<~> CHAPTER 13

We had spent several hours working our way through the goblin camp. I became comfortable leaping from cliff to cliff silently as I took out the lookouts and archers. Goblins were more intelligent than animals but they were still incredibly dumb. They were also selfish and cruel.

More than once I had made mistakes that should have gotten me caught. Twice the goblins didn't notice when their allies went missing and once a goblin even laughed when he found one of them dead not long before he joined them. In our time working our way through the camp we also found several piles of humanoid remains where they had thrown the decomposing bodies of the people they had taken captive once they had perished. For better or worse we didn't come across anyone alive as we made our way through the horde of creatures.

Not even the few hobgoblins in the group had given us any trouble. We just slowly made our way through, dividing and conquering the monsters. After a while I began to question the purpose of this, the group wasn't really taking things from the goblins. I didn't understand how killing these goblins was making my party members any stronger. I would have asked but it didn't seem like the time to bring it up, all of us were focused on making our way through the camp. Once we had killed all of the goblins we could find we were gathered in front of a makeshift door to a large hut the size of a circus tent made entirely from sheets of scrap metal.

("Maxwell says that through this door is the goblin's leader. It's either a goblin shaman or a newly ascended goblin king. They are only able to get this organized under those two conditions.")

I nodded and flexed my claws. I hadn't shifted back to my human form since we started, it was easier to keep myself focused on the hunt in this shape. The goblins weren't any match for me physically but this experience had been invaluable in gaining a sense of what my limits were when trying to remain stealthy and hunt. I was strong, I wasn't sure if these things were even capable of hurting me, but not everything I would encounter would be weaker than I am. I also couldn't help but admit that it felt good to stalk them.

("What's our plan when we go in there? Should we try and ambush it?") I asked Luna.

She scribbled some words in the dirt and heard Maxwell's reply before responding to me. ("No, Max says it wouldn't be worth the trouble to ambush either of them. It would be better to face them head on where we can set up to work as a team.")

("Sure, what should I do then?") I asked.

Maxwell drew a little diagram in the dirt as Luna narrated the plan to me. In simple terms, he would go in first with his shield to try and hold its attention. In the case of a shaman, Luna would be working on counterspells and disruption, if the enemy is a goblin king, then small offensive attacks that avoid friendly fire. Piper would stay near Maxwell and take advantage of any openings where she could while keeping him healed up. I would try to circle around it and get in any hits I could when it was vulnerable. He said I would be taking the place of their rogue.

("Why wouldn't I just fight it directly like Maxwell?") I asked Luna.

She relayed the message in the dirt and then gave Maxwell's response back to me. ("He says, so far we've been using you like a scout so he was thinking of you as a rogue. But he wouldn't be opposed to you taking some of the monster's attention in the front if that's what you want to do. You haven't directly said how you like to fight, other than what we saw at the frost salamanders. N-no offense but he says you fight more like an animal than someone he can usually account for, so he's not sure how to plan around you.")

I reached up to cup my chin before realizing my hand and wolf's muzzle didn't really fit together the same way. How would I like to fight? I've mainly been guided on instinct this whole time rather than giving any thought toward how I intended to fight. Ripping things apart and optionally eating them is all I know how to do.

I looked back at Luna. ("I don't really know how I fight, I've only been going off of instinct. I'll try to do as Maxwell says, getting shots in where I can. I might try and grab his attention if necessary but I'll try and follow Maxwell's lead.")

Maxwell nodded in response and made some kind of hand gesture at me. He held three fingers up sideways but it wasn't anything recognizable to me.

("What's that mean?") I asked Luna.

She giggled. ("That means... good? Or okay? Hmm... in some contexts it means we're friends. It's kind of ambiguous now that I think about it.")

Soon the four of us formed up at the makeshift door. Maxwell lifted his shield to shoulder height and Piper pulled it open as he began to push in. I would have been relieved that we were fighting a more physical based enemy if it wasn't for how fucking huge that goblin was. Some of the Hobgoblins were about the size of a human, unlike most of the goblins, but the goblin king was more like eight feet tall. Sure I was nearly a match for it in height in my werewolf form but the thing was gigantic for a goblin, especially compared to my new friends.

The thing was sitting on a throne that was slapped together with all sorts of different materials. Despite its somewhat grand size, the thing was made from junk and didn't look all that comfortable to sit on. The monster jumped in his chair when he saw us and essentially roared at us before waiting expectantly. The monster's eyes widened when no other goblins came running to join him other than the three others that had already been in here with him.

My goal was to stay mostly out of sight initially so I was keeping low to the ground on all fours behind Maxwell, letting him keep most of the attention as we approached. I would look for a good opportunity before trying to get behind it.

The other goblins scrabbled to their feet and moved to surround us but Luna was quick to start hurling small balls of fire at them, forcing them to jump and dodge out of the way. The heavy-looking goblin king jumped to his feet and immediately came charging at Maxwell who caught the monster with his shield.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Unlike most fights with our group Maxwell, Piper, and Luna kept to a tight formation, not risking drawing the goblin king's attention to themselves in this fight. I slinked out from the group and made my way around the goblin king who was fruitlessly pounding at the man's shield with its fists. Maxwell rocked back with each blow but it looked intentional so I didn't worry about it.

The first thing I took care of was the other goblins, quickly dispatching the one that had managed to escape Luna's fire magic before finishing off the partially burnt ones that were screaming on the floor. Once that was taken care of I positioned myself behind the king who was still focused on Maxwell.

In the time I had been working on the other loose goblins, my group hadn't made any headway with the goblin king. Luna's fire attacks were rolling off its skin, completely ineffective, and between Maxwell and Piper, the thing only had a few shallow cuts on its legs. The fight wasn't going well so far but at least the thing hadn't hurt any of them yet.

I aimed for the creature's back, right where its heart should be, and decided to see if I could claw right through its ribcage. My entire hand sunk into its back to my third knuckle but I somehow knew I didn't hit anything important. All I did was piss it off.

The thing pushed off of Maxwell's shield and spun around to roar at me. Halfway through its roar, its eyes went wide as it looked at me. It appears that my friends aren't the only ones that recognize an umber hound. Before I could stop myself I planted all four of my limbs to the ground and roared back at it, challenging it as it had challenged me.

Its face twisted in a rage that I hadn't expected and the thing charged at me with its arms stretched out as if to tackle me. The thing was slow compared to me though and I easily ducked under its arm and slashed my claws through its left side. Right as I spun around to face him again a giant cleaver-like sword dug through my neck all the way to my chest.

I coughed blood. I couldn't breathe.

The goblin king kicked me and I tumbled backward and rolled twice before I flopped onto my back. I coughed again but I only tasted more blood, there was too much in my airways. I was drowning. Piper ran up to me as a sudden explosion of fire rocked the entire building. I could hear the monster's scream but I could only focus on coughing and trying to regain my breath.

Piper said something unintelligible as she pushed the two halves of my body back together. My entire left side felt numb but the moment my body was back in one piece I could feel a cold prickling through my chest. I coughed out the last of the blood and my breath stabilized. I sat up against Piper's insistent pushing, she was trying to hold me down. Stopping me from taking my revenge on that disgusting goblin. HOW DARE HE ATTACK ME WITH THAT CHEAP TRICK?

I pushed myself to my feet and spat out more blood, the last of what was in my mouth. Hot anger traveled up my spine as my smoky fur prickled out in all directions. Before I knew it, a deep rumbling growl was shaking my chest. Piper quickly jumped away from me, no longer willing to hold me back from that horrid wretch. My chest expanded with air as I took a deep breath and stared at my prey. A cold focus washed over me.

The goblin king was burnt on the entire left side of his body and his arm on that side was limp. In the creature's right hand was the bloody cleaver sword that had nearly bisected me through the middle. Its eyes were focused on Maxwell and looked glassy as if they were in a trance. Unimportant. I howled, the noise comforting to my ears but everyone else, friend and foe alike, stumbled back and covered their ears.

The moment I stopped I was on top of the goblin. The weakened creature was on its back, I don't remember leaping on it but it doesn't matter. I would kill it for making me look weak. My teeth tore into its neck as my foreclaws ripped open its chest. I wanted to rip this thing to shreds, make it completely unrecognizable. The meat and gore were horrendous but I didn't care, the only thing I cared about was making this thing pay.

I grabbed tight around something in its chest to hold it in place and give me leverage to rip off its arm. With that done I tossed it to the side and pulled its ribs apart from the inside out, the sound of cracking bone filled my ears. Then I found the heart.

I never wanted to eat one of these disgusting creatures but this stood out to me. Before I knew what I was doing, I was devouring the black diseased heart. I was nearly heaving as the grotesque meat slid down my throat, its taste sickened me but I felt compelled. I couldn't help myself. I kept eating it.

With my unintentional meal finished I staggered to the side. I felt sick. I felt putrid. I was covered in blood.

I could hear voices but I couldn't understand them. Even the speaking in my head felt so far away. I turned and looked at my packmates. They looked frightened but I couldn't understand why, the monster was dead. I turned back to the corpse of the monster and vomited. It was a relief, revolting bile followed the chunks of meat. The inside of its chest was so destroyed that the heart was indistinguishable from the rest of the viscera.

I took a shaky step back from the monster and glanced back at my packmates. I tried to take a step toward them but fell forward onto my belly. I wasn't able to get my arms under me in time so I just fell forward without catching myself, my head hit the ground and cracked the floor.

I felt so weak. So tired.

My eyes fluttered closed and it felt like I was being submerged in water. I began to lose consciousness. My body started to shrink.

More garbled words tumbled through my ears as I staved off the darkness and tried to stay awake. I failed.

Sleep took me.