Öd Ögöd is scared tonight. Come to think of it, he’s always been scared. That’s the normal way of life when you’re not an alpha hobgoblin. But tonight it’s different. There has been so much blood these days. They butchered the fast bastard humans like they did the slow ones with the bearskins. Who comes to a knife-fight with bearskins on, Ög wondered. There has been so much blood that no one noticed the Khan was dead until after the game. The great chaos began then. Everyone love the chaos, it’s the natural order of things. A khan dies, everyone fights to see who take its place, alliances are being made, backstabbing happens. Öd Ögöd is not particularly scared of it. The sneaky gits have been mumbling in their beards and between themselves, sharpening their knives and hissing at everyone. Ral Pustulus has been screaming in his shrill voice that he’s the new khan now. No one takes him seriously. He has weird ideas, playing the ball, “you can actually throw it you know, throw the ball” he’s been saying. No one listens. A runner can’t be khan anyway, they’re too weak. No, no, no, it wasn’t that. It started when the trackers came back with that gnoblar for dinner. He was saying strange things. Talking about a great horde of hobgoblins coming south, towards them, with a might khan leading them, uniting the clans and the teams. He’s heard of Marqash and the Vandals, that gnoblar said, he wants your team, he said. He was squeaking “the Messiah is coming for you” right until the two gits stabbed him in the eyes. Then they didn’t understand what he was saying anymore. His work had been done anyway. Everyone was thinking about that horde coming for them. Wondering who they’ll execute and who they’ll keep to play for them. Ral Pustulus has been screaming less. The others keep on fighting each others, but their hearts are not in it anymore. Öd Ögöd is scared, but there’s something else. Something that scares him too. Excitement.