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Nathak, a spindle-aroblin, made his way slowly up the steep, rocky incline, every step weighted with dread The goblin had to report his findings - five dead gnolls could not be ignored - but the unfortunate creature seriously doubted that either Ulgulu or Kely accept the news Still, what options did Nathak have? He could run away, flee down the other side of the mountain, and off into the wilderness That seeoblin kneell Ulgulu’s taste for vengeance The great purple-skinned round with his bare hands, could tear handfuls of stone from the cave wall, and could readily tear the throat froht a shudder as Nathakscrub into the small entry room of his master’s cave complex

"Bouts tioblins in the rooone fer two days!"

Nathak just nodded and took a deep breath

"What’re ye fer?" the third goblin asked "Did ye finded the gnolls?"

Nathak’s face blanched, and no a could relieve the fit that caulu in there?" he asked squeauards looked curiously at each other, then back to Nathak "He finded the gnolls," one of thenolls"

"Ulgulu won’ts be glad," the other piped in, and theythe heavy curtain that separated the entry room from the audience chamber

Nathak hesitated and started to look back, as though reconsidering this whole course Perhaps flight would be preferable, he thought The goblin guards grabbed their spindly cohly shoved hi their spears behind Nathak to prevent any retreat

Nathak ed to find a ulu, sitting in the huge chair across the roooblin ranks as the calh Keh of his minions to earn their healthy respect Keoblin’s entrance, instead busily conversing with Lagerbottoiant that formerly claimed the cave complex as his own

Nathak shuffled across the rooe - nearly as large as the hill giant - scarlet-skinned goblinoid

"Yes, Nathak," Ke protest with a simple wave of the hand "What have you to report?"

"Me e eyes suddenly glowed orange, a clear sign of dangerous excitenolls!" Nathak blurted "Dead Killded"

Lagerbottorowl, but Ke hie

"Dead?" the scarlet-skinned goblin asked quietly

Nathak nodded

Kehest whelp’s thoughts at that moment were more centered on his brother’s inevitably volatile reaction to the news Ke to wait

"Dead!" came a roar that nearly split the stone All three monsters in the room instinctively ducked and turned to the side, just in tie boulder, the crude door to another rooulu!" Nathak squealed, and the little goblin fell facedown to the floor, not daring to look

The huge, purple-skinned goblinlike creature storlowing rage Three great strides took Ulgulu right up beside the hill giant, and Lagerbottoms suddenly seeulu roared again in rage As his goblin tribe had die or by other er - the s force for the lair

Ke They had cohest whelps, to eat and grow Ulgulu had proest of their victiulu’s skin, and by his sheer size and strength, it was apparent that the whelp would soon be able to return to the reeking valley rifts of Gehenna

Keone, he would rule; he would eat and grow stronger Then Ke period on this cursed plane, could return to cohtful plane of existence

"Dead," Ulgulu growled again "Get up, wretched goblin, and tell roveled a ed to rise to his knees "Me no know," the goblin whiulu rocked back on the heels of his floppy, oversized feet The gnolls had gone off to raid a farmhouse, with orders to return with the farmer and his oldest son Those two hardy huhest considerably, perhaps even bringing Ulgulu to the level of maturation he needed to return to Gehenna

Now, in light of Nathak’s report, Ulgulu would have to send Lagerbottoiant or the purple-skinned erous, organized action "Tephanis!" Ulgulu roared suddenly

Over on the far wall, across fro entrance, a sed and fell The drop was only a few feet, but by the time the pebble hit the floor, a slender sprite had zipped out of the small cubby he used as a bedrooht up Ulgulu’s side to sit cohest’s immense shoulder

"You-called-for-me, yes-you-did, my-master," Tephanis buzzed, too quickly The others hadn’t even realized that the two-foot-tall sprite had entered the roo his head in ahter; he so loved to witness the spectacle of Tephanis, his , a diminutive sprite that moved in a dimension that transcended the norility that would shas could perforulu had befriended Tephanis early in his tenure on the Material Plane - Tephanis was the only hest did not clai whelp a distinct advantage over his sibling With Tephanis scouting out potential victiulu knew exactly which ones to devour and which ones to leave to Keainst those adventurers ulu purred in an odd sort of grating sound "Nathak, poor Nathak," - The goblin didn’t miss the inolls have o-and-see-what-happened-to-theulu took aof words, then nodded eagerly

"Right-away, ht shiver on his shoulder, but by the time he, or any of the others, realized what Tephanis had said, the heavy drape separating the cha position One of the goblins poked its head in for just a ulu had su the drape’s ulu roared in laughter again; Kelare Keo, except that he couldn’t ignore the potential benefits, assuulu had returned to Gehenna

Nathak slipped one foot behind the other, ulu stopped the goblin with a look

"Your report served hest started

Nathak relaxed, but only for the reat hand to shoot out, catch the goblin by the throat, and lift Nathak from the floor

"But it would have served me better if you had taken the tinolls!"

Nathak swooned and nearly fainted, and by the tier oblin wished he had

"Rub the behind, ease the pain Switch it brings it back again Rub the behind, ease the pain Switch it brings it back again," Liam Thistledown repeated over and over, a litany to take his concentration fro sensation beneath his britches, a litany that mischievous Liah, with Lia to himself, after a while, that he had indeed run out on his chores

"But the drizzit was true," Liarowled defiantly

As if in answer to his statement, the shed’s door opened just a crack and Shawno, the second youngest to Liam, and Eleni, the only sister, slipped in

"Got yourself into it this tih you run off when there’s work to be done, but co home with such tales!"

"The drizzit was true," Lia Lia hiht "Black as Connor’s anvil and with a lion just as black!"

"Quiet, you both," Shaarned "If dad’s to learn that we’re out here talking such, he’ll whip the lot of us"

"Drizzit," Eleni huffed doubtfully

"True!" Lia slap fro open

"Get in here!" Eleni whispered harshly, grabbing Flanny, as a bit older than Shawno but three years Eleni’s junior, by the collar and hoisting hiroup, quickly poked his head outside to see that no one atching, then softly closed the door

"You should not be spying on us!" Eleni protested

"How’d I know you was in here?" Flanny shot back "I just came to tease the little one" He looked at Lialy in the air "Ware, ware," Flanny crooned "I am the drizzit, come to eat little boys!"