Subtlety was obviously not a strong suit for this group of gnolls. They cackled and yelled while running toward us eschewing any form of stealth or tactics beyond rush em. If anyone hadn’t noticed them, they knew they were coming now.

The rest of the children reacted differently to the appearance of four large gnolls with weapons. Some started crying at the sight, too frightened to do anything else. Some just stared at the approaching gnolls, perhaps not understanding what was happening. A few were smart enough to remember today’s lesson and started moving toward the water, even attempting to call for help.

Mrgglr turned towards the rest of the children and pointed to the sea. “Get in the water, NOW!”

That seemed to break most of the rest out of their daze, and they started running for the water. Unfortunately, the gnolls were much bigger, and their strides were easily three times the size of a young murloc’s. Even with all the ground they had to cover, they would reach a couple of the children before they reached the relative safety of the water.

To make matters even worse, one of the tadpoles was not responding to the oracle’s order. They were probably a bit more than a year old, and just sat on the ground crying.

Looking back at the gnolls, they were about half a minute away. If I ran, I could probably pick up the tadpole and get back to the water before they could catch me. If I tripped or anything slowed me down, it would not end well. But looking at the tadpole's little face, his huge, watery eyes, I couldn’t just leave him there. This was my tribe, my people.

Running forward, I heard more cries coming from behind me. Looks like a couple of the other elders are coming to try and stop this attack. They were brandishing their walking staves and moving in between the gnolls and the fleeing children. It was a brave move. Also a suicidal one, but brave nonetheless. They wouldn’t stand a chance against the gnolls, who were double the size of an adult murloc in their prime, and these murlocs were not in their prime.

After a good ten seconds of running, I reached the crying tadpole and scooped them up into my arms. Turning on a… not a dime, apparently young murlocs don’t have the best momentum control. So, turning on a quarter, I started to run back towards the water. As I was running, the sound of the gnolls kept getting louder and louder. Were they picking up speed?

As I passed the few elders with weapons, I turned my head to peek behind me. Turns out, the gnolls did speed up, and they were right on my heels. When I looked back, the four gnolls crashed through the line of elders that were trying to block them. They didn’t even turn around to finish them off. I guess they wanted to catch as many of us as they could before we got to the water.

The leading gnoll points toward me and says something to his buddies. I couldn’t understand their language, but I got the idea. Hey, look, a two-for-one special! I need to get to that water.

I turn back around and try to run even faster. We should really have some sort of murloc gym class. They expected us to stay healthy by playing with each other, but I never really got into those games. The result was a body that wasn’t in the best of shapes, and I couldn’t run as fast as I wanted to.

While I was running, I noticed Mrgglr ahead of me. He had his staff out and was shaking it around in the air while doing… were those jazz hands? Why was he dancing when we were being atta…

Just then, a small stream of water floated toward him from the ocean. It started spinning and getting narrower at the end. Then, once it had gotten so narrow it resembled a spike, it froze into a sharpened icicle.

Right, magic. So jazz hands are how you summon water, eh? You learn something new every day.

Unfortunately, this display of magical prowess distracted me somewhat from the situation, and I slowed down. The gnoll that pointed at me had managed to get behind me without alerting me to his presence, and only his cackling as he raised his axe tipped me off to the danger I was in. I tried to jump to the side, but the combination of extra weight from the tadpole in my arms and my untrained muscles being unused to this amount of strain stopped me from getting very far. As I looked up at my soon-to-be killer, I heard Mrgglr yell something in Nerglish. “Ice Spike!”

Suddenly, a large icicle stabs into the gnoll's chest, knocking him back. It seemed to pierce his crude leather armor, and then break off once it got too far inside his flesh. Maybe it hit a bone or something. Picking myself and the tadpole up, I started to run again. When I passed Mrgglr, he had already formed another one of those ice spikes and sent it flying at the gnolls. Hopefully, he would be able to hold off the gnolls until the hunters got back.

After another thirty seconds of running, I reached the water and put the tadpole down. He was still crying, but at least he would be safe here. Turning around, I saw how the battle was unfolding. One of the gnolls, the one that was chasing me, seemed to be out cold. Another one of them had turned around to face the elders, who had managed to regroup and give chase. The last two seemed to identify Mrgglr as the biggest threat and were rushing him down.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

This was bad. I don’t know how fast he could make and throw those ice spikes, but it probably isn’t fast enough. If he doesn’t get help, those gnolls are going to kill him. The elders won’t be able to get to him in time with how slow they move, and none of the other kids can fight. Honestly, I am also unable to fight effectively, but at least I understand the general concept. Maybe I can throw stuff at them? Annoy them a bit, maybe goad them into coming after me instead. All I need to do is distract them for a bit, so Mrgglr can work his magic.

I start crawling forward, trying to stay out of the gnoll's attention. I need to catch them by surprise or they would just stay out of my range. Which was pitifully short, meaning I would have to get within their striking range.

While I was making my way over, Mrgglr was able to form another ice spike. To the gnolls' credit, they seemed to grasp the concept of big icicle hurt and started trying to dodge. To Mrgglr’s credit, he seemed unfazed by this development and sent the ice spike directly in the path of the leading gnoll. It collided directly with his face, cutting a large gash across his cheek and breaking his nose. The remaining gnoll threw all caution to the wind and rushed directly at Mrgglr.

From what I had seen, it would take at least another 10 seconds to create another ice spike, and that was generous. I needed to act now.

As a young murloc, my choice of hobbies was few. One of the things I did to pass the time was collect rocks, mainly for skipping. My mother had brought me a leather pouch she found on one of her hunts, and I used it to store my collection. Reaching into the pouch, I pulled out a stone the size of my palm and turned toward the gnoll. I wasn’t too concerned about aiming, the point wasn’t to kill him with the throw. It was to split his focus and give Mrgglr more time to deal the killing blows.

I threw the stone with as much force as I could muster, and it arced toward the gnoll. As he raised his arm to strike, the stone collided with his right leg while he was running. He gave a surprised yelp as his whole balance was thrown off, his forward momentum carrying him to the ground.

Surprised at how effective the throw was, I shouted at the gnoll. “Yes! Take that, you idiot!” He wouldn’t be able to understand me, but it was the thought that counted.

Suddenly, he swiveled his head towards me and growled, his fangs on full display. Oh, right. He can hit me at this range. And now he is very pissed at me. Fuck.

Before I have a chance to move away, the gnoll reaches out and grabs my leg. I tried to dislodge the fingers, but his paw is almost as big as my head. There is no way I am getting out of this grapple. He stood up and lifted me into the air upside down. Behind him, I could see Mrgglr starting to form another ice spike.

“Help me Mrgglr! Please!!”

As I yell, the gnoll seems to catch on to what is happening. He turns his body and raises the axe to my chest. Looks like I’ve been promoted from dead meat to hostage, at least temporarily. The gnoll sees the ice spike forming and gives off a high-pitched cackle. Mrgglr looks conflicted, as the ice spike floats in the air fully formed.

What should I do? What can I do? My brain runs a mile a minute trying to figure out a solution to this situation. I can’t physically break out of the gnoll’s grip, and the blade is a bit too close for comfort anyways. Maybe we could talk him down? But neither of us speaks the other's language. Miming can only get us so far, plus I don’t think this guy is too interested in negotiating. He seems more of the “kill them and take their stuff” type. Okay, my only hope is to knock the axe out of his hand and then position myself so Mrgglr has a clean shot. It’s a long shot, but it’s my best chance.

As I prepare to slap his wrist, something collides with the gnoll’s axe hand, knocking it away from my chest. With a jolt of surprise, both I and the gnoll turn toward the direction where the projectile originated. Rising out of the water, there were three adult murlocs, all carrying weapons. It seems like the closest hunters had heard the cries and came back to help. With the gnoll distracted, I ripped the pouch off my belt of rope and slammed it into his crotch with a crunch. He yowled in pain and dropped me to the ground. As I was on the ground looking up at him, the ice spike Mrgglr was holding came flying into the gnoll’s head, knocking him back onto the beach. Blood gushed from the wound, and the sand was dyed red.

The rest of that day was mostly a blur. A meeting was called, which I was unable to attend. The kids were split up into groups and taken inside the huts. I don’t know what was said, but I was brought out toward the end and congratulated on what I did. That night, during dinner, I was given an entire fish, head and all, as a gift for saving the tribe’s oracle.

The next morning, instead of just the elders, a couple of adults also stayed behind to watch over the children. Seems like they are taking this threat seriously, as they were all armed and patrolling the perimeter of the village. During the circle, we were told that one of the elders had passed away overnight. His wounds were too serious and Mrgglr was too drained from the fighting to heal him.

One of the adults came over and joined the elders to talk to us. He looked solemn and spoke in a soft voice. “What happened yesterday has not happened in almost a generation. Those creatures were called gnolls, and they usually stay away from the water. Something has happened inland to change their behavior, and we do not know what. We were lucky they rushed in blindly yesterday. If they had gone back to their tribe and gathered more warriors, many more of you would not have survived.”

At his declaration, some of the children started to tear up. One of the elders spoke up in his place. “What Huntsman Mgl is trying to say is that you should be thankful. But what happened yesterday will happen again. Maybe not right away, but soon enough. So we have decided to prepare you for when that happens.”

Mgl stepped into the middle of the circle and spoke again. “Starting tomorrow, you will be trained to fight by some of our best hunters. But it will be a long process. Do not believe you can take on these gnolls while you are still in training. You are children, and you are weak. None in the tribe expect you to fight. They want you to run. Because once we return to the Deep Mother, you will be the hunters, and then you will fight.” At his declaration, the children started asking questions all at once. Some were scared, others excited. Many were just confused and wanted to know more.

Mrgglr clapped his hands together to silence the circle and spoke. He spoke in a quiet and slow voice, tired from his night of patching up the wounded. “All your questions will be answered tomorrow. For today, enjoy the peace. Remember it, and it will help you understand why you must learn to fight.”

The circle broke apart, and most of the kids went to play in the water, starting up games of tag and racing. I walked over to the small log of wood Mrgglr was using as a chair. “Oracle, will we be learning how to use magic tomorrow? I do not know if I would be the best warrior.”

He looked at me for a few seconds, his eyes locked on mine. Then he let out a small chuckle. “No, young one. Magic is unattainable for most of us. In our tribe, there are maybe four who can wield any form of magic, including me. But if you wish to try a different path, you may join me to learn the ways of healing. You will still need to learn how to defend yourself, but I may be able to excuse you from some lessons. The tribe always needs healers, now more than ever.”

“That would be amazing sir. Thank you.”

He nods his head and looks out to the ocean. “Come to my hut tomorrow after the first lesson, and make sure to eat a good breakfast. The lesson will not be an easy one.”