Chapter 150: The Future Of Vaal’kor Begins Tonight

After several hours of drinking, dancing and celebrating, the festivities showed no signs of stopping. The bonfires still burned brightly throughout the colony, drums continued to echo through the tunnels, and the smell of roasted meat remained thick in the air.

However, Ka’z had gradually distanced himself from the celebration with his closest friends, leading them away from the crowded gathering until they reached the entrance of his secret cave.

He stood at the entrance with his arms folded, glancing over his shoulder at Ru’k, Kurg, Za’r and Kora as they wandered deeper into the chamber, examining everything he had carved into the walls during his absence.

Some of the markings were crude records of ideas, while others were notes about magic, cultivation and plans for the future. Za’r looked particularly fascinated by how much Ka’z had managed to accomplish in secret, while Ru’k kept pointing at random carvings and asking what they meant.

Ka’z eventually turned his attention toward Tu’ka, who was standing beside him and staring around the chamber with an expression of mild disbelief.

"I can’t believe you built a secret base and no one knew anything about it," Tu’ka said, running his fingers over one of the walls as though still trying to comprehend how Ka’z had managed to keep such a large place hidden from everyone.

Ka’z simply shrugged. "It’s called a secret base for a reason. I needed it for some privacy. You of all people should understand this better than anyone else."

Tu’ka nodded, though not particularly enthusiastically. He understood the need for privacy better than most. Whenever he wanted to be alone, he disappeared into the forest and spent hours away from everyone else, which was one of the reasons he had developed such an intimate familiarity with the surrounding wilderness.

What bothered him was that Ka’z had apparently discovered an entire hidden chamber and never told him about it. If he had known, there was no doubt in his mind that this would have become his preferred hiding spot whenever he wanted to escape the colony.

Ka’z glanced at him for a moment before a mischievous smile appeared on his face. "So how is your relationship with your girlfriend?"

Tu’ka’s expression immediately changed. He looked toward the others for a moment before scratching the side of his head thoughtfully.

"It’s really nice. It’s just that I have less free time."

Ka’z chuckled. "That’s women for you." He shrugged as though he had just stated the most obvious fact in the world.

Tu’ka gave him a sideways look but decided not to argue. The two of them eventually fell silent, they moved to the cave entrance as they stared out toward the vast expanse of the Evergreen Forest.

The moon hung high above the trees, bathing the distant canopy in pale light. From their position on the hill, they could see the forest stretching endlessly into the darkness, its enormous trees forming an ocean of leaves that seemed to disappear into the horizon.

For several moments, neither of them spoke.

"I’m sorry for what I said that night," Tu’ka finally said, breaking the silence. His voice was quieter than before. "I didn’t mean it."

Ka’z rolled his eyes and leaned against the cave wall. "If you are sorry, then help me build a kingdom that can keep all of us safe from humans."

Buzz!

Tu’ka’s head snapped toward him. "What?"

His voice was loud enough to attract the attention of Kurg and Ru’k, who were not far away. The two kobolds approached with confused expressions, clearly wondering what they had missed.

"A kingdom?" Kurg asked in disbelief. "A kingdom has hundreds of thousands of people. We are not even up to a hundred now."

Ru’k stared at Ka’z for several seconds before apparently deciding that physical violence was the best way to resolve his confusion.

He rushed forward and grabbed Ka’z by the collar. "Didn’t you say you wanted a village at first? Make up your mind, damnit!" he growled while shaking Ka’z violently.

Ka’z simply stared at him and allowed himself to be shaken. He knew Ru’k well enough to understand that the kobold was not genuinely angry. He was simply overwhelmed by how rapidly Ka’z’s ambitions had grown.

Bam!

A moment later, Ru’k was crouched in a corner of the cave, clutching the lump that had appeared on his head with both hands. Za’r stood nearby with an annoyed expression.

"You drunk fool, get your hands off my man!" she yelled.

Ru’k rubbed his head and glared at her. "I wasn’t trying to steal him!"

"You were grabbing his collar."

"That doesn’t mean I wanted to steal him!"

Nobody bothered responding. Ka’z sighed before turning his attention toward everyone gathered around him. The laughter slowly died down as they realized he was about to explain himself.

"Alright guys, everyone listen up. I will explain this in very simple terms so that everyone can understand where we are and where I want us to be. Is that alright?" he asked.

The others nodded attentively. Even Ru’k stopped rubbing his head long enough to listen.

Ka’z leaned against the entrance wall and glanced toward the moon for a moment. The cool night air brushed against his face, carrying the distant sounds of celebration from the colony behind them. When he looked back at his friends, his expression had become considerably more serious.

"I’ll start by asking two questions. The first is rather simple. What is the greatest threat to every living thing in the Evergreen Forest?"

"Humans!" everyone answered in unison.

Ka’z nodded.

"It’s those same humans that attacked thirty years ago, killing basically everyone in the colony to steal everything our colony had worked for," Kurg said, his voice filled with deep hatred. "That attack is what led to teacher Kong’gong blinding himself."

The cheerful atmosphere disappeared from the group as soon as the memory was brought up. Even Ru’k’s expression became serious.

Ka’z nodded at Kurg’s words before continuing. "And if they were to show up now, do you think we can survive against them?"

This time, nobody answered.

The silence was immediate and uncomfortable. Each kobold looked at the others, as though they were hoping someone would provide an answer that they already knew did not exist. They had spent their entire lives within the safety of the colony. They had hunted, cultivated, trained and lived beneath the protection of the Evergreen Forest without seriously considering what would happen if another human expedition arrived.

Ka’z could see the realization spreading across their faces.

"That is why I want to build a kingdom," he said. "A kingdom that will cover all of the Evergreen Forest, control all its resources and be filled with all the talented magical beasts and races in the forest. Only then can we resist human incursions and protect our people."

Buzz!

Everyone’s eyes widened. Their mouths opened several times, but no words immediately came out. The idea was simply too enormous. They had spent their entire lives thinking in terms of surviving another day, protecting their colony and gathering enough food to last through the next season. Ka’z was talking about uniting an entire forest under one banner.

"A kingdom with all the beast races in the Evergreen Forest?" Kurg muttered, his mind clearly struggling to process the scale of the idea.

"Of course," Ka’z replied. "The Kingdom of Lanthor is right next to the Evergreen Forest. The threat is too close for comfort. We need to build a kingdom that will serve as a safe haven for all beasts and attract them from all parts of Athedal. But to do that, first we must become a force capable of subjugating every race in the Evergreen Forest."

Ru’k grabbed his head with both hands. The dream Ka’z had placed before them was so much larger than anything they had ever imagined that he seemed physically incapable of containing it.

"That’s why I brought you all here," Ka’z continued.

Everyone looked back into the enormous chamber behind them.

"I plan to turn this place into our official training ground and fill it with the high level aether crystals we got from Ashmork village. I also have the Red Scripture, and with its knowledge I plan to build the most powerful army the Evergreen Forest has ever seen. That is why I brought back the Ashmork artisans, so they can build and teach our people how to build."

"Stop, this is too much for me to process!" Ru’k suddenly complained, practically rolling across the ground while clutching his head.

Everyone stared at him with unimpressed expressions before returning their attention to Ka’z.

Za’r sighed and rubbed her forehead. "He is right though. It’s a bit much to unload on us in one night."

The others slowly nodded. They were still trying to comprehend the fact that Ka’z had gone from wanting a village to wanting an entire kingdom, and now he was explaining how he intended to create an army capable of defending it.

"Yeah, you don’t need to tell us too much," Tu’ka said. "Since you already have a plan set out, just tell us what to do and we will do it."

Kurg nodded. "He’s right. We don’t need to understand everything immediately. If you have already thought this through, then we’ll learn as we go."

Ka’z stared at them for a moment before smiling. A strange weight seemed to lift from his chest. He had been carrying this vision alone for so long that finally being able to share it with the people he trusted made the impossible task feel slightly more manageable.

"This is a goal that might take us thirty or even fifty years to achieve," Ka’z said as he looked toward the forest. "But I’m confident that as long as I have you guys, we will succeed."

He stretched out his right hand toward them.

"For the future of Vaal’kor."

For a moment, nobody moved. Then Tu’ka stepped forward and placed his hand over Ka’z’s. Kurg followed, then Ru’k, who grumbled something about having no choice before placing his hand on top. Za’r and Kora joined them immediately afterward, and soon everyone stood together with their hands pressed against one another.

"For the future of Vaal’kor!" they chorused.

Their voices echoed through the secret chamber and out into the night.