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Episode II - Where do we go from here?

How many of you who have read those libellous tales of apparently evil goblins ever stopped to consider that goblins are people too?

If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If you poison us do we not die?

Goblins have feelings, Goblins have needs and Goblins grieve

Chidal is a goblin

He worked for many cycles as a scullery slave with his wife Fadol and with the change of governance of the trolls; they were released from the citadel and taken back to their homelands, where their son and his family worked the goblin family farm.

But on arrival, they discovered that during the bitter civil war that swept the Mystical Realms, three graves on a wrecked farm. One for their son’s wife and one each for each of their younglings (Children)

But worse was to follow, for the shock of this discovery has proved too much for Fadol, and despite the best efforts of the troll sent with them, she died right in front of Chidal, who still does not know what fate befell his one and only son

In the words of the song once sung by Don Williams

Where do we go from here?

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Chidal sat on the back of the cart whilst the hobgoblin cart driver sat next to him with an arm around the elderly goblin.

“It’s all my fault” Chidal kept repeating as he shook his head

The troll came back to the cart, and Chidal looked up at him, with tears streaming down his face.

“I have buried her with the others like you asked” the troll said softly
“Thank you” Chidal uttered
“Is there anyone you can stay with?” the troll asked
“I don’t know” Chidal replied, barely audible

“There is no way he can stay here” the hobgoblin chipped in, “all the buildings are destroyed and the farm is deserted”
“Agreed” said the troll, “We will try the next village, as the last one was in such a bad state” then he looked at Chidal, “if that is ok with you?”

Chidal just shrugged his shoulders, “What ever you think sir” replied, “There is nothing left for me here now, but it would be a day’s ride from here” Then Chidal looked up into the evening sky and quietly said, “Oh why could it not have been me that died”, and then he broke down, while the hobgoblin held him, trying to control his own emotions.

The troll just walked up to the remains of the farm house and banged with his fist on the stone remains. He was used to loosing comrades in battle, but for someone to loose a mate the way his charge had done, especially as he had got to know them over the last two days was something else.

The troll came back and told the hobgoblin, “As night is falling we will have to go back to the village here and see if there are any lodgings for the night”, then the troll sat next to Chidal, and the hobgoblin took this as his cue to go and start the cart on it’s way back to the remains of the settlement they had past in what little light there was in the afterglow of the suns set.

The troll lifted the goblin further into the cart and sat him down amongst the bundles he had left. Some of them were clothes belonging to Fadol, which made it seem more tragic. The troll then sat opposite him.

Chidal just looked up at the troll, “It’s all my fault” he whispered, “It’s all my fault that they died”

The troll scratched his head, “How do you work that one out?” he asked.

“If only I had let my son Keval take his wife and son to Karam Tag Chou, instead of saying we would go, they would all have been alive”
“But it would be you that was dead” The troll replied
“But Fadol and myself had had our lives” Chidal answered, then with a voice with raw emotion and tears added, “They were so young, they had their lives ahead of them and I selfishly took them away”

The troll put his two hands on the goblin’s shoulders, “Chidal, my goblin friend, you did not kill them. This was a war that started well after you chose to serve the penal servitude in your son’s place” then he added, “It was probably the orcs who butchered your son’s family, and since someone buried them and listed their names on the grave markers, maybe your son is still alive”

Chidal looked down, “But I can not believe he would wish to see me now.” Then he looked up at the troll with tears in his eyes, “That ogre was right, Fadol and I were safe at Karam Tag Chou while all this” Chidal pointed at the remains of another burned out hut, “was happening”

Then Chidal remembered his dead wife, “Oh Fadol, I killed you too, I’m so sorry” and then he resumed his sobbing.

The troll just looked up into the night sky and muttered swear words under his breath. He was from the clan of the Rachtal, and the Rachtal clan was one of those troll clans who had fought alongside the orcs during the civil war. They had told themselves that they were helping to overthrow the tyranny of the last leader of the Manjura Clan, the Lord Low Troll. The orcs had an extra agenda, their version of ethnic cleansing, and it seemed unthinkable that the troll had been allies with the very orcs that had slaughtered this loyal goblin’s family and lead indirectly to the death of his wife. The fact that the trolls on the orc’s side refused to indulge in what the orcs were doing, would probably be very cold comfort to this broken hearted elderly goblin.

The sky was black by the time they returned to what was left of the goblin village, the only light they had was from the three of the four moons, and the fourth one would not be up until later in the night.

The dilapidated building cut just as a pathetic sight by the light of the moons as they did in the afternoon suns. As Chidal looked at them he could just about remember how the village used to be before the ravages of the war had come upon it. It seemed amazing that anyone was still living there, but they were.

“Chidal” the troll asked, “Was there an inn when you used to live here”
Chidal just feebly pointed in a direction where he last remembered where there was a hostelry, it was run by dwarfs he vaguely remembered.

The hobgoblin got the beasts of burden to move in the direction that Chidal pointed, “I hope it is still there” the hobgoblin muttered.

As they were riding in the cart, Chidal noticed a number of goblins running in the shadows ahead of them, most of them were young adult goblins, and they all seemed to express alarm, maybe the hobgoblin looked too much like an orc Chidal thought.

After five minutes they came to the outskirts of the village at a river crossing, and there was the hostelry, surprisingly it was unscathed.

In front of it was a line of goblins carrying flaming torches and agricultural implements as weapons.

“What is the meaning of this?” barked the hobgoblin, “We are just three weary travellers”

A middle aged goblin stepped forward, “We have no problem with you hobgoblin” he shouted back, “It’s him we have an issue with” and pointed at the cart
“Oh no” thought Chidal, “They must think me a collaborator”

Chidal jumped down off of the cart, if they were going to kill him and string him up like they did with the female goblin they saw the day before, maybe it would be for the best, after all he no longer had anything to live for.

Chidal went round to face the crowd, “I am so sorry” he cried, then sank to his knees and got on all fours, “Do with me as you will” he then added.

“It’s not you sir” came a voice from the throng, “it is the troll. It was trolls that attacked our village”
“What?” Chidal replied and stood up and looked back at his troll bodyguard.

“Did these trolls say which clan they were from” The troll boomed out
“They did not” another goblin replied
“So what crest did they have on their helms?” The troll enquired further
“They had no helms Troll” the goblin replied.

The troll sighed and shook his head, “Those were trolls from the Yataxal clan”
“So?” replied the same goblin, “They were trolls”
“I am from the Rachtal clan” the troll insisted, “We were on the opposite side to the Yataxal, they were our enemies”

Chidal put his head in his hands, he had for the most part been working for the clan of the Delethon, and their clan chief had been in league with the deputy clan chief of the Yataxal and the evil humans who had brought some kind of poision the Yataxal took because they believed it made them better warriors. Somehow Chidal had been enslaved to and worked for the very troll clan that was allied with the troll clan that had brought death and misery to his village.

“So you would have slaughtered us with the orcs then?” the goblin shouted back at the troll.
“We only fought with the other trolls in battle” the troll insisted, “We never slaughtered non-combatants. Had we been here we would have fought the Yataxal with you”

“What is this disturbance” came a voice from the darkness. Chidal looked away from the crowd of goblins but could not see much.
“This troll has come to our village” yelled one of the goblins.
“So I see” replied the voice from the darkness as it approached further.

In the light of the flaming torches and the light of the moons, Chidal could finally see who it was, it was a middle-aged goblin, wearing a sash of leadership. Instantly Chidal dropped to his knees and bowed to the goblin village leader

The goblin leader came up to Chidal and unceremoniously pulled him to his feet, “Get up, I do so hate it when others bow to me”
“I apologise my liege” Chidal replied, looking at the ground not daring to look the goblin leader in the eye
The goblin leader then lifted Chidal’s head, “You are old enough to be first goblin or one of the elder goblins, had they still been alive, what is your name and what is you business here”
“Please my Liege” Chidal started, “I am Chidal, I was a scullery slave with my wife Fadol at Karam Tag Chou. The new troll clan running the citadel sent us home with the hobgoblin for transport and the troll for our protection”
“And where is your wife?” the goblin leader asked.
Chidal looked back at the ground, “My dearest wife, she died of a broken heart only this eventide when we returned to the farm that my son Keval ran, and saw the graves of his wife and younglings. The troll tried to save her, but she died” and then Chidal broke down.

The Goblin leader held the weeping Chidal in his arms, “let them through” he yelled at the amassed goblins in front of the hostelry.
“But there is a troll” came an objection.
“I said let them through” the goblin leader insisted, “The war is over”

At this and with some mutterings the crowd dispersed and the goblin leader held Chidal out at arms length, “Keval did you say”
Chidal nodded, “Was he slain as well” he asked tearfully

The goblin leader shook his head slowly, “He is still alive, but he was injured in the defence of the village, but has healed, although I fear his spirit may have been broken” then he ushered Chidal towards the hostelry.

The hobgoblin took the cart to the stables and once again said he would sleep with his cart. The troll waited outside the front door for the goblin leader and Chidal. Chidal just looked at the ground, a broken goblin.

The goblin leader opened the door, “There are a lot of changes here since you left for the citadel” he warned Chidal.

As Chidal entered he noticed that the long tables were no longer there, but there were a number of beds. Some housed elderly goblins some younglings. Some were asleep; others just sat on them staring into space. The bar was still there, but the beverages had given way to preserved rations.

A dwarf female was sitting on a bed talking to a female goblin youngling of not more than four cycles

“What happened?” asked the troll

“It was about two cycles of the moons before the war was declared ended” the goblin leader started to explain, “We thought we had kept out of the war, but an army of trolls approached from the west. We thought we would be safe because they were not orcs, but a goblin scout reported that they had slain a goblin merchant and had mutilated his body”
“That was certainly what the Yataxal clan ended up doing” the troll interjected
The goblin leader then continued “From what we could tell, they must have thought we were loyal to the orcs, which was not true. We sent an emissary out with tribute, but they would not even let him speak before they ripped him to pieces, so we had to quickly make up some town defences and send a runner to the citadel. When the trolls finally attacked the village, a large number of goblins were put to the sword and the axe when they over ran our defences”
“Oh Goblin leader” the troll spoke, “That sounds very much like the Yataxal clan. We hardly got to fight them as they always preferred to go after orcs, as they were mutilating them for innards to buy a type of poison from the World of Mortals that some treacherous hoomans were selling them. They believed it made them fearsome warriors”
“But it was good humans, the emperor, his queen and the princess and others that stopped them” Chidal chipped in.
“I know Chidal” the troll reassured him, “I know that hoomans are like trolls and goblins that not all of them are treacherous. Our hooman emperor had honour”

The goblin leader waited for the two of them to finish, and then continued. “The Yataxal trolls would have completely slaughtered us, so vicious they were when a high ranking troll of that clan came flying in on a dragon and shouted at them that goblins were no good. I never understood that until you mentioned this trade of orc innards for a poison. But by then most of our village was destroyed, and some of the outlying farms”

The goblin leader then swung a pointing finger at all the beds, “these are some of the survivors that are less able to fend for themselves”
Chidal looked round the room, and the leader was right, there were hardly any goblins of fighting age, and those that were had atrocious injuries. Most were elderly or younglings.

The leader pointed at the youngling that the female dwarf had been talking to and was now tucking into bed, “That youngling lost all her family, her mother, her father and sisters and brother. She only survived the attack because she had pulled a large cooking pot over herself when she was playing a game and so the trolls did not know of her existence”

Then he pointed to another elderly goblin, a female goblin, “She saw her husband’s head ripped off by a troll and then kicked around as part of a game”

At this the troll felt uncomfortable, “I think I had better find my bed with the cart and the hobgoblin” he told the goblin leader and then left.

Chidal just looked around the room and shook his head, “Why could his son’s younglings have not been amongst this lot”

“Chidal” the Goblin leader addressed him, “I know this sound’s horrible, but because we lost very ill and injured goblin defender last night, we have a bed for you to stay here”

“But I do not deserve to have a roof over my head” Chidal objected, “I was locked away safe with my wife in the citadel whilst you were all suffering”

The goblin leader put his hand on Chidal’s right shoulder, “That is nonsense my friend” he chided, “If you had been here, you might have been killed as well as the others”
“But my son, his wife, his younglings might have been safe at”
The goblin leader motioned for Chidal to stop, “I know why you and Fadol chose to do what you did, and had there not been a war, it would have been the right decision. Besides, suppose they had gone to serve in your place, we all thought that the orcs might consider that a primary target, and supposed they had managed to tame some dragons, like they tried to do, and take the place out, would you feel guilty because you were not their?”

Chidal just nodded and the goblin leader called for the female dwarf to show Chidal to where his bed would be.

The dwarf female showed Chidal up the stairs to a small room, “You are most privileged sire” she gruffly told him, “The goblin before you, because of his injuries was afforded his own room”, then the dwarf showed Chidal where the upstairs privy was.

Chidal just meekly followed and sat down on the bed and then after the dwarf had left he made a visit to the privy to prepare for the night. When he got back to his room, a bag with some of his clothes had been left in the room. He retrieved his night gown, changed into it, he sat back down on the bed kicked his sandals off, and swung his legs up to the bed and pulled the blanket over him.

In the darkness of the night, Chidal gently sobbed for Fadol, it had been too many cycles for him to remember since he slept alone, and so the bed seemed colder than it could be.

He loved her

It was only that morning when she was still by his side, but now she was dead, killed by the shock of seeing the graves of his son’s younglings and his son’s wife.

Chidal just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up.

Just what did he have to live for now?

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The early morning suns cam streaming through the window, and as was his custom, Chidal awoke early. By force of habit he went to wake Fadol, but then remembered she was dead and forever sleeping in her grave next to her Grand-Younglings in their graves.

He sat up and quietly sobbed, and again wished he had died and not his precious Fadol.

Then he got up and changed into new clothes. The ones from the day before, he would later take to the river and wash them upstream of the hostelry. It would normally have been his wife’s task, but she was no longer around.

Then Chidal crept down the stairs as quiet as he could, so as not to disturb the others, and made his way to the front door. He tried the door, but it was locked. He looked around, but nobody else seemed to be up. He so desperately wanted to say goodbye to the hobgoblin and the troll, but it did not seem that was going to happen. Then he had an idea, and tried to creep through to the back to look for the back door, but the door to the staff section was also locked.

Chidal just sighed and resolved himself to not being able to say goodbye, and decided to creep back upstairs and return to his room.

“I want my mummy” came a sound behind him as he reached the stair case. He turned around, the youngling that he had seen the previous night with the dwarf. Chidal looked around, but no one else was up, so he went and sat on the bed next to the youngling.
“I’m sorry” he whispered to her, “She’s not around anymore, but I’m sure she loved you very much”
“But they told me she was just sick” the youngling replied, and then started to cry

Chidal then suddenly realised, they had not told her that her family was dead as she was so young, so he picked her up and put her on his lap. “I’m so sorry youngling” he whispered to her
The youngling looked up at his face and with tears in her eyes, as she was obviously an intelligent young goblin asked, “Are my mummy and daddy dead?” then she asked “are my sisters and brother dead too, they said they were sick too”

Chidal looked at the youngling and desperately wanted to lie to her to give her some hope, but his eyes filled up with tears as well, especially when he remembered how his wife was with younglings, that she was so much better with them than he. The youngling read his face and burst into tears, and all Chidal could do was hug her as he quietly cried too.
“I’m so sorry” he kept whispering to the youngling, then he whispered, “I lost my wife yesterday and I so miss her as well”

It was five minutes before the female dwarf came into the main room and found the two together.



Chidal saw her and gently placed the sobbing youngling on the side of the bed and hung his head in shame. “I’m so sorry, I did not realise that she did not know” he muttered.
“So you told her Sire” the female dwarf answered sternly
“She guessed” Chidal replied, “I was incautious when she asked for her mother and she guessed from my response”
“An itinerant elven healer removed memories of finding ther rest of her family slaughtered, my father said they were memories no youngling should have” The dwarf whispered into his ear so that the youngling could not hear, then she asked in a normal voice “Why are you up so early anyway?”
“I always got up early miss” Chidal responded, “I was a scullery slave and we always got up early at the citadel, plus I wanted to say goodbye to my travelling companions”
“I will let you out” the dwarf replied, “And then I need to take Shaval here to the bathing room to wash her and then get her dressed” With that the female dwarf went and opened the door, her irritation with Chidal was completely obvious.

Chidal wandered out and made his way to the stable where the troll and the hobgoblin were set to leave. The cart looked odd, being empty, but then they had fulfilled their duty and taken Chidal and his wife home, even if for one of them that meant being buried in the ruins of their farm.

“I came to say thank you and wish you a safe journey back to the citadel” Chidal shouted up to them.

The troll motioned for the hobgoblin to wait and got off of the cart and knelt down to talk to Chidal, “Officially my mission is over my good Chidal”
“I know my liege” Chidal replied
“I am so sorry about what happened to your wife, I tried to save her, I really did”
“I know that too my liege” Chidal replied and a tear rolled down his cheek.
“I will report back what the Yataxal did here, maybe we can send some Rachtal and Manjura to try and help in the reconstruction of your village. I asked the goblin leader after he left you last night why so long after the hostilities had ended most of the village was like it is”
“And why is it like this?”
The troll continued to explain, “Most of the able bodied goblins who had the skills to build were slaughtered in the attack, and the rest were conscripted to help rebuild the main city of the Mystical Realms. Those that blockaded us last night know only of farming and have been working the fields to stave off starvation, so have little time for building in the village.”

“I feel so guilty” Chidal told the troll
“Why?” asked the troll
“My son, his wife and younglings, Fadol”
“Stop right there” the troll interrupted, “This was a war nobody could foresee, it was triggered by a vengeful major spirit of vice and an arch orc that wished to grab power for himself under the pretence of removing a tyrant , and although both got their just deserts, their evil work developed a life of it’s own and also what we could not foresee was that it was kept going by a clan from the world of Mortals who sought to profit from our misery and from what I heard, deal in misery and death in their own world, again for mere greed. You can not blame yourself for that”

“I know sire” Chidal responded looking down at the ground, then he looked up into the trolls eyes, “but I am alive and they are dead, and it does not seem right”

“It is the way of war my goblin friend” The troll replied, “I know of what you speak, before I took service at the royal court of the emperor I was on a patrol, when we were ambushed by Manjura warriors, only three of us survived and all of us felt guilt at being the only survivors, even though we were vastly outnumbered. Take care my goblin friend, I will try and get help to come to your village.

With that the troll got back up into the cart and Chidal watched as they rode into the distance.

As he stood watching, he became aware of a small hand grasping his, he looked round and saw the dwarf female coming out, quite flustered and as he looked down, he saw Shaval, the orphaned goblin youngling clinging to his hand and trying to hide behind his legs, still in her flimsy nightgown.

The female dwarf stopped and in an irritated voice, “Shaval, you need to come in and get dressed, AT ONCE”

Chidal looked down at the youngling, “Hello Shaval, I do not wish you to catch cold out here, shall we go back inside”
“Yes sir” Shaval replied and so Chidal gently guided the youngling by the hand back into the hostelry and to her bed.
“Let her dress you and be a good youngling” Chidal gently told Shaval pointing to the dwarf female, and so Shaval complied.

Chidal turned his back while the dwarf dressed the youngling, and once she was dressed for the day, Shaval grabbed his hand once more.

“I’m sorry sire” the dwarf told him, “but for some reason she just want to be with you”
Chidal was momentarily confused, but then asked if he could take his break of day meal outside with Shaval, maybe he could find out why a person such as him could elicit such a following.
The dwarf said that would be ok, plus it would allow the elderly goblins to continue sleeping, as there was not much else they could do, since their lives had been so devastated, and the other older younglings to get up so they could go and help in the fields.

Chidal took Shaval to the table and seat outside and waited for the dwarf to bring the break of day meal.
“Why do you wish to be with me Shaval?” he asked the youngling
Shaval looked at him with sad eyes, “We both lost our family sir”
Chidal gently clutched her hand, “Are you upset I told you the truth”
Shaval nodded then shook her head, it was clear she was confused “They lied to me” Shaval said, her voice breaking with emotion, “Mummy told me never to tell lies”
“Shaval” Chidal spoke softly, “sometimes the truth hurts, and the grown ups wanted to protect you from that” Chidal found his voice cracking with emotion, wishing Fadol were with him to help comfort this youngling.

The dwarf delivered the break of day meal which was a meagre affair and then left them to eat and to attend to other matters.

The two goblins, united in grief ate in silence listening to the world wake up.

After they had finished eating, Chidal asked Shaval “What do you normally do with your day?”
Shaval looked down at the table, “Jovan the dwarf gets me to help her make the beds and then” Shaval looked up with tears forming in her eyes, “I sit upstairs waiting for mummy to come back” then she looked at Chidal “Mummy is not coming back is she”

Chidal just looked at the pleading teary eyes of the goblin youngling, all he could think to say at that moment, “I’m so sorry Shaval, I don’t believe she is”

Chidal watched as her face crumpled and she began to cry again, Chidal really thought he had messed up, before he had let on to this youngling, she had hope but by telling her the truth, he had taken that away. Maybe they had thought she was far too young to know the truth, but he had gone and ruined that.

Chidal got up and sat beside Shaval and put an arm around her, to try and comfort her as best he could. “I may not be your mummy”, he whispered to her, “But I’m here”
“Will you be my new daddy?” Shaval asked through her tears.
“I’m old enough to be your grandfather” Chidal replied.
“Don’t you want ot be my daddy?” Shaval asked, it was clear she did not understand what Chidal had told her
“I don’t know if I would be allowed to be” Chidal told her, “I was a daddy once” he added
“Did you have a little boy-goblin or a girl goblin?” Shaval persisted in her questions
“I had a boy goblin” Chidal answered, “and he grew up to be a daddy too”
“What did he have?” Shaval continued
“He had” Chidal started, then stopped as a lump in his throat appeared from nowhere. Chidal took his arm from around Shaval and then put his head in his hands. “He had one of each” he could just get out, as tears started rolling down his face.

Chidal then felt a small hand on his back, it was Shaval, in a nervous and sad voice she asked “Did the trolls kill them as well?”

Chidal could only nod, well he assumed it was the trolls from the Yataxal. For all he knew it could have been an earlier attack by the orcs, but nobody had mentioned an attack by orcs, only the one by the trolls.

The two just sat there for a period of time, how long, Chidal did not know.

One of the other elderly goblins came out, assisted by the dwarf landlord this time, and he was sat outside on a bench overlooking the river.



The female dwarf came up to the table where Chidal and Shaval were sitting. “Shaval, I need you to help me inside” she told the goblin youngling and so she got down from table and followed her into the hostelry.

Chidal got up and went to talk with the other elderly goblin, but he just stared into the distance and was unresponsive to Chidal.

“That’s Laqual, We can only get him to eat and do basic functions” the dwarf landlord told Chidal, “He saw his wife and daughter raped and butchered by the trolls whilst they held him down”

Chidal was shocked, “So why did they spare him”
“We don’t know” the Dwarf replied, “The trolls were just out of control, even the orcs were more controlled than these trolls”
“I was told the human’s poison mad them that way” Chidal told the dwarf. Chidal then thought of little Shaval, “Landlord, I noticed that Jovan almost treats the youngling that sat with me as a daughter by the way she dressed her and called her to do chores”
“My daughter does that with all the younglings” the landlord commented and then added, “Do not read into that any feelings from her for the youngling, as I do not believe she has any. My daughter would happily find someone to take her off her hands, like all the other younglings who lost their parents when the trolls attacked, but in the meantime she fulfils her duty to care for them although she does believe in making them earn their keep”
“How may I earn my keep?” Chidal then asked
“What can you do?” asked the landlord
“I was for many cycles a scullery slave at Karam Tag Chou” Chidal offered

The landlord shook his head, “Our scullery is small and my daughter is queen of that domain. She will brook no interference there”
“Before that I ran a farm” Chial offered
The dwarf landlord looked him in the eye, “My friend, you are too old to work the land now, and some of the older younglings here have already been helping with some of the farms, in fact a few now have moved to them from the hostelry”
“So I am of no use?” Chidal asked
“Maybe you can sit with the other elderly goblin and keep him company, whilst I go about my other duties and see he comes to no harm” the dwarf landlord suggested.
Chidal nodded and so the landlord went elsewhere.

The other elderly goblin looked about Chidal’s age, possibly older and it seemed so pitiful as he just stared out at the river, mouthing incoherent thoughts.

Chidal thought he would at least try a conversation, to while away the hours, “Hello Laqual, my name is Chidal”

No response

“I lost my wife too” he tried, hoping to reach him through some common ground.

Still no response

“She died yesterday, we found the graves of our daughter in law and her two precious younglings” Chidal still had trouble speaking about it as the emotion was still raw, because of the short passage of time, “and she died of a broken heart” and then Chidal could speak no more for a while as he fought back the tears.

Laqual just sat there, moving his mouth as if he was speaking, but making no noise, it was obvious, his mind had been destroyed by what he had been forced to witness. To Chidal it just highlighted how he had been spared the horrors while he had been in servitude with his wife. He had only had to suffer the horror of seeing the three graves and watching his wife die as her heart gave out. Fadol’s death was a tragic, but if truth had to be told, it was a death by natural causes. Laqual and Shaval had had the horror of seeing loved ones having their lives brutally ended by creatures larger than them, right before their eyes.

Chidal just felt thankful for the elven healer that had removed the memories of those horrors from poor little Shaval.

He thought about her, Shaval was almost the same age as his son’s youngest, if Chidal were younger and Fadol was still with him, and they had a place to stay, and all those awful ifs that just plagued him, he would have a go at taking in little Shaval, but it was pointless. Chidal and Shaval were effectively in the same state of affairs. They had no place other than the hostelry that had been turned into a shelter for the displaced that had been lucky to find a place there first.

He then thought of Karam Tag Chou, there were loads of good strong buildings and billets, all lying idle. The Manjura and the Rachtal clans took only a fraction of the space, as did the Troll Chamberlain. And as for the humans, they would hardly ever stay the night, they would gate in and gate out. Only rarely did they ever stay the night. He knew of only one occasion come to think of it, when only three came for one night, and they did not even stay for break of day meal. It seemed obscene all that space going spare, while every nook and cranny of the hostelry was crammed with a bed, and Chidal was certain there were some not so fortunate goblin younglings trying to live in the streets. Come the winter and many of them would most likely not survive.

Chidal thought he would try again with his companion, “Laqual” he tried, “Is there anything you want to do?”

yet again no response

So Chidal just sat with him in silence, watching the river for about an hour or so. Then Shaval came and sat beside him, and he put an arm around her and she tried put her arms around him, “Please be my new daddy” she whispered.
“I’ll do what I can Shaval” Chidal answered her, “But I can not promise anything”

About ten minutes later Jovan the female dwarf came out to the three sitting on the bench.
“WHY ARE YOU BOTHERING THE ELDERLY GOBLIN AGAIN?” she scalded the little goblin youngling
Chidal felt the youngling jump at the sound of the Dwarf’s voice
“Sorry Jovan” she said, obviously frightened by the dwarf, and made to get down from the bench.
Chidal to his own surprise, just held onto Shaval, and hugged her closer to himself, “She is no bother to me at all miss Jovan” he told the dwarf.
“This pest is like this all the time” Jovan replied, “Any goblin or any visitor that ever talks to her and she gets all clingy and they do not like it, and they complain to me”
Chidal, again to his surprise, picked Shaval up and put her on his lap and cuddled her, like he used to cuddle his son when he was but a mere youngling of Shaval’s age. “Please don’t take her away” Chidal found himself pleading, then he added, “She is no bother to me and gives me a reason”
Jovan the dwarf put her hands on her hips and looked confused, “So what reason does she give you”
“A reason to go on” Chidal responded, “Otherwise, what do I have to live for”
“Sire” Jovan insisted, “You are not really in a position to argue with me, since you are a guest here, and she has been told off before”
“But she is the same age as my son’s youngest was before she” Chidal said before his voice failed.
“Before the trolls slaughtered her” Jovan finished his sentence. Jovan stepped right up to Chidal and held out her arms, insisting Chidal hand Shaval over to her. Shaval just tried to hide her face in Chidal’s chest, she was afraid.
“She is doing no harm” Chidal insisted, but it was to no avail, as Jovan took hold of the youngling and told her “You, you little pest are not to bother this goblin again”

As Chidal lost his grip of the youngling, Shaval burst out crying, but Jovan just told her to shut her noise up, it would not wash and she was going to get another severe beating for bothering her elders.

“A beating?” Chidal said in horror, he had heard that some races would use beatings as physical punishments to control and discipline their younglings, but goblins never did, it was an appalling idea., “She was not bothering me, she has done nothing to merit a beating” Chidal pleaded
“It’s the only thing they understand” Jovan told him angrily.
Chidal made to get up, but Jovan immediately told him “You stay with this goblin, and whilst you are under our roof you do as we say or else, OK”

With that she carried the hysterical Shaval to the hostelry, and Chidal felt torn, between his duty to sit the elderly goblin whose mind had gone, and the youngling who would be subject to a brutal physical assault, because the female dwarf thought she had transgressed a trivial rule. Chidal felt sick, as he found himself wondering if his son’s younglings were killed quickly or made to suffer like Laqual’s wife and daughter had done.
“Please Laqual” he pleaded to the goblin, “We need to go and save Shaval” he added, trying to gently shake him, but it was to no avail, as Laqual just sat there, catatonic as ever and there was nobody else around.

Chidal just had to sit there, weeping as he could just make out the screams of agony as Jovan exacted her punishment on the youngling, and it reminded him of the human child when she was beaten back at the citadel for not being able to do tasks that were clearly beyond her ability. There had been no need for it as Shaval had not been bothering him, but the female dwarf was obviously on a power kick, just like the Tyrant had been before the civil war had deposed him.

It was near noon time before the landlord came to relieve Chidal from his enforced vigil of Laqual.



Chidal could not bear to look at him in the eye as he could only think of how his daughter could inflict pain on a youngling, just like the trolls had done.

The landlord could sense somehow Chidal was bothered with something, “Are you still upset that the youngling came and bothered you?” he asked, “Jovan said she had, and she would make certain she would not again”
Chidal just looked at the landlord contemptuously, “And if I somehow offend your daughter, does she give me a beating as well?”
“No?” the dwarf landlord responded with a confused expression.
Chidal was still upset and so told the dwarf landlord “The youngling was not bothering me; I pleaded with your daughter to let her stay, but she threatened me, took Shaval away and beat her” Then Chidal added, “Is Shaval still alive or was part of her punishment to be dispatched”

The landlord sighed, “Ever since we were asked to make our business into a shelter, Jovan has been angry at how we lost our profits. She was more used to dealing with rowdy carousers than dealing with elderly, infirm or youngling goblins. Like her long dead mother she believes in stamping out trouble before it grows with a very firm hand, and in the hostelry and tavern trade you need to”
“But she was a youngling, and she was no bother” Chidal insisted
“But Chidal, you are old, suppose you are no more, by encouraging her, do you not store up more trouble for someone else” the landlord suggested.
“Then why did she not beat me instead?” Chidal asked, “I was as much part to blame”
“Because you’re an elderly goblin”

Chidal gasped in disbelief and shook his head, “We goblins never hit our younglings, and we have never needed to”
“Dwarfs believe that a good beating does not do any harm and serves as a deterrent to others” The landlord replied, and then he added, “My father beat me countless times and I have turned out alright”

“If I had somewhere else to go” Chidal stated emphatically, “I would take Shaval with me”
“But you don’t” the landlord pointed out

Chidal looked down at the ground, the landlord was right. The farm was destroyed, his son’s family were slaughtered and his son was nowhere to be found. Much of the village was in ruins, even after the end of the war.

“I will find the leader of the village and tell him of how this youngling was beaten for no reason” Chidal told the landlord.

The landlord just wearily shook his head, “Chidal, my friend, your concern for this youngling confuses me, she is not of your blood, and besides the leader will have more important things to worry about than one goblin youngling”

Chidal did not reply and as the landlord was with Laqual, he left heading back to the hostelry.

Once he got in he noticed that the only residents there were the elderly or infirm goblins. The older younglings had left to work in the fields, but he could see no sign of Shaval. He looked round the hostelry, trying to find signs of her, but she was not in any room that he had access to, all he found were beds or the occasional elderly or injured goblin. No Shaval

He looked at the door to the staff section, and tried it to see if like earlier in the day it was locked; maybe she was in the staff quarters.

Then he thought he heard a faint whimper, coming from a small cupboard that held cleaning materials. He tried the door, but it was locked. He listened at the door of the cupboard and heard the faint sound of a youngling crying, it had to be Shaval. He looked at the construction of the cupboard door, it was too well constructed to break, and beside he might injure Shaval. Jovan had obviously locked her in as part of the punishment, and Chidal reasoned that as her word was law, she would most likely not let her out on his asking. As for the landlord, even if he had a key, it was obvious that his daughter could do no wrong, in his eyes and he would not let her out as in his eyes that could be seen as undermining her authority.

Chidal looked behind the bar, to see if he could see some keys hanging up, but instead, near the floor he caught sight of Shaval’s clothes. This was horrendous, Shaval must have been stripped, beaten and locked in a dark cupboard. Just like the day before when he could only watch as Fador died, he felt utterly helpless.

Fador!!

Suddenly he remembered, in the items delivered to his room was some of his wife’s things, so Chidal bounded back up to his room and rummaged through the bag with her belongings and found an old hair pin. He grabbed it and went down stairs to be greeted by the goblin leader.

“Chidal my good” The goblin leader started, but Chidal waved his hand to cut him off.
“Apologies my liege, but I believe that a goblin youngling has been locked in this cupboard” he hurriedly said and then started to try and pick the lock with the hair pin.

Chidal was then astonished when he heard the goblin leader bang on the door to the staff quarters and then pulled Chidal from the cupboard door.
“Please my liege” Chidal instinctively pleaded, “I’m trying to rescue the youngling”

But the damage was done, and Jovan came through the door looking cross. “What is it now” she complained and then looked at the goblin leader. “Oh it’s you” she said contemptuously.
“Yes it’s me” the goblin leader replied, “The one who still the designated authority in this settlement” and for good measure he added, “and also the one who holds the title in trust for the land upon which your establishment sits”
“Sorry oh leader of the village, I meant oh it’s you to this other goblin” A crest fallen yet frustrated Jovan then replied pointing at Chidal, “What did you require? The kitchen is not yet open, but I am working on the end of day meal”
The goblin leader pointed at the cupboard, “Open it”
“Leader” the dwarf objected, “I am teaching a very disobedient youngling not to bother others”
“But she wasn’t bothering me” Chidal piped up
“It has to learn” Jovan insisted, sounding very irritated at Chidal’s unwelcome intervention
“OPEN IT” The goblin leader repeated with more force.

Jovan muttered something that Chidal could not catch and then dug in her pocket and opened the cupboard door. Inside was Shaval, naked, cowering and covered in welts across the back of her lower abdomen.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry” she kept whimpering.
Jovan, grabbed Shaval’s clothes from behind the bar and flung them in at Shaval. “Put those on and come out” she shouted at the youngling.

Chidal watched as the child tried to put her clothes on in the confined space, and it was clear she was in a lot of pain. Chidal felt guilty, by making a connection with this youngling, he was indirectly responsible for her unjust punishment. Yet again, because of decisions he had made, like the younglings in his son’s family, another youngling had suffered.

“Dwarf” the goblin leader told Jovan forcefully, “You do not punish goblin younglings like this again”
“If that is how you wish it Leader” Jovan replied, with a tone of annoyance in her voice, “But how else can I maintain discipline amongst these younglings I have to put up”
“You tell us and we deal with it” The goblin leader retorted.

Shaval just managed to put her clothes back on and limped out of the cupboard, whimpering how sorry she was and flinching when she caught sight of Jovan.

Chidal just could not take any more and picked up the weeping youngling, he so wanted to make amends by protecting her, although he did not know how.

Chidal then carried her upstairs to his room, lovingly placed the youngling on his bed, while he grabbed what clothes he could in his bag, picked it up.
“Shaval” he told the youngling, “even if I can not be your daddy, I can at least try and be your grandfather and love you like my own, if you will have me”
Slowly Shaval nodded.

Chidal then led Shaval by the hand back down the stairs.

“Where are you two going?” Jovan asked.
“I don’t know” Chidal replied, “just somewhere where Shaval will be safe from you, even if I have to carry her back to Karam Tag Chou myself”

Chidal grabbed the small bag of clothes by Shaval’s bed and led Shaval by the hand to the front door and began to open it,

Suddenly the goblin leader uttered, “Oh Chidal my friend I almost forgot to say why I had come”

As Chidal finished opening the door, he got a huge shock, and dropped the bags, but managed to cling onto Shaval.

There standing just outside was Keval, his son, with a huge fading scar down the left side of his face

“Hello father” Keval said
“Hello son” Chidal reciprocated, then he felt himself welling up, “I’m so sorry son, what can I say”

Then Chidal let go of Shaval and sunk to his knees, “Please forgive me son” he uttered, “I am so sorry”

To be continued