The afternoon sun drifted towards evening, and birdsong was replaced by the chirping of insects as light began to fade in the tranquil forest clearing. Jade, Naomi, and Luis spent the hours all sharing their various class abilities, spells, and talents, as well as comparing stats and going over their experiences so far. Jade took the opportunity to explain the circumstances behind her transformation into a demon and why it had been necessary, which Luis and Naomi were both very interested to hear. She showed them the bloody remnants of the shirt she had been wearing when she entered the Labyrinth, and they accepted her story with only a few clarifying questions. After that, the discussion turned to the strange and unfamiliar mechanics of the world they now found themselves mired in.

It turned out that, with a 10 in agility, Jade had the highest single ability score of the group. Exactly how big of a difference there was between each point in a score was something none of them knew yet, though that was on the list of things Jade wanted to ask Damos when next she saw him.

Luis had chosen the 'Spell Guardian' class, a tank class that specialized in defensive magic and melee combat. He currently had 1 spell and 1 talent. The talent 'Guardian Dash' was simple, allowing him to increase his movement speed for a short duration, with an increased speed boost if he was moving towards an ally. Jade was new to fighting in general, but she was quickly learning that anything that let you get around the battlefield more quickly was a very good tool to have at your disposal.

The spell he had was just as team oriented, making Jade wonder about the individual focus of her own abilities. His spell, called 'Shield Burst', did not do what she initially expected when he told her the name. Jade first envisioned some sort of exploding shield that damaged enemies, but instead it conjured a shield around the caster as well as their nearby allies. The caster received full strength barrier, and their allies got a diminished shield with power proportional to how far away they were when the spell was cast.

"That sounds great." Jade said, after Luis had finished explaining it to her. "Why didn't you cast that when we were fighting the goblins?"

He grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Ahh… I forgot about it. Still new to all of this. Yesterday I was fixing cars in my uncle's shop. Today I'm casting spells and fighting monsters in a crazy new dimension."

"I can relate." Jade said, dryly.

"Don't games usually come with a way to carry all the stuff you find?" Naomi asked. "Because it'd be great if we could take all of this food and water with us. But I think we'd have a hard time walking with all of this… let alone fighting."

"You're right." Luis said. "We need an inventory. Maybe there is one, and we just haven't learned about it yet?"

The three of them dug through their menus, exploring various options, but found no trace of any inventory or storage system. There was a 'party' system, however. It allowed them to track each other on their maps, as well as pull up indicators of each member's current status. They experimented, forming a party with the three of them. To trigger it, they each had to touch their Wayfarer marks together. After they'd all tapped the back of their hands together, a new section appeared in the corner of Jade's vision listing her party members and some summarized information on them.

"Huh…" Jade said, examining the status pages of her party members. This would make it a lot easier to keep track of each other. "This will be helpful."

"I'd rather have a way to carry our stuff." Luis griped. "Whoever is running this place is cheaping out on us."

"Maybe we'll find a bag of holding somewhere." Jade suggested.

"Bag of holding?" Naomi asked.

"You know, bigger on the inside? Dungeons and Dragons?"

"You didn't seem like the DnD type to me." Luis said, giving Jade an appraising look. "More like the cheerleader type."

"Maybe more of us would play those games if that wasn't the response we always got." She said, giving him a flat look.

"Hey, my bad." Luis said, holding up his hands. "I think it's awesome. Anyway, I hope we do find one. We could really use it."

"Do you think there are a lot of Sanctuaries?" Naomi asked, looking around at the darkening forest. "Maybe it won't be a problem, if they all have food."

"Maybe." Jade said. "There's got to be some way to get food. We should look for more."

"Just make sure you leave something for the rest of us." Naomi said to Luis. "How are you eating so much? Where does it go?"

Luis had already made a noticeable dent in the Sanctuary's food stores, despite only having discovered them about an hour ago. Jade had no idea where the man was putting the calories, he was tall, but not especially large.

"Those goblins didn't feed us." He protested, putting down another finished can of sausage. "Besides, this stuff is pretty good!"

"I'm sure there's plenty. It probably, like, regenerates or something." Jade said. "That'd be the least weird part of all this."

Next, they moved on to discussing Naomi's abilities. Her 'Idol' class was actually a variant of the 'Bard' class and, as Jade had surmised earlier, was music themed. She had started with three spells, the most out of any of them, and two of them were support oriented.

"I have a spell that gives a little healing to everyone I choose nearby." She said timidly. "I don't know how much use that will be in a fight, I think it's pretty slow. And there's a limit to the kinds of wounds it can help mend. But it could be useful for getting fixed up after a battle, and I can keep it going as long as I keep playing. And as long as I have mana."

She patted the guitar for emphasis.

"Anything that keeps us healthy is good." Jade said. "What else?"

"There's another song… er… spell, that I can cast. Or is it play? What do you call it for bards? Anyway, it says it gives everyone nearby a speed boost while I'm playing it."

"Those both sound great for us." Luis said. "Do you have anything for you, though? Something that doesn't need a friend nearby to work?"

"Um.. Yeah…" Naomi said, staring off into space with an unfocused gaze that Jade was rapidly beginning to associate with reading the private system menus. "My last spell is Sonic Boom. It's a blast of sound that does 'sonic damage' and can knock enemies away… It sounds scary…" She added.

"There are a lot of scary things out there, too." Jade pointed out. "We need scary. Scary is good."

"If that's what we need, I'm glad I'm with you." Naomi said, looking Jade up and down.

"Me?" Jade frowned.

"You're pretty intense, amiga." Luis confirmed, patting her on the back. "But don't worry! That's probably a good thing here. I like you."

"Oh…" Jade didn't know what to say to that. That wasn't the image she'd thought she'd been giving off. Then she remembered. Images of ramming her dagger through the necks of goblins flashed before her eyes, and she suddenly felt cold. No, she couldn't think about that, not yet. She didn't want to process what was happening, or what she had done.

I had to do it. They would have killed us.

That was probably true, and it made dealing with her emotions a little easier. But it didn't make them go away. Not entirely.

"Next time, I'm going to be more like you." Naomi said quietly. She was biting her lip, and Jade could see her shaking. Was she afraid? Angry? She couldn't tell. "I won't be someone who needs to be protected."

"With those spells, sounds like you'll be protecting us." Luis said. "If RPGs are anything to go by, we have a good group here! A support." He pointed to Naomi. "A tank." He pointed at himself. "And a DPS." He gestured towards Jade. "That's a pretty balanced party for three!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Naomi said. "But I'm glad you think I'll be helpful."

"I don't think I'm a DPS." Jade said. "Not entirely, anyway."

"You're close enough." He said, waving her concerns away. "Your sexy succubus powers are just a bonus! Hey, when we get out, you're probably going to have a fan club."

"Or a one way ticket to a government black site." Jade muttered. "I'm literally a demon. People will probably call me the antichrist."

"Don't be so dramatic." Luis said. "We'll work it out! You'll see."

He grinned at her. Jade just shook her head, bemused.

"And what about you?" Naomi asked quietly. "What else can you do? Can you fly?"

"Ugh. I wish." Jade groaned. "What's the point of having wings if you can't fly? I'm hoping I get to once I level up more. These keep getting in the way." She fluttered her wings, extending them and then folding them behind her. They kept getting caught on doorways, much to her chagrin.

"That'd be great! I wish I could've picked your race…" Luis said.

"Somehow, I don't think you qualified for it." Jade said dryly.

Jade went on to give the pair a brief description of her spells and abilities, starting with her racial features. Her transformation ability in particular required a lengthy explanation.

"So, you can turn into anything?" Luis asked, fascinated.

"It feels like it has limits, but I haven't had time to experiment." Jade said. "It takes a lot of focus."

"And you get faster and stronger in the demon form?" Naomi asked.

Jade nodded. "Apparently. But my willpower takes a big hit."

She really wanted to know how big of a deal that penalty was. The lowered mana regeneration would be a pain, but did having a lowered willpower come with other downsides? There was so much she didn't know.

"I can't believe your spells get more powerful when you're tied up." Naomi said, covering her mouth to hide a grin. It was the first time Jade had seen her smile.

"I dunno." Luis said. "Sounds exactly like the kind of power a succubus would have, to me."

"We could keep you tied up, and carry you around with us." Naomi suggested, eyes sparkling with mirth. Jade gave her a flat look, and Luis and Naomi laughed.

"It works on enemies too." Jade said, defending the ability. She blushed, looking away from the pair. "But it is kind of ridiculous…" She admitted.

"It helped free us from that camp." Luis pointed out. "So I'm not complaining."

After the three of them were done sharing info on their abilities and skills, the discussion turned to what to do next. Naomi wanted to wait for one of the Labyrinth attendants would show up again, but Jade didn't feel comfortable sitting idly. They had no idea if or when Damos or Shari would return, and sitting here wasn't getting them any closer to escaping the Labyrinth. To her mild surprise, Luis sided with her.

"We need to make sure those goblins didn't follow us here." He said, uncharacteristically serious. "And if they did, we need to do something about it."

"Do you think they're waiting outside?" Jade asked.

"We didn't go that far. They live in that junkyard, they have to know about this place."

"Then why didn't they come in?" Naomi asked.

"They probably can't." Jade said. "Not while we're in here. These Sanctuaries are clearly meant to be some sort of safe place."

"What do we do if they are waiting out there?" Naomi asked, giving a concerned look to the magical door that stood at the edge of the forest clearing.

Jade shared a look with Luis.

"We persuade them to leave."

 

---

 

As it turned out, there were goblins waiting for them in the factory. Jade discovered this when she cracked the door open to peak outside. The high catwalk leading to the entrance was clear, but another overlooking walkway had a pair of goblins standing sentry. She caught sight of a few others on some of the lower levels as well, and then quickly closed the door before any of them noticed her looking outside. Jade cursed under her breath. She'd been hoping the goblins wouldn't be so dedicated to pursuing them.

As soon as she closed the door, a new notification appeared.

 

• New Quest: Cornered.
• Escaping the goblin camp was a good first step, but now they've followed you to a Sanctuary. There's only one way out, and it's through them. Goblins are stubborn hunters. Once they have their sights set on a prey, they don't back down. Not unless you make them.
• Objective: Defeat or escape from the goblin pursuers.
• Reward: Low experience gain.
• Reward: Class equipment.

 

"They're out there. At least five or six." She said to the others. "One of them is a lot bigger than the rest, and has a big fancy sword. He's probably some kind of leader. I just got a quest to either defeat them or escape from them."

"I got that too." Luis said, dismissing his notifications. "If we defeat their leader, maybe the others will give up. Show them we're too tough to mess with."

"Good idea." Jade agreed. "I don't think we'll have an easy time getting past them without fighting. Not at the top of this factory place. The big guy was one level down, but it looked like he was heading up here. If we go out soon, we might be able to catch him while he's on the ladder."

"Can't we just wait here?" Naomi asked, sounding frightened. "They can't get in here, right?"

"We can't stay here forever, Naomi." Jade said. "I don't want to do this either, but if we wait, they might just bring more backup. There are only a few out there right now, but there were a lot at that camp. We should get away from here while we have the chance."

"Are we sure they're here to fight? Maybe we can talk it out..."

"I don't want to hurt anyone either, but I'm pretty sure they were going to either eat us or enslave us." Luis said grimly. "Or enslave us, and then eat us. I'm not going to give them a chance to hurt anyone else. We need to get out of here, deal with them, then find somewhere safer."

Naomi swallowed, then nodded. She took a deep breath and shouldered her guitar, strumming the strings once. She could adjust the guitar to be as loud or as quiet as she liked using a dial on one side of it. Right now it sounded as though it was being piped through an amp, except the sound came directly from the instrument. Jade had no idea how that worked, but it was pretty convenient.

"O-ok. I'm ready."

She didn't sound especially ready, but the young woman had a determined look in her eyes. Jade nodded, turning to Luis.

"So, go for the big one?"

"Sounds like a plan. Should we check one more time?"

"Let's catch them by surprise. I don't want them to notice that we're watching."

Luis nodded, drawing his greatsword. The weapon was enormous, even in the hands of such a large man. Jade spared a moment being impressed that he could handle it with relative ease. It couldn't have been as easy as he made it look.

"I'll try to keep the small ones away from you." Naomi said, clutching her guitar in a white knuckled grip.

"Thanks." Jade said. "If it goes south, we'll run back in here and come up with a new plan."

"We've got this." Luis said. He took a deep breath, then set his shoulders. "Now let's go find a way home, yeah?"

Jade and Naomi exchanged a glance, then nodded. None of them wanted to do this, but they weren't left with any other options. After a moment's thought, Jade shifted back into her demon form. If they were about to fight, she would need all the power she could get.

Alan. Jade thought, squeezing the hilt of her dagger. I'm coming home.

He'd been fighting his own battle for years. A grueling, thankless campaign filled with challenge and pain. Now it was Jade's turn to fight.

Luis counted down from three, flinging the door open and leaping out onto the catwalk as the count hit zero, sword in hand. Jade and Naomi stormed out behind him, weapons, and instruments, at the ready. The catwalk wasn't quite wide enough to safely walk two abreast, much less fight side by side, so they stayed slightly behind him as he charged towards the ladder at the end of the platform.

The large goblin that Jade had seen earlier had just reached the top of the ladder and was starting to pull himself up onto their level. He froze in surprise as the Sanctuary door burst open and the three humans charged directly at him but recovered quickly, managing to haul himself to his feet before they could close the distance. The large goblin, who Jade noted was almost as tall as she was, did not have time to draw the blade strapped to his back before Luis was on him, swinging his large greatsword in a wide arc.

The goblin was still standing at the edge of the high catwalk. With nowhere to go he stepped into the strike, catching Luis's blade on a forearm bracer and partially deflecting the blow. The impact was still enough to stagger the creature, and a spray of blood burst from a gash on his arm as he snarled, kicking Luis and sending him stumbling backward.

"You're going to regret that!" He growled at Luis, his voice much deeper and more menacing than that of his smaller kin. "Kill the other two! Leave that one to me."

Yeah… We definitely aren't going to talk our way past this guy…

Jade counted five other goblins scattered across various catwalks and conveyer belts. Most of them were on lower levels, but two were up at the top with them on another platform. Before any of them could join the battle, she examined their leader.

 

• Groll
• Level: 5 (Mark of the Wayfarer)
• Race: Hobgoblin
• Class: Berserker
• Origin: Labyrinth-immigrant

 

He's a wayfarer too?! Jade didn't like the sound of that, nor the fact that he was a higher level than any of them. She wasn't entirely sure what the difference between a 'goblin' and a 'hobgoblin' was, but thought it had to do with why this creature was quite a bit larger.

Jade didn't have many options for ranged attacks, which left her in a tricky situation. She drew her wand and took aim at Groll, intending to fire a 'Clinging Darkness' at him. But Luis was in between them, and the platform wasn't wide enough for her to move to get a safer shot. Before she could line up her attack properly, an arrow clanged against the catwalk near her feet. The two goblins on the adjacent catwalk had equipped bows and were aiming in her direction.

"Stay away from my friends!" Naomi shouted, strumming her guitar with surprising force. A blast of sound burst from the instrument in a cone in front of her, rippling through the intervening air and slamming into the pair of goblins. Jade could actually see the shockwave propagate through the air, and even though she wasn't in its path it was loud. The wave of force sent the goblins stumbling backwards, only there wasn't anywhere for them to go. They tumbled off the narrow catwalk, screeching in terror as they plummeted dozens of feet down to splatter across the concrete floor far below. Naomi stared down at ground level with wide eyes, mouth open in shock. The guitar fell from her hands to hang from its shoulder strap, still buzzing with residual energy.

Holy shit. Jade thought, momentarily distracted.

A loud clang drew her attention back to the main fight, Groll had managed to draw his sword and was now pressing Luis back across the catwalk towards them.

"Great job Naomi!" Jade said, shaking her to get her attention. "Now we have to help Luis!"

Naomi blinked, looking dazed, then shook her head. "Right. Right!" She said, returning to her senses. "I'll help!"

Satisfied that Naomi still had her head, Jade charged towards where Luis was being pushed back by the larger hobgoblin. There was no other option, she'd have to risk trying to slip past them to flank Groll. As she approached Luis dodged to avoid a swing, and Jade finally saw an opportunity to cast her spell.

"Noctis!"

A haze of dark smoke burst from the tip of the wand as Jade cast Clinging Darkness, lancing right into the creature's chest. It curled up and around his eyes, flowing into his body as the spell took hold. After a few moments, though, the smoke simply fizzled away, leaving the warrior unaffected.

"Ha!" The hobgoblin laughed, shoving Luis further down the catwalk. The large man stumbled back into Jade, who steadied him. She noticed with alarm that he had a large gash across his shoulder. Blood dripped from the wound, soaking his clothes. "Your weak magic holds no sway over me, demon whore!"

For some reason, the insult sparked a burst of righteous fury in Jade that even her companion being wounded hadn't elicited.

"Drink a potion." She said to Luis, stepping in front of him. "I'll take it from here."

Jade dropped her backpack, an awkward motion that her wings kept getting in the way of. That just pissed her off even further.

"Leave, now." Jade said coldly. "Or I will kill you."

"You?" Groll sneered at her, hefting his large sword over his shoulder. It was almost as large as Luis's. "Your head will decorate my throne."

She didn't bother to reply to the threat. Equal parts frightened, determined, and angry, Jade fell into a crouch, dagger extended towards her foe. Focusing on Groll, she opened her senses to his weaknesses and vulnerabilities, places she could strike for maximum effect. To her surprise, only a pair of red highlights appeared in her vision. One was at the base of his throat, the other towards the top left corner of his chest. Was that where his heart was? Jade didn't know how goblin anatomy differed from that of humans. She also didn't much care. Still, to her enhanced gaze Groll was tough.

Another handful of goblins were climbing their way up the ladders to the higher platforms, navigating the tangle of catwalks and conveyer belts that led up to the highest levels of the assembly line. Jade was running out of time. She darted forward, brandishing her dagger as she closed the distance between them. The narrow catwalk would limit her ability to evade attacks like how she'd fought the automatons in the scrapyard. She'd have to get creative, or land a decisive hit early. Groll grinned wickedly as she approached, grasping his sword in both hands and swinging it in a wide arc at chest height. A spike of fear lanced through Jade as she saw the attack coming, but she didn't stop. At the last moment she dropped into a slide, leg extended like a baseball player, leaning back as the blade whooshed over her head close enough for the wind to whip her hair.

Heart thundering in her chest from the near miss Jade surged to her feet right in front of Groll, aiming a slash at his neck. The hobgoblin raised an arm, blocking the attack with a forearm and kicking her back a step. Her dagger bit into flesh, but not nearly as much as she'd expected it to. She didn't let up, striking again and again, trying to get as many hits in as she could before her opponent could recover his stance.

Thrust! Swipe! Stab!

Jade fought to remain focused, the artificial knowledge implanted in her mind upon choosing her class guiding her strikes as she struggled to translate the knowledge into actual motion. Groll growled, slashing again at Jade, who nimbly ducked the blow. She was in too close for him to effectively use his long blade. He snarled again, dropping his sword and punching out at her with lightning speed. Jade spun to the side, evading the strike, but nearly stepping off the high platform in the process. She gasped, jerking herself back onto solid ground. Groll seized the opening, reaching out and grabbing her by the throat. He heaved, lifting Jade bodily off the platform. Jade coughed, choking, feet kicking a solid 6 inches off the ground.

Groll's face and arms were streaked with blood and small cuts. None of her attacks had been very effective individually, but they were adding up. "Nice try." He growled, squeezing his hand around her neck. "You-"

Jade didn't let him finish. The edges of her vision was already starting to go black. She couldn't reach his body, held as she was. Instead, she raised the dagger and plunged it right into the arm he was using to hold her up. The effect was immediate. Groll roared in pain, dropping her and clutching at his arm. Unfortunately, he had been holding Jade halfway off the platform. She hit the edge as she was dropped, scrambled for purchase… and missed. She screamed as she rolled off the platform, grasping wildly for anything she could reach. A hanging chain brushed against one of her flailing hands and she flung herself at it, grasping it as tightly as she could. She jerked to a halt as her arms wrapped around the chain, leaving her dangling with nothing but open air below her.

"Jade!" Naomi yelled, panicked. She stood guard over Luis as he recovered with a potion. He leapt to his feet as she hung there, several feet below their platform, her only support a chain anchored to the ceiling of the chamber. Naomi and Luis ran towards her and Groll. Jade knew they wouldn't make it in time. The hobgoblin chief stood at the edge of the catwalk, sword back in his hand, glaring at her with rage filled eyes.

These fucking wings better let me fly…! Jade thought, pulse racing as desperately searched for anywhere she could go.

Groll raised his weapon high, then swung.

CRACK!

The chain snapped, Jade's stomach lurched, and she plummeted towards the ground.