Chapter 52 The Adventurers Beyond The Borders

With a primal scream that pierced the air, Kaka leaped into action, his movements wild and erratic. His limbs flailed about wildly, his hands slashing through the air with the force of a hurricane, while his body convulsed with an otherworldly agony.

 But it was not just Kaka's frantic movements that sent shivers down the man's spine. No, it was the grotesque sight of Kaka's horribly injured, wounded, and acid-burned body that added an extra layer of horror to the scene. Blood oozed from gaping wounds, mingling with the blackened scars of his tortured flesh, creating a ghoulish picture of agony and despair.

With each fierce gesture, Kaka sought to appear larger and more formidable, his shrill cries punctuating the air like the shrieks of a wounded beast. His attempts to intimidate the adventurer bordered on the absurd, his antics more reminiscent of a manic circus clown than a fearsome beast.

But despite his best efforts to appear fierce and menacing, Kaka's attempts fell short of their mark. His screams and squeals were more comical than threatening, and his wild gestures only served to make him look more desperate than dangerous.

The man hesitated briefly, his resolve waning in the face of Kaka's unhinged display. But as Kaka's unearthly screams continued, the man made a split-second decision, stepping back into the safety of the forest shadows.

But it was not fear that drove the giant man to retreat. No, it was the sight of a goblin breeding farm looming in the distance, its grim walls crawling with goblin guards. With a sinking feeling in his gut, the man realized that drawing attention to himself would only lead to trouble he did not need at the moment.

And so, with a final glance at Kaka's twisted form, the man quickly melted into the forest, disappearing into the shadows before the goblin guards could catch wind of his presence.

Kaka wasted no time in scooping me up into his arms, his miserable muscles trembling with the effort as he turned and fled toward the breeding farm. Every step he took seemed to sap what little strength remained in his broken body, his ragged breaths coming in shallow gasps as he staggered forward, his movements fueled by sheer desperation.

As he clutched me tightly in his trembling arms, I could feel the heat radiating from his feverish body, the strong stench of sweat and blood clinging to his torn skin. With each labored breath, he wheezed and gasped, his chest rising and falling in erratic spasms as if struggling to draw air into his lungs.

His steps faltered and stumbled, his once agile form now weighed down by the heavy burden of his injuries. Yet, despite the pain that wracked his body, he pressed on, driven by an unwavering resolve to protect me from the dangers that lurked in the darkness beyond the breeding farm's gates. With every ounce of strength he could muster, Kaka pressed forward, his feet dragging through the dirt as he propelled himself toward the safety of the farm walls.

As we approached the towering gates of the breeding farm, Kaka's heart pounded with fear and desperation. He knew that our lives depended on gaining entry to the safety of the farm's walls, but he also knew that the guards stationed there were unlikely to take pity on a wounded goblin and his tiny companion.

As we stood by the imposing gates, Kaka turned to me, his eyes wide with worry. 

"Stay close, little one. We must convince them to let us back in, or else we'll be left at the mercy of the forest beasts and those adventurers."

I nodded silently, my own heart racing with fear. I could see the guards ahead, their eyes scanning the horizon with a vigilance that sent shivers down my spine. They were the gatekeepers of our only refuge, but their stern expressions left little room for compassion.

Kaka's voice trembled with urgency as he begged the guards standing watch. 

"Please, oh mighty masters!" he implored, "we come back seeking entry within these walls. We were gathering the resources needed to mend our miserable tent and secure our shelter from the harsh elements and now we returned. Please, grant us this small mercy and grant us passage."

The guards, their faces hardened with suspicion, eyed us with distrust as they exchanged wary glances. With a creak and a groan, the gates swung open, revealing the same goblin guard who had granted us entry earlier. But instead of offering assistance or aid, the guard's twisted features contorted into a cruel grin as he took in the sight of Kaka's grotesque injuries. With a sinister smirk, he stepped forward, his voice dripping with cruel mockery.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Isn't this a shity slave and his shit hatchling! Looks like someone had a little run-in with the forest critters, eh? There's a bit less of you now. What! Did you feed your rotting ballsack to that shity hatchling of yours or did you munch it yourself?! Brrraaahahahah! What a disgusting slave!"

The other guards gathered around, their laughter ringing out like the clanging of metal on metal. They pointed and jeered, their voices rising in a chorus of mockery.

"Look at him, all bloody and melted! I bet he couldn't even outrun a snail now! And what's with that sorry excuse for a face? I've seen better-looking tree stumps! You all Kaka's disgusting but you top them all! Shit face! Brahahahahah!" one of them chortled.

"Tell me, you shity Kaka," the next guard sneered, "did you trip and fall into a patch of thorns? Or did you have a run-in with a particularly aggressive twig? Braagagagaga!"

Kaka fell to his knees before the guard, his voice hoarse with pain and exhaustion, his body shaking with the effort of holding himself upright. With tears streaming down his dirt-streaked face, he begged the guard to listen to his words, to heed the warning he carried in his broken body. 

"Please," Kaka rasped, "you must listen to me. There is danger beyond these walls, danger that threatens us all." Tears streamed down his dirt-streaked face, leaving streaks of clean skin in their wake.

He recounted the harrowing ordeal he had faced at the hands of adventurers just beyond the borders of the breeding farm, his words punctuated by the raw anguish etched into every line of his face.

"I beg of you, heed my warning. The adventurers beyond the borders of this breeding farm... they are not like any before. They are ruthless, merciless. They care not for our suffering, only for their gain. I have seen their cruelty firsthand, I have felt the sting of their weapons, the agony of their blows. We cannot afford to ignore this threat. We must prepare ourselves, and defend our home, our kin. If we do not, we will surely fall prey to their brutality, their insatiable thirst for blood."

The goblin guard's eyes narrowed with a mixture of anger and worry as Kaka's words rang in his ears, the mention of adventurers made him ponder. With a swift backhand across Kaka's wounded, dirt-streaked face, the guard silenced the desperate plea.

"Shut your mouth, you dirty, shity Kaka!" the guard growled, "enough with your ramblings, you piece of goblin shit!"

But even as he spoke, a shadow of fear crept into the guard's mind. He remembered the reports from earlier that morning, the whispers of suspicious shadows lurking on the outskirts of the goblin breeding farm. Could there be truth to Kaka's warning? Was there a real danger lurking just beyond their borders?

In a fit of frustration, the guard delivered a brutal kick to Kaka's butt, his voice laced with urgency as he urged the battered goblin to leave his sight.

"Get out of my sight, filthy Kaka! And heed my warning: if you are lying, there will be punishment, you worthless scum!" the guard barked, his eyes flashing with anger.

As the guard's boot connected with Kaka's butt, sending him sprawling into the dirt with a sickening thud, I couldn't help but feel a surge of despair wash over me. The sight of my caretaker, already broken and injured from the relentless cruelty of our oppressors, being subjected to yet another round of senseless violence filled me with a deep sense of hopelessness.

But the guard wasn't content with merely kicking Kaka while he was down. No, he had to further demonstrate his dominance by spitting on my fragile body, the glob of phlegm landing with a repulsive splat and sending me tumbling to the ground in a tangled mess of limbs and filth. I lay there, writhing in the stinking spittle, my already caked body now even further defiled by the guard's vile spit.

With a painful grunt, Kaka pushed himself off the ground and scooped me up in his arms, his own body trembling with exhaustion and pain. Together, we staggered back to Kaka's tent, where we were greeted by the sight of the other hatchlings, their faces twisted in a mixture of happiness, concern, and sorrow.

Kaka dropped his makeshift basket of medical herbs and gathered the tiny hatchlings into his embrace, holding them close, showering them with his love, the only tenderness and warmth we ever received in this torturous place. To each of the hatchlings, he gently stroked their tiny wrinkled heads and planted gentle kisses of warmth and care. But for Kaka, there was no comfort to be found in their tear-streaked faces, only a reflection of the pain and suffering that had become our daily reality. His heart tore apart looking at them suffering.