Vral and Tristan's hands found mine. As their fingers laced into mine, both girls squeezed my hands tight.

  Ro and Na-Ya grabbed the girls' hands, and within seconds, we were ready to go.

  "Okay..." I took a breath. "Is everyone ready for this?" I wasn't.

  "Yes, but can I make a recommendation?" Na-Ya asked with her usual sweetness.

  "Sure, anything you need." She was family. I'd do anything for her.

  "No rivers this time," she said, all coy and innocent-like.

  "Ass."

  "What?" She doubled down on the innocence. "It's a good suggestion, isn't it, Saleh?"

  With a wide grin, he said, "That's a great suggestion, Ya."

  "Guys!" Tristan yelled.

  Before I could sass them back, Vral added, "No trees either."

  "Or rooftops," Ro said with a chuckle.

  "Oh, ha ha ha." I glared at the traitors. "Everyone, just go ahead and get your shots in now. Pick away at little ol' Alex, why don't you?" I ended my sentence with a dramatic huff.

  "So... Business as usual, then?" Na-Ya's eyes sparkled as she grinned her shitty grin at me. "Right, Crybaby?"

  I was never going to live that down. "Yeah, yeah." I rolled my eyes. "I'm going to make sure you end up in the river. Just you, though, Na-Ya. No one else."

  Na-Ya laughed. "Just see what I'll do to you next time you need healing."

  "Can't be any worse than all the other times." I held up the arm she healed years before. With as much sass as I could muster, I said, "Your healing's mid. Tristan's is way better."

  "Ugh!" She pretended to be offended. "While I never!"

  "Alright, everyone, enough picking on Alex." Tristan glared at her cousin, then Ro and Vral, before squeezing my hand. "You're going to do great."

  "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Tris." I glared at the others. "You three could learn a thing or two about showing love and affection from her, you know."

  Vral's canine glinted in the light cast by a nearby crystal. "Yeah, and you could learn to get good with that new skill of yours."

  Tristan leaned in and kissed my cheek. "Don't listen to her. She's just jealous she can't do it."

  "I am not jealous!" Vral stomped her foot. "Why would I be jealous of his stupid, amazing Chosen powers?!"

  "Mhmm." My priestess pressed herself to my side. "Whatever you say, Vral."

  Vral crossed her arms. "You know what, elfie? You're in for it when we get back to the temple."

  Tristan met her gaze and smirked. "Oh yeah?" She purred. "And what'll you do if I fight back?"

  Vral's eyes ignited. "I'll win."

  Hooking her arm around my hip and pulling me close, Tristan murmured, "You know, she's right. What do you think, Alex? Want to take her with me?"

  "Yes." Despite being a bit dense at times, I did not miss her innuendo. "Yes, I do."

  Vral cocked her head, then her eyes shot open, and her ears turned bright red. Stammering for a good ten seconds, she finally managed to sputter out, "O-Oh yeah? Well!" She giggled. "Well, I'll take you both at the same time, and I'll do it with my arms tied behind my back!"

  Ro chuckled. "Phrasing, Vral."

  She stuck out her tongue at him. "I said what I said."

  "Gross," Na-Ya pretended to gag.

  "Agreed," Ro joined in.

  "Alright, everyone..." As fun as the banter was, we had a job to do. "Hold on to your butts. If I don't do this now, I'll psyche myself out of it." I took a deep breath and visualized the temple as best I could. After a couple of seconds, I thought I had the image of the temple right...

  Or did I?

  Was the well in the center of the courtyard, or was it at the edge?

  And how far away was the barn? I could have sworn it was just past the north wall. And it was red, right?

  What about the roof? Was it shingled? Or was it solid? Tiles?

  "You okay?" Tristan asked softly.

  "Yeah..." I started nodding, but the nod turned into a shake. "Actually, no."

  "I can tell." She whispered. "What's wrong?"

  "Uh, is the barn red?"

  She laughed. "Yes."

  "And is the well in the center of the courtyard?"

  "Also, yes."

  "The roof's made of shingles, right?"

  "Tiles. Gray ones."

  "Is the field on the north side of the temple the size of a football field or a soccer field?"

  "Alex."

  "What about the—"

  "Alex!"

  That snapped me out of my spiraling. "Um, yeah?"

  The beautiful priestess smiled at me. "Don't overthink it."

  I couldn't help but laugh. "Sorry." I rubbed my forehead.

  She kissed me. "You've got this, okay?"

  I looked into her sapphire eyes. There was so much certainty in them that I couldn't help but believe her. "Okay."

  [Recall]

  With a flash of light, lightning crackled overhead, followed by the boom of thunder as I used the skill. As the winds began whipping around us, the world twisted and bent.

  However, just as the world began rippling, I heard something in the forest.

  "Boss..." Vral's ears were twitching. "I hear something. Do you hear it, too?"

  "Yeah, I do." I felt the image of the temple fade in my mind.

  There were voices. Coming from the trees.

  "Alex, can you stop the skill?" Ro asked.

  "I think so..." I tried to will the skill away. As I did, the sky lightened a little.

  "Where the hell did this storm come from?!" A gruff voice shouted to the west.

  "The sky was as clear as elf spit a minute ago!" A second voice answered. That voice was deeper.

  My eyes met Tristan's.

  She nodded and slowly let go of my hand.

  With as much willpower as I could muster, I willed for [Recall] to fade.

  The booming thunder and crackling lightning in the sky above faded away.

  "The hell?" The first voice shouted.

  "Magic if I ever saw it," The second added.

  "Witchcraft, more like," A third voice chimed in.

  "Dark Father's sweaty knees," A fourth grumbled.

  "Keep your eyes peeled, maggots!" A new voice, this one high-pitched and female, screamed at the others. "We've got to be close, so open your eyes and shut your damn holes! I'm not about to lose this job because you four are bitches!"

  "Yes, boss!" The other voices shouted back.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  For a moment, the voices were quiet. Then, slowly, they began grumbling again.

  They were closer now.

  I gestured for everyone to get low and pointed to a nearby bush.

  Slowly, carefully, we slinked away from the crystals and crouched behind the nearest bush in a small huddle.

  "Party up," I whispered and willed the system to do the thing:

  Na-Tristan, Elf-Human Acolyte of the Tower 26, joins your party.

  Na-Ya, Elf Priestess of the Serpent 38, joins your party.

  Ro-Saleh, Elf Champion of the Lovers 43, joins your party.

  "What do you think?" Ro whispered beside me. "Bandits?"

  "Maybe." I searched the trees in the direction the voices were coming from. "Or mercenaries."

  "Could it be the cult?" Na-Ya asked.

  "I don't know." I didn't feel any of that black presence that I usually felt when one of the cultists was nearby, but I couldn't rule it out, either. "Draw your weapons."

  Following my own advice, I drew my sword and unslung my new shield. At the same time, Ro drew his sword, and Na-Ya her staff.

  Tristan's hand found my shoulder. "Alex, would you get my mace for me?"

  "Okay." Reaching into my inventory, I pulled out Tristan's long two-handed mace. Handing it to her, I asked, "What about your armor?" She'd taken it off when I carried her to stop all the chafing she was suffering from and never put it back on.

  "No time." She turned the mace around and gripped its handle tightly. "I'll be alright, though." Whispering a few words in the Goddess's tongue, I felt of magic wash over her.

  [Armor of Faith]

  There was a small flash of light, and ghostly white armor appeared over her leather traveling vest before vanishing.

  "There." Her knuckles went white as she gripped her mace. "I'm ready."

  That was a new spell. "Neat."

  "Yeah." She whispered.

  Looking down at Vral, I asked, "How many are there, Vral?" She had the best hearing of any of us. If anyone would know, it would be her.

  Vral's daggers appeared in her hands. "I hear five."

  "Same," Ro nodded.

  "Great." I took a breath. "Unless they see us, let's wait to find out what they're doing here before rushing in. I don't want to miss something because we decided to be too hasty."

  "Agreed," Ro said.

  For a few moments, we sat silently, listening to the approaching people crunching through the brush and grumbling to one another.

  "They said the damn things were out here!" One of the goblins complained. "But where the hell are they?!"

  "I don't know, but I'm getting sick of these woods," Another whined. "I just wanna put my feet up next to a fireplace and drink until I piss myself."

  "Breskaya!" The others hissed.

  "Idiots!" The female voice snapped. "And stop your damn whining!"

  "You're always so bitchy..." The deep voice grumbled.

  "The fuck did you just say to me?" The woman snapped. "Don't make me cut it off!"

  "You'd miss the ride, whore."

  "Fuck you, asshole," The woman spat back. "I could replace you in a second."

  "Try me."

  The woman clicked her tongue but didn't say anything else.

  They got quiet again. After a minute or so, though, I could see movement through the gaps in the trees.

  "Stay sharp," the woman's voice commanded. "And keep your damn mouths shut. If that thing comes back—"

  "We know, we know," one of the male voices grumbled. "If we get caught, we're dead like Hurp, so run like hell."

  "No, you'll die." The woman's voice was cold. "I'll make it, though."

  "Yeah, yeah. Also like Hurp."

  "Hey!" There was a thump. "I found something!"

  "What is it, Klart?"

  "Is this one of the crystal thingies?"

  The woman said, "Not bad, dummy. You did good for once."

  The others began chiming in.

  "That's one of the crystals!"

  "About damn time!"

  "We're gonna be rich!"

  "Hey, there's more over here!"

  "And here!"

  "There, too!"

  "Keep moving!" The woman shouted. "They're way thicker this way! And they're bigger, too!"

  A moment later, the figures emerged from the trees.

  Goblins.

  Five of them. Four males and one female.

  I felt Vral tense beside me.

  "I knew it..." She hissed. "Fuck these fucks."

  I put my shield between her and them. "Not yet."

  "Tch."

  That issue resolved, I watched as they slowly entered the clearing we'd been in minutes before.

  Walking with her chest out and with the raw confidence of a leader, the female goblin was clearly in charge. She was taller than the others, with sharp features and blood-red eyes, and she was sporting a thick mop of dreadlocked red hair on her head. She wore well-oiled leather armor, and a short sword hung at her hip. On her belt were several vials of different-colored liquids, and a weird pickaxe-looking thing hung from a loop on her left side.

  Unlike her, most of the male goblins didn't look like much. All but one was smaller, scruffier, with hunched shoulders, long faces, and nervous expressions. They carried a variety of low-quality weapons and wore rusty armor, and they looked absolutely miserable.

  Only the largest male seemed like he was anything. He was nearly as large as the woman, and he had a similar build and natural confidence as the female. I figured, based on what I'd learned about goblin culture from Vral, he must be her mate.

  "There!" The female goblin pointed at the largest crystal, one of the amber ones that we'd been looking at. "Let's start with that one." She walked up and slapped the crystal. "Get to work. And be quick about it. I'd say we have an hour or two before that thing comes to find us."

  The three smaller males moved forward, muttering under their breath.

  "Don't know why we took this job..."

  "Shoulda stayed in the swamp..."

  "Gonna get killed out here..."

  "Shut. Up." The female's hand moved to her sword hilt. "You three keep blabbing, and I'll cut your throat here and now and take the larger share."

  "No, we just..." The smallest of the males simpered as he fell to his knees. "How'll we sneak back home with all these goods? It's not like we have a wagon!"

  "And isn't this place near some temple? What if the priests show up?" Another male looked around nervously. "I don't want to fight any priests."

  "I'm tired!" The third whined.

  "Dumb asses." She unslung a sack from her shoulders, threw it to the ground, and untied the top. Opening it, she pointed to the hole and said, "You throw the shit in the hole, and it goes poof. It's so easy, even you dumb fucks can do it." Then, patting the vials hanging from her belt, she added, "And,.if anyone shows up, that's what he gave us these for. Anything happens, and you know what to do."

  The three goblins looked at one another and snickered.

  One of them said, "Oh yeah. I forgot."

  "Fucking imbeciles," The goblin woman rubbed her temples.

  One of the little males walked up to the sack and stuck his hand into the opening of the sack. Then, his arm disappeared up to the shoulder, but the sack never moved or shifted. It just kept on looking like an empty sack. "Damn, boss! Why didn't you tell us you had something like this?"

  "I tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it!" She stepped forward and kicked him in the chest, sending him flying backward. When he hit the dirt, the sack slipped off his arm. "Now, get moving!" The female snapped. "I want to be done with this shit and back in Velmire by the end of the week!"

  Velmire.

  The duchy to the west. That was where the Hands of the Fallen were supposed to be regrouping.

  I assumed these goblins all but confirmed that the cult was operating there, assuming these goblins were affiliated. I didn't know for sure yet, but I had a feeling that assumption was well-founded.

  You gain the quest [Hunting the Hunted]

  That confirmed it.

  Ro's golden eyes met mine. He mouthed, "You get that?"

  I nodded.

  One of the male goblins, one with a crooked nose, pulled a small pickaxe-looking thing made of sparkling metal from his belt and started chipping away at the large glowing amber crystal. Unlike Vral's daggers, every time her struck the crystal with his pickaxe, little shards of it broke away from the main stone and fell to the ground. As they did, the crystal flickered and pulsed violently.

  "Slower, Lutz. If you go too fast, the monster'll get released." The female patted the amber crystal. "None of us wants that, now do we?"

  "Sorry, boss." Lutz softened his strikes, causing fewer shards to break loose. However, when the next piece did chip away, it was far larger and more whole than the ones prior.

  For every chip that fell to the ground, one of the other goblin males snatched it up and threw it into the sack.

  "Grort, the orb."

  "You got it, boss." Grort, the large goblin with the deep voice, pulled out a golden orb from a pouch at his waist. It was about the size of an apple and made of bronze, smooth and polished, with strange runes carved into its surface. As he held it up to the crystal, the orb began to glow. Then, the light from the crystal started flowing into the orb.

  "What are they doing?" I whispered.

  "I think they're stealing the light," Na-Ya breathed.

  "Let's fuck 'em up." Vral's eyes were glowing in the dim light of the bush.

  I moved my shield forward. "Not yet. We need to know what they're doing."

  "Come on..."

  I watched as the crystal's glow dimmed until it became dark, dull.

  The goblin kept the orb pressed against it until the light was almost gone, then pulled it away and threw it into the sack, where it disappeared.

  "Good job, Grort." The goblin woman put a hand on his shoulder, then snapped at the goblin doing the mining. "Lutz, keep mining that one. We'll start on the next." She snapped her fingers. "Idiots. Come."

  "Yes, boss." The other two scrambled toward her and Grort. Together, they all, minus Lutz, marched to the next largest crystal, a sky-blue spire with sparks of gold that pulsed within the blue.

  As Grort placed a second orb against that crystal, he asked, "Hey, Ark, what should we do with the other cargo?" without looking up from his work. "I'm not looking forward to taking them back.

  "What about them?" Ark, the female goblin, asked flatly.

  "They've been in those cages for a week now. Some of 'em are getting sick. Now that we found these crystals, wouldn't it be easier to kill 'em and be done with it?"

  "And give up all the money? Hell no," She barked. "The goods'll live long enough to reach Velmire. That's all that matters."

  I felt my blood go cold.

  Slaves.

  They were talking about slaves. I knew it. That was exactly how Crimson Kingdom talked about us down in the Dregs. We were merchandise. Nothing more.

  "Fine," Grort grunted as the light from the blue crystal began flowing into his orb. "But if they slow us down, or if the beast shows up again, I'm cutting and running."

  "If the beast shows up, I'll feed them to it myself." Ark pinched Grort's ass. "So don't worry your pretty little head about it. Just do your job."

  Grort winked at her. "I always do, don't I?"

  Ark growled, "That's why I keep you around."

  "What about us, boss?" The one who put his arm in the sack whimpered.

  "If the beast shows up again, you'll die fighting, and Grort and I will run." She said it like she was discussing the weather. "You know the rules. That's how it all works."

  The other male goblins looked at each other but didn't argue.

  "Fuck... this..." Beneath me, Vral was shaking, and her teeth were bared.

  Beside me, Tristan's face had gone pale. Na-Ya's hands were trembling. Ro's jaw was clenched so tight I could see the muscles working.

  I needed to make a decision.

  We could let them finish their work and follow them back to wherever they were keeping the prisoners. But that meant risking the captives' lives if something went wrong. And, who knew what they were doing with these crystals? And these crystal shards? What if letting them mine more of them would lead to bad stuff happening later?

  Instead, we could attack now. Take them by surprise. We'd have to force them to tell us where the prisoners were being held, but I was sure we could pull that off.

  I made a decision.

  Looking at my team, I nodded.

  Ro nodded back. Na-Ya's hands were already glowing with magic. Tristan gripped her mace tighter and began whispering. And Vral...

  Vral was already moving.

  One moment she was crouched beside me, the next she was a blur closing the distance between us and the other goblins.

  Ark's head snapped up a second too late.

  Vral's right dagger buried itself in the goblin's chest with a wet thunk.

  The female goblin screamed and stumbled backward. "Shit!" Her hand shot to the dagger and ripped it free, spraying blood across the grass beneath her. "Boys!" As her free hand already reached for one of the potions at her belt, she screamed, "We've got compan—"

  Vral's other dagger nearly tore through Ark's throat.

  Leaping backward, Ark just barely avoided the strike.

  She was fast.

  Not Vral fast, but certainly faster than the rest of us.

  She uncorked the potion with her teeth and downed it in one gulp. The wound in her chest began to close, flesh knitting together in seconds. "The fuck'd I say!" She snapped at her crew. "Get your shit together!"

  The male goblins spun around, weapons raised, eyes wide with panic and fury. Only Grort looked confident as he pulled a sword out to bear.

  Vral slashed at Ark again. "You're dead, bitch."

  Ark backpedaled. As she avoided another strike, her eyes narrowed on Vral, and she said, "What's a girlie like you doing out here? And why're you fucking with us?"