Chapter 35
They climbed over snow mounds, duck under broken signs and walls, and pa.s.s through the snow mazes. The clouds over them grew darker and heavier. Snowfall will arrive soon.
During their walk, Sum and his followers will talk random tribesman. They asked them their opinions on the chief and what they hope will happen in their tribe in the near future. Many responded with the usual appreciation, but some criticize the chief. What surprised Sum during his patrol was that some goblins had the gal to suggest to Sum that he should challenge the Chief.
Sum found this disturbing. Sum told the goblins that showed signs of rebellion to head over to the cottage. Sum made sure to play along with the idea of betraying the Chief to persuade the goblins, despite finding the idea repulsive. Most of the goblins were skeptical about the meeting at first, but Sum a.s.sured them that this meeting has nothing to do with the Chief. He even alluded to the idea of challenging the Chief.
Most of the goblins were convinced while the rest opted to stay out of the way. The meeting would begin at midnight. Sum instructed those that are willing to come in secret. Sum's followers wondered why Cala ordered them to find these goblins. Sum's loyalty can never be bent no matter what wrongdoing Cala could do. But this loyalty did not come for free.
A long time ago, deep in the forest, Cala, Sum, Cloud, and Tama went on their first hunt. They had the standard weapons the first time hunters get and had a superficial knowledge of their prey. But worse of all, they were overly confident.
Goblins that died an early age lost their lives during their hunt. Some died due to inexperience, but most died due to overconfidence. They were no exception. The only one cautious in their midst was Cloud, but his physical weakness caused his wary att.i.tude. He was still confident that the other three would protect him.
After hiking for three hours, the four of them managed to find hoof prints on the snow. And they looked fresh. "Hahaha. Tama found foot!" Tama laughed out.
"Off Tama, Cala want see!" Cala pushed Tama out of the way. "Four foots! And look," Cala followed the direction of the hoof prints and saw the prints heading to the bushes. "Foot make line."
"Tama got good eyes."
"Follow foot already, Tama!" Cala ordered in frustration.
Tama dropped his weapons and ran to the bushes. "Idiot! Why did you drop the spears!" Sum screamed, but Tama was too focused on the task at hand to hear. Sum and Cala followed Tama while Cloud stayed behind keeping an eye on their stuff.
It wasn't long until they reached Tama. Cala and Sum were about to hit Tama for leaving his weapons behind when suddenly, a large mountain goat charged at them. The three managed to dodge the goat. "What that?" Cala yelled. "Eyes look like our eyes." The goat turned around. It kicked the ground behind it and lowered his head, pointing his horns towards Tama.
"That is deer, that is food!" Tama yelled.
"That no deer!"
"Idiot get out of the way. We don't know what that thing can do." Sum yelled, but Tama did not listen. He leaned forward, held his arms in front of him, and opened his palm. He relaxed his muscles and waited for the goat to get closer. In a split second, the goat's horns made contact with Tama's hands. His hands closed at the moment of impact. The goat's strength was enough to push Tama back. At first, Tama slowly slid backward, then finally, he took a few steps back. Cala and Sum ran as far
"Let go of the goat!" Sum told him. Tama nearly tripped but managed to regain his balance after releasing his grip.
The goat raised its body and stood on its hind legs. It aimed directly at Tama, who just stood there, paralyzed. The antic.i.p.ation of the attack prevented Tama from moving his legs. Fear took over his body like hands grabbing hold of him. "Wake up, you d.a.m.n idiot!" Sum shouted. Sum's loud voice was enough to ignite Tama's brain and wake up from the trance state. Sum warned him just on time as the goat's horns descend. Tama leaped to the side, dodging the goat's attack.
The goat landed on its front hooves, but its head remained low. It dug into the snow and kicked the snow and dirt back. Its eyes rotated, keeping its line of sight of the goblins despite facing the ground. The goat checked its targets. Tama had no weapons, but getting grabbed by him would prove to be too risky. Cala and Sum have spears on them, but after witnessing the goat's power, they are now hesitant.
The goat charged at the nearest goblin, Sum. The speed of which it traveled was faster than Sum's reaction. By the time he raised his spear, the goat was already three steps in front of him. But the goat did hit Sum. Instead, it fell over with a spear attached to its neck. Sum looked at the person who threw, Cala. He stood there, frozen in shock. His right arm extended out in front of him.
Cala saved Sum's life, and ever since that day, he swore loyalty to him. The four returned home with their kill. Their Chief, impressed by the hunt, allowed Cala to keep half of the kill. They returned to their little cottage west of the town and near the building with the tent roof.
Now, Cala is the chief of the Lev tribe. Sum, Cloud, and Tama became his first retainers. Cloud gave Cala his knowledge of the stinkbombs, Tama gave his strength, and Sum gave his allegiance. Together, the four of them ruled over the tribe with absolute.
But everything changed. Some of the goblins began questioning the Chief's rule. Sum can not allow such rebellious thoughts to persist. His followers still could not see the problem. What could normal goblins do to the chief, a powerful and experienced redskin? Even Tama failed in his rebellion despite turning into a redskin.
Sum could tell that his followers had doubts, but he knows they do not have the same forethought as he and his Chief does. Eventually, the sun left the sky, and darkness took over. Sum sent his followers to the cottage to take care of the goblins coming. He wanted to go to Flute first. He suspects she must be behind all this.
He arrived at the barn. Flute was outside drinking by the fireplace. Sum approached and sat on the opposite side of the fire. Snow started to fall gently to the earth. "Snow tonight." Flute said while blowing her warm tea.
"Yeah," Sum looked at her. The fire danced in front of her as snow landed and melted on her coat. "Flute, I wanted to ask you something since this morning. Why did you call for me?"
"You know Flute called you?"
"Yeah. The goblins I talked to said that Cala only sent those brothers to die trying to kill those wolves. They said I was a hero for saving them and the tribe.
"You want know?" Flute looked at Sum. "Tribe need help. Flute got Tie call you over."
"But it goes against the Chief's wishes. The fact that I unknowingly broke his law torments me." The fire slowly shrunk as the snow rain down on it. "Now, there are goblins that want me to be the Chief. He ordered me to gather them in one place so that we can kill them all. You would not believe how many goblins wanted for the Chief to die. So many goblins desire to backstab our Chief!" Sum stood up, looking down at Flute. "The tribe will tear itself apart. You have compromised the stability of our tribe. Was this your plan all along? Did you want this to happen? Do you hate him that much."
Flute glared at Sum. She took her cup and poured its contents on the fire, killing it. "Flute no hate Cala. Flute hates Flute for getting tricked. Flute call you to help tribe. Nothing more, nothing less." She said in a gentle voice.
"The former Chief told Cala about you. About the dream he had. The dream where you will give birth to the child that will overthrow the,"
Flute jumped up her seat, "Shut up! No nothing. Sum no nothing of Flute." Flute took her cup stormed back to the barn.
Sum sat back down and calmed himself. He could deal with Flute later because, for now, he has a mission to do. He stood back up and turned around to walk back to the cottage. On his way was Cloud.
He stood there, fl.u.s.tered. He walked to the barn because he wanted to talk to Sun, but he couldn't bring himself to enter the barn with Flute and Sum arguing outside. "Um, is everything ok?" He asked.
"Yeah, it's fine. We should get going." The two of them walked together.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you something," Cloud said. He was rubbing his knuckles. "About the plan to kill those traitors."
The two discussed the plan while walking. After a few minutes, they arrived at the old cottage. "This was our old home, remember," Cloud said.
"Yeah."
Cloud handed him a small ball with a pin on top of it. Their followers were throwing powder around the building, and they filled the holes and cracks with dry leaves and hay. Cloud was scared the snow would make the building wet, but his followers a.s.sured him that the building is dry enough.
Sum entered the building. The room was filled with small bags containing the white powder Cloud's followers were spreading around the building. About forty goblins sat inside, waiting for his arrival. Some of them raised concerns about Cloud and his followers present. They questioned if Cloud's presence was necessary to overthrow Cala. Such discussions made Sum sick to his stomach.
Before the goblins could continue talking about their plans, Sum called out for one of them to come forward. "Me, Yes, me coming." One of the goblins said. He ran up to the front with an eager face. He thinks that Sum will reward him the position of being one of his retainers. He had his hands together, ready to accept the hat with the red, symbolizing his power over others. Instead, he got a small ball with a pin on top.
"Hold on to this," Sum told the goblin. He tied a thin thread around the pin. "Ok, I need you to hold onto this while I go out and get something." Before leaving, one of the goblins in the audience asked what the purpose of the small ball is. "It's our secret weapon," Sum replied.
He left the cottage and closed the door. In his fist was the other end of the thread. He continued to walk away from the cottage until the thread was no longer loose. Cloud and the followers stood behind. At the count of three, Sum pulled the thread, and the cottage exploded and burst in flame. The bomb's explosion could be heard around the town and pa.s.sed the eastern wall. But the sound of goblins screaming in agony was louder for Sum and Cloud. They watched as their old home burn to the ground, and the fire slowly die from the falling snow.