Chapter 87: [v2] Chapter Six – In which Magpie discovers that monsters can appear anywhere, even inside Goblinhome.

[v2] Chapter Six – In which Magpie discovers that monsters can appear anywhere, even inside Goblinhome.

~~** Interlude | Magpie **~~

It is the job of the Sneaky Clan to keep a watchful eye on things both within the tribe and without. While my Lord is currently resting and recuperating under the care of Mint, my maker Crow and I had been sneaking around the borders of our domain, only to find some trouble forming out by the stream.

Crow and I watched, concealed from view on a sturdy branch high up in a tree overlooking the wide, flat, treeless embankments on both sides of the stream. Gathered on the other side of the stream that marked our borders was a group of roughly twenty tall, muscular, blue-skinned creatures.

“Orcs.” Crow explained. “Make things worse since they have those.”

She pointed to a pair of creatures with black fur coats each having a rope tied around their necks.

“Those are Black-claws.”

It was my first time seeing either of these creatures. While there was no doubt the Black-claws were the enemies of the Bloodmaw Goblins, they were not the main focus.

“Do you think they are planning on crossing the stream and entering our domain?”

“Yes. Pepper says hunting fish with a spear is smart, but not with a sword or a club. I don’t see more than two Orcs carrying spears. What do you see?”

“The same. Two spears, one held by the long haired one with big milkies, the other by the one who looks older than Old One. Do you think they know where Goblinhome is located?”

“The Orcs? No. But there’s no telling if the Black-claws may. There is a reason that Lily’s job is to cover all tracks leading to Goblinhome, and why Doll keeps the fire-pit lit at all times. It’s to protect against being discovered and attacked by the Black-claws who fear fire.”

“Just the Black-claws?”

Crow quietly nodded.

We watched as a number of those Orc creatures mulled around, pushing each other and making strange noises neither of us understood. A few pointed at the stream from time to time and it appeared that they must be waiting for something, whether it be a final member of their group or a signal of some kind to proceed with the crossing of the stream.

“It will be night soon. Go back to Goblinhome quickly and let Prima know that the Orcs and Black-claws are working together and will cross the stream into our territory soon, probably when the moon rises. Prima will know what to do.”

“What about you?”

“I have sneaked around the entirety of our domain since I was barely a moon older than you. I will keep an eye on things. If I feel they are moving towards Goblinhome too quickly, I will do something to distract them.”

Crow placed a hand on my shoulder.

“This is our job, Magpie. This is what it means to be part of the Sneaky Clan. We must protect the tribe, and we must protect Husband.”

I nodded and Crow made a quiet signal with her hand telling me to go. I quickly moved through the treetops back towards Goblinhome. The sky was already beginning to turn red, and it wouldn’t be long before the moon rose. And that meant it would soon be time to put my training as a shinobi to the test.

Unlike my sisters who have only one or two grand weapons to use, I have what my Lord calls an arsenal. Pouches full of both thin, pointed needles and flat, sharp pointed stars which can be thrown at targets from far away, able to deal lethal damage without need of ever revealing myself or engaging a foe directly. Handfuls of spiked stones which can be quickly dropped on the ground in a wide area, making anything that were to dare chase me suffer greatly as their bare feet step upon them. I also have sharp claws for my hands and feet that let me climb trees with ease and slash as if I was a maker bear protecting her strong-ones.

I also have a pair of special daggers with three thin forking blade-tips meant for blocking sword and spear attacks with, and five regular daggers with a hole at the end for my finger to slide into meant only for throwing. I have many pouches filled with loose powders meant to cause intense itching when it comes in contact with skin, and two pouches of color-spin-think powder used for confusing. I have special stone balls that are the size of my palm which have Runes carved into them. When I activate and throw them, they explode and send out sharp flakes of rusty metal. I also have a single sword which has a Rune formula for speed and sharpness. I am told not to use it on anything other than flesh, otherwise the blade will dull. It also has a name, one that my Lord says is most fitting for it.

Kogarasumaru, which according to my Lord, means in the language of some far-off land, Little Crow.

In a way, such a weapon could only be meant for me. As I am the strong-one made by Crow.

Reaching Goblinhome after having run the entire distance from the stream without stopping, I quickly rushed to Prima’s cave-hole and found her in the middle of eating together with my younger sister, Nova.

“Crow sent me with important news. Orcs and Black-claws are at the stream and she believes they will attempt to cross it by the time the moon is visible in the sky, or perhaps they have already done so.”

“Orcs and Black-claws?”

“Yes. A group of at least twenty Orcs and two Black-claws were counted on the opposite side of the stream before Crow sent me to report this information to you.”

“This is not good news.”

I was in agreement with Prima.

“Go tell Old One at once that she needs to use the summoning dirt to call on the Great Protector. I will take care of gathering everyone who can fight.”

I nodded and dashed out of her cave-hole, running as fast as I could through Goblinhome to where Old One was. As soon as I arrived there, I felt a bone-chilling aura coming from inside.

Creeping in, I saw a large goblin doing what I have seen my Lord do with the adult goblins when making new sisters.

The goblin sniffed the air and turned its head, looking straight at me.

“Mags. You are not yet ready to carry my strong-ones.”

I quickly drew my sword and held it out in front of me, defensively.

“Who are you?” I asked, having never seen a male goblin before.

“I am the one who made you. And the one who will make more with you.”

I felt my body shiver uncontrollably.

“M-my Lord?”

A smile creased the goblin’s face.

“W-why are you… a goblin?”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“A good question. But one I don’t care to know the answer to. Whatever business you have with Old One will have to wait.”

The goblin continued doing what it was doing to Old One before letting out a grand growl. Old One wasn’t conscious anymore, and probably hadn’t been for a while. The goblin pushed her off of his seed-stick and she fell to the ground like a stone. White fluid poured out of her fuckhole in huge spurts.

The goblin turned to face me completely now, that same seed-stick fully coated in a layer of white slime. It was difficult not to stare at it.

“M-my Lord… Prima sent me here to tell Old One to use the summoning dirt to call on the Great Protector.”

“The Great Protector?” The goblin tilted his head. “What for?”

“Crow and I spotted a large group of Orcs and two Black-claws preparing to cross the stream to the East. We believe they’re going to invade our territory tonight.”

“Is that so? How many are there gathered?”

“At least twenty.” I reported.

“Old One will not be able to help. Glace, as the tribe’s shaman should know how to do what you need done.”

I nodded quickly. The large goblin never once took his eyes off of my sword. He walked over to me and placed a large, clawed hand on my head.

“Go now.”

I quickly backed off, putting my sword away and rushing towards the cave-hole both Glace and Button shared. When I got there, I saw Glace using many magic Runes on Button, who looked injured.

“What happened?” I dared to ask, knowing it must have been my Lord.

Button met my eyes and growled.

“Husband happened!”

“Did… you two fight?”

Button snorted.

“Fight? Button… thought she was strong. Thought she had learned the secrets of the swirly-whirly… But Husband is TRICKY! ALWAYS SO TRICKY!!”

Button pushed Glace away softly.

“Magpie. We are not strong goblins. The secrets of the swirly-whirly go far deeper than we could ever imagine…”

I spared a glance at Glace who only shook her head. I know my Lord personally trained her to be able to fight as well as Diana Artemis with her only weapon being her very body. In every sparring match I’ve ever had with her, I’ve lost. I consider her to be the strongest of all my sisters, even stronger than Diana, but…

“Button… wanted… a strong-one…”

I shouldn’t be here to see this. Let me pass along the message from Prima and prepare myself to return to Crow’s side.

“Shaman. I’ll make it quick and go. There are a group of about twenty Orcs and at least two Black-claws preparing to cross the Eastern stream. It will either happen when the moon is in the sky, or it has already happened. My Lord… has… put Old One to sleep. He says you should know how to use the summoning dirt to call upon the Great Protector to help us.”

Glace made a circle with her thumb and first finger, sticking the other three up in the air. I knew this to be the hand signal for her saying she understood. I turned and exited the cave-hole. Beastie was exiting the cave-hole across the way, carrying the body of Mint who wasn’t conscious at all.

“Beastie? What happened to Mint? Was it my Lord?”

Beastie nodded her skeletal head, then tilted her head at an unnatural angle to point further into the cave.

“Is there something I need to see?”

Beastie nodded as she proceeded to pass me by. I was hesitant to look inside for some reason, but it was my job as a shinobi to assess everything and make informed decisions based on what I have seen.

The cave-hole was empty save for three goblins. Lily was on her knees, rubbing the backs of both Orchid and Lilac who were face down on the floor and appeared to be knocked out.

“Lily! What happened?”

“Husband… happened.” She replied flatly.

“Did he fight with my sisters?”

“No. A fight can be won. Husband got a little angry and punished them for being a little bit too greedy with what they wanted.”

“What did they want?”

Lily shook her head.

“I was teaching them how goblins make strong-ones with Husband’s seed-stick. At the same time, Mint was trying to find a way to get Husband to accept the goblin way over his human way. And she did it, somehow. But Husband suddenly went crazy and began to change into a goblin. Then he…”

Lily stood up and placed a hand on her belly, which was much bigger than it was the last time I saw her. She was covered in bloody bite marks around her neck and shoulders. Most noticeable was her mouth, dried blood caking around it and down to her chin.

“Are you okay?”

Lily grinned. Oozing down her legs was a thick stream of pinkish-white slime.

“Husband loves me, Magpie. Even though I am only a runt, and the weakest of all goblins in the entire tribe… he has never once pushed me away. Sometimes he is busy and forgets to visit me, but when he does…”

Lily’s legs wobbled, and she slumped right onto her butt. I didn’t fail to notice the fresh bite marks on her ear, either.

“You don’t have to worry about us, Magpie. The three of us will be fine. I’m just… going to take a nap… since I’m full.”

Lily lay down on her side and closed her eyes with a peaceful smile. Peeking at the faces of both of my elder sisters, they didn’t look to be in pain at all, for having been punished. I would need to keep my ears open for details about what happened here at a later time. For now, I needed to report back to Prima, and prepare to head out to rejoin Crow.

When I reached my Lord’s cave-hole, it was to find Prima fighting him with her grand weapon, the bone-spear she calls Gob-dent. Husband was using only his hands and was deflecting each of her thrusts with a speed faster than I’d ever seen him use before.

“Why are we fighting, Prima?”

“You are not Ark.”

“I am. Just not Ark the pathetically weak Human. Do you not like my new form, my Guardian? All of you damn goblins wanted me to stop being a pesky human and embrace the goblin way. Well, now I have.”

It wasn’t just Prima and my Lord there. Truffle, Ivory, Doll, Jewel, Berry, Diana Artemis, Figurine, Ruby, Jade, Nova, Stella, and Vera were all gathered and watching.

“I’m itchy. When you’ve all prepared yourselves the rest of the way, come and find me. I’ll be in Pear’s cave-hole until then.”

My Lord turned around and walked away, passing right by me again without even sparing a glance my way, the oppressive aura he was emitting was far more intense than when I encountered him in Old One’s cave-hole.

Was my Lord getting stronger the longer he was in his Goblin form?

I made myself known and reported to Prima what I saw at the back of Goblinhome.

“What the hell did Mint do to him!?” She shrieked.

“Diana Artemis always knew Husband was the strongest goblin! Gwah hah hah!”

Berry slapped the back of Diana’s head.

“This is serious, Diana Artemis!”

“What’s the problem? Husband just showed us all that he can handle Prima easily! Do you think that we would lose to some Orcs and Black-claws with our Husband fighting alongside us in his true form?”

“That’s not his true form.” Prima argued.

“Husband.” Vera interjected, though what the context of it meant was lost to any of us.

“Is it just me, or did he smell better than color-spin-think powder?” Truffle asked nobody in particular.

“How the hell do you smell color-spin-think powder?” Jewel retorted.

“She’s a mushroom-head, Jewel.” Ivory replied with what she no doubt felt was the obvious answer.

“Shut up!” Prima yelled.

“Truffle, Ivory, Berry, you three along with Pepper will defend Goblinhome. The rest of us will go out to fight. Button and Glace will be joining us, but it looks like Orchid, Lilac, and Mint are out. What about Ebony?”

“Ebony will come.”

Ebony appeared from behind us, along with Bitey and Beastie.

“Mint is not able to fight right now.”

“Alright. That settles things. Get yourselves ready and we’ll follow Magpie to where Crow should be keeping an eye on things.”

Everyone let out a loud growl and quickly split up, returning to their cave-holes to gather their weapons or whatever else they needed for the upcoming battle.

I followed Vera back into my Lord’s cave-hole.

“Vera.”

She stopped and turned around to regard me.

“Do… you think that goblin truly is my Lord?”

Vera retrieved her bone-staff with the blue stone on the end, then placed a hand on my chest.

“Heart. Husband.”