There was an intense battle being fought between two groups. A large clan of goblins were facing off against a much smaller group of what Ronin recognized as troglodytes or trogs for short. The goblin sized humanoid crocodiles were outnumbered five to one, but they seemed to be the aggressors in the conflict. They had backed the goblins into an alcove that they couldn’t escape from without a fight.

To make matters more complicated, it looked like the rest of the stone carver rats had ended up here. they swarmed around both sides of the conflict, biting and scratching at everyone equally. Doing some quick head counting, Ronin figured there must be between fifteen and twenty of the troglodytes. Looking at his people, he saw that they were ready and eager for the fight.

“Guts, you and me will head in and gather their attention. Hunter, Soft step and Song, you come in behind us and shoot as many as you can. Don’t risk yourselves unnecessarily, take your time and make the shots count. When we finish the battle, don’t let the goblins out of the alcove. I don’t want to risk them running. got it?” seeing that everyone understood, Ronin gave a shout and charged.

He met the first humanoid crocodile with his shield. Even with his enhanced strength and height advantage, the troglodyte only stumbled back a step at the charge. Despite being goblin sized, they were densely muscled and covered in thick scales. Thankfully, they didn’t seem very smart. He didn’t spot a weapon between them, fighting with teeth and claws alone. The one he’d rammed into righted itself quickly and lunged back into biting range. Its massive jaws snapped shut around the round shield, catching it on the lip and nearly pulling it from his grasp.

Thankfully his sword was already lined up and a quick thrust was able to put the blade into the attacker’s neck. It didn’t let go right away however, continuing to bite and thrash against Ronin’s shield. The beast’s thrashing only served to open its neck wound further and before long it dropped away, clutching its throat.

While he’d been engaged, Guts had thrown himself on a second trog. He’d followed Ronin’s example, leading with his shield. When the trog bit down on the steel shield, he began stabbing it as fast as he could. letting his armor absorb the claws, which were raking down his sides from all four limbs. not having the time to help Guts, Ronin was already being engaged by another of the aggressive trogs. He’d learned a little from the first encounter, so when the trog came in with a bite he would pull back the shield. When it closed its mouth with a snap, he would punch the shield forward into its snout before cutting at it with his damaged sword.

It was slower than his first attack method but kept him at a distance from the teeth and claws. Thankfully, the trogs seemed to be rather single minded in their fighting mentality. Only the ones who had been directly engaged from behind had turned around to fight, the rest remained focused on the goblins trapped in the alcove.

The scouts were making their own contribution. Having taken Ronin’s advice to heart, the three goblins were standing back. Taking careful aim between shots, they lined up their target before shooting to conserve ammunition. They still missed more often than they hit, but the targets were so bunched together that it hardly mattered. Ronin saw that Guts had also finished his first target. The goblin chief was injured though, having taken too much damage to his armor during the brawl.

“Guts, help with this one.” he called over softly, not wanting to alert the others. “We will take them on together, they are just too strong to do it alone.” Complying with the order, Guts rushed the trog from behind and drove his knife into its back. Not being able to turn around for fear that Ronin would be able to target it freely, the trog did its best to defend from both directions but quickly went down under the onslaught.

Motioning Guts to stay put, Ronin pulled another trog out of line and led it over toward the injured goblin. They made quick work of this one too, following the same tactic. The number of standing foes was starting to dwindle, and before long they were either all stunned or dead.

“Song, Soft step, reload and block off the alcove. If any of them try and run, stun them.” He called out. “Hunter, here.” Ronin said to the final member of the group, tossing over a bag filled with control collars looted from the Kaldarr drop ships. “There are ten collars in there, if there are any more than ten still alive… kill them.” Hunter was the most decisive of the goblin women, and he didn’t think she would balk at the orders.

“Guts, you gunna make it?” He asked the goblin chief as he moved over to support him.

“I’ll be fine sir,” he said with a pained grimace. “Let’s get them subdued before something unfortunate happens.” He said looking with concern toward Song and Soft step. Confused, Ronin followed his eyes. What he saw was a large number of goblin males, staring at the leather clad goblin women with lust filled eyes.

“Damn,” Ronin swore. Thankfully, the rats were still running amok inside the goblins ranks or they might have already tried something. “Screw it, we’ll have to stun them. Song, Soft step, aim for the males. We need to make this quick before they finish off the rats.” Pulling out a bundle of zip strips, he plunged into the pool of green skin and red hair.

* * *

The following hours were a blur to Ronin. they’d used more of the stun rounds then he’d expected and ran out after a few shots. He’d ended up having to wrestle the goblins down and zip them hand and foot before moving on. Guts was too wounded to assist, but he was still a giant goblin male. Just by standing in the alcove opening and bellowing at any who came to close, he was able to keep them all confined while Ronin worked.

The rats were an added complication he hadn’t wanted to deal with. They managed to kill a half dozen goblins after he’d tied them up, before he killed the last one. Hunter, having finished collaring the trogs, began injecting the bound goblins with the sexual inhibitor. It would be a while before it took effect, but when it did, they would start to calm down. then they could feed them, and hopefully convince them to follow the group back to base.

“Sir” the familiar voice entered Ronin’s exhaustion drenched mind. blinking in surprise he looked around, wondering if he’d imagined it. “I completed my mission, and as promised, I’m here.” it wasn’t his imagination after all. Owl five had just entered the alcove, followed by a pair of hulking Kaldarr warriors. They were huge, standing fully eight feet tall.

Ronin had read in his books about giants before. It was easy to read about eight-foot-tall giants, but when he saw them in the flesh it was different. It was unreal, just how big they looked. He felt like a child again, looking up at the adults of the caves. He blinked and shook his head when he realized how badly his mind was wandering.

“I’m glad you’re here Brie.” He said, giving her a smile. He’d removed his helmet after the battle, so his expression was on full display as he smiled tiredly. “Would you mind taking over here? Hunter can fill you in. Guts has already passed out, and I’m honestly not too far behind.”

“Of course, sir.” She said, having stiffened slightly at his use of her name. “Get some sleep, I’ll take care of everything.”

“Thank you, Owl five.” He said gratefully, entering a quiet corner to lay down. he was asleep before his head settled all the way down. He’d pushed himself hard, and made a good head start on his goals. There was still a long way to go though.

He didn’t know how much time passed before he opened his eyes again, but he felt fully refreshed. Sitting up, he found Owl five sitting beside him with her helmet off. she held a hunk of bread and a piece of dried meat, which she handed to him.

“Good morning,” he said. accepting the food with a “thank you.” he ate in silence, waiting for her to speak.

“We’ve secured the area,” she started after a moment. “Thirty-three goblins survived the ambush. We finished the sexual inhibiter injections, and once they calmed down, we fed them. the group’s alpha tried to cause trouble, but as malnourished as he was, even injured, Guts crushed him. once they have a little time to talk with Hunter and the others, we shouldn’t have any trouble at all getting them back.”

“Good.” Ronin said, still eating. “it’s a real shame though, there were easily twice that many goblins when we arrived at the fight. you were right you know, again. I should have taken my rifle… and you.” he thought back to the losses they’d suffered at the fangs of the rats. He had to do better.

“It takes time sir,” Owl five said looking him in the eye. “You are learning. Sure, you made mistakes, but none of them would have survived at all if you hadn’t arrived when you did.” Ronin nodded, able to accept her words as the truth, even if he didn’t want too.

“How about the trogs, and that bag of rats?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Hunter collared ten troglodytes and killed the other three,” Owl five started. “I found the rats on the way down and brought them along. We took off the muzzles and let them eat and drink before muzzling them again. what do you plan to do with them? neither of their species will be easily controlled. The control collars don’t actually force obedience, they just punish disobedience.”

Ronin nodded, he agreed with her, but he couldn’t pass up any opportunity to earn more credits. Living creatures were worth more than dead ones, and if he could get them to behave, the credits he earned would be worth the effort.

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly, if not completely. “We should have killed Guts and his group too, but that ended up working out. the trogs are strong and aggressive, maybe use them as guard dogs?” as for the rats, well he had no idea but Owl two might.

“What would you like to do now, sir?” Owl five asked after a long moment of silence.

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“Now?” he said, finishing his meal. “Now, lets get this group organized. I want the Kaldarrians along with the goblin team to shepherd this lot back… while you and I go just a little farther.” He didn’t expect to get any more goblins out of the deal, but he just wanted to see a little more.

“Yes sir,” Owl five said, “I will get them organized and join you shortly.” Having spoken, she got right up to put action to words. Within fifteen minutes the group had been organized and were moving back the way they’d come. Ronin made sure to have them pick up as many rat corpses as they could carry. He didn’t know what purpose they would serve, but the metallic plates interested him.

“Ready to go?” he asked as she joined him by the far passage.

“Yes sir,” she said with a nod. Putting her helmet back on she nodded her head, saying that she was ready to go.

They didn’t have much time left, but now that they had a map, they could always sprint back. Just the pair of them could move at incredible speed. He also had several things he wanted to talk with her about.

“… So, after watching what Hunter and Soft step were capable of, I’d like you to take them, and others like them, under your wing.” He said as they moved, “they will be our scout team.” He had been explaining what he had learned about the goblins as a whole during the short trip. “Going forward too, we’ll separate the goblins like Guts and Song from those like One ear and White hair. They are fine as general workers but, on this trip, they were a liability. It was my fault as the leader, but taking their armor off like that, led to their deaths as much as my not understanding the threat the rats posed.”

The goblins weren’t a close combat force. even Guts wasn’t very good at close quarters fighting. But the ones who were gifted at stealth, were very gifted. If he could get an entire team of skilled scouts and hunters like Owl five… his mind spun with the possibilities.

Turning a bend, Owl five motioned for him to stop. Ronin looked around but couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. So, he just watched her move forward toward the next bend.

“Sir, there is light up ahead.” She said over helmet coms. “I think we might have found another exit to this cave system.” Joining her when she motioned him forward, Ronin looked around the bend. Only then did he notice the darkness shifting a little towards light. Her perception must be very sharp to have noticed it even before they got to the bend.

“How did you know at the last bend? I can barely see the light shift, even here.” he asked her curiously.

“It’s the smell sir,” she said. “I can smell the air has changed, so I knew there was something ahead.” The air? He’d seen the other goblins smelling the air. Tilting his head back, he took a few whiffs at the air, but couldn’t smell anything. Goblins might be weak bodied sex addicts, but they sure had sharp senses.

“Good job, Owl five.” He said at last, giving up on trying to smell anything. “I can confidently say that your senses are much better than mine.”

“I am pleased to be of assistance,” she said. “I look forward to going on the next adventure with you from the beginning.” Ronin hadn’t said he would take her along, but he couldn’t deny she was invaluable as a scout.

“Get me a team of scout candidates and give them some instruction and you have a deal.” He’d take her with him regardless, but he figured he might as well add extra incentive for her anyway.

“Deal” she said, and Ronin swore he heard a smile in her voice. They moved forward together, rounding the bend and finding a small crack leading to the outside world. it was too small for either of them to fit through, but looking out, all they could see was forest. Talking it out, they decided to leave for now. They would explore here after the tax collector was taken care of. placing a marker on the map, they turned and sprinted all the way back to base.

They arrived with a day to spare, coming up out of the cave to a whirlwind of activity. The former human slaves were helping Guts and his people bathe and clothe the new goblins. Kaldarrians wearing control collars were busy building new tents, under the watchful eyes of a drone parasite implanted Kaldarr warrior. While all that was going on, town’s people moved in through the southern cave entrance carrying raw cuts of meat. That they handed off to Owl two. he was working the drying oven he had cobbled together, then passing the finished product on to more towns people who carried it out the northern tunnel.

Ronin was impressed by the operation underway. His eyes had lingered on the Kaldarrians for a while, he counted six of them in collars. So, Owl five had managed to collect five of the seven after all. he’d hoped for all of them to be captured, but he had only asked her for four of them, so he wouldn’t complain. Moving his eyes over the bustling crowd again, he frowned.

“Owl two,” he said moving over to his assistant. “Where are the Troglodytes and stone eater rats?” he was confident they weren’t in the cave, but he’d seen them come up with Guts group. Come to that, he didn’t see the two Kaldarr warriors who had come down with him either. He hoped something hadn’t happened after he’d left them.

“Relax sir,” Owl two said. “We didn’t have time to mess with those upright crocodiles, so I had the Kaldarr lock them in the damaged drop ship. I closed the cockpit so there’s nothing in there for them to hurt. I ordered them to sit quietly until I came back. Orders they are probably ignoring right now. I’m hopeful that the repeated shock therapy will calm them down. Rats are sedated and locked down, for the same reasons.” Owl two was clearly not happy about the added work load. If Ronin had to guess, he hadn’t stopped working since he left a few days ago.

“And the Kaldarr?" Ronin pressed, wanting a more complete update before he started helping out anywhere.

“I sent them to the outer wall,” Owl two said with obvious irritation. “Another ankylosaur pulled wagon arrived a few hours ago. I was worried they would try something while we were all the way over here. don’t worry about that though, those hulking brutes can handle anything those primitives have to offer.”

Ronin believed that easily enough. A pair of riflemen on that wall could ruin an army of any size’s day. When said army was armed with swords and spears anyway. nodding to Owl two, Ronin worked his way around the underway operation. Going out the southern tunnel, he saw a number of towns people climbing around a partially disassembled iguanodon. They carved strips off the carcass and took them to long tables set up with more towns people, who cut them into strips and removed unwanted portions. Still more were grinding the scraps up and stuffing them into intestines.

It looked like they were using the opportunity to make some food for themselves as well. Ronin agreed with the decision. He only saw two of the drop ships, one being the damaged one. muffled screaming and bellows of rage echoed out from inside the ship. Ronin shook his head, wondering if the trogs would end up being too aggressive to learn. Catching sight of a resting Emil, he moved over to the former mayor.

“Greetings Emil,” he said squatting down beside the sitting man. “How is the processing going?”

“Greetings mayor Ronin,” the old man said tiredly. “It’s been a trial, but we are almost done. Some of the magic devices you have in that cave of yours are enough to boggle this old man’s mind. to be honest, before I saw that strange oven working, I didn’t think it was even possible to jerk that much meat in only a week.”

“Yes, my assistant came up with the idea. Though it’s not a fuel-efficient method, we won’t be able to do this again…” they continued the conversation for a short time, talking about light topics to avoid the subject of the obese tax collecting lord at the gates.

Ronin got up to check out the northern tunnel. moving back through the southern tunnel, he picked up a bundle of dried meat to save someone else a trip. He laughed quietly and shook his head when he saw that Owl five had already pulled Hunter, Soft step, song and three other goblins aside. She was talking to them intently, and Ronin could only guess that she was already working on the scout team he’d asked her for.

Following the trail of towns people out the northern tunnel, Ronin saw the last drop ship. The people were loading the meat into crates, they must have brought from the town, and stacking them up in the troop compartment on the ship. It was nearly full, and Ronin was impressed with how diligently everyone had been working. He wasn’t happy about having to use the drop ships to move the stores, but under the time restraints he didn’t know how else to move ten tons of dried meat the ten miles it needed to go. he resolved right then to get himself an ankylosaur pulled wagon of his own.

Handing off his bundle, he went back into the cave. It was already crowded and wouldn’t be able to handle anymore goblins. At least the towns people weren’t planning on moving in too, or it would be a nightmare. He had to talk to Owl two about it soon, he didn’t know if he wanted to move outside the cave and into the forest or dig into the mountain for a more hidden and fortified town. he sighed; it was a tradeoff between safety and time. He guessed he shouldn’t decide on anything until the business with the tax collectors was taken care of.

Rolling up his sleeves, he joined Eric and Samantha in bathing the new goblins, they were clearly grateful for the help since it was a nasty job. They were clothed in rotting animal hides and were infested with fleas and lice. Ronin didn’t understand how the drive to reproduce could account for it. then he remembered old Sam, from back on earth.

He’d been a scavenger along with his son. When his son hadn’t come back from a scavenging trip with him, he went a little insane. It started off with a few of the cave’s special mushrooms, to help him sleep. Then after a while, he would have a few after dinner too. Before the end he would roam the caves looking for a patch of the mind-altering mushrooms. Then gorge himself until he passed out. then repeat the process again when he awoke. He never bathed, changed his clothes, or anything else productive during his final years. Ronin felt pity for old Sam, but he’d also felt disgust for how awful he’d smelled. Everyone was relieved when he finally ate a bad batch of mushrooms and passed on.

“But could instincts be so powerful as to act like a drug, and if they can, why is it that they can talk after they are relieved of it?” he pondered over the odd puzzle of the goblins while he helped get them cleaned up. he didn’t think there was any real answer. He’d created them at random, intending to use them as battle practice and nothing more. It was only after killing one of them, and then finding out about Markus’s condition, that he started trying to fully understand them.

Once all the new citizens had been cleaned and tucked into their tents, the day was drawing to a close. they had to deliver the promised meat in the morning, but Ronin wasn’t ready for sleep just yet.

“Thank you for your hard work, Owl two.” he said, sitting around a small fire with Owl’s two and five. Guts was tending the stew pot, having appointed himself as Ronin’s personal cook. “I know you are already well aware.” He added with an eye roll, “but none of this would be possible without you.”

“Indeed,” Owl two said with a slight inclination of his head. “Its good that you recognize that fact.” He couldn’t eat but held a steaming cup in his hands anyway. he’d said that it would make them feel more comfortable if he acted like a biological. Strangely enough, it actually did, when Ronin stopped thinking about how weird it was anyway.

“So how do you think it will go tomorrow?” he asked, thanking Guts who had just handed him his own steaming cup of soup. They’d finished packing the meat two hours ago but had carried on for another hour and a half to make jerky for the town’s folk too. Eric was flying them back to town now, with a Kaldarrian escort. To both keep him safe and to ensure that he came back with the ship.

“Honestly, I don’t know.” Owl two said, raising the cup to his helmet and making a sniffing noise through the speaker that was his voice box. “If I had to guess, I’d say plan on a betrayal. But it would be in everyone’s best interest if the payment went off flawlessly.”

Ronin looked at Brie, who was quietly sipping her own soup. Her eyes were focused on the six goblin women she’d picked out to comprise the scout team. She had them running laps around the base cave. She’d also given the three she’d pulled from the new group a draft of enhanced water. Owl two had protested, but she had ignored him. saying that she needed them in shape fast so she could get them started on their training.

“As much as I hate to admit it,” Ronin said turning his eyes back on Owl two. “I have the same feeling, the question is… what do we do about it?”

“Well,” Owl two said, pausing to take a ‘sip’ from his cup. “I have been thinking about it, and…”