In the middle of the night, when everyone else had gone to sleep, Scratch sat alone in front of the cave entrance.

He was communing with Cyclophan, evil god of guile and trickery.

You're moving out my goblins.

Am I?

Yes, you're spreading out the monsters over the countryside. But I need monsters in my dungeon to feed my magic.

Humans don't do the trick?

You can't replace them with bandits, bandits stay up top, they don't live in the dungeon.

Help me out here, because I thought I understood your situation until now. You want a funnel from the outside air to your crystal, and you can simply add to that pathway by digging a bit deeper, correct?

Correct.

But I can't extend it the other way, by building a wall?

Is that what you're trying to do?

Well, naturally it serves a dual purpose. It keeps out the hooligans too.

In theory you're correct, the wall directs the flow of magic too, just like the sides of the cave. But humans are stronger than goblins, that strems the flow. Normally, in a dungeon, monsters become stronger the deeper you go. Dungeon keepers usually organize them into levels because of that.

These rules seem strange and arbitrary to me.

It's just the way of the world.

-

Scratch leaned back. So if I put something stronger than humans down here, that'll make you happy?

Yes. One big monster to guard the core. We call that a dungeon boss.

I'm the boss.

It's just the name. You don't even have to make friends with it, you could build a cage. The metal bars are working pretty well in the river.

And the wolves aren't good enough.

After the most recent exchange with the thieves' guild the tribe had taken home two large dogs from the disappeared kennel owner. They were well bred, strong enough for Cyclophan to 'evolve' in what he called warg wolves. It had made them slightly bigger, with more fur and larger teeth.

A warg wolf is about equal to a human peasant. But there's only two and they run around on the surface most of the time.

The canines, Nico and Bello as they had been named by their previous master, had been given a horse-skin mat next to the underground river. They only used it to sleep, and even that not every night.

I'll keep my eyes open. See if I spot any dragons hanging around.

Don't play games with me Scratch, you know that I only aid your purposes for as long as you continue to serve mine.

Scratch took eagerly advantage of this opportunity to change the subject. Speaking off... what about those guido's, ey? You know that's what I wanted to get from you.

If you mean the new bandits from the republic, you can rest easy. They're not here to spy on you, they're genuine outcasts, though they indeed are friendly with Fyro. Old acquantices from his younger days.

You see, that doesn't put me at ease at all. Informance doesn't have to be explicit, if their loyalty to our rival is stronger than their loyalty to us, that makes them subversive agents.

What are you going to do? Kick them out?

Not yet. I might need an excuse to later. What about Harkness?

She knows. She's known for a long time. When a tamer tames a goblin, that doesn't extend to its progeny, your 'Beatty' character would have had to come and tame the newborn everytime a litter is birthed. On top of that, the amount of initiative you're showing-

"Damn." Scratch whispered under his breath. So she's waiting for the optimal time to use it against me. No matter, we'll come up with something.

She still doesn't know about me, or that trick you did pointing the adventurers to her.

Of course not, all the evidence of that has been destroyed.

Then our agenda for the coming weeks is full,* Scratch decided, *a vilage to build, a boss monster, managing bandits, controlling the tribes...

About that. Why did you send out the captured adventurer?

Brittany? She's of more use there. The tree needs to be refilled, it's right near the river so a warrior mother is a good fit to teach them how to fight.

But won't she escape?

He laughed. Britt? Not a chance. Do you remember what she was like when we captured her? When you take away a person's dignity, they crumble. We drip-feed them their dignity back, we can twist them into any shape we like. Brittany is dependent on the boys' approval for self worth right now, and as long as the faces that put her in that state are there that won't change. Plus, she has a family now, in the tree home she has status. Escaping would mean throwing away her new life. Nono, she isn't going anywhere.* He put away his pipe, using the last vapors left in his lung to commune. *Good night, Cyclophan, dungeon keepers need their rest too.

Don't forget the dungeon boss.

Yeah, yeah.

The next day Linus was tending to the water purification when he was bothered by one of the newer bandits.

Aimone wasn't too fond of the water distillery. "Mannaggia, what are you doing to the water, huh?"

"I... purifying it?" Linus was uncomfortable having a stranger yell at him so loudly.

"Purifying, purifying, oh, Dower protect me. Metal and skins do not clean water, only magic can do that. Brother, you must come see this."

Gildo, who had come to fetch him, was instead dragged into the conversation. "You do have magic, Aimone, can you not purify the water before you drink it? Basta, no problemo."

"No problemo? There is a problem Gildo, there is no living in a place like this." He held his hands up, his fingers pressed together. "Why are the goblins handling the water? Before you know it, this whole place is taken by a plague, I tell you!"

Linus cringed at the hard words, until Second came to his defense. "If you want water, take it and go back to your own side."

"Que? This one is angry." Aimone remarked.

"I did come to retrieve you, Aimone," Gildo mentioned, "it seems the 'highborn' has some work for us."

Aimone did not react to his words, he was still looking at Second. "Hasn't your master taught you manners yet, subhuman? You live by our mercy."

Although he did not seem poised to attack, Gildo put his arm over Aimone's chest as if to hold him back. "Now is not the time to argue with monsters, brothers, let us be off and stay friendly with our new neighbours, eh?"

Second fumed, he searched frantically for the perfect turn of phrase or insult to return the human's disparaging remarks, but he could not think of anything as they walked off.

-

He still stood there, between the purifier and the well, when Scratch came by to have a drink.

In his anger, he fell out against Scratch instead. "We're not tamed! We're not soup humans!"

Scratch filled up his clay mug and took a slow sip. "You alright there, buddy?"

"He said we're filthy, and that we live by their mercy."

"Who did?"

"He did. Aimone. He'd kill us if he felt like it, they all would! And we have to act nice-"

Scratch had scooped up another mug of water and dumped it over Second's head. Their hair had grown long after all these months, and it covered his face.

"Bwah! Hey!"

"That's to cool you down. What did the fucker do, did he hurt you?"

"He said we and our water were filthy."

"Well, maybe he's right."

"Wha-"

"Maybe if you weren't so pre-occupied with feeling feelings, you'd pick something up."

Second brushed his hair aside to look at his brother. "I'm supposed to learn from him!?"

"You know who Aimone is? Huck told me, those three all come from a country of only canals, they teach everybody water magic. If there's anybody that would know, it's them."

"So we just have to let him talk to us like that?"

"Well jeez, if it isn't too much damn trouble, yes please." Scratch answered sarcastically.

"Or what, will we end up like Teeth!?"

Now the goblin boss became angry. "Do you think you're doing me a favor here? Just play nice with super-beings, it's to your own benefit! Why are you like this?"

Second looked away. "We worked hard on that purifier, and you're saying it's worth nothing, that we're worth nothing."

Then Scratch exhaled, forcefully returning himself to a calmer state. "You're worth everything to me, Second. These humans, they're important, because they're our tools. But your lives are what we have the tools for, the goal, do you understand?"

Second looked back at him with different eyes.

Scratch went on. "This guy talks smack, and you're going to endure it. Because by the end, we'll have gotten our worth out of him, and we'll dispose of him, right?"

"Right."

"Just be careful, diplomacy is like playing with fire. If you're too careless, you'll get burned. So, what will you do?"

"Play nice."

"Good boy." He ruffled the boy's hair.

Then he went off to follow the strangers to Harkness' tent.

After the bandits had made it their permanent residence, the construction in front of the cave had not stopped.

Now that the walls and road stood, a lookout tower and a storehouse were being built. Luckily, a few of the humans knew how to build such large buildings, the other humans and the goblins simply followed their lead.

Wooden frameworks were being lifted upright and secured together with materials commissioned from Fyro and his thieves' guild, it was the last task to be done before it was time for a collective pause.

-

Quiet and Haruto had prepared snacks for all the workers, a significant portion of which were Barbara's newborn spawn. They were trotting back and forth from the kitchen hut near the well to the construction site, carrying plates of rabbit meat and berries.

They had to leave the snacks on top of the platform where the dogs couldn't get at it. But one of them was determined to get at the succulent roasted rabbit, and tried to snatch it from their hands as they walked to and fro. The beasts had been dobermans before, large black dogs with considerable strength. But since their transformation they had become larger and more furry, tremendously scaring the timid Quiet.

Fyro, the belligerent goblin, post-poned his ropemaking chore in orde to help the caterers, and bodyguarded them with a spear. "Bad. Go away. You have your own food."

The animal was scared off by the pointy weapon, but it turned out to be cleverer than expected, because it laid a trap.

-

On the sixth trip back and forth, Haruto suddenly found his footing slip when he stepped into a hole filled with loose earth, the earthenware plate shattered on the ground and the contents fell off, in order to immediately be snatched up by the canine.

"No-ooo!" Haruto whined at letting the dog steal the food, while Quiet helped him up.

"What's the matter?" Cobaline, the young human child who didn't have much to occupy her time with, came rushing up to involve herself.

"Bello dug a hole to make me drop the food."

"Bad doggy!" She waved her finger at the dog, who let out a series of raspy pants before running off. It had sounded a lot like laughter.

"I understand you know your way around a weapon." Harkness told the Grienicians.

"Audace here used to be a conscript," Aimone answered for the group, "but we've all been in the wild for the six years."

"That's good." She was stroking the head of one of the dogs, Gildo couldn't take his eyes off the creature. "We've taken heavy losses the past month. I need you to take up the job of guards."

"You, ah, do much guarding yourself?" The man wanted to know.

She raised an eyebrow, "among other things, yes."

"Yeah, cause, see... Me an' Audace were talkin'... Weren't we Audace?"

The third recruit slowly nodded his head.

"And we said to each other, the Harkness cousins, they're not knights anymore."

"Hey-" Gildo interrupted.

"Not now Gildo. Why should they sit back and have others do the work for them, you know?"

"You're challenging my leadership. After one day."

"Yeah... Yeah, I guess I am challenging your leadership. What of it? Just because your mama or papa was some bigshot, that doesn-"

Harkness stood up with an abrupt jerky motion, the power behind her movement silenced him. The dog she had been petting began to excitedly pace back and forth the tent, unsure of its loyalties. "Like it or not," she spoke, "I am the leader. And if you three want to be a part of this group, you'll have to accept that."

He gave a nervous laugh, but composed himself. "Why? You'll send your guards after us? That's us. You're no highborn anymore, lady."

Before he knew it she was in front of him, holding a blade to his throat. He had no idea where she'd pulled it out from. "You think my birth is a title?"

He tried to slap her arm away, but she effortlessly evaded his attack and grabbed his wrist with the very same hand, turning it behind his back painfully to make him bend over. When Audace moved in to help his friend she kicked her leg high in the air, without letting go. Her foot she kept menacingly suspended in front of the man's face.

"You're from Grienice, so I'll let it slide one time. Here in the rest of the world, the position of our birth is not arbitrary. Fyro and I are of knightly blood, despite our current situation. This blood gives me power and responsibility. That's why I'm the leader."

-

"Whoops! Walking into something private?" Scratch remarked as he and Huckabee entered the leader's tent.

"Boss... you wanted to see me?" Huckabee asked awkwardly.

"Huckabee," Harkness returned to a more neutral stance and it go of the man, "I wanted to ask you to administer these new recruits. From now on, you three answer to Huckabee."

When they didn't answer she emphasized her point. "Isn't that right?"

"R-right." Aimone answered. They had been suitably intimidated.

"Then you'll be guarding the gate and patrolling the wall. Scratch, you told of a lookout post."

"Eh," the goblin held his hand horizontally with the palm held down and wiggled it a bit, "it'll be some time."

"Then that's that. Dismissed, soldiers." Harkness ordered.

"Ah, one more thing." Scratch interrupted. "I wanted to be here when you're all gathered together. There's an issue I need to address."

"By all means." The bandit leader invited him to speak.

Aimone was incensed by this. "By all means? What blood does the goblin have tha-"

"The goblin. Speaks for his Tamer." She insisted, as angry with him as he was with her. "Scratch, say what you have to say."

"Yes... I understand you're not happy with the water situation."

Aimone looked at Harkness, gesturing quasi-politely to be allowed to speak. She gave him an equally polite gesture back, giving him the floor.

"For us it's fine," he said, "since we come from an educated democratic country, all of us have been educated with the magic to clean our water. But having this goblin filtered water spread through the camp is asking for trouble, some kind of disease is bound to break out."

Huckabee took exception to that. "These goblins are more-"

But Scratch waved away his comments. "No useless pride. We'd be eager to improve, how would you see water handled?"

"Even small villages have water towers." Gildo mentioned. "That way the drinking water can be purified, with magic."

"Pshaw. A water tower is just a water tower. As long as you keep dumping your *merda* right on the ground, your ground water will be filthy."

"We've got the slimes, don't we?" Scratch responded.

"Ayai, slimes." Aimone swayed his upper body back and forth in his emotional response. "Slimes aren't clean, are they? They just break down the filth, that green liquid, that's manure, everyone knows that!"

Gildo nodded. "What we need is a bonafide sewer, just like back home."

"A sewer!?" Huckabee responded in shock. "This is the wild. You're expecting water towers and underground plumbing?"

"Well, why not?" Scratch asked. "We've got walls, crop fields, and a road. A water tower doesn't sound too out of place, does it? You two seem to be the experts, I'll put you right on it."

"On it?"

"Yes, Aimone, from now on you're our minister of waterworks. I expect lots of good from you," he winked at Harkness, "in-between the guard duty of course."

The Grienician looked at his bandit leader, "is he joking?"

She shook her head with a bemused smirk. "He never is."

-

When the attendants of the meeting parted, they had much to think about, but Gildo kept interrupting Aimone's thought process.

"Did you see the dog? I think the dog was different."

"Mannaggia, Gildo, what do I care about some dog?"

"It looked like a wolf Aimone. That tamer, he was here last night."

He threw up his hand in a dismissive gesture, but the words stuck in his mind.

Who was Clyde Beatty, and why all the mystery?

Since arriving in the cave, Nico's mind had become exceptionally clear. He had loved his previous master, but he had never understood him, not really. The man had taught him to recognize certain sounds, "fetch", "down", "kill", and he'd respond to these commands by his master with the actions he knew were expected of him.

But those were just sounds to him then, now they were something called words. He had sat with the lady all day, and listened to the people talking, slowly he was beginning to make out what they were saying.

Bello was less curious, but the change had been the same. When before the two had communicated with simple barks and growls, now they could look in the other's eyes and see their emotions, place themselves in the others position and understand him. While Nico had been observing the humans, Bello had been playing around, pranking goblins and stealing their food.

When the evening came all the humans put themselves to sleep, but Nico woke up his brother to stalk the empty nights alone. In these solitary hours he tried to speak himself, to imitate the words of humans, but his throat was not suited to their sounds. "Fch, hwn, kww."

Seeing his failed attempts Bello started panting with a raspier voice. Laughter. They had discovered humor after their transformation.

Though they couldn't speak, Nico tried to stare at Bello in an inquisitory manner, as if to ask 'do you understand what's happening to us? Bello understood, and gave his answer by putting his paw over his mouth, he did not know either.

Picking up on the smells of the forest, and the creatures there-in, Nico began to howl at it. And instinct he'd had his whole life, and one with meaning. 'Is anyone there? Anyone like me?'

From deep in the wild came and answer, more howling. 'We are here, and we are like you.'

Bello joined Nico's howling, but the two were disrupted when someone threw a shoe at them. "Mannaggia! Stupid dogs! Go to sleep!"

Demons

Demons are ageless spirit creatures that inhabit the abyss and hell, there exist 777 species of demon, each wildly distinct from all the others. Demons desire only to do evil, to kill, corrupt, and betray, even if it goes against their own self-interest. For this reason they are trapped in the depths by the gods.

Demons that have entered the higher planes have done so via dark magic. The summoning of demons is a vile act and a crime in all four realms. Demons will only truly co-operate with the vilest of summoners, those that try to use them for any other purpose than evil will find themselves quickly betrayed.

The most evil of all thinking beings is the demon king. This is not an individual, but a title. On many occasions throughout history a champion of evil has been declared demon king and has set out to destroy the world. The demon king need not be a demon, but demonkind obeys them and marches in their name. In such cases, a hero is needed to destroy the demon king, which will dissolve the demon army.