by Emma Hamm
She was not a soft woman. And she was not a woman to threaten.
As Ruric fell before her, Jane felt as though her entire life flashed in a moment before her eyes. She knew how much she loved him. Her heart clenched in pain at the thought that perhaps he was dead.
The knowledge that Ruric may be forever out of her reach cause an answering anger that pushed her forwards to continue. Though it may not have been Ruric’s plan for Jane herself to attack the Doctor, he had known she would do what she must.
Jane hardly had control over her own body. In the moments that followed Ruric’s fall, she felt as though she watched herself outside her own body.
Her hand stretched forward in such a slow motion that she was certain the Doctor would move away. But in fact, she moved so quickly that he didn’t have time to even think.
Her fingers closed around his wrist and turned his hand forcibly towards his own chest. Though he fought her, Jane was not a small woman. She used her own strength, weight, and anger to force him onto a knee before her.
He didn’t have time to make a sound as she jabbed the needle between his ribs.
Her thumb pressed down upon the end and she smiled back at him in satisfaction as his eyes bugged out of his skull. He was already slowly losing control over his limbs when she found the second needle.
The line of its tube pressed stark against the smooth edges of his pants. Enraged and fighting off the burgeoning grief of loss, Jane jagged the second needle into him as well. The third soon followed until she could no longer find any more of the dreaded drug to force into his system.
The Doctor was as aware as one could imagine through all of this. The darkness at the edges of his vision were not a good sign. He knew very well what would happen should a person overdose on his special brand of satisfaction.
He managed a small gurgle before his eyes rolled back in his head for a final time.
Though it felt like a lifetime to Jane, this all managed to happen within the span of thirty seconds.
She slumped backwards and her bottom hit the sand hard. She scuttled as far away from the Doctor’s body which had started to spasm. Her chest rose and fell in sharp panicked breaths as she forced herself to watch the man die.
This was her doing. He was a bad man and he had meant to hurt them.
But it was the first life she had ever taken. Jane knew in that moment it would also be her last.
A hand settled on her shoulder. The fingers were long and the nails were neatly trimmed.
“Jane.” Catherine’s voice was soft and quiet as she leaned down to hold the other woman in her arms. “It’s over. It’s over Jane.”
“The rest will come.” She didn’t recognize her own voice. It was hoarse and angry.
“He’s gone. They will go home to their families. They will not avenge him.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do.” Catherine responded. “I do know that because I am one of them.”
Jane’s wild eyes looked over Catherine’s shoulders and she was bewildered to see that it was true. The men that had been shooting them with tranquilizers had lowered their guns. They were staring at the scene as though they too could not believe what had just transpired.
“Go on with you.” It was the other man who had spoken, the one who had led Ruric out of his confinement with Shusar. “We’re leaving. Tell the others that if they want to come they can.”
One of the soldiers removed his helmet. Jane was shocked to see the bright red locks that covered the man’s head in curls.
“It isn’t safe out there. Where will you go?”
“Where ever they do.” Frank said. “It’s got to be better than here.”
The soldier seemed to think on that before he nodded. “I know a few. How long will you be here?”
Catherine glanced over her shoulder. “It’ll take the others a half hour to wake, perhaps another hour after that too to be able to make the journey. It’s a fast moving drug.”
“I’ll be back then.”
“Could you-” Catherine paused to untangle herself from Jane’s grasp. “Could you move the others? Back to the tunnel?”
“No!” They all paused to look at Jane’s wild eyes. She had instantly moved to Ruric’s side and was crouched protectively over the goblin male.
“Jane, they can’t stay in the sun. It won’t be good for them.”
Catherine was gentle in her speaking, as though she were talking to one of the wild animals she had experimented on for so long. The thought brought an answering thrill within her chest that she might have a chance to see these creatures in their natural environment.
If she didn’t die from her weak lungs first.
“We’re not going to take them back Jane. We’re just going to make them comfortable so that we can leave.”
“I don’t trust you.”
“You have to trust someone, sometime Jane.” Catherine had no right to ask it, but she did all the same. “Let us take care of you now.”
“Why?”
“Because you gave the courage to be free.”
Frank stepped forward, a sheepish expression on his face. “Maybe you’ve got something on the sands that we don’t know about. Whatever it is, we’ll follow you out of this place.”
“The City is everything that the mining towns want. Why would you leave this place?”
Catherine’s eyes looked up the heights of the walls around them and she shook her head slowly. When she met Jane’s gaze again, her eyes were haunted. “These walls hold so many twisted things, Jane. For once, I want to be somewhere that isn’t shrouded in ghosts.”
Jane understood that sentiment far more than she wanted to admit. Returning to the mining town had been as though she had visited her own ghosts. If this woman wanted to leave, then she was welcome. But they all needed to be aware of what they were getting into.
“I can’t offer you shelter. I can’t offer you a home with the goblins. There’s nothing for you out there but sand and possible starvation.”
“Then that is where we go.” Frank shrugged in response.
“I agree.” Catherine said. “We’ll let the others know, but I don’t think you’ll find that many of us wish to linger here.”
Slowly, Jane nodded. “Then move the others. We leave as soon as we can.”
14
The guards returned with twenty five more people. Most were families that had hollow eyes and gaunt faces, but Jane was shocked to see the wealth that came with them. The guards had the foresight to bring enough water for the journey as well as food.
Jane was touched that there was anyone who would consider it.
Most of the people who had been tranquilized were finally awake. They had slowly sat up and touched hands to their heads, but there did not appear to be any with adverse effects. Both Catherine and Luther had flitted from person to person to ensure that they were all healthy.
Jane had remained next to her sister and the goblins. Willow tucked easily into the empty arm of Illyrin’s. He had remained awake throughout the entire ordeal, though Jane had no idea how. Even Catherine appeared stumped as she said one of those darts would have been enough to make a horse sleep.
Illyrin was all too pleased to watch over her sister as Jane watched over the rest of them.
The sun set and the heat of the day finally cooled. She was able to breathe as the goblins eyes opened. It wasn’t particularly comfortable for them to look around, but at least they were able to see.
The journey that awaited them was going to be just as grueling as the first.
As the soldiers and families emerged from the tunnels, she was crouched before Shusar. The goblin lurched forward as though to attack the humans coming through, and Jane placed a warning hand on his chest.
“No.”
He growled in response.
“I understand that you don’t trust them. But they’re running with us.”
“Bad.”
“Yes.” Jane watched
as his eyes snapped towards hers. He hadn’t been expecting him to agree with her. “But they need sanctuary as much as we needed it.”
“They did not give to us.” His words were lisped and uncomfortable around sharp pointed teeth.
“Then we must not make their same mistake.”
She stood slowly and dusted the sand off of her knees. The humans would want some kind of reassurance about the goblins, and Jane was the most capable of providing that.
But she was shocked when she walked towards the others and was not questioned immediately. Instead, a woman she did not recognize walked towards her and handed her a plain dress.
“It’s not much, but it’ll cover you far better than that hospital gown.” The soft smile that accompanied the kind words was nearly her undoing.
“Thank you.”
“And thank you.”
Jane looked around at the smiling faces and found she had the words to say. These people needed reassurance from her, but she did not have that. What she did have was strength and pride that for once her people had made the right choice.
“I don’t have much to offer you. There is no town waiting for us. There is no food or water where we go. I cannot say that you will not be hungry or that you will be safe.”
The solemn faces around her turned towards each other and she saw a few step back from the group.
“But I do offer you a place where you will always be free.” This caught their attention. “I do not know if there is an oasis waiting for us or if there will even be kind words. But I do know that wherever we end up, together we will make it work. There will be no Doctors. No monsters waiting in the shadows because we live with them.”
“The goblins will be our shields then?” A soldier was looking towards the four goblins who were just now managing to stand on their own.
“No.” Jane’s answer was sharp. “They are not our military. We protect them.”
Stunned silence greeted her.
“What?”
“They are the very last of their kind. They do not know this world. They live underground and they have no reason to be above it. Just as we have no reason to be below it. Let me be very clear with you now. We go to be their protectors. To hide them from those who would harm them. To work side by side with the goblins so that we never have to experience this again.”
She pointed towards Ruric.
“This is what humans did. Experiments. Pain. Torture. We will not stand for that again. And in return, I will ask for their guidance and their help in building a community that will house our children for generations.”
The humans stared at her as though she had grown a second head. None of them understood why a human woman was so fiercely protective over beasts that had no ability to even speak. Let alone to reason.
These questions were easily answered when the large goblin whose eye was missing stepped towards them. They moved as a group away from him, flinching as his presence felt like a physical wall shoving them backwards.
But the goblin was incredibly gentle as his hand laid on her shoulder.
“My people are not welcoming to change.” His voice was deep, like stones falling. Shivers crawled up the spines of the women in the crowd before them. But their eyes were locked on the black claws of his hand that traced the line of Jane’s arm. “I will do my best to venture some kind of agreement.”
Frank stepped forward, ever the brave man. He had more experience with the goblins than the rest, at least he thought so. Which was why he stepped forward to make the truce himself.
Best foot forward and all that.
He held his hand out for the goblin to shake. “I for one, would be happy to be friends. I told you first I’d make a good impression and I hope I managed. I’d be honored to come with you.”
Ruric had experience with this. Micah had shown him this long ago and Ruric was grateful for the old man. It would be good to see him once they managed home.
The large clawed hand closed around the soft skin of Frank’s. Black claws brushed the sensitive skin of Frank’s inner wrist, but to the man’s credit he didn’t flinch.
“You have a choice to make now.” Jane said. “We’re leaving now. The sun has set and the goblin’s can travel. Bring only what is absolutely necessary.”
She stepped away from the crowd to allow them all a moment to speak with each other. Ruric trailed after her, stopping only when Jane gathered the remaining goblins together.
“Will we be able to provide for them?”
Shusar’s expression was grim before he said, “Ruric I need you to translate for me.”
Ruric spoke over his friend as the soft warbles began.
“He says, the goblin council is unlikely to attempt to help once they find out what has happened to Ruric. Me.”
“These are not the people that did terrible things to you and Juo. These are the people that disagreed with it.”
“Perhaps. But our people are no longer trusting of yours.”
“Do we have to put them in the caves?”
The goblins blinked at her, and for once Shusar did not have an argument.
Jane continued.
“Can we build something above the cave opening? A town? It would hide one of the entrances to your home and also give these people a place to live. I’m sure together we could build something far superior than that of the mining towns. They could watch over the caves and in return you could provide them food. Shelter. Combined knowledge of technology and healing.”
Shusar scrubbed a hand over his chin and nodded at Ruric.
“It’s a fine idea.” Ruric translated for her.
“It’s something the council might consider.” Illyrin’s deep voice also had to be translated by Ruric.
“But would they listen?”
“We can try.” It was the best he could offer her.
One of the humans called her name, and Jane left the goblins where they stood. The three warriors turned as one to walk towards Juo. They had left the boy on the sand where he could stay warm. The nights were colder than the day, and Juo was already weaker than they would have wished.
Ruric knelt next to the boy and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“You alright, boy?”
Juo nodded, but his sightless eyes remained closed.
The goblins had been horrified when Juo had finally awoken. His once dark black eyes were now white and milky. Part of the honor of goblins was their ability to see in the dark. This was how they protected themselves and that had been ripped away from the young goblin.
When he returned home, his existence would be bleak. He would never traverse the caves with ease, as the steep drops were far too dangerous for one that couldn’t see them.
He would never be alone unless he was in his home cave, and even then they would be loath to leave him alone. Ruric’s heart ached for the promise of a young warrior that was now snuffed out like a flame extinguished by water.
Juo seemed to be handling all this well, or he had yet to come to terms with his predicament.
Ruric hoped it was the first.
“We’ll have to carry him.” Shusar said from behind Ruric’s shoulder.
“Mm.” The sound of agreement was hard for Ruric to make. No goblin wanted to be a burden to others. Illyrin was capable of carrying all of them but Juo would want to walk on his own as soon as possible.
Juo started shivering and his too thin arms wrapped around his torso. But he managed to speak. “Where is Jane?”
The whisper was so quiet that even Ruric had to strain to hear it. The words warmed his heart as he knew the boy trusted the woman he called wife.
“She is with her people. We’re bringing them with us.”
“Who?”
“A few guards, doctors, those who want to come.”
Shusar stepped forward. There was a glint in his eye that Ruric knew meant he was going to attempt to use this to his advantage. “Are you afraid of them? We won’t bring anyone who harmed you.”
Ruric should have known. Shusar was a good man but he did not trust humans. The horrors he had seen in the City would only have strengthened that resolve.
He did not know if he could refuse Jane in this. The knowledge that her people were leaving their homes with only the few things they could carry weighed upon his shoulders. They did not know what waited for them at the goblin home, but they had agreed to travel.
Trust was so fragile an emotion. These humans could easily become the same as the others, or they could change the way the world worked.
Ruric was off balance. There were too many unknown factors in the foggy future that he had created with his warrior of a wife.
“No.” Juo’s voice was louder this time. “They should come with us.”
“Are you sure?” Shusar was gentle in this question.
“Yes. They did not want to hurt me.” As Juo shifted, he winced and closed his eyes tight. “Not all of them.”
It was enough for Ruric. He leaned down to scoop the boy into his arms though his own body was weak. He would carry him for a turn before passing the body to the next goblin.
Together, they walked towards the humans and ignored how many of them flinched away from them.
“Are you ready?” Jane asked. Her face was flushed and her eyes glittered brightly in the moonlight. Ruric knew all too well that this was where she was happiest. Not with her people, not with his own, but helping those who needed her.
He had forgotten to make certain she knew she was needed in the caves.
A sigh rippled along the length of his spine. “Yes.”
The journey across the sands was as long and as arduous as the first attempt. They traveled only by night so that the goblins were able to see. This was a fact that angered the humans. They wanted to travel during the heat of the day. They wanted to stop regularly. They wanted to not be sleeping next to monsters in the middle of the night.
There were a few who did not share these angry thoughts. Those that had treated the goblins found them to be fascinating. The journey was a fantastic opportunity to study the creatures in their natural environment.
Or at least what the scientists thought was their natural environment.
