Chapter 258 The Scenery of Devastation

As Suzuka secured her 'cargo' to the four-wheeler, Max and Jake reluctantly abandoned their search for survivors within the wreckage. Despite over two hours of scouring the area, their efforts yielded only four pitiful goblin slaves, their frail bodies bearing the wounds of relentless mistreatment. These creatures, once resembling goblins, now appeared mere shadows of their former selves. Max and Jake had done what they could to treat their injuries, but their efforts seemed futile in the face of such damage.

Returning from the four-wheeler, Suzuka approached Larry.

 "Hey, Larry. I've completed the search for survivors. Unfortunately, apart from a few hatchlings barely clinging to life, I found no one else who could be considered alive. How's Mia holding up? She seems in bad shape; I suspect she may have a concussion and urgently requires medical attention."

Larry's expression mirrored her concern as he nodded in agreement.

 "Yes, she's taken quite a blow. We mustn't delay any longer. We must go back to town and get her to the doctor, then, report to Valerius what happened here."

Suzuka hesitated for a moment before proposing a solution.

 "Listen, Larry. I've been thinking. Given the condition of the goblins and hatchlings, it's unlikely they'll survive the journey if we attempt to move them now. They need time to recover, and Mia can't afford to wait. So, how about this? I'll take Mia with me, ensuring she receives immediate medical care back in town. Meanwhile, you, Max, and Jake can stay behind to tend to the goblins. I'll inform Valerius of our findings and ensure Mia receives treatment from Dr. Jenkins. With any luck, I'll be back within a few days, tops."

Larry's voice was faint as he posed his question, his gaze flickering with a glimmer of hope.

 "Helen," he began hesitantly, "you've... you've worked wonders with Hermit. Saved him from death's grasp more times than I can count. Is there... is there any chance you could do the same for the others? Heal them like you did him?"

Suzuka's reply came with a touch of coldness, "Larry. I'm afraid my healing abilities are exclusive to Hermit alone. It's... complicated. What works for him might not necessarily work for the others."

 "Yeah... you're right, Helen. We will go by your plan, I leave Mia in your care. Please, be safe out here, and good luck. But knowing you, you don't need luck," he murmured, his words carrying the weight of resignation.

Suzuka looked at Hermit lying on a makeshift bed Larry had made for him.

"You just look at this slacker, sleeping like a baby, he slept through the whole thing. How about waking up already? I need my guide back to town! Wake up I say!" She spoke as she nudged the sleeping goblin with her boot. 

Hermit stirred from his deep slumber, a sense of disorientation washed over him, his consciousness slowly returning to him like a fog lifting from a misty morning. With a painful groan, he pushed himself up from the ground, his movements sluggish and uncoordinated as he rubbed his eyes, trying to banish the remnants of sleep from his mind.

As his vision cleared, Hermit's eyes widened in horror at the scene before him. The once bustling and lively goblin breeding farm now lay in ruins, a chaotic landscape of destruction and death. His heart pounded in his chest as he took in the gruesome sight, his tiny frame trembling with fear and disbelief.

He delivered a cracking slap across his face to wake himself from this horrible nightmare but the scenery before his eyes remained the same. Everywhere he looked, he saw the lifeless bodies of his fellow goblin slaves, their mangled forms twisted and broken within the rubble. The ground was littered with the broken remains of innocent hatchlings, their tiny bodies crushed and torn apart by the brutality of the attack.

A guttural cry of anguish tore from Hermit's throat as he staggered forward, his eyes brimming with tears of sorrow and despair. 

"Brothers... We were supposed to... to escape together. How... how could this happen?"

He stumbled over the fallen bodies of his kin, his hands trembling as he reached out to touch their lifeless forms as if hoping against hope that they would stir back to life.

"No... no, please... wake up! You can't... you can't leave me like this! NO! No, no, no!" Hermit's voice cracked, each syllable a painful wail that clawed its way out of his throat.

But there was no response, no sign of life in the carnage that surrounded him. Hermit's heart felt as if it had been ripped from his chest, the pain of loss threatening to consume him entirely. Hermit's entire being quivered with an overwhelming mix of anguish, disbelief, and despair as he beheld the harrowing scene before him. 

Every fiber of his being screamed in torment at the sight of his fellow goblin slaves strewn lifeless across the torn ground, their bodies broken and mangled beyond recognition. Tears streamed down his grotesque face, mingling with the filth and grime that coated his skin as he let out a series of pitiful screams.

 "AAAAARRGGHHHHH! No! Noooo! Nooo! Eeegh! Why? Why, why, why?!" he wailed, the sound guttural and primal, echoing through the desolate landscape.

 "Brothers! My fellow gobos! Gone... all gone! I... I couldn't... save them! I couldn't... warn them..." Each word was torn from him like a piece of his soul, shredded by the devastation before him.

 He felt a searing pain in his chest as if his heart had been torn in half by the cruel hand of fate, leaving behind a raw and gaping wound that could never be healed. The weight of sorrow pressed down on him like a mountain, threatening to crush him beneath its unbearable weight.

He fell to his knees beside the lifeless body of a fellow goblin slave, his hands trembling as he reached out to touch his cold, still form. The reality of their death washed over him like a tidal wave, threatening to engulf him in its suffocating embrace.

"Wreeeee! Why? Reeeeee! Why did this happen? Reeeeeee! What have we done to deserve such cruelty?" Hermit screamed, his voice was choked with grief and sorrow.

As Hermit gazed upon the scene of complete devastation, his heart, at least what was left of it,  shattered into a million pieces. The sight of the tiny goblin hatchlings torn apart and strewn across the blood-stained ground was more than he could bear. With a gut-wrenching cry of anguish, Hermit's world crumbled around him.

His voice cracked with grief, the mournful sound reminiscent of a wounded animal's cry.

 "Aaaargh! Nooo! Wretched fate, cruel fate! Nooooo!" he shrieked, his voice raw with anguish, "Nooo, please! They... they were just hatchlings! Innocent hatchlings! Why must they suffer so? What... what have they done to deserve this?!"

"I... I can't... My kin! My brethren!" he choked out between gasps for air, "I can't bear it... the pain... the loss... I can't!"

In a frenzy of despair, Hermit scuttled pathetically amidst the wreckage, his trembling hands reaching out to cradle the broken bodies of the hatchlings. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he gathered them close to his chest, his sobs echoing through the silent ruins.

"NO! No, no, noooooo! My hatchlings, my little ones... why? Why must you leave me?" His voice cracked with raw emotion as he clutched at the lifeless forms, his tears mingling with the blood-soaked dirt. 

But his efforts were futile, for the hatchlings lay still and lifeless in his arms, their tiny forms limp and cold. With a wail of despair, Hermit's grip tightened around them, as if trying to breathe life back into their broken bodies.

Clutching the lifeless hatchlings to his chest, Hermit's hands trembled with grief as he rocked back and forth, unable to comprehend the cruel twist of fate that had robbed them of their futures. 

"Wake up! Please, wake up! Please... please come back! I can't... I can't bear it without you! Please, no... wake up, little ones! Wake up! NOOOOOOOO!" he screamed, his voice cracking with raw emotion. But there was no response, only the haunting stillness of death that surrounded him.

In his desperation, Hermit's movements became frantic and uncoordinated. He stumbled over his clumsy feet, his grip on the hatchlings slipping as he tumbled to the ground. The fragile bodies rolled from his grasp, their motionless forms coming to rest on the blood-soaked ground.

As Hermit lay there within the carnage, his body racked with sobs, a sense of overwhelming despair washed over him. He pounded his tiny fists against the ground in a futile attempt to vent his suffering, his grief-stricken screams echoing through the ruins.

Larry looked from afar, guilt preventing him from facing the grieving goblin. He just stood afar with his head cast low and gazed at the cold ground. He couldn't bear to tell the goblin that this happened on his order.

Suzuka impatiently tapped her feet looking at her imaginary watch, counting the minutes of how long Hermit's drama would last. 

With tears still streaming down his cheeks and his heart splitting with sorrow, Hermit's thoughts turned to the precious goblin eggs that lay vulnerable and forgotten in the now-ruined hatchery. With tears blurring his vision and anguish gripping his heart, Hermit pushed himself off the ground. Every fiber of his being screamed with agony as he remembered the fragile goblin eggs.

"The hatchery! The eggs need to be looked after! Need heat and poop! Eggs will freeze! Little hatchlings will freeze! I need to save them! I need to!"

Summoning every last ounce of strength within him, Hermit forced his trembling legs to run, his movements clumsy and awkward as he stumbled forward. With each faltering leap, he felt the sting of pain as his scraped knees and elbows protested against his desperate run.

The thought of the helpless goblin hatchlings trapped within their fragile shells spurred him onward, a beacon of hope within the darkness that engulfed him.

With a desperate cry, Hermit pushed himself forward, his eyes fixed on the looming entrance to the cave. Every inch of progress was a battle against the overwhelming despair threatening to break him, but he pressed on, driven by the hope to save whatever innocent lives remained, unknown to him that none remained.

With a single-minded focus, Hermit pressed on, his eyes fixed on the entrance to the cave where the goblin eggs lay waiting. As he finally reached the mouth of the cave, Hermit's breath came in ragged gasps, his chest heaving with exertion. Ignoring the stinging pain of his scraped knees and elbows, he crawled forward on all fours until he reached what was supposed to be the hatchery.

With a final surge of strength, Hermit reached the pile of debris that blocked the entrance to the hatchery. With trembling hands, he began to claw at the wood debris and rubble, his fingers bloody and raw from the effort. Inch by agonizing inch, he cleared a path until finally, the entrance lay open before him.