Chapter 51: First Contact

Serve me. I sent, reaching out to the Dryad bound in tight silk, the green monster suspended in a cave with her arms and legs tied up to her body to restrict movement.

“Nyet!” The monster replied, still refusing.

Fine whatever. I can use anima manacyst.

I opened up my dungeon manager, spending a bit of my manacysts to create a composter in front of the suspended monster.

The earth shifted, opening up, serrated teeth chomping as the green-eyed dryad went wide-eyed.

Zorin.

At my signal the sleepy croco-girl entered, in her arms, a dead unicorn, a survivor of the massacre that had been caught, killed, and now, being used to serve as an example.

Zorin tossed the corpse into the pit, the composter happily munching with rainbow blood splattering over Slimey and the Dryad.

I opened up several more composters, surrounding the dryad with the pits, Zorin pulling in several bodies from out of the hallway of various gnolls, goblins, and spiders. Most of the bodies being gnolls after uncovering a den of the feral creatures.

Like sarlacc pits, the composters produced fleshy red tentacles, latching onto the dead bodies it knew were for it, and began dragging the corpses into their maws.

I focused on the dryad.

I’ll give you some time to consider the offer. I sent before Slimey spun, Zorin shutting the bone cage door behind us.

“My lord.”

Yes?

“Why do you insist on conscripting that worthless tree hugger into our family?”

Because she has a purpose. A strong addition to our resources.

“Of… course.” Slimey said, her form changing momentarily to a yellow color.

Sigh.

Do not be jealous Slimey. You alone are my champion. My first minion. You need not fear.

At my words, the slime turned bright pink, my champion hugging me close as we passed a group of goblins cleaning. One sweeping the floor while the other used a slime attached to a spear to mop.

Suddenly, we stopped, Slimey vibrating in place, all color draining from her body to leave behind a dull grey marred by her red cores.

“Hero… Please…”

Huh? A voice, one that came out like a slight whimper echoing through the recesses of my mind. A plea that was filled with desperation.

The quack?

And just as quickly as it had come it was gone, Slimey and I on the move once more.

Slimey.

“Yes my Lord?”

What was that?

“What was what my Lord?”

That. You turned grey.

“I have no idea what you're referring to my Lord.” Slimey replied, smiling at me.

Right…

Weird. My mind began to ponder what that was. Unfortunately, I didn't have too long to think about it as a notification hit my mind.

[Your Minion Has Died!]

[Your Minion Has Died!]

[Your-]

What?

WHAT?!

WHAT'S GOING ON?!

Opening my minion menu, I scrolled down, picking out the last name just as it blipped away.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Goblin 46! Gobeldee’s replacement team, one of three goblin teams assembled to give Gobledo and Gobledee relief and support in the field. Now they were being picked off!

What's the meaning of this?! Goblin 47! Respond! I sent, attempting to contact the team leader.

Screams. My trustee dying, the connection severing.

“My Lord?” Slimey began. What's wrong-?”

WE’RE UNDER ATTACK! I spat, reaching out to the other teams in the area to order a retreat.

*****Elsewhere.

Lhikan grimaced, flinging the dead armored goblin, the green-skinned creature smashing against a nearby wall as his party caught up to him.

“Oh good, you caught them!” Marcus exclaimed, catching his breath.

“Yeah… the runner didn’t get far.” Lhikan said, frowning as he eyed the phalanx of goblins that attempted to ambush him after he chased after a fleeing goblin to stop it from alerting its horde.

“Weird.” Tipsy said, the gnome standing over a dead goblin covered in silk garments with skin unmarred by blight.

“Alright. Let's prepare to head out!” Lhikan barked, flicking the green blood off his blade and signaling his soldiers.

“No wait!” Tipsy shouted, stopping the group of blood-covered paladins from moving forward.

“What? What’s wrong?” Marcus asked, the sergeant facing the gnome.

“These goblins, they shouldn’t exist here.” Tipsy said, her voice one of concern despite the robotic filter over it through her pink lensed gasmask.

“Ok? And?” Marcus said, raising a brow. “Lots of monsters tend to crop up in places they shouldn’t be, plus, these are gobl-”

“No.” Lhikan said, cutting the sergeant off. “These goblins… they’re armored and organized. Displaying a ranking structure.”

“Are you sure?” Marcus asked, his steel boot kicking the corpse of one of the goblins.”How can you tell? They died pretty quickly.”

“When I ambushed the first goblin, the other retreated.”

“They’re cowards. It’s in their nature to flee.” Marcus discounted.

“No. It didn’t flee, it retreated,” Lhikan corrected, kicking over the old shield that was dented from his first punch. “Luring me into an ambush with armored reinforcements and standing its ground.”

At the senor paladin’s words the scribes and knights shared collective looks.

Tactics. Something unheard of from goblins unless led or motivated by a MUCH higher being on the food chain.

Marcus cocked his head to the side, his eyes furrowed. “Is it a demon?”

“Doubtful.” Lhikan replied, clenching his armored gauntlet into a tight fist. “We would have felt its presence. No, it’s something else, maybe an evolved variant or mutant, something elevating these goblin’s performance.”

“Sir, didn’t you say that blight ran rampant through this entire castle?” Tipsy asked, taking out her Mana reader device, the dial on the gauge already pointing at DANGER just from the mana in the air with the dial lowering as she swept it over the corpses. “These goblins are clean. Barely any traces of blight on them. In fact, they’re giving off some holy energy.”

“Impossible!” Marcus exclaimed, eyes wide, the scribes crowding the gnome to observe.

“The reader doesn’t lie Marc.” Tipsy said.

“Well, maybe it’s broken!” The Paladin retorted.

“Impossible! I made it myself! I maintain all my gear, are you calling my work shoddy spoon ear?” Tipsy spat, offended.

“Cut it out you two,” Lhikan intervened. “We’ve got work to do, and two dungeons to get by if we’re going to get to where the artifact is.”

The pair stopped arguing, falling in line with the rest of the squad and descending into the darkness.

As the group walked, Lhikan’s pace began to slow, the man eventually coming to a stop as he eyed the walls devoid of web, dust, and… a blue cleaning slime moving across the floor.

“What is it?” Marcus asked, signalling the paladins and scribes to halt.

Lhikan clenched his jaw, his eyes narrowing.

“The last time I was here… these hallways were covered in webs. Beset with nearly hundreds of gnolls and skeletons. Tarantuals hiding behind every corner… now there's nothing. It’s quiet, too-”

“Please don’t. Maybe you're just paranoid?” Marcus groaned.

“-quiet.” Lhikan finished with Marcus sighing.

“Great.” Marcus frowned. “What do you suggest sir? Should we turn back?”

“No. Within the week, Danse and his army will have cleared the roadblocks we left behind and the landslide. We need to push forward. But go cautiously, we don’t want to take any chances. I want no more loses from here on out.” Lhikan ordered, signaling two knights to the front equipped with shields. “Joshua, Kyle, you two up front, Tipsy, stay at my side, Marcus, cover our retreat.”

“Aye sir.”

Tipsy cocked her head to the side, eyeing eyes going round at the blue jello slinking away.

“CATCH THAT!” The gnome exclaimed, pointing at the blue orb.

“What? WAIT!” Lhikan spat, snapping up the excited gnome by her backpack as she tried to run past him. “What part of stay by my side don’t you understand?!”

“THAT SLIME! CATCH THAT SLIEM!” Tipsy hollered, flailing in the air as the paladin held her aloft.

Lhikan turned his head to the creature. “What’s so important about a slime that’s got you all worked up?”

“THAT’S A CLEANING SLIME!”

Silence descended in the hallway, every set of eyes staring at the gnome.

“...And?”

“YOU IDIOTS! ITS. A. CLEANING. SLIME! AN UNMUTATED MONSTER IN A BLIGHTED AREA!!! There hasn’t been a natural sighting of an unmutated slime in years! YEARS! Those are an endangered species!” Tipsy exclaimed, still struggling.

“Stop.”

“What're you-!”

“I SAID STOP!” Lhikan barked, quieting the gnome. “Need I remind you what our mission is. We can't afford to waste time attempting a monster capture for an experiment!”

“But!”

“No.” Lhikan said, letting the deflated gnome go. “But. If it's still around on our way out. We'll take it with.”

“Th-”

“Let's keep moving.” Lhikan ordered, his soldiers taking care to sideskirt the blue monster.

With lightstones held high, Lhikan and his party pressed forward, this time at a snails pace with Tipsy walking between the gathered soldiers to check their filtration boxes.

Eventually, the party stopped, putting away their lightstones as they eyed their surroundings now illuminated by glowstones decorating the walls.

“You're right.” Marcus commented, rubbing his gloved hand over a pristine tomb devoid of dust or web. “This place is clean. Too clean for someplace that's supposed to be abandoned. And these glow stone fixtures aren't natural.”

“Still think I'm being paranoid sergeant?” Lhikan said, scanning the area. “Jesse.”

“Yes sir?” A scribe who occasionally moonlighted as a sticky fingered individual.

“Scout for traps.”

“Right on sir,” The rogue went ahead of the party, creeping low to the ground, his eyes moving back and forth until they settled on something that should have been in the area but hadn't been so far.

“What is it?” Marcus asked upon the thief returning.

“Trip wire made of spider silk. Connected to some kind of spike trap made of whittled down bones attached to each wall.” Jesse reported, pointing them out.

Lhikan grimaced.

Finding traps in dungeons and old ruins wasn't rare, there were countless mechanisms left behind by previous occupants. However what was, was finding newly crafted traps, indicating that there was a level of strategic thinking at play.

“Can you disarm it?” Lhikan asked.

“Yeah, no problem boss.” Jesse said before taking off, the rogue moving towards the alleged tripwire and-

“AGRHH!!!” Suddenly Jesse fell, the man’s left leg sink

ing into the floor.

“AMBUSH!” Lhikan cried as stones, slime, and wads of silk flew through the air.