《Ben Lassiter, Monster Researcher.》


 Tribe Grazels Guest

    Three years since Ben got the right from the Federation to study this tribe. All orders of goblin extermination had been suspended from the region and Tribe Grazel was listed as a research subject. Currently they sat across the river from him, the elders were fishing at one end while the younger goblins were cleaning.


    ¡°Ya Kazel!¡± The voice of the Elder Goblin cut through the crowd.


    All of the heads perked up to look at Ben, curious eyes that ranged from bright yellow to grey to deep brown. Those words are the same words that they yell when dealing with other tribes. The elder stands out from others of his tribe, he was on the shorter side with darker green skin and a set of small horns that resembled a goat.


    The tribe let out a series of hoots and grunts. The fishing quickly turned into spearfishing, the younger males tried to impress the researcher with their capabilities. Lithe bodies moved with cat-like grace to fill handmade pots with tonight''s dinner. The splashing and chaos was accompanied by the delightful laughter of the tribe.


    The elder walked across the river without a care in the world. His horns gave him greater mastery of the arcane, they shimmered ever so slightly when he used his abilities. Ben lost count of how many times he would splash members of his tribe with magic fonts of water. The older goblin couldn''t help but to show off by skipping a bit.


    The tribe calls this elder Zukel, outside of Ben''s scientific study he quickly became fond of the elder. Goblins near cities and towns tend to be war-like raiders but the tribes that exist deeper into the forests tend to be less aggressive with other humanoids. In three years there was not a single incident of Zukel harming his own tribe members.


    ¡°Ya Kazel!¡± He shouted with a laugh.


    ¡°Ya Kazel!¡± Ben returned the guttural greeting.


    He immediately squats and runs his finger through the dirt. He draws a picture of a fish at his feet, then takes a step back. Ben has seen this gesture many times. He squatted down and drew a picture of a sweet flower. A common medicinal herb of the region.


    Zukel''s smile widens and he nods. He whistles to one of his subordinates, a chubby goblin with a bandolier filled with various baits approached. This Goblin was known as Buppa, Buppa cooked, cleaned, and fished. The goblin was never one to hunt or fight.


    The pair yelled at each other across the river until Buppa tossed a large sack of fish across. Zukel caught it with a grunt, then opened the bag excitedly. Five large fish, they would last Ben a week if prepared correctly.


    ¡°Nam ba.¡± Ben agreed


    He made it a point to trade mostly medicine to the goblins. His study of this tribe includes the effect of mana on their bodies. Sweet flowers contain dense and pure mana, if his theories are correct this should cause a softening in personalities. Goblins are, in theory, the missing link between man and monster. The question was if the mutations that came with it would vastly change the goblin tribe for the better.


    Ben offered him a two pound satchel of sweet flowers. He takes the satchel and sniffs it. He dumps the entire satchel into his own bags. The smile on his face warmed Ben''s heart.


    ¡°Nam ba! Nam ba!¡± He cheered.


    He skipped across the river. The lack of clothing on most of the tribe allowed Ben a good look of their leaders back. The heavy scarring on his body told a story of a hard life. Once he made it across he began to share the flowers with a very old female.


    The average lifespan of a city goblin is around thirty years. Certainly this female with her saggy frame and toothy smile was at least fifty. She was the medical expert of the tribe, Mago was the name she was given. She looked at the flowers and scowled. Ben watched as she vented her frustrations on Zukel. He didn''t think that two pounds of sweet flowers was an unfair trade. Quickly the elder returned with two more fish and a bag of grapes.


    ¡°Ma ke taolp.¡± He squatted and drew a crude picture of the female.


    ¡°Nam ka!¡± Ben immediately used the words for bad trade.


    He chuckled and gave the researcher a playful punch in the thigh. Before he could return the gesture the entire tribe turned their attention to the north. The goblins moved like a single organism, they grabbed what they could carry and bolted.


    Ben''s hand darted to a concealment potion, he downed the small bottle. His scent, the fluctuations of his mana, and his visibility all vanished. The only thing he couldn''t hide was his foot prints. He stood against a tree and waited. His waiting was rewarded as a large reptile on thick legs began stalking through the fishing area.


    Deep green eyes and darker green scales. The creature was over six feet tall and territorial. A golden crest on its head shimmered as it fired raw bolts of magic into the already dead fish. While many of his colleagues would love for the chance to study a river wyvern, he despised the things. Wyvern''s are at best temperamental and at worst a researcher''s worst problem. Even as he studied it, the foul smelling beast was actively destroying days of Tribe Grazel¡¯s work.


    He slowly withdrew a bottle from his satchel and opened it. The pungent scent of dragon urine wafts through the air. The wyvern eyes become pinpricks as it begins to look around. The cocky aggressive nature was replaced by a cautious stride. Even a wyvern wasn''t stupid enough to make too much noise near a suspected dragon''s nest. It scooped up a few smaller fish in its maw and ran back the way it came.


    Every beat of Ben''s heart is telling him to kill the thing. He knew several spells that would leave the creature in chunks. His adventuring days have left him with a bloodlust for reptilian monsters. He bit back the words of power that were on the tip of his tongue.


    He quickly crossed the river using the same water walking trick as Zukel. The tribe would likely move camp and he would like to know where they go. It didn''t take Ben very long to follow the footprint of the heavier tribe members.


    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    Their camp was well hidden in a clearing. The bushes attached to their structures along with their deep green skin makes them almost invisible to someone who isn''t looking. This tribe tends to make housing structures that are easily collapsible and easy to build. If the common goblin is more of a fight response this tribe are experts at flight.


    ¡°Ya Kazel.¡± Ben heard the words just before a small hand slapped his rump.


    Even while concealed, the elder goblin noticed Ben. He was patting his butt and thighs to confirm the researcher¡¯s location, Ben studied him and realized that he was sniffing him curiously. The horns on his head glimmer in response. That unique mutation seems to allow him to pick up on the smallest flow of mana. Fascinating for such an untrained monster.


    The potion wore off with a slow bleeding away. The less magically sensitive goblins let out gasps of shock. A simple wave from the elder made them relax, the clever old goblin winked to placate his tribe.It was an oddly human gesture. He quickly pulled Ben''s arm and brought him over to one of the many rolled up tents that passed for housing.


    ¡°Galak lak!¡± He lifted his own tent and motioned Ben to follow.


    While there was nothing prohibiting him from helping the goblins, he kept aloof out of respect for the tribe''s culture. Zukel led the tribe through the thick brushes and sharp bramble. The hike was hours of following along the river until the tribe finally stopped in a clearing.


    Zukel let out a few commands in his guttural language before dragging Ben off to his own little corner. He took the tent from the humans hands and slowly began to set it up. Once he was done, he clapped his hands together.


    ¡°Is this for me?¡± Ben asked.


    He let out a grunt of confusion and scratched at his black hair. He shrugged and pushed the larger man inside. It seemed that the goblins at least thought he was worthy of being near their tribe. Ben Lassiter, monster researcher, was now a guest of Tribe Grazel.


    He did not look forward to the journey to collect his stuff back from my home camp. The excited thumping in his heart as he realized his research would grow exponentially! He could run tests of pure magic on these kind goblins! Would they turn out like the volcanic Durgoi, positively glowing with volcanic mana?


    Once the goblins were focused on their own tasks. Ben began to work on his tent, it was a sturdy tent for such a simplistic design. Deer hides, slime oil to keep out the elements, vines to make it collapsible. Ben added quartz beads, he infused them with mana. A trick so simple a dog could do it, it caused them to radiate pure mana. He hung them around the inside of his tent.


    ¡°Chee Kai?¡±


    Mago looked at the glowing orbs. She smiled showing her four good teeth. She shouted for more goblins to join her. Ben smiled as half of the adults were cramped in his tent. Mago stepped forward and let out a grunt, she scratched under her chin in thought.


    Her finger drew a picture of deerskin. She wanted to trade for the glowing stones of mana. Ben grinned, in a city a deer skin was worth a few dollars but glowstones were less than worthless. Rather than cheat the old goblin, he gave her eight stones.


    ¡°Ja Kade?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Nam ba.¡± Ben smiled.


    Mago blushed and motioned for him to lower his head. Ben lowered his head to the matronly goblin. She gripped him tightly and kissed him on the lips. The other goblins cheered and whooped like an excited tavern. The entire mood changed, the goblins moved closer in the tent. Every goblin that he gave beads decided that he was kissable.


    The last goblin that broke contact with his lips was Zukel. The old coot laughed and held up the quartz beads. His horns glowed and the pure mana flushed with blue light. He shook it, grumbled and gave it back to Ben.


    ¡°Water comes to you naturally. It makes sense with how-¡± Elderly goblin lips silenced him.


    Zukel pointed to the bead. ¡°Cak pet Kai?¡±


    Ben sent his mana through the bead and returned it to its white luster. A pleased burble came from Zukel, he grabbed it tenderly from the human hands. Ben watched as the male kept his own mana restrained when holding the beads. The fascination in his eyes warmed Ben¡¯s heart, the goblin let out another cry of delight before darting out of the tent.


    He looked at the orbs in his own home, they were slightly stronger than the ones he offered the goblins. He needed to write and writing he did, his journal was magical and would often fill with combat information similar to the ones kept by adventurers. Unlike those kept by adventurers he had a log that he could put his own notes and journal entries into. He ran his hand over the black dragon leather cover, each page was made with the discarded bark of a dryad.


    He opened his entry of Zukel, the book had designated him an ally due to the constant trade. The picture that it pulled from their interactions was the old male squatting just before relieving himself. The Lassiter family¡¯s youngest son grimaced at the idea of other researchers seeing this as part of his research.


    Zukel


    Goblin Elder (Water mutation)


    Level : 2


    HP: 10


    MP: 55


    (Other status unknown.)


    Ben groaned, the problem with such books is that most information is granted slowly with study. He would have to fight the goblin or study him fighting to get his combat statistics. However a simple push of his will caused the book to shift to other information.


    ¡®Zukel is leader of the Grazel Tribe. Zukel became leader when the previous leader died to an orc accidentally falling on him. Zukel¡¯s water manipulation makes him popular with the tribe. He is fond of other humanoids and makes an effort to stay in good relations with them.¡¯


    Ben nodded at the information, this was a generalized version of his own notes. The amount of content so far would net him a few dollars. He placed his journal in a small net hammock above what would soon be his bed.


    He placed a few alarm spells to warn him of intruders with weapons. In a fist fight he didn''t think the whole village could defeat him. He still didn''t want to risk a knife in the neck. He reached into pockets and pulled out a single red feather wrapped in the hair of a nightmare. He sent a sliver of mana through it.


    An ornate king-sized bed stuffed with goose down feathers and two pillows appeared in the tent. It shifted to cover the whole tent without damaging it, it was now circular and covered the entire tent. This item was one that most adventuring teams tended to buy before delving into dungeons, the camp set could be modified to taste but Ben''s was the most generic version with only a bed.


    The forest was muggy and he was tired from the hike. He would begin his research on pure mana effects on goblin biology in the morning. He undressed and looked over his aching legs and swollen feet. He climbed on the bed and let the healing properties wash over him. He closed his eyes and his weariness washed over him.


    Ben awoke feeling sticky and hot, he felt weight all over his body. He lifted a hand which peeled off of a sweaty goblin¡¯s head. He slowly opened his to find a large pile of goblins occupying his bed. None of his stuff seemed disturbed other than his clothing being used as pillows. The carefree nature of the goblins combined with the nudity reminded him of some of the sultans of the great deserts. This was not a harem but a research opportunity.


    He reached up and grabbed his research journal. He scooted to the side and began to write about the sleeping habits of the tribe. His attention was drawn to Mago, the elderly female had awakened when he moved she reached out to coil around his thigh again. Even with the forest heat she seemed content to stay warm against his skin.


    Zukel on the other hand slept on his back with his head on a female''s back. His feet were resting on Buppa''s belly. There was no status or order to their sleeping, they seemed to focus on whatever was most comfortable. Ben grinned, if he could put more pure sources of mana in his hut then he could speed up his research.


    First he would have to travel back to his original campsite. That was going to be unpleasant if anything tougher than a Wyvern approached. He swallowed down his hesitation.