When the colossal beetle was released, even Ragushat was humbled by the insect's tremendous size size. It adapted well to the training Targe gave it, and Corai seemed absolutely delighted that the elves had done half the work for them. A thief met his end at the tusks of Ragushat, and in celebration of their good fortune a celebration was held. Mona was seen however looking annoyed. “Hey Mona, what's wrong?” Ringo asked, hoping the miner wasn't upset over something. “Flying squirrel people clogging up our cages. Gonna go and deal with them.” She said, handing Ringo her work mattock. “Uhm.... Alright then.” Ringo mumbled. When Mona had set upon them, the fight was over before it began. Two had the life ripped from hem with the red metal pick Mona brought to bear, with the survivors being an initial capture and a second she chased into a roadside trap. After the deed was done, Mona informed the others and they intended fully to kill the survivors, if only to free up he cages. The militia ran solo drills often following this to keep their skills sharp, once they officially opened the barracks doors. Hammerhead and Muscov seemed to love watching mantis and Corai practice with their weapons. Mantis had even gone so far to begin showing her children the various weapons in the armory, and where some came from if she or Corai knew. Of a non-martial matter, Lev and Mattock were now competing to see who was the better chef, both beginning to bang out masterfully made dishes.
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“Hey Usi, watcha doing?” Wax said, sitting next to his fellow Battleminer in the gold mine. “Down there.” He said, pointing with his mattock. “Ugh, more sugar beetles?” Wax said in disgust. He was sick of the annoying little bugs. Why they began breeding them was anyone's guess, as they had so much food already it was ridiculous. “Didn't know they lived down here.” Usi said, taking a swig from his sterling silver flask. “Damned things live everywhere but the coldest places.” Wax said. “Come on, it's not healthy to be down here for too long. Besides, those fishfolk may decide to take a pot shot at you.” Usi sighed and said simply “Alright.” Before the two went topside. And found their clansdwarves dragging in cages with still more beetles in them. Spike beetles this time. They were also dragging in the remains of two that had been killed by an anti-snatcher trap. “More beetles. MORE FUCKING BEETLES.” Wax shouted indignantly. “I'M SICK OF BEETLES!” “Calm down Wax, it's just some overgrown vermin.” Wax sighed. “I'm just sick of looking at them.” He muttered depressingly. “Then you probably don't wanna look up.” Usi said, his head craned upwards. “Why- What the hell is that thing!?” Wax's jaw dropped as he saw a big ugly insect hoping from tree to tree before coming to rest out of sight on the hill. “A giant grasshopper apparently.” Wax lamented the sight of the beast, but then just shook his head and went with Usi back inside as a human caravan was sighted down the road where work on the golden road had begun. This was good, as rather amazingly, they had run out of things to cook besides plants, and who wants just plant based food? Although lev had managed to make a strange stew from raspberry wine and fish, so who could tell if it would really be bad or not? Not long after come the silver xelics, looking for trade as well. They would be seen to if they had anything left to trade after they were done with the humans.
There was suddenly shouting from the armory, and Wax came out dragging the remains of a slain Zephyr. “Little shits just don't know where the hell to quit.” He said in irritation. Trade went well overall with the humans, whom were glad to have their many manuscripts on military method and strategy, and those on engineering and the many ingots of metal, as well as piles of preserved meat and fish and many cheeses. The xelics had less, but still, fish, brewables, a small quantity of seeds and cheeses, and a beautiful blue spear made of glacium were purchased, though they did get upset over a shimmersteel piccolo that had chestnut bands on it that had been recovered from the high elves' wrecked wagon, it didn't prevent them from trading. They did opt to begin packing in however to leave. Also rather humerously, a number of goblins were found sliced to bits by a pond. A trap laid months ago finally saw its intended victims: Kidnappers. What had alerted anyone of their presence was a string of curses coming from the ancillary where a goblin had walked into a trap. Not long after, they heard shouting goblin and a loud splash: An ambush had blundered into the traps as well. Judging by the goblins' rapid exit, the dwarves though the enemy commander had died, but instead saw him claw his way from the muck.... And get brained by a maul that sprang out on a springy wooden arm in a windmilling fashion. He flopped onto some of the trap opening in the soil, warrenting being removed manually. However when Targe went to do this so the others could focus on other tasks, a second group attacked, and Targe, having locked the ancillary door as precaution, panicked and ran down oneside of the stockade, the closest goblin giving chase, and subsequently running into the only lethal trap by the door, a wrought iron hammer bursting from a slot in the door and smashing the goblin in the side of the head, sending him into the mud by the pond in noisy splop and clatter of armor, but otherwise unmoving. Zinc meanwhile had gone to rearm a trap but was spotted by one of the still ambulatory goblins, who gave chase. Zinc thought up a plan quickly, and decided to bypass the gate. As she ran by the gate, the beetle dubbed Nightwheel came rushing out when she called. The beetle slammed into the goblin's backside and sent him crashing face first into the solid adobe roadbed. The beetle then lashed out with it's foreleg to hold the goblin in place and crushed the goblin's right foot to lumpy mush and bony splinters, and, using this anchor-point, bit down and tore away the goblin's entire right leg, spray blood for a brief instant as the goblin let out a horrible cry, quickly being given a sort of “SHUT UP!” type message as, when the goblin began screaming, Nightwheel smashed his teeth down his own throat. The goblin, now delirious with pain didn't seem to notice when he lost his hand to the beetle's snapping mandibles. The goblin made a single cursory effort, swinging his shield hopelessly at the attacking beetle, and was rewarded with more of his arm being amputated before the beetle muscled it's head in his guard and bit down on his body and began shaking him about for a full minute, at the end of which the goblin spearman's body armor buckled and the serrated edges of the mandible ripped open and spilled out his guts. Finally, the world grew dark and the pain faded after the beetle spun around and tore away his last leg.
Back near the ancillary, Targe's screams for help were answered as ragushat came barreling around the stockade wall towards the wounded goblins. The first was dazed and sat up, holding his broken arm when he found himself staring at the (to the goblin) icy dead gaze of Ragushat, Elephant Matriarch of the Goldenrocks herd. He closed his eyes as the tusk was swung in, and he felt nothing more. The squad leader, had already begun to try and escape when Ragushat grabbed him by the leg with her trunk and flung him bodily over the sudden drop the Battleminers had made to control traffic. She quickly went down and around, and stomped the goblin's head into unrecognizable slop inside his own helmet. There was now one survivor left, and the blood spattered matriarch thankfully passed him over, heading uphill to look for the dwarf he'd himself lost sight of in the dense brush around the dwarven stockade. Suddenly a dwarf leapt by, grabbing his shield and spinning him around before bolting inside. Suddenly the goblin realized, as he steadied himself, that it meant the elephant knew where he was, and sure enough he was send violently to the ground when the head of an elephant smashed into him. He rolled aside as it smashed a large foot into the earth where he was and tries to counterstrike, but fails, and his spear is yanked from his grasp and tossed into the mud. Raguashat then swung an angry trunk down, but he managed to block, his shield denting inwards under the strain, much to the goblin's dismay. Suddenly he found himself seized and hoisted up by his lag, and promptly slammed into the ground with such foce that several ribs shattered and the bone fragments ripped into his lungs. Ragushat then tossed him at the wall, seeming to aim for the weapon trap in front of the ancillary door. He hit the ground and remained still, and the elephant, thinking him dead, left. [Ragushat basically said screw it while the goblin was mid-flight from a kick to the body.] When he stood up, a dwarf in craftsman's attire rushed at him and planted a punch squarely in his face. He then found his weapon arm grappled and broken, and he promptly passed out from the accumulated injurues.
Stone had done the limb snapping, and Wax, hearing him grunting and the sound of a rock being wanged against a helmet, investigated and upon findig the goblin being wailed on by Stone, shoved the craftsman off and put his work mattock in the goblin's head through the helm. The danger had passed, but Wax remained on guard, while the clan moved to clean up the wreckage of the fight and unjam the trap that had killed the macegoblin. The children also seemed perfectly happy to loot the bodies of the relatively unworn clothes, as were some of the dwarves, as the clothing were of articles they lacked, such as indoor robes and new cloaks. It was well into early autumn by the time the corpses, larger teeth and ripped off limbs. And to top off the start of the season, several sugar beetle nymphs were hatched.
[Well, this season's ambushes were beaten by brain over brute force more or less, all thanks to some random quirks in the AI and Ragushat leaving her pen to chase the goblin Nightwheel murderized. Trade was conducted, sold a bunch of shit, somehow managed to piss off and still trade with the tree fondling bug-men, and still probably won't get any damned migrants. BUT! The golden road is underconstruction, but we need to find another gold vein to finish it. Back to it! Oh, and Ragushat is now Ragushat Regenshal Arros, “Clapbasement the Gloved bud of Throwing.” Yes.]