…
In a small mountain village east of a blackwood forest.
「 It must be so hard to be a knight… I follow him as he walks out of the small horse stable we slept in, his eyes cast downward as he enters the town's main square. He walks to the bell, and rings it once, summoning the villagers to the said square.
I stand behind him as he talks to them, explaining the situation.
A man comes forward as he approaches us; he looks rather older than the others in our group but not very. His hair is streaked with grey, and his beard is thick and full.
He bows as he addresses the knight.
"Honourable sir... why are we greeted with your presence?" he asks. Ahahaha. The stupid Sordie probably doesn't know what hit him.
I wait patiently as the Knight explains that he is here to help organise the area. These Sords don't even know how to build a wall. As the Knight finishes his explanation, the townsfolk start muttering amongst themselves.
The man looks at the Knight angrily as he says something I couldn't hear.
"Sir, there must be some mistake," says the elderly man as he walks towards us.
"There is no mistake! My master would never~."
"I am here to help you with your enemies." the knight says. The man turns and glares at us before speaking again, and I see the Knight take a deep breath. I can tell the man is not pleased to be dealing with people like us.
As if it weren't bad enough, his wife starts walking towards us. This lady must be the leader.
"Hello foreigner, I am the leader of this village." the knight bows his head to her as she speaks.
"So what do you want?"
"To make friends," he says, looking straight at her.
The lady seems to relax a bit at this and smiles. "Alright then friend. Why did you come?"
I notice that the villagers seem hesitant and suspicious. Their gazes shift from the knight to me and back again. The lady smiles at them as if telling them to listen to the stranger.
"That's fine. Tell us what to do." She replies after thinking about it for a moment.
Honestly, I am appalled that the Master has decided to work with these savages. The Sords with olive skin and brown hair and beady black eyes, dressed in tattered clothing and mud covering their boots. A group that will try and eat you alive if given the chance.
They're the scum of the earth. Why should the Master work with these village dwellers? I look at him, but his face is obscured by his helmet. I feel disgusted at the sight of him working together with these people.
Master is my protector. I won't allow anything to harm him if I can stop it. If he's willing to work with them then I will gladly do the same. But I'm not sure if our superior blood should work with them.
Now that I think of it, I don't know why we even sailed all the way here from the old keep. In a peculiar way too, as we jumped on a small boat and basically kayaked ourselves. But I trust my master, I don't have to worry about that.
Still, I want to talk to him when all of this is done. Maybe he'll tell me more about this strange land. After rounding up the people in the village the Knight enters the woman chief's house. Of course I followed him there.
The house is completely made of wood, but instead of thin planks it's made of thick logs presumably tied or nailed together. There's two rooms at the end and the floor is covered in dirt and dried mud. All around the walls is a large array of wooden boxes filled with food.
"Sorry for the rabble." the woman says as she puts down her savage furs. She sits on her bed, which is just a woolly patch on the floor, but I guess for these people it's enough. Her body is slender and tall, her shoulders wide.
Her home is surprisingly comfy, in contrast to the bright and cold morning on the outside, the windowless cabin is dark and warm, the only light coming through the holes in the roof.
"It's quite alright." The Knight says as he takes off his sword belt and hangs it on a peg by the door.
"Are you the only one?" the chief asks. The knight nods. The woman gets up from her seat, taking a piece of bread out of the basket on the table at the centre of the room. She bites into it with a satisfied expression, as she stares towards the fireplace.
She then takes a few more pieces and stuffs them into her mouth as she makes her way towards a cabinet. She opens it and reveals a small map. She shows the map to me and the knight, placing it on the floor in front of us.
My eyes roam over it before I finally realise that it seems to be a map of our current area. She traces her finger, towards some crudely drawn squares on the map.
"This is where we came from" she says gesturing towards the squares on the map.
"We fled all the way towards here. There are too many hostiles roaming in our old homeland. There was nothing we could do." she says in a solemn voice dripping with hot wax, burning her skin as she remembers.
"Oh, why don't you give it a jimmy?" she laughs, wiping some tears from her eye before turning to the Knight with a smile. He looks at her puzzled as she reaches over and taps the edge of the paper with her finger; soon it slides over to him.
I watch the master hold the paper in his hands, rubbing his fingers in between the paper, his face scrunched up in deep thought. His helmet is on his lap as he hands the map to me.
"My name is Kauno Nahoeon. I haven't caught yours." she says in a curt tone.
"His name is Marcus Willem!" I say. This woman should really treat the Master with more respect.
Kauno's eyes turn sharp and narrowed into slits, but quickly return to normal. "Is that right?" she asks the Master in an inquisitive tone.
The Sordish village is a very small one, just eight men are in it at this time of day, and some women and children. There might be more of them but for now this is what the Knight has to work with. At least he isn't fighting alone.
Kauno motions us over and places another piece of meat in front of each of us, and gives us a plate of berries and nuts. After she serves herself, she looks at me expectantly. She's waiting for me to say something.
I suck a breath, looking at her face is intimidating. I don't even know why we're working with them, and not anyone else. What's happening back home?
"You are really eager, I suppose we can do it with you." Kauno sighs.
She takes a pitcher from the table and pours herself water on her bowl. She drinks it in one go, washing down the bread.」
Gathering their things, they walk out to survey the town, Marcus walks around the town to see the facilities it has, a single pig pen, a farm plot, and some dirty huts. It's not a lot but it's manageable. They'll make do. For now.
They have enough food for a few days at least, so there's no rush. The sun is warm on their skin, and he can't help the grin that splits his face. He never did get a chance to have his own land back in the continent.
These islands are a new frontier, and he will put his own foothold here. He looks at the thick lipped woman beside him, she has followed him all the way here, she hasn't asked him too many questions, and she's always followed him, for as long as he remembers.
Recently he's discovered something about her. About why she follows him like a lost sheep, she doesn't seem to want much. Her only request has been the same since he rescued her from her father, who beat her up badly.
That's when he took her in. She'd lived alone with only a dog for company, but after he got her to his side she became extra clingy. He gives her a side eye before he walks to the edge of the small village. She skips behind him following him to where he's walking to. The grass is wet under his feet but he ignores that.
When he reaches the top of the hill he glances back and sees her still following him, her eyes glued to him like a leashed animal. There's a smile on his face. He looks down at where the sea is, across the sea is where his civilization was once were.
He shakes his head. Now he has to start over again, build a new home somewhere far away, so no one can ever find them for now. But they won't be living in hiding forever. Marcus knows this. He just needs time.
He's been planning how he wants this new life to begin, with more resources than he has right now. He's gonna start small first, then move out further as things start to look good. He knows what to do first, in these forests there are moon-touched beings, most likely, goblins.
They need protection. They're predators, but their territory isn't near the main settlement. He knows he's going to have to enter an alliance with them in order to conquer the entire island. The island is huge, and it's going to be a challenge to rule it all.
He's going to have to learn as much as possible about them, if he plans to succeed. So far they've done nothing to show any signs of hostility towards humans. As Marcus sits there thinking, the woman comes up next to him, she's holding a bundle in her arms.
Marcus turns to glance back at her. "I have bought some firewood... so we can cook on the way!" she says, her voice enthusiastic. "You haven't eaten or slept all day. You must be starving. Master, please let me serve you!" she skips towards him, she stops and bows slightly.
A blush spreads on her cheeks. "Please give me a chance." she pleads. Marcus nods and lets her take him by the hand. He holds her hands and leads her into the forest. It's the least he can do for her.
As soon as they enter the forest she sets up camp. She takes some of the wood from the basket she's carrying and makes a fire, then lights it using a flint and a steel piece, which she pulls out of her pocket.
Marcus likes her for her efficiency and her compliance, she does exactly as he asks without argument. Once she has the fire lit, she starts chopping vegetables in silence. She's making a broth.
But Marcus isn't here to hunt, he's here to track down the goblin nest. The goblins are very territorial creatures, they live in caves underground, their nests are very hard to spot. Marcus knows he's going to have a hard time tracking them, but if he wants man power he has to show a lucrative deal with them.
Goblins fear no man, but the woman cooking the broth, kneeling in the dirt right next to him will solve that issue. She's not wearing a bra today, she doesn't usually wear much clothing anymore since she's soaking her soiled clothes in vinegar to clean it off.
Her body is covered in scratches and bruises, but her breasts are quite large. The way the light catches them, he can't keep his eyes off them, and they feel full and soft against his fingers.
They're a nice contrast to the chubby round stomach underneath them, which curves into her belly button. "Sir..." she whimpers. Marcus snaps back to his senses and he quickly retracts his fingers. He's now kneeling beside her...
This is a power she doesn't know she has. She should know better, but she's innocent, she thinks he loves her... Maybe he does... Marcus is disgusted by her naivety. He should avoid doing anything romantic with her because he knows that it's not true, it's her.
A monster.
He stands, and she immediately rises with him. He doesn't say anything.
"Let's go, we'll come back here after we find the nest." he says, leading her into the forest. He knows where to go, just in the centre of the forest these things always reside.
He must get back into the village before the end of the month, unspeakable things happen here. "Where are you taking me?" she asks nervously, her hair sways from side to side, but her arms fold up to her chest mimicking a scared animal.
"There's a clearing here, are we almost there?" she whines, looking at him as if he's killed a small animal. "If you stay quiet, you may get your wish to see the goblins. But you must listen to me. Do you understand?" he says, giving her a stern look.
She giggles as she is led by the knight to a cove near the centre if the forest. It is a peaceful place, hidden by the bushes and trees surrounding them, it could even rival the gardens back in his old home...
"Why don't they live in other places?" She asks curiously.
It's a valid question, because goblins rarely leave their burrows unless they have to. "Because they're afraid of humans." he answers. "And they're smart."
"Smart?" she repeats, confused.
"Smarter than the savages living on this island. Those people, like the Sords we encountered, do not see reason. They see creatures that are different from them and they attack without mercy. I know we can reason with these goblins." he replies.
"All we need is to convince them to work together…"
The forest slowly grows quiet, except for the soft crackling of the fire between them, the sound echoes.
He can hear birds singing outside, there are animals running through the woods… It's a beautiful place to live. But it would be dangerous to stay.
It's not long until he saw a goblin bathing in one of the ponds. It doesn't look too different from the men, really, they look like regular men that have been painted on, in a multitude of colours. Most of them have varying appendages.
Like horns, extra limbs and other things that are not in normal humans, they're really pitiful. They stand around naked, with the exception of the two or three tattoos that cover their bodies, all of them sporting ugly scars from whatever happened to them.
Humans are the worst. They kill everything in their path and then laugh while they do so. No wonder this island is filled with savages.