POV Rick

  [It is now 1500.]

  ‘I don't know if time is going fast or slow, but we’ve gotten a lot done today. I guess it doesn’t matter too much.

  ‘Can you bring up the statuses from the couple of unevolved Goblins we looked at earlier, please.’

  [Understood.]

  {Name - None}

  {Age - 1}

  {Race – Goblin}

  {Tier – Zero}

  {Strength – 5}

  {Agility – 4}

  {Dexterity – 4}

  {Intelligence – 2}

  {Endurance – 6}

  {Name - None}

  {Age - 4}

  {Race – Goblin}

  {Tier – Zero}

  {Strength – 4}

  {Agility – 6}

  {Dexterity – 5}

  {Intelligence – 3}

  {Endurance – 4}

  {Name - None}

  {Age - 3}

  {Race – Goblin}

  {Tier – Zero}

  {Strength – 5}

  {Agility – 3}

  {Dexterity – 4}

  {Intelligence – 2}

  {Endurance – 6}

  ‘It looks like the stats of Goblins don’t really change much till they evolve into High Goblins. All the numbers are roughly about the same.

  ‘I guess that’s why Goblin Tribes don’t last long in the world. We have really terrible low starting points.

  ‘I also used to think Jaba was the oldest Goblin in the Tribe apart from me, obviously, but that seems to be wrong.

  ‘There is a Goblin here the same age as him, and even one Goblin who is a whole year older than him.

  ‘I wonder why the older Goblins didn’t evolve before Jaba, and even now before Geedi, Dal, and Tars, who are all two years old.

  ‘Is that where each individual Goblin’s personality comes into play?

  ‘I should probably go check out all the different Goblin statuses in the Tribe to see if there are any older ones, but I think I’ll wait till they evolve into high Goblins.

  ‘That should be fairly interesting because if they’re older than Jaba, they might remember way more about life before the stone monster attack.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  ‘Though they were normal Goblins at the time, so that might just be wishful thinking.

  ‘I’ll just have to wait and see if they remember anything once they evolve. No use in thinking about it for now.

  ‘There’s even a Goblin who’s only one year old, so I’m assuming that one’s got to be the youngest Goblin in the Tribe.

  ‘I guess that means the Earth Golem attack that killed most of the Tribe was probably less than a year ago.

  ‘Not one of them has a name either. I guess you don’t need a name if all of them look exactly the same and can’t even communicate with each other.

  ‘Well, that’ll all change with me being here. Goblins are about to be stronger than ever.

  ‘Though I wonder when we’ll get some baby Goblins. Soon enough, all the current Goblins here will evolve into High Goblins, so we should have a pretty elite force, but we need a lot more than what we currently have.

  ‘I can’t expect them to just start popping out babies so soon after just hearing about the whole reproduction thing.

  ‘So going out to find other Goblin Tribes should be my number one focus for now.

  ‘Maybe I should change my plans slightly then.

  ‘Ideally, I’d want either me or Jaba to always be here in cases of any emergency, like the Earth Golems attacking or some other random variable like the wolf. But If I’m going to go looking for other Goblins, I can possibly be gone for a significantly long time.

  ‘This means Jaba will just be stuck here, unable to go out and fight stronger prey while I’m gone.

  ‘But how can I avoid that if I want to both accomplish goals and protect the Tribe at the same time?’

  ‘What do you think, Velora?’

  [There is the option of just waiting for more Goblins to become High Goblins or even waiting until one of the squad captains becomes a Hobgoblin.]

  ‘I guess I can just take it easy and wait it out. It’d make it a lot easier for me to go out and explore for longer periods of time.

  ‘Jaba and whoever the newly advanced Hobgoblin is could rotate between staying at home and going to hunt deeper in the forest.’

  [But you're not going to do that, are you?]

  ‘Of course not! Well, maybe. I don’t know yet. The Tribe needs to get bigger, and having more information about the surrounding areas can’t hurt either.

  ‘Who knows? Maybe while I sit still and wait for more evolutions, that old fox or the monster in the lake can choose to attack.

  The entire Tribe fighting wouldn’t be able to stop them so would it really matter if neither Jaba nor myself was here would it.’

  [Probably not. Regardless of whatever you decide to do, the Tribe is a lot stronger now, even without you and Jaba’s presence.

  [There are now three High Goblins instead of one and all of them along with the rest of the unevolved Goblins have actual battle experience.

  [That coupled with their constant training makes them a Tribe that might be far stronger than you might give them credit for.]

  ‘Wow, that was really inspiring, Velora. You should start writing poems or something.’

  [Only if you properly start training.]

  ‘I guess I set myself up for that one. You’re most definitely right. My Goblins are all a part of gang green so there’s no way they are weak.

  ‘I’ve made my decision. I’m going to leave at some point again to begin another journey. Though I won’t leave too soon as there is still much to do here, so let's start with the Earth Golem corpses.

  ‘They were really just a pile of big rocks. Nothing was even in the shape of a body since it all broke apart once they died.’

  [Move the rocks a bit, I believe they had a core of some sort.]

  ‘Ah yeah your right let me give that a try.’

  …

  ‘Oh, I think I found one. Look at it, it definitely looks like some type of ore, right? It just has to be! Velora, do you think you're able to scan this? I don't think you’ve tried to scan nonliving things before.’

  [I can try.

  [It seems I can.]

  {Object}

  {Type - Ore}

  ‘Wait is that it? Not much but I suppose I should be grateful you could even scan it all. This is good news. It also confirmed that it is in fact ore of some kind, meaning we can turn it into tools, right?’

  [Yes, that should be possible.]

  ‘Of course, that is easier said than done. I think I will hold off on this until we grow some more.

  ‘No need to rush and do everything all at once. The number one priority for now is to grow and get stronger. There will always be time for other things later.

  ‘Though with that being said, I think I’m actually gonna leave relatively soon instead of waiting a while… I’m not sure it's the best idea, but I think it will be beneficial. What do you think, Velora?’

  [There are pros and cons to everything you can do is make confident decisions and live with the consequences. Though regardless of the outcome, you should still learn something from it to help make better decisions in the future, as you’re now responsible for lives other than your own.]

  ‘That was deep. you Velora. I think you helped me with my decision. I once left for three weeks, and the Tribe grew stronger with the instructions I left them. I think they will continue to grow stronger at this rate, so leaving again so soon shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

  ‘I trust my fellow Goblins!

  ‘Though this time, I’ll have to leave maybe a few more detailed instructions for the Tribe because I might be gone for a long time.

  ‘Alright, Velora, what are some major things that can happen while I’m gone?’

  [Well, for one, a multitude of evolutions can take place depending on how long you're gone. More normal Goblins could become high Goblins, while the current high Goblins could become Hobgoblins, and even Jaba could evolve beyond a Tier Two Hobgoblin before you return.

  [The Goblins might reproduce which would lead to a bigger Tribe by the time you return.

  [The Goblins could get attacked by more Earth Golems or something stronger and all perish. A few of them might also die due to encountering strong beasts while on a normal hunt.

  [Maybe other stuff as well, but these are the few I believe have a relatively decent chance of happening.]

  ‘So basically, I have a lot to talk about when they come back from hunting.’

  [Basically.]