Everything went quiet. The whole forest, an otherwise constantly changing, moving ecosystem seemed to freeze in time. Not even the birds dared to chirp for a moment, stopping their happy songs to watch.

My mind, too, went still as stone. I have been preparing for this for years on end, yet now, that it was truly happening, it was almost like I couldn't believe it.

And then, time started moving again.

'Goblins!' I shouted, alerting Mok of their presence. It was time to see whether my years of training really mattered.

I acted fast, but the goblin was faster. Actually, make that goblins. Two more sprung out of the bush, circling around to prevent their green friend of standing in their way.

It looks like they were expecting us.

I blocked the crude, bone dagger the goblin wielded with the shaft of my spear just in time. The goblin wasn't a lousy fighter, however, and swiped his free hand at my face. I turned my upper body to shield it, my shoulder getting cut up by his long, sharp nails. Claws, almost.

My training did not go to waste, however, as I fought off the instinct to close my eyes. As I turned my head to avoide the goblin's swipe, I noticed the second one approaching me from the left. I pushed away the goblin in front of me and swung my spear in a wide arc, forcing both of them to back away.

Their surprise attack failed, but they did not appear interested in retreating.

I did not have the time to turn around, but I presumed the other goblin went to attack Mok. These goblins weren't stupid. They probably planned on killing me first, while counting on their friend to hold off Mok. They were severely underestimating him if they thought he couldn't even deal with a single goblin.

A wide smile grew on my face. Not because I was enjoying this that much, I was no psychopath; I was doing this more so to confuse the two goblins in front of me.

In my years of sparring, I realized that getting into your opponent's head was the easiest way to win a fight. Though I doubted a single smile would defeat two armed goblins, seeing your opponent be unusually confident in themselves makes you think they have something up their sleeve, and more often than not, you will second guess your actions and perform poorly.

'Mok, watch your back! I'm gonna circle these motherfukers!' I shouted, and started circling around to the left, trying to get the second goblin in front of the first.

This would allow me to fight off only one at a time, however, the first goblin could simply change targets and start attacking Mok, which was the reason for my previous words.

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

The first goblin decided against switching opponents and started circling around as well. It was time to take advantage of my superior reach. Just as the first goblin walked past a tree, obscuring his vision for a moment, I thrust my spear with everything I had.

My timing was near perfect, and I caught him in the shoulder just as he moved past the tree trunk. The other goblin did not miss this opportunity, and bolted towards me.

I grinned. I knew I couldn't retract my spear fast enough, but I held an ace up my sleeve. I sprung my foot forward and kicked a large amount of dirt into his face, obscuring his vision.

That was a horrible miscalculation. The dirt hit its mark, and my aim held true, but the goblin kept moving. It made no sense. Any person, animal, or monster recoils backwards if dirt hits its eyes. At worst, it slows them down.

The goblin however, defying all logic, sprung forward with even greater force, dagger in hand. I did not even have time to dodge, as the crude weapon slid into the side of my abdomen. My only saving grace were his closed eyes, because of which he missed my internal organs, Well, I hoped so.

Agonising, maddening pain shot from the wound. I roared and dropped my spear. The goblin was still blinded, which gave me a precious moment to gather my wits.

On pure instinct, I reached behind my back to grab my dagger. The goblin started twisting the dagger still lodged in my body, introducing me to pain far greater than anything I had ever felt. With every ounce of my orcish power, I swung my dagger down, missing his neck entirely. My vision was blurry, due to my teary eyes, but I felt it pierced something. I felt bones crush under my blade.

I then dislodged my dagger, from what I presumed was the goblin's skull, and with a guttural scream swung it towards where I thought the other goblin should be. He easily dodged my attack, as telegraphed as it was.

I couldn't see him well with my teary eyes, but I still heard his giggling. He was the one smiling now. I started backpeddaling, trying to create some distance between us.

I reached down and tried to dislodge the dagger stuck in my body. I only got it about half way out before the pain grew too immense. My vision started turning white, but I powered through and forced myself to take the whole blade out. I had one last trick, and this one had to work.

I quickly wiped my eyes, and tried to focus to the best of my efforts. I could see the goblin better now, smiling and slowly closing the distance. He didn't seem to be in a hurry, more so just waiting for me to collapse. He was hurt as well, and wasn't dumb enough to prematurely attack me.

I took a couple of agonising deep breaths to calm my nerves, and focused on his forehead, drenched in sweat. I practiced this. Only briefly but it will have to do.

I acted like I was staggering, which only made the goblin happier, his giggling giving way to laughter. I then quickly planted one leg, let out a deep breath, and threw the still bloody dagger in my left hand directly at his head.

It was a bad throw. I should have predicted it, but just as I was about to let the dagger go, I stretched open my wound, which led to searing pain extending all throuought my body.

The dagger still held the right path, however, and the goblin was caught off guard, unable to react in time.

'THUD'

The handle of the dagger hit his head instead of the blade. But that was all I needed.

I shot forward, stretching my arm towards his own dagger. I caught his hand before he stabbed me, and before he could react, thrust my dagger into the side of his head.

I collapsed together with him, my legs unable to hold me any longer. I heard a voice in the distance.

'Rak! Fuck, fuck, are you alive? Talk to me! Fuck!'

Sorry, Mok, but I'm going to get some shut eye.

Everything went black.