Chapter#11

"Who did?" Beth put out an arm, helping Mike to the wall.

"The rat king." MIke sneezed, a cloud of dust leaving the top of his head and revealing the brown hair beneath. "Little bastard informed us that this home belonged to him, and then he pulled an actual cord which opened a trap door beneath us."

"Sounds like diplomacy failed then."

Mike laughed, then coughed. "Yeah. I told them they were welcome to stay, but apparently that isn't good enough. Little fucker is giving us a week to clear out before he makes us leave. Little shit."

Beth fought the grin behind her lips. "Did he have a crown?"

"Really? That's what you want to ask?" Mike coughed, then sneezed, another cloud of dust floating away from his hair. After several seconds, his lips curled into a smile. "Yeah. I don't know, maybe they found a soda can or something and chewed it into shape."

"So what next?"

"Smash them all." Tink had reclaimed her hammer, her eyes on the hole in the ceiling. "Make rat jam, feed to snake witch."

"That's one option." He walked beneath the hole. "Oh, and the tunnels the rats are using make no sense by the way."

"How so?"

"Take a look." He dug through his pockets and pulled out a flashlight. The beam was visible in the dust filled hole, revealing a series of pipes, vents and what looked to be a tiny door about twelve feet up.

"That would put that room..." Beth thought about the layout of the house. "In the middle of the hall."

"Yep. It's like the cave and the Labyrinth. Interdimensional." He looked at Abella and Tink. "For now, I guess we need to get cleaned up and maybe patch this hole. I don't want the rats following us down here. Then I'm going to see what Naia knows."

"Stupid fucking rats." Tink stormed off, likely headed to the garage where her toolbench was. Mike and Abella followed her, the floor creaking eerily under her heavy footsteps. Sofia and Beth watched the hole above, but there was no further movement. After a few minutes, Beth picked up the dead rat.

"What are you going to do with it?" Sofia asked.

"I'm going to see what a snake witch knows about sentient rats." She knelt down to pick up her broken coffee mug. "And get some more coffee. Are you good here?"

"Yes." Sofia pulled a small knife from her belt and gave her wrist a flick. It unfolded itself several times, becoming a thin blade nearly five feet long. "I think I've got a handle on the situation."

"Great. Thank you." Beth wandered to the kitchen for a new cup of coffee with a smile on her face.

It was going to be another fun-filled day.

***

Beth finished what was left of her coffee, then set her mug down on her dresser. She picked up her backpack, the contents rustling. She had stuffed the rat in a couple of grocery bags, hoping it wouldn't start to stink too soon.

The closet in Beth's room was terribly small. At most, she could hang a few clothes and maybe put in a reasonably sized shoe bench. However, if she turned the knob a certain way, the interior of the closet opened to a large cave that would take her down to the Labyrinth. She had made the trip several times, enough that she was starting to recognize some of its features. With no light to see by, she carried a rechargeable flashlight. The cave opened out into an enormous underground complex with a switchback path that led down to the cave proper. The path was tediously long, and she had already asked Tink what it would take to install a more convenient flight of stairs that went to the bottom. The little goblin had promised to get to it once they finished fixing up the house.

The cavern was lit by intensely glowing moss, the Labyrinth below lit by torches. She walked past the reflecting pool, stopping to look at her reflection. The pool was a shortcut back to the house. It was convenient not to have to climb up the path, but she would have to change clothes or have Naia dry her out. It wouldn't matter if she stayed here too long - the closet would close itself up after an amount of time.

There was a metal panel in the floor that would open the Labyrinth, but Beth heard the large iron doors rumbling long before she even got there. The dark gap between the doors revealed the minotaur waiting within, his axe clutched tightly in his hands. He relaxed when she drew near, slinging his weapon over one shoulder.

"Greetings, friend." His voice was a low, syrupy rumble that made Beth's stomach flutter. While Asterion was not the best conversationalist, his body was all muscle and his large cock had made their initial meeting extremely exciting, though it had made walking uncomfortable for a day or so. Just the memory of his dark, thick cock sliding into her made her feel a little dizzy.

"Are you okay?" Asterion sounded concerned.

"Right as rain." She had spaced out for a second. She gave the minotaur a quick hug, her arms sliding around his waist. "I need to see Ratu. We have a problem upstairs that she may be able to help with."

"Hmmm." He turned around and looked back at her. "Then we should go now."

Asterion led her through the long halls of the Labyrinth, taking her through shortcuts that would suddenly appear before them. Occasionally looking back, Beth got chills watching the paths disappear. The Labyrinth itself was much like a living creature, clearly run by a magical mechanism that ensured it was constantly changing in places. They ended up in an underground tunnel, the sound of water rushing over them. Beth wondered if the tunnel had always been there, or if Ratu herself had carved it out while in her giant snake form.