"So you two are really leaving then?" said Jacob.
"For the last time, yes Jacob," Sara yelled back from her room.
"We still have another day until we leave, we are just packing up," said Kurt, with Jacob standing at the door. He was putting all of his things in order and packing away.
"It's just, I don't know."
"We get it, this sort of sucks for you. We're sorry, but we are growing up, this stuff sometimes happens."
"But it's the end of an era dude!"
"And epic era, dude! But, this is really good for us, we are going to make a bunch of money. The connections they have, well I shouldn't talk about it."
"Still dude, I hate to see you go."
"And what about me?" Sara shouted back.
"I'm not having a conversation across the house," shouted Jacob back.
"You'll be fine, you heard your father, you're basically already a clan member," said Kurt.
"I know, but we gotta keep in touch," that actually was a serious problem. There wasn't going to be much of a way to do that, but Jacob didn't necessarily know that.
"What is with all the yelling?" shouted Arthur.
"When did you get back?"
"Just now."
"Still nothing?"
"I don't know if it's like they saw me come into town or something, I guess I wasn't very discrete. But they also want me to wear the uniform, how am I supposed to do both? The brass needs to get it."
"Yeah I've been getting that feeling too, somehow you spooked them, I guess they left.
"Hopefully that means they will at least stop. But enough about business, so the day finally comes?"
"Tomorrow really, but yeah," said Kurt. He had a few butterflies in his stomach, Arthur was actually looking for him and Sara. He was looking for what he thought were thrives selling merchandise from the clan, because the e resources were from the otherside, and only their clan had access to one of them. Until Kurt that was. The two hadn't actually stolen anything, they just didn't want the clan to come in to take over.
"Well best of luck, and if you run into any trouble you know you can always ask me, if I can help you both out. The clan's reach is quite far."
"I appreciate that," Kurt didn't see himself making that call, or hoped he wouldn't have to.
After a few hours of packing both Kurt and Sara were done, they were only waiting on two things, Layla and the driver. Layla had to make the trip with them to step up the new gate, and the driver was just the only person that knew how to drive a carriage. Sara had decided the first chance she got she would buy lessons, but for now they had to depend on hired help. It didn't seem very hard, but if the horses ran off in the middle of the trip, or they lost control. That was unacceptable. If only he could tame a beast like the shaman did.
After a bit, Kurt and Sara said goodbye, but they had snuck out a few boxes to take back to the other side, no reason to overload the carriage. They had picked out two rooms in the pillar until their places had been made. After Sara had made a comment and Layla heard her boasting about her place. She had insisted that Kurt be built a residence as well, he chose on the top of Pillar, so he could say the entire thing was his place, you know bigger, nicer and with a better view than Sara.
Hank, Tom and Joe were starting to become good friends with them. Apparently a three goblin crew is considered very small, but after the tales of the Horror Rabbit, and the rewards Mary had given them they had made a name for themselves. There wasn't many battles or glory to go around, they had captured and ended up coming back with a herd of Rams, Tom had taken a good one, Hank was given a massive creature that Kurt didn't know the name of, it had huge front legs, but smaller back legs, allowing Hank to ride on what was his shoulders, but there was a saddle there all of them had one, almost ape like but with a spikes horned head and never really stood on its back legs, Kurt decided to call it a Barbariape, a cross between Ape and Barbarian.
Joe seemed to have made out, a rider hawk was basically only big enough to hold a shaman, it was simply a large hawk, which meant Joe was airborne. And for someone that needs to spray dusk and smoke on what is below them, circle and see the battlefield. It was a great mount, just the ability to fly itself gave so many advantages.
The mounts seemed to fit them, the rams were able to climb almost ninety degree angle cliffs, and moved quickly, giving Tom a way to make sniper spots, and Hank, he was always the front line attack and defense, the Barbariape provided both, it had massive arms to take hits, and the wider body gave a lot more cover. Mary had apparently swiftly given them their mount just on Kurt's mention of Joe wanting one.
They had started to have a habit of showing up when Kurt and Sara were around. They had made a friendship out of the whole ordeal
"They are great, being just in the party to defeat a Horror rabbit, and the rams for the rest of us. We are like superstars to the horde," said Joe
"You know you can't call it that, we haven't declared," said Hank.
"Kingdom them." Said Joe.
"You're one crazy goblin, I mean human," said Tom to Kurt, "Taking one by yourself, I have no idea how you pulled it off."
"I hit it, then I hit it again, then I hit it harder, then I hit it sharper, then I just didn't stop hitting, I don't know either."
Hank laughed, "Yes this is a very good strategy, one I've used myself before."
"Yes, I hate to admit it, but usually the one that can keep hitting their opponent wins," said Joe. They were all laughing about the whole idea.
"You know that poison you gave me, I ended up just throwing a whole bag of it at him, still didn't take it down."
"The whole bag? At once? I said a handful."
"I even got him to drink most of it."
"That's how it died right."
"Gods no. But that's how the tide turned in my favor, once I got him with that, I started to pull through. Honestly, that bag saved my life."
"I can get you more."
"Please do."
They were having a good time and then Layla came in.
"Umm Kurt," said Layla, "there is a bit of a problem."
"Problem?"
"I think you were followed."
Kurt's eyes widen, "what do you mean followed?"
"Well, someone has come through the gate, and…."
"And…"
"He's not hurt, he actually apparently surrendered as soon as he saw he was surrounded."
"Who is it?"
"I don't know, but…he's dressed in a clan uniform. And that is a problem for me."
Crap, did Arthur just follow them into the gate. Kurt's mind was spinning. "Ohh my god, it probably fucking Arthur, Kurt." said Sara.
"Arthur?" said Layla.
"What do we do?" said Sara.
"I would think I would take an audience with our guest, and I don't think it's wise to hide your presence, he probably knows you are here," said Layla, "and depending on his…"
"This is bad."
"Yes, very. So, um I would like the both of you to be there."
"When?" said Kurt.
"I mean, I can hold him for as long as you want Kurt."
Kurt and Sara looked at each other, they had gotten careless at the last possible minute. He thought Arthur had basically given up, he kept saying that he couldn't find anything, and recently he was starting to realize the truth, he spooked them. And they stopped.
"I don't think, fuck, maybe," looking at Sara, "are we ready to just get out of town?"
"Umm, but what does that fix, how are we going to stop him from stopping us on the other side. Even if we move, he'll just see where that gate is."
"Well, we can't just hold him, the clan will come anyway to look for him."