The goblins’ final plan was, by far, their most ambitious—and their most ridiculous. Snaggle, Grizzle, and Nibbles had spent the last hour gathering every piece of rope, vine, and string they could find in the forest.

  Their plan? To create a giant, goblin-sized slingshot and launch themselves at Sora in a desperate attempt to catch him.

  “We fly through air!” Snaggle declared, his crooked nose twitching with excitement. “Like bird thing! We catch it mid-air!”

  Nibbles, chewing on his fingernails, looked skeptical. “But… what if we miss?”

  Grizzle grunted, his scowl deepening. “We no miss. We aim good. Right?”

  The trio worked tirelessly, tying vines to tree branches and fashioning a crude slingshot out of sticks and rope. Snaggle, the self-proclaimed "engineer" of the group, insisted on testing the contraption first. He climbed into the slingshot, his lopsided grin widening as the other two goblins pulled the vines taut.

  “Ready?” Snaggle asked, his voice trembling with excitement.

  “Ready!” Nibbles and Grizzle replied in unison.

  With a mighty heave, the goblins released the vines, sending Snaggle flying through the air like a poorly aimed cannonball. He let out a high-pitched scream as he soared over the treetops, his arms flailing wildly.

  Sora, perched in a nearby tree, watched in stunned silence as the goblin flew past him, disappearing into the distance with a faint thud.

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  “Snaggle!” Nibbles cried, his twitching eye going wide with panic.

  Grizzle growled, his scowl deepening. “Stupid Snaggle. Always mess up plans.”

  Undeterred, the goblins decided to try again. This time, Grizzle climbed into the slingshot, his muscular frame straining against the vines.

  “You no mess up,” Grizzle growled, glaring at Nibbles. “Pull hard. Aim good.”

  Nibbles nodded, his hands trembling as he gripped the vines. With a deep breath, he and Grizzle pulled the slingshot taut and released it, sending Grizzle flying through the air.

  But instead of soaring toward Sora, Grizzle’s trajectory was off. He crashed into a tree with a loud thwack, his club flying out of his hands and landing in a nearby bush.

  “Grizzle!” Nibbles cried, his voice filled with panic.

  Grizzle groaned, sliding down the tree trunk and landing in a heap on the ground. “Stupid slingshot,” he muttered, rubbing his head.

  Now it was Nibbles’ turn. The smallest and skinniest of the trio, he looked at the slingshot with a mixture of fear and determination. “Maybe… I no do this,” he muttered, chewing on his fingernails.

  But Snaggle and Grizzle, now back on their feet, insisted. “You do it!” Snaggle declared, his crooked nose twitching with excitement. “You last hope!”

  With a nervous gulp, Nibbles climbed into the slingshot, his cloak tangling around him as the other two goblins pulled the vines taut.

  “Ready?” Snaggle asked, his voice filled with anticipation.

  “No,” Nibbles replied, his twitching eye betraying his terror.

  “Too bad!” Grizzle growled, releasing the vines.

  Nibbles shot through the air like a tiny, screaming projectile. His trajectory was perfect—straight toward Sora. But just as he was about to collide with the harpy, Sora spread his wings and gracefully sidestepped, leaving Nibbles to crash into a bush with a loud thud.

  The goblins groaned in unison, their spirits thoroughly crushed. They sat in a dejected heap, their ridiculous plans having failed yet again.

  Sora, perched in the tree above them, couldn’t help but let out a soft chirp of amusement. The goblins’ antics had been so absurd that he almost felt bad for them. Almost.

  As the sun dipped below the horizon, the goblins finally admitted defeat. “Maybe… bird thing too smart,” Snaggle muttered, his crooked nose drooping.

  Grizzle grunted, his scowl deepening. “Or maybe we just stupid.”

  Nibbles, chewing on his fingernails, nodded. “Yes. Probably stupid.”

  The trio sat in silence for a moment, the sounds of the forest filling the air. Finally, Snaggle stood up, his eyes gleaming with determination.

  “We go home,” he declared. “Tell leader bird thing too tricky. Maybe… we catch something else.”

  The goblins nodded in agreement, their tiny brains buzzing with the possibility of easier prey. They gathered their belongings and trudged off into the forest, their ridiculous plans left behind.

  Sora watched them go, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his beak. For all their foolishness, the goblins had provided a strange sort of entertainment. And as the stars began to twinkle in the night sky, he spread his wings and took to the air, ready to face whatever challenges the next day would bring.