Trout's Landing.

  "So what's the damage?" Jeb asked when he finally found the Trap Master down one of the branching tunnels.

  Unlike the main area of the burrows, the kobolds seem to be adjusting to excavating to their own size. Which meant they could better defend themselves from invaders underground. But it also meant Jeb had to stoop a little when leaving the main area and going down the separate tunnels.

  The Trap Master, not bothering to voice a response, took the pickaxe from one of the other kobolds and handed it over to Jeb. Whose illuminated eyes in the dark shines over the metal head of the tool.

  It was covered in pits, nicks, and several deeper gouges and cracks in the metal. The wooden handle wasn't much better as it was already repaired once before as a mess of tape and rope kept it, mostly, in one piece. But what was left was splintering and cracked.

  "That bad huh?" Jeb asked as he handed back the pickaxe.

  "And it's only going to get worse. The tools are too big and are already being pushed past what they can handle." The Trap Master states and gestures a little further down the tunnel where several of the tribe struggle with the oversized tools as the weight and length of cause their swings to go wide and hit the stone and dirt walls wildly.

  It was either that or they swung it too fast to make up the weight and risk hitting another of their kin in the process. Long story short? Despite the initial burst of speed and progress after warming up with balefire, they're now back to square one due to equipment.

  Jeb inhaled as he stared at the uneven and rough tunnel and tapped his leg in thought. If they'd found some iron themselves they could forge their own tools. But they haven't and at the rate of degradation of the tools it wouldn't matter if they did as the tools themselves wouldn't last enough to mine enough ore to smelt.

  Which left them with the agreement with the dwarves. Thing is though, it wasn't yet time for the dwarves to make due on their side of the agreement.

  If it was anyone else then there wouldn't be a problem. Folks around here didn't mind a little leeway in terms of agreements. But from what he got from the dwarves they wouldn't look to kindly on being rushed.

  But they didn't really have much choice, Jeb thought as a crack resounded through the tunnel as the handle of a pickaxe finally snapped, leaving the metal head embedded in stone.

  The 'bolds turned towards the Trap Master and Jeb with expectant looks. The Trap Master nodded.

  "Go back to the gathering area for rest and food. Leave this to us."

  The kobolds nodded and scurried back down the tunnel with ease, even with Jeb filling a good chunk of the passage. Jeb turned towards the Trap Master as the kobolds disappeared down the tunnel.

  "Got any ideas short-term?"

  The Trap Master shook his head.

  "No. We need tools to work. Our claws can go through dirt easy enough but solid stone? No. If we want a secure burrow we need to dig deeper. Most of our projects also need those tools or we risk a collapse or flooding."

  As if to reinforce his point, Dougie whined behind Jeb as a stream of water started to flow between his feet. Jeb and the Trap Master, with Dougie in tow, hurried back down the tunnel and towards the source of the water.

  Their panic subsided slightly when the direction wasn't coming towards the river. But that didn't mean they weren't on the cusp of a flood. They turned down the tunnel the water was flowing from and was met with several kobolds rushing back towards the main area.

  "Sorry! We just wanted to prepare the wall for excavation! But a wild swing broke through and the water started to rush in!"

  Jeb and the Trap Master followed the kobolds and discovered the source of the water was coming from the generator room below the admin building. The stagnant water, previously a small stream, was now little more than a trickle as the water lowered below where the hole had been struck.

  The Trap Master sighed and turned to look at Jeb and gestured the stagnant water at their feet to illustrate his point. Jeb nodded.

  "Alright. Guess we ain't got a choice. I'll chat with the dwarves and see if we can get an advance on those tools."

  Jeb turned and started making his way back down the slightly soggier tunnel, the voice of the Trap Master telling them to begin draining the water in the tunnels echoing off the walls as he did.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  He and Dougie emerged into the main gathering area to some nervous and bewildered kobolds that looked in his direction. Jeb gave them a smile and spoke in a reassuring voice.

  "Not to worry! Just a little old water is all! Nothing to panic over!"

  The kobolds glanced back down the tunnel and at the small stream of water that was already dwindling before returning to their business. Assured that things were, at least at the moment, taken care of.

  Jeb turned towards Dougie.

  "Stay. Guard."

  The eldritch wormhound whined at him but plopped down in the center of the gathering area and went stock still. Jeb reached out and rubbed his oily chitinous head.

  "Good boy."

  With that, Jeb then teleported "upstairs" and back out into the snowy open air of the lodge. He glanced back towards the murlocs as their population was noticeably smaller than before along with the number of boats also lesser.

  Jeb shrugged and started walking down the dirt road of the lodge and towards the main road that would lead him back in the direction of Somewhere, and to where he and the dwarves had agreed to meet for their trade.

  Snow fell as he walked down the road. The formerly black road was blanketed in white. Serving as a reminder just how little traffic they got this way during the winter. If at all.

  Then his nose started to itch as he neared the bridge that spanned over the river below. He groaned as he saw an all too familiar face leaned back against the railing. His own face beamed back at him and gave him a little wave as Jeb intently ignored it and marched through the snow.

  "Heya Jeb! What's happenin'?"

  Jeb continued to ignore "himself" as he marched on by without anything more than a grumble even as he followed after.

  "Y'know, I'm kinda hurt. You don't write, don't call, not even a text. Kinda feels like you're ghostin' me."

  Jeb scrunched up his face as he felt a sneeze coming and shook his head to resist it even as the smell of rotten eggs filled the cold air.

  "Really? Nothin'? Not even a fine how do you do? Kinda rude I'm not gonna lie. Guess Southern Hospitality just ain't what it used to be."

  Jeb marched a little faster in response. But the footfalls of "himself" continued close behind.

  "Folks these days. Won't even give so much as a smile or wave to a kind friendly stranger. Really tells you how the world is goin'."

  The footfalls finally ceased following him when his own feet passed across the boundary between the bridge and the road. Jeb barely looked back and saw the still smiling and waving face of himself looking his way before doing a "call me" hand gesture.

  Jeb snorted and marched onwards. The cold not bothering him near as much as whatever devilry lurks on the bridge now, the sooner he got this done with the better, he thought as he continued onwards.

  -----

  Dwarven Outpost.

  Damnable cold. Damnable gnome. Damnable Haunter, Forgrim thought to himself. Though he wasn't the only one with such thoughts, some going so far as to voice them aloud as they toiled away at the ground through the cold snow.

  As much as Daele had its issues, at least it never snowed, Forgrim thought as he huffed warm air into his hands before rubbing them together and getting back to work. Work had crawled as snow build up took time and effort away from building the Outpost. Keeping the fires going was already a chore on its own as dry wood was now a rarity.

  Which wouldn't be so bad on its own. If they also didn't have to deal with Odeas' constant moaning about his stolen book, and the cold, and how much he missed the hub. Most of which the dwarves could sympathize with. But his grating nasally voice on top of his lack of actual help in setting up the Outpost just caused further tension between the exiled dwarves and their gnomish busybody.

  "I swear. If he goes on about tha' damn book again I'll dump a bucket o' snow down tha' hole o' his!" One of their number hissed.

  "Don't bother. It'd just be somethin' else fer him ta complain about." Another grumbled.

  "Ack! All he does is complain! At this point I'd take one o' those whiny knife-ears o'er him!"

  "Ha! Bet they're frozen solid by now. Twiggy buggers."

  "Tree fuckers would probably just conjure a damn fire. Lazy louts."

  Well, at least they stopped complaining about the gnome, Forgrim thought as he took a rest from breaking ground to help shovel snow.

  "Can you not go any faster?! It is cold and wet! This is not a proper environment in order to dwell in!" Came a irritatingly nasally voice from a hole nearby.

  "Think if we filled his hole with water he'd float?" One of them grumbled.

  "Nah, he'll sink with how full o' himself he is."

  Forgrim sighed as he continued to shovel the snow out of the way, the sounds of grumbling mixing in with the sounds of work.

  -----

  Ruby stretched with a shiver as she blinked open her eyes wearily. She snuggled up more into the well-worn bear fur blanket, the urge to get up and be productive despite the cold fighting against her desire to continue sleeping in the warm moss bed.

  Unfortunately for her though, with Jeb no longer providing heat the bed didn't remain comfortably warm for long. So Ruby sluggishly began to rise from their shared bed and glanced around. Her eyes first landed on their eggs in the corner. She yawned and pulled herself out of the cooling bedding and towards the eggs.

  She reached a claw out and gave a pleased shiver as the warmth of the balefire kept the onyx colored eggs at the proper temperature, but also gave her a nice and welcome shot of warmth that caused the cold to flee from her body.

  She sighed contentedly and nuzzled closer to the warm shells and fire. Shivering comfortably as the fire warmed her scales and her core as the egg shells pressed against her soothing the aches and stiffness in her muscles.

  She was on the cusp of nodding back to sleep against the eggs when she heard a chuff from nearby. She opened her eyes and went stock still as the form of the eldritch wormhound loomed over her. The nightmarish creature, Dougie as Jeb had called it, starred at her with its multitude of beady black eyes. Its thin whip-like barbed tongue hung from its circular mouth as a viscous fluid dripped from the barbed tip in long thick strands.

  Ruby's eyes went wide and she briefly glanced over to where her combat staff was leaned against the rock wall nearby. But it was too far, she thought as her instincts told her to protect the eggs first and foremost. Which just left her claws and teeth instead. Though she doubt that would do much against the chitinous hide of the eldritch wormhound.

  Her scaled lips peeled back as she flexed her claws and made ready to defend her clutch of eggs from this nightmarish creature. She instinctively swiped when the eldritch wormhound lunged at her! Only for her claws to do nothing more than slide against the oily hide. Her thoughts turned to despair and worry for her clutch of eggs as she realized that this was the end for them both.

  Only to blink in surprise when she was still breathing, and that her eggs remained intact. However, she now had the oily chitinous hide of a not-so-small wormhound laying in her lap. The eldritch creature gave a pitiful whine as its thick claws pawed at the stone floor as it moved its worm-like head to look at Ruby more directly.

  Ruby could only blink and stare as the creature seemed... sad? At least that's what she thought it was as the creature slide more and more onto her lap, pressing her more and more against the warm eggs and the balefire. She grunted as the creature seemed to take residence on her lap as it starred down the tunnel and whined pitifully.

  Were all human animals like this, Ruby thought as she just patted the creature's hide and gave soft cooing noises as the wormhound waited for its master to return home safely. She glanced to her clutch of eggs briefly before trying to angle herself between the onyx shells and the eldritch wormhound. Which wasn't easy since the creature was plenty bigger than she was.

  But she managed, somehow, to at least physically block, partially, her eggs. Even if the wormhound didn't seem interested in attacking her or the eggs, she didn't trust it. Even if it looked sad and pitiful as it gave a low whine as it continued to nuzzle against her and stare down the tunnel.

  She sighed and gently scratched at its hide while her other claw rested protectively over the shells of her eggs. She hoped this wouldn't become a regular thing. At least her salamander wasn't like this. She wasn't sure how she'd handle two large creatures seeking her attention while she was busy tending to her clutch of eggs.

  "Hopefully Jeb gets back soon." She muttered to the agreeing whine of the wormhound in her lap.