At the rise of the next night Arkevh and Donovan reached the Goblin camp that terrorized Farsen for months by now. The Moon shone directly inside of the camp that was surrounded by wooden palisades, revealing the green and brown tents and a giant campfire in the middle of the camp which was guarded by some Goblins. Most of the Goblins however seemed to have fallen asleep in this late hour, they were only loosely related to gnomes after all, so they wouldn’t find any night active Goblins.
Donovan and Arkevh still lay on a boulder and scouted the camp. Donovan seemed to be prepared for almost everything as he pulled a telescope out of his backpack and looked down at the goblin schemes.
“There is one yellow colored giant tent.”, Donovan leans a bit further to the side.
“I think this is where they store their weapons, if we attack them, try to destroy them or separate them from them, the people of Farsen may need it.”, Donovan explains and continues to look in his telescope.
“Behind the giant Campfire, is a red tent, it seems to be the biggest, do you think we find a Shaman here?”, Donovan asks and gives Arkevh the Telescope to look through it.
“Could be, that means we should be careful, the Shaman will surely be better with magic then the ogre. However Goblins lose their sense for fighting as soon as their Shaman dies or gets taken away right?”, Arkevh looks over to Donovan after he looks through the lens for himself.
“What is your plan?”, Donovan asks unsure.
“If we focus on the Shaman, we get out there as fast as possible and do the most for Farsen.”, Arkevh explains and stands up, looking towards the path in the forest Donovan and he made out for a perfect ambush.
“Why don’t you just use your ability, you know the third eye powers?”, Donovan asks and points towards the camp.
“One second and it all would be over.”
“I still can’t control them. Also what is when there are captured people in there. I don’t want to kill innocent people like I did in Darkingstone, when the halls collapsed.”, Arkevh explains and looks away.
Donovan stands up as well and claps on his shoulder.
“I guess you're right, we should not waste Humanon lives that can assist us against the order of Mörk.”, Donovan explains and takes the lead towards the forest path, Arkevh sighs and follows.
The Goblin camp had only one entrance, however that would not hold them off, Donovan had a plan involving Arkevhs dark magic. Even though he hated demons as much as Goblins and Orcs, Arkevhs magic seemed to not originate from the demons, he wasn’t consumed by it like many users were.
As they sneaked behind the Camps palisades everything seems to be ready for their operation, next to the Shamans tent there seemed to be a lot of storage boxes, if Arkevh was fest enough he could transport themselves over the palisades into a hiding spot, from there they could see how to deal with the guards.
“You ready Arkevh?”, Donovan asks and looks towards his companion. Arkevh just nods, kneels down and plunges his Hands inside the dirt. After some time something crystalized with the help of the aura of creation. A tall hand formed out of dark magic towered over Donovan grabbing him and slowly raising him up. However Donovan, to Arkevhs surprise, shakes and twists himself in the Hand symbolizing him to stop.
Then Arkevh hears the sound of a breaking stick next to him and turns around letting Donovan fall to the ground, rather quickly.
As Arkevh turns around he sees someone he would not have thought to see. A Goblin Tinkerer who held some test tubes in front of his old leather jacket, ragged and plastered with loose buttons, revealing his white tunic. He looked at both of them in shock and raised his hands up in the air.
“I don’t want any trouble please don’t kill me!”, he says and falls to the ground, laying his hands over his head, cowering and shaking on the ground.
“He can speak the Human language?” Arkevh questions, surprised.
“That doesn’t matter.”, Donovan explains and walks towards him, raising his broadsword to end his life.
Arkevh however steps in his way, pointing his staff at Donovan.
“Are you deaf?”, he says furious
“He just said he doesn’t want any trouble.”, Arkevh reminds his companion, who grabs his shoulder and stairs directly in his face. The clouds in his blind eye started to swirl around more intensely
“What, are you doing!”,Donovan asks enraged and tightens the grip on Arkevhs shoulder.
“Have you forgotten what they have done to the farm, and what they did to my home village, Those Monsters don’t deserve to be spared, even if they speak our language, he is probably way more dangerous because of it!”, Donovan finishes and pushes Arkevh out of his way ready to plunge his sword in the Goblins flesh.
Towering over the Goblin he raises his sword, eying him one last time. He looked weak and pathetic, he was even smaller than most Goblins, maybe not even three feet. No wonder he just gave up an easy cleansing from this plane. Donovan was about to crash the sword down at the Goblin decapitating the head from his owner. However as he raised his sword over the head he stopped.
He was controlled by his own hate, he wasn’t ready to unleash it especially because of Arkevh who fired a magic projectile right next to him, throwing him out his trance.
As he turned around, he started to shake, tears coming from his eyes as he saw Arkevh.
He shone in a violet glow and his third eye peaked out from his forehead, the violet pupil staring directly in his soul, while Arkevh looked at him in anger his staff raised at him. It was just like Helland showed him. Beautiful. This Aura of Chaos.
Then he stops and drops his sword, right when Arkevh goes back to normal.
“I still accepted this Mission and I'm gonna finish it like I think it's right. He gave up so we spare him, the Goblin can help us get into the camp in an easier way.”, Arkevh says and lowers his weapon.
Donovan gulps and nods, then he slowly stands up again. Bowing his head down immediately.
“I apologize.”, he says and looks towards the Goblin, giving him a hand helping him stand up. Even if his inner self was not sure.
The Goblin looks up with his big brown eyes, slowly takes the help and stands up.
“You don’t want to kill me anymore?”, he asks unsure
“No, not anymore as long as you don’t do anything stupid.”, Donovan explains and goes back next to Arkevh, apologizing once again, Arkevh just shaking his head.
“What are you doing here?”, Arkevh asks, ignoring Donovan further.
“Searching ingredients for my experiment, as you can see on my golden earrings I'm a Goblin Tinkerer.”, the Goblin says proudly and adjusts his green chaotic hair.
“Where did you learn the Human language?”, Arkevh asks curiously.
“From the old Shaman, he was from a time where Goblins still worked with the order of Ljus, like the Kobolds today, some southern lands still work with Goblin engineers.”, he explains.
“Could I ask you something too sir?”, the Goblin inquires unsure after both of them said nothing for a while.
Arkevh nods.
“Are you the Arkevh? I heard from the one with the three eyes.”, he continues.
“Indeed, that's me, and who are you? I think you don’t belong here right?”, Arkevh replies, not really surprised that even the Goblins knew of him.
“My name is Craftol, as you said I don't belong here.”, the Goblin begins.
“As you know the Goblins war between themselves, I once lived in this camp with other forest goblins. However, one day we got attacked by a Goblin tribe located in Skull Mountain. They killed all of us besides the Tinkerers and set a new Shaman as the leader. Now I'm forced to build Weapons for him.”, Craftol says, devastated and looks to the ground.
“Why don’t you just flee if you are already outside of the camp?”, Donovan asks unsure.
“One doesn’t flee from the Shadowhound.”, he says panicked and looks around the forest. Like he saw something in the wind that went through the trees leaves as they spoke.
“The Shadowhound?”,Donovan repeats unimpressed.
“Yes, he follows you if you don’t come back the next day. Killing you instantly.
“And you sure it's true?”,Donovan continued his questioning.
“Absolutely”,Craftol nods
“Four other Tinkerers tried to flee in the night, in the next morning their heads were put on pikes, no traces of their body.”, Craftol says serious.
“You sure the guards didn’t catch them?”, Donovan replies once again, this time however Arkevh said something as well.
“While you two were discussing, I tried to focus my Mana, trying to find other Auras and I think Craftol is right.”, Arkevh answers.
“Are you kidding me, I never heard about anything called the Shadowhound or anything similar.”, Donovan explains.
“There are two strong Auras in that camp, one from the Shaman and the other one from something that seems to be similar to mine.”, Arkevh continues coldly.
Donovan takes a while but then just shakes his head.
“You sure?”
Arkevh nods.
“Craftol, how do we get to the Shaman quickly.”, Donovan asks.
“Let me consider, tomorrow I will show the Shaman one of my newest technologies on the clearing further north, a new kind of healing trinket.”Maybe you can attack them from there, you have Arkevh on your side, Knight.”, he explains.
“I guess we have a plan.”, Arkevh explains.
“Please trust me, i also want to leave this place, i would be eternally grateful if you get rid of the Shaman.”, Craftol promises and bows down again.
“Then we have a plan, we will meet at the clearing tomorrow morning, act like normal and don’t worry we will be there, now get back to your camp before that Shadowhound gets you.”, Arkevh smiles.
Craftol replies the same and vanishes inside of the camp quickly, having everything gathered for tomorrow. Craftol seemed to trust him, he did not have any other options if he wanted to leave to be fair.
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Donovan however seemed to be unsure.
“He doesn’t know our hideout at least. What if he lies though.”, Donovan reminds Arkevh.
“If he does, we probably need to get another plan, we find something, a Goblin camp is nothing in comparison to Darkingstone.”, Arkevh explains and goes back to their hideout to get more sleep before the next big day.
Donovan nods and follows, hoping that Helland would be proud of him, controlling his hatred.
On the next Morning Arkevh and Donovan waited as promised on the clearing, hidden behind some bushes, close to a stream that burbled over their whispering.
After some time where Donovan questioned Craftols promise he finally appeared on the clearing. However, not alone, four Goblin guards and the shaman followed him towards their trap. One of the guards carried a little cage in which a bunny was trapped and puts it on the ground.
Another Goblin carries a bag and gives it to Craftol, who rummages around it and finds what he was looking for, a glass tube filled with a purple liquid.
“Did he work on animal experiments?”, Donovan whispers incredulously and watches Craftol approach the bunny, seemingly stressed out.
“Seems like it, he said he is trying some kind of healing potion.”, Arkevh answers.
“Do you feel that Shadowhound close by?”, Donovan whispers.
“I Do, it's close to the Shaman”, Arkevh explains and looks further down the clearing.
The Shaman seemed to be deeply focused on the cage and what Craftol had created for them, his orange eyes keyed on the bunny that opened his mouth as the tube got closer to the mouth, slowly drinking it. But even after a minute nothing happened.
The Goblins spoke something in their language, Craftol however urged them to wait with a gesture off his hand, saying something in the goblin tongue, however there was one sentence Donovan and Arkevh could understand, giving his creation a human name.
“Now.”, as the Goblins were completely focused on the bunny, that just got a normal fruit extract.
Before the Shaman could react a ray of dark magic pierced his head collapsing on the ground coloring the grass around his head red. His staff, decorated with a goblin skull falling down next to him.
In Panic the Goblins yell something in their language and flee back to their camp.
“Cor Sham el mork, Cor saramhoun levas”,
Quickly, Craftol opens the cage and lets the Bunny outside who flees towards the forest, saving him from the experiments.
As Arkevh and Donovan decide to step out of their hiding spot Craftol turns around symbolizing with a gesture to be aware.
“Be prepared the Shadowhound is coming”, he says panicking and looks at the Shamans dead body in shock.
Something was off.
A black cloud emerged from the shamans blood that slowly started to circle around the clearing, growing in size with every lap it made around them.
A deep growl rang through the clearing as the cloud rose to the sky and crashed down immediately, covering a part of the clearing in front of them in black mist. Quickly Craftol hides behind the two humans as something starts to reveal itself inside of the black mist.
A slim and long arm was the first thing that emerged from the clouds, the pale and skinny hide transforming in sharp black claws at the end. After some time the monster revealed his head. The head of a grey furred Wolf that was attached to a Humanon like body. As the mist fully faded away it revealed its true length.
The arms and legs of the creature were as long as a grown man, the back was triple the size of a wolf, covered in fur on the top row, leaving his stomach exposed. The mouth of the creature was opened and revealed multiple rows of sharp teeth.
“Besides the head that Monster looks nothing like a hound”, Donovan explained and grabbed his sword more tightly.
“Cause it isn’t a normal Wolf, it's some kind of aberration of what we would normally call a monster.”, Arkevh explains, feeling a strong Aura that reminds him about himself, whatever this was it was similar to the magician. Especially after a third eye started to manifest on his forehead letting out another deep growl in the process.
After some time the creature started its stampede towards the three, using its long arms, trying to grab one of them. As Donovan tried to parry one of the Shadow Hounds arms with a swing of his sword it suddenly bounced off, dragging the arm to the side but causing no damage at all.
“This is impossible. He is so skinny, why can he block the sword like it's nothing?”, Donovan explains in stress and tries to dodge another hit of his claws that strap his cheek, cutting through his flesh.
“Hold it off from me I have a plan.”, Craftol explains, while Arkevh tried to block as many hits with a magical shield created from light magic as possible. Tacking a lot of his powers, while the Shadowhound hit it over and over again, without needing to take a break from attacking.
While Arkevh and Donovan did their best holding the creature's attack off, which came at them with inhuman speeds. Craftol rushed outside of the creature's attack range, sneaking towards his bag the Goblin guard dropped.
There were multiple trinkets that could be helpful. One that enhanced strength, healing potions but also something that explodes, perfect for the constantly opened mouth of the creature. A Trinket made from Magma slug slime that exploded in contact with other liquids.
As Craftol rummaged through his bag, the creature heard the sound of glass tubes, letting out another deep roar and rotating his head by 180 degrees.
As the creature sees Craftol it turns around in its entirety and rushes towards the tiny Goblin. Letting out its canine madness. Trying his best Arkevh tries to hold off the creature with some light magic, he stretches his left hand out and a spear of light forms rushing towards the creature's leg. Finally doing some kind of damage as black blood drips from the wound and it starts to slow down. Another deep growl fills the clearing as the creature cried out in pain.
Now it was Craftols time, he grabs the Trinket filled with brown to yellow liquid and throws it towards the creature's mouth. It tried to get towards Craftol before he could throw with a mighty leap to the front, but it came too late. The glass shatters inside of the creature's mouth, plunging its shards inside of the creature's tongue, emptying the trinket's content out in the whole mouth.
Before the Creature could let out another growl the liquid started blowing up in the creature's mouth dissolving the creature's head in a burst of flames, before it’s lifeless body fell to the ground.
“We did it!”, Craftol jumps in the air.
“We killed the Shadowhound!”, he continues in joy.
Arkevh replies with a smile, maybe after some time he could have found a weakness in his attacks, hitting his mouth as well but maybe not. So he was happy that Craftol acted so fast, getting rid of the creature. They worked together well as a team. This was undeniable.
“What now?”. Donovan asks, turning around the dead Goblin Shaman with his feet, seeing the eye tattoo on his forehead. He looks at it for a while in trance before he turns him around again.
“The Shaman is dead right? Will the Goblins really flee to the next camp though?”, Donovan asks unsure.
“They will as soon as i will be their leader, i will send them to a camp further in Skull Mountain.”, Craftol explains.
“How are you going to do this?”, Donovan laughs, thinking he made a joke.
“The Shaman is dead and the Shadowhound as well, whoever kills the Shaman will be the next leader, especially if he also killed the Shadowhound.”, Craftol starts to explain.
“So you are trying to say.”, Donovan starts.
“Exactly. The Goblins have not seen you two and could think I have killed the Shaman, if I then also get the head of the Shadowhound?”, he starts with a big smile.
Donovan groaned, goes towards the dead Shadowhound and cuts off his head with the help of Arkevh, who infuses his sword with light magic. As the head got separated from the creature the rest of the body slowly disappeared into dust, like it was common for multiple Monsters.
“And how are you going to carry that head you ankle biter?”, Donovan asks annoyedly,
carrying the head in both hands, it was as tall as Craftol, if not even taller than him.
Craftol just smiles and empties a glass tube from his bag, growing by around a foot and having an orange glow around him.
“This is a trinket I made from earth roots that grow around Trechna herds, it has strengthening powers like the Trechnas magic itself. It doesn’t hold for long but it lets me carry the head back to the camp.”, he explains and opens his hands.
“Arkevh, I still don’t trust him.”, Donovan explains.
“I can see why but I have a compromise.”, Arkevh explains. Resulting in Donovan crossing his arms eying him unsure.
“Tomorrow Morning you will go to Farsen, alone then we want to see an emptied Goblin camp, that is on its way to the mountains.”, if that isn’t the case and you don’t show up we know our deal is done.”, Arkevh explains and looks towards Donovan for approval.
He groans once again,
“Fine, but you will be looking out for him to hold his promise, while i go back to Farsen. I offered some sleep for your safety, so now it's your turn.”, Donovan says annoyed yaws and bows down as Arkevh heals his wound that was still bleeding.
“Okay fine.”, Arkevh agrees afterwards and follows Craftol back to the Goblin Camp, delivering the Shadowhounds head.
Donovan however thinks about the eyes on the Goblins again, the Goblin attacks, the Shadowhound, Arkevh and the one eye of Yasoma seemed to be connected with everything.
Arkevhs first Mission was done however, they saved the Lives of multiple people in Farsen and met some new faces along the way.
But one day, as Donovan foretold there would be more in danger then a village, entire civilizations wouldn’t be safe from what hungered for more souls.