Why a Goblin?

With Jaba fervently teaching the unevolved Goblins with vigor and discipline, they entered a strict schedule of training as a group in the morning, followed by hunting in rotations with Jaba.

It only took two days for that arduous regimen to produce quite the visible change in the tribe. A change that saw the number of unevolved Goblins reduced by one in number.

It was the morning of the third day when Jaba was waiting outside to begin training when a newly evolved female Goblin came out to greet him.

Her height didn’t change much, just slightly over three feet tall, the most evident changes came with the reduction of her potbelly, and the slight increase in her bosom, which was once flat and indistinguishable from male Goblins.

Her hair, which was also the only way Rick could tell the males apart from females, grew a lot more, having just as much as a two-year-old baby might. With this new evolution, it was quite clear now that she was indeed a female.

She also gained the ability to speak and also understand other Goblins, instead of only being able to communicate with Jaba, she could now communicate with the others.

“Ah! We finally got one of you to evolve! I guess Rick was right after all!”

“Jaba!...I...evol..ved?'' Said a rough but definite feminine voice. A voice clearly not used to speaking, as she didn’t really have a reason to speak too many times before.

“Yes, you evolved! Which means you grew stronger, good job. Now, do you have a name for yourself? And also, what are those things on your chest?”

“No...name...and...not..sure…”

“Hm I’m not sure either, I didn’t have those things when I evolved to your current level. Maybe Rick will know when he comes since he knows a lot of weird things. But you need a name..hmm...how does Geedi sound?”

“Good.”

“Alright, Geedi stand to the side for now, everyone else line up! Things are going to change now that we have another evolved Goblin! I will continue to take two to three Goblins at a time to hunt while Geedi herself will take one!”

“Going forward I need everyone to set Geedi as their goal! And if you don’t already have a name for yourself, I will give you one once you evolve! Now grab your spears and begin training!”

“Geedi come over here, now that you’ve evolved you need to learn how to properly use your new strength while learning more than just how to thrust, sidestep and slash. The easiest way to show that is to actually fight, now come!”

As soon Geedi heard the word come, she immediately ran towards Jaba, even stumbling along the way due to moving at a speed she wasn’t used to.

Having recovered from her stumble she quickly arrived at Jaba and began doing the few moves she was used to, thrusting, sidestepping, and overhead slashing. It was at this point Jaba began fighting back while yelling out pointers.

“Look at how my spear moves in the air! You can slash from multiple angles! Don’t be afraid to change the level of your body! Duck, jump, slide, sprint forwards, let the spear become an extension of your hands and feet! Quicker Geedi! Move move move move!!!”

Although Jaba was holding himself back, and the spear he was using was so short that essentially was just a pointy stick to him he was still far beyond the capabilities of Geedi. Also note, this was Jaba’s third spear as the two previous ones all broke when he accidentally swung it too hard. There was a slight smile on his face while he continued to train her as if showing how happy he was inside. Though Jaba himself didn’t realize it.

He kept it going until he noticed she was getting tired and finally stopped.

“That's enough for now, everyone take a short break!”

“How do you feel Geedi?”

“Ti..red...but..want..to..go..again.”

“Haha good! Cause we will! Everyone! After the break time is over, continue training, then afterward it will be time to hunt!”

And just like that Jaba and Geedi spent the morning sparring intensively while the remaining unevolved Goblins trained just as passionately. After their training session, which was followed by a brief rest, Jaba took three Goblins with him to hunt while Geedi was accompanied by just one.

This sort of arrangement continued for another three days before another evolved Goblin showed up, this time a male.

Looking almost exactly the same as when Jaba did before he evolved, he quickly made his way over to Jaba.

“Another one! Now did you already have a name prepared for yourself, or will I have to give you one?”

“..No...name..” Came a nervous reply from the Goblin.

“Why do you sound so scared? It’s a good thing to evolve! Be stronger and hold your head high!”

“Ye..s.. Ja..ba.!!”

“Hmm a little better I guess, anyway you need a name as well I see. Are you comfortable with Dal?”

“Y..es..”

‘I came up with another splendid name...good job Jaba’ He was a simple Goblin.

“Alright good, now for the rest of you, just like before with Geedi, one of you will accompany Dal to hunt! Before we start that though, begin morning training!”

“Now for you Geedi and Dal, instead of fighting me, you will both fight each other! I’ll be able to properly provide help and advice when necessary, so get some space between yourselves then quickly begin!”

A couple more days passed with the tribe continuing their ever so passionate training, it has only been three weeks for these Goblins, but this small Goblin tribe went through many changes that would set the tone for the weeks, months and even years to come. With a solid foundation, one can build and grow many times over.

Especially with a Goblin such as Jaba being the guiding figure in the lives of his fellow Goblins. He trained them with both an iron fist and a kind heart. In doing so he appeared to have found his love for teaching, something he still doesn’t quite understand himself, but he definitely will with time.

Though the reason for all these changes was slowly making his way home from his rather adventurous journey. Humming a tune from his previous life, a new and improved Rick was coming home.