“I still can’t believe that thing follows you around,” muttered Pam, glancing over her shoulder at the Jumping Spider as she scuttled along behind us.

“She’s not a thing,” I said and Pam arched an eyebrow.

“She huh? Sounds like you have a new pet. Did you at least give her a name?”

I grimaced and scratched my chin as we walked.

“I was thinking of calling her Mimi.”

“Mimi?” Pam sounded incredulous and I threw a scowl her way.

“What’s wrong with it? I thought it was.. you know kind of cute.”

“Sure.” Pam seemed more like she was trying not to laugh which only annoyed me further. Mimi rushed between my legs as I walked and scampered ahead. She stopped in front of the Dane who still lay against the tunnel wall with hooded eyes.

I frowned.

“Is he dead?”

Dark eyes met mine with a flash of annoyance.

“Not yet, human.” Was the growling reply. Pam knelt beside him and the dwarf tensed.

“Relax,” I said. “She’s a friend.”

Dane tensed as she moved closer, but Pam had only eyes for the stab wound still weeping blood from his abdomen.

“It’s not too deep,” she said, gesturing. “But if we don’t get the bleeding to stop he won’t be able to recover. Do you have any clothes in your inventory? Linen or cotton preferably?

I nodded and removed the remaining linen napkins from my inventory. Pam took them and leaned forward.

“It’s going to hurt,” she told him. “I’ve seen this kind of wound before in the line of duty. But I need you to focus on staying conscious while Zade puts pressure on the wound.”

Dane grunted as I leaned down beside him. He pursed his lips and gave a small nod as I bent down to apply pressure to his wound. The Dwarf's side was already slicked with blood, and I couldn’t help but wonder if we were too late. But Dane’s eyes were still fierce and sharp as he glanced over my shoulder.

I followed his gaze. Nearby, Mimi was frolicking in a small pool of water. She splashed and water droplets sprayed around her as she played.

“You have a Void Weaver as a familiar?” rasped Dane as he watched her. “I thought that was impossible.”

I threw a look over my shoulder, frowning.

“What do you mean?”

Dane grunted as Pam worked, tightening the tied linen around the wound and binding it. A trickle of sweat dripped from his forehead into his beard.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“You are a strange man,” he muttered. “First you have no markings on your body – no sign of indentured servitude or contract. Then you wield some kind of foreign magic.” He shook his head. “If I didn’t know any better I’d have assumed you a god.”

A god? Now I was sure he was rambling. Pam and I exchanged a look.

“The bleeding stopped,” she said. “But there isn’t much I can-“

A clank sounded from somewhere deeper in the tunnel. Mimi froze mid-splash and stared toward its mouth. In the distant darkness, I saw the darkness cut with a soft orange glow.

Dane’s eyes cut toward it, panic lighting his features.

“What is it?” I asked as Mimi scampered towards me, her playtime forgotten. Dane grunted as he tried to sit up. I could hear noises in the distance.

“The Foresworn,” growled Dane, wiping a hand across his mouth. It came away red. “They’re sending others after me. I’ve been down here too long.. I was only meant to scout...” He grunted as he struggled to rise and failed.

“He can’t run in this state,” said Pam, her face pale in the lantern light. I glanced at the tunnel again and heard the sound of voices echoing off the stone.

“I don’t see much choice.”

I gripped Dane’s arm and threw it across my shoulders as I helped him gingerly to his feet. Pam supported his other side with one arm. Her newly loaded crossbow was gripped in her other hand as she glanced over her shoulder.

“Can you walk?” I asked, grunting as I shifted the Dwarf’s weight. Dane’s breathing was heavy but his eyes were determined as he nodded.

“Thank you,” he said and I nodded. In truth, I don’t know what had compelled me to save the guy. Maybe it was just the thought of leaving him to die at the hands of the three stooges that hadn’t sat right with me.

Mimi darted around my legs and up ahead towards the downward slope of the tunnel. Then we began to move. It was slow going, as every step seemed jarring and painful to Dane. Pam snatched up the fallen lantern from the ground and held it up, giving us as much visibility as possible.

It swung back and forth as we shuffled along. I glanced at my nearly depleted mana pool and suppressed a sigh. If our enemies caught up to us, we were going to be hard-pressed to come out of that altercation on top. I glanced up the tunnel ahead.

“Where are we going?” I asked. “Is there some sort of sanctuary around here?”

Dane bit his lip and nodded.

“The City,” he said. “There’s a waypoint up ahead, maybe minutes away. If we can get there then we might have a chance.”

“Waypoint,” I muttered as I hefted his arm higher. Damn, but this Dwarf was more solid than he seemed.

“Is that like a fast travel point?”

Dane’s thick eyebrows drew together.

“A what?”

Pam suppressed a snort but when she glanced around I caught her eye. We were both thinking the same thing. Apocalypse or not, this whole song and dance was starting to feel strangely familiar. Stats? Levels? Waypoints? The system was beginning to resemble some sort of twisted game and I didn’t like the odds.

Voices echoed off the cavern behind us, distant but drawing nearer.

“How far?” Asked Pam in a whisper as she darted a glance back the way we had come. The glow of torchlight was unmistakable.

“Not… far.”

Dane was breathing hard. Sweat had broken out across his face to drip into his thick beard. I swore inwardly. At this rate, we weren’t going to make it. The cave widened ahead of us and I could see the set of stone steps extending up and into the darkness.

Behind us, something whistled by, passing inches from my head. An arrow shattered against the stone nearby. We were out of time.

“Pam,” I said urgently, drawing her attention back to me. “Can you take him?”

She swallowed, her throat bobbing. Then she nodded. I transferred Dane’s weight to her and she staggered but managed to keep her feet.

“Keep moving,” I said. “Don’t stop for anything.”

Pam’s eyes widened.

“What about you?”

I sucked in a deep breath and let the mana race down my arms and into my palm. I was low, almost out. But it would have to be enough.

“You know what they say,” I growled as the yellow glow of my magic lit the tunnel.

“He who strikes first laughs last.”

Pam blinked.

“I don’t think that’s wh-“

I turned and jogged back in the direction I had come. And this time, I made a silent vow. I wouldn’t pull my punches. If this was a game then I had only one purpose. To win.