A family mission.

A blue sky, not a cloud in sight. Laying in the grass, a young man, barely in his twenties, looks up. Relaxing, he watches the sky, as he lets his mind wonder. This was his routine, before any mission. Once all preparations were made, and the day came, he’d lay and look up at the sky till it was time to go.

With his family, and two others, he was part of a group of adventures. They may not be the best around, but in their small village, they were heavily respected. Thinking about the missions he’s been on, none of them were really too hard. They hadn’t come across anything stronger than a dire-wolf, since they lived in a mostly peaceful area.

His mind wanders to their next mission. It’s hard to wonder why they would need the whole party, since they were just going to be taking out a few goblins. Some of the stronger adventurers could take out the whole army of goblins, just by themselves.

No, there was a reason. He recalled back to yesterday, the day of the strategy meeting. When they were discussing who they should bring, the mention of taking a partial party was part of the discussion. That is, until the village elder mentioned she had a bad feeling about this mission.

It was at that moment ,his father decided to bring the whole party. Even though there’s only five, it should be more than enough to take down anything in this area. We may have only had to take on a dire-wolf, but there have been rumors of an ogre in the area. Normally, they’d be in groups, but out here they’d be so rare they’d probably travel alone.

“Hey Hector!” that was his fathers voice, yelling for me. “We’re getting ready to head out.” sitting upright, he looks down the hill he sits atop. Raising a hand, he waves to his father. Waving back, his father turns around and heads back to the village in the distance.

It’s time then. Time to head out. Standing up, his short brown hair begins to wave in the wind. Wearing a viking-like leather armor, he looks down at his village. With only around twenty buildings, it was much smaller than any city. It didn’t matter how big it was, it was home. That is why we do these missions. To protect our home, and take out threats before they become a problem.

Beginning his descent down the hill, he continues to think. This is why we’re doing this mission. To take out a small goblin horde before they become a bigger threat. It shouldn’t be too hard, but the elders' words are still ringing in my head. Whenever she has a bad feeling, everyone gets on edge.

She was never wrong about this. Last time she had a bad feeling, we were ambushed by bandits. Since we were prepared, we were able to hold them off. It not for her bad feelings, we might not have made it out.

Then there was the time she nearly broke down. She was so scared, we all decided to reject the mission. Oh boy, were we glad we did. The party that went accidentally woke an elder dragon. It followed them back to the city, and ended up burning down an entire district before it was chased off.

Walking for a few more minutes, he eventually reached the village. Standing just outside the gates was the rest of his party, all ready to go. His father, wearing heavier leather armor than he was, led the party. He was a good leader, and even though he frequently lost his temper, always made sure the party was prepared. He was a good leader, and just as good a father.

Becoming a teenager, it became apparent I wasn't going to be as big as others my age. I wanted to follow in my father's footsteps, but I couldn’t handle it. He taught me that strength wasn’t the only way to fight. He taught me that being smaller wasn't a bad thing. Giving me a short sword, I learned how to use my smaller figure, to my advantage. It made me faster than most, and allowed me to react faster than the others.

Next to him is mother. Her long flowing golden hair, and beautiful smile won over several men in the village. She settled down with my father though, because despite her beauty, she was just as headstrong as he was.

She was the most ruthless healer the village has ever seen. She wouldn’t hesitate to scream at you for getting hurt. This made most guys hate her, since they didn’t want to be lectured in the middle of battle. But, that was what made father a better warrior. Since he actually listened to her, he learned what not to do in a fight.

Standing next to them were the elf couple Tildor and Elaina. His green tunic wasn’t really armor, but since he was a mage, it was enchanted to help him. His hair was a medium length silvery white, a standard color for high elves. Being the mage of our group, he was decently strong. While other mages were stronger, he understood his party better. He wouldn’t cast spells that could hit his allies. He also had spells that would strengthen the party, not just attack spells.

On the other hand, Elaina had long brown hair, but during missions, like now, she always kept it up in braids. She was also a very dependable archer. She could hit anything she could see. Other archers may be able to hit multiple targets, but she focused on range, rather than multiple targets. This allowed her to slow down, or even take out enemies from such a long distance, that they couldn’t retaliate.

Walking up to this group, I smile. They were family to me, all of them. Not just my mother or father, but the elves too. They were the fighters of the group, while I was good at fighting, I was nowhere near their level. I would get lost in thought so easily, but sometimes it comes in handy.

“Hey!” Tildor shouts “Fiora and Hector were looking for you, why do you keep wandering off before a battle?” He always jokes like this. The smile on his face showed this. He would always joke that he’s the first, or the best. Not many people caught on to it, but I knew it was to push people to do better. Though, it backfires more than it works, but his intentions are good.

Elaina elbows him in the side. “Hey come on now, you know we just got ready.” turning to me, she continues “looks like you’re ready to go. You always seem to be the first to get ready, but the last to show up. Well, I guess it doesn’t matter, so long as you aren’t late for the mission. Don’t you agree Fiora?” she asks, turning to my mother.

She always wore the same cleric-like outfit on missions. Though, when we return home, she wears clothes more akin to what father wears. She doesn't like how the outfit looks, but her mother made it special for her. Enchanted it too, so it’s a prized possession, despite not liking how it looks. Her messy dark blond hair was cut short, so it only lay down to her shoulders. She likes it short, too many times did someone, or something think they could pull it to get her.

Scoffing, Fiora slightly laughs at her. “Of course I do! It shows me he’s ready to go, and thinking about the upcoming mission. Unlike some people who laze around till the last minute. She glares at father as she speaks. “Oh wait, this time you wouldn’t stop eating, huh He?”

Turning to her, father smiles warmly. “What can I say, everything you make is so damn good, I can't help myself.” at his comment, she blushed and looked away. Suddenly reaching forwards, he picks her up to give her a giant bear hug. “Oh come here my beautiful wife. You’ll always be my feisty love bear”

Blushing, she struggles to push away from him. “Hey, stop it!” she nearly shouts, as he squeezes her tighter. Getting annoyed, she shouts “that's enough!” as she slams her fist on top of his head. Dropping her, he holds his head in pain. “See, that's what you get. hmph.”

Lightly laughing it off, he turns to me. “So, ready son?” nodding, I turn towards the road we’re going to be taking. I think back to the fact the elder was worried. I, like the rest of my family, trust her judgement. Almost as if he could read my thoughts, father places his hand on my shoulders. “I know thinking is what you're best at, but don't over think. It may very well be the death of you one day.”

Looking down, I lightly nod. What is going to happen? Should we not have… no, father just told me not to over think. We’ll get through this, I know we will. Taking in a deep breath, I prepare for the mission. “Right, I'm ready.” I say out loud.

“Ha!” Father lets out a big belly filled laugh. Smacking my back with full force, the sound rings out loud enough for everyone to hear. “That’s ma boy! HAHAHA!” As I stumble to catch myself from the blow, father continues to laugh. “You and I may not fight the same, but I can definitely tell you’re my child.”

With a huff from Tildor calls out “yea, don’t really take from your mother much. She’s way more aggressive.” *smack* Elaina hits him upside the head, while giving him a displeased look. “What? That’s not a bad thing, having a healer tell us what’s wrong is actually more helpful than one who blindly heals. Am I wrong?” he asks, shrugging his shoulders.

Pouting at him, she mutters a “no…” growing in her assertiveness, she continues “but you shouldn’t be so rude about it. People might get the wrong idea about you. WE may know you’re joking, but not everyone will.”

With a sigh, mother interrupts “don’t worry about it. I’ve had to deal with far worse back when I was dating.” turning to the road, she looks on with determined eyes. “We have to get moving though, if we don’t hurry, those goblins might move before we get there.”

Everyone turned towards the road as well, as they followed her lead. We may joke around alot, and when a mission is over, we eat and drink plenty. That being said, when the mission starts, we take it seriously.

Leading our group, father begins marching forwards. Without a word, we all follow his stoic marching. When father gets serious, everyone else does too. He keeps us together, while mother keeps us in line. I’m the brains, Elaina’s our archer, and Tildor’s our mage. This is my family, my home, and my party. We might not be the strongest, but that doesn’t matter.

My thoughts keep wondering as we march. I’ve never been good with down time. I usually play games in my head, like counting the birds, or how many different colored flowers I can see. We’ve got a ways to go, but it should only take us about an hour of walking to get there. Along the way, we grab some herbs, and other materials for the town’s doctor.

Since we found a few resources, it did take us a bit longer to get to our destination. Though, after just under ninety minutes, we were there. A cave, big enough I would have to stand on fathers shoulders to reach the ceiling. Inside is supposed to be a horde of goblins. They aren’t that hard to take down, so long as you don’t get ambushed.

Glancing over his shoulder, father looks at me. He knows I've already started thinking of a way to get the goblins out. The question isn’t how, but what's the best way. If Tildor shoots a fireball in there, they might come running out while still on fire. On the other hand, Elaina can’t see in there. Father and I can’t see too well in the dark, and since we don’t have range, we shouldn’t go into the cave.

Fine, I guess the simple route is best this time. “Dad, take the lead. Mom, be ready just in case. Elaina, stay behind me. Lastly, Tildor, get ready with arc bolt.” Without a word, father moved forwards, as I approached closely behind him. Mother stayed back, with Elaina in front of her, while Tildor remained off to the sides.

After we all got into position, I crouched down to pick up a rock. Only way to lure them out without a potential major problem, is to simply get their attention. Standing back upright, I look into the cave one last time. “Alright, here we go.” I say out loud, before chucking the ruck into the cave.

“GAH!” a goblin shouts from inside the cave. From the sound, it seems I may have hit one. Lucky shot, but it won’t do much except anger them. I can feel a slight devilish smile forming, knowing they’ll run out. If I did anger them, that means they won’t be able to think straight. Then again, they’re goblins. They don’t think right normally.

Just as I had predicted, the goblins come charging out. Just by a quick count, I can see ten of them. With more bringing up the rear, there’s likely even more just inside the cave. Quickly readying myself, with sword drawn, I wait for them to get closer.

With my father in front of me, he holds a large two handed axe. It was his preferred weapon. No time to think about that now, the goblins are getting closer. Although, this isn’t the wave I'm worried about. “Arc bolt!” almost on cue, Tildor shouts out.

From his direction, a bolt of lightning launches from him, and hits the first goblin. As it shocks him, the lightning bolt jumps from him, to another goblin. Then to another, and another. It chains the first five goblins, killing each one quickly after it does. Completely ignoring their fallen comrades, the remaining goblins even trample over their corpses, charging for me and father.

Bringing his axe to his left side, he holds it lower the the base with both hands. Just as the goblins near, with all his might, he swings, cleaving through thee of the goblins with a single strike. Releasing his left hand, he watches as the two remaining goblins close in on him. My turn, I dash around father, and quickly stab the first of the goblins. Removing my blade, I spin around to cut the last of this group.

Jumping back, I let father get ahead of me once more. Looking over his shoulder, he produces a big toothy grin at me. With his free hand, he also gives me a thumbs up, while stating “good job son.” turning back around, he knows not to get too cocky. Even from behind him, I can tell his expression grows with concern and ferocity.

A single arrow flies past us, as it pierces one of the new goblins coming out of the cave. Somethings wrong though, unlike the first set, they’re moving slower. Then I see it, the first big obstacle. One of the goblins comes out, much larger than the others. It’s also wearing heavy knights armor. Where did it get that?

This isn’t good, it may just be a goblin, but armor like that could prove to be a problem. Turning around, I shout “Elaina, can you hit that armored one? If we don’t take it out quickly, it might become a problem.”

Drawing an arrow, she begins to aim it. “Leave it to me” she mutters, trying to get a good shot. As I turn back around, I realized it’s going to take her a bit to line up the shot. While she has amazing accuracy, it does take her a while to guarantee the shot. Lowering his hips, Father prepares for another set of goblins.

As they begin to almost march out of the cave, I realize The next wave is really different. They actually have armor. All of them, though most are just wearing simple leather armor. That could still be a problem, though, mostly for me. I watch as father brings his weapon to his left again. Gripping it extra tight, he moves forwards a little. With a giant swing, his axe cuts clean through one of the goblins, cutting even it’s leather armor.

As he finishes his swing, father watches on with an intense glare. All that’s left right now is the one in heavy armor, two in leather, and three without armor. It doesn’t make sense though. How did they get that armor? Even the low level hunters that would wear that armor could take down these goblins.

No, I think I've got it now. The goblins aren’t the only thing here. There’s something else in the cave. There has to be. It’s going to be risky, but we’ll have to. As I'm thinking, Elaina fires her arrow. It soars past us, headed directly for the heavily armored one. Just as I had hoped, the arrow goes right into the eye slot of the helmet, hitting the goblins head.

“Nice shot!” I yell out, but I don't wait for a reply. “Tildor, cast a fireball into the cave! Everyone else, get ready. There’s something else in that cave. I don’t know what, but it’s going to be a lot harder to take down than these goblins.”

I notice father tightening his grip. Mother behind us clenches her fist, as Elaina draws another arrow. As we wait for Tildor, the five remaining goblins all charge for father. Swinging his axe once more, he takes out three. The two armored ones stayed back, so they avoided the blow.

Dashing forwards, I'm able to hit one in the neck. “GAH!” it screeches, not dying right away. Swinging it’s blade as it falls, it desperately attempts to cut me. Thanks to my quick reactions, I'm able to easily evade though.

“Hector!” mother’s voice comes from behind. *shink* sharp pain comes from my left side. Looking over, I realize how cocky I got. The other goblin stopped attacking my father, and instead chose to hit me.

“RAH!” Father roars, slamming his axe into the goblin. Shaking, I grab the goblins blade, as father charges moves in front of me. Even though there’s no goblins right now, we all know more will be out.

“Fire ball!” Tildor shouts, as he launches it into the cave. I keep my eyes on it, as I hold my bleeding side. The pain, it’s intense, but mother’s already by my side. All i have to do… is focus… It's getting harder with the pain.

“GROA!” there! Whatever’s in the ave, it’s coming out now. The footsteps, I hear them. They’re getting loader. As my vision starts to blur, it finally comes out of the cave. I can’t see much, but judging by the size, and the sickly green skin, I can tell it’s an ogre.

It’s smaller than most, but still stands one and a half times fathers size. He’d have trouble with it by himself. Hell I don’t think we’d be able to beat it if we didn’t have all of us. Vision fading… I can't focus… much…

“There, healing light” mothers voice. I close my eyes, only for a second. Jolting them open, all the pain is gone. Mother’s healing spell. I know what else is coming… *smack* “didn’t I tell you to watch yourself! Geeze, it’s like you want to die out there. “

“Heh, thanks mom. Sorry…” the pain may be gone, but the humility of that always eats at me. I… didn’t even realize I fell over. I’m laying down, as mother sits on her knees, holding me up. “I’ll be fine now.” I fully stand up.

Father is attacking the ogre. A single arrow flies, hitting the ogres shoulder. That won’t be enough. None of us have the strength to take it down alone… but… “Elaina, get a metal arrow ready. I need you to hit it’s neck!”

Everybody knows to listen to me. I may be good one on one, but that’s not where I shine. “Father, move to it’s right side!” hitting the ogre one more time, he moves to his left. Just as I had hoped, the ogre turns to him. Father does a great job of making the bigger guys angry.

Before I can give the next command, Elaina’s arrow flies out. The arrow hits the ogre's neck, sticking out of it’s right side. “ROA!” it looks into the air, screeching in pain. Turning back this way, it glares past me, right to Elaina.

“Not on my watch!” father shouts, hacking at it’s leg. The blow knocks it down to it’s knee, barely keeping itself up with it’s other foot. Reeling back, father prepares another swing. It barely glances over its shoulder, before father drives his axe into its back.

Good, I have a few seconds. “Tildor, get ready to use another arc bolt.” as the area around him begins to glow, he begins charging up the spell. “Elaina, get another metal arrow ready, aim for its neck, but wait for my signal.” glaring at the ogre, I begin to think of the last step of my plan.

“Damn it!” father shouts, as the ogre reaches behind itself. Grabbing hold of father, I watch as it uses all of its strength to throw him. Flying directly at me, I dive to the ground. As father flies over my head, i hear a sudden *crash* as he hits the ground.

I don’t even need to say it, mothers already running over to him. She's the one that taught me to think ahead. Now, back to the ogre. All I can do right now is wait for her to heal father. No, I have to take it out now. It begins to stand back up, but when it takes a step, it limps, favoring it’s left leg.

That’s how I'll do it. I’ll have to be quick, but it should work. Charging forwards, I don't hesitate. I can't, if things go wrong at any point, this could get bad fast. As soon as I reach the ogre, I drive my blade into it’s right ankle.

“GROAA!” it screams in pain once more. Yea, good, now come at me. I dash to my right, causing it to angrly turn its head. Glaring at me, it stumbles forwards, having trouble walking. That’s it, just a little more. With one more step, it fully turns to me.

“Now Elaina! Tildor, hit her first arrow as soon as it hits the ogre.” *swish* the arrow flies through the air. I don’t even have to move. I smirk, knowing how this is going to play out. Let's just watch and see.

The arrow hits the ogre in the neck, causing it to arch its back. Reaching up, it holds the spot where the arrow hit. “Arc bolt!” tildor shouts, as a bolt of lightning shoots from his hand. In an instant, it connects with Elaina’s first arrow. The sudden shock causes the ogre to tighten every muscle in its body.

Unable to hold itself up anymore, the ogre falls forwards. *CRASH* The sound of the ogre hitting the ground echoes through the area, and into the cave. I wait, just in case. Keeping a close eye on it, I'm hesitant to move. Both Tildor, and Elaina keep ready, as they are also worried.

After almost a minute, I began to inch my way towards the ogre. As I get closer, the putrid smell of the ogre penetrates my nostrils. Nearly vomiting, I cover my mouth. The adrenaline in me must have stopped me from smelling it before. That, and I wasn't close to it for very long.

The closer I get, the more worried I become. Finally reaching the ogre, I can tell by looking, it’s not breathing. It’s dead. A heavy sigh of relief escapes my mouth, as I stand there. Turning to the others, I give a slight thumbs up.

They both sigh in relief as well, as I turn to my parents. Mother helps father walk, as they both move towards me. She must’ve run out of magic. That might be why she always yells at people. Then again, I did take severe damage. If not for her, I'd be dead now.

Father looks at me, and gives a big goofy grin. Accompanied by a thumbs up, I know he’ll be fine. This was a close battle. Things may have played out differently if any one of us weren’t here. This is why I trust my family. They are the ones that keep me safe.