Scouts

Wrapped in makeshift, light armour, three groups of goblins stood to attention awaiting orders from the being sitting before them. Amethyst orbs hovered over the goblin's armaments, appreciating the craftsmanship of the armourers and the blacksmiths. In the short time they were given, the armourers had produced a sufficient number of armour with relatively decent defensive capabilities - they had been crafted from boar leather. But the Asura knew that the armourers had much to learn, her encounter with the Warforge knights had shown her what real armour looked like. 

It was quite likely that the armourers would have to pick up blacksmithing to develop themselves further which would allow the combat power of the followers of corruption to increase. Faye had no concerns about the development of the armourers, the goblins behind the creation of the daggers and swords, that the scouts had been armed with, were the reason for this. Not only had the father and son duo forged a huge number of weapons in a short time, each and every one of these weapons was of the highest quality that Faye had seen. The only weapon that could likely compete with these weapons was the sword wielded by the late Captain Edin; this alone showcased the skill and prowess the two possessed. 

With those two as mentors, the armourer's mastery would flourish but for that, they needed to acquire raw materials. This issue would be resolved after the conquest, with a larger population of followers, Faye would be able to enact her plans with more efficiency; this was one of the reasons the Asura had prioritised the conquest over stabilising their current situation. 

"Each of you will spread in different directions to cover as much ground as possible, when you discover a settlement, alert your squad members and then try to gather as much information without alarming the inhabitants,"

Faye looked around at the excited faces of scouts, making sure that they had all understood what she had just said before continuing.

"You'll return here and report everything Thrag, and I mean everything, do not miss a single detail in your reports. You have a maximum of three days for this task, do not disappoint me"

With that, the apostle gestured towards the scouts with her left hand, signalling for them to depart - which they did immediately. 

Three groups gathered around the village entrance with a goblin standing at the forefront of each group - two males and surprisingly one female.

On one side stood a lanky goblin with his face streaked with annoyance, the armour hanging loose on his body likely being the reason behind this annoyance. Unkempt, black hair reached down past his shoulders, draping over the two daggers sheathed in a brown belt tied around his chest. 

Opposite this fellow stood a goblin shorter than the rest, even before the enhancement this was the same - he was fated to be on the short side of the height spectrum. But one must not let his short stature fool them, his strength made up for where he lacked, before the arrival of the Apostle of Corruption, he ranked second in the tribe - just under the deceased chief. Every inch of his body was packed with muscles, a testament to his great physical power as well as his efforts to grow as strong as he possibly could. Unlike his lanky comrade, he sported a buzzcut, giving him the appearance of a battle-hardened commander which fit his demeanour quite well. Hanging to his sides were two hatchets, making him one of the few among the goblins not wielding a sword or a dagger.

Another, who wasn't displaying the typical choice of weapons of the goblins, was the female goblin standing between the other two. Tightly clasped in her left hand was a curved, wooden instrument with string spanning from each end of the item's curvature - a bow. In fact, a large majority of the group behind her were wielding bows except for a few close combat specialists; their job was to prevent enemies from closing the distance between the archers. 

With short, spiky hair and a stern look etched onto her visage, it was clear that the goblin, like the short goblin, took her role seriously. Her toned arms and callused hands further accentuated this image, life wasn't easy for the females among the goblins but this goblin showed the possibilities for those who strived for them. But this goblin wasn't just simply a unit leader, the respect in the eyes of the two goblins who stood beside her suggested otherwise. She was Sherna, the goblin chief's only partner. 

Why was this significant?

It's important to remember that goblins are creatures of lust, so it was normal for them to engage in intercourse with a huge number of partners across their lifetime with the chiefs of goblin tribes possessing significantly higher numbers than the ordinary goblins. The goblin chief of Sherna's tribe was different. He desired power. All creatures did. But his drive to attain this far outreached his inborn libido, allowing him to undergo evolution twice; a goblin evolving even once was a rare occurrence, and twice was something unheard of. And so, when it came to partners, rather than to take random women into his bed, the chief wanted only the strongest.

Sherna was the only one among the women the chief had met in his life who fit this requirement. Though there was another among the humans living on the outskirts of the Forest of Aeternitas, the Chief was unable to "acquire" her. Being acknowledged by the chief meant the respect of all the goblins in the tribe including those who sat in the upper ranks. Becoming the chief's woman also meant that she gained significant amounts of influence which allowed her to take command during raids where the chief was absent, influence which she still held.

"Wirak, you head towards the River Tribe and Kornac, see if you can find traces of those fire worshippers"

The sharp tone of her words demanded no objections, not that the two goblins had any intentions of objecting in the first place. The lanky goblin, Wirak, nodded his head before rushing into the treeline with his unit, leaving Kornac and Sherna with their respective groups. Scratching his head whilst, in thought, the muscular goblin's eyes held a trace of uncertainty as the contents of Sherna's order cycled through his mind. 

"Sherna, you aren't planning to look for...them, are you?"

The concern in the veteran warrior's question caused a smile to break through the female goblin's stern exterior. Turning away from Kornac, she began to walk towards the trees with her unit following closely behind, seemingly choosing to leave the warrior's question unanswered. Sighing, Kornac shook his head in self-mockery before turning towards the direction of his unit's objective, his mind now focused on the task at hand. Alas, this focus was broken by the words of the archer causing the warrior to raise his eyebrows in surprise.

"Kornac, don't think I haven't noticed you eyeing me down, we can have some fun if you return with good news. So don't worry about me and hope you find those fire worshippers"

Looking back, the veteran saw the object of his desire standing at the treeline with her hands on her hips, along with a seductive look in her eyes, which seemed to pull him. Kornac wanted nothing more than to ravish the beauty on the spot but the apostle's order took precedence; he would take his time with former chief's widow once he returned. Nodding at the archer's words with a large grin on his face, he watched as Sherna disappeared into the forest before rushing towards his own objective leaving his squad struggling to chase after him. 

Once a goblin, always a goblin.

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With great focus, the Devil of Corruption perused the new techniques he had gained from reaching the Idol influence level; they had been etched into his mind at the end of the Totem Creation Ritual. It was clear that the goblins had only truly begun to place their faith in the devil after seeing the results of the ritual. But it wasn't like the devil had expected as much, who would wholeheartedly profess faith for a being because they had been threatened with death. The benefits of doing such a thing would have to be shown first.

And after experiencing first-hand the benefits that came with the path of corruption, the goblins saw no reason not to follow the devil and his apostle. 

With a whole tribe falling into his clutches, the Lord of Corruption became an Idol of Genesis and he didn't plan on stopping here. And, one of the techniques he had received for his achievement would provide him great assistance in his endeavour.

Circulating his demonic essence in a specific pattern, the devil raised one of his hands as a ball of energy slowly formed in the centre of its palm.

'Creation Technique: Demon Soldier'