“I said to collect me some moss or small branches, not half a damn tree,” Harm frowned at the goblin who had entered his hut, struggling to drag literally half a tree.
“That’s not what Nathic said. He said you needed trees, but I didn’t think one would fit in the hut, so I brought a large branch instead.” His face downturned.
Harm sighed, holding the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. He was sure that Nathic was trying to be funny. He had a habit of assigning younger clan members to perform silly tasks.
“Moss. Go get me some moss. There is enough by the stream,” Harm said.
“Moss. Right. No problem, Harm,” the goblin said as he dropped the large branch and ran off. Harm bellowed after him.
“And get rid of this damn branch,” Harm yelled.
The goblin appeared again, smiling sheepishly as he grabbed the branch and dragged it back from his hut. Harm had finished most of the map work and was busy adding details. It had grown since he started it and now covered nearly half of the floor in his hut. Harm had shaped the valley, adding all its key features, including the river that ran from the southern mountains, where Hillnot sat in the lower foothills, all the way through to Sallew at the valley’s entrance, before the plains, and he had even shown where the other farms were. Alongside his and what had been Dasir’s dairy farms, there were several crop farmers.
Where Sallew was on his map, he had also highlighted the positions of the main buildings, the chapel, the store, the forge, the town council, and, most importantly, Satil’s home. It was on the eastern side of the town, surrounded by walls and extensive grounds. Harm had only ever been there once, but had a good idea of the layout.
It was a while later that the same young goblin appeared at his door again, carrying an armful of moss.
“Perfect. Drop it there,” Harm pointed to the wall.
The goblin grinned, happy he had done a good job for Harm. He stood looking at the map with intrigue. He scratched his head, frowning.
“What’s wrong?” Harm asked.
The goblin stepped forward, staring at the ground; he crouched, pointing. “It’s missing the gully.”
“Gully?” Harm asked.
“Yeah. It runs from here to here,” he pointed from the western edge by the valley mouth, running to the edge at the west of the town.
“How do you know it’s there?”
“You can see it from the ridge.”
Harm picked up a stick and scraped a small channel in the earth. “Like that?”
“Yeah. It’s a good hiding place. We use it when approaching the farms here,” he said, pointing to where Harm had marked farms with stones.
“Thanks,” Harm said, impressed with the goblin’s information. “What’s your name?”
The young goblin looked at Harm, surprised, before standing up straight. “I am Lowku.”
“Thanks, Lowku.”
Lowku beamed. “No problem, Harm,” he said as he turned to leave.
Harm moved to where the moss had been dropped and began moving it onto his map, using it to show the location of the woods in the valley. Two hours passed as he finished the details. After kneeling, sitting or crouching for so long as he worked on his map, he stood stretching, arching his back.
“Perfect,” he said, smiling at his handiwork.
Harm walked out of the hut. A fine rain had started to fall, not heavy, the sort of rain that would get through anything if you stayed outside in it long enough. It hadn’t stopped the clan from completing their tasks. Luubu was with Jillew and several of the clan in an open area by the stream. They were instructing them in swordsmanship. Nathic was overseeing the building of another hut. A goblin named Arrbu was busy with another small group making bowls, plates and cups from wood cutoffs. A wooden shelter had been built next to the fire pit, and a crude table held their wares. All in all, every goblin was doing his or her part in the clan.
Harm was pleased with how things were going. They had settled into a routine, and since his rather terrifying outburst when he had thrown Ullu into the hut, there had been no further arguments. It was surprising how well the threat of being killed could have on a group...
“Harm,” Dafu called.
Harm turned, looking at his friend, who was smiling. “How are you feeling today?”
“Much better.” It had been four more days since their return.
Dafu's arms, scarred and crisscrossed from torture, were no longer bandaged. “How’s the ear?”
Dafu pulled his face. “Itches like hell,” he said, gingerly rubbing where half his ear remained.
Harm nodded in understanding as Dafu joined him.
“I’ve finished the map. Did you find anyone who knows exactly where Teras’s clan is?” Harm asked.
“Tassew, one of the elders from Murgo’s, knows, or believes he knows where it is.”
“Excellent. I can add it to the map.”
“I’ll get him.”
“No need.” As Harm turned and bellowed. “TASSEW?” A goblin by the fire pit looked at Harm. He climbed to his feet and trotted over.
“Yes, Harm?” Tassew asked, arriving.
Harm struggled to see the age difference between the goblins. The sproglings were obviously easy to tell, but there appeared to be little difference in the looks of most goblins once they reached adulthood, at least to his eyes. Goblins didn’t get grey hair, as they didn’t have hair; only as sproglings did they seem to have little tufts on their heads which, as they aged, fell out. Some appeared to have more wrinkles, but looking at Tassew, he didn’t look any older than Dafu.
“Dafu says you know where Teras’s clan is?”
“I know where they used to be, yes. There are no guarantees they are still there. They used to move often due to how close to Hillnot they were based.”
“I was told they are in the sunken woods.”
“Usually, or around that area,” he nodded. “It's difficult terrain to navigate, as the ground is marshy, which helps keep the dwarven guards away.”
Harm had been to Hillnot many times over the years, and for the size of the town, it was impressive. Its defences outstripped Sallew by far. The dwarven stonemasons had constructed a wall that stood fifteen feet tall. They had used the land to their advantage, and there was no way you could get a wagon or cart into the mountain pass without passing through Hillnot. Most of Hillnot’s patrols, Harm knew, didn’t enter the valley, but patrolled the mountain path.
“Tassew, can you show me exactly where you think Teras is, please?”
Tassew frowned. “I can go with you if you need me to, but I am not much of a fighter if anything happens.”
Harm smiled. “No, here, follow me.” Harm turned and entered his hut. His lantern burned brightly where it hung from the roof’s underside, and as Tassew entered, he let out a low whistle.
“That’s impressive,” he said, looking at the three-dimensional map that Harm had made, nodding his head appreciatively.
Harm picked up a stick and, using it as a pointer, pointed to where the sunken wood was. “So here?”
“Can I? Tassew asked.
Harm passed him the stick. Tassew walked around the map and pointed to a spot on the far side of the sunken wood near the eastern valley wall. “They used to be in this area. Marshes cover the whole ground by the wood and beyond, where the rain runs down from the mountains.”
Tassew added a cross on the map with the stick.
“So, they aren’t actually in the sunken wood?”
“No. The ground is treacherous, so they wouldn’t be able to build any huts there.”
“Okay. Thanks, Tassew.”
“No problem. Did you need anything else?”
“No, not for now.”
Tassew left Harm and Dafu, who were looking at the map.
“Right then. Time to plan,” Harm said.
The following two hours passed quickly as they discussed their next steps. They disagreed, argued, and often cursed, mainly about who would go. Dafu had been adamant that he would accompany Harm, who had flat-out refused his suggestion. There was no way Harm would allow Dafu to go. He still hadn’t fully recovered from his ordeal. Eventually, they reached a compromise. Luubu would go with Harm, along with Nathic, Jillew, Rewic, Acloo, and Bequ.
They were some of the best fighters the clan had, and Acloo was their best scout. From Dafu’s description, he had the eyesight of a hawk and the ears of an owl. It was understood that Teras’s clan didn’t get along well with others, and if trouble started, the stronger fighters would show their strength to him.
“Right then. We are agreed,” Harm said.
Dafu was still unhappy about not going.
“I should still be going,” he grumbled.
Harm shook his head, looking at his friend. “Nope. We aren’t starting that discussion again. Anyway, what good would you be? You won’t hear what’s going on, only having half an ear,” Harm chuckled.
Dafu swiftly thumped him in the face. “Bastard,” he cursed, launching at Harm.
They tumbled backwards as Harm held Dafu’s arms, stopping him from hitting him again. Dafu snapped his teeth, trying to bite him. Harm’s chuckle had become a thunderous laugh as he held his friend at bay, who straddled him. There was no way Dafu could get at Harm.
There was a cough at the entrance, and they both looked over.
Luubu was standing with her hands on her hips. “Have you boys quite finished, and Dafu, if your ear bleeds again, don’t come to me asking for sympathy.”
Dafu looked thoroughly ashamed, climbing off Harm, who was grinning and chuckling still. “Sorry, dear.”
“You'd better do as your female said...’Half-Ear’,” Harm roared with laughter again.
Dafu snarled, turning towards Harm and was about to launch at him again when he yelped.
Luubu had stepped forward and grabbed him by his good ear. “I just told you,” she said, pulling him away. “And Harm, don’t be so mean,” she said, scowling at him.
Harm stifled his laugh as best he could. “But it has a nice ring to it.”
“Out,” Luubu said, dragging Dafu. He didn’t protest as he winced from Luubu’s grip on his ear.
“Make sure you let the others know about the plan. We will meet in the morning... ‘Half-Ear’.” Harm roared again as Dafu turned the air blue, his snarl disappearing out of sight as he was dragged through the door.
The rain was heavier, and Harm sat listening to it, striking the hut’s roof. The roof leaked in a couple of places, and water dripped onto the ground, none of it over his bed or, thankfully, the map. Harm moved to the entrance, looking out; most of the clan had gone into the huts to escape the rain. The clouds were heavy, and the sheet of rain would be slow-moving as it passed overhead with such a light wind. Two goblins stood by the fire pit, holding skins over their heads to keep the worst of the rain off them as they ensured the fire kept burning.
Harm had introduced them to soak some logs in oil, for when it rained. They didn’t burn as efficiently, but at least they still burned, meaning the two large hoglings on spits wouldn’t stop cooking. It was a trick Harm had learned while adventuring. He had always carried some oil-soaked kindling in a skin for lighting campfires. The clan would soon run out of oil. They had frequently used the barrel from the warehouse. Harm for his lantern, and after the whetstones had been collected from his farm, to sharpen and maintain the blades of their weapons.
Weapons were still an issue. The clan didn’t have enough or of decent quality. Harm had been considering how to overcome the shortfall. Hillnot produced the best weapons in the area by far. The skill of the dwarven smiths was rarely challenged in comparison. The problem was, there was no way they could get into Hillnot. The forge in Sallew was an option, but after his recent visit, the number of guards patrolling would only have been increased. Kartoon was the other, but with the bounty on him that Jeffer had made him aware of, there was no way that they wouldn’t be aware. If only the goblins had the professions that they really needed. Classes aside, professions were an issue. Most goblins had one of three different professions. Hunter, lumberjack, or cook.
It was limiting their abilities, and Harm knew they would have to expand beyond their current choices. They may have benefited the clans previously, but with what Harm had planned for them. His clan would become a force to be reckoned with, and that would only happen if they diversified.
Harm grabbed a skin from his bed and, holding it over his head, stepped out into the rain, walking over to the field. He took his usual pose, resting his foot on the lower strut, letting the skin keep the worst of the rain off as he watched small puddles form in the tilled earth. He smiled as he mulled over his thoughts. The demon spoke to him, but he paid it no heed. Pleased with the progress, Harm knew much work remained before Sallew fell and Satil received his due.
