As Garrick edged into the blackened cave where no light shone. The attack that was still fresh on his mind, had disappeared from his thoughts. His steps were echoing in the dark, it was quiet awfully quiet. Not a sound, that didn't come from him. He saw nothing but the darkness. Yet he could feel the vastness of the cave in the air. Hollow and hungry.

It was bone-chilling. He was frightened at what he might find. He felt like a child again, huddled in a darkroom, trapped in the darkness. No adult would hear him scream, no one would save him. He shivered.

‘Perhaps this was a horrible idea, perhaps he should’ve hightailed away. While he had the chance, why pursue this story, for some princess he briefly met.’Why not loot and raid as he is sure everyone else is doing?

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea at all.” The voice rang out, mature and commanding, “Welcome Garrick, and, do not be afraid.”

It read his mind.

Goosebumps and shivers, were what he felt. The tone felt insistent, inviting even, beckoning him to move deeper into the shadows. His nerves were shot to hell, but he kept pressing forward, he wanted some answers.

Brief sparks of light appeared through the cave entrance, he felt watched stared at, and not by one thing but by many. It may have been his imagination but he swore he saw hundreds of white eyes staring at him judging him.

“Can you see Garrick, can you see me? Can you see in the darkness?”

“No,” he said gulping. “It’s practically pitch black there is nothing to see.”

The entity hummed along.

"Did I teach you nothing?"

Mana vision of course. He closed his eyes attempting to see what was hidden, still even with the powers he had gained he saw nothing.

“Still can't see anything? You were a lot more tongue-in-cheek in that little well i found you in. You sound a lot more scared now, a lot more frightened."

“I’m just here for answers, whatever you are or whatever you want, I don’t practice devilry or esoteric fuckery.”

The thing giggled. Its chuckles vibrated, he could feel it in his bones.

“Perhaps I could teach you some 'Arcane Devilry'.”

“Not interested,” he said. His short black was slowly rising standing upwards.

His eyes went wide. He swore he could feel something moving, long and slender, like a snake or big worm, moving next to him.

“Hold still would you, no fidgeting or making sudden movements Let me see what is wrong with you.”

Something whirled around him, like he was being constricted, it was wettish but not in a conventional sense. Like he was touching a thick gas that was stuck between freezing and liquids states. It tightened. He could feels the pressure of being squeezed.

“Yes…yes… I can work with this. You have terrible luck do you know that.”

Not knowing what it insinuated he struggled to get lost.

“Unhand me. What the fuck even are you! Let me go right now! Devil!”

It raised him into the air and then loosened his constriction. Garrick fell to the ground on his shins.

“Devil? Devil? I am far above such silly concepts. Gods, kings, beasts, and dragons. They are nothing to me. I am something far greater and older, something your little mind can’t comprehend.”

Garrick moaned, he could still feel the sensation of being gripped. Like metaphysically the grip was still there. He could feel the Pressure in the air condense, making it harder to breath.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

“So what do you need me for? Why help me the past few times? Why teach me things.”

There was a small pause for a moment As if it was still deciding what to say.

“Because you and I are cut from the safe cloth. Neither of us was born, here. I for example was trapped in this cave by my peers. And you, when I saw your helpless soul drift away, I couldn’t help but give a little nudge into that dying little goblin body.”

“What…what do you mean? Where was my soul supposed to go.” He was outraged, he was not going to be used as this thing's tool.

“If I didn’t intervene, anything could have happened perhaps your soul would be stuck in some animal, perhaps in the opposite gender, maybe some twisted and demented thing could have eaten it. You should be thankful.”

“That's awfully convenient, isn't it?” He questioned the reliability of the creature, he held all the power here and with it the narrative.

"Indeed, but you should be thankful."

He didn’t know if that was a good or a bad thing. Had he gone elsewhere he might been in a bigger predicament on the other hand, there was a way forward here, who knows what other may led him to.

“Damn. I kind of believe.”

“It's a start to our partnership. You can thank me later. Now, I want you to start a fire.”

“Why. And I don't recall signing some Faustian contract.”

"What is a Faustian contract, enlighten me."

"Nothing, a long story from back home."

“Hmmm, anyway Just do as I say, in front of you just a few steps, is an old dead campfire. Some fool used to live here with me, but he outlived his usefulness.”

“Ahh, you offed him when he no longer had a use for you.”

“No, he died of old age.”

“Oh.”

“Hurry the fuck up!” It raised its voice.

Garrick obeyed the command, walking up to the fireplace. Everything was still dark so he was careful where he was stepping, over what he could be stepping. He found it and found unused wood as well, but there was no way to start the fire.

“I’m gonna need some flint or a firelighter for this.”

“What’s a firelighter?” the eldritch creature asked him.

“Uhh, nothing…just the old slip of the tongue…you wouldn’t understand.” he tried downplaying it.

“Now I want to know!”

“Fine. It’s just a tool back home, we used to light anything really. Technology and all that.”

“That’s way too vague give me a proper explanation later. Just use your mana to start it.”

“What what do you mean, i don’t know how to do that.”

“You did it earlier when you killed that little freak, hurry up.”

“So you are spying on me. And more like that was lightning.”

“It was warm was it not, and should one obfuscate one’s eyes, because someone else might be naked?”

“Generally, yes.”

“Hurry up. I have things to demand.”

Garrick gritted his teeth. Very well, let’s not piss off the eldritch abomination.

He placed his hands on the bundle of wood, letting his mana flow outwards. And into the bundle of sticks. Sudden sickness plagued him, and he realized that he may have overworked himself, as he felt more energy had dispersed from that was probably the curse.

He kept focussing, on the smaller parts of the firewood and lo and behold. Flames leaped to life, lighting a small part of the surrounding area, eerie and dynamic shapes started animateing shadows along the cavern walls. In the dimly lit circumference, Shadowlike and coiling tentacles, danced in the background, pulsing like the being was part of the cave itself. A black mass that he was unable to make out, sat deeper inside, A great eye protruding from it.

“I suppose I should introduce myself.”

“You could have done that a whole moon ago.”

“Let's see if your bark is as strong as your bite.” The white eye started strengthening in luminosity, it appeared to grow in size, where the being's black mass lay dormant. “My name is Asul'rath Kalithr Velkul gar'tl Yith Ulgor axith Kthar'yth Eldrath Traxen Qar'set Ur'thoth yrrzaal Xoth' Drazk Varitrak Azar'vu Lothloth Krar Qal'thirath Jhul.”

As the being pronounced his long name like it was a string of code, the cave shook and indescribable images, garrick could not understand started flashing in his head. His ears were drumming like the earthquake were inside his head. His nose started bleeding, he barely held his body from falling.

“Stop!!! What the fuck is that man!”

The whole sequence came to and with it the horrible things, the world no longer shook. The goblin felt violated.

“You may also call me Asul.” The thing said without care.

“Then say that the first place!” Garrick held his ears.

“When you formally meet a business partner, your full name is relevant to the conversation, no.” It hummed.

Everything calmed, and Garrick once again became calm, focusing on the task at hand.

“There’s a lot I want to know but more importantly, I've been cursed by a certain individual.”

“Yes, I saw it happen. ”

“And you couldn’t intervene.”

“This place is a prison for me, my intervention starts and stops only with those i have a hand with such as you, should i decide to start messing with the outside world, i’ll draw unwanted attention. It’s a long story i’ll bore you with it some other time. But I know what you want.”

“And what is that?”

“To be free of whatever plague’s you, to run after the princess, after the castle was raided.”

“At the very least, I’d like to stab the bastard back. You’ve taught me some things before i’d be lying if I didn’t want to learn more.”

“The very first thing you want to do is break the limits of what’s possible, you need to actually learn how to properly harness mana. I can see that the curse is taking a toll on you.”

He held his stomach, where the leaky feeling was most common.

“SO you’ll teach me how to manage it.”

'

“Yes, but not for free”

"Of course, there is a price."

“I want a sacrifice.!”

Images fly towards him of several people he has met so far, even the witch girl, they were prime targets should he kill one of them.

“Out of question. Hell, no. I don’t partake in ritualistic sacrifice.”

“Who said anything about rituals you latrine pot,” he bonked Garrick on the head with his tentacle. “ Do you think I am uncivilized? All I want is a meal. Good meats above all, prime salted and seared venison if you can. I do not eat sentients. If I ate any of you fools I’d inherit the waste that is your brains. I haven't eaten since this fool decided to perish away, because of age and sickness.

He pointed to a cadaver that lay west of the room.

Now Garrick-boy what will it be? One question a day, a lesson or two for a proper meal.”

"Why should I agree with this, it's clear, that you are stuck here, no thanks to your own choices."

"Would leave a disabled boy hungry and alone in the woods, Garrick. Are you the monster here?"

"you're certainly no disabled boy, Don't know what you did but you're in here for a reason."

Garrick breathed a sigh of relief. At least he didn't have to worship Azul.