---

"They were born, they then lived, before they died. Death tulips meant to signify death we are sorry they died so soon.

It was after these words that Lomen saw a small window pop up in front of him with the curse. I didn't surprise him since blessings had been the same but the effect of it was immediate. In an instant a rush of information about death and its importance in life and as such how the cycle of life and death will continue on as long as at least one persists. For a moment he was shocked with both the massive information he had been given and at such a rapid pace. In it's wake was an unsettling feeling of being overshadowed by the grandeur of the forces that reside in the world he exists in. With this fresh in mind, a looming fear of death hung upon him, as if to say his days were numbered.

Within a few moments, Lomen took deep breaths to collect himself and consider the reality. Nothing had changed except for his knowledge of life and death. Death being the end of life, and life persisting after death. The reality that he was alive had not changed, the fact he had to force death upon creatures to live had not changed, and the fact that a nice breeze was comforting had not changed. As he recalled this he analyzed fear, being false evidence appearing real, not to be mistaken with danger. The danger of death was present but not to prevent the act of life. It is simply the end of it. What happens in life dictates how memorable both life and death is in the minds of the living.

Seeing as their was still light outside, Lomen decided to ponder more as he hunted by the side of the wind and went to the cave's entrance. Seeing as grandpa goblin was busy with Zectoll, he decided it best to just make a comment to Kishi and Zectoll.

"I am going back out to hunt. If either of you want to join me you are welcome too. If not I will be heading out while their is still light in the day."

He took a deep breadth in and enjoyed the breeze on his skin as it seemed to almost sooth the soul. He thanked the god of wind for helping him calm down, as well as the god of origin, life, and death for the knowledge, even if it was something that instilled some fear into his mind.

@Duthguy@demonspade64

When the goblin tapped its petal with a stick the flower didn't budge. It knew that anything that wasn't close to its lure wouldn't be caught with certainty and it would loose its meal. It was unresponsive its only points that would cause it to attack was touching its stem in a defensive response or if something was near its lure meaning that it would eat.

@Duoya@The 4 Winds

continuing the hunt-

The goblin Lomen soon left to go out and hunt once more. It is unclear if the goblin Kishi could move or think clearly after gaining the chained grief curse. Soon enough Goblin Lomen soon found his way towards a new area and soon he could hear the pounding of something heavy against the ground. Soon he came upon a Stamp boar this pig was as large as the goblin himself and was grazing on some berries nearby. The legs were muscled and no doubt could crush the little goblins bones should it reach full charge. Even so its tusks would still be a better weapon then the horned rabbits horn being much sharper and seemly sturdier. If they could kill that boar they would no doubt have a great feast of meat.

@El Noche

Elderly legend-

Grandpa was sad about having to do a service so soon after the young ones were born. He knew he was little better then a nurse maid but he felt connected to each of the young ones that were born in this cave. No two were exactly alike and each had their own strengths to call upon. Soon enough he was brought of his sad thoughts when little Zectoll came over and offered him some wolf meat the old Goblin smiled and took it from him. If nothing else these young ones respected his wisdom and age and he was glad that they all understood that for information he would give so long as he had a full stomach.

As he took a bite he listened to the little one as he described how he got a strange message telling him that he learned a new skill and asked if this was normal for goblins. "Its actually quiet common young one but not all goblins see it clearly sometimes it simply cant be seen or in other cases the goblin just feels that they learned something new rather then see the message in front of them. he said as he went back to eating the hind quarter. Soon the young one asked how he could become more like the black wolves and he decided that it was time he told a good story. "Well the way to that road of not fearing is to face what your afraid of. If you want to be more like the black wolves then you must remember that wolves run in packs their is always an alpha, a leader wolf. When you defeat one you will know what it means to be in a pack. I have heard stories that their are those who take the life of a black wolf so easily like running with wolves, commanding wolves, and hunting with them that they become something extraordinary. I have only heard stories about it but far out into the mountain to the north their lives a wolf that stands above all others in both strength and swiftness its maw covered in blood. When someone defeats that wolf it is said that they become the king of all wolves and shall be feared themselves. Of course I have never been outside the cave myself so I don't know if its true" he said with a smirk as he went back to eating the meat the young one gave him for his tale and advice.

Luz

"I'm gonna something that could be very stupid, cover me."

Luz couldn't help but raise a brow before tightening the grip on her stabbing stick. When he touched it she was ready to strike the head of the flower when it came after him; only for nothing to happen. "Well that quite...edgy." Luz told him sounding calm yet a bit surprise. "Say there wouldn't be a point to what you just did would it?" Luz wondered.

Kishi slowly came to, when he realized that Zectoll was no longer around. Presumably, he went into the cavern in search of something. Kishi turned towards the two graves before vomiting in his mouth. The bile was horrid, and it took several seconds for the foreign liquid to return to his stomach. A strong acidic burn spread throughout his mouth, and nearly distracted him from Lomen's words.

"I am going back out to hunt. If either of you want to join me you are welcome too. If not I will be heading out while their is still light in the day."

Kishi stopped his movements. Once again, the rage returned, however it came back as a fiery vengeance rather than an icy anger. The though of death made him realize how much the creatures of this land had taken from him, and the thought of killing them filled Kishi with a disgusting sense of joy. Once again, he donned his fake smile, and he responded to Lomen.

"Of course. There is still time in the day, after all. You can lead us this time, I... don't really feel in the mood."

Kishi began to follow Lomen as he made his march into the dark forest once more.

---

The path they had taken had been completely different from any that Kishi had taken before. Then again, considering he has only been hunting twice, this was not saying much. He was about to ask if the two of them should turn back, before a thumping on the ground silenced him. Standing 1-2 dozen feet away was a furry creature that was the same height as Kishi, and far more muscular. The flesh of the creature was incredibly taught, and stretched tightly across it's body. A single kick was likely to break his bones, and Kishi refused to think of what the creature could do if it struck him with it's tusks. However, the beast was also far larger than any other that Kishi has encountered thus far, and was more than capable of feeding multiple goblins. Whoever slayed this beast would be the envy of the entire cave. Kishi, however, was too focused on the tusks that were nearly the size of his arm. Soon, the voice in his head chimed in, giving Kishi a name for the creature.

Stamp Boar

Kishi silently maneuvered himself behind a bush, before thinking of a plan to fell this creature. Surely he could keep the beasts attention, but the biggest threat were the tusks. They could easily disembowel any goblin, and both of them were no exceptions. The airstrike was effective in it's last employment, but it was quite dangerous. Deciding to take the aggro, Kishi listed out his plan to the goblin beside him.

"Here is my plan: I'll go in for a direct assault and, while it's distracted, you jump down from one of the trees. Since you don't have much reach with your horn, jumping down is much better than being the bait."

The usually light tone of voice was not present in Kishi's remark. Instead, a cold, slightly anxious voice stood in it's place.

---

As Lomen exited the cave, he heard the start of Grandpa's story and would have to ask both Grandpa and Zectoll for more information. If anything it would be an amazing experience for him and anyone else who would hunt the majestic beast. In a way it was ironic the small party that had come back. One had a deep hatred for wolves, another aspires to resemble them, and himself wanted to be closer to beasts and come to an understanding of them and, if possible, learn to live with them or integrate them into the clan. While Kishi would protest, Lomen respected that beasts survive like the goblins do and would prefer to maybe live with a few as companions as he grows in life. That idea made him smile and he looked back to Kishi.

"I am glad you decided to join me even with the ceremony just finished."

---

As Lomen joined Kishi he also took into consideration both the size and danger of the boar.

"Here is my plan: I'll go in for a direct assault and, while it's distracted, you jump down from one of the trees. Since you don't have much reach with your horn, jumping down is much better than being the bait."

"Should be fun. It is important we each play around with different positions and find our own fighting style. Be sure to position yourself in front of a tree or large stone. Although the tusks may be scary, they can also be broken or stuck into a tree. If you desire being the bait you can take my shield. If not I will tie it around you or myself as armor. I would prefer to be the bait but I will not stop you if you believe you would be the better bait."

Lomen then took some fur off of the horned rabbit pelt and let it float out of his hand in order to find a position downwind. Lomen moved to a spot with trees that was down wind of the boar and sent a small prayer before turning to Kishi.

"This is a good spot. I would rather be the one to take a greater risk as bait since you have experienced dropping from above already and I have a skill to help dodge deadly blows. If you want to switch roles, tell me now so I can either go up or wait on you to get to the top."

In reality he did not care either way of where he went, but would prefer to have Kishi stay out of immediate danger. Where it would be nice for Kihi to have some front line and bait experience, this is much more dangerous than a horned rabbit and should not be taken lightly.

---

Dreams of Conquest

Listening intently to Grandpa Goblins story, Zectoll munched on his portion of wolf meat with haste, his eyes wide and gleaming. His imagination began to run wild, visions of a huge monstrous wolf with blood drenched fangs and a shimmering noir coat, racing through the shadows of the forest delivering death upon those who would oppose its rule upon the mountaintop and devouring the life of the various beasts of prey to be found within its domain. The visions both frightened and excited him. His spirit was renewed though, as Grandpa Goblin had fed him just as the elder had done when he was but a mere infant. Though the morsel imparted unto him this time was not of plant nor animal flesh, but of knowledge, food for the mind.

Zectoll rose to his feet, his stone tipped hunting spear grasped tightly at his side. Thank you, Grandpa. I now know what path I must take. The path of Conquest Conquest.The word had sprung into his mind like lightning during a storm. He would face his fear, build his strength, ascend the mountain to the north and conquer it, usurping the mantle of King from this Great Wolf. Though such a feat was far from his grasp at the current moment, he knew with hard work and determination, he could reach this goal. Why else would the Elder Goblin share this tale with him, if such a goal was impossible to achieve.

Zectoll bowed to the Elder Goblin, and then made his way out of the cave, remembering that Lomen had said something about going out to hunt again. Zectoll had barely heard his brother speak, so enraptured was he by the tales of Grandpa. It appeared to him that Kishi had gone as well. Zectoll was alone again. He knew what he must do. The process to defeating the King of the Wolves was simple. He would need to learn more skills and develop them. He would also need better equipment. Finally, he would need to eat and grow bigger and stronger. All of these steps could be accomplished by going out and defeating the various beasts of the forest.

Zectoll decided that he would start off small, since he was alone. It was apparent to him that both Kishi and Lomen had each killed horned rabbits on their own, each having a deadly horn as a testament to such a fact. Both also had pelts in which to cover themselves. Zectoll looked down at the dirty rags that encircled his groin. Not good enough. Zectoll said to himself as he stood at the mouth of the cave. Stone spear in hand Zectoll made his way into the forest, making sure to be as quiet as possible. His eyes were focused, as he searched for his intended prey, Horned Rabbit. Deciding he wouldn't stray far from the cave, Zectoll looked for a berry bush. He planned to hide near such a bush, in hopes of ambushing a Horned rabbit. He hoped one with a large horn would come. The Larger the horn, the deadlier the weapon Zectoll thought to himself as he imagined the type of weapon a large rabbit horn could become.

@El Noche

-rite of passage-

As the goblin went to the berry bush he was rewarded for his patience as a large horned rabbit appeared. This was another Alpha having a larger horn then a regular horned rabbit as it didn't smell the goblin nearby but it moved closer to the goblins bush because it had berries. If the goblin didn't move then the goblin would be caught by the rabbit and it will have the first strike and considering how close it would be getting the goblins chances of winning were getting slimmer by the second.

- Skubli -

@Jangel13

---

Skubli sat, staring mesmerized at the fish as they swam through the river. Their brilliant iridescent sheen gave a wonderful, haunting effect as they twisted their bodies in odd patterns to propel themselves forward through the water.

Despite his initial reservations of spending any more time outside of the cave, something drew Skubli to them. As they slowly drifted away, the goblin runt submerged his body into the stream and slowly creeped along the bottom of the riverbed, blending in with the muddy, rocky surface beneath the school of fish. He slowly stalked beneath them, his previous concerns merely a shade of a memory in the back of his mind.

His lungs screamed in pain, however the desire to continue to observe the fish was far too powerful for the small, simple minded goblin to resist. Seconds faded into minutes, and it felt as if minutes faded into hours as he followed them, all the while without air to breathe.

The school weaved themselves in and out of each other, swimming in dazzling group patters that displayed the wonderful light of their scales. Soft yellows faded into burnt oranges into crimson reds and vibrant violets. Their shining beauty ensnared the goblin, making him forget himself, thinking only of the brilliance of their light...

Pain shot through his torso as his body overrode his commands to hold his breath as his lungs sucked in a deep breath of murky water. The tiny runt thrashed, overcome by the pain, and searched for anything to orient himself towards the surface.

The shining fish were nowhere to be found, and muddled darkness surrounded him. A faint white light shone to his right, beckoning him towards it. Unaware of which way the surface was, Skubli flailed in the direction of the glow. Fire burned within his lungs, fueled by the cold waters suppressing him.

His head broke the surface and air flooded into his half flooded lungs, inducing a coughing fit that brought fresh pain but also relief. After a few minutes, the small creature was able to reorient himself as to his surroundings.

He tread water roughly fifty feet off of the shore in a lake, with murky waters reflecting the shining moon above. Trees dotted the shoreline, offering haunting shadows and twisted branches. His limbs slowly gave out as he attempted to stay afloat; swimming was something he wasn't particularly able to do, and the exhaustion made it that much more difficult.

Skubli began making his way back towards shore, terrified of the thought of a creature lurking beneath the waters, waiting for him to tire out. Within a couple minutes, the goblin had reached the shore and dragged himself up upon the beach, resting on the cool sand.

The water behind him lapped quietly against the shore, reminding Skubli that he had to keep moving to find shelter for the night. He warily entered the forest, his small frame shivering in the cold night air.

He walked for hours, searching for shelter, unable to find a safe place to rest. Multiple night creatures followed him throughout the night, searching for an easy meal, however Skubli slipped away from each predator, sneaking through the surrounding underbrush to avoid being slain. Eventually, a massive tree presented itself with minimal low hanging branches. Skubli dug his claws into the bark and ascended, quickly scaling the plant and finding a comfortable perch around forty feet off of the ground. Skubli wrapped himself in his mantle and curled into a tiny ball, letting his exhaustion overtake him as the sun peeked over the horizon.

---

The sun was high in the sky when Skubli awoke. His limbs ached and his innards grumbled, desiring of food. The tiny goblin slowly descended from his perch and scrambled along the ground, quickly making his way towards the sound of running water. Whether it was mere luck or some higher power smiling down upon him, he recognized it as the stream that he and his siblings had been hunting near. He followed its path downstream, back towards the lake. He had walked a great distance the previous night and had most likely passed the spot where they had slain the horned rabbit.

After almost an hour of quick scampering, he reached the spot where the dazzling fish had first been discovered. Across the river laid the corpse of the horned rabbit, picked clean of anything desirable by Stegs and the second goblin who's name Skubli couldn't recall.

The water was pleasantly cool on Skubli's skin as he swam across, moving past the corpse and to the cave as soon as possible. He knew the way back fairly well, despite having only traveled this path once.

Soon the cave came into view, with a couple of goblins near the entrance. Skubli slowly crawled back inside, sitting in the entrance and letting his persistent exhaustion overtake him.

Kishi turned to look at Lomen as he gave his response, making sure to keep an eye on the boar, who was facing away from them and devouring the berries greedily.

"Should be fun. It is important we each play around with different positions and find our own fighting style. Be sure to position yourself in front of a tree or large stone. Although the tusks may be scary, they can also be broken or stuck into a tree. If you desire being the bait you can take my shield. If not I will tie it around you or myself as armor. I would prefer to be the bait but I will not stop you if you believe you would be the better bait."

"If you are sure you can dodge him, I see no problem. I Just... Make sure you don't get hurt."

"I'm not sure what I would do if you... ya know. Be careful."

Kishi quickly spotted a tree that covered the clearing. With dexterity that was much more advanced than the days prior, Kishi silently climbed to the top of the tree, before resting on a branch directly over the gluttonous boar. Kishi carefully retied the knot of his spear, making sure that it was very tight, and tensed every muscle in his body.

The bark of the tree felt unnaturally rough, and the leaves covered the branch like a blanket. If Lomen was successful in distracting the boar, he would have a very easy job of finishing off the creature.

Thoughts of Isurta's death and the goblin corpses filled his mind. He could see himself falling off the branch, breaking his legs on the hard and unforgiving ground, and being devoured by the giant monstrosity. The fear returned.

The boar in his dream left him as nothing more than a skeleton, bones picked cleanly. And then, it charged for Brother Lomen, impaling him cleanly through it's tusks.

A strange calmness laid over him. He was going to do everything in his power to not miss. He wasn't going to die here.

Not while he still had people who needed him.

Kishi waited for Lomen to begin, and prepared to deliver a Precise Strike.

@Duoya@The 4 Winds

Rampaging Boar-

The goblins soon went and got themselves ready to attack. Soon the boar looked and saw a goblin get closer with a weapon and the boar didn't hesitate. It brushed its hoof against the ground twice before I started its charge attacking the goblin but thanks to Lomen's Evasion ability he was able to easily dodge and avoid the attack the Boar had to struggle to stop because while it had a great attack and plenty of power it was weak in terms of its own control over itself. Lomen was strategic in where to wait and then when the boar charged again it careened to a stop by the goblin on the tree.

When Kishi jumped down using precise strike it was able to attack its spinal column making a very critical strike. The strike caused the boar to loose its ability to charge at all. It still didn't want to die though and it still tried to fight angrily flailing its tusks around in an attempt to keep the goblins away like any other creature it would fight till it couldn't anymore...

---

@December

the lost goblin-

The goblin went through what no other goblin ever did and actually survived outside the cave at night. It was a harrowing experience but the goblin lived to see another day and when he dropped to the cave Grandpa was surprised to see thinking that like Isurta and Xaal that he was dead himself but this meant so much more. It meant that this goblin had a natural ability to survive most goblins wouldn't dare try to stay out at night until they were much stronger but still this goblin was something else. Grandpa simply smiled and picked the goblin up by one arm struggling a bit because of his old age but the young one deserved to at least have a proper place to sleep other then near the entrance. He put the little goblin back to where they were born and let him sleep. He then went over to the entrance and relaxed watching as the young Zectoll go out to hunt once again.

---

Savage Striker

There before him, sauntering ever closer to his hiding spot, it's large horn jutting proudly from its head, stood his prey. An Alpha Horned rabbit, like the one Lomen had slain. Luck was on his side it seemed. Zectoll's heart began to race as the reality of what he was attempting to do sunk into his mind. The fear in the back of his mind began to surface. This rabbit was quite capable of killing him, piercing his body with it's large horn. He could very well die this day. Before his fear could grab hold of him fully, Zectoll remembered that he had faced Black wolves and lived. Though formidable, slaying this rabbit was not outside of his reach. Zectoll's mind shifted back to the wolf he faced, it's snarling visage a stark imprint in his mind.

He knew that he would have to strike swiftly and with great force, before the rabbit realized what was happening. He recalled the feeling he felt when he struck the wolf in his first hunt, and conjured that sensation once again within himself. Zectoll waited until the Horned rabbit was within the range of his spear, springing forth from his hiding spot with all of his might. His face twisted into a snarl as he attacked the rabbit using Savage strike, his spear aimed at the Alpha's right front flank.

---

Amazing. He was alive.

For a moment during the first charge the world started to slow down as the evasion skill activated and allowed him to track and cleanly maneuver away from the dangerous tusks. It felt almost dreamlike and without danger until the world snapped back to reality and its normal speed. He didn't have the luxury of waiting to catch up with his thoughts and re-positioned himself for the second charge. Again the world spun slowly as Lomen swiftly dodged the beast and again the world snapped back to its normal pace. All that was left was a drop from Kishi.

Kishi perfectly dropped onto the beast and appeared to have immobilized the boar. Although this didn't mean a kill unfortunately as the monster thrashed around in an attempts to survive. Lomen felt for the beast but above that pity was a will for himself and Kishi to survive.

"Get behind it and away from the tusks! It still has life."

Lomen decided that it was best if he distracted the boar again, this time with something a bit more drastic. He stepped forewards just enough so that the stick he held in his hand would barely reach the boar and used the heavy strike ability in order to smack the ground in front of it, if not hitting its face in the process. Immediately after he would take a deep breath in and roar with his whole body in order to catch the boar's attention without breaking eye contact. Lomen needed to be close enough and show the boar that even if it looked away for a moment, Lomen would be there to kill it. This would hopefully give Kishi an opening to strike.

As he roared, Lomen found himself feeling a massive beat of his heart and became somewhat more sensitive to the area around him, the wind, the vegetation, the boar, and the forest itself seemed more alive. Heart pounding in his chest, he could feel himself grinning with an open mouth and drooling thinking of the taste the boar would have, but never broke eye contact. A moment of carelessness would mean death as he switched to the horn instead of his stick, keeping the shield at the ready in order to help avoid injury.

---

"Say there wouldn't be a point to what you just did would it?" Stegs couldn't believe that question, of course he had a reason for potentially endangering himself like that. Yes, we now know that it only seems to attack when something touches the cherry." That new bit of info made dealing with the plant a lot easier.

He started on working a plan that would let him and Luz do just that. It took another few minutes of thinking but eventually he came up with something. he believed could work. "Okay Luz first we need to gather up as many rocks as we can. After that we attack the stem and if we get attacked throw a rock at the cherry to distract it." As soon as he was done talking Stegs began looking for rocks that were both small enough to easily throw but seemed big enough to get the plant's attention.

Luz

Luz then when wide eye. "I see, You planned on keeping it fed as we remove him from his spot, pretty clever," Luz told him with a smirk. This Steg' goblin seems pretty cunning. So Luz when away to hunt for rocks and came back with a bunch of them wrap in a leftover pelt from yesterday's hunt. She then moved to the side of the plant with her stabbing stick in hand.

Time had slowed to a crawl as Kishi gripped the spear. His muscles, much larger than they had been the day before, tensed in preparation, and his breathing slowed. The boar, tensing every muscle in it's body. The creature looked as if it was about to catapult it's way through the very trees in it's path. Kishi wasn't going to fail. He wasn't going to die.

Not now, anyways.

Lomen had begun to inch his way closer, and the boar took notice. It immediately entered a rage, charging at the goblin with speed that was at an incredibly intense level. Lomen, with dexterity that reminded Kishi of Xaal, dodged out of the boar's path with ease. The boar, barely managing to stop itself, began another rampage which Lomen expertly dodged, leading it mere feet from Kishi's position.

Kishi leaped downwards, pushing off the branch to deliver as much force as possible. With surprising ease, Kishi's spear penetrated the beast's thick hide, striking down to the bone. Kishi felt spine hit his spear, before he leaped away, pulling his blade with him. The boar thrashed in pain, desperately flailing in a poor attempt to rid the goblins from it's presence. Kishi felt no pity. It was kill or be killed. The black wolves had taught him that fact the previous night. And Kishi wasn't going to let any of his family be killed.

Not again.

Lomen released a bloodcurdling scream, similar to what Kishi had done earlier in the day. Kishi slowly maneuvered himself, trying to make his way behind the boar. All the while, Lomen was trying to draw the monster's attention with his screaming and the rapid swinging of his horn. If he managed to succeed, Kishi would deliver another Precise Strike to the Boar's rear.

@Duthguy@demonspade64

-give me the flower-

They soon went to work grabbing rocks and putting their plan into action. As expected once they started to work on getting the stem the plant immediately got ready to defend itself but thanks to the goblins clever thinking they didn't have to worry as they kept feeding the flower the rocks hitting its lure to keep it distracted as it went through the long process of digesting. Of course it took a while to fully digest giving the goblins ample time to get the flower. As they repeated this process two more times they finally ripped the flower from its stem.

The flower writhed as if in pain for a few brief seconds before fully going limp on the ground. A few pokes with the stick proved that it was dead and wouldn't be an issue anymore. Now they simply needed to work on using its parts for their own use...

---

@El Noche

Savage-

The goblin waited and soon it made its attack. The effect of its savage strike was apparent as even the horned rabbit didn't notice the goblin till it was to late. The strike entered the rabbit and because it was a savage strike with great power behind it the wound actually appeared in the back of the rabbit. The goblins strike made a finishing blow on its first attack the rabbit couldn't even fight back despite it being an alpha it was still only a rabbit and with the superior reach of the goblins spear not to mention how it was able to stay stark still until it strike it may as well have been an ambush.

Goblin Zectoll: gain 3 XP
Goblin Zectoll learned the skill: Predator stance the predetor stance is a permanent ability that can be switch on or off by the goblin. The stance give the goblin muffled movement and ambush bonus when not detected before attacking. Much like a predator that silently gets closer to its prey before it strikes with ferocity.

---

@The 4 Winds@Duoya

The mighty boar falls-

The roar that one of the goblins attempted made the boar focus solely on the goblin aggravating it and the boar didn't notice the other goblin until it was to late. The goblin using precise strike was able to generate the force to a single point and as such the spear cut through the toned muscles of the boar like butter and the spears end hit the boars heart it was only a moment later that the boars eyes went white and it dropped to the floor making a loud thud as it was finally dead. The goblins killed a difficult adversary which will no doubt provide an ample supply of meat for the entire family should they choose to do so.

Goblins Kishi and Lomen gain 12 XP

Goblin Lomen: learned Challenge This move is used when the goblin creates a battle cry roaring at the opponent and makes the enemy focus solely on him. While this may seem like a dangerous move if used correctly can create a perfect ambush as being bait.

Goblin Kishi: learned Charge This move is used when the goblin makes a speedy attack on an enemy if this strike is done properly it can cause major damage to the enemy however this strike also has a high chance to miss because the goblin must be running at full speed for the attack to be effective.

---

Stegs was surprised how easily the plant was taken down when they figured out how it worked, than again it wasn't like it was even as smart as an animal. "That worked better than I expected."

Since he mainly wanted one of the petals to carry his berries in he attempted to tear one off, as that seemed easier than dragging the whole flower back to the cave. Still he couldn't deny that maybe one of the other goblins wanted some parts of the plant as well. So he decided to try and remember he and Luz would take on the way back, in order to act as a guide to anyone who had an idea on how to use the flower's remains.

Luz

When Operation takes the plant became a go. Luz starts by feeding the plant a rock before she started stabbing and wacking the plant at it stem while keeping an eye on his head. Once the plant was dead Luz held her stick up in victory before swing her sweat off her forehead. "I can't believe that worked. good job." She told him delightfully before helping him drag their catch back behind them. "I wonder if we can catch theses thing alive, it was quite interesting walking it devour whole rock in seconds. "She said out loud.

---

Lomen watched with unblinking eyes as the Boar died in front of him. This was an important moment that he might not get to witness again, the death of something living without being the one to kill. Where he had seen the wolfs die earlier, it was not while staring into its eyes as life left them. It was a whole new experience as the boar's body twitched as Kishi made his strike and hit a major vital point as the body seemed to have moment of shock realizing the damage. The board did not simply lay down though, it attempted to stay up, legs trembling, mouth wavering, and its eyes fluttering. With a few harsh breaths the boar let out a last long breath as its body stopped all movement and Lomen watched as the eyes focused on him one last time before the light faded from the beast's eyes, rolling back into its head and its body collapsing to the ground.

That moment felt profound as he took a moment to gaze upon the boar's resting corpse and how peaceful it looked. It helped calm the fear of Death since Lomen saw how peaceful the boar looked, almost smiling at the mouth, as if content with how it left this world. As Lomen was about to that the gods, he realized how ignorant he was. Here he is, a goblin with no knowledge of the world tring to gain the favor of gods that he understands nothing about. He considered himself lucky that they had tolerated him and closed his eyes.

"I apologize for my ignorance and thank you for tolerating my ignorance."

He promised himself that he would discover as much as he could about this world and about those that lord over it. Hopefully grandpa would know more but this gave Lomen a sense of purpose in this world that he was brought into. The thought of learning more about the world excited him and to calm down he moved to the boar and dug out its heart, being weary to make sure Kishi's spear did not hurt him in the process.

"You should eat a bit as well before we take this back to camp. I think it would be best to share our hunt with the clan since I am well fed and we still have a wolf I need to show you how to skin.

Lomen intended to share this great feast with Grandpa goblin and the other goblins that were less fortunate. No need to make enemies in the family and nothing seems to bring family together like food. After devouring the heart he licked his lips and looked at the tusks, seeing them as better short weapons than the rabbit horn.

"Also, Kishi, I do not know what happened when you made your screech earlier, but I have gotten a skill called 'challenge'. Did you get something like this after the fight with the wolves?"

It was important to find out if he was the only one getting skills such as this or if it was a common thing. If the latter was true than it would be good to find out if actions result in multiple options and how to go about giving ones self more abilities and thus more options. Either way Lomen would be content with more knowledge that he felt like he wanted to amass.

Lomen's screech did the job, and the injured boar turned to face him. As he did so, Kishi maneuvered himself to it's side, before driving the spear through the mighty beasts flank. The feeling of flesh give way as easy as air caused the goblin to grin. Surely, this is how the wolves must have felt. Killing something so easily... It made Kishi grin. Not out of happiness, but out of satisfaction. He was going to kill anything and everything that threatened his kind, his family. This boar was no exception. Kishi held the spear firmly, before twisting it and letting it go. The boar trembled slightly, almost as if it was trying to fight the fact that it nearly died, before it's legs simply gave way. The eyes of the creature rolled back in it's head, and it remained still. A long, drawn out breath exited, and the creature expired.

Kishi grinned.

The fear of death was gone, at least temporarily. It was imposible for him to die, at least right now. He refused to die as long as there was one creature that threatened the goblin existence. His kind were not meant to be stepping stones, as food. Not anymore, at least.

Lomen moved close to the east and began to extract the heart, which Kishi had honestly thought was destroyed. Lomen turned to the goblin.

"You should eat a bit as well before we take this back to camp. I think it would be best to share our hunt with the clan since I am well fed and we still have a wolf I need to show you how to skin."

Kishi's eyes turned towards the tusks of the creature, and he carefully removed his spear so as to not harm Lomen. Kishi quickly slashed at the two blade-like bones with his spear. Both broke off cleanly, and Kishi tossed one of them to Lomen. As Kishi replaced the horn of the rabbit with the tusk, he gave out his response.

"I refuse to eat this. At least, right now. I will not eat this until every other goblin in our home has had their fill. Grandfather especially. He is far to old to be doing his own hunting."

Kishi wasn't going to let any goblin in his home die, even if they couldn't hunt. If he had to, he was going to feed every damn one of them himself. The tusk was curved and, as a result, Kishi's spear was now more akin to a halberd than anything else. Kishi gave the weapon several practice swings before Lomen spoke again.

"Also, Kishi, I do not know what happened when you made your screech earlier, but I have gotten a skill called 'challenge'..."

An intense wave of pain flooded throughout all of Kishi's body. All around him was pure blackness, and an intense feeling of hunger consumed his being. Slowly, the hunger faded, leaving in it's place a cold numbness. Just as soon as it appeared, it faded away, and Lomen's voice reappeared.

"...something like this after the fight with the wolves?"

Kishi breathed heavily, a look of fear in his eyes. He tuned away from Lomen, and gave out his reply.

"...I don't know what you're talking about, Brother Lomen."

A wetness appeared on his face, and Kishi reached up to remove it. As he pulled away, a red liquid followed.

...Blood?

Kishi wiped away the fluid quickly, before moving to the rear of the beast and grabbing hold of it's hooves.

"...We should take this back home. We can divide up the parts back there. Besides, this thing is too large to carry back with anything else, and the blood will draw lot's of attention."

The fear of death had returned.