My mana bottoms out well before I arrive back at the valley.
Instead of taking it easy and waiting for the energy to return, I push through the feeling of weakness left behind by my empty mana pool and instead continue at a brisk jog. My breath comes in and out heavily and a fine coat of sweat clings to my skin from the continuous exertion, but I do not bother slowing down to take a break. At this point, my clothes are nothing but burnt tatters and the rubber soles of my shoes are partially melted due to the immense heat that surrounds me.
I ignore all of it though as I trudge forward. I have finally connected all of the dots in my head and the realization that came from it is enough to keep me running as fast as I possibly can back toward the valley.
The carnage surrounding the old goblin camp, the lines drawn into the bordering trees, and the fear in the goblin’s eyes upon hearing the rumblings of the Train. It is clear that for whatever reason, the Train is hunting the goblins. I don’t know why it’s happening or how long it has been going on, but I am almost positive that by me destroying the goblin’s home, I just sped up the timetable of their inevitable demise.
There are still some factors I haven’t fit into the puzzle. Why did the goblins have two prisons, one in the cave and one in the clearing? Why were there no guards at the cave but three at the clearing? Why were low leveled goblins running around alone in the woods when I first came out of the cave? None of it makes sense to me just yet, but I’m hoping that these extra questions become unimportant at the end of the day. If I can manage to use the distraction of the Train mowing through the goblin camp to slip past their guard and get to the valley, none of these other puzzle pieces with be worth thinking about.
Times passes and I finally arrive at the entrance to the new goblin camp. I am almost back to a full mana pool, but I am rasping for air and sweating bullets. Before I get to the edge of the field, I dive back into the woods and quickly find my previous hiding spot. I am happy to see that I arrived before the demolition of the goblins, so I sit back and gather myself while I take in the new preparations I can see the monsters have constructed. Say what you want about the goblin’s intellect, but when it comes to facing the extermination of their entire race- The goblins are surprisingly well prepared.
A wall of wood spikes and compacted mud has been erected around the main tents. The cooking pits are set off to the side of the tents, where a nearby guard shack consisting of uneven stones overlooks their labors. From the angle I am sitting at in comparison to the shack, I can see random weapons and gear stored inside. There are monsters still running around putting up more defenses, but my focus is set on a small group of wrinkly goblins with manes that extend down their backs. The motley group consists of three hunched figures with skin much darker than the normal goblins I have come across. They all hold some sort of metal staff that they use to dig intricate lines in the dirt.
I want to see what the wizard goblins are doing up close, but I settle for climbing up a tree to get a better angle. Once I am high enough to get a better look, I can see that the wizards have drawn similar lines around the majority of the base already. I already know what they are doing, as I easily recognize the inscriptions in the ground as the same ones I saw in the bark at the old goblin camp. I wonder what makes the lines so special, as they don’t seem to be treated with any spooky voodoo materials like kid’s bone marrow or goat’s blood. The wizards themselves don’t seem to be doing anything special either, as I watch them use the butts of their staff as a pseudo-carving tool to replicate what I am guessing to be as some sort of barrier.
Maybe it’s some sort of ward or concealing diagram? I’m really just making stuff up in reality, as I barely just discovered what mana is, much less whatever type of magic they are attempting to enact. Part of me really wants the Train to remain absent so I can observe the wizards for longer and see what exactly the lines achieve upon completion. Knowing that it is not likely, I even debate whether or not to engage the goblins myself to see if the staff themselves are some sort of magical artifact.
I am already almost halfway out of my seat leaning toward the wizards when one of them finally gets close enough that their level appears.
< Goblin Enchanter - Level 26 >
I immediately sit my ass down.
How the hell am I supposed to clear this floor myself? A level 26 magical geezer? Not just one, but three? What kind of sick fuck made the ‘Death is Certain’ difficulty?
I now dub thee as “DIC” difficulty.
Whoever made this crap now has a fitting name for their creation that perfectly reflects the nature of its creator.
I let out a huff of frustration before wiping any ideas of attacking the goblins from my mind. It looks like I will be waiting on the Train after all. With this new information in mind, I sit back and just continue to watch the goblin enchanters. Since I have nothing better to do, I absently focus on the thermal radiation coursing throughout my body. It doesn’t really achieve anything or gain me any levels, but I feel like it helps me gain familiarity with the feeling of a tangible energy coursing through my physique. I really shouldn’t be playing around with the radiation so I can try and level since it is most compatible with my Augment, but I can’t help but be entranced with the familiar burn of the foreign heat.
Eventually, I get tired of watching the endless dirt drawing by the old fossils, so I turn my attention to the main base and watch the goblins move around like ants in a colony. If I had to guess, there are still around two hundred goblins left over from the wildfire. They all run around in haste as new walls are put up and meals are being prepared. Some trudge back and forth between the base and the woods, clearly guarding the new camp. These guards have mismatched pieces of armor that look tarnished and old. They keep their eyes fixed on the woods, and I can see the fear in their expressions as they clutch their various weapons with shaky grips.
A part of me actually feels a little bad for smoking them out of the safety of their home. My guilt is quickly forgotten though as I cast my gaze back over to the cooking pots where I can see multiple pieces of human meat being brought out to slow roast above the coals. Based on the shear amount of random body parts they bring out, I estimate around six humans have been killed and prepped for consumption. Adding in those I found in the prison camp, that means at least eighteen other people were on this floor with me. Who knows how many more there might have been if the goblins have been eating humans since the floor started.
I had been hungry when I first arrived back at the new camp, but now I just feel nauseous as I watch the flesh of my fellow man crack and leak meaty juices that sizzle in the open fires of the pits. The goblins cooking the meat are practically drooling at the sight, and I watch as one of the cooks has to smack the hand of one of its buddies that happened to be reaching for the meat like a child reaches for cake.
I tear my eyes away from the scene and continue to watch the monsters filtering in and out of the tents. Something about the previous sight with the reaching goblin bothers me, so I try to pay more attention to the types of goblins I see running to and fro. I can’t see any levels, but the majority of the green creatures look to be the same basic worker-type I have seen throughout the floor. There aren’t many combatants, and I don’t see any seekers running around. There are a few brutes that lumber around carrying large tree trunks for construction too.
The thing that bothers me is that I don’t see any children. Does this world not have procreation? Are mobs just System creations and there is no need for kids because more adults can just be spawned in? The goblins could just be housing them in one of the tents, but all of the constructs look the same and aren’t big enough to be holding every kid in the tribe, right?
The distinct lack of children bothers me, so I begin to catalog all of the kinds of goblins I have encountered so far in my head while my foot begins to tap the ground due to my increased concentration. While I do this, I cast a glance behind me, and I notice that the woods are beginning to smoke heavily. It seems that the majority of the wildfire has extinguished, and the thick ash is making it even harder to traverse through the scorched remains. It’s hard to tell due to the crackling of the fire still near me and the sounds of the goblins, but I feel like I can hear trees falling in the distance.
My mind constantly tries to sort through the goblins I have encountered. The matter of the children irritates me more than the itching on my skin, so I stop tapping my foot on the ground and give up trying to cycle thermal radiation through my body in order to dedicate more of my attention to the matter. There were the normal worker goblins that I assume are any goblins under the level of 5. Then there was the goblin seeker that kidnapped me. After that were the goblin traitors that were also imprisoned in the clearing with me. I believe the goblin brute showed itself a while after that. Then there was that warrior that I beat pretty easily. And finally, the overpowered enchanters.
What am I missing? I can’t help but feel like I have seen more goblins then that. Where was it?
…
It finally dawns on me, and a sickly thought worms into my brain as I remember the cave I woke up in.
There were goblins in there too. I might not have seen their levels before my skill killed them, but I remember them being much smaller than the first goblin I met outside. Were they the goblin children?
They were also chained up.
Why would the goblins chain up their own children deep in the forest so far away from their home?
The answer is simple. The cave did not belong to the goblins.
My leg continues to vibrate because it seems that due to my realization, my foot began unconsciously tapping the ground again. I smack my leg in annoyance while my mind is overwhelmed with the thoughts of who the cave belonged to. I can still feel an annoying shake in my leg, and I look down in annoyance at my foot, as I had thought I already stopped it from tapping earlier. My foot is completely still though, and my breath catches in my throat as I quickly get up and strain my ears. The woods are still roaring with the crackling of the fire, but I can hear a faint thumping sound that matches the shaking in the ground beneath me.
The Train has arrived at the station.