(It has been almost two years since I have been able to write and while I am rusty I have had the urge to write like I did when I was younger. I have tried to shed my previous style and reform into better and more mature stories. Any and all reviews would be greatly appreciated.)

The sun had slowly started to set over the land of Kyphus as the traveler Robert Haswalde shuffled a deck of cards he kept for long distance trips. The caravan was on its third week of five between the cities of Dahl and Yaseb. While the trip had been relatively uneventful to the relief of most participators, the hired guards were getting restless with boredom and eager sword arms. Heat of the summer kept the guards to their leather armor for some level of protection but the heavy chainmail was too much lest they succumb to dehydration or exhaustion. Four days out from the last water spring, thirst had taken the caravan with wild abandon. Fights were starting to break out among the fellow merchants over very minor disputes such as card games or political discussions. Robert, however, had managed to keep himself out of trouble. His companion, a Half-Orc named Dorgat, kept him in good company and good spirits. As Dorgat was born among a full blooded Orc clan, he was accustomed to hard travel and tense nerves. He had escaped his father's clan by killing the lone scout left to watch over the camp at night or during raids and taking his weapon. Dorgat eventually found his way to the care of a priest in a nearby temple who taught him the use of the Gods and the rewards of living a good life. When he got older he joined a guild of travelling merchants as his blood could allow for peaceful negotiations with the more bestial races such as his own full blooded orcs or even occasional Kobold raids. This was where Robert met Dorgat. They had done several high risk jobs together over the last three years and found they trusted each other when it came to travelling with larger and less experienced groups such as the one they currently found themselves with. While both wielded swords at their sides, they hadn't even thought of them the last week or so. Their days were filled with card games, rolls of the dice, indulging in wine rations, and singing many songs of travel and heroics beyond what they expected to face.

The afternoon had begun to turn into evening when Robert finally grew tired of cards for the day and tried to fish out some of their bread and cheese for an evening meal. Dorgat accepted his portion with a nod and ripped it apart before tossing it into his tusked maw. It was stale but it did the job. A commotion formed several wagons behind them but neither of them took any mind to it as fights had become almost hourly. While the shouting was standard, the sound of swords being drawn was not. Both of them looked around to see a guard trying to fumble for his sword but being caught with an arrow to the chest.

"What the devil?" Robert exclaimed in confusion.

"Goblins!" Dorgot shouted. No more than a second after he said this, an arrow pierced Dorgat's shoulder. It was smaller than a standard arrow, clearly made for a smaller being. Dorgat grunted but shoved Robert down to the floor of the wagon and they hid as low as they could. The sound of numerous arrows piercing their wagon was all that Robert could hear for the following seconds. Screams of pain rang through the air which then turned into bloody gurgles for mercy. When the arrows stopped and the approaching babble of Goblins filled the air, Dorgat drew his blade and jumped from the wagon. Robert stood up to see the Half-Orc surrounded by almost a half dozen of the small green skinned devils. Their oversized heads were only further pronounced by large red eyes. Their screams of anger at the resistant Half-Orc were swiftly met with one of Dorgat's boots. The crunch of a Goblin nose silenced the creature almost instantly. The Goblins hopped back, unsure of how to proceed. While Goblins were a powerhouse when it came to their almost endless numbers, they were cowards at heart and never liked a straight fight. Dorgat roared at them, his mane of black hair making him appear a great brutish lion protecting its tribe. Two Goblins screamed back in weak response but both were beheaded with a single swing of Dorgat's massive blade. While Robert's sword was a standard longsword, Dorgat wielded a blade almost twice as large with a single hand. The remaining four Goblins tried to charge and slash at his ankles but the Half-Orc had faced their kind before, as well as their lack of tactical diversity. A swift kick of his massive boot sent another Goblin flying as his blade skewered another Goblin right through the skull, silencing it immediately. With a great roar, Dorgat hurled the skewered Goblin off the blade and crashing into the third Goblin before cleaving off half of the skull of the fourth in a single clean motion. Dorgat turned and his beady black eyes went wide.

"Behind you Rob!" he roared. Robert swiftly ducked as a Goblin blade passed right where his head had been and the Goblin crashed face first into the corner of a box in the wagon. Its neck snapped with a sickening crack. As Robert stood back up he faced his flank to see two Goblins approached on their ragged looking Goblin Dog mounts. The sword quickly was drawn from his sheath and he barely got the blade up in time to block the leaping Goblin Dog's bite. As he struggled with the rat looking beast, the Goblin was hopping wildly in its makeshift saddle and screeching for the mount to kill. Robert kneed the beast in the snout, dazing it, before driving his sword into its throat. The goblin hopped at Robert with wild abandon but was caught by its large face and he changed its midair course down into the hard dirt below. It landed right on its neck and crumpled into a mess of tangled limbs. Before he could pull his gaze from the kill, a stinging pain seared across his back and he fell from the wagon as well. He could feel the warm blood splashing across his travel vest as he tried to stumble back to his feet. Dorgat rushed over and cleaved the Goblin from the wagon with a single mighty swing.

"I think I'm done," muttered Robert.

"Like hell you are!" Dorgat responded loudly. With a trembling roar he lifted Robert up onto his shoulder with one hand and began towards a still living wagon horse. When he found one that wasn't losing its mind and was capable of riding, he grabbed a saddle from the wagon and ripped the horse free of its restraints. "Put this on!" Dorgat yelled as another flurry of wild Goblins began to attack. The large Half-Orc rushed out and met the Goblins head on with rage filled eyes. The little green beasts could barely get close to him as his sword cut through their scavenged armor like warm butter. They didn't stand a chance. Robert screamed in pain as he managed to heave the saddle onto the horse and get onto the horse. Dorgat kicked a dying Goblin out of the way and walked over to Robert and handed him his map of the area.

"You've gotta find a horse too," Robert said with a faint weariness to his voice and eyes.

"I'll find a way. You get out of here." The Half-Orc's hand slapped the rear of the horse and it shot off with Robert on top. Robert saw his longtime companion face the newest wave of Goblins with blade. As the minutes passed the sounds of combat slowly fell away and Robert knew he had to focus on finding help and learn the fate of the caravan at a later time. Night slowly overtook the sky and the warm blood became a cold chill on his back. He wouldn't die, he knew this, but it was surely painful and going to take a while to fully heal.

After an hour, he found he was completely lost and needed to try to locate himself. The horse trotted to a stop and Robert slowly heaved himself off of the saddle. The impact with his feet sent a wave of pain through his back and he fell with a scream. A fresh wave of blood began to seep out of the wound but Robert stood up defiantly with gritted teeth. He found a tree to sit against and began to look at the stars. He turned to his map that Dorgat gave him and tried to find his location from the caravan's battle. After twenty minutes he could see that he was close to a nearby temple for young warriors. He had heard stories of place before and knew he could probably find support there. As he rolled up his map, he heard a small commotion forming behind the tree. He froze as the familiar sound of Goblins filled his ears and then noticed his horse had wandered off. The Goblins, infuriated at the sight of a horse, quickly commenced to slaughter the poor beast less than fifty feet from where Robert was hidden by the tree trunk. It was then he noticed there was a difference in the voices that yelled at the dying horse. They were female with only a few male voices cheering on. Taking a deep breath, he leaned around the tree trunk to see what he could. Some stationary torches were in the distance that he hadn't cared to notice before. The female goblins carried simple cudgels and the male voices came from young Goblin children. The Goblin camp. He pulled back and tried to stifle the scream trying to escape from another searing pain in his back. The path to the temple led right through the middle of the Goblin camp. He tried to find a way around but the camp was wedged between a river and a cliff face. The only alternative would be to swim across the roaring river which would be impossible with the remaining strength he had left. All he could do was pray his feet were silent and that their little noses couldn't pick up the smell of blood. As he approached the camp he decided to try crawling by the riverbed to reduce the smell and his own sound as much as possible. The water was chilling and coursed over him but it made no difference in the natural sounds the Goblins were likely used to. The only thing that kept him concealed from their wide red eyes was the darkness of a moonless night. While he crawled, the pain in his back was near crippling but he kept his mouth under the water to conceal any possible groans that would escape him. He was almost halfway across when he saw a Goblin with exceptionally long floppy ears seem to pick up his movement. He stopped crawling as the Goblin walked over. The Goblin was clearly not a warrior for the only clothing he wore was some old and recycled patches of burlap that it had likely managed to scavenge off of a corpse. His ears hung almost down to his shoulders and it held its little dagger with a false bravery before quickly scampering back to rejoin its friends at the campfire.

"What was that?" asked an extremely gaunt Goblin.

"Thought I heard something," came the high pitched response of Floppy Ears.

"You hear nothing but dinner yell," laughed a Goblin with a curved nose.

"You hear nothing but mother's mating call!" howled Floppy Ears in response. The remaining Goblins whooped with laughter at the expense of the Curve Nosed Goblin. Robert continued to crawl when he heard a fierce howl of approaching Goblins. He looked to see his companion, Dorgat, being dragged by several of the rat-like Goblin Dogs. A rope leash was lashed around his neck and a squad of five Goblins chased after him with sticks to whack at his heels. He seemed severely beaten but resistant. He tried to kick at a Goblin but was dog piled by all of the Goblins with sticks and beaten severely before being dragged by the throat into camp. When the Goblin Dogs stopped by the fire, Dorgat gasped for breath in deep wheezes.

"Who this?" asked Gaunt Goblin.

"This was the most troubling one," responded one of the raid members with an overly large smile of pride.

"Why bring him here?" asked Floppy Ears.

"We play games for next couple days with him." The Goblin raid group whooped for joy.

"First we show him to Chief!" a Goblin with a fresh cut over his left eye said. The others got out of his way and ushered the Goblin Dogs to drag Dorgat once again towards the biggest hut in the camp. The commotion caused an angered squeak from the hut.

"What be the noise about!"

"Oh great and powerful chief we bring prisoner from raid for games and feast!" announced the goblin with the cut eye, clearly the raid leader. There was a couple groans from inside and the hut flaps moved aside to see a massively fat Goblin sitting on a makeshift litter chair with four goblins carrying him out to see the prisoner. Chief was almost twice the size of Raid Leader and the rolls of fat could be seen even from the distance Robert was at. A massive crown of parrot and ostrich feathers sat upon his greasy black hair and Chief looked down at Dorgat.

"This one Orc blood. Did you kill Orc tribe?" Chief questioned Raid Leader.

"No, oh great amazing and powerfully awesome Chief. He found with human trade wagons. He helped other get away."

"Did you find other?" Chief asked angrily.

"No, super master grand warrior Chief." Chief stomped on his foot to be let down from his chair, though the impact mostly caused the four Goblin servants to fall to the ground with a harsh impact. Chief stood up with a heavy wheeze and waddled over to Dorgat who looked at the massive Goblin Chief.

"You Orc tribe big pain in our butts. Send them big message with little corpse." Dorgat looked at the fat Chief and lunged forward. Chief tried to waddle back but was hit with a harsh headbutt to the face and he fell onto his back like a trapped turtle. The Goblins howled in anger and leapt upon him with sticks in a wild fury. Chief felt his bloody nose and squealed in anger and pain. "Bring him to the River Box!" yelled Chief in a fury. The Goblins dragged Dorgat violently by the throat to a heavy iron box with numerous crude holes cut into it. Robert knew he couldn't hold back anymore. He rushed forward, adrenaline numbing the pain in his back, and he brandished his sword. Soaked to the bone in river water, his movements were sluggish at best but the Goblins were caught off guard by a new challenger. With a single motion Robert slashed Curved Nose across the face and cut into the face of a second Goblin. Both Goblins fell down in pain as their black blood spilled to the ground. He quickly cut the bonds around Dorgat's neck and hands to the dismay of the Goblins. Dorgat stood up with pain in his face as Chief rushed back to his hut and yelled for reinforcements. Both Robert and Dorgat looked at each other and then ran.

"This way!" shouted Robert. Dorgat followed without hesitation and grabbed a torch stand to smack away rushing Goblins. The roar of Goblin warriors seemed to fill the night sky. It almost sounded like hundreds of the little beasts were waiting in the trees or on the cliff face. Robert and Dorgat made it through the central area and found themselves rushing past Chief's hut.

"I will kill you!" shouted Dorgat at the hut. As they made past the tent they found the exit and continued into the forest. They didn't stop running until they lost sight and sound of the Goblin camp. When they finally stopped for a breather there was a sound that emerged from the tree next ot them. Robert readied his blade and both jumped around the side of the tree to catch it off guard. What they saw was something that stopped both of them in their tracks. It was a Goblin sound but not a war cry. A lone Goblin baby, stark naked and shivering, was trying to curl into a makeshift bed of leaves for warmth. They could both see the eyes in this Goblin were not red but in fact white. Robert approached and waved a hand in front of its face. It didn't react except shiver.

"Blind," said Robert.

"Leave it," Dorgat grunted through his bloodied wheezes. Robert didn't know why but he put the sword into his sheath and picked up the Goblin baby. At first it struggled wildly but its strength was nonexistent and it tired in seconds. He held it and looked at Dorgat. The Half-Orc seemed unable to find an opinion.

"Left to die?" asked Robert.

"Most likely. Goblins are barbarians at heart." Robert looked at his own drenched clothing and then to Dorgat, who was bloody but still dry.

"Give me your shirt." Dorgat didn't seem pleased at the idea but removed it and gave it to Robert. With the shirt he did a makeshift sling cradle and put the baby around Dorgat's neck.

"You cannot be serious," said Dorgat in protest.

"I wouldn't leave an Orc baby to die so I'm not leaving a Goblin baby."

"You'll regret this down the road, Rob."

"I'll deal with it when it comes to me." They walked through the night with no more interruption and when dawn began to break, they saw the ocean. After another hour of walking they finally saw the temple, built on top of a rocky cliff that overlooked the massive Eastern Ocean. The Goblin baby had been asleep for hours and cuddled against the warmth of Dorgat's muscled chest. Dorgat rolled his eyes at the baby in disgust as they proceeded towards sanctuary in the temple.

"What makes you think they will take us in, especially with this thing?" asked Dorgat doubtfully.

"I've heard about them since I was a little kid. The fact we were passing by their temple is extremely lucky on our parts, my friend. Their charity is well known to my people."

"Let's hope they accept us without knowledge of their leverage."

"You think every unknown is a potential enemy."

"It's kept me alive this far." With the sigh of acceptance from Dorgat, the two of them proceeded with the likely full day march to the temple.

(Please review. I am taking the general layout of races with the Pathfinder RPG)