The kobolds fled shrieking, scattering into their tunnels and disappearing into the dark. Hump was shaking with adrenaline. His throat hurt from screaming so hard, but gods it felt good. They’d won. They’d saved the village, saved Kassius and his party, and they’d looked damn good doing it. Now they just had to get back to the surface in one piece.

There was relieved laughter amongst the villagers, and some quiet cheers. A few of them sat on the stone ground and caught their breath, still holding their improvised weapons in their laps. Still ready for a fight.

When the kobolds were fully gone from sight, Hump leant on his staff and took a deep breath. He tried to ignore the smell of blood, but many kobolds had died.

“Excellently done!” Kassius said, approaching. He wore a broad smile on his face, and Hump could see the thrill of battle gleaming in his eyes. “Where are the rest of your men, Vamir?” he asked, looking around.

“It’s just the four of us I’m afraid,” Vamir said. “With any luck, reinforcements will be on their way, but it will be a long time before they reach us. We’re on our own.”

Kassius blinked, surprised. “It was a bluff?” he asked.

“Exactly so,” Vamir said. “Kobolds are cowards. If we could convince them of a large attack, I knew we could make them run.” Vamir grinned. “It was a dice roll. I guess it worked out.”

“Worked out…” Kassius shook his head slowly. “That’s incredible. Truly, I’m impressed. And that my friend is a rare thing these days. You have my sincere thanks,” his eyes passed over each of them, “all of you. You can be sure your efforts won’t go unrewarded, I can promise you that.”

Now that was a promise Hump liked the sound of. For their efforts, they’d certainly earned a reward. Though looking over the villagers now, and the near disbelief on their face that they were free, he felt that was reward enough. Still, a prince’s reward was nothing to scoff at. He’d never say no to a bit of coin, and a title like that came with a heaping ton of coin attached.

Kassius tilted his head back and barked a laugh. “Four of you just sent an entire kobold village running like rats. Genius. Pure genius. Imagine what the guilds will say to that. Those Silver Spear pricks are going to look like the bleeding cowards they are.”

Hump grinned. “Really, that’s what we’re here for.”

“I’m sure! I’m sure!” Kassius said. “And don’t think that spell of yours escaped my notice. What was it you cast there at the end, Hump? I don’t believe I’ve ever seen light magic like that before. You truly did look spectacular. An affinity for light is a rare thing.”

“It was nothing that special,” Hump said quickly. “Really. My affinity for light is average at best. It was just a simple cantrip that I spiced up a little with a blast spell chained in at the end.”

“A light cantrip?” Kassius asked, surprise clear in his tone. The rest of Hump’s party gave him a confused look too. “You sent a battalion of kobolds running with a bloody light cantrip?”

Hump scratched the back of his head, feeling awkward. “Vamir asked for something flashy, and I didn’t have essence left for much else. Especially after that first Essence Blast. I couldn’t very well leave Bud on his own now, could I? So I improvised.” He shrugged.

Kassius shook his head and laughed. “The gods are truly blind to have missed you. Do not forget my offer, Wizard Hump, for when this is all over. I’ve plans for you, boy. Big plans.”

Hump made a dismissive gesture with his hand. “You give me too much credit. Vamir came up with the plan, he and Celaine did the real damage. And I’d wager Bud was more terrifying than I could ever be.”

Kassius placed a hand on his shoulder. “Modesty is a fine trait in a young man. But of course, you’re correct.” He turned to Bud. “Robert, my friend, there will be stories of this, I can promise you that. The Knight of Kelisia that charged head on into a battalion of kobolds, alone, one man against dozens, yet he sent them running. The beautiful Celaine, whose arrows pierce hearts from a continent away. The strategist, Vamir, who pays all else for falls. And of course, Wizard Hump, a beacon of light like the heralds of old. A reminder that old magic still has its place amongst Chosen.”

“I’m not sure I’ve heard of any stories quite as dark as this one,” Bud said, watching over the villagers with sad eyes. In his eyes, Hump could still see frostfire shimmering. He still hadn’t sheathed his sword.

“Perhaps not,” Kassius said. “Though you can be certain that these people will tell the tale. And those at court shall hear of it too, I will make sure of that. The four of you will be famous! Not many people get to rescue a prince, after all. Again, to all of you, you have my thanks. To put it lightly, we were royally screwed. Now then, we must move quickly. How did the other rescues fare?”

“Successfully,” Vamir said. “Though Meera and her party suffered quite badly in the attack. She took a bad wound herself, and they lost a man getting the villagers out. But they made it. Our own efforts went well too, we were safely back at the forward fortification when Oswald sent news that the frontline assault had ended and that we were to retreat. Of course, by that point we were concerned something might have happened to you. Meera went back with the survivors to call for aid, while we came to assist.”

“I’m glad you did,” Kassius said. “We likely have little time then before reinforcements arrive. We best get moving.”

“How many got out?” one of the villagers blurted. He was a middle-aged man that wielded what Hump guessed was the handle of a shovel as a quarterstaff. He was a big man, a farmer or smith no doubt.

Kassius looked at him for a moment, pressing his lips together in thought. “Please understand, news is bleak. And we’ve yet to receive word from our scouts about the situation in Hursdale.”

The man nodded. “I understand. Just… We need to know.”

Kassius sighed. “Yesterday, Vamir and his party discovered fourteen of your people in some of the chambers nearby. They were able to get them out. It was only then that we first learnt of your plight. Our parties are a part of a three-prong operation that took place today to get as many people out as we could. From the sounds of it, the other groups succeeded in saving another thirty-four. And then fourteen were rescued yesterday.”

“Forty-eight,” the man said the words softly, Barely a whisper. He shook his head, tears in his eyes. “So few survived.”

“Are there more of you nearby?” Bud asked urgently.

The man gave a helpless shrug. “They kept us in the cages.” He looked from left to right, staring at the huts and stone around the area. “As you can see, there’s little we can know from here.”

Bud’s jaw clenched. He gave a hard nod. “I’m sorry for what happened.”

The man paused, then nodded. “Thank you.”

Amongst the villagers, a few broke out into tears. They approached Bud and Kassius, calling out names, asking for news of parents, siblings, children, anyone that might be amongst the rescued. As they gathered around Bud, he stepped back, holding up his hands as if to calm them down, fumbling over his answers.

Hump clenched his fist tightly around his staff. What does one say to that? he thought. Funny how quickly victory could lose its glamour.

Kassius stood his ground, standing taller than most of the crowd, he held his head high, his face a rock of security in this place of death and terror. His armour shimmered with light, shifting with the fluidity of quicksilver. “People of Hursdale,” he began gently, yet his voice drew their attention as if he were speaking to each one of them personally. “You have taken the first step to freedom with your own hands, yet there is still a fight left. What has happened to you is beyond cruel, and I curse the gods that they have allowed it to be so, but you must stand strong. There are wounded in the shrine that cannot move on their own. If not for yourselves, stand strong for them. There is still work to be done.”

The villagers quietened down. Some nodded, and Hump saw determination in their eyes once more. Others looked like they had all but given up again.

“Your orders, milord,” the same man that had first spoken asked.

“What is your name?” Kassius asked.

“Borrick, milord.”

“Organise your people, Borrick,” Kassius said. “The strongest of you, search the nearby huts and find what materials you can. We need bandages, and we need stretchers for any wounded that cannot walk or be carried.”

“Understood,” Borrick said. And under his direction, the villagers kicked into action. He turned to the rest of the villagers. “You heard him. Strip down anything you can find.”

“Lyran, I want you on lookout,” Kassius commanded the rogue. “Find yourself a vantage point and inform us when the kobolds are growing near.”

“Understood, milord,” the rogue said, giving an exaggerated bow. He vanished in a poof of black smoke.

Kassius nodded. “The wounded are inside the shrine. Vamir, you know the skills of yours best. Do what you can.”

“I have some skills in healing,” Hump said. “It isn’t much, but I can see what I can do.”

“You know healing magic?” Celaine asked, surprised.

“Just a little,” Hump said. “I can partially mend bones and speed up the healing process of light surface wounds.”

“Don’t,” Vamir said. “Not unless you have to. Preserve what essence you have left. We might still need it before we’re out of this mess.”

Hump hesitated, but reluctantly agreed. “Then I’ll stick to the healing tonics I have left and a few herbs I brought with me.”

Vamir nodded. “What about you, Bud?”

“I can assist inside,” the knight said. “I’ve been trained to deal with battlefield injuries. Unless you want me keeping guard, I’ll go with Hump.”

Vamir nodded. “That works well. Celaine and I will work with your scout. Get the people ready to move quickly. I have a feeling we won’t have much time.”

“We’ll do what we can,” Bud said.

There was nothing elegant about the shrine. The stone walls jutted out of the rock in thick, jagged slabs, shining with veins of the same green light Hump had come to dread since they had arrived. From the outside, if not for the iron gate, Hump could have mistaken it for just another part of the cavern. Perhaps it was. The dungeon had spawned living creatures and carved miles upon miles of tunnels, creating a shrine seemed far simpler.

Inside, the sickly glow illuminated the wounded villagers. There was little space, so the injured were forced to lie side by side on the stone floor; their pained moans sent chills through Hump. This had always been the part of being an adventurer he hated. He wasn’t squeamish but seeing such suffering in another person was something Hump could never get used to. It was something that stayed with a person, lurking in the recesses of one’s mind. A memory that snuck up unexpectedly. It made him think of his master in his final hours.

Hump gazed over the thirty-odd people that were in no shape to move and shook his head. It was too many. They didn’t have the numbers to move them all. They needed field medics and priests, not basic healing magic and first aid. Those that Borrick commanded that were still fit for work carried in water from the stream using some of the buckets Hump had seen scattered around the village. The silk covers over the hut doors were torn up into bandages or tied between tool handles to make stretchers.

At the front of the shrine was an altar formed from a single block of grey stone and covered in dried blood. It was adorned with a human skull, a jagged black knife, and two black iron cuffs that rose from chains in the ground on either side. Something about it made him itch. There was magic at work here, and it made his skin crawl and his chest tighten.

“We should get to work,” Bud said.

Hump ignored him and wandered forward.

“Hump?” Bud asked questioningly.

Still he walked. He felt something there, something that filled him with dread. He leant heavily on his staff as he walked, feeling all the aches and cold of two days of fighting. With each step, the dread increased until he was staring down into a deep, dark pit hidden behind the altar. A musty and foul smell wafted up from its depths.

“Kelisia’s mercy,” Bud said, staring down into the hole. “What foul god do these beasts worship?”

Hump stared down into the darkness, a sickening feeling rising in his stomach. Amongst all the black was a dull red glow. “Not a god. We’ve found the dungeon heart.”