The darkness had encroached on the forest so fast it seemed like someone put a blanket over it. I sat below the bush, squinting at the guard tower, my night vision barely reaching that far. The Fin'r Goblins were just grey outlines atop the tower.

Why don't they have a bloody watch fire? I moaned internally. It would have made it so much easier to time what I wanted to do. To my annoyance and surprise, those Goblins seemed well organized, and not just at the guard tower.

I scanned the dark woods around me for another patrol, but it was quiet. Every few hours, a large group of Fin'r Goblins accompanied by chained Wirgs patrolled around the area. The last had been ten minutes ago. Taking a deep breath, I crawled out of the thorn bushes.

The nearest tree was twenty meters to the right, a tall shape looming in the darkness. I sprinted towards it, trying to watch my footing and the guard tower at the same time. When I reached it, I grinned. So far, so good. Peeking around, I looked at my next available cover. The tree was not as far away as this one had been, but it was the closest to the tower, making it dangerous. Luckily, after that I would be heading away from the tower, and the trees would be a bit closer as well.

I waited to see if the guards were acting differently, an indication they had seen something. After a few minutes, I nodded. Dodging around the tree, I ran as fast as I could. I had thought about sneaking before, but the distance between the trees was just too large. Besides, those Goblins must have night vision, that or they were staring into the darkness for the hell of it.

Running to the second tree, I almost tripped across a stump, hidden beneath low grass. Keeping my balance, I jumped behind the tree and held my breath. There wasn't any shouting, and after a moment, I exhaled. Dammit, that was too close. Thinking for a moment, I realized this explained why there were so few trees here. Those Goblins had chopped them down. How had I not seen those trunks when it was still daytime?

I shook my head. This wasn't the time to worry about what I should have seen. I looked at the next tree, scanning the ground. I noticed an odd protrusion almost in the middle of the path I had planned to take. Grimacing, I crawled up and rushed towards the tree.

"KEAL RON LI!"

I almost had a heart attack as a shout pierced the silence of the night. More shouting came from the tower, in the same foreign language.

"Fuck!" I cursed, changing my course to the dense forest in the distance. No reason to try and hide now, I knew. Keeping my eyes on the ground, scanning for any more things to trip over, I ran as fast as I dared.

The shouting from behind had become quiet, and I wondered what the Goblins were up to. A moment later I heard more shouting coming from the left and right, augmented by howling and barking. Dammit, they are sending out the hunting party, I thought as my hairs stood on-end.

A hundred meters before the edge of the forest, I saw two pairs of gleaming red eyes look at me. Those had better belong to Scar and Smell!

Something whistled through the air and struck the ground ten meters beside me. It had come from the left, and I quickly looked. Further in the forest stood a group of four goblins with bows. Where the hell did they come from? I cursed. Three of them were drawing, while the other was grabbing for another arrow. A moment later, three arrows slammed into the tree beside me. I flinched and tried to squeeze more speed out of my legs.

Before more arrows came my way I reached the edge of the dense forest and rushed inside.

Two agile shapes ran towards me and fell in line: Scar and Smell.

"You two need to learn some manners!" I hissed under my breath. "Now find us a place to hide!"

Smell yipped, an odd sound for such an ugly creature, and she ran ahead, taking a slightly different path.

Ten minutes later, I was sitting on a thick root, hiding below a massive, hollow tree. Smell and Scar sat beside me, their ears constantly twitching as they pointed them at the fading sounds of pursuit.

"Two days gone, eleven left," I said as I scratched Scar behind her ear. I got up and cracked my neck before taking out the map. To my surprise, there was a change - something that had not been there previously. A small red dot sat a tenth of the distance between the two temples. Was that me? I thought for a second longer and guessed it probably was. Too bad the map didn't show the Goblins. Still, it would be more than a little useful. Tracing the distance from where I stood to the temple, I suddenly realized even the individual trees were depicted on the map.

"It's like an overhead map," I muttered. Scar looked up, and I scratched her between the ears. "Don't mind me - I am just happy. But I wonder how many more of those guard towers are between us and this tower…"

With a sudden burst of inspiration, I closed my eyes.

Rathica, can you show me my enemies on this map?

I hadn't really expected a remark, but a soft grin sounded throughout my mind.

~ I can't. Giving you a sentient map is already stretching it. If the other deities find out… ~

Blinking at the idea of a sentient map, I shrugged. It was worth a try.

~ Est, don't contact me again until you find the entrance. I have decided to attempt something… difficult. It will take all my focus, but with only one follower, I need to try it now. I might not get another chance like this, and it will increase my future chances greatly. ~

Alright. Be careful, I thought back lamely. I snorted at myself. Telling a deity to be careful, she must be laughing her ass off.

~ I will! ~ Rathica replied, and I felt her presence fade away.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Great. So I guess it's just you guys," I said as I looked at the Wirgs. Wondering if I should and could rest here, I decided it should be fine and lay down at the back of the hollowed-out tree.

"Warn me if anything comes close," I told them.

Smell cocked her head, and I could swear she nodded. How intelligent are these things? I thought not for the first time as I closed my eyes. I didn't feel like sleeping, but I needed the rest.

It took a long time before sleep finally came to me, but by the time it did, I had thought up some things to do the next day.

--

The chirping of birds woke me, and I felt warm and cozy. Something was pressing against me like a blanket. Soft breathing came from my side, and I yawned as I sat up. Scar lay beside me, her back pressed against mine. I got up, trying not to wake her, and wondering about the fact that I now had to worry about waking a Wirg.

Smell sat at the entrance to the hollow tree.

"Good morning," I said, stretching my four arms before bending my back until my vertebrae popped. It was going to be an enervating day.

I moved to the exit of the tree, grabbing some rations from my bag in passing. Smell looked at me with her red eyes.

"We aren't leaving yet. I just need to find something," I said as I looked around the forest outside the tree. Dark and brooding, it barely matched my mood. Scanning the trees and bushes, I walked forward and began searching for nuts and small saplings. With what Agga had taught me, it didn't take long before I was walking back with my arms full.

I dropped my haul into the middle of the hollowed tree and sat cross-legged beside it. Taking a black, shiny nut that resembled an acorn, I cast Sprout Life. I had cast it thousands of times, but I had never actually used it before. The gestures flowed easily, my fingers moving like a blur. A soft green glow emanated from my hands, and the nut shivered before splitting open. A green stalk grew out quickly, bulbs on the sides opened, growing into leaves. I felt myself grow slightly weary, as if I had walked up a long stair, and I suddenly worried about how to stop the spell.

I quickly put the nut on the ground, and it stopped growing right away. The glow from my hands faded until it was gone, and a small sapling two hand lengths tall and with a dozen dark green leaves stood before me. The roots lay on the hollowed tree's moldy wood, and I knew I would have to put it in the ground or it would waste away. Scanning the other saplings, I began casting Sprout Life until I had a few dozen saplings of different sorts around me. Except for the first one, the drain had been barely noticeable, and I wasn't tired at all.

A couple of handfuls of nuts were still in the pile, and I put them in my bag. Scar and Smell sat to the side, curiously looking at all of my actions.

"I need to know how my magic works, what I can do, and what to expect," I said as I got up. "If I need to cast something last minute, it pays to be prepared."

I walked out of the tree and looked at Smell. I had realized that she was the one who knew how to get around. "Let's go to the destroyed building!"

Smell yipped and loped away. The longer I was around the Wirgs, the more they reminded me of wolves. Just smaller and uglier.

We ran through the dark forest, dodging trees and bushes for most of the morning. The only times I stopped was to check the map, but we were still heading roughly in the right direction.

"GRIL KINR WAZ!"

The roared command made me jump sideways and whirl around searching for the origin of the voice. I didn't spot anything, but Smell and Scar were staring at a tree. Looking closer, I saw slight movements between the dark leaves. There were bushes to my left and a tree to my right. I feinted towards the bushes before jumping towards the tree.

Arrows struck the trunk behind me like hail on a windshield, but I got behind the tree. Scar and Smell were nowhere in sight.

Did those two run away again? Frowning, I decided to work on their usefulness if I could. Shouts came from behind the tree, and I heard feet run my way. Taking a deep breath, I peeked around the tree and pulled right back.

Four Fin'r Goblins were rushing my way. Wearing leather armor and swords, they looked totally unafraid, but there was no sign of the archers. Taking a quick look around, I saw bushes, bushes, and more bushes. Black leafed, and with withered, gnarly branches, they looked like positively great Entangle material.

I rushed towards them, jumping inside, and crawled through. The footsteps were at the tree now, and I turned as soon as I was out of the bushes.

"Over here, low-grade scum!"

"TEL RA!"

I grinned at the response and cast Entangle, my fingers moving in a blur before a glow came from them. A mass of movement came from the bush as it surged forward and away from me. A cry of outrage came from the other side. Circling the tentacle-like branches that moved around grappling something on the other side, I finally got a clear view. Three of the Fin'r Goblins were slashing at the branches that were reaching for them. A fourth was entangled in what looked like a branch cocoon that dragged him across the ground.

A scream from the direction the Goblins had run from silenced the roaring Goblin fighters. Looking past them, I saw two Goblin archers on the ground beside the tree, scrambling to get up. Two nimble shapes jumped from the tree towards them, and started biting at their exposed parts.

Now we're talking! With a grin, I gripped my ax and ran towards the Goblin Fighters. One of them saw me at the last moment, but by then, my ax was slicing towards his head. With astounding speed, the Goblin ducked. My ax scalped part of his hair and skin off, but the Goblin only screamed before jumping towards me.

For a moment, I was startled at the sight of three armed assailants, and then my weeks of training with the ax showed. I dodged to the side and forward, passed the incoming sword, and grabbed the sword arm. I struck the Goblin's exposed throat, and at the same time, sliced at the incoming fighters. My ax's long reach paid off, and they had to jump back. Stepping back and pulling the first Fin'r Goblin with me, I kicked his legs out while pulling. With a screech, the Goblin toppled over, and I slammed my ax in the back of his neck before turning to the two that remained.

They spread out, and from the gleam in their eyes, I knew they were far from fleeing. A sudden rush of power and surety told me that was their last mistake. I jumped towards the nearest one parrying his sword with the blade of my ax, and grabbed both his arms. He struggled to get free, but I easily lifted him from the ground and swung him around and in the path of the third Goblin.

I stepped back, dropped the Goblin, and kicked him in the center of his chest, causing him to tumble towards the other. Again, faster than I had anticipated, the Goblin jumped aside and forward, slashing at my abdomen. I stepped into the blow, my ax handle between the sword and my stomach. I felt the sword hit and push the ax against my side, but it didn't get through the leather armor. I struck out with three fists, two at the head and neck area and one at the chest. One got blocked, but the other two hit and the Goblin stepped back from the impact. Before he could recover, my ax blade sliced through his collarbone.

A ping from my status barely registered. Still in the thrill of battle, I spun around, searching for more things to fight. Smell and Scar stood to the side, bloodied muzzles and gleaming eyes. Two unmoving Goblins lay sprawled on the ground behind them.

Calming down, I grinned and turned to the last Goblin, wrapped up in tendrils. His two yellow-green eyes glared at me through his bindings.

"Glare all you want!" I said as I moved towards him and got down on my haunches.

"I have some questions…" I continued, wondering if the Fin'r Goblin even spoke whatever I was speaking.

"You'll get no answers from me, filthy heathen," the Goblin growled in a heavily accented version of the common tongue I spoke.

I blinked, gaped, then slowly began laughing. Did he just call me a heathen? I thought as I got up. No matter, I could get to the bottom of that too. First, I was going to get some intel about where I was.