Darts started to rummage through the box,picking a pair of skyrockets,three paper candles and a Desnan candle and stuffing them into his satchel.
Mines for all the trouble. Gorge of Gluttons mines now,too. And Climber ring. Darts declared,matter-of-factly.
The yellow goblin started picking his teeth distractedly with his fangfile,sticking the Gorge of Gluttons through the strap of his satchel.He fiddled with the enchanted ring adorning his knobby finger.
Hesitantly, he ventured,What you-gobs gonna do? Darts not gonna go backs to Licktoadies. He leavings soon.
Korg sits down tired and looks at Darts. "What do you mean by that you don't go back to the village? The Chief is waiting for us."
"He not part of village, he no go back. Me think no back as well. Nuggle says as he looks in the fireworks box.
Darts leaned against the chest,buffing his black square nails against his vest.
You mean your chief,Korg. Gutwad not my chief.Darts his own gobbie--never work for another again. He become...adventurer.
Darts smirked at them. Methinks Korg,Nuggle,and Slicy alrights. We do well togethers. You-gobs can come with Darts if yous wants. But Darts not go backs to Rendwattle Fatwad and Licktoadies. Darts leavings soggy swamp. First stops in Sandpoint.
He starts picking over the odd colorful manthings Slicy found in Vorka's (and his) bedroom. He spread out the fan,squinting at its drawing of a lizard and petals.
He carefully counted out the gold,dividing it evenly into four seperate stacks. He scooped up 35 coins and tucked them away.
Hmm. Vorka got new stuff while Darts gone. What you gobs want? We earned it--not Gutwad.
"Adventurer? You mean like what Longshanks do?"
Nuggle takes his share of gold and.....
trips over some of the other items on the floor.
Me knows, somatimes de groups sof longshankers come in marsh and campy and attack licktoaders... Me come, but my pappa be killed we no go back... Mebbe's we kill chief, Yes?????"
Slicy and Korg Licktoadies. You goes backs with rest of fireworks and heads of Vorka,horse,dogs,and...whatever that was. We gives them rest of treasures we don't wants. Prove we heroes. Say Darts fell through hole in ship and dissapear. Slicy go gets pappy and bring if she wantings.
He waved the fan dismissively as he poked through the rest of stuff. The lantern was pretty but heavy. He could see in the dark anyways.
He tried to pick up the sharp pointy metal stars but ended up nicking his finger. Sucking on his wound,he took a bit of wire and looped it through one of the stars and let it dangle from one of his numerous earrings. It dangled prettily.
He tucked four more of the flat bladed caltrops into his satchel.
Then he pushed the heart bottle over to Slicy. Here's love-juice. Slicy take. It be funny.
Then he picked the odd stick up between his toes and wiggled it. Vorka witchy-stick. Wonder what it do without Vorka?
He gave it twirl between his dexterous toes.
HAHAHAHAHA!!! We go Sandpoint and Longshanks make me QUEEN with juice, yes? HAHAHAHAHHA!!!!
She thinks a moment about her papa.
"Me knows, we gos to tribe lates, I gets my papa and we then goes adventures"
She grabs the pearl pin, four pointy stars and some fireworks and her share of the gold.
Nuggle picks himself up, looks at the other goblins and says, "Well me have no ties to tribe. Me go with Darts."
And vanishes into the shadows.
The ship begins to suddenly creek and groan. The floor seems to vibrate with anger and tears of mud creeps through the floorboards trickling down to your feet. The floor seems to be tilting and you start to feel gravity pull at your back!!!
As the ship begins to lurch, Nuggle comes tumbling out of his hiding place.
Darts promptly dropped the wand in an attempt to keep his footing...
...and easily remained standing on one foot even as Nuggle went tumbling past from his hiding place,suddenly reappearing and skidding across the tilting floor. Slicy and Korg started to pinwheel their arms to stay balanced.
Darts sneered as he realized what was happening. We go now's. Ship sinking in mud. Be gone soon. Perfect excuse. You tell Fatwad Darts sink with it. First Darts helps with heads and treasure. Korg get fireworks. Slicy get rest of treasure. Give lantern and witchy-stick and fan to Licktoads. Darts and Nuggle go get horse and dog heads. We leaving now's. Darts sneaks to his tree house on edge of village. Come sees Darts there. Knocks first.
The yellow goblin tossed the wand and fan over to Slicy,grabbed the smoking monkey head,and dashed out the door back the way they came.
Slicy not only keeps her footing and shows off by doing a pirouette to boot.
Deal! We meets ur house
Slicy then unasses the ship most ricky tick, helps preparing the horse, dogs and so on.
Darts scurried off the groaning,tilting ship after pausing to lop the heads from the skewered,burnt bodies of the mangy dogs and made his way down the rumbling gangplank. He stamped on Vorka's mangled corpse several times in glee before it flopped down into the knee-deep mud below from the vibrations caused by the shifting wreck.
Almost falling with it,he landed with a somersault and his armful of charred heads. He made his way over to the corpse of the horse to rest. Flies started to gather over the gaunt,malnourished frame.
....Hmmm. Darts better waits. Lotsa Legs deads but worse live in soggy swamp.
Then he considered the horse. After removing its split,skeletal head, he stared at it. The skull would make a nice shoulder guard once the meat was gone. He could make horse jerky!
Then he looked between its legs. He broke out into a grin. Now he could make a coin purse for his coins!
The yellow goblin picked up its severed tail from the muck and attached it to a string of leather,tying it around his hips to dangle before his crotch. Laughing at his new trophy,the yellow gob set about making himself a coin pouch out of the dead horse's scrotum as he waited for his fellow gobs to exit the ship.
Not bothering with stealth, Nuggle makes his way off of the ship. Once he hits the soft mud.....
...he vanishes completely.
Slicy takes her share of the loot and waits until 2am or thereabouts and opens the door to her and her father's hut.
"We needs to goes!"
"Ok, the chief threatened me. We need go"
Hammy packs his backpack and his tools and a large amount of food. Hammy being the carpenter for the whole village opens a secret door that Slicy did not know about, underneath the secret door is the ground and a hidden tunnel. Hammy and Slicy descend into the tunnel and once there Hammy turns to Slicy, "Where we go now?"
"We go Darts then Sandpoint"
"Yes we take left tunnel, goes to Darts house, I built that too...HAHAHAHA!"
The two of them continue in the tunnel which is about chest high salt water till they get to a ladder that is inside the trunk of a tree.
"Dart's tree"
Slicy knocks on the secret entrance wall of Darts' house...
Darts had decided to skulk off after he grew too agitated to wait for Slicy and Korg. He sneaked the entire way back to the Licktoad village,leaving the tailless monkey head,dog heads,and even the slightly mashed head of Lotsa Legs Eats Goblin Babies Many near the front gate for the others to find when they returned. He made sure none of the guards saw him as he crept off to his hollowed out willow tree near an overgrown game trail he'd seen boar and swamp deer use.
Once comfortably inside his home,reclining in a ratty blanket hung up like a hammock,limbs dangling off the side,the yellow gob snored contentedly. A snot bubble shrank and expanded with each breath.
When he heard a sharp rapping noise underneath him,the yellow gob started awake,snot bubble popping. Groggily,his red eyes peered in the darkness of his tree hollow and strained his ears.
He heard a muffled,familiar cackle of a certain female gob and a thicker,lower voice followed by another loud knocking.
…Slicy??he asked suspiciously.
He looked down at his 'floor',really packed dirt with a thick slab of bark covering a bolt hole that connected to the old animal burrow in the ground several feet beneath the willow tree's roots.
"Yes, me and my papa, Hammy, you let's us in, yes?"
After see Darts take off, Nuggle decided to follow him. Like the yellow gob, this pale little creature bypassed the guards easily and continued to an old willow tree....
"Why you have tunnel to Darts?" Nuggle asked from his perch on Darts ceiling. He then dropped down and landed about two feet in front of the goblin group.
Hammy, Slicy's father answers, "Me and Scribbleface built all licktoad village, me head carpenter, architect and craftsmen. Me dug tunnell."
He looks up and says, "Me know Gutwad long time, he bad chief, me wanted to leave but my daughter too small to move away, now she big, now we adventure, yes?"
Slicy looks around. "Papa smart!"
Darts tried to keep the shocked look on his face as mild as possible when not only Slicy and her father Whammy squirmed up from an apparent tunnel leading directly to his tree dripping wet and smelling of sea water,but quiet little Nuggle also had been waiting hanging from his ceiling since whenever.
He composed himself,scratching his ear as he looked at each gob in turn. Where bes Korg? He dies on ships?
Then he started double checking his gear,making sure he had everything he didn't want to leave behind. He scooped up a pair of bolas made from the skulls of two gobs,connected by a length of rawhide and sporting jagged teeth like spikes that were lethal. He tossed them into his satchel.
Dipping water out of a hollow root with a cracked clay bowl he kept covered with a rock,he drank deeply before offering any of the other gobs some.
What happen with Fatwad? You give him fireworks and heads and shinies we no want? Or he goings to try hurtings us?
Nuggle seems to disappear for a second then, standing right next to Darts, he says, "Me no see Korg, busy jumping for life. As for fat chief, me no care. He not leave us alone, he get bad belly ache." He says grining evily.
Darts turned to Slicy,apprehensive.What Fatwad and stupid Slorb say? Darts knowings Fatwad hate Longshank humies lots. He probably use fireworks on travelers or on man-town. That piss humies off. Then they sends adventurers to kills Licktoads.
He played with his new earring,fingering the sharp star....Ooor we sneaks into Sandpoint,have fun,get new stuff and tasties, cause troubles,blame it all on Fatwad so Longshanks go after him. We eithers hide out inside town or move on where Fatwad can't follows,if he not killed yet. The yellow gob sniggered mischievously.
Then he turned to Hammy,picking at his nose with a black square nail at a sudden itch.You,Hammy. You knowinger any other gobs in tribe that be troubles? Other 'heroes' besides us ?
Hammy turns to the younger goblin. "Nay, unless Gutwad comes self but he too fat an lazy, now."
Slicy jumps in, I wait till night, got father, no look us. No see Korgi since boat. Me still have loot"
Hammy gives a big s$&@ eating grin, "We take tunnel to bridge then we go Longshank place other gobs no find for awhile, scribbleface knew tunnel, he dead cuz he read."
Darts tugged his upper lip in exasperation as Slicy's words sank in. He growled in frustration as his scheme decided to burn up into ashes inside his head,set alight by Slicy and her father,with a furious Gutwad Rendwattle pissing on the ashes.
Turd!he groaned.
Eyeing the oblivious and giddy father-daughter duo,he sighed,Okay,Slicy,what loot dids your bring from ship? Darts left all heads on trail near front gates for youse to gives to Fatwad. Korg was supposed to get fireworks--whatever happens to hims.
Buckling his bulging satchel securely around his scrawny waist,he checked to make sure he had the Gorge of Gluttons,his dogslicer,his fangfile,his bolas,and his crossbow with its quiver of bolts. He then took the rusted regular dogslicer he had when he first came to the Licktoads.
Sneering,he hurled it at the wall of the hollow tree. The rusted bit of junk bit into the wood,vibrations from its landing causing it to snap apart and crumble into jagged shards.
We leave soon. Waitings one more wick for Korg. Then we head back to Vorka's ship--sees if he's dead. Take rest of fireworks if theys still there. Then we sneaks into man-town. We no Licktoads--Darts never was. We...just....GOBLINS WE BE!!
You seem to hear a faint ringing, as if there was a bell been shook. The noise is to faint to be coming from inside the house and you quickly realize that it must be from the swamp outside.
Slicy concerned looks out the window.
Perception
Darts squinted suspiciously at the odd noise,one ear raising to catch it. He clambered up the side of the wall,peering through a knot hole large enough to serve as a peephole.
He made motions to be quiet.Something ringings....
Looking out the window you see an old hag of a Goblin pushing an mouldy, rusty cart across the swamp. Several little bells hang from the side of the cart, that tinkle gently as she struggles with what is obviously a heavy load.
The Goblin herself seems to be dressed in filthy rags and slime from the swamp drips from her bulbous head. The cart is piled high with rubbish and you can see huge swarms of buzzing flies engulf the hag and her things.
Slicy sees the old hag of a goblin
Knowledge Local
And she doesnt have the foggiest idea. "Me no know her, Pappa you look"
Then Hammy takes a look.
Know(Local)
Darts made a disgusted face. Yucks! Sticky old hag.
Darts scratched at his itchy nose,squinting hard.Blech. Why she no dies yet? Always attract bitey flies. Nasty trash gobby. What she's doings out heres?
She is probably one of the only Goblins to ever traverse between all of the local tribes.
Yeech. Flygob Hagface. Darts go see what's she's wantings.
Darts carefully peeled away a strip of bark covering a wide knothole high up on the tree's hollow insides. He clambered up it and squeezed outside,slipping down and around stealthily.
Stealth
He approached the struggling drifter in an exaggerated crouching tip-toe.
You sneak up behind her and see that her cart has managed to get stuck in the swamp muck "Damn...cart...Flygob should have big fly thing...make it so no stuck."
Booga! What's youse wantings,Flygob?
Flygob jumps as Darts pops up from behind "Me just walking through." She turns to look at the yellow Goblin "Ah you one of those ones. The one big chief of Licktoads is coming for." She smiles wickedly "One of your friends ran off to Chief. Told him you be taking Chief's fireworks."
She turns back to look at her cart swatting a fly from her wrinkly face and in the process wafting one of the foulest stenches ever smelled directly at Darts face. A disgusting blend of excrement, onion, egg, cheese topped with a healthy dose of herbs and spices. You wanna buy anything?
Darts scowled with anger as he realized Korg betrayed them. Then he gagged at her smell.
Blech. Darts haves no friends among Licktoad. What stinky lady gots ?
Nuggle watched from the window as Darts made his way to the smelly goblin. He strained his ears trying to here what they were saying.
"Flygob got lots of stuff. Me got some drinking potions, some little rings for little fingers, some pig urine, old weapons. Me also take things off you if you don't want them anymore."
Showings Darts rings,weapons,and stinkiest. Darts sees what youse got themselves trades. Darts got shinies,too.
The yellow sneak turned his nose up at her,arms crossed over his scarred chest,knobby elbows sticking out sharply.
"Chief know." Nuggle states coldly to Slicy and Hammy.
"Hmm so you want to do a switchy? Me got magic potion that let you float. Or me got big poison that kill."
Nuggle's ears pricked up at the word poison. In the blink of an eye he was outside at the cart "What want for big poison?"
Flygob smiles Knew got myself a fishy. She turns to Nuggle "Hmm what you give for big poison? I have lots." She starts rummaging through the fly laden cart and pulls out several vials, she holds each one in the air as she speaks and puts on a creepy posh accent "Belladonna, Insanity Mist, Black Lotus." A smile plays across her lips "Me even have...Azure Lily Pollen."
Nuggle looks at Darts, "You got Vorka Witchy-Stick?"
Me got Vorka Witchystick!
Go for it.
"Coulds I have it?"