Continued from last night 'cause I was too tired.
"My aching back." Skiv muttered to himself as he loaded the last sack of provisions onto the wagon. The goblin had been hauling equipment around all morning in preparation for the orc party to continue their move through the forest. Many were items plundered from the last elf village they raided, a successful venture despite being harried ever since by some silent hunter. He half hoped that the hunter would find this main group of orcs, delivering his wrath to them swiftly. He thought this because he was one of only a handful of goblin slaves left after the raid; they were often used as advanced troops in the raids and this time many were cut down by the skilled archers of the elven village. Now he was left with less than a dozen others, only one being a brutish bugbear, to do the heavy work around the camp.
At dusk the party had learned of the demise of their rear guard, a group of orcs that had been specifically left behind to deal with their elven pursuer. They had obviously failed to an orc, killed in the first day after the raid. Now the leader, Grullashk the Gruesome, was anxious to leave. He tried to hide his fear of the elf, but Skiv had worked around these orcs for the last three years and knew each one well, he never had a problem reading their feelings. The orcs ignored the goblins for the most part, speaking openly about plans and events, as if the goblins were too stupid to comprehend their schemes. That couldn't be farther from the truth. Skiv and his kin were merely waiting for the opportune moment to rid themselves of their cursed servitude.
"Stop standing around, wretch, there is more work to be done before we set out."
The goblin quickly ducked his head and nodded in subservience. The speaker was Durigal, Grullashk's mother and his most fervent supporter. It amused Skiv how much Grullashk depended on his mother to help him in the direction of the pack. He knew that she was just as much the leader as her son, for he consulted her in all things.
Skiv approached the small fire that had been set up to cook the group's breakfast, intending to douse it as the preparations for departure were nearly complete. Before he could, Durigal stopped him, her hand clasped tightly about the hand that held the putrid water of the previous day. Skiv risked looking up at her, a confused expression on his face.
Durigal was ugly even by orc standards. She'd had one eye gouged out last winter in a furious row with a troll and she did nothing to hide the garish scar it left behind, proud of the trophy of that great victory. The tusk on that side of her mouth was also broken just above her protruding lip and rot had begun to creep into it. She was large for a female, standing well over six feet and powerfully built. It was clear to see where Grullashk got his amazing size.
She stared down at Skiv with her one good eye, a malicious smile adding a sinister cast to her horrid features. "I want you to feed it, make it bigger. We're going to leave something for these elves to remember us by."
Skiv was able to hold in his shudder until after she left. She meant to set fire to the forest to keep the elves busy while they escaped. The goblin hardly thought it was a wise decision. Traps left behind them would do just as well to hamper any pursuit and wouldn't incite the wrath of every sentient forest-dwelling creature in the region. While it may take a little while for the elves to control the blaze, they would pursue with great haste and with rage behind their bow shots. Skiv only hoped he could find a good hiding place with an ample view of the slaughter when it came.
After the fire was burning high and hot, many of the orcs took up flaming brands and hurled them into the forest at their backs. The weather had been dry enough of late that the flames caught with ease. As the company began its evening trek they left a wall of roiling flame behind them.
Skiv fell into line among the other goblin slaves who always walked at the rear of the line of two score orcs. They were silent for the first hour, waiting for the orcs to fall into a sense of security, once again taking their attention off of their servants. Skiv leaned in toward the goblin next to him, Duok, and spoke in hushed tones in the undercommon language unfamiliar to the orcs.
"The elves will surely visit their vengeance upon these beasts." He said, glancing farther up the line to see if any of the nearest orcs had heard him. They hadn't so he continued. "I heard that the orcs already believe that a whole elven hunting party is trailing us."
Duok shook his head, a gleam coming to his red eyes and a small smile working its way onto his face. "Not Grullashk," he replied in a raspy voice. "I heard him talking with his mother and they believe it is the work of a single elf. Only one style of arrow could be found among the slaughtered rear guard. Many of them hadn't the chance to respond, so quickly were they cut down."
Skiv nodded, having assumed something similar. "Either way, our freedom is near. A whole party of such warriors would destroy the orcs in short order. A single elf would cause enough chaos that we could rise to the occasion and take back our freedom."
The other goblin had to fight to keep control of his excitement. "You should speak to Agruthak. The bugbear will want to know that his time to prove himself is at hand."
Skiv smiled widely, his many pointed teeth gleaming in the light of the rising moon. "We will be ready," was all he said before working his was slowly toward the back of the group to where Agruthak the bugbear plodded along. "When the time comes, the orcs will fall, one way or another."
At dusk the party had learned of the demise of their rear guard, a group of orcs that had been specifically left behind to deal with their elven pursuer. They had obviously failed to an orc, killed in the first day after the raid. Now the leader, Grullashk the Gruesome, was anxious to leave. He tried to hide his fear of the elf, but Skiv had worked around these orcs for the last three years and knew each one well, he never had a problem reading their feelings. The orcs ignored the goblins for the most part, speaking openly about plans and events, as if the goblins were too stupid to comprehend their schemes. That couldn't be farther from the truth. Skiv and his kin were merely waiting for the opportune moment to rid themselves of their cursed servitude.
"Stop standing around, wretch, there is more work to be done before we set out."
The goblin quickly ducked his head and nodded in subservience. The speaker was Durigal, Grullashk's mother and his most fervent supporter. It amused Skiv how much Grullashk depended on his mother to help him in the direction of the pack. He knew that she was just as much the leader as her son, for he consulted her in all things.
Skiv approached the small fire that had been set up to cook the group's breakfast, intending to douse it as the preparations for departure were nearly complete. Before he could, Durigal stopped him, her hand clasped tightly about the hand that held the putrid water of the previous day. Skiv risked looking up at her, a confused expression on his face.
Durigal was ugly even by orc standards. She'd had one eye gouged out last winter in a furious row with a troll and she did nothing to hide the garish scar it left behind, proud of the trophy of that great victory. The tusk on that side of her mouth was also broken just above her protruding lip and rot had begun to creep into it. She was large for a female, standing well over six feet and powerfully built. It was clear to see where Grullashk got his amazing size.
She stared down at Skiv with her one good eye, a malicious smile adding a sinister cast to her horrid features. "I want you to feed it, make it bigger. We're going to leave something for these elves to remember us by."
Skiv was able to hold in his shudder until after she left. She meant to set fire to the forest to keep the elves busy while they escaped. The goblin hardly thought it was a wise decision. Traps left behind them would do just as well to hamper any pursuit and wouldn't incite the wrath of every sentient forest-dwelling creature in the region. While it may take a little while for the elves to control the blaze, they would pursue with great haste and with rage behind their bow shots. Skiv only hoped he could find a good hiding place with an ample view of the slaughter when it came.
After the fire was burning high and hot, many of the orcs took up flaming brands and hurled them into the forest at their backs. The weather had been dry enough of late that the flames caught with ease. As the company began its evening trek they left a wall of roiling flame behind them.
Skiv fell into line among the other goblin slaves who always walked at the rear of the line of two score orcs. They were silent for the first hour, waiting for the orcs to fall into a sense of security, once again taking their attention off of their servants. Skiv leaned in toward the goblin next to him, Duok, and spoke in hushed tones in the undercommon language unfamiliar to the orcs.
"The elves will surely visit their vengeance upon these beasts." He said, glancing farther up the line to see if any of the nearest orcs had heard him. They hadn't so he continued. "I heard that the orcs already believe that a whole elven hunting party is trailing us."
Duok shook his head, a gleam coming to his red eyes and a small smile working its way onto his face. "Not Grullashk," he replied in a raspy voice. "I heard him talking with his mother and they believe it is the work of a single elf. Only one style of arrow could be found among the slaughtered rear guard. Many of them hadn't the chance to respond, so quickly were they cut down."
Skiv nodded, having assumed something similar. "Either way, our freedom is near. A whole party of such warriors would destroy the orcs in short order. A single elf would cause enough chaos that we could rise to the occasion and take back our freedom."
The other goblin had to fight to keep control of his excitement. "You should speak to Agruthak. The bugbear will want to know that his time to prove himself is at hand."
Skiv smiled widely, his many pointed teeth gleaming in the light of the rising moon. "We will be ready," was all he said before working his was slowly toward the back of the group to where Agruthak the bugbear plodded along. "When the time comes, the orcs will fall, one way or another."