Kaladin Shadowheart’s POV.

“Orvok, thanks for comin’ along,” Durak said with a nod.

“Not every day a man gets to witness a thing like this. Besides, the boys all agreed, and Lord Shadowheart here is payin’ good. Uh, not that we wouldn’t have come anyway…” Orvok said with an awkward chuckle.

Orvok’s six-man team was him, being the only Beastmen, four Humans, and a High Elf. They didn’t appear to be nearly as balanced as Durak’s team, with most of them being scout and hunter types, and they didn’t have a mage, a luxury I’m sure Durak enjoys far more than I realized. As for pay, they were getting slightly above their standard fee.

I didn’t feel inclined to give them any more than that, but perhaps if Orvok and his men produced surprising results, they could be offered a chance for a certain program in the future. If their contracts ended timed well, that was.

If Durak and the others have a longer contract than expected, perhaps I could expedite it? Surely a “noble” recommendation from me ought to do if needed.

“Shall we then?” I asked, pointing to the gaping black hole in the dirt mound.

“Usual formation then?” Orvok asked beforehand.

“That’ll do,” Durak confirmed.

“Alright, then Dorian and me will get up there with your boys,” Orvok agreed.

The two teams settled into their formation, and with a single command from Durak, we began to file into the darkness. The unease of entering the dungeon hit, and what was once a seemingly endless void turned into something far different. The sudden change was unnerving as it was impossible, but dungeons were just like that, places where the laws of the world seemed to crumble apart with ease.

A long, expansive tunnel stretched into the distance, but along its walls and ceiling were old wooden timbers that clearly did not originate from the surrounding forest. They were in nearly perfect condition without so much as a scratch, as if they had just been erected moments ago. The tunnel was also surprisingly well-lit with torches at regular intervals, as if they had just been lit for the day.

“Creepy stuff this is. Just had to be a long tunnel…” Orvok muttered.

“Most are,” Durak grumbled.

The tunnel allowed four people abreast, well, in that case, a Dwarf, two Humans, and a Beastmen respectively. We silently marched down the tunnel in order before Geoffrey’s voice carried from the front.

“Isn’t that stick going to be a problem?” he asked Thrak.

“Just choke up on it and poke’em in the face. Most things don’t do well when their nose touches their brain,” Thrak chuckled.

As we contiuned it didn’t take long for us to arrive at the first four-way junction. There didn’t seem to be any difference, and as the tunnel snaked up and down, it wasn’t possible to see to the other end.

But there was something unusual. Santer caught it about the same time as I did. Narrow slits in the rock just to our side, far too small for a person to fit through, even a Dwarf couldn’t manage it, but deliberately large enough that it couldn’t have been an accident, or a “miner” digging at the rock to go deeper.

“What do you think?” I asked him.

“Don’t know. Never seen before. Insect? Burrow monster?” he said with a shrug.

“No…doesn’t it look like it was chipped away with a tool, though?” Geoffrey said.

My thoughts exactly.

“Great, they’re in the walls. Wonderful,” Ingra hissed.

“Well, I can find out if they are at least lying in wait right here,” I said.

I placed a hand into the crack for show while using Soul Sight. A dungeon was a very different experience, very much unlike peering through man-made walls. But I could see further into the crack. However, there was nothing.

“Nothing crawling around close to—us?” I muttered.

Elowen, the other High Elf, and I exchanged quick glances. Far off in the right tunnel, bouncing off the stone walls, a faint but distinct noise could be heard. The sound of a pick striking rock. Eventually, Santer and Orvok heard it next as if the source was getting closer.

“It’s definitely not a person,” Geoffrey warned.

“Obviously, even if it were, they’d be up to no good,” Thrak spat.

The sound of the pick striking rock didn’t stop; however, it also no longer contiuned to get closer. It remained ever-present a feeling that whoever, or in this case, whatever, was just around the bend.

“I mean, it’s obviously a trap, right?” one of Orvok’s men asked.

Orvok shrugged and answered, “Just depends on whether we are going to take it or not.”

There was a discussion about whether to hunt down the creature that was undoubtedly luring us in. If this dungeon proved to be a source of income, fighting and managing the monsters was something that just had to be done. But whatever it was, it was clearly something no one had heard about.

It was also somewhat understood that the first floor of a dungeon wasn’t considered to be especially dangerous. But there was also no way of knowing how many floors were in the dungeon. If it were just one, then we could very well be facing off against a guardian that was far more of a concern and its minions at the same time.

However, the talks went silent as another noise began to ring out in the dungeon from the left path. It was the same even cadence of a tool against stone, just close enough that one could feel they needed a few steps to get to it.

I looked over to Cerila and asked, <Do you smell anything unusual?>

She slowly shook her head and signed back, <No, nothing at all. Which shouldn’t be the case. The monsters that live in dungeons often can’t hide their scent like this.>

Wonderful.

“Let’s push forward to the section with no noise. At the very least, it may be a dead end. It seems we are going to have to map this place out regardless,” I offered.

“Aye, we can do that,” Durak agreed.

“Then Cerila and I will watch our rear. Continue forward as usual, but pay attention to those gaps in the rocks,” I said.

With the decision made, we pressed forward. As we contiuned down the mine, we would occasionally spot those awkward holes chipped into the walls or ceilings. It was clear that it was some kind of tunnel system for whatever lurked around. The only positive note was that there wasn’t anything inside of them, and there weren’t so many as to expect an entire swarm of smaller creatures to pour out. Yet…at least.

Cerila began sniffing the air along with Santor and Orvok. After a brief moment, Santor looked confused and said, “Smells like Hivers. Dead ones.”

It was only a short walk, and the sound of the pickaxes was always present behind us, that the shaft opened up into a bowl. A pit was dug out, and that was about the only noticeable thing, as everything was splattered with green slime. It stuck to the ceiling, the walls, everything in sight was green goop. Of course, the torches covering the walls still flickered with light, seemingly immune to whatever the goo was.

“Seems like a bunch of Hiver scouts blow themselves up real good. Must’ve been at least five or six of them little guys to cover this much space,” Orvok muttered with a whistle.

Thrak poked at the goo pile and rolled something out of it, smearing the floor with a disgusting, black, inky mess. After rolling it off a bit, what was left came into the light. A piece of a pale, gangly arm, or what was left of it anyway.

“Well…at least we know we can kill them just fine,” Geoffrey said with a smile.

Splash.

Everyone turned their head to Durak, who tossed water on the wall and chipped away at the goo with a knife. After clearing a small cutout, he stepped back and whistled softly. The stone underneath wasn’t just a dull grey; a bright, fluorescent blue streak seemed to sparkle.

“By my beard, it seems this is the place they got the Cobalt after all. We didn’t even have to go that deep to find it, either,” Durak said with a grin.

“Suddenly, I am far more motivated to go into the depths of this forsaken place and kill those things now,” Ingra said proudly.

“Shall we go meet our new tenants then?” Geofrey asked as he raised his shield.

At least they aren’t lacking in motivation.

With newfound vigor, the group launched straight into the tunnels and back to the intersection. But we only made it about halfway before suddenly the torches flickered and everything went dark. However, the panic was brief and never settled as I illuminated the space with my magic.

The warm orange glow went bright, followed by terrible, inhuman screeches of pain. I sent my flames slightly in front of us, and the monster finally came into the light. Short, gangly creatures with pale skin so white it was closer to paint than flesh.

They covered their faintly glowing red eyes with their elongated limbs made of what looked to be their bones. The way the monsters moved about on their limbs was disgusting, multi-jointed, and moving as if they were swimming. The creatures were truly revolting.

But they died all the same.

Durak’s crossbow bolt took two out with a single strike, piercing their bodies and spraying their inky black blood across the stone floors. Two more began to crawl on the sides of the walls, but Elowen’s wind blades chopped their limbs straight off, and as the other went to pounce, Orvok’s spear skewered it through its humanoid face.

He kicked the crate off, and I looked up at the noise as one of them crawled out from its crevice, which was blinded by the light. I waved a hand, and a stone spear launched out from the rock, pinning it to the hole it crwaled out from.

It only took a matter of moments, but the creatures were wiped out entirely so far. The pickaxe noise was gone, as were their screeches. There was a small sense of unease within me, but I realized it was because it was too easy.

But that was only based upon my experiences of dungeons that were abnormally difficult. These creatures, while undoubtedly dangerous to an unskilled or unsuspecting victim, must have relied purely on their stalking and ambushing. Outside of that, they were painfully weak, dying to a single blow.

Yes…this is how dungeons should be for the most part. Not every one of them is an exercise in the utterly impossible with god-like beings, undead hordes of ancient races, and cousins of Dragons lurking about.

Just hideous abominations requiring a bit of elbow grease and magic.

“Well, shall we continue?” I said.

—

Exarch Gerimia Foster’s POV.

I couldn’t help but glare at The Grand Inquisitor. My disdain for the creepy man had only grown stronger. His severe lack of care for our men was always a problem. But his willingness to sacrifice them had only grown stronger.

“Glaring at me will not make things go faster, Exarch Foster,” he said evenly in a low voice.

“My men are already prepared to do what needs to be done. Isn’t it your little Inquisitors that have been lacking as of late?” I asked smugly.

The man showed no reaction as he answered dryly, “The forest has proven difficult. There are many places to hide. This is to no one's surprise but your own, apparently.”

There was little point in playing his game. I could only take some satisfaction in knowing that, recently, it was his men that were being sent into that god-forsaken forest to be eaten and not my own. But the odds were, he simply didn’t care either way.

The door to the ship’s office was casually tossed open. There were very few individuals who would dare do such a thing. But if it was him, it made sense. After all, he must have believed he was the second coming of God.

“Exarch Stormborn, what do we owe the pleasure. You should have set sail for the east already,” The Grand Inquisitor said.

The man stood tall in the doorway, his frame was well built, his armor light but of the finest materials, the pure white vestments that sat over his armor were pristine, as was the drape with the golden symbol of our God over his face. Despite being the youngest of the Exarchs, I had never so much as seen what he looked like.

The elegant bow across his back seemed otherworldly, no matter how many times I lay my eyes upon it. Its pure white metal shone with blue specks, as magnificent as the night sky. Each one glimmered and shone with a power that could draw anyone's eyes to it.

“I have received a divine message from God. The plan shall be changed, and I’ll be taking the place of Exarch Emberglade for this incursion. I have already sent her east in my place,” he said firmly.

The Grand Inquisitor flinched slightly, and I couldn’t help but smile. I may not have liked Stormborn all that much, but I liked him a whole lot more than the other bastard.

“You dare make—”

Exarch Stormborn waved a dismissive hand as his bloodlust intensified. It was suffocating, far beyond what a man his age should have been able to produce. Sure, his training in the Vampire Lands may have been expedited and harsh, but to such an extent…it seemed almost impossible.

“And you dare doubt my words, Grand Inquisitor? You may have forgotten, but you are not the only one chosen by our God. The High Exarch may have entrusted you with the campaign, but God’s orders are absolute, and you do not command me freely,” he jabbed after a brief moment.

Exarch Stormborn scanned over me and nodded before continuing, “I have the location of the heretics, and God has confirmed the presence of the arch-traitor. I will bring them to justice personally. You may leave your pawns as I will put them to use as ordered by God. God has already put his plans into motion and begun to move personally, and you shall follow his design, Grand Inquisitor. Or do you have an objection to the will of God?”

The unsettling mask of calm returned to The Grand Inquisitor as he nodded slowly. “As God wills it,” he said softly before turning and leaving.

Once it was just the two of us, I raised an eyebrow at Stormborn. “You did receive a message, right?” I asked.

The man turned his head slowly as the cloth glided across. “Of course, I would not lie about such a thing,” he said.

“Good. Then be careful, the arch-traitor was one of us once,” I warned.

“I’m aware. But the arch-traitor was not who God warned me to be wary of,” he said quietly.

My eyes widened as I let out a deep breath from my nose. “The Dragonslayer, mm? He’s becoming a bigger problem than we imagined. I only wish God allowed us to kill him before he grew,” I muttered.

“He foiled God’s plan twice now, threw his earnest plea out the window. It appears God is not so forgiving a third time. He will pay for his transgressions this time. I swear it,” Stormborn said firmly.

“Make sure of it. Also, be safe out there. Expect the unexpected. The Dragonslayer is a variable we can not fully account for, it seems,” I warned.

“Naturally.”