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Slowly lowering their lantern to the floor, Shade squinted as he maintained a lingering gaze on the corpse. While neither the first nor the last cadaver he would come across, the boy took a moment to trace his fingertips across the bones. Several bite marks could be seen, clearly strewn across its shape. The head had fallen off, and nothing remained but the very shell of what had once carried a person. “It’s been a while..,” Shade commented, feeling the dry nature of the bones against his dainty fingers, “must have been a sewage worker,” he continued, before managing a soft sigh, “or an adventurer.” This could very well be the fate of all three, killed and forgotten within the disgusting confines of a sewer. It was somewhat fitting, one might add, at least for the assassin. He was born in darkness, and perhaps he would die in it, as well.

With the lantern lighting their surroundings from where Shade had left it upon the floor, the boy stared into ever-growing darkness with streams of light weakly peering through grates above. Clenching his teeth, the Dark Elf was unable to ignore sounds of squeaking, accompanied by the padding of small, filthy feet. Rats were coming. “Archer,” Shade spoke, the word leaving his lips at a rapid pace once the forms of two rats made themselves known. 

Large, furry creatures leaped into the circle of light which spread its way around the party, gnashing and gnawing teeth attempting to hungrily dig their way into flesh. Behind them, another two rats charged the group with a lone halberdier tasked to keep them at bay. “Damn, a pincer move,” Shade clenched his teeth. They were rats, but they were also hunters, and they had killed humans, before. A pile of bones next to the party made that abundantly clear. 

Shade leaned towards his quick reflexes and dashed aside, avoiding the devastating pounce of a rabid, filthy beast. The boy’s footwork allowed for him to rapidly swing his blade, leaving a trail of blood on the floor, before the sound of a squealing rat filled their ears. It would not allow such a meager wound to slow the beast down, however. Swiping at Shade, the rat pounced forth and managed to knock the assassin into a hard, stone wall. Sharp, rotting teeth attempted to sink their way into his skin, before biting down on the edge of his blade, where he guarded himself against the otherwise finishing blow. He slid the blade out from between his enemy’s teeth, leaving a long cut across the rat’s cheeks, but was yet again standing against a viciously pouncing beast. 

“Shit..,” Shade yelped, moments before he was pushed over and hit the floor, a massive rat climbing atop of his small frame. Through pure reflex, the assassin shoved his blade through the rat’s temple only moments before its teeth managed to reach his face. Instead, the beast slumped on his body, deadweight now pushing him down without remorse. “Goblins would..,” he panted, slowly pushing himself out from beneath the monster, “have been better..,” Shade finished.