The goblin excitedly ran up the stairs; he already had one of the sentinels hauling the appropriate door from storage. They both arrived at the intended location at about the same time. The sentinel placed the door and Armand powered the magic circle, establishing a connection.

  “Time for the initial test.” The goblin said with a smile. As the door opened, out stepped a man in rags with feet and ankles in chains. It was decided that they would test using a prisoner first; after all, the previous door was not large enough to put a person through.

  “Please return.” The goblin said to the prisoner, who sighed defeatedly and turned around and back into the doorway. The goblin frowned and noted something of concern. The prisoner came back and for a few more times, blankly went through the task over and over.

  “What’s your name?” The goblin suddenly asked. The prisoner stopped in his tracks and looked closely at the short figure before him.

  “Nelson, m’lord.” The prisoner replied.

  “What did you do to get put in chains?” Armand asked of the man.

  “I was convicted of the murder of a young girl a nobleman fancied.” Nelson replied, but there was something deeper that he was not saying.

  “Of course you didn’t…” The goblin resolutely replied. Causing the prisoners’ eyes to widen.

  “You don’t think I did it?’ He asked incredulously.

  “No matter what you say or do, your soul doesn’t lie.” The golden shine of a soul destined for Celestial was unmistakable. “Why do you tell me what happened?”

  The prisoner stopped for a moment. “I loved her, and she loved me.” He choked out, “And that bastard killed her because she could have her.” The goblin nodded; the story checked out with him.

  “What’s the hold up?” A guard seemed to have grown impatient.

  “Let darkness take you and let the god of slumber bring you into his embrace.” The goblin chanted, and the guard in turn fell to the ground into a deep sleep. The goblin waddled up and placed a hand upon the guard’s head. “Forget what you have seen; it is not what you thought. Let it be gone from your thoughts.”

  “What was that?” The prisoner asked, aghast at what had just occurred.

  “Well, I have no desire for the general populace to know who I am just yet.” He turned to the prisoner. “And before you ask, you were to be executed after this excursion.” The prisoner just froze in place. “Obviously I cannot let that happen.” The goblin waved to the doorway “Please take him and go back and tell Isolde to come in here and that you are to accompany her.”

  “But what if they kill me?” The prisoner asked, clearly concerned for his well-being. Armand couldn’t help but smile.

  “Just tell the queen that if you die, the wolves may have an accident.” He had no intention to harm her ‘pets,’ but it would put a fire under her. The prisoner had no clue how to respond but the matter-of-factness of the goblin before him caused him to grab the sleeping guard by the scruff and drag him out through the portal.

  A few moments later the queen in question burst through the doorway, the prisoner held by the scruff. “Threats are not your usual game, Armand.” She had a silent fury brewing in her eyes.

  “You know, I would never harm them.” The goblin replied playfully; those creatures awoke Isolde’s maternal instincts and even though she trusted the goblin completely, she was played like a fiddle. “Now to some important business.”

  “Is that the way to greet me after a month?” Her fury was redirected in another way.

  “Of course not,” Armand said with a smile as he stepped up and gave a hug. Her anger was slowly replaced with contentment. “Now onto the other matter at hand.” The goblin turned to the prisoner in question.

  “What, you want his soul?” She asked, and Nelson shivered at the statement.

  “Not in this case; I am pretty sure he is innocent.” The goblin stated rather matter-of-factly. “His soul is clearly tinged golden.”

  “Most curious.” Isolde got invested in it all; she looked the prisoner up and down. “Perhaps you should loop me in on the important details.” The prisoner looked at her in shock; the queen of the nation was asking for his side of the story? After everything, someone with power was actually listening.

  This is a golden opportunity so it was best to act before they changed their minds, so the prisoner began to explain the story again. A nobleman’s son was engaged to the daughter of a powerful merchant. However, the young man, an apprentice in the trade, won her heart, and she ultimately chose love over power.

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  The nobleman’s son in turn shared the news with his father, who was a baron no less. They had her killed off, bribed the right people, and arrested Nelson. “I have heard your case, and much like Armand said, the color of one’s soul cannot lie.”

  The prisoner’s eyes widened. “So I am free?”

  “Unfortunately, no…” Said the queen. “While I am the new monarch, it is a very tentative hold. The nobility has gone unquestioned here for generations and I am not capable of dealing with a rebellion of the moment.”

  The prisoner hung his head, the brief glimmer of hope extinguished. “Perhaps you should finish your statement and not leave the poor man hanging.” The goblin said with a laugh.

  “Well, obviously the prisoner would be ‘executed’ here in the dungeon and the nobility would gradually forget of their existence with time.” She turned to the prisoner. “You understand what I am implying.”

  “Yes, madam, Nelson is dead.” The prisoner said with a nod. The duo of woman and goblin nodded and turned to one another.

  “Lunch?” Armand inquired.

  “No, unfortunately, my absence has left a stack of paperwork that leaves even the most seasoned receptionist in fear,” she replied.

  “You can offload that to me if you want; I can set one of my readers to tackle it.” The goblin offered.

  “While I would love to, I need to be on top of the business in the kingdom.” She replied.

  “Truly a mark of a good queen.” Armand replied, “I can get you your own reader construct here then…” She looked at him, as if to say ‘right now?’ “When you are ready, of course.”

  She laughed and gave the goblin a small arm squeeze before heading to the exit. As she opened the path, she said one last thing, “By the way, Theoden will be by later this evening to pick up the doors for his village!” She didn’t give the goblin an opportunity to respond as she passed through the doorway.

  “”Well, shucks.” The goblin was a little disappointed, but there was still a guest in his midst. “Perhaps you would care to join me.”

  “If it is anything other than gruel, then I would greatly enjoy it.” The prisoner-turned-free man replied. They went to the hall and the goblin created a large banquet of food. He would have cooked for himself but he hated seeing how thin Nelson was.

  The man ate like it was the first time in his life, supping on everything and licking the bowl clean. “How long did they make you eat gruel for?” The goblin couldn’t help but jest.

  “I lost count of the days; it could have been years. Frankly, I feel like they locked me away and forgot about me.” The man replied.

  “It must have been disheartening when you were chosen for the experiment.” The goblin sighed.

  “Yes, it was. But now I wouldn’t trade it for anything.” The ex-prisoner replied.

  “Have you decided what you would like to do?” The goblin asked.

  The man shook his head. “I’m not sure. Can you share with me any options I may have?” he asked.

  “Well, at the moment there are two exits to the dungeon; one is in the castle, which is off limits, and the other is in the forest of death.” Armand elaborated.

  “That option is also not good.” Commented the man. He sat back. “How long can I stay here?”

  “As long as you want.” The goblin replied, “I’ll supply you with food, water, and shelter. However, I will be quite busy soon here. Speaking of which, a new exit will be available within the elven forest.”

  “That could work,” the man concurred, “but I feel like I owe you something for saving me.” The goblin waved him off but the man insisted, “Look around you! Look at all these amazing constructs and books; they are hard to come by for most folks.”

  “Truth is, money is rather pointless to me.” The goblin replied but he was brewing up an idea. “Could you maybe find me rare and unique materials?”

  “How so?” The prisoner brought his hands together and leaned forward.

  “I can recreate almost any material brought into my dungeon, but that is the caveat. I need an actual physical example or I need someone to help manifest it.” The goblin clarified.

  “So you have seen these constructs before?” The ex-prisoner scratched his head trying to imagine how a goblin could have seen these things before.

  “No, I made them myself.” The goblin rolled his eyes. “But the mithril I learned to make from a dagger I found, while the alchemical gold that powers them I learned from a demon.”

  “Mithril and Alchemical Gold?” The man exclaimed with an expression of shock and awe. “If you sold that in the outside world, you could quickly become very rich.”

  “Then it is settled.” Armand stated.

  “What settled?” The man asked.

  “You will be my personal merchant; we split the profits equally. You use my portion to acquire rare materials and your portion to get revenge.” The goblin replied.

  “Revenge…” the man said softly, “You are right; not only can I avenge her, but I can claim my own revenge with enough capital.” The ex-prisoner had a new smile across his face, one filled with excitement and bloodlust.

  “There is something else I want you to acquire as well.” Armand spoke up; the man nodded his head, indicating he was listening. “Try and keep an eye out for shards of dungeon cores on the market; I need them for some experiments.” The man nodded. “You will need a name as well.”

  The man couldn’t be called Nelson anymore, not without the potential of being found out. “Pick one for me,” the man insisted. “You are giving me new life and purpose so I want you to choose it.” The goblin thought for a bit and picked one from a particular novel, The Cost of Love.

  “Your name shall be Cassian Woe.” A fitting name for a man who will be selling and acquiring innumerable strange materials.