself to conventional shapes.”
Liliene debated whether it was the proper time for a training session, but then again, she had just flirted with her, so she wasn’t one to talk. She had just flirted with Nex… Oh god. Time to be mortified later. Fighting came first.
She ran toward the troll, who was dumbly scrabbling for his club in the building he’d half-flattened.
“Arrows!” Nex shouted.
She formed a shield to deflect the incoming projectiles and pulled it back in after hearing a few tings. She kept running and, when she was finally at a good distance, jumped to build momentum. In her fall toward the troll’s back, she formed a sword. She should have made a spear, she thought. Too late now.
The sword cut. Barely. The troll kicked behind him on reflex when he felt pain shooting along his back. Liliene barely had time to cross her arms to protect herself and skidded against the ground.
She needed to make it thinner. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t copy Luna. She couldn’t begin to comprehend how wide a single atom was. Nor exactly what an atom was anyway.
Stop making weapons, Nex had said. But what should she make?
Her musing was cut short by a wooden beam flying to meet her face. She jumped unceremoniously to the side and rolled on the ground.
Bats? Her first thought went to her little friends, but while giving herself wings would certainly look cool, she doubted it would be useful. If they even worked.
She dashed between two buildings to buy herself time, killing more green pests when they were near.
Claws? They wouldn’t achieve much more than her sword. What a curse it was to be the versatile one yet so lacking in imagination. Laura would find a solution in a heartbeat.
Oh. She had an idea, and it sounded stupid. Spiders were cute, too, and they stuck to anything.
She ran to the giant, gray monster, and when he hefted his club, she ran faster to slide underneath him.
“Argh.”
Liliene hissed in pain as four thin arms erupted from her back, tearing her skin, then the fabric of her top. She hardened the pointy tips and dug them inside the troll’s hide. Just skin-deep, she couldn’t find anything with her blood, but they stuck, allowing her to launch herself at his back.
“Lili!”
Liliene heard the sweet, worried voice of her Laura. Did she come back? She had no time to ponder why; she needed to finish this. But the sound gave her wings. Look at me, Laura. Look how strong I am.
***
Laura had rushed ahead, her steps carried by the screams and roars resonating against the cave’s walls.
“Wait, Laura! We don’t know what’s ahead!”
She ignored Michelle’s warnings and ran faster. After a few minutes at full speed, retracing their earlier steps, still littered with goblins’ corpses, she finally reached the entrance where she had left her companions.
It took a moment for her eyes to acclimate to the ambient darkness. The few braziers still burning at the far end made everything look like silhouettes. A giant figure thrashed wildly while a smaller one climbed it with too many limbs. It was like watching the shadow play of a spider wrapping a meal definitely too big for it.
Was that… Laura looked at the ground next to her feet when she heard a groan. Nex rested with her back against the wall, her hand rubbing down her neck. If Nex is here…
“Lili!”
“Miss Laura. Don’t distract her,” Nex said, then slowly rose to her feet.
Only now did Laura notice the two points on Nex’s neck, still leaking a thin stream of blood. Laura’s heart clenched. She knew it must have happened during the fight, that Liliene had probably needed it, in some way. But she couldn’t help the mix of hurt and ugly feelings swirling deep inside her. If Nex could also provide, while fighting better than she ever would… What was she good for?
“Laura!”
Michelle’s voice, along with a few sets of hurried footsteps, came from the corridor.
“They can’t see Lili’s blood magic,” Nex hissed, drawing her sword once more.
“Wait!” Laura stood in front of her. “I’ll buy us time. Just… Just… Don’t kill them. Please.” Laura ran back the way she came from.
***
Liliene climbed around the giant troll, getting the hang of it. She chipped at his hide, driving more pointy limbs into his skin. It was hard to focus while being thrashed around, but once she hardened her extra limbs, they stuck with little conscious effort. She focused on making another one big, thin, long, and very pointy. Like a scorpion. The tip hammered against the troll’s back, puncturing a little deeper with every strike until she felt it. Thump. Thump. His heartbeat. It was strong, also very slow. She melted the tip and let her blood flow. She wouldn’t mix it this time. After a few pumps, having pushed what she could, she hardened everything.
A giant Lycoris suddenly bloomed on the battlefield. The troll erupted in a sculpture of spikes and a fountain of blood. He fell like a rock, face first against the dirt. Liliene stood on his back, drenched by the constant gush of his blood.
“Laura! Did you see?” she asked, turning around to look at where she had heard her lover’s voice.
Her heart fell; Laura was nowhere to be seen; only Nex stood a few paces away, watching her with a patient look on her face.
“My Lady, you were beautiful. But they’re coming back. You should hide your powers.”
She obeyed and pulled back inside what blood she could, spilling the rest. When the group of delvers arrived, they froze. Liliene also took the opportunity to look around. The ground was carpeted with corpses, the houses broken. A few survivors were crawling away, praying to stay unnoticed. The quiet dripping of liquid was the only sound for a while, as the village's blood formed new, ephemeral streams.
Had they done that?
Somewhere behind her, Laura retched.