Chapter 10
Skull Ridge City
The journey to Skull Ridge City was uneventful, and Trog used the time to train the young orc Thra. She showed great control and attacked each session with focus. It was nice when the 2nd moon came, and he had someone explain which creatures were which, as the battles for life and death could be seen throughout the barren landscape. Watching the struggles for life in this land that had so little was amazing. It may have been brutal, but seeing only the white sparkles of the moon's reflection from a distance made it seem like a dance of lights instead of the last struggle of prey vs predator. Traveling with Thra had become routine after a few days. They would talk during the day about the area and the city, but at night, they trained.
Three weeks of travel and training had passed before they saw the gates of Skull Ridge City. The giant skull hanging over the entrance gate looked to be of an old dragon. After fighting with the dragonkin for so long, Trog couldn’t help but enjoy the sight of a dead dragon. After an hour of waiting in the queue, they approached the guards.
A group of young orcs stood blocking the way into the city while an older officer called out. “State your name and reason for visiting.”
“My name is Trog, and I am here to claim farmland and to train and sponsor adventuring teams.”
The officer looked at him with a questioning gaze. “You are a farmer, and you want to train adventurers?”
Trog smiled at the old orc. “I am a retired soldier who found a farming stone on my way here. I always planned to move to the home where my skill was born and train new warriors in the honorable Precision Brawler Skill. Now that I have magical farming skills, I can contribute more than just training great fighters for the city.”
The old orc’s eyebrows raised, and he stood taller at the name of the skill. “It has been many years since we have had a master-level precision brawler. Would you mind if I used Identify to verify your skill level?”
Trog wasn’t upset at all by the request. It would be nice to have local verification of his skill. “Please go on.”
“This will only take a moment.” the orc said as he held his palm towards Trog. In a low voice, he spoke, “What should I know?”
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Krakgar reached his hand towards the Goblin and used one of his favorite identification skills. He wished he could have used it without saying the words, but it had become a habit when he made himself seem more sinister when questioning criminals in his younger years as a guard.
“What should I know?”
Unlike other identification skills, which generate a visual stat sheet full of useless information, Krakgar’s skill lets him hear his voice in his head, quickly telling him essential information about the person. It makes figuring out who a real threat is simple.
The voice spoke quickly and almost in a panic, which was not the expected response.
“Trog is a dual war titled Vanguard! One title was earned within the first three years of the war. The second title was earned after his permanent injury, which didn’t stop him from fighting on the front lines. He has reached Tier 5 in Precision Brawler and Goblin Warcry. Show respect and let him pass, then inform the city leaders of his presence.”
Krakgar respectfully bowed to the Trog as he welcomed him to the city.
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“Welcome to Skull Ridge City, Master Trog. We are happy to have someone of your skill come to teach our young warriors”, the orc said as he gave Trog a bow. Trog felt reassured about his choice to come to an orc city. The respect the guard was showing Trog was something he hadn’t seen since leaving the vanguard. He gave the guard a nod as he took his wagon into the city.
Thra was a little shocked. She believed her master was indeed at tier 5, as he had said. She had seen him in battle, and it was amazing. But seeing the old guard's reaction after using an identification skill made her proud to be his first student. She vowed to focus more on her training to not shame him when the time came to enter battle.
The City was massive compared to other cities Trog had traveled through. He figured that space was not a problem here in the barren lands, unlike all other cities built around rivers and forests. The streets were wide, and everything was made from stone, and now and then, you could see older buildings with bones used as decorations. A few had noticeable human skulls. Trog’s first stop was at the garrison, where he showed his identification scroll to the Captin on duty. He was then escorted to see the Quartermaster. It didn’t take long to file the paperwork and claim Skull City as the location where he would collect his war pay. Like the guard at the gate, the Captain and Quartermaster bowed to him as he left to find a room to rent for the night.
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Captain Gorshak shared a look with Zugdak, the Quartermaster, as the goblin climbed into his wagon and headed out of the garrison.
“I didn’t imagine that, did I? I mean, you saw two war titles as well, right?”
Zugdak nodded slowly, “I had heard those titles before but didn’t realize they were the same person. I did not think the war had gone on long enough for a Vor`kash to arise.”
The Captain looked shocked, “Wait, can he be a Vor`kash? I know he has the two titles, but he isn’t an orc.”
“He earned two titles in just ten years of battle. Orc or not that hasn’t been done in generations. You had better send a message to the Commander. She needs to know about this.”
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Ursa was enjoying her day off. So far, she had done three dungeon runs. The Tier 2 dungeon was no longer a challenge for her, but she was required to enter only the Tier 2 and below dungeons while in command of the city garrison. She was hoping to contract with a new sponsored team this year so that the garrison could have a chance to get some better loot and maybe some awakening stones. The nearby tier 4 dungeon was known for having common fire-type awakening stones. Nothing was better than sending well-trained, magic-wielding soldiers to the front. She looked down at the three loot chests she had claimed after finishing the dungeons. She had to make a decision. Open them and hope for some good weapons and maybe get an awakening stone, which was extremely rare for a tier 2 loot chest, or she would sell them at auction. She reached for the lock on the first loot chest, and a voice called from behind her.
“Commander Ursa, I have an urgent message from Captain Gorshak!”
Ursa quickly pulled her hand away from the chest and reached for the runner's scroll. A smile spread across her face as she read.
Commander Ursa,
Trog, a goblin, came by the garrison to claim his war pay. He had an identification scroll that the Quartermaster verified as military issue. Trog is a permanent injury discharge. More importantly, he has two war titles. Quartermaster Zugdak believes that this gives him the rank of Vor`kash. Please advise on how you would like to proceed.
Captain Gorshak
“Tell the Captain to proceed as usual, and I will address this during the morning meeting tomorrow.”
The runner saluted quickly and then turned to run back to the garrison. Ursa patted the loot chest before putting it into her dimensional bag. A Vor`kash was settling into her city. Recruitment would increase so much that she would need to extend the barracks. And a few loot chests might earn her some goodwin with said Vor`Kash. But first, he needed to meet with the city lord.
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Lord Krato looked over the map laid in front of him. The map showed all the available land for any magical farmers settling in the area. Each location had various marks noting the land's features. He would typically allow one of his subordinates to assign the land, but not this time. He was still focused on the map when his attendant announced that the Commander had come to see him. He waved a hand at the attendant, and soon, the Commander entered the room.
“My Lord Krato, I have learned that a Vor`kash has chosen to settle within your lands.” Commander Ursa was surprised the Lord didn’t stop looking over the map when she announced her news.
“I have heard, Commander, but the Vor`kash has also chosen to claim farmland and plans to sponsor and train adventurers.” Lord Krato looked up in time to enjoy the shock on the Commander's face.
“I am trying to find the best land for him to use. I am considering assigning him the land north of the tier 4 dungeon. It may not be the best dungeon for new adventurers, but I am sure he will have some veterans sign up when they hear of his title.”
“An excellent choice, my Lord. I was unaware of his plans. I was hoping to use him to promote recruiting efforts. That may not be possible if he plans on training adventuring teams.”
“We still might be able to make use of him for recruiting. I plan on offering him a training agreement.”
Ursa was shocked. Training agreements were only offered to trainers with high-value Tier 5 skills.
“My Lord, what skill mastery does he have?”
Lord Krato turned to face the Commander. “Precision Brawling”
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The streets of Skull Ridge were full of life as the residents went about their day. Thra led Dinner through the streets while Trog sat upon the wagon, taking in the sight of the city. To his surprise, a group of goblin children ran across the road, followed by two city guards. Trog quickly stood and shouted.
“Children! Silence and Stillness!
Instantly, the four children skidded to a stop and turned to look back at Trog. The guards also came to a halt and glanced at Trog while still keeping an eye on the goblin children. Trog turned his gaze from the children to the guards.
“Forgive my neglect, protectors of Skull Ridge. What have my children done?”
Thra turned in surprise as she heard his words.
The guards stood a little taller when they heard the term of respect. Grik had been a city guard for years and had only been called a protector a handful of times. He stood tall and did his best to show the same respect to the goblin that addressed him.
“I must inform you that these children took food from a stall without paying. The penalty is one lashing for each of the four silver worth of the stolen food.”
Trog's eyes flashed to the children.
“Is this true?” the children nodded, “Who is the oldest of you?”
One of the children raised his hand and stepped forward.
Trog looked down at the child. The young goblin male seemed well-fed and had no signs of abuse or neglect.
“As the oldest in the brood, you are responsible for paying for the crimes of your juniors. Present your back and prepare to be punished for the crime you should have prevented.”
Grik was in shock as the young goblin turned his back to the goblin in the wagon. Before he could say anything, the goblin in the wagon took a rope from the wagon and swiftly unleashed four loud cracks as the rope left four marks on the young goblin’s back. The marks were noticeable but did not break the skin. The young goblin quickly moved to join the other children. Grik was shocked at how quickly it had happened.
“Thank you for allowing me to punish these young ones. With your leave, I will make sure they get home.” Trog said and waited for the guard to answer.
Grik nodded to the goblin. “Uh, yes, you may take them home now.”
Trog didn’t wait. He motioned for the young goblins to get in the wagon and then for Thra to continue leading Dinner down the road. Once they were out of earshot, Trog turned to the oldest of the young ones.
“You took your punishment with bravery. I am proud of you for showing strength in front of your juniors. However, I am disappointed that you broke city law. I want you to lead my student Thra to the Brood Elders.”
The young goblin nodded, jumped off the wagon, and motioned for the orc woman to follow him. The other three children were eyeing the items in the back of the wagon. The youngest closed his eyes and followed his nose as he smelled something sweet in one of the bags. Trog smiled as he watched the young one crawl from bag to bag, taking a deep breath to find where the smell was coming from. Trog reached for the bag holding the peaches and removed one from the bag. All three of the young ones locked their eyes on the sweet-smelling fruit.
“If you wish to eat sweet fruit such as this, you must ensure that you don’t do anything that will force the guards to lock you in a cell. Prisoners do not get fruit.” The young ones nodded in agreement as he tossed the fruit to the youngest and told them to share it.
It took them time to get through the city, but eventually, they arrived in an area that was noticeably different from the rest. The buildings were smaller, and the doors were barely large enough for a goblin to fit through if they turned sideways. It was common practice in the swamp to keep the large animals and monsters of the swamp from entering goblin living areas. Thra was surprised to find a gate guarded by goblins who were not wearing city guard attire. The young goblin leading her to this area looked back at Trog and waited until Trog waved his hand as if telling the child to go before he ran past the guards. The other three children in the wagon jumped out and chased after the older boy. The goblin guards didn’t do anything to stop the children from running past, but as soon as Thra took a step forward, they lowered spears in her direction. She turned to Trog, who told her to wait with the wagon as he walked towards the guards.
Stopping before the guards, he bowed his head and spoke.
“I am Trog of The Great Swamp, child of the grey rock brood. I come to give my all to the community.”