Jarek: Goblin Pyros, Round 02

That thing is still alive? I cursed as my arrows struck the elbow of the lanky goblin. The creature took a couple of steps back and growled furiously at the quivers sticking out of its rubbery green arms. It quickly looked up, towards the window and caught a glimpse of my bow.

Damn it! I muttered as the goblin dashed across the room, jumping over a couple of crates. It threw a burning flask of oil towards my direction, hoping that the bottle would shatter and engulf me in flames.

I ducked behind the window and heard the glass shatter on the wall. The goblin howled in fury and I saw the burning flask miss the window by a few inches. Now the cabinets below were covered in oil and burning with a sickly orange light.

Suddenly the chanting goblin stopped banging her drum and growled in an angry, booming voice. I looked at her direction and saw the puss-faced creature draw out a large bone from her deer-skin cloak. It was covered to the tip with dangling feathers and tiny rocks. She pointed the stick at my direction and the feathers began to glow an eerie shade of gold and lavender.

I tried to turn my face away from the strange light, but the light became more dazzling. "Help!" I shouted as the light became painfully bright, searing my eyes like hot poking needles. "I can't see!"

The sudden lack of vision disoriented me. I almost slipped from the window, but my climbing rope kept me secured and grounded near the ledge. I still heard the lanky goblin laughing in delight, mocking my blindness.

I pulling out another arrow and readied my bow. I never did fire my weapon in the dark. Shalelu never taught me blind fighting. The only training I got from her was survival training in the woods at night -- where she blindfolded me, left me weaponless, and hunted by a hungry grizzly bear.

I placed the arrow on my bow and tried to focus on the sound of the laughing goblin. Shalelu's husky voice echoed in my ears, telling me to trust my sense of hearing. I remembered being back in the woods, blindfolded and running from the sounds of a growling bear.

Must keep calm, must forget the stinging pain in my eyes.

Memories of Shalelu's training came rushing back. I felt I was in the woods again, running in darkness, trying to elude the hungry bear. I ran and ran, hoping to get far away from the raging predator.

I took a deep breath and pointed the arrow towards the sounds of goblin laughter.

Suddenly I remembered running into something, my face colliding with a thick branch. My body tripping over the roots of a large gnarled tree.

I released the arrow and muttered a curse.

* * *

Jarek's arrow flies true. Guided by the hoarse laughter of the creature, the arrow finds its target.

The lanky goblin's laughter abruptly stops as the arrow pierces one of its lungs. It then crumples down on the floor, its body quickly being covered by the spreading oil and eventually catches on fire.

* * *

The ranger opens his eyes and is in disbelief as he is once again able to see and finds that his opponent is likewise down and out.