Chapter 28: The Kobold Extermination
The mouth of the mine loomed like a jagged wound in the hillside, silent and foreboding. Inigo advanced first, raising his rifle as the shadows swallowed them whole. Behind him, Lyra moved with near-silent precision, her steps as light as falling leaves. The only sound between them was the faint creak of worn leather and the slow, steady click of Inigo's safety disengaging.
Just inside, the mine opened into a narrow tunnel—wooden supports bowing inward with age, beams draped in old moss and spiderwebs. A lantern wouldn't have helped here. The darkness was thick and absolute. But Inigo had already tapped into his system.
[Night Vision: Active]
The world turned green as his visor adjusted, bathing the tunnel in cold, artificial clarity. He could see every rock, every fracture in the timber, every worn pickaxe left behind by long-dead miners.
"Hold," he whispered, raising a clenched fist.
Lyra froze immediately.
Ahead—movement.
Three kobolds, their eyes glowing faintly in the dark, shuffled toward them. They were armed with jagged spears and rusty blades, armor cobbled together from scrap and bone. Inigo shifted slightly and raised the rifle to his shoulder.
Thwip. Thwip. Thwip.
Three suppressed shots rang out. The first two kobolds dropped instantly—one with a hole clean through the chest, the other crumpling as a round tore through its eye. The third screamed, turning to flee—but Lyra was faster. Her arrow hissed through the dark, alighting with a flash of flame mid-flight, and struck the kobold in the spine. It toppled, engulfed in small dancing embers.
Inigo glanced over his shoulder. "Nice."