Fallen Crown (Orc Destiny Volume II) (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) (8 page)

Raising a hand to silence those who spoke amongst his clan
behind him, he watched and patiently waited as the goblins removed themselves
from the harnesses.

“Good goblins, Gnak thank you. Go now. Bring you king. Tell
king armor make Gnak proud. Proud know goblin king. Proud talk goblin king.”

The goblins, respecting his position of authority, each
bowed slightly before they turned and fell into four ranks of twelve before
they marched back up the hill. Even with so few, the goblins’ precision was
impressive and Gnak was glad for it. His clan was witnessing the display, and
now they would see with their own eyes how working together with such perfection
inspired awe. It demanded respect. It instilled pride. Now it was time to
address his people.

“Mighty Gathos, good goblins bring us gift. No touch gift.
Gathos wait, goblin king come. Goblin king bring people. Goblin king good.
Goblins good. No kill goblin king people. Yes?” Gnak began.

Heads bobbed here and there, and were punctuated by many a
grunt of approval. Patience was not a strong trait among Orcs, but they were
beginning to trust his ways. Setting off across the camp he motioned for his
newly returned captains and Bota to follow. Within minutes he was back in his
tent and hearing the details of their trip. Within an hour he knew all that was
needed to know, and he sat patiently listening to their tale.

It seemed they had reached the pass through the mountains
without incident, but found the southern mouth cleared of all useful materials,
except of course the many pouches stuffed with goblin currency he had hidden
there weeks ago. Traveling through the pass they found it still empty, the
great carcasses of the giants nearly picked clean by flocks of large black
birds. Fortunately the northern mouth of the pass was another story.

The Orcs told him that they had found all they could carry
with their large carts and still left much behind. They gathered all they could
carry and struck out for the city of the goblin king immediately. Without time
to rest, they had hauled the equipment day and night until they reached the
city of the goblins and, once there, they were met amongst the dunes by a
scouting patrol. They surrendered themselves and their wares to the goblins,
telling them what Gnak had ordered them to.

Brought to the city, they were met by the goblin king who
was happy to receive them. He fed the Orcs, allowed them rest, and set his
armorers and blacksmiths to task as he prepared his own troops to march. For
three days and two nights the goblins’ forges blazed heat, and thousands of
hammers clanged steel relentlessly until the job was complete. Returning, the
Orcs marched with the goblin king and his small army, detaching themselves the
previous day to rush ahead and announce his coming. He would arrive near
morning.

Gnak took in all the information as it was given. He rested
quietly for several minutes, thinking to himself. Planning. Then he spoke,
giving his orders to Bota, who could then delegate them to whomever he wished
to carry them out.

“Go count clan. Gnak want know number. Send hunt. Big hunt.
Goblins come, we feed. Give honor goblin king.”

Dismissing them from his tent, Gnak followed them out and
watched as they dispersed to carry out his orders. Turning, he strode between
the tents back the way he had come earlier, and reaching the southern edge of
the camp he looked upon the carts of weapons and armor. A guard had been set to
protect the armor from outsiders who might be looking on from the dunes beyond.
Gnak had no doubt they were there, watching his clan’s every move. But he did
not care. Let them watch.

Striding among the carts he found that they were all
similarly filled, and reaching within one he pulled from it a blackened iron
breastplate. It was not an overly ornate thing, but neither was it plain.
Shaped in the form of the Orc body, it lacked the definition of muscles and
such, but was thick and solid. The edges were turned up and rolled, to make
them smooth. Leather straps clung to the plate from behind and attached to them
a simple back plate had been created with built in slots to hold the newly
formed blades. Though the design was simple, it allowed a wearer to easily
slide it over their head, pull the straps tight to secure it, and they were
ready.

Turning the piece back over once more, he touched his finger
to the design etched upon the blackened metal, tracing the image. It was a
large skull that wore an immense crown. Standing within the crown was an Orc,
with chains in his fists. The goblins had made Gnak the very image his clan
would wear. Orcish pride demanded that Gnak approve, and so he did… with a
large tusky grin.

Replacing the piece into the cart he turned and strode away.
A king was coming to visit him. A king he had been working to emulate. He would
prepare as best as he was able.

CHAPTER SEVEN

With the morning came the goblin king, though naught
announced his arrival but the drumming of hooves and eerie song that carried
over the dunes from the south. With light breaking the horizon, the sky
transitioned from black to purple and then finally blue as the sun rose,
streaking beams of yellow and white light through the clouds. After another
hour, war drums could be heard, beating in rhythm with the song. Climbing the
nearest dune, Gnak and Bota both looked out across the desert and watched the
goblins come.

Though he had received the count of how many Orcs he
commanded sometime in the middle of the night and found it impressive, the
force that marched with the goblin leader dwarfed his by more than ten times.
Gnak’s nearly five hundred seemed quite small by comparison. Even so, his many
hunters were still returning with whatever animals they could gather to feed
the goblin horde. The feast would range from everything from bear to wild boar,
and even several dozen of the small foxes they had hunted days before.

Over the dunes the procession came, near four thousand foot
troops accompanied by almost another thousand goblins mounted on domesticated
boars. Louder and louder they grew, until at last Gnak could make words out of
their dark and foreboding song, and listening he began to piece it all
together, only to find himself astonished.

Once was an Orc, a mighty Orc.

who traveled across the sand.

Defying the desert and his race,

he came with gold in hand.

To the goblin king he came,

with plans to lead his kind,

Capture a giant from the sand,

was what he had in mind.

With the goblin king his friend,

together a giant they bound.

The Orc Gnak, with message to send,

rode the king of giants, once crowned.

Return to his home, the Orc did go,

and slay the giant by right,

Sworn to a god Orcs did not know,

he was blessed by the goddess that night.

A mighty Orc, could raise the dead,

some say it was beyond belief,

But again he returned, and removing his head,

he slayed his father the chief.

Now called to war, the new chief strode,

with his clan to go and fight.

And to his side a goblin king rode,

to join together their might.

Gnak it seemed, the mightiest chief,

would claim the Orkin throne,

In him the goblin king had belief,

having had a vision of his own.

So on the goblin forces marched,

to join with the Orkin clan.

To drink some blood, their throats quite parched,

and help Chief Gnak with his plan.

On and on the goblins repeated the tune, growing louder and
louder by the minute. Gnak listened time and again, his head not believing his
ears. He watched as the mounted contingent broke away from the rest of the
goblin horde and split into two, the mounted goblins circled out in both
directions, both east and west, vanishing among the dunes as the main force
stayed true.

Gnak was filled with so many questions he found it hard to
focus, and instinctively reached within himself to find Jen. With her presence
soothing him, he stood atop the dune until the goblins finally arrived. When
they did, he was again surprised.

Marching to within feet of him the goblin army halted, both
their song and drumming ceasing. To the fore of the goblins came a man he
recognized, carried across the sand in a two-wheeled cart pulled by a pair of
the trained boars. Standing tall, Gnak watched the goblin king come. He was a
small man with the same ruddy green skin of his kind, striped through with
browns and blacks. He was not overly large, not even for a goblin, yet he
was
impressive.

With a golden crown upon his head and golden barbs through
his ears, he was covered in baubles that many races found to have value. He
wore odd armor, that resembled the layered feathers of birds, only each feather
was gold and silver. In one hand he held a goblin blade, though his was a fine
creation encrusted with sparkling stones in various hues. In the other he held
a scepter similarly encrusted. But the display of goblin wealth meant little to
Gnak. It was the goblin’s eyes that made him impressive. The intelligence and
cunning that shone there were not hidden well by the smile the king gave. No.
The goblin king did not mean him harm, but it was obvious he was not a man to
cross. No matter how small his stature.

Approaching the small king, Gnak was caught off guard when
the goblin leader stepped from his chariot and knelt before him in the sand.
Every single goblin echoed their leader’s move, and not knowing what to do in
return, Gnak nodded, lowering his own head in respect to the king. Gnak watched
the goblin king rise and appraise him, before the small man talked.

“My friend, Gnak. We haves much to discuss,” said the goblin
king with a toothy grin.

“Come. Goblins make camp,” Gnak replied turning to point
back down the dune behind him. “Have food. Goblins eat. Get rest. We talk.”

Having invited his ally to join their camp, Gnak turned and
walked across the sand with the small king. He watched the man at his side as
the goblin raised a hand and gestured with his fingers as goblins behind them
began shouting orders. Down the side of the dune they walked, Gnak taking
smaller strides than was natural, allowing the smaller man to keep pace. It was
not until they approached the base of the dune, with all the Orcish clan having
come out to witness the arrival of the goblins, that the goblin king began
speaking again.

“Me sees you gots the armors,” he said gesturing to the
heavily laden carts still unpacked at the edge of camp.

“Yes. Gnak think is good. Gnak thank goblin king for armor.
Gnak no understand why goblins come. Want know what goblin music say. What
goblin king vision?” Gnak said, voicing his concerns aloud.

“Yes, we talks all this in private. I tells you what me sees
in vision. What me thinks it means.”

And with that the two walked into the Orc camp. Gnak paused
only momentarily to instruct Bota to have the Orcs help the goblins in striking
camp, and extending it in the way the Orcs had begun. He also gave the order to
see to it that as many Orcs as possible were armed and armored with the new
equipment. Before even walking away, Bota was delegating to the captains their
own sections of the camp in which to lead the Orcs in assisting their apparent
new allies.

Before Gnak and the goblin king could make it through the
camp to his tent, the mounted goblins rode in, both contingents becoming one as
they closed in upon the north side of the camp, opposite where they had begun.
Gnak watched out between the tents as the goblins dismounted, and working
together they dragged to the edge of the camp several Orcs bound by ropes.

One of the goblin’s apparent captains came running down the
isle of tents, and dropping to a knee before his king he spoke.

“We catches spies. We brings them. Whats we do with them?”

The goblin king did not even respond, instead turning to
Gnak for an answer.

“Keep tie. Hold spies. Gnak talk goblin king first.”

Up the goblin sprang before sprinting back the way he had
come. Shouting orders, the goblin pointed towards the sand outside of camp and
within seconds poles were being driven down into the sand, the prisoners being
dragged up to them and lashed round and round their bodies, holding them still.
Gnak admired their efficiency.

As the task was being completed he again led the goblin to
his tent and once inside they seated themselves as if they were old friends.
Though before Gnak could begin his questioning anew, the goblin spoke.

“Tells me, Gnak. What happened afters you left me city? I
have heard a tale, but wants to hears it from you. Then, I will tells you my
tale.”

It was a fairly simple request, and with all the goblin was
apparently offering, it was a trade Gnak couldn’t resist. Reaching inward to
caress the power that was Jen, he soothed himself, allowing his mind to stitch
together his story in chronological order.

He told the king of his return to camp and how Jen, the
human he wished to save, had been brutally treated. He told of her murder and
his killing of the false king of the giants. He told of his answered prayers to
Ishanya and the granting of his blessed power. Though it was difficult, he
spoke of his attempt of saving Jen and restoring her to life only to watch her
fade and die yet again. Keeping the details to himself, he told the goblin king
about slaying his own father to claim the clan for his own, and everything
else, minus his experiments, between that time and the present. On and on the
goblin king listened intently, his facial expression changing again and again as
the story progressed. Only when Gnak was done did he split his wicked grin, the
rows of razor sharp teeth creating an odd bemused expression.