Dwarves must be such a fascinating people to grow up amongst. They seem to just do whatever they please regardless of consequence. Igvild never seems to worry about anything, either. Does it really not bother him that what we just did could get us into a lot of trouble if we get caught?

  Igvild had led us away from the gates of Bruhle, but I hadn’t questioned or bothered to ask the Dwarf what his plan was. He seemed to know exactly where he was going and I trusted him. Yet, when he led us around to the river facing side of the wall and led the horses to a mundane looking section of wall, I finally had to ask a question.

  “We aren’t going to try to climb the wall, are we? I don’t think I could manage that! Plus, won’t we be seen and get in trouble?”

  “Nah, we’re going through the wall, lad.” Igvild replied with a chuckle. He then approached the wall and cocking one of his large ears started to lightly tap upon different sections of Bruhle’s stone wall.

  “Ah. I see,” I replied. I didn’t see, but I told myself to be patient. Then, after a few minutes of tapping Igvild let out a triumphant laugh.

  “Ah, I knew it was around here!” Igvild faced a rectangular block of stone and pushed into one of its corners while pulling outward on the stone’s opposite corners with his rough, calloused fingers. My eyes widened as the stone shifted and several sections of stone swung inward to reveal a passage! My jaw dropped.

  “Is that supposed to happen?” I asked after I recovered from my shock.

  “If you understand how Humans like to do things, yes.” I had to duck to follow Igvild into the passage and the secret door swung shut behind me. Igvild pulled out a torch and held it towards me which I lit almost absentmindedly. Summoning my fire was becoming second nature to me now.

  “See lad, Humans are paranoid about two things: protecting their lives and their stuff.” Igvild’s grin looked sinister in the torchlight. “They like to think they’re being sneaky and clever when they make escape routes like this just in case they need to make a quick escape. Yet, it isn’t so clever when every single Human made city makes the exact same escape route to get outside the city wall.”

  “Oh, okay.” I still didn’t quite get it, but we were inside Bruhle with none the wiser. The passage was short and led us under and into a building Igvild identified as a storehouse for Bruhle Guardsman supplies. It was completely empty.

  “The Burgomeister keeps it empty on purpose, lad.” Igvild answered when I asked him about it.

  “Why?” I asked, but Igvild just chuckled and shook his head.

  The streets this early in the morning were mostly empty, but people were stirring to prepare for a day of commerce. I could smell bread baking and coffee brewing. It was a sore temptation to stop and beg one of the sellers to brew me a cup, but Igvild explained it was wiser to stick to the trial rations and water we had brought with us.

  “Never enter a Dungeon hyped up on that Coffee garbage, lad. It’ll make you jittery. Need all your wits about you in Solo Dungeons.”

  I didn’t agree with him calling coffee garbage, but then I thought vodka was more a punishment than a pleasure and he seemed to live for the stuff.

  “You’ll want to pace yourself, lad. Don’t try to rush through it. Take breaks. Hell, you may even find yourself spending the night in there. Most dungeons don’t have time limits so always approach each encounter at your absolute best with your Health and Mana full and all your cooldowns reset.”

  I nodded along with each piece of advice Igvild offered. It was clear to me that Igvild was a veteran on such matters. I was fortunate to have so experienced a friend. However, his final piece of advice gave me a deep sense of trepidation.

  “If you find yourself up against something you believe you cannot handle, try rethinking your strategy and approach the encounter from a different angle. You can’t run away in a Dungeon. Running is death.”

  “How will I know if the…whatever it is has strength I can’t handle?” I asked. I noticed we had left the market district behind and entered a much more run down part of Bruhle as compared to the others. I could still see the Temple of the Eye in the distance rising over the rooftops. Chimney smoke cast a veil of haze upon the sky and if I closed my eyes and concentrated I could feel the flames of their origins.

  “You’ll know it when you’re lying on the ground bleeding out,” Igvild quipped. “Seriously though. Don’t run. The beasties will follow you all over the dungeon and you’ll just end up pulling more mobs until they finally overwhelm you. Stand your ground and use every tool at your disposal and…here.” Igvild stretched out a hand and I received a familiar object.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “Your Soothe ring? Are you sure?” I asked, holding the clear band in the palm of my hand.

  “It’s not really mine. I took it from a chest I found in that Hexblighter’s tent before you burned it down, remember?”

  “Oh. But then…”

  “Davros, I’m a thief.” Igvild said, stopping so he could turn and look me straight in the eye. “I became a thief the day I Awakened. I had a lot of ways I could have gone on that day and I chose wealth and self satisfaction. However, I also chose when to help those who are worth the trouble. Lot o’ people ain’t. You and I suppose Anya and maybe Valka too have shown they are worth it.” The dwarf grinned. “I ain’t a fool neither. It’s in my best interest you make it out of this Dungeon alive. Two Awakened like us can live like kings if we play our cards right.”

  “Well…I’ll do my best not to die then. Is this the place?” We were standing in front of a rusted and dilapidated iron fence. Within was a manor home that must have once been truly magnificent. It reminded me somewhat of the Orphanage, to be honest and I felt an unexpected pang of homesickness.

  “The Greenhouse with the Dungeon entrance is around back. Let’s go.” Igvild didn’t even bother opening the old gate, but instead led us a short ways around the perimeter of the fence until we came to a section of it that had collapsed at some point. Igvild confidently led us forward through the grounds. We passed a broken fountain, overgrown gardens and an old gazebo. A strange feeling started to make my skin crawl and I got the sense I was being watched.

  “Igvild…,” I whispered.

  “Don’t worry about it, lad.” The dwarf murmured. “Nobody would be crazy enough to squat in a place so close to a Dungeon. What you’re feeling is the area’s mana being stirred up. Dungeons like this, one of the reasons they are difficult as far as solo dungeons go, is because of the tragedy that gave birth to it.”

  “Tragedy? What happened here?” I asked as I stepped over a mushy piece of ground. The feeling was growing stronger the further into the old manor grounds we traveled. It wasn’t painful, but it wasn’t comfortable either. It was making me feel anxious and even a bit sad.

  “Not entirely sure, really. It happened a long time ago, maybe close to two centuries ago. Something happened to the family that lived here. Every last one o’ them died on the same day. Man, woman and child.”

  “That’s terrible,” I said. I kept my voice low. It didn’t feel appropriate to speak too loudly here. There weren’t even any birds or small animals in the trees making noises. It made me feel as if Igvild and I were no longer in a city, but in some wild, untamed land that hadn’t seen life in ages.

  “Aye, but people have been successful running the Forsaken Garden despite its difficulty so we at least know what you can expect.”

  “Right. Plant creatures.”

  “They should burn just fine, but watch yourself in there. Welp, here we are!”

  The Greenhouse had once been a grand, rectangular building that now looked to be still standing only by the grace of the Eye. Part of its roof was collapsed and most of the glass panes that had once made up its walls were now broken or gone altogether. It had been huge originally. Bigger than most houses. Glancing inside through a broken window I observed the desiccated remains of exotic trees and plants, but also something else above the dried, spider-like stump of one of the old trees. It was a…disturbance of some sort. A place where one reality became another. I realized I was looking at the entrance to the dungeon.

  “I should be out here when you finish, but if I’m not wait for me here and I’ll take us to where we can sell any loot you find. From the info I gathered, time passes a bit faster in the Forsaken Garden than out here, so it won’t feel as long to me as it will for you.”

  I took a deep breath and approached a section of broken window where I could safely enter the building then the dungeon. I wasn’t scared, but this would be the first time in my life I would be truly alone, except for when I had been stuck in the Box, of course.

  “If I don’t come out…”

  “Don’t let that happen,” Igvild said firmly. “You’re tougher than you know, lad. Imbolc’s Eye is watching you closely, for whatever reason, so don’t let those beasties get the better of you.”

  I nodded solemnly and stepped gingerly through the broken window, my boots making a cracking noise as they stepped upon and broke apart fallen panes of glass on the inside floor of the Greenhouse. The air inside smelled different, despite it no longer holding any living plant life that I could see. It was decay and rot. The dampness in the air made me shudder.

  I hope this doesn’t turn out to be like Herne’s Grove. Water Mana is definitely not my friend.

  The path to the dungeon entrance was clear. I looked back once and saw Igvild watching me. He flashed a thumb’s up and a grin. I smiled from beneath my scarf.

  I can do this! I’ll get the item for Madame Krait and perhaps I’ll even find something useful for Valka and Anya?

  I shook my head to clear away the sudden image of Lieutenant Smeeve kissing Anya from my mind. This was no time to think of such things! Yet, I felt the fire in my Core stirring in response to my jealousy. I needed to be careful. Wrath Corruption was only a whisper away.

  I balanced upon one of the stump’s thick tree roots and walked up and towards the disturbance. I almost didn’t realize it at first when I found myself someplace else. The world suddenly got brighter and for a moment it felt like I was surrounded by stars. I heard the tinkling of bells and the sound of happy laughter that grew and grew until with a jolt of surprise, I found myself surrounded by people.

  “What?” I whirled around. I was surrounded by well dressed people. The Greenhouse was restored! Magical lights floated along the walls and ceiling making it seem as if I were surrounded by multi-colored stars. Plants, vibrant and full of life made the air smell sweet and pleasant. The laughter of a woman next to me made me draw back in surprise. She was talking to a well dressed man who held a crystal glass filled with some drink that he sipped from. I blinked as I looked at them closer.

  Elves?

  I looked around and saw that the Greenhouse was filled with other well dressed Elves all drinking, laughing or admiring the many exotic plants that filled the space.

  “Pardon me, my Lord. Would you care for some champagne” I looked down and saw a small individual holding a tray of the crystal glasses. Instinctively I reached out and took one of the glasses and the Halfling, for that was what I assumed he was, moved away to distribute more of the expensive looking drinks. It was then I felt a tap upon my shoulder. I turned around and saw a tall Elf dressed in bright, blue robes trimmed in gold looking back at me. His eyes were silver and had an unsettling intensity to them.

  “Welcome, my Lord. I hope you enjoy the hospitality of House Merovingian this evening. Would you give me the pleasure of your name?”

  “I…er…Davros,” I finally managed to get out. The Elf nodded and gave a slight grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

  “Welcome, Lord Davros. It isn’t often we get visitors to one of our soirees anymore and I sense that you are here with a purpose. Might I ask what that purpose is?” The Elf leaned in, his silver eyes seemed to glow and I took an involuntary step back.

  “Sure, but can I ask you a questions first?” I noticed then that several of the other guests were watching us and whispering amongst themselves. They were looking at me with curiosity, but I sensed there was also an undercurrent of hostility as well. I felt my level of discomfort rising.

  “You may ask.”

  “Thank you. Um, where are the plant monsters?”