Caverns

"We're here." Lady Jade said as the lift stopped with a resounding thud, "The entrance. This is still technically high up against he way of the valley, but it's the furthest we're willing to go down to." 

The group watched as the wooden doors to the lift opened and they saw a massive cavern in front of them. The entire place was reinforced with walls and ramparts, several torches that illuminated the darkness. 

They noticed several guards were there, patrolling as they looked over a gate. 

"Hm..." Daemon said as they followed Lady Jade out of the lift, "Interesting...." 

Lady Jade looked at him and gestured towards the gate, "That's a gate that is always guarded. There's a large metal door that blocks the actual entrance to the cavern systems. This place is just the Lift's outpost. Every day, a shipment of supplies and food is sent down to the guards that are posted here." 

Daemon nodded, "I see." He said, "The door isn't disturbed? I'd imagine Goblins or beasts could wander towards it." 

"They should." Lady Jade said, "But they don't. You see, outside, you'll see two defense systems. The first, is a radiating magic incense that cloaks the door, it spreads out for several hundred meters, keeping the vicinity clear. It's mostly meant for Magic Beasts but it works against the Goblins too. The second and most important defense are the magic turrets that were placed there long ago by the Great Artificer Wuldren." 

"Oh?" Daemon said

Zaphira's eyes glimmered, "The Wuldren?" She said, "I heard he wrote several books on Artifice Magic. He's considered one of the greatest Mages in history!" 

"Not as good as Ignis, whom I learned from." Lady Jade said with a smile, "But Master Wuldren did design most of the Hightowers' defenses. The Invisible Net is his greatest creation, I must admit." 

Lydia walked up to her, standing next to Daemon, "The Invisible Net?" she asked

Lady Jade smiled even more, "A massive magical field invisible to the naked eye that spreads from the walls of the Bridge, protecting the top of the Valley and keeping any danger inside." She said, "It was meant for the swarm of Deathcrows and occasional Wyverns but it can also prevent any sort of aerial infiltration. Truly, an ingenious design." 

Daemon nodded, "Wuldren was a great magical mind, I've heard." He said, "Morty studied his books, gifted to him by the King at a young age. That's how he learned Artifice Magic and developed his own creations." 

Zaphira looked at him, "He has books written by Wuldren?! Daemon, you must ask him to let me read them!" She said with an excited tone

Daemon looked at her, "I'll try, but he's overprotective." He said, "What's your deal? A Warlock excited by Artifice magic?" 

"Fufu." Lady Jade said, "Any Mage will be fascinated by Wuldren's mind, Daemon. Anyway, I wish you good luck. Walk over to the Metal Door, the only one who can open it is a Mage who knows the chant. I shall open it and close it as soon as you get out. But....here...." 

Lady Jade pulled out a cylinder crystal and offered it to Zaphira. 

"What's this?" The Warlock asked

"The key to open it from the outside." Lady Jade said, "Only a Mage can use it, just repeat the chant that I say and touch it against the door. It's a one-time use only, specifically made for this. Use it when you're done with the job and you return, okay?" 

Zaphira took the crystal, "Okay..." she said, "Thanks." 

Invidia walked past them, "Shall we make haste?" She asked as Azael followed

Daemon chuckled, "You two are in a hurry." 

Azael looked at him, "The job is before us, I believe we should try to make it quick." He said

"True." Daemon said, "But let's take it at a steady pace." 

Lady Jade looked at the guards, "Open the gate, these adventurers are going out." She announced

Without hesitation, the guards opened the wooden gates, and the group walked out. A couple of dozen meters, a massive metal door was built and reinforced in a cavern entrance. The group could tell it had a strong magical hue to it. 

Lydia gulped nervously as Daemon stood in front of her, "This is it...huh?" She said, "A Darkstone Crown..and a Demon..." 

"Relax." Zaphira smiled, "We have Daemon with us, whatever that Demon is, we'll be fine." 

Invidia nodded as she patted her shoulder, "You ought to relax." She told the young fighter, "We need to be focused." 

"Right..." Lydia said

Daemon looked back at Lady Jade and nodded silently, telling her that they were ready. 

Lady Jade lifted her hands up, "Oh, by the way." She said, "The Turrets are designed to fire at anything that moves, so they'll be disabled until you return. So if you see any magic beast or Goblins that are near the Incense field, kill them. I could have one of my eyes act as surveillance, but I rather not. I need to go back up and speak to Lord Glavius about something." 

Daemon raised his arm in agreement, "Sure." He said

"Eyes of Magnus, Teeth of Sorrow, Blood of Retribution, Open" 

As she finished the chant, the Doors immediately began to open, slowly revealing the dark tunnel that was beyond it.

Daemon rubbed his neck as he took a step forward, "Alright, let's go." He said seriously

As he walked past the doors, the group followed behind him, seeing the two massive bronze pillars right outside the door, a glowing orb that was dimming down. 

Those were the Turrets that Lady Jade spoke of, they were being deactivated. 

"We're out." Daemon said as he turned around and saw the doors closing behind them, "This is it." 

Zaphira was able to feel the magic incense that they were told about, seeing that above the doors and next to the turrets, there were several magical orbs that were glowing bright blue, radiating with magic. 

"Whoa..." She said with a slight smile, "That's nice." 

Azael looked around, "Hm..." He said, "The air is damp here.....but not lacking, like I thought...could there be vents of air that bring oxygen in?" 

"Maybe?" Lydia said, "It doesn't feel....suffocating...." 

Invidia looked alongside the walls, seeing slight traces of moss on them. It was a bright green and yellow-colored moss.

"Hm..." She said as she walked towards it, "This type of moss...." 

Zaphira looked at it, "What is it?" 

"Nothing..." She said, "I didn't think it'll grow here, it usually requires sunlight." 

Daemon looked at them, "Let's keep going." He said, "They said that there are markers that will point us to the bottom of the Valley." 

Lydia nodded, "Okay..." She said

"Keep your guard up." Daemon continued as he began to walk, "We don't know what kind of trouble we're to expect." 

"They said Goblins...." Zaphira said, "Man, I hate Goblins...." 

"Agreed." Invidia said as she walked next to Azael, "Those little critters are despicable." 

"They smell horrible, too." Azael said

"Usually, Goblin Nests that are in Cavern Systems like these...." Daemon said, "There's bound to be Hobgoblin Champions too, not just the regular ones." 

"Hobgoblins are the worst." Lydia said, "I heard that Goblins evolve into Hobgoblins once they become more intelligent and eat enough human meat...." 

"I don't know about that." Daemon said

"Goblins and Hobgoblins are fundamentally different." Invidia said, "They're both born from regular Goblins but Hobgoblins are essentially the anomalies that later become leaders of the groups." 

"I've never seen a female Goblin." Azael said

"They're rare." Zaphira said, "It's messed up though, as soon as a female is born, they're separated and they wait until she is old enough to procreate and they're used as a breeder. The larger the female Goblin, the better, they can produce more and more." 

"Goblins are despicable animals." Invidia said with anger, "There have been occasions where they attack and assault Women, but since they're incompatible for procreation, they're simply used and eventually killed." 

"W-What?" Lydia said completely horrified, "A-Are you serious???" 

"Enough talk about that." Daemon said, "You see a Goblin, kill it. Don't hesitate. And if you see a Hobgoblin, well, make sure you don't get smashed in the face. Those fuckers love Warhammer." 

Azael looked around as they walked, "We're still in the field's range, right?" He asked, "I'm getting an odd feeling." 

"I feel it too, don't worry." Zaphira said, "We're nearing the actual Death Gullet's caverns....I feel it...dread...." 

Invidia nodded, "Let's be on our guard here." She said, "At all times." 

"We don't know what to expect."