Chapter 2: The Stolen Blade

The ruin of Bullminth's Armory was far larger on the inside.

The hole in its roof led to a large, single room with a spiral staircase of smoothly cut stone leading down through the center of the structure. The entire structure underneath spread out from that central staircase, with each floor they passed forcing Elma to consider how deep it actually went.

One or two halls branched off from every floor they descended past, the shouts of Nurl and the laughter of Dreamers echoing from other portions of the armory. On every floor, the central room was lined with stone counters coated in dust. A cold, dead forge built into the wall of the first floor, a large anvil took up the majority of the second.

It was at that third level where they spotted a Nurl hurriedly trying to drag a heavy sack towards the staircase, the shouting of other Nurl voices echoing from the hall behind him. The edge of his sack had caught on the corner of a large stone desk, but he stopped trying to free it the moment he noticed them.

Yorm moved first, leaping from the staircase just as the Nurl dropped his sack and began running for the hall. He was just about to shout when Yorm's hands locked around his mouth and chest, pulling him up from the floor as Elma slipped by and cupped a hand against her ear.

She couldn't make out the words of the other Nurl or the Dreamers, but they weren't approaching. She turned and nodded to Yorm, who tightened his grasp on the Nurl as he stepped back towards the staircase.

“The relic.” Yorm stated, “You tell me where it is and I don’t trap you in this sack of yours, right?”

Elma kneeled beside the sack in question and opened it, finding it laden with old tools.

“No touch!” the Nurl pleaded once Yorm pulled his hand from his mouth “No tell, but no touch yes?!?”

“Open it up,” Yorm told Elma before giving the Nurl a shake “Seems he’s doubting my word.”

“No, I-!”

A scream echoed up from the staircase, with all three of them going quiet for a moment until the Nurl stammered.

“Fancy sword, yes?” he looked between them “Don't move, yes?”

“If that’s what the Archon’s focus is on, then yes.” Elma stood up and walked to him “Please.”

“Right below, escaped blastie quake!” the Nurl pointed to his sack “Save for hoard, yes?”

“Move move!” All three turned towards the nearby hall as another Nurl raced out with a sack on her shoulders. She didn't even pause to consider Elma and Yorm's presence, instead racing towards them with panic etched into her features.

“More blasties gone! Shinies in danger!”

Yorm struggled to keep his captive secure with one arm as he reached an arm out. Elma lunged as the Nurl scampered by, only for the entire armory to shake.

“Wait-!” Yorm shouted, only for the ruin to be rocked by another blast.

It was deafening, throwing Elma to one knee as a cloud of dirt and dust erupted from the hall the Nurl had run from. When she looked up, Yorm was struggling to rise and the Nurl he’d been holding was desperately pulling tools from the dropped sack.

They locked eyes briefly, causing the Nurl to scamper up the stairs with several old tools clutched to his chest.

“Damn it,” Yorm wiped at his eye before squinting through the dust “that thief’s gonna bury us all.”

He began to rise, grimacing at the sound of the Nurl fleeing upstairs.

“Then we’ve no time to waste,” Elma stood and gestured towards the stairs "he said the sword’s just downstairs.”

“If he was speaking true, that means the Archon’s Host is down there too.” Yorm reached for the hatchets dangling at his waist “Risk your life all you want, but don’t let him see you.”

“There’s no time for-!” Elma looked up to see Yorm rearing back with his hatchet.

“Drop!” was all the warning he gave, and it was all the warning she needed.

Elma dropped down as he flung the hatchet, practically feeling it pass overhead before the sound of a gasping laugh erupted at her side.

She spun towards the sound, seeing a rotting hand gripping the edge of the hall. The rest of the Dreamer pulled herself back up, leaning out of the hall with Yorm's hatchet lodged into her skull. The glow of her eyes brightened upon looking at Yorm and Elma, her torn up fingers opening and closing the long cattle shears in her grasp.

The hatchet wasn't deep enough, and the Dreamer's other hand reached up for the handle with a moan of ecstasy.

“So good,” she chittered as her laughter grew “Its just so good!”

Elma charged the Dreamer as her laughter grew, drawing her sword and slashing for the neck. Her sword lodged through the walking corpse's neck, but failed to silence her laughter.

In fact, more voices joined it.

Emerging from the same hall that was riddled with dust and debris, another Dreamer poked his partially scorched head out whilst running a rotting gray tongue along his dagger.

“More friends?” he asked as his dagger sliced through his tongue, the tip of the muscle falling to the floor between his legs “No worries, the Dream is for all!”

Elma gripped the hilt of her sword with both hands and and finished severing the head of the first Dreamer. Before she could try rushing the second, Yorm charged forward with his remaining hatchet. Another Dreamer darted out from behind the blade-licker in a mad dash, throwing herself through the air towards Yorm. He was just barely able to slow down and lunge to the side as the Dreamer’s flailing limbs swung through the air at him, but the blade-licker took the opportunity to rush in.

Elma brought her sword down on the Licker’s shoulder before he could get close, only for his free hand to latch around her blade and drag her close.

“Deeper!” he hissed in amusement as the blade sawed through his shoulder “Cut deeper, friend!”

Elma pulled on the handle, but her sword wasn’t able to cut through his fingers fast enough. Out of the corner of her eye, another Dreamer was emerging from the blown out hall with a large shovel.

“Love the Dream, I promise you will!” he cried out as he brought the jagged edge of that shovel down towards her head.

Elma let go and threw herself back as the shovel slammed into the hilt of her sword, forcing it up through the Licker’s shoulder and cutting through several of his fingers in the process.

The shovel came swinging towards Elma again, she backed away as its wielder swung over and over. It slammed into the floor before her, prompting her to raise a boot and drive it through the shovel’s handle.

The Dreamer eyed the broken handle in its hands for a split second before the dissipating body of another Dreamer slammed into him from the side.

Yorm rushed the Dreamer as he struggled from under the body, leaving Elma to look back towards her fallen sword. The Licker pawed at it with his mangled hand, unable to wrap his brutalized fingers around it.

Upon realizing Elma was rushing, he swatted the blade aside and instead reared back before swinging a leg into the severed head of the first Dreamer.

Elma had to throw herself out of the way as the laughing Dreamer head sailed through the air towards her. She dove for her sword as the Licker charged her, just barely managing to grab the hilt as he threw himself on her. She swung, slashing open his stomach and spilling his fuming, darkened entrails onto her boots as he stumbled off course. He swung back with his dagger, but her sword met the back of his neck first.

Only when his body collapsed did Elma allow herself a small, calming breath. Even though his head still spouted obscenities and moans of delight, Elma turned her attention back to Yorm.

He was straddling the other Dreamer, hacking his head open with his hatchet until there was barely anything recognizable above the neck. With his forearms thoroughly caked in dissipating Dreamer remains, he slammed the body hard against the floor before rising and looking back to her.

“We know it's here.” He spoke whilst approaching the severed head of the first Dreamer and reaching down to pry his other hatchet from her head “Let’s go.”

The severed head giggled as Yorm struggled to rip his weapon from her skull, prompting him to simply crush the head under his boot to retrieve it.

“We're not leaving it!” Elma declared before pointing to the floor "Bullminth's Blade is here. It's right under us, Yorm! We can do this!"

Yorm grimaced before making for the stairs.

“A child of Morgo never hurries to their last hunt.” he stated as he continued his ascent back towards the surface.

Elma gave pause as she watched his fur boots disappear up those stairs, rumbling from elsewhere in the armory leading her to grasp her hilt more tightly.

“Alone, hm?”

She glanced back towards the severed head of the licker, whose eyes glowed brightly as he stared up towards the ceiling.

“No such thing as alone in the Dream.” He smiled, eyes locking on the rocks above “You’ll love it. There’s enough for all.”

The Armory trembled again, leading Elma to leave the head behind and make for the last level. As her legs carried her down deeper into the ruin, she noted that she could no longer hear the screams of Nurl anymore.

Only the giggles.

Half of the chamber had collapsed, with several Nurl clawing at it with their bare hands. Elma slowed her pace as she saw the glow of their eyes. A group of them had gathered around a Nurl trapped in the debris, merrily tearing at them with glee even as another rumble shook the entire structure.

“Shiny! So shiny!” one cooed as she dug her nails into the corpse of another Nurl “Best hoard, hoard so happy!”

Elma moved as quietly as she could, placing the spiral stairs between her and the Nurl Dreamers and gauging where her search could begin. Unlike the upper floors, this chamber only had one branching hall. Whether the other had been buried by the collapse was irrelevant to Elma, she saw the only path forward and took it.

The bluish trails of Nurl blood decorated the walls, with one Dreamer still suckling on a small, severed arm when Elma found him.

She split his head before he could even raise his shortsword.

The hall had no branching paths, it was a straight shot directly to a single chamber. As she grew closer, the temperature grew colder. The cheers and laughter of the Dreamers became more and more distant until their words were indecipherable.

Through the silence, she could hear a familiar voice crying out.

“Maltop promise, not betray!” the foreman pleaded “Why I stay if betray!?! Maltop dies!”

“Impressively reasonable defense,” the Archon’s voice did not seem convinced “but you brought her on-board.”

“Goldie good finder!” Maltop stammered, “She find many shinies with pretty eyes.”

“Believe me, Nurl. It would be pleasant if I could simply accept that as truth.”

Elma could see the back of the Archon’s host up ahead, holding up Maltop in the middle of a featureless chamber at the end of the hall. Maltop shook his head furiously as the host lifted her head and spread her mouth wide.

Elma broke into a sprint as the host sank her jaws into Maltop’s neck, his screams drowned out by the echo of the Archon’s voice.

“But assuring that truth is far more preferable.” The Archon spoke, his tone never rising in pitch even as his host feasted on Maltop’s flesh.

Elma brought her sword down through the Host's head, cleaving down to her nose in one fell swoop. The host collapsed, dropping Maltop to the floor in the process. Though he landed on his feet, he quickly stumbled back and slipped in the growing pool of blood spewing from his wound. He tripped over a small mound of polished rock, his back slamming against the wall of the room before sliding down.

Elma eyed the host as it slumped forward, watching it twitch and spasm before hurrying to Maltop and kneeling beside him. He sat against the wall, his hands pressed tightly to his wound to no avail.

“Keep still,” Elma said, reaching out to steady Maltop as best as she could “I’m sorry, but movement will only bleed you quicker.”

“Maltop… hoard.” Maltop choked out, tears mixing with his blood as he struggled to stem the flow “Not... finished!”

She could see it starting, his blue eyes were glazing over, a hint of white light growing from behind them.

“Time grows short, Maltop. The Dream is taking you.” Elma stated, wincing as his skin rapidly began to pale “Bullminth’s Blade, where is it? With it, the Alliance can free you and your colleagues!”

“Goldie…” Maltop’s head leaned to the side as his eyes began to close “take fancy sword... stolen.”

He raised a trembling hand and pointed.

She followed his finger to the mound in the floor that he'd tripped over. It was an empty slot in the floor, wide and thin and far too cleanly cut to be incidental.

“She steal…” his eyes closed “she take. Such pretty eyes.”

His lips pulled into a weak smile, “Pretty… shiny eyes…so Shiny… So shiny!”

His eyes snapped open as the glow erupted from within, the same glow burst from his mouth in a blinding light as Elma backed away.

“Shiny everywhere, happy Nurl!” Maltop cried out as he stomped his little feet against the floor “Happy hoard for all! Share Dream! Share-!”

Elma brought her blade down on his head, the thickness of his skull halting it partway in.

With the Armory rumbling again, and the sound of something collapsing nearby, Elma’s head turned towards the slit in the floor that Maltop had indicated. Elma cursed under her breath, the thief stealing Bullminth’s Blade was both a blessing and a curse. It was farther from the Archon’s grasp, but until it was in Alliance hands it was still at risk.

Elma turned to the Archon’s host. Unlike the other Dreamers, the body hadn’t begun dissipating. It just sat there spasming occasionally.

Turning back to Maltop, Elma gripped her sword to pull it free.

But then the cold grew harsher, and words echoed from behind her.

“Remnants this far in Melkish lands. What misfortune.”

Elma spun to the Archon's host, seeing it begin to rise even with its head split. Though the host was rising, there were no laughs coming from its split head. Instead, the large eye in its torso quickly focused on Elma.

Elma’s expression twisted into a grimace as she pulled on her sword, only for it to stop. Her gaze snapped back to Maltop, who snickered as his hands latched onto the blade buried in his head.

"Be shiny too." he spoke between laughs "Maltop share! Share Dream for you!"

"Hold tightly, Maltop." the Archon spoke, each word chilling the very blood in Elma's veins "You wouldn't want her to miss out."

Looking back, Elma watched as the eye glazed over within the host's torso. It began to split from within, pulsating green spilling out until it ripped itself apart and spilled a cloud of that blackish green smoke into the chamber.

Elma planted her foot against Maltop's chest and pinned him to the wall as she wrenched her blade from his grasp. She managed to stumble back and catch herself as Maltop collapsed. He pushed himself up with one hand while keeping his partially split head together with the other, but Elma's gaze snapped towards the Host.

The tainted smoke of the Archon's eye was flying into the open chest cavity of the host, causing every failed vein to light up with pulsating green. They split open, spewing fresh flesh over the host as her ribs grew long and jagged.

Elma darted past the abomination, sprinting back into the hall only to pause at the sight of Nurl Dreamers racing to meet her. She glanced back, watching the arms of the Host fuse to its body before gritting her teeth. She turned and swung, cutting into the nearest Nurl and flinging him into the others to gain as much breathing room as she could.

A roar from behind made her look back just as the abomination pushed itself from the floor with trunk-like legs. It turned towards her, the chest cavity having become a nightmarish maw of protruding ribs that snapped together several times before an elongated skinless arm reached out from within.

The cavern shook violently, but the Nurl Dreamers continued their charge. Over a dozen of them racing forth, screaming happily even as Elma cut them down. Cheers of joy, amused laughter, even as they began dissipating back to the Dream.

Her sword got lodged in one's side, and he and another quickly grabbed hold as another raced by swinging her pickaxe merrily.

Elma steeled her stance before kicking the charging Nurl back into one of the two holding her sword. With both hands, she levered the Nurl on her blade off the ground before flinging him back towards the approaching monstrosity. The skinless arm took hold of him and dragged him inside the maw, which chomped down upon his smiling face and sucked him inside.

Elma flung more of the Dreamers back towards it, hoping to slow it down, but each one consumed only made it grow larger.

Finally she saw her opening. The violent shaking of the structure had more of the Dreamers stumbling over themselves, Elma could clearly see a gap through their ranks. She lunged for it without hesitation, breaking into a run the second she landed.

"Its love! Its love!" one of the Dreamers shouted behind her, his voice devolving under the crunching and chewing of the abomination gorging itself on the Archon's slaves.

Elma flung herself towards the central staircase, pressing herself to the wall as the structure shook again. None of the Nurl Dreamers emerged from the hall. Instead, the walking maw stumbled into the chamber, several more skinless arms ruptured from within its massive cavity and reached for Elma as she raced up the stairs.

She flew up the stairs, letting floor by floor pass as she raced against both the Archon's monstrosity and the collapsing ruin. Dust and debris filled the air and choked her lungs, her legs burnt from the exertion and her intense grip on her sword made her hand go numb. But she couldn't even consider slowing down.

Bullminth's Blade was so close after all.

It was the one thing fueling her movements, not the collapsing ruin she was in or the Archon's beast nipping at her heels. As long as that weapon was near, it was the only thing she needed to carry her to the very top of the ruin.

By the time she stumbled out of the Armory, the chamber beyond had been abandoned. No Nurl or Dream to be seen, only the gleeful screaming rising from the ruin behind her.

She didn't wait for it, sheathing her sword and racing for the stairs lining the chamber as chunks of the cavern's ceiling began breaking free. She darted out of the way of falling rocks and began her descent, only managing to ascend past the top of the ruin before the monster tore out of it.

Numerous voices laughed in unison as the walking maw stumbled forth, having grown beyond the height of any man Elma had seen before. It turned its massive cavity of twitching ribs towards her as she raced up the stairs, spreading its maw wide as those skinless arms reached up for her.

Elma focused on the top of the stairs, the cave beyond, and the surface just beyond that. But those arms were faster, they kept extending from the walking maw, meat upon meat until they reached the edge of the stairs and dug their fingers into them. They hauled the monstrosity up from the bottom of the chamber, its weight managing to tear portions of the stairs out in its grasp.

It mattered little, the Arms merely grabbed hold of the chamber's crumbling walls to continue its pursuit.

The cacophony of laughter grew louder each time it got closer, with Elma keeping her gaze solely on the chamber's exit until something tugged her backwards.

She spun, sword already halfway out of its scabbard when her eyes fell upon the skinless knuckles buried in the hood of her cloak. The maw was too close, its other arms racing to grab hold of her. Her free hand shot towards the pin holding her cloak together and tore it from the cloth, lunging away as it was dragged into the maw.

Her eyes snapped back towards her goal, seeing the stairs giving way between her and the exit. She didn't even consider slowing down, instead pumping her legs faster as she neared the edge.

She leaped, collapsing into a stumbling roll on the other side and hauling herself back to her feet as the Maw stumbled over the gap. She seized the moment, pushing herself forward even as the cave collapsed behind her.

Even with more distance between her and the monster, she continued sprinting up the stairs as fast as she could, unconvinced that the cavern wouldn’t still bury her along with the Archon’s slaves.

Her breath was heavy and her heart pounding, sweat nearly blinded her. But she continued, pushing forward in a mad dash only until the sunlight touched her skin.