Chapter 4:
Deep in the Dungeon,
We Found a City
THIS WAS MY THIRD TIME entering a natural cave that had become a dungeon, the first two being our runs on that basilisk nest. I’d say the biggest difference this time was the total lack of illumination. We walked in utter darkness; it was pretty tricky.
The first part of the cave was a big open area, wide enough to fit that sleeping wyvern, but a few dozen yards beyond, the walls suddenly narrowed and the interior branched off into several small passages. No light by moon or star could penetrate these narrow corridors.
“Wouldn’t it have been better to come in during the day? This place could use a little sun…” I said.
Nishka shut me down right away. “Are you stupid? At night your eyes can get used to the dark, and then you can see what’s around you better.”
Wak’wakgoro nodded in agreement.
Sure, I knew your eyes adjusted to the dark when you stayed there for a while…but that still didn’t add up to me. Wouldn’t you notice way more details at literally any time during the day? Maybe the others were so comfortable with mere starlight because they weren’t human; after all, Nishka was a long-ear and Wak’wakgoro was a goblin. Or maybe it was just something they’d picked up from hunting since they were kids.
“This tunnel has been carved out pretty recently.”
“You’re right. The walls are still soft. And there’s no discoloration.”
Nishka and Fuzzball both brushed their fingers over the walls of the cave. I had seen Mari and Yoi do the same thing in the basilisk cave. I followed along now; I didn’t want to miss a single piece of info if I could avoid it.
“So,” Elpaco mused, “do you think the minotaurs widened the passage?”
“It’s possible. Or it could’ve been some kinda monster. Considerin’ how hard this rock is, I’m betting on the minos.”
I had always thought this kind of stonework was patented and licensed exclusively by dwarves. But now that I thought about it, minotaurs were renowned as the lords of labyrinths. Hell, maybe they started working on this cave in order to build one.
I could barely see where I was walking, so I fell in behind Nishka, constantly checking to make sure the ground beneath my feet was solid. Every now and then, she would touch me to give me a signal. It warmed my heart that I had gotten hold of pants to cover my lower body, but—except for my lightweight vest—my upper body was still almost entirely exposed. Which (oh no, how awful) meant that every time she did that, I was getting a little skin-to-skin contact with one Nishka the Scalesplitter.
My heart pounded against my ribs. Because, uh, the dungeon. It wasn’t the oh-so-slight chill in Nishka’s fingertips.
I kept moving forward, these ridiculous thoughts tumbling through my mind, until Nishka’s whole palm landed firmly on my abdomen. This time her touch wasn’t gentle. It suggested that she had spotted something up ahead.
“Wak’wakgoro, watch the back.”
“Right.”
“Shooter, you come with me. Stay low like I am. Girly-pup, you’re our backup.” Nishka issued these rapid-fire orders in a low voice and, ever ready for an unintentional surprise encounter, took out her machete and grabbed my hand.
Wak’wakgoro showed his veteran skill, raising a spear in one hand to guard the rear approach on full alert. Elpaco, who was pouting pretty nastily at the girly-pup snark, still obeyed Nishka and readied his shortbow. He held a reserve of arrows in the same hand as his shortbow, ready to be unleashed in a torrent at any moment. As for Nishka and I, we formed a two-man infiltration cell and pressed on down the passage.
As we advanced through the cave, it occurred to me how wrong I was, thinking of this hideout like an anthill. It made almost no sense for a group of bull-kin to be living in such a cramped space, so…what was it, then? What was I missing?
Nishka came to an abrupt stop, lowering her head as much as she possibly could to peer farther ahead.
“Found ’em. There’s a bull-kin passed out over there,” Nishka whispered, her voice barely more audible than a breath. She quickly switched places with me and I squinted toward the other side of the cave. Just as I was about to poke my head out, Nishka shoved my head down firmly. Signal received—I stayed low.
From that vantage, I finally caught sight of a person with the head of a bull who, while not quite as tall as an ogre, was stacked with enough muscles to rival Gimul, or even that adventurer, Dyson. They were asleep, snoring faintly, and their clothes were unexpectedly fine. Nicer than anything I’d worn in this world, at the very least. Not only that, they were actually lying down in a bed with a little blanket pulled over them.
I’d pictured these bull-kin as ogre-like barbarians, but they were clearly way more advanced than that.
I drew my head back, which allowed Nishka to advance almost brazenly down the passageway. She looked back and waved at me to follow. I exchanged looks with Elpaco and signaled to Wak’wakgoro, who was even farther back, then proceeded into the hall.
I had been sure I wouldn’t be able to see anything in this darkness, but now I realized that, strangely, my eyes had started to adjust after all. I could make things out pretty well! Including that bull-headed apeman lying sound asleep, a trickle of drool hanging from his mouth.
If she’d wanted to, Nishka could have murdered the bull-kin with ease, but the village chief was expecting us to rack up laborers, not a kill count.
We crawled slowly forward a while longer, then Nishka once again held up a hand to stop me in place…against my bare stomach. I really wish she’d stop doing that. Or was it that I really wished she would never, ever stop doing that?
“I dunno what’s beyond here, but the echoes are gettin’ worse.”
“What does that mean?”
“We’re lookin’ at a big, open cave through here.”
“Like in the basilisk dungeon?” I asked, recalling the underground lake where I had protected Basil.
“Probably. I can hear people doin’ stuff. Doesn’t sound like soldiers.”
“Do you think it’s the minotaurs?”
“She’s right—I hear it, too,” whispered Elpaco.