Arriving at the foot of the mountain had never been as quick and exciting as it was for Drix this evening. The closer they get the more Maximon would slowly point out signs of goblins that even Drix missed. Scattered across the mountain side were clear signs that something had taken route, Maximon was the only one to notice them and piece them together.
From the higher abundance of plant life, which suggested a lower population of rabbits in the area. To the straighter than normal animal paths, which branched in different ways unaturally. All these small details that only Maximon could pick up on, and they were facing the front of a cave enterance in no time.
Drix did not recognise anything except the stench that exuded from the cave. It was horrific and disgusting, resolving him to end their pitiful lives sooner and return to the far prettier smelling group. Thankfully though, he still remained by their side.
A goblin guard stood afront the caves opening, like a small snack that rested infront of a great maw. Everybody was quick to hide among foliage, unhindered by their clothing. Appreciating the lack of heavy armor among his companions, Drix sunk deep into a stealth, hiding from even his own companions. Maximon was quick to twist his fingers in the somatics of a spell, they did not glow his signature cyan, but Drix could smell the magic on them regardless. With the spell cast, he looked Drix directly in the eye, pointing him toward the goblin. Despite the suprise of finding him so casually, he looked calmly to the guard. The ugly goblinoid was looking elsewhere, in the opposite direction of the sleuthy group.
Drix recognised the opportunity, taking it upon himself to move toward the unguarded and exposed back. Moving silently across the forest floor and into the small clearing was easy and practiced, fluid motions that he always had time to practice. The next step was the only challenge, sinking his stilletto into live flesh in a way to end it quickly and quietly.
Taking tips from Maximon's illusions made during their little game, he mimicked a move used by Maximon's personal figurine. Tightening his grip on his stilletto and taking his off-handed dagger out of his sleeve, he reversed his off-hand grip and thrust his main hand foward. He brought his off hand down at the same time, diagonally toward the throat of the goblin.
The stilletto pierced the gap between two ribs, slightly rubbing up against the higher one a little too much. The long metal murder machine missed its mark by only an inch, leaving its right lung intact. Drix's human sized dagger was more clunky to wield, leaving him with a solid thud and scrape against collarbone, sinking into the throat with less force.
Vines and leaves that sprouted out from the ground and twirled with green magics were the only thing keeping the goblin from howling in pain. They covered its mouth and filled his throat like a ball gag, preventing all but the sound of choaking from escaping.
The goblin died soon after Drix removed his weapons, likely due to shock or the vines that filled its throat. Wiping the disgusting goblin blood on the grass, he spit at his own clumsiness of the kill. Oh well, he thought to himself, he would do it correctly next time. The kill finally registered inside his head, another goblin dead and another trip of euphoria. It felt lesser, far less impactfull than before, but it still tickled his fancy.
The group joined him infront of the cave's opening, Maximon pat him on the back, "Alrighty pal, im sure youll get better at that, so get on in there and bring out some fun for us." he said, excitedly.
Drix agreed with the idea, no matter how completely stupid and reckless it was. The cave mouth dipped down into a small decline underneath a large rock. Crude pickaxe marks cover the sides of the cave, which slowly got more cramped and closer together. The walls then got shoulder wide, small obstacles jutted out of the wall like teeth in the throat of a huge sea creature. Drix had to duck down and under some parts, twisting his body in ways the leather armor he wore objected to. At this point, he was as deep underground as a grave, not to mention the added height of rock above his head from the mountain above. The darkness got darker and darker, something that a person new to caves would find impossible as they never understood true absence of light. If not for his darkvision, a special trait that many cave and night dwellers have, which allowed him to see in darkness as if it were dimly lit, he would not be able to see the many obstacles that would trap him in bindings of stone.
He wouldnt have to bend awkwardly or dodge stone spikes for too long though, as the small passage opened up into a far more spacous and dark area. In the distinct shades of grey his eyes saw in, he watched as the ground infront of him dropped into a steep seventy degree slope of sharp and loose rock like the side of a cheese grater. The wall on the other side was smoothed out by countless mellenium of water flowing and was two arm lengths away from the slope at all times.
The only thing egging Drix to continue onwards was the familiarity of it all and the orange glow at the bottom. With it, he stepped onto an outjutting rock not far down. Placing one foot on, waiting, then placing more weight onto it, waiting again, then finally shifting his second foot down. The feeling of gravity pulling on his body was the first sign to hold onto the ledge, as the rock underneath him slipped under his foot and fell like a pachinko ball.
Regardless of the potential and horrifying consequences of failing to catch himself, he could only think of a very fun and amusing idea.
Umber followed behind him after a short minute, shimmying through the enterance passage with his guidance. It did not take being in the dark cave for a long time, with immovable and unstopable stone around, that she summoned flame upon her forehead. The bright light in the deep dark, illuminated the grey and white rock that surrounded their bodies. The flame was small, like the flame upon kindling, but it seemed as welcoming as the sun would be. As they manuvered the rest of passage, Drix sore to himself to try learning common, even if it was only used to pass the time in something a little more than silence.
They arrived, finally grasping a full lung of air in the respite from claustrophobia that the steep but open slope represented.
Here, Umber moved to the side, avoiding the sight of the slope, slight off edge in a thankfully metaphorical way. She then sat down and put palms down on the rock floor. The sounds of shifting earth and moving stone could be heard echoing endlessly through the entire cavern. An extreamly unsettling sound, one that would put anybody into a fit of fear.
Thankful, and hopeful, that the rocky walls, ceiling, and floor would not consume him, he made his way cautiously down the slope. Taking a lesson from last time, he strained his eyes to pay more attention to the details. Spotting rocks that had footing marks eroded into them by feet and passage, or from water made by morning dew or rainy nights.
It formed him a comfortable way to travel safely down the passage, as if he was a resident of the group itself. The slope carried down for twenty meters, making a long anxiety filled journey.
The bottom of the slope was a sight for sore eyes. A singular piece of stone that was far less likely to give out from beneath your feet. Less of a wishful sight, were the goblins camped at the bottom. They sat around a campfire, which let smoke off into a hole in the ceiling above them. Drix did not go unnoticed.
They all jumped at the sight of him, brandishing their weapons and scurrying into a fighting position. The looks of confidence on their faces were well earned, as goblins were known to do well against a singular opponent.
Drix removed his helmet, giving them a neutral stare with one eye closed. They all made sounds of suprise, looks of apprehension and confusion on their faces. Despite the suprise though, they seemed slightly less aggresive, but still weary and ready to kill.
A taller goblin stepped foward, wearing a rusty chain shirt and a small wooden buckler, a dagger strapped to his waist. His large grey nose covered a large portion of his face, which seemed tattooed with charcoal paint. His equipment would speak volumes in Drix's old group, but here it seemed only normal, as the rest of the goblins had items close to its protective value.
He came right up to Drix, approaching the range of his stilletto. Arriving five feet infront of him, the goblin was only a few finger widths shorter than Drix, something that caught Drix by suprise. This goblin infront of him was tall by goblin standards, and that was never a good thing in something like a group of them. More intriging was its skin colour. Any goblin that spends sufficient time underground, or is born there, will naturally take on a dull stone grey instead of the usual vomit green skin colour. This tall goblin however, had shifted from dull stone grey to a slightly purple toning.
Choosing to act before he looses the good chance, he withdrew his stilletto from his sleeve. Using the goblins own body as cover, Drix stabbed his stilletto through the bottom of its skull, running its brain through. Then, he caught the shoulder of the goblin, propping him up.
Now, he threw his secondary dagger with all his might, striking the small flame they made with sticks. The light went out immediately.
Drix threw the dead goblin to the side, retrieving his stilletto in the process. Opening his closed eye and closing the open one, he was able to see when the others had to wait to adjust. Running, he was able to approach the thinnest group of them, five out of the fifteen total goblins in the chamber.
They had yet to panic, which made it all that much easier for Drix to stab his stilletto through the first one's throat. He kicked it down and gargling sounds were all it could make to warn its allies. Warning them seemed to prove fruitless this time though, as all it did was cause them to look in the direction, straining their eyes to adjust. Then the second and third ones fell, gargling their own dying breaths as well.
Drix retreated to the back of the chamber, placing his back against its surface and hiding his body behind an exposed rock. The goblins were finally alert, able to take in their surroundings with their adjusted eye sight. Taking in the dead bodies of their companions they got slightly closer together and scanned the slope and direction Drix first came in.
They were looking the wrong way, and Drix knew that. Donning his helmet, he prepared for his last act before regrouping with Umber Silent, he moved swiftly to the back of the closest goblin, one who never stopped retreating slowly toward the enterance to the next passageway. His left hand shut its mouth, and his right stabbed his stiletto into its torso repeatedly from the front of his body. He was lucky with this kill, not a peep beyond its body slowly falling to the floor with his assistance. It was enough to continue with, but he needed to draw his luck here. Once more, he moved to the back of the nearest goblin. More stabbing, and he was swiftly finished with the now dead goblin corpse.
As Drix bolted past the body of his latest kill, the others caught on a second too late. They tried to catch him, but they were unsuccessful at grabbing his nimble limbs. When Drix got to the slope leading back to the enterance, he leaped up like a cat. He landed lightly upon one of the stable rock, used by the goblins. He leaped again, pushing his body into another leap onto a higher part of the path. Then he ran, having remembered the path perfectly.
His goblin persuers were just as familiar though, racing up the path at a pace close to his. Drix was faster though, perhaps due to genetics, maybe due to stronger legs, but definetly partly due to the strength he has gained from killing their comrades earlier.
He reached Umber's position at the top of the slope in record time. There, she was sitting and waiting cross legged at the far back wall, clearly avoiding any sort of edge to slip off of. At the sound of Drix's arrival, she summoned a small flame to confirm his identity. At the sight of a familiar helmet and gambeson, she stood. Infront of her were large rounded rocks which connected to the stone floor at the bottom. Made by her magics to move the earth at her will, they planned on using them to smash a good number of goblins into their graves.
Umber casually moved her hands in a sculpting manner. Like it was the most natural thing in the world to her, the stones infront of her shifted. They rolled off the small part of rock they were once connected to, and down the slope they went. It was not a smooth slope in any way, but they soared downward. Some knocked against the jutting stones, some hit against the smooth back wall.
When the goblins thought they were safe and had their intruder on the run, they looked up to see their deaths. There wasnt a single goblin left, all crushed by the weight of heavy stone and dead comrades. Drix's heart was overcome with euphoria, and he let out a long cackle. Its seems dealing the final blow was never required for his brain to unleash a torrent of chemicals.
Umber was far less than comfortable hearing the person she was underground with cackle in the twisted joy of murdering goblins. She patted her butt of the dust and dirt from the ground she sat on. Then radiated green magical light from her palms.
Drix took half a minute to calm down, taking deep breaths as the adrenaline pumped through his system.
They waited for the rest of the group to catch up, notified by Umber's magic. They emerged from the small enterance way soon after, dust and dirt covered most of their equipments surface area. Maximon was quick to pat himself off with blue covered hands, most of the filth falling off at the same time.
Umber called out to the bard, saying his name. He was casual to turn and chat with her. Drix knew something was up immediately, because they didnt speak in common. They spoke in odd mumbles, not fully formed words. Their hands moved like a language of hands and signs. Their postures shifted as they talked, unnatural to what seemed like their true emotions. It was very complex, uncoding it would be a challenge even for those that claim to be linguists. Drix was not even going to try, if they wanted secrets, they can keep them, but they would have to accept the ones he keeps to himself.
As he meandered back down the slope he wondered to himself, clearly he created some distrust between him and Umber. A very regretful situation he found himself in with a prospective companion, it weighed on his heart. Truely, he didnt understand why it bothered him so much.
He was confused, what was he feeling? He tried to ask himself, but he couldnt find an answer. A knot in his chest, like a door he cant open, a wall that holds him back from the answer he sought.
The mumbling of their oh-so-secret conversation echoed into his ears. It annoyed him to all ends of his wits.
He turned back, and muttered at their direction, "Shut up, do you want things to hear you?"
It came out in a suprising way, he spoke in common to tell them to shut up, something he didnt expect himself to know or remember. He then said the rest in goblinish, but it seemed so much more angry and hateful than he intented. He cursed himself in his head, he didnt like the way he sounded even to his own ears. All he wanted to do was convey his annoyance, that they shouldnt talk, that they have no reason to speak secretively.
A boot touched down to more solid ground, at the base of the slope. Drix found a goblin corpse, it was crushed half to paste by the rock that hit and killed it. He kicked it, he did it again, and he pretended like all his aggitation went alongside the force of the kicks. Others would scold him for improper anger management, curse them too. Another kick. Their secret conversation no longer entered his ears. Another kick. They would hate him for raising his voice, and laughing in such an ugly way. Another kick. Two tears. A silent scream. He head toward the continuation of the tunnel, toward the rest of the goblins.
The bipedal bundel of emotion stood infront the opening, unbenownst to him, his posture was slouched and defeated. Madove was the first to arrive from the slope, her eyes met his. Once again, she stared directly into his, through the small slits of his visor. She was roughly fifteen feet away, yet she could see him standing there. No sources of light remained in the cavern, so it clicked in Drix's head quickly. She had darkvision, the same as him.
The forboding fact hung above his head, he caught onto it and learned it, but deep down he didnt understand the consequences of it. Drix turned into the cavern, readying to scout ahead for the group.
Madove stayed behind, watching his back get smaller and dissapear around a turn. She smiled, a genuine one from her heart. Sour or sweet? Nobody could tell, not presently at least. The half-elf gandered a look at the rancid remains of the dead near her. The stab wounds from a familiar stiletto did not escape her perception. Her shoulders shuddered with her light giggles. She wiped the smile off her face, and held back her amusement.
Then, Maximon arrived, hopping down the stones as if he was playing hopscotch in a schoolyard. When he reached the bottom, he landed on both his feet, muttering something about a perfect score under his breath. Finally, the inseperable two arrived, Umber held Zenoda by the hand and led her every step to the next stable rock.
Maximon approached, standing next to her. He took in the carnage, the stabbed goblins and the ones crushed by Umber's rocks.
"Can we keep him?" he asked, turning his body to her and putting his hands together like a prayer.
Madove scoffed, following in Drix's direction. Maximon stayed put, raising his arms in exaggerated enthusiazum.
"Yay," he exclaimed, "I knew you agreed, the little rascal fits in so well." he added, following her.
Umber and Zenoda watched them interact and leave through the light of the small flames they conjured over head. The half-orc had a smile on her face, not a single negative emotion. The fire genasi was paying more attention to Zenoda than the situation. They followed behind Maximon, leaving the corpses behind.
More goblins awaited further in the cavern, unknowing of their impending doom.