A human woman stepped towards him. She had Asian features and olive skin. He guessed that her hair would have been blond it hadn’t been so dirty and matted. She wasn’t wearing clothes so much as rags, and bruises dotted her body. One eye was swollen shut. Despite all that, Richter could see that at her core she was a beauty. Her chest was small, but it tapered to ample hips, and her features were fine. He could only imagine what she had suffered at the hands of the goblins. It made the fact that she still had a fierce gaze even more shocking and impressive.
“You are Lord Richter?” she asked in common-speak. Her tone was sure. It contrasted completely with the broken appearance of most of the other prisoners.
“I am,” he replied.
She bowed her head, “I imagine that you did not come here merely to free us. Still I thank you from the depths of my heart, and will do whatever I can to repay this debt.”
“You’re right,” Richter said. “You do not need to worry about any of that now, though. This isn’t a trick. Just go with the others.”
“No,” she said firmly. She stepped in his way as he tried to walk past. “I am honor bound to repay this debt to you.”
Richter blinked in confusion. Who was this woman? Who would voluntarily stay in these caves after having been used for slave labor? He used Analyze and found that her name was Enalise. He also found out much more.
Name: Enalise Race: Human Disposition: Admiring
Humans are one of the shortest-lived, but most prolific breeders in the Land. Humans have a broader affinity for skills than other races. No special bonuses to race. Humans get four points to distribute per level. Profession: Miner. Profession: Crafter.
Level: 17
Health: 126/190 Mana: 130 Stamina: 177/350
Strength: 22
Agility: 18
Dexterity: 22
Constitution: 19
Endurance: 35
Intelligence: 13
Wisdom: 11
Charisma: 18
Luck: 19
She was the first person he had ever met with two Professions! Richter took another look at her. He had initially been distracted by both his anger at her treatment and her beauty. There was probably a lesson in that, but he was too busy reassessing her to really pay attention to such a trivial matter. Now that he was paying more attention, he could see that her arms were extremely well toned. She didn’t have the giant muscles of a warrior, but her biceps, triceps and deltoids were well-defined. Enalise just returned his gaze as he studied her.
Richter came to a decision. There was probably much more that he didn’t know about the strong-willed woman, but she was willing to help. He couldn’t afford to waste time wandering around in dark. “I’ll accept your offer, but only if you let me heal you first.”
Her face became somewhat guarded, but she still nodded with almost no hesitation. Richter raised one hand and cast his spells in quick succession. Weak Slow Heal, Weak Cure Disease, and Weak Cure Poison. He finished with a fifth casting, Weak Detect Hostile Intent. The chaos seed had fallen for the damsel in distress act once before. The consequence of that mistake still literally gave him nightmares that made him wake up drenched in sweat. He was relieved when Enalise did not start glowing red in response to his last spell. His breath caught, though when the sac tied to his waist started to shine a sinister scarlet.
Richter stared at the large pouch holding the Bloodstone for long seconds, until Sion walked up behind them and touched his arm. The chaos seed started but came back to himself. Putting the relic out of his mind, at least for the moment, he focused on finishing the mission. Reaching into his Bag of Holding, he pulled a shirt out and handed it to the Miner.
“If you’re going to come with me, I can’t have you walking around in naught but your skin,” he said. She took the shirt and after slipping it on, she tied her old rags around her waist like a belt. “I just wish I had some boots for you.”
“Do not worry, Lord Richter. I have been walking around in these sandals for months.”
“Months!” Sion exclaimed. “Have the goblins truly been here so long?”
“No,” she said bitterly. “They brought me here from another settlement.” The three of them started walking quickly towards the back of the cavern. The shale adder slid behind them, unseen and unheard, only a few feet from Enalise. Richter didn’t think he had anything to fear from the woman, but despite his feeling and his spell, he wasn’t taking any chances. After all, his Detect Hostile Intent spell was only of the weak rank. He was sure it wasn’t infallible. Blissfully unaware of the predator following her, Enalise told her short but tragic tale.
She and three friends had been exploring a cave system in the Serrated Mountains late last year. They had been snowed in, but it wasn’t anything they hadn’t planned for. She came from Rione, the kingdom north of the mountains, and it wasn’t uncommon for mining teams to be gone for an entire winter. There were even underground outposts made specifically for the purpose of supplying such teams and also for mutual defense.
Enalise had been asleep when the goblins attacked. They usually didn’t range so close to the surface. The soldiers of Rione were known to be deadly and ruthless. The goblins were not fools, however, and kept an eye on the weather. Because the entrance to the surface was blocked by snow and ice, they had executed a nearly perfect raid. A few members of the settlement were lucky enough to escape, but she had not. Still, she added, she had been luckier than her friends. Her eyes grew hooded while she relived those horrible memories. Richter didn’t press.
When the goblins had found out about her level and skills, they had stopped using her just for menial and pleasure labor. Enalise said the last dispassionately, and just continued her story. She had been moved to different locations and put to work as a Miner. Enalise had only been brought here within the past few weeks.
“At the end of this cavern, tunnels snake away in many directions. Myself and the other prisoners have been sent down many different tunnels. I do not know why. We were just told to dig.”
“Why is that strange?” Richter asked. “You’re a Miner.”
She looked at him oddly for a moment, wondering how he knew that without being told, but still answered, “Every other time I have been moved to a new location, it was to mine a specific resource: copper, iron or salt. This time, it was almost as if they had us searching for something, but they never told us what. With my Miner Profession, I found small veins of base metals, but nothing that would justify their strategy. I even found a vein of silver ore, though it was only as long as my arm, and it tapped out soon.”
“Do you have any idea why they moved you around so much?” Sion asked.
“Not exactly, she said, “but I have an idea.”