When faced with a giant, hulking monstrosity, the matters of Shroud, Mayor Ashburn's murder, and Windmore's treason seemed inconsequential. It wouldn't be a court-sanctioned execution or an unseen assassin that arranged her meeting with the Ferrier of Souls. It wouldn't be Windmore and his insatiable desire for revenge. Not even her own shortcomings would herald her demise.

No. Everna was certain the hand of stony death would crush her before Shroud had the chance.

Massive did not do the creature that clamored from the earth justice. At nearly thirty feet tall, its head brushed the roof of the cavern, crashing through the stalactites as if they were paper streamers. Arms bulging with muscles as large as boulders dangled from shoulders broad enough to block a city street. Its legs, thick as tree trunks, towered above her; her head barely reached the underside of its ankle. Eyes like pools of glowing silver stared down at her and when it smiled, it displayed a row of teeth that were perhaps as sharp as her sword.

Vina fainted.

She was out before she hit the floor, her body bowed as her legs buckled, and she crumpled into an ungraceful heap of limbs and flyaway hair. Lisette followed suit, arms trembling as she stumbled back onto her rear and scrambled as far away from the beast as her wobbly legs allowed. Everna couldn't move; her legs were so stiff with fear that even her knees refused to yield.

"I don't suppose there's anyway we can talk about this, is there?" The words tumbled from her lips as nothing more than a breathy squeak before she realized she'd spoken.

The monstrosity laughed. Loud and booming, its voice echoed through the cavern, reverberating off the walls. The sound drove straight through her, much like the thundering of the afternoon's storm. Her stomach churned, a violent sea raging within her. The creature's laugh lingered long after it finished, slowly diminishing in volume until it became nothing more than a distant whisper above the crackling flames that engulfed the village behind them.

All at once, the goblins flocked to the edge of the pit. They flung themselves to the floor, knobby knees bent beneath them and their heads pressed to the stone. A portly goblin draped in threadbare robes of faded white and stony gray shuffled to the front of the crowd carrying a gnarled tree branch topped with a bent gold coin. The leader, she presumed, waved the tip of its stick wildly in their direction, grunting and warbling excitedly.

"A sacrifice, you say?" the monstrosity said, bemused. It lifted its massive hand to its chin, as if entertaining the thought. This thing was intelligent. "I do like the taste of humans. A nice, crunchy snack. But what do you say, little human?"

"What?"

The monstrosity laughed again, and her knees shook beneath the tremors of its voice. "You asked to speak, did you not?"

Lisette turned to look at her, her face ashen with fear. "Everna, don't. Cavernbrutes don't bargain! It's toying with you! You can't—"

The cavernbrute angled its head, its shrewd gaze shifting to Lisette. "I did not give you permission to speak, human. Be silent, like that one." It pointed a massive finger at Vina.

"But you," it said, turning its attention back to Everna. "You amuse me, human. Even though you reek of fear and shake, you don't cower. You plead to bargain. It's been a long time since one of your kind had the courage to do so. Entertain me."

Everna swallowed the lump in her throat, albeit with great difficulty. Debating was one of the few things had a talent for, but there was a vast difference between debating law and policy in a mock courtroom and bargaining with a beast that saw her as an amusing snack. Her instructor wouldn't eat her if she lost a classroom debate.

She knew nothing of this creature. Her parents spoke of goblins and orcs and other such things, but never had they mentioned anything resembling a cavernbrute. It bore an eerie likeness to a human, save its dusky gray skin and bladed teeth, and possessed both intelligence and strength rarely seen beyond the typical creatures of the realm. With the ease it rent the stone beneath its hands, fighting it wasn't possible.

"Take your time, little human. I wish to hear an interesting argument for your salvation."

Her gaze fell on the goblins at its feet. They served the cavernbrute, if they didn't worship it. The goblins' leader allegedly mentioned a sacrifice. From that, she could conclude the goblins had captured them to feed them to their exalted 'deity.’ With the cavernbrute's intelligence, begging for freedom while offering nothing in return would get her nowhere. She needed to present something of equal, or greater value.

Or, make a suggestion so asinine the cavernbrute couldn't help but entertain her until she could think of another means of escape.

"Well," Everna said, her tongue darting out to wet her dry lips, "if it's a sacrifice you want, then I offer however many of these creatures here."

Lisette stared at her, aghast.

The cavernbrute frowned, the crease in its brow resembling a mountain ridge. "You offer me my own servants?"

"It just seemed to me that they aren't much good for anything else."

"That's your argument?" the cavernbrute questioned. "Perhaps I gave you too much credit."

Lisette's head whipped between her and the cavernbrute, and Everna saw the terror in her eyes — the grim realization that she would likely die here. Yet Everna ignored her and returned her attention to the beast before her. Her courage hung by a fraying thread. If she let distractions disrupt her focus, she'd never regain it.

It didn't matter if it was an absurd suggestion. She merely had to argue her point well enough to convince it to let them go, or confuse it so much that they could run for the exit while it tried to make sense of her proposition. Maybe if she dragged it out long enough, she could use Leah's ring to slip behind it and take out its ankles.

She'd rather let that remain an absolute last resort.

"The raging inferno behind me speaks for itself," Everna said, mustering her best courtly impression. "As does the fact that my friends and I are free of our confinements. Never mind their atrocious handling of the situation afterwards. They fought with each other rather than make any attempt to contain us."

The cavernbrute's gaze fell to the goblins, now trembling at its feet, its eyes narrowed. "Yes, there was quite a loud commotion that woke me from my slumber. And you're walking free where you shouldn't be."

The leader of the goblins scrambled to appease it, but a single look sent it into whimpering silence.

Everna stamped down the tiny pang of sympathy that rose at the sound. These creatures intended to throw them to their deaths. They created the situation. They would be the ones to suffer for it, not her.

She'd been the one to give too much credit. The cavernbrute was intelligent, but its intelligence paled when compared to the Inquisitors and Arbiters that ran the Courts of Inverness. They could pry secrets from the most tight-lipped individuals as gently as night fell — a gradual process that only the most perceptive noticed before it reached completion. The cavernbrute didn't have their mastery of words and manipulation; it had arrogance in abundance.

This creature demanded subservience from those beneath it. People — creatures, in this case — of that nature were the easiest to persuade. Many saw arrogance as an obstacle, but those who had a gift for manipulation saw it for what it was: a useful tool. So long as the arrogant remained the focus of the conversation, and they believed they benefited the most from the suggested solution, they were pliant. Malleable.

"Far be it from me to make such claims, but it seems someone of your prominence deserves more loyal and competent servants," she pressed. "They serve you, but it seems only when you turn your eyes upon them. It seemed to me they didn't care whether you received your dues."

The cavernbrute scowled. "Not for the first time. But where, little human, would I find more competent servants, hm? Are you offering yourselves in exchange?"

"All things considered, we'd be a far worse choice," she said, choosing her words with care. "However, these mountains are enormous, and I understand goblins are not the only creatures within these parts. I'm sure you could quickly find replacements."

The cavernbrute smiled again, the sight turning her stomach. "I could, but goblins are small. Humans are larger. More filling."

The image of her bones wedged between those wicked teeth leapt to the forefront of her mind, but she forced it aside with a calming, albeit shuddering, breath.. She needed to push the conversation back to the goblins.

"True as that might be, there are only three of us, and even as far as humans go, we're considerably small. Probably no more filling than two goblins," she argued. "There are more of them than there are of us. Besides, if they couldn't contain three measly women, they'd never successfully deliver a larger, more... suitable offering, should it stumble into their lap. The three of us aren't much better; after all, even these incompetent fools captured us."

A tense silence settled over the cavern. Everna ignored the muttered pleas of the goblins and Lisette's stunned look. Despite the trembling in her legs and the unrelenting urge to turn tail and run, she forced her feet to remain rooted to the stone. She wouldn't die here.

Everna was not proud of her knack for manipulation. She despised the thought of taking advantage of others, no matter how easy it could be for her. But, if that's what it took to ensure she survived this encounter, then so be it.

If she died, Shroud succeeded.

That thought alone gave her the strength not to faint on the spot when the creature responded.

The cavernbrute laughed. It laughed so hard it nearly staggered back into the ravine, a hand clutching its impossibly large belly. She could almost see tears in its eyes.

"You're bold, little human!" the cavernbrute cried between thunderous peals of laughter. "Offering my own servants for your lives? I've never heard of such an absurd suggestion!"

Had she gotten too confident? No, she knew this was a futile endeavor; Lisette warned her it was merely toying with her. She was the entertainment — the show before the meal. She gritted her teeth as its laughter once again shook the cavern. Did she truly believe she could—

"I like you," it said, an unabashed grin splitting its face. "I'll give you thirty seconds to run."

Everna didn't need to be told twice.

She bolted to Lisette and hauled her to her feet as the cavernbrute stepped into the congregation. It swept the goblin's leader into its hand and tossed it, screaming, into its gaping maw. The tribe scattered, scrambling like roaches as they retreated further into the cavern.

A large gray foot soared overhead, slamming into the ground behind her. The floor trembled, cracks webbing across the stone. A spindly goblin leg, bent at an unnatural angle, stuck out from beneath the cavernbrute's heel.

Everna pushed her way through the scrambling mass and, with what little aid Lisette could offer in her daze, pulled Vina onto her back. She was heavy, more so than she expected, and much too tall. Vina's legs trailed behind her as the two of them fought past the last of the goblins and stepped onto the rickety bridge.

Though the ramshackle construction swayed wildly beneath them, the darkness of the ravine hardly crossed her mind. The true danger lay behind them, a hulking mass of stony gray among the terrified screams and the sickening crack of bones. Planks wobbled beneath her feet, the ropes creaking and snapping as she tore across the opening. Never had her heart beat so painfully in her chest — not even on the night she faced Windmore and fled the town's Guard. Her hands were numb, her trembling fingers barely able to keep Vina from slipping off her shoulder.

She could barely fit through the crevice in the wall, and the narrow, winding tunnel beyond was even more difficult to traverse. Yet, as if by the grace of the Golden Lady herself, she and Lisette pulled Vina through. As soon as Everna’s feet hit the floor of the cave and her gaze fell on the grassy plain just beyond the entrance, she sent a prayer of thanks to every deity she could name.

"How in the Nine Realms did you pull that off?" Lisette asked. She gasped for air, her hands trembling with such violence she could barely push her curls out of her face.

Everna shook her head. She hadn't a clue how her ridiculous argument worked, but it had. They escaped, and that's all that mattered.

"You've some kind of divine grace on your side. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were a votary of Lady Luck," Lisette said between breaths. "Cavernbrutes always toy with their food before eating it — whether by terrorizing it or 'debating' with it. I've never heard of one that let their meals go, no matter how amusing they find them."

"If it was the Golden Lady, I couldn't tell you why," Everna said. "I've never been a devout follower of the gods. I'm the last person they'd grace with their blessings."

Lisette drew in a shuddering breath, then swallowed and said, "Come on. We need to get out of here. A few goblins might escape and I don't fancy being here when they decide to take revenge."

They dropped Vina near the cave entrance and wasted no time gathering what few belongings Lisette had smuggled out of the cavern. Everna struggled to pull on her leathers, still soaked through from the previous night's storm, as Lisette stuffed Vina into her dress. After no small amount of fumbling, Everna buckled the last belt into place and retrieved her sword from the pile of weapons tossed into the middle of the cave. Most belonged to Lisette, and she quickly lost track of where she hid the array of knives and daggers.

After she wedged one down the front of her pants, Everna decided she'd rather not know.

Less than a quarter of a mile from the cave's entrance, they found the horses, still saddled, grazing on the plains. Lisette collected hers and Vina's while Everna hauled herself astride the molted mare she left the safe house with. Esazia huffed as if displeased with having her grazing cut short, but trudged after the other two horses.

No sooner than they returned to the cave, Vina bolted upright with a strangled shriek.

"Oh gods! I'm dead! I'm—" Vina's babbling ceased as she took in her surroundings, her eyes wide with disbelief as her head whipped about. "Outside?"

"You can thank Everna for that," Lisette said from atop her horse. "You would be dead if she hadn't convinced the cavernbrute to let us go."

"Cavernbrute?" Vina asked, scrunching her nose. "Is that what that horrendous creature was?"

Lisette made a sound of frustration at the back of her throat. "I should've known. Goblin tribes aren't that well organized unless there's something much more powerful lording over them. It's usually a cavernbrute or a cave troll. Sometimes, if you're really unlucky, it's a dragon."

"What's the difference between a cavernbrute and a cave troll?" Everna asked. "Neither sound pleasant."

Instead of an answer, she received a muddy stiletto heel to the face.

"You!" Vina hissed, red with fury. She flung the second shoe at her. "I bet you had something to do with this! You just faint at the most convenient time and we get dragged into a cave with those vermin? You're trying to get us killed, aren't you?"

Everna hadn't a chance to respond before Lisette spun her horse about and pinned Vina with a withering glare. "You were the one who fainted, and thank the gods for it. With your attitude, you'd have gotten us killed in seconds!"

"My attitude?!" Vina recoiled, scandalized. “My attitude is—"

"Unbearable at the best of times," Lisette finished. "With the way you've been acting, especially since Everna arrived, you're lucky to be alive. I wouldn't have blamed her one bit if she'd elected to leave you behind."

"Since when were you on her side?!"

Annoying as Vina was, Everna couldn't deny it was a valid question. Even if she hadn't overheard Lisette and her brother that day in the training room, Lisette made it clear she didn't trust her. The feeling was mutual.

Though Everna supposed Lisette had every chance to leave her behind. She could've taken their belongings and escaped with Vina, leaving her at the mercy of the goblins. Yet she'd come back for her.

"Since she saved our lives when she very well could've left us," Lisette said with finality. "Now, please, get on your horse. It's been a long night, and I want to put as much distance between us and that cave as possible."

"Don't expect me to thank you," Vina hissed. "You commoners exist to serve the nobility. I refuse to reward a fish for swimming."

Once Vina was out of earshot, struggling to haul herself onto her unwilling horse, Everna sighed. "Beyond the fact that she's an insufferable brat, what in the name of the gods did I do to deserve this much vitriol from her?"

Lisette cocked her head. "Wil."

Everna stared at her. "I absolutely have not."

"I didn't mean it literally," Lisette snorted. "She likes Wil. He can't stand her."

"I doubt that. She's Anwellian. They despise anything that isn't human — as well as any human that's not, well, them.”

Even without considering that, Lisette's proposal made no sense. She'd never heard Vina speak to Wil beyond the tantrum she witnessed the day she arrived at the safe house. She'd certainly never seen Wil associate with her. It had to be something else.

Or Lisette's complaints put the idea in her head.

"Yes, she's Anwellian," Lisette said as if it explained everything. "Wil, allegedly, comes from Inverness's High Nobility. It's the status she's after. She's throwing a hissy fit because he won't look in her direction, but he's glued to your hip."

Everna rolled her eyes. "Seriously? Osain's the one responsible for that. Contrary to what everyone seems to think, I didn't woo my way into the safe house. In fact, I wanted nothing to do with him at first."

"That was after the fact. Wil... He wasn't supposed to get involved. Osain told him to watch you, but he went and dragged you into the Guard post instead."

Now that she thought of it, Wil never said why he'd been in the tavern the night of Mayor Ashburn's assassination. She never asked; with everything that happened since, it was the furthest thing from her mind. In hindsight, it should've been the first question she asked.

"In the tavern, or after the fact?"

"Both," Lisette said after a moment of debate.

"Why?"

A pregnant silence preceded her response.

"Because we were told you'd be the one to kill Mayor Ashburn."

Bargain

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