The cave mouth yawns before me like a dark, gaping wound in the hillside. I should be terrified. I know I should be. But honestly? I feel nothing but a strange calm.
The royal convoy stretches behind us in a long line of armored soldiers, their polished shields catching the afternoon light. Twenty of them, at least. Plus Matilda with her arms crossed, looking like she could bench press a dragon. Morgana stands off to the side, her dark robes billowing in the gentle breeze, and Luna hovers near the back, her holy rod clutched in hand.
“Alright,” Matilda says, stepping forward with that commanding presence that makes even the birds stop singing. “So this is your first goblin cave. Any questions?”
Brooke shifts beside me, her hand resting on the hilt of her legendary sword. “How advanced are these goblins?”
Matilda raises an eyebrow, her weathered face breaking into a smirk. “What, are you afraid of taking a life or something?”
Brooke snorts, rolling her eyes. “No, goblins are goblins. I don’t care about them. I’m asking to know what level of training and weapons to expect.”
Matilda’s smile widens, genuine approval in her eyes. “These are just grubs that try and fail at kidnapping men to rape. They might have some spears, but they should be no match for one of you, let alone both of you.”
She turns to me then, those sharp brown eyes studying my face with uncomfortable intensity. “Christopher, I took you for someone that might feel guilty about killing something.”
I shake my head. “Nah. I’ve been mentally preparing for this one since we got here. I’m just happy I don’t have to kill a human.”
Matilda’s expression shifts, something almost like respect flickering across her features. “Well, you will in the future.”
“Yeah,” I say, feeling the weight of those words settle in my chest. “I figured.”
Morgana’s eyes find mine. “I’ll be right behind you both, ready to cast if needed.”
I nod, grateful for her presence.
Luna steps forward, her white eyes somehow finding mine in the dim light. “Don’t be afraid to go all out,” she says, her voice gentle but firm. “I’ll be here to heal you when needed.”
I swallow hard. “Matilda, should we go slow or rush in?”
The veteran warrior considers this, her scarred face thoughtful. “A smart person would take it slow, but if you rush goblins, it usually catches them off guard.”
“Should I practice infusing my sword?” Brooke asks, her hand already glowing with a faint red light.
Matilda shakes her head. “Both of your swords are already brimming with holy magic. If you want to stack on top of that, it’s fine, just be careful you don’t smoke yourself out.”
I glance at Morgana, suddenly unsure. I haven’t practiced that particular technique yet.
“Don’t worry about that,” she says, her purple eyes meeting mine with unexpected warmth. “Just focus on moving efficiently today. Your magic is coming along, but I think you’d be better off using the sword as is.”
I nod at her, grateful for the guidance. She’s been so great lately. So smart. So easy to talk to... almost motherly in the way she looks out for me.
“You ready?” Brooke asks, her voice pulling me back to the present.
“Yeah,” I say, drawing my sword. “Let’s do this.”
I grip the hilt of my sword, feeling the familiar hum of power that seems to resonate with my heartbeat. Brooke gives me a quick nod, her eyes blazing with determination, and then she’s off, running toward the cave entrance with a speed that still surprises me.
“Wait up!” I call, breaking into a run after her. My legs pump beneath me, and I’m struck again by how much my stamina has improved since arriving in this world. What used to leave me gasping for breath now feels like barely a warm-up. Morgana said that’s our bodies adjusting to becoming heroes.
The darkness of the cave swallows us as we enter, but my eyes adjust quickly. The air is thick with the smell of damp earth and something foul that makes my nose wrinkle.
We don’t have to wait long. The first goblin appears around a bend in the tunnel, its beady yellow eyes widening in surprise as it spots us. It’s small, maybe three and a half feet tall, with green skin and a crude spear clutched in its clawed hands.
“Long time no see, Dad!” Brooke screams, her voice echoing off the stone walls as she lunges forward. Her sword slices through the goblin’s torso with a wet, tearing sound, splitting the creature clean in half.
I blink, momentarily stunned by the brutality of it. But then I see the wild grin on Brooke’s face, the way her eyes flash with something that looks almost like relief, and I understand. This is her outlet. All that anger she carried for her father back home, all that pain, she’s channeling it here, into these monsters.
Another goblin appears, this one wielding a rusty knife. It charges at me with a guttural shriek, and I react on instinct. My sword swings in a wide arc, connecting with the creature’s neck. The blade passes through like it’s cutting through warm butter, and the goblin’s head flies from its shoulders, bouncing once before coming to rest against the cave wall.
“Woah,” I whisper, staring at the decapitated body as it crumples to the ground.
“Come on!” Brooke calls, already moving deeper into the cave. “There’s more!”
She’s right. The tunnel opens into a larger chamber, and suddenly we’re surrounded by at least a dozen goblins. They’re armed with an assortment of crude weapons, spears, clubs, knives, and they’re all looking at us with that same hungry expression.
I fall into step beside Brooke, our backs nearly touching as we face the circle of creatures. The goblins hesitate, perhaps sensing that we’re not the easy prey they expected.
“They look scared,” I whisper, noticing how the goblins’ yellow eyes dart nervously between Brooke and me. Their weapons tremble in their clawed hands, and a few of them take hesitant steps backward.
“They should be,” Brooke replies, her voice cold and hard.
One of the goblins drops its rusty knife with a clatter. It falls to its knees, its green hands raised in a gesture of surrender. “Please,” it croaks, its voice surprisingly human-like. “We don’t want to fight you.”
For a moment, I feel a pang of sympathy. The creature looks so pathetic, so desperate. But then my eyes catch on the cave walls, and my blood runs cold. Crude paintings depict goblins in graphic acts of violence against men, their victims’ faces twisted in agony. My stomach turns, and any hesitation I might have felt evaporates.
Brooke laughs, the sound echoing off the stone walls. “I wouldn’t want to fight me neither.” In one fluid motion, she swings her sword, and the goblin’s head separates from its body with a wet thunk. The head rolls across the cave floor, coming to rest at the feet of another creature.
The remaining goblins shriek in terror, but it’s too late. Brooke is already moving, a whirlwind of death as she cuts through them with brutal efficiency. I follow her lead, my sword feeling lighter in my hands as I join the fray. The legendary blade slices through green flesh with ease, each swing more confident than the last.
The fight is over in minutes. Twelve goblin bodies lie scattered across the cave floor, their blood pooling on the stone. I stand in the center of the carnage, my chest heaving as I catch my breath. Brooke is already at my side, her face flushed with excitement, a wild grin splitting her features.
“Did you see us!” she exclaims, grabbing my arm with her free hand. “We are so badass, Christopher!”
I nod, a chuckle escaping my lips. “Yeah.” The adrenaline is still pumping through my veins, making my hands tremble slightly. “That was... intense.”
Brooke took out more than half of the twelve on her own. Her movements were fluid, almost graceful in their violence. I can’t help but feel a surge of pride watching her, even as the reality of what we’ve just done settles in my stomach.
Matilda strides into the cave, her heavy boots crunching on the stone floor. She surveys the scene with those sharp brown eyes, her expression unreadable.
“Don’t get a big head about it,” she says, her voice gruff. “That was bottom of the barrel. Hell, slimes are harder to fight than these kinds of goblins.”
I wipe my sword clean on a relatively clean patch of the goblin’s clothing, trying to ignore the way my stomach churns at the sight of so much blood. “Slimes are harder?”
“Yep,” Matilda says, crossing her arms over her chest. “Everything is.”
I nod, sheathing my sword as I start wandering around the cave. The walls are rough and uneven, covered in those disgusting paintings that make my skin crawl. I find myself drifting further from the group, curious about the deeper parts of the cave.
“Christopher,” Matilda calls from behind me.
I turn, still walking. “Yeah?”
“Be careful the further you go in. Sometimes the goblins set up…“
The words die in her throat as my foot catches on something. There’s a metallic snap that echoes through the cave, followed immediately by a searing pain that shoots up my leg.
“Ahh, fuck!” I hiss through clenched teeth, looking down to see my foot caught in what looks like a bear trap. The metal jaws have clamped around my ankle, biting through the leather of my boot.
Luna is the first to reach me, her white eyes going wide as she takes in the scene. “Christopher!” she shrieks, her voice cracking with panic.
But then something strange happens. Her face... changes. Her eyes start twitching, her breathing goes wild. She drops to her knees beside me, and tears begin streaming down her face, cutting clean tracks through the dust on her cheeks.
“Ahh... help...” she whispers, her voice barely audible. Her eyes lock onto mine, pleading, desperate. “Help... mmmm... hellppp...”
I stare at her, completely bewildered. This isn’t the composed, gentle priestess I’ve been training with. This is someone else entirely, someone terrified and broken.
Morgana appears behind Luna, her tall figure casting a long shadow over us both. She places a hand on Luna’s shoulder, her purple eyes confused.
“You okay?” Morgana asks, her voice carefully neutral.
Luna blinks, then shakes her head, wiping the tears from her face with the back of her hand. She looks down at her wet fingers in surprise, as if she can’t understand where the tears came from.
“Yeah...” she says, her voice steadier now. “Sorry about that...”
The transformation is immediate and unsettling. One moment she’s a sobbing mess, the next she’s back to her normal, serene self, like someone flipped a switch in her brain.
Brooke pushes past them both, kneeling beside me with her sword already drawn. “Hold still,” she mutters, opening the trap.
I gasp as the pressure lifts, blood rushing back to my ankle.
I groan through clenched teeth as I look down at my ankle. The bone is clearly broken, jutting at an unnatural angle beneath the torn skin. Blood soaks through my boot, and the pain is so intense it makes my vision blur.
“For Christ’s sake, heal the man!” Brooke barks, her voice echoing off the cave walls.
Luna gulps audibly. Her hands tremble slightly as she positions it over my mangled ankle.
“Cura,” she whispers, her voice barely audible.
The golden light envelops my ankle, and I feel the bone shift beneath my skin. It’s like someone’s grabbed my ankle and twisted it back into place, but without the excruciating pain I expected. The skin knits itself together, the bleeding stops, and suddenly I can breathe again.
“Oh god,” I gasp, rolling my ankle experimentally. It feels completely normal, like nothing ever happened. “That’s... that’s incredible.”
Morgana looks absolutely terrified, her eyes wide as she stares at my healed ankle. “Are you alright, Christopher?”
“Totally fine.” I test my weight on the ankle, expecting some lingering pain, but there’s nothing. It’s like the injury never happened. “That’s some good healing, Luna.”
I turn to Luna. Her face is pale, her white eyes unfocused. “Luna, do you still need help?”
“Sorry...” she whispers, her voice shaking. “I don’t know what came over me. I’m totally fine...”
She doesn’t look fine. Her hands are still trembling, and there’s a sheen of sweat on her forehead despite the cool cave air.
“Alright,” I say, though I’m not convinced. Something strange happened to her back there, something beyond just concern for my injury.
Matilda steps forward, her weathered face grim. “That’s enough excitement for one day. Let’s head back to the castle.”