"The Great Goblin War" | Kelindor

Written by Eragon Brightsteel

In the year 1422, Kelindor was bathed in blood. Many Kelindorians, both human and dwarven, were killed. The war was terrible. No one saw it coming, for it was not against any surrounding kingdom, but against one deep beneath us. One of fury and blind rage, watching, waiting for something to hurl it's wrath upon. It was a fairly average day. The merchants were babbling about their wares, the politicians arguing hours about useless details. Down in the caves the mushroom farmers were shooing naughty children away from their crops, and the miners' picks were clinking in a strange but often melodious pattern. Everyone was going about their business. But one dwarf, deep within the very depths of the mine, whether foolhardy or just in the wrong place at the wrong time, struck the stone wall with his pick and it gave away. An ominous hissing sound and a foul stench emerged from the opening. The dwarf frowned, peering in. The other miners heard a short scream quickly cut off. Soon after, unearthly shrieks and a deep rumbling sound echoed through the caves. Goblins came pouring in. The hideous creatures came crawling on the walls and on top of each other in their bloodthirsty rage. “Run for your lives!” a senior miner yelled to his comrades. They all ran, but were quickly overtaken by the oncoming tide of death. The commotion was heard by miners above them and the alarm was raised. On the surface, men gathered hastily, ready to fight... but nothing came. They stood at the mine entrance for over an hour, but not a sound was heard from within. Soon, scouts returned and reported the only things they could find were a few blood stains. All life had disappeared. As quickly as they had come they were gone.
Those were dark days indeed. There was no joy in Kelindor, there was no peace. There were no children laughing in the streets, no men merrily chatting together in the tavern. Fear was their life; Fear was their entire being. The goblins came quickly and without warning, always opening a new door to sneak through. They left nothing. Even the grass got trampled to death. When the army did catch them, there would be a long and bloody battle. The warriors of Kelindor, exceedingly stout and hardy, usually won those battles, but the goblins were innumerable, and they seemed undaunted by their tremendous casualties. There was no way to chase them to their lair. The tunnels were an endless maze, and anyone that entered them was never heard from again. And thus it continued for three long years.
The forces of Kelindor were dwindling. Its economy was in shambles as the goblins commenced raid after raid, again and again. They just kept coming, sending fresh waves that seemed to be never ending. Soon the goblins would overwhelm the entire kingdom.
One day, when the kingdom was on the brink of collapse, the kindom's generals gathered together to discuss their last-ditch effort to defeat the goblins. One such general, by the name of Thor Tiberius, sat listening to the war council, carefully considering each proposition. One burly dwarf, his battleaxe hanging by his side, stated firmly, “We need to send every soldier we can into those tunnels an' flood em until there are none of em left!”
A shrill voice belonging to a skinny adviser retorted, “But that will leave all our cities nearly free for the taking! There is no way we can keep this a secret. The other kingdoms will pounce on the opportunity to capture our land.
“We have to find some way to rid ourselves of these vermin,” a paladin calmly replied.
“What if we send a peace delegation and attempt to reason with them?” asked one of the lower rank generals. Panic was visible through his insufficient mask.
“REASON WITH THEM?” Roared the burly dwarf as he stood up. “They are nothing but mindless brutes! They'll kill anyone we send!”
The general responded with some heat, “We don't have many options! And we are running out of time!”
“SILENCE!” Shouted the Grand War Master. A hush thickened as his voice echoed through the halls. “Do you not realize,” he said quietly, “that if we fight amongst ourselves there is nothing we can do to win this war. We will fall and there will no longer be a country for us to defend. Now, does anyone else have any ideas?”
“M'lord.” All eyes turned in the direction of General Tiberius, “I have an idea. I'll need a city sir, and a lot of explosives.”
After several days of work the trap was prepared. The underground city of Gondül was evacuated. Everything was ready. But first they had to lure the goblins there. They stocked the place full of livestock and waited.
The first sign of the goblins came as a distant thundering, just barely a tremor in the earth. However, it grew until the stones on the ground moved and the ceiling shook with the force of it. The goblins burst through the tunnels into a cavern so huge that one could not see the top. The city, standing majestically against the hordes of goblins, covered only a portion of the cavern. The Kelindorian army charged as they tried to draw more and more goblins into the cavern. The wave of goblins crashed into the shield wall of the Kelindorians. It buckled at first under the weight of the charge, but the soldiers recovered quickly, and held fast. When the time was right, the Grand War Master, standing atop one of the exterior buildings of the city, ordered to his lieutenant, “That is enough, sound the retreat.” He looked around at the members of his guard and said, “Alright, let's move!” The lieutenant shouted a command to his right, and a bellowing horn blasted throughout the surrounding area. The men slowly began retreating to the side tunnels, the goblins still pressing against them with all their might. The demolitionists were waiting for the command to light the explosives which had been carefully placed around all the support columns; Enough to collapse the entire cavern.
The order was about to be given when a human shout was heard from somewhere within the cavern. General Tiberius looked and saw a small group of men and dwarves completely surrounded, trying to stay alive against the onslaught of goblins. “Hold them for a little while longer!” He shouted to the defenders guarding the tunnel entrances. “Fourth regiment! To me!” He waded out into the goblin masses with fifty elite dwarves and fought towards the group of survivors. They made contact and Tiberius yelled, “RETREAT!” Tiberius fought fiercely. He struck left and right slaying them by the dozens but they just kept coming. They surrounded him and cut off his escape. His men tried to get to him but he shouted, “No! You'll just get yourselves killed! You have to get...” The sound was cut off by an explosion off in the distance, and then several more scattered throughout the cavern. “GO!” Roared General Tiberius. Spouting curses at the goblins, the Captain of the regiment ordered his men back to the tunnel openings. Just as the last soldier went under cover an indescribable sound was heard as the roof collapsed. The noise was immense. It was heard fifty miles away in Ragnivoll and even into Baleror. The corresponding earthquake destroyed houses and toppled trees and was felt as far as Akihide, Bergenstaat, and Ina Tathen. The great city of Gondül was destroyed but the goblins were defeated at last.
There was great feasting and celebrating across the entire kingdom. The goblins were gone! Those few survivors were so scattered that they had no chance of regrouping. All were finally free of that constant fear! Of course there were the usual bandits and sky pirates but the people almost welcomed them. The goblins were gone at last! As the people celebrated, however, all remembered those who had perished fighting for their kingdom. All remembered the damage the goblins had done, but alas! The war was over and peace reigned in Kelindor.