The Chronicles of Nirn: WAAAAGH!

by Jensiferum Satyrus

Follow a small band of greenskins as they set out on a journey with no real plot at all. Races, locations and deities belong to Games Workshop. but the characters are mine. Rated T for violence and orcish stupidity. looong oneshot.

There was a sudden noise from the bushes. The Goblin narrowed his eyes and grinned wickedly as he pulled an arrow out from his quiver and laid it onto the string of his bow. He held his breath and fired straight into the vegetation. A pained squeal erupted from the undergrowth as a wounded boar tried to crawl away from the gleeful goblin with an arrow in its hind leg. The greenskin's grin grew wider as he put away his bow and pulled out a stick with a large fang tied onto the end, it was supposed to be a spear, and approached the wild pig. He paused and savoured the moment, and then he plunged the makeshift spear into the boar's neck, twisted it around a few times and pulled it out once the pig had stopped trashing. Some time later the goblin came waddling back to camp with the dead animal hefted onto his shoulders. A large shadow was suddenly looming over him. The tiny creature looked up, and frowned. A hulking greenskin stood over him; his clothes looked like he had killed something, skinned it and pulled the remains over his head. Two large weapons that looked more like oversized butcher knives than actual swords were hanging from his belt, and the majority of his body was covered in red tattoos. The orc gave a grin. "You iz late, runt!" The goblin kept his mouth shut and continued walking when the orc reached out and picked him clean up from the ground. "Oi! Don't you go all quiet-like when I iz talkin' ta you'ze! Ya li'l git!" The smaller greenskin swallowed. The orc raised his fist; and yelled out in surprise and pain, dropping the goblin in the process. The orc looked down and spotted a second, slightly smaller, goblin pulling a dagger out of his foot. "Ghruz! Wot da Gork iz yer proplem?" he bellowed. The robed goblin shot him a scowl and licked the blood off of his dagger "You woz goin' ta 'it 'im!" he growled. "Boss Gronnlork sez dat you can't 'it uz if 'e don't say so first!" The orc snarled and stomped off. Meanwhile, the first goblin had retrieved his boar and wits, and continued on to the campsite. Upon reaching said camp he spotted his boss sitting by the fire. His boss was easy to spot, though, for he was truly a massive orc, easily over two and a half meters in height. The goblin dropped the boar next to him, and climbed up his arm and onto his shoulder. "Dere you iz!" the orc leader muttered. "I woz startin' ta get worried 'bout you'ze. Wot took ya so long?" The goblin sighed. "Da li'l bugga wonted ta play 'ide an' seek. And den Grulkog wonted ta make me 'iz punchin' gob." Gronnlork the Git-stomper rose to his feet and took a deep breath. "GRULKOG, YA GIT!" he bellowed. "GIT YER LOUSY CARCASS BACK 'ERE, YA BLOODY RUNT!". A moment later Grulkog came sprinting into the clearing with Ghruz following close behind. The smaller orc stopped and the goblin crashed into his calf. "Yeah, boss, wot iz it?" he asked. The black orc pulled his weapon out, and smashed the hilt between the smaller orc's eyes. "Grezzit sez dat you tried ta 'it 'im" he snarled. The lesser orc shot a murderous glare at the goblin. Gronnlork smashed him over the head again. "LOOK AT ME WHEN I IZ TALKIN' TO YA!" he yelled, spittle flying from his monstrous jaws. "You know da rulez" he growled once he had calmed himself. "No 'ittin' da grotz 'less I tellz ya to. Ya got dat?" Grulkog started mumbling to himself. "YA GOT DAT?!" Gronnlork yelled while giving his subordinate yet another smash over the head. Grulkog swayed a bit, and then he crashed to the ground like a sack of dwarf beards. "Got it, boss" he answered meekly before passing out. Gronnlork nodded and turned to the robed goblin. "Ghruz, go get sum wata or sumfing ta wake 'im up wiff." The shaman nodded vigorously. "On it, boss." The goblin made for the woods and disappeared in the darkness. "Az fer you" the black orc rumbled, picking Grezzit off of his shoulder. "Start kuttin' up dat boar, I'ze gonna place dis git sumplace soft-like." The goblin nodded and walked back to the fire while pulling a small knife from his belt. Ghruz soon returned with the water. "Now let'z 'ave a go at dis" he mumbled while crushing some mushrooms and pouring the remains into the water. He then made strange patterns in the air with his staff and shot a small green beam into the mixture. "Right, dis fing'z gonna get 'im on 'is feets in no-time" he muttered while giving a manic cackle. The shaman made his way over to the downed orc, grabbed a hold of his tusk, opened the mouth and poured the contents into it. Grulkog's eyes were open in an instant. He bounced to his feet and started running in circles while yelling and screaming gibberish. Gronnlork put his foot out, and Grulkog went face-first into the mud. The larger orc grabbed him by his torso and hauled him to his feet. "Iz you proppa awake now?" he asked. Grulkog nodded. "Wide awake, boss". "Den git movin'! I iz 'ungry."

After a sating meal, the greenskins got comfortable and fell asleep. Suddenly Grezzit was stirred from his slumber by a sound. The goblin raised his large, pointed ears and his equally large, pointed nose and sniffed out in the air. The scent was familiar somehow, but he was unable to place it. Realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He quickly stood up and stealthily made his way towards Gronnlork's hulking frame. "Boss! Boss! Wake up boss!" he whispered and shook the larger greenskin's arm. The black orc gave a snarl and rolled over, squeezing the goblin under him. "Boss!" he croaked "Boss wake up! Dere iz sum o' dem humies 'round 'ere!". The orc opened one of his eyes. "Humies?" he asked. "Pleez stop crushin' me, boss" Grezzit pleaded. Gronnlork got up and pried the goblin off his chest-plate. "Humies?" he asked again. "Iz you sure?" The goblin panted and swallowed to catch his breath before replying: "Yeah, dey'z 'ere, boss. I can smell dose gits from a mile away" "Go an' wake Ghruz. I'll get Grulkog" Gronnlork ordered. Grezzit nodded and snuck over to the other goblin. The black orc tiptoed over to the smaller orc; and gave him a boot in the ribs while clamping a hand over his mouth. The orc woke immediately and looked his boss in the eye. "Gedup!" the boss said. "Grezzit sez dat dere's humies sumplace 'round 'ere!" Grulkog grinned and got up. Ghruz and Grezzit returned. "Now wot, boss?" Grulkog inquired. "Wot do ya fink, ya git! C'mon boyz! It'z been far too long since we got ourselfz a propa fight!" Grinning gleefully, the greenskins drew their weapons and crept slowly to where Grezzit said the humans were.

Ghruz peeked out from beneath a bush and raised his hood to see better. A large campsite revealed itself to his eyes, and in the dim light he could make out at least twenty-five humans and there were probably more inside the tents. The shaman grinned toothily and retreated into the forest.

The human raised his head suddenly. "What is it?" another guard asked him. "I thought I saw something" the first guard muttered. The second guard rolled his eyes. "Oh please, there's no one out here but us. What could you possibly have seen?" "Don't get cocky" the first guard warned "I've heard that there are greenskins and trolls and ogres and all other sorts of dumb, brutal creatures around here." The second guard laughed. "I'm sorry, but I think you've got outdated information. All those beasts live in the mountains; the forest isn't exactly their turf". He gave a small sigh. "No my friend, I reckon that the last thing we'll see down here: is a greenskin." At that moment the sound of branches snapping was heard and the sound of something big charging through the woods followed soon after.

"WAAAAAGH!!!!!" With a mighty war-cry, the greenskins erupted from the undergrowth. Gronnlork in the lead, Grulkog hot on his heels, Grezzit snarling and Ghruz waving his staff around. The thundering battle-cry had stunned the two guards completely. Gronnlork ignored them and charged past. Grulkog swung his mighty arms and lopped the heads off of them both. The two orcs bellowed with savage joy as they cut, smashed, stomped, crushed, chopped, hacked and killed anything in their path that wasn't green. One of the humans quickly pulled his crossbow out and took aim at the head of the smallest orc. The sound of a bow letting loose echoed through the night and the crossbowman fell dead with two crude goblin arrows sticking out from the side of his head. Grezzit notched another arrow and sent a charging human screaming to the ground. Before the pinkskin could get up again, the goblin was over him. Grezzit cackled like a madman while using his spear to stab at any place that wasn't covered by steel. When the human finally died the goblin heard the sound of running behind him. He turned, and saw a human wielding a sword and shield charging him. There wasn't enough time to fire an arrow, and in melee combat no goblin excelled. Suddenly a green bolt of lightning struck the human and sent him flying. Ghruz was currently drooling green, his eyes were glowing green and he sent green fireballs and green lightning at every human he could spot. Gronnlork snarled and smacked one human with his thick, wooden shield while sinking his blade into another human's guts. He raised his head and looked around for fresh prey, spotting a human wielding a hammer and shouting prayers, he grinned and took off in that direction.

The hammer-wielding human was currently standing over a downed Ghruz. He raised his weapon and shouted: "O, Sigmar, father of mankind, bless my hammer with thy light so that with it I may cleanse the wicked and purge this unholy beast from the realm that does belong to thee and thy children!" "Save yer breff, humie!" a deep and guttural voice sounded from behind the warrior priest. Gronnlork pulled a feral grin and stomped the ground in front of him. "You iz goin' ta need it when I starts tearin' yer armz off!" The large orc let out a deep laughter at his own joke. The priest gritted his teeth and brought his hammer down upon the orc. Gronnlork raised his shield to block the blow and shook from the impact. "Finally a humie wot 'itz 'ard!" he thought as he swung his large blade in a wide arc. The warrior priest ducked and sent the black orc to the ground by smashing his hammer into Gronnlork's legs. "DIE, WICKED CREATURE!" the priest yelled as he raised his hammer to deliver the final blow. Then he fell silent and looked down. A heavy orcish boot was currently getting better acquainted with his crotch. The priest looked up to the sky "Why…?" he whispered. "Why hast thou forsaken me, Sigmar?" He fell to his knees, holding on to his crotch with his hands. The orc got up and retrieved his weapon. He took a look at it, and sheathed it. The priest growled. "I do not want mercy from you, beast!" he snarled. Gronnlork grinned. "'Oo said anyfing 'bout mercy?" he asked. "I said dat I waz goin' ta tear yer armz off. Didn't I?" A look of pure terror came to the warrior priest's face. Gronnlork grabbed both arms by the elbows and planted his left boot on the human's chest. And with a mighty heave, he pulled both arms out of their sockets. The priest howled in pain with the orc's mocking laughter ringing in his ears. Gronnlork pulled out his weapon and cleaved his head off. The black orc picked up the arms and hoisted them into the air. "WAAAAAAGH!!!!!" he bellowed while holding the severed limbs up high. Grulkog was pulling his swords out of two foreheads when he heard his boss yelling in triumph. He looked around and realised that there wasn't a single living human left in the camp. Raising his swords and crossing them, he threw his head back and yelled as well. The two goblins grabbed each other by the hands and started dancing. Grulkog picked them up and placed them on his shoulders, and then he started dancing too. "OI!" Gronnlork snapped. "Quit bein' stoopid an' grab sum drinks, eats an' trophies!" The other greenskins got to work with looting anything that could be eaten or drunk and then they took pieces of armour, hacked off some limbs or looted human weaponry for their trophy piles. They took all they could carry and dragged it back to their camp. After about thirty minutes of trudging through the forest, the victorious greenskins reached their campsite. After feasting on the spoils of their victory they leaned themselves up against a tree and fell asleep.

The sun's first rays shone over the landscape, bathing it in a tranquil golden glow and fully revealing the carnage that had been brought upon the humans only a few short hours ago.

The sun hit the snoozing goblin; Ghruz growled and pulled his hood further down his face until he hit his own long, crooked nose. "I 'ate dat fing" he muttered and turned over. Gronnlork sleepily opened one of his eyes and then the other one. After pulling himself up, he stretched and gave a roaring yawn. "C'mon boyz! Git on yer feets, dere'z no time ta waste!" he said. Grulkog got up and scratched himself behind his ear. "Iz we goin' sumwhere, boss?" he asked on a yawn of his own. "Course we'z goin' sumwhere" Gronnlork replied. "We can't let all o' dese trophies we gavvered juz' lay 'ere, right?" "You iz boss, you iz alwayz right!" the smaller greenskins said as one. Gronnlork gave a satisfied nod and started gathering up the trophies he had collected from the humans that had fallen by his blade. The other greenskins followed his example, and soon after they were on their way. "Where IZ we goin', boss?" Grezzit questioned. Gronnlork rolled his eyes. "We iz goin' back 'ome ta dump all o' dese fings in our trophy-pilez" he explained. "Oh! You iz smart, boss!" "I know I iz!"

The greenskins kept on trekking through the thick forest, eventually stopping for a short break. "Okay boyz!" Gronnlork shouted. "Take fife or sumfing!" The greenskins dropped what they were carrying and sat down. "I iz just goin' ta fetch meself sumfing ta drink" Ghruz mumbled and took off. The goblin crept through the bushes, occasionally raising his nose to sniff out eventual dangers. After a few minutes the shaman reached a large clearing with a glittering lake stretching off into the distance. Ghruz sighed happily and approached the water with a tiny bit of caution. Bending down, the goblin stuck his tongue out and started lapping at the water like a thirsty dog. After quenching his thirst, the diminutive greenskin turned around and started walking back the way he came. A small puff of wind brought a scent with it, a scent that made the goblin pale. A tree was flung aside, and a huge troll was suddenly observing Ghruz with its small, beady eyes. The troll bared its tusks and roared before swinging one of its lanky, yet muscular, arms towards the partially stunned goblin. Ghruz was hit. The punch sent him sailing several meters through the air before crashing head-first into a boulder. Roaring, the troll charged and raised his fist to crush the goblin. Ghruz dived to the side and the troll's fist smashed into the large rock. The boulder shattered, and the troll turned to find that the greenskin had gotten his staff out and was currently weaving green patterns in the air with it before pointing at the troll. A green lightning shot out from the tip of the staff and sent the troll flying into another boulder. The troll got to his feet with a savage growl. Spotting a large rock within reach, the troll grabbed it and hurled it as hard as it could against the goblin. Ghruz yelped and dived out of the way. Taking advantage of this, the hulking troll moved with a speed that seemed unnatural for such a large being. When the goblin looked up, he saw that the troll had raised both of its fists in the air. The shaman dived forward and just as the two huge fists hit the ground, he pulled out his dagger and jammed it into the back of the troll's knee. The troll let out an ear-splitting roar of pain, and raised its foot to smash the goblin underneath. Quickly crawling forward, the shaman got to his feet and made for the nearest tree. The troll made a sharp turn and limped after the fleeing greenskin. Ghruz reached the tree, dug his claws into the bark and started climbing. Deciding that he had climbed high enough, Ghruz turned and leaped onto the troll. Snorting with irritation, the troll clawed at its own back, trying to get a hold of the annoying prey. The shaman was suddenly sitting behind the hulking creature's head. Raising his staff, he jammed it into the troll's skull. The staff flashed green and the troll gave a world-shattering roar and fell over on the ground. Upon hitting the mud, the impact flung the goblin off the dead troll's neck and into the lake. The victorious Ghruz resurfaced and swam to the shore. The shaman managed to crawl his way to dry ground before collapsing from sheer exhaustion.

Grezzit peeked out from the bushes. It had been over four hours since Ghruz had gone to get something to drink, and after two hours of waiting, the boss had commanded his greenskins out to search for the missing goblin, quoting: "No git iz left be'ind az long az I iz boss!" And as such they had spent the last two hours looking for their shaman and field doctor. An unexpected sight met the goblin's eyes as he made his way out of the forest and into the clearing. Firstly; there was the downed troll. Secondly; Ghruz was laying flat on his belly a few meters away. Grezzit turned sharply and yelled: "Boss! Grulkog! I found 'im!" The two larger greenskins came running and stopped abruptly when they spotted the dead troll. "Wot in da name o' Gork an' Mork 'appened 'ere?" Grulkog whispered. "Wot d'ya fink 'appened" Gronnlork replied in a low growl. "Ghruz 'ere juz' kilt a troll!" Grezzit sprinted over to the downed goblin. "Ghruz!" he wailed. "Ghruz! Gedup ya git!" He then proceeded to smacking the unconscious shaman while desperately screaming his name. "Don't die on yer matez now, ya 'ear! We needz you, ya runt!" Gronnlork picked the panicking bowman off of the shaman and tossed him into the lake before picking Ghruz up. "Kalm down, grot!" he yelled once the goblin resurfaced. "Dis boy ain't dedd!" The black orc dipped the shaman in the water and held him there until he started struggling. Gronnlork grinned and hauled the shaman out of the lake. Ghruz spat a mouthful of seaweed out of his jaws and stared blankly at the huge orc holding him. "Iz you Gork?" he asked groggily. "I fawt you'd be bigga dan diz." Gronnlork frowned and slapped the goblin. "Iz you kallin' me small? Ya li'l git". Ghruz quickly came to his senses and told the tale of how he defeated the troll. Grulkog pulled one of his swords out and separated the troll's right hand from its body. He then passed the severed hand to the shaman. "Kongratualshunz, grot" he said with a grin. "'Erez yer trophy!" Smiling brightly, Ghruz accepted the hand. Holding it up in the air, he proclaimed his victory; "WAAAAAGH!!!" His fellow greenskins raised their weapons to the sky, and roared with him. "RIGHT, ALL O' YOUZE GITZ!" Gronnlork yelled. "CELEBRASHUNZ IZ OVA! GIT GOIN', YA LOUSY MOB O' RUNTZ!"

After a few more hours of trekking through terrain a human never could've traversed, while dragging the troll's corpse after them, it became dark. "Boss?" Grezzit asked. "Wot?" "I iz tired, me feets iz 'urtin an' I fink dere'z sumfing tryin' ta eat me toezez. Kan we stop walkin' now, boss?" "Hmmm…" Gronnlork scratched his chin and tried to look thoughtful. "A'right! Settle down ladz!" Dropping the troll, the greenskins fell to the ground in exhaustion. "Dis iz wun 'eavy git" Grulkog panted. Ghruz grinned and drew his dagger out of his belt. "We'z just goin' ta 'ave ta take a few bitz off 'im den!". Gronnlork made his way over to the troll-turned-dinner and pushed the smaller greenskins out of the way. "I iz boss! Da thighz 're mine!". After the black orc was finished tearing off the thighs, Ghruz split the creature's stomach open and pulled a large portion of innards out of the wound. "Mmm…" the goblin inhaled the scent of his meal. "Da gutz iz da juiciest part" he thought while hastily gobbling up a dripping, purple and slimy part. Grulkog chopped off one of the troll's arms. "Dis iz gonna be gud!" he exclaimed and dug his teeth into the leathery skin of the fallen troll. Grezzit jammed his claws into the troll's chest and ripped out a few ribs before pulling out two lungs and a heart and silently devouring them. Gronnlork belched and gave a long and loud fart. Grulkog laughed and flashed a thumbs-up. "Dat wuz a gud wun, boss!" "Yeah, boss! Gud wun!" Ghruz added while Grezzit clapped and hooted. The large orc grinned and raised his fists into the air. A few hours of belching, farting and eating later, nothing remained of the troll but its bones. The greenskins were currently washing everything down with some of the ale they had looted when they attacked the human camp. After drinking for a while; Gronnlork ordered his satisfied warriors to sleep, and sleep they did.

Dawn swept across the forest. The chirping of birds roused the smaller orc from his slumber. Grulkog stretched and walked off to relieve himself. Returning about thirty minutes later, he noticed that the other greenskins were up and going. Gronnlork was looking both thoughtful and annoyed at the same time. Grulkog approached him wearily, already familiar with his leader's short temper and violent tendencies. "Wot'z wrong, boss?" he asked. "We'z off da course! Dat'z wot'z wrong!" Gronnlork snarled. "Grezzit sez we gotz ta turn east if we don't wontz ta end up near any stunty 'oldz or sumfing like dat." Grulkog's ears perked up at the mention of a possibility to fight dwarfs. "But boss… stunties! Stunties wot we kan kill an' smash an' take beards from!" Gronnlork silenced his subordinate with a nasty-looking scowl. "It'z not dat I don't WONT ta fight stunties." He muttered. "But we'z got fingz wot needz doin'!" Grulkog refrained from delving further into that matter. "You'z da boss" he said before changing the subject. While the two larger greenskins were discussing their next move, the goblins had snuck ahead to scout the path. Gronnlork had begun pacing. This was almost certainly a sign of impatience, and impatient bosses are usually angry bosses Grulkog thought. "Luckily, boss Gronnlork iz diff'rent from da udda big boyz most o' da time." Time passed. Grulkog started pacing as well when the two goblins returned. "Well?" Gronnlork said. "'Owz da way from 'ere?" Grezzit cleared his throat. "Dere'z sum kind o' road an' a big humie place in da way, boss. But we'z goin' ta 'ave ta kross dat road or risk loosin' at least free dayz mo'." Gronnlork groaned. "'Ow big?" he asked. "Me an' Ghruz could count fife 'undred humies, boss. Dey iz way too many ta fight." Ghruz nodded vigorously in confirmation. The other greenskins waited in silence as their leader analyzed their options. "Right!" Gronnlork said. "We iz goin' ta sneak az close ta dat road az we kan. Den we wait till' no-wun'z lookin' and den we git ova dat road right fast! Got it?!" "Got it, boss!" they replied simultaneously.

The four greenskins peeped out from the bushes. Gronnlork eyed the large wall surrounding the human fortress with disdain. "We'z too cloze ta dat wall" he concluded. "Dey iz goin' ta see uz if we triez ta kross ova right 'ere. We needz ta go furvva down." "Boss iz right" Ghruz mumbled while glancing nervously at the cannons present on the walls. "Dem humies iz weak, but dey got sum big an' scary shootaz up dere." Moving as silently as they possibly could, the greenskins made their way further down the forest on the road's edge. "Now, rememba…" Gronnlork warned. "Da first git wot stepz on a twig, or sumfing like dat, getz da flat side o' me choppa whacked ova 'is 'ead!"

Grezzit and Grulkog peeped out of a particularly large bush and glanced to both sides. "All clear, boss" Grulkog muttered. Gronnlork nodded and took a deep breath. Then he got to his full height, raced across the road and jumped into safety in the forest on the other side. Grulkog was next. He was slightly faster than his leader and got across without trouble. The two goblins exchanged looks and ran for it. Suddenly the sound of galloping horses were heard, the goblins were in the middle of the road. "Drop dedd!" Grezzit hissed. The greenskins dropped down on the ground and laid still. A large force of armoured men on horseback came around a nearby turn. The rider in front raised his hand in the air. "Halt!" he shouted. The column of riders stopped. The apparent leader motioned with his head to a rider directly behind him. The man got off his horse and approached the seemingly dead greenskins. Bringing his spear with him, the human stuck it out and poked one of the goblins with it. The greenskin did not make a sound. "I think it's dead, sir!" he called back to the leader. "Is it breathing?" the leader called back. "Pardon me sir! But I'm not going any closer than a spear's length to a goblin! Where there's one, there's a hundred of the little blighters!" "Are you disobeying my orders?" "No sir it's just that…" "It's just that nothing! Now, check if those creatures are breathing!" The soldier swallowed and got closer to the greenskins. Gronnlork and Grulkog clutched their weapons tightly, ready to rush in and smash a couple of heads if needed. The soldier bent down over one goblin, then another, and let out a sigh of relief and turned to his allies. "They're not breathing, captain!" he informed. The captain scoffed. "Move those…things out of the way, then!" Picking the two 'dead' greenskins up, the soldier dumped them in the forest on the side and got back to his horse. "HYAH, FORWARD!" the human leader yelled. The men kicked their horses into action and the humans disappeared down the road and out of sight. Ghruz and Grezzit started breathing again, and discovered that they were on the wrong side of the road. After joining up with the two larger greenskins, the small band made their way eastward and out of harms way. After a while they stopped and sat down. "Dat" Grezzit panted "wuz too cloze." "Yeah" Ghruz agreed "way too cloze." Gronnlork rose to feet and sniffed the air. "We'z too cloze, too" he grumbled. "On yer feet ladz! We gotz ta go longa dan dis!" The smaller greenskins kept any complaints to themselves, and started walking after their boss.

After running for six hours with only minimalistic breaks, the four greenskins collapsed in the woods; instantly asleep.

Yet another sun rose on the horizon, casting its cloak of warmth and light over the world. Grezzit was the first who stretched and yawned. Sitting up and blinking lazily with his eyes, he was dimly aware of the fact that he was cuddling up to Gronnlork's hulking frame. Raising his helmet up over his eyes, the goblin spotted a boar sleeping nearby. Grinning savagely, he reached out and retrieved his nearby spear. Getting up, the greenskin snuck as silently as only a goblin could towards his chosen prey. The boar was dead before it woke up. The goblin was in the process of lifting the boar onto his shoulders, when he heard another one grunting drowsily. Grulkog felt someone shaking his arm. He opened his eyes and saw Grezzit standing in his lap. "Wot do ya wont?" he muttered. "I woz 'avin' a nice dreem." "Sumfing ta eat iz wot I wontz" the goblin replied. "I kilt four o' dem boarz and I needz a big an' strong boy, like youz, ta pick 'em up fer me." Grulkog sighed and got on his feet. "Right" he said. "leed da way, gob."

Gronnlork opened one eye, then another, and spotted a fly sitting on his nose. He eyed it for about three seconds before raising his fist and smashing it into his face. Groggy, but mostly unharmed, the black orc examined his fist, then his face, then his helmet. Finding nothing, Gronnlork shrugged and was about to fall asleep again when he discovered that something wasn't as it should've been. "Let'z see now…" he mumbled, trying to make his brain wake up. "Ghruz iz sleepin' ova dere. And I iz sittin' right 'ere. So dat meanz we iz…two. So whoz missin'?" Frowning, the large orc massaged his brow. "All o' dis finkin' iz makin' me 'ead 'urt" he growled. "Ah, da 'eck wiff all o' dis!" Gronnlork said to himself. "I'll just ask Grezzit an' Grulkog when dey getz back 'ere from woteva it iz dey iz doin'." The orc's eyes widened. "Bloody git" he muttered. "I gotz ta be da smartest boss dere iz!" As Gronnlork stood up and was about to wake the shaman to tell him that they were missing two of their comrades, a dead boar suddenly flew through the air and smashed into his face. "WOT DA BLOODY 'ECK IZ DIS?!" he bellowed. Ghruz was instantly awake and up in a nearby tree to avoid the black orc's wrath. Grezzit pushed Grulkog into the clearing and darted back into the bushes. "Well…?" the black orc growled while tapping his foot. "Well wot, boss?" the smaller orc asked. "Well. Az in, I wantz an eksplunashun." "Wot kind o' eksplunashun, boss?" "Sumfing like…WHY DA BLOODY GORK YOU IZ TOSSIN' DEDD BOARS AT ME!" Gronnlork's fist made contact with Grulkog's face. Grulkog snarled and planted his own fist in the larger orc's gut. Soon the two orcs were in a full-fledged fist-fight with each other. Grezzit cautiously slipped over and up into the tree Ghruz was currently hiding in. "Do… do you fink we should stop 'em?" he questioned. "Do you wont ta go down dere before dey iz finished fightin' each ovva?" "No" "Me neivva. So we iz stayin' right 'ere 'till dey settle fings between demseflz!" Grezzit blinked. "You iz real smart, Ghruz" he said. "Dat'z becuz I iz a shaman. Ya gotz ta 'ave sum smartz when you'ze a shaman, but fankz anyway."

Some time later; both orcs were still standing. Though that changed when Gronnlork gave a mighty swing that sent his opponent barrelling into the tree containing the two goblins. "I givez! I givez! You win, boss!" Grulkog panted. Gronnlork grinned and extended his hand. Grulkog took it, and the larger orc pulled him to his feet. "Just wot I needed ta wake up!" Gronnlork laughed. "A gud an' proppa fight!" The goblins dropped down from the tree, and Ghruz tended any injuries and bruises with his healing magic. "Can we eat now, boss? I iz starvin'" Grezzit asked after the shaman had done his thing. "We gotz fingz ta eat?" Gronnlork snapped. "Yeah boss, dat boar wuz wun of 'em" Grulkog said. "An' we'z got mo' where dat kame from."

After eating one boar each, the greenskins took off eastward towards the mountain range known as The Worlds Edge Mountains and The Mountains of Mourn.

Gronnlork raised his hand. The greenskins halted. "Wot'z up, boss?" Grezzit asked. Spread out before them was a large meadow, so large that it looked like half a dozen dragons had simply stood side by side and mowed down the forest. The greenskins were standing just inside the forest. "I don't like dat fing" Gronnlork growled. "But da idea of tryin' ta find a way 'round it. I likez dat even less." Grulkog walked forward and stood beside the black orc, his head was about on level with the middle part of Gronnlork's upper arm. "Dis don't look so tuff!" the smaller orc grinned. "We'z goin' ta be ova ta da udda side right kwikk!" Ghruz and Grezzit sniffed the air. "I don't smell nuffing, boss" Grezzit said. "Me neivva, boss. Just sum troll dung" Ghruz added. "No trollz wot placed it out 'ere den?" Gronnlork asked. His voice was lower than normal. The pair of goblins shook their heads. "No trollz, boss." Gronnlork nodded and stepped out of the trees and into the meadow. "Now boyz, even dough youze two can't smell anyfing out 'ere, we still gotz ta be caushuz-like. Got it?" "Got it, boss!" the greenskins agreed. Two hours later, the small group was only about halfway over the large meadow. "Right kwikk 'e sez, not so tuff 'e sez, dat git!" Ghruz mumbled and shot a scowl at the orc's back. Grezzit hissed in discontent, the sun was strong out here and no goblin likes the sun too much. "Dis" Grulkog began "is a right 'uge place!" "Well, ain't you da masta o' da obvious! Shut yer yap an' keep walkin'!" Gronnlork snarled. They were passing yet another mound of troll dung when the goblins stopped and sniffed the air again. "Now wot?" Gronnlork growled. "Dere'z sumfing wot smellz difrent wiff dis 'eap o' dung" Grezzit said. "Difrent? 'Ow?" Grulkog wanted to know. "Dey iz… difrent… in da scent" Ghruz slowly replied. Suddenly a muscular arm shot out of the heap, grabbed Grezzit and pulled him back in. "Grezzit!" Ghruz yelled out and dove in after him. Moments later they emerged. The tip of Grezzit's spear was stained with blood. Grulkog grabbed the goblins and pulled them behind himself before unsheathing his weapons. Gronnlork had reached for his blade and shield the moment the mound had started stirring. "Wot in da name o' Gork woz dat?!" Grulkog shouted. "Move back, boyz!" Gronnlork called out. The mound started shaking and a figure suddenly rose from it. It was truly a monstrous creature. It stood well over three and a half meters. The torso appeared to be that of a human but the hair was more rugged and frequent. The legs were bull-like, hoofed, thick and powerful, covered in dark-brown fur. And the head looked more like a huge bestial ram than anything else. Gigantic, curved horns protruded from the back of its head, and a single horn about half a meter in length stood up from its goat-like muzzle. The creature eyed the greenskins for a moment or two. Then it tossed its head back and let out a bestial howl. Several mounds around the small group began stirring. And up from each at least one creature similar to the first one rose, though none were as tall and imposing as the creature in front of them. "Beastboyz" Gronnlork growled savagely. "Form a circle ladz! Dis iz goin' ta get ruff!" The huge beastman roared out in a strange language, and suddenly every beastman in the surrounding area charged forward roaring with bloodlust shining in their eyes. At least five fell with arrows in their throats, and ten went down from the green lightning shooting out of the shaman's staff. The first beastman that got in range fell to Gronnlork's blade. Grulkog lashed out with his swords. With every swing, beastmen fell dead or wounded. For every dead one, there seemed to come three new in its place. Two of the beasts engaged Gronnlork at once. Holding one at bay with his shield, he quickly disarmed the other one and lopped its head off before turning his attention to the second one. Grinning, the black orc swung out with his left arm and bludgeoned the beastman with his shield, before his opponent could recoil; Gronnlork buried his blade in the creature's guts. The beastman fell with a sickening howl. Catching an axe on one of his blades and a spiky mace on the other, Grulkog was caught between two of his enemies. Suddenly the orc jumped backward, the two beastmen tumbled to the ground. Grulkog laughed as he raised his blades and sank them deep into the beastmen's backs. Another attacker went flying backwards with an arrow between its eyes. Turning and pulling another arrow, Grezzit sent it flying into another beastman. Hearing a hoof trampling the ground behind him, the goblin leaped out of the way and got his spear out. Grezzit snarled and jumped forward. The beastman raised its axe and swung it at its prey. The goblin dodged and planted his spear in the beastman's thigh. The creature went down with a shriek of pain that was abruptly interrupted by the goblin's spear piercing its skull. Growling with the battle-lust that characterized the greenskin species, Ghruz unleashed the fury of his magic to its fullest. Felling beastmen left and right, the shaman pulled his dagger and jumped onto the back of a passing beastman, jamming it into the creature's neck. He then turned and sent a green lightning shooting out of his staff and into another attacker. Feeling a shadow looming over him, the goblin turned just in time to get an enormous hoof crashing into his chest, sending him flying. The humongous beastman howled in fury. He would not stand for this. They had been over seventy-five gors and ungors, now they were reduced to no more than twenty. This was an outrage. Bellowing in that strange language, the bestigor made his way towards the second goblin. Grulkog pulled his swords out of his fallen prey's ribcage and turned around for more. That was when he spotted the enormous beast heading straight for one of his companions. "GREZZIT!" he yelled. "WOTCH OUT!" The bow-wielding goblin turned and fired. The arrow flew through the air and lodged itself in the beastman's armour. The huge bestigor looked down at the arrow, pulled it out, and snapped it in his clawed fist. In three long strides he was at his destination. He reached down and picked the goblin up by his throat. "You little cretin!" he snarled. "Did you think your meagre weaponry could harm ME? Var'Kash the Blood-drinker! He who has been blessed by The Lord of Skulls!" His voice was deep and had a snarling undertone to it. The goblin clawed at his captor's hand, desperately trying to free himself. Grulkog snarled as he separated another head from its body. A quick look at his boss, who was currently occupied with ten beastmen at once, had told him that HE had to rescue Grezzit from the jaws of the hulking bestigor. Running as fast as he could over the battlefield, Grulkog spotted one of the beasts standing over the unconscious Ghruz. Bending down and picking up the axe of a fallen foe, he hurled it towards the beastman. It buried itself in the creature's throat and sent him to the ground. Hacking his way through four more beasts, the orc reached the area he was looking for. Readying himself for the battle ahead, Grulkog charged the hulking creature. "WAAAAAGH!!!!" The bestigor raised his ears and turned to face the greenskin. The towering beastman was indeed a sight to behold and fear. He was defended by a long chainmail that reached him to his knees, with large plates of black steel in spiky and elaborate shapes strapped on outside of it. The armour on his shoulders were in the shapes of skulls, and fifteen actual skulls were hanging from his belt. Dropping the goblin, Var'Kash reached behind himself and pulled out an enormous two-handed axe. The beastman grinned and charged with the orc's battle-cry ringing in his ears. "Blood for The Blood God!" He yelled. "Skulls for the Skull Throne!" The bestigor gave a mighty swing; the orc dodged it and swung his blades at the beastman. Var'Kash was quicker than one would think of a creature that size, however, and he easily dodged or blocked every flash of the orc's blades. Grulkog was angry, more than angry, he was pissed. The beast evaded everything he could possibly throw at him. His anger got the better of him, and he left himself exposed. The bestigor's axe smashed into his side and sent him into a tree. Var'Kash chuckled. "So much for the great warriors of the orcs" he mocked. "OI!" A voice sounded from across the battlefield. Grulkog looked up and saw Gronnlork still fighting seven beastmen. "Why iz you lyin' on dat tree, ya git! Gedup an' chop 'im ta bitz!" he bellowed. "I can't, boss!" Grulkog yelled back. "'e'z too strong fer me!" "No 'e'z not!" the black orc yelled as he blocked an incoming blow. "You'z an orc, right? An' orcz iz da biggest an' da strongest! Get 'im!" The bestigor laughed out loud. "My, my, my, such stalwart companionship. Though it will do you no good, orc. You'll be as dead as a rock in a few short moments." As those words left his lips, Var'Kash raised his axe and prepared to add the orc's head to his belt. "I iz an orc" Grulkog muttered, trying to focus on the enemy. "An' orcz iz da biggest an' da strongest!" The last part came as a shout. The bestigor found his strike blocked. The enraged orc's arms were bulging with the effort of keeping the beastman away from his head. Tossing the axe of his foe away, Grulkog leaped to his feet and charged. With both his strength and his spirits renewed; the orc drove the hulking monstrosity back with each blow. Bringing all his rage and all his strength to one blow, the orc struck. The beastman's axe shattered. Before he could react, Var'Kash felt a stabbing pain in his gut. Looking down, he discovered the greenskin's blades lodged in his stomach. "How…?" he whispered, falling to his knees and struggling to breathe. "How can this be?" Looking at the orc with rapidly fading eyes, the bestigor whispered with his last breath. "Khorne have mercy on my soul." And then he fell to the ground, dead. Grulkog chopped his head off and raised it to the sky. "WAAAAAAGH!!!!!!!" he yelled, holding his new trophy high. Gronnlork cut down the last of the beastmen and stormed over to the smaller orc. "I told ya you could do it!" he yelled and slapped the back of his comrade. "I couldn't 'ave dun' it wivout you, boss" Grulkog sniffed. Then he suddenly wailed out: "Fanks, boss! You iz da bestest boss o' dem all!" Gronnlork clamped his hand over the smaller orc's mouth. "Not so loud, ya git!" he snarled. "Dere could be mo' o' dem beastboyz runnin' 'bout." Grulkog nodded and stuffed a dismembered arm in his mouth to keep quiet. "Gud" Gronnlork nodded. "Now pick up wun o' da grotz an' let'z leg outta 'ere 'fore we iz spotted by anyfing elze." Making his way over to Ghruz, Grulkog picked him up and tucked him under his arm. Gronnlork did the same with Grezzit. Running as fast as an orc possibly could, the two large greenskins reached the other side of the meadow in less then an hour and a half. Grulkog sniffed around for any sign of danger. Finding none, he nodded. The two orcs crept through the thick undergrowth, occasionally stopping to listen and smell. The sun had disappeared. Gronnlork peeped out of a bush and into a clearing with a large tree in the middle. "Up dere" he pointed at the tree. "Up dere iz where we iz goin' ta sleep." The orcs made their way to the tree and climbed up into it. Getting as comfortable as one could in a tree, the greenskins fell into a deep slumber.

A small, red, bird shook its head and rose to its feet. Raising its beak, the bird let a few tones chirp out in the lazy morning sun. A loud yell, followed by the sound of something heavy hitting something hard, scared the bird away. A stream of cursing and snarling woke Grezzit up from his state of slumber. Blinking a few times before peeking out of the leaves, the goblin discovered Gronnlork lying face-down in the grass. "Boss?" he asked. A grunt of acknowledgement came from the fallen orc. "Why iz you lyin' on da ground?" "Come down 'ere an' I'll tell ya why I iz lyin' on da ground" the orc snarled. "Fanks, boss. But no fanks. I like me 'ead on me sholdaz" the goblin replied. "Ya smart li'l git" Gronnlork muttered. "Wot'z goin' on?" Ghruz sleepily asked. "Come 'ere an' I'll tell ya wot'z goin' on" the black orc growled. "No way, boss! I needz me armz!" The huge orc snarled, whenever he was annoyed, like now, hitting something usually helped him get in a better mood. "Wot you two gitz yellin' 'bout now?" Grulkog growled at the two goblins. "Come 'ere an' I'll tell ya wot dey iz yellin' 'bout" Gronnlork called from below. "Right!" Grulkog answered. "On me way, boss!" Ghruz and Grezzit exchanged looks and grinned wickedly. Leaning out, the two goblins watched as Gronnlork got up from the ground just as Grulkog got down from the tree. "Now, wot were dey yellin' 'bout, boss?" the smaller orc asked. The black orc planted a fist in his face. Gronnlork grinned. "Dat made me mornin' a lot betta!"

The greenskins were moving again, after a meagre breakfast. Grezzit returned from scouting ahead. "Boss! We kan see da foot o' da mountainz when we pass dose treez ova dere!" he said excitedly and pointed. Gronnlork smiled. "Dat meanz dat da easy part iz frew an' dun fo'!" he exclaimed. The greenskins cheered. Gronnlork sighed "Dat meanz it getz 'arda from now on, gitz." The greenskins stopped cheering.

Gronnlork drove his blade into the rock surrounding him and pulled himself a bit further up the mountainside. The goblins were quick and nimble, and were far ahead of the orcs. Grulkog was just below him. Suddenly a boulder smashed into the mountain a few meters to the left of Gronnlork. Sharply turning his head around, the shaman spotted a troll tearing another chunk of mountain off the ground. "Troll!" he yelled. "Yeah, dat'z real 'elpful ta know wot it iz!" Grulkog called back. Grezzit hadn't stopped to look closer at the monstrous being. Instead, he had kept climbing and was nearing the top. Another boulder made contact with the mountain and the impact sent Ghruz flying downwards, screaming like a pig. Gronnlork reached out and caught the goblin in his fist. Grezzit crawled up over the top, stood to his feet and whipped out his bow. A boulder narrowly missed Grulkog's feet. "Oi! Wotch where you'z lobbin' dose rockz ya git!" A goblin-made arrow whistled through the air and zipped past the troll's head, mere centimetres from its ear. The troll spotted the bow-wielding greenskin and aimed its next throw at him instead of the other ones. Grezzit let loose another arrow and dived back when the cliff he had been standing on clashed with another thrown boulder. The remains of the cliff rained down over the other greenskins, who had started moving again. Aiming carefully, Grezzit fired his last arrow. It flew through the air and lodged itself in the troll's skull. Dropping the boulder it had been holding, the troll collapsed and plummeted into the mist below. The other greenskins crawled over the top of the mountainside. All four let out a breath of relief. After trekking through the rocky landscape for two more hours, the greenskins made camp. Grezzit started breaking twigs off of nearby trees while the orcs found small rocks that Ghruz sharpened with his magic. They then tied the rocks to the twigs to make more arrows. "Right!" Grezzit exclaimed. "All we needz now; iz sum feavverz ta put on back!" Grulkog raised his brow in question. "Wot you need feavverz fo'?" he asked. "Steerin'" Grezzit answered. Gronnlork turned to the smaller orc. "Go an' see if ya kan find sumfing wiff feavverz on" he said. "Den kill it an' bring it back 'ere so Ghruz can pluck it." "Okay, boss!" Grulkog went to find a bird or something feathery.

He returned about fifteen minutes later clutching two dead vultures in his palms. Handing the birds to Ghruz, the orc made his way to the small campfire that had been lit while he was away. After Grezzit had finished making his arrows, the greenskins got ready to sleep. "Don't sleep too deep now, boyz" Gronnlork warned. "Rememba; we'z in da moutainz now. Dis iz a dangeruz place ta be." The smaller greenskins nodded and went to a relatively easy sleep. Grezzit opened his eyes slowly. He had heard something, he was sure of it. The light, almost unheard, sound of small feet skittering across rocks. Clutching his spear tightly, the goblin peeped up as silently as he could. In the pale light of the moon he could make out a silhouette slightly smaller than himself with its hand in their bags. Rolling forward and to his feet, the goblin leaped at the intruder, clamped his hand over its mouth and pinned it to the ground. The creature was green. Or at least a very light shade of green, almost blue. It was slightly shorter than the average goblin, its nose was long and thick and its ears were smaller and droopier than a goblin's. "Well, well, well" Grezzit muttered, a sneer of disgust plastered on his face. "Wot do we 'ave 'ere? A filffy li'l gnob sneekin' 'round!" Ghruz had gotten to his feet as well and made his way over to his companion. "Where'd da gnob come from?" he whispered. Grezzit shrugged. "Go wake da boss" he said. Gronnlork blinked and spotted the goblin standing in his lap and shaking his arm. "C'mon, boss!" Ghruz hissed. "Grezzit 'az a gnob!" The black orc was wide awake that second. He nudged Grulkog and motioned for him to get up.

Gronnlork nodded. "Where dese runtz iz, da ogrez iz too" he snarled. "Wot now, boss?" Grulkog asked. Gronnlork moved away from his group and sat down on a nearby rock to think. A branch snapped somewhere in the dark. Grulkog whipped around while pulling his swords out. The goblins prepared their own weapons. A thump was heard from behind them. The three greenskins sharply turned just in time to see their leader getting dragged off into the night. "BOSS!" Grulkog yelled and stormed off, the goblins close on his heels. The two smaller greenskins launched themselves forward and latched on to Grulkog's feet, somehow managing to bring him down. "Wait, Grulkog! It would take at least twenty gnobz ta 'aul da boss off like dat! We would 'ave 'eard 'em!" Ghruz shrieked. "Wot'z dat s'posed ta mean?" Grulkog snarled. "We gotz ta save da boss!" "Dat'z s'posed ta mean dat it woz da ogrez dat took da boss! Big an' tuff ogrez wot managed ta smack 'im" Grezzit swallowed. Grulkog calmed himself and sat up. "Since I iz da biggezt?" he began. "Duz dis mean I iz da boss now?" Ghruz and Grezzit nodded. "Wot'z yer ordaz… boss?" Ghruz asked. "Arm yerself, boyz!" Grulkog shouted. "We iz goin' ta save da big boss!" The goblins roared and cheered and the remaining greenskins followed the large footprints leading northward.

Something caught Grulkog's leg and sent him to the ground with a yell. "Wot in da bloody 'eck?!" he cursed. The orc picked up what he had tripped over and prepared to hurl it away. "Wait, boss!" Ghruz called out. "Dat'z big boss Gronnlork'z choppa!" Grulkog froze and looked closer at the weapon. "Yeah!" he said. "You'z right!" Grezzit sniffed the air. "I smell ogrez" he snarled. "Dedd ogrez!" Grulkog grinned. "Lookz like da boss didn't wont ta come wiff dose gitz!" he laughed. "It'z too dark ta see anyfing now" Ghruz concluded. "We shuld wait fer da mornin', boss." Grulkog pondered for a moment; and nodded. "You boyz iz da smart wunz 'ere" he sighed. "We'z goin' ta wait right 'ere 'till we get sum light."

The greenskins were up and going before the sun was fully up. In the lazy morning light they could see several gutted ogres lying around them. Quickly tearing off some meat off the corpses and eating it, the three companions were able to follow the tracks more clearly in the morning sun. Dashing over the rocky landscape at high speed, the remaining greenskins were still unable to catch up with the ogres that had apparently not used the night to sleep and gather strength.

Gronnlork snarled. He was tied to what would appear to be a furred rhinoceros, he was without his weapon, several ogres were flanking him and the tiny gnoblars kept glancing wearily at him. It was no surprise, considering that it had taken eight ogres to bring him down last night. He had been thinking about the greenskins next move the night before, when a crushing pain had made itself known to his helmet. It felt like Mork himself had snuck up on him and smacked him over the head. When he woke up again; he was as mad as only orcs could get and he had quickly slain his captor before more ogres had arrived. There had been at least twenty of them. Six fell with their guts on the ground before he had gotten another mace to the head. The next time he awoke, he was tied to a rhinox and was surely intended to be the snack of the leader of these ogres. "Orc is nice and juicy!" one of the ogres licked his lips. "Me wish me was going to eat orc" he pouted. "No git ogre iz goin' ta take a bite out o' Gronnlork da Gitstompa!" the black orc yelled. "An' da first wun o' youze wot triez iz goin' ta regret it!" The gnoblars scurried away. The ogres laughed out loud at the bound orc. "We not eat you, orc" the largest, and fattest, ogre of the group said. "We take you home! Orc food for tyrant!" Gronnlork scowled. "Just me luck" he thought. "First: I getz clubbed ova da 'ead by a bunch o' gitz! Den: I iz goin' ta be food fer da ova-git!" Another thought shot into his head suddenly. "I wonda 'ow da boyz iz doin' or… ravva wot dey iz doin'."

Grezzit jumped down from a large rock and dashed back to his allies. "Boss!" he called. "Boss! 'E'z alive! I 'eard 'im yellin' at da ogrez!" Grulkog and Ghruz raised their heads and grinned. "But I don't fink we'z goin' ta catch up wiff 'em 'fore dey reach whereva dey came from" the goblin said slightly more silently. Grulkog and Ghruz lowered their heads and frowned. Grulkog got to his feet and clenched his fist. "We'z not givin' up!" he growled. "Not when dere'z still a chance ta save da boss from dose fat gitz!" The goblins nodded with a fierce determination, uncommon for their kind, glowing in their eyes. Grulkog eyed Gronnlork's blade with a sigh. "I 'ope I getz ta give dis choppa back to da boss" he mumbled. "An' if not…" The orc swallowed. "I iz at least goin' ta bury it wiff 'im." The goblins' ears fell at the thought of that possibility. Once upon a time; Gronnlork had watched them take down adversaries in much greater size and number. He had been pleased with what he saw, and had personally inducted everyone present into his small yet deadly group, and none of the remaining band wished to leave the area without their boss, or at least his remains.

Another day passed. By the time the sun disappeared behind the horizon, the ogres had reached their destination. A huge opening, almost like a gaping jaw in the mountainside, came into view. Gronnlork snarled and snapped his own jaws at a gnoblar who had the misfortune of venturing too close to the irate greenskin. The tiny creature shrieked and quickly dived behind an ogre. For several minutes all that could be seen was rock, rock and some more rock. A tunnel lit by torches stretched far into the heart of the mountain. And when the tunnel ended; a spectacular and terrifying sight was unveiled. An entire city was carved into the very rock, though most was abandoned and only a small part was inhabited by the ogres. No ogre could ever have made such perfection, it was obviously a dwarf–hold that had been wiped out and taken by the all-consuming brutes. The caravan did not stop until it reached what once had been the main plaza of the city, there it halted. The largest of the ogres turned to his subordinates and the orc. "Stay here" he said. "Me go get tyrant! Tyrant eat big orc." "It'z not like I can go anywhere, now iz it?! Ya bloody stoopid git!" Gronnlork yelled. "Ahh…" A deep voice came floating out of a large building up ahead. "Me hear orc talking!" The ground suddenly shook, and then it shook again. Gronnlork's eyes widened. An enormously fat ogre came waddling out of the building, the ground shaking with every step taken by the grotesque creature. His neck looked like six huge bratwursts were tied around his throat. With every move the ogre-tyrant made, his flesh rippled and waved like a stormy ocean. Like all ogres he was equipped with a large plate covering his gut and was wearing baggy, green-brown pants. But in addition he had armour running down his arms, two spiked shoulder-pads and a large, horned, helmet on his obese head. His chin was about as meaty and repulsing as the rest of him. The mouth was open, rowed with small, sharp teeth, and drooling. The small, pig-like eyes were red. And they were ablaze with hunger. Though fat, revolting and grotesque in every sense of the word; he was still strong enough to shatter bone, rock and metal with his bare fists. His name was Grorg Troll-Eater. And he lived up to that name to the best of his abilities. The morbidly obese ogre licked his lips. "It be long time since me had orc last" he rumbled. "Me almost forget taste!"

Grulkog looked carefully around before ducking back to consult the smaller greenskins on their plan. "Wot you fink, boyz?" he whispered. "Dere'z way to many of 'em ta just storm in" Ghruz muttered. "But if we don't do sumfing right fast, dat fat ogre iz goin' ta eat da boss" Grezzit objected. "I know dat!" the shaman hissed through gritted teeth. "Don't strezz me!" Grulkog's eyes widened. "Boyz" he said. "I gotz a right kunnin' idea!"

Grorg bent down and reached out with his arms. Suddenly a voice rang out from a nearby roof. "OI! 'Andz off o' da boss, ya fat git!" Three greenskins jumped off the roof and landed near the hulking ogre. The ogre stood to his full height and gave out a bellowing laughter. "What you think you can do?" he mocked. "We bigger than you, we more than you and we stronger and hungrier than you!" Ghruz and Grezzit cracked scowling grins at the ogre. "But we iz smarta dan youze, ya git!" they cackled. "Dat'z right!" Grulkog yelled. "An' dat'z why we iz cha… chall… makin' you fight in wun o' dem duelz wot efferywun'z yappin' 'bout all da time!" Grorg cracked a grin of his own. "Since greenskins challenge Grorg; Grorg picks challenger! Who smarty now?" Grulkog blinked. "Wot in da great green iz 'e yappin' 'bout?" he asked. "I gotz no idea, boss" Ghruz shrugged. "Firstly" Gronnlork snarled; "'E sez dat 'e getz ta pick which wun o' youze 'e wontz ta fight." The greenskins paled. "An' secondly… I IZ DA ONLY BOSS 'ROUND 'ERE, YA RUNTZ! I IZ GOIN' TA GIVE ALL O' YOUZE GITZ A GUD THUMPIN' LATA!" Both ogres and greenskins had cringed when the black orc started yelling. "That not problem" Grorg rumbled. "Will never be 'later'. Me pick you!" Grezzit glanced around himself to see if he could spot a conveniently placed titan of an orc standing directly behind him. No such luck. "To Maw-Pit!" The ogre-tyrant bellowed. The ogres and gnoblars roared in approval, picked the greenskins up from the ground and carried them off to the easternmost corner of the city.

A large, crude and deep hole in the floor suddenly stretched out in front of them. It was obviously clubbed out, and lined with sharp rocks and pointy bones, making it look like a massive mouth was gaping against the newly-arrived spectators. And the stench of fresh, rotting and half-eaten corpses gave the impression of a reeking breath that had the pair of goblins grabbing their large, sensitive noses. "We fight in Maw-Pit" Grorg growled. "Great Maw watch me win! Me get blessed by Great Maw!" Grezzit was screaming and crying on the inside. The goblin scowled and snarled out: "Yer Great Maw can take a 'ike! Gork an' Mork iz wotchin' uz! An' dey'z not lettin' any ogre win ova da greenskinz!" Grorg seemed displeased about the goblin mocking his god. Sneering, the ogre attempted to jump into the pit; only to discover that he was unable to lift himself off the ground. Giving an annoyed growl, the tyrant simply walked off the edge and landed safely, although with a grunt of discontent, on his feet. Ghruz massaged the shoulders of his kinsman. "Rememba now, 'e'z not very mobile so you gotz ta try ta outrun 'im an' stick sumfing in 'im when you getz da chance. Got it?" Grezzit gave a meek nod. "Dat'z wot I like ta see! Now get in dere an' kill 'im right gud!" As Grezzit made his way down the hole, the shaman waddled over to his larger cousins. "So?" Grulkog asked. "You reckon 'e'z goin' ta do gud?" Ghruz shrugged. "Dere'z a chance ya know. Maybe 'e'll smack dat git 'till 'e startz cryin' like weedy snotlin'." Grorg pulled his two maces out and smashed two craters in the floor. "Or maybe…" the goblin muttered. "…ol' Grezzit iz goin' ta be a bloody 'eap on da floor in 'alf a minute." Grezzit stared at the two large dents in the solid rock with a mixture of disdain, panic and surprise. Suddenly the ogre charged while swinging his maces about I wide arcs. "So much fer outrunnin' 'im" the goblin thought as he yelped and dived out of the way. Grulkog and Ghruz stared in shock. "Dat'z not gud" the shaman whispered. "No it izn't" Grulkog agreed. "'Ow can sumwun dat fat be dat kwikk?" A snarl from the black orc caught the attention of the two greenskins. "Iz you two gitz goin' ta stand dere an' look like you gotz a squig chompin' on yer jibblies?" Gronnlork asked. "Or iz you goin' ta untie me anytime soon?" Grulkog quickly made apologies and went to cut his leader loose. Gronnlork stretched out a bit before bringing his fist down on the smaller orc's head. "Wot in da name o' Gork do you runtz fink you'z doin'?!" he hissed. "Grezzit'z goin' ta get 'imself kilt down dere!" The black orc called the shaman over and gave him a fist to the head too.

Grezzit got to his wits and rolled out of the way as yet another rock was turned into splinters. "'E'z strong an' 'e'z fast" the goblin concluded. "But 'e'z not dat smart an' nowhere nea' az kunnin' az I iz." Dodging the ogre's deadly blows, the goblin ran for cover. "I can't outrun 'im fer long; so I gotz ta outsmart 'im instead." The tiny greenskin heard his massive adversary approaching, thinking quickly, Grezzit gathered some dirt in his hand and pressed himself tightly against the rock. Grorg bent down and peeked around the side. Once Grorg's head came into view; the bow-wielding goblin tossed the dirt into his eyes and darted behind him. The ogre retracted with a yell and brought his hands up to wipe the dirt from his face, smashing his maces into his helmet in the process. The ogres and gnoblars gave a collective "Ooh" while the greenskins cheered and doubled over laughing. The titanic ogre shook his head to clear it and looked around, trying to spot his prey. When he turned; so did Grezzit. This continued for three more minutes until Grorg bent down and looked behind himself from between his legs. The goblin had been expecting such a move. He jammed his spear into the ogre's head and plucked out his eye. The Troll-Eater bellowed in pain and whirled about with his arms outstretched. A mace struck the goblin in his ribs and sent him flying. He hit the stone wall and slid down before falling forward onto his face. A roar of mixed terror and rage sounded from his companions. The ogre stepped forward and picked the goblin off of the ground. He grinned savagely at the greenskin. "Had enough beating now, little goblin?" he mocked. Grezzit answered by spitting him in the face. The enraged ogre growled and flung his foe clean across the pit. Grezzit was tough for a goblin, however, and managed to get to his feet long enough to leap out of the way of the ogre's blow. Grorg bellowed with frustration as he swung his weapons at the goblin, who somehow managed to dodge them all. The greenskins up above watched, surprisingly quiet, as the huge ogre seemed to lose control over himself and simply club around in hopes of hitting the tiny creature. "'E can't keep goin' like dat foreva" Gronnlork muttered. "Wot you mean, boss?" Grulkog muttered back. "Dat ogre can't keep 'ittin' 'round 'imself like dat" the larger orc explained. "'E'z goin' ta get real tired soon enuff. An' dat'z when Grezzit stickz sumfing in 'im." Ghruz grinned. "Den dat meanz dat 'e can still win, right?" the goblin asked enthusiastically. "Not so loud, ya runt!" Gronnlork whispered. "We don't wont any o' dose gitz ta 'ear uz" he motioned towards the ogres. A small gasp alerted them to the presence of a fourth greenskin. A gnoblar darted out from a small crack in the floor and made for the pit's edge. Ghruz hastily pulled his dagger out and tossed it. The gnoblar went down with a shriek. Grulkog was immediately by the fallen creature. He picked it up and stuffed it in his mouth. The orc chewed three times and swallowed. Gronnlork walked over to him and observed the nearby ogres. "It don't look like anywun 'eard or saw wot 'appened" he growled. "Dat'z gud." A gasp from the shaman had the two orcs moving swiftly back to the pit. They arrived to see Grezzit's feet sticking out from the ogre's mouth and gave gasps of their own.

Grezzit wrinkled his nose. The inside of the ogre smelled worse than the outside and spit was running everywhere, coating the goblin in thick saliva. His mind was racing, it took all of his muscle to keep the ogre's jaws from separating his feet from his legs, and he frantically searched for a way to get out.

Grorg managed to press the goblin fully into his mouth and smiled while giving a sigh of content. Suddenly his face twisted in pain and he opened his maw to scream. The tiny greenskin leaped out, a piece of red meat between his teeth, a feral grin etched across his face. Grezzit gobbled down the ogre-tongue and dived forward and between the legs of his foe. The Troll-Eater was getting disoriented, and didn't see the goblin's spear before it was too late. Grezzit left his weapon in the staggering ogre's gut and dashed off. Grorg barely registered the goblin picking up his bow and notching an arrow. The greenskin let his arrow fly and it struck through the eye-hole of the helmet, the second one buried itself in the ogre's gut, next to the spear, and the third one penetrated Grorg's ribcage and lodged itself in his heart. The ogre-tyrant swayed and took a few, uneven, steps towards the grinning goblin. The brute attempted to lift his mace, but his strength failed him and he fell to the ground: dead. "Eat!" a voice sounded from above. The ogres and gnoblars were chanting the word, obviously wanting the goblin to eat his fallen adversary. Grezzit approached the dead ogre and pulled his arrow out. He ate the eye stuck on it and proceeded to pull his spear out of the ogre's gut. He then tore open the chest and feasted on the heart. The ogres and their small companions erupted in cheers as the goblin crawled back to the head and lifted the ogre's helmet off. He raised it to the roof and drew a deep breath. "WAAAAAAGH!!!!!" The greenskins present joined their companion in the thunderous battle-cry while the ogres didn't stop cheering.

The greenskins stayed in the ogre-city for three more days, basking in the luxury of Grezzit's position as new tyrant of the tribe. Eventually, Gronnlork decided that it was time to move on, and the greenskins loyally and whole-heartedly agreed.

"Gud ta be on da road again! Right, boyz?" the black orc sighed. Various sounds of agreement and approval came from the smaller greenskins as they made their way across the mountainside. "'Ey, Grezzit?" Grulkog said to the goblin. "Yeah?" he answered. "'Ow come you took dat ogre'z 'elmet an' not 'is 'ead?" the orc asked. The goblin scoffed. "Dat wozn't a very gud 'ead. It woz missin' bofe eyez an' a tongue!" Grulkog nodded in understanding. Gronnlork turned to the shaman, who was currently trying to stuff the tooth of an ogre onto a piece of thread. "Oi, Ghruz" he said. "Climb up dat tree an' see if dere'z anyfing speshull in front o' uz." Ghruz nodded and made for the tree. The goblin returned quickly. "Nuffin' speshull, boss. But dere iz a lake up a'ead" he explained. Gronnlork nodded. "Den we'z goin' dat way. I iz firzty az 'eck."

The greenskins reached the lake without any problems and sat down and made camp. They drank from the water and got ready for their evening meal. Grulkog pulled the dismembered ogre-arm out of their food-sack. "At least dat fat ogre git woz useful fer sumfing" he laughed. "Dat'z az right az it getz" Gronnlork agreed. "'E tastez gud too!" Ghruz and Grezzit picked off the toes and ate them before consuming Grorg's feet. Grezzit let out a loud belch, gaining cheers and applause from his fellows. The small band continued belching, eating, making crude jokes about everything that wasn't a greenskin, laughing and seeing who cold toss a rock furthest, before eventually falling asleep.

Grulkog got up next morning with a feeling of satisfaction in his gut. He stretched and yawned, picked a bone out of his teeth, and went to water the lake. Ghruz was up next and he spotted Grulkog with his loincloth down, whistling a merry tune. The shaman resisted the sudden urge to gouge his own eyes out and instead went to the orc's side to relieve himself. Grulkog heard a sound and spotted the smaller of the goblins standing by his side. "Mornin'" Ghruz greeted. "Mornin'" the orc said back. They stood in silence for while. "Nice weavvea we'z 'avin, eh?" the goblin said. "Yeah" the orc agreed. "Lookz like it'z goin' ta be a sunny an' a bit cloudy day." The goblin nodded. "'Ow long d'ya fink it'z goin' ta take uz ta get back 'ome?" the shaman said after a while. The orc shrugged. "I gotz no idea. But we'll get dere soona or lata." A snort alerted the two greenskins to the fact that their leader was awake. Gronnlork looked over at his subordinates and walked off to dirty a bush. When he returned, the greenskins had started bringing out breakfast. The black orc sat down and was handed a thigh by one of the goblins. After eating, they quenched their thirst and went off on their way.

They walked in silence, or what silent means for a greenskin, and mainly talked about their feats in their previous battles.

It had been several hours since their last stop. The greenskins were starting to get drowsy, and the sky was darkening. Grulkog tripped and fell flat on his face. Gronnlork, who was walking second in line for a change, kept walking and made sure to step on as many soft spots as he could. The goblins, not wishing to incur the orc's wrath, stepped to the side and walked around him. Grulkog snarled and got up while cursing under his breath. He turned and found that a small root was the reason he felt stepped on. Cracking out a nasty scowl, the orc grabbed the root and pulled it out of the ground. He tore it in half and tossed the parts off to locations unknown and uncared for, before turning and jogging off to catch up with his companions. "Stoopid root" the greenskin muttered to himself. Ghruz reached the large black orc's side. "Boss, it'z getting' late. Can we stop now?" he asked. The orc started considering. After doing so for a good three to five minutes he nodded and ordered his warriors to make camp. Grezzit was busy unpacking when something suddenly hit his nose, something small and wet. "Boss! I fink it'z goin' ta…" Thunder clapped and the four greenskins were soaked in an instant. "…Rain" the goblin finished his sentence. Gronnlork took a deep breath and barely hindered himself from ramming the goblin somewhere quite unpleasant for stating the obvious. He hated it when someone stated the obvious. "Instead of makin' me feel like stuffin' yer 'ead up Grulkog'z bum…" the black orc growled. Both Grulkog and Grezzit winced at the thought. "…you could go an' see if you can spot sum shelta or sumfing!" The goblin took off, eager to be outside the huge orc's swiping range.

Grezzit returned some thirty minutes later with news that he had found a cave not so far from where they were. After receiving a verbal abuse from his leader about leaving them in the rain, the goblin led his comrades to the location of his discovery.

Gronnlork eyed the opening with a small amount of suspicion. "You sure dat'z safe, Grezzit?" Grulkog spoke the black orc's thoughts. "I didn't smell nuffing den, I don't smell anyfing now eivva. But dere'z no way I iz goin' in dere all by meself ta check" the tiny greenskin huffed. Ghruz pounded the bottom of his staff into the ground twice and the tip was immediately engulfed in green flame. The shaman guided his staff past the entrance, bathing the cavern in an eerie greenish glow. It wasn't a big cave by any means but it was roomy enough for the small band. The four greenskins made themselves comfortable on the stone floor and fell asleep.

Ghruz blinked and sat up while scratching himself behind the ear something had taken a bite out of once. Spotting movement to his left, the goblin swung out with his arm and caged something in his claws. He lifted it up and sniffed it. "Smellz like rat" he concluded before popping the unfortunate creature into his mouth. "Oi! Tastez like rat too!" The shaman grinned and looked around, hoping to spot more morning meals running about. After managing to catch and eat five more rats, the goblin suddenly stopped. Something was wrong. Very wrong. Ghruz sat down and started thinking. His inner clock told him that it was morning, he could no longer hear the rain falling outside and it was darker in the small cave now when compared to when they entered. Ghruz took note of these three details and put them together. The goblin swallowed loudly and turned towards the entrance. The stinking suspicion in the back of his head was confirmed. The cave was sealed shut by a huge boulder. The shaman's eyes widened and he bolted off to where Gronnlork was sleeping. "Boss! Boss!" he yelled, waking his leader and the other two greenskins in the process. "Wot iz it now?" the black orc growled. The goblin pointed a shaky finger towards the entrance. Gronnlork fell silent, and then his face twisted with rage. "Wot in Gork'z name iz dat fing doin' dere?!" he snarled. Ghruz shrugged while discreetly backing off. Grulkog approached the stone and put his ear against it. "I don't 'ear anyfing from da udda side, boss" he said. "Maybe it woz a rockslide or sumfing like dat." Grezzit looked doubtful. "We would 'ave 'eard a rockslide" he muttered grimly. "Wot do ya mean wiff dat, Grezzit?" the orc asked. "It'z just a feeory but…wot if sumwun put dat boulda in front of da entrance while we woz sleepin'?" The greenskins fell silent. "Well, it don't matta no more!" Gronnlork spoke up. "We'z geddin' out o' 'ere!" Ghruz! Blast dat bloody stone ta smivvereenz!" The shaman nodded and concentrated his powers into his staff. The staff started glowing green and shaking. With a loud shout, the goblin let a large green ball shoot from his weapon. The four companions stared in shock as the ball hit the boulder and merely bounced back and hit the floor instead. The rock beneath them started cracking and falling down into the blackness below. The part the greenskins were standing on was starting to fall. "Bloody git" Gronnlork muttered. The floor disappeared from beneath them and they fell screaming into the pit.

Gronnlork landed first, then Grulkog hit the ground a few meters to the left and the goblins plummeted face-first into the rock to his right. The black orc sat up while rubbing his head and took in his surroundings. "Well dis just grand!" he rumbled. "Anudda 'banoned stunty-'old!" And it was indeed a dwarf-made place they were sitting in. An enormous hallway supported by massive and carefully carved-out pillars stretched as far as the eye could see in all directions. Grulkog stared in disdain at the handiwork. "Stunties" he growled. "Dey iz allwayz makin' stuff look dumb an' ugly." Grezzit and Ghruz made their way over to their larger comrades. Ghruz glanced up at the hole they had fallen through. "Why izn't we dedd yet?" he mumbled to himself. "Wot'z dat s'posed ta mean?" Grezzit wondered. The shaman pointed up at the hole in the roof about thirty to fifty meters over them. "Dat'z a bloody gud queshtunn" the bow-wielding goblin muttered in awe.

The small group sat for a while and sulked while trying to figure out what to do about the current situation. Gronnlork rose to his feet and sighed. "Come on, boyz. We'z not geddin' anyplace just sittin' 'round like dis." His subordinates got up as well and stood at attention. "So, uh…" Grulkog started. "Wot way, boss?" Gronnlork turned to the largest of the goblins. "You'z da tracka 'ere, Grezzit. Wot way d'ya fink iz norf?" The goblin scratched his chin and looked around before shrugging. "'Ard ta tell, boss. But I gezz maybe dat way" he pointed off to the left of them. "But dere'z no way ta be sho' dat dat'z right." Gronnlork nodded. "We'z just goin' ta 'ave ta trust yer instinctz, Grezzit. Come on boyz, we'z movin' out."

It was black, and not the kind one can get used to either. It was pitch black. A human would not have been able to see his hand in front of his face. Luckily, the greenskins had a glowing staff that helped them avoid sudden chasms in the floor and large cracks. Grulkog heard something crack under his foot and he lifted it to investigate. A small, bearded skeleton clad in thick, grey armour was lying on the ground, a large two-handed axe loosely clutched in its bony hand. Looking around, the orc spotted several similar skeletons nearby and around. More than five had arrows sticking out of their ribcages and the rest had obviously been violently stabbed to death. "Boss…look" he said. The black orc turned and observed the macabre sight. He then motioned for the goblins to check it out. The two smaller greenskins rushed silently forward and studied the corpses. They returned quickly, casting wary glances about. Grulkog was examining a nearby body and found a seal of some sort. Much too crude for a dwarf and much too refined for a greenskin. The goblins started talking as soon as they were by the two orcs. "Dose stunties wasn't kilt by greenskinz dat'z fer sho'" Grezzit explained. "Den, wot woz it dat did kill 'em?" the black orc asked. The tiny greenskin shrugged. "No idea, boss. I'ze nevva seen dat kind o' arrerz befo'." Grulkog came walking back with the seal he had found. "Oi, boss!" he called. "Look wot I found!" "Not dat loud, ya git!" Gronnlork hissed. "We don't wont 'em ta catch uz in da back, now gimme dat!" Grulkog stuffed a skull in his mouth to keep quiet. Gronnlork studied the seal. A rat with two sets of horns was carved into the bronze. One set went backwards like those of a goat. The second one curved down and forward like those of a ram. The rat's face was a cross between a feral snarl and a chilling calmness. "A 'orned rat? Wot'z dat s'posed ta mean?" Gronnlork wondered. Ghruz started drooling. "Mmm…ratz." Grulkog was starting to feel uneasy. "Boss, dis place lookz like it'z right dangeruz. Can't we just be on our way now?" Gronnlork gave a nod. "Grulkog iz right. I don't like dis place eivva, let'z go boyz." The greenskins set off in the direction they walked in before.

The small group had been walking for three days straight, with only minimalistic breaks and little sleep. They had not seen nor heard anything of the mysterious and possibly hostile force that had wiped out the dwarfs. There were no torches burning where there were holders. They moved in uncharacteristic silence, all in deep thought. Gronnlork had noted the lack of torches to himself. "Woteva it iz dat'z down 'ere can't like da light a lot" he thought while keeping an eye on the surroundings. Every now and then Grezzit imagined that he heard soft, clawed feet skittering across the floor, in the dark where they could not be seen. He had shrugged it off as paranoia after the fifth time. Grulkog was nervous, something an orc his size rarely was. The feeling of unfriendly eyes observing them was pricking in the back of his neck. He did not express his unease to his comrades, however, but his eyes were darting from place to place and he was tightly clutching his weapons. And the fact that he was walking behind everyone else did not help the slightest. Ghruz was walking in front of the others, his staff, and by extension their magical torch, held high over his head. He had a gnawing suspicion that he would make an easy target in the darkness that seemed to be trying to suffocate them, due to the green glow emitting from his weapon. If they were attacked and he was shot, the loss of light would surely blind his allies, leaving them ripe for the taking. He realized with a start that they counted on him to be their light in the sea of blackness that surrounded them. Gronnlork was second in line. He was still wondering about the bodies they had found. "Dey woz all bone an' no meat" he concluded. "Dey must've been lyin' dere fer a while. Dat or sumfing picked da bonez clean."

He suddenly crashed into the goblin in front of him and almost went down, but he managed to steady himself. "Ghruz, why'z you stoppin'?" The shaman pointed forward. An enormous gap in the floor had laid itself before their feet. Grulkog and Grezzit came to stand beside them. "Well" Gronnlork began. "I gezz dere'z no point in tryin' ta cross ova it. So we'z goin' 'round it. Leed on, Ghruz." Ghruz nodded and took off to the right, sticking close to the edge of the gap. Grezzit suddenly stopped. He thought he saw a shadow scaling the chasm. It was man-sized but far thinner and seemingly more agile. He could not see anything but the outline of it. A long tail was protruding from the bottom of its spine. Suddenly the creature turned its head and spotted the goblin staring at him. It bared several nasty-looking teeth and sneered at him. Two yellow eyes gleamed in the darkness. The goblin blinked. When he opened his eyes the creature was not to be seen. Grulkog looked down and noted the absence of a second goblin. "Boss! Wait!" he whispered rather loudly. The two other greenskins stopped and turned. "Wot?" Gronnlork asked. He quickly observed that they were a goblin short. "Wait, Where'z Grezzit?" The smaller orc shook his head. "I don't know boss, 'e woz right 'ere in front o' me just now." Suddenly Grezzit came running back into the light. His three companions exhaled with relief. Grulkog picked him up and glanced at his leader. Gronnlork nodded. Grulkog's fist smacked into the goblin's gut. Grezzit had to walk before Gronnlork for the rest of that day's march.

They followed the edge until the gap was narrow enough to leap over to the other side and then continued in the direction they believed to be north. After four more hours of trudging through the abandoned halls, they decided it was time to stop and rest.

Gronnlork found a small door hidden in one of the massive pillars, more than enough for the goblins and just big enough for the orcs to squeeze through. Judging by the shelves with food and the barrels that smelled of dwarfish alcohol, they had discovered a storage room of sorts. Making a decision without thinking twice, Gronnlork commanded his band to rest there for the night. Nothing had been touched, so it appeared that whatever wiped out the dwarfs had not found this room yet. They closed the door and barred it with several two-handed axes and other things they did not have need of. They ate till they were full and used the rest to restock their dwindling provisions. After a while, Gronnlork sat up and coughed to get the attention of his subordinates. "Boyz, now iz da time, I fink, ta make a few mo' rulez known ta all o' ya" he said. The greenskins nodded. "First o' all: No wun wandaz off or stopz wiffout tellin' sumwun." Grezzit tried to make himself as small as possible. "Second o' all" Gronnlork continued. "No greenskin iz left be'ind if dere'z a chance ta save 'im." The smaller creatures gave applause. "Fird o' all: Grulkog still can't 'it da grotz wiffout askin' me first." Grulkog's face fell, the goblins were ecstatic. "Fourf o' all: If we'z 'ttacked nowun charges off ta where dey can't see anyfing." More nods. "An' finally: No loud talkin' or shoutin' az long az we'z down 'ere. Got it?" the other greenskins answered as one: "Got it, boss!" "Gud. Now rest up, boyz. We gotz a long way ta go tomorrow."

Grezzit was wide awake, even after several hours had passed. That shadow… every time he closed his eyes, he saw that sneering scowl, the jagged teeth and the yellow eyes filled with a desire to kill. The goblin got to his feet and went to get something to drink. "Can't sleep?" a voice muttered. Grezzit turned to see Gronnlork observing him. The smaller greenskin shook his head. "I'z got a lot on me mind" he said. "Like wot?" the black orc sat up and motioned for the goblin to come and sit by his side. Grezzit took the offer and dropped himself on the ground next to his leader. "I really don't wont ta talk 'bout it" he sighed. Gronnlork grinned. "Den it'z time fer rule numba… numba…" "six, boss" "six! Yeah, six! No secretz. We share effryfing wiff each ovva. Right?" Grezzit smiled, nodded, and told his leader what he had seen. After the goblin finished with his story, Gronnlork looked thoughtful. Grezzit knew better then to disturb an orc in any way, and he waited until the huge orc was ready to talk to him. "Grulkog sed dat 'e fawt sumfing woz followin' an' wotchin' uz" the black orc suddenly said. Grezzit kept quiet until he remembered something. "Boss. I just remembad! I'z been 'earin' sum weird noise all day!" Gronnlork scratched his chin. "Wot kind o' weird noise?" he asked. "Sounded like feet, boss. Soft feet wiff clawz on 'em." Gronnlork pondered for a while before he said "Go ta sleep, Grezzit. We'll discuzz dis wiff da ovva boyz when we wake up." Grezzit nodded. After talking to the hulking orc about what bothered him, he was able to close his eyes and fall into deep slumber.

Grulkog felt someone shaking his arm; he opened one of his eyes and saw Gronnlork standing over him. "Gud mornin', sunshine!" the black orc grinned. "Gedup, or you iz goin' ta miss breakfast." After eating a breakfast that would keep them going for most of the day, Gronnlork introduced the smaller orc and the shaman to rule number six, which was well appreciated among the band. "Now I'z sho' dat you iz all aware o' da fact dat we iz not alone down 'ere." Nods and confirming words came from the group. "Well yestaday, Grezzit saw sumfing wot may or may not be wot kilt da stunties." The black orc proceeded to describing the creature the Grezzit had seen. Grulkog's eyes widened, he had been right. They were being watched by whatever that creature was. He got to his feet. "Wait a second!" the smaller orc exclaimed. "Grezzit sez it woz da size o' a humie, right?" Gronnlork and Grezzit nodded. Grulkog frowned. "Nuffin' az small az a humie could've kilt all dose stunties by itself." "Den dat meanz dere'z mo' o' dose fingz creepin' 'round!" Ghruz whimpered. "Stop cryin', ya runt!" Gronnlork barked. "Look boyz, I know dat da situashun lookz right bad fer uz, but we've been in timez like dis befo', and I don't see anywun o' uz lyin' dedd on da ground! Dat'z 'cuz we'z neva givin' up! We iz goin' ta find our way out o' dis stinkin' pit o' rock! An' if we die tryin', den at least we don't die sittin' around or runnin' away like a bunch o' 'alflinz' wot'z seen a rat or sumfing like dat! Da point iz dat we iz greenskinz! We iz da sneakiest, da smartest, da tuffest an' da strongest dere iz! An' if we die down 'ere, we die fightin'! Dat'z da only way ta go fer a greenskin! An' dat would be da will o' da godz! Fer Gork an' Mork, boyz!" The greenskins roared and cheered, chanting the name of their gods.

After the goblins had sniffed around a bit, the greenskins started moving again, even more cautious now than before. Gronnlork had ordered the shaman to dim the light so that they were not so easily spotted, and they no longer walked in a line, instead the two goblins were walking side by side while the orcs were walking behind them. They kept to the pillars, avoiding as much open space as they could and moving swiftly from place to place. Suddenly Ghruz noticed that something was different. The roof was not as high as it was before, the pillars were less frequent and he could barely make out a street of some kind beneath their feet. After a short while; they could see houses, streets, smithies and other normalities of dwarf city to their sides. They had crossed the great hall and reached the actual city of the hold unharmed. As they passed a well, Grulkog spotted movement from it. "Boss, dere'z sumfing in dat well" he said. The greenskins whipped around just as a shadow launched itself from the well's blackness and towards them with a bone-chilling shriek, brandishing a curved, jagged, bloodstained scimitar along the way. The creature did not get far; it fell to the ground with an arrow in its throat. Grulkog ran off, fetched the corpse and returned to his comrades. Gronnlork was looking warily around. "Not 'ere" he said. "Dere could be mo' o' dem." The black orc spotted a house nearby with its door still intact. They headed inside to examine their kill. Ghruz powered up his light a tiny bit so they could see better. The sight that met their eyes was not a pretty one. A man-sized rat was sprawled out on the floor before them. Its fur was thin and dirty brown. A long, naked, tail was sticking out from its bottom. The rat-man was thin. They could clearly see every bone in its body and several places were devoid of fur. Even in death its eyes were hateful and hungry and the long, clawed and bony fingers looked perfect for wrapping around someone's throat or plucking an eye out. A skaven. One of the rat-people.

The greenskins had not stayed near the dead skaven for long, aware of the possibility of more being attracted by the shriek and smell of the now-dead rat. Now that they knew what was stalking them, the greenskins wasted no time. They moved as fast as they could, knowing that it would take an exceptionally large number of skaven to decimate an entire dwarf-hold.

Two more days passed. Two days of abandoned and partially destroyed dwarf homes and dwarf corpses covering the floor. They had encountered a small band of skaven halfway into the first day. They had been dealt with swiftly and with moderate silence. When they slept; they did so on shifts, aware that one of the rat-men would not hesitate a second before plunging a dagger in their throats.

It had now been seven days since the greenskins had fallen through the roof. And apart from a few minor scratches and bruises from the now-more-frequent groups of skaven they were unharmed. Grezzit stopped suddenly. Grulkog walked into him and fell flat on his face. "Eivva da ground luvz me an' wontz ta give me a 'ug…" the orc thought grimly. "…or it 'atez me an' wontz ta punch me in da face all o' da time." Gronnlork leaned over to the tallest of the goblins. "Grezzit? Why'z you stoppin'?" he asked. Grezzit pointed at a door that seemed to lead straight into the mountain. "Dere'z a breeze comin' from dat way boss" he said. Ghruz stuck his nose in the air and sniffed before nodding. The greenskins' hopes went through the roof. They quickly made their way through the door and up a tunnel. Another hall, similar to the first one was revealed to their eyes. Except for the fact that a large band of skaven was in their path. The greenskins did not even have to consult their leader first. "WAAAAAGH!!!!!" The skaven present turned and were almost flattened under heavy orc-feet. The battle-crazed greenskins killed around twenty-five of the rat-men and the rest fled into the dark. Gronnlork laughed as they ran as fast as they could down the hall. "Wot a bunch o' weedy gitz!" he shouted. "Runnin' like a snotlin' wiff a squig in 'is 'eelz!" The greenskins were about halfway down the hall when a noise suddenly rang through the darkness. And up from cracks and chasms in the floor and roof; skaven came pouring out before joining together in a massive tidal-wave of spears, swords, claws, teeth, shrieks and murderous intent. The small band barely had time to yell out in shock and terror before the sea of rat-men crashed down upon them. Gronnlork and Grulkog lashed out with their blades, lopping off at least three limbs with every strike. Grezzit realised that bow and arrows would be disadvantageous in such close proximity to the enemy and whipped out his spear, quickly stabbing it around. The skaven were so numerous that he was bound to hit something anyway. Ghruz plunged his dagger into any rat that came within the length of his arm, deciding that he should save his magical powers for the time being. The greenskins were soon standing back to back in a circle, killing far more than they cared to count, probably more than they could count. The sea of dirty brown did not seem to shrink at all. Skaven were still crawling out of their holes, each and one lusting for the blood of the green-skinned intruders. "Now iz da time!" Ghruz thought fiercely as he drove his dagger into another skaven's eye. The shaman raised his staff and let out a thundering shout. The hall was enveloped in a green flash as several green bolts of lightning drove into the mass of rats. Around thirty skaven fell dead; the rest gave a shrieking retreat, wishing to shield themselves from the bright light. Gronnlork quickly came to his senses. The greenskins had shut their eyes tightly when they saw Ghruz raise his staff. "Move it, boyz! Run!" the black orc ordered. The greenskins turned and ran. Furious shrieks echoed down the hall as the skaven gave chase. Gronnlork and Grulkog took one goblin each and placed them on their shoulders, the goblins turned and started firing arrows and lobbing green fireballs at their pursuers. One of the fireballs hit a rat square in the chest and seconds later his fur was blazing green. The green flames quickly spread to some of his comrades and soon the rat-men had to run around a wall of green fire. Grezzit had a sudden idea. He retrieved a small device he had looted off a dead dwarf once from his belt. He had heard someone refer to it as a "Grenade" once, but the goblin preferred the name: "Boom-fing." He fastened the boom-fing to one of his arrows and let the projectile loose towards one of the pillars. The arrow hit and the explosive did its job well. The pillar toppled over, crushing many a rat and trapping more between it and the wall of flames behind them. The few skaven who charged them from the front were quickly dealt with by the orcs and their blades. The greenskins reached the end of the hall and stormed up a spiralling staircase, Grulkog was first with Ghruz on his shoulder and Gronnlork was hot in his heels with Grezzit clinging on to his helmet. The shrieks echoing up the tunnel told them that the skaven had traversed the fallen pillar and were giving chase with a fury that teetered on the edge of madness. Several rat-men suddenly appeared in front of the fleeing greenskins, Grulkog cleaved his way through them without stopping, and those who survived were finished moments later when Gronnlork either chopped them down or ran them over. They reached the top of the stairway and closed the door after them, barring it with nearby weaponry and rubble before sprinting down a new hallway. Ghruz sniffed the air as the orcs ran and pointed to the left. "Dat way!" he shouted. Grulkog turned down the hallway and Gronnlork followed closely. They heard wood cracking and hitting the ground, the skaven had broken down the door and came flooding into the hallway. The greenskins turned a corner and were suddenly face to face with a huge door made of stone with runes and other dwarfish symbols carved into it. "Boss!" Grezzit shouted. "Da draft iz comin' from dat door!" The orcs ran faster than they had ever done before towards the exit. The wave of skaven flooded into the hall behind them. Seeing their prey so close to escape infuriated the rat-men greatly and they increased their speed, trying to catch up with their meal. As they got closer; the greenskins realised to their terror that the door was closed and that trying to open it would get them killed. "Grulkog! Get be'ind me!" Gronnlork yelled. The smaller orc obeyed and fell behind his leader. Grezzit realised the black orc's intentions and leaped over to Grulkog's shoulder instead. Gronnlork raised his shield and charged forward, hitting the door with enough force and momentum to smash right through the rock and out of the dwarf-halls. As soon as the greenskins got out: they ran along a narrow cave. The rat-men were held back by the hole. No more than five at a time could pass through at once. The cave suddenly ended. The greenskins were blinded by the sunlight for a moment before they kept running. The furious shrieking and screeching was suddenly replaced by frightened whimpers. The goblins turned to see that the skaven had stopped and would not venture into the light of the sun. The orcs kept running, and before sunset they were miles away.

Gronnlork drowsily opened one eye to see the sun setting. He got up and inhaled, having forgotten the smell and feel of fresh air while they had been in the rat-infested caves. He went over to Grulkog and shook him awake. "C'mon ladz. We 'ave ta move out right fast now!" The smaller greenskins got on their feet. "Why do we 'ave ta move fast, boss?" the smaller orc asked. "Becuz az soon az da sun iz down; dose rat-gitz iz goin' ta come afta uz" Gronnlork answered. "An' I'd ravva not be eatz fer dem ratz anytime soon." The rest of the group had no objections to that, and soon the greenskins were moving swiftly across the mountain. "'Ey, boss? If we iz in such a 'urry, why ain't we runnin'?" Ghruz spoke up. "It'll take 'em sum time ta catch our scentz. An' a lot o' 'ourz ta catch up wiff uz" the black orc said without turning. "We'z not runnin' 'till it'z eivva dat or dyin'." A collective "Aah" came from the group.

Three days passed. The greenskins were sure that the skaven were no longer tracking them and the hours flew by with ease and light-heartedness. As the small band made their way northward, they noticed that snowflakes were beginning to fall softly from the sky. Three hours passed and the snow kept falling. The greenskins found shelter behind a rock and went to sleep.

Grezzit awoke to the howling of the wind and the snow whipping into his face. He sat up and spotted Grulkog and Gronnlork standing up and watching the blizzard. "Wot'z up, boss?" the goblin asked sleepily. Gronnlork did not answer. And he looked annoyed, so Grezzit did not pursue the matter. Grulkog turned to the goblin and said, "Boss iz mad becuz o' da storm, but 'e sez dat we'z goin' frew it." "Frew dat fing?" The goblin gulped. The dwarf-halls had almost spelled their doom, and this storm looked like it would simply tear the skin off anyone who dared to challenge it. "We'z off az soon az Ghruz wakez up" Gronnlork said. Grezzit considered banging something blunt and heavy into the smaller goblin's skull to keep him asleep, but he decided against it when he thought of how mad his leader would be if he did that. The goblin started mumbling to himself. Gronnlork turned to him. "Stop yer mumbling, ya git, 'fore I tosses ya out dere on yer own!" he snarled. Grezzit clamped a hand over his mouth. Grulkog gave a mental sigh and went to rouse the shaman from his sleep. Though the greenskins knew that their leader would never leave any of them to die, or willingly give one of them up, he often made threats like that to impose his leadership in a way that all greenskins did. Gronnlork was different from most orcs like that, he cared for the members of the group, he didn't see the goblins as an emergency meal and he never left anyone behind. That behaviour only surfaced when he was with his group, however, and he could easily eat a goblin or a smaller orc that wasn't a part of it.

Grulkog could barely keep his eyes open. The orcs were waist-deep in cold, wet snow. The goblins had almost disappeared before Gronnlork had picked Grezzit up and ordered Grulkog to do the same with Ghruz. The goblins were now clutched tightly against the chests of their larger companions. The average human would have given up long ago; the orcs did not, although five hours of trudging through snow as thick as rock took its toll even on the greenskins. Grulkog gathered his courage, knowing that he could easily end up with a fist to his face for doing this. The orc took a deep breath and yelled; "Boss! Dis iz crazy, we'z dyin' out 'ere! We gotz ta find shelta from da storm!" Gronnlork stopped and turned, slowly. The smaller orc looked into his leader's eyes and said; "Fink 'bout da gobz, boss. We'z propaply goin' ta survive, but da grotz can't take all o' dis cold fer much longa!" Gronnlork looked at the goblin cradled against him. The small greenskin had a blue shade over his skin. Gronnlork closed his eyes for a moment before looking around and spotting a cave nearby. The orcs headed inside and sniffed around. Concluding that nothing had been in the cave for many a month, the greenskins managed to get a fire going. Grulkog was sitting by the fire, getting some much-wanted warmth, when he noticed that Gronnlork was looking like he had just lost a dear friend. "Wot'z wrong, boss?" the smaller orc asked. Gronnlork sighed. "You woz right" he said silently. "Goin' out dere like it iz now woz a dumb an' crazy fing ta do." Grulkog was shocked. The huge black orc rarely admitted to being mistaken, and when he did it had to be serious. "It'z no big deal, boss" Grulkog said, trying to cheer his leader up. "It'z a bloody 'uge deal!" Gronnlork snapped. "I could've gotten all o' youze, an' meself, kilt out dere!" the black orc sighed again and directed his gaze to the floor. "I iz da worst boss eva" he mumbled. Grulkog frowned. Seeing his leader like this was not something he was used to, nor was it something he wanted to see. He cautiously laid his hand on the larger orc's shoulder. "No you izn't" Grulkog said. "Any ovva boss would'a left da gobz ta die. Any ovva boss wouldn't 'ave lissened ta me an' gone fer shelta. You iz da best boss o' dem all, boss, an' I iz 'appy an' proud ta be wun o' yer boyz." Gronnlork smiled, another thing he rarely did, and got up before giving Grulkog a pat on the back. "Fankz, Grulkog. Dat made me feel loadz betta." Grulkog smiled back. "Anytime, boss." After getting something to eat, the two orcs went to sleep, the storm still raging outside.

Ghruz slowly opened his eyes. The last thing he could remember was being pressed up against Grulkog's chest. Now he found himself on a stone floor next to a dead campfire. He got up and took a quick peek outside. The snow was falling softer than the footsteps of his sneaky kind. He noticed that his companions were still slumbering. The goblin made his way over to Gronnlork's hulking frame and studied him. "A forma boss o' mine sedd dat I woz too nosy fer me own gud" he thought as he pricked one of his claws into the sleeping orc's arm. Gronnlork swung out and smashed his arm into the goblin, sending him flying and colliding into the wall. The black orc grabbed the shaman by the neck and held him up in front of his face before yelling; "Wot da bloody 'eck did ya do dat fo'?!" "Curiosity, boss! I can't 'elp it! Pleez don't 'it me!" the goblin whimpered. Gronnlork sighed and dropped the tiny creature on the ground. The yell had caused the other greenskins to wake up and soon breakfast was underway. The weather had softened considerably but the snow was still up to the chests of the orcs, forcing the goblins up on their shoulders. "It'z not easy bein' green" Gronnlork muttered. Since he was, by far, the biggest of the group, he had to go first and dig a path for his companions. Grezzit heard the black orc muttering to himself and started scouting for something that could cheer him up.

They trekked through the snow for four more hours when Grezzit suddenly saw grey and green in the distance. "Oi, boss!" he called. "I can see sum rockz an' sum grass from 'ere!" The greenskins altered their course, and soon found themselves walking normally again, much to the woe of the goblins. "Stop complainin', grotz" Grulkog said after listening to the goblins snarling and muttering to themselves. "A li'l walkin' neva kilt anywun. At least nowun I've eva known." Gronnlork suddenly stopped, sending the smaller greenskins crashing into him and tumbling onto the ground. The black orc raised his head and sniffed the air. Taking his helmet off, the orc raised his pointy ears and appeared to be listening to something. "Grezzit" he said. "Get dose earz o' yourz up an' lissen gud." The tallest goblin raised his large ears and listened, before kneeling and placing his ear to the ground. When the goblin got up, his eyes were wide. "Eivva dere'z a 'ole load o' boyz comin' dis way" he began. "Or sumfing right gianormous iz out fer a walk." The ground shook. Over a nearby hill; a lone figure appeared. It was a small one, thick armour surrounded it, an axe and a shield were being gripped tightly in its hands, the most distinguishing feature, however, was the long, thick and grey beard stuck onto its chin. A dwarf. White hot rage, mixed with glee, flashed through the greenskins. They charged forward with a yell, stopping abruptly when ten new dwarfs came into view. Then ten more, and another ten. Soon; the hillside was crawling with dwarfs. Every one of them carrying weapons, and all but a few were clad in thick, stone-grey armour. The black orc's mind was pumping. Trying to outrun the approaching dwarfs would surely be hopeless and hiding was not an option now that they had been seen. Quickly coming to a solution, the largest greenskin unsheathed his blade and brought up his shield. His subordinates followed his example and brandished their own weapons. The greenskins charged with their signature battle-cry thundering across the mountain. "WAAAAAGH!!!!!" The greenskins barrelled right through the dwarfs' frontline, lopping off heads, stabbing exposed parts and setting beards on fire as they went. Though about forty dwarfs went down, the four attackers were soon surrounded. Grim dwarfs were scowling at their life-long enemies with hatred blazing in their eyes. As the greenskins drew their breath to yell out their beloved, and probably last, war-cry someone beat them to it. "WAAAAAAAGH!!!!!" A thousand voices rang out as orcs and goblins came charging down the opposite hillside. Some on foot, others on the backs of giant wolves and boars. Several trolls with strong chains around their necks were being driven into battle by the greenskins, and large, crude catapults were being pulled by even more trolls. The sea of green clashed against the wall of dwarfish steel. The dwarfs bit their teeth together and charged their ancestral foes with their own war-cries echoing through the air. Crude blades and axes clashed with finely-crafted weaponry as orc, goblin and dwarf alike fell into the fray, determined to kill as many foes as possible. The dwarfs who had not charged off were quickly dealt with by Gronnlork and his group. The four greenskins made their way to the front and started stabbing, chopping and bellowing into anything in their path. A bolt of blue lightning sent a nearby orc to the ground. Ghruz turned his head and spotted a dwarf in flowing robes waving a staff in the air. The tiny greenskin snarled and sent his own lightning at the rune-priest. The dwarf raised a rune from the ground that deflected the greenskin's magic before sending another bolt at the shaman. The goblin snarled again and conjured a green fist that crushed the dwarf's lightning in its grip. The rune-priest and the shaman sent one bolt each at the same time. The lightning met halfway and immediately started struggling for dominance. A battle of minds commenced as the two spell-casters focused till they were sweating. An arrow flew past the dwarf's ear, breaking his concentration for a moment. The goblin saw his chance and poured all of his power into the bolt. With a cry of rage, the greenskin sent his bolt barrelling into the dwarf's face, sending him flying over the battlefield. Ghruz laughed with glee and ran off to find someone else to kill.

Grulkog pulled his blades out of a dwarf's ribs and looked around. He lashed out and deflected an axe someone had tossed. Looking around, the orc found his suspect number one. A dwarf with his red hair put up in a Mohawk, his beard braided and his upper body bare and tattooed. The dwarf was wielding a pair of axes and his face was twisted with rage and disgust at the orc. "Must be wun o' dem slayaz" Grulkog thought as he grinned. The orc suddenly sprinted forward, the battle-cry of his kind flying past his tusks. The slayer bellowed his own cry and charged the greenskin, swinging his axes around. Dwarf and orc met. Savagery clashed with furious determination as the two warriors blocked, parried and dodged every blow from his opponent. The orc's blade took a bite out of the slayer's upper arm, just as the dwarf-forged axe buried itself in the greenskin's thigh. Both gritted their teeth and gave only small grunts of pain. Grulkog raised his blades and brought them down in a mighty cleave. The dwarf caught the weapons with his own. Muscles bulged as both tried to force his foe to the ground. Grulkog had a sudden, and rare, bright idea. He grinned and the next second his forehead was shooting downward. The thick orc-skull connected with the dwarf's jaw, a sickening crack reaching the orc's ears. The slayer recoiled and spat a bloody tooth out of his mouth. The orc was instantly over him, laughing with cruel glee as he plunged one of his blades into the dwarf's gut and the second into the back of the slayer's head. The dwarf fell dead to the ground and the orc charged off into the thick of the battle.

Grezzit leaped out of harm's way as a cannonball made splinters out of a nearby catapult. The trolls that had been pulling it broke loose and charged into the fray, clubbing a path through dwarf and greenskin alike. Grezzit slowly got up again, only to stiffen when he heard a sound he dreaded. The sound of a dwarfish gun reloading. He tossed himself to the ground as the face of a goblin behind him was turned to paste. The goblin hastily rolled out of the way as the dirt he had been lying on flew into the air. Grezzit got up and whipped his bow out, pulling an arrow and notching it in the process. Quickly spotting the source of the gunshot flying over his head, the goblin pulled his arrow back and fired. The arrow whistled through the sky and lodged itself in the ground right next to the dwarf. The greenskin cursed and pulled another arrow. The dwarf decided that the arrow was too close; and dived behind a nearby cluster of rocks. Peeking out, the dwarf hastily fired, missing the goblin by an inch. Grezzit followed the dwarf's lead and took shelter, occasionally ducking forward to let an arrow loose. An idea formed in the goblin's devious mind. Pulling another boom-fing from his belt, the goblin picked the small removable part out and tossed it. The dwarf heard a familiar clanking to his left. He wondered for a quarter of a millisecond how a goblin got his claws on it and how a goblin knew how to operate a grenade before tossing himself out of the way just as the explosive went off. Grezzit leaped on top of the rocks and sent three arrows flying. The dwarf rolled out of the way and managed to avoid the first and second arrow. The rifleman cursed loudly as the third arrow penetrated his calf and pinned him to the ground. The goblin squealed gleefully and brought out his spear before running over to the dwarf. The bearded warrior saw the goblin's spear plunge towards him, and brought his spanner up to block it. A minor melee ensued. The battle-crazed goblin quickly gained the upper hand and sank his spear into the dwarf's chest, killing him instantly. Grinning, the goblin aimed and took down another dwarf with an arrow.

Gronnlork had lost count of how many dwarfs he had killed around thirty-six, and he was having the time of his life. Casting a glance to his left, the black orc observed a dwarf pulling his axe out of an orc's skull. The dwarf's armour was heavily decorated, showing him to be the leader of the dwarf army. The large orc grinned and made his way over to the dwarf. Sensing movement from behind, the dwarf whipped around and brought his large, round, shield up in front of himself. Gronnlork copied and brought his own shield up in defence. The two leaders studied each other for a moment. And then charged, war-cries ringing through the air, axe and sword raised to kill. The dwarf and the orc met halfway and started blocking and striking. The bearded warrior managed to land a blow to the greenskin's rib. The searing pain only served to enrage the orc. Attacking with savage fury pumping through his veins, Gronnlork drove his short adversary backwards and struck him in his shoulder. The dwarf gritted his teeth and rammed his shield into the orc's gut, knocking the wind out of him. The greenskin toppled over on his back. The dwarf raised his axe and prepared to finish his foe. As the axe cleaved through the air towards the downed orc, Gronnlork quickly raised his wooden shield. The dwarf's weapon lodged itself in the thick wood of the orc's shield, trapping the axe there. Gronnlork grinned and rolled around, taking the dwarf with him and pinning his foe to the ground. The greenskin retrieved his blade and raised it. The dwarf, however, had no intention of dying. He pulled his fist back and slammed it into the laughing orc's jaw, knocking loose a few teeth. The orc fell flat on his back again. The dwarf scurried off to the orc-shield and pulled his axe out of it before turning to the orc itself. Gronnlork snarled and met the dwarf's axe with his blade, a struggle for dominance ensuing. Dwarf and orc raised their fists and barrelled it into the side of their foe's head, sending them both to the ground again. Gronnlork got to his feet quickly and raced over to his downed foe and picked him up before smashing his forehead into the de-helmeted dwarf's face and tossing him away. The dwarf moaned weakly as he heard the orc approaching and reached out for something to avert certain doom with. The dwarf smirked slightly as his fingers closed around a nearby pistol. The dwarf waited till the orc was right over him before rolling around and firing at the huge greenskin. A yell of shock, pain and rage was all the confirmation the dwarf needed. The short warrior got up and dashed for his weapon. Retrieving his axe, the dwarf turned to face the maddened orc head-on. Clutching his blade tightly, Gronnlork charged his foe and sent a hail of strikes at the dwarf-general. The black orc was beyond furious. He had a dwarf that wouldn't die, a bullet in his upper arm and he was hungry. All this mixed up in an unquenchable rage that he was taking out on the dwarf in front of him. The dwarf-leader was starting to get nervous at that point. The orc bellowed with rage and slammed his blade straight through the dwarf's weapon and into his adversary's skull. The dwarf stood for a few moments before crashing to the ground. Panting heavily, the orc picked the dead dwarf up by the beard and tore it off of the corpse's chin. He tossed his head back and bellowed: "WAAAAAAGH!!!!" At that moment; one of the rampaging trolls charged past and swung its fist. The blow connected with the orc's spine and sent him spiralling into a large boulder. Gronnlork the Git-stomper fell to the ground and did not get up, still clutching the beard of his last foe. The troll continued on its murderous marathon, laying waste to anything in its path. A gunshot rang over the battlefield and the troll started wobbling. Grulkog suddenly spotted Ghruz standing right were the troll would go down, pulling his dagger out of a dead dwarf. The orc sprinted towards the smallest of his companions and covered him with his own body. A shadow fell over the shaman and he turned to see Grulkog getting a troll to the head. His eyes widened; and everything went black. Grezzit had fired his last arrow and was currently busy pulling his spear out of a fallen foe. Suddenly: a sharp pain exploded in the back of his head and he fell to the ground; out like a light.

Something was tearing at his skin. He opened his eyes and bellowed. The vulture that had been preparing to feast on the downed orc gave a shriek and flew off, along with all the other vultures on the battlefield. Gronnlork got to his feet and rubbed his head. "Bloody 'eck" he mumbled. "Dat 'urt. A lot." He looked up and noticed the silence. All was deathly still. Even more so than in the skaven-infested tunnels. The black orc raised his hands to his mouth. "Boyz?" he called. "Boyz? Grezzit! Grulkog? Ghruz?!" The stillness of it all was choking. Coughing caught the orc's attention. He raced over to the source and saw Grezzit slowly getting up from the ground. "Grezzit!" At the sound of his leader's voice, the goblin turned and ran towards him. "Boss!" he called. The two greenskins met and gave each other a high/low five. "Iz we dedd, boss?" Grezzit asked after a while. Gronnlork pondered a bit. "I don't fink we iz" he said after a while. "But I don't know. I'ze neva been dedd befo'." A troll to the left started stirring. The two greenskins reached for their weapons and stood ready. The stirring troll was suddenly tossed to the side and Grulkog emerged, with Ghruz following close behind. "'Ey, boss! Did we win da fight?" Grulkog called. "Well… we'z breavvin' an' dey'z dedd. So I fink so, yeah!" Gronnlork called back, drawing excited hoots and cheers from the greenskins. Gronnlork glanced over the barren, corpse-littered, landscape. "Den 'gain all o' da ovva boyz iz dedd too" he said. "But we'z alive. So dat meanz dat da four o' uz iz da winnaz!" Ghruz said excitedly. Gronnlork raised the beard he had cut loose from the dwarf and grinned. "An' I got a right friffy trophy too!" he smiled. The four companions gathered food and drink from slain dwarfs and greenskins and they even tore chunks off of dead trolls. They enjoyed a long and satisfying meal and a short nap before moving on.

A rock plummeted off the treacherous mountain path and into the seemingly endless abyss below. Grulkog pulled Ghruz closer and let out a shaky breath. "Dat woz a li'l too close fer bein' gud" he said. "Yeah" the black orc replied from in front. "We gotz ta find anovva, less dangeruz, way up dese cliffz sumday." Grezzit, who had gone ahead, came racing back. "I see it, boss! Ya can see it just 'round da turn 'ere!" he chirped. Gronnlork grinned and sped up, with the other greenskins following suit. The four greenskins rounded the corner and smiled. Some distance away and upwards; there was a cave. The opening was covered by a large boulder to keep smaller creatures out. "It'z not far now boyz! C'mon!" the black orc ordered. The greenskins ran as much as they could. And after about forty-five minutes of climbing and running, they stood before the entrance of the cave they called home. Gronnlork and Grulkog pushed the boulder aside and the greenskins ventured in. Making their way to their trophy-piles, they started unloading everything they had gathered along the way. "Ya know boss, it'z a shame dat all o' dese nice trophiez iz goin' ta rot in dese pilez" Ghruz mumbled. Gronnlork nodded; and cracked a large grin. "Boyz" he said. "I gotz an idea!"

The greenskins examined their handiwork. They had erected a wooden cross. To the "arms" of the cross; they had fastened the arms of the warrior priest, nailing the troll-hand to one hand and the skaven-seal to the other. They had plunged the head of Var'Kash on top and Grorg's helmet on top of that. Lastly, they strapped the dwarfish general's beard to the head's chin. Grulkog turned to his leader. "Now wot, boss?" "Well we woz goin' souf last time" the black orc said. "Doez dat mean we'z goin' norf now, boss?" Grezzit asked. Gronnlork nodded, still grinning.

The greenskins went off the next morning. Before they left, however, they nailed a piece of wood onto their new warning sign/totem/ trophy rack. Carved onto the wood were the words: "Dis 'ere iz da cave o' Gronnlork da Gitstompa an' 'is boyz! Steal our trophiez at yer own risk! WAAAAAAAGH!!!!!"

The end. (da end o' da story, ya gitz!)