C.U.C.K.E.D H.E.R.O Ch:10

Together, we hobbled the few steps over to the Goblin chief's tent. I didn't have any idea what to expect inside, and a part of me was terrified. I wanted to believe Hailey had the situation under control, but if she didn't…

“Knock knock.” I whispered. Not wanting to waltz in unannounced at the wrong time.

No response. I leaned close to the door flap of the tent, listening as best I could.

I couldn't hear much, but it did sound like someone was eating in there? Slurping up a thick chewy stew maybe?

“Uuughhh.” Vance groaned. Blood still flowing out of his wound.

Ahh fuck it. This wasn't the time to be a coward and hesitate. I needed to be a man and get in there.

“Hailey!” I said as we pushed into the tent.

Hailey sat across from the door, on the foot of the ornately adorned bed. Thankfully still fully dressed in her priestess outfit. Her back to us, she was bent over. Leaning on the Goblin Chief, who I could see was soundly asleep.


“MmFft, Mhayshun?” She said as she leaned up, her mouth full with something.

Slowly she turned to look at us. Her mouth, and most of her face was covered in a thick white cream. Even her hand had some of the stuff on it

“Yeah… Vance is hurt bad, is it safe to come in?” I whispered to her.

Seeing Vance keeled over, with blood dripping out of him must have really freaked her out. The panic was clear in her eyes, even in the dimly lit tent.

She gulped down whatever weird Goblin dessert. Almost about to say something, but she stopped to lick the cream off of her fingers first.

“Mmhmm… its… it's safe.” She said as she licked her lips clean. “Just… uhh…. Just don't get too close.”

She shuffled around to face us, sitting between the Goblin chief's legs. It almost looked like she was leaning back, resting against something. But that didn't make any sense, there wasn't anything behind her big and sturdy enough to support her body weight. Must have just been a weird trick of the light.

“Please tell me you've figured out your magic.” I said as I carefully put Vance down in the centre of the room. Making sure not to get to close like Hailey asked. “Because I don't know how much longer he has.”

“I've uhh… I've figured it out…” She gave an awkward laugh, looking back at the sleeping Goblin.

I thought maybe she had drugged his food, which is why she was eating when we came in. But had she actually used magic to put him to sleep? I don't remember seeing that ability on her list…

But this wasn't the time to think about that. I could get distracted. We'd debrief when we made it back to town. Alive.

“That's great! I knew you could do it!” I told her. “So get over here and fix him up already!”

“Umm… yeah… I'll just… uhhhhh…” Hailey hesitated. She seemed weirdly out of it, which I hoped was just from the shock of seeing Vance so badly hurt, and not from anything that Ungar had just put her through.

“What's the problem?” I asked. Noticing she had her hands behind her back. Touching or holding something. “Do you have to maintain touch for the spell to stay in effect?”

“No. I mean… uhh…” Hailey bit her lips like she did when she was worrying about something. The reality of this fantasy world must have been setting in. It sure was for me. This wasn't a game that we could quit if it got too hard, this was life and death.

“Where's the others!” She exclaimed.

“Shit.” I said. I'd almost forgotten about them in my panic to save Vance. “Myla got drugged with something. I should go check up on her.”

“Yes!!” Hailey intently nodded her head. “Yes you should definitely go do that!! Take your time! And I'll make sure Vance is okay…”

For some reason, it felt wrong leaving her alone here. Maybe it was her telling me to go help Myla when I knew she didn't like her…

No, that was stupid. Hailey was a good person, she wouldn't let a little feud get in the way of helping someone in need. We were just both panicked and freaked out.

I stood up, about to leave, but there was something I had to do first.

Rushing over to Hailey, I kissed her before she could say anything. Startling her at first, but after a moment she embraces me back.

“I love you.” I told her for the first time. It had been true for a while, and she knew that, but until now I'd never had the courage to put it into words.

“I… I love you too baby. So… so much.” Hailey stared deeply into my eyes and I swear her pupil's had reshaped into hearts. It was too dark to know for sure, but it sure was cute.

I wanted to say so much more, but there wasn't any time. I already felt like I was putting the others at risk just by doing this, but I needed Hailey to know. More than ever, she meant everything to me, and I didn't want to die without expressing that.

Trying to act cool, I wiped off a speck of cream she'd missed on her face and licked it off my finger. I had expected something light and sweet, but weirdly it was salty. A taste that I could almost recognise.

Hailey watched me lick the cream off with wide eyes. Clearly swooning over how cool I was. I pressed two fingers to my lips and blew her a kiss before running out of the tent. Leaping over Vance’s blood puddle for added effect.

I felt so energised after telling her how I felt. It was like my body was experiencing a rush of power and emotion, stemming from my newfound confidence.

Back outside, it looked like Sandor was mopping up. Piles of mutilated Goblin corpses scattered around the cave and more running off sacred. Fleeing deeper into the dark depths of this shithole.

Maybe I should have felt bad for the mass murder we had wrought here, but I just couldn't. Every second I spent in this world made me hate these bastard creatures more.

“Myla? You doing alright?” I asked. Kneeling down next to her.

“Hehehe Heeeyyy there stranger.” Myla rolled over to face me. Her antlers clacking against the stone floor.

“Myla, it's me. Mason.” Uughh. She was still out of it. I didn't want to deal with this right now, I wanted to get back to Hailey.

“I knooooow.” She giggled. Drawing out her words. “You were so strong saving my Vwancy from the big bad Goblin… I think you need a reward!”

Myla crept up towards me, her hands climbing up my pants and trying to pull them down at the waist.

“Myla, no…” I told her gently. Shaking my head. “You know I can't. And besides, I think you're kind of high right now.”

“It's not that bad.” She let go of my pants and rolled onto her back. Staring blankly at the ceiling. “I've got poison resistance, so it's nothin’ but a light buzz…”

A light buzz… sure…

“Thank you for the offer.” I said diplomatically. “But I've got Hailey, and I don't think she'd appreciate me getting any ‘rewards’ from any other girls.”

“Huh?” Myla looked at me with dazed eyes. “What's that mean?”

I liked Myla, but it was clear now that Hailey had the right first impression of her. She was a complete slut. If sucking off Vance in some alley, and proportioning me here, her confusion now sealed it. The idea of my girlfriend being mad at me for cheating on her seemed incomprehensible to her. Maybe that was just a cultural thing, but I had a feeling it was just her.

I didn't have any problems with her being a slut. If that's how she wanted to live her life then hey, more power to her. But even if I didn't have Hailey, I still wouldn't be interested.

That just wasn't the type of girl I could fall in love with.

A pink flash shone throughout the cave. Emanating from the tent Hailey and Vance were in. Guess that meant she was done healing him?

“Don't worry about it.” I shook my head. Offering Myla a hand. “Let's just head back home.”

Home… it didn't feel right calling the town that. Maybe someday it would, but right now I was completely aware of just how far away home really was.

Walking back into the tent with Myla this time, we found Hailey sitting next to Vance. She was in the middle of fixing up his pants, which must have been dragged down when I put him on the floor.

On a weird move, Hailey had dragged a bookcase from the side of the tent and moved it in front of the bed. Blocking our view of the sleeping Goblin.

I guess it was to block the light from her spell which might have woken him up? Still, it seems like there were easier ways to do that. Like just putting a pillow on his head. She was in shock though, not exactly thinking straight.

“How's he doing?” I asked her.

“Drained.” She said. Licking more cream off of her hand. Where the hell did she keep getting those desserts from? It had tasted weird and salty, but I kinda liked it. I wouldn't mind trying more.

“The bleeding stopped, and he's stable. I think. But the wound looks bad.” Hailey continued, inspecting Vances body.

Now wasn't the time to be thinking about snacks. Maybe I'd ask about them later, though that probably meant finding a Goblin to sell us their food.

Nevermind. I never wanted to see a Goblin again after today.

“Ohh! Let me see!!” Myla stumbled over to Vance. Putting her face an inch above Vance and staring blankly at his wound.

“Uhh… Myla?” I asked after a few moments of silent staring.

“Yup!!” She said with a cheerful smile. “It's bad!!”

“Thanks for the diagnosis doctor…” Hailey gave me a look, and I mouthed the words 'She's high’ to her.

“Weeellll, I ain't no Doc-tour.” Myla raised her finger to make a point. Waving it back and forth as her head swayed. “But if madam priestesseesee's healing couldn't close the wound. Then he must be poisoned.”

Oh, that was actually helpful to know.

“So that's what the poison does if you're not resistant?”

“Yup!” Myla shook her head vigorously. “Sucks to suck.”

She was laughing despite her so-called ‘Vwancy’ being in peril. Additionally, I was never going to let him live that pet name down.

If he lived…

“So… will he be alright?” Hailey asked.

“Nope!” Myla kept giggling. “He'll die.”

“WHAT?!” We simultaneously exclaimed.

“Settle down” Myla raises her palms at us. “He'll die… soon. In like, a week or so. If y'all don't get him the antidote, that is to say.”

“Next time start with that bit please.” I really hoped that her dose would wear off considerably faster than a week. “Can you make an antidote?”

“Me? WhoDaYaThinkIAm?” She said, all as one word. “An alchemist? No… what we need is-”

“An alchemist?” Hailey said. Dryly. She was even more done with Myla than I was.

“Yeah! How'd you know?” She squinted hard at Hailey. “Expensive though… veeeery expensive…”

“Uughhh. The whole point of this quest was to make money! Isn't there any other way to save him?”

“There might be…” Myla tapped her chin rapidly. “I know a guy who does work on the cheap… but he's kinda shady. Only the desperate-”

“We are desperate.” I said. “And I in particular, am desperate to get the hell outta here. We're never doing a Goblin related quest again, right Hailey?”

“Uhh.. yeah… definitely…” She looked back at Ungar, who was still sleeping soundly. Whatever she'd done to him, it had really knocked him out.

“Should we uhh… finish him off?” I gestured at Ungar.

I'd killed a Goblin moments ago, but that was in battle. When our lives depended on it. I hated them and him especially, but to kill a living thing while it slept felt deeply wrong.

“I think somebody already finished him off…” Myla giggled.

“WHAT?” Hailey shrieked.

“You know…. When Sandor killed all his tribe? He's done for without them. Finished off. I doubt we'll see him again.”

“Oh… yeah… haha… that's… that's true…” Hailey wiped some sweat off her forehead. We were all so on edge, we needed to get out of here and rest.

“Alright. Let's round up Sandor and leave already. First thing tomorrow we'll go buy the antidote from… what's his name Myla?”

“The alchemist? Myla giggled more. Blushing a little this time as she told us his name.

“His name is Maximus Dickson.”