CHAPTER 12. GUESTS THEY DIDN'T EXPECT

“We are goblins of the Bignose clan. My name is Mor, and this is Vuk and Nuk. Allow me to greet you on behalf of our Warden Ogl,” Mor said, addressing Warden Appo as respectfully as he could, doing everything he could to keep his nervousness from showing.
Standing beside him, Nuk and Vuk bowed. The goblins had agreed beforehand that Mor would do the talking, and that the brothers would speak only when they were asked something.
“That you’re from the Bignose clan, I can see for myself. And I’m glad to welcome you to our humble goblinum. I am Warden Appo, and this is my Counselor, Torul. A very clever old man, I should tell you. He knows the history of our forest inside and out. If you get along, I’m sure he’ll tell you a lot of interesting things about the Bignose goblins,” Warden Appo said, half seriously, half joking.
Not knowing how to react to that, the young goblins only nodded.
“But that will come later,” the Warden continued. “For now, allow me to ask what three Bignoses are doing in this far-off, out-of-the-way corner of the Goblin Forest?” he asked, studying each of his unexpected guests closely.
“We’re here on behalf of our Warden, who invites you to a festival marking the end of the harvest. He wishes, within the circle of the great family of forest goblins, to thank the Supreme Rider and to share with you what our heavenly patron helped us grow,” Mor answered calmly, holding Warden Appo’s gaze.
“Ah, is that so. Indeed, such a tradition does exist. Unfortunately, goblins have lately begun to forget about it. Still, it’s very good that our forest has Wardens who bring the traditions of our ancestors back to life. But surely the time for this festival hasn’t come yet. The harvest isn’t in, and the flocks are still full of sheep. Hasn’t the esteemed Warden Ogl been hasty?”
“It’s better to let everyone know ahead of time, so that all the guests have a chance to prepare and arrive on time,” Mor answered.
“All the guests? So we’re not the only ones who’ve had the honor of tasting Bignose mutton and potatoes?”
“You’re quite right. Our Warden has written invitation letters to every Warden of the Hermit clan. Here is your letter.” Mor took it out of his bag and held it out to the Warden.
Having read the letter carefully, Warden Appo nodded approvingly.
“That’s very generous of Warden Ogl — to give everyone advance notice, so no one would be late. It speaks to his sincere wish to share the fruits of his labor with us. So, must you ride on right away? Do you still have invitation letters left? If not, I’d suggest you stay with us a while.”
“We still need to visit three more goblinums. But we have enough time. And we were actually hoping to stay a little while with you, to rest. Besides, we lost one of our rams. So now we’re forced to ride on two. Before the long road ahead, it wouldn’t hurt them to build their strength back up, either,” Mor explained.
He had expected they would be asked to stay, but decided to mention the rams as well, to reinforce the need for staying at the goblinum.
“So where did your third ram go? After all, if you value your lives, you most likely rode the whole way along the river. And there, as far as I know, there’s only one dangerous spot — the Black Lands. But the black wolves usually don’t come close to the river. They’re afraid of snakes. Though snakes aren’t residents of our forest, and don’t turn up here often. But I see you’re carrying swords. So I don’t think there are many beasts that could easily take a ram from you. Only one beast of the eastern forest comes to mind that could overpower even three armed goblins. That’s the cave bear. But the bear hills lie off to the side of the Road of the Four Clans, which you probably rode along at first. You couldn’t have ridden through the forest itself, after all. Why would you?”
The Warden’s piercing gaze came to rest on Mor.
“That’s all correct, Warden Appo. We rode along the Road of the Four Clans, and then along the river. So there was no way we could have run into a cave bear. Still, misfortune caught up with us on the road. One of our riding rams suddenly stumbled and broke its leg. As you can understand yourself, it could no longer carry anyone. So we had to turn it into food,” Mor answered, very convincingly.
“Yes, that sort of thing happens sometimes with these foolish animals. And always at the worst possible moment. I suppose it was this young goblin’s ram that got hurt? He looks bigger than the rest, I see,” the Warden said, pointing at Vuk and smiling good-naturedly.
“No, Warden Appo. Vuk’s ram is doing fine. It was Nuk’s ram that got hurt,” Mor answered.
“Well, then. That’s clear enough. I believe we can find you a good riding ram. And of course, you’re welcome to stay with us. After all, the ones you’re headed to see should be arriving here any day now. All three Wardens. You can hand them their invitation letters and head home by the road you already know. That way, you definitely won’t have to run into any cave bears.”
“Thank you for your hospitality, Warden Appo. What a wonderful coincidence, that the Wardens of all the goblinums will be coming here,” Mor said, genuinely surprised.
“Yes, as you see, that happens. Now then, you’ll be given a house and food. And if need be, your rams will be looked after, too. Torul, take our guests to Brakha, and see to everything I’ve said. And tell that idler he’s to carry out any request these young goblins might have,” Warden Appo ordered, and glanced toward the door, showing that the conversation was over.
A small goblin, who struck them as somewhat ugly, led Mor, Vuk, and Nuk to a stone house of the kind they were used to. When he heard where they had come from, he seemed embarrassed for a moment, and that didn’t escape Mor’s notice. The small goblin looked over the cozy dwelling with sad eyes, and quickly left his guests, after telling them where he could be found. That was how the Bignoses learned that their guide was, in fact, the keeper of the riding rams, and that his name was Brakha.
Left alone, the goblins didn’t dare speak for a long while, only occasionally exchanging glances. It seemed to them that a crowd of Hermits had pressed themselves right up against the walls of the house, just waiting to hear something about the Ant Power and expose them once and for all. Some time passed. They calmed down and realized that thinking about spies around the house was foolish. If they’d been suspected of anything, they would have been seized long ago.
Mor was the first to break the silence.
“I know I’m getting ahead of myself, but still. What do you think — was it them who stole the Ant Power?” he asked quietly.
“Very possibly. You saw for yourself how many armed goblins they have. What are they here for? We don’t have anything like that, because we’re not planning to fight anyone,” Nuk answered.
“But Brakha explained that the warriors are needed to guard the goblinum. After all, they live right on the very edge of the forest, and such a remote one at that. They’ve got swamps to the east, and mountains to the north. And trolls could be wandering anywhere out there, and who knows what else. It’s easier for us. We live deep in the forest. You could say, right at its very center,” Vuk objected.
Even so, he too was surprised by the large number of goblins with swords wandering the streets and around the fields.
“That may well be so. But don’t forget, trolls haven’t shown up in our forest for a very long time now. At least, I haven’t heard of any. So it still seems somehow suspicious to me. They have too many warriors. We need to find out whether they’ve recently started boasting about some incredible strength of theirs. If it really is them, then I very much hope they needed the Ant Power only to defend their own land. Tomorrow we’ll try to find something out. For now, let’s get some rest. So far things are going well enough. Warden Appo has received us, even if he did ask a lot of questions. So there’s nothing for us to be afraid of,” Mor said, and began settling down on his sleeping mat.
The night passed peacefully for the goblins. For the first time in several days, they didn’t have to light a fire or keep watch over the camp. So they slept well, and by morning were already striding briskly toward the center, where the cellars were located. They had no trouble finding their way, since this goblinum was practically a copy of their own. Not that the goblins were especially hungry — though Vuk was already starting to complain — but they needed to look around. And the central square suited that best.
Along the way they came across both ordinary goblins and goblins carrying swords, who always walked in twos or threes. All of them looked at the Bignoses with interest. After all, it wasn’t every day that one could see visitors in these parts — and ones who looked different from the local goblins, at that.
As he approached the center, Mor saw exactly what he had expected. Life here was already in full swing. The ringing of hammers drifting to him, together with the dull knock of axes, told him that the Iron-master and the Wood-master had already opened their workshops. At the cellars, goblins were lining up for food. Mor noticed that in this goblinum, one couldn’t simply walk into a cellar and take food, the way it was done back home. Here it was handed out by a set amount, and called a ration. Not that the local goblins were skinny — except for Brakha, of course — but to the Bignoses, it looked strange. Still, the locals took such rules for granted, and seemed content with them. Or perhaps they simply didn’t know things could be any different. But none of that concerned the guests in the least.
Mor went up to one of the cellars and waited for his turn. Goblins were talking all around him, and he was hoping to overhear something important.
Meanwhile, Vuk and Nuk were watching an enormous goblin in the middle of the square, who was about to teach the others how to handle a sword. The brothers found the sight interesting, and after letting Mor know, they went off to get a closer look.
A little while later, they heard:
“All of you saw the great battle in which our Warden won his victory. Thanks to his strength and his skillful handling of the sword, he had no trouble overcoming his enemies. In just the same way, remembering that example, you must strive day after day to become warriors like Warden Appo. And then no enemy will frighten you, which means you won’t lose a single battle. Are you ready to learn, so that later you can fight for the glory of our Warden?” the enormous goblin asked.
“We’re ready, Lukdun!” came the loud voices of the goblins lined up in front of him, in reply.
At that moment, Mor was already receiving his food, and noticed that his ration turned out to be better than what the locals were getting. At the cellar he heard nothing but ordinary street chatter. Deciding there was nothing more to do here, Mor headed off toward the brothers.
The armed force in the square interested him too. After all, this was exactly where the Ant Power might reveal itself. But watching the armed goblins, he noticed nothing unusual. They showed none of the super-strength Azuel had spoken of.
So Mor suggested they go check on the riding rams. Vuk and Nuk had quickly grown bored with what was happening in the square, and they agreed readily.
The goblins walked unhurriedly toward the pen, located not far from the center.
“Well, did you notice anything unusual?” Mor asked.
“Doesn’t seem like it. First that huge goblin named Lukdun was praising his Warden’s strength and skill, and after that you saw everything yourself,” Nuk answered.
“Well, that’s hardly surprising. We saw for ourselves yesterday just what a big goblin Warden Appo is. And I’ve no doubt he handles a sword beautifully. With this kind of iron discipline and strict order, the Warden of this goblinum certainly can’t be weak. Though I think our own Warden would still be a bit stronger.”
Soon they spotted their own rams, chewing grass with great appetite. Brakha was standing nearby, watching with obvious pleasure as the animals quickly devoured the juicy green treat he had recently brought them. The Bignoses greeted him, and at first assumed that only their rams, as guests, were being given such special attention. But looking over at the other pens, they saw that all the animals were also having freshly cut grass for breakfast. This surprised them greatly. After all, it was still early morning.
“When did you manage to cut so much grass? The day’s only just begun. With a Warden like that, I wouldn’t mind becoming a ram myself,” Vuk said, not hiding his surprise.
“Well, I haven’t gone anywhere from here at all. I live here,” Brakha answered, a little sadly.
“Here, or what? In the pen? There’s not a single house here except that shack over there,” Vuk said, pointing.
“That shack right there is exactly my house,” Brakha said quietly, and it was clear that he felt embarrassed admitting it.
“What do you mean, your house? Your goblinum is full of stone houses. Do you mean to say that not one of them could be found for you? You’re just as much a resident of this goblinum as anyone else, after all,” Mor said indignantly.
“Warden Appo says that if I live far from the pens, I won’t look after the rams as well. But recently he promised to think about a good stone house for me,” Brakha answered.
Even so, everyone could tell from his voice that he himself didn’t quite believe his Warden’s promise.
“I don’t know all your customs, of course, but with us, even a goblin from another clan can always find a good house. And there are already such goblins living in our goblinum,” Mor said.
Brakha didn’t answer. He only looked at him sadly. For a moment something like a spark flickered in his eyes, but it went out just as quickly.
Having made sure the rams were very pleased with the local hospitality, the Bignoses headed to their house, to have breakfast themselves as well.
“Shame on this Warden Appo, making Brakha live, you could say, right alongside the rams, just so he’d look after them better. That’s the same as settling me in a dugout next to the potato field, or the Bee-master in a beehive. By the way, I haven’t noticed any beehives here. Have you?” Vuk asked suddenly.
“What difference does it make whether there are beehives or not? These Hermits puzzle me generally. At first glance they’re just like us, but on the other hand, completely different. They have warriors and laborers, and everything’s arranged much more strictly. And on top of that the Warden has a Counselor. Our goblinums aren’t set up that way, even though they look very much alike on the outside,” Nuk answered.
“You’re right. Maybe that’s exactly why they’re called wild, because everything about them is different. But a Counselor is just the same as a helper. Every Warden has one. It’s just that the others aren’t as close to their Wardens as this one is,” Mor explained.
“And that old man yesterday struck me as sly. And there was something suspicious about the way he looked at us, too. Maybe they know why we really came here, and right now they’re laughing at us. We’re in their hands either way, after all. In that case we’re hardly likely to find any proof of the Ant Power,” Nuk said as quietly as he could, since they were just then walking onto the square.
Here, as before, goblins were swinging swords, and hammers and axes were pounding away, while by the cellars other goblins stood with baskets. Some were already leaving with a full basket, while others were just arriving for their ration. Everything proceeded calmly, as though each of them had known from birth exactly what he needed to do. But in all this near-perfect order, emotion was missing. There were no loud arguments, no cheerful conversations, no simple laughter, either. And an outside observer wouldn’t have been able to tell right away whether the local goblins were simply born that way, or whether someone was making them be that way.
No one answered Nuk’s guess. The Bignoses walked on in silence after that, only now and then feeling the eyes of others on them. They had almost crossed the square and were about to turn onto their own street. Another goblin was walking toward them, carrying an empty basket. As he drew level with them, he looked at all three, letting his gaze linger on Vuk for a moment. Then, without even slowing his pace, he walked on past.
A little while later, the goblin turned around and looked once more at the Bignoses walking away. Nuk, who kept glancing around on all sides as though searching for something, noticed this.
“You’d better not turn your head around so much. Or they’ll be sure to take us for spies,” Mor told him.
“You mean that goblin who just walked past? He was probably just staring at our noses, same as everyone else. Seems like we’re something like rare animals around here,” Nuk answered calmly.
“So what if our noses are bigger than everyone else’s? That doesn’t make us any less goblins. And here they are staring. Decent goblins don’t do that. Though what can you expect from them? No wonder they’re called wild,” Vuk said indignantly, and walked the rest of the way home with his nose held proudly in the air.
Once inside the house, he felt that his indignation had stirred up an even greater appetite in him.
The goblins had a good breakfast, and so as not to waste any time, decided to head straight for the fields. There, too, they might hear something interesting, or simply have a look around. Perhaps that was exactly where they’d see what they were looking for.
Meanwhile, the goblin who had crossed paths with the three Bignoses didn’t head for the cellar, even though he was carrying an empty basket. He hurried off to Dagul’s instead. Not finding him at home, he decided to go to the Warden.
This time he had better luck. The guards let him through, and he went in, finding Warden Appo examining some kind of casket. The Warden was studying it carefully from every side, as though checking it for flaws.
“What do you want, Uruk? I’m busy right now,” the Warden grumbled, displeased.
“Believe me, Warden, I wouldn’t have allowed myself to disturb you over trifles. I have very important news. I hesitated a little, so at first I meant to go see Dagul. But he wasn’t home, and so I decided to come to you,” Uruk said, stumbling over his words.
“Remember what I’m about to tell you, Uruk. If you have important news, you’re to come straight to me, and to no one else. Now speak.”
“When we were carrying out that task of yours” — after the Warden’s ban on mentioning the Ant Power, Uruk was still afraid to say the words aloud even now — “near that very goblinum of the Bignoses, Dagul and I climbed up into the trees to search the area for anthills.”
“I know,” the Warden cut in. “And I also know you might have been spotted from practically the other end of the forest, because you climbed that tree like a clumsy bear.”
“Yes, Warden, I beg your pardon. I’ll be more careful from now on, and I hope you’ll still trust me with some task or other. But now, with your permission, I’ll continue. Well then, when we were sitting in the trees watching the Bignoses, one of them stuck in my memory especially. He stood out among the rest, because he was fat, and his red head could be seen clearly from far away. And I just recognized him. He walked right past me on the square. There were two others with him, who also look very much like the ones I saw back then, near that red-haired Bignose,” Uruk recounted, agitated.
This news really did turn out to be very important to the Warden. After all, it meant that the Bignoses, who had suddenly appeared after his messengers returned, hadn’t come here for the letter at all. But then it followed that the one responsible — the one because of whom the Bignoses had learned of the theft of the Ant Power — was now standing right in front of him. For it was entirely possible that it was he whom the goblins working in the field had noticed. They simply hadn’t let it show, and had secretly tracked him afterward.
“How long did you watch the Bignoses?” the Warden asked.
“All day. We waited until they finished working and headed for the goblinum, and only after that did we climb down from the trees.”
“Did any of them leave for the goblinum during the day?”
“No. All of them worked from morning until almost evening, and never left the whole time. They only rested by their fields.”
Uruk had no idea that this answer had just saved him from a great deal of trouble.
“Strange. Then how did they manage to pick up your trail?” the Warden asked himself, out loud.
Uruk decided the question was addressed to him.
“I don’t know, Warden. But believe me, it wasn’t because of me. The whole time we were there, no one saw us.”
And to fully deflect the Warden’s possible anger away from himself, Uruk told him that they had actually been spotted earlier, near another goblinum, and that it was Dagul who had suggested riding in closer to the fields.
“I told him we shouldn’t ride in so close, because we might be spotted. But he didn’t listen to me.”
“Fine. I expect I’ll soon find out whether anyone knew about you or not. And remember: it may turn out that all of you have let me down very badly. Now get out.”
Uruk seemed to have been waiting for exactly that order. Covered in sweat, he hurried out.