Goblin Diaries, Vol 21: Trapped!
From the May 16, 2025 Newsletter ...
It’s the afternoon of the second day of my
stand-off with the pack of hyenas. I’m hunkered down in this small cave where
they cannot get to me. But I have no food and only enough water to last a day
or two if I ration it sparingly.
I had hoped that I could wait them out
until they lost interest and left. But they show no signs of giving up the
prospect of feasting on my poor carcass. Their perseverance is both disturbing
and confusing since I’m sure they could find better game than me in the
surrounding grasslands.
It’s the big female alpha that is keeping
them here—I am certain of it. She didn’t like that I outsmarted her and
thwarted her hunt. When I look in her eyes, I see more than hunger. I see
hatred.
She’s cunning too. This morning, she
dragged the remains of my pack to the cave mouth—without the food, of course.
She left it just out of my reach, then disappeared. I suspected she was trying
to lure me from my hiding place, and I tested my theory by cautiously reaching
out for one of the straps. Sure enough, she pounced from her hiding place, and
I barely withdrew my arm in time to avoid her snapping jaws.
So here we sit, me waiting for her to lose
patience, and her waiting for me to make a desperate run for it. The air in the
cave is hot and dry, and I long to drain my waterskin to slake my thirst. But I
must resist. The sun is sinking low and the cool of the night should make it
easier.
I’ll try to sleep soon. I pray that when I
wake, these hellhounds will be gone and I, too, can be on my way in safety
through the mountain pass and north toward the East Road.
