The Crumbling Warrens

         To the Crumbling Warrens, many came in search for it,

         But ne’er did they leave.

         Nor did they ever find it,

         For the greedy who wanted it ne’er would.



         ‘Twas only for those in dire need,

         That could lay their hands on it.

                             

                   

- An inscription over the entrance of The Crumbling Warrens

*

         Two blades chimed in the torch-lit tunnel, Xest’s short sword parrying a goblin’s amateur attack. Her longsword hissed through the air, its flames licking at anything they touched. Cherry-red hair flicked through the air as she spun to her left and parried another attack with her mundane shortsword.



         She counter spun to evade a spear-tip that came at her from a second goblin. The first creature saw nothing but her black cloak, then felt a burning blade through its gut. She had yet to retract her flaming blade before her shortsword pierced through the neck of the second goblin. 



         Her body was exposed to attack.



         A third goblin ran at her, its spear leading its charge. Xest pulled her blades free and steadied herself. Starting her twist to the left, she parried low and followed through with Fireblade aimed at its neck.



         The blade seared flesh as the goblin’s head fell to the floor, still baring its teeth in frustration. She saw more of the diminutive beasts came at her. Xest struck at the first of the approaching monsters, pushing it back, and then turned to run.



         These goblins are relentless, she thought. Their footfalls and screeching yelps echoed off the walls behind her. She disappeared around a corner and then turned right down another passage. The young woman stopped to catch her breath, but almost immediately several of the creatures came yelling around the corner. Instinctively she thrust with her shortsword, scoring a hit on one’s shoulder. Outnumbered, though, she turned and fled again.



         Something nipped her shoulder, but she did not slow.



         Her chest heaved and her lungs burned from lack of air. For the first time, she felt claustrophobic in these narrow halls. She turned another corner and, confident that she had put enough distance between her and her pursuers, stopped halfway down the corridor. Xest leaned heavily against a wall, doubled over to catch her breath.



         Suddenly a wave of dizziness and nausea swept over her. The world swooned around her. Her swords clanged against the floor as she fell to her knees. Her breaths came in laboured gasps, as she tried desperately to fill her lungs with air. Then she saw the dart in her shoulder and pulled it free.



         The poison from it had already started to work.



         Xest tried to gather her thoughts and forced her breathing to calm. Don’t panic, she thought, knowing the poison would only spread quicker. She grasped her swords in her hands and forced herself to her feet, but the blades felt heavy and unbalanced in her hands.



         More gibbering shrieks, of goblins on the hunt, came from behind her. She sheathed her blades and made her way down the tunnel, away from the approaching horde.



         Why did I come here? She asked herself. Now I’m going to die in these cursed tunnels. Xest had felt compelled to enter the warrens when she stumbled upon the entrance by chance. She felt her heart pounding, the sweat beading on her forehead. She winced with every breath.



         Xest stopped to steady herself.



         “Come,” she said through gritted teeth, struggling against the numbing pain forming in her abdomen. She heard the screeching of yet another goblin long before she saw it come around the corner.



         Xest disregarded the blinding flashes of pain, the outcries of her aching muscles, and waited as the goblin got closer. It caught sight of her and charged headlong. In a blinding flash, Fireblade sprung to life in her hands.



         Too late for the goblin to react.



         The unfortunate beast impaled itself on her blade. The smell of burned flesh assailed her nostrils. Xest dropped her sword to the ground with the burning goblin still attached. Her hands shook uncontrollably and she was sweating more from the pain and nausea than she was from the effort of battle.



         The tunnel seemed to wobble, bringing about the sense of nausea with ever more potency. She vomited on the floor next to the corpse. Another flourish of nausea attacked her and within moments she heaved again. Xest wiped her mouth with the back of her gloved hand and, convinced that she had finished throwing up, freed her sword from the scorched carcass.



         She stumbled a few steps down the corridor before she managed to find her footing. These goblins must have an antidote of sort, she thought to herself, realising that her situation was very urgent indeed.



         She continued in the only direction away from the goblins that passageway allowed. Tiny, blurred spots formed behind her eyes. She staggered and stopped and rested against the wall of the passage. Xest got back to her feet and carried on, determined not to die. Her hands felt clammy against the wall that she was using as a guide and support. The torches snuffed themselves out from a sudden gush of wind and Xest stopped. It was quiet, but for the echoes of activity from behind her. Down the corridor, came the thud of weighted footfalls.



         Xest doubled over from the eruptive pain I her stomach. You can’t defeat this, a voice said in her head. Her right hand fell to the hilt of her longsword and, for what it was worth, she pulled it free. Its mysterious flames sprung to life suddenly, lighting the tunnel slightly with its glow.



         Once again, Xest staggered down the corridor. She reached a T-junction and stopped for a second, leaning heavily against the left wall to catch her breath. The heavy pacing sounded again to the right, but from the left she heard nothing.



         But she felt.



         A cooling breeze caressed her face and twirled her hair. Curious, she thought. She figured that with such a strong inflow of air coming from the left, she could possibly get out. She quickly made up her mind. She bit back the pain of the venom coursing through her body. She took the left passage, away from the dull thumping and whatever lay in wait to the right.



         With every step her muscles cried in agony. She swooned and collapsed from weakness “Get up!” she told herself as she tried to pick herself up. “Just keep going.”



         She kept repeating it to herself as she made her way down the passage, guided only by the fresh air that cooled her face with each gust. Her hair was matted with sweat and her skin had become ghostly white.



         She wiped her eyes, not only from the beading sweat but in an attempt to wipe the blur away. The passage got slowly darker. Her vision faltered. It did not take long before even the light from Fireblade was completely snuffed. She could still feel the blades fiery warmth in her hands. She then realised that the poison had done what she had feared.



         I’m blind.



         With her sightlessness came the surging sense of dread. With no use for a blade, she sheathed it and felt her way down the passage.



         Xest kept her left hand against the wall and did not take it off. Defeat seemed to swathe at her feet, too, as she dragged them along the floor. Her muscles seemed to be on the verge of collapse and her breathing had become drawn and painful. Her stomach muscles were board-like and ached.



         She had no idea where the tunnel was leading her, but she could still feel the fresh air on her face no matter which direction she turned.



         In an instant the closeness of the air in the passages gave way to the sense of openness. Xest figured that she had entered a room, a large room that echoed with her footsteps. Her legs burned and finally gave way. She hit the ground hard, the impact pushing the air from her body. She breathed heavily and in choking gasps. An acute pain stabbed her head, followed by a trickling of warm blood.



         Xest felt the cooling, fresh air.



         The woman urged her body to work one last time. She willed her arms to move, to drag her near-lifeless body across the stone floor, at least to get under the chute, wherever that was.



         The invigorative cool air kept Xest going. It got colder the closer she pulled herself to its source. Despite her confused state, she realised that it was not skyward, like she had thought, but rather low and on the floor just in front of her. She got to within a few inches of the supply of the wintriness.



         Xest came to a stop, her arms too weak to drag her any further. The origin of the air was right in front of her. It felt strangely chilly, almost otherworldly. She fought through the fog the toxins had begun to work on her mind.



         With listless limbs, Xest reached out with a gloved hand, and inched her hand up to her arm’s full length. Her fingers were cold, but refreshingly so; as though there was life again. She inched her hand closer still. Her hands shook and she was barely able to control them. There was something there, teasingly just out of her reach. With a desperate, last attempt, Xest made a grab.

*

         Xest awoke, gasping for breath. She still felt dizzy and nauseated, but she was alive. Her muscles still ached, but more from fatigue than from pain. Through blurry eyes Xest found herself staring at the room’s ceiling.



         She remembered that she had snatched at something, and she held it tightly in her hands. It was warm in her hands and it radiated warm energy. She blinked quickly, trying to rid her eyes of the blurriness. It took a few moments before they cleared up enough for her view the world in all its splendid detail.



         Raising her hand in front of her face, Xest saw a sparkling silver chain with a heart pendant hanging from it. She stared at it. Her pale blue eyes locked onto the light blue gem embedded within the silver heart. She was confused how the gem could be the source of the warmth that bathed her. 



         “You are the reason I’m still alive, aren’t you?” Xest whispered to the amulet. She half expected it to reply.



         Her heartbeat had slowed right down. The nausea she had felt disappeared and she was no longer sweating. It was as though the amulet was helping to speed her recovery. Xest called upon her limited knowledge of magic to verify that the amulet’s power, a skill learned from her father. She sensed no extraordinary energy emanating from the amulet.



         Xest felt compelled to wear the medallion. She pulled the necklace over her head and let it fall on to her shoulders. She felt invigorated. She got up slowly to her feet, though. Tentatively she placed her feet underneath her as she tried to stand. Each step was difficult, her legs not used to the weight of her body as she stumbled along. But each stride brought new strength. 



         She dusted her cloak off and combed her hair through with her fingers. Her hands shot down the blades at her side and almost instantly her swords were in her hands. Her primal instincts took over.



         She looked to the entrance of the room and down a lit passage. It was the only passage that led off from this room. She heard a thud from beyond, followed by another, each one echoing off the walls.



         The woman braced herself and steadied her breathing. Her eyes flashed green in Fireblade’s light and a wry smile formed on her face.



         The heavy footsteps approached.

*

         The weighted footfalls kept coming closer. Xest’s heart pounded in her chest and a surge of adrenaline put her senses on high alert. No matter what comes through those doors, Xest thought to herself. It would soon wish it had not.



         A low rumbling noise resonated in the passageway. Through the din of resonation and footfall, Xest heard the creature’s rasping breath.



         Then there was quiet.



         Xest dared to move a little closer to the door to take a look at what was approaching. Down the corridor, Xest saw it. The creature stood at a junction, its massive weapon resting against the floor, and stared off down the passageway that ran perpendicular to hers.



What next? Xest thought to herself



         The monster let out what sounded like a gruff sigh. Xest looked around the room to see if she could find some way out, but there was none. There was not even the chute she had thought was letting fresh air into the cavern.



         She tightened her grip on her weapons and moved slowly out of the room towards the beast, in toe-heel fashion. It did not seem to notice her as she stalked ever closer. She had never seen such a monster before. Its skull was draped with rags of decayed flesh and its body was torn all over by something sharp. The monster towered over her, with barely any space between its head and the ceiling of the passageway. It must have once been a giant, Xest concluded. That has been bought back from the dead.



         She got to within striking distance and, without hesitation, stabbed with her flaming blade. She caught the unsuspecting beast in its side just below its ribcage. Fireblade hissed and charred its rotted skin. The beast merely turned and looked down at the woman, her blade still stuck in its side. The giant swiped with its right arm, smashing Xest in the chest and sending her sliding across the floor. An explosive pain burst in her chest, but she stumbled to her feet again. With a grimace on her face, she saw the monster coming at her.



         Its footsteps rumbled the walls as it neared. The creature came on at her, imposing its massive frame over her. Xest kicked herself back to the room from where she had come from only a few feet away. She reached to her boot and unsheathed a dagger with an elaborate blue pommel. 



         In her half-seated position, Xest took aim and let loose the dagger. It flicked through the air tip-over-hilt and caught the beast in the face. The creature merely grimaced as the blade nicked a piece of its exposed skull. In a flash the dagger disappeared from sight. Xest quickly got up and entered the room, grateful for the distraction. She knelt down and unsheathed the same dagger from her right boot. Xest flung it at the creature again, but the blade struck the frame of the entrance with a clang.



         It disappeared once again and she felt it re-materialise in its sheath at her boot.



I have to get past this monster, she thought. It will not take long for it to break through the door’s threshold. Her mind worked quickly for a way to solve her dilemma. She looked into the giant’s eyes. There was no sparkle of cognition there. This creature had no idea what it was doing. In fact, the only thing that was sparkling hung around the creature’s neck. Xest spotted the golden amulet. Even at a distance she saw its single ruby in the centre of the pendant. 



         It had hardly even flinched when Fireblade entered through its side. Its enchanted flames seemed to not hurt it; even her magical throwing dagger had hardly slowed the beast.



         With one last ditch effort, Xest sprinted. She freed daggers from her bandolier and flung as she ran. Before she knew it, she had thrown five of the tiny blades, each finding their mark. The beast howled as the blades tore its skin.



         Without a thought of what to do next, Xest launched herself beyond the door’s threshold and stabbed at the creature’s leg with her shortsword. The creature slowed slightly, but threw its massive arm at her with its fist leading the way. Xest sidestepped quickly and cut a thin line across the back of its hand. At the last moment she reacted to the huge boot aimed at her.



         She dug her feet hard into the ground and launched herself backwards, narrowly avoiding getting her face smashed in. She flipped backwards, setting her feet perfectly in place as she landed, to spring into a counter attack.



         The beast thrust with its long sword, aiming at her midriff. She feigned to her left and readjusted quickly to move to the right. The weapon whisked past her ear just as she leaped forwards. In once step she pushed up to the wall with her foot. The next step launched her from the wall and face-height with the beast, her short sword leading the way.



         She plunged it deep into its chest; the blade entered easily. Her momentum carried her past the creature and she pulled the blade across the beast’s chest, ripping a line from one side to the other. She landed on the beast’s right hand side and in a moment pulled Fireblade free from its side. The monster struggled at its chest and fell to its knees.



         Xest was calm. The amulet lay broken on the floor only yards away from her. When her ordinary shortsword had cut the chain, it severed the supernatural life-force it supplied to the beast. Xest walked around the beast and collected some of her throwing knives. She was near the door again when she heard the creature slump on the ground, quite dead. She replaced the knives in her bandolier and sprinted down the corridor. This was a warren where the dead and goblins existed together. She realised, though, that the goblins were afraid to follow her down this passage. Perhaps, she thought, it was the monster she had killed that scared them off. 



         She spurred herself on, eager to escape this place.

*

         Around her all was quiet, as though her presence here had gone unnoticed; not even the goblins that had relentlessly chased her were searching for her anymore.



         It was not long, however, before Xest found them. She turned a corner and entered into a small room that overlooked another at the further end. She came to an abrupt halt and quickly scuttled to the right hand wall of the antechamber. She melded into the shadows easily.



         She crept along the wall, reaching the entrance to the main room and peered in. Three goblins sat to the side of the circular chamber, and one more was standing guard near the exit on the other side. Her passage was blocked. She had no choice but to fight her way through. Her ribs surged with pain from the last confrontation. She would have to end it quickly, as she mentally weighed up her options.



         And then charged.



Xest leaped through the doorway, throwing a dagger at her first target. Caught completely unaware, the goblins fumbled at the woman’s sudden appearance. Her first victim gurgled its last breath as the dagger dug itself into its throat.



         She came out of her roll in an instant and in one movement, freed her magical dagger from her boot and flicked it at her next target. The blade hurtled forwards, catching the goblin in the heart just as it got its spear up and at the ready. In an instant its expression turned from exhilaration to pain and, finally, to one of death.



         Xest’s next movement was for the guard. She unsheathed Fireblade. The little beast dropped its weapon at the sight of the flames that suddenly sprung to life. It put up a futile defence, its small wooden shield offering little protection against the calculating woman.



         Fireblade smashed into the shield and it burst into flame. The goblin dropped the shield immediately, but that was its last act. Xest pounced, thrusting her burning sword straight through the creature’s chest, charring its skin and setting its clothes ablaze.



         A loud, cacophonous noise sounded and resonated through the complex. Xest winced and turned to see the last goblin holding a crudely crafted horn in its hands. Her heart pounded uncharacteristically hard as she heard scuttling and movement from all directions. Another horn sounded in the distance.



         The call had been answered.

*

         I cannot expect to face off against their vast numbers – on their home ground – and expect to see the light of day again, Xest thought. She set her piercing blue gaze on the solitary goblin that stood with the horn in its hands. It was grinning at her, with razor-sharp teeth bared and big, narrow–set eyes. In an instant, Xest fell into a sidelong roll and unsheathed the enchanted blade in her boot, and loosed towards the goblin. The blade plunged into the little beast’s throat before it could ever move. It struggled for a moment at the blade protruding from its throat before the dagger vanished



         The goblin fell to floor, quite dead.



         Xest set off through the second antechamber. All around her she heard the goblins’ squealing and screeching. She did not slow; she put her head down and ran as fast as she could before the vile creatures reached her.



         It took several minutes before Xest reached a part of the labyrinth that she recognised. She reached a small circular room alight with several torches set in sconces against the walls. Three other tunnels led from the room at right angles to each other. She had only caught a glimpse of this room before, she remembered, as she was running from the chasing goblins. 



         Xest could not remember which tunnel she had come from.



         From the darkened tunnel to her right, goblins burst into the small room. They charged at her, their little shields and maces flailing wildly. The first goblin was reckless and spearheaded the attack. It did not go much further than a few paces. Blood spurted into the air as it fell at her feet, headless and with cauterized wounds. More goblins spilled into the small room. Some readied spears, others short swords, while others put mall pipes to their lips.



         Xest leaped head-first towards the passage to her left just as a volley of darts was fired at her. She came out of the roll in the passage and sprinted on. She turned left and, in her haste, smashed into a wall with her right shoulder. She recovered quickly and then immediately right.



         The goblins shrieked down the tunnels behind her as they gave chase. A few moments later the woman came to a halt to catch her breath. She felt two darts protruding from her right calf. She pulled the red-feathered darts and threw them to the floor in anger. Her calf burned slightly from the poison that was already beginning to go to work. She muttered a curse under her breath and then carried on down the same passage, taking the first left she could find. Down the passage in the distance she saw the iron portcullis that marked the entrance to the warrens.



         Her leg felt strangely warm all of a sudden. Unfamiliar energies pulsed throughout her body and calmed her. Xest disregarded it though, and ran as fast as her legs could move. 



         Goblins burst into the tunnel from both sides. She did not slow her pace though; she could not slow, for the exit lay just beyond that portcullis. They came at her with crude weapons, but she batted them aside with Fireblade, kicked at some of the goblins and disembowelled one just for good measure. Her face stung with a sharp pain as a goblin scored a hit with its knife. She felt the blood trickle down her cheek.



         A small gap opened up in the goblins’ lines and she put more energy into her strides. With a few short bursts of energy she cleared the masses of goblins that were now pouring in from every tunnel. She saw the pulley of the portcullis against the wall ahead of her. Fireblade smashed against the chain, shattering a link, as she ran past it. The iron gate dropped immediately as she dived towards it.



         It banged shut.



         Xest opened her eyes as she turned onto her back to look back into the goblin-filled passage. She got to her feet and ran towards the exit. The goblins screamed guttural curses in protest.



         She walked down natural passages before she reached the exit. The light of the sun stung her eyes and it took several long moments for her eyes to get accustomed to the light of day again. She exited the tunnel and fell to the floor just outside the cave entrance. She turned onto her back and looked up at the old proverb etched into a smooth surface over the entrance. Her breathing calmed and the surge of adrenaline she had only moments before came to an end.



         She felt no adverse effects from the poisonous darts in her leg. By now, she knew, she would be dizzy and her muscles would be weak. She was suffering from none of that, though. She looked up and gazed at the blue sky. She saw, in fine detail, the birds that flew overhead.



         She pulled the amulet out from under her leather tunic and stared long at it. She looked at the heart-shaped and bejewelled pendant with uncertainty.



         “Thank you,” she whispered to it and kissed it. “For saving my life.”



         “- Twice.”