Chapter 184

Battle Through the Kneecaps

Gabby

Sloop besties lived on the sloop, but they weren’t on the soop. Sloop besties didn’t swim, so they weren’t in the water. Sloop besties dug tunnels—that, I knew—but a farm-a-market was on the land. A short goblin like me was the best one for looking for sloop bestie tunnels. I was closer to the ground than anymore other goblin, unless they were lying down, or unless they were napping, or unless they were sleeping, or unless they were…

Come on little legs! There were no tunnels around big rocks, no tunnels around trees, no tunnels on the corners by the streets. There were a lot of dips in the ground, but my fingers didn’t go that deep.

“Hey! Out from under there!” said a human.

There were no tunnels under the farm-a-market vendor tables.

“Sloop besties!” I hollered. “Help!”

I ran under tables, no matter how many times humans yelped or shouted or fell back in fright. I had to find the sloop besties! I dove under the table cloth of a garlic vendor and thrashed around, looking for tunnels.

“Young lady, is everything all right?” said a voice through the table.

“My Admiral is in trouble! I’m looking for Hawkin or Abigail or Boggo or Ella or Thrush or Hiccup or the Smith butler! The sloop besties know how to call the Thrush monster for help!”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know those names, do—”

I bolted out from beneath the table. A startled dog shrieked, and jumped back. They were just like humans, shrieking all because a desperate goblin was bumping into them and sometimes clawing at the ground by their feet. Didn’t they know I was trying to help my Admiral? Wasn’t it obvious?

“Boggo! Please thank you, I need you!”

When someone was in trouble, you were supposed to help them! But none of the humans were helping. My favorite voice in the world outshone every other chattering voice in the farm-a-market.

“Sloop besties!” echoed Sweet-thumps. “Captain Ella! Help!”

I tried to peer between humans to try and find Sweet-thumps, but I couldn’t see the goblin. While I looked, I smacked into the legs of a human. I bounced off and staggered but stayed on my feet.

“Please excuse you!” I said.

“Whoa, slow down there, what’s all this hollering for?” said the human.

“My Admiral sounds like she’s gonna die! I need the sloop besties, or Hawkin, or Hiccup!”

“The gold rank Brewer? Well, I suppose he’s been keeping a lot of goblin company lately. Follow me.”

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The human sprinted off. He was lucky that other humans got out of his way. I guess he was easier to see, so other humans moved out of his way. They didn’t do that for me!

Oh, wait! “Sweet-thumps!” I turned to call. “This way!”

Pumping my legs, I raced after the human. I put so much effort into running as fast as I could that I screamed. He dodged humans. I dodged them too, but I needed to make sure they saw me.

“Move! Please thank you! Excuse you, please thank you!”

I slammed into the human where he stopped on the boardwalk.

Panting, he said, “Up this road, then take a right—”

Up the road I went! “Hiccup!”

The human shouted after me. “Take a right onto Rue…” His voice was quickly drowned out as I ran.

At the first interaction, humans were filtering to and from the farm-a-market. There were so many humans! More than half of them had long dark cloaks. I couldn’t break my stride, so I barreled through them. Legs were swinging like pendulums all around me. Cloaks flew and rippled and snapped like moving curtains. I pushed legs, elbowed the backs of knees, and stepped on boots as I went. I forced myself through, because I had to save my Admiral. I’ll fight off as many kneecaps as I need!

Humans were cursing and shouting. They were stumbling and falling. Whole piles of humans slammed onto the road all around me. The meat on their legs and bellies were too soft and unstable to walk on, so I had to crawl. Crawling over slithering cloaks and groaning, writhing humans was even more difficult, so I had to swim. Stroke after stroke, kick after kick, I made my way across the sea of humans. I pulled on hair, I pulled on cloaks, and I pulled on limbs to get myself through the crowd.

By the time I got through, the humans were in an uproar. I leapt from the mess and landed on the cobblestone road once more, running deeper up into Lavenfauvish.

I took the first right that I could. “Hiccup! Hawkin! Smith-butler! Please, somebody thank you!”

There were fewer humans there, but none of them seemed to know who I was asking for. I choked on a recovering breath, turned about, and bolted back up the street. I took the next right.

“Has anyone seen Hiccup? Thank you, please.”

I returned to the main road, and bolted up the hill. I had to push off my knees with my hands to keep up speed. I had to tuck in my chin, and heave my breaths to keep going.\

“Hiccup! Please—”

I slammed into another human. This time I bounced off and fell to my butt. As I got to my feet, I tried to scoop more breath in with my tongue. Sweat was pouring off of me. But nothing would stop me. I had to push myself. I slammed into the same human again. Gah, this one was tough to go through.

“What have we here?” said the human. “A wee goblin come up from Green-fin?”

“Out of the way, please thank you!”

The human squatted and gently grabbed my shoulder. “Whoa now! Yer bleeding from green ear to green toe.”

Bleeding? Oh, from the battle with all those kneecaps?

“I’m looking for Hiccup,” I said.

“Yer one of Barnacle-eyes’ goblins? I’m on the way to deliver this little something to Slime-tooth before I head over to the grand opening of Hawkin’s tavern.”

I looked up at him. He was the biggest man I ever saw. He carried a trophy, and it was a bronze trophy. There was a name on it, and I think it was Slime-tooth’s name.

But I was suspicious. “You know Barnacle-eyes? Hiccup too? How come I don’t know you?”

He laughed like he was trying to blow out stubborn earwax candle wicks. “Erik Skullander, at yer service. Hiccup’s one of me lackeys. I’ll have to scold him for not making our introduction. Now what’s the matter, little spitfire?”

Tears jumped out of my eyes. “Barnacle-eyes is in trouble! She screamed like she got stabbed in the chest. Then she fell into a little ball and started crying. She kept grabbing at her chest. When I moved her hands away there wasn’t any blood. But she wouldn’t stop crying. She was crying and crying and crying. We need healing beers and healing stuffs!”

“Stabbed?” said the human, and he seemed immensely shocked. “Are you sure?”

“Right in the heart! Please thank you!”

The human scooped me up under one arm, but I grappled his arm and pedaled my feet to help us run faster. Along the way, we came upon another kneecap beaten goblin who staggered zigzag up the street.

I pointed at the goblin, and the human scooped him up with me.