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Kus-Kus impatiently taps his foot waiting for everyone to get to business, before looking at the townsfolk gawking their way. Snarling, he walks over to them, before baring his fangs and claw at them. "Get lost! We're paying the old dotard a visit! If you're looking for a demonstration...!" He roared his best, channeling his inner dragon blood and snarling, hoping to frighten off the bystanders.
Kus-Kus comes out of his room yawning, little rows of fangs bared as he trudged downstairs. Apparently, he overslept. "Gruh... sorry, stayed up late on watch last night on the roof. What'd I miss?" Kus-Kus looks around, before quirking his brow; something was off. "Hey, where's 'meiko? She never sleeps in."
"In a day? Uh, no. In fact, an emphatic no. Just getting there would be a challenge. Goblins are stupid, but sly; ambushes are something they like to do. Granted, not well, but it takes time to get around them. Even if we caught some, I doubt they'd know anything; like I said, goblins are stupid." Kus-Kus grimaced as he sat up higher in his seat. "If you want definitive answers, the best bet would be to chase down each tribe. It could be done, the tribes aren't exactly hidden... but if you take the fight to them, you'd best be ready to finish it."
Kus-Kus rocked his chair back and forth a little as he pondered, tapping a claw to the table and scratched at his scaly cap. "...that's not entirely true." he mused, before turning around in his seat and peering over the back. "If you wanna take some action, the goblins have a few big tribes around these parts. I wouldn't recommend it, but you could always storm the places and see what they know. Admittedly, that won't be much, but..."
Kus-Kus stared out from behind Kerak's legs, before yelping and jumping into full view thanks to another nip from that stupid crab! "Frasky little..." he muttered, caring for his poor abused tail. "Church of Magnimar? ...Baldy hasn't even left yet. Why are you...?" He cocks his head to one side before walking past her and grabbing a seat at a nearby table, clambering into it. "Heroics? Try dumb luck. We just lost some guy's face to another goblin hiding in a closet. Can't say they're doing so great in that department, eh?" He kicked back in his oversized chair, quirking a leathery brow. "If you're here to rid the town of... 'evil'..." he said, making air quotes with his claws. "Why come to them? If you know evil's here, shouldn't you be enough? Or perhaps bring some kind of troops who actually know what they're doing?"
Kus-Kus huffed as he folded his arms, turning to the side. "I don't need their approval! Why do you think I left my old tribe before!?" he said indignantly... though it seemed slightly forced. "I'll see how I feel if it happens. I make no promises." As Hemlock leaves, Kus-Kus leans out the door, shouting after him. "Hear that, Baldy!? No promises!"
As Kus-Kus enters, the sight of Shalelu's bow and pointy ears elicits a groan of frustration from the kobold. "Oh great, our resident show-off." he muttered, completely unaware of the irony. However, as she explains things, he pounds a fist into his little palm, snarling. "I KNEW that attack was too damn organized! Between that and the old man's bones going missing, something had to be up. This is way to organized for goblins...." he said, scratching his cranium as he paced a little in a circle. But Hemlock's mention of leaving catches Kus-Kus's attention, and when talking about staying as a public presence, he bites back the urge to laugh uproariously at that. "Whoa whoa whoa...you want us to be your stand-in troops? Pfffftahahaha-- sorry, sorry, that's a little, oh... what's the word I'm looking for... insane! I hope you aren't including me in that, because you know what these people think of me. I'm the little monster people tolerate around here. I am no goblin hunter, symbol of authority, and definitely no hero. I'm sticking around, but I am not playing pretend to keep these folks happy."
Kus-Kus cocked his head to one side, before rolling his eyes and huffing a bit. "Geez, this 'hero' malarkey is getting to be more trouble than it's worth..." he sighed, shuffling off to the town hall.
"(Not really. Brave and stupid aren't the same thing.)" Kus-Kus muttered to himself, coming out of the house and cleaning off his sword. "Well, next time, you may wish to find a mate who doesn't have such a short temper. Selection can be tricky like that..." he offered, hoping the possibility of a better mate might make her feel better.
"Dang it, hold still you little runt!" Kus-Kus snapped, ducking underneath another attack by the goblin before swinging back. This would be much more interesting and epic if it wasn't taking place in the entrance of a closet...
"Bah! Just stay back! It'll be easier without you all getting in my way!" Kus-Kus quipped back, lunging his longsword again at the goblin warrior.
"Graaaah! It's too crowded in here! Get our 'hero' out of here and get him some help!"
"Probably--!!!" Kus-Kus begins to say, but the rest of his sentence comes screeching and wailing out of the closet, hellbent on cleaving him in half. Luckily, Kus-Kus expected this sort of ambush, and deftly brought his longsword around to misdirect the attack. "-that!" he shouted, shielding his eyes from the Magic Missile's light, before diving after the goblin with his sword. "Get him out of here, I'll deal with this little bugger!"
"Nic! El! Get in here and gimme a hand! I found our brave defender of the home." Kus-Kus called out, moving closer and keeping his sword trained on the closet as he clambers carefully over the human's legs. "He's not moving, that's a bad sign... you two move him out of the house! I'm going to have a closer look at the closet..." Kus-Kus ever so cautiously leaned closer, peering into the darkness in hopes of spying the little kid muncher...
"If we're too late, we won't have to worry about that!" Kus-Kus said, swiftly drawing his longsword as he rushed into the house, heading for the room the mother mentioned.
Kus-Kus continues to munch, raising his brow at the sudden entrance by the woman and her kids, but seeming generally disinterested. That is, until she showed off the bite marks on the boy's arm. Kus-Kus stood up from his seat onto the chair, leaning over the table to get a better look before snarling. "Sneaky little--! Wait, he's trying to go after it? By himself!? Oh for- show me where, we've gotta move now!" Kus-Kus ordered, leaping up and over the table and making immediately for the door. Thankfully, he'd already come downstairs prepped, and was ready for action. "I'm going ahead! Every second counts!"
"Are you nuts!?" Kus-Kus replied in shock, sitting up with his fringes at full mast. "Like hell I'm staying here free! You all can dull your senses and take advantage of generosity. I'm paying. I don't take handouts, and I don't accept gifts. " Kus-Kus pointed a little clawed finger into the table, tapping it in. "Yeah, let's clear out the goblins. They've only got an advantage in numbers, a home terrain, hiding, bases, familiarity with the environment and a few other odds and ends. But sure! Let's go slay them! Would you even know where to start?"
"Feh, Blady's annoying, but he's reasonable. Narv's probably sleeping away in a little cell. Probably not happy about it, but that's how it rolls..." Kus-Kus replied, shrugging his little shoulders. His fringes perk up a bit at the noise in the kitchen. Curious, he leans around Nic and Kerak to the kitchen, trying to get a better listen on the activity in there...
Kus-Kus seems to be the first one up in the morning, a habit since hatching he's never been able to work out; early to rise saves kobold lives! Trudging downstairs, he looks around, seeing what there is to munch, with little success. Under normal circumstances, he would've banged on the innkeeper's room and demanded why there was no food, but given this was Ameiko's place, he opted against it. He instead decided to head for the fireplace and curl up next to it, keeping himself warm. He'd have to visit the jail later, see about busting Narvolo out...
"Frankly, 'meiko, I'm thrilled he's not calling you family anymore. The old man is the hide of a purple worm's ugly end." Kus-Kus pipes up from his meal, apparently so calm among the utter madness around him that he hasn't even bothered to stop eating. "It's his fault for busting in here to begin with. I don't get why he's such a tightwad about you and Tsuto." Then again, you bigger races make such big deals about parenting and stuff. Our tribe just cared about who made it furthest, and you two have proven that much...
"Hey, Narv. I appreciate you trying to knock some sense into the old man, but if you plan to pick a fight, take it outside, would ya? I'd hate to see Miss 'meiko's place trashed." Kus-Kus requested sitting calmly and continuing to eat his food.
"That... was DOOM BRINGER! And to be fair, Miss 'meiko, I did give him ample warning not to go around causing a ruckus." Kus-Kus said, still eating as he gave her a clawed thumbs up. "By the way, you really outdid yourself tonight with this dish! It's awesome!" A little buttering up never hurt anyone.
Kus-Kus nearly tumbled out of his seat as Narvolo actually got up and smashed the living hell out of the old man. One part of him wanted to leap on the barbarian's back, probably swearing in draconic. ...on the other hand, he did warn Lonjiku that he'd sic Narvolo on him. Putting another bite of meat in his mouth, he motioned at Nic with a nod. "If it makes you feel any better, I have no problems with Varisians in particular."
Kus-Kus remains quiet as Lonjiku burst in, probably wasted off his rocker. He knew the surly old dotard, and Apsu knows he clashed with the old man on more than one occasion. But he behaved himself, for the moment; this was Ameiko's place, and she liked to keep things in order her way. But when old man Kaijitzu stomped his way to their table, Kus-Kus bared his little fangs at the 'gentleman.' "Two things, old man: this guy here has a gigantic hammer, and I will sic him on you. Unless 'meiko gets here first." Kus-Kus glowered at Lonjiku, before smirking as he tossed a bit of meat in his maw. "Besides, shouldn't you be worrying about the antics in your own family before worrying about ours? Like your kids? ...or Mrs. Kaijitzu...?"
Grateful to be free from Foxglove's incessant questions (and even more incessant answers from Narvolo), Kus-Kus exhales as he flops into his chair. He started combing through his gold pieces greedily, counting them as he spoke. "They have one, but I wouldn't call it stellar. You saw how effective they were at the festival. Outnumbered and unprepped for a real fight. The most they have to deal with is the occasional drunk or local dispute. If I wanted to make I scene, I would've shown them all up at the festival." Closing his little pouch of shiny coins up, he set them on his belt as he leaned on the table. "Yeah, hero act. All we're doing- well, you're doing, I suppose, I'm trying my best not to do drake squat -is giving these folks peace of mind. If things heat up, we'd better hope Magnimar can send some aid right fast..."
"Five tribes in total, that I know off. Most of them bicker among each other... if they've gotten wise and started working together, that spells bad news for Sandpoint. Hemlock's tough, but you'll need a decent standing militia to deal with an army of the little buggers..." Kus-Kus seemed... different as he pondered things. For once, he wasn't calling the sheriff 'Baldy' and his tone seemed almost concerned for the town. Though it seemed to pass when he ran into Foxglove again. Oh sweet country-fried cock-a-doodle-do, this nutjob again... he thought, before the promise of a hunt for pigs caught his attention. "Boars? Alrighty, now you're speaking my language, Foxy. You want a hunter, you've got the best in town!" His gaze quirked up at Kerak as he spoke. "Oh yeah. I'm sure a fisherman and his pet crab are the perfect choice for tracking a wild pig."
Kus-Kus trailed back along, bickering with Narvolo occasionally and generally sounding uninterested with what was going on between this woman and Eleazar. Kerak was okay, he supposed... but his stupid crab kept nipping at his tail, annoying him. Nic seemed to be the only one he could stand to be around, accent aside. "Something's bothering me about that crypt; goblins aren't normally this cunning or organized. And... there's something else bothering me... didn't want to say it in front of Sheriff Shinycap, but... there was another set of tracks at the crypt. Much bigger than a goblin. I've heard about Tobyn and the old church, but I can't see why those warty little buggers would want his bones now... hmmm..." Kus-Kus trudged along, wracking his little brain for any clue or memory that might aid him in this mystery.
Kus-Kus takes a little while to look at Nic, before cocking his head to one side. "I've been meaning to ask; what the heck are you saying? It sounds like language, but not one I've heard before."
Nic:
You could always do what I do with my kobolds: get a good cart and donkey. They're pretty strong, diligent, and will reluctantly follow you into dungeons... if they can, of course.
Kus-Kus would appreciate the ride, for what it's worth. Kus-Kus pulled out a shortspear, poked Eleazar with the blunt end of it and scowling at him. "That all you care about is coin? You gotta shift that perspective. In my old tribe, we had a saying: 'Junk only exists for the wealthy.' And as kobolds, we weren't anything, but. Gratitude is plenty pay, trust me. After all, 'meiko's put us up for the week without pay. And the whole town's buzzying about with you all as the subject." Putting the spear away, Kus-Kus tapped at the side of his head with his claw. "Think, foppy. It may not glitter, but it's worth plenty."
Kus-Kus kicks back in his chair, leaning on the hind legs as he sips his drink. "Not me! I helped the old man during the festival when he fixed me up. I don't owe him a blasted--" The kobold paused, tipping his head back as he thought. Helping this town did come with it's advantages... he'd gotten quite a good bit of free stuff. He wasn't fond of this 'hero' title; never considered himself that. Buuuuuuuut... "...alright, Baldy. I'll tag along. Can't see the harm in it. Might wanna bring a dog though. The little things could be anywhere, and a mutt would sniff them out fast."
"Narvolo must learn to speak in 1st person!" Kus-Kus replied, point a clawed finger at the barbarian. "And big talk for a guy who outsizes the little numbskulls!"
"Oh yeah, that's fine. Take all the credit! Big guy who can swing a hammer that's smarter than him is the big brave hero, but the little dragon who's outsized by goblins he fought is just the side order!" Kus-Kus muttered and grumbled under his breath all the way back to the inn. He seemed much more pleased to see Ameiko however, and even more so at the free drink. "Kus-Kus, if you cared. Hunter, tracker, guide, goblin smacker, take your pick. I do it all around here. I have to; I'm the only competent one at it..." He said, downing his drink in one shot and slamming it to the table. "So fancy-pants stays here, huh? Odd... whatever, if he's giving rewards, I am not complaining the least. My question is: how'd those little buggers get so close into town like that... they hang around the junkdrop at night, but they've never been scaled enough to get this close..."
Kus-Kus seems pleased with himself that he's doing far better this time with the commando. And then the others showed up to steal his glory. "Oh, now you all come to help me! How nice..."
Kus-Kus was not having the best luck today. Snarling as he weaves away from the blade and it's owner, getting nicked on his shoulder, the kobold turned and chucked his spear back at the commando. Then, as he came back up, in one swift move he drew his little longsword once more. Hopefully, he'd have better luck this time.
Kus-Kus isn't quite sure what that old preacher was up to, getting him back on his feet and closing up those wounds... but he wasn't going to argue. His first instinct was to take off, now that he was better, but... he didn't want the old man's favor hanging over him. Guilt was leaving a great big whole open in one's defenses. Hearing the scream and snarling, Kus-Kus pointed up at Father Zantus, looking rather unhappy. "This one time, old man. One. Time. You get a freebie." As he left, he retrieved the spear he'd thrown and missed with earlier. Those things were hard to make, darn it! Rushing forward, eyes trained on the commando, he snarls at the others. "The little buggers are cowards! Break their leader, and they'll scatter!" Which is what he planned to do, daringly taking on the commando lizard-to-goblin as he rushed into the fray. "Pay back time, you snot bag!"
I'm here, and somehow alive.
As Kus-Kus comes up, the goblin's blade catches him in the gut, causing him to hunch over, wince and finally fall to his sides. Curse you, Apsu... find someone else... to be your stupid... hero...! he thinks, as he clenches up and tries to stem the bleeding. ...I... hate this town...
I'm just going to assume that I'm getting all my bad rolls out of the way now so that when the big bosses come around, I kick some ass.
Yelping in pain at the cuts he endures, Kus-Kus snarls through the blood trail dripping down his face. "I knew I should've run..." he muttered, before ducking and rolling to the side, coming up and hoping to slash the goblin from an open flank.
In a flurry of acrobatic spins and flips, Kus-Kus manages to dodge most of the attacks, despite dealing with two fronts and being outnumbered 2 to 1. However, finally, one of them cuts into him, making him howl in a nasty snarl. "I swear to Apsu, you little bastards are starting to PISS ME OFF!!!" He cussed, before turning on the goblin flanking behind him and wildly slashing his longsword at the goblin.
Can I call all the shenanigans on those rolls of Elaezar's? 3 out of 4 criticals in one battle? No wonder nobody else is having much luck; he took it all! Greedy!
Don't be a wuss! Take the fight to them! Show them who's boss! The only way to truly beat these little nutjobs is to show them YOU ARE CRAZIER THAN THEY CAN EVER HOPE TO BE!!!
"Oh you little--!" Kus-Kus starts to swear, before the goblin retaliates by swinging it's crude weapon straight for his head. Kus-Kus bends backwards as the blade flies right over him: if he had hair, he was certain it would be partly shaved right now. Using his tail to prop himself back up straight, Kus-Kus immediately snaps his hand to his little blade, drawing it and swinging at the goblin on his way up in one graceful motion. "Like this, you little bugger!"
Kus-Kus waits, listening as the sounds of battle seem to be moving past his hiding spot. Good. Now might be the time to skee-daddle out of this uprising. Rounding the corner, the kobold starts to move up and past the wagon, but notices a villager just standing there, frightened by... s..sleeping goblins? Kus-Kus knew they had the attention span of a bowl of bean soup, but... wow. Still, they probably wouldn't stay asleep... and everybody else was somewhere else. Eh, so what? But... if I beat these little guys off, and make a show of it... maybe, for once, the town might starting showing me a little respect and attention! No, no, that's stupid... they would never... He had a viable escape route, and nothing standing in his way. Jumping into this fray, outnumbered, for people who he not only didn't particularly like, but hated him in return, was a dumb idea. Starting up past the wagon, he stopped again, looking back. His escape. The villager. Escape. Hero. "...grrrrRRRRRRRRR! Bleeding hearts of the gods unite!" he snarled, turning back and moving for the goblins. "Hey, genius! Move it if you value your ankles!" he ordered the villager, before grabbing one of the spears off his back and chucking it in one swift motion at the closest target.
Kus-Kus blinked as the festivities were suddenly interrupted by an ambush of goblins! How is blazes did these little gits make it into town?! Pfft, and of course Baldy's nowhere to be seen. Typical. I should make myself scarce... Taking advantage of the confusion from the sudden attack, Kus-Kus took an opportunity to sneak away from the plaza and find himself a decent hiding spot to hunker down. He wasn't afraid of goblins by a long shot, but he'd had enough face-offs for one day. The less trouble he could get into the better...
Kus-Kus bears his teeth at Hemlock, growling a little before directing his glare at the cook. Squinting at him, the kobold finally digs into his pocket and digs out a couple more silvers and a gold piece. Old bloat better watch it... he might just find his next influx of meat to have something considerably wrong with it... Kus-Kus takes the coins and tosses them on the ground past the sheriff to the cook. "I've got better things to do with my time than sitting around in your shack of a jailhouse."
Kus-Kus folded his little arms, nodding up at the sheriff. "Finally, someone gets it! Yes, he says the meat is 2 gold. I say he's full of it! I left him some silvers on his little counter, so I didn't steal it. I just paid him what it's really worth!" Kus-Kus glanced back at Eleazar briefly, before turning back up to Hemlock. "Baldy, you and I both know 'meiko serves up more than that for less. And I'm your go-to hunter around these parts; I ought to know how much that meat goes for. We both know I love freebies, but I'm no thief; there's nothing to be earned from not earning it. If you expect pay, I give what I owe. Nothing more." "Narvolo no see violence. Just boring talk. Like now." Narvolo looks at the sheriff. "I was told you an ugly woman. Strange."Move it along, before you find yourself in a mess you cant get out of." He replies. "Hey, eyes on me, please! Besides, you won't, Baldy. You're not the type to do that to an out-of-towner. You wouldn't have made sheriff you locked 'em up willy-nilly."
Kus-Kus puts his sword back in it's sheath as Hemlock towers over him, one of the guards restraining the cook finally. "About as much trouble as you have staying out of Ms. Kaye's room?" Kus-Kus muttered, just audible enough for the sheriff to hear. "Ask this bloat! I paid for the meat and he throws a fit!"
"I do. I always do." Kus-Kus replied, before sheathing his sword again and stepping back a bit. "But I've got better control of my anger. And you can keep swinging that big stick, but it's big enough that a goblin could side-step it without trouble." Kus-Kus clenched his clawed hands, balling them up and raising them in a fighting stance. "I may be a kobold, but I can fight just as well as any of you bigger buffoons. So I tell you what, fatguts: how about you and me settle this man-to-kobold? You pummel me, and I'll pay you double what you think that meat is worth (even if you are wrong). I pin you, and you limp back to your little hut, take the silver, and leave me alone!"
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