AGoblin'sTale

by Scott

  Red Dog froze and stared with a confused expression at the snake. His mouth kept opening and closing, and he was blinking rapidly. “There’s something there. Ugh, I’m getting a headache.”

  So was Blacknail. He didn’t know what was going on. Even Red Dog didn’t usually act quite this stupid. Also, no one nearby had noticed the snake either. This called for desperate measures. Something was obviously very wrong here.

  The hobgoblin stepped over to the right, where it would be easier for him to take cover behind a group of nearby bandits. He drew his sling and did that which came naturally to him—violence.

  He snapped the sling around and sent a stone whirring toward snake’s head. The projectile slammed into the beast’s forehead with a muted thud then dropped to the ground. The snake turned toward Blacknail. The scales where it had been hit were undamaged. It narrowed its red slit eyes at the tiny hobgoblin that had dared to throw a rock at it.

  “Ssissiruss” the gigantic snake hissed loudly as it drew itself up until it towered over a dozen feet off the ground. It looked mad.

  Blacknail moved to place some meat shields between himself and the monster, but all of a sudden, his head throbbed painfully. Ow, it felt as if his brain was trying to vibrate out of his ears. Had the snake done something?

  He wasn’t the only one affected either. All around the battlefield, the sounds of combat slowed as the wave of mental pressure washed over everyone. The knights pulled their mounts away from combat and disengaged as they tottered in their saddles. Herad’s men didn’t give chase. They could only grit their teeth and fight to keep standing.

  “Well, fuck me. There’s a giant snake right there.” Red Dog groaned as he held his head and stared.

  People were looking around for the cause of the mental shriek that had come out of nowhere, and they quickly found it. The massive emerald serpent looming over the battlefield wasn’t subtle.

  “Ssissiruss” the beast hissed again. Its voice was clearly audible to everyone in the now almost silent camp.

  One of the bandits closest to the beast panicked. He turned to try to run. He didn’t get far.

  Like emerald lightning, the snake lunged and its maw seized the man. A second later, it tossed him into the air. The man screamed as he tumbled almost straight upward, but only for a moment. The beast twisted around, caught the bandit in its mouth, and swallowed him in one gulp.

  The other nearby humans didn’t learn from his mistake. They panicked and ran as well. As they fled, the monster flailed and lashed out. Its tail smashed into one particularly loud group and scattered them like broken twigs. Its fanged jaws closed on another bandit, then tossed his mutilated body aside.

  Blacknail kept absolutely still. He turned to Red Dog and gave him a level gaze. “Can you see the snake now?”

  The man groaned as he massaged his furrowed brow. “I can see it, you green ass.”

  “Then do something,” the hobgoblin told him.

  “What, why me? You bloody do something!” Red Dog growled.

  All through the camp, Herad’s minions and the attacking knights had ceased fighting. Everyone was either fleeing from the creature or regrouping. Both sides occasionally threw each other hateful glances, but they made no move to resume combat.

  “I did-ss do something. I’m helpful like that,” Blacknail told Red Dog. “I hit-ss it with a rock, and now you can see it. You can thank-ss me later. Now it’s your turn to do something.”

  “Ugh, damnation, my head feels like a smith’s anvil,” Red Dog complained. “Helpful my ass, this is probably all somehow your fault. You bring this company nothing but trouble!”

  Blacknail watched the beast crush a pair of men under its bulk. He thought back to the creepy feeling that had bugged him as he’d walked back from finding the cave. Oh, the cave…

  “This isn’t-ss my fault. It’s probably yours,” the hobgoblin replied defensively.

  He and Red Dog kept a watchful eye on the rampaging monster. For now, it seemed to be heading away from them.

  “Why would it be my fault?” Red Dog remarked as his face flushed with anger.

  “Because you-ss smell funny all the time, that’s why.”

  “I don’t smell funny!”

  “How would you even know? You have a useless human nose!” the hobgoblin countered.

  Before either of them could say anything else, they were startled by shouting from off to one side. Blacknail looked over to see that most of the knights had regrouped into one large formation well away from any of the bandits.

  “Now you face your doom, you baseborn scum,” Sir Devos yelled from the front of the group of knights. “You have abandoned your loyalty to your good lords and turned against your fellow men. The gods have seen your evil ways and sent this terror to aid us in our quest to wipe you from the face of the earth. Once it is done feasting on your corpses, we will ride the last of you down like dogs.”

  “What an asshole! I hope someone guts him like a fish,” Red Dog said as he studied the knight.

  Blacknail nodded. That sounded like fun.

  “Cease this foolishness, Sir Devos,” another voice challenged the young knight commander. It was Sir Masnin. His steel war helm once again concealed his face, and he had somehow reacquired his sword. It hung from the scabbard at his side. “This battle is nothing but an extension of your arrogance, and all the lives lost here shall weigh down your soul. Now you speak of turning the rampage of a foul mutant to your own advantage! Where is your honor?”

  “You are the fool here,” the other knight replied “Why do you turn your blade from these criminals? They are honorless thieves and killers who prey upon the weak. The lands of men will be a better place once I have killed them all. Certainly there will be fewer widows weeping for honest men.”

  “Be that as it may, it is not my duty to slay men and women. I am charged by holy writ to pursue the forces of darkness wherever they may be found and to take no side in the struggles of men while I work. You were seconded to me, and that means you swore to do the same while at my side,” the paladin countered.

  “This is not politics, and these are not some foreigners with which we are in dispute. They are nothing but rabble to be crushed!” Sir Devos exclaimed angrily.

  "That is not your decision to make; it is mine. Now my duty is clear. Darkness has once again risen before me, and I must test my blade against its serpent. You should remember your oaths and aid me,” the paladin announced as he let his gaze slide over the knights.

  His stare was harsh enough that several of the riders flinched, but none broke rank and came to his side. With a regretful sigh, the paladin turned from his former companions and faced the rampaging serpent.

  That was when Mahedium and Herad stepped out from a nearby crowd. The mage aimed his staff, and before any of the knights could react, a furious explosion tore through their formation. It incinerated Sir Devos first—he died instantly—then its flames tore into the men around him. A dozen knights staggered and fell as their mounts screamed inhumanly high. Blacknail smiled as the scent of roasted horse flesh reached his nostrils.

  “It was nice of him to line them all up like that,” Herad remarked as she walked forward with a small group of spearmen.

  Chapter 35

  Sir Masnin drew his sword and spun toward Herad. Behind him, the remaining knights reeled in shock from the fiery explosion that had torn through their ranks. They had to fight to keep their terrified mounts under control. The knights were now leaderless, and it showed. Several of them looked as if they wanted to try to charge Herad’s mage before he could strike again, while others were pulling back toward their militia at the entrance to the camp.

  “That was not necessary,” Sir Masnin snapped at the bandit chieftain. The paladin had one hand firmly planted on his sword hilt and looked ready to draw it at any second. His usually calm face betrayed barely contained rage.

  “Of course it was. The leader of those men just publicly announced his intent to
attack me from behind when I tried to deal with the beast in our midst,” Herad replied scornfully. “There’s no reasoning with a man like that, and I don’t have the time to try.” In a louder voice that was clearly meant for more than just Sir Masnin’s ears, she added, “I’m not without mercy though, so I’ll let the others live if they’re out of my camp within the next minute.”

  The knights were certainly close enough to hear her. They had managed to regroup but had yet to attack or retreat. Herad’s words washed over them and were apparently enough to make up their mind; they broke and retreated. Leaving their dead behind, they rode toward the road and the men they had left there.

  “Now, shall we deal with the latest horror the deep green has spat up? I believe it’s your holy duty,” Herad told the paladin smugly.

  “You expect me to fight by your side?” he remarked with indignant surprise.

  “That’s up to you, but I’m sure that if this serpent escapes, it’s going to kill a lot of innocent peasants and such, not to mention any wounded knights left behind,” the bandit chief pointed out.

  “Very well, as long as you allow all Lord Strachen’s men to retreat unharmed,” the paladin replied before he ground his teeth in frustration.

  Herad nodded. “Mage, the beast now. This headache is getting very annoying.”

  Mahedium turned and unleashed another shimmering blast. This time it was aimed at the serpent snapping at a squad of sluggish-looking spearmen. Flame washed over the monster’s emerald scales and all around it. The serpent’s head twisted under the impact, but a second later, it righted itself and turned toward the mage. Curls of flame still hung in the air, but the monster lunged through them.

  “Sissiruss,” the massive serpent screeched as it blasted through the few spearmen between itself and the mage.

  Mahedium’s face went white with terror, but he dropped to one knee and tried to line up another shot. The monster was speeding toward him far too quickly for him to be able to run. Another round of flame burst from his staff as the creature was about to hit him.

  The serpent saw it coming and tried to dodge. The blast glanced off the side of its head. Again, the beast was knocked backward, and this time, its momentum was lost. It was only two dozen feet from the terrified mage though, and it recovered almost instantly.

  That was all the time Herad needed. At full sprint, she leaped under the beast and stabbed a spear upward toward its exposed throat. The tip of the weapon sank several inches into flesh, then she rolled away without it.

  Behind her, a squad of bandit spearmen moved up to help. Their movements still looked slow, but they rushed into the gap between the serpent and the kneeling mage. The serpent hissed again, and Herad had to dodge a lash of its tail.

  The monster slithered backward slightly and tried to focus on Herad, but Sir Masnin attacked. He stepped forward and slashed at the side of the gigantic snake’s neck. The armored warrior’s blade parted the scales on the beast’s neck and drew blood, but only barely.

  Surrounded by enemies and with its target out of reach, the serpent flailed about madly. One unlucky bandit was sent flying by a wild lash of its tail. The others quickly fell back.

  Meanwhile, beside Blacknail, Red Dog ran toward Mahedium. The hobgoblin followed him. It seemed like a good way to look busy without putting himself in danger. Together, the hobgoblin and man helped the mage to his feet. His face was still pale, but he seemed steadier than most of the other bandits. The mutant’s magic was still squeezing everyone’s brains.

  “Can you finish the thing off? The boss is cutting it up, but it doesn’t seem to be bleeding much,” Red Dog asked Mahedium.

  The mage shook his head and gripped his staff tightly. “No, I don’t have enough crystals to do much more. That thing’s scales are too tough for any of the spells I have.”

  “Hells, I don’t like our odds then. If the boss doesn’t get in a lucky blow, then we might have to abandon the base,” Red Dog said.

  “Including my lab,” Mahedium muttered.

  “Are you sure you don’t have anything in reserve?” the bandit lieutenant asked.

  The mage frowned, and his brow creased as he fell deep into thought. “Nothing that would work from the outside, but if we targeted a weak spot… maybe poison? No, wait—the flawed gems. If they detonated inside its mouth, that would definitely kill it. The timing would be unpredictable though. A mage would have to get very close…”

  “I suppose you’re going to walk right up in front of it and throw the stones in its mouth?” Red Dog asked with obvious sarcasm.

  “No, I don’t think I’ll be doing that. It probably wouldn’t work anyway,” Mahedium responded carefully.

  “Then we need something else.”

  Blacknail had an idea. He scratched his nose and tilted his head as he thought it through. Yep, it would probably work, and it would remove a thorn in his side as a bonus. “Use Scamp.”

  The men turned toward him with questioning looks.

  The hobgoblin sighed and clarified his response for the two slow humans. “Give-ss Scamp the crystals and throw him-ss at the snake. When he gets-ss swallowed by the thing, he’ll get scared and then boom!” Blacknail explained using all the appropriate sound effects and hand gestures.

  “That might just work… I’ll lose a valuable sample though, and Varhs might get upset,” Mahedium said.

  “I’ll buy him a dog. Just do it,” Red Dog countered.

  The mage nodded, then turned to the hobgoblin. “Blacknail, you’re the fastest runner. Get Scamp and bring him here. I already have several flawed stones on me, so he’s all we need for this to work.”

  “Go now,” Red Dog commanded.

  The hobgoblin gave the man a messy salute, turned around, rolled his eyes, then ran off to find himself a goblin. He had a good idea where Scamp could be found. After Mahedium’s demonstration, the goblin had been led away by Varhs to be tied up. Blacknail raced through the camp. He passed scores of trampled tents, corpses, and moaning bandits. Some were injured from fighting, but most seemed to just have terrible headaches. The serpent’s hostile magic was slowly crushing everyone nearby.

  When he got to Varhs’s tent, it only took the hobgoblin a few seconds to find Scamp. All the unexpected noises from the battle had frightened the goblin, but not enough to make him bite through his leash. Instead, he was hiding under a nearby scrap of cloth.

  “What’s happening?” the terrified goblin blathered as Blacknail pulled him from his hiding spot and cut the rope tying him down.

  The hobgoblin ignored the question, picked up Scamp, and ran back to Mahedium. The surprised goblin was momentarily limp in his arms.

  Up ahead, Herad and the others were struggling to keep the serpent at bay. It twisted and writhed across the ground as it struck at any nearby humans. It hadn’t managed to hit Herad or Sir Masnin yet, but the bodies of several bandits littered the ground.

  “I’ve got him!” Blacknail announced as he reached the mage. He brandished the goblin above his head for everyone to see.

  “Let me down!” Scamp wailed.

  “Here, Scamp. Take these. They’ll, um… protect you. You just need to make them glow,” Mahedium told the goblin as he pressed several large crystals into his hands.

  Scamp gave the two men and the hobgoblin an uncomprehending look as he stared in surprise at the crystals in his hands. His eyes were wide with confusion, and he looked overwhelmed.

  “What now?” Blacknail asked.

  The mage gave the goblin a wary look, then leaned close to Blacknail so he could whisper, “Throw him at the snake’s head, then run for it.”

  Scamp’s long ears twitched. “Ah, I heard that! Stop!”

  But Blacknail was already running. With a struggling goblin held above his head, he dashed toward where his chieftain was fighting the serpent. As he whipped past Sir Masnin, the man froze and did a quick double-take.

  Herad twisted through the air as she dodged a snap of the mutant’s ja
ws. The snake pulled back and coiled in preparation to strike again. Herad brought her blade up into a guard as she readied for another strike. Her spearmen leapt forward to help.

  The serpent ignored the Vessels for a second and turned toward the bandits supporting them. Its eyes drifted across the spearmen, and those unwise enough to meet its searing gaze fell screaming. One man curled up on the ground and wept while cradling his head. A wailing woman began to gouge out her own eyes with her fingers, until a pale-faced man beside her knocked her out with a blow to the back of the head. Even the bandits that were still standing flinched, and their charge was broken.

  “Sissiruss,” the serpentine monster growled smugly as it turned back to face Herad.

  That was when Blacknail got close enough to throw Scamp. He held the goblin by one leg and gave him a good twirl. Then he let go and Scamp sailed through air, smacked into the serpent’s snout, and fell to the ground with a muted grunt of pain. The mutant snake reared backward in surprise and suspiciously eyed the goblin on the ground in front of it. There was a second of silence as it tilted its head and tried to figure out what had just happened.

  “Sissiruss?” the beast hissed in apparent confusion.

  “Did he just throw a goblin?” Sir Masnin asked in startled disbelief.

  Scamp rolled to his feet and looked around. His gaze met the curious serpent’s, and he seemed to notice it for the first time. He froze. As they stared at each other, the goblin’s eyes slowly grew so wide, they seemed to fill his face.

  “Ahhh! Monster! Run!” Scamp shrieked in terror as he turned tail and tried to flee.

  Blacknail was already turning to run back to Mahedium, but out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw the crystals in Scamp’s hands flicker.

  “Run and take cover; he’s going to detonate!” Mahedium yelled.

  Instinctively, the serpent targeted the fleeing prey. Any traces of confusion disappeared as it lunged toward the little goblin with jaws open wide enough to swallow him in one bite.

  Scamp wasn’t completely stupid though. He had survived in the woods for years before being taken in by Varhs. He knew better than to run in a straight line, and luck favored him. The goblin happened to change direction at the right moment. The beast’s attack missed and caught empty air. Its scaled bulk whipped past Scamp without harming him. The serpent hit the ground, turned one yellow eye toward the goblin, glared at it in annoyance, then shifted its weight to strike again.