Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

In the underground city (I)

Some mole-beings, Tica among them, had gained a level after getting rid of the toads. Everyone gathered in front of the entrance to the nexus to enjoy the food, which was mostly made up of dishes cooked from the different parts of the amphibians.

Of course, there was no shortage of beer, with which the dwarfs toasted the brewmaster on most occasions. There was also no shortage of toasts in honor of the other two visitors, the dwarfs themselves or their reunited mole-siblings.

All three, the lynx, the goshawk and the kraken, also enjoyed those new dishes, some of them seasoned very spicy for the lynx. Although first, Gjaki wanted to get ahead and try the new dish, without giving the elf time to warn her.

"You deserve it," the elf lectured her between laughs.

"You should put up warning signs..." the vampiress complained. She was drinking a juice from a certain purple fruit to try to overcome the burning in her mouth.

Unfortunately, the spiciness didn't harm her, so Self-Regeneration had no effect. It wasn't a curse either. She wondered if there was any skill to counteract the effect. Maybe, she would have to learn it.

Of course, they weren't just eating. There were wachmoles o watchdwarfs, and also several Bats were guarding the perimeter. The goshawk also roamed the stone sky, between meals, watching the actions of the toads.

What worried them most was that she practically didn't see any more toads. They didn't know if their enemies had really taken refuge in that building, or were moving through lower levels. What they did know was that they would have to go there to find out.

After eating and resting, the group resumed their march. They decided to move through what could be called the surface, that is, the upper level of the city. It had the advantage that the goshawk could explore it. Besides, the building they were going to had access from there.

They moved much more slowly than Gjaki would have liked, while the scouts preceded them. Both air and land.

"Stop!" the mole-man in charge of checking the path suddenly exclaimed.

"What's happening, Guino?" Fita asked.

"Different resound. The floor is thinner," he explained.

Fita herself and other mole-beings decided to check it out for themselves. In a position similar to Ear on the Ground, they beat the ground rhythmically, which caused the sounds to spread through the stone. Everyone frowned and came to the same conclusion.

"It should hold, but it's fragile. It could be a trap," Fita reported.

Perhaps, not even the dwarfs would have thought about it, but the mole-beings lived in tunnels. This was their territory, and a trap of that type wasn't unknown to them. Against certain underground beings that were difficult to fight head-on, they dug tunnels beneath the main one. That way, mole-hunters could create a hole as soon as their prey passed over it. Not only did they fall into the new tunnel, but they encountered sharp spears or dangerous magic.

"Can those shitty toads set traps? They seem fucking stupid to me," Trelka intervened.

"They're not very smart, but there was a different one. It was their leader, it had black stripes. They set a trap for us," Guto explained.

He was one of the mole-men they had saved on their previous visit to the city. He had seen the strange toad from inside the library where they had taken refuge.

"If they've set a trap, where would they be?" Eldi asked.

"Most likely, on the level below. They could be hidden around, but it would be strange. We've not detected anything," Fita explained.

Just in case, the vampiress sent her winged scouts to investigate inside the nearby buildings. She also sent forward a pair of hounds, along with her companions' Wind and Earthen Golems. If there was a trap, they wanted it to be triggered on them.

"What kind of trap could it be?" Goldmi asked as the summons progressed.

"The simplest would be for the ground to open, with whatever waits underneath. It's also possible for something to attack from below, without waiting for the prey to fall, some sort of mana attack. Although, I don't think those pests are capable of something like that" Fato explained. He was one of the mole-beings that had accompanied Eldi in the previous exploration.

Of course, there were other types of traps. Though there was no trace of magic on the surface of that city street, they didn't know what could be underneath. Unfortunately, skills like Ear to the Ground could detect what was in contact with the surface, but not what was on another surface. What was on the floor of the floor below was impossible to determine.

"Don't look at us. We dwarfs aren't experts in fucking traps," Trelka denied before being asked.

"Maybe, we could send some scouts? That right there is an access to the lower floors," Hila pointed out.

Guto's little sister had almost died in this very city. Despite this, both she and her brother had decided to return. It had been traumatic, but their knowledge of the terrain was valuable.

"That? I'll check. Are they stairs? Is there anything else I need to know?" Gjaki offered.

"Yes, there are circular stairs for individual passage. But they may not be whole. The door has to be pushed, it may be stuck," Hila warned.

"No problem," the vampiress assured.

Her colleagues didn't say anything. She received a few blessings, just in case. Without a doubt, she was the best one to explore, unless it was a forest.

In front of her, there was a hound, and further there was a Bat. She walked down the stairs carefully. They were carved into the rock, and the passage of time didn't seem to have made a dent in them.

She soon reached the door, which she examined carefully. It had no lock or handles, and according to Hila, she only needed to push it. It closed itself, or at least that's what it should be. The ones they had used on their previous visit had too much sand in the hinges to move properly, and they made noise.

She tried to push carefully and gently, but it didn't even budge. When she increased the force, the screeching became really loud.

"No surprise factor then," the vampiress quickly decided.

With a kick, the door swung open. Many pairs of eyes looked in her direction. The initial screeching had alerted them, and the loud bang had startled them.

Gjaki frowned at what she saw. Without a doubt, there was a trap there. The problem was that there weren't only toads.