King of the Goblins 2—Chapter 36

Day three came and several things occurred to me the moment I woke up.

First, Gallu was still on top of me. Awesome didn’t even begin to describe the feeling of waking up with morning wood and already being inside a beautiful woman. Needless to say, we went at it without hesitation; we just kept quiet so we didn’t wake the others.

Second, we were getting close to the troll settlement. If what I had been told was true, we’d probably reach the troll city sometime today. I just hoped it happened when there was still sufficient daylight, although I tried to remember that goblins and elves had incredible eyesight and trolls had little beady eyes. Their vision was probably worse than mine.

And third, I should have told the soldiers to stand guard last night. Being this close to the troll settlement, we could have been attacked. Granted, everyone said trolls were lazy, but we still should have been safe. My thoughts had been with the women, so I hadn’t thought of any of it.

“Rise and shine,” I said as Gallu finally rose up off me. I leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, then clambered to my feet. My legs were sore as hell after two full days of this. Walking was something you didn’t realize could be so tiring until you went forty miles in two days.

We ate a slightly larger breakfast than the days before, and I ordered everyone to let their food settle for thirty minutes before we packed up and left. When we came across the trolls, I wanted everyone at their best. I took a moment to check everyone for blisters and bruises as well.

There was definitely an air of excitement around our party as we walked through the forest. The absence of great trees was noted; things were smaller and more spread out this far from Solace. It made walking much easier, but it definitely looked like a different place than the forest outside my underground city.

“So, what’s the plan again?” Taranath asked. He had mostly spent his time walking with Althidon. It was nice to talk with my elven friend.

“If we come across any trolls before we get to the city, kill them,” I said simply. “I’ll try to talk to them if I can, and learn where their king stays. Once we get close to their settlement, I’ll sneak in and kill their king. Then we can set a few things on fire and leave.”

He nodded. “I like simple plans. Less to go wrong. Well, at least the trolls aren’t known for being archers.” He slapped himself on the stomach. “Glad to know I can avoid a repeat of that unfortunate incident.”

“It’s been a while since I fought with a spear,” Althidon said as he walked up to us. He was using one as a walking staff, same as me. “My sword won’t be much good against those huge bastards.”

“You two will do everything possible to kill any trolls that try attacking us,” I said to Silvy and Tressi. “You as well, Gallu. Just set them on fire.”

She nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“If things get too busy, we might need a distraction so I can sneak into their city. Gallu, how far away can you set fires?”

She frowned and thought about it. “I’m not sure, Your Majesty. A few hundred feet, I think.”

My eyes almost popped out of my head. “Okay, well at least we know we can keep you at a safe distance. All three of you, for that matter. The soldiers can protect you.”

“Does that mean we’re going with you?” Althidon asked.

“Possibly,” I said. “It’ll all depend on what things are like when we get there. I’m really hoping I can just use the shadow stone and sneak in alone. That’s the best-case scenario.”

“And the worst-case?” he asked.

“Worst is me getting an arrow to the stomach again,” Taranath muttered.

“Worst-case scenario, we have to fight our way in,” I said. “Our spears will only do so much damage against them. If that happens, I’m counting on the women to dish out most of the damage. If we can keep the trolls at bay while the women set them on fire, we should be fine.”

Althidon nodded. “Well, if nothing else, this will make for some good stories to tell my grandchildren.” He gave me a look as if to remind me he wanted grandchildren, and the sooner the better.

“I’ll talk to her when we get back,” I told him. “Let’s focus on surviving, first.”

“And no surprises like last time,” Althidon said.

“Yeah, fortunately we don’t have to worry about that. Although the trolls are a bit resistant to magic, especially my blood magic.”

“They still burn,” Tressi said.

“And I know troll magic,” Silvy added.

“We’re as ready as can be,” I said. I had full confidence things would go well.

“Everyone keep your eyes open. We’re close, now,” I said to the soldiers.

We kept walking for the next few hours. No one really wanted to stop for lunch, but I made them. We cooked a lighter stew so none of my soldiers would go hungry. Althidon muttered something about fighting with a full stomach, but he ate as much as the rest.

“Here you go, hero,” Tressi said, tossing me a wine skin. 

“Thanks,” I said as I caught it. The last thing I wanted was to be drunk when we came across the trolls, but I took a swig to ease my nerves. This was different from fighting Ralcor, or even our earlier fight with trolls. This was out in the open. Anything could happen.

No matter how much I had trained with Althidon, I wasn’t naturally a fighter. I wasn’t particularly brave or aggressive. I fought for what I loved, but in the end I was a desk jockey that somehow found himself as king. With all that in mind, I tried to keep myself calm, and tried not to dwell on the fact that we were going to be fighting ten-foot-tall monsters.

“Tracks!” one of the soldiers called out. “Lots of them!”

We came to a halt and let him follow the tracks for a moment. Another soldier checked them and said they looked old. Only a moment later, they found more.

“We’re in troll country, now,” I said. “Everyone keep your eyes open. Your ears, too. Hell, keep your nose open, for that matter.”

“Do you think your pathetic human eyes will be able to see them?” Taranath asked, feigning concern.

“You might need to paint them bright pink so I can make them out against the forest,” I said in grave tones. “I didn’t bring any paint though, so we’re fucked.”

Taranath snapped his fingers. “Not sure how we’ll survive, in that case.”

“Yeah, I know,” I said. “You’ll probably wind up taking an arrow to the stomach.”

“Hey, not funny,” he said, but laughed. “You know, I was—”

“Troll!” one of the soldiers called out in a harsh whisper we could all hear.

“Fuck,” Taranath said. Even he blinked after saying that. I guess my way of talking was rubbing off on him.

Our party stopped and the soldiers focused on the troll. It was far away, barely visible. We moved carefully through the sparse woods, trying to stay as silent as eighteen people could.

“Let me try to talk to it first,” I said. “Maybe we can learn something.”

We crept closer until even I could make it out. The troll was doing something with a tree, reaching up and pulling branches down. I realized after a moment that it was probably a fruit tree, and the troll was gathering food. 

“It’s a woman!” one of the soldiers said.

“Hey Aaron,” Taranath said with a grin.

“No,” I told him. “No way.” 

“Oh come on,” he whined. “Don’t you like tall women?”

I snickered but otherwise stayed silent. We moved closer and I was finally able to see the troll better.

It was, in fact, a woman. Her mane of coarse black hair was quite long, nearly to her waist, and in a single braid as thick as my arm. She was just as tall as the other trolls I had seen, though certainly smaller than the warriors. Compared to the men though, there was a certain softness to her. Her neck was as thick as a tree trunk but she had sagging breasts beneath a crude cloth covering. I hated to say it, but peeking out from a short cloth skirt, she had quite the fat ass.

“I know how you like ‘em,” Taranath whispered. “Maybe a political marriage can help our situation.”

“Hush,” I told him.

“Look at the rear end on her!” he said, struggling not to laugh.

I took a deep breath and moved forward, although at least I was smart enough to grab Gallu on my way. Poor woman was trembling with fear.

“Here,” I said, and reached out my hand. She took it in hers. I could feel her shaking. “Everything will be fine. I speak their language, so I’m just going to try to get some information from her. You’re just here as insurance.”

“Insurance?” she asked.

“Yeah, I guess you guys don’t have insurance companies in this world yet. If she tries to attack us, set her on fire.”

Gallu paled a bit, but nodded.

Together, we walked closer to the massive troll woman. She seemed somewhat oblivious to the world around her and just focused on gathering fruit from the tree. Being ten feet tall certainly helped with that.

When we got close enough, I stopped and stood there for a moment, just watching her. She grabbed fruit from the tree, sniffed it, then stuffed it into a sack that hung from her waist. I looked around the area and didn’t see evidence of any other trolls, so I looked back at her.

“Are you staring at her ass?” Gallu asked me in a whisper. “That thing is huge!”

“No,” I grumbled. “Jesus, you guys are ridiculous. Just because I like big butts doesn’t mean—Ah, nevermind.” I raised my voice and called out to the troll woman. “Hey! Uh, excuse me.”

I wasn’t sure what kind of greeting to use with a troll woman, but what I said seemed to work. Her head snapped around and she turned to look at us. Her eyes narrowed and she took a step closer, smelling the air, but she didn’t make any sudden motions that made me think she wanted to attack us.

“What are you and why do you speak my language?” she asked. Her voice was low and coarse, exactly what I expected from a giant troll woman. 

“First, I want to emphasize that I’m not here to hurt you,” I said. “As long as you don’t attack me, I won’t attack you.”

“Oh, how kind,” she said. Her brows drew down. “Why are you bothering me?”

“Tell her you want to see her butt,” Gallu whispered next to me.

“Hush,” I replied.

“Tell her I want to see it, then,” she said. “That thing is impressive.”

“I’ll be open with you,” I said. “I need information about your new king.”

Her face briefly twisted into a scowl. “He’s a bastard,” she said, and spat on the ground.

“And yet you follow him,” I replied.

“You say that like we have a choice,” she said angrily. If anyone disobeys him or displeases them, he burns them. If it’s bad enough, he’ll burn them publicly until they’re no more than a pile of ash. That’s his magic. Fire.” She looked me up and down for a moment. “He looks like you. Different, but the same race.”

“That’s what I’ve heard,” I told her. “Well, if you want to be free from this guy, tell me where he is so I can kill him.”

Her face hardened and for a moment I thought I had made a mistake. Then, I realized that look was a mixture of determination and pure hatred. She really didn’t like her king.

She took a few steps closer to me. I felt Gallu gather magic into herself and I reached over and put a hand on her shoulder to keep her calm.

“If you can kill him, I’ll name my firstborn child after you,” she said. “But you never answered my first questions. Who are you, and why do you speak my language?”

“I’m Aaron,” I told her. “And I’m the king of the goblins. I’ve been here about as long as your king. The reason I speak your language is due to magic. One of our women cast a spell on me when I first arrived to your world that allows me to speak and understand any language.”

The massive woman grunted. “She used troll magic on you. That language spell is one of ours. Our king had it cast upon him as well. There is a goblin woman that knows troll magic?”

“Yes, and she’s my wife,” I said.

“How can you be king of the goblins when you aren’t a goblin?” she asked.

“Well, how can King Jack be king of the trolls when he’s not a troll? The difference is that I’m not an asshole, like he is.”

She frowned. “Fair enough. So, you want to kill King Jack? I’ll tell you how.”

The troll woman turned around so that she was facing away from us. Gallu immediately nudged me and pointed at the back end of the troll woman. I rolled my eyes. But, you know. I looked.

The lower parts of her ass cheeks were clearly visible beneath the crude skirt she wore. I found it oddly fascinating that such a horribly ugly creature had such a great ass. That thing was big and round, like someone stuffed two basketballs in the back of her skirt.

“Did you get that?” she asked after a minute, looking at me over her shoulder.

Shit. She was telling me how to kill King Jack and there I was, staring at her ass. 

“Yeah, but can you run it by me again? I just want to make sure I understand everything completely.” That should work.

“We live that way,” she said, pointing in front of her and slightly to the right. “There is a wall around the city, made from logs, so you won’t be able to see everything. You might be able to climb it, though. King Jack lives on the southernmost point of the city. So as you approach it, to the right. You’ll see his house; it’s the largest one, even though he’s half our size. He has a flag flying above it as well.”

I nodded. “Got it. Thank you.” I even managed to completely avoid looking at her ass that time.

“He doesn’t use troll magic. He uses fire magic, and he loves to see things burn. The more cruel, the better.” Her eyebrows drew down into a fierce scowl. “He killed my son, because my son refused to obey him without question.”

“I’ll avenge your son,” I told her.

She looked at me for a while after that, as if deciding what to say. “Aaron?” she asked. “That is indeed a strange name. But as I said, you kill Jack and I’ll name my next child after you. I will do you that honor.”

I bowed to her. “Thank you. And thank you for the information. We won’t let you down.”

“How will you kill him?” she asked.

“Blood magic,” I told her simply.

“I’ve heard of that,” she said after a pause. “I’ve also heard it’s evil. Are you an evil man, Aaron?”

“If I was, I wouldn’t be here trying to kill a tyrant, and I wouldn’t have worked so hard to defend my people when Jack sent his warriors to kill us.”

She nodded. “Do what you must, Aaron. And may the gods be with you.” She turned back to the tree, then looked over her shoulder at me. “Avoid any of our soldiers you come across. They are the most devout, and they follow everything Jack says. Also, please keep it to just our king. I don’t want any more of my people to die.”

“I give you my word,” I told her.

With that, we turned and went back to our party. 

“What did she say?” Gallu asked.

“She told me where their city was and where King Jack stays. He sounds like Ralcor—the people don’t like him. She’ll be glad to see him gone.”

The soldiers gathered around me and I passed on what I had learned to everyone. After a few minutes, we were ready to go.