Those Who Provide

There is an old saying in the caverns.

“There’s meat in the stew pot for an adventurous goblin.”

Many a young goblin has tried to decipher its meaning, only to have to have it explained by an older goblin in the end. It is an analogy of temptation, and of short-sightedness. It is the adventurous goblin, seeking after the prize, who is most likely to fall into the stew pot as a consequence.

Yet the aphorism is not a deterrent. Some goblins have adventuring in their blood, and no amount of sense will prevent them from seeking exploration and escapades. Some strike out on their own to find excitement, but most put their impudent spirits to good use among Those Who Provide.

Nala knew as a youngling that he would join the food gatherers. As soon as he was mature enough to traverse the caverns on his own, he did. He was a little one, and good at getting into tight places. Long before his training was properly finished, he was being taken along for raids on human gardens. His only regret was that he seemed unable to master the knack for changing the colour of his skin that would make him fade into his surroundings. It was a talent that some came to naturally, and a few could learn. There were many who were never able to do it, who would always rely on stealth to stay out of sight of the humans. Nala was good at stealth, but he would have been happier if he could change. Then he would have been invited to go on surface raids more often.

Digging root vegetables from under the ground was safe enough. They did it during the night time when humans slept. That was the first illustration that Nala had of the differences in the human world. Growing up deep in the caverns, the movements of sun and moon were no more than subtle gravitational pulls to the goblins. There was no light to change the patterns of their activities, they slept when tired, ate when hungry or when someone was cooking a pot for the Storytelling.

But Those Who Provide noted the movements of humans so they could avoid encountering them, and knowing the patterns of light and darkness on the surface world was among their survival skills. Nala sometimes saw the soft moonlight through the holes in the ground as they stole the vegetables. Occasionally, one of the more experienced goblins would squeeze through one of them and come back with fruits and other vegetables that grew above ground. But Nala had been cautioned against the risk of going above ground without training to avoid humans. It wasn’t only himself he would endanger, but their whole species. So Nala complied, and trusted those more experienced to judge when he was ready to test his skills in the hostile world above.

That day did come. There was to be a swine raid. The timing was carefully chosen. There would be humans about. At dawn, the pig boys took the swine to a field where mushrooms grew to allow them to root for food. The field was within reach of a cavern opening. There would be three young humans in charge of the pigs, but with a little mischief, they could be distracted while a few of the herd were routed into the cavern. Swine meat was a particular treat for the goblins. It was worth the higher risk.

Nala was surprised when he was invited to help. His role would be the safest, but very essential. He was to stay by the mouth of the cavern and push the panicking swine down the corridor. Three other goblins would actually be out in the field creating havoc, invisibly. It was a method that had worked many times before without consequences. The pig boys knew that swine could spook suddenly for no apparent reason. Whether they were aware that they lost a few when it happened the goblins didn’t know. But they didn’t come looking for them, and the cavern was always closed after so that all they would find is a hillside. Perhaps they assumed that some had charged blindly into the forest, lost forever.