The gate immediately closed behind them. Lyall and Luther had no chance to adjust their eyes to the sudden darkness when they were ushered into a metal wagon with an additional seat at the front for a driver—theirs a female dwarf named Naedryn—to push buttons and set levers to guide the vehicle along its track. That track followed the far edge perimeter of the city, much to Lyall’s gentle disappointment. However, the effused light sparkling upon the bend they approached stuck him to the inner side of the wagon where he didn’t realize how far he’d come to lean. 

“Perrine is the city above. Our city is called Cendrukor,” Naedryn, young with a curly beard only an inch from her chin, motioned. “Roughly translated, it means under the stars.” 

Cendrukor was a friend of the void cloaked in the splendor of a dying dusk one breath away from night. The cavernous ceiling cast in darkness borrowed the depth of the endless heavens, and pockets of light from gaps unseen scattered diffused sunlight upon natural flecks in the stone birthing illusory stars. Lyall’s eyes flicked furiously finding hopping flashes of bright colors amongst the silver. Were there gems left embedded? The intent watch leaving spots in his vision, Lyall sank his gaze to the city itself. Distant, damp mist tickled his nose as a wide river mysteriously sourced cut through the highest platform of naturally settled rock before cascading upon the next platform and the next and the next before disappearing out of sight into the black where even the halo of golden glow hovering over the city could not reach. Streets as full and busy as any Lyall’d seen above bustled dwarves and the few visitors along as ants in a hill between their vaulted, decorated homes and business grown right from the stone beneath them. 

Fifteen minutes passed before Lyall’s nose crinkled at how long silence had been permitted to exist. He whipped around and pouted discovering Luther sitting and watching him with all the amusement of a parent entertained by their child’s fascination of something long mundane to them. 

“Pardon. Please ignore me,” Luther apologized. It was sincere enough, but the corners of his lips couldn’t fully lie flat. 

“I will gladly do so,” Lyall bantered. He resumed his viewing of the city with his own tiny grin. 

Naedryn brought them lower and lower. Lyall didn’t realize the temperature was dropping as his fixation was so great on seeing how buildings fit together between cracks, around juttings, and on ledges like pieces in some gargantuan puzzle. Gray smoke hissed up in countless towers above a sea of smelteries and forges, mixing into a pungent cloud that caught on stalactites cutting it into helpless pieces and meeting a wispy death high above. Titan-sized rock columns erupted from the void below to reach to the now unseen cavern height. Luther summoned a barrier keeping them and the wagon clean when a swarm of unusually large bats squeaked a chaotic chorus flying from some dark hole to whatever other dark hole they sought. Finally, the wagon stopped where the city fell away and a series of sloping roads and elevators took control. 

“Marnis, I’ve got the spider slayers!” Naedryn shouted without shame towards a cluster of twelve dwarves conversing by the main tunnel heading down. A female dwarf with mighty forearms, a strong nose, and rubies twisted into her silver locks approached. Naedryn smacked her chest hard and stood in her seat. “They don’t look like the wimps who came last time!” 

“They don’t, but everyone always has a chance to prove they can be anything they want to be!” Marnis goaded, largely with tease, and gave Lyall and Luther a dramatic wink. “Welcome, lanks! I’m Marnis, the mine boss on duty today. I know why you’re here, and you know why you’re here. I’ll escort you down to the shaft where we’re having troubles, you go off and do your thing, and you’ll hopefully come back not running for your very lives with, somehow, your pants missing. Good?” 

“Most good,” Luther affirmed, swinging himself over the side of the wagon and leaping off. Lyall hesitated, looked at the back of the wagon supposed to be used for dismounting, and copied his partner. 

Marnis didn’t wait for or care for a response from Lyall too. She started her way towards an arcane elevator. Lyall noticed the temperature dropping now and started to shiver, jealous that Luther seemingly had no issue with the chill. The elevator quickly depositing them nine levels below popped Lyall’s ears but stepping off into a long tunnel heading left and right—they went left—ushered in a new sensation far more unpleasant. However, Lyall didn’t understand what was unpleasant, and the feeling trickled in slowly enough for him to try and brush it aside as their trio began a long walk. Marnis instructed Lyall and Luther on the basic dwarvish needed to follow the directional and warning signs, pointed out the tubes mounted to the ceiling pumping fresh air, and bellyached about slacking employees. 

“I have a curiosity about the job on a broader sense,” Luther asked when there was an opening for speech. “It’s my impression most dwarves learn some manner of combat skill in their life. The spiders we are to face, although large, are not a grave threat on the ranking of all threats. What necessitates this being a job posted at the adventuring guild?” 

“Damn politics,” Marnis scoffed. “The Ironhold mountains don’t have a connection with the deep crust. No matter how far we go down, we’re not going to run into the races living deep because they’re just not in this area. Even so, that peace treaty signed with the spider queen made any dwarf squashing a spider bigger than our hand a cultural taboo even if the spider queen doesn’t give a shit about these kinds of spiders. We have to get someone else here to squash ‘em for us.” 

“Interesting,” Luther pulled out a small notebook and pencil from his pocket and blurred his hand writing. He glanced at Lyall. “I think I prefer bigger spiders. That way you always know where they are, yes?” 

“Y-Yes.” 

“Are you alright?” Luther frowned, shoving the notebook away and halting. “I don’t mind that my joke did not land, but your complexion glistens sallow.” 

“Complexion glistens sallow,” Marnis huffed under her breath. “You wizards and your fancy words.” 

“I am alright. It’s just...” Lyall ignored her. “I felt off once we reached this level, and I can’t figure out why. It is like I am dizzy or my ears are muted, but neither is true. A sense that I didn’t know I had as a sense is disoriented, but...what sense would that be?” 

Luther put his warm palm on Lyall’s forehead. It felt nice, but the odd sensation didn’t lessen. Marnis, on the other hand, vocalized a noise of recognition. 

“I thought you seemed prettier than most. You’re a half-elf, aren’t you?” 

“I am.” 

“That’s it then. We had another one of you come through here a while ago. Hmm, maybe about two-hundred years ago? Anyway, she said the same thing. You’ve gone so deep you’ve been disconnected from feeling all the plants and whatnot.” 

Lyall couldn’t help but laugh, which made Luther retreat his hand. “I am learning much about myself going on these jobs. I saw the creation lines for the first time a week ago, and now I see I’m more connected to energies in the world than I thought.” 

“You saw the creation lines?” Luther’s hand inched towards the notebook again. 

“Oh, I’d love to hear about that! There are many great pubs in Cendrukor to tell stories over drinks,” Marnis nodded eagerly. 

“I only have permission to be down here for the job,” Lyall teased. 

“Hmm, well, maybe I can pull a few favors...” she mumbled. 

“In any case, are you well to continue?” Luther checked, leaning close and staring deep into Lyall’s eyes. Lyall hid how his next swallow was slower. 

“Yes. I am physically fine. Merely a little unnerved, and less so in knowing the cause.” 

“Honestly, as long as either of you are capable of setting the webs on fire, that pretty much takes care of things. I really don’t know how that other group messed up so badly last time,” Marnis shrugged. “We’re almost there. C’mon.” 

With the mystery solved, the job soon began. Marnis showed them the new shaft splitting off towards the end of the main one and escorted them halfway. Lyall and Luther each earned a pat on their arm before her departure. Magical lights kept the surprisingly smooth shaft on the less ominous side of things, yet it wasn’t long before a black maw of uneven stone burrowing into the mountain marked the entrance of their work. Luther flicked his fingers to conjure a light much like Cylon’s. 

“I’ve fought giant spiders once before,” Luther spoke softly. “Setting everything on fire can be effective, but it also guarantees a swarm upon you. I’m capable of quickly burning away the webs at our feet to allow a stealthier approach and a more manageable flow of enemies.” 

“Sensible and preferred,” Lyall agreed. 

“I will take the lead. Your bow will be the best—” Luther scoffed amusedly, for Lyall already worked on preparing it and his quiver. “Please alert me if my suggestions strife into the realm of bossy.” 

“No worries so far,” Lyall grinned. 

“Onwards then.” 

The unnerving sensation faded from Lyall’s chest having the distraction of work. He breathed slowly at the conflicting air hanging both damp and dry, and Luther’s hands glowing red to instantly burn and quench, burn and quench the webs soon stringing the walls like a giant’s stretched snot added unmoving smoke that only stung his eyes. Avoiding the pebbles crunching under their feet was impossible. In barely more than a minute, a rotund, bulbous figure shifted in the darkness ahead. The eyes of the giant spider clicking determinedly in their direction had the briefest of seconds to shine before Lyall’s swift draw and release pierced clean through its head. It dropped and heavily squelched to the ground. Vibrations shaking the snotty web pulsed down the darkness and then back. Another arrow already ready to nock, the two spiders next to investigate the disturbance joined their companion in its upside-down, curled legs position. 

“I seem to have blocked the way,” Lyall noted dryly at the obstructed narrow passage after a long moment without other enemies revealing themselves. 

“If I may have your elbow...” Luther cheerfully clasped his hand around the bend of Lyall’s arm. In a blink, existence vanished, reformed, and put them on the other side of the spiders. Lyall clenched his teeth and maintained his balance. Waiting until he was steady, Luther clapped his back. “Teleporting is my specialty.” 

“That’s handy.” 

“No. That’s elbow-y,” Luther pointed to Lyall’s elbow that he still held. There was a pause. Luther coughed sheepishly. “I know, I know. Forget I said it.” 

“I appreciate the effort,” Lyall found a chuckle. 

“I would rather the laugh be from the joke than—ah. Spider.” 

Luther spoke without urgency. Lyall shot with plenty of time to not fret about his first arrow not taking the beast immediately out like the others. Eleven more spiders went down in similar fashion, and Luther put forth his best effort to make up for his bad joke by trying several others. He managed a good chuckle right before it became especially obvious they were a team well-matched yet overpowered for the job. They crept upon the den not fifteen minutes later, Luther’s singular brush of his arm erupted the walls in an inferno of flame, and Lyall and Luther spun around in perfect harmony in the center with Lyall now swinging his sword to strike down the few that escaped burning alive while Luther kept himself and Lyall’s back safe with a magical barrier. The worst issue came from the thick smoke of the fire. However, Luther killed the flames with the snap of his finger as soon as every spider was dead. They investigated the jagged space and found a tunnel continuing on, but signs of any spiders rapidly faded. 

“They wanted this den gone, not for us to track their original origin,” Luther considered. 

“There’s your alliteration,” Lyall smiled. 

“Yes. Although, I suppose ‘original origin’ is rather redundant,” Luther tapped his nose. “This tunnel shrinks considerably. Let’s leave it for the boss to figure out how they want to deal with the space past this instead of blindly charging into unstable rock.” 

“I agree.” 

“Elbow, please.” 

Lyall permitted the touch. Luther returned them to where the new shaft was interrupted by the natural vein. Assuming a long walk back was in order, Lyall tilted his head at Luther picking up a rock to put in his pocket with the notebook and then taking his elbow yet again to pop them where they’d gotten off the wagon. The dwarves milling about the area leapt, shouted, and swore. One threw a rag Lyall smoothly dodged before the others called him off realizing what was going on. 

“You’re done already?!” Naedryn gushed, still in the driver’s seat. 

“And we kept our pants,” Lyall smirked. 

“Wow. Marnis hasn’t even made it back!” 

At that, the largest elevator hummed its ascendance to a slowing stop. The doors whooshed open, Marnis stepped out, and she froze locking eyes with Lyall. 

“Aww, what the fuck!?”

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Until the next chapter is available, these other Action Fantasy entries are sure to entertain you. Links to each are in the description below.

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