Hello my fellow fiction enthusiasts. GLG here, and I'm happy to announce that I've made my 1st ever fanfiction, and what better way to get started than with a passion project I've wanted to do for months? I've seen other people go down this little yellow brick road, and now here I am to give my own 2 cents on a subject that...well, the title and description should already tell you about. Now, I intend to stay as faithful to the series as I can be, but I have no intention of addressing things that do not involve my main OC, mostly because the series itself does a good job of telling what's going on with the main storyline, and I don't want to be redundant, especially when it comes to Goblin Slayer himself; the point of this is to make something out of Priestess' first 3 teammates because of how richly they deserve it, so...Goblin Slayer will not have as big a role until later on . Don't get me wrong, I WILL include the main cast; it's impossible not to, especially with GS himself, but there will not only be twists in the material, but also extra material to cover what might happen off-screen so to speak, and let the record show that the original series is NOT MY PROPERTY, nor do I intend to slander or claim it for myself. But since the 1st episode, which the 1st chapter will cover, has gotten alot of flak from the fanbase, and in my humble opinion, it deserved it, so I have no issue deviating from it, and I'm sure I speak for a good chunk of the fan base when I say "hey, why did you do this to me? I trusted you." Now, without further ado, let this grand adventure commence!

"This is it..." a young Priestess said as she looked over a Guilt tavern. She had been practicing the holy arts for as long as she can remember, and her chance to make a difference was within reach. But as she readied herself to go inside, the sound of a galloping horse got her attention, so she turned and saw one approaching from the right road, with a man riding it, and she knew as he slowed the horse, dismounted it, and tied the reigns to a post, he was there for the same reason she was. He had brown eyes, dark brown hair that went down a little past his shoulders, as well as a ranger's outfit, complete with armor and a green hooded cloak. He also had a crossbow, two short swords, and a belt of throwing knives attached to the saddle, alongside with his partially filled saddlebags. His weapons, and 6ft frame made him a daunting sight for her, handsome though he was, but she managed to drum up the nerve to speak to him.

"Um, hello sir ranger." Priestess said as he looked in her direction.

"Hello. Are you here to become an adventurer as well?" Ranger said

"I am, but...I'm more nervous than I thought I'd be." Priestess admitted.

"I see, maybe having someone at your side would calm your nerves." Ranger said sensing the truth in her voice and this, she visibly calmed down.

"I believe so, yes." Priestess said.

"Looks like I got here just in time." Ranger joked "You just got yourself a teammate."

"Thank you very much good sir." Priestess said with a small couldn't help but smile.

"You really are a polite one." Ranger said as he examined her more closely. "Then again, people of the faith tend to be that way." He then turned to his horse to pet it. "We won't be too long." The horse actually neighed in acknowledgement, and the two went inside the tavern and looked around to see the place was reasonably full of people, some were drinking, others talking, others apparently waiting for something to happen. To their right, was a desk with a young woman in a guild uniform ready to receive them.

"Ah! New adventurers! Welcome!." She said as she spotted the pair. Ranger could tell she was fond of meeting new people...as if she wasn't appealing enough.

"That is our goal my good ma'am." Ranger said as he and Priestess approached the desk. "Where shall we begin?"

"First off, can the two of you read and write?" she asked them.

"Quite well." Ranger said before looking at Priestess.

"Me too." She said.

"In that case, I'll need you to fill these forms out for me." Guild Girl said as he handed the pair some papers to fill out, which took the pair less than ten seconds, with Priestess going first "So, it says here that you're 15 years of age, and trained to be a Priestess?"

"That's right, and now that I'm an adult, I want to become an adventurer and help out as many people as I can!" She said with no small amount of conviction

"A noble endeavor if there ever was one." Ranger said with admiration then Guild Girl addressed him.

"As for you, it says you're 19 years of age and- whoa! You're an actual ranger?" Guild Girl asked and Ranger nodded. "You sir, do not mess around."

"Trained from childhood by my father in woodsmanship, ranger tactics, and especially weaponry." Ranger stated with a fairly humble and honest tone.

"An aspiring adventurer with formal training and equipment, this is...not common to say the least." Guild Girl said as she recovered from the surprise "Anyway, here you go." she puts two tags with strings on them on the counter "These will serve as your Guild identification." she continued as the 2 examine their respective tags "Now, there are ten ranks for adventurers, Platinum is the highest rank, following that is Gold, however the highest ranks you'll encounter out in the field are the Silvers. If you look at your tags, you'll see it indicates that you're a Porcelain, which is the lowest rank among our adventurers."

"That makes sense, considering that we're just beginning." Ranger said.

"Correct." Guild Girl said.

"May I ask what the other ranks are?" Ranger asked.

"There's Porcelain of course, then Obsidian, then Steel, then Sapphire, Emerald, and Ruby, then Bronze, then of course, Silver, Gold, and Platinum." Guild Girl answered.

"And I take it becoming Platinum ranked is nothing to take lightly?" Ranger asked.

"Oh, you could not be more right sir; only a handful of people in history have made Platinum rank." Guild Girl said with emphasis.

"How does one increase their rank?" Priestess piped up.

"By completely quests of course, but also by proving yourself as a valued member of the Guild, especially by helping your fellow members, which considering the attitudes you have shown so far, should be no big deal." Guild Girl explained "Any more questions?" They both shook their heads. "Alright then, that's it for your registration." She then motioned to the nearby board which Ranger immediately started looking over. "This board is where quests are posted, you're welcome to look through them for one that's suitable for your ranks. Another option would be joining a veteran adventurer's party-" she barely got done talking before a young man with a red headband, breastplate, a sword on his back, and a few bandages on his face showed up and leaned on the desk next to Priestess.

"Hey, we're going to go on a quest, you two want to come with?" The Warrior said, which made the pair turn their heads to face him. "She said you're a Priestess and a Ranger right? My adventuring party's missing a healer, but we've got an urgent quest to tackle, so we're looking to add someone with the right skills and training as soon as possible."

Priestess was listening intently the whole time, but when Warrior mentioned his party, Ranger turned more and saw two girls with him. The first was a Wizard if the hat, cloak, and magic staff she had were any indication. She also had short, dark red hair, glasses over her green eyes, and wore a dress that showed some of her cleavage. He had to admit she was cute, but the other one really took the cake. She had silky black hair tied into a ponytail, with eye color to match, and unlike Wizard who had a stern look in the face, hers had a liveliness that he could tell he'd need more than alittle fortitude to look away from, and even though she wore a baggy robe and pants, he could tell her figure was at least on par with Wizard's. She was quite possibly the most beautiful girl he's ever seen, and if Warrior hadn't directly addressed him, he probably would've looked at her for too long.

"And throwing a Ranger into the mix should make this even easier. So, will you come along with us?" Warrior asked.

"That depends. What sort of quest is it?" Ranger asked.

"Goblin slaying." Warrior said which made Guild Girl groan.

"You're going after goblins?" Priestess said.

"Sure are. They attacked a village, and as if stealing supplies and livestock weren't bad enough, they also kidnapped a few of the local girls too." Warrior said.

"What?! Why?" Ranger asked more than a little concerned.

"Who knows? But we need to rescue them as soon as we can." Warrior said while looking at Guild Girl.

"Um, you're all Porcelain ranked aren't you? This will be, quite the challenge. I'm sure that if you wait, there will be other adventurers looking to take on the quest." Guild Girl said with some concern in her voice.

"Oh please, the five of us can handle a bunch of filthy goblins no problem. Can't we?" Warrior said, barely letting Guild girl finish. The girl in the robe, Fighter nodded her head.

"Mmm-hmm. You in Priestess? Ranger?" Fighter asked...which made Ranger catch his breath; her voice was as pleasant as her face.

"Come on and make up your minds already." Wizard said impatiently.

"Wait." Ranger said before turning to Guild Girl "I couldn't help but notice that you cringed when goblins were mentioned, may I ask why?"

"Are you serious? Let's just-" Ranger cuts Wizard off.

"Let her answer." He snapped.

"Well...goblins are seen as weaklings, and pests...and well, they are, but...they know they're weak, which is why they don't fight fairly, and don't fight alone." Guild Girl said.

"Tell that to the goblins I kicked out of my village." Warrior boasted.

"How many were there?" Ranger asked.

"A couple. You should've been there, it was really heroic." Fighter teased before Warrior pouted at her. It was clear these two had history of some sort.

"Did you actually fight them?" Ranger asked urgently.

"Uh, no. Can't say I did." Warrior admitted...which made Ranger facepalm.

"Did any of you fight them?" The two girls shook their heads which made Ranger sigh in exasperation "I'm in. Priestess?" She had been taking the situation in the whole time, but her answer was immediate.

"Yes, if it's this important I'll do whatever I can to help." she said with conviction.

"Be careful you guys. Many adventurers who choose goblin slaying as a starter quest seriously underestimate them, and wind up as additional victims." Guild Girl said.

"Don't worry, I'll hold their hands." Ranger said as he made for the door.

"You'll hold our hands!? We may be new to this, but we're not babies! Also, who died and made you our leader?" Wizard snapped.

"Like you said, you're new to this." Ranger said as he mounted his horse "I however, was trained as a ranger since childhood, by my father nonetheless. Now, where to?"

"I've got the map." Warrior said holding it up as proof.

"Then you lead the way." Ranger said and they were off.

A few minutes later, the five-person team reached the edge of town and were heading down a long dirt road.

"According to this map, we head down this road, then head for a small clearing, and there should be a small cave entrance the goblins use for their home." Warrior said. He was leading the way, with Fighter and Wizard at his side, and Priestess behind them, and Ranger riding at her side. He would offer her a spot on the horse, but his weapons and supplies gave her no space, something he noted to rectify later on if possible, but for now, he decided to break the ice and get to know his new teammates.

"Priestess? What skills do you have?" Ranger asked.

"I can perform the miracles of healing and holy light, but only three times." she said.

"Hopefully we won't need any of them, but it's still good to have them available. How about you?" Ranger asked Wizard.

"I can use fire spells at least four or five times." she stated simply.

"Damn, suddenly I'm glad I'm not a goblin." Ranger said knowing how painful burns are. "Now, I myself have this crossbow, which I'm able to load and shoot in just over a second, these short swords which are of course great for getting close, and these knives? Well, it's said a good knife has 1001 uses, and I have about a dozen on me, some of which I use for throwing. Sometimes I use poisons, but I don't have any on me."

"How many weapons does one person need?" Wizard asked in astonishment.

"Rangers are trained to use just about any weapon they can get ahold off; I simply took my favorites, and the ones that require the least training, so if a possible teammate needs it, they won't need too much training, like my crossbow. When I first used it as a child, I never even held one, let alone shot one, and I hit all but one target that I didn't even aim at thanks to overconfidence, and if a child can use a crossbow, with no prior training, imagine what someone with training, or at least a clue could do. What do you have?" Ranger asked Warrior.

"I've got this" He said as he stopped and pulled his longsword. "And I know how to use it!" He prepared a practice swing...then Fighter stopped him cold

"Don't even think about it." She said as if she was scolding a younger sibling "As for me? I don't have any weapons; I am one."

"Wait...You have no weapons at all?" " Ranger said as he stopped his horse. Fighter simply shrugged at this.

"Don't need any. Like I said, I am one." Fighter said while raising her fists for emphasis.

"Lady, your bare hands will only get you so far." Ranger said dryly, and Fighter scoffed at him.

"Says the man who's practically a walking armory!" She said with exasperation.

"I have these weapons, on top of unarmed combat skills, and if you don't believe me, I'll give you a demonstration when this quest is done." Ranger said seriously, and Fighter smirked at this.

"Challenge accepted." she said with enthusiasm.

"Oh gods above! Can you two save the flirting for when the quest is done as well?" Wizard asked.

"Flirting?" Fighter said flustered while Ranger just sat on his horse in disbelief.

"Uh, yeah? What you say, how you said it, and why speak for themselves quite well." Wizard said like it was obvious. Warrior meanwhile was snickering a bit.

"Oh this is just-" he then noticed Fighter raising her fist threatening to punch him and shut up right away, then kept going with the others following.

A few minutes after their...interesting conversation, the band of adventurers made it to that small clearing and sure enough, there was a small cave entrance. But before they went to investigate, Ranger took his horse to the side and inspected the plants there.

"What are you doing?" Priestess asked.

"Making sure there are no poisonous plants here so my horse doesn't eat any of them." He answered before petting his horse then continuing his inspection "Alright, it looks alright, eat up horse." He then motioned for the horse to do it's thing before taking some supplies off the saddle, starting with a small bag which he handed to his party. "Someone hold this please." Warrior then took it as Ranger grabbed his crossbow and slung it over his shoulder after removing his cloak and tying it to the saddle.

"What's in here?" Warrior asked before opening it to find an assortment of potions which made everyone breathe hard. "Where did you get these?"

"My mother brewed them." Ranger said simply.

"Wait, first your father is a retired ranger, now your mother is a potion brewer? What next? Your uncle is a gold miner?" Wizard said, and everyone laughed at her remark, and she herself had to admit it was pretty funny.

"Don't I wish, but no." Ranger said after getting enough of a grip. "I have no uncles, at least, not through blood ties." He then attached the belt with the twin swords on it and headed for the cave "Now, let's see what this cave is about-" He stopped talking the moment he noticed the signpost at the entrance then rushed to investigate it. "I don't believe this..."

"What is it?" Fighter asked.

"Apparently goblins aren't just smart enough to figure out how to attack a village, and get away with it, not to mention what to take, but are also able to build a signpost." Ranger said before shaking it. "A well-built signpost to boot."

"So? Let's go in and get rid of them." Warrior said before his attempt to go inside was stopped cold by Ranger.

"Have you been paying any attention? If goblins are the pushovers that people think they are, why are we here to get rid of them, and why did their invasion of that village, and maybe others before that succeed?" Ranger asked sternly.

"But we're adventurers. We can handle this." Warrior said with a note of seriousness.

"And when two dozen goblins jump on you from all sides and none of us can reach you in time? What then? You're just going to handle that?" Ranger asked with urgency in his voice. "I am seriously alarmed with how no one but me acknowledged what was said about this situation, and alittle ashamed I didn't talk about what wasn't said sooner, but we only know what some people think, and have said about these creatures, but what was said needs to be at least considered a risk to be worked around, especially since we don't know how many goblins are in this cave. There could be dozens, or even a hundred in there, and this sign proves that either they have someone in there leading them, which makes absolutely no sense, or they're smart enough to do it themselves. Heh, they're smart enough to invade an entire village, take out everyone who resists, and know what to take; they kidnapped some girls for the Supreme's sake! So if we don't do this intelligently, we will be their victims instead of them being ours."

"Alright! We can take a damn hint! The "charge in like a moron" tactic is officially dead. Let's do this the ranger way." Wizard snapped.

"Um, the "ranger way" is looking pretty good from where I'm standing. Maybe we were being a bit too thoughtless when we agreed to this, but now we know that this isn't something to take lightly, and we won't" Fighter said before motioning to Ranger "So lead on...boss."

"Yes." Priestess said before stepping forward "Lead on."

Warrior huffed "I guess I was being a bit headless about this, but you clearly weren't, so lead on boss." Everyone then looked at Wizard

"Oh alright. Lead on boss." She said with a sigh.

"Alright." Ranger said "My first act as your leader, is to apologize for taking my fears out on all of you, and to congratulate you for overcoming them. Now, since we got that out of the way." he took two torches he brought from the horse, gave one to Warrior and kept the other and looked into the cave "We have some goblins to crush." They then went in after him.

Ranger went in first, followed by Warrior and Fighter, with Wizard and Priestess taking up the rear; as the spellcasters, they required the most protection, especially Priestess.

"May I ask why we're using two torches?" Warrior asked.

"To eliminate as many shadows as possible. Caves don't always go forward and backwards only, and I seriously doubt the goblins wouldn't take advantage of that in one way or another." Ranger said.

"That makes sense." Wizard stated.

"Priestess? You alright back there?" Ranger asked.

"Yes sir, I'm just alittle concerned." she said.

"We all are. But we've come too far to quit now." Fighter said.

"Ah, like I said, we can handle this." Warrior said with enthusiasm as he pulled his sword "I'll bet that if we put our minds to it, we'll get strong enough to take on a dragon!"

"Well, before you can become a great and mighty dragon slayer, you'll have to settle for being a great and mighty goblin slayer" Ranger said dryly which got a few giggles out of the three ladies behind him.

"Don't worry boss, I know the drill; I was just trying to lighten the mood." Warrior said.

"That is appreciated, but keep your focus on what's in the here-and-now until we can afford it. Understood?" Ranger asked.

"Yes sir." Warrior said. The team then carried on their trek into the cave, and Ranger couldn't help but notice some stray water sources and some minerals in some parts of the cave.

"I should probably get my pickaxe and come back into this cave when we're done." He said

"You have a pickaxe? What tools don't you have?" Wizard asked in awe.

"A true ranger brings as many different tools as possible, both for his own sake, and the sake of his teammates. In this case, what are the chances that our reward for this quest might not be high enough? A pickaxe will turn the quest itself into it's own payment if the right materials are found." Ranger said.

"That is pretty crafty." Fighter said as continued further into the cave until Ranger stops them. "What's wrong boss?"

"Look ahead." Ranger said, and the four peeked around him and spotted a sign similar to the one outside "There's also a side cave like I predicted. Wait here" He walked forward slowly and noticed a three-way split in that area, then ran back to the others. "That sign is in the middle of an intersection between three paths; it's a great place for an ambush."

"Do you have a plan sir?" Priestess asked which made Ranger observe the terrain, his equipment and recall his party's skills, and finally turn to face them.

"Ambush their ambush." He said.

"How?" Wizard asked.

"First, I'm going to set up my weapons, then throw my torch into the middle of that intersection, then lure them to us by clapping." Ranger said.

"Clapping?" Fighter asked confused.

"Yes, clapping." Ranger said after taking the bag from Warrior and tossing it behind them. "Not even beasts would ignore an unknown sound, and I don't care what anyone says, we are fighting them on our terms, not theirs."

"What should we do?" Warrior asked.

"You and Fighter take the left side, I'll take the right. Wizard, you stay in the back, if you see any goblins using ranged weapons of any sort, cook them. Priestess, you especially stay in the back. We cannot afford to put you in harm's way, and speaking of harm's way, when I throw that torch, the space ahead of it is to be considered high-risk; no one is to charge past it under any circumstances. Understood?" Ranger asked.

"Yes sir!" Everyone said at once then Ranger turned to Warrior.

"I forgot to mention, that sword you're using is suspiciously long to swing in a space this small, so prioritize thrusting over swinging, unless you want to risk hitting a teammate?" He said with a minor edge.

"Of course not." Warrior said defensively.

"Good. Now, let's do this. Everyone get ready!" Ranger said and everyone got to their positions. Ranger then threw his torch into the middle of the intersection, knelt down by his crossbow, clapped once as a test; the sound bounced off the walls quite nicely. "Yes...that will do." He clapped again and everyone tensed up, then he started clapping rapidly until a few seconds later when they heard gurgling snarl sounds and some goblins came into view.

"GOBLINS!" Fighter yelled but Ranger was already on it; the moment they came into view, he grabbed his crossbow and shot the closest one in the head, and some of it's friends tripped over it's corpse, then true to his earlier claim, he loaded another bolt so quickly his teammates could barely see his arms move and shot another in the head, then another, and another, and another, and when he loaded a sixth shot, one pounced at him, only to be stopped in mid-air by him standing up, putting his crossbow in the way, slamming it into a wall, then he kicks a second one in the face hard enough to break it's spine, then he pulls a knife and stabs the first one in the bottom of the skull, severing it's brain stem and threw the corpse into a third one that showed up from the right entrance.

Fighter and Warrior meanwhile, were mopping up the goblins that tripped over their dead friends, with Warrior stabbing them like Ranger said, and Fighter stomping their skulls in. One pounced at her then Warrior stabbed it in mid-air, then Fighter punched it in the chest hard enough to remove it from Warrior's blade. in total, they must've killed seven.

"Fireball!" Wizard called and then launched a ball of fire at a pair of goblin archers she spotted in the back and both caught fire. The two screamed in pain trying to put the flames out, but they died before they could. "Down you go."

Ranger then got attacked by about four goblins from the right entrance, then he pulled his two short swords, yelled at the goblins and stabbed a pouncing one several times before slamming the corpse on a second one, then severed a third one's arm before stabbing the fourth in the head, then stabbing the second one before it recovered, and then beheading the third one.

The group took a small breather as the adrenaline high started to wear down, then rapid, earth-shaking footsteps were felt which made Ranger go for his crossbow right away...then they spotted what looked to be a gigantic goblin charging them.

"OH SHIT!" Ranger yelled and Wizard immediately shot a fireball at it, missing it's chest, but hitting the side of it's face, making it stop and scream in pain "Kill it while it's down!" Warrior charged it and when he got close, the big goblin stood up before he could stab it's neck and took the sword to the gut making it roar in anger and prepare to swat him only for it to take a crossbow bolt to he elbow paralyzing it's arm and giving Fighter and chance to do some damage with a strong kick to the side, but the big goblin grabbed her foot with it's working arm, growled in anger, and squeezed hard, making her scream in pain, which in turn, made Ranger grab his swords, charge it, slide under it's legs, climb up it's back, and stab it in the top of the head, killing it and freeing Fighter. He then pulled her back to the others as Warrior kept an eye out for more goblins.

"I can heal her!" Priestess exclaimed.

"Not yet. Let me see how bad it is." Ranger said as he removed her boot. He ran his fingers along the bony part of her lower leg looking for injuries and listening for Fighter to grunt in pain, but she never did except for when he gently squeezed her ankle, which miraculously wasn't broken. The whole time however, he didn't dare look her in the face; he thought he did a good job of hiding it thanks to him prioritizing her well-being, but he couldn't help but feel flustered inspecting the body of a beautiful woman, even if he was checking to see if she was hurt. "Those are pretty high-quality boots you wear; your foot isn't seriously hurt, but...you're in no shape to go anywhere." He then turned to Wizard who still had his potions "Luckily, it's nothing a health potion won't fix." He then took one from Wizard and gave it to Fighter before collecting his crossbow, and loading it before some metallic footsteps were heard behind them making Ranger point his crossbow in that direction, Warrior run back to the group to help fight, and Wizard prepare another spell, until they realized, it was a man in armor, carrying a short sword, and a torch and buckler in his left hand. "False alarm." Everyone lowered their weapons.

"I see you've killed some goblins." The man said with a raspy voice, mostly due to his helmet, but there was an undeniable amount of irritation in his voice

"Yes we have. Who are you exactly? Wizard asked before the man stopped and kept looking ahead.

"I am Goblin Slayer." He said

"Goblin...Slayer?" Fighter Askeid in disbelief.

"He's Silver ranked!" Priestess exclaimed.

"A Silver Rank? Here? Wow, this just gets better and better."Warrior said in amazement as GS walked right past the group and looked at the dead goblins.

"7...14...16...20, and a hob. Impressive for a team of rookies." GS said.

"Um, what's a hob?" Priestess asked

"That big one with the sword wounds in it's head. These goblins must've recruited it as a guard." GS said before turning his head to the group "Do you have a leader?"

"That would be me, sir." Ranger said.

"How did you get them all to fight you here?" GS asked.

"I clapped my hands and let them come to where we could fight more effectively." Ranger answered.

"That was risky. Goblins have hearing far sharper than ours. If there were many more than this, you would've been overwhelmed. I wouldn't do that again." GS said.

"Noted, but that torch there was put there as a line we shouldn't pass, with that hob being an obvious exception." Ranger said.

"That was a smart move. Letting goblins surround you is nothing short of a death sentence." GS said before he turned to the sign post. "This sign post. This horde is being led by a shaman."

"A shaman?" Priestess asked.

"A powerful spellcaster. Are you the entire group?" GS asked.

"Yes, and...while it's in bad taste...hers was the only injury." Ranger said as he motioned to Fighter.

"That sort of leadership can carry you far. As for this horde? I'm going to finish it off." GS said.

"But, we got them all, sir." Warrior said.

"There's still the shaman, and possibly some other goblins protecting him. What will you all do?" GS asked.

"I'll go with you." Priestess said.

"So will I." Ranger said.

"Us to." Wizard said.

"No, you two stay here and protect Fighter, and keep any goblins from leaving. This shouldn't take too long." Ranger said before he heard GS stab the dead hob. "You are aware that the stabs to the head were enough to kill it right?"

"You two have to get rid of your scents." GS said as he soaked some cloth in the hob's blood. "They not only have great hearing, but also great smell." GS then smeared the blood on Priestess' dress and Ranger's scaled armor.

"I think I'm going to be sick..." Wizard said as she turned away.

"Do you know spells?" GS asked.

"I can perform the miracles of healing and holy light." Priestess said.

"How often?" GS asked.

"Only three times, and I haven't used any yet." she said.

"Good, we'll probably need them." GS said before Ranger collected his crossbow bolts and his used knife before the then pressed on further into the cave until GS stopped them. Ranger put up his crossbow in preparation, then GS threw his torch, then threw a knife which hit a goblin and then he charged it and put his short sword in it's chest. "That's 22." He said

"Do you have an ability that let's you see in the darkness?" Priestess asked.

"Of course not; I just practiced. The trick is to aim where their necks should be." GS said as he dragged the dead goblin behind him with it's spear in his right hand.

"That's insane. How much have you trained?" Priestess asked.

"Alot." GS said as he eyed the dead goblin before moving on.

"What about the sword?" Ranger asked.

"There's too much blood on it." GS said before stopping. "That was a scout...we should go this way." He then took out a wooden stop, and some rope, then set a tripwire with it.

"Expecting a surprise?" Ranger asked.

"Never take chances with goblins; for all we know, that wasn't the only hob they had." GS said which put Ranger on edge; they had a hard time with only one. The three then went down a sloped pathway with GS in front, Ranger on the side, crossbow at the ready, and Priestess behind them. then GS stops them "Use Holy Light from here, once you're done, run back to the entrance. Ranger, keep that crossbow trained. Now!" He then braced himself to charge, Ranger pointed his crossbow down the pathway, and Priestess sucked in a breath.

"Hear me O merciful Earth Mother, protect us and bless us with Holy Light!" She prayed and then the head of her staff gave off an impressively bright flash which even Ranger was strained by even though he was looking away from it; he dared not shoot his crossbow because of it since he didn't want to hit GS, who charged right into the fray.

"Six goblins, plus a hob, and a shaman...he dies first!" he yelled before throwing his spear at the shaman who was charging a lightning spell, then retreated. "Fall back!" He said to the other two who took off after him with the goblins hot of their tails. GS and Ranger both jumped over the tripwire, but Priestess missed her landing and Ranger immediately turned and his heart sank when he saw the hob and some smaller goblins.

"The light! "Again!" GS said before grabbing an axe no one else noticed.

"O merciful Earth mother! Protect us as we go forward, and bless us with Holy Light!" Priestess prayed and the same flash happened and the hob fell for the tripwire, which Ranger took advantage of right away by putting a bolt in it's head before switching to his swords.

"There will be others coming for us, but I can only pray one more time!" Priestess yelled.

"You've done enough." Ranger said seriously, and sensed that she was more at ease.

"23!" GS said before dumping sort of oil on the hob's dead body then kicking it down the slope. "See ya!" The hob actually rolled over 2 goblins and drenched them in oil too, then he fetched the torch he threw earlier, and tossed it down the slope to ignite them "25."

"What was that?" Priestess said after coughing.

"Gasoline I bought from an alchemist. Wasn't very good for what I paid." GS said.

"Wait! What about the girls they captured?" Ranger asked with worry.

"There were only three goblin corpses; the flames won't spread too far. They'll be fine." GS said.

"So, should we charge them?" Ranger asked.

"No..." GS then swung his axe at one goblin in mid-air "They probably think we ran..." Ranger then stabbed one that fell for the tripwire in the head "They'll have no idea we're out here waiting for them!" GS then bashed a second pouncing goblin with his shield and threw his axe into it's head, then the three went down into their den, and when they did, Priestess and Ranger's hearts sank like a rock. There were no less than five girls, all were buck-naked, and laying down completely motionless.

"What the hell...?!" Ranger breathed out as he surveyed the area in horror. "What did those damn goblins do?!" His heart sank even further when he noticed each one covered in some sort of glue-like substance he dared not think about, especially between their legs. "What have they been doing!?" His horror slowly turned to rage as he looked them over, and then his eyes burned when he saw their faces...their blank, lifeless, and broken faces, then he bared his teeth, started snarling and clenched his convulsing fists.

"Shaman." GS said, breaking Ranger out of his emotional maelstrom "You can't fool me." The shaman then jumped at him, only to have it's head smashed in by a club, which Ranger wanted to do himself. "32, these high-level ones are tough." he said as he smashed a small throne then opened a secret door which revealed a complete surprise...

"Children?" Priestess asked.

"They multiple quickly. If this nest had been left for much longer, there might have been a horde of 50 waiting here for us. We were lucky." GS said as he went inside.

"So...they..." Ranger trailed off, then looked at the girls again. "These girls were their...what is wrong with these creatures?!"

"This is what goblins are like. There is no monster more heinous than goblins." GS said.

"Are you going to kill them?" Priestess asked sadly.

"Of course I am. These animals hold onto grudges for life; the survivors in the nest, would learn from the mistakes of the dead, and adapt. There isn't a single reason to show them mercy!" GS said, and Ranger could not help but nod his head and kneel to see GS' work better; he thought goblins were a pest and needed to be dealt with, but this? Using kidnapped girls as breeding stock against their will? No, this was beyond disgusting and demands punishment.

"But what if there was a good goblin? They might exist!" Priestess said with what Ranger firmly believed was completely misplaced sympathy.

"Maybe. If you looked hard, you might be able to find one, but at the end of the day, the only "good" goblins, are the ones who never show their faces to the light of day." GS said, and with that...he started smashing the little goblins' heads in one by one, their cries of terror falling on deaf ears. All but Priestess who broke down crying from seeing their temporary innocence snuffed out, which for a moment, Ranger agreed with, but his repulsion towards the goblins was still as firm as ever.

"That makes 36." GS said as he came out and went to leave the cave.

"Wait." Ranger breathed out before getting up and facing GS who didn't bother turning to him. "Goblin Slayer...I must ask you some things."

"Then ask." GS said.

"Are all goblins born like this?" Ranger asked alittle afraid of the answer.

"Most likely. I don't know if it was always this way, but it is now." GS said.

"Alright." Ranger said with his rage turning into sorrow "Have you seen this done before?"

"Yes. It's actually what drove me to exterminate them." GS said, his patience apparently running out.

"One more thing." Ranger said urgently before looking at the girls for the umpteenth time. "What...what should we do with them?"

"Kill them." GS said simply which caught Ranger by surprise. "You've seen their faces haven't you? Their lives are over; the damage will never be fixed; the only thing they're going to do from this point forward, is wait for death. If you spare them, you'll be prolonging their torture." And with that, GS leaves the den and therefore, Ranger and Priestess to make the decision.

"We can't kill them!" Priestess exclaimed as she ran towards Ranger and grasped his arms. "Please. There's been enough darkness as it is. We have to take them out of it and heal them." For a moment, Ranger looked into her pleading eyes and thought it could be done, but recalled what GS said, especially "prolonging their torture", which he couldn't be responsible for.

"No..." Ranger whispered. "You heard what Goblin Slayer said, these girls are done living; their faces say it all." He pulled away from Priestess who ran out of the den bawling her eyes out, then Ranger pulled a sword and plunged it into one of the girls' heads after closing his eyes not wanting to see his work then went to the next, killed her too, then killed the third, before pausing to process the rage and sorrow in his heart, then killed the fourth one, and then watched himself kill the final one before letting out an enraged yell that echoed throughout the cave.

"What the-?" Wizard snapped from leaning against the wall and saw GS coming "Where's Ranger and Priestess?"

"They will come when they come." He said and he walked past them.

About ten seconds later, Priestess showed up still crying and Warrior rushed to receive her.

"Priestess? Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yes, but..." She said before clinging onto Warrior like she was drowning. "The girls aren't!"

"What?" Warrior asked.

"It's the goblins, they...were using the girls to breed. That's why they captured them!" Priestess said while sobbing.

"No..." Warrior said horrified which Wizard and Fighter echoed. "We should get them out of here!"

"They're all dead." Ranger said as he approached in a manner eerily similar to Goblin Slayer's, then he broke the sign post they were near with one hit "Just help Fighter up and let's get out of his hellhole."

"But sir-" Ranger cuts Wizard off.

"DO WHAT I SAID!" He exploded then kept going as his team stood there stunned for a moment before Wizard helped Fighter up and Warrior let Priestess cling to him before the whole team left the cave to see Ranger destroy the sign post outside as well, then rush to his horse, and head down the path they took to get there.

Ranger rode ahead of the group a fairly large distance, but the team knew the way back like he did, so it wasn't too bad a move, which they all knew deep down. They noticed that he still kept his weapons on his person, and on occasion petted his horse as if looking for solace in the action. The team's hearts went out to him, especially Fighter and Priestess, though it's anyone's guess who's case was stronger.

"I don't think I've ever seen someone that torn up." Fighter said somberly before turning to Priestess "If it's not too much to ask, can you please let us know what happened?"Priestess took a moment to compose herself.

"Alright. After we went further into the cave, Goblin Slayer and Ranger cleared out the rest of the goblins, with two of the three miracles I can use helping them, but when we found their den...there were the girls, all of whom were traumatized from what the goblins did to them and..." Her sorrow came back with a vengeance as she tried to stop herself from crying again "...Goblin Slayer found some goblin children, and killed them all! I know they were goblins and they hurt lots of people all the time but...they looked so innocent!" She couldn't contain herself anymore and cried into Warrior's shoulder as he held her, with Fighter and Wizard putting their spare hands on her. "But...before he left, Goblin Slayer suggested Ranger kill the girls to end their pain, and he did just that."Fighter immediately removed her hand.

"He did not..." She whispered, then looked at Ranger again "No wonder he's so torn up."

"I just...I just couldn't watch anymore so I left that den, and I never want to go back." Priestess said.

"And we won't. We dragged you to into this, and we're not dragging you in there again." Warrior said.

"It's not your fault." Priestess said looking right at him.

"Maybe not, but we should still support each other." Wizard said with a faint smile. "We're a team aren't we?"

"Yes." Priestess said drying her eyes. "Yes we are." She then looked at Ranger. "And our leader needs us now more than ever."

"You're all completely right." Fighter said still a bit sad for him.

Ranger meanwhile was making no effort to wait for the team so they had to rush to keep up.

At the Guild tavern, Guild Girl was there talking to some other adventurers when Ranger walked in doing his damnedest to keep it together.

"Ranger!" She said cheerily before noting that he was alone "Where are the rest of your team?"

"They're not far behind." He said.

"So...you led them all to victory against a goblin nest? That's...quite a feat." Guild Girl said in utter amazement.

"Yes, those goblins will never hurt someone again." Ranger said with a minor edge to his voice.

"Very good." Guild Girl then handed him a bag full of copper coins, and some silver coins "Here's your reward."

"Thank you very much ma'am." Ranger said eyeballing the bag of coin before sighing. "Listen...I'm going to leave for a while, and I don't know when, or if I'll come back."

"I see. I hope you to see you again; you seem like a promising adventurer." Guild Girl said disappointed.

"I appreciate the support, and everything else too." Ranger said and he turned to leave and nearly ran into his teammates.

"Ranger!" Priestess said but Ranger gave them his bag of coin.

"The reward for our mission's success." He said before mounting his horse.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Boss! Where are you going?" Wizard said.

"I'm going home for a while." Ranger said looking straight forward. "I cannot be an adventurer in this state of mind, let alone the leader of a team." He then looked right at them. "And my parents are the only ones I think can help me out." He then turned his horse "If you want to follow me there, I won't stop you." He then had his horse trot off the way he originally came into town.

"Ranger..." Fighter said before she tried walking alone which actually worked thanks to the potion he gave her and then the rest went with her.

And with that, I'm finally done. I really doubt I need to explain why I deviated from what happened to the team in episode one, because let's face it, who in the name of all that's sacred, writes in some characters, gives them JUST enough development to get our hopes up that they'll be a driving force, and then screw them all over? As a writer myself, I am sourly disappointed, and as an audience member, I am disgusted that their fates are taken so lightly, especially Fighter's fate. Yes, I know it was done to showcase how vile the goblins are, but as I demonstrated...there are OTHER WAYS to do that! Now for a few author's notes before I rant too badly: first off, in the original episode, there were only 22 goblin kills; I beefed up the numbers here to make it more fair/interesting. Secondly...I'm pretty sure you've all figured this out, but I'm planning a romance between Ranger and Fighter, cause let's face it: if there's one thing she deserves, it's a dose of true love. Anyways, be sure to review, rate, share with your friends, all that sweet stuff and I'll be back with some addition parts to the 1st chapter later on, so stayed tuned for them cause I'm not even close to being finished.

A/N: Please note that I do not condone just giving up the way Ranger did in that den, but things do go up from there, so if anyone finds that disgusting, please know that I do as well, but I only wanted to give an least somewhat realistic moment where the Dark Side is strong, so that the Light Side can have something to overcome, and later on...it succeeds. I won't say how, but I promise I'm telling the truth.