Roc hated his job. Cleaning the pots in the kitchen, cleaning pots that stored food, and really hated cleaning his tribe’s chamber pots. They all lived in tents so what were chambers anyway? He hated cleaning pots period. He would drag the all the pots to the river, dump them out and clean them. Fill them with water and one by one bring them back to the tribe.

Roc was a goblin, the runt of his litter. Smaller and scrawnier then the rest he always had the bad duties no one else wanted. Roc do this, Roc do that, Roc clean this, Roc clean that. Orders, orders, orders all day every day since he was born two years earlier.

While the rest would go hunting he was left in the cooking tent cleaning the pots and other tools. When the hunters came back they would drop any kills in front of the food tent and he would clean and help cut the bodies for cook, thinking of her made him shudder. Some said she was Grizt the tribe leader’s favorite at one time and she had been his sole mate while all others were shared by the biggest and best goblins. Her mating days now long past she instead ran the cooking tent like she owned everything. In a way she did but she was just so…mean. He couldn’t even sneak some food without being threatened to have the food replaced with his own parts. It wasn’t an idle threat either, many other goblins found out.

Life was like that for Roc until one fortuitous day one of the lead hunters invited Roc on a hunt. At first he thought someone else was being asked until he got smacked upside the head. When asked again he jumped with joy. His dreams were finally happening.

He would go hunt and maybe even help bring down a dino. He would get metal bits and make armor with them, possibly even get a sword. Metal in the tribe was currency. Working in the cook tent he had never had metal before and hunters would get a bit for each kill. Everyone wore their wealth around. The wealthiest had armor that covered their whole bodies and a big weapon to show how rich and strong they were.

Cook was angry and shouted at the hunter. She claimed Roc was only good for cleaning and making food. He had shouted that he wanted to go. Cook had given him a look he’d never seen her use before but she finally backed down and told the hunter if he wanted to go she wouldn’t stop him.

Leaving the tribe with his hunting party there was only one other goblin he knew. Roc was a good name he thought, a name much better then Fathead though his friend did have a rather fat head. Roc had gotten his name shortly after being born. Bigger goblins liked the game goblin toss and threw the new goblins at a large rock that sat at the center of the tribe. They would bet on who would last the longest. Roc had won to the amazement of the tribe. From then on he was known as Roc because he must have rocks in his head.

He couldn’t believe he was really hunting, he even got to hold a pointy stick. When asked what to do with it he was told to poke things that weren’t goblins. It was a good idea in his opinion. He could also throw it but then wouldn’t be able to poke things. The hunters explained they would find something and all of them would poke it until it stopped moving. Then drag it back to camp and drop it at the cook tent. Then get a metal bit and eat later.

When he asked what there was to poke they told him of all the dinos they could find, sharp claw dinos, bonehead dinos, water dinos, tall dinos, and flying dinos mostly. He had cleaned some of those but by the time they got back to camp they were mostly already cut up. After a little cleaning and into the pots they went.

After a long time of walking they stopped at an area covered in rocks and trees. It was hard to see anything now but the hunters said this was a good hunting spot. They told Roc and Fathead to start digging at a mud hole next to a stream. They were going to build something called a trap. Food would come and fall into the hole, then they would poke it and they would be done. It was so exciting.

The rest of the hunters said they would patrol the area for anything while they dug. Fathead used the end of his stick to push the mud around. It was too hard for Roc so he just used his hands. They had made a good size hole when Fathead made a sound. Roc looked up and saw a sharp claw dino. Three times the height of a goblin with a long tail it stood on two feet ending in claws that were razor sharp. Roc knew that because it was what they used to cut all the food meats. Its long skinny head screeched at them and charged.

Roc did what he thought any sensible goblin would do if a titanic monster charged them. He curled up into a tight ball and closed his eyes so he wouldn’t be seen. Fathead was apparently crazy though, Roc heard him scream and run away yelling at the top of his lungs. The ground trembled with each step the sharp claw took.  He felt it rush right past him, ha his brilliance worked to perfection and he was invisible. He looked back between his fingers to watch what happened. A moment later the sharp claw had caught up to Fathead. It lifted his whole body off the ground with its smaller arms and bringing him to its jaws it ripped his head right off. Guess it wasn’t so fat after all he thought. In two gigantic bites it was done with him and Fathead was no more. Licking its lips it seemed to look back at him. He closed his one open eye and hoped he was still invisible.

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Suddenly loud screams were all around him. The hunting party had shown up to save him. They surrounded the sharp claw and started poking it. It whipped around slashing with its arm claws but they were short to hit anything but stick points. Roc heard stories of the sharp claws, the legs were the deadliest part of them but they had to run and jump on their foes.

The hunting party didn’t let it run or jump. They just kept poking it. Roc had joined in after a few moments. He wanted to show the sharp claw he had never really been afraid of it. After many pokes it finally dropped to the ground though they kept poking it until they were all sure it couldn’t move anymore. They all started cheering at such a successful hunt.

Dragging the dino back to the tribe they had started telling stories of other good hunts. Roc listened attentively as he had never heard many of them. After quite a few he realized most of them involved bait and then waiting around for something to show up. He heard other names he recognized as goblins that went out to hunt but never came back. Piecing it together over story after story he came to understand certain goblins were brought out to the hunts and picked to do a job like a trap or make calling noises, sometimes a small wood tower to better see around them.

They were the bait for the hunting team, they were the bait for the dinos to come. He suddenly felt sick. They had used him. They never wanted to have Roc along for the hunt, well they did but not in a good way he thought.

Roc managed not to let his fear show, working for cook had done wonders in that regard. He just kept asking questions about the hunts, what they had seen and the best ones they had been on.

Eventually they reached camp and dropped the dino at cook’s tent. She came out and spotted Roc. He waited for the rest of the hunters to leave before he approached her and asked if he could come back and help her. She had told him he was a hunter now and would keep going on future hunts. Some of the fear he was feeling must have shown. Doing something he had never thought possible she hugged him.

Cook told him he could help her one last time. First he needed to go get Grizt’s food pot at his tent. He was the tribe chieftain so he got a whole food pot just to himself. He left to do as he was told. Getting to Grizt’s tent the guard pushed him inside. He’d done this many times in the past so no one questioned his presence. Grizt sat on top of his metal throne. Roc had never seen a fatter goblin before but knew his fat layers were just for show.

At two different times other goblins had challenged Grizt for chieftain. He made a spectacle of them. The first he had disarmed literally and then ripped his throat out with his teeth. The second wasn’t too long ago. After Grizt had slapped him enough for all his teeth to come out he had shoved the challenger onto his own spear. The body and weapon still hung outside as a warning to the next goblin who tried to usurp him. Grizt hadn’t even worn his armor to protect himself.

Roc quickly found the food pot and was just heading out when Grizt told him to stop. Cowering before the leader he tried to think of what he’d done to become the center of attention.

His tribe leader had never spoken a word to him before. He beckoned Roc closer. Dropping the pot he made his way before the scary goblin. When he was before him and after standing for many silent moments Grizt held out a metal bit. Roc had forgotten, the reward for a successful hunt.

He took it and bowed before the mighty chieftain. Backing up he picked up the food pot once more. It was heavier then he remembered it. Looking inside he found a horn made of what looked to be dino bone.

Looking back Grizt gave him a smile and made a shooing motion with his hand. Bowing once more Roc left and hastily made his way back to cook. He told her of everything that had happened and showed her the metal bit and horn. She took the metal bit and started scrapping it across one of the food blades. Part of it was now very sharp.

She told him that she had once been Grizt’s favorite mate but her last litter had been small goblins and one runt. After that her mating days were done and she had become the cook for the tribe. An esteemed position but dangerous too. If the food wasn’t good the chief usually became the next meal.

Roc was amazed by everything she told him. Goblins never cared about their fellow kin, brothers and sisters or parents. Most goblins were just other goblins to each other.

Cook, no his mother told him to take everything he had and go to the river with some pots. Use the sharp metal bit and leave blood near the river. It would look like a water dino had gotten him and then make his way East. He had no idea where that was. Go towards the sun when it disappears she had told him. Leave and never come back.

Roc never knew there was more beyond the tribe and dino lands. It would be interesting to see he decided. Besides he didn’t want to stay and become hunter bait again.

One hunt had been more than enough for him. Following her orders he gathered up everything, it took only a moment. Before going outside she had given him a wave.

His mind swam over all that he had learned. Roc was chieftain Grizt’s son, and his mother was cook. He now owned a metal bit and a horn thing. So much had happened in a single day it was no time at all when he found himself next to the river’s edge.

Roc looked around. He couldn’t see any other goblins out. The metal bit easily sliced through a part of his arm just like when he was using a sharp claw in the food tent when he wasn’t paying attention. Lots of blood covered the ground now. That should be enough he thought. Checking that the coast was clear still he swam across the river and went into some trees. Looking back at the tribe he realized for the first time in his life he was free.