The next morning came and my body was refusing to get out of bed. The soft layers of fabric over me and the cushioning caress of the mattress below made me feel like I was sleeping on a cloud.

I felt a hand caressing my belly and thigh, occasionally stopping at a place in between, causing a satisfied purr to be heard whenever it did. I turned my head to look for the hand's owner, only to see a pair of ears sticking out of the blanket. I pulled it back to see Lin’s half-opened, somewhat sleepy, yet lustful eyes looking longingly into mine. Before I could say anything however, the door behind us opened, causing Lin to flinch and her hand to clamp down, letting her nails dig into soft flesh.

“Lin, watch it!” I yelped, checking myself for cuts. “Those things are sharp.”

Toughness has reduced the attack to minimal damage.

I turned towards the door to see who was the culprit of my short yet painful experience to find a chipper fox, carrying a tray stocked with pancakes.

Rolada held the tray towards me and asked with a smirk on her lips. “Did I interrupt something?”

The smell of the food caused the nude cat girl to free herself from her covers entirely. She then started to stretch across the entire length of the bed to straighten her back while flexing her hands, purring as she kneaded her claws into the blankets.

Seeing her sharp claws catch the blankets I knew I was going to get mileage out of that talent around Lin at least.

After Lin finished stretching she sat up, excited for the meal. Rolada got into bed with us and distributed plates of pancakes with syrup, bowls of fruit and glasses of juice. It was a bit cramped in the bed with the two girls but I had no complaints about our situation.

“Someone is trying to get into our good books, what do you have planned for us Rolada?” Lin asked.

“Maybe I just want to treat my friends, or impress our keeper to give me my own library room in the dungeon.” Roalda said, rubbing her cheek against my shoulder. “Please?”

“If we can afford it, our budget is kind of stressed at the moment. If we get enough from the job with Rodney I can consider it.” I said around a mouthful of pancake.

After I finished eating I excused myself into the washroom and readied up for the day. As I finished up and opened the bathroom door I found the girls hovering around my open backpack.

“What are you two doing?” I asked, rushing in from the door.

Lin held the purple lacy undergarments from the tower in her hands, checking if it matched her large assets. She hid them behind her back and acted innocent of any wrongdoing. On both their faces I saw smears of chocolate and the empty wrappers dotted the bed.

“Nothing.” They said in unison, their faces full of guilt.

The decimated box of chocolates sat empty on the ground, its trove of goodies plundered by the two back stabbers. I rubbed my temples and accepted the fact my candies were now gone with the wind. I was almost surprised the chocolate had lasted this long with these two around.

I shook my head wondering why I still had the underwear and told Lin to keep them, who happily took them. I made them clean up the chocolate mess they had made and the empty packaging vanished into the trash chute in the hall. Once we collected the tray and donned our gear we headed downstairs. Huolong was managing a counter with customers and Rolada left the tray for her with a tip.

After stretching one last time by the door we left the tavern and found Tiff sitting outside waiting for us, with two hooded individuals. One was the same size as Tiff while the other one dwarfed us, a huge eight foot tall creature standing in the shadows.

“Hi Tiff, who's your friend?” I asked, keeping a hand near my dagger.

“These are my two pals, Burnt Meat and Bent Plate. Honest folk looking for work of course. Oi you two, stop hiding, they are gonna think your muggers.” Tiff said, dragging the shorter one out.

Their hoods fell away and I saw one was another goblin while the other was something else entirely. He looked like an orc but was wider in build with a flatter face, his skin was also beige in colour rather than the usual green of the orcs.

“Feel free to call me Burn, I’m an alchemist by trade and explorer by heart. I got everything from bombs to soap at my disposal.” The goblin said.

He swept back his shaggy black hair and shook his cloak dropping soot onto the ground. His head was level with my stomach and from his build I assumed he was more agile than strong. He was covered in belts with dozens of pouches full to the brim with components. Glass jars were strapped to his bag filled with coloured gas and each time he moved sparks came off them. He looked more like a walking fire hazard than anything.

“Hi, I’m Bent Plate, but I like to go by Bent. I’m an ogre and weightlifting champion. Tiff said you might need a strong man to carry things around.” The huge man said, his voice uncharacteristically light hearted and friendly.

“Did you guys want to do a character swap so we can get to know each other a bit better?” I asked.

They agreed and showed off their name and stats. We did the same and I was able to spy on Rolada to see what her stats were as well. The goblins had some middling stats I glanced over but Bent’s page threw me for a loop as I came across it, as did Rolada’s rather high mental stats.

Tiff, Goblin, Level 3 Ranger

…

Burnt Meat, Goblin, Level 3 Alchemist

…

Bent, “Bent Plate”, Ogre, Level 4 Thug

Strength 21

Constitution 17

…

Rolada, Fox beast-kin, Level 3 Scholar

Strength 8

Constitution 11

Dexterity 13

Intelligence 14

Willpower 12

Charisma 15

“Wow you two are super smart.” Bent said to Rolada and I. “You must be really strong wizards or something.”

“Your strength is how much?” Rolada said in awe. “You have to be stronger than an ox.”

“Oh I like cows, but they don’t like it when I lift them over my head. Used to use them as weights when I was training.” Bent said, flexing his arms. “It took a long time to get this strong, I hope if I keep training I can become a strong ogre like the rest of my tribe.”

“Wait, your tribe has more than twenty strength?” Lin asked wide eyed. “You're kidding right?”

“I’m the runt of my tribe, I got made fun of a lot and kicked out. It was for the best, they were mean and I got to meet my new best friend Burn.” Bent said.

“Big guy and I are tight, we go way back. So if you want to hire either of us it's a two for one deal.” Burn said.

“I already convinced them you idiot, just tag along and it will be fine.” Tiff said.

After an exchange of pleasantries we headed to Rodney’s store with Tiff leading the way. The goblin girl had ditched her maid outfit for padded armour with leather reinforcements, a small ax on her hip and a short crossbow on her back. She kept a keen eye out for danger as we navigated the packed streets. Having the ogre was great because everyone gave us a wide berth.

“Don’t ogres stick together in war camps and plunder farms and stuff, how did you become a weightlifter?” Lin asked.

“I got kicked out because I didn’t like hurting people for no reason, sure if they try to stab me I’m all for knocking them up the head but I don’t see why we need to raid. After walking around the woods on my own I saw a bunch of humies throwing around boulders and tree logs. I asked them what they were doing and instead of yelling at me they let me join. During one of the contests I met Burn selling his potions and he made me one of his workers, the rest is history.” Bent said, grinning at his own tale.

While the goblins were armed and armoured the ogre wasn’t. He only wore simple clothes under his huge cloak and a massive belt around his waist. I pointed out his lack of gear and the ogre waved off my concern.

“I don’t like fighting folk unless I have too. Usually I just lift them up and they give up on hurting me pretty quick.” Bent said.

We reached Rodney’s shop and Lin and I went inside, leaving the others behind on the stairs with Rolada, who was more interested in some conversation than dealing with the wacky store owner. The tiny building housing the massive indoor store was the same as we had found it, only this time with Rodney standing on the counter.

“Welcome customers- oh it’s you again.” Rodney said, turning up his nose. “I thought you were too good for me.”

“I am, but we want what you have. New deal, you pay us the gold up front and then we will go reclaim your wares.” Lin said.

“You will be paid after, I know your kind, running at the first sign of danger.” Rodney said, slurring his speech and jabbing a finger at Lin. “How do I know you will even finish the job- urk!”

Lin grabbed him by the collar and hissed, dragging the goblin off his feet and into the air. She glared at him and spoke in a low tone of voice.

“Run that by me again, I heard you want me to punch you in the face.” Lin said.

“Five gold each after the job, fifty percent off a magic item too.” Rodney said, trying to break Lin’s hold of him. “Human, get her off me and I’ll give you something from the bin for free!”

Lin winked at me over her shoulder and I put a hand on her. “Let him go hun, we need him intact so he can pay us after the job.”

Rodney was dropped onto his rump and swore under his breath. He got back on his feet and stayed out of Lin’s range. He handed me a note with directions and the list of wares we needed to reclaim. Lin snatched the note to read herself and Rodney took me over to a wide metal box with peeling paint.

It was stuffed to the brim with half broken devices, scrap metal and unlabelled potions. The area reeked of disinfectant and I felt my sinuses clear from the strong cleaning agent. It was all junk and I couldn’t make heads or tails of anything useful.

“Listen kid, girls like that are nothing but trouble. You sure you want to be around crazy?” Rodney asked in a whisper.

“I heard that!” Lin yelled, shaking her fist.

“Just take something and get going, it should be a quick job. Just don’t stand still and get torched.” Rodney said.

The goblin shopkeeper waddled off somewhere else and Lin took his place. Her tail’s fur stuck up on its end as she tried to wave off the smell. She bunched up my cloak and dug her nose under it in an attempt to reduce the assault on her senses.

“What a load of junk, that sword looks only half rusted, you should take it.” Lin mumbled through the fabric. “I’m going outside.”

Perception : Success!

+2 XP gained.

I saw what Lin had pointed out, tucked under shattered furniture was a scabbard barely visible. I grabbed a hold of it and wretched it out sending a cascade of trash deeper into the bin. A cloud of who knows what kicked up into the air in a plume of dust and ash. As it settled on the nearby shelves I could hear a low hiss and watched the metal shelves dissolve before my eyes.

Not wanting to be blamed I carefully sneaked out of the shop while keeping an ear out for Rodney. I made it to the front undetected and reached for the door, my freedom just out of reach.

“What the fuck is this?” Rodney shouted across the store. “Human, are you still here?”

I ripped open the door and launched myself outside, running right into Lin’s back. She stumbled forwards a few steps before regaining her balance and grabbing a hold of me. She was about to ask what I was doing but Rodney’s distance screams made her smirk and wave the team to follow her.

“Not bad Josh. Alright everyone, let's get this done and bag the coin. If someone would be so kind as to tell me what these horrible directions mean, that would be grand.” Lin said, waving the note around.

“I gotcha sister.” Tiff said, hopping up to grab it. “Ah shucks we are going to need to take one of the mine cart routes, shouldn’t be too expensive.”

“What do you mean Tiff?” Rolada asked. “Shouldn’t it be somewhere in town?”

“Hell no, not one building goes unused and untaxed in Wyrmbreath, the only place you're getting an abandoned building is outside town. If you have never been on the trails you are in for a treat.” Tiff said.

Tiff took the lead and led us through the back alleys of Wyrmbreath. She wasn’t kidding either, every single bit of space had either a store, a workshop or apartments crammed in every inch of available space. The tight twisting alleys might have been navigable by a goblin but us taller folk had to twist and squeeze through the narrow alleys. Bent even took off some shingles on a few homes that were packed side by side.

The buildings were in all kinds of disrepair, the shiny storefronts of the taverns were night and day compared to the squalor back here. Worse yet it smelled strongly of urine and I could see the horrible smell was hard on the girls. Thankfully the short journey came to an end and Tiff brought us into a courtyard.

Dozens of booths blocked our exit and over them were various signs listing different numbers and connections. All around our feet were tracks heading to all the different booths and into dark caves beyond. Hundreds of small holes in the caves could be seen each with a track going into the unknown. Near us was a large stone building with a sign listing it as the main station.

It reminded me of a train station mixed with a bus stop. Hundreds of dwarves and goblins lined up with tickets and once in a while a wide flat cart exited a stone warehouse with a metal box on the back of it chugging along. It would stop by one of the booths and an orc would take people’s tickets, after which they would hop onto the back of the cart and speed off.

“Wow, this is rather unexpected.” I said, watching the intricate dance in awe. “There are so many, how would you ever know where to go?”

“You don’t take them blindly of course. Come here let me show you.” Tiff said, motioning for me to join her.

A rusted metal panel with worn buttons and a slot cut out of it was set into the wall, there were ten like it stretching across the main station building. Tiff held up the note and from Rodney’s writing punched in the track E, then the numbers seven and three. After a brief moment a chute opened up and a set of metal dials spun showing the number ten. Tiff took out a fist full of copper coins and tossed them into the chute. Once it processed her payment a paper the size of my fist shot out of the slot and into her hand.

“See, easy. We are all going to need a ticket so you help everyone get one.” Tiff said, patting my side. “I’m grabbing a beer before we go.”

Tiff went into the station and left me alone to show my friends how to work the ticket machine. Burn and Bent got their own tickets at another machine, getting their ticket with ease. It was a rather odd sensation, it looked wonky and I had no clue how it functioned but at the same time it felt oddly familiar. Like I was getting a train ticket back home.

“You alright there Josh?” Lin asked, shaking my shoulder. “Your eyes got cloudy for a second.”

“Sorry, deja vu.” I said. When the girls cocked their heads to the side in confusion I tried to explain. “This thing reminds me of home, that's all.”

“Josh, I thought you lived in a heaven of chocolates and sweets. This place looks like a dump.” Lin said, crossing her arms. “I don’t understand you sometimes.”

Rolada nervously slid up to me, holding onto my arm as another flat cart whizzed by. She looked at the carts coming and going, each filled to the brim with strangers.

“Do we really have to get on one of those things?” Rolada asked.

“It beats walking.” I said, putting a comforting hand on her back. “You can sit with me if that helps.”

Rolada didn’t reply, instead lacing her fingers with mine. Lin got on her other side and held her hand as well. The door to the station opened, revealing Tiff. Jammed under her arm was a box filled with bottles full of beer.

“Alright kids, I will be your guide for your first mine cart adventure, follow me.” Tiff said, bombastically.

She marched towards a booth on the far right side, an area that showed little use. In the small wooden booth I could see a goblin leaning back in his chair asleep. His feet were up on a wide metal box covered in levers. Tiff stood beside the door going into the booth and raised her hand, cupping it around her mouth.

“Wake the fuck up Jed!” She screamed.

The goblin inside screeched and jumped, hitting his head off the ceiling. He crashed into the levers and the sign above him lit up green. Characters scrolled past on the sign and as I watched them go past I realized it was some kind of crystal display. Beside the goblin in the booth was even a tiny box with a screen on it showing the surroundings outside the booth.

I gawked at it. It looked just like the cheap CCTV equipment we had at Dan’s store. The sense of familiarity washed over me and I wondered if it was possible for my minions to build such a thing. If possible I might have more amenities than I was used to.

Recipe added, skill levels are too low to currently build.

“What is it Josh?” Rolada asked.

“I’ll tell you guys later.” I said, ruffling her hair. “It’s something which might help us in the future.”

Tiff held out a glass of beer to the other goblin and he snatched it out of her hand. Burn held out a small metal hook and let the booth guard crack open his beer with it. Once he wet his throat with the drink he looked over us and held out a hand.

“Welcome to Wyrmbreath station, I’m Jeb. Hand over your tickets and you can get going.” Jeb said with a hint of boredom.

After he checked over our tickets he leaned over and whispered to Tiff. “Are you sure you want to use the abandoned routes?”

“Got a job to do Jeb, and I mean look at us. We can handle a few wandering cave bugs.” Tiff said, dismissing his concerns.

Jeb looked us over and Bent flexed, showing off his massive arms. The ogre’s biceps were as big as my torso and were honestly kind of terrifying. So far he seemed to have a pretty laid back attitude, but I was just glad he was currently on our team.

“Alright, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Jeb said, pulling the levers on the board. “Keep off the track until your cart arrives, once you're on I’ll hand over control.”

A few seconds passed and out of the warehouse came our ride. It had a longer base than the others I had seen and when it reached the booth it screeched to a halt. Rust pitted the edges of the cart and the metal box on the back was dented in places. This one had an edge going around it meaning we wouldn’t fall out and at the front and rear were two glass domes filled with the glowing moss to give off light.

The cart was divided into four wooden benches with the front most being the smallest and surrounded by levers. Tiff took what I assume was the driver seat, the girls and I took the second bench leaving the last two for Burn and Bent. Once everyone was settled Jeb flicked a switch and saluted us. Tiff slid one lever forwards and we started to move, heading towards a dark cave.

No sooner had we passed the booth I heard the goblin guard start to snore. We were completely in Tiff’s hands but the goblin girl seemed quite confident in her ability. As we neared the dark entrance our front light barely lit it up and Rolada reached into her pocket with shaking hands.

“Light!” She said, raising a smooth white stone.

The rock lit up like a beacon and when she pressed her thumb on it the light focused into a cone illuminating the way forwards. Tiff thanked her and started to hand out beers to everyone.

“Toss those here, Burn has you covered.” The goblin alchemist said.

He took two at a time and hooked the caps under each other, he then gave them a swift twist popping the caps off. Lin and I grunted our thanks and raised our beers. Once everyone was situated with a drink we started to ease up.

The cart track wove into the mined out caves and tunnels deep under the earth, zig zagging along and making me think we were following an ore vein. Our cart sped along the track at a leisurely pace, it wasn’t terribly fast, but it beat walking. The metal box at the back shook and coughed, sending plumes of black smoke behind us as we chugged along in the darkness.

“Is that going to be a problem?” I asked.

“Naw, don’t worry bud, these babies can run on spit and dreams. Even if there's an issue I can probably give it some elbow grease and have her going in a flash.” Burn said, leaning against the cart's side.

He tried to look relaxed but the fact his eyebrows were burnt off and his coat was covered in small burns painted an odd picture. As he raised his bottle he sneezed and set his arm on fire. After he patted it out he gave me a smile and a thumbs up.

“How did he do that?” I asked Lin in a low voice.

“Can’t you smell? He has enough liquor on his breath to knock out Sten. I'm amazed his sweat doesn’t ignite too.” Lin whispered back.

“Miss Tiff, is the journey far?” Rolada asked our driver.

Tiff looked over her shoulder and said. “Should be less than an hour at the most. I can try to give it some more juice if you want-”

The metal box at the rear kicked out a massive plume of greasy smog. Gears started to grind and the whole thing came to a screeching halt. Rolada screamed like the world was ending and I held onto her to calm her down. The cart wasn’t going terribly fast to begin with and we stopped a short distance after.

“Spit and dreams, eh.” I said to Burn. “I guess you're up.”

Burn sighed and finished off his bottle before hopping down. Bent Plate followed him, causing the whole cart to lurch to the side for a moment. Tiff twisted in her seat and looked at us.

“Well a bit more exciting than we hoped, but don’t worry these caves are all abandoned. Not a soul in sight except for the occasional bug or lizard.” Tiff said, trying to soothe Rolada. “You are going to be fine, sweetheart.”

“Are the cave lizards big?” Rolada asked.

Tiff laughed and held up her hands. “They could fit in the palm of my hand. Super small.”

“Then why is that man riding one?” Rolada asked in a hush whisper pointing out towards the darkness.

Ahead of us on the tracks we heard the sliding of something large and several pairs of footfalls. Walking into the light were six covered figures clutching weapons with one of them riding a giant white salamander. The wet creature was the size of a horse and dripped slime onto the ground. It opened its maw showing off rows of razor sharp fangs that dripped with a green liquid. As the liquid hit the rocky cave floor it sizzled sending up wisps of smoke.

“That might be a problem.” Tiff said, reaching towards her crossbow. “Hope y'all are ready for a fight.”