Jaakx banged his little metal mug across the bars of his cage and then back the other way. The tolling of metal on metal had his ears pricked up as he waited in the tiny dark room. Far away, even with the clanging he was making he could hear the commotion of Nonna’s dinner party. There was a ridiculous amount of laughter. Surely most of it was fake. No normal people cackled like that when scoffing down food. His crankiness might have made any merriment annoying. He couldn’t get past the rudeness of the old witch shoving him in this cage while she had fun and got pissed on wine.
If he had made it through the damn portal it would be Jaakx throwing back the drinks and celebrating. The soul gem he’d stolen off Mrs. Banchi was still hot and heavy in the pocket of his torn vest. He dropped his mug with a clang and pulled the gem out, turning it over in his hands. The blood had been rubbed from its surface now leaving it clean. Its inner light pulsed still, filling the confines of his covered cage in soft silver light. It still held some warmth but not nearly as much as when he’d pulled it fresh from Mrs. Banchi’s body. The thing was jagged and uneven, unlike the pretty jewels the mining goblins sold in the marketplace. If he sold it instead of trading it to the Corps for a badge he'd make at least five thousand gems. That would be enough to last half a year if he didn’t waste it all at the drinking house.
He couldn’t lie to himself. A drinking house would be exactly where he would go and he wouldn’t leave until all his gems were gone. It would be the only safe place. If he didn’t join the Corps he’d be worse than dead if he stayed in Ma’s house.
The door of the room flew open. Jaakx screeched and jumped so high he banged his head on the bars above him. A shadow in the golden light filtering through the smelly blanket covering the cage grew larger with every stomping footstep. The blanket was torn away and Nonna’s glaring face stared down at him.
“I told you to be quiet. My guests think I have a rat problem with all your banging about.”
Jaakx grinned and picked the mug back up, banging it across the bars one more time before he said, “Let me out and I’ll stop being noisy.”
“Stop being noisy or I’ll take that pretty little gem for myself and kill you like the rat they all think you are,” she snapped.
“Guess we’re at a stalemate.”
Nonna dug her fists into her waist as she seemed to like doing. “You are wrong, goblin. There is no going home without that portal. How long do you think it will be before you’re found out and killed for the monster you are? Humans don’t take too kindly to your kind.
Besides, if you’re a good boy I’ll send you home with another nine of those pretty little gems. Won’t you be the talk of the town if you do that?”
Jaakx could only stare as his mind scrambled to understand. Ten soul gems. That was a lot. Onk had only collected six in total and she’d been with the Corps for years now. He could have money or at least two badges with that many soul gems. Maybe even three badges. What rank could he achieve with three badges only a few days after graduation? He’d be more than the talk of the town. He’d be a hero. Ma would be beyond proud. Onk would be furious.
His grin grew as all the possibilities awoke. Killing Mrs. Banchi had been easy. How hard could it be to run his blade over a few more necks? In fact, it was so easy he was beginning to wonder why Onk and Ma called this killing human thing difficult.
“I’ll be quiet if I can have a cannoli. I promise,” Jaakx said.
Nonna smiled. “How can I say no to that after your fine work today?”
She walked from the room, leaving the door open and the blanket off his cage. Jaakx scooted his butt until he found a more comfortable position and pulled the blanket through the bars. He rolled into it until he looked a little like the cannoli he was waiting for. The days in this place were nice and warm but the nights were chilly. Nonna came back in no time with a whole plate of goodies. She slid the plate through a low open area in the bars.
“Eat up. I’ll need you big and strong when I send you after Mr. Callo. He is a vile beast of a man. He even tried to woo me once when I was a younger woman, can you believe it? The man's ego far exceeds his true merit. My good friend even let slip that he is practically penniless these days.”
The crisp pastry crunched as Jaakx bit into it, the soft and sweet cream filling his mouth. He’d only partially been listening to Nonna’s tirade. The woman loved to chatter away, especially once she started in on the wine. The food on his little plate was far more interesting. Still, he knew better than to stay silent when she paused and stared at him like that.
“Why don’t you just move if you hate so many people here?” He asked.
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“And let them win? No, thank you. I worked hard for this home and I won’t have it fouled by something as ridiculous as people existing well past their expiration date. Now, eat, sleep, and be silent.”
“Mhmm,” Jaakx managed.
He stuffed a crunchy bit of bread topped with tart tomato, onion, cheese, and basil into his mouth. Nonna was the best chef he had ever met. It wasn’t long before his belly was full and his body warmed by the blanket. He curled up in his cage, listening to the drone of people still gathered for Nonna’s party. The room no longer felt like a prison. Even if he couldn’t escape the cage it now felt comfortable and homelike somehow. He yawned and adjusted as the soothing darkness crept over him, carrying him away from the human realm. Dreams of more soul gems, endless potent drinks, and a bloodied blade kept him company.
The sound of the cage door scraping over the floor woke him. He blinked at the harsh morning light pouring in from the small window. Nonna stood there in another one of her floral dresses. Her cheeks were flushed red and her eyes twinkled.
Jaakx groaned and yanked the blanket over his head. “Nonna, no. It’s too early.”
“It is well past breakfast. How can you waste the day sleeping?”
Jaakx peeked out from his blanket cocoon. “Sleep is nice.”
“Get your butt out of there. The sun is shining, the market is open, and Mr. Callo is waiting for you to come visit.”
“But I don’t want to,” Jaakx whined, throwing the blanket back over his head.
Nonna kicked him through the open cage door. “Move it. I have a gift for you.”
Jaakx leaped up at that, banging his head on the roof of the cage. Muttering some choice goblin curses under his breath he crawled from his metal bed. Oddly enough the cage was far more comfortable than the little corner of torn rags he called a bed back at Ma’s. More private too which was a nice change.
“What did you get for me?” he asked.
“Come and see,” Nonna said.
Together they left the room and tramped down the stairway and into Nonna’s favorite room in the house; the kitchen. She marched to the same dresser she’d pulled his itchy hair bracelet from and started digging as she had before. The woman really needed to pay a little more attention to her organization.
“Ahh, here it is,” she said.
She turned to face him and presented him with a little wooden box far longer than it was wide. The lid was held tight in place by a fancy golden lock. Nonna directed him on how to open it and then plonked her ass down in one of the kitchen chairs and beamed at him. Jaakx felt a little uncomfortable by her intense gaze but chose to ignore her. The box clicked as he opened the lid.
Inside was lined by purple velvet with ten equally spaced hollows. He poked a clawed finger into one of the pits. The fabric felt nice even if it was a little worn. The box might fetch a few gems if he sold it but not too much. It was old but not some antique from the Elven Era.
“This is my gift?” he asked. “What am I supposed to do with it?”
“Take out your pretty soul gem and see how it fits,” Nonna said.
Jaakx lifted a brow but did as the woman directed. The soul gem slid neatly into one of the hollows. The silvery glow from within made the soft purple fabric glimmer.
Nonna smiled. “Once you’ve filled up that little box I’ll reawaken the portal and you can go on home. You’ll be a hero among your kind.”
Jaakx bounced from foot to foot. His heart thrummed inside his chest, pumping buzzing energy through him until his tail whipped about and his ears fluttered.
“Onk will die from shame!”
“Just another reason to finish up as soon as you can. Come with me.”
Nonna stood, picked up her woven basket, and marched out the door. Jaakx bolted up the stairs, hid his new collection box within the many folds of his blanket then raced to catch up to the old woman. He cast Shadow Mask in the alleyway and walked behind Nonna to keep from being accidentally bumped by the crowd of people wandering the streets. It baffled him how these people spent so much of their time just walking aimlessly around in the heat of the day. A proper goblin would be caught dead before he went for something as boring as a midday stroll.
It wasn’t long before they made their way to the market. The noise was atrocious. Everyone seemed to be shouting as they tried to force the people walking by to buy their wares. Fish, vegetables, wine, crafts, and jewelry. The market seemed to have just about everything. He was a little surprised he didn’t see a stall selling weaponry or magical objects. They were the most common products in his realm.
Nonna stopped halfway down the line of stalls and moved off to the side. “Do you see that man bellowing at the wine merchant?” she asked.
Jaakx looked around until he saw the table packed with corked bottles. The man behind it and the man in front of it were screaming at each other with hands flying about. The man closer to them was short and rotund. White hair circled his head but left his sun-reddened crown bare. His eyes were grey and blazing with fury as he shook the bottle in his hands.
“That is Mr. Callo. He is a vulgar pig of a man with a taste for young ladies who don’t know better. He will be your next soul gem,” Nonna said.
Jaakx beamed and his fingers twitched toward his blade. It would be foolish to murder the man in the middle of the market but he was eager to feel the heat of a fresh gem in his clawed hands.
“Leave it to me, Nonna.”