Page 11 of The Goblin's Mine

When the attack comes, I sense it too late—we all do—because it comes fromabove. Once again, those damned tubes in the mountains come into play, except this time the hobgoblinsare using them on purpose. They’ve been cultivated for surprise attacks.

The creatures are between two and three feet tall, with sallow green skin, red eyes, and huge ears. They have fangs and claws, and they are far uglier and more vicious than Kill described.

They are alsocopious.

There must be ten of them for every one of us, and they descend through the ceiling with hideous, high-pitched screeches. Two immediately jump on me, and despite their small size, they are incredibly strong. I scream and try to detach them, but they grip tightly. One has my arms in its claws and the other has sunk sharp teeth into my leg.

Moving so swiftly he’s nearly a blur, Kill whirls around to me. He rips away the one on my arm, tossing it into the cave wall. With a downward slash, he rakes his knife through the other one, kicking it when it releases my leg.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“I think?” I’m definitely injured and bleeding, but it’s probably not life threatening.

Kill nods and spins again, taking down another hobgoblin just as it leaps into the air. He slashes under its belly and it howls as it falls to the ground.

“This is a fucking swarm!” someone shouts, and whoever it is, he’s not wrong. These little gremlins are every-fucking-where.

They’re still dropping from above, stout little things with powerful legs that allow them to leap among us. I catch sight of Flynn using his strength to his full advantage. He plucks one from the ground and breaks its neck with a crunch. He grabs two more and crashes their skulls together before dropping them. I don’t know if they’re dead or unconscious, but they certainly aren’t moving.

I see Conor lift a small, lightweight bow and begin firing arrows left and right. He uses his superior height to shoot rightthrough their faces and necks, taking them out in the grimmest of ways.

I’m doing the best I can, kicking and slashing with the hunting knife I brought with me, but I’m not a trained fighter. And these things just keep coming. What they lack in size, they make up for in numbers, and suddenly, I understand their tactic. They’re driving us apart, herding us in various directions to weaken us. I shout to Kill, trying to let him know what’s happening, but a hobgoblin lands on my back and drags its talons down my neck.

I screech and throw myself backward into a wall, completely losing sight of the men I came with. The impact is enough to shake the creature loose, but it accomplished its objective. I’ve been driven into a side tunnel, completely apart from my group.

And still, more hobgoblins are coming.

Injured and alone, I don’t have any choice.

I turn away from the fray and run.

CHAPTER FIVE

NATALIE

I haveno idea where I’m going. No idea where this tunnel leads. All I have is my flashlight to guide the way, and I pray I don’t come to any dead ends. Once I got far enough away, the hobgoblins stopped chasing me, so I assume I’m safely out of their territory. Of course, that’s a small comfort. Who knows what else dwells in these underground caves? Shit, for all I know, I could fall off a ledge or stumble into a river.

I shake my head, chastising myself. Seriously, what did I think I was doing? I threw some snacks in a backpack and just marched into a cave, like I was totally prepared for whatever might come my way. That’s laughable. I have zero cave experience and no real idea what kind of normal animals might live here, much less cryptids. Kill came right out and told me that the goblins voted to murder me, and the hobgoblins made their intentions clear too.

I’m a fool.

A filthy, bloody, dumbass whose family was right. I need to stop fucking around with my life and actually get it together.What did I even hope to gain by proving monsters are real? Family respect? Please. If I wanted that, all I’d have to do is call Griffin and ask how to best help the town. He’d give me some assignment and that would be that. I’d be a proper Bishop.

Except…I’ve never wanted that.

I’ve never wanted to organize a festival or renovate a lodge or run for public office. I don’t want to own a store or build on the family legacy. I want something forme. I want to be respected for beingNatalie, not for being a Bishop. And I couldn’t do it with any of my previous hobbies, so I decided to become a monster hunter.

What a joke.

I swat a tear from my cheek. I don’t know if I’m crying because of the pain of getting bitten and slashed, or because I’m realizing how depressing my life is. It’s probably both. And honestly, the best thing to do for both is to go home. Get some antibiotics and have a come-to-Jesus with Haven, who I trust to help me find my way.

With a sniffle and a renewed sense of purpose, I continue my way through the tunnels. It’s a complete maze, and there’s no real way to tell which way I’m going, but I know that ultimately I need to head up. So I do my best to stick to paths that seem like they might ascend, and I follow sounds of water when I hear it, hoping the underwater rivers and streams are fed by the lake. Even if I come out twenty miles from my house, at least I’ll be aboveground.

I don’t know how long I’ve been trudging when I finally hear something that makes my heart sing: footsteps. I don’t know what’s making them, but whatever it is sounds bipedal, so I’m happy to take a chance.

“Hello?” I call out.

“Natalie?” a deep voice responds, making me frown.

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