As the group ventured deeper into the cave, the echoing cries and rustles of unseen animals grew louder and more intimidating. Steeyann crouched down, running his fingers over the cool, dusty ground. There were more hoof prints intermingled with those resembling the chickens and almost chickens. He also pointed out some llama tracks, but the other sets of tracks were still a mystery.

  Just as Valgrin noticed the familiar gray hues of his night vision sharpening the shadows and contours around him, the cave brightened banishing the extra gray. He put a hand on Malcolm’s shoulder and motioned for the group to head back around the slight bend they’d just walked around.

  “That should be far enough.” He whispered, “Didn’t know if any of you could tell—but it’s getting a little brighter. The noise volume has leveled off too. So, we’re probably going to be coming across something soon.”

  “Yeah, expected we weren’t too far from that.” Steeyann rolled his shoulders.

  Malcolm smiled and rolled his eyes.

  Valgrin shrugged. “Okay, I’m being overly paranoid since that initial attack hasn’t been followed up on and had a Captain Obvious moment. But it’s still best to make sure we’re all ready than one of us be surprised. Tahlur, you have a question?”

  The mage put his hand back down. “I’m confused. Who’s Captain Obvious?”

  Malcolm swallowed his laugh, muting most of the noise.

  “A saying in our world, meaning someone who states what everyone already knew.” Valgrin stared at Malcolm, then looked back at Tahlur.

  “Understood. I’m ready, by the way.”

  “Okay, Malcolm, lead the way—no sense in going over our planning again. Even I know we’ve done all we can there. Skwilly stay behind everyone else, be alert for anyone coming at us from behind.”

  Malcolm and Skwilly nodded and the crew headed back to where they just came from.

  The group moved carefully, reaching the point they’d turned around—Malcolm looked back at Valgrin. I don’t have any magic answers. He tried to put that in his shrug. With a nod, Malcolm turned and kept moving forward.

  About twenty feet further down the tunnel, the animal noises went from grunts and chuffs to high pitched squealing.

  “Damn,” Malcolm muttered. “Didn’t think about the creatures sniffing us out.”

  “Me, either.” Valgrin and Steeyann said at the same time.

  They kept moving; the tension growing with each step. They all came to a halt when a monster appeared in front of them.

  The monster's eyes widened in shock, mirroring the group's astonishment, before it froze momentarily. Suddenly, it slammed down onto all fours, unleashing a piercing, ear-splitting whistle that cut through the air as it charged at the group with terrifying speed. Its powerful hind legs coiled like steel springs, launching it through the air from ten feet away with lethal precision. Malcolm braced himself, adopting a solid cross-block stance, ready to confront the impending onslaught.

  Valgrin drove forward, ready to strike with his katar. A huge tiger with no stripes? The beast lunged at Malcolm, who barely managed to ensnare its neck with his crossed sai. His muscles strained to their limits as he fought off the creature’s attack. He let out a pained groan as the monster plowed into him, both of them crashing violently to the ground.

  Blood erupted in a gruesome spray across the walls and floor as the beast landed, Malcolm’s sai biting deep into its flesh. Without hesitation, Valgrin sprang towards the chaos, driving his katar with ferocious precision into the creature’s chest. Blood gushed forth, transforming the vibrant orange fur into a grotesque tapestry of red and black gore.

  The attacker howled in pain, its massive head turned, its jaws snapping at Valgrin. The elf pulled out the katar and thrust again, aiming for the spine. He saw Malcolm trying to saw at the thing’s neck from underneath.

  He didn’t see the claw that raked his lower leg. Ribbons of pain shot through his leg, his body. He screamed. His thrust missed the beast’s spine, sinking deep into its back. He felt fur brush his fingers. The creature spasmed, trying to roll away from the attack.

  “More coming.”

  Valgrin heard, but didn’t react. He pushed his ice creation ability through the katar, he willed the magic to keep flowing out. The beast howled again, thrashing. Valgrin tucked his legs close to the beast, successfully avoiding frantic claws. He kept pouring his magic through the katar, he felt it pulling the energy from his being, draining fast. Vibrant flashes of color sparked through his vision—each flash a fresh wave of pain. The few seconds that had passed felt like weeks, but finally the creature stilled. Valgrin felt hands on his shoulders pulling at him.

  He opened his eyes and saw Malcolm’s mouth moving. Then the words worked their way through his brain. “…ann said move. C’mon!” Valgrin felt Malcolm tug harder.

  He looked past Malcolm and saw Steeyann firing arrows from a small bow, his mouth pressed into a thin line. He scrambled, trying to get his injured leg to work and help Malcolm pull him.

  “Take cover!” Steeyann screamed.

  Valgrin made progress, Malcolm continued to pull.

  “Kyfakyfakyfa!” Steeyann shouted.

  Valgrin’s world shook when the explosion hit. Rocks bounced off his head. More pain. He grabbed at his head. No blood—just pain. Waves of dust filled the air. He heard someone coughing, the sound muffled. Skwilly’s high-pitched squeal was the only thing that didn’t seem muted.

  A noise buzzed nearby.

  A moment of silence passed.

  “I said are you okay?” Malcolm shouted into Valgrin’s ear.

  “Me?” Valgrin’s words slurred slightly. “I think so?”

  With each passing second, Valgrin felt the impact of forcing his ice magic through the katar fade. That needs to be a last ditch thing. Then the fire of the pain in his leg hit. “No! I’m not okay. Do I have anything below my left knee?”

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  He felt a familiar warmth spread through his body. Healing me, Malcolm? With the warmth, the fog lifted from his brain. He saw Steeyann standing just in front of where he lay, bow at the ready. Malcolm looked down at him, concern apparent on his face. Skwilly brushed Valgrin’s cheek with a cool snout.

  “I’m better. Sorry to scare anyone. The magic I used took more than I expected from me and then I remembered my leg, but couldn’t feel it. I can cast a heal on myself to top off.” Valgrin cast, which brought him back to full health.

  He took a breath, then asked. “I focused on the tiger-monster thing. What happened?”

  Malcolm pointed down at the cave. “Skwilly put on a quick light show, which slowed the oncoming hoard. That allowed Steeyann to blow a bunch of monsters up.”

  “I shot two arrows down there when I saw several monsters coming at us. Skwilly slowing them kept them tightly bunched. Making it easier to explode the mass of monsters. And, I only have two of those types of arrows left. If anyone wanted to know.”

  Valgrin looked down the cave where Malcolm pointed. It was hard to tell how many bodies were in the tangled mess of body parts. He made out one wolf like muzzle, the same shape as the tiger-monster that had attacked them. Rocks and dirt mixed with the blood and body parts, all combined to create a wall that only left a small gap between the ceiling and the mound. He could hear growls coming from the other side. The pile shifted slightly.

  “There is something on the other side trying to dig through—so we have to stay ready, if we stay here.” Steeyann stated.

  “Anyone else hurt?” Valgrin asked.

  “That thing,” Malcolm started, then changed direction. “Anyone know what that thing is called?”

  “Looks like something mixed with a yantka. At least the head and neck are sorta yantka shaped.” Tahlur commented from behind.

  Malcolm nodded, “Almost chickens and sorta yantkas. Seems some is playing let’s make something new. Anyway, back to the original question. This sorta yantka fell on me. I missed most of it, but still hurt. You stabbing it kept it from going after me, so I didn’t get hurt further. And I think everyone else is okay.”

  The others agreed with Malcolm’s assessment.

  A rock fell off the pile, bouncing when it hit the ground.

  “Seem to be getting closer.” Steeyann observed.

  “Would that be a Captain Obvious moment?” Tahlur asked.

  Valgrin and Malcolm laughed, briefly.

  Malcolm adding, “You learn quickly.”

  The grunts and growls increased in volume, again.

  “Do we retreat or make our stand here?” Valgrin asked.

  “If we retreat, we won’t fulfill the contract.” Steeyann pointed out.

  Malcolm nodded, then muttered. “But we’d be breathing. No guarantees we would be if we take a stand. That said, I vote stand.”

  The others made it unanimous.

  “I think that our friend here.” Malcolm patted the dead monster. “Came from a room or a different cave, but whatever it is—it’s between us and that pile of stuff. And if my ears can be trusted, after explosions and down here in a cave. The original animals noises are coming from around that area.”

  “Might be an advantage if we aren’t where everyone thinks we are.” Tahlur said.

  The group jogged forward.

  Valgrin peeked around the corner, then stepped into a carved out hallway, motioning the rest to join him. Malcolm already had. Tahlur followed, with Skwilly at his side. Steeyann, tense with anticipation, brought up the rear, his bow poised to unleash its deadly arrows at a moment's notice.

  The hall had several large windows along the walls, with four doorways barred by imposing gates. Each doorway led to a small lobby area and then another doorway blocked by a towering gate. On the other side of the gates, bizarre creatures crawled on the stone floor, their forms so grotesque and alien that none could even begin to name them.

  Valgrin stared in horror at the creatures. Trying to cope with what he saw, he decided their heads looked to be twisted into something that resembled the disfigured head and neck of a decaying sow, while their bodies lay sprawled like flattened sloths, complete with a slick, greasy patch on their backs. The fur around this patch seemed to writhe and shift independently, a detail that sent a shiver down his spine. How these abominations move is a mystery—perhaps they have tiny, hidden legs, or they slither on their bellies like snakes. Each of the four rooms was infested with eight to twelve of these nightmarish crawlers, turning the space into a scene from a chilling nightmare.

  “This is looking more and more like weird genetic stuff.” Malcolm continued to stare at the creatures.

  “We have to assume they’re dangerous. Why would you have a two gate system otherwise?”

  “Do we stay? What if they are dangerous and someone can open their rooms with magic?” Tahlur asked, his fingers twisting together.

  Steeyann's voice echoed from the entrance of the hall, his eyes fixed on the mound. “We don’t have much time left,” he warned, urgency threading through his tone. “The gap at the top has widened, but it’s still too narrow. It won’t stay that way for long.”

  “Sounds like we stay here, all of us several feet from the main path. It means we’re in a dead-end passageway. Unless we can hide in that one storage room and hope they think we ran away.” Malcolm pointed to the room at the far end of the hall.

  “I don’t like the dead-end part, even more than what if these doors open. I vote back to where we were.” Valgrin stated.

  Steeyann coughed for attention. “I just looked back where we were. The monster we killed is gone. I don’t know how, I just know it is. That might affect our decision making.”

  “Dammit!” Malcolm stomped down the hall and back again. “I hate not knowing. We don’t know what’s on the other side of the mound. We don’t know what these creatures are, or what they can do.” Malcolm pointed at the rooms. “Now we have something collecting corpses—but we don’t know what or how.” He stopped and held his hands up in the air. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “It seems this hall area has a lot of shiny reflective surfaces, windows, metal, and other things. I could flare my lights and it will be even more effective than usual.” Skwilly observed. “Just make sure Steeyann and Tahlur know if I squeal real loud, to close there eyes.”

  Valgrin’s explanation to the others stopped short when a crashing noise brought everyone’s attention back to the main tunnel.

  “We don’t have to decide where to go now.” Steeyann ran back toward the group.

  They took their stand even with the first sets of doors, one on either side. The growls and screams grew louder. Then quieted when all the noise from the mound stopped.

  Valgrin and Malcolm stood even with each other, a gap between them. Steeyann stood in the middle of the hall, slightly behind the pair, ready to shoot arrows through the gap they made. Tahlur and Skwilly stood behind all of them, ready to step forward, if needed.

  The seconds stretched to a minute. Valgrin itched to sneak up and glance around the corner to see what the monsters were doing. He took a step forward, then retreated as he heard something scraping along the floor.

  Two almost chickens rounded the corner, they dwarfed the small purple skinned humanoid standing between them.

  “So, what should we do?” The purple creature’s shrill voice vibrated. “Hmmm?” The creature started tapping a dark metal walking stick on the floor.

  Valgrin shook himself out of stupefaction when Malcolm stepped forward and spoke.

  “You got us at a disadvantage here. Do about what? And what do we call you?”

  The creature’s smile seemed to take over half of the purple face, with bright yellow teeth. “I am Pelhiglo.” He followed the statement with a formal bow, the top of his bulbous head nearly hit the floor. His smile had vanished by the time he stood up. “Do I speak to you? Formidable adversaries, this you prove. But perhaps collaborators should be direction?”

  “You, Pelhiglo, want us to work with you?” Valgrin had moved next to Malcolm. “Why and at what?”

  “Am,” Pelhiglo paused for a second. “Genchemist, hybrid life making. Containment hold vipoth.” A six-fingered purple hand motioned to the creatures in the cubes. “Manipulated genetics to produce poison, strongest. People pay me much, when can discover extract safely. You help gain and also gain other gene sources.”

  “Harvest life so you can experiment? I, for one, don’t want to be a part of that.” Malcolm gritted his teeth, stepping back a step. Valgrin took a step too.

  The purple humanoid shrugged. “You say no, you die. You say yes, you live. Pelhiglo not care. Must gather lab and find other placing. Much work lost. Still work with you if you say yes. If say no, must move, even if you die. Others may find now that humans looking. All you say yes or no?”

  Each of the group refused Pelhiglo’s offer.

  “Be it done.” He turned and walked out of the hall. “Kill all!” He shouted. The hallway filled with several almost chickens with two feet high balls of spikes rolling around their taloned feet.

  “Start firing Steeyann.” Malcolm stepped back and to the side. A flurry of arrows shot down the hall, accompanied by shards of ice. Screams echoed off the wall as chaos erupted.