The story of which I am about to tell comes from the Dwarven Fortress of ‘Deathcrystells’ within ‘The Dune of Craft’. It is a Desert Fortress where food and water are sparse within a sea of red and yellow sand. Beneath this horrible plain is a strong obsidian base, where the worthy fortress was founded.
During year 1053 Ducim ILromgeshud, one of my legendary miners, was working on a glass roof project. Ducim was digging on the surface of the desert, channeling out the 5 z-level deep hole that I would eventually glass over. I had already dug out the -1, -2, -4, -5 z-levels. So there was only the surface level and -3 level left.
However I am inexperienced at using the channel function and at how to prevent cave-ins. So the inevitable disaster struck, Ducim caused a cave-in on the top level, fell down two levels, smashed through the floor of the third and landed two levels below. Then the roof proceeded to fall on him, mangling his left and right upper arms (red), breaking his right lower leg (red) and damaging his foot and three of his toes (yellow).
Ducim ILromgeshud lay unconscious on the floor covered in his own blood for many days. Eventually a health care worker came and put him in his room for recovery. I knew that the likelihood of him surviving was low but he was one of my starting 7, and probably my favorite dwarf so I let him live.
It took a few months for me to realize that the miner was extremely thirsty and that I needed a well. So I set about making a well in the middle of a desert. I had to dig out an aquifer that was present in yellow sand but not in red. Seeing as the desert was about 95% red I had a bit of work to do. Ducim was nearing the point of death when my lazy carpenter had finally taken apart a couple beds to make two buckets. A peasant then rushed of to get him a drink of refreshing water.
His recovery was slow. I was almost sure that he was going to die so I ordered an obsidian tomb to be built deep below the fortress. I mandated four platinum and 20 obsidian statues to be built and placed them in his tomb. Ducim’s 10x6 tomb was smoothed, engraved and ready for the death of a king. Ironically as I was putting the finishing touches in, Ducim was nearly back to put health.
To celebrate his recovery, I turned his tomb into a party hall. Many parties were held. I decided to then celebrate Ducims recovery myself by putting a giant skylight over the tomb/party hall that was 9 z-levels beneath the surface. It was a bad Idea.
Ducim and four of his mining buddies were involved in a second cave-in. They fell 9 z-levels to their death landing in the middle of a party currently being held in Ducim’s own tomb. I was taken aback by his Ironic demise.
(This is a true story)
[ March 27, 2008: Message edited by: A_Fey_Dwarf ]
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Topic: A tale of Dwarven Irony (Read 4686 times)