Prelude
Midsummer of the year 132, goglos great-hand, who would be known for his skill in battle for this very fight, would take command of his squad of 8 remaining dwarves and stem the tide of goblins. He commanded his squad to guard the gate and gave them courage in the face of annialation. While the squad of 8 braves dwarves fought to keep the goblins from entering the fortress, Goglos ran for the lever that sealed the draw bridge. He saved the kingdom with his act, and was recognized hence as the general of mountainhome. The king and queen took notice and commended the great dwarf, citing Goglos to be the bravest dwarf to ever walk the halls. They showered Goglos with gifts, and feasts, and soon he became the richest dwarf in all mountainhome, and all through the years of praise, Goglos's ego grew and grew. Goglos would live for many years to come and would be the advocate of the purity of dwarven culture. He bacame a noble of the hall, and would dine with the king and queen, but the king and queen, as well the rest of the dwarven nobility were old, and were knocking upon the doors of death. For 30 years Goglos was hailed until the death of the king and queen, and by dwarven standards, Goglos was still young. The years came on and on, there was a new king and queen, and the old nobility began to die off one by one of old age, replacing all of Goglos's supporters. The new nobility began to question Goglos's right to be in the courts citing him as a relic of the old way, but never once did they do it openly. Goglos was called to the courts of mountainhome less and less as the new nobility slowly diminished Goglos's role in dwarven society, but because the people still recalled his great deeds, the nobility allowed him to keep his holdings. Goglos was begining to show his age, yet his ego was still as strong as the day he defeated the goblin raid. One day a new hero came forth and replaced the glory that Goglos once held, and Goglos was forgotten. With his glory days behind him, Goglos decided to marry, so he wed borath, a female maidservant to the old queen. Borath was widowed many years prior by one of the dwarves in the great goblin raid, and she had a son by the soldier, Tarmok.
For all of dwarven history, it is considered an utmost bad luck to be born under the sun, so those few dwarves that are, are shunned by society. While not openly rejected, those dwarves who are born under the sky are secretly despised and often grow up as outcasts. Tarmok would be a symbol of this prejudice among dwarves, as he was not only born under the sun, but he was born without a "whole mind". The dwarven children called him the "Seasoned Squash" as he was born in a summer squash patch a few miles from the entrance to mountainhome. Despite the torment he withstood from his peer's and often from the older dwarves of mountainhome, Tarmok loved them, and would do kind deeds for his fellows, even in the face of his torment. Tarmok was innocent as a child, and despite his problems with speach, and his inability to do alot of "normal" dwarven activities, he loved all things of dwarven society. His mother Borath loved him immensely, as she saw in him his potential to be one of the greatest crafters of all mountainhome history, for as she watched him play as a young child, he would often bring her small trinkets of such beauty, it would bring tears to her eyes. As Tarmok grew, he developed a limp in his step caused by a small deformation in his leg, and his speech was never quite clear, and for these reasons and his being born under the sun, he became a popular target for pranks and jokes among all the other dwarves. Borath worried for her beloved son as he grew, fearing that the torment would one day get to him and make him go mad, but time and again she witnessed Tarmok turn his torment into beautiful creations, and watched as he showed kindness and love to his fellow dwarves.
It came to be when Tarmok was 36 years old, that Borath was to be wed to the old hero Goglos, and he was proud of his mother and happy for her to finally be happy with someone. But Goglos was a proud man, and treated Tarmok baddly, yet Tarmok endured and yet loved Goglos for being a good man to his mother. Behind closed doors Goglos would call Tarmok names and hit him, yet never once did Tarmok ruin things for his mother and complain about the old hero. For 12 years this treatment continued, until Goglos was chosen by the new king and queen to lead an expidition to found a new dwarven colony. This Journey would become a tale of dwarven legend, and all dwarven kind would tell the tale throughout all history, as the greatest of all dwarves arose from this journey!
Tarmok "The Seasoned Squash"
Chapter 1
"Squash..... SQUASH.." he heard as he limped over to the waggon, upon his shoulder was the last barrel of Plump Helmets. Tarmok stopped dead in his tracks, the barrel slid from his grip and tumbled to the ground, cracking the lid a bit. When Tarmok turned he saw Goglos pacing his way, and not wanting to anger Goglos, Tarmok stood as straight as his crooked leg would let him, and put his hands to his sides.
"Squash... I thought I asked you to load that wagon before we dine with the king and queen!" Goglos demanded as he stepped up face to chin with Tarmok, see Tarmok was a large dwarf and stood taller then the majority of dwarven kind, which added to the cliche of being born under the sun!
" yesh shir Goglosh, I wash loading the lasht berrel right now " he said as Goglos stared him up and down, with a dissaproving frown!
" What in the name of mountainhome happened, this barrel has a crack in the lid boy... what do you think we should do about it " Goglos exclaimed harshly.
" I'm shorry Shir you shurprished me and it shlipped from my shoulder, I will replace the lid shir.." said Tarmok with a bit of crackling fear in his throat. He had been taught years ago to always address Goglos properly as sir, and for a long time Goglos would hit him for making it sound like "shir", but Goglos gave up on Tarmok ever getting it right, yet he still whinced whenever he heard it!
" Clearly Squash those plump helmets will need to be replaced, we cant have them going rotten on the expedition, I am going to have to dock your pay for a new barrel. Take this silver and get a new barrel, and fix that lid for mountain sake. I swear you are the worst thing that ever happened to me, Gray I tell you, you going to make me gray! " Goglos droned, as if talking to himself.
" yesh shir, I will do it now shir! " replied Tarmok. ' he must be stressed about the expeed.. exedi... ex... expedition' he thought to himself as he turned and began limping his way back to the traders stand. Tarmok loved going to the traders post, There was one trader there, a human trader named Tylt that never shunned Tarmok, and sometimes Tarmok would go to the old humans stand and just sit and laugh with him over silly things. Over the years, Tylt and Tarmok would become friends. Often Tarmok would bring miniature Rock statues for Tylt to sell for him, Tylt would buy every craft for 1 silver peice, despite Tarmok's attempts to just give them to his friend. The old human was a rich man, but lived simple, and was kind and generous to Tarmok, they would talk of the small things, and trade stories... well usually it was old Tylt that would be telling the stories, while Tarmok sat and listened, but they were the greatest of friends anyway!
Tarmok got to the stand he was looking for and purchased the barrel, which happened to be right next to Tylt's stand.
" Hey there Squash, come here, I got sump'n for ya " Tylt proclaimed. Tarmok handed the silver piece over to the trader and limped over to tylt and sat at his chair... as soon as Tarmok sat, it made him remember what Tylt told him 6 years ago. " squash my friend, just so you know you are always welcome here at my stand, I dub this chair here Squash's Throne" it made Tarmok giggle to himself everytime he sat down! This time he saw something behind Tylt that he hadnt seen before, it was covered in a burlap blanket, but the bottom edge was as white as snow. Tylt was sitting on his stool with his hand resting on the top of the object smiling..
" You know what this is Squash? " Tylt asked as he patted on the top of the object..
" No shir. " exclaimed Tarmok.
" Gods man for the last time I am not your HighHead Ass, " Tylt said. It was Tlyt's nickname for Tarmok's step dad, Goglos.
" This here is a gift for you my friend, I got it from a dwarf in the growhill outpost up north... you know what that means right? " Tylt continued smiling
" No shir, but isnt that where the.." Tarmok started saying but Tylt interrupted.
" Correct my friend, that is exactly where the Snow marble is from... " Tylt said as he pulled the burlap up from Block of pure white, translucent marble. Tarmok stared at it for a bit, amazed at how clean it looked. The block wasnt big, it was only the size of a dwarven chair, but Snow Marble from the north was notoriously expensive, and usually reserved for master craftsmen in dwarven society.
" Squash my old friend I want you to take this with you, and when you are confident enough, you carve your masterpiece out of it for me. "
" Tylt I cant take thish from you, thish hash to be worth more then all the trinketsh I have ever given you " Tarmok said, even though somewhere deep inside him was screaming that this piece of marble would change his life, and that he wanted it... No... he needed it!
" I wont hear it squash, you have no idea how much money you have made me over the years, and this is paltry to what I feel like I owe ya, now you are gonna take this block and carve something great out of it, and years from now when I am dead and gone, you can look at your masterpiece and remember your old friend!" Tylt giggled, then continued. "oh and also, I am coming with ya my friend... The traders guild got wind O' the expedition and elected I go and set up shop, so that we would be the first to reap the benefits of a new dwarven colony! "
" Thatsh great Tylt, what hash Gogl.... HighHead Assh shaid about you coming along? " asked Tarmok.
" HA, that idiot cant say a damn thing about it, I told him I would be there and he didnt like it, but e' knew e' couldnt protest. Traders guild aint' got nuthin to do with that old windbag. Besides e' knows e' will need a good trader there for supplies. Now mind you, I aint' gonna be there till just before winter, and they told me I would be there only 6 months out of the year, err the snow trap me there, but I will be there! " Tylt explained then continued " now about this block, your gonna take it with ya, an' like I said, when you feel confident, you are gonna carve something grand out of it.... I aint' takin no for an answer ya hear, and... Hey now dont even think about that. Take your hands out O' them pockets boy, you dont owe me nuthin for this ya hear! " Tylt stated firmly.
" ok Tylt shorry, but I do need to buy a barrel lid... one of the barrelsh got cracked up by the wagon and Goglo.... err HighHead Assh told me to fix it..." Tarmok stated as he pulled a few copper coins from his pocket. "
" oh you keep that, a lid aint nuthin to me " tylt replied as he bagan digging into a large crate behind him. Soon he produced a lid for the cracked barrel, handing it over, then he continued speaking. " now you get all that done and come back here for your snow marble block, I will have it on a cart for ya so you can load it up on the wagon.. Now get goin before the Ole HighHead Ass comes lookin for ya! " Tylt said as he handed the lid to Tarmok.
Tarmok spent a couple hours, hauling the new barrel of Plump helmets up to the wagon, and fixing the lid on the barrel he dropped. after all was finished he went back to Tylt's stand and hauled the Snow marble up to the wagon and got it loaded as well, by that time the farewell feast was well under way, and he made it just in time to see everyone just finishing off their plates. He felt a little out of place being the last one to eat so he skipped that part and just sat quietly as Goglos yammered away with the nobility. Soon enough Borath came to him and said.
" son if your hungry, you dont have to sit here in the corner and hide, you can take your plate to your room and eat, I am sure Goglos wont mind you slipping away. Just be sure to be ready in the morning, we leave at dawn! " she said comfortingly... Tarmok loved his mother more then any other dwarf in the land, she always stood up for him and treated him like he was precious, and she never ever looked down at him for his limp, or his problems with speech.
Tarmok grabbed his plate and made his way out of the noble dinning hall and back to his room, where he sat eating and dreaming about what he might carve out of the snow marble. It wasnt too long before he fell asleep, with the empty plate laying on the floor next to his bed.
When he awoke in the morning, Tarmok made his way to the wagon, and before he even came into view of the wagon, he heard Goglos's voice speaking loudly to a crowd.
" Fareweall fellow Dwarves, we leave this day to extend the reach of our great dwarven civilization. We make for the mountains of Kargoth in the far east, and there will create a great dwelling for our people... The journey will be perilous but our band of dwarves will prevail the wilderness. This Block of marble here will be carved into statue for the entrance to our new dwarven colony, and shall stand for all who enter, that our new home is great among dwarvendom..." he heard as he approached, and when he saw the marble that Goglos was talking about, something caught in his throat. Of all the things Goglos had put him through, never had he got in the way of Tarmok's carving, no one had ever really questioned Tarmok's skill at stonecarving, and for Goglos to claim the snow marble as his own brought anger into Tarmoks heart. This, he knew he couldnt turn away from, this was what Tarmok loved, and he couldnt just stand back and let someone take one of the only good things he had in his life away from him! as he got closer, limping his way through the throng of dwarves gathered to witness the expeditions departure, he saw Tylt standing by the wagon having a hushed conversation with Borath, his mother. Tylt waved for Tarmok to come closer then began talking louder so that Goglos would overhear the conversation.
" As I said my lady, I gave that stone to Squash here, and it is his, that HighHead Ass has no right to it, and I will not allow him to claim anything of mine.... " he said. Goglos peered darkly at the trader for a second but didnt stop his speech to the crowd of dwarves. Then Borath spoke.
" Dont worry Tylt, I will make sure this stone remains with Tarmok, I am sure Goglos is just saying that to the crowd to get them excited and doesnt mean to take it from the boy." she pleaded with the frank trader to avoid a conflict...
" Thats exactly what I mean to say Tylt, the stone is Squash's dont worry!" said Goglos smiling darkly as he ended his speech.
" Good, just keep that in mind, or I will leave you high and dry come winter when you need a trader. I dont take kindly to anyone stepping on my toes! " said Tylt dryly. Then he turned to Tarmok and said. " Well my friend I guess this is goodby until winter, you mind your stone and dont let the ass here take it from ya. " he stated, Goglos snapped a cold look his way but didnt say anything!
" Yesh Tylt, thank you... I will make shomething grand out of it for you I promish! " Tarmok replied, thankful that his freind stood up for him.
It was soon that everyone said their goodby's and the expedition began, Tarmok and Tylt clasped hands, and hugged eachother. The expedition then began moving slowly down the tunnel towards the exit, and then into the dawning light of the early morning. The weather was brisk, as the last of winters chill was being swept away by the beginning of spring. Unlike most dwarves, Tarmok enjoyed the sun, and walked along side the wagon as it made its way across the feilds, reveling in the feeling of adventure that layed itself out in front of him. As he walked, he dreamed about what he would carve from the brilliant white marble block, as it gleamed and shimmered in the morning sunlight. Yet somewhere deep inside him there was an underlying fear in him that he couldnt quite grasp, that his life was about to change forever! As the first day drew on, Tarmok "The Seasoned Squash" dreamed of, and feared what lay in his future!
Author's notes:
I first heard of Dwarf fortress quite a while back from a friend of mine, and I admit right now that when he convinced me to try it out, I was quite confused as to why he even like the game.... honestly I thought it sorta sucked that first time, but I only gave it about 15 minutes before I made that assumption. it wasnt long ago that I found another game called Minecraft, and the maker "Markus "Notch" Persson" stated repeatedly that he got inspiration from dwarf fortress. Well I love Minecraft and decided to see for myself why so many people like DF. Again I DL'ed the game but this time I was determined to stick with it a bit longer, and give the game its due dilligence. I spent about an hour in the game fighting the urge to delete it from my hard drive. but it started to dawn on me that DF was more then it at first seemed to be, I got past the unintelligable looks, and started to see it for the sum of its parts. I am now only 3 weeks into playing the game and I have come to realize that DF is so much more then I believed at first. Everyy world has a long and detailed history, every dwarf has his/her own unique story and back ground, every detail of life in a dwarf fortress is quite fleshed out in a precise and random way. I am no coder, but the scope of what I see coming out of this game astounds me, and makes me wonder why there arent more developers out there putting just as much love and thought into the creation of their own games!
The game is a true inspiration, and I soon began to care for every one of my dwarfs in a way that I hadnt for any other game related character. I found myself getting extremely pissed when a goblin killed one of my precious dwarves, and then wanting revenge on the whol lot. Now I can confidently say, whether I be a nerd or not, I love DF! it has inspired me, I have written stories before but I wanted to give something back to Bay 12 for their creativity. I played DF long enough to know that you cant survive long as a new player, and losing is just as fun (Frustrating as hell but still fun) as surviving. Well the story you just read is based on one of my dwarves who really was a craft dwarf, but I am changing the true story for the sake of storytelling. Right now I ask for forgiveness for my lack of knowledge of DF lore, I wont be spot on, but I can write, and I want to create a story based on this dwarf (who became my favorite dwarf and the first dwarf I had that got the "mysterious mood" thing) and make him into more then he really was! I have no idea if anyone will enjoy this story but I have noticed alot of you here on these forums enjoy a bit of story telling, and I kinda want to join in on the fun. if you like this story (so far) please let me know and I will keep releasing more, if not then I wont. but I have alot of notes as to where this story is gonna go, and if you want to find out more then please tell me so. I tell you now that every detail wont stand up to scrutiny against DF lore, but I will try my best, I am new to DF really and only have a few weeks of exp with it, but I fell in love the second day in trying to play it, and the third is when Tarmok had his little mood swing, and it instantly made me want to take notes.. and this ongoing story will be the result.... anyway I have talked long enough, I hope you enjoy this little bit of the story of Tarmok "the Seasoned Squash" (a name that just popped in my head for some reason) and would like to follow his adventure in the DF universe!
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Topic: Tarmok " The Seasoned Squash " (Read 762 times)