Colb nodded. “Hmmm, that’s worth a try, yes? I’m sure the dwarves would appreciate it!”

The two goblins raised their hands, ready to pitch this Yiklar Beach Sand of Protection plan to the announcer. Unfortunately, their thin green arms couldn’t be seen amongst the crowd of taller and wider dwarves.

“Yes, you in the front?” the announcer said, calling on a dwarf covered in yellow hair and electronze metal piercings.

“Oi, what’s happenin’ with the summer antlizard be’ind the volcano? It’s too dangerous ta travel ta Bellra right now, innit?” the dwarf shouted.

A larger murmur broke out amongst the dwarves. Colb could make out some “that’s right” and “I’d rather stay here” sentences amongst the noise.

“All right, all right, listen up,” the announcer called out. “It is true, the summer antlizard still lives on the path between Dalrek and Bellra. We can’t walk by it, but we feel that it would be more dangerous to stay in the direct path of these tsunami waves. We’ve decided… we’re going to send in the army, and attempt to defeat it to open our path. It’s a problem we needed to deal with eventually either way.” This prompted a renewed explosion of worried murmurs amongst the dwarven audience.

“That’s ridiculous!” a dwarf shouted from the crowd.

“Yea! How are we supposed to kill that thing?” another agreed.

“Last time you sent the army, our weapons were completely ineffective!” a third dwarf cried out.

As the announcer tried to calm the audience, Colb translated these revelations to 27. “AaAaaaaahhhh, maybe we can help with that!” 27 cheered. “The Yiklar Factories produces a line of weaponry of the highest quality. Nothing like this Yiklar Spear of Irreversible Death we’re meant to pick up, but still some most powerful of weapons!”

“Hmmm, I heard a dwarf say that weapons are ineffective against this summer antlizard?” Colb worried.

“AaAaaaaahhhh, but Yiklar-made items are enchanted. These dwarves tend to craft non-magical weaponry, like what you might find made in Skaal or Kreet.”

Colb glanced down at his simple Skaal-produced wooden shield and leather armor. “Items from Yiklar are imbued with powerful magic, yes they are,” 27 continued. “Yiklar-made weapons are stronger, sharper, and generally come with some specialized effects. Equipping a whole army with Yiklar-made goods would make them undefeatable!”

“Hmmm, then it sounds like we’re in a position to really help them out, yes?” Colb cheered, pointing to 27’s Yiklar Bag of Traveling Inventory.

27 nodded in agreement, then jumped up and down while frantically waving his arms in the air. “We can help you!” he shouted. “Call on me! We can help! Let us help!”

“What’s that weird sound?” the announcer questioned.

“Oi, it’s a goblynn, innit!” shouted the yellow-haired dwarf from the front row. “I learn’d ta speak Goblish as an ‘obby. I’m a lil’ rough, but that sounded like a goblynn sayin’ ‘e wants ta ‘elp us!”

“Hmmm, they just heard you, yes? They’re talking about us!” Colb translated. “Keep going, yes?”

“Let us help you! Let us help!” 27 shouted, now with enhanced vigor.

The dwarves before them parted, opening a path to the front of the audience. The goblin duo scampered towards the announcer, hundreds of hairy faces staring them down as they moved.

“See? I knew ‘et!” the yellow-haired dwarf cheered, gesturing to Colb and 27 as they arrived at the front row.

“MMmMmmmm, okay, let me do something here,” 27 mumbled, pulling out his Yiklar Bag of Traveling Inventory. “I need a silvopper.”

“The goblynn says ‘e wants a silvopper piece before ‘e can ‘elp us,” the yellow-haired dwarf announced. “Lil’ greedy, innt ‘e?”

One of the shiny-armored dwarves stepped forwards and pulled out a large leather bag of metallic nuggets. She removed a silvopper piece and flicked it through the air. 27 caught it, and dropped it into his magic red sack.

A moment later, a pile of parchment launched out of the bag, which 27 snatched up. “AaAaaaaahhhh, customer!” he cheered, handing the stack of papers to the dwarf that had given him the silvopper nugget. “I am from the Yiklar tribe, yes I am. My name is 27. I was… um, passing through, and noticed your plight. This is a Dwarvish-translated Yiklar Catalog, which lists all the magic items I can sell to you. Perhaps we can provide some magic weapons to help defeat this summer antlizard blocking your path, yes we can?”

As the yellow-haired dwarf roughly translated 27’s words, the six shiny-armored dwarves crowded around the Dwarvish-translated Yiklar Catalog. After a minute of quickly rifling through the listings, they deliberated amongst themselves.

Colb didn’t hear everything in their discussion, but he did catch a few sentences: “I always figured these magic Yiklar items were a scam,” “We shouldn’t just throw away a potential solution to our problem,” and “A leader in Forgar once told me that the Yiklar goblins are trustworthy.”

“You have these weapons with you?” one of them asked, poking his head out of the deliberation circle. He looked at the yellow-haired dwarf. “Ask if they have the items with them.”

Stolen story; please report.

Colb glanced at 27’s red bag. “Hmmm, I can understand Dwarvish, but I can’t speak it, yes?” Colb explained. “We have as many items as you could need, and they are always available, yes?”

“Oi, right on lil’ goblynn! I’m jus’ like that. I can understand yer Goblish, but my speakin’ it is rough – I’m glad ye can understand our Dwarvish ‘ight now, yea?”

Colb nodded. “Ight,” the yellow-haired dwarf continued, “lil’ goblynn says they can give ya’ anythin’ at any time.”

Given that information, the six dwarves deliberated a little more, then appeared to hold a vote amongst themselves on what they should do. The audience behind Colb and 27 watched this interaction with piqued interest. Once the half-dozen dwarves appeared to have made a decision, they all turned to face the goblin duo.

“As denoted by our unique armor, we are the six leaders of Dalrek,” the shortest of them grumbled. As he spoke, he spat through the mound of matted, unkempt black hair that covered his face. “To introduce myself, I am Leader Glazeanvil: head dwarf of the army, and one of Dalrek’s six highest officers. I must say, I’m not one to trust outsiders, and I don’t understand your language.”

One of the other dwarven leaders nudged him, causing the shortest dwarf to sigh. “Nevertheless, after discussing your proposition with the other leaders – and being outvoted – I am inviting you to join me at the front of the army on our trek to Bellra. If you can prove that your weapons are more effective than ours in a preliminary attack against the summer antlizard, then we’ll purchase a bundle of them from you for our full-scale assault.”

Colb whispered the Goblish translation to 27. “AaAaaaaahhhh, a wise and cautious customer, yes you are,” 27 cheered. “This sounds most amiable. If you allow us to group up with our other two comrades first, us four goblins will meet you at the western end of Dalrek to set off, yes we will.”

After hearing the yellow-haired dwarf’s translation, the six dwarvish leaders nodded in unified understanding, and adjourned the town hall meeting.

“This is perfect,” 27 said as they exited with the audience. “These dwarves are evacuating to Bellra. If we help their army defeat this summer antlizard creature, not only will we be doing a good deed to balance out our mistake, but also we will be getting a free escort to the very town we aimed to reach, and we will have convinced the leaders of Dalrek to be more trusting of Yiklar-made goods. It’s a win-win-win, yes it is!”

“Hmmm, that does sound promising,” Colb admitted. “Hmmm, but remember – we owe them a gift. Assuming they like the weapons, you should give them out for free, yes?”

“I’ll see what I can do,” 27 replied.

The duo proceeded to wander around Dalrek for a short while, searching for their companions in the wreckage. Eventually, they spotted Drek and Stibs at the western corner of the town – quite close to where they had agreed to regroup with the six leaders. The two goblins were standing next to a wooden cart full of food, valuables, weapons, and armor.

“MMmMmmmm, what is this?!” 27 exclaimed. “Where did you get these things?”

“Rrghegh… we liberated them from some rubble,” Drek replied. 27 gasped, and then turned to Stibs with a look of befuddlement.

“Hurmph! I tried to stop him, but then he had some convincing arguments and, well, next thing I knew, I was helping him,” Stibs said with a shrug. “We’ve got supplies for weeks now! Let’s head out to Bellra and pick up your spear.”

“No no no,” 27 cried, “this is not the Yiklar way! We do not steal, we sell! Sell! We sell products and services with a focus on high quality and good deals! Stealing from a potential customer is a… a bad deal!” 27 gagged as the words ‘bad deal’ left an awful taste in his mouth.

“Hey, over there!” a dwarven leader shouted from nearby.

“Rrghegh… what is that dwarf saying, Colb?” Drek asked.

“Hmmm, I believe that’s Leader Glazeanvil, yes? Dalrek’s army is meant to meet us here,” Colb replied. Stibs and Drek’s eyes widened as a platoon of dwarves started jogging over to them.

“What’s that cart you’ve got there?” Leader Glazeanvil asked as he and his small army stopped before the goblin crew.

“Rrghegh… oh no. What? What? What is he saying? This is my stuff! We found it,” Drek said. “Tell them to go away.”

27, Drek, and Stibs looked at Colb expectantly, as his Yiklar Amulet of Open Ears glowed with understanding. “Hmmm, is your translator here?” Colb asked.

“Oi, I’m ‘ere!” the yellow-haired dwarf shouted from the back of the army. “Ma name’s Sunbolt, by ta way! Me ‘air is ‘ellow ta match me name, innt dat neat?”

Sunbolt pushed his way to the front of the line until he was standing at Leader Glazeanvil’s side.

“Hmmm, we feel terrible that your homes were destroyed, yes?” Colb said. “My friends here salvaged what they could from the rubble, as an act of good faith, yes? Perhaps these things will help with the evacuation, yes?”

“Rrghegh! Why did you say that?! It’s not tru-” Drek started to yell, but 27 quickly grabbed him and covered his mouth before he could revoke Colb’s offering.

“Oi, that’s mighty fine o’ you!” Sunbolt cheered, his hairy head aimed towards Colb as he spoke. “These goblynns ‘ere ‘alvaged some supplies fer us, now innt that nice ‘o ‘em?” he translated for the other dwarves.

Leader Glazeanvil furrowed his mound of black hair as he towered over Colb. “I find that unlikely,” he grumbled after a moment, “but since we’re here now, we might as well take our items back. Have at it, soldiers.”

The leader waved his hand, to which the squadron behind him approached the cart and began looting it.

The noble goblin let go of Drek, whose lower eyelids twitched with rage. “Rrghegh… you two better watch your backs,” he mumbled at Colb and 27.

After a few minutes, the dwarves stepped away, wearing their armor and wielding their weapons. The cart had been picked dry. “We are now ready to head out, dwarves.” Leader Glazeanvil announced. “Let’s meet up with the other leaders and townsfolk, then head to Bellra!”

A flurry of dwarves replied “Yea!” as the platoon turned and hustled away.

“You four, follow me,” Leader Glazeanvil commanded.

“We need to follow him, yes?” Colb translated. Drek sat on the ground defiantly, to which Stibs grabbed him by the collar and dragged him along.

As the goblin crew followed Leader Glazeanvil and his army to the front of the evacuation lines, Colb and 27 explained the plan to Drek and Stibs.

“Rrghegh… my bow is from Yiklar, right?” Drek asked, fully laying in the dirt as Stibs dragged him along.

“AaAaaaaahhhh, your Yiklar Bow of Returning Arrow is indeed Yiklar-made, yes it is,” 27 replied. “If you can get some good hits on this summer antlizard with it, that’ll surely prove the usefulness of magic weapons to these dwarves, yes it will.”

“Rrghegh!” Drek grumbled, releasing himself from his teammate’s grip and standing up. “Then I’ll use my arrow and slay this monster personally. Maybe show this old fart a thing or two about how fighting works on this side of the century,” he jeered with a grin.

“Hurmph! Then I’ll fight, too,” Stibs announced. He drew his handmade bone sword, and cradled it in his palms. “I don’t need magic, and I don’t need inexperienced children like Drek, either.”

“Rrghegh, well then – may the better goblin be the one that slays the beast,” Drek challenged.

“I’ll remember you said that while I’m cleaning summer antlizard guts off my sword,” Stibs chuckled.

With that, the goblin crew followed Leader Glazeanvil a little further, eventually arriving at the front of four long lines of dwarves. Colb gulped at the sight of the armed dwarves behind them. How did our mission escalate so quickly? he thought to himself. Whatever a summer antlizard is, I hope we can slay it before it slays us.