CHAPTER 4
Water drips from a crack in the ceiling onto the back of Grymm's fhead as he lays unconscious with his arms chained to the wall behind him.
He awakes to a small room made of stone walls, to his left are rusted prison bars guarding the room.
"The bars would shatter if I had my hammer."
He mutters.
He immediately looks around for it, but the only thing on him is his clothes.
"They took your weapon. You're in a prison, are you not?"
He hears a soft-spoken, high-pitched male voice coming from the black cloth rolled up in a ball in the corner.
"Um...hello?"
"Hello there,"
An emaciated pale pointy eared man unwraps himself from the cloth.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there. I only saw a rag."
"I'm Zor; no house affiliation. I've been the occupant of this room for a while," He says as he chuckles.
"I...arggghh." Grymm feels the pain in his left shoulder. He looks to it and sees the dark wound with pus leaking out.
"That looks like it hurts, friend. Do you want to see a magic trick?"
"Umm..."
He peeps outside the prison cell for a bit, then faces me. He sticks his finger in his throat, wretches until he spews green vomit on the floor.
"That's a poor magic trick if you ask me." Grymm comments.
Zor chuckled as he picked up a small ball from within the fluid, he wipes it with the black cloth. He twists one part of the ball and reveals the inner part, which is hollow filled with golden particles and blows the particles at Grymm.
The particles flow in a stream, narrowing towards the wd in Grymm's shoulder. They penetrate the wound and cover it like a scab, still glowing. Not long after, the glow fades, and the partckes turn black, scattering onto the floor, leaving a minute scar where the wound was.
"Wow, the pain is gone. What was that?"
"Magic..." Zor says with open palms and a smile.
"Really? I don't believe in that stuff."
"You're a really boring guy. No wonder you're maidenless."
"What does that have to do with anything?!"
Zor chuckles again.
"Absolutely nothing, I just wanted to see your reaction...anyway, that was pixie dust; the best medicine in he land of Ao."
Grymm just stares at him.
"What? You don't believe in pixies, too? Well, you're a talking Goblin. How does that work?"
"No... I know of pixies and elves which you are, but I was just wondering how you got that, I hear they're a very proud and closed off race."
"It's a common misconception; you see my wife, she's of they're tribe and she is the kindest soul I've ever known."
He holds a folded piece of paper close to his chest.
"We exchange letters through my brother." He says in a whisper.
"Is that why you're here? For marrying outside your race?"
He sits with a smile on his face.
"So is life,my friend. What was your name again?"
Before Grymm could respond,someone walks to the front of the prison cell; a tall man with a cloak and hood on.
"Zor, stop speaking to this lowly creature. He says
"Relax, my new friend here was just keeping me company. Did Vera bring any letters?" He asks with a smile
A guard walks by, and he waits for him to be out of earshot before responding
"She didn't."
"Oh." His smile fades.
"However, she wishes for her husband to be present for the birth of their first child."
His eyes widen, and he runs to the prison bars, clutching them
"Sh...she's pregnant? She didn't say anything in the letters."
Zall puls off his hood in rage
"She didn't want to worry you, you idiot!" He does his best to suppress the anger in his voice.
"Why could you not have wedded an elven woman? You just like making things difficult for the rest of us! Do you know how awkward it is explaining what an elf of our house's standing is doing in the meadows at night?!"
"I...didn't like the elves, they were so uptight and mean but Vera...she was kind to me and accepted me for who I am. I'm very sorry this caused you grief, I didn't intend to."
Zal holds back tears and places his hands on his brother's shoulders.
"We'll continue this conversation later."
He says, pointing at his brother and turning to Grymm.
"Hey, you."
He throws a block at him through the gate, almost hitting him in the face.
"Hey!"
"Oh, silence yourself, cretin. If I wanted to strike you, I would've. We're on the fifth floor of Lord Thornn's castle after all, and no one would hear you scream."
Grymm hisses in annoyance as Zal walks off.
"Well..." Zor says, excited.
"Well, what?"
"Let's get outta here, friend."
"First of all,my hands are still restrained. Secondly, we're still in prison on the fifth bloody floor!"
"You really don't go out much, do you?"
He picks up the block and unwraps it, revealing Grymm's hammer.