Excerpt from the journal of Mulch Diggums...
Ukat had a conversation with Fred today. She should have remembered that we don't talk to Fred. She's incoherant after suffering a blow to the head. The only semi coherant thing was the suddenly screamed name "AMOST!" before she settled back into a deep slumber. But what does it mean? And which dwarf does it pertain to?
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... I sleep perchance to dream...
"...finely-crafted philosophy paper. It is made of Theology. It is adorned with allusions to James' Pragmatism and menaces with references of David Hume. It is engraved in discussion with the image of Ayer and Kierkegaard and Aquinas and Anselm and God. Ayer and Kierkegaard and Aquinas and Anselm are searching for God..."
"What was that? Who are you?"
"Foolish dwarf! Can't you recognize you own kin?"
"It's so..." For a moment the blurred shape before me regained focus. I recognized the sturdy and bearded figure of my mother before the swirly light overtook my senses once more.
"This can't be! I left you in Nisam Acak! I left to be an engineer!"
"An engineer...?"
I open my mouth to protest but can not force out a sound. Grasping for the ability to vocalize, I feel fury building at those two words, so ambigously pronouced. I no not what to answer and give a toneless, gutteral curse as I feel the choas of the world overtake my senses...
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... I awake at my desk once more. But not my desk at the fortress. No, my old desk at the academy. I feel drowsy, uncertain, Gods, I need a rest but I can't. No, there is studying to be done. I pull a paper towards me and stare at the scribblings on it. The letters reluctantly form words which I martial into sentences...
...This is an Exam. It is made of Differential Equations. It is engraved in red ink with a student and a grade. The student is making a plaintive gesture towards the grade...
I give a cry of protest, throwing the paper away from me. No, no, no! I have studies to do! You haven't seen my sum worth! Don't judge me yet! I grab a new sheet of paper and concentrate.
...This is a Well-crafted Exam. It is made of Biology. It is engraved in red ink with a student and a grade. The student could not care less about the grade.
I angrily rend the paper apart right there. I can't be concerned with this rubbish! There is work! Learning! Let me learn! This time I shall do right! This time I shall prove myself!
"This time?"
I turn, angrily, to show my fury to the voice that mocked me. But I stare at an empty room. There is no emotion in the silence.
I reach for another sheet. Forcing other thoughts out of mind I turn my attention to what is written upon it.
...This is an Exam. It is made of Statics. It is engraved in red ink with a student and a grade. The student is not paying attention to the grade.
"BECAUSE IT'S A JOKE OF A CLASS!" I bellow into the night. I cringe, expecting to have upset the other residents of the dorms. But all is strangely quiet. And then...
"Are you really serious about engineering?" The question is as inevitable as it is degrading. It's all the more harsh for the gentleness of it's tone. I silently mouth the reply; Yes. I do not turn this time, for I know I'll never see the source of these snaring words.
"You should consider the humanities. You show talent in them..."
Humanities, Pah! No work for an honest dwarf like myself!
"Or think about switching to something like accounting"
I slam a fist down upon the desk in fury. Silence.
I pull the sheet of paper my hand rests upon towards me. With absolute devotion of mind and purpose, I begin to read. The gods are kind and this time I am granted peace.
Hours go by. My eyes grow weary from staring at figure after figure. And then, at the bottom of the stack, I find one that has no figures; merely a simple description.
This is an Exam. All craftsdwarfship of the highest quality. It is made of Physics. It is engraved in red ink with a student and a grade. The student is holding aloft the grade triumphantly.
Falling back in my chair I feel a wave of relief come over me. At last I can give in to the fatigue and let proper rest come.
As my mind finally settles peacefully I instill one thought in my mind. You're stronger then you know, Ukat Luslemidek, look hard enough and you will find the way.
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I awoke with a jolt, the darkness lighting the room like a thousand suns compared to the false blackness that filled my dreams. That dream had gone on too long. Time to get back to work. My fortress will be great. Time to get the new recruits in line, instill a little discipline and we'll get past this damn aquifier one way or another.
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Excerpt from the Journal of Mulch Diggums...
... Ukat is awake but I can't help but wonder if her senses have truely returned to her. All day long she dreams up plans of blocking the aquifier, diverting the aquifier, even flooding it with magma! Already we've flooded the bottom floor with an attempt at setting up a wall to stop the water. I can't help but fear what will happen if her magma scheme fails so miserably...
I can't say we haven't been without good fortune though. It seems we can scarcely put a pick into the ground without hitting a gemstone. The dwarves resent Ukat instance that we leave them in the ground "until the time is right" but they do sense an amazing luck about her.
She only takes the slightest interest in things other then the aquifier. The glass industry we've been looking forward to still waits as the magma channel fills itself. She has given me the most haphazard of engraving instructions, the main gate and an obscure side passage. There's little to engrave in any case, I made an engraving of myself engraving and she said it was "as good a work as you've done yet." I've given up on looking to the world for inspiration and started making images of Toads. Fine and noble creatures they are.
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Ukat's Journal, The first day of Winter:
Things are going splendidly! With the new immigrants we have time to properly look into this aquifier challenge. I'm sure success is just around the corner!
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Out of Character:
So yeah, the aquifier is turning out to be a giant pain in the rear. I'm contemplating just rebuilding the entire freaking fortress over at the magma vent.
The magma vent is another source of disappointment. That stuff is moving SLOWLY, it's taken about a month to move halfway along the channel.
All in all, not a lot to say. I'm trapped between an aquifier and the sky. So, I just posted what was on my mind instead.
Author
Topic: So, why're you in charge? A novice attempts greatness (Read 4394 times)