"I don't want to touch it," Dezi protested, standing four paces away from the hideous, rock-eating worm.

"Brando did," Fin said, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Years from now, how can you tell people that you are the queen of this cave when you didn't even pet the rock worms?" Brando asked, nearly sounding sincere.

"First of all, it's a mine. Secondly, I'm not touching it and won't tell you again." Dezi said, crossing her arms. "If that thing can melt a finger off, I'm not putting my hand anywhere near it. Also, the fact that you are carrying around a severed finger goes beyond my comprehension. It's sick and psychotic."

"I don't have it anymore," Fin said, wounded. He looked around for the next area to investigate. "But, now that you mention it, remind me to get another one on our way out."

Fin ignored the disgusted noises Dezi made and started moving forward. "If all that's left here are more worms, I would say this cave is cleared."

"It's a mine," Dezi said, catching up to Fin. "And I would say the worst part of it is done. These worms shouldn't be too hard to kill."

Fin stopped dead in his tracks, turned, and faced Dezi. "You're not planning on killing them, are you?"

"Yeah, they're almost cute," Brando added from outside the purview of the torch. "All they do is lounge around and eat rocks."

"My cat Chelsea is cute; those worms are an abomination," Dezi proclaimed. "Besides, they're dangerous. You said it yourself."

"Only if you put your finger in its mouth, but anything is dangerous if you put your finger in its mouth," Fin said, lowing his voice again with effort. "Brando threw a rock at it, and it just moved out of the way. It didn't hiss, it didn't attack, and it didn't shoot acid at anyone. If I threw a rock at Chelsea, it would probably attack me."

"You wouldn't dare throw a rock at my special girl," Dezi hissed. "And she's a she, not an it."

"Well, George is a boy," Fin claimed, not knowing if his statement was correct. "He's my special boy. Besides, I rescued you from the castle and cleared the mine so you wouldn't have to marry some random mercenary. I think I've earned a favor. Spare my pets, including George."

"Fine," Dezi relented. "I'll do everything in my power to ensure your pets are spared."

"Swear it," Fin demanded.

Dezi gave her word of honor, and Fin's lips curled into a wicked smile. "I'm going to name them all."

"That's cheating!" Dezi's voice echoed throughout the cavern.

"Not so loud," Brando chided. "I'm going to name the next one Terry."

"That's a great idea," Fin said, pointing the way forward with his torch. "The next one is this way."

Dezi ran after Fin and Brando, worried she would get left in the dark. "Come on, we don't have that much time."

"Then you better hurry," Brando said behind his shoulder.

"You are Terry," Fin proclaimed at the next worm before darting forward again.

After naming the fifth worm, the names started getting creative. Two worms were called "Cobble Kisser" and "Brick-lips." After the twentieth worm, titles were handed out like candied apples at the Autumn Festival. Worms were dubbed "Sir Knight of the Cave," "Captain Troll Finger," and "Duchess of the Mine." There was an especially large worm that Fin gave the title of "Queen Golden of Lokardale, The First of Her Name."

They had not explored the whole cavern, but they explored enough to deem it reasonably less dangerous than they thought it before. They stumbled across more than several piles of bones. Fin assured everyone it was fine if the bones weren't gathered in one place. Dezi wasn't convinced, but the confidence was enough to give her the courage to continue forward.

The third torch dimmed by the time the worms had all been named. Some of them were named twice. A quest notification appeared, and Fin halted to read it.

• Insight Quest Complete: Impact a life by bestowing the power of a name. +1 Active Ability. Forfeit all Frenzy Quests.

• Active Ability: True Name.

"What is it?" Brando asked, surprised at the abrupt stop. He was breathing heavily from their efforts.

"Apparently, running around naming worms was a quest," Fin said with a smile. "I just got a new ability."

"What kind of ability?" Dezi asked, between breaths.

Fin turned towards Dezi and said, "True Name." He was about to say more but noticed a small window hovering over Dezi's head. It read Desiree Rae.

"That doesn't sound very helpful," Dezi said. "It would have been better if you got something that made torches last longer."

Fin ignored her statement and asked, "Your name is Desiree Rae?"

"Yeah, Princess Desiree Rae. Everyone knows who I am," Dezi claimed, shaking her head. "What's your point?"

"My point is, I just came up with a fun little nickname to give you," Fine smiled mischievously.

"I'll bet I can guess what it is," Brando mused.

"If you say it, I will not deign to protect a single one of your pets, on my word," Dezi warned. "Now, what were you about to say?"

Fin held up a hand to stop Brando from saying whatever he was thinking. He had worked too hard to have all his efforts thrown away. "I was going to say we should get out of here and be rid of you once and for all."

Dezi hmphed and walked ahead.

Fin and Brando followed in contemplative silence. They passed the first shamble of bones they came across. They stepped over the bones and scraps of cloth, keeping up with Dezi's brisk pace. The spoils of the dead lying forgotten once more.

Fin approached the entrance to the round room and halted Brando by the shoulder, terrified. Fin's torch caught the reflection of two beady eyes standing deep inside the room. It was too late when he settled on whether to tell Dezi to stop, come back, or run.

Dezi stepped into the cave troll room with a determined stride. She had never felt so disrespected in her life. Usually, people would step all over themselves just to fawn over her, but not these two. How did her usual charm not affect a simple potato farmer or a big ugly oaf? They should be so lucky to even grovel in her presence.

She removed the torch from the cave troll's carcass. They could have put the torch anywhere, so why had they thought it was a good idea to tuck it under the arm of a dead, smelly troll? The smell had seemed to get worse since they were in here last.

She heard the potato farmer tell her to come back. At last, her charm had broken through. She turned to say something coy when she noticed something in the room wasn't quite right. Realization struck as she found herself face to face with a bigger and uglier version of the creature they had killed earlier. She only let out half a scream before something struck her, and her vision became as black as the unlit mine.

Fin charged in as the cave troll swung a meaty hand forward and struck Dezi's face. He stabbed forward, sinking the sword deep inside its back. The troll spun for an attack, tearing the sword grip from Fin's hand. Fin dove to the side, barely dodging the troll's flailing fist. The dim torch fell next to him, causing the shadows in the room to grow.

Brando arced his sword toward the creature's neck. The blade sliced through empty air as the troll pivoted towards Fin. Brando regained his footing and swung again, this time lodging the sword halfway through the monster's forearm.

The cave troll roared in pain, backhanding Brando with its limp claw. The swing connected with Brando's jaw, momentarily jarring his senses. Brando could feel unbidden tears form in his eyes. He staggered dizzily away, willing his senses to return.

Fin landed on scattered rocks and had trouble regaining his balance. He pushed away a jumble of unseen rocks and pressed against the ground. He raised himself up to his feet just as the creature lunged for him with a giant hand. Fin rolled away from the attack, but the creature grabbed him by his sword arm and lifted him effortlessly in the air.

Face to face with Fin, the cave troll opened his mouth for a bite attack. The torchlight painted a clear picture of what was to come. Fin let out a Fear Howl and felt the reverberating magic thrum to life in his throat.

The cave troll closed its jaw briefly before shaking the Fear Howl's effects off and redoubling its efforts. This time it was determined to bite its prey's head off.

Not expecting Fin to use his ability, Brando found himself stuck deep in the shadows. He had experienced this ability multiple times to lesser degrees. It was a simple trick of the mind; he could overcome it. He had to. Squaring his shoulders, Brando let out a warrior's yell and gripped his sword as hard as he could. He stepped forward and broke free.

Fin panicked as his face drew closer to the open mouth of the cave troll. Sticky breath brought the smell of rotten meat through brown and yellow teeth. Fin squirmed and struggled, but his wrist held firmly in the creature's massive hand. Without a moment to spare, he yelled, "Caustic Breath!" and took a deep breath of noxious air. He blew as hard as he could, trying not to gag.

Brando's sword hit the side of the cave troll's knee with all his strength. The critical blow made a satisfying pop from the monster's joint, but the blade failed to sink in. Without skipping a beat, Brando pulled his sword back and swung again.

Golden mist filled the cave troll's mouth, corroding its innermost parts. Teeth and skin disintegrated, mixing together in black pools of saliva. The monster dropped Fin and jerked sideways, hands held to its mouth.

Fin unstowed one of the bandits' swords from his inventory. His strength failed in his right hand, so he gripped it with his left and began hammering the blade into the cave troll.

Fin and Brando hacked and stabbed the creature relentlessly. It swung an arm out multiple times, tripping Brando and snuffing out the light.

Darkness enveloped their world.

"Just stab it!" Brando yelled. "Try not to hit me!"

The pair blindly sank their swords into the cave troll over and over. It felt like stabbing through a mud pit with multiple rocks inside. Finally, it stopped moving.

"Are you alright?" Fin asked, panting for air.

"I don't know," Brando managed to say between gasps of breath. "How are you?"

"I don't know either. We have to find the torch Dezi had" He pulled up his inventory and unstowed the other flint stone. "I have a flint stone."

"See if one of your abilities can help you find our way around," Brando suggested. "I'll see if I can find the old torch. It might spark back to life."

"Already on it," Fin said, looking over his options. First, he tried True Name, but nothing happened. He probably needed to see the person for it to work. Then he tried Sense Treasure, and the whole room lit up. It was still too dark to see, but the outline of the room came into sight.

Specks and veins of gold lit up in the walls and ceiling like he saw them in broad daylight. Below him, he could see other sporadic veins a great distance downward. He still couldn't see his body, but it felt like he was hovering over a deep ravine. The feeling was surreal.

He pulled his eyes upward and found what appeared to be Dezi's coins. They sat stacked together in a perfect cylinder of gold. He hoped she was still wearing her pouch as he took one unsteady step after another. When he finally got there, he felt Dezi's cold skin.

"I found Dezi," Fin said, feeling for a pulse, but his hands were shaking too hard. "I can't tell if she's alive or not."

"Checking on her won't do us any good without light," Brando said. "Just find that torch."

They each searched for a torch. Fin felt around the princess for the new one while Brando searched around the cave troll for the old.

"Aha! Found it!" Brando erupted, followed by his blowing on any possible coals left.

Fin touched a smooth handle of wood. He took hold of it and felt it with his hands. "I found the other one!"

Fin crawled back toward the princess and drew her dagger. He was about to use it on the flint stone when the room came into view.

Brando ran over to Fin and lit his torch. "She's in bad shape."

Fin looked down at Dezi. On one side of her face, she was bleeding from three long gashes and one large developing bruise. Her blonde hair was dark red above her forehead.

Brando lowered his head and placed his ear to her mouth. "She's alive, but we have to hurry. You have anything left?"

"We'll find out," Fin offered. "Can you carry her?"

"I guess we'll find that out, too," Brando tossed aside his dying torch and scooped Dezi into his arms. "Lead the way."

Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!