Claud was understandably distraught, by the goblins and by the source of the poison. “With goblins so close and the polluted water, we will have to risk travelling while some of my people are still ill.”

“Even if you do manage to leave the forest, you will be labelled as wanted men and women by Sir Jesa,” Judd argued as they stood in a huddle, “you’ll have to live in hiding for the rest of your life. And Sir Jesa won’t know if you’ve left the forest so he’ll keep blaming the raids on his land on you which, I’m pretty sure, are the goblins doing as well.”

Claud looked at Verne who nodded and said in his soft, low voice. “It all fits, Claud.”

“What would you have us do?” Claud asked weakly.

“We need to kill the goblins and cleanse the water.” Judd stated.

“How can we possibly do that?”

“I can make an herbal decontaminate that will counteract the goblin’s,” Aalis swallowed down the bile that rose in her throat, “toxin. I can have it ready in half an hour and we could do it today.”

“Today?”

“They’re damning a pool, filling it up with concentrated…”

“Don’t say it…” Caste begged, pale and bleak.

“Stuff,” Judd croaked, “then releasing it. They’re currently getting ready to unleash another load of the poisoned water.”

“You mean to tell me,” Claud stared at Judd, “that you’re going to kill dozens of goblins on your own?”

Judd cleared his throat. “I was kind of hoping you and your people would help me.”

“We are all too sick or weak from being sick,” Claud lamented, wrung his fingers together, “and despite what Sir Jesa has said about us, we are not bandits. We’re farmers.”

Judd sighed and looked at Aalis who bit her bottom lip.

“Then…I guess we’ll have to do it ourselves.”

Caste moaned and walked away from the group before spinning on his heel and returning.

“Judd, hear sense! You cannot…CANNOT, take on dozens of goblins without an army and a broken sword! The goblin presence in this forest is Sir Jesa’s responsibility.”

Judd faltered then turned to Aalis. “What if we just returned to Faine to inform Sir Jesa of the goblins?”

“Every day the goblins contaminate the water is another day the orchard and surrounding land must recover from.” Aalis insisted. “Judd, the land will claw its way back to health but sooner or later…and I believe from the evidence of the orchard that it is sooner rather than later, it will be beyond the reach of restoration.”

Judd tapped his teeth together, thinking hard.

“Could you climb a tree with the cure?” Verne asked, surprising them.

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“Is that important?”

“There were a number of tall trees on the plateau, some hanging right over the pool. If you climbed one and dropped it in the water from above…the goblins would be none the wiser. There would be no need to fight or kill any of them.”

They all stared at him. “If Aalis stays here and continues to make the cure while I return to Fort Faine…” Judd nodded. “That might work. But I’d like to come with you today to make sure the cure works.”

“I would feel safer.” Aalis admitted.

“I’ll go with you too.” Verne offered and then all three looked at Caste.

His eyes narrowed. “Fine, I’ll go too…but under protest.”

“Naturally.”

Aalis worked quickly on her water cure. Judd watched her work, fascinated.

“Is this really going to work?” He whispered.

“Caste’s recovery from the fever gave me a base to work with and knowing how the earth is filtering it naturally gives me hope.”

“Not for the first time I am very grateful you agreed to come with me on my knighthood quest. If I was here alone, I wouldn’t have the first idea what to do.”

“I doubt you would have found this place,” Aalis said, jerking her head, “without my kidnapping to give you something to track.”

“True.”

As soon as they were able, they left the little village, the light beginning to soften as the sun started to ease across the sky, tired after a full day’s worth of shinning. Fortunately their hasty pace through the forest meant they were hardly cold, breathing rapidly as they reached the base of the plateau. Three of them began to climb. Caste watched them go, unable to be convinced to join them.

Once they reached the lip of the plateau they scrambled for cover and hunkered down. Judd pointed to a tree and they huddled behind its trunk, trying to keep out of the sight of the goblins who seemed to be having a competition as to who could pee the longest into the pool, cackling with laughter.

“You want me to go up?” Judd whispered.

Aalis shook her head. “No offence, but I am lighter.”

Judd nodded and cupped his hands together. Aalis stepped into his palms and he lifted her up as high as he could. She grasped the lowest branch and pulled herself into the tree. It was painstaking progress but she eventually reached a branch that had another one overhead that she could cling to and inch her way out over the heads of the goblins. Judd and Verne were both silent as they watched her.

Abruptly the branch Aalis was standing on cracked. She froze, her eyes going wide, her fingers tight on the branch above. Judd and Verne looked at the goblins. Some had lifted their heads at the sound but never thought to look up. They were the size of children but with heads too big for their bodies and long, bony, pinching fingers. Their bellies were bulbous and it didn’t help that the way they stood seemed to make their stomachs protrude even more than they should.

Aalis looked down at Judd.

“Throw it.” He mouthed. She nodded and let one precious handhold go of the branch above to pull the pouch from her belt. She used her teeth to loosen the ties, braced herself then threw under arm, towards the water. Judd and Verne held their breaths as it fell, fell…and snagged on a low branch, and frustratingly, refused to do so upside down.

“Damn.” Judd cursed quietly. He lifted his gaze to Aalis and she shook her head then started pointing rapidly.

“Judd,” Verne nudged him and whispered, “look.”

The goblins were making for the dam, grasping logs and trying to heave them out of the natural path of the water. The trickle that flowed began to increase.

“No, no, no, no!” Judd swore.

“I got this,” Verne said, taking his bow into his hands and grasping an arrow, “but I can’t hit it from here.”

“What?”

Judd watched as Verne simply walked out in full view of the goblins and lifted his bow. The goblins could not help but see him, their little teeth like razor blades in their mouths snarled and snapped, forgetting about the dam as they sprinted towards him.

“Hey!” Judd cried, running out in front of Verne and further still, drawing their attention. “Hey little goblins! Bet you can’t catch…woah!” He underestimated his effectiveness or their hunger for human flesh as most of them broke off to chase him. Thankfully goblins weren’t too bright but unfortunately, they were fast! He darted away as Verne released an arrow from his bow, the tip slicing through the pouch Aalis had prepared, the contents dumping into the pool of water.

“Run!” Aalis cried and Verne turned on his heel and bolted, slinging arrows as best he could.