When they army of creatures came, they didn’t charge immediately. Some might say it was out of respect for their foes, or to intimidate them and break their spirit.

Ratface thought it was out of fear.

With Tiffany and the rest of the groups help, Ratface had turned this place from a sewer into a dungeon level. At first, she had got Tiffany to surround the closest area to them with all sorts of roots until they had essentially a wall. The boring stuff out of the way, she’d started getting creative.

She’d chosen a corner as her choice and stuck them in the middle of it then got Tiffany to grow brambles and trees until there was only one path to them. Sure, the alligators and rats could try to tear down the walls, but with what weapons? Instead, they’d have to go through the walkway she’d made just for them.

On the outside was a group of alligators and rats. Ratface reflected that usually she’d be on the other side of this battle. Three creatures emerged from the shadows, and they finally got to see the masterminds behind the ambush.

“Friends of yours?” Franklin asked. She barred her teeth, but she couldn’t deny it. The creatures that stood before them literally had ratfaces. Rat men she guessed. It was amazing how close to the actual rats faces they were. One almost looked like Halmir. They were humanoid but tails wrapped around their waist like a belt. The two on the side were in armour. One of them was in full heavy armour the other was wielding a dagger with its tail. The one in the middle was in robes and stared out at her work. He waved his hand, and the first set of their defences shrivelled away. Ratface felt her stomach lurch.

“Druid?” she asked Tiffany.

“I don’t know but I don’t think so.”

“Rot mage,” whispered Franklin. He turned to Anna, “keep him away. He touches us and its game over.”

The archer aimed for him and took a pot shot that the armoured one blocked. They let out a screech and the rats charged. She guessed now she knew why they were so big.

The hole in their defence was that Tiffany had to make her defences out of trees so there was plenty of space for the rats. The robed Ratman wasn’t holding anything back and he sent the entire swarm into them. They’d be so busy dealing with that that the alligators could approach for free.

Well, that’s what they thought anyway.

“Now,” said Ratface and Tiffany’s staff burned green and then spiked. All the plants she’d made did the same and the army of rats suffered as they were impaled and trapped throughout the defence. It hadn’t killed them all, but it had killed a lot and now they’d be wary to go there.

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The Ratman screeched again, and the alligators began to advance. They walked through her pathway and Ratface smiled as her traps began to do their thing.

The first alligator stepped on one and there was a snap as something slammed into its legs and cracked the bone. It reeled back as did the rest.

That’s when her forward raiding party struck. The spear boys darted out and stabbed into the group then jumped back into the trees which grew over them to cover the escape. This carried on at each pocket until eventually the alligators stepped into a clearing and there was nothing.

Arrows and slings slammed into them as the ranged members of the group took advantage of the pause. With their own allies pushing them forward, the vanguard alligators had no choice but to rush forward to the next ‘wall’ of trees for cover. The spear boys were waiting for them again and they stabbed them down. The entire front line of the alligators shuddered. Then they walked forward again into her maze.

The path got more and more clogged with the creatures as they grinded away at the defences. They were losing a lot of alligators, but they were grinding the defences down. It was an effective strategy if you didn’t care about the creatures you sent to die.

It was when her trap was well and truly engaged that the rat men began to walk down together. Anna kept trying to hit the robed one, but armour was always in the way. With every step the Ratman got closer more of their defences weathered away. There’d be a sweet spot where he got close enough to completely eradicate their defences. She had to hope that they’d thinned the heard enough by then.

Ratface frowned. Why hadn’t they come from the start? Ratface’s entire strategy hinged on Tiffany’s abilities and if they’d done this at the start then she would have been screwed.

It was when they walked forward over a dead alligator she realised.

It was the traps. They were afraid of them. She’d miscalculated. The rat men didn’t care if their entire army died so long as they survived, and the kids didn’t. She watched grimly as they marched ever closer.

The kids at least were doing their best to grind the groups down and they were effective. The spear boys were brutal as they got close and the closer the alligators got the more of the children joined in with the strike squads. Ratface had done her best to adapt her mother’s raiding tips to defence but as she watched the rat men grow ever closer she knew it wouldn’t be enough.

She didn’t know what to do and she could feel panic crawling in her belly. She should’ve tried to force her way through. At least some of them would have survived instead of them all being cornered like this. What was she-

Her thought came to a halt as a hand clapped down on her shoulder. It was Franklin. He and Albert were looking at her and their faces looked determined.

“We’re going out to fight them,” Franklin said, “we’re the best available and this whole thing fall apart without you. We’ll buy you some time.”

Ratface had to hand it to him. She’d thought all he was only a sneering rich boy but when since things had got rough, he’d proven himself as someone she could rely on. Loathe as she was to say it, she was glad he was here. First impressions be damned.

“You’re wrong,” said Ratface. They looked at her in confusion and she gestured at Tiffany.

“The plan rests on her. I’m just another body. Let’s go kill ourselves some overgrown rats.” Halmir squeaked on her shoulder in defiance, and she gave him a pat. He was just the right size.

They told Tiffany and she made them a path out of the defenced and straight towards the rat men. The three rats watched this happened but allowed the children to get ever closer. They were confident.

Ratface could feel her arms shaking but she had her knife and sword ready. It was about time she indulged in a time-honoured goblin tradition.

Everyone knew you hit the mage first.