-…so you
see, this green wunderkind of a bastard here, he goes: What's a little fuzzball
like you gonna do about it, eh?" And, and, I kid you not, the damn badger, who
might I remind you is a little over our tough guy's knee, just straight up
jumps and uppercuts him! But! But he doesn't punch him in the jaw. No... – with
a grin spreading from ear to ear , the gnoll turned towards the burly orc
sitting beside her -  …Bron…

The
laughter of the group died down, all sitting in anticipation of the orc's answer.

-Yes, Rik?
– he murmured with a controlled tone of voice.

-Where did
he punch you, Bron?

Bron turned
towards Rik, her malevolent smile revealing two rows of surprisingly white, straight teeth.

-In the
balls.

-HE GOT
PUNCHED IN THE BALLS BY A FUCKING BADGER!

Everybody
burst out laughing. Everybody except for Bron of course. He didn't exactly see
the comedic appeal of a high velocity impact to his groin region. He stirred
his pint of rum and sipped, waiting for his companion to finish up.

Through her
laughter, Rik turned towards a tiny, dark blue kobold, sitting across her:

-Hey!
Chety! Get your lizard ass off that log and pass me another one of those
bottles, will ya? My mouth's getting kinda dry from all this fabling.

The kobold
slipped from his seat and fell face first to the ground. He drunkenly stumbled
towards a crate.

-Punched in
the balls by a badger…-Chety snickered to himself over and over again, while
rummaging for a bottle from their crate of spoils.

Rik turned
towards Bron, noticing he wasn't taking part in the merriment. She threw her
arm over his neck and pulled him closer.

-Come on,
Bron! Don't be like that! You know we love ya, right? It's all just in good
fun.

Bron looked
up at the gnoll towering two feet over him and he gently pushed himself away
from her sweaty body.

-You know,
big guy…thanks Chety...you know, you need to get yourself one of these – she
violently slapped her crotch without wincing. – Made this codpiece myself. Pure,
genuine boar leather. Best I could get my hands on.

-Heh…and
here I thought, you wore that so you won't scare away any young boys who would
get too curious. – he took a large gulp from his pint and wiped his mouth. –
Oh, who am I kidding! Tell me truthfully, have you ever been mistaken for a
man?

Rik rubbed
her chin as if thinking.

-All the
time, I guess. Have you?

The camp
burst out laughing once again. Bron just grunted and drank the rest of his rum
in one large gulp. He reached over, violently yanking the bottle from the
kobold, who was trying to pour himself a pint and started drinking heavily.
Chety turned towards the minotaur sitting next to him with pleading eyes. After
a while, Terek sighed and gave him his pint.

-You know,
Bron, it just occurred to me… - RIk once again locked the orc in her embrace. –
Now that you ain't got no balls, you are practically a gnoll, aren't ya?

She
snickered over Bron's expressionless face.

-I've
always wanted a sister. Hey! Maybe tomorrow we can do each other's hair and we
can talk about boys!

And again
the group exploded in laughter. Bron tried to push himself away from Rik, but
this time her grip was tighter. He simply sighed.

-There's
nothing shameful about being punched in the groin…-he said almost inaudibly, his face
pressed against Rik's exposed pecks.

-No. There
isn't. But it's pretty funny! – Rik burst out laughing, letting Bron go.

-Don't tell
me, you've never been hit in a weak spot.

-Nope! –
Rik immediately began flexing, though her muscular physique wasn't very visible
by the campfire. – My bones are iron. My flesh is steel. I strike like a
wyvern. Even kings will kneel.

-Heh…I
didn't know you've read the poems of Brinshah – Tarek spoke up surprised. –
Hell! I didn't know you can read at all!

-What can I
say? – Rik answered laughing – I am full of surprises! Gives me the edge! I
ain't got a weak spot and maybe I can read!

-Really?
You ain't got a weak spot. – Bron crossed his arms. – Tell me…how's your gut?

Rik froze
during one of her flexes, her expression immediately changed as she turned to
the orc.

-What did
you just say? – she snarled through gritted teeth.

-Nothing. I
just figured that after the whole badger incident, your gut might still hurt…

The
campsite quieted down, only faint giggles remaining. Rik didn't pay them any
attention. Her entire focus was on Bron.

-You
wanna…make something out of this? – she let the question hang in the air, with
an obvious threat ingrained in it.

-Did she
get hit in the belly again? – Chety broke out in laughter. – Man, I love it
when that happens!

The group
once again started laughing, this time Rik being the only one left out of the
joke. She tensed up and shrank a bit in her seat.

-Alright,
alright! Let me tell you what happened AFTER I got punched in the balls. Rik. –
he turned towards the gnoll – you can add anything I miss out. Who says I'm not
a gentleman?