Jeanne could feel her knees ready to give out as they reached the top of the stairs. Some of the goblins rushing to take their friend off her shoulders as she slumped against the wall. Leonidas rushed up to the unconscious goblin. One of the miners, his hands opening and closing into fists.

“Is he going to make it?” the goblin asked.

Leonidas looked Wul’mum over carefully. “He’s definitely going to be out for a while. But I think he should pull through without anymore scares.”

“R-remind me to wring his neck when we’re done,” Alm’gis said.

“In good time,” Ar’iel replied. “We need to make sure the mine is safe to work in before we go discussing rhetorical threats.”

Jeanne, now walking over to the railing of the walkway, vomited over the side. Leonidas rushed to her. “Are you all right.”

She wiped her mouth and looked at him. “Should I answer that one, darling?” she said with a gravelly slur.

“I mean … yes?” he said hesitantly.

“Give me a moment and I’ll get back to you on that one,” she said, sitting down and leaning her head against the railing.

Leonidas grabbed a flask from his satchel and handed it to her. “Here take this.”

“I don’t think I should be downing that,” she said, waving it off.

“It’s water.”

She immediately grabbed it from his hand. “Gimme!” After two long swallows she handed the flask back to Leonidas and breathed in the air and felt her head and muscles feeling better already.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Resting, she heard Ar’iel say to the rest of the goblins. “All right, until the air is cleared, no one goes in without my authority.”

“How long is that going to take?” one of the miners asked.

Ar’iel shook her head. “Can’t say, these things don’t run on a tight time table, as much as I hate to say it.”

“But what are we going to do?” another miner asked. “If we can’t mine, we can’t get supplies from the traders who bother stopping here.”

“If I may,” Cid said, “if we can get Master Cullen back to his kin, we may have some pull with the reeve on this.”

“You think they’re going to listen?” Ar’iel asked.

“Can’t hurt to try,” Cid replied.

Jeanne gripped the top railing with her hand and lifted herself up. “If those short stock bastards won’t listen on way, we can beat it in.”

“I do not like the sound of that,” Ar’iel said.

“Jeanne …” Cid said before she turned to him.

“I have not gone through all this, the hunting, the hiding, the stalking, the anxiety, the madness, and now I just had to risk dying in a disturbing tunnel,” she stopped to turn to the goblins before turning back to Cid, “no offense, just to be pushed around by some half pint knave,” she turned to the goblins, “again, no offense,” she said to them, as they shook their heads adamantly, “if they don’t want to be reasonable about it, then they can find out what diplomacy by a fistful of pain is like.”

“Jeanne,” Cid groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Oh, come no, Cid. You and I both know this whole mess past the borders of the kingdom of stupid and into the Empire of Absolute-Bullshit. And I’m tired to bowing down to this insanity because a whole town needs a little guy to step on. I say let’s step on them and see how it feels.”

“Kick their ass!” one goblin cried out, as the others let out a rousing cheer.

“Jeanne,” Cid said, lifting up his hand, “let’s just try the less violent approach first.”

“And then I hit something, if they don’t?” Jeanne asked, looking eager at the idea.

“Yes,” Cid relented, shirking back immediately as Jeanne let out an enthusiastic war cry and raced off out of the mine.

Cid turned back to Leonidas who looked at the Felidan with wide eyes. “The hell just happened?”

“I am not sure,” Cid said, still processing, “though we should probably get good Cullen before she squishes someone into jelly.”