CHAPTER 46: THE TUNNELS (2)

The journey to the tunnels dragged on as long as expected. The world around them was already steeped in darkness, and as the last threads of daylight bled away, the air grew colder, heavier. Shadows stretched unnaturally across the uneven ground, and every step echoed louder than it should have.

At first, Stephan had taken Anna Mary on his back, her weight barely a burden compared to what he had endured before. But after a while, he felt the steady rise and fall of her chest against him, the heat of her breasts pressed too close. It unsettled him in a way he liked but couldn’t admit. Without a word, he shifted her back into Grief’s arms, letting the soul servant carry her instead.

Their attempts at prying more out of Fizzwigg had yielded almost nothing. The gnome was careful, sharp-tongued, and annoyingly evasive. All they managed to learn was that Magodilin was indeed a city of gnomes, hidden deep underground, and that his little excursion into Orc territory had been part of some "special mission." Beyond that, he shut down, repeating the same line with smug finality, "Confidential information. For the King’s ears only."

Stephan didn’t press further. For now.

Fizzwigg explained as they walked, his small feet pattering quickly to keep pace. He told them how, in this realm, sometimes the sun grew so weak it could not pierce the sky, leaving the world cloaked in shadow for an entire day. How rain was rare, and when it came, it was sometimes red, thick and heavy, like blood.

"It is believed the gods wage war above the heavens," the gnome said solemnly. "Their blood spills down upon us in the form of rain. Some call it a curse, for nothing grows when the blood rain falls. We must survive only on what water we’ve stored."

Stephan let out a low, cool laugh. "Your gods sound like a bunch of arseholes to me. Cursing their own worshippers? Some real fine divinity you’ve got there."

"Blasphemy!" Fizzwigg snapped, glaring at him. "How dare you mock the gods?"

"It’s not blasphemy when I don’t believe in your gods," Stephan countered smoothly.

Yennefer, who had been quiet, spoke then. "I wonder if those gods are the Unbound Death Gods... like Noctis."

Fizzwigg’s brow furrowed. "Unbound gods? You told me of them before, that they created this realm." He hesitated, then looked at Stephan. "This Noctis you speak of....the one who sent you here?"

"Yeah," Stephan said simply.

Fizzwigg tilted his head, curiosity flickering in his beady eyes. "If that’s true, perhaps he is one of the gods we gnomes pray to. Tell me, what is he like?"

Stephan smirked, the corner of his mouth curling upward. "He’s just an ugly bird."

"What do you mean by that?" Fizzwigg asked, tilting his head.

"He looks like a man with a raven’s face and wings," Stephan replied flatly.

The gnome shuddered. "Isn’t that terrifying?"

Stephan’s gaze stayed forward. "We’re used to things like that now. In my previous life, I would’ve been scared..."

Fizzwigg blinked. "Previous life? What do you mean by previous life?"

Stephan turned to look at him, a faint smile curling on his lips. "That wasn’t part of the bargain, was it?"

"Oh, c’mon now..." the gnome muttered, quickening his little steps to keep up. "You humans are strange....interesting. You’ve seen things I can only dream of. Traveling between realms... meeting gods... wielding tremendous power..."

They walked in silence after that, the weight of the gnome’s words hanging between them.Then, out of the darkness, a shape began to emerge, massive, jagged, half-swallowed by shadow. As they drew closer, it revealed itself: a ruin. Once a castle, now nothing but a broken husk. Crumbled towers jutted like shattered teeth against the dim sky, and walls that had once stood proud lay in heaps of stone.

It was human-made, that much was clear. But whatever glory it once held had long since been devoured by time and ruin.

"We’ve arrived at the tunnels," Fizzwigg announced.

The group scanned the ruins, but all they saw were broken stones and the skeleton of a once-great fortress. No passageways. No tunnels. Just silence and the eerie weight of abandonment.

"Where are the tunnels?" Stephan asked, narrowing his eyes at the rubble.

Fizzwigg smirked faintly and motioned with his small hand. "Follow me. They’re inside."

With that, the gnome slipped nimbly over a pile of collapsed stone, heading toward the yawning shadow of the ruined castle.

They stepped into the abandoned castle, boots crunching against shards of broken stone and rusted iron. The air was thick with dust, stale and unmoving, as though the place itself had been holding its breath for centuries.

"This place..." Fizzwigg muttered, his voice hushed despite himself. "Humans once lived here. Before the fall-off."

Stephan’s eyes lingered on the toppled columns and shattered banners, remnants of a forgotten age. The silence pressed in heavy, broken only by the faint whistle of wind through hollow cracks in the walls.

"We should head down," Fizzwigg said at last, pointing toward a staircase swallowed in shadow. The stone steps seemed to spiral into nothing, an abyss of absolute black.

Without waiting, the gnome struck flint and lit a torch. The flames sputtered, then steadied, painting his sharp features in orange light. Without another word, he descended.

One by one, they followed him into the dark.

"See, before humans orchestrated their own collapse, they were the only race that could rival the elves," Fizzwigg said as the torchlight flickered against the ruined walls. "They possessed almost equal wisdom, weapons, technology, even magic... But they were greedy bastards....sorry. Elves are greedy too, but humans were worse. Always wanting more, clawing for superiority, never satisfied."

Stephan and Yennefer both shot him a look, sharp enough to pierce through the dark.

The gnome exhaled, almost weary. "I feel your eyes burning into my back, but what I’ve said is the truth. And isn’t that why you’re here in the first place? To kill each other for greater power? To prove you’re above the rest? Humans will never change, no matter the realm. You’ll always be the same."

Yennefer’s voice cut through the silence. "And you think your race is better than the rest?"

"Not exactly," Fizzwigg admitted, his tone soft but edged. "But in the last thousand years, gnomes have never started a war. It was the elves and orcs who dragged us into their bloodshed. We couldn’t just stand and wait to be slaughtered, so we fought back. But unlike them, we fight only to survive. Not for land, not for power, not for dominion over this realm."

The torchlight flared briefly, casting his shadow long and twisted on the cracked stone.

At last, they reached the end of the staircase. Fizzwigg raised the torch, and its flame licked the darkness, revealing the yawning mouth of a tunnel. It stretched out before them, vast and hollow, wide as the belly of a train. The stone walls curved into shadow, swallowing the light after only a few feet. The air was colder here, heavy with damp and the faint stench of earth long undisturbed. Beyond the torch’s glow, it was darker than midnight, an endless black that seemed to breathe as they stared into it.

"Welcome to the tunnels," Fizzwigg announced, his voice echoing faintly against the stone.

He lifted the torch higher, pointing toward the endless stretch of darkness. "If we can make it to the far end, we’ll arrive at Magodilin."

Stephan smirked, his eyes sweeping over the cavernous passage. "Well, this is a cozy little place. Tell me, did the dwarves dig all this?"

"Gnomes," Fizzwigg snapped, the correction sharp.

"Yeah, whatever," Stephan muttered with a crooked grin.

Fizzwigg’s small chest puffed slightly with pride as he gestured around. "Our ancestors carved these tunnels with their hands, their tools, and their lives."

Yennefer tilted her head, frowning. "Tunnels? Plural?"

"Yes," Fizzwigg said, lowering his voice as though the dark itself might overhear. "This is only one of many. The tunnels branch into dozens...hundreds even. It was by design. A safeguard. If orcs or elves ever forced their way inside, they would wander endlessly, lost a thousand times over before stumbling upon Magodilin... if the Hanging Ones didn’t take them first."

The silence that followed was thick, broken only by the faint crackle of the torch.

"That being said," Fizzwigg continued, adjusting his torch, "we will walk in a single line. The human warrior first, then myself, the strange girl with the angel, and finally, Lady Yennefer at the rear."

Yennefer’s brow furrowed. "Why should I go last?" she asked, her tone edged with irritation.

Fizzwigg glanced back at her, unbothered. "The Hanging Ones usually strike from the front. That’s where the strongest should stand. They rarely attack from behind...unless we pass a joining tunnel. Even then, it’s uncommon."

Stephan chuckled under his breath. "So, I’m basically your bait?" he asked coolly.

"You’re the strongest, aren’t you?" Fizzwigg countered without missing a beat.

For a moment, Stephan just stared at him, then a slow grin stretched across his face. "Yes... you’re right. I am the strongest."

Fizzwigg returned the grin with his own sharp smile, then touched Stephan’s arm as if sealing the agreement. "Good. Then let’s move. I’ll explain more about the tunnels as we go."