Chapter 11: All Alone

Karen studied the strange goblin’s features. It was different for sure, but she’d never think it belonged to a freak. In fact, she’d say he was quite handsome, in an exotic kind of way. But it was his eyes that really caught her attention. The lilac irises enveloping the vertical slit pupil. His pupils were always contracted to thin lines, as if prepared to fight at any moment, perhaps he was. But it was something that laid deeper within that drew her attention. It was raw, untainted, pure. It was pain.

“I like your eyes, I think they’re pretty.”

Stryg's eyes widened at the compliment. No one had said that before. For a brief moment she saw his pupils form into an oval.

She looked away, flustered, “You know, like a girl. I mean, you’re as short as a girl, and you have no facial hair. I think you might be able to pull it off.”

His pupils reverted to slits, “Are you mocking me?”

Did she want to fight, he wondered? Did he have the energy to? His muscles still ached every step he took.

She pulled her head back, scrunched her eyebrows, and made a half smile, “Relax, it's just a joke.”

“...Hm.” He backed down.

“I do like your eyes though.”

She reached over to slap his shoulder playfully. But the moment was gone. Stryg stepped away. Karen lowered her hand.

She opted to change the topic. “Hey, how did you get so fast?”

“What do you mean?”

“This morning, I saw you running. I’ve never seen a goblin run that fast.”

He gritted his teeth. Fast? Who was she kidding? He was one of the slowest in the entire tribe. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t play dumb. I saw it for myself. You ran like a vampire, it was pretty cool.”

“I don’t know what you saw. Last I checked I got last place in most of my tribe's races.”

“Wait, wait. You’re saying that people in your Blood Tooth tribe-”

“Blood Fang tribe.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever, you're saying that your tribe has a lot of people faster than you?”

“Yep.”

“I call bullshit. Unless you guys have some secret magic technique to make you as fast as vampires.”

Vampires? What exactly were they anyway? he thought.

“Most of them are faster than me and there’s no magic technique,” he said. “We just train everyday in order to survive in the forest.”

He looked at the abundance of food on display throughout the stands. “But, I guess you guys don’t need to. You’ve all just gotten fat and slow.”

“Hey, now you’re mocking me,” she smirked.

“You’re the one who thinks I’m fast.”

“Mm.”

She doubted he was considered slow among his tribe. Sure, most people here didn’t train everyday in the wilds, after all they lived in a damn city. But even if they had, she’d doubt they could come close to his speed. He was just lying about his agility.

She suddenly recalled how he had looked when he admitted to being a freak. Perhaps he didn’t see it that way.

She paused in her steps. “Why were you running anyway?”

“...I failed to join a tribe. Or gang as they called it here. What’s the difference?”

Karen was confused. He wanted to join Jax’s gang? Then why did he break his nose? “Gangs are just groups people make up to get some things done is all. You shouldn’t join any… they’re not very good people.”

“Is it because they’re weak?”

She gripped her skirt, “No, it's because they’re criminals. Sometimes innocent people just get caught up with them, because they have no choice. But gangsters are bad people. They beat others up who are weaker than them and take their belongings. Simply put, they bully the weak. ”

“That sounds pretty good to me.”

“What? No, that’s literally the meaning of a bad person.”

“Why? It’s the right of the strong to take what they want. If someone’s weak they should expect to bow to the strong, anything else would be strange.”

“What in all the Realms are you talking about? So, if you’re weak you should just roll over and be someone else's bitch?”

“No,” he looked at his hands, “I’m saying if you’re weak you should strive to get strong. And if you can’t, then you should roll over and be someone else’s bitch.”

“Why would anyone do that?”

“The weak need the strong to survive,” he said. “The strong have a right to what they want, that’s just the way it is. The law of nature. If the weak try to resist they simply get crushed.”

“Well maybe that’s the way it is where you came from but here-”

“Is it different here?” he asked, surprised.

So many things were different in the city. Perhaps he’d have a better chance in this place.

Karen thought of the powerful Houses who lived in the Villa District, the lords and ladies who ruled this city. She thought of the poor populace who had to obey them, lest they be enslaved, or worse, sent outside the walls to become fodder for the shades.

Karen frowned, “...No, I guess not.”

“Oh. I see…”

Stryg nodded to himself, of course things weren’t different. The world was cruel no matter where you went.

“Even if this place has its problems it doesn’t mean it should,” Karen said. “People don’t like the way things are here. Someone has to do something. Someday, someone will, hopefully.”

“Someone once told me that it doesn’t matter what others think, if they can’t stop you, then they don’t matter. You take what you want. Who cares what the weak want.”

“Wow, sounds like a tyrant,” she said with a stony face.

“It doesn’t matter what you think of him, or what anyone thinks for that matter. He got what he wanted.”

“Is that right? So, what happened to this powerful tyrant? He become the leader of your tribe or something?”

“No, he died.”

“Nice, ~so powerful~” Karen rolled her eyes.

Stryg ignored her. “But while he was alive he got what he desired, surprisingly. He just wasn’t strong enough, so he got killed. No one was strong enough to survive what we faced...”

Stryg had simply been able to escape. He had left Ostroz and the rest behind to die. Because he had been too weak to help them. He wasn’t the moon’s chosen one. He was just some random goblin who had gotten lucky under the circumstances. He hated the shaman, but the guilt of abandoning the rest still weighed on his mind.

“Well, I’m glad one more bully is dead. The world could use less of those.”

“He wasn’t a bully, but he was cruel and merciless to those he fought. All goblins compete to be the strongest. The goal is to make others submit to you, to make them acknowledge you as the strongest. That is our way.”

“What a charming tribe you got going there,” she said sarcastically.

“Yeah, it was great,” he sighed reminiscently.

He missed home, too bad he was an exile hundreds of miles from the village. “What I’m trying to say is that he had been nice to me when he didn’t have to be. When he wasn’t expected to be.”

Karen blinked, “Oh. He was your friend... I’m sorry for your loss.”

“He wasn’t my friend. He was a bastard, honorless. He was just a little better than the others, I guess. Besides, goblins don’t have friends. We’re all in a battle to see who is the strongest. To see who rules over the rest. There is no room for friends.”

Stryg frowned. How could she not understand that? The world was cruel and the only way to survive was being crueler. At least, that’s what the Mothers had taught him.

Karen smiled softly, “Everyone needs a friend. Even a power hungry, possibly sadistic, goblin.”

He stared at her, then shook his head, “Nope.”

“Well, this is it,” she pointed at a food stall.

He looked at the small sign hanging above the stall, “Fiery Chicken, huh?”

“How did you know the stall’s name? Wait, you can read!?”

He shrank back, “Yeah, not great I know.”

“What do you mean not great? Do you know how many people would kill to get a chance to learn how to read?”

He rolled his eyes, “Yeah, sure. And I’d love to learn how to dance like a vulture.”

What is wrong with this guy? Karen thought, exasperated.

Stryg glanced at the woman standing behind the stall, “So, what do we do now? Small woman, where is the food?”

There was no food on the stall’s table, only circular wooden boxes.

“Dwarf,” the woman glared at him.

“What?”

“I’m a dwarf, you imbecile.”

Stryg hissed. The dwarf raised a wooden spoon.

Karen stepped in between the two. “Sorry, Agatha. He’s new to Hollow Shade. I don’t think he knows any dwarves.”

Karen dropped a couple of copper coins on the table. “Two servings of chicken dumplings please.”

Agatha eyed the two goblins, but swiped the coins up anyway. “You better teach him some manners, or I’ll whoop him black and more blue then he already is.”

Karen bowed her head, “Sorry, will do.”

Stryg saw her bow of submission. This dwarf was stronger than her. Karen was trying to protect him. He decided to let the insult go, he simply wasn’t sure how strong this dwarf was.

Agatha opened the wooden box and pulled out a couple of large dumplings. She handed one to each of them. Stryg watched the exchange with great care. So, it was a bartering system, he surmised. The coins were given in exchange for food and entrance to the city. He had heard as much from a few goblins in the tribe, but he was pleased he could now confirm the stories.

“Thank you Agatha,” Karen smiled.

“It’s my pleasure. Now be sure to stay out of trouble.” She glanced at Stryg, “Especially with that one. Oh, and make sure to say hi to your folks for me.”

“Will do,” Karen was filled with guilt as she nodded. She was dating a gangster and was a pickpocket, it was a little late for staying out of trouble.

Stryg took a tentative bite from the steaming dumpling. He had never tasted something so good. The flavors practically exploded in his mouth. There was definitely salt in here, but there were so many other flavors as well. What was this incredible delicacy? He scarfed the food down in the blink of an eye. Was this food some kind of magic? He felt like life was returning to his deadened limbs.

Karen glanced at Stryg, he was salivating at her dumping. She laughed, “You can have it. I can eat something later at my house.”

Stryg grabbed the dumpling before she finished talking.

“You’re welcome,” Karen smirked.

Stryg devoured the dumpling, “I’ve never had something this good. What is it called again?”

“Chicken dumplings. Yeah, Agatha makes the best dumplings around.”

“Well, I’m glad I got a chance to try some. When I didn’t see any food on the stall I thought we might have to eat the small woman.”

Karen chuckled, “You’re ridiculous you know that.”

“Yeah, I thought it’d be hard to kill her with so many people around. I’m happy we didn’t. Now I can go back and eat more of her dumplings later.”

Karen’s smile fell, “What? You’re not serious right?”

He blinked at her innocently. It was a desperate move he admitted. He didn’t like eating goblins anyway, dwarves probably didn’t taste much better.

Karen laughed awkwardly, “Well, let’s get something to drink at least. There’s a shop right around the corner that sells sweet milk.”

“Sweet milk?”

“Yeah, you know? Milk with some sugar, usually an extra flavor added too. Ring a bell? No? Well, don’t worry about it. You’ll love it.”

If the dumplings tasted this good, Stryg could only imagine how tasty this milk could be.

“Karen?” A voice called out.

Karen froze. “Oh no,” she whispered.

“Hm?” Stryg’s thoughts of food vanished as he saw Jax standing in front of them. He wasn’t alone. Leroy and five other goblins stood behind him.

“You really found him, Karen! Well done,” Leroy said.

Stryg looked at Karen in confusion, “What’s going on?”

“It’s pretty simple, idiot. My girlfriend found you and brought you to me.” Jax tried to smile through his bandaged face, but failed as he winced in pain.

Karen looked horrified, “No, it’s not like that. I swear I didn’t know they would be here!” She tried reaching out for Stryg, but he jumped back.

“You don’t have to lie to him,” Jax said. “Get behind me Karen. He’s dangerous.”

Stryg hissed at him.

“You’re a freak,” Jax sneered.

“No, he’s not,” Karen said. “He’s my friend! Stryg, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

Stryg was a moron. How could he have been so trusting? His exhaustion and hunger had clouded his mind. The goblins had already begun to surround him. His back was to a wall, Karen had played him for a fool, and he was the idiot who had fallen for the trap.

“Leroy,” Jax commanded.

“On it,” Leroy grabbed Karen from behind her waist and pulled her away.

“Let go of me, Leroy! Run, Stryg! Run!” Karen cried out as she thrashed around.

“You’re not going anywhere, freak,” Jax pulled out a knife and pointed it at Stryg. “You’re all alone now, your gang isn’t here to save you.”