The rapid pitter-patter of raindrops grows into a gentle roar in the cloudy countryside. The rhythmic drumming producing different sounds from the leaves of the forest, to the soft ground of the road, to the tiled roofs of the village, to its hard cobbled streets. The raindrops turned the world fuzzy as they traveled to the ground, but closer to the village they glowed like fire as they caught and reflected torchlight. The roar of the rain is accompanied by the pounding of boots on the hard cobbles, until the sound of footsteps begin to echo and drown out the rain. “After it!” a voice called out “Don’t let it get away!” called another. “It’s heading for the alley! Quick if we can block em all we can trap it and flush it out!” said a third The village was in an uproar as its residents flooded the streets, and began blocking the entrances to each alley, one by one. The brandished torches, clubs, and other makeshift weapons, as they patrolled the area. “Keep your eye’s peeled everyone! Don’t let that kobold get the drop on you.” Hah-hah-hah-hah. . . Small, heavy panting could be heard coming from within a compost bin in one of the blocked alleys, as a reptilian eye peers out from a space in the wood. The eye belonged to a young kobold. Its scales were a mossy green, and small round horns protruded from the back of its head. The kobold moved against the back wall, and began to catch its breath. It closed its eyes and took slow deep breaths, listening out for the villagers. “Be sure to check every nook and bin, that kobold’s small, so it could be hiding in a tin can for all we know.” a voice called from somewhere in the street. “I’m not that small.” the kobold thought to itself with a pout. Its pouting face was quickly wiped away and replaced with an expression of fear as it heard heavy footsteps entering the alley. The kobold peeked out the gap again to see four shadows moving in the alley. The sudden crash of a trash can being knocked over caused to kobold to jump, but it managed to cover its mouth to muffle it’s scream. Footsteps filled the alley again, getting closer, before the sound of another bin being knocked over echoed out. The footsteps continued to approach, and with each step the kobold became more anxious. Its mind turned into a jumbled mess of delusional escapes and what horrors awaited it, when they found it. Soon the steps stopped right at the kobold’s bin, the shadowy silhouette of a hand reaching out and grabbing the lid cast through the gaps. The time had come,would the kobold fight, flee, or cower? “It’s getting away!” a voice called from the far side of the village. “Don’t let it out of the village, if it reaches the tree line we’ll never catch it!” Another yelled. The shadows scattered as the rapid pounding of feet on the cobbles got further and further away. The kobold peeked out from the bin again to confirm the coast was clear, before falling back with a sigh of relief. “That was too close.” it said to itself, “Since they think I’m small enough to fit in a tin can, they probably chased a rat out of town instead.” “Rat, kobold, I’m sure they’re the same to these people. Vermin sneaking into their homes to steal and spread disease, not to mention where one can be found hundreds of others can’t be far away.” The kobold’s heart sank like a stone at the sound of the voice. It shakily moved towards one of the gaps to peer out, when suddenly the lid of the bin was lifted off. The kobold didn’t even have the mind to scream as it swiped at the space above it with it’s talons, hoping to at least land one hit but, they instead moved harmlessly through the air. All that was above the kobold was the sky filled with dark clouds, and raindrops falling into the bin. “But that’s what’s going through their heads. I, personally, am more curious as to why a young kobold would not only wander into a village, but to also enter a Guild Art correspondence office. I’m sure even a fresh hatchling wouldn’t even do that. So the question is, why did you?” “M-my village, it was-” the kobold began in it’s high voice. “Perhaps something has happened and you’ve come seeking help. That’s the general reason someone goes to a correspondence office.” the voice interrupted, “Yes, I’m willing to bet that’s it, but surely even you know that there is no help for a kobold here. Even if you didn’t before, the villagers surely made it clear.” The kobold’s heart began to sink, as the words the voice spoke rang true. It could barely ask for help before it was chased. “Yes, if you’re seeking help, you’ll find none in this village; but that doesn’t mean you can’t find it elsewhere.” The voice continued, sparking a glimmer of hope in the kobold. “But I’m afraid to inform you, elsewhere isn’t close, though; it isn’t too far away either. If you’re desperate enough, I’m sure you could make the trip and be back in no time. “I- I am! Please my vil-” the kobold began, but was cut off when a small bundle fell on its head. “Head south-east to the river, there you will find a boat waiting. Cast off in it and it will take you to the sea, and from there the current should carry you to the island of Loras. On Loras there is a guild that exist to solve the problems no one else can or will. Find them and explain your problem, I’m sure they will help you.” The kobold sat and listened but, no more words came. “He-hello?” It said standing up and peeking out of the bin. The alley was empty, the owner of the voice was nowhere to be seen or heard, as the rain overtook the village with it’s soft roar. The kobold looked down at the bundle that lay at its feet. It reached down and undid the tie. The bundle consisted of a traveler's cloak, a loaf of bread wrapped in leaves, a small bottle filled with a fizzy liquid, and lastly a folded sheet of paper. “Hmm.” the kobold said figuring out how to put on the cloak, having never needed to wear anything before. It sniffed at the bread, which smelled fresh, then the liquid which smelled of ginger; the bubbles stinging it’s nostrils. Tucking the rations away, the kobold picked up the paper. On the outside there were two words written, two words that weren’t familiar to the kobold, but for some reason filled it with determination and hope. Neon Pixie. Neon Pixie Chronicles Episode 1: The Brave and the Kobold. An orange glow began to peak over the horizon, as the deafening crash of waves, and salty spray of the sea filled the air. A small wooden boat rocked about on top of the rippling waves, the clinking of an empty glass bottle rolling around inside barely coming out over the noise of the waves. “Ugh, st-tupid bottle.” the kobold’s weak voice said before the bottle flew over the edge of the boat. The kobold lay on it’s back on the boat's floor, looking greener than usual, the leaf that held it’s bread over its eyes. “W-we kobolds *hurk* were not made *burp* to be at sea.” it said dry heaving. The kobold had been feeling sick since the boat had reached the sea. Shortly after the nausea set in, it realized that the rations it was given helped with the sickness, but desperate for relief, it finished them within the first hour, and had been stuck trying fight it’s urge to vomit for the remaining five. The kobold tried to take slow deep breaths to try and calm it’s stomach, but by the third breath more then air was coming back up. HUUUURGGEHH Light began to spill over the sea as dawn broke, illuminating the kobold with its head hanging over the side of the boat. “Ugggh, how much longer?” the kobold whined, when something caught its eye. Before it, in the middle of the expansive sea was the silhouette of a massive landmass. As the light grew bright the mass became clear as the kobold saw the green of a forest canopy and the browns and whites of building dotted among them, and strewn off the shore. It had arrived. “Land! Sweet, solid, unmoving land!” the kobold proclaimed, it’s boat beach on the shore behind it. The kobold looked around the beach, which was littered with large stones. Some of them looked to be ordinary rock, but others looked like they were apart of something. Some looked like chunks of statues and sculptures the may have washed up, but others looked like parts of buildings that had been buried in the sands, and some just appeared to be decorative pillars and pieces. Turning its gaze inland the kobold found much of the same. Even from the beach it could see the forgotten overgrown remains of buildings and decorative structures, and several pillars still standing, some tall enough to stick up out of the canopy. The kobold reached into it’s cloak and pulled out the paper it had received earlier and unfolded it revealing a hand drawn map. “Loras, the Isle of Ruins and Silence.” it read the header of the map out loud, “Well this place has a lot of ruins, and it’s pretty quiet, so I guess I’m in the right place. That or there’s some other island of ruins and silence and I landed on the wrong one.” The kobold looked over the rest of the map, starting at the beach with a big circle with ‘You Are Here’ written next to it. “That’s convenient!” the kobold said. From the circle, a dotted line lead inland into the forest, and at the other end was a drawing of a building with ‘Neon Pixie Guild’ written above it. Aside from the two points there were little doodles of some of the ruins, and on the other side of the guild was a cluster of little houses with ‘Town. If you end up here, you’ve gone too far.’ written under its border. “Hmm, looks like whoever drew this, made sure I’d avoid town, but. . .” the kobold looked around at all the abandoned structures, “Is there anyone even here?” The kobold couldn’t help but pause. The world around it seemed so still, the wind didn’t blow, the leaves didn’t rustle, the sea went still. . . “No, there has to be. For everyone’s sake, there has to be.” Sound and motion returned to the world as the kobold set off into the forest. “I’ve got to be getting close now. . . right?” The kobold had been wandering the forest for what seemed like hours, it’s map proving to be useless. The island was like a maze, with nothing but trees and ruins as far as the eye could see. The map had no sense of scale, and all the ruin doodles proved to be just that, doodles. “I must’ve missed something. There has to be something I missed.” the kobold said as it frantically looked over it’s map again. It carefully looked over every inch, until at the very bottom in a corner it did find one thing it had missed. In the bottom right corner of a map was a line of six symbols. The first was odd, it was two halves of a face. The left half was that of a sleeping cat, but the other half, was that of something unearthly. For all the kobold could tell the right half was that of a demon; a skeletal face with sharp teeth, a flame for an eye, and a large horn sticking out from the forehead. The kobold shook its head to shake off the uneasy feeling this one gave, and looked to the next. The second was simpler, three crescents to the left and right of a fist. The kobold studied it for a moment, as the circles reminded it of water for some reason. The third were three odd circular shapes, the kobold could not identify. The fourth looked like a strange star with branches at each point and what looked like a dog's head in the center. The fifth was the profile of an odd looking fish, with sharp teeth and eyes the looked like slits. And the sixth looked like a skull with stitch markings along the edge. Just below the symbols the name Neon Pixie was written again. The kobold’s hands gripped the map tightly, as it’s body began to shake. “Rrraaaaagh!” the kobold screamed, as it tore the map to shreds. “What am I even doing here?! Everyone’s in trouble and I’m wandering around some abandoned island looking for some fairy guild that probably hasn’t existed in years, because some voice told me to!” It fumed in frustration, stumbling backwards until it hit a tree. “Who am I kidding? We kobolds are hated. No one would help us.” it said as it slowly slumped to the ground. “. . .Errrraagh!” it screamed again grabbing a stone and throwing it as hard as it could, before pulling its hood up, and burying it;s head in its arms. Clank “Who dares cast stones at me! Show yourself!” a boy yelled. The kobold’s head shot up, it’s eyes filled with tears. “Th-that. . .” it quickly wiped the tears from it’s eyes and rushed over towards the voice. Thunk “Ouch.” the kobold rubbed it’s head. In its haste, it ran right into something metallic in the bushes. It looked up to see what it had hit, and was surprised to see a bronze chest plate. The armor piece belonged to an aquatic reptile boy. His scales were the color of sand, with stripes of slate blue. there were fins like those of a shark on his arms, legs, and tail, and slit gills along his neck. He wore a helmet that matched his chestplate, but his lower half was covered by a loincloth, that seem very out of place with the rest of him. In his right hand he held what looked like a shovel with a leather cover over the spade. Just beyond him, the kobold saw a building that looked as if it were still in use and in good condition. A truly rare sight on this island. “What art thee?” he asked. “H-huh?” the kobold looked up not realizing it had been too busy looking around to actually acknowledge him. “What manner of creature be thee?” he asked slowly, a hint of impatience in his voice. “Oh! Uh, I’m a, umm, kobold.” it answered shrinking back as it found him quite intimidating. “A, kobold.” the boy confirmed. He put his shovel down and grabbed the bottom of his chestplate, pulling it forward a bit before reaching under it. From within his armor he withdrew a book titled ‘Minotaurs and Mazes 18th Edition Creature Codex’. “Kobold, kobold, kobold.” he muttered to himself as he flipped through the pages. “Umm.” the kobold began, thoroughly confused as to just about everything, when something on the boys armor caught its eye. On the right of the breastplate there was a symbol branded onto the metal. It resembled a shark, but where the eyes should be there were slits. The symbol seemed familiar to the kobold somehow, as if it had seen it before somewhere. “. . . Oh! The map!” it said to itself, in a quiet enough voice as to not draw the boys attention. It scrambled back over to the remains of the map and began looking through them. “Ah, here it is. Kobolds.” the boy said finding the page he was looking for. “Kobolds are aggressive, inward, yet industrious small humanoid creatures. They are noted for their skill at building traps, preparing ambushes, and mining. Kobolds hold a hatred for nearly all other humanoid races and enjoy killing and torturing them, in particular brownies, gnomes, pixies and sprites. The ultimate goal of the kobolds is the conquest of as much land as possible. They will plan and dig mines industriously, while laying cruel traps for interlopers, preferring an ambush to direct confrontation. Their society is influenced by their. . . lawful evil alignment.” “Umm, it was a corner right?” the kobold said to itself as it sorted through the scraps, until it found the piece it was looking for. Sure enough, the symbol on the boys armor matched one of the symbols from the map. “Oh I get it. Each member of the guild must have one of these on them somewhere.” the kobold said, “Wait! That means they’re real! I actually have a chance to save everyone!” The kobold was full of hope and excitement as it turned back to the boy, only to be greeted with the blade of a spear pointed at it. The boy had a hostile aura around him as he pointed what the kobold originally mistook for a shovel at it. “I knoweth not what hast brought thee here foul creature, but thee’ll soon regreteth crossing my path.” he said. “Wh-wat?” was all the kobold could manage to say. “I, Manni Ust, the proud squire of Sir Percival Rōnin and loyal Dragoon of the guild Neon Pixie shalt be thy opponent. Now, draweth thy weapon and prepareth to taste mine own lance.” The kobold had become paralyzed with fear. It’s body shivering from the overwhelming intimidating aura coming off the boy, his stance unflinching, his intent clear. Like in the alley before, it’s mind had become a jumbled mess, but unlike then, all the thoughts were the same. “RUN!” “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!” the kobold shrieked as it took off in the opposite direction of the boy, back into the forest. “Coward! Cometh backeth here and square me!” Manni shouted at the kobold before giving chase. Fueled by fear, the kobold’s little legs were a blur as it sprinted as fast as it could, leaving Manni barely trailing behind. “Curses! I can’t keepeth up with this cowardice kobold, but even so, it shalt not escapeth.” Manni stopped in his tracks, and firmly planted his feet on the ground shoulders length apart. He opened his mouth, revealing two rows of razor sharp teeth, and leaned forward forcing all the air from his lungs. Once empty, his gills opened, and he started inhaling hard and deep. A cloud of mist began to form around him as he sucked in the water from the very air around him. His chest expanded nearly doubling in size, causing his armor to groan. When his lungs reached capacity, he quickly clamped his mouth, gills, and nostrils shut, as he threw his head back. A deep gurgling emanated from him which quickly turned to the roar of rushing water. The sound grew louder and louder, until as if from within the source, a voice spoke out in an unknown tongue. vebren di wer qumado darastrix Manni lunged forward, his jaw snapping open as wide as it could as a powerful jet of water erupted from his throat. The water rocketed out at a blinding speed, quickly closing in on the fleeing kobold. “Huh?” the kobold said, hearing the rushing water approach. The kobold turned just in time as the water hit it’s cloak, immediately tearing through it, and continuing on unperturbed to strike a tree head on. The kobold spun out of control, tripping on a root and crashed into a bush. “Wh-wh-wh-w-w--wh-what w-w-was- tha-” it began as it shakily, looked toward the direction the water went. Before it could fully turn, it heard the violent cracking of wood, and out the corner of it’s eye, saw the top half of the tree come crashing down to the ground, its trunk splintered and cracked where it was hit. “Enough running.” it heard Manni say from behind it. He stopped, using his spear as a walking stick, water still dribbling from his mouth. The kobold was utterly dumbfounded by fear. It’s whole body shook, and tears streamed down it’s face. “Noooo!” it cried out as it’s body act on it’s own and began flinging whatever was at hand at Manni. Twigs, leaves, pebbles, they all bounced uselessly off Manni’s armor to land at his feet. “Pathetic.” Manni said as he slowly approached the terrified kobold. “It’s cleareth thou art no fighter. Surrender and cometh along peacefully and I swear no harmeth shalt-” “Stay away!” the kobold shrieked, fear deafening it to his words, as its hand found a rock and flung it at Manni with all it’s might. Crack “Aaaaargh!” Manni screamed in pain, his spear falling to the ground. The rock hit him square in the snout, the pain crippling enough to bring him to his knees. Seeing an opening the kobold didn’t hesitate to take advantage of it and run right past Manni. “Come back here you coward!” Manni screamed. “Owie, owie, owie.” he whined, cupping his snout. The kobold was in a blind sprint as it traveled through the forest, until it emerged from the bushes to see a wall. It could barely catch its breath when it heard a twig snap behind it. “Eeeek!” it shrieked, looking around frantically. It spotted a window that was cracked open and quickly made for it, clambering in and shutting it behind itself. Hah-hah-hah-hah The kobold found itself in a big empty room. The only thing to speak of in the room was a large half dome structure that was against the far wall, with a small tunnel at it’s base. Though odd, the room was a nice change compared to everything else the kobold experienced that day. As it’s racing heart began to slow down, it stood and walked further into the room, when it noticed steam appearing with it’s breath. “Huh?” the kobold said confused, until it began to feel a chill; a chill the grew stronger and stronger by the second. “I-it’s f-f-f-freezing in he-here.” the kobold said clutching the remainder of its cloak to it’s body for warmth. It’s body began to shake violently as it searched for any exit, but aside from the window which was no longer an option the only other way out was the tunnel into the dome. It quickly scurried over and crawled into the tunnel. On the other side was another room, but this one was much different than the previous. It was mostly round until it reached the far wall which was flat and had a door. The room was filled with many things from a small table set in the center, trunks against the wall, and shelves above them filled with toys, games, and a few books. There was a crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, a tv set into one of the walls, and on the opposite side off the room raised a bit of the ground was a circular piece with raised padded walls filled with pillows and blankets. All in all this room was completely different from the other which was wide open space while this one was more like a bedroom, granted the kobold had never seen a bedroom in it’s life, and it’s rapidly dropping body temperature didn’t exactly give it any leisure to ponder what the room was. “G-g-gg-gg-go-t t-t-tto g-g-et w-w-warm.” it said as it rushed over to the circular piece and crawled in. “Ah, that’s much better.” it said with a relieved sigh as the blankets blocked out the cold. Still weak, the kobold wiggled about in the pile getting comfy, looking for a warm spot among all the blanket to settle into and regain its heat. It found the warmest spot with two pillows, a red one and a fluffy white one. The kobold nuzzled up close to the pillows, resting its head one the white on, which was long and curved. “Mmm, so soft and warm.” the kobold said happily rubbing its face against the fluffy white pillow. Just as the kobold got comfy, the white pillow began to move about erratically, then it and the red pillow suddenly sank away into the pile. It was at this moment the kobold realized, that what it currently lay in was a bed, and those pillows were likely the owner. Without a word the kobold quickly crawled out of the bed and looked around spotting the other door. “Arf!” The kobold slowly turned it’s head back towards the bed. The pillows shifted as something moved around under them. “Arf! Arf arf! Hey! Where’d ya go?” a voice said in a happy playful tone. Out of the pile popped out a small husky puppy, no bigger than the kobold. It’s fur was the color of charcoal, with a lighter grey over its muzzle. It had red eyes the shone like jewels and a messy mohawk of snow white hair, and though almost a blur from wagging its tail was the same color. The pup wore an oversized bright red parka with fur lining the hood and cuffs that fit him like a robe. “Why’d you run off? Aren’t I warm and fluffy enough for ya?” he asked with a big friendly smile, that the kobold couldn’t help but get a hint of mischief from. “Heh, heh.” the kobold laughed nervously trying to smile in return, though it’s instincts screamed for it to run away as fast as possible. The pup stared it the kobold for a moment, tilting it’s head to the side. Soon a smile returned to his face, but unlike the first, this one was filled with mischief. “Uh-uh, g-good d-doggy?” the kobold said. “So let me see if I got this straight.” said a young skunk girl as she walked down the hall beside Manni. “You caught a cold, and it’s goin round the temple, and you want me to what?” She was a young girl, with black fur and white face marking normal of her species. She had long well groomed green hair that was kept in a braid, and wore a frilly puffy powder blue dress with a white front, and pink lace bow. Accompanying her down the hall were two living bat-like plush dolls. They looked to be hand sewn with ragged umbrella remains serving as their wings, and crystals spheres for their eyes. They hovered in the air just above them flanking the girl. Liketh I toldeth thee-” Manni began, his voice a bit nasally from his injury and the bandage over his snout. “Will you stop with that coo-yon fancy talk. You sound a fool enough talkin like that when yo nose aint busted up.” she snapped at him. The two stopped as Manni glared at her, the hand gripping his spear shaking slightly until he took a deep breath. “Like I told you, you foul swamp swimming witch, I found a kobold lurking in the forest outside the temple, it attacked me, and ran off towards here. The grounds are to big for me to search alone, so I need you and Cole to help me search around for it.” he explained. “First off!” the skunk girl began, holding one finger up in Manni’s face, “Who do you think you’re callin a foul swamp swimmin witch ya overgrown minnow. Secondly,” she said holding up two fingers, “Unless this kobold thing is runnin around with a pair of drawers on it’s head, you’ve got a snowballs chance in hell of getting that lech of a mutt to help. Thirdly,” she said holding up a third, “What in the bayou is a kobold?” “Eeeeeeeeeeek!” a high shrill shriek echoed through the halls, causing the two to jump. A nearby door flew open and the kobold rushed out, glancing at the pair before taking off in the opposite direction. Following right after something came rushing out of the room with the remains of the kobold’s cloak over it’s head blinding it, causing it to run right into the wall. “Ouch.” the pup said throwing the cloak off, before looking up and down the hall. “Oh, Hi Lacy. Hi Manni.” he said before turning the other way and taking off on all fours after the kobold, revealing he didn’t wear pants under his parka, just a pair of light blue briefs. “What on-” Lacy began. “Excellent! The Sorcerer Cole hast found the dastardly creature. Cometh along Lacy, we can’t alloweth it to escapeth again.” Manni said before running after Cole. “Hey!” Lacy called out, “Stupid shark.” she said with a pout before turning to her dolls, “What are ya waitin for, the belfry bells to ring? After that thing, Ding Bats.” “Great! First a shark, now a dog. What else is going to chase me today?” the kobold said as it fled down the hall, when out of the corner of it’s eye it noticed two shadows quickly approaching. It glanced over its shoulders and let out a shriek as the two bat dolls had caught up with it. The dolls tucked their wings and dove for the kobold who narrowly dodged them, letting them squeak on impact with the floor. “I wish I hadn’t asked!” the kobold screamed. Just ahead, down the hall was another open door. The kobold was far enough ahead that if it could make it to the door, it could barricaded itself inside. It turned into the room, but bumped into something that sent it falling onto its rear. Out of all the things the kobold had seen in the past twenty-four hours, what stood in the doorway before it took the blue ribbon for scary. Standing there was a tall dark horned figure covered in eerie glowing blue marks. Behind it were two blue flame tipped tendrils that waved about in the air behind it, and most horrifying of all, was the single, beady, fiery eye that stared at it, seemingly looking right into the kobold’s soul. It couldn’t run. It couldn’t scream. It couldn’t even shake in fear. It could barely breathe. Being in the presence of this nightmarish creature paralyzed the kobold. The creature let out a low growl as its mouth slowly opened revealing large sharp teeth, which was the last thing the kobold saw before it fell back fainting. “Ah-aaaaaaaaaaahhh.” the creature yawned as it stepped out into the light of the hall. Free from the shroud of shadows, it’s true appearance was seen. It was actually a cat with ash grey fur, and flame blue stripes. He looked to be in his early twenties, and had long messy fiery blue hair with silver streaks throughout. He wore an open black formal vest with orange trim and matching shorts and tabi shoes. He rubbed his right eye , before opening it to reveal a sleep filled blue eye. All in all he looked like a young rock star that just woke up after a night of partying, or he would if he didn’t have horns, a split fire tipped tail, and an unearthly black void holding a small orange flame for a left eye. “Arf! Arf!” “Huh?” he turned down the hall to see Cole, Manni, Lacy, and her dolls heading his way. “Huzzah! Yet another villain slain by the most wondrous Sir Percival!” Manni exclaimed. “What the hell are you talking about pup? And what’s with all the noise?” Percival asked, when he noticed his left eye was focused on something on the ground. “What?” He looked down to see the fainted kobold at his feet, twitching involuntarily. “Who the hell is this?” he asked he asked in a drowsy tone, before letting out another yawn.