"Fifteen grams of muddlecap…" muttered the kobold to herself, pouring a carefully-measured dish of ground mushroom into the flask. She ran a green claw across the book beside her, pointing at the next line in the recipe. "Let sit for at least 12 hours, then drain." She closed the tome and smiled. This should finally clear up that case of blacktongue in the giant rat farms. Blacktongue wasn't dangerous to kobolds of course, but it could easily wipe out a large portion of their herds if left unchecked, and they couldn't exactly just go get more.
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the entrance to the chamber. "Eikka, you in here?" said an orange-scaled kobold, peeking inside.
"Hey Mallik! I'm just about done here, what's up?" replied the kobold inside as she neatly returned vials and cases of supplies to a large wooden case.
"Where have you been? The ceremony starts in like five minutes, come on!" Mallik grabbed her by the hand and began trying to pull her into the corridor.
"The ceremony? What do you-" Eikka racked her brain. "Oh Bahamut, that was today?"
"Yeah it's today, and if we're late we're gonna be digging latrines for the rest of the month! Let's move!"
The siblings quickly made their way through the tunnels of Stonehome, ducking through gaps too small for anyone more than a couple feet high. Stonehome would be absolutely labyrinthian for anyone other than its citizens to navigate. That is, if anyone other than them had been there within the past couple centuries.
Eikka and Mallik entered the grand chamber to a scene they'd watched many times before. Every kobold in the warren was gathered around a raised central platform, from which the cave's natural acoustics could easily amplify a speaker's voice across the crowd. An aging kobold with curled horns and tired eyes stood on the podium: the warren's elder, Khott. Beside him was a large bowl filled with many small stones, each with a name carved into it. Almost on cue with the pair's arrival, Khott began to speak.
"Good evening and welcome, my friends. We are gathered here today for a very special occasion; the selection of this year's champion! In just a single week's time, one of us will have the prestigious opportunity to serve their clan in the most unique and courageous way that one could ever hope to serve." "So this makes it what, six years in a row he's given that exact same speech?" whispered Malik to Eikka, nudging her with his elbow. She elbowed him back with a shush.
"This year," continued the elder. "marks our fifty-second expidition to the surface. Though it has been over two hundred years since we sealed our caves from the dangerous world outside, I believe the time for our return is nearly at hand. The champion chosen today shall venture bravely to the surface above, and return with the information of a world much bigger than our own. Armed with their knowledge, this champion will lead our people into a new age!"
There was a polite round of applause from the gathered kobolds. Sure, being chosen to scout out the world above was a great honor, but it was also a suicide mission. In the entire history of this tradition, not one champion had ever returned. After the listless response, Khott continued:
"Does anyone wish to volunteer themselves to this honor?" Khott paused, giving the members of the crowd a chance to speak up. Nobody did, of course. There hadn't been a volunteer in over thirty years, and the question was little more than a formality at this point.
"...I see. Then we shall allow the gods to decide who among us is worthy of this glory." The elder closed his eyes and buried a scaled arm in the container of stones. After a moment, he pulled his hand out, a smooth gray stone in between his claws.
"It is my pleasure and honor to announce that this year's champion is…
Eikka!"
The next week passed like a blur to the little apothecary. She was measured and fitted with a set of leather armor, crafted from the hides of the giant rats that helped feed the populace. Passersby in the tunnels gave her congratulations and pity in equal doses. Her own family seemed almost like they were distancing themselves from her, perhaps to start their own grieving processes early.
Before she knew it, her final day in Stonehome was at hand. She spent the morning touring the warren one last time, hoping to keep its memory with her as she ventured to parts unknown. She meandered from the mushroom farms filled with fungi of all shapes and sizes, to the egg-nursery with the embers of its heaters glowing gently against the walls, to the shrine to Bahamut, made from a single gleaming dragon scale surrounded by offerings; the only world she'd ever known was about to be lost to her forever.
Shortly after her tour and a few quiet goodbyes, the elder led Eikka to the outer boundary of Stonehome. They followed the cavern's stream up several flights of roughly-carved steps, to a section of Stonehome where few kobolds had ever bothered to go. Here, where the surface river called Brewer's Run entered Blisswood Cave, was the only remaining way in or out of Stonehome. Normally, the force of the river was deceptively powerful, and anyone caught in its current within the cave would be drowned or dashed against the stones. However, for just one or two days during the summer, the river would slow enough that one could safely climb down from the outer portion of the cave and into Stonehome, or vice versa.
Wordlessly, Khott nodded to Eikka and gestured to the trickling stream. She strapped on her backpack and climbed past the threshold of Stonehome, into the cave above. The stream's path was twisted and snaking, and it took Eikka several minutes to reach the entrance; a path she walked in solemn silence. But soon, as she climbed closer and closer to the end of the cave, the river's gentle bubbling became louder and louder, forming a low roar as it swept across the stone. Quietly, she turned the corner…
and for the first time in her life, Eikka Stonehome saw sunlight.