At the edge of the Razin tribe was a large imposing church, degraded over the years, sitting on top of a hill. The halls were divided into numerous separate rooms, with alter turned into the Chief's throne room. Small statues made of gold were situated on top of a large dresser, all of which depicted figures holding an oversize cog over their heads. Cossack stood in front of the large closet filled with numerous articles of clothing. He dug through them, looking for the perfect clothes to replace his dirty and wet ones. He also needed a new pair of pants after realizing he soiled himself during his encounter with the Lev Chief.
Once he found what he was looking for, he tore off his garments and threw them in a barrel. Just then, Violin entered the room through the curtains, "We got the grass you. Oh my god!" Violin covered her eyes.
"You could have knocked!" Cossack covered his chest and crotch with his hands.
"Whatever." Violin turned around, "We got the purple grass you needed to make your death touch."
"Perfect." Cossack shuffled through his shirt until his head popped out, "You can turn around now."
"Great, now let's go to the garden."
"Not yet!" Cossack took out a small purple flower. "I'm going to need some encouragement from my love." He said while sniffing the flower with his cartoonishly long nose.
"Are you being serious right now?"
"Yes," Cossack said as he sneezed, "I need to tell her what happened."
"And to tell her how brave you were," Violin said sarcastically.
The two of them left the throne room and walked outside. The Razin tribe's building was smaller than that of Lev, but the land of which they occupy was far larger, and they made full use of the empty spaces by creating small pockets of gardens while in Lev, the meadow was barren. The two made their way to the base of the hill, where a modest-sized barn was situated. Outside were some caretakers working under Violin. They were in charge of caring for the sick and the injured, and the barn was the place they would rest.
The caretakers bowed their heads before Cossack and Violin before returning to their work. Cossack entered the building with Violin following close behind. There were three rooms inside the barn, and one of these rooms had a goblin spearman standing guard. This goblin was one of the few goblins that were loyal to Cossack, and thus, he was entrusted with guarding Cossack's most precious person.
Cossack and Violin entered the room, barely lit by a hanging lamp sticking out of the wall. Violin leaned against the wall beside the door with her staff resting on her shoulder while Cossack stood in the middle of the room. The candlestick was nearing its end, and the fire was slowly wilting away, letting the darkness cover much of the room. But the light was strong enough to blanket the figure opposite of the door Cossack entered from.
In front of Cossack, sitting on a large pillow, was an elven woman. Her hair was redder than an apple, her legs were long and smooth, she had broad shoulders, and her hands were covered in calluses. Her eyes were crystal blue, and her glare was seething with contempt as deep as deepest oceans. She wore a gambeson torn in half, exposing her soft belly and lower back. Her lower half was lying lifelessly on the pillow, but the rest of her body still had the energy to move. She picked up a clay cup and drank water. "The hell do you want now?"
"My lovely Artio!" Cossack ran towards her, landing on his knee, then grabbed her left hand. "You would not believe what just happened!"
"Get your hands off me," Artio pulled her hand away from Cossack.
"Those vile Levs from the north have come to take over my tribe. But fear not, for this strong and brave goblin stood his ground and showed them his might." Cossack jumped on his feet and began to flex his muscles. "They could not believe how strong and powerful I was until I slammed my Krepkiy Club, creating a large crevice between me and their army hundreds of goblins." Cossack's long nose began to twitch.
"Oh, really?" Artio said unamused.
"Yes, my love, but they still would not give up. And so I wagered my life in an honorable Tina Bökh Fight. If I win, I will be their new Chief."
"And if you lose."
"Please, my love, I won't lose."
"Yahahaha," Artio laughed, then stopped, "Well, I hope you die when you lose."
"I will never die, my love. Not until I've caught your heart."
"Whatever you dirtbag pervert. Just leave me alone."
"As you wish," Cossack exited the room leaving Violin and Artio alone.
"Miss Violin, you go too, no?" The guard poked his head through the door and asked.
"Just give me a few seconds," Violin said.
"Ok." Then the guard returned to his post.
"What do you want?" Artio asked.
"For someone who can't walk, you sure have the guts to wish for my Chief's death."
"Yahahaha! And what are you going to do about it? Are you going to kill me for it? Then go ahead, I'd like to see you try."
"Oh, please don't try to act all tough. As the Chief Priestess of this tribe, I've heard about you from my caretakers how you cry every night after having a nightmare of dying. You're not brave enough to face death."
"Fuck you. You know nothing about me,"
"And you nothing about my Chief, my friend, and you certainly don't know what's going to happen to you if he loses this duel. Do you know anything about those barbaric tribes from the north? The things they would do to you are far worse than us secluding you in this barn." Violin slowly walked towards Artio. "They would ravage your entire body from head to toe. You'll be covered in filth every hour with no time to rest. And you're going to wish for death to come every day, but he will never come to you until your body is broken beyond repair." Violin stopped, took her staff, and poked Artio's belly while leaning closer.
Artio grabbed the staff with her left hand and tried to push Violin off her with her right hand, but Violin managed to catch it in the air. "Get off!" Artio grunted as she struggled to wrestle Violin off her.
"I'm not done," Violin gently whispered, "Those barbarians will fill your belly to the brim until that soft and cute belly balloons. And then a little halfling will crawl its way out of you, and the cycle of rape and abuse continues. And once your holes are loose and unable to give birth to their weak halflings, then in winter, they will roast you alive, and their entire tribe will feast upon your flesh." Artio began to sweat profusely. "So let's both pray than my friend wins, yes?"
Violin pulled her staff from Artio's weak grip and exited the room. Cossack waited outside the barn for Violin and when he saw her outside and Cossack and placed his hands on her shoulders. "You didn't scare her, did you?"
"Yes, I did."
"Why?" Cossack yelled.
"Because she needs to know what will happen if you lose," Violin said while poking Cossack's belly with her staff. "Now let's go to the Glass Garden already. My caretakers are waiting."
"Alright," Cossack brushed his nose.
"Why do you like her anyway?"
"I don't know. Maybe because she doesn't know anything about me, so I thought I could be somebody to her."
"Oh, didn't think you'll answer sincerely." She said sarcastically, "Well I know you enough to know that I like you."
Cossack was flustered. "What?"
"What?"
"Look I like you, but as a friend. So I'm sorry if,"
"What, no!" She yelled, "I don't mean it that way. I like you as friend too. My tinia, you're not even my type."
"Cahahaha!" Cossack laughed.
The two of them walked to the center of town, where a large building stood. The dome's exterior was held together by metal frames with its walls and roof made of thick fiberglass. Inside the glass building was a garden with yams, lettuces, gourds, and parsnips growing from its soil. Violin's caretakers were in charge of caring for the garden, for this was the garden that feeds the tribe during the harsh winter months. While Lev and many other northern tribes struggle to hunt their food, the Razin devoted most of their time growing a surplus. The Razin tribe sees the job of a caretaker as the most prestigious role a goblin woman could have. And very few are able to fill the position.
To become a caretaker, one must be single and unable to give birth to children. Their infertility is seen as a blessing by the tribe because they are no longer held down and can grow food for the tribe without any distractions. In return, the tribe considers the caretakers as the tribe's full pledge mothers. And thanks to these caretakers, starvation is but a foreign concept.
Besides the caretakers, the job of a guard is a highly respected position. They protect the tribe from outsiders and maintain the walls that keep out wild animals from coming in and disturbing the gardens inside. But it was also the most dangerous for the walls could only do so much. And the length of the walls meant the guards were stretched thin. Because of this, Cossack made fake dolls and moving spears along the walls to make it seem like an entire army guards the walls.
But the wall is only as important as the treasure it protects, the Glass Garden. Cossack and Violin entered the Glass Garden, and the caretakers working inside stopped and bowed to them. The two walked past the many vegetables being grown until they reached a large yellow tree growing in the middle of the garden. On the base of the tree was a clay jar full of purple liquid extracted from the poisonous grass Violin and her followers gathered, and next to it was a vase of flowers.
"This better work," Violin commented, "Because we've already used up all the fruits grown from that tree to make those pills."
"What do you mean?" Cossack looked up at the tree and pointed at it, "Look, I see some growing right now." He said with his nose twitching.
"Whatever, let's just get over with." Violin tied a white knot around Cossack's biceps. Then she took a bag of sand and filled the jar until it reached its mouth. "Ok, It's ready."
Cossack dipped his hands in the jar until the sand reached his elbow. After soaking it for fifteen minutes, Cossack removed his hands from the sand and opened his mouth. Violin took out a yellow pill made from the fruits that frows from the yellow tree. These pills were the antidote for the poison and must be eaten by Cossack after soaking his hand in the poisonous sand every fifteen minutes. After three hours, the pain from the poison was too much and Cossack collapse on the floor. But his hand was still far from poisonous.
Cossack continued to do this for five nights, until after the sixth night. Violin gave him the antidote after five hours of him repeatedly stabbing the sand, then Cossack took a flower from the vase and it wilted.