Cluupyte stared on at Charlie. He really did have the same eyes as his farther.
“The deal?” she said, as she stared into his eyes. On accident? It had to be. But for a moment she thought she stood alone in a field. But the second she blinked, several dead goblins, and blood aged goblin, and a few dead raiders surrounded her. On accident, he had activated some kind of ability. Quickly, she smiled and placed a hand onto Charlie’s head.
“Its fine, lets get to showing you how to make a knife,” she said excitedly as she picked him up and placed him onto her lap.
Never would she allow something like that to happen again. Never again would she allow someone like his farther to roam free. Once they returned, she would relay the unusual goblin group to the other clan leaders, as well as relay to the others about his eyes and try to find a possible solution. Placing her hands onto his, she began to help him craft.
He was a good person, she could tell, but there was no telling what those emerald eyes could do if not monitored. Well, maybe monitored wasn’t the word. Maybe it was best that they just kept the eyes secret to him for now. Or did he already know about the eyes? Shaking away the thought, Cluupyte continued with her works as she began to show him how to carve the knife.
Like the bowl before, he became focused onto creating the knife. All around him seemed to disappear as Cluupyte guided his blade. First, they created the handle.
“Don’t worry about it being made too small. There are ways in which using that skull bowl from earlier we can make a grip for the knife to suit any hand size within reason,” Cluupyte explained as she continued to guide his hand.
Together, they carved the blade. The knife wasn’t long, but it was long enough to be called more of a short sword rather than a knife. Creating the blade, Cluupyte instructed Charlie to cut off any imperfections while she prepared the skull bowl. The entire time they did this, Ourupadia had been busy processing the tree bark into cloth. Only now did Charlie notice this as Ourupadia placed a few stretches of the pale cloth next to him.
Cracks and crevasse of labour riddled Ourupadia’s hands. Still though she smiled as she continued to make even more of the cloth. To his other side, Charlie saw Cluupyte hard at work, ripping leaves from trees. Now he could see why she wanted to show him how to use a Goblin body to its full advantage. Using some bones from the goblin, she had created a small tripod over a little campfire.
Once she had gathered some leaves, she brought them over to the small fire. Tearing the leaves and cursing them together, she then placed them into the bowl. For a while she waited, and as she did so Charlie decided to return to his knife making. By this time, the knife had begun to take more of a tear drop shape. It was good, but the shape of the blade seemed odd.
Following her instructions, Charlie began to cut away at the bone. After some time, Cluupyte approached him with the bowl of leaves.
“The leaves here have lots of sugar in them, as well as saps native to these trees and plants that when boiled becomes a liquid. After it becomes incredibly solid it acts like… what’s I called? The substance you humans use to quickly bind things. Glue?” She said as she placed the bowl by his side. A green sludge had bene created from the mixing of the sap and the leaves.
“Are you happy with the knife?” Cluupyte asked.
“I’m not sure. I don’t know what makes a good knife,” Charlie said as he carefully examined the blade.
“A blade should be strong but light, sharp but well balanced. Is the knife life that?” Cluupyte said as she moved closer to him.
“I… I don’t think so,” Placing a hand onto his head, Cluupyte turned him to look her in the eyes.
“Then that is fine. Life is like creating a knife, you may fail many times, but if you have the ambition, you can always try again. And anyway, this was your first time so consider this knife to be more of a decoration or gift to someone rather than a practical weapons,” Cluupyte took the knife from his hands. Dipping her fingers into the bowl, she retrieved some of the paste she had just created.
Taking the paste, she used it to line the grip of the knife. Taking some of the cloth created by Ourupadia, she wrapped it around the grip. Once it began to stick, she made sure to wipe away any excess paste.
“How did you do that?” Charlie asked.
“Do what?”
“How did you know exactly how much cloth to use for the grip?” Cluupyte frowned.
“Well, this isn’t my first time, I guess it is just instinct,” Cluupyte quickly brushed away any concern as she finished wrapping the cloth.
“Now this is finished, all we have to do is wait for it to dry,” Cluupyte said, placing the knife onto a stone. Looking across to Ourupadia, she saw she had just finished making some more cloth.
“She’s fast…” Charlie muttered, staring at the almost unseeable hands of Ourupadia.
“Even though Ourupadia is officially a member of the huntresses, she tends to bounce from clan to clan, learning their knowledge. She spent an entire year learning how to make cloth from tree bark from the Forgers,” Cluupyte said proudly, knowing that Ourupadia’s fighting skills in melee had come from her.
“Ummm, thanks?” Charlie said as Ourupadia pushed a cloth against his chest.
Placing a hand over her mouth, Cluupyte wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. A white cloth with the blue silhouette of a woman firing an arrow, and a man with a gun. Oh no, if the Chiefess saw this, she would probably tear both Ourupadia and Charlie burnt alive. To the average person, this kind of weaving made from the cloth and native paints would probably be seen as just a nice decoration, but she knew this was a deep symbol of love amongst the Forger clan.
“You should be carful girl. Only the heavens know what the Chiefess would do if she found out you were offering such a gift,” Cluupyte said in their native tongue, pinching Ourupadia’s leg.
“I know this kind of thing is usually left until the female has claimed the male, but I wish for him to have something to remember me by when we return. After all, I guess the Chiefess will be obsessing over him once we return,” Ourupadia responded, placing a gentle hand onto Charlie’s head.
“I love him,”
“I know. But I doubt he would ever understand such a thing. He is to kind-hearted, and would probably try to return your love, but he also wouldn’t want to anger the Chiefess,” Cluupyte pointed out as she ruffled his hair.
“We all love him,” she placed Charlie down, and allowed him to continue to examine the cloth in piece.
“But it is the Chiefess, my daughter, and the other clan heirs who have become her harem who shall own him,” Ourupadia’s tail, and ears dropped as Cluupyte said this.
“Just let me pretend, just for a little longer,” Ourupadia said, nuzzling her head into his neck.
“I wish I could have claimed him before her,” Ourupadia continued as she placed a soft kiss onto his neck.
“I wish I had met him when I was younger,” Cluupyte joked, making both women laugh as they stared on at Charlie.
“Can I have some help?” Charlie asked, showing the knife to Cluupyte.
“With what?”
“Something that I think that will probably save us from being beaten to hell by the Chiefess,” Cluupyte gave a nod to Ourupadia as she moved to help Charlie.
Sitting back, Ourupadia watched in silence as Cluupyte took her knife and began to help Charlie carve something into the blade. Taking some cloth, Ourupadia began to again create one of her images. Taking her knife, which she had dipped into some ink made of a native flower, she began to create her image.
An hour or so past, then another, and before long another. By time it was mid-day, the group had mostly finished securing the area of any lasting goblins, as well as preserving the bodies for when the reinforcements arrived to take them back. Placing his finished knife into a cloth made by Ourupadia, he then doble wrapped it to make sure no damage was to be done to the knife.
To his side, Cluupyte lay under a tree. Lazily, her tail wagged, hitting away any flies that came near. Looking down to the wrapped knife, he placed it carefully into a small cloth bag. Again, this was created by Ourupadia. Moving over to the side of Cluupyte, he momentarily stared down at her. Sighing, he sat by her side.
“Are odds are low,” He muttered as he placed a hand onto her head. Running a hand over her ears, he got her attention. Staring up lazily at Charlie, Cluupyte frowned.
“Odds?”
“It was part of our deal, wasn’t it? You help me make a knife, I tell you the odds of defeating such an army of the Region Lord,” Cluupyte frowned as she stared up at him.
“So, the odds of wining are low?” Charlie grinned down at her. Grabbing her hears, he yanked them hard before jumping to his feet. Squealing, she snarled at him while rubbing the top of her head.
“Why would you do that?” she said with a glare.
“I’m testing my luck,” Charlie said, glancing back to see if Cluupyte was going to attack him. Looking back and seeing she was still understandably annoyed, but not lashing out, he knew she had trust in him. “As I said, the odds are low. But the odds that the Chiefess may skin me for basically abandoning her for a week, or at least that’s how I think she will see it, are incredibly high. As a merchant I like statistics, so if I can get away with yanking the sensitive ears of a wolf, then hopefully I can get away with the chances of being severely punished by the Chiefess,”
“Get away with that, and your plan may just work?” Cluupyte guessed. There was no need for an answer as he grinned at her again.
“Merchants say it is bad luck to show your hand before the game ends,” Charlie said, placing a hand onto the cloth bag which held the knife.
“I have a few cards, and when we return, I hope to potentially find a few more,” Charlie stood as a yell came from the tree line. A warrior came sprinting out of the forest line. Scrambling over to Cluupyte, Charlie couldn’t help but notice the fear on her face.
Her words came out in a rapid dribble of information, but one word was for certain, or well several for that fact. Nolkonoe and Pycleia were the two words he recognised as she pointed franticly behind her, to where she had come from. Cluupyte leapt to her feet. Dusting herself off, she stared towards where the woman had pointed.
Several large groups, maybe each about fifty or so in size, exited through the forest. The first was led by Nolkonoe, the second by Pycleia, and the other two groups by some women that Charlie didn’t recognise. Every woman though was armed to the teeth, and their bodies covered in war paint. Despite being about a hundred or so feet away, Nolkonoe’s eyes shook Charlie.
“Oh no,” Charlie said as he noticed her tail straightening. Clutching his bag to his side, he closed his eyes as he watched her begin to sprint towards him.
Throwing an arm around his waist, Nolkonoe threw him over her shoulder.
“The Chiefess wishes to see you, and you better pray my little human because she isn’t happy,” Nolkonoe said, her voice harsh and sending chills down his spine.
Cluupyte stared on at Charlie. He really did have the same eyes as his farther.
“The deal?” she said, as she stared into his eyes. On accident? It had to be. But for a moment she thought she stood alone in a field. But the second she blinked, several dead goblins, and blood aged goblin, and a few dead raiders surrounded her. On accident, he had activated some kind of ability. Quickly, she smiled and placed a hand onto Charlie’s head.
“Its fine, lets get to showing you how to make a knife,” she said excitedly as she picked him up and placed him onto her lap.
Never would she allow something like that to happen again. Never again would she allow someone like his farther to roam free. Once they returned, she would relay the unusual goblin group to the other clan leaders, as well as relay to the others about his eyes and try to find a possible solution. Placing her hands onto his, she began to help him craft.
He was a good person, she could tell, but there was no telling what those emerald eyes could do if not monitored. Well, maybe monitored wasn’t the word. Maybe it was best that they just kept the eyes secret to him for now. Or did he already know about the eyes? Shaking away the thought, Cluupyte continued with her works as she began to show him how to carve the knife.
Like the bowl before, he became focused onto creating the knife. All around him seemed to disappear as Cluupyte guided his blade. First, they created the handle.
“Don’t worry about it being made too small. There are ways in which using that skull bowl from earlier we can make a grip for the knife to suit any hand size within reason,” Cluupyte explained as she continued to guide his hand.
Together, they carved the blade. The knife wasn’t long, but it was long enough to be called more of a short sword rather than a knife. Creating the blade, Cluupyte instructed Charlie to cut off any imperfections while she prepared the skull bowl. The entire time they did this, Ourupadia had been busy processing the tree bark into cloth. Only now did Charlie notice this as Ourupadia placed a few stretches of the pale cloth next to him.
Cracks and crevasse of labour riddled Ourupadia’s hands. Still though she smiled as she continued to make even more of the cloth. To his other side, Charlie saw Cluupyte hard at work, ripping leaves from trees. Now he could see why she wanted to show him how to use a Goblin body to its full advantage. Using some bones from the goblin, she had created a small tripod over a little campfire.
Once she had gathered some leaves, she brought them over to the small fire. Tearing the leaves and cursing them together, she then placed them into the bowl. For a while she waited, and as she did so Charlie decided to return to his knife making. By this time, the knife had begun to take more of a tear drop shape. It was good, but the shape of the blade seemed odd.
Following her instructions, Charlie began to cut away at the bone. After some time, Cluupyte approached him with the bowl of leaves.
“The leaves here have lots of sugar in them, as well as saps native to these trees and plants that when boiled becomes a liquid. After it becomes incredibly solid it acts like… what’s I called? The substance you humans use to quickly bind things. Glue?” She said as she placed the bowl by his side. A green sludge had bene created from the mixing of the sap and the leaves.
“Are you happy with the knife?” Cluupyte asked.
“I’m not sure. I don’t know what makes a good knife,” Charlie said as he carefully examined the blade.
“A blade should be strong but light, sharp but well balanced. Is the knife life that?” Cluupyte said as she moved closer to him.
“I… I don’t think so,” Placing a hand onto his head, Cluupyte turned him to look her in the eyes.
“Then that is fine. Life is like creating a knife, you may fail many times, but if you have the ambition, you can always try again. And anyway, this was your first time so consider this knife to be more of a decoration or gift to someone rather than a practical weapons,” Cluupyte took the knife from his hands. Dipping her fingers into the bowl, she retrieved some of the paste she had just created.
Taking the paste, she used it to line the grip of the knife. Taking some of the cloth created by Ourupadia, she wrapped it around the grip. Once it began to stick, she made sure to wipe away any excess paste.
“How did you do that?” Charlie asked.
“Do what?”
“How did you know exactly how much cloth to use for the grip?” Cluupyte frowned.
“Well, this isn’t my first time, I guess it is just instinct,” Cluupyte quickly brushed away any concern as she finished wrapping the cloth.
“Now this is finished, all we have to do is wait for it to dry,” Cluupyte said, placing the knife onto a stone. Looking across to Ourupadia, she saw she had just finished making some more cloth.
“She’s fast…” Charlie muttered, staring at the almost unseeable hands of Ourupadia.
“Even though Ourupadia is officially a member of the huntresses, she tends to bounce from clan to clan, learning their knowledge. She spent an entire year learning how to make cloth from tree bark from the Forgers,” Cluupyte said proudly, knowing that Ourupadia’s fighting skills in melee had come from her.
“Ummm, thanks?” Charlie said as Ourupadia pushed a cloth against his chest.
Placing a hand over her mouth, Cluupyte wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. A white cloth with the blue silhouette of a woman firing an arrow, and a man with a gun. Oh no, if the Chiefess saw this, she would probably tear both Ourupadia and Charlie burnt alive. To the average person, this kind of weaving made from the cloth and native paints would probably be seen as just a nice decoration, but she knew this was a deep symbol of love amongst the Forger clan.
“You should be carful girl. Only the heavens know what the Chiefess would do if she found out you were offering such a gift,” Cluupyte said in their native tongue, pinching Ourupadia’s leg.
“I know this kind of thing is usually left until the female has claimed the male, but I wish for him to have something to remember me by when we return. After all, I guess the Chiefess will be obsessing over him once we return,” Ourupadia responded, placing a gentle hand onto Charlie’s head.
“I love him,”
“I know. But I doubt he would ever understand such a thing. He is to kind-hearted, and would probably try to return your love, but he also wouldn’t want to anger the Chiefess,” Cluupyte pointed out as she ruffled his hair.
“We all love him,” she placed Charlie down, and allowed him to continue to examine the cloth in piece.
“But it is the Chiefess, my daughter, and the other clan heirs who have become her harem who shall own him,” Ourupadia’s tail, and ears dropped as Cluupyte said this.
“Just let me pretend, just for a little longer,” Ourupadia said, nuzzling her head into his neck.
“I wish I could have claimed him before her,” Ourupadia continued as she placed a soft kiss onto his neck.
“I wish I had met him when I was younger,” Cluupyte joked, making both women laugh as they stared on at Charlie.
“Can I have some help?” Charlie asked, showing the knife to Cluupyte.
“With what?”
“Something that I think that will probably save us from being beaten to hell by the Chiefess,” Cluupyte gave a nod to Ourupadia as she moved to help Charlie.
Sitting back, Ourupadia watched in silence as Cluupyte took her knife and began to help Charlie carve something into the blade. Taking some cloth, Ourupadia began to again create one of her images. Taking her knife, which she had dipped into some ink made of a native flower, she began to create her image.
An hour or so past, then another, and before long another. By time it was mid-day, the group had mostly finished securing the area of any lasting goblins, as well as preserving the bodies for when the reinforcements arrived to take them back. Placing his finished knife into a cloth made by Ourupadia, he then doble wrapped it to make sure no damage was to be done to the knife.
To his side, Cluupyte lay under a tree. Lazily, her tail wagged, hitting away any flies that came near. Looking down to the wrapped knife, he placed it carefully into a small cloth bag. Again, this was created by Ourupadia. Moving over to the side of Cluupyte, he momentarily stared down at her. Sighing, he sat by her side.
“Are odds are low,” He muttered as he placed a hand onto her head. Running a hand over her ears, he got her attention. Staring up lazily at Charlie, Cluupyte frowned.
“Odds?”
“It was part of our deal, wasn’t it? You help me make a knife, I tell you the odds of defeating such an army of the Region Lord,” Cluupyte frowned as she stared up at him.
“So, the odds of wining are low?” Charlie grinned down at her. Grabbing her hears, he yanked them hard before jumping to his feet. Squealing, she snarled at him while rubbing the top of her head.
“Why would you do that?” she said with a glare.
“I’m testing my luck,” Charlie said, glancing back to see if Cluupyte was going to attack him. Looking back and seeing she was still understandably annoyed, but not lashing out, he knew she had trust in him. “As I said, the odds are low. But the odds that the Chiefess may skin me for basically abandoning her for a week, or at least that’s how I think she will see it, are incredibly high. As a merchant I like statistics, so if I can get away with yanking the sensitive ears of a wolf, then hopefully I can get away with the chances of being severely punished by the Chiefess,”
“Get away with that, and your plan may just work?” Cluupyte guessed. There was no need for an answer as he grinned at her again.
“Merchants say it is bad luck to show your hand before the game ends,” Charlie said, placing a hand onto the cloth bag which held the knife.
“I have a few cards, and when we return, I hope to potentially find a few more,” Charlie stood as a yell came from the tree line. A warrior came sprinting out of the forest line. Scrambling over to Cluupyte, Charlie couldn’t help but notice the fear on her face.
Her words came out in a rapid dribble of information, but one word was for certain, or well several for that fact. Nolkonoe and Pycleia were the two words he recognised as she pointed franticly behind her, to where she had come from. Cluupyte leapt to her feet. Dusting herself off, she stared towards where the woman had pointed.
Several large groups, maybe each about fifty or so in size, exited through the forest. The first was led by Nolkonoe, the second by Pycleia, and the other two groups by some women that Charlie didn’t recognise. Every woman though was armed to the teeth, and their bodies covered in war paint. Despite being about a hundred or so feet away, Nolkonoe’s eyes shook Charlie.
“Oh no,” Charlie said as he noticed her tail straightening. Clutching his bag to his side, he closed his eyes as he watched her begin to sprint towards him.
Throwing an arm around his waist, Nolkonoe threw him over her shoulder.
“The Chiefess wishes to see you, and you better pray my little human because she isn’t happy,” Nolkonoe said, her voice harsh and sending chills down his spine.
