by Emma Hamm
“You need water.”
“We’ll be alright. We remember how to get to the place where we got water last time.”
“You’ll get lost in the sands.”
“You forget that some of us grew up here.” Frank said with another laugh. “We will be fine, Jane.”
She wasn’t certain how to feel about that. But Jane knew that her choice had just been made for her. She would return Underground with the goblins and do what she could there. The alliance between humans and goblins was of utmost importance now.
“Alright.” She said with a nod. “I guess I’m going then.”
He smiled at her, and she could tell that there was a little pity in that gaze. To lose so much responsibility was difficult for Jane to relinquish. She had no way of knowing that these people would be alright while she was gone.
There was a part of her that knew they would be just fine.
She stood and dusted off her knees. Her goodbyes would need to be made quickly as Jane hated to say goodbye to her family once more. She assured both Luther and Willow that she should return, though she did not miss the looks they sent in Ruric’s direction.
Neither of her siblings trusted the goblin entirely. All they knew was that he was the one who had kept her from them long ago. They liked him well enough. He seemed to be kind to Jane and was obviously infatuated with her. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try to keep her all to himself.
Willow in particular seemed to be having an issue with letting Jane go. But she was held back by her brother and the sharp words he whispered in her ear. Jane was coming back this time. She had to.
Still, Willow didn’t take her eyes off of the goblins and Jane until they had all disappeared into the dark crevice.
She glanced over her shoulder to meet the watchful gaze of her brother.
“I don’t like it.” She said firmly.
“You don’t like anything, Willow. We have to trust them.”
“No I don’t.”
Luther rolled his eyes at his sister and started dragging her away from the crevice by the back of her shirt. “Come on, you. You don’t trust anyone but I do.”
“I don’t!”
She would continue to argue until her brother’s ears bled, but Willow didn’t like any of the goings on. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach and was determined to listen to that bad feeling. Someone had to.
Jane’s hands stroked the cool walls as they entered the Underground. She had never thought she would miss the slimy feel of algae on her palms or the sound of dripping water.
The caves were darker than she remembered. But then again, they had appeared this dark to her the first time she had traveled down these long tunnels. She was experiencing this world again. This time, she would feel no fear.
There were no blue globes waiting for them and Jane had to rely entirely on the guidance of the goblins in front of her. Illyrin led the group to catch anyone if they started to slip. He still had most of the strength that they had come to expect from him. The goblin was more reliable as a bodyguard than anyone else Jane had ever met.
Juo was finally walking on his own and his spirit had returned as soon as they stepped foot inside the caves. Though he could not see, he visibly relaxed as his feet touched the rough surface of stone. Finally he was home. Finally he was safe again.
They walked in a line through the tight walls and crevices that were numerous along the line. Jane was glad that the goblins remembered their way home. She would have gotten lost in the hundreds of tunnels that led nowhere.
She remembered what it was like working in the mines. There were so many men who had gotten lost and died even the short time she was there. The memory felt as though it was someone else’s. So much had changed since that time that Jane was disconnected from it all. She was a completely different person than she had been so long ago.
The darkness swallowed the group whole, and Jane found that something inside of her loosened. She had been so tense these many weeks and now she was finally in a place where she didn’t have to worry about anyone other than herself.
Her palm pressed against the slight swell of her belly. There was so much to be happy about now. The child inside of her was the start of something wonderful and good for both species. She could only hope that the others would be just as pleased as she and Ruric were.
Catherine had said the child was growing far slower than she had expected. Jane wasn’t sure what the normal amount of time was for goblins, but it made her worry. Complications could happen, she was certain of that.
Life could be created between goblin and human, but she worried that life could not be sustained. What would happen if she lost the child? Jane wasn’t certain she could live through that. She already felt such love for the tiny thing that existed within her.
Thoughts like this were so easy to swell in the darkness around her. Worry, doubt, fear, all of it seemed to overwhelm her.
Just as her breathing started to pick up, there was a flare of light in front of her. Ruric stood before her with a globe of bioluminescence held in his hand.
The blue light banished the fear from her mind, although it didn’t manage to reach her heart. She held out her hand for the light and saw in Ruric’s expression that he understood what had been going through her head.
“Where did you find this?”
“We leave stashes in certain tunnels. I remembered this one.”
He reached out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear and to gently follow the line of her jaw.
“Thank you.” She whispered.
“We’re home.”
“I know.” She shivered in the cold air of the cave. “I’m afraid of what kind of reaction we’ll get once we return.”
“They will be thankful and grateful.”
“To you perhaps.”
“In doing this, Jane, you will be welcomed back with open arms.”
“You can’t be sure of that.” She responded. And he couldn’t be sure of that. The goblins didn’t seem like the kind of creatures that held grudges. But she understood why they were angry with her. Jane was simply tired of all of it. She wanted to start a family and live her life. Yet there always seemed to be one more obstacle for her to climb.
“I can.”
“You’re always so sure of yourself.” She said with a wry grin.
“I have to be.” He answered her with a smile. “I’m a warrior. And I know my people.”
His hand dropped to follow the curve of her shoulder and down her arm until he reached her hand. He pulled it to his face and pressed it against the angry scar that had taken his eye.
“Oh Ruric.” She murmured as her fingers splayed against his skin.
“We are home, wife.”
She could feel his lips moving against the sensitive flesh of her wrist. It was not the first time he had called her wife, but the words held more meaning as they seemed to echo in the caves.
A trilled word from the other goblins broke the spell that held Ruric and Jane tethered together.
Ruric chuckled against her but reluctantly let go of her hand.
“What did he say?”
“Shusar said there was no time to waste.” He winked his working eye at her. “I think he’s in a rush to get home.”
Jane burst out laughing. “To what?”
“His bed and sweet dreams I expect.”
They could hear grumbling from the front of the group as Shusar pushed Illyrin to move faster so that he could get away from the two that had become the bane of his existence.
But he was happy that they were together once more. Shusar liked to see a smile on Ruric’s face, and he had come to realize that the man rarely smiled when he wasn’t with Jane. Not to mention the child that the two of them were going to bring into the world.
His lips twitched when he thought of having another youngling running around the caves. Though it would likely be weaker than the others, it would be half human after all, he thou
ght that he would enjoy it just as much as the others.
He was looking forward to bouncing another child on his knee.
The tunnel slowly widened as they grew closer to their home. Jane could feel the excitement coming off of the goblins as they started to chatter in their own language. She thought they were trying to make as much noise as possible so that the other goblins would hear them.
They didn’t speak her human language anymore, but they all started to move faster. So much so that Illyrin paused to lift Juo back into his arms. The boy couldn’t move at the pace they wanted, and he was starting to grow tired. They wanted him to still be alert and aware when they finally brought him home.
Juo wanted the same. He would have been ashamed to return home to his family unconscious.
Finally, in the distance, they all saw the soft blue light that signified they were finally home. The goblins started letting out loud whooping trills that made Jane cover her ears. She laughed with them as they all finally returned to the place they called home.
The goblins paused for a moment to listen as the entire cavern erupted. Goblins started shouting so loudly that Jane was certain they were going to make each other’s ears bleed. But they were happy that the goblins who had left somehow had made it back to their home.
Jane watched as green bodies filtered out of their homes and rushed towards her group. The ease with which the goblins traversed the rope ladders and sheer rocky cliffs reminded her why she had been so fascinated with these people the first time she had seen them.
A warmth grew in her chest even as nerves made her swallow hard. Though Ruric seemed confident they would be pleased to see her, Jane was not as sure.
She was pleasantly surprised when they met with the other goblins.
Green skin stretched as far as she could see in the dim light. Jane hadn’t realized how much she had missed that sight until she saw Ruric’s skin now looked as it had the first time she met him. The sickly yellow had disappeared to give way to the pleasant forest green she remembered.
Slowly, the other goblins moved forward. They were faces Jane found familiar and some she did not recognize. Their hands touched Illyrin has he passed by them. Claws hands stroked the warm skin of Juo as tears streamed down their cheeks. The boy they had lost had come home.
Jane knew how precious the lives of the younglings were to the goblins. She was sorry that one of the men she had let go had been the cause of so much suffering.
Shusar was swept back to his home as soon as he reached the other goblins. They knew he would be tired and that the Queen would not need him. He was to be taken care of immediately.
Ruric and Jane were the last to be met, and Ruric held Jane in front of him with a gentle hand upon her shoulder. She took a deep breath and stepped forward to the small gap that the goblins had made.
In a way, she was traversing yet another tunnel. This time the walls were made of solid warm flesh and hands that could do harm as much as a stone wall.
She nearly flinched when the first hand reached out to touch her. But Ruric’s warm palm upon her reminded Jane that he would protect her from all harm. Not only because he loved her, but because she carried his child within her.
The hands did not touch her with aggression. Instead, they were the welcoming touches that they had given Illyrin as well. They stroked her arms and held out claws to catch the delicate strands of her hair.
Jane could remember the last time they had done the same thing. They had wanted to see what she felt like. Humans were so incredibly different than the goblins and they had all been curious. Now, she had a feeling that they were trying to touch the sun that had bleached her hair and left streaks in the strands.
Ruric leaned down to press his lips against her ear.
“See?”
She smiled then and let out a burbling laugh. “Yes, yes I see.”
And she was glad of it. The goblins were actually looking at her now. She hadn’t realized how much she had missed the strange creatures that laughed with her as she passed through them.
It felt good to be home.
She leaned back against Ruric’s broad chest slightly as he guided her through the crowd of overjoyed goblins. He became a wall that kept her moving but continued to hold a bit of her weight. He made it easier for her to move as exhaustion finally caused her muscles to shake and tire.
“We’re not done yet.” He murmured at the exact moment she noticed they had already passed by the ropes that would have led them to their home.
“Where are we going?”
“To the Queen.”
The words made her shiver once more. The Queen wasn’t what she was frightened of. The old wizened goblin woman had a strength in her that Jane had always admired. She was strong and capable. Her thoughts had always seemed to align with Jane’s, and she would always do what was right for her people.
The Council was what made Jane nervous. There were a few on the Council that wanted nothing more than to close their doors to humans forever. They would be difficult to sway and even more difficult to convince to forgive.
“We’re giving our accounts already?”
“Immediately upon return.” Ruric said.
She glanced up to see that his eye was already scanning the crowd before them. She had seen that expression before, just as Ruric had been going into battle with the raiders.
“We don’t have anything to worry about, do we?”
“I do not know, bright one.”
“Then we do.”
He looked down at her solemnly, but he didn’t correct her. Jane knew then that she was going to have yet another fight before her as she struggled to convince the goblin council to give her and her people a chance.
“Do you think the Queen will listen?” She asked Ruric as they finally cleared the crowd of goblins welcoming them home.
“She will listen.”
“But the others will not.”
“I do not know. There are some on the Council who will be interested to hear what we have to say. Others will want to stop us.”
Jane nodded firmly. This was yet another obstacle but they had managed thus far.
She glanced up at him as his palm pressed against her spine to guide her across a rope bridge.
His expression was grim as he started to speak again. “Tell no one of the child.”
“Why?” She was surprised he wouldn’t want to use that to his advantage. “That’s the most convincing argument we have.”
“I want to see who is going speak against us first.”
Jane slowed as she saw the Queen’s chamber loom out of the darkness before them. “So you want to find out who the enemy is before we tell them the truth?”
“We will tell part of the truth.” His voice had lowered to a growl. “But hold back the most convincing truth until we know what the others will say.”
With a firm nod, Jane started to move again. The plan was something she could agree to. If the goblins didn’t want her to stay underground, or her people, then she would leave. Ruric would have to make the difficult choice of whether or not he would follow her.
She and her child would not stay where they were not wanted. It was with this thought that she stepped into the Queen’s chamber.
Jane made certain that her chin was held high as she stared at the figures seated upon the jagged thrones of crystal.
The Queen stared down at them from high upon her throne and Jane could not help but think she looked even more frail than the last time. Her wrists were thinner and the bones along her collarbone were far more delicate. She looked more birdlike than ever.
But the fire in her eyes as she stared down at them reminded Jane just how powerful a woman the Queen truly was. She was not the kind of creature that could be easily trifled with.
Ruric stood behind Jane with his shoulders squared and his expression carefully blank. He would not give away anything, not until he provided his full report.
There was a long moment of
silence before the Queen became to trill. The warbling voice was surprisingly soothing to Jane as she leaned against Ruric’s side. He did not translate the Queen’s questions for her, and instead began speaking as soon as the Queen’s voice fell into silence.
Jane knew what he was saying. Though she did not entirely understand the noises he made, she knew the parts of the story he was telling as his voice rose and fall.
She was shocked at how much they had gone through. In such little time they had managed to fight off Raiders, survive the desert, experimentation at the hands of a madman, and yet another journey through the unforgiving sands. Somehow they had returned home in relatively one piece, though Ruric was missing a few bits of flesh and an eye.
She didn’t know how it was still possible that they were all standing, or that they had managed this suicidal mission. But in that moment as Ruric’s warm voice rumbled at her back, Jane found that she wanted nothing more than to sleep for weeks.
After everything that they had done, she believed that they at least deserved that.
The voices slowly died down and Jane realized she had shut her eyes. There was a slight movement from behind her as Ruric gently jostled her awake.
Had she fallen asleep? Jane wasn’t so certain it would be that easy in a room full of goblins that may or may not allow her to remain. But she had drifted for a while and had nearly slipped into the dreaming world.
She sighed and rubbed the back of her hand against her eye before she tilted her head back to look at Ruric.
“They wish for you to speak.”
“About what?” Her voice was ever so quiet. Jane didn’t know what they wanted her to say after everything that Ruric had told them. He was unlikely to leave out anything other than the child, and the Council was likely even more distrustful of her.
“I told them that you have a proposal for them. About humans living side by side with goblins.”
“Oh that.” She couldn’t stop the yawn that split her face and attempted to hide it in his shoulder.
Jane stepped away from his warmth then. The chill in the wide cavern would keep her awake. She looked up at the faces of the goblin Council and was instantly reminded that she was going to have to battle them to allow her to stay.
