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The
neon lights over the club’s door shined a bright orange, except for that one
single bulb that was burned out. It seemed to taunt his eyes and for a brief
moment, he was eager to throw a dagger at the bulb and destroy it out of
existence, but that would call attention to him when the bulb cracked and
pieces of glass fell on top of the short and stocky bouncers. So he sat in the
shadows, waiting for the goblin that had walked into the club. Unfortunately
for him, he was an elf in a goblin town and sitting was the only way he could
really hide.
The
goblin bouncers walked into the club and the elf walked as close as he possibly
could to the building. He sighed and waited some more. The goblin couldn’t
possibly stay there all night…could he?
Bilgewater
Harbor was deserted that late at night, overall, except for the small
street-walking females and the occasionally drunk orc and male goblin wandering
about. Dressed in black clothing, the elf slumped and banged his head against
the building. “Where is he?” It wasn’t long after his comment that he saw five
women walking out of the club surrounding what appeared to be a drunken goblin.
What caught the thief’s attention wasn’t that he was a goblin. There were
plenty of those around, but that he flaunted a bag of money when he walked into
the bar. That was just what the thief needed to pick his target.
The
female elf, goblins, and trolls chuckled and teased the goblin. The thief saw
it as the perfect time to attack, so he slithered among the shadows and moved
behind the crowd, drawing his dagger against the goblin’s back.
The
goblin stopped and sighed. “Ladies, ladies. Do me a favor and wait for me back
in the room. I want to see you all naked and ready to go when I get there.” The
women giggled and walked away together, leaving the goblin alone on the street.
In almost a blink, he shadow-stepped, grabbed his dagger, and made his way
behind his assailant.
“Why
the fuck are you following me? What do you want?”
The
thief froze in place, unable to respond quickly. When he finally managed to say
something, his voice cracked, squeaking a bit. “H-how did you do that?”
A
sharp smile spread across the goblin’s face, “I’m the one asking the questions
here. What do you want and why are you following me?” He sliced the back of the
thief’s thigh, enough to make the tall, lanky elf fall to his knees.
“Ow!
I just…I just saw your money! I want your money!”
“You
picked the wrong goblin to attack, fucker. I have five wenches in my room ready
and waiting, so I’ll just kill you know.”
The
thief shrieked and the goblin’s dagger sliced at the thief’s facemask. As the
cloth fell onto the street, he noticed the thief was a young Sin’Dorei elf. His
light emerald eyes were widened with fear and he was visibly trembling. The
goblin chuckled and took a step back, his daggers still pointed at the elf.
“What
the fuck is this?” He laughed and kicked the elf, causing him to fall to his
side. “You’re a child?”
“I…ow.
I ain’t a child.”
“Well,
you look like a damn kid. Younger than the elves I know. Get back home to your
mommy and daddy before I fucking slice your neck.” The goblin was beginning to walk
away when the elf shouted back at him.
“Fuck
you! I ain’t a kid and I am not going back home! I didn’t steal and fight my
way here to go back home!” The goblin ran back to the elf and kicked him in the
stomach once more. The elf grunted and shut his eyes tightly.
“You
think you’re some kind of badass, eh? First of all, you lose your fucking mind
and attack anyone with money. Secondly, you have no idea if that person with
money has any weapon skills. I eat little shits like you for dinner, fucker.
Don’t you ever assault or try to rob me ever again.” The goblin angrily waved
off the elf and continued to walk away.
The
elf laughed as he started to get up. He kept one hand across my stomach and he
ran one hand up his black hair. “Just wait. When you least expect it, I’ll be
right there ready to attack you again.” The goblin stopped and slowly turned
around and the last thing the elf saw was a jagged, sharp smile before the
goblin disappeared before his eyes. “Oh shit.” The elf looked around and
started to run before he was tripped, falling face first onto the street, his
face covered with small rocks.
“What
was that?” The elf tried to lift his head to look behind but he was shoved back
down onto the rocky road. “I didn’t hear you, fucker. What was that?” Lifting
his head once more, the elf was crying and trying to say sorry. “I didn’t hear
you!” The goblin shoved his face once more onto the street and the elf didn’t
lift his head again. Before hopping off his back, the goblin took his pouch of
coins and searched his pocket for any other valuables. Inside his pocket was a
picture of a young elf boy with similar features. He was smiling and waving and
for a moment, the goblin considered just crumbling it and throwing it aside,
but he simply asked, “Who’s this in the picture?”
The
elf didn’t respond at first, but after the goblin kicked his side, he muttered,
“My…my brother.”
With
a snicker, the goblin slid off the elf’s back. “You elves are all the same:
pussies.” He threw the picture in his face and stepped away. “So you’re a
thief, eh? Why don’t you do something productive?”
The
elf sat up and took the picture, placing it inside his shirt. “What do you do?”
“I
sail.”
“That’s
it?”
“And
plunder, and pillage, and destroy, and do whatever the fuck I want.”
The
elf snickered as he wiped rocks off his face. “Like me.”
“But
I do it better and I don’t get robbed.” The goblin jingled the elf’s coin pouch
in front of him. “I’ll tell you what: I’ll give you a job. You have to work for
me. Earn this pouch back and whatever I pay you.”
“Why
the fuck would I work for you?”
“Fine.
I’ll see you later, ass.” He started to place the pouch onto his belt when the
elf grunted.
“Wait.
What do you want me to do?”
The
goblin smiled and extended his arm toward the young elf. “I need a crew. We’re
setting sail once more and I need a crew I can trust before setting out. You
in?”
“So
you’re the captain?”
“Not
exactly, but he still needs a crew. I just need someone to keep an eye on the
captain for me.”
“Mutiny?”
“Nah,
but that jackass ain’t telling me shit anymore. Anyway, you in? I promise that
your loyalty will give that kid in the picture all the money you want to get
for him.”
“How
do you know it’s for him?”
The
goblin smirked. “You’re not the first runaway turned thief in the world. We all
have a reason for what we do. My reasons are waiting for me in my room. So, if
you’re in, I’ll meet you at the docks tomorrow morning. I’ll give you your
money then. If not, thanks for the loot.” The goblin turned around and began to
walk away.
“Wait!
What’s your name?”
“Ziggly.”
The
elf grimaced and sighed, rubbing his arms. “I’m Kyl,” he whispered to himself
as he sat on the dark, cold street. He thought for a long while about the offer
and realized that the goblin was right. He was doing it for his brother. He
longed to get his brother away from his family and their demanding requests. He
and his brother were never going to be Farstriders.
Never.
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