That's probably what brought him so close to the shimmering blue hole that suddenly appeared in the desert. Most other ostards would have run off, but not Grobba. He'd seen humanoids of all types before, and he was going to see what was coming this time.

If Grobba were human, he might have figured out why he had a dislike for humanoids, despite his overwhelming curiosity. They were too artificial. They always seemed to be hiding some inner motive, something they didn't want anyone to know. They weren't true to themselves like other animals.

But the one that approached him was different. The others felt a bit artificial themselves, but the robed orc that walked towards him seemed more natural than they were. Grobba could feel that he was more true to himself, and to his emotions. Just the same, he was wary of this newcomer, but after a few moments of coaxing, Grobba was convinced that he was a friend.

The ostard let out a small noise of happiness. "Grobba!" The orc repeated the noise. "Grobba! Grobba!" The orc would remember that noise, and use it to refer to his new friend.

Smo'dis and Grobba were best friends. Each felt he understood the other better than anyone else. Grobba felt the other orcs, though less so than humans, were still too unnatural for his personal liking; and Smo'dis, being more of an animal than an orc in his frame of mind, could relate more to Grobba than to any of the other orcs. The pair were inseparable.

Then one day, a large force of humans came to do battle with the orcs. The orcs had foolishly spread out, and Smo'dis and Grobba were madly darting from group to group trying to keep everyone safe. Eventually, the spells that flew at the pair became too much, and Smo'dis toppled off of Grobba's back and fell in the dirt.

Grobba was confused and alone. Never before had anything like this happened. He had not thought that his friend was capable of dying. He felt Smo's presence, and tried to follow, but then the humans returned. Grobba was angry, and attacked the humans in a rage. But the humans soon tired Grobba out, and he fell asleep.

Grobba dreamed of home. He saw the plants, the animals, the sand and rocks. Other ostards trotted around, digging through the sand for bugs and eating fruit off the tropical trees that grew in the area.

And when he opened his eyes and stood up, he was home. Apparently, his time with Smo'dis had caused some of the mojo to rub off on him, and he had teleported himself back to the desert. But this time, he wasn't surprised when he saw the blue hole open a few minutes later.

Grobba was a bit upset and refused to listen to Smo'dis right away. But he couldn't stay mad at his best friend for very long, and after a moment or two, the friends were back together. Smo fed Grobba and the two rode off into the blue hole and back to orc territory.

And so the pattern continues to this day.