Barius came up first, then Riana, and finally Darnak. The dwarf in his armor was heavy enough that the trolls started to slide across the ground. If the others hadn’t heard Jig squawk and grabbed the rope, Darnak would have pulled Jig over the edge and buried him beneath a pair of dead trolls.

“Now this is a proper dragon’s lair,” Darnak said. “Much more to my liking.” He quickly lit the lantern and retrieved his mapmaking tools. As Jig retrieved the rope, Darnak was happily pacing off the width of the tunnel.

“Twenty-five paces exactly. Figure three or four paces for clearance, but that still means a pretty good wingspan on the beast.”

The tunnel was wide, but the roof was only a few feet higher than Barius’s head. If Straum decided to come out for an early-morning flight, there was no place for the group to hide. Indeed, they’d be lucky if the dragon didn’t smash them on his way out.

“Quickly,” Barius said. “My brother cannot be far. We’ve outmarched him, and soon he will be back within our grasp.” With a tight smile, he added, “And he has kindly led me to Straum’s hoard. For that boon, perhaps I shall be lenient.”

Perhaps Straum would welcome them with open arms and present Barius with the Rod of Creation as a birthday gift, too, but Jig doubted it. He wondered if death by dragonfire would be quick. Fire was a painful way to go, but the stories said dragon breath was so hot the victim burned to ash in seconds.

“Should I stay here to watch the entrance?” Jig asked nervously. “To make sure nothing follows.” And to run like a frightened mouse once Straum kills the rest of you. “It’s not as though I’d be much use against the dragon,” he added, trying to sound helpful.

“You will remain with us.” The decisive tone of Barius’s voice squished Jig’s hope of survival. “If nothing else, perhaps the dragon will waste valuable seconds on you, giving us time to execute our attack. Therein lies your usefulness, goblin.”

“Oh.” After that he was too depressed to say anything else.

The tunnels grew warmer as they walked. What did a dragon’s lair look like? A creature that breathed fire would probably want to keep its home as warm as possible. Would there be bonfires and torches? Dragons were supposed to have great piles of treasure that they used as nests. Uncomfortable as it sounded, it did make a kind of sense. Perhaps dragons followed the same logic Jig used when he slept with his few belongings clutched to his stomach. People had a harder time stealing something in your sleep if they had to roll you over to get it.