So as some of you (maybe I dunno how well known I am, probably not very) are aware I make a lot of mods for dwarf fortress and sometimes I like to write about them. So I am going to do that here if that's ok, throwing stuff out when I feel the urge to whip up a story. Think of this like Threetoe's stuff. While I try to stick to the game logic as much as possible, I'll be throwing in a few bits here and there that can't currently be done in-game that I would really like to see be made possible at a later date. Here's my first offering for you all. As an aspiring writer, feedback and criticism are greatly appreciated.
This story takes place in The Lunar Realms (
http://dffd.bay12games.com/file.php?id=13741), a setting which takes place in spaaace. But like, fantasy space so there's astral whales and void krakens and other craziness floating around in the aether. Everyone lives on moons and asteroids and things tend to get really weird really often. Let's begin.
=========================================================================
The stark light of the stars shone down on the lunar surface, glinting across the forest of crystal branches like a muted, glittering rainbow. Laying down atop a rise in the land, Namat signaled to his brothers to prepare for the attack. Lanky and muscular, with golden skin and eyes framed by fiery red hair, he was a typical example of the Lunen folk found in the western regions, as were his comrades. Not that one could tell at a glance. Clad in black silk from their pants to their turbans and armored with brown crystal masks and plating, their facial features, and affiliations, were obscured. Which was important, considering failure would mean the beginning of a long and bloody war. Should they charge in wielding or wearing the signature silver crystals of their people, the only conclusion to draw would be that Namat’s nation had thrown its hand into the rapidly growing conflict, and considering the state of his kingdom of Naronning, that would be a foolish choice indeed. Yes, the ronin’s color would be most suited to this assault.
His eyes narrowed as he spied the quarry, a procession of glimmering color making its way across the plains just beyond the forest’s edge. Already he could make out the heavily ornamented, purple and white armor of the khanate’s elite vanguard, both marching on the ground and soaring above the treeline atop their signature wasp-mounts. The lunar beetles, cyclopean insectoids with silver shells and a gleaming mauve eye, their bodies uniform save for the most indistinguishable variations. Supposedly they told one another apart through pheromones, but Namat cared little for such things. All he knew was that the past few years had been fraught with bloody war thanks to their aggressive expansion. The insectoid nation of Sangu Yoo had suddenly unleashed a blistering assault on the neighboring kingdoms, their feared aerial cavalry riding down from the stars and burning villages in their wake. The cause was as yet unknown, but the various rulers of the region had their suspicions. Sangu Yoo would not act in such a belligerent manner unless they had found a powerful trump card, and it was up to Namat and his cohorts to find out what it was. And now it was time to do just that.
The Lunen signaled to his soldiers, a brief hand motion, but concise in its meaning. To a man, the band of soldiers took out a small pouch, pouring the substance within into the palms of their hands. For most, it appeared as a brown dust. Of course it did. As is known, it is the powder made from the ubiquitous brown coral that magnifies the strength of those who inhale it. Any dust-user would be a fool to not carry some with them for emergencies, so universally helpful were its properties. What was more interesting was what the bowmen carried. Namat had a trump card of his own, taking the form of the shimmering black dust held in the hands of his marksmen. Black coral dust was very rare, and he had gone through great pains to secure even this meager amount from a reclusive Oni smuggler lurking in Shkil Jyaap. Black crystal on its own was worth its weight in rubies due to its sheer strength and sharpness, but the effects of it’s coral’s dust were just as useful. As the marksmen began to inhale their powders, Namat could see the change, their pupils dilating as their minds grew sharper and vastly more focused. In this state they could shoot the wings off a moth without breaking a sweat. Namat himself felt the same, feeling the effects of the brown dust surging through his body, amplifying his strength. Responding to another curt signal from their captain, the bowmen went from lying still to kneeling, taking aim and letting loose a flurry of precisely aimed arrows at the wasp riders above, sending them careening, one after another, to the unforgiving ground below. In the corner of his eye, Namat noticed one of the archers drop dead shortly after. He cursed. Such was the risk of dust. Each breath of it carried the kiss of death, and whether it chose to take you was a matter of mere luck, or perhaps fate. But there was no time to dwell on it now. Already he could hear the enraged chittering of the chitin soldiers and the clinking of scimitars being drawn from their scabbards. Letting out a fearsome war cry, he leapt up and began the charge, followed closely by his comrades.
Battle was joined in short order, both sides rushing to strike the first blow. As a beetle’s axe bit into the man on his left, Namat knew this would be ugly. He could see some of the purple and white figures in the distance place their hands to their mouth for a moment before charging into the fray. It would seem the soldiers here, or at least some of them, were dust users as well. And odds were, it was purple coral-derived, like the weapons they carried. Instinct enhancers, sharpening the subconscious and increasing one’s intuitive senses. While not as overpowering as the effects of brown dust, it’d make a trained soldier into a truly fearsome foe, and it was for certain that this title would apply to all the beetles present here. Namat had gambled on overpowering them through sheer brute force and now it was time to stake his coins on it. Dodging a spear thrust, he deftly parried with his blade and sent his opponent’s head sailing in an arc away from its body, an easy feat with his enhanced strength. His soldiers fared similarly for the most part, hacking away at the initial charge before getting bogged down by yet more soldiers, and judging by the cries of agony it seemed like more capable veterans had entered the fray as well. Silently he thanked the gods that he had made the right choice. Had he not taken out the air cavalry they would be dead already, skewered from above. As it stood, they had a fighting chance. His confidence was bolstered even further by the sound of arrows crashing into the armor of the beetle men, spraying wide gouts of ichor. His bowmen had done their initial duty, but that didn’t mean their role was over. That unnatural focus could still be aimed at the remaining infantry, and in his mind’s eye he saw the marksmen fire off their weapons with implacable precision, each shot hitting its mark. Confident that the main battle was well in hand, he vaulted over the remaining enemies in his way and cut down those who tried to impede him, heading toward a very specific destination. To be precise, the ornate palanquin in the center of the disrupted enemy forces.
Supported by the other Lunen soldiers, Namat managed to make it all the way to the palanquin’s silk-shrouded entrance before a silver arm shot out and sent him skidding atop the mossy ground, coming at a stop a dozen or so feet away. Scrambling to his feet, his eyes widened as he saw the general make their grand entrance. A towering figure, centauroid in nature rather than bipedal like his kin. Four insectoid claws scraped the ground, connected to an oval body atop which sprouted the upper torso of a beetle man like those he had cut down before. Like the others, he wore the purple armor of Sangu Yoo, though altered to fit his abnormal frame. “You… you have discovered transcendence.” Namat said carefully. A statement, not a question. After all, the proof was in front of him. Every lunar people knew the moons had their ways, and a tendency to change those who lived on them. And if one could harness these unseen forces, they could optimize them, bringing out the ultimate potential of their race. And judging by the specimen before him, the lunar beetles had discovered just that. “Correct.” It rasps. “And already, our khans have been transfigured. Soon, our soldiers. Then, all of our kind. We will rule and live forever, our nation will spread across the stars. It is inevitable.” “Not if we have anything to say about it!” Namat growled, lunging at his foe. He would not allow his people fall under the yolk of these foreigners, not while he still drew breath. And as large as his opponent was, the dust still surged through his body, putting him on equal footing. The transfigured beetle drew a two-handed sword and raised it high, bringing it down as Namat threw up his buckler to send it skidding away, sparks flashing from the impact. Blades flew faster than the eye could follow as the two engaged in a blistering duel for the fate of their peoples. Eventually, however, Namat saw an opening and lunged, his sword striking deep into the chitin of his foe who in turn sent their sword plummeting into his shoulder, nearly cleaving it apart. But of the two wounds, it was the one inflicted by Namat that did the most damage. With a wheeze, the general toppled over, ichor gushing from its body as it breathed its last. Namat fell backwards, rapidly losing consciousness. He dimly heard footsteps and cries of alarm as his soldiers finished off the remaining guards and ran to his aid. This was a small victory, he thought, but a victory to be sure. And if what his foe had said was true, more would be needed. A decisive blow would need to be struck, and the ascended rulers eliminated before the whole race could be uplifted into immortal demigods, at which point hope would vanish. But so long as he could hold a blade, he knew his battle would not be over. He would continue to defy fate, until the day he drew his last breath, and left this blood-stained jewel of realm forever.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Analysis:
Things you can do in this mod:
-Inhale moon dust to get crazy stat boosts with a small chance of melting your organs in adventure mode and fortress mode (probably, it still needs testing in fort mode.)
-Make armor and weapons from fancy crystals
-Live on the moon
-Ascend into a superior form of life and uplift your entire fort into such beings
-Fight Mongolian beetles riding gigantic space wasps.
Things you can't do in this mod:
-Make your adventure mode companions snort moon dust (actually I dunno, its a food item so maybe? There might be a way to do it I just don't know it.)
-Find a palanquin, they aren't in the game yet.
-Use hand signals.
-Fight mounted enemies in adventure mode.
Author
Topic: Random Writing Stuff I Guess (Read 815 times)