บท 22: The Ambush
It had barely been two days. The sun was only beginning to set over the horizons, creating thick shadows all around the forest, as the lingering sunlight fell on the forest floor through whatever opening in the dense covering.
"Word just came, Lance. The ogres are have begun making their move." Rynne reported as she met Lance in his quarters.
Zarra was the one who sent the signal. She stood farthest away from their camp, so she could signal the rest when the ogres decided it was time. Behind her, though still far away, between her and the camp, was Rikka. Once Zarra spotted the ogres, she lit some signal moss while standing closer to the tree tops, so the smoke would be less visible from below.
Once Rikka saw the signal, she knew what it meant. Since running all the way back would waste time, she too lit a signal moss to notify those back at the camp.
As soon as Lance got the word, he asked Rynne to gather everyone so they could move. The thing about the goblins was the fact that almost every one of them participated in the fights. Though not all were trained, most of them still knew how to handle a weapon.
The forest remained silent, unnervingly so, as the goblins waited in the cover of the dense undergrowth, and atop the surrounding trees. Every rustle of leaves, every crack of a branch, set their nerves on edge.
Lance crouched behind an overgrowth of leaves on a branch, conveniently placed behind the tree's trunk to provide extra coverage, his heart pounding as he scanned the trail ahead. He could feel the tension in the air, as the weight of the moment pressed down on him.
"This will work," he whispered to himself, though, the words felt hollow.
Their group came out to join Rikka at the area where she was, and Zarra fell back to join them.
Behind Lance, Zarra crouched low, her sharp eyes fixed on the path where the ogres would soon appear. "They're coming," she murmured, her voice barely audible.
Lance nodded, signaling to the others with a subtle wave of his hand. The goblins tensed, ready for action, silently hidden among the trees and foliage all around. Around 93% of the entire camp was out here, and their numbers were more than adequate, around 50.
The ogres arrived with gentle force, their heavy footfalls seeming to shake the ground as they trudged through the forest, though, it was mostly just imagination, as they too were experienced fightes who knew at least the basics when it came to weight management, or at least Lance had heard from Rynne.
At their head was the scarred leader, a massive spiked club resting on his shoulder. Behind him, a dozen others spread out in a loose formation, their gruff voices carrying through the air.
"This better be worth our time," one growled.
"I'm not in the mood for games."
"I asked the leader earlier, we can keep some things to play with… heeheehee."
"About time, it's been too long since I quenched myself. With a tribe filled with females alone, there's a lot to choose from, I say three for each one." Another spoke, a knowing grin on his face.
The goblins' expressions darkened as they listened, their eagerness even sharper. 'I hope there isn't such an ability like sensing bloodlust, because I can't imagine the goblins to be calm after hearing that.' Lance thought to himself.
He held his breath, observing the ogres as the ogres moved into the clearing. They were overconfident, their guard down as they assumed the goblins were too weak to pose a threat. Just exactly what Lance expected.
Once Lance dimmed the moment right, he gave the signal for a certain trap to be deployed.
The first trap was triggered with a sharp snap. A hidden tripwire released a cluster of weighted logs, which swung down from the trees and crashed into the rear ranks of the ogres where the three discussing were. The impact sent two of them sprawling, as it was unexpected. Their grunts of pain showed that the impact was no joke.
The third one managed to stop the log headed towards him, shielding it using his shoulder, but even that was not a good idea.
The ends of the all the logs had several medium sized spikes in them, and using Mira's knowledge of medicine and herbs, these spikes were all poisoned. Even though the poison was not the instantaneous type as Lance would have wished, as long as the ogres continued to fight and improve blood circulation in the bodies, they would feel the effects sooner or later.
A similar tactic was employed in the making of almost all the other traps, and even the goblins smeared similar poisons to their weapons.
Lance had asked Kaeli to make smaller thorns attached to knitted ropes, forming a
"What the—?!" one of the ogres bellowed, spinning around to face the chaos.
Before he could react, a second trap activated. The ground beneath him ogre collapsed, revealing a concealed pit lined with measured poles, fastened with sharp metal heads. Lance had also asked them to reduce the number of these spear-like spikes, to improve penetration. The unfortunate ogre's scream was cut short as he fell, impaled by the crude but deadly spikes.
"Waste of space." The ogre leader said as he watched four of his men easily falling for the enemy's trap.
The remaining ogres froze, as they scanned the forest with wide eyes.
"Impressive!" their leader shouted, a wicked smirk on his scarred face.
Rynne raised a hand, and that was the goblins' cue.
She led the charge, her spear gleaming as she burst from the shadows with a feral cry. The goblins followed close behind, their smaller frames darting between the trees as they descended on the ogres.
Three goblins had descended unto the ogre leader, but with a single swing of his club, he knocked all of them to the side, almost mangling their bodies even. If not for the fact that the three of them acted as meat shield for one another to cushion the strike, his strength would have easily ripped one in half.
Just as they had planned, once they touched ground, the goblins attacked, targeting the ogres' knees and ankles with precision. Though they were smaller and weaker in strength, their speed and coordination gave them the edge.
Rynne was a blur of motion, her spear striking with deadly accuracy as she fought in a feral posture, moving closer to the ground, even using her hands to run around sometimes.
She ducked under a wild swing from an ogre's blade, the size of her torso, driving the tip of her weapon into his thigh. The brute didn't even roar in pain, showing the resolve and composure of an experienced warrior. Rynne wasn't surprised, pulling her spear back with force, to make sure it didn't get stuck.
Completely ignoring the injury, the ogre came at Rynne again, attacking with an unnatural speed for its size and body mass. If not for the huge weapon it wielded, perhaps she wouldn't be able to defend herself, but this time, she was able to dodge and parry every strike.
Seeing an opening, she struck towards the enemy's other thigh from the side, successfully piercing through, then pulling her spear outward, she tore off the meat and muscle to free her spear.
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