The smoke grew heavier with each step, curling through the trees like lazy fingers pointing the way. James crouched behind a rotting log, peering through a gap in the moss-covered bark. What he saw on the other side made his breath hitch.
The goblin outpost was far larger than he'd expected.
It wasn't just a ragged camp of tents—this was a fortified position. Crude palisade walls made of sharpened logs ringed the clearing. Inside, squat huts of mud and timber surrounded a central bonfire, its flames licking at the mid-morning air. Dozens of goblins milled about, some sharpening spears, others gnawing on chunks of meat. Two larger ones, their green skin marked with white paint, barked orders at the rest.
James could count at least fifteen… no, closer to twenty.
Ilyanna, crouched beside him, lowered her bow after a quick scan. "Too many for a frontal assault. We should thin them out first. Pick off sentries, lure them into the trees—"
"We?" Chester's voice came from behind, dripping with smug amusement. "You mean you. Some of us don't need to play hide and shoot."
James turned sharply. "Chester—"
But the swordsman wasn't listening. His smirk had already turned to something more dangerous, the look of someone about to do something reckless just to prove a point. Argo was grinning beside him, rolling his shoulders as if warming up for a street fight.
"Watch and learn," Chester said.
Before anyone could stop them, Chester vaulted over the log, sword in hand, charging straight toward the palisade. Argo barreled after him, gauntlets clenched.
"Idiot!" Ilyanna hissed, already stringing an arrow.
The nearest goblin sentries spotted the pair instantly. Their alarm was shrill and ugly, like metal scraping bone. Within seconds, the outpost erupted into chaos—goblins spilling from their huts, grabbing weapons, rushing to the breach where Chester's sword had already hacked a gap into the palisade.
James scrambled to his feet, adrenaline spiking hard. "Dannevie!"
The scholar was already moving, wind magic swirling around him. "I'll cover you—go!"
James followed Ilyanna, sprinting for the edge of the clearing. The air was suddenly filled with the thud of arrows and the guttural shouts of goblins.
Chester was in his element. He moved like a storm, blade flashing in wide arcs, each swing dropping a goblin with brutal efficiency. Argo fought like a boulder given life—his gauntleted fists breaking bones with each blow, his laughter booming over the chaos.
They were effective, yes… but horribly exposed.
James ducked behind a crude cart for cover, murmuring the words to Magic Missiles. Three glowing darts shot from his hand, each one striking a goblin archer perched on the wall. Two fell immediately; the third staggered, only to be finished by one of Ilyanna's arrows.
But there were too many.
The goblins weren't just rushing in blindly—they were flanking, circling behind Chester and Argo. James could see two of the larger, painted goblins moving in from opposite sides, their jagged blades glinting in the firelight.
"Chester! Behind you!" James shouted.
The swordsman barely turned in time to parry the first heavy blow. Even so, the force of it drove him back a step, his smirk finally fading into a grimace. Argo lunged to help, only for the second painted goblin to slam into him, the two grappling in the dirt.
Dannevie's voice rang out over the din. "Wind Push!"
A sudden blast of air hurled one of the painted goblins backward, buying Chester a moment to recover. James seized the opportunity, thrusting his palm forward.
"Ignite!"
Flames leapt from his hand, catching the goblin's crude armor and sending it into a screeching frenzy. Chester didn't waste the opening—his blade came down hard, ending it in a single stroke.
Meanwhile, Ilyanna had climbed onto a toppled section of wall, her arrows flying in quick succession. She wasn't just aiming at goblins—she was targeting their archers and anyone moving toward the outpost's horn. Twice, James saw her drop a goblin just before it could sound the alarm.
Still, the fight was tipping dangerously toward chaos. For every goblin they felled, two more seemed to appear. The central bonfire blazed brighter, casting wild shadows that made movement harder to track.
James ducked under a wild spear thrust, his staff coming up instinctively to block. Mana Shield flared into place just in time to stop the follow-up slash. With his free hand, he sent a Light Orb spinning toward Ilyanna, giving her a better view of the far side of the camp.
"James! Left flank!" Dannevie shouted.
James spun to see three goblins breaking off from the main fight, moving toward the trees—likely to circle around and hit them from behind. He gritted his teeth and sent Magic Missiles streaking toward the first two, dropping them instantly. The third made it almost to the treeline before an arrow from Ilyanna pinned it to the ground.
For a moment, it felt like they might stabilize the fight—until the largest goblin James had ever seen stepped out from the biggest hut.
It was massive, at least a head taller than Argo, its muscles corded and scarred. A jagged bone crown sat on its brow, and in its hands was a rusted greatsword nearly as long as James was tall. Its eyes burned red in the firelight as it bellowed something in its harsh tongue.
Every goblin in the outpost seemed to rally at the sound.
"Oh… that's not good," Dannevie muttered.
The chieftain charged, scattering his own warriors to get to the intruders. Chester met him head-on, their blades clashing in a thunderous impact that rattled the nearby palisade. Sparks flew, and Chester was driven back two full steps.
Argo tried to flank the chieftain, but the massive goblin simply kicked him aside, sending him sprawling into a hut wall.
"Distract him!" Ilyanna called, loosing another arrow—this one bouncing harmlessly off the chieftain's crude armor.
James's heart pounded. He didn't have the firepower for something like this—not directly. But maybe…
"Dannevie! Can you push him?"
The wind mage's eyes lit with understanding. "Only if you've got something ready after."
James didn't hesitate. "Do it!"
Dannevie's hands moved in a flurry of gestures, a vortex of air swirling around the chieftain's legs. The goblin roared in anger as the wind shoved against him, forcing him off balance for a split second.
James thrust his staff forward, channeling every drop of mana he could spare. "Ignite!"
The flames burst across the chieftain's armor, licking upward toward its face. It staggered, blinded for a heartbeat—long enough for Chester to lunge, his sword piercing the gap under its arm.
The chieftain gave one last shuddering roar before collapsing into the dirt.
The rest of the goblins faltered at the sight. Some fled into the trees; others were cut down where they stood. Within minutes, the outpost was eerily quiet save for the crackle of the bonfire.
James leaned heavily on his staff, breathing hard. His hands were shaking—not from fear, but from the sheer drain of magic and adrenaline.
Chester wiped his blade on the chieftain's tattered cloak, smirking again as if the whole disaster had been part of his plan. "Told you it'd be easy."
Ilyanna just stared at him, her bow still in hand. "If you ever rush in like that again," she said coldly, "I'll put an arrow in your leg myself."
Argo chuckled weakly from where he was propped against a hut. "Worth it."
James glanced at the bodies, the crude huts, the still-burning fire. Easy? No.
They'd survived—but just barely.
And the forest still felt like it was watching.