free fall. Any higher and I might have used Emily’s blanket as a parachute, but surprise is on my side and I want to keep it that way. The ground rushes toward me; I pull my legs up against my torso, folding myself in half as I wrap my arms around my legs and torpedo toward the ground.
That tiger can make all the claims he wants about his tail, but he isn’t the only one that can bounce. My aim is perfect and I come down right in the middle of the pack of goblins. I hit the ground and feel my stuffing compress on itself; it is the release of that compression that launches me back into the air. The night spins as I somersault forward, the goblins panicking around me. Typical bullies, vicious until someone stands up to them. The solid weight of Dreamer’s hilt appears in my right paw as I land. I spin to the left to avoid a spear thrust at my head; the silver edge of my sword flashes in the torchlight, and the slightest resistance against the blade tells me I have connected. The goblin who had attacked me with the spear, now behind me, disappears in a slow coiling of smoke and dust that returns to the Dark that had birthed him. I face the remainder of the stunned hunting party and grin. “One down, four left. Who is next?” I ask calmly.
As one, the four goblins turn on their heels and sprint for the edge of the forest behind them. Three quickly outpace the fourth, and I stoop to pluck the dropped spear from the grass. Sighting my target, I launch the spear with my left paw before following my quarry. The spear takes the trailing goblin in the back, tumbling him forward. This one shatters like glass into shards of smoke before hitting the ground, and the spear buries into the earth, still quivering from the force of the throw that had launched it. The final three goblins are about to enter the forest, and I know they will turn and attempt to fight, their numbers just enough to make them stupidly brave.
As I near the edge of the forest, I do not slow. The underbrush slaps against my legs and torso, almost hiding the telltale whisper of a blade cutting the air. Almost. I dive forward and below the swung weapon, my momentum carrying me past my attacker. I roll to a knee and lash out with Dreamer toward the second goblin in the line. The first cut takes the goblin’s arm from below and continues upward, carrying my blade into a sweeping reversal that removes the creature’s head from its shoulders. All three pieces return to the Dark at the same instant. Two to go.
The snap of a branch and I stand, turning as I rise with Dreamer a fraction of a second behind. The goblin I dove past is rushing me, and he is too close for me to bring Dreamer’s blade around to make the kill clean. I swerve my body to the right, slipping past the spear thrust. Momentum carries the monster closer to me, and his face into Dreamer’s cross guard. The goblin emits a pained cry as he swallows a couple of teeth, but I cut it short. As he stumbles back, I step away, slicing up and across his chest and throat. The goblin melts like wax, and only one remains.
The forest around us darkens momentarily as Sparkles flies over, and the goblin breaks eye contact with me to look up. His pale yellow eyes are wide with fear as he casts them around, searching for any means of escape. Finally, in a high-pitched voice, he pleads, “Please, I’ll never come back.”
“No, you won’t,” I answer as I lower Dreamer and flick the blade, the residue of the monsters slain this night flying off into the darkness. I can see him relax for a moment, believing I intend to be merciful, until he sees my advance, and the meaning of my words hits him fully. My arm rises, Dreamer shining in the false moonlight of this forest that will never know the touch of the sun.
The sound of shattering glass echoes from far away and all around me at the same time, halting my advance on the goblin. Voices, too faint