(Important retcons. Well first of all, the thing with the orcs and the people of Hargrave has been reworked. The main bad guys are the Goblin Tribe of Hargrave, which just means that they are a random tribe of people, they just look kinda weird. That’s how it is in this world. Previously, Pike and Erasmus fought off some forest monsters, like giant spiders or wolf people or something. Erasmus is wounded pretty bad right about now.)

Anyways. The chapter began with Pike kneeling in some bushes at the edge of a cliff, hidden from view as he silently watched a procession of soldiers below him. He scratched his chin as he looked them over. There was at least two dozen of them, scouring the woodland below for something, all armed to the teeth, many of them with bows and imported muskets, primed and ready.

“The Goblin-folk,” hissed Wudu, who came up beside him. “From Hargrave.”

“So these are the bad guys. Don’t seem that scary.” In truth, they did look a little ugly. But for strangeness they hardly compared to Troll-men or Dwarves.

“They came to this country not more than a hundred years ago,” Wudu whispered. “Driven from their own lands. My elders said they came from the underworld and wandered lost the sunlit realms, settling in the gloom of the forest country.”

“How interesting,” said Pike flatly. “What are they hunting for though?”

“I don’t know. But that matters little to us. There might be more bands of them. If they are ahead of us, and with the forest beasts beside, we have no choice but to wait for them to pass, or try and go around them.”

Pike stood up and walked away. “That depends on the paladin,” he muttered.

He walked over into the clearing where they had set up camp. Erasmus sat there, resting against a tree. Sweat was beading on his horribly pale skin, his eyes dark and sunken. The last of the bandages they had to bind his stomach was already black with old blood. The wound he had received from the fight with the monsters or whatever was already pretty serious, then Pike had punched him right there.

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Should have clocked him on the chin, Pike mused to himself.

“Time to go,” said Pike coldly. “How far can you walk today?”

Erasmus glared up at him and grinned sardonically. “I could go all day.” He hauled himself to his feet, gritting his teeth against the pain. He took a couple of shaky steps, and then fell heavily to the earth.

Pike walked over and went to help him up, but Erasmus thrust his hand aside. “I don’t… need your damn help,” he muttered. He tried to stand again, but he just did not have the energy.

Wudu came up, shaking her head. “It’s no good. He can’t go on like this. We must let his body rest and fight the poison.”

“We’ll be discovered if we stay here…” said Pike.

“I can draw the goblins away,” Wudu replied. “Nothing could be simpler.”

“The paladin could do with some fresh bandages,” Pike mumbled. “Maybe some medicine too.”

“The goblins must have supplies with them. I might manage to steal some of them.”

“We’ll lose a lot of time with all this. There’s no way we can reach the rangers any time soon, not before the enemies do.”

“I know that, Troll-slayer. But there’s nothing more we can do about that. We must either show up late, or not at all.”

Pike shook his head. “Seems like it. But then, perhaps it would be better to show up right on time.” Pike turned his back on them and walked back to the cliff’s edge.

“Wait, what do you mean, troll-slayer?”

Pike looked back and grinned wickedly. “Don’y worry your ugly little head. Just stick on your feathers and fly back to Erda. Tell her that we’ll be there when the battle begins.”

“How? What are you going to do?”

“Just getting the Paladin a room for the night.” With that, he strode boldly to the cliff and jumped off. The goblin scouts were still inspecting the area, when a dark shape fell among them, landing in a cool pose. Startled, they scrambled back and aimed their weapons at the stranger.

Pike straightened himself and threw up his hands, trying to put on a disarming smile which only unnerved them more.

“Stay right there!” shouted one of the scouts. “Who are you!”

“Me?” Pike leered at them. “Just a bounty hunter. You ugly buggers know where I can get some work?”