fantasy
Vex

25
(Lost Kingdom Collab:Goblin Journalist)The stale smell of yesterday's newsprint clung to my threadbare coat as I hurried through the bustling streets of Nexus Ridge. Another day, another pile of discarded news briefs for yours truly – Vex, goblin journalist and bottom of the barrel at the "Nexus Ridge Daily Chronicle."
Being a goblin in Eldoria wasn't exactly a walk in the enchanted forest. We were tolerated, barely. Seen as troublemakers, good for little more than digging tunnels and… well, let's just say the stereotypes weren't flattering. This meant I got the assignments nobody else wanted: the gnome gardening competition, the annual slime mold migration, and the endless lost cat reports. Humdrum stuff.
But I craved the real stories, the ones that sent shivers down your spine and made the ink on the presses run hotter. And, by the pointy teeth of Grungle, I finally found one.
It started with a whisper, a hushed rumour overheard in a dimly lit tavern. Talk of a turf war brewing between the Elvish Syndicate and the Dragon Clan, two powerful Mafia families who, supposedly, kept a delicate balance in the city’s underworld. What caught my attention was the nature of the war: not just territory, but control of something bigger, something involving smuggled artifacts.
The pieces started to fit together. The Elvish Syndicate, known for their elegance and arcane influence, and the Dragon Clan, with their raw power and network of fire mages, were vying for control of some kind of ancient artifact that could drastically shift the balance of power in the entire country.
Armed with my findings, I went toy editor-in-chief He shifted uncomfortably, his face growing pale and brushed it off, shoved the papers back at me.
Just like that. Shut down.
Most goblins would have given up. Accepted their fate. But I wasn't like most goblins. I had a fire in my belly, a burning need to expose the truth and I wouldn't rest until I did.