“Stop!”

Apple froze in place, his left leg hanging in the air.

“See this?” Nick pointed down with a long chiselled finger from where he was crouched.

Apple followed the man’s hand and bent down beside him. Almost hidden in the decayed bracken was a lump of what appeared to be dried tar. Its once hot bubbles frozen in time as the moisture that gave it life had long abandoned it. Even with its clear age, the rancid smell it hazed knotted the hairs in Apple’s nostrils.

“Goblin shit.” The hunter told him. “Old though. Weeks I’d say. Not a great tracker, it isn’t.”

“Ah yes. Seen my fair share of that stuff, yes Sir.” Apple mumbled knowledgeably.

The hunter gave Apple a quizzical look.

“Didn’t you say you already knew where they lived? No need to be teaching me things I already know. I am an accomplished goblin slayer after all.” Apple stammered as he stood up, to be away from the smell and his stare.

“I do.” Nick admitted. “Just thought I’d let ya know what their shit looks like. Never know if it might come in handy. Forgot that Gill said you’ve already got experience with the buggers.” He copied Apple, now standing at his full height again.

As someone who had hunted his fair share of game the past year, Apple could see the logic behind knowing the appearance of his prey’s faeces. He just wished he already knew what it looked like. Why had his father’s men failed to mention what goblin excrement looked like in their reports? “Fair enough. Lead the way, Nick. We’ve been in these woods for about an hour now, without seeing a single goblin.”

Nick began to walk and Apple and the shy Mula followed suite. “I’ve heard a rustle here and there. A few are lurking around, I’m sure of it. They’re thick as cow dung, but also cowards. They wouldn’t attack us unless there was at least a dozen of them.”

Apple looked around the forest. A mess of trees and bracken, plenty of places to hide. He had heard nothing amiss on their venture and it frustrated him immensely. He had been thinking that he was quite the accomplished hunter as of late. It would seem he still had much to learn.

“Walk in front of me, Mula.” He softly ordered the girl. The news of them being stalked disturbed him.

“Kay,” she whispered from behind. As Apple marched, he saw the fluttering of her new wool cloak appear before him at his waist.

The trio continued the rest of their journey in almost complete silence. Stopping only when Nick heard a sudden rustle nearby.

**********

“There it is.” Nick stated, as they hid behind a bushel of moss-covered boulders.

About thirty feet in front of them was a limestone wall of miles wide and hundreds of feet high. At its centre a jagged gaping maw that breathed cold darkness.

Around the entrance of the spoiled cream-coloured cliff was their prey. Eight small wiry humanoids with hunched spines, hooked noses, sickle-shaped ears, and armoured in nothing but their bile green skin. Their skin folded together tightly - crashing like waves. Apple had seen sun baked old crones with less wrinkles than these monstrosities.

“So, what’s the plan huntsman?” Apple whispered.

“Plan. Why you askin’ me? Aren’t you supposed to be the goblin expert here?” Nick retorted.

Apple paused. He was doing a poor job at maintaining his lie so far. “Well, of course.” He hurriedly replied. “Though, you’re the expert of these woods. Not to mention I lost most of my goblin killing tools in that scuffle with those bandits.”

“I see...” Nick hummed thoughtfully. “We’ve got the element of surprise right now. Though it looks like I’m the only one with a ranged weapon. How about you two flank ‘em, while I draw their attention?”

“Sounds like a fine plan.” Apple immediately agreed. “Follow me, Mula.”

Apple tiptoed away from the formation of boulders ever so carefully. He had to turn around several times to check if Mula was still following him. He was both impressed and mildly annoyed that he was completely unable to hear her behind him. Every wince he made when he felt the creak of foliage beneath his boot was magnified by her complete silence.

Once he found a large dense bush to hide behind, he waited. He and Mula were now to the left of the creatures ready to pounce.

After waiting several minutes, it occurred to Apple that he and Nick had failed to agree on a sign of attack. He looked towards the green tinted rocks but was unable to see the hunter. Without any other idea apart from waiting, he waited.

More minutes later, Apple finally saw the blur of a flying shaft. A fire hardened arrow landed in the chest of a goblin, causing it to collapse with a screeching protest.

All the goblins that had been lazing around turned towards the boulders and hissed. They approached slowly at first, but a second arrow found its way in the stomach of another goblin causing them to charge.

Now that the naked creatures had their complete attention on the hidden bowman, it was Apple’s turn to attack.

He crept up towards the goblin furthest away from the pack. Making sure to calm his war-ready breathing while he moved. Using the training he had received back on old man Tom’s farm, he brought his staff above his head and slammed it down onto the goblin. The oversized stick, that was really more metal than wood, liquefied the creature’s bulbous skull like a melon. The goblin did not even have time to cry out over the unfairness of its assassination, only a squelch and thud did its body utter when it collapsed to the ground.

Before the others noticed him, Apple swung his catalyst diagonally, aiming at another goblin’s temple. Unused to fighting beings so small, Apple struck its earhole instead. The goblin cartwheeled to the ground from the impressive blunt force. Unfortunately, the creature screamed while it spun through the air, causing the remaining pack to become aware of its plight.

Apple was not worried, however., there were only four left and goblins were not known for their strength or skill in battle.

The one closest to him squawked and lunged with its crude wooden spear. Apple stepped back and returned a quick jerk of his staff at the beast. The amber kissed the goblins cheek and knocked it to the ground. Another came at him but it fell to an arrow before it even got close enough.

The two left saw their fallen comrades and realised they had no hope of winning the battle. They screeched at Apple with waggling grey tongues and sprinted towards the cave entrance.

With a reach no goblin could possibly match, Apple gripped the end of his staff and swung it at a fleeing goblin. The goblin ran into the sudden outstretched wood with a speed that almost contorted the innards of its leg muscles. The staff hooked under its chin, causing it to swing like an exited pendulum, at its peak the goblin’s toes pointed towards the morning sun, before crashing upon the fall dead. Its throat crushed from the force.

The final goblin had almost made it to the cave; its body beginning to vanish in the darkness of the sanctuary. Before it completely made it into the cliff’s throat, a creature of similar height was upon it.

Mula charged the creature and leapt upon its back. The goblin buckled under the sudden weight, causing the two to roll to the floor. Even still, Mula refused to let go. Her body wrapped around the pruned skin fiend, with only her right hand free in the grapple. The knife that dwelled within her small grip touched the creature’s neck and rocked back and forth rapidly. She waved the blade backwards and forwards as if the goblin’s neck were the strings of a violin and her knife the bow. Only when she felt the resistance of bone did her piece come to an end.

The battle was over. All eight foes had perished with neither one of the opposing sides receiving an injury.

Nick appeared from behind the murky foliage from whence they came. His eyes were fixed upon the bright forked teeth that were exiting the cave. His hunter trained eyes had seen what the proud owner of those teeth had done to that fleeing goblin and he was now forced to see her in a different light.

Apple in turn saw the man study his companion with sceptical eyes. He too had witnessed her actions and while worried about the risks of what she did, he felt pride in her swiftness. “Good job, Mula. But be careful in the future, there could have been more of them lurking in the shadows.” He scolded, now that she was in front of him, showing a sweet proud smile. A smile you would typically see on any cheerful child’s face. However, her fangs and the fresh stains of crimson on her clothing, overshadowed the innocence of the action significantly.

Mula’s mouth turned into half smile-half frown. “He was getting away. If Mula not kill him, he would tell his friends about us.” She protested.

Apple had to admit she had a good point, he doubted he could have caught the creature as silently and as quickly as her. “True, just be careful, okay? There’ll be a lot more in the cave and they can see in the dark.” Apple hypothesised.

“Mula can see in dark too.” She boasted.

Well this was news to Apple. Though he wasn not too surprised. He barely knew the girl and she was quickly demonstrating superior senses to his own.

“Well, sadly I can’t. Even more reason to stay close to me. I’ll need you to be my guide.”

Mula pondered a moment before answering. “Kay. Mula help, be your eyes.”

“Good.” Apple replied. He turned to face Nick. “You going inside with us?” He asked the hunter.

“Not yet. I’m going to guard the outside and wait for their patrols to return. I might show up later, dependin’ on how long they take.” He informed Apple.

“Fair enough. See you later, hopefully.” Apple was not sure if he was glad the man was not joining them. He was reluctant to use magic in front of him so at least now he could use it to his heart’s content. However, he had also lost the aid of a man who was well versed in killing their targets.

With nothing of worth left to say, the two strode towards the gaping maw of the cave and were dutifully swallowed.

It did not take long for Apple to become blind to his surroundings. Only a rare patch of murky grey would present itself as they walked deeper and deeper into their opponent’s lair. Only a growing foul scent and the humid air informed him of the world around him.

“Can you still see, Mula?” He asked, wishing for her to affirm her previous boast.

“Mula see. It still hard though. Everything grey, like fog.” She explained from beside him.

“See anything special?”

“No. Mula just see rocks.”

While Apple was relieved to hear she did not share the same failure as himself, he was loathed to rely completely on her. He almost positive goblins could also see in the dark as well. If they could not, how where they able to navigate through their own home? There were no torches or the smell of an extinguished flame either to disapprove his suspicion. They would see him coming however Apple would not. He decided he might as well even the playing field: “Cambingan gwy minum ghar, briar ond los destine.” Apple whispered.

When the spell had been successfully uttered, the heart of Apple’s catalyst began to flicker. Its orange colour shone brighter after every blink, until to lit up the area brighter than any oil dipped wood could manage.

Now that the cave around him could be seen almost as well as if daylight loomed upon it. Although the rough creamy walls showed themselves as a dim orange, instead of their regular white. Apple scanned the tunnel for danger but it seemed Mula was indeed correct. He saw nothing but completely normal orange-tined rocks, not even some primitive graffiti on the walls to signify their existence.

“Won’t gobbies see us, with bright light?” Mula asked, not quite masking her amazement at the glowing jewel on a stick.

“They’d see us anyway. At least now, I can see them.” He replied.

They continued to venture through the single tunnel they entered, so far, no other option of hallway had presented itself.

It was not until about ten minutes into their infiltration that they finally came into contact with the enemy.

Apple noticed that Mula had suddenly stopped walking and turned back to look at her. His eyes were met to a stern face that was completely focussed on the darkness in front of them. Before he could say anything, he heard sounds from the direction of her gaze and too froze in place.

What sounded like coughing, hissing, and the clicking of tongues was heard approaching them. It seemed a group of goblins were casually conversing while taking a stroll through the tunnel.

Apple thought of an attack plan. He examined his surroundings once more but found nothing to hide behind in the narrow cavern. It seemed his only option was to simply wait for them. It was fortunate that doing absolutely nothing physical in combat was a magician’s specialty.

“Stay behind me, Mula. I’ll take care of these ones by myself.” He told the girl, who was already stood behind him.

Apple continued to march forward, believing it was pointless to simply stand still and wait. He had no wish to emulate the lazy beliefs of the Espavailier like he had done so in the past. He walked forward as slowly and as silently as he could manage, he even dimmed the light of his staff and hid it behind his back, although he made sure to keep the fire energy dwelling inside well alive.

Once he saw the group of goblins about fifty feet in front of him, he charged. With powerful lunges, that could only be accomplished from a lifestyle of heavy walking and enthusiastic squats, he closed the gap between them in less than ten strides. Even while moving at the very limit of his ability, Apple remained concentrated on the flame behind him – even adding a couple words of power to it while he ran.

With only ten feet left in between them, Apple whipped his staff out from behind his back and aimed. The startled yelps of his grotesque opponents quickly turned into screams, as the dull light of the amber now rivalled the sun with its brilliance. It vomited flames upon the pack of goblins, devouring them with the finesse of a veteran glutton. The spell only lasted for a mere few seconds, luckily that was more than enough to ignite their wrinkly hides.

Mildly disturbed by the sight of their tiny bodies flailing around on the ground while the flames still clung to them, Apple turned to see if Mula had caught up. She had. Her small figure was located to his side, staring at the living kindling with those child-innocent eyes of hers.

“Come on, let’s go. They aren’t getting back up.” Apple stated, as he began to step over the still breathing corpses.

He was not fond of using fire, mostly because it was the element, he had the least affinity for, but also partly because of the cruelty of it. Although he had to admit it was highly effective in combat.

His staff still hosted a light for him to see with but he was much more on guard now. If any goblins were nearby, they must have heard their comrades' cries. He only hoped they were stupid enough to charge at him in a narrow pathway, instead of waiting for the pair in ambush.

Again, he tiptoed forward bravely into the unknown. The charred bodies of his victims had vanished as their light source carried on its journey with them.

“Look out!” Mula cried from behind him.

Unsure on what to look out for, Apple rolled to the left, hoping that was the correct action. The silent whiz of a stone flew past Apple’s shoulder and tumbled harmlessly to the ground. While Apple recomposed himself, he felt several more hisses of wind dart past his body, thankfully none made contact with him.

“Slings.” Apple cursed, more to himself than anyone else. All the projectiles came from in front of him, yet he could not see the owners of the rocks. They could not be too far away, slings were not known for their range, nor their accuracy.

Apple churned the dormant dwimmer lurking within his body into a raging typhoon ready to burst. He fired a concussive force of wind in front of him with a wild haste. He heard the satisfying clang of stones landing on the hard ground. His gale had successful grappled the momentum from the enemies' attack. The bright heat that lived in his staff’s heart had been flung as well, hopefully stinging his foes. Unfortunately, Apple was now blind. He could easily conjure another light again, but it would be instantly snuffed out as soon as another attack left his catalyst.

Apple decided to retreat. “Follow me, Mula.” He ordered, as he ran towards where they came from, out of the goblins’ range. While he ran, he unslung his sack from his shoulder and awkwardly shuffled through its contents. He yanked the unlit torch from within it and held it firmly in front of him.

Hoping he would remember to retrieve it later, he dropped the sack to the floor, now wielding both his staff and his touch in either hand effectively. The amber kissed the tip of the torch and willed its tar membrane to ignite. The sticky black liquid quickly became consumed by hot weaves or red and yellow. Now that he was able to see again, it was time to go on the offensive.

“Stay behind me,” Apple reminded Mula.

He ran cautiously towards the flying stones, whispering the wind blast spell all the while, just in case.

Once the goblins saw him again, they hissed and hurriedly began to spin their slings. Apple was close enough now to not only see their horrific faces, but also hear the hissing of their ropes as they cut wind.

Before they could gather enough speed to fire their projectiles, Apple unleashed a powerful gust that made their slings go limp and throw them to the floor.

Apple merged the dregs of cold wind that still dwelled in his staff with the fresh batch of water elements that he was pumping through his body.

A wet icicle grew from the amber of his catalyst and plunged into the heart of a prone goblin. Apple hurriedly yanked the crude pike from the creature and placed into another goblin’s stomach. Knowing he had failed to achieve a killing blow, Apple poured more magic into his creation. He watched with unmoving eyes, as the ice expanded inside its gut, exposing the torn anatomy of the fiend.

Positive the goblin was done for, he yanked the large icy spearhead free from the brown paste of innards and smacked it into the head of a goblin that had managed to stand up. The creature screamed as the cold glass shattered upon its skull and screamed louder still when Apple twirled the jagged end of the chipped icicle onto its exposed scrawny throat.

“Take one of their slings, Mula. I think it’ll be useful in the future. Don’t try to use it now, they’re harder to wield than they look. You’d probably just bosh me on the head if you did it in here.” He said.

“Kay.” Mula replied, as she appraised each of the slings scattered across the ground, looking for the best one.

As she tucked away her chosen sling, her head jerked to empty sight from where the pair had come from.

“What?” Apples asked the girl staring at him with an expression he had not seen since their encounter with the Espavailier.

“Trouble.” She stated. “Gobbies. Lots.”

Apple too became serious. He wanted to ask how many but realised if she knew, she would already have told him. It must have least been lot for her to make such an intense face. They had killed nearly two dozen so far with ease, yet Apple still feared what was to come.

Apple’s thoughts came to a halt when he felt his arm cry out in pain. A small rock plopped down to his feet, affirming what had struck him. Several more stones whizzed past him at blurring speeds, each barely missing him.

The pain in his pain was quickly overridden by the shock that cascaded down Apple’s body.

The projectiles had not come from where Mula said the goblins were coming, they came from the direction the pair were heading in. Apple did not doubt Mula’s ears, not for one second, which could only mean one thing; they were surrounded.