RUSTY

As the gang entered the encampment of the Midden Tribe, they found themselves lost amid an expansive community of salvage, dotted with haphazard dwellings and signs of slapdash industry. Columns of smoke ascended from cook fires, the aroma of roasting meat blending with the odors of corroded metal and wood rot. Still wearing the disturbing cloak Chul had fashioned for him, Rusty trailed behind, drawing a range of reactions from the more observant goblins, curiosity, distrust, and even some fear. They didn’t know what he was, but they knew he was something that didn’t belong.

Expectant mothers shuffled around, hauling water, or tending to cauldrons over open flames, as youngsters frolicked amidst the lean-tos of cast-off materials converted into homes. Despite the frenzied disarray, an unmistakable aura of kinship and vitality emanated from the Midden tribe, and Rusty found himself relaxing. There had been no goblin warriors waiting to expel them; the encampment hardly seemed defended at all, quite different from the cowering masses Jiho had claimed they would find in the wake of the hound’s presence in the junkyard.

"Look at all this," Chul whispered to Rusty, his breath warm against the dragon's ear beneath the rat disguise. "We're home."

A group of younger goblins approached the gang, their gazes alight with fascination. They gawked at Rusty's disguise, chattering excitedly amongst themselves. Chul couldn't help but smile at their innocent curiosity, and he stepped forward to introduce himself and his new companion.

"Hey there," Chul said, bowing to the goblin children. "I'm Chul, and this is my friend Rusty." He gestured toward his companion. "Rusty may look like a rat, but don't let that fool you. He’s actually a scaly dog."

"Chul, we're not here to make friends," Jiho interjected, his voice tense. "Remember why we came back."

"Right," Chul murmured, glancing around nervously. Rusty noticed that some of the older goblins were watching them too, their expressions wary. One of them slunk away, presumably to fetch an elder.

"I’ve never heard of a scaly dog," one youngling told Chul, eyeing Rusty suspiciously. “Why is he wearing that?”

"Those are all the rats he’s hunted with me," Chul told them, his voice filled with pride and affection for his friend. "One day, we’ll kill enough rats to make new cloaks for all of you too."

“No thanks,” the youngling said. “It stinks.”

The others giggled along with him.

The laughter of the young goblins died down as Seok stepped forward, brandishing a fresh club he had collected along the way. He wielded it awkwardly with only one arm, and he was clearly still in pain, but he put on a fierce expression, intent on putting the children in their place. He swung the club in an arc, aiming for a nearby stack of cans, but he over-committed, and ended up slipping on a discarded fruit peel, landing himself on the ground. The children fell back into laughter.

"Pathetic," Jiho sneered, looking down at Seok. He turned his attention back to the gathering crowd of young goblins who enjoying the spectacle. "Listen up, you lot. If you don't behave, I'll have my beast eat you all."

The threat had the opposite effect than intended. Instead of fear, anger flared in the eyes of the nearest children. Among them, a girl stepped up, with hair as orange as Sooji’s, and puffed out her chest. "Who are you? You boss us around? I’m Yumi, and the Great Goblin is my uncle’s father. Your nobodies," she shouted, her treble voice trembling with rage.

"Watch your tongue, little one," Jiho warned, his own temper rising.

Another young goblin beside her was too fascinated by Rusty to be angry with Jiho. He looked from his friend to the disguised dragon and then to the rest of the gang.

“I know you," he said excitedly. “You’re the Gang of Fools, aren’t you?”

Seok struggled to his feet, wincing in pain, and trying not to let it show. Chul glanced between Jiho and the young goblins, obviously uncomfortable with the conflict. He huddled closer to Rusty.

"Enough!" Jiho roared, silencing both the children. He locked eyes with the two young goblins, his gaze cold and unyielding. "We're here to see the Great Goblin, and you should get out of our way."

The sun cast long shadows across the goblin community as a familiar group emerged from between the ramshackle homes, their faces twisted in contempt. Bok, adjusting his crown of tin cans, strode confidently toward Jiho and his companions. Behind him, Yun displayed a knife fashioned from jagged scrap metal and leather straps, its uneven edge catching the light.

"Look who's come crawling to see us," Bok sneered. "The [Songstealer] and his grandfather."

Jiho bristled, but countered with a smirk, "Maybe you should run away again, Bok. We've brought our dragon with us." He gestured toward Rusty, still covered by the rat cloak.

Yun stepped forward, her astonishment plain as she stared at Rusty, recognition dawning on her face. "It really was a dragon!" she exclaimed. “What is it doing with you? And why is wearing that?”

Chul puffed up his chest, responding to the weight of their attention on him. "Rusty and I are best friends," he explained. "He’s the best kind of scaly dog. We're going to have great adventures together and become heroes to all the goblins."

"Keep dreaming, little one," Bok scoffed, clearly unimpressed by Chul's vision of their future.

Jiho’s face twitched with annoyance at Rusty and Chul taking center stage. “That’s right,” he said. “The dragon is with us. Why don’t you run off again and fetch the Great Goblin? Running is all you’re good for, anyway.”

“He surprised us,” Bok said defensively, “that’s all. Anyway, I bet that’s not a real dragon. You found yourselves a lizard and want to play a trick on us.”

“He’s not a lizard,” Chul insisted. “He’s a scaly dog. You should be nice to him. He’s going to get bigger soon.”

Bok sneered at Chul. "Lizard or dog or whatever he is, you don’t deserve a companion like that. Why don’t you hand it over and slink on home? Maybe it will make up for that beetle you stole. The Great Goblin never gave you permission to hunt it, and you know it.”

More goblins were approaching from around the encampment, many of them bearing weapons. Bok raised his arms as if to acknowledge their presence. “You’re surrounded, [Songstealer]. And no one’s in the mood to listen to one of your songs today. Why don’t you go feed yourself to the Junkmaster’s hound. We heard him howling earlier. It would save us all some trouble.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“We aren’t afraid of you,” Jiho proclaimed. “We aren’t afraid of the hound either. Did you wonder why he stopped howling? We already met him once today, and Seok has the wounds to prove it.”

Yun leaned forward, eyeing Seok. “That’s a bite on that arm, isn’t it? How’d you get away?”

“The hound was no match for us,” Jiho said grandly, “behold, the dragon who defeated him!” He snatched at Rusty’s cloak, not realizing it was tied on, and merely succeeded in pulling the little dragon back onto his haunches.

“Slugs, Chul, you idiot. Take it off him.”

Bok laughed at the display, but he stopped laughing when Chul’s deft fingers quickly undid the ties around Rusty’s legs and midsection, drawing off the cloak to give them a clear view of the dragon beneath. A pall of silence fell over the group that had surrounded them, and soon spread to much of the camp beyond as more and more goblins got a first good look at Chul’s companion.

“I’ve had enough of these gobknobblers,” Jiho said. “Where’s the Great Goblin? Bring out the oaf.”

As if summoned by those very words, a larger goblin pushed his way through the growing crowd to confront the gang. He was older than most of the goblins, his jade skin weathered, but his muscles were taut, bulging beneath his skin. The Great Goblin stood taller than the rest, over five feet, and an air of authority surrounded him was more than a simple impression. He had received the pledges of the Midden Tribe, and sired many children, and the power that came with that position radiated from him like heat. His outfit was distinctive, a coat made of various animal hides stitched together far more cleanly than Chul’s work, adorned with an assortment of trinkets and talismans that glittered in the afternoon sun. In one hand, he held a staff topped with a human skull, the bone white and clean, grinning down at them.

Sooji's looked away from the goblin leader. "I'm beginning to think this was a bad idea," she said.

Chul stepped forward timidly, his eyes flicking between the fierce Great Goblin and Rusty, who was crouching like a nervous cat. "Um, excuse me, Great Goblin, sir," he began, swallowing hard. "We wanted to ask if we could come back to the tribe, seeing as we brought our scaly dog. His name is Rusty, and he is very strong. He scared the hound today, and he helped us kill a dump beetle, and he’s very smart."

The Great Goblin turned a hard gaze upon Chul, scrutinizing him for a moment before responding. “I thought Bok had lost his mind, talking about a dragon in Midden. Are you the one who found him?" he asked, his voice deep and authoritative.

“I found him, actually,” Seok said.

“He found the egg,” Chul explained meekly, “but I hatched it. He’s my best friend. Rusty is, not Seok, sir.”

"Very well," the Great Goblin said. "You will be allowed to live here, you were only an infant when those two,” he gestured at Jiho and Jiwoo, “broke their oaths and put the tribe in danger. If the dragon is your companion, you will be more than welcome among us. But the Gang of Fools is not.” He glared at Jiwoo.

“You know better than to have come back here, cousin.”

“Puh,” Jiwoo scoffed, pressing down on his cane to straighten his back. “Don’t forget who you’re talking to, upstart. I don’t know better than anything.”

The Great Goblin licked his lips. “I remember you, Jiwoo. We all do. If you wanted to bring the young one and his companion to us, then we accept, but don’t think that will make you a member of the tribe again. You will never be one of us. Not you, not the [Songstealer], not anyone who follows you.”

Jiwoo’s face darkened. “You can’t talk to me like that! I raised you up when you were nothing, and this is how you repay me? Bah! Like I would ever want to pledge myself to you. This tribe is nothing without me. Muckrakers, gobknobblers. Every one of you. It’s no skin off my feet if you don’t want me, but the dragon is ours. Chul is ours. You can’t have them.”

The Great Goblin took a long breath, gripping his staff with all his strength. “Out of respect for who you were, I will allow you to leave here unharmed. This is your chance. Take it. Begone, and never return.”

Jiwoo grinned. “Who’s going to make me? You? Did you forget what happened the last time you challenged me, little Toogi?”

“That was a long time ago,” the Great Goblin said, taking a step forward. “But now that you mention it, why don’t we go another round? It would do the tribe good to see you put down once and for all.”

“Wait!” Sooji cried in growing alarm. “Can I leave? I’m not challenging anybody.”

The Great Goblin blinked as if he was noticing her for the first time. “Soo?” For a moment, his face softened, but that softness was gone as swiftly as it came. “You made your choice when you went with them. What were you thinking, coming back here?”

“It wasn’t a great idea, I admit,” Sooji said, swallowing. “But there’s no need for violence. You know how they are, Toogi. They get an idea in their heads, and they can’t stop themselves. I had to come along. Jiwoo doesn’t know what he’s saying. He’s old, really old. His brains are scrambled.”

“I’ll scramble your brains,” Jiwoo shouted, swiping at her with his cane.

Sooji ducked out of the way and continued talking. “See what I mean? It’s been years, Toogi. I was young then, we both were. We can’t take it back, we can’t take any of it back, but haven’t we paid enough? It doesn’t have to be this way. Look at them,” she pointed to Rusty and Chul. “Did you ever imagine something like this would happen? Let us come home, let us all come home, and the future can be different.”

The history the gang had here was a lot deeper, and a lot more convoluted, than Rusty had suspected. It was also hard for him to follow the conversation, as important as it was, with so many amazing treasures all around him. His material sense was going crazy. The staff, the other trinkets the Great Goblin carried, they were only the tip of the iceberg. Every goblin here carried something he wanted to add to his hoard, and there was more waiting for him in the encampment. All around them, there were objects his heart told him were valuable, even if they had been discarded by humans, a greater concentration of wealth than anywhere else in the junkyard. It was making his mouth water.

The Great Goblin ground his teeth, clearly at odds with himself. “If you really mean that, Soo, then forsake the Gang of Fools. Pledge to me and leave the old one and the [Songstealer] behind. You and the young one and the dragon, I will accept your pledges, and you can come home.”

“What about me?” Seok spoke up. “I’m a great warrior. You could use me around here.”

“Not you,” the Great Goblin said shortly. “I’ve made all the offers I’m going to make today.”

Sooji hesitated, wavering between her family and the tribe before her. But she stepped back, closer to her brother, and the Great Goblin’s face hardened to stone.

“I thought so,” he said. “All these years, and you are just the same. All of you are just the same.” He rolled his shoulders, dismissing her entirely, and redirecting his attention to Jiwoo. “So, what do you say, stinky gobbo? One more round for old times’ sake? To the death.”

Jiwoo cackled. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Jiho stood stock still, his ill-conceived scheme falling to shambles around him. For once in his life, he was at a loss for words. The goblins formed a wide ring around the gang, an impromptu arena, with no avenue for escape. Jiwoo came forward without hesitation, baring his teeth and growling like an angry badger. The Great Goblin looked unimpressed.

Before either of them could strike the first blow, a sound rolled across Midden, beginning at the great wall, a solitary note, building intensity as it went. The goblins paused, looking in the direction from which it came, and soon it was joined by other notes, higher and lower, a chorus of horns.

Panic swept through the goblin encampment like wildfire, as goblins young and old scurried for cover. Despite the chaos surrounding them, the gang remained rooted in place, their eyes locked on the Great Goblin. He, too, seemed momentarily taken aback by the sudden disturbance, but quickly regained his composure.

"We’ll finish this later, old one,” he said. “A hunt is on."

He turned his back on Jiwoo and began shouting orders to the other goblins, attempting to bring them under his control and cut off the panic before the entire encampment dissolved into pandemonium.

Rusty looked around in confusion, the horns and the shouting enough to draw him out of his sensory reverie.

"What’s going on?" He asked. Jiwoo was grumbling to himself about cowards and gobknobblers, watching the Great Goblin stride away. Sooji fell to her knees, caught between relief and despair, and Jiho remained frozen in place, his eyes focused into a distance that none of them could see. Seok hopped over to Sooji, dropping his club to pull her back up.

“We have to go!” he shouted. “We have to go now!”

Chul looked at Rusty, terror bright in his yellow eyes. His face had turned so pale that he was barely green at all. He was the only one who had heard Rusty’s question.

“It’s a hunt,” he said. “The humans are coming.”