G'gak! the Cutty-Stab of Zot Elf-Ender
Chapter II of the Swords of Nashoba Saga
First, a note on the pronunciation. It's nearly impossible for humans to properly pronounce G’gak! The closest approximation is the sound of a cat hacking up a hairball. Zot named G’gak! thus because it's the sound goblins made when he stabbed them with it.
Also of note, the terms goblin's use to describe various weapons are, in most cases, simply descriptions of their particular mode of attack. So a sword is a cutty-stab because it can both cut and stab whereas a dagger is simply a stabby. An axe is a chop-chopz and a club is a bonk and so forth.
When you discover G’gak!, you will certainly notice that no goblin could craft a weapon of such exceptional quality. The sword was in fact forged by Elven Nassa-Sü’chet or star iron weavers who originally named it Duraal Fa’hai or Forge Bright, hence the blade’s bright red color. Now you may ask how did a lowly goblin like Zot end up with such a magnificent weapon?
Settle in folks and listen to Hrothgar’s yarn.
A young Nassa-Sü’chet apprentice named Fingolin was tasked with taking the newly forged Duraal Fa’hai to a leather crafter to have a scabbard fashioned for it.
Just days before Fingolin had completed one of his masterworks, a full suit of mail fashioned from star iron, and was keen to show it off. He set off for his day-long journey to the leather shop clad in his shimmering armor which would prove to be a true lifesaver.
Along the way, Fingolin made the fateful decision to stop at a roadside cider shack. The lad had coin to spare and the lass serving it was most fair so drank and drank until we passed out in a stupor upon the bar.
Since Fingolin was unconscious at this point, we must rely on the oral account of Zot himself. The following is translated from a stone rune tablet I found on Oak Hill. Much like Mark Twain with Huckleberry Finn, I have done my best to capture the rough goblin vernacular:
Gather round mez weelings ta ear grab da wordz trail of howz Iz won da cutty-stab G’gak! from da bestest Elf fight-winner wat ever waz!
So mez yobz Spink n’ Ponk done ge-flubbed da last zider brewin’ so wez had naught da git wez fiz-headed. Now da Elfs livin’ yonder da Nasho wet gotz lots zider so mez n’ five n’ four mez yobz goz foot-foot til wez eye grab diz lil Elf zider shak. Wez fer sun-gone a-wait n’ denz wez bash in da shak wit wez chop-chopz a-swingin’.
Now der ain’t but one Elf in der n’ hez close-eyed wit hiz nognog on da drinkin’ log but hez git up rite qwik! Hez mity tall n’ hez a-wearin’ shiny iron skin allz over. Denz da Elf zinks out diz cutty-stab dat like hot mehul a-glowed n’ hez cutz off da arm o’ Spink n’ da leg o’ Ponk n’ hez Three-Eyez Flink rite in hiz middlin eye ge-stab! Wez swingz back wit wez chop-chopz but theyz ain’t a-bitin’ cuz dat shiny iron. Wez waz a-losin’ da fight!
So I sez ta mez yobz ta yeet on da Elf n’ rassle himz down. So me n’ da yopz wot ain’t dead ge-yeet on da Elf n’ grab himz soz hez can’t ge-stab wez wit da red cutty-stab. Dat Elf wez mity strong but wez be seven n’ himz was onez so wez nowz a-winnin’. Iz grab da hand o’ Elf n’ Iz bite hiz thumb rite off n’ hez drop da cutty-stab. Iz grab it rite qwik and Iz stab da Elf in da eye just like hez ge-stab Three-Eyez Flink!
N’ datz howz Iz won da cutty-stab Iz call G’gak! from da bestest Elf fight-winner wat ever waz!
A quote from Huckleberry Finn best characterizes the veracity of Zot’s account. “He told the truth, mainly. There was things which he stretched, but mainly he told the truth.”
Zot’s tale is mainly true but he ends it with a whopper of a lie. He did not end the elf in the dramatic manner he claims. Rather when Fingolin dropped the sword, Zot grabbed it and dashed from the shack, abandoning his yobz. Fingolin managed to kill two more of the goblins with an iron fire poker before the rest fled. All but Zot were soon tracked down and slain by rangers of the Broadleaf Brotherhood.
Well there you have it folks! Chapter II of the Swords of Nashoba Saga! If you've already found Excachibur, you know what you're looking for.
________________________________
Please be nice to nature.
Also, please note the location and orientation of the cache container before you retrieve it and put it back just as you found it.
Thank you for your consideration.
For maps and more information Oak Hill conservation land: https://littletonconservationtrust.org/property/oak-hill/
Permission to hide geocaches on Littleton conservation land was granted by the Conservation Trust of Littleton, MA. https://littletonconservationtrust.org/
Special thanks to Littleton Conservation Trustee Dustin Neild.
A gift from Hrothgar, the self-styled sovereign of the Nashoba Valley!