The Goblin Horde

by Ivan Kal

  “So,” Morgan said after a moment. “You have Herbalism skill?”

  “I do. I’ve studied under my tribe’s Wise Woman, and she taught me all that she knew before I even ascended.”

  “Oh, that means that your skill is high?”

  “It is level five,” Clara said as she picked out a few bundles of herbs and told the trader woman that she wanted them packed. She even instructed the woman in how they should be stored. Morgan was both surprised and impressed; he had been thinking about starting to use his knowledge of Herbalism more actively in order to supplement his other skills. It had already been useful when they had poisoned the goblin den what seemed like years ago…but his skill only allowed him knowledge of how to make simple pastes and poultices.

  “Do you know how to brew potions and elixirs?” Morgan asked, interested.

  Clara snorted. “No, I do not have the Alchemy skill yet. My plan is to get it eventually; from what knowledge my tribe possessed, it becomes available only if you are at least level fifteen and you have a nature alignment along with a Herbalism skill of at least seven.”

  Morgan had seen the skill on his own sheet, but it had been unavailable and there had been no requirements listed. He stored the information in his mind for later. Alchemy sounded like a really useful skill.

  “So, you are using it to augment your healing abilities?” Morgan asked as she retrieved the bundles the trader gave to her and slid a small pouch with coin across the counter.

  “My Aegis class is mostly focused on defensive buffs that prevent damage, and buffs that increase overall effectiveness—or at least it will be once I learn more abilities. I do have a few healing abilities that increase my targets’ natural regeneration over time, but I lack the real burst healing abilities that can heal wounds in an instant,” Clara said as they walked out of the shop.

  “I remember,” Morgan said. She had used a simple buff when they had taken her to the Mountain’s Heart dungeon, which increased their attributes by a small amount. It hadn’t been much, but Morgan knew that every bit helped. “We really need to take the time to test out all of your abilities.”

  Morgan knew had plans to get some training in for their five-person team for dungeons and more, but there always seemed like there was something else more important.

  They reached the cart and climbed on. Ereden took the reins of their oxen and slowly they rolled out of the village and were on their way to the next town—the mining town of Gebel. They rolled out of Terbon, and onto the road.

  “Finally, the new adventure begins!” Morgan said, grinning at the two ladies sitting next to him.

  “Adventure?” Clara said. “You do know that we are on an important mission? If we fail to gather a sufficient force to defend the valley, people will die.”

  Morgan looked at her blankly as silence set over their cart. “Yeah…” Morgan said at last, averting his gaze to look at the passing forest. “That didn’t bring the mood down like at all. Spoilsport.”

  Clara huffed, but didn’t respond.

  I’m not an idiot! I know that people’s lives are at stake, Morgan thought angrily. This is just how I deal with the heavy stuff. But he didn’t say anything out loud; he didn’t really know how. Morgan was very good at pretending—he had survived in this world from the moment he arrived by acting as if this was all just a game, even though he had always known that it was not. It was the only thing that he knew how to do. He glanced at Ves, who gave him a small reassuring smile, and immediately Morgan felt better. She knew, understood that the things he said and did were all a mask. He wasn’t really sure when he had figured that out, it had been something that just clicked in his subconsciousness. Vestella accepted him as he was, and it was why he was with her. Even though they had known each other for such a short period of time, he knew that she could see right through him—and that was one thing that he had never had. No one before had seen him, not as he truly was, not even his mother before she passed away.

  To all on Earth, he might as well have been invisible. He hid himself behind the mask, portrayed a persona to the outside world for fear of them finding out who he truly was. The friends he’d had online, who he’d played with almost daily, had not known him. But Vestella accepted, even though she knew his darkest secret: the event that had turned him into who he was now. Ever since he had told his new friends that he had killed his step-father when he was young, he hadn’t had a single dream about him, something that had been almost a daily occurrence before. This world was different; it was brutal and hard. He had killed monsters, felt their heat and blood on his skin, had almost died by their hands. Somehow, the death of one scumbag did not seem important by comparison.

  Morgan shook his head, dismissing the thoughts. He had spent many years on Earth attempting to deal with the trauma and the consequences of what he had done. But no more—his past life was done, and he would not allow it to destroy his new life here. If only it was so easy to change, Morgan thought, and sighed.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Their trip to Gebel had started uneventfully. Morgan remembered the last few trips he had to Terbon and Reach, and was surprised that they hadn’t encountered a single monster, but Vestella explained it to him after he voiced his confusion.

  “The towns and the roads are generally safe areas, as the Guiding Force keeps the monsters away from them,” Vestella told him as they sat next to the fire on the first night they made camp. “It is why non-ascended can survive here. Generally not even the goblins raid all that much, and when they do it is in small numbers, rarely more than half a dozen, small enough that even organized non-ascended can deal with them. It is only recently that such raids have become more dangerous.”

  Clara nodded her head and added her own thoughts. “It is because of the Goblin King—his actions have caused an increase in raiding as well as larger parties to come from their mountains. The goblins’ presence has disrupted the natural movements of monsters in the valley, making them more likely to wander near safe zones. Our clearing out the goblin presence here had probably sent the monsters wandering back into their usual territories.”

  “Oh,” Morgan said. He had just thought that it had always been that dangerous.

  “You are disappointed, Guild Master?” Ereden asked as he turned the meat they had cooking over the fire.

  Morgan scratched above his eyebrow. “I don’t know, an encounter would be a valuable experience, but getting this done quickly and without risk is preferable, I suppose.”

  Vestella leaned her head on his shoulder. “We deserve some peace and quiet.”

  “That we do,” Morgan said.

  They ate dinner and settled in for the night, with Morgan taking the first watch. He found himself sitting on the cart and watching their surroundings. He used his Nature Sense ability to feel the life around them. His Nature Sight seemed more useful as it allowed him to see life force wherever he looked, but Nature Sense allowed him to feel life and death in a sphere around him. It had a shorter range, and a bit more confusing to make out what was what, but he figured that he should train it up. It was a bit disconcerting to feel the decay of now dead things in the earth, but it was also fascinating. The corpse of a field mouse was directly beneath them, buried in the collapsed tunnel. He wasn’t really sure when it had died, but based on what he was feeling it hadn’t been all that long ago—days at most. The life energy that filled all living things was gone from it now, leaving only entropy, and it was slowly breaking down the mouse’s body. Slowly he tried to expand his mind and his power to touch the mouse to add his energy and accelerate the process. So far he had only managed to use his Power Siphoning and Power Infusion abilities while touching something, but now he also had the Energy Manipulation skill at level III. It took him some effort, but he managed it. His mental tendril touched the mouse and he sent a small infusion of power, encouraging the entropy inside. The processes accelerated, and in a few seconds the body decayed faster until it ran out of his energy, leaving
the natural order to continue.

  Morgan pulled back, shutting off his Nature Sense and thinking on what he had just done. The rules of this world had always seemed strange; there were classes and abilities that one could gain and advance by spending points one got from leveling up, but then there was not really a limit on what one could do. If you did something by yourself, you would just gain that ability. The system seemed open—too much so. The rules he had been led to believe were absolute were malleable, which begged the question as to why that was. Morgan generally didn’t think much on things, being more a “go with the flow” kind of guy, but the last few encounters with monsters he’d had had made him realize that he couldn’t afford to act in such a manner anymore. What he didn’t know could get him killed, and he was really not a fan of the idea of going back to that tunnel he met Oxy in. That damn white light, Morgan shivered at the memory.

  He noticed that he had a notification and he mentally brought it up.

  Nature Sense level increased to III!

  Huh—fuck yeah! Getting levels through practice seemed to be a much better way than just spending points, which was another thing that made little sense to him. Why have the points in the first place if you could just level everything through practice? There were things that he was missing, that everyone was missing. He had talked some with Lucius and Vestella about this, and they didn’t know. Ves he could understand, she didn’t know much about the greater world other than what she remembered of her parents telling her. But Lucius had lived out beyond the mountains, near the Tower in a powerful Guild. If there was something obvious, he would know, which meant that it was something that only Oxylus knew—and perhaps this Guiding Force he kept hearing about.

  This world had magic, but it wasn’t really constricted by the rules of leveling, abilities and skills. They only gave the knowledge through the soul implants that every ascended had. His body, even, was being upgraded. In a way, it was like it was being genetically enhanced every time he increased his attributes, every time he leveled. The soul implant that Oxylus had created and bonded him with was the key, he was certain of it. Sabila was there to guide him and upgrade him. He still didn’t know what “experience” really was, but he was starting to suspect that it wasn’t just some abstract measuring number. But if he was right, then ascension was like a guiding hand helping people along. For what purpose he still didn’t know, but perhaps in time he would figure it out.

  He forced his mind back to keeping watch—he remembered what had happened the last time he didn’t pay attention. We almost got killed by goblins.

  The rest of their trip was completely without surprises, and just a few days later they arrived at their destination. The town of Gebel looked surprisingly like Terbon. They had a wooden palisade of dark wood surrounding the town, perhaps three meters tall, and at places even overgrown with vines. The town didn’t have any farms outside of the wall, however, unlike Terbon—but then again, Morgan remembered that Gebel survived mostly on trade with the other towns. The guards standing at the top of the gate looked mismatched and watched them approaching warily. Their cart slowly rolled over to the open gate and they were met by a guardsman.

  “Greetings, travelers. May I inquire about your business in our town?” the man asked.

  Morgan leaned from his spot at the front of the cart. “I am Guild Master Morgan, and we are here to speak with your mayor. I believe he is expecting us.” Morgan showed him the Guild mark on the back of his hand.

  The guard’s eyes widened as he saw the symbol: a manticore’s head on a shield. “Guild Master, sir!” He saluted clumsily. “We were told to expect you. I apologize for not knowing it was you, sir. Uh… You were just not what we expected, sir.”

  Morgan frowned at hearing that, and Clara snorted behind him. He turned slowly to look at her, seeing her trying to contain her mirth.

  “I guess,” Clara said tightly, trying not to break out in laughter, “that you aren’t the typical look for the master of a Guild.”

  “Really? You can’t think of anything better?” Morgan asked, then shook his head. “Frankly, I’m disappointed. You can do better.”

  Clara frowned and opened her mouth to speak, but Morgan turned back to the guard, ignoring her. Ha!

  The guard looked confused at their interplay, and just a bit uncomfortable. As Morgan turned back to him, he cleared his throat and spoke again.

  “Mayor Garrne is not here presently, as there were some problems down at the mine. The Mayor had, however, left instructions in case you arrived before he did. We are to escort you to him as soon as possible.”

  Morgan raised an eyebrow, and exchanged a look with Ves. “Is it far away?”

  “About an hour’s walk from here,” the guard responded.

  “Very well, take us to him then. But may we leave our cart and oxen here?”

  “Of course, we’ll see to it. You have my word.”

  Morgan looked at Ereden. “Stay with the cart. This shouldn’t take long.”

  Ereden nodded at his order and they all jumped down from the cart. Morgan didn’t intend to spend a long time here, as Fennes had already assured him that Gebel would join them. They only needed an oath from the mayor, and then they were done. They couldn’t afford to stay here any longer than the time it would take to secure that oath. He needed to get as many people as he could for Skyreach, then get them all back to Reach to train and ascend.

  The guard walked over, spoke for a short time with the other guards, and then they were off. They moved east toward the mountain range down a well-used road. The guard informed them that they had carts that shipped the ore from the mine to Gebel and then to the other towns to be sold. They spent the walk mostly in silence, and Morgan entertained himself by using his Nature Sight to look around them, hoping to increase his ability’s level.

  Finally, they reached the mine. It was a unique sight, as he saw a few cabins and a large tent standing just a bit away from the mountain base, where the large entrance was leading into the depths. There were about two dozen people there, mostly guards if Morgan wasn’t mistaken. The others were dressed simply, in the same manner that the people of Terbon were. He couldn’t really pick out the mayor from the crowd.

  What he could tell, however, was that the people standing there were worried about something, or that was the general sense he got from the way the group was interacting. The guards would cast glances to the entrance of the mine every now and again, then whisper among themselves.

  As the group approached, they were noticed and a group of guards walked over to meet them.

  “Narious,” one of the guards greeted their guide.

  “Tarba,” he greeted her in return. “Where is the mayor? The Guild Master of Skyreach is here to talk to him.”

  The woman glanced at Morgan, Ves, and Clara, her eyes studying them quickly. He could tell that she wasn’t all that impressed. “Come with me.”

  She led them through the group of people, until they reached the tent that was set up close by. She pulled the flaps and ushered them inside. There, a middle-aged man stood over several maps with a woman dressed in guard’s armor standing next to him. At their entrance they raised their heads, and the man raised his eyebrow in question.

  “The guests you had been expecting are here, Mr. Mayor,” the guard, Tarba, said.

  “Oh, thank the Great Lord,” the Mayor said as he walked over. “I am Mayor Garrne of Gebel. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

  Morgan stepped forward and offered his hand. “I am Morgan, the Guild Master of Skyreach, and these are my companions Vestella and Clara.”

  The Mayor shook his hand and then gestured to the woman standing behind him. “This is Captain Henna of the Gebel Watch.”

  Morgan inclined his head and received a short nod of acknowledgment in return. “A pleasure,” Morgan said. “Mayor Garrne, I was told that you wish for your town to be brought under the domain of our Guild. I do not have much time, as there is a Goblin K
ing raising an army that will spill over the valley—so if you are still interested, we can have this done immediately. The only thing I will require of you is a tax in the form of fifteen percent of all your produce, as well as you allowing any people interested in ascending to come with me, as well as those willing to simply move to the Guild Hold to work as non-ascended. In return, we will be hiring your people’s services and will keep your town safe from monsters.”

  The Mayor blinked as he digested what Morgan had said to him. From Mayor Fennes, Morgan knew that other towns didn’t yet know about the goblin threat. For them, the recent attacks had only been an unusual increase in their raiding, not a precursor to invasion. Shock and awe: best tactics for any situation, if my old friend Mark is to be believed.

  “Uh…” the Mayor stammered. “We were not aware of a Goblin King rising.”

  “What proof do you have of this?” Captain Henna asked.

  “Well, aside from the fact that we fought a battle against a large raiding party that contained hobs and an ogre at our Guild Hold…” Morgan glanced back at Clara and nodded with his head in the Captain’s direction.

  Clara took a step forward, bringing everyone’s attention on her. “It is true. I was sent by the tribes up north to warn your settlements: the Goblin King is close to uniting all the tribes on the mountains. Once he has a firm control, his horde will spill down his mountains to wipe the entire valley clean.”

  The Captain exchanged a look with her Mayor. Something passing between them, but they didn’t answer.

  “So?” Morgan prodded. “Will you make the oath?”

  The Mayor coughed uncomfortably. “We had told Mayor Fennes that we were interested in accepting your offer, and we are. It is just that we were hoping that you could help us with a problem first.”

  Morgan nearly rolled his eyes. Of course, a couple of fetch quests or something. Like really, Oxy, you couldn’t be a bit more original? “What is this problem?”