@Aristocles @Pandalope

Bok pretended that he just noticed them.

"'Ello, Taurl." He listened to his proposition with exaggerated care. At the end he hefted Basher back over his shoulder and nodded solemnly.

"Alright, I'm behind ya. If anyone can't be messed with, it's us, eh?" He glanced over at the woman, Nabi.

Bok was more than ready to smash some skull and bash some brains, it'd been too long since he'd been in a good fight. No point standing around when there was work to be done.

He looked at Taurl and gestured at Nabi with his club. "Is she comin' with us? Just for watchin'? Or is she gonna, eh, fight?"

@Stekkmen@Jangel13

Nabi made a face and planted her hands on her hips. "Of course I'm coming with," she said as if it were the obvious answer to the question. "And I can fight if I need to." She wasn't sure if she would actually end up finding, but there was a pretty good chance obviously, so she had to be ready.

Gabi smiled. "Thanks for the offer," she said to him and polished off more than her share of the chicken before she got to her feet and walked over to the washtub to clean up after eating. Although she wasn't very big yet, her middle did have a distinct roundness to it that Olric might notice as a sign of early pregnancy. Her chest was also fuller than normal as well.

@Pandalope

"Alright. Let's go to the chief and make it formal. If we get his blessing, we'll have no problem getting word of this raid out. As soon as we have a few more fighters, we set off immediately." Taurl knew the way to the Rockbiter village, having been there on a raid in the past. That assault hadn't been too successful, and Ty wanted to try it again. His motive for leading the raid wasn't as pure as revenge for past raids on the Goblin Bone village, insofar as revenge could be called a 'pure' motive.

@Pandalope

As Bok began to follow Taurl around he held his club in both hands in front of him and looked at Nabi.

"Well I just wanted to make sure I didn't 'ave a weak newbie girl on our team! You're not a weak newbie girl, right? How many globs you smashed? What's ya weapon o' choice? Eh?" He gestured at her with his weapon, a shove into the air. Bok wasn't too keen on some girl who's never been in a fight before muckin up things.

@Stekkmen

Nabi crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. "I'm not just some newbie girl." Even though in reality she pretty much was, but she didn't feel like admitting that to Bok or anyone else. But when Bok started to ask her more questions about fighting, she could only look down at her feet and chewed her lips. "I, uh, none I guess. And, um, I don't know what my weapon of choice is." She thought about the knife that she had with her. It wasn't anything impressive, but she hoped that it would be good enough if it came to a real fight.

@Pandalope

He finished his portion before he watched her take the okayed to the wash tub. He could tell from her increased appetite and her slightly larger breasts that she was already with her first litter. While he was somewhat disappointed he wouldn't show it so instead he asked "so who is the lucky male?" He asked referring to the one she mated with. She was still young and didn't need to be with a litter so soon but she always took pride in the females duty to increase the tribe since their was no telling who could die the next day.

@Jangel13

Gabi had finished washing her hands when Olric asked her who the lucky male was, obviously referring to her pregnancy, which was becoming more and more apparent every day with her breasts and stomach getting bigger. She never told him that she was with her first litter, but she supposed she shouldn't be surprised that he guessed because he was obviously smart. "He was just an older warrior that I met. Well, a couple older warriors actually. I don't really remember their names to be honest." She returned to her seat. "I'm just happy to do my part to help increase the tribes numbers."

@Pandalope

He watched as she sat down again and said that it was just one of the older warriors she met though the way she says it, it seems she was given a breeding day. Which was something done for the older warriors who haven't yet bared a youngling and a young female who had yet to bare any litters. He simply nodded since he honestly couldn't judge so after she said she did her duty he said "Yeah I can only wish you a good litter. I'll even make you and nabi a charm so you both will stay healthy" he said since of course their were good luck charms that could be given for a healthy litter but the issue was that it was usually done by the male who did the deed. They were meant to give their mate something that they earned or made.

"Thanks," Gabi said when he offered to provide her with a charm to make sure that her litter was born healthy. She wasn't sure if she really believed that it would help, but she supposed that it couldn't hurt. There was such a high mortality rate among goblin younglings, that anything she could do to help ensure a strong and healthy litter was probably worth it. "I still have about two months to go," she explained, looking down at her stomach.

@Jangel13

He smiled softly as she said thanks and told him that she had two months to go. He nodded and said "I can tell it's early but just barely noticable. I genuinely hope you have a safe pregnancy" he said before he stood up and stretched a bit before he said "well I should be heading back to the forge. I'm sure somebody has tried to break in by now" he said with a little laugh he then said "please stop by if you are ever in need of a sympathetic ear" he said giving a little bow as he walked out of her hut and started to walk home

Goro continued to watch over the work that would grow their gardens, he had seen the other goblins moving around inside the village more actively than usual, but chose to ignore the activity. He rarely had time to himself and watching the human boy work provided a strange form of relaxation, the fact that one of their most feared adversaries could be working for the good of goblin kind.

He wondered if he should assemble a raid into a far off human village to find him a mate, though females were always hard to pry out of human hands, Goro was confident that nabbing just one would not be so hard.

@Aristocles @Stekkmen @Pandalope

"Tell me again how this 'lucky stick' work?" Tovo's companion asked scratching his bald head, still confused how Tovo manages to use that seemingly mundane stick to functional effect.

The two had left the temple and Tovo accompanied his hunting companion as they walked through the village.

"For the last time, I place the stick to my forehead and focus really hard and the stick tells me what to do. Thats how I've always used the stick"
Tovo pauses for a short second or two.
"...minus the times it does work and I didn't do anything. Those times were lucky accidents."

"Tovo...that still does not make sense."

The goblin in question only shrugs in response and admits. "Well, even I don't know how it actually works but I won't question something that saved me from two arrows, a boar, and recently saved us from a wolf."

"Maybe we will never know what makes that thing so special."

Tovo looks down to the stick at his side. With an uncharacteristically sad look in his eyes. "I think its special cause my mother gave it to me. She...she was a really good mother."

His companion realizes that this was a sensitive topic and tries to veer the conversation to another direction. "I'm really thankful she did give you that stick. Without it, maybe you wouldn't have been smart enough to be able to save us and capture that wolf." He replies with a half hearted chuckle.

Tovo pats his companion's back as they walk. "We captured that wolf, remember? You distracted it while I set up the attack. I mean, without your skill in looking at things angrily with your ugly face, the plan would have failed!"

The two goblins burst into a fit of sniggering and good natured shoves. They soon part ways a short while after the conversation. With Tovo's companion heading back to his hut to rest.

Tovo wandered around the village for a little bit until he saw Taurl, Bok, and...someone he didnt recognize. He raises his hand and waves at them as he walks towards them.

@Pandalope@Searat@Aristocles

Bok nodded, sneering. "Yeah, uh-huh, okay. Sure. Just try not to get yourself killed." He said, hefting his club over his shoulder. He supposed everyone was as new as her at somepoint, so she had to start somewhere. Still, he wished she could start somewhere else.

He turned and saw Tovo approaching. Bok returned the wave, though it was big and exaggerated.. "Wey-ho, Tovo."

@Stekkmen @Pandalope

"Hello, Bok." Tovo replies.

Upon walking closer to the group, the unknown individual was actually a young female goblin. Tovo, trying not to be rude, offers her a nod of recognition before walking to Bok and before awkwardly leaning closer to him and whispering to him.

"Bok, who's the new girl?"

@Jangel13@Searat

Nabi overheard what Tovo whispered to Bok and she interjected by taking a step forward so that she could introduce herself to the older warrior. "Hi," she said with a little wave. "My name is Nabi. Is it true that you're actually a veteran warrior? Have you fought in lots of battles? Can you tell me about them sometime? Have you ever killed an orc before? I've heard that great warriors can kill an orc? Is that true?" She was practically bouncing up and down as the questions just came flooding out of her mouth. She realized that she sounded like an easily impressed youngling, but she just couldn't help it.

"Thanks," Gabi said to Olric. "And I will definitely come by some time. Bye." She watched him leave the hut and then settled into her seat, looking at the chicken bones that were left on the table. Noticing a little meat still left on the bones, her stomach rumbled and she dove in again to pick them clean.

@Stekkmen @Pandalope

Tovo could not help but feel the pride within him grow as the young goblin girl named Nabi called him a veteran warrior. From his position at the side of Bok, Tovo places his hands on his hips and pumps out his chest proudly as he grins ear to ear like an idiot.

"Heh. It is true that I have two years under me as a warrior, but I have not earned the right to be called a veteran and have much to learn but I thank you for your kind words, Nabi. For the stories, you are free to listen to my tales tomorrow. I promised the younglings two stories and I intend to keep that promise! As for the orc, I have yet to encounter one in combat but I'm sure I'd be able to slay those brutes one day!"

Tovo ends with a hearty chortle.

@Searat@Pandalope@Stekkmen

Taurl looked at all those he had assembled. "I'm glad to see you are all here. We should go see the chief, then depart immediately. Just... hope that we don't run into any orcs. In fact, the less bloodshed, the better. This is a raid, not an attack. Don't do anything stupid, and if you can avoid killing someone, don't kill them. We want to take enough loot to make this trip worthwhile, but not do so much damage that it starts a war."

@Searat@Aristocles

Nabi listened to Tovo boast with eyes wide and a smile from ear to ear. "Wow, I would love to hear your stories," Nabi said once he was finished. She was a grown goblin and shouldn't be so eager to hear the warrior tell his stories to the younglings. Even so, she knew that her life would soon likely be focused on rising younglings of her own, so she wanted to enjoy the moment and allow herself to act a little childish while she still could. When Ty spoke up, she turned to him, listening carefully before she nodded. "Alright, let's go see the chief then!"

@Aristocles

"Don't worry about me, Taurl. I know better than let those Rockbiter monkeys have a reason to wage war against us. As you said earlier: we're sending a message, not a declaration of war."

@Searat@Pandalope@Aristocles

"Nabi," Bok said to Tovo as she introduced herself. He fell quiet for a moment as they talked, before speaking up again himself.

War was different from raiding. Raiding was acceptable among tribes that weren't friendly with each other. It was understandable, and as long was too much damage wasn't done the tribes could raid amongst each other. Defending ones possessions was also expected. It was like a political shove. Shove! What are you gonna do, shove me back? Probably.

Friendly tribes, of course, didn't shove each other.

A skirmish is different from a raid. It's worse- or, in Bok's opinion, better. Goblins go from getting injured to getting killed. More is stolen. Still, it may be once off and the two tribes go back to raids.

A war, on the other hand, involves Goblins going after the tribes themselves. Villages burn, civilians die, heroes are truly born. Hopefully it doesn't come to that...but if it does, Bok is ready to take advantage.

"Well, lads," he said. "I'm ready to raid." He grinned, holding Basher in both hands.