by Scott
This caused Saeter to blanch, look uncomfortable, then try to squirm away. “We need to head back. Let go and help me with my arms, Blacknail.”
He clearly wanted to push the goblin away but couldn't manage it with his wounds. Blacknail waited a few second before letting go. He enjoyed the hug and had to put back the pouch his naughty fingers had instinctively borrowed by mistake at first.
“Yes, master,” he acknowledged when he was done and had let go.
Saeter crouched and had Blacknail go through his pouches until he found one that contained some strong herbal-smelling paste and another that contained some clean rags. Saeter then had him apply the paste to his wounds using the cloth. Finally he had the goblin tie one rag tightly around the largest cut to stop the bleeding, then use another one to tie his arm up to his chest to support it and prevent it from moving.
Saeter grunted as Blacknail finished. “That will do. Let's go.”
The goblin stepped away, and Saeter rose to his feet. The two of them began the long walk back to the camp. Saeter was wounded but could still walk without too much difficulty. Much to Blacknail's surprise, Saeter signaled that he should take the lead.
Excitedly, the goblin took point and led his master home. If they both survived, he was sure to have earned a huge treat! Hopefully, it would be better than the berries the stupid mimic had chased them away from.
Chapter 13
Blacknail traced their path back to the bandit camp by following their old scent trail. It was easy because he had an amazing nose and was the greatest goblin tracker ever! He kept a sharp lookout for signs of danger and unknown smells as he trudged through the forest. His master was depending on him to get them home safely.
A breeze blew through the trees, making some of them sway and creak ominously. Blacknail froze in alarm. He stopped and stared at a tree up ahead of him. Had its movement just been the wind, or had it been something more sinister? The tree definitely didn't seem to look right to Blacknail. Not nearly tree-like enough. Was it another mimic?
He got out his sling and spun it. He unleashed the stone, and it whistled through the air and bounced off the tree with a dull thud, falling onto the dirt. Blacknail held his breath. Nothing else happened. The tree didn't split open, move around, try to eat him, or anything else threatening. He was still suspicious.
“It's not a mimic,” Saeter remarked dryly from behind him. “Just like the last three trees you checked.”
Blacknail sighed and walked under the tree. It didn't move or transform into a horrible abomination. Sometimes his master was just no fun. They continued on.
The sunlight moved westward through the branches overhead as they reached the halfway point back. Blacknail was climbing over a large fallen tree trunk that was starting to rot into mulch when the barest traces of a scent caught his attention. He titled his head back and sniffed the air. At first he smelled nothing out of the ordinary, but after a moment, a scent he knew well filled his nose.
Excitedly, he stopped atop the log and stood up to get a good view of the woods. He scanned the ground and brush around him for the source of the smell. His heart pounded as he searched. He saw a lot of roots, fallen logs, and small bushes, but no obvious threats.
“What is it?” Saeter asked with alarm. He was in no shape for another fight, and he knew it. Both his arms were heavily bandaged, and he was walking with a limp.
“Goblins, many,” Blacknail answered quietly.
Several complex emotions rose within him and mixed together chaotically. Part of him wanted to challenge the goblins for the territory. Another part of him knew that was dumb. He was outnumbered with only a wounded Saeter for backup and they needed to get to camp. He hesitated.
“Do you smell a hobgoblin, Blacknail?” Saeter asked nervously.
What? Blacknail turned to his master and gave him a questioning look. “Dunno. What’s a hobgoblin?”
The old grey-haired scout gave him a surprised look back. “You don't know what a hobgoblin is?”
Blacknail nodded in confirmation. He did not know this thing.
After a second of thought, Saeter asked carefully, “Huh, do you smell a large strange goblin?”
Blacknail frowned. How was he supposed smell how large a goblin was? Sometimes his master said some stupid things. Blacknail took another sniff. All the goblins he could smell seemed normal enough. “No, master. None like that.”
His master looked relieved. Now Blacknail really wanted to know what a hobgoblin was. It sounded interesting.
“Keep moving, but be ready for a fight. We should be able to scare them away though. They're just… um, goblins,” Saeter said with an awkward finish.
Blacknail ignored the unplanned insult. He nodded and jumped down from the log to forge ahead through the woods. With an expectant smile, he drew his knife and held it ready in front of himself. Back in the humid darkness of the sewers, he had never had a weapon like this when he had fought other goblins. It was so sharp, shiny, and dangerous! Saeter had drawn his knife with his unbound arm as well.
Blacknail could smell the goblins better now. There seemed to be at least four of them, and they were definitely moving closer. They were probably investigating his scent and looking to kill the strange trespasser. The smell of his master's blood could also have convinced them an easy meal was nearby.
They would get no easy meal from him. Blacknail closed his eyes and concentrated on his hearing. From within the darkness behind his eyelids, he heard the scrunch of dead leaves being crushed and the sound of soft footsteps on dry dirt. He spun around and opened his eyes but didn’t see anything.
Blacknail narrowed his eyes warily as he scanned the surrounding bushes and trees for any signs of the goblins stalking them. He could feel them watching him. Every instinct he had told him there were hostile goblins around.
Out the corner of his eye, a green blur shot out from below some tangled roots and raced toward him. Blacknail reacted quickly and jumped away just as the attacking goblin smashed its large wooden club onto the ground by his feet. The club was made from a large twisted branch and looked as though it would have really hurt had it hit.
The feral goblin’s long green ears went flat, and it snarled at Blacknail. He was unfazed though and hissed a challenge right back. It was time to show this ugly wimp who was the toughest goblin around. Blacknail eagerly launched himself at his opponent. He intended to counterattack before the other goblin could recover from missing with his club.
As he charged, Blacknail got a good look at his first forest goblin. The goblin was a slightly greener shade than him, completely naked, and ugly as mashed worms. Blacknail’s face had the same long nose, thick brow, and squinty eyes, but they looked much better on him.
Blacknail’s smile grew wider, and he bared his teeth as he took in his opponent. He was bigger than this naked runt. It should be an easy fight, and that was his favorite kind. As Blacknail moved to complete his counterattack and stab his attacker, something hit him from behind. He snarled and turned to see that another goblin had tackled him from behind. Hey, that was cheating!
“Cowards!” Blacknail hissed as he and the new goblin tangled together and went flying off to the side.
They rolled across the ground. His new opponent tried to smash his head in with a sharp pointy rock, but Blacknail grabbed his arm and stopped the blow. This fight was his! He and his opponent fought and clawed as their momentum carried them through a prickly bush. The feral was too wary of Blacknail’s blade to let himself get stabbed. Together, they tumbled and smashed into the bottom of a thick tree.
Blacknail was stunned and lost his grip on the other goblin for a second. Luckily, his opponent wasn’t any better off. The two goblins fell apart, took a few seconds to recover, and got to their feet again. The feral goblin still had his pointy rock clenched tightly in one of his fists, and Blacknail had his knife.
“Raargh!” the naked green pipsqueak yelled as he raised it above his head and charged.
<
br /> “No quarter!” Blacknail shouted back as he ducked under the rock. It was something he had heard the bandits yell during fights.
He tackled his opponent to the ground and bit him. His teeth sank into the flesh under the other goblin’s arm, where he couldn't be hit by his opponent’s rock. The taste of iron filled Blacknail's mouth as he drew blood. It excited him. He was winning!
The other goblin yelped loudly and tried to pull away. Without mercy, Blacknail withdrew his teeth and stabbed his opponent in the shoulder with his blade. He had been aiming for the other goblin’s neck.
Regardless, the rock-wielding goblin fell wailing to the ground. Blood dribbled from his side where he’d been bitten and the shoulder where he’d been stabbed. Blacknail spat blood onto the ground and wiped his mouth as he looked triumphantly down on his defeated opponent. Victory was his!
Blacknail was now breathing hard and had several new scratches that burned painfully. The other goblin's nails were sharp. As he sucked down air, he was alarmed to hear the crackle of leaves behind him.
He spun around just in time to duck out of the way of a surprise attack. The branch-wielding goblin had rejoined the fight. Blacknail felt the club whoosh by his head as he ducked under it. Right, he had almost forgotten about that guy. How silly of him.
As he scrambled away from the club, he saw his master attempting to fight three other goblins. They circled around the man, wielding long wooden spears.
“Damnation, you bloody little bastards,” Saeter swore in frustration. He was obviously having trouble defending himself from all three of them. The old scout only had one useable arm, which held a long dagger. He looked exhausted as he hopped around. avoiding the goblins’ clumsy spear thrusts.
Blacknail had to focus on his own fight though. The club-wielder rushed him again. Instead of dodging, Blacknail leaped forward before the other goblin was ready and tackled him. They both fell over, but Blacknail landed on top. He easily managed to block the other goblin’s clumsy swings, as they were too close together for the club to be swung properly.
Blacknail put all his weight on the other goblin's chest. Spittle flew from the feral’s mouth as he screeched and tried to bite Blacknail with his broken yellow teeth, but Blacknail held him down. He had a strong one-handed grip around the feral goblin’s throat. The fight ended when Blacknail stabbed his opponent savagely up and under the ribs, as Saeter had taught him. Then he did it again several times just to be sure.
Blood poured from the wound onto the ground. The club-wielder twitched and choked before going still and limp. Blacknail chuckled happily. Truly, he was a strong goblin. He’d defeated two other goblins by himself!
As Blacknail rose to his feet, he turned to face the three goblins attacking his master. However, they took one look at him standing over their two defeated packmates and fled. They scampered into the woods with a quick series of fearful yelps.
The wounded goblin also managed to get to his feet and dive under the roots the first goblin had hidden in. Blacknail watched him go and saw that there was a burrow under there. He felt no desire whatsoever to try to chase the wounded goblin underground. That would be too much work.
“Well, this hasn't been a good day for me,” Saeter remarked tiredly. The old scout was swaying unsteadily, but he was still standing. The goblins' crude spears hadn't pierced his leather armor, but they had to have hurt when they had jabbed him, and they had jabbed him a lot.
Blacknail smiled at his master as excitement overcame him. “We win. I win! I stab, bite, and stab, and win.” Blacknail joyfully hopped a little. He had shown those other goblins who owned this territory. Him, he did!
Saeter just gave Blacknail a tired look. “Well, we're still alive anyway. Let's hurry back. I need a drink… and medical attention.”
With a shrug, Blacknail did as he was told and headed toward the camp. He had his own cuts and scrapes, but none of them were too serious. They were just proof of his strength and toughness!
Saeter moved even slower now as he hobbled after Blacknail. Both exhaustion and pain from his new wounds slowed him, minor though they seemed. The old scout muttered and grumbled as he walked. Blacknail thought his master should be happier that they had won, but he had come to realize his master was kind of grumpy for a human.
Blacknail strutted confidently through the woods now. His victory had intoxicated him. He was the strongest goblin around! The toughest in the entire forest! He still kept his eyes open, but his usual fear of the forest had subsided for now.
An unexpected glimmer of color among the green to his left caught his eye. Shiny! He wandered over to get a better look. The thing was small, about the size of his fist, and many different sparkling colors. It seemed to reflect the light in a rainbow hue. As he moved, Blacknail heard a grunt behind him.
“Bad, Blacknail. Come back. Stay on the trail,” Saeter shouted before a fit of coughing overtook him.
Blacknail looked back with concern. He really should turn around. With regret, he turned away from the shiny thing. Knowing this forest, it was probably some sort of horrific murder trap anyway. As he walked back to Saeter, he heard a whirring sound from behind him. With a panicked twitch, Blacknail threw himself off to the side. He rolled and scrambled through the dirt before getting to his feet and turning to see what was attacking him.
The shiny object he had seen flew past him. As he watched, the small colorful thing buzzed over to a tree and landed on it. It was a bug. Oh, he recognized it now. Blacknail felt really embarrassed. He threw a quick glance back toward his master. Saeter was glowering impatiently at him.
The bug on the tree was large, and its wings shone with different colors as the light hit it. It looked like a cross between a beetle and an ant, and it had huge sharp-looking mandibles. Blacknail had seen plenty of them in the sewers. One of his main jobs had been to exterminate them. They tended to build large nests that blocked pipes, and drill holes through other pipes. His old masters hadn't liked them much. They were also poisonous, so you couldn't even eat them. Out of habit, the goblin drew his sling to kill it.
“Stop, Blacknail!” Saeter shouted as Blacknail was in mid-swing.
The goblin stopped and looked at his master with a confused expression.
“It's bad luck to kill a harvester. They're sacred to the gods,” Saeter explained.
Blacknail considered that. If killing bugs made spirits angry, it would explain all his bad luck and how he had ended up in the forest. That made sense. No more shiny bug smashing for him. He lowered his sling.
Meanwhile, the harvester crawled up the tree bark until it reached a small green shoot. Using its pincers, it snipped off the shoot, then took flight with it. Blacknail watched it zoom off into the bushes with the bit of plant in its mouth.
“It will be taking that to its underground hive where it will rot and be used to grow mushrooms. That's why it’s sacred to both Tera-Nan of growing things and Cor-Dius of darkness,” Saeter explained reverently.
Blacknail gave Saeter a confused look. So this Tera-Nan and Cor-Dius were spirits? It figured that humans named spirits. They certainly named everything else.
Saeter met his gaze and gave a pained chuckle. “I'm not going to try to explain the gods to a goblin. No offense, Blacknail. Now let's get going.”
With a shrug, Blacknail moved back onto the path and began to guide Saeter back to camp. He didn't really feel the need to learn the names of spirits anyway. It seemed kind of pointless. Spirits watched you and did what they wanted whether you knew their names or not.
As they moved, Saeter limped more and more. He was also noticeably slowing down. Blacknail began to grow concerned that his master wouldn’t make it back to camp. Dragging him would be a lot of work.
Luckily, Blacknail soon heard human voices through the underbrush. His long pointy ears detected the noise before Saeter did. He scampered off into the bushes to check it out.
“Hey, where are you going? Come back,” Saeter shouted.
<
br /> “Hear voices. Be right back,” Blacknail responded.
He peered out from behind a tree and saw a group of rough-looking humans moving around the forest. It took him a second, but he recognized several of them, mostly by their strong smell. Smiling in relief, Blacknail turned and ran back to his master.
“This way! Band this way,” Blacknail told Saeter happily as he ran up to him.
Saeter gave him an annoyed look but walked in the direction Blacknail indicated. They soon ran into the other bandits, who were obviously searchers looking for the cave. There were a dozen of them spread over a small area, checking under bushes and behind rocks for crevices or caves. As Saeter and Blacknail approached, one of them looked up and gave them an amused look.
“What in all creation happened to you, and should I be worried? There isn't a pissed off drake chasing you, I hope?” the man asked Saeter as he took in their exhausted and ragged state.
Saeter's clothes were cut and covered in blood. His one arm was still in a sling. Blacknail had his own share of bloodstains and scratches as well.
Saeter scowled at the man. “We'll be fine, thanks for asking, and there is no drake. We just walked into a mimic, and then a bunch of feral goblins decided we looked like a free meal.”
Blacknail nodded as his master spoke. He would have noticed a drake. He had heard they were pretty big.
“Well, I hope that mimic isn't around here. Also, don't look now, but I think one of those goblins is still following you,” the man told Saeter with a smile as he pointed at Blacknail.
Saeter gave the man an entirely unamused look. “I'm not in the mood for jokes. The mimic is two hours’ walk away, so don’t worry. This area should be fairly clear for several miles, but I'm heading back to camp to get myself fixed up. You're on your own out here. I would appreciate you sending someone back with us just in case though.”
The other man shrugged and agreed to send someone with them. He called a lanky bandit over, and the three of them headed back to camp together.
