Sound rushes back to a normal cadence as the scent of copper assaults my nostrils. Wait, copper? I look down and find that the still twitching bodies are expelling a liquid of a medium light blue hue. It would appear that these creatures have fluids, possibly blood, of an unusual color. While certain animals, particularly marine life, utilized hemocyanin in my previous life, these goblins here are a bit of a departure from a mollusk or crab. Not that I was too concerned about eating them, but it may not be possible to consume the flesh of these goblins with the copper content of their body likely being very high, maybe even to a degree of concern, not that I was all too enthusiastic about that option anyways. Analysis aside, it would be prudent to ensure that these individuals have been properly dispatched before I begin a review of what has happened, so lets go ahead and do that shall we. I step back a bit and pick up the fallen club of the third goblin. The club is made of a solid chunk of wood, likely a branch or root, and is just over a meter long, roughly three and a half feet. It is relatively heavy for use as a club, likely around 15 pounds, which speaks to the goblins strength. I may have been a bit rash to directly engage these creatures in close quarters, but at least it ended up ok for the most part.
I lift the club above my head in a two handed grip and center myself on the third goblin. It is lucky that this club is reasonably long so that I won't need to crouch down all too much for the moves that I am about to make. Utilizing the same motion that I would use to drive an axe to split wood or a sledge to drive a spike, I bring the club down to deliver a crushing blow to the skull of the goblin. The skin and bone on the back of the head fail to deaden the blow as the club continues downward, barely slowing as it breaches the cranial cavity. A feeling akin to that of crushing a partially frozen watermelon is transmitted through the club as it sinks through the brain tissue and finally starts to slow as the front of the skull and the ground beneath it offer resistance. The scent of copper again permeates the area, though to a much higher degree than it previously had. I remove the club from the brain bowl I have just assisted in creating an see that the slight twitching of the goblin has largely subsided, replaced by stillness. Moving to the second goblin I find that he(?) is currently seizing, likely a result of having his brain intruded upon, really quite a common side effect. I utilize the same method as before and again experience the crunchy melon sensation.
Turning to look at the final goblin, I find him(?) clutching his throat with his left hand accompanied by a soft gurgling sound. He turns his face to me with a look akin to a cornered animal, part fear and part rage. He has managed to move a very small distance away from where he first fell, only about two feet, apparently using only his feet to push himself forward while he attempted to stop the bleeding from his throat. Sadly, the bleeding from his axillary artery in his armpit is also causing a massive loss of blood, so even if the flow was stopped from the throat in any meaningful way he still probably doesn't even have a minute to live at this point. He continues to stare at me in frightened rage as he begins to slowly sway and shake a bit, likely due to blood loss. A few more seconds of this stare-down pass before his eyes finally assume a more glassy look before closing in a tired manner. He is largely still at this point but, unwilling to just take his word for it, I bring the club up above my head and deliver a final blow through his skull.
Now that the current threat has been resolved, I begin my AAR. Though it isn't always necessary to do one of these after every action, I find it useful to reflect on significant actions, especially if they will possibly affect the future. Given that this is the first bit of combat that I have experienced in this new world, it seems fitting that I should do one now. First: what occurred? Well, I appear to have neutralized three hostile individuals in close combat, nothing too in depth. Second: what are my sustains? I was lucky enough to remain unharmed, and I was able to resolve the contact quickly and relatively efficiently. Finally, what needs improvement? This is the easiest one. I would really like to put some distance between myself and the enemy, so I should look toward acquiring or making either an effective polearm or a ranged weapon of some sort. Though I may have been able to come out out of this fight unscathed, it may not always be possible to do so, especially in close combat, so I should make it my top priority, after finding water and food, to acquire some more appropriate means of protection. Keeping it brief, this concludes my first AAR.
