I Can See Evolution Paths

Several Goblins unconsciously held their breath.

One child quietly reached for their mother’s hand.

Even the Blazefang Lions remained perfectly still, ears twitching every time another heavy footstep echoed overhead.

Nobody wanted to discover the beasts had found them.

Only the sounds above remained which were heavy footsteps and roars. Then thunder rumbling somewhere in the distance. Dust occasionally fell from the ceiling, drifting down through the dim light of the chamber.

Everyone instinctively waited.

Vedas quietly watched the hidden entrance.

Nobody wanted to be the first one to make a sound.

Arthur slowly looked away from the entrance and looked around. The chamber stretched far into the distance with massive stone pillars rising toward a ceiling so high it disappeared into darkness.

Golden crystals hung overhead like stars, bathing everything in a soft amber glow. Ancient roads branched in every direction. Stone bridges crossed over lower streets.

Entire neighborhoods stretched beyond the light, disappearing into shadow. Arthur blinked in surprise and then he heard the footsteps above had finally faded. Then the roars grew quieter and silence slowly returned.

One exhausted Hunter finally let out a long breath. "They’re gone," he said.

The entire underground chamber exhaled together. Several Goblins simply sat down where they stood.

One Builder flopped onto his back. "I don’t think I’ve ever run that much," he said.

Another laughed weakly. "I don’t think I’ve ever been chased by that many beasts," he said.

Even Sun sat down heavily. "I’m voting we don’t do that again," he said.

Arthur scratched his cheek. "It wasn’t that bad," he said.

Everyone immediately turned to look at him.

"You’re impossible," Sun said.

Arthur blinked. "Really?"

Mithra smiled. "We should rest,"

Nobody argued.

Hunters removed damaged armor, wincing at bruises they hadn’t noticed until now. Builders finally relaxed, sitting against the stone walls. The Riders carefully helped injured Goblins down from their Lions.

The newly evolved Blazefang Lions quietly lay down beside their new partners. Some Goblins nervously reached out to touch their fur. The Lions didn’t pull away while one rolled onto its side instead, and the Goblin blinked. "I think he wants more," he said.

Then he scratched behind the Lion’s ear. Its tail immediately started swaying. "You really like that?" The Lion leaned closer.

Another Rider laughed. "I think yours is already spoiled."

Several of the other Lions slowly wandered toward their own partners. One nudged its Rider’s shoulder. Another lowered itself beside a child.

Arthur watched quietly. "They’re pack beasts."

Everyone looked toward him. "They’ve already accepted everyone here as part of their pack."

Several Goblins smiled.

Some reached out a little more confidently and none of the Lions pulled away.

Arthur smiled. "They learn quickly," he said.

Sun watched the scene, shaking his head. "I still can’t believe you punched friendship into existence," he said.

He tilted his head. "It worked," he said.

Athena sighed. "I hate that he’s right," she said.

Mithra smiled. "Let’s not visit that method anytime soon again."

Melo began walking through the crowd, soft dream mist spreading from her steps. "Kyu," she said.

The Goblin Healers immediately began working beside her. Cuts began disappearing, burns started to fade away and bones were being healed. The atmosphere in the chamber completely shifted.

Instead of panic, people began talking again, laughing, and sharing stories about the chase. One Goblin proudly announced that he had actually punched a Lion.

Another immediately replied, "You got launched into a tree."

"I still punched it," he said.

Everyone laughed.

While the rest continued recovering, the elders slowly began walking around the chamber. Elder Raja gently placed his hand against one of the ancient stone walls.

"So it really existed," he said.

Arthur looked over. "You knew about this place?"

Raja nodded. "There were stories," he said.

Raku smiled faintly. "When we were children, the elders used to tell us about an underground city," he said.

Mara nodded. "They said our ancestors once lived beneath the mountains," she said.

Luka quietly added, "But no one knew where."

Arthur blinked. "Really?"

They all nodded.

Sun looked around. "Wait," he said. "If the Guardian Spirit Trial always led here, how come none of you found it?"

Raku scratched his head. "Huh? It does?"

Luka folded her arms. "We never knew."

Mara nodded. "There wasn’t an entrance anywhere," she said.

Arthur looked surprised. "So every generation missed it?"

Nobody answered.

Athena tilted her head. "I’m surprised," she said.

Everyone looked toward her.

"If the city was still usable," she said, "why didn’t your ancestors live down here?"

Several Goblins quietly nodded. It was a reasonable question.

Vedas slowly looked down the ancient road stretching before them. "I think," he said.

Everyone turned toward him.

"The Goblin King didn’t want us becoming comfortable," he said.

Silence.

"If everyone stayed underground," he continued, "there would be no reason to leave." He gestured toward the city around them. "Food. Shelter. Water. Safety."

Elder Raja’s eyes widened. "I see," he said, slowly nodding. "We would’ve believed this was enough."

Vedas nodded. "And if something forced us back to the surface—"

Raku sighed. "We wouldn’t know anything," he said. "We’d be weak. We’d be completely screwed."

Nobody argued.

Sun sighed. "That’s actually a good point," he said.

Athena nodded. "It also explains why the Guardian Spirit Trials were on the surface," she said.

Mara quietly smiled. "Even after all these years, our King was still thinking ahead," she said.

The Goblins quietly looked around the chamber again. This time with even more respect.

After everyone finished recovering, Arthur stood. "Let’s keep moving," he said.

This time nobody rushed and the atmosphere had turned peaceful. Children walked at the front of the group, and the adults simply followed along behind them.

Every few steps brought a new question.

"Who lived here?"

"Did Goblin kids play here?"

"Was it noisy?"

"Were there lots of people?"

Raku chuckled. "I don’t know," he said. "I wish I did."

One little Goblin pointed toward an old stone bench. "Can I sit there?" she asked.

"Of course," Raku said.

The child proudly sat down. "I’m an ancient Goblin now," she announced.

Everyone laughed.

One little Goblin suddenly tugged on Arthur’s sleeve. "...Prophet?"

Arthur looked down. "Yeah?"

"Did the Ancient Goblin King ever come here?"

Arthur thought about it. "I can definitely see that. This is his city after all."

Another child immediately asked, "Did he play here too?"

Arthur blinked. "Maybe."

A third child raised his hand. "Do you think Guardian Voro went down the slide?"

Arthur imagined it for a second. "...I think he would’ve."

The children immediately started laughing.

Raku chuckled. "...Somehow I can picture it."

Even Mara smiled.

After a bit, one of the goblin children stopped.

"What is it?" Arthur asked.

The goblin children pointed toward a small stone porch.

A tiny wooden toy sat there covered in dust and forgotten.

Arthur picked it up and it was carved into the shape of a Goblin holding a spear.

The child smiled. "Someone forgot their toy."

Mithra quietly placed it back where it had been. "Maybe they’ll want it when we rebuild."

Nobody said anything but several Goblins smiled. And they continued walking until soon, the road opened into a small square, and it wasn’t a military area at all.

A neighborhood.

Near the center stood an old playground, a stone slide worn smooth with age, a small merry-go-round carved directly from rock, animal shaped carvings scattered around the edges.

The children immediately ran toward it.

One little Goblin slid down the stone slide and immediately climbed back up.

Again. Again. Again.

Another jump on the strange flower that sent them flying up into the air and then dropping back down with a laugh. Soon children’s laughter echoed through the neighborhood and for just a few moments...

The city sounded alive again.

Raja quietly watched and his smile softened. "Our ancestors would have loved this."

Mara nodded. "I think so too," he said.

The children’s laughter slowly faded behind them as the convoy continued down another ancient street.

The little Goblins were still talking excitedly. "Did you see how high I jumped?"

"I know! You almost flew!"

"Pssst, so what!? I went down the slide six times!"

"Hahaha! I went down ten times!"

Arthur smiled as he listened. "...I bet this place used to be noisy."

Raku chuckled. "I hope so."

Luka looked around the neighborhood to see stone homes lined both sides of the road. Even after centuries, it still felt lived in.

Mara quietly smiled. "I can almost picture it."

Arthur nodded. "Me too." He looked toward one of the houses. "I wonder who lived there."

Nobody answered.

But for a few moments, everyone simply imagined it.

Children running through the streets.

Families eating together.

Arthur suddenly smiled. "You know..." Everyone looked toward him. "I don’t think your ancestors would be disappointed."

Several Goblins blinked.

Raja smiled. "...Really?"

Arthur nodded. "This somehow was preserved." He gestured around the neighborhood. "They clearly expected future generations to inherit it."

Several Goblins straightened proudly.

Arthur continued. "So you guys should probably become at least this good."

Silence.

He looked around. "...Otherwise that’d be pretty disappointing."

One child blinked.

Raku froze.

Luka’s eye twitched.

Mara slowly covered her face.

Sun closed his eyes. "...There it is."

Athena sighed. "I was wondering how long it would take."

Arthur tilted his head. "...What?"

Sun looked at him. "You." He pointed toward the city. "Do you have any idea how absurd what you just said was?"

Arthur blinked. "I don’t think so."

Sun stared. "You just casually told an entire race they should surpass the civilization that built an underground kingdom stretching beneath an entire mountain."

Arthur thought about it. "...Yeah? Didn’t they already mention they would surpass their ancestor?"

"It not like they knew how absurd their ancestors was–"

"That shouldn’t matter."

"It does!" Sun threw both hands into the air. "That’s like walking into a ruined castle and saying..." He cleared his throat dramatically. "’Well, your descendants better build something even bigger or everyone will be disappointed.’"

Arthur blinked again. "Wouldn’t that make sense?"

Sun looked toward Athena. "...Help me."

Athena adjusted her glasses. "Logically..." Sun looked hopeful. "...he isn’t wrong."

Sun’s shoulders dropped. "Are you kidding me?"

Athena looked toward the Goblins. "If every generation merely matches the last, then they won’t grow. Arthur’s wording could have been better."

Arthur tilted his head. "What was wrong with it?"

Mithra laughed. "You accidentally called every Goblin here a disappointment."

"Really? Maybe my expectations were too high. I’m sorry–"

"No! Keep those expectations! We will surpass them!" All of the goblins roared.

Arthur smiles. "See, Sun? They are fine."

"Ugh..."

Further ahead, Melo suddenly stopped. "Kyu," she said, pointing excitedly.

Everyone looked.

Rows of ancient fruit trees stretched through a large underground orchard, golden crystals glowing softly above, providing gentle light across the entire space. To everyone’s surprise, many of the trees were still alive, covered in bright red fruit.

Arthur walked toward the nearest tree.

Its trunk was enormous and old, yet its leaves were bright green. Fresh fruit covered every branch. He placed one hand against the bark and to his surprise, it felt warm.

Athena crouched beside the roots and saw magic shimmered beneath the soil. "It isn’t surviving by chance." She pointed toward the ground. Tiny glowing channels stretched beneath every tree. "The system is still working."

Arthur picked one of the fruits. "Can we eat it?" he asked.

Sun immediately answered. "You first," he said.

Arthur took a bite and he blinked. "Sweet," he said.

Sun immediately grabbed one for himself. "Now we’re talking," he said.

Within minutes, everyone was eating. Children ran around carrying fruit almost too big for their small hands. One little Goblin happily held up two at once. "I found extra!" he shouted.

The Blazefang Lions were given some as well. One sniffed at the fruit cautiously, then happily crunched into it.

Its partner laughed. "Even you like it?" she said.

The atmosphere grew even lighter. For the first time since entering the Trial, nobody was thinking about beasts.

Not far beyond the orchard, they heard running water. A crystal clear spring flowed through carved stone channels, the water so clean that the glowing crystals beneath it could still be seen shimmering below the surface.

Everyone naturally gathered around it. Hunters washed blood from their hands. Children splashed each other, shrieking with laughter. One Builder immediately fell into the shallow water.

"Worth it," he said.

Everyone laughed.

Arthur knelt beside the spring and quietly drank. "Cold," he said.

Mithra smiled. "Refreshing?" she asked.

Arthur nodded. "Very," he said.

Even Athy landed beside the water and happily drank her fill. Melo carefully dipped one tail into the spring before immediately fluffing it back out again.

"Kyu," she said.

Sun laughed. "She approves," he said.

Eventually everyone began standing again and felt the rest had done them good. The exhaustion hadn’t disappeared completely, but the fear had.

Vedas looked back once toward the orchard. "Our ancestors really lived here," he said.

Raku smiled. "One day our children will have places like this again," he said.

A nearby Builder shook his head. "We won’t just restore it," he said. "We’ll make something even greater."

Another immediately pointed farther down the street. "I’ll rebuild the houses."

A third crossed his arms. "I’m making a forge twice as big."

Within moments the Builders were already arguing over which buildings they wanted to restore first.

Luka watched them. "They’re planning a future already."

Raja smiled. "...That’s exactly what this place was waiting for."

Several Goblins smiled at that. Not because they missed the past but because, for the first time, the future felt possible.

The King’s Mark glowed once more on Arthur’s hand, and the golden trail continued deeper into the underground kingdom.

Arthur smiled. "Looks like the King still has more to show us," he said.

The children immediately cheered. "Let’s go!"

Everyone followed. Not because they were escaping anymore, but because they were finally exploring the home their ancestors had left behind.