by Jeff Inlo
#
Lief noticed the strange goblin activity before he even set foot in the Lacobian Desert. His travels brought him through the heart of Dark Spruce Forest and while he moved with a mind toward the southwest desert, the activities within the trees could not go ignored. The existence of goblin packs wandering the forest had become commonplace now that magic had returned to the land, and detecting the diminutive monsters became natural practice for all elves that ventured through the trees.
At first, the elf simply tried to avoid the goblins, but their persistent movement was the first hint that something was not quite right. Goblins were not transient, nomadic creatures that constantly ventured across the land. If anything, they moved only when necessary and normally not far from an established source of food and water. During the dormant season when food remained scarce, many goblins even dropped into a near state of hibernation.
Lief, however, found the exact opposite behavior in every group of goblins he encountered. As he ventured further into the heavy trees, he continued to come across roving bands of the dark creatures that showed anything but normal activity. These small groups showed no desire to remain still, but moved with purpose and without squabble over direction. That in itself was almost too much to believe as it was a goblin’s nature to argue and complain within their ranks, especially if they were doing something against their instincts.
He realized that while they were moving in small packs and did not congregate into one horde, they still moved as if they had the same goal in mind. They were all arming themselves, apparently raiding human outposts and possibly even a dwarf mine. Still, even as they collected weapons, they did nothing to establish a territory or even a zone of safety. The latter was the most confusing as the normally suspicious and leery creatures ignored obvious signs of potential predators. They moved about the forest as if they did not have to care about potential threats. Even when hook hawks soared above their heads, the goblins simply continued moving eastward as opposed to shrieking in fear and diving for cover.
“Odd,” the elf noted to himself. “They move as if they have come together, yet they remain apart. This is not like goblins at all.”
The elf knew full well that goblins were capable of combining into a massive horde and moving of like mind and desire. It is at this time these creatures are their most dangerous and prove that they cannot be ignored as some weak insignificant pest that can be swatted away. Elflore describes past legends and battles that include a sea of goblins attacking in waves of a purple-gray, pulsating mass that could fill the hillsides like ants on a drop of sugar. Their sheer numbers of incalculable size could overwhelm the best defended castles of men or the tallest tree fortresses of elves.
Still, for goblins to reach this level of a threat, they would need to combine. An underlying need or desire must bring them together into one conjunctive mass. For all those that Lief could see, they remained in their small packs, but acted as if their aims were the same.
Remaining high in the trees and deep within the cover of pine branches, Lief avoided being seen by goblins below or flying beasts above.
“Why would they all be moving in the same direction? They could fear something to the west, but they do not act as if fleeing. They are moving with purpose, not with fear.”
In considering a danger to the west, Lief’s mind returned to his own objective of Sazar and Tabris. He wished to waste no further time on the likes of goblins when such a true threat existed out in the Lacobian Desert. He almost dismissed what he witnessed until he realized the actions of the goblins might indeed be related to his own objective.
“Could the serp be directing them?” the elf wondered aloud. “No serp has the power to control this many goblins separated by such a distance. But what other explanation is there? They do not flee from the hook hawks. If anything, they ignore them. Even if they numbered thousands, the arrival of the bird-beast would at the very least provoke a response. If the serp was indeed guiding their actions, as well as the hawk, they would indeed ignore the bird.”
Lief considered all he knew and all he saw. “No serp alone has the power to do this, but what of a serp combined with the power of a sorceress? And if Sazar were to gain such power, what would he do? Would he stay in the Lacobian wasteland where prizes are few and far between? No, he would not. He would move either west to the coastal towns or east through the forest and into the plains that hold so many human cities.”
Putting the pieces together in his head like a puzzle that becomes easier to solve at the end, the elf visualized Sazar creating an army of minions just as he had done before attacking Pinesway. This time, however, the army would be massive in size and scope. With the aid of a sorceress’ power, the serp could control thousands upon thousands of goblins as well as hook hawks and other monsters. From the desert, Sazar would have to cut through the rocky hills and then Dark Spruce, but eventually he would come to the open plains and one human town after another where he could finish what he started in Pinesway. Realizing that the goblins were indeed linked to his own objective, Lief understood he did not have to go to the Lacobian to find his target.
“These creatures will lead me to Sazar, eventually.”