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Valediction
Chapter 16 Choices to make...

Chapter 16 Choices to make...

Chapter 16 Choices to make...

Slowly I crept forward, each paw step methodically soft as I placed them down on the cold uneven surface that was the cave floor. The structure that had formed under the keep propper was a massive branching thing with probably hundreds if not thousands of naturally formed branches that spread in increasingly complex mazes. This was likely the factor that had saved Sarena’s life as well as my own. And while it was possible to have multiple entrances, seeing as most of this was carved out by underground rivers and streams that were not too likely. More likely those streams would continue underground for who knows how long. Meaning there were two entrances that we could count on, the first being the entrance the goblins had used to get into this cave system, to begin with, probably through some tunnel that had a stream flowing out of it.

The second was the tunnel they had made to the keep’s lower level, also known as the way we came from originally. Both paths would be blocked and guarded surely. Goblins are dumb, but not that dumb. If it was just the goblins then Sarena would have already left, she apparently is quite skilled in many forms of crowd control.

Voodoo magic works on perception, so if you perceive this doll, for example, is a person, a very specific person then you can inflict pain on it through the doll. If you instead perceive this doll to be all of the people then while the same pain is inflicted it is spread out over the number of people. Sarena had convinced herself that all the goblins looked the same, meaning she when she used the doll she only saw goblins, not an individual, making it possible to target multiple goblins at once.

And it can be really disrupting when you suddenly feel a stabbing pain in your head or groin…

The issue lies in the fact that the goblin shaman was immune to the magic she cast. Shamanic magic and Voodoo magic both share the common bases of ritualistic magic, Meaning she was able to resist her spells well enough and Sarena was able to do the same to her, only The goblin also had hundreds of warriors that Sarena also had to deal with, making any magical debate between the two of them rather one-sided affairs. We had decided that we needed more information if we were to get out of here, so I was doing one of the things I was best at.

Scouting…

She had cast a spell that took away my scent, the same one that she had used so we could avoid the Direwolf that had hunted us when she had first rescued me. Apparently, it would only last for the next two hours and was not perfect. If for example, a direwolf got closer than a meter away they would smell me. She told me this was due to the fact that it was a spell she was not that good at, seeing as it was not Voodoo magic or even ritualistic in nature. Which meant I needed to go about this carefully and make sure to not get to close. Thankfully I was well versed in sneaking, slowly using both my front paws as well as my back paws I crept forward, it didn't take long to get back to the intersection of the paths, and what Isaw there made me want to cry, and scream, and tear the head off of every goblin.

Hanging there from a chain was Alaina’s body.

She had been stripped naked, her limbs removed and her head stuck on a spike not five feet away, standing sentry along with Harland’s head. Both of their eyes were wide open, staring in horror at nothing. I was so focused on how they had defiled my friend's corpses I almost didn't notice the goblin that was standing sentry, in his hand he was holding a stick, this stick carved with runes that curled down the shaft and a red ribbon tied around his wrist that pulsated with a soft red light.

They had only set one goblin here, even though they knew we had disappeared down one of these paths, which meant it was a trap. Goblins were not afraid of sacrificing a member of their own tribe, in fact, it was one of the cornerstones of most of their strategy, how they got volunteers for this I will never understand, but right now my gut was telling me this was a trap, a really big trap. Creeping backward I made my way back down the path, I hadn't gotten as far as I wanted but I had found out something interesting, perhaps Sarena would shed some light on the glowing stick….

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When I got back she was dancing some sort of ritual dance, her voice rising and falling as she hopped from one bare foot to the other in a rather graceful manner. As she danced the flaps that made up the skirt of her dress seemed to flutter in the wind of her movement, slow and thoughtful. I stood there unwilling to interrupt whatever she was doing, both because I simply wanted to watch it, and because I didn't know if there would be any magical backlash from interrupting whatever she was casting, even without seeing the mana or the signature of the spell I could tell there was something magical about it. As she finished on a long keening note there was the feeling of wind, rushing out, ruffling my fur, she stood there gleaming with sweat in the crystal light.

“You’re back earlier than I thought, what is up?” she panted.

“There is only one goblin guarding the path, but she does not like it,” I say, attempting to not let my eyes fall to her chest that is rising and falling rapidly in a rather eye-catching way. “The goblin is holding a stick that pulses and is red, Rin does not know what it is,” I state, looking into her deep purple eyes.

“Damn,” she said under her breath, which catches me by surprise, I didn't expect her to be the cursing type. “That is a Warlass stick, its a good thing you didn't kill that goblin,” her eyes focused on me, “The second you would have killed him you would have finished the magic, essentially what happens is it is an incomplete immobilization spell, the shaman carves the runes to cast it on the staff, with the requirement of a blood sacrifice, with the target being the person who finished the spell. It probably also had some sort of alarm on it to notify the shaman that the spell had been completed.”

“A rather devious trap even for goblins, she wonders how they got so well versed in hunting people.”

“Do you think we are the first people to be sent here by lady Brandmount has hired?” I thought back and shook my head.

“Rin recalls her telling us there were five others she hired,” I responded.

“Yes, five other teams,” my eyes opened wide at that, “Only three of which returned, and when they did they stopped working for the guild and started doing jobs for her, let me ask you this, did she loan you all some money before the start of the mission?” she raised an eyebrow and I nodded.

“Rin remembers a purse of 10 silver, we chose not to spend it but to rather save it, it is at the bank in Uljits.”

“A smart choice,” she raised a bag that jingled from behind her back and shook it once. “Ten silver is more than an average adventurer see in half a year, likely what she does is she gives the coin and when the adventurer’s get it they spend it, getting new equipment and the like, and when they come here they do the smart thing and retreat, or like us they get trapped, which leads to the parties death, but the ones that do make it has to go back to her, where she demands they repay her fee of silver, when they cant she forces them to do jobs, jobs she does not want to be posted on the guild list either due to the dubious nature of the job’s legality or because they are politically charged.”

“She wonders why no one has reported this! Surely the ones who survived would tell of this outcome and the guild would be outraged!” I hiss the words out through my teeth.

“That is the beauty of the plan, once you take the contract you are bound by guild rules to not reveal the nature of the contract to anyone, failure of this will lead to heavy guild fines or even banishment if the client takes offense.” she smiles in a angry sort of way, “You must admit it is a rather impressively devious way of going about things.” she laughed bitterly.

“She is disgusted, because of that vile woman Rin’s friends are dead!”

“I'm sure she would argue that it was your own fault for biting off more than you could chew, but yes, in fact, I am dubious of whether there is even a chest or if she just made it up to get people to come here and fall into her little honey pot.” she sighed and sat down, using a scrap of cloth to wipe off the sweat on her skin. “Luckly for us Voodoo magic can be cast at a range, and she is not aware of what type of mage I am,” a wicked smile spread on her face. “So once we get out of here we can give her the money back, and administer a little justice to her, also we will need to find Tam,” she paused looking at me slightly nervously. “That is if you still wish to join me...”

I looked up at her, curious at the sudden change in her demeanor. “Rin wonders why she would not wish to join with you?”

“Well, over the past few years I have not been making the best of decisions...”

“Perhaps that is due to a lack of input? ” I asked, a small purr in my chest, she smiled back at me and nodded a conceding head.

“Perhaps.”