The angle was difficult to hit the goblins flat up against the wall. But they did their best, dropped what they could, and then came back down the stairs.
The first-floor door opened into a corridor, on each side of which was a work room. Then it opened up into the wide kitchen with the central shaft going from ceiling to floor. They upended the kitchen table, which had been too heavy to lug up the stairs and put it flatwise against the corridor. They piled what they could on either side of it to hold it in place as a barrier to fight over. Lastly, they lit several oil lamps behind them. That provided them light to see by, but to see them the goblins had to look directly at them.
Zipper limbered up and tried a few thrusts with her spear. “It’s like a good tight shield wall. We don’t’ have to worry about flankers.”
Delta nodded, also testing ranges with her glaive over the barrier. “My trainer used to do something like this back in town.”
Zipper looked at her curiously, but the outer door started to splinter before she could ask anything. The goblins outside had smashed it enough to break the bolt, and now pried it open. With raucous shouts, several of them bundled into the corridor. They stopped short, seeing the defensive barrier, and collected themselves.
Spears were passed up and one of the larger ones stood forward. It howled loudly at them and bashed the floor several times with its spear.
“Is this supposed to impress us?” asked Zipper.
“I think it’s supposed to impress his friends”, said Delta.
The goblin paused in his war cry and struck a pose. Zipper blew a raspberry. There was some sniggering and the goblin made a great show of stomping down the corridor at them. He just came straight on at them, spear held firmly with no attempt to thrust for range. Zipper did a circle parry, deflected the point, and, a moment later, Delta thrust solidly at his faceplate. He howled again, with less bravado this time, and staggered backward. The blade hadn’t made it fully through the slot, but something had been hit and he retreated.
A second goblin took to the corridor. It howled as the first one did, but more briefly. It charged in the same way. Zipper casually did another circle bock and Delta followed through, with a good connection through the faceplate. This one let out a high-pitched scream, dropped its spear, and retreated clutching its face.
“What’s with these guys?” said Zipper. “Do they even train?”
Delta shook her head. “Don’t count on it working a third time.”
It didn’t. The next goblin edged forward much more carefully, and without any theatrics. They were ready for the circle block and merely feinted, and cross blocked Delta’s follow up strike with their haft. This sent Delta’s blade over their shoulder instead of into their faceplate. What they didn’t reckon on was the hook on the back of Delta’s glaive. She turned the blade 180 degrees and then pulled it back, hooking the goblin’s back and pulling it forward, off balance. Zipper had slid her spear back, and then thrust again, catching it solidly in the upper chest. It went down with angry screaming and had to be pulled out by its colleagues.
There was a standoff for a while after that. This was clearly not what the goblins had in mind. A captain had arrived, they judged, based on the way the others deferred to them. It directed several of them to attack at once, trying to mimic the tactics that Zipper and Delta used. It did make things harder, but they hadn’t practiced this sort of close formation fighting, and Delta had a much better reach than they did. After losing a few more, the captain left to consult with someone else.
“This is going better than I expected”, said Zipper.
“What did you expect?” asked Delta.
“To be dead by now”, said Zipper. Delta laughed hollowly. “Do you think they’re set for now?”
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Delta looked at their opponents critically. None of them looked too willing to charge in without their officer giving them specific motivation. “I think they’re happy to just glare at us for now.”
Zipper propped her spear, popped off her chinstrap, and dunked her head in a bucket. “Bleah!” she cried. “Hot work, this.” With a wary eye on the goblins she lifted it, poured some down her front, and drank a healthy portion. She then slid her helmet back on. “Your turn.”
Delta grunted, and cautiously, took her own helm off, slicked her hair back, and drank her fill. The goblins watched them closely during all of this but didn’t make any aggressive moves. Delta moved the bucket back and forth and the goblins watched it, mesmerized.
“I think they’re really thirsty”, said Zipper.
“After that climb and the workout we’ve been giving them, I’m not surprised”, said Delta. She put the bucket down and the goblins looked disappointed. They both looked at the bucket and back at the goblins.
“You said you’d roll them out a keg of brandy if we had it”, said Zipper.
“That was not out of sympathy”, said Delta. “I’m not sure making them happy and refreshed is in our self-interest right now.”
“We’re all troops on the line”, said Zipper. “Just because we’re trying to kill each other doesn’t mean we have to be inhumane.” Delta looked very unsure. “It’s unlikely to turn the tide, and, a small act of kindness now might make them less inclined to hang us by our fingernails.”
Delta sighed deeply. “You’re right. It’s a small gamble and maybe the gods are looking.” She lifted the bucket by the rope handle, hooked it with her glaive. She raised it over the barrier and extended it out as far as she could down the corridor, placing it on the floor.
The goblins looked at the bucket, at them, and at each other. One sidled forward, and when not skewered, pulled the bucket back, then they took their helmets off, and used them to scoop up and guzzle water. They gave them a grin.
That changed quickly when the captain turned up. It screamed something at them, and they stood bolt upright, and jammed their half-filled helmets on their heads. It screamed at them some more, shouted out to people outside, and glared angry daggers at Zipper and Delta.
“What’s his beef?” said Zipper.
“He might think it was poisoned”, said Delta.
The captain was now slapping the troopers around with his hands and pushing them out the door. Then it stood there glaring at the two of them for a while until another goblin arrived.
This one was clearly a chief. It had better armor than the rest, and more ornamentation, including some gold flashing. The two grunted at each other briefly, and the Chief examined the bucket, and the barricade. With a long-suffering sigh, it pushed forward into the corridor. It moved the bucket to the halfway point, and to one side. It then sat cross legged on the floor and pulled out a leather bundle. It untied this and rolled it out on the floor, exposing what looked much like their own dried rations. Then it just sat, hands on its knees, glaring at them.
“This is very strange”, said Zipper.
“Yeah”, said Delta. “It’s like he’s inviting me to tea in the middle of the battle.”
“That could be it”, said Zipper. “Might be a tribal thing. We showed them hospitality, now they have to return it.”
“That’s messed up”, said Delta. “But we’d be stupid to say no.” She passed her glaive to Zipper and cautiously started sliding the kitchen table to the side. “Cover me.”
Zipper watched, with many misgivings, as Delta moved carefully into the corridor, and sat opposite the goblin.
Staring her in the eye with great malice the goblin reached for his belt. Delta tensed, seeing the dagger there, but instead it unsnapped a tin cup. It dipped this into the water and drank. It then said something with the intonation of a ritual, picked up a pinch of dried food, ate it, then looked at her expectantly.
Zipper slid out a tankard, and Delta used this to drink some water herself, and then took a pinch of food. “Martius!” she swore, “this is spicy!” She took more water, momentarily off guard. She could see the goblin’s lips almost twitch.
“Is that fruit still soaking?” asked Delta. “Pass it up.”
Zipper did so, carefully, and Delta set the plate out on the ground. “May Hearth Mother bless this provenance she has provided” she said. She picked up a pinch and put it in her mouth.
The goblin leaned forward and took its own pinch. It seemed a bit surprised at it when it put it in its mouth and chewed carefully. It grunted once, intoned something else, and then rolled up its leather again.
“Sky Father shine upon us and our journey forward”, said Delta, picking up her portion and standing as well.
When everything was put away the chief glared intently at Delta. It then said, “Who you?” in a heavy accent.
Delta looked surprised, then slowly reached for her belt pouch. She took out a small linen card and held it out to him. “Wight’s Brigade” she said, pointing to the coat of arms on her surcoat and the card. The goblins lips moved as it looked at the card. It grunted and found a place for it. Then it sighed deeply and walked off. The captain glared at them as well, and likewise left.
“So, do we go back to killing each other?” said Zipper, as Delta returned, and they dragged the kitchen table back across the entrance.