Path of the Pioneers

The kobolds(?) all looked back and forth between one another, muttering in hushed tones, and then the one in the middle looked back at Adeline, “I assure you, miss, we are quite real!”

Adeline leaned over towards me, speaking quietly, “I’ve never seen these things before, only heard stories. They’re these odd fey-things tha-” She was interrupted by one of the kobolds in the back speaking up.

“F-fey, yes! We are fey-folk!” The rest nodded, making sounds of agreement.

The one in the middle nodded the most, and then finally looked up at me, “Madame, you are a friend to the fey-folk! And so, we would plead you for your aid in a matter most urgent!” They all nodded together at once, making those same “mmh mmh!” sounds. I simply stared on, trying not to let me befuddlement show. A friend to the fey-folk? I had spoken with one fairy. Or, did even the fey think that my hair was a reflection of heritage?

Adeline saved me from this confusing mess by speaking up for me, putting her hands up even more as she did, “Wait, wait, wait! Good gods, you need to slow down!” She put her hand up to the bridge of her nose, rubbing it for a minute while her eyes locked shut. Then, she addressed the crowd of kobolds. “Look, whatever your business is, you can’t just expect to run us down and have us solve your problems. You should start by explaining things.”

The kobold in the middle had a look on their face as if they had been splashed with water, stunned after Adeline’s verbal lashing. They bowed deeply, and then raised themself up. “S-sincerest apologies! I should begin with introductions: My name is Charlie.” One by one, Charlie put a hand on the shoulder of each kobold, introducing them, “Jordan, Alex, Rowan, Aubrey.” Jordan did a light, shaky bow, Alex waved enthusiastically, Rowan smiled widely, and Aubrey did a small curtsy.

I took a moment to process each of their names, and then put a hand on my chest, “My name is Sybil. This is Adeline.” I gestured towards her. “Err.. I-if you don’t mind.. Could you tell me what you meant by ‘friend of the fey-folk’?”

Charlie raised up, very clearly surprised by my question. They shuffled in place for a moment, “Y-you do not know? T-that is to say.. Ah..” They glanced at the other kobolds, who were similarly puzzled, and then back to me, “You, Madame Sybil.. Bear the mark of a child of the forest. It shows you to be a friend to fey-folk of all kind and nature!” They fidgeted a bit more, “Fey-folk of kindly nature, more like, maybe.”

I blinked, confused. “I.. Bear a mark?” I saw them open their mouth to speak, and I silently begged that they wouldn’t bring up my hair.

“T-to explain more in-depth, Madame Sybil, nobler fey-folk are wont to appoint mortals they find..” They shuffled again, their expression making it clear that they were struggling for the right word. “M-mortals that they may find fascinating, with a measure of their presence. It is not a physical or visible brand, but a distinct mark! Something that us fey-folk can sense with ease.”

The only explanation was the fairy that lingered in my mind -- Stella. It had been a month since I had last spoken with her, but it made the most sense. She had left a mark on me? My mind was swimming with questions, and I was almost forgetting the most important one of all: These couldn’t be simple dungeon monsters, could they? Those same flames were wandering outside of the dungeon, which meant they weren’t bound by it.

I took a deep breath, and then asked Charlie a simple question, “Are the fey able to enter and exit as they please?”

They smiled brightly, and then replied just as simply, “Just so, Madam Sybil! The laws of this space lack the reach to bind us.”

In my little experience talking to fey, which seemed to be far more than the average person, they were very forward about saying terrifying things. They made it sound like it was a normal fact of life. Adeline had the slightest look of worry on her face, clearly unnerved by them. I could understand where that feeling may have come from, hearing those words from that form was certainly odd.

“R-right. Um.. Alright.” I fidgeted with my hands for a moment, and then put them together, “Could you explain what your troubles are, then? I think that.. It may be best to hear that first.”

Charlie put a hand to their chest, unintentionally posing rather dramatically, “I will do my upmost, Madam Sybil!”

Quite a long time ago -- that is to say, a time that was once written in their well-kept records that have now been lost -- a group of twelve kobolds dwelled in these mines. It was a wonderful time for the group, where they could make all the pleasant mischief they wished.

The dwarves in the nearby settlement.. “Tearsullen?” Spent a great deal of time near the area, prospecting for ore-rich veins of whatever they could get their hands upon. The kobolds did ever-so enjoy the dwarves, and their drive for ever-yet shiny and pure stones and rocks. They often would lead them towards deposits of adamant and other minerals, making sure to play extra-clever, extra-humorous pranks along the way.

The dwarves were no fun, though. Even when they resorted to nasty tricks like replacing some of the gold present in the mines with fools’ gold, the dwarves seemed pleased to have found the stuff. They knew it wasn’t gold, as well, those crafty dwarves called it “pieright” instead.

Regardless of how much the dwarves were terrible sports about the whole thing, the kobolds still delighted in their mischief. Replacing their pickaxe’s wooden handles with solid metal? Making it so their lanterns could never be turned off? Their cleverness knew no bounds. The time they spent there was peaceful, until everything changed.

Rather than dwarves, other creatures began to prowl about within the mines. Odd, fell creatures.

Red scales dotted their lanky bodies. Lanky, even for their short stature. Their musculature was strange and alien, and twisted horns rose out from their heads like branches. Their sclera were dyed like pitch, and beads of light shone out from their centers instead of irises. Some of them were taller, bigger, and meaner looking than the rest, by a long-shot.

The dwarves stopped visiting.

The fiends could not see the kobolds, and it was a wondrous thing that they could not, as the monsters wielded rather nasty-looking weapons, and they seemed the sort to use them.

The kobolds hatched several plans to try and rid the mines of these beasties, but one after the other, their plans failed to take out even a single one.

It dwindled down their number, until only five remained.

But the extra-clever kobolds knew of a surefire way to banish them, if only they had the strength to succeed. The biggest fiend rested around the same area of the mines constantly, and its death would almost surely mean its lackies abandoning the area.

The kobolds’ plea was simple: slay the fiends’ king.

The two of us were now walking through one of the mineshafts, which was far less cramped than I thought it might be. After much discussion, we had finally accepted the request of the kobolds. As soon as I agreed, two things happened. One: the kobolds all brightened up, very pleased with my response. Two: my panel opened up very suddenly.

[Surprise challenge triggered: ‘Quest: The Adamant Fiends’]

Adeline ducked under one of the lanterns hanging from the ceiling as she walked, turning to look at me as she continued, “What do you make of all this? It just seems odd. I’ve heard of quests, sure, but never like this -- I didn’t even know the fey were real before this. I just thought they were wives’ tales…”

I was staring down at a map of the mines that we were given. The shafts branched off in different places, and were meticulously placed and organized. Nonetheless, the map would be necessary to get through this place with the sheer size of it. “I think that they simply need help. And.. W-well.. Either way, this will probably lead to more rewards, will it not?”

Adeline nodded, “Mm. I agree. I’m interested in seeing this ‘king of fiends’, anyways. Sounds like a dungeon boss if I’ve ever heard of one. And, speaking honestly, the surprise challenge last time gave us rewards far better than what we should’ve gotten. I’m almost happy it’s happened again.”

We walked for a while longer, and I made certain to mark the path we were taking on the map with dirt from the ground of the mineshaft. It would be no good to get lost in this place. Spells existed for exactly this sort of thing, I had heard, but it wasn’t within my repertoire.

I had thought about leaving behind a strand of mana with me as I walked, but I suspected a lone thread would break if I attempted to leave it too far away from myself. That was just the feeling I got as a mage.

But it wouldn’t hurt to try, would it..?

I delicately moved mana from my heart to my hand, sending a thread out and letting it drop to the ground. So long as I kept ‘unspooling’ more mana as we walked, it would stay there. Or so my theory went. Minutes past, and I watched the mana counter on my status panel, waiting for it to tick down. After five minutes of walking, the counter ticked down by one. I couldn’t quite tell if the thread had broken yet, though. I had a slight sense through mana I manipulated; but as it went on, it almost felt oddly ‘numb’ compared to the rest.

I decided to continue my little experiment regardless. It might have brought some useful knowledge about how mana worked.

My eyes were drawn to Adeline as she moved her head. Suddenly, her gaze shifted up from the ground below, towards something in the distance. “Finally, our first hit.”