Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

Stuffed guardian

The first thing she noticed was that there were more goblins, quite a few more. While she didn't know many of them, others were familiar. It didn't seem like they were prisoners, or that there was some kind of plot, so she decided not to act rashly.

She hadn't found Tili yet, but the Bat had arrived at the area where the children used to play, and there were many of them, more than usual. The fact that they seemed to be playing naturally reassured her.

She thought about sneaking in, but in the end she decided against it. There was no reason to hide, and she was curious about the reaction of these new goblins. Besides, she hadn't found any that could be a threat, not even close.

So, she came out of her hiding place and approached the cave entrance. The sentinels soon spotted her and pointed their spears at her.

"Who're you? What do you want?" demanded one of them.

"Who're you? What're you doing here?" Gjaki asked, without answering the previous questions.

The goblins didn't respond either. They were too surprised and terrified to perceive the power of the visitor.

"Don't... Don't get any closer!" one of them almost begged, scared.

"I haven't even used Bloodlust," she complained to herself after watching them tremble.

The vampiress stopped a few meters away and stared at them, not sure what to do. She could just walk in, though she might have some trouble if the traps had been changed. Besides, she didn't know if they would attack her. Not that she was worried, but she didn't want to hurt them if they were friends.

Suddenly, more goblins began to arrive, alerted by the alarm that had been fired.

"Gjaki!" exclaimed one of them.

"Hi, Tolo. What's going on here? Who're these?" the vampiress greeted the newcomer, to the surprise of those who didn't know her.

"They're friends. It's a tribes meeting. It's a long story. Have you gotten stronger!? In such a short time!?" he exclaimed, surprised when he realized it.

"It's a long story," she laughed.

Those who knew her looked at her in surprise. The others were between scared and confused. Tolo turned to them.

"She's Gjaki. We've already told you about her. I suppose that now you'll believe us," he explained to them, with some reproach in his voice.

They looked at her between disbelief and overwhelmed, while she simply walked past them and reached Tolo.

"Have you set new traps? Let's go, take me inside. How is Tili?"

"We've temporarily covered them. Tili's fine. Well... It's better if she tells you..." he replied, visibly uncomfortable.

Gjaki looked at him strangely, but she didn't insist. If her friend was okay, she would talk to her about whatever was happening.

She followed the goblin and entered the cave. Many goblins greeted her warmly, while others watched her from afar, puzzled or frightened. Many times the former made fun of the latter, on account of the taunts from days before. They had been ridiculed and called exaggerated, if not liars, when they had spoken about the vampiress. However, she was there now, more powerful than ever.

Gjaki simply walked over to where the children were. Tili would appear when the news of her return reached her, and she had missed their affection. Although she didn't want to admit it, she had felt a little lonely.

"""Aunt Gjaki!!""" many of the children recognized her.

Others looked at her curiously. Although it was the first time they had seen her, she seemed somewhat familiar to them. The reason for this was in some stuffed dolls with which many of them played. A couple of those stuffed dolls were promptly shown to the newcomer.

"Look! She's just like you!" one of them exclaimed.

"She protects us from the monsters! They don't dare come out from under the bed!" another explained.

The vampiress looked with wide eyes at those dolls, stunned. In fact, they were very simple. A large ball that acted as a body, four smaller ones that acted as hands and legs, and another that acted as a head.

The one that made the body was black, and the ones with the head, legs and hands were white. These last ones had sewn pieces of cloth as nails.

On its head, there were two small red spheres for eyes, and two long white fangs had been sewn into its mouth. In addition, a kind of grayish wool was the hair, which could be combed in different ways.

To say that it looked like her was far from the truth, although it did have some resemblance. However, with a child's imagination, it wasn't very difficult to establish the link.

She felt somewhere between surprised, overwhelmed and stunned. Nonetheless, but she didn't have much time to think about it. The children were pestering her, as she held up one of the dolls before her.

"I'm not that fat. Although it's adorable" she murmured to herself, somewhat embarrassed.

She couldn't help but smile at them. The children's laughter was contagious, and their affection more than evident. Her heart completely melted when a six-year-old goblin girl approached her with teary eyes, and grabbed her pants to get her attention.

"Can... Can you fix her?" she almost begged, while handing her another stuffed Gjaki.

One of its teeth had come loose, and was hanging out of its mouth. Gjaki returned the doll she had to its owner, picked the child up into her arms, and sat her on her lap. She stroked the child's orange hair as she accepted the battered doll from her.

"Of course I can, but I think this Gjaki is missing something. Step aside a little, leave me a little room," she asked the children.

Though reluctant, they complied, and left enough room for the vampiress to summon her portable tailoring platform, much to the admiration of those who hadn't seen it before. From her privileged position, the girl watched with curiosity and amazement as the tooth was repaired.

However, what captivated her most was the little Gjaki who braided the doll, the girl and the real Gjaki herself. All three were adorned with the same black bow.

"We're the same!" the girl said enthusiastically, while grabbing her own braid with her hands.

Gjaki soon realized her grave mistake. Dozens of eyes watched her with passion, expectation and anticipation. She sighed resignedly.

Therefore, she was forced to spend a long time braiding, even some smaller ones for the children with short hair, without distinction by sex or age.

Some parents, who didn't know her as they were new there, were at first alarmed at the presence of the vampiress among their children. However, they soon calmed down after seeing her patient and resigned attitude. They even ended up feeling sorry for her.

Unfortunately, the peace was broken soon after. A bitter discussion was taking place not far away, and a Bat had caught every detail.

"I have to go for a moment. I'll be back later," she assured the children, who, although disappointed, stopped clinging to her.

It wasn't until she stood up and turned her back on them that the forced smile she had worn for some seconds disappeared. In its place, there was an enraged expression that chilled the blood of those who caught a glimpse of it.