Chapter 28
"Yeah, I'm fine," Sun said. The female goblin helped him up on his feet. Sun looked at her and said, "Thank you."
"You welcome," She answered.
"Tie? What are you doing here? And where have you've been?" Smoke asked. Two goblins were carrying Smoke by placing his arms over their shoulders. A tree branch pierced Smoke's right leg.
"Let me help you with that." Sun rushed to Smoke's right side and took over the duty of carrying him, "Looks like it's my turn to carry you."
"Looks like it." Both of them laughed. "Ow," Smoke yelled when he attempted to use his right leg.
"Halfling," Sum said, "What you did during this hunt was heroic, worthy of praise. Most goblins would have run away, leaving their fallen comrades behind. But you stood your ground and fought the wolf. With that, you have earned my respect."
"Thank you." Sun was blus.h.i.+ng from the cold and Sum's praises.
"No wonder Chief Cala sent you to slow down the wolves for us. The chief must have known of your great potential." Sun and Smoke's eyebrows twitched slightly. "Cala will surely reward you for your service. I would not be surprised if he awarded you the honor of becoming his loyal retainers. But enough small talk, we must get the wolf meat to our chief and tribe."
Sun and Smoke turned to one another. Sum looked to Cala in high regard. They doubt Cala agreed to the brothers' request if not for the other retainers' protest. But what surprised was Sum's choice of words. From what they heard, it sounded like Cala summoned Sum here to hunt the wolves. Smoke gave Tie a glance. Tie adverted her eyes from Smoke.
Sum ordered the goblins to bring the sleds and carry the wolves on them. Rock was sitting on the ground next to the pile of dead wolves. A goblin woman wrapped linen around his head. After wrapping him, the goblin patted Rock's head and said, "Good job!" Then she went to her next a.s.signment. Rock's head still hurt, but Sun punched him harder before. He saw his brothers conversing with the red helmet wearing goblin. He stood up and walked to them to introduce himself.
"Hey, Tie, it's been days since the last time we've seen you. And bro, what happened with your leg."
"What do you think?" Sun said sarcastically.
Rock turned to Sum; his tone s.h.i.+fted from a relief to a slightly hostile tone, "h.e.l.lo, you must be Sum. I'm Rock nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Sum said.
A goblin walked up to Sum and said, "Master Sum, wolf ready move to tribe."
"Then let's get moving before it snows."
Sum and his followers carried the wolves on sleds. The sleds nearly sunk in the snow from the weight of the wolves. It took five goblins to pull one sleigh. Smoke's wound was patched up and was given a stick to hold on to, but Sun and Rock insisted on carrying him.
They arrived outside the walls not long after. Dawn and Dolce and his followers saw them walking towards the gate with the wolf meat. Dolce rang the bell alerting the tribe that the brothers are back with food. Dawn climbed down the wall with her baby in her arms. She ran to Sum and gave him a hug. "You're back. Dawn and baby miss you." She said sobbing. Rock adverted his eyes from the couple. He could not bear seeing his first love show affection to someone else.
"I understand Dawn, but we need to transport the wolf meat to the chief to distribute it to the rest of the tribe." Dawn hesitantly released Sum from her embrace.
"Ok. Dawn knows work important." She watched as the goblins walk to the town square. She saw Rock carrying his brother. She walked up to him and said, "You back. That's good."
"Of course I will," Rock said. They both gave each other an awkward smile. Rock struggle to
Dawn waited for Rock to finish his sentence. Smoke and Sun could not bear the embarra.s.sing interaction between them. Smoke decided to intervene, "Rock killed one of the wolves by himself. You should have been. He smashed that wolf over there with the broken skull right on its face."
"Really," Dawn said.
Rock blushed, "Yeah I did. That wolf was nothing compared to me."
A crowd of goblin arrived at the gate and saw the wolves and Sum. They began to praise Sum for killing the wolves and saving them from starvation. Sum waved at them to stop. He climbed up one of the wolves and told them about the brother's achievement, "My tribesmen. I only killed one of these wolves. The ones that did all the work were none other than these brave brothers that sent out to hunt these furious beasts. They are the ones that deserved your praise."
The goblins clapped and cheered the brothers. They also praised Sum's humbleness. From the crowd came Pin. She ran up to the brothers who were getting embarra.s.sed from loud cheering. "Halflings alive. Thank goodness. Where Tie? Pin not see her."
Tie raised her hand and waved at Pin. She ran to her and the brothers. Seeing the arrival of Flute's caretakers decided it was best for her to leave. She bid farewell to Rock and his brothers then joined Sum as they walk towards the square.
Pin and Tie gave each other a huge hug. "Tie, Flute worry, you not get Sum on time."
"Tie get Sum on time, and save halflings from wolf. Now Flute, no mad at Tie."
"So that's why you were missing!" Rock and Smoke yelled in unison. Since Sun was in a coma, he had no recollection of who Tie was, and he felt a little left out.
"Tie, halflings. We go now. get to Flute and Stick." Tie, and the brothers followed Pin across town until they reached the barn. There was a wall of snow surrounding the building. Flute and her followers were dragging goblins out the wall. They didn't have any fatal injuries, but they smell horrendous. Flute and the caretakers had a mask over their face to alleviate the smell.
There were large buckets where the caretakers bring the goblins and wash them. Pin and Tie ran up to Flute, who was was.h.i.+ng a goblin. Flute saw the brothers behind the two girls. She smiled, knowing the brothers came back safely. Before Tie and Pin could say anything, Flute got up and hugged both of them. "Thank you," She said.
The two frozen in shock. Flute was never this happy before. Tie swallowed her saliva and asked Flute, "No mad at Tie."
"No." Tie hugged Flute back.
After hugging Tie and Pin, Flute turned her attention to the brothers. "Flute know you come back. Tie and Pin wash this goblin. I get brothers to Stick." Tie and Pin got to work. Flute took the boys' hands and told them, "Come, we go."
The brothers followed Flute back to their cottage. Inside was a group of caretakers tending to Stick's injuries and caring for the slave women. The brothers ran and hugged each other. Some tears flowed down their cheeks. "I just saw all of your victims, Stick! You showed them." Sun said proudly.
"I did my best," Stick said while laughing.
"Why are you guys here anyway. I thought you would be at the other building."
"Well, Flute thought it might be better to have them in the barn. The goblins could just climb the wall and tear the tent roof to get in. But then I realized that since we were moving so many of them to the barn, Cala's followers would have known and told him where they would be. So,"
"You hid them in our cottage in the last minute just in case you couldn't stop Cala from entering the barn."
"Exactly!"
Sun's mom stood up and walked towards the brothers. "Mom?" Sun said when he saw her moving. She got on one knee and examined Smoke's legs. She placed her hand on Smoke's bandages. The blue light came out from her hands, and the light slowly turned into gold. The gold light then turned into mist enveloping the leg.
Smoke took off his hand from Rock's shoulder and put pressure on his right leg, and the pain was gone. He took off the bandage and saw the wound turned into a scar. "Thank you, ma'am." Smoke said.
"Woah. So you really can use magic mom." Sun said in bewilderment.
Mari stood back up and looked down on Sun. She raised her hand and placed it on Sun's head. She rubbed his hair and told him in a soft, raspy voice, "You didn't say goodbye. You should always tell your mother if you're leaving." She took her hand off Sun's head. "But, you did a good job."
Sun was surprised she could speak. Sun couldn't help but embraced his mother tightly in his arms. He cried on her mother's blue garment. Sun's hug caught Mari by surprise, and she nearly toppled over. She looked at the ugly crying goblin hugging her waist. She always had mix feelings for him. He is a monster she conceived after getting raped by the red goblin and his men. But he was also the only goblin that treated her kindly.
Now another strange feeling emerged from within her. A feeling she could not explain. Maybe because the goblin was crying like a child, but a newfound emotion swelled inside of Mari that she could only describe as caring. She put her hands over Sun and smiled unconsciously.
At the same time, the square was filled with goblins waiting for the wolf meat to be carved out and pa.s.sed out to them. Cala arrived at the scene. Sum saw Cala and he ordered his followers to make room for the chief. The sea of goblins was split in half for Cala. The goblins stared at their chief as he walked towards the platform where the bodies of the wolves lay. Sum, Dawn, and Dolce bowed at the present of the chief.
Cala climbed the stairs. He looked at Sum and asked in a stone-cold voice, "Why is that here?"
"I apologize to you, my chief. I came here to present to you the wolves that have been haunting our hunters. I know I must store the wolf meat inside your home before presenting it to the tribe, but the crowd grew restless. I am sorry if I impeded your policies."
Cala wanted to tell him that he was referring to his presence in the tribe, but he could not dare utter it. Sum is a loyal follower and a popular retainer amongst the tribe. He was as strong as Tama and smart as Cloud. His only fault was his unyielding loyalty towards Cala. A loyalty he can exploit.
But there is one thing Cala can not take from Sum. And that is Dawn's love. Cala could order Sum to give Dawn to him at any time of the day, but he will never be able to capture Dawn's heart. Not when Sum is around. He had a solution, and that was to station Sum in Bona after defeating the Razin tribe's chief, a decision that was unpopular in the tribe. Now that he is here, another rival has arrived, but this time its not power but for love.
Dawn would occasionally glance at Sum; her eyes were filled with pa.s.sion every time. Cala could not help but notice her looking at Sum. A burning sensation swelled inside of Cala. It was a feeling he knows too well. Dawn's heart is occupied by Sum, and he could not help but frown from jealousy and hate.