Tales of Cubonia

The Golden Hourglass 3 -The Trader Caravan

As morning crept over Laketown, Broderick Porter awoke from a deep sleep refreshed and ready for a new day. Killing Goblins – especially those intruding in his home – always made him sleep a little better. He threw back the gryffon-down blanket on his bed and stepped onto the Golden Oak floors. The hardwood was cool on the pads of his feet, but Broderick savored the feeling. He stretched his arms far over his head and craned his whole body in a stretch to work out the kinks of a good night's rest. A few of his joints popped as he exhaled deeply.

Broderick pulled a spare tunic off the armchair next to the bed, slid it on, and crossed the hall and into the washroom. The sink, tub, and latrine were all made of marble excavated from the Dwarven mountains on the north face of Cubonia, and carved by the Dwarves themselves. To his knowledge, Broderick owned the only Dwarven made bathroom set outside of a castle in all of Cubonia. He rarely used the tub at all though, preferring to bathe himself in the lake out back. Something about bathing indoors made him feel too pampered. He took a moment to relieve himself then splashed a handful of cold water on his face to startle his system into readiness for the day. He wiped his face off with a small hand towel woven from tinctured mammoth fur, and threw it back on the rack.

Leaving the washroom, Broderick stepped down the hall and into the armory. The morning light was pouring through the single window making any weapon touched by its rays glisten and glitter. The Goblin's body was lying dead in the middle of the room, the neck twisted at a gruesome angle. Normally he would have searched the body for anything of value directly after the kill, but he was too tired to care the night before. Patting down the Goblin's slightly chubby frame, he found a small sack of gold Copins, probably the Assassin's fee, a lockpick set, a retractable telescope, and a small Goblin-made dagger.

He lifted the dagger and examined it in the sunlight. The blade was made of Goblin steel, a sleek black metal that ate up sunlight instead of reflecting it. The hilt was carved from bone. Since it was a Goblin weapon, the bone most likely came from the body of a fallen enemy. The craftsmanship was exquisite. A weapon so ugly it was beautiful. Broderick tested the weapon for weight and balance, and found them both – not surprisingly – in perfect harmony. He crossed the room to the empty spot on the wall and set the dagger in place. It was slightly too big for the spot, but looked at home among the weapon collection nonetheless.

Setting aside the rest of the spoils, Broderick moved back to the lifeless Goblin. Taking a closer look at the Goblin's face, he realized it wasn't an ordinary Goblin. His face was creased with the signs of age and there were gray streaks in his greasy black hair. His bulbous green stomach was stretching his sneaking suit to bursting. Goblins had a notoriously short lifespan. They could live as long as any other creature on Cubonia, but they rarely had the opportunity. Goblins were highly irritable and quick to violence. More goblins had died from battle or a simple spat over a game of Checkmate than of natural causes in the entire history of the Goblin race. The constant fighting kept them lean and wiry. The Goblin lying dead on the floor in Broderick's armory was truly a one-of-a-kind create. Well, it had been. Now it was just a dead hunk of meat stinking up his house.

Broderick hefted up the fat, dead Goblin, and threw him over his shoulder. He moved back down the hall, and went downstairs. Forgoing his breakfast for the time being, he swung open the back door and went outside. The morning sun was glistening across the surface of Shimmer Lake like thousands of tiny diamonds floating just on the surface. Early settlers of Elazio had once believed that the lake's waters were actually highly valuable, and established Laketown as a mining community. After they realized that the only thing of value in the lake was the dogfish and that the shimmering quality was due to the almost microscopic marine life that had iridescent exoskeletons, they gave up the mining and never spoke of the thoroughly embarrassing affair ever again.