It didn’t start as a plan.
It started with a knock on Ma’s root cellar door and a wide-eyed baby goblin clutching a rusty dagger and a half-eaten biscuit.
Then another.
And another.
Folks from every ridge and holler had started bringing their young goblins to Ma’s cabin, whispering the same thing: “Ain’t got time, but I know you’ll raise ‘em right.” And they left, sometimes with tears, sometimes with thanks, but always with relief.
Everyone in the mountains knew: if a goblin needed care, you took them to Ma. She’d feed them, train them, and teach them how to live by the rules without losing their spark.
So they came. And they stayed.
But they were too small for war. Couldn’t hold a spear straight, didn’t know a jump spell from a poison drop, and one of them cried every time the battle horn sounded.
By the third week, Ma’s porch looked less like a home and more like a goblin orphanage. They were everywhere, under the bench, behind the rain barrel, piled like firewood near the root cellar steps.
Pa stepped outside one morning, coffee mug in hand, and promptly tripped over a snoring pile of green limbs.
He cursed, catching himself on the railing. “They can’t stay here. They don’t fight. And they take up space.”
Ma didn’t even look up from her herb stringing’. “You take up space, too.”
“Yeah, but I add stars.”
She smirked. “Not at first. Give ‘em time. They’ll grow. It’s just part of having littles around.”
Krypto was perched on the porch rail, watching it all with his arms crossed. He tilted his head. “What if we set up camp and trained ‘em?”
Pa gave him a look.
“I mean it,” Krypto said. “Not just babysitting. Structure. Routine. Teach ‘em orders, clean attacks, discipline. Start ’em young and by the time they grow into their gear, they’ll be ready to move here and will be loyal.”
Pa sipped his coffee, still eyeing the green snoring lumps. “I wouldn’t have the patience. They’d last two days with me.”
“They’re not gonna be with you. Not at first,” Ma said simply. “They’ll be mine. We’ll teach them. Krypto will run drills. We’ll get them ready. By the time they transfer over here, they’ll already know how to follow instructions.”
Pa grunted again, but his demeanor changed slightly. Thoughtful. “Maybe we can swap a few out sometimes. Use them in backup wars.”
Krypto perked up. “And I can keep records. Track stars, show growth. Treat it like a bootcamp. Like a holler hatchery.”
Pa rolled his eyes. “Fine. It’s a lot of work. But they’re yours. And we need fighters, not flower pickers. They can’t stay piled up here, I’m tired of tripping over them and the crying every time they hear a battle cry. They need their own space.”
“They’re gonna be warriors,” Ma said, voice steady. “They just need the right start.” Then she added, “we’ll build them a little Goblin nest.”
“They’re yours.” He repeated. “But… we do need more fighters.”
Then he paused a minute, looked out toward the ridge and added, “I can drop in for one of their wars sometime, I guess. Or we can send some of our bigger guys over to help them sometimes.”
That was as close to approval as Pa gave. Ma just smiled.
They built the Goblin Nest tucked deep into a mossy hollow behind the main war barn, cloaked by enchantments and guarded by a cranky badger named Smoke. It wasn’t big, but it was tight knit. Every goblin had chores, every attack was reviewed, and if a target got stolen, well….let’s just say there was a rulebook, and it was clear as shine.
The Nest became a forge for goblin youth. A place where they learned not just how to fight, but why. Why strategy mattered. Why loyalty wasn’t just a word, but a weight. Why instructions weren’t suggestions.
Ma taught with gentleness but firm lines and Ellie Mae often spent time in the nest helping out in Ma’s place. Krypto ran drills like a miniature Pa; stern but always watching for heart and exceptional effort.
Two brothers stood out early on. Eager, strong attackers, full of fire, but not exactly rule followers. One of them, quick with his spells and quicker with his temper, stole a war target during their second week. Ma reminded him gently but firmly that orders were always posted, and they were to be followed.
The next war? He did it again.
Krypto called a full Nest meeting that evening, stomping out into the circle with his arms crossed and a scowl carved into his face.
“This ain’t Goblin Solo,” he snapped. “We are a team. You don’t win wars by running off alone. You win them by trusting each other and following orders. That’s how we get better. It’s a team effort and max stars are a priority, not goblin ego.”
Later that night, he sat with Ma at the camp fire and shook his head. “Can you imagine if he did that in the main holler? Pa wouldn’t say a word. He’d just pull off his belt and point to the woodshed.”
Ma sighed. “This is why they’re not ready for Pa yet.”
The next morning, as she and Pa had their coffee on the cabin porch, Ma relayed the happenings in the Nest. When she got to the part about target stealing and ignoring orders, he interrupted.
“I wouldn’t tolerate that,” he said flat. “Same rules for all. Don’t matter who. I won’t put up with that shit over here. Better get that in their heads right now. You let them get away with it once, then everyone will be doing it and you’ll have lost all control.”
Ma lifted a brow. “Yes, yes. We all know how YOU are.”
“I mean it,” he added . “They don’t follow orders, then they don’t fight here. End of story.”
“I know,” she said, then glanced toward the Nest trail. “That’s why we’re getting the mistakes outta their system now. Krypto’s got the belt energy without the bruises.”
She paused, then chuckled softly. “Truth is, he tries real hard to be you. But he’s too nice.”
Pa huffed. “Soft.” But he looked kinda pleased.
“Nah,” Ma said, “just got a tender spot for the ones still figuring it out. Like someone else I know.” She nudged him playfully. “You like to act like you don’t care, but I’ve seen you gently guide the ones who are truly trying to get better, through their mistakes. I’ve seen it. You can’t fool me.”
Pa acted like he didn’t hear her and took a sip of his coffee.
“Also, Krypto has said multiple times that he just wants to make you proud,” Ma told him. “He looks up to you so much. He remembers how you guided him when he was young and he is trying to emulate that with the nestlings.”
Pa tried to hide his smile and said, “No belt for Krypto.” Which made Ma laugh.
But when the goblin brother went rogue a third time, Ma didn’t wait.
She kicked him out of the Nest.
The other brother came to her not long after, wringing his hands and stammering, “Please, Ma. Let him come back. I’ll make sure he follows rules. I promise.”
Ma studied him a long time, then finally nodded. “Alright. But this is the last time. He breaks rank again, and it’s both of y’all out.”
To his credit, the first brother did fall in line after that.
…for a while.
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