Part 328th Obsidian
I continued my trek across the tundra north of the Tower. The weather has only gotten worse, and the thick fog enveloping the land makes it difficult to even distinguish between day and night. Just when I was wondering if I would ever be free of it, I saw a treeline in the distance. As I entered the forest, the fog began to melt away. Finally, I was out of the tundra, and from the treetops, I could see my destination in the distance. Well, destinations. Rising above the rest of the mountain range was the great peaks of the Point of Heroes, and the volcano, the Torch of Courtesies. I intended to climb both these mountains, which are estimated to be two of the tallest peaks in the world (OOC note: 3rd and 4th tallest, to be exact, standing at 276 tiles high each) From the peaks, I intend to document the basin of the Cosmos of Shows, and record my notes on the region for future scholars to impart upon the common man.
The great peaks of the Point of Heroes and the Torch of Courtesies, rising above the clouds hanging over the Kindred Jungles
To the north of the tundra, I stumbled across another abandoned dwarven fortress. To the east of the entrance lay a few skeletons, half buried by the snow. One of the bodies seemed to have decomposed less than the others. Searching it revealed a backpack that contained a variety of items, including an overly ornate animal trap, and a bismuth bronze short sword of the highest quality:
In the bottom of the backpack was the head of a female dwarf, seemingly unaffected by decomposition despite all evidence indicating that these bodies had been here for years. Could this be the head of Cog the dwarven necromancer? That would make this the body of Th4DwArY1 Shieldtempests… Could he have been cursed in the same way that I am? Either way, whatever killed him must be close, and if it could kill someone with knowledge of the secrets of life and death, it was not something that I wanted to encounter. I grabbed the sword and the animal trap, and left the body of Th4DwArY1 Shieldtempests and the head of Cog behind in the snow. Hopefully Th4DwArY1 Shieldtempests was able to find the peace that evidently has eluded Cog.
Despite my intentions, as I was walking away from the bodies, I heard a noise coming from inside the abandoned fortress. Surely it wouldn’t hurt to take a peek? And I am glad I did, for when I ducked inside the towering entranceway to the fortress, I found one of Cog’s deranged experiments, shuffling about. As I approached it, it looked up at me and spoke out, greeting me, and telling me its name was Ishes Sebidola. The creature seemed lost and scared, so I took pity on it, and asked it to join me on my journey. It eagerly accepted my offer, and fell in line behind me.
His presence here makes me wonder at Cog’s role in all of this. Could Cog be the reason that this fortress now lies abandoned? Perhaps, after trying to kill Cog, Th4DwArY1 Shieldtempests fled to the north, and was eventually tracked down by Cog’s minions. The true answers to all of these questions are likely lost to time, but perhaps some answers may lie in the depths of this fortress, which Ishes informs me is called “Palacework.” However, if they are there, I was not able to find them. Indeed, besides Ishes and some reanimated animal corpses (the work of Cog, I assume) Palacework seems largely void of both treasures and inhabitants; another dead hall of the dead race of the dwarves. I did take some copies of some unknown books along with me from the library, in addition to some writing equipment, to supplement the quires I bought at the start of my journey. Upon Ishes’ insistence that Palacework was in fact haunted, we left in somewhat of a hurry, leaving behind the many steel weapons in the armoury below.
29th Obsidian
Our journey continued to the west of Palacework. On our way to begin our ascent into the mountains, we found a medium-sized obsidian building in a clearing at the foot of the mountain range. To my surprise, we also found some humans and goblins milling around the outside of the building. They seemed friendly enough, despite my choice of companion, so we approached, and asked a human maceman about this strange site. After some brief questioning, he revealed that this site is called “Championvault” and is ruled by a group called “the Urns of Joining”, a dwarven group associated with the Walled Dye, the group that I had run into at the cave of Mischiefpit. This site seemed to be a far cry from that squalid cave, so I decided to investigate. What initially appeared to be one building was in fact two, the building to the west being slightly larger than the other.
Looking north towards the two obsidian buildings of Championvault, in the snowy clearing at the foot of the mountains.
Inside Championvault is rather underwhelming. Contrary to the legends of underground cities paved with gold, Championvault seems to me to be a more settled version of Mischiefpit. Perhaps that is a bit too harsh. It’s more of an underground hamlet. Having to walk through a pile of corpses to get in the main entrance certainly did not endear me to this place.
On the first level are the farms, and some associated workshops. The second level has more workshops, storage, and the saddest excuse for a library I have ever seen. No books at all! Hardly deserving of being called a library. The levels below that contain the sleeping areas, along with numerous dead end hallways, unfinished rooms, and mining areas. If Championvault is truly a new settlement of the Walled Dye, it seems that the golden age of the dwarves is long behind them. If this is to be their future, hiding in dank caves until the end of time, one can’t help but feel sorry for them. However, perhaps the dwarves are not entirely to blame for the sorry state of Championvault. Indeed, I only saw a handful of dwarves in my time there. Most of the population seems to be comprised of goblins, and humans secondly. Quite strange indeed.
1st Granite, 727
After camping out near Championvault, we headed into the mountains. It may technically be spring, but here in the mountains it feels like the dead of winter. The snow is waist high in many places, and we are buffeted by the endless gales that lash snow across our faces. Even though I no longer truly feel temperature anymore, it is a thoroughly unpleasant experience. Ishes seems unbothered by it all however, and is the picture of a perfect travelling companion. She frequently fills me in on all sorts of current events. How she knows them, being stuck deep underground in Palacework is anyone’s guess. Having her along reminds me of Iral, and her untimely death. I can’t help but think how callous I was regarding her death. She may have wished for a glorious death, but no one deserves to die like that, ripped apart by a pack of dingoes in a desert far from home. In truth, I missed having a companion with me.
We stopped for the night, resting against a boulder. Ishes prepared a small campfire, and we relaxed and watched the stars. It was clear for the first time in a while, and we could see the full moon rising in the eastern sky. Another upside of not requiring sleep is that it allows me to appreciate the beauty of the cosmos so much more than before. For the first time since leaving Keyconjure, the voices of the dead are truly silent, and I can almost forget about the curse. All it took was walking off the edge of the world, into the great unknown, climbing peaks that no man, dwarf, or beast has ever climbed. Tomorrow, we continue.
2nd Granite
In the morning, the weather had returned to its previous state, and the tranquility of the previous night was replaced by a heavy snowfall.
The heavy cloud cover made it difficult to orient ourselves, and it took us a while to realize that we had been going the wrong way. While we had intended to climb the Point of Heroes first, before looping down to the Torch of Courtesies, we had somehow found ourselves to the south of the Torch of Courtesies. Once we had realized our mistake, we corrected course, and after descending into a river valley, we found ourselves at the base of the Torch of Courtesies. Above us was the most difficult climb yet, an almost vertical cliff. Although I was a competent climber, aided by my seemingly endless reserves of stamina, I found myself envious of Ishes’ wings. Wings or no wings, we reached the top in good time, right as the clouds began the clear.
Up here, the stench of sulfur was strong, and thick black smoke choked the air. I could hear the magma pool hissing and popping below. Despite our achievement, we took little time to revel in it, and quickly moved on, pushing northwards towards the Point of Heroes. Moving downwards, I passed the body of an owl Ishes had killed earlier. Somehow we had walked right by the Torch of Courtesies while enveloped in fog.
With the snow no longer falling, and the sun out, we made great time, and later that afternoon, we found ourselves cresting the summit of the Point of Heroes.
I pulled myself up the last ledge, Ishes flying behind, and was greeted by one of the most magnificent sights I have seen in my life. Looking south from the summit I could see the tundra below, and the top of Cog’s tower, barely visible in the dense fog that still hung over the area. Beyond that was the Cosmos of Shows and the surrounding jungle, the dense tree cover obscuring the places I had visited on my journey here: Mischiefpits, the unknown structure where I lost my finger, and of course, Keyconjure. And at the end of it all was the Sea of Blades, stretching off into the horizon. Somewhere near the east shore was my old home of Strifefularmor. Although it has scarcely been a month since I first set out on this journey, it feels as though a lifetime has passed. And, in some ways, it has. Even if I had wanted to return to my old life, a humble city doctor with a passion for enlightening the common man, I would not be able to. Even my old goal of travelling the world and sharing the knowledge of my journey with the masses seems insignificant now. The thoughts from before danced around in my head. Is it the fate of the searcher of knowledge to end up as I have? Or as Cog has? To lose your humanity and live out the rest of your days watching the world die around you?
And yet… Sitting at the top of the Point of Heroes, reflecting on the journey that has led me to this point, I feel free. More free than I have ever felt, even before I was cursed at Keyconjure. Perhaps I am not doomed to end up like Cog, trapped alone in a tower, waiting out the end of the world by toying with the lives of others; innocent beings like Ishes. There are many like Ishes who are just looking for someone to help them find a new life. There are many like Iral, who are just looking for adventure, to explore the farthest corners of the world. And there are many like my old self, looking to learn about this world and share that knowledge with others. All of these people deserve their chance at life. The world is not over because I have been cursed, and the Ishes, Irals, and Glloyds of the world will need all the help they can get if they are to make it, and to avoid my mistakes.
After taking some time to rest and draw the landscape before me, I set off with renewed vigor. First, back to the Realm of Silver. From there, I would head across the tundra into the north, following the path of the Purged Loot to the lands where goblins and humans waged constant war with eachother.
6th Granite
We made good time heading down from the mountains, and before we knew it, we were standing by the banks of the Purged Loot, where the great river meets the Sea of Blades. Looking south, we could see the Teeth of Defense rising above the horizon. Located a short distance to the northwest of my old home of Strifefularmor, the Teeth of Defense was the first mountain I had ever climbed, when I was a young man. The view from above looks out over the Realm of Silver and the Sea of Blades, as the mountain stands alone on the lowlands that surround the Sea of Blades.
7th Granite
Following the Purged Loot north, we encountered another shadow creature, who ran out from a nearby hillock brandishing a copper carving fork, and attacked us with vigor.
Between Ishes and I, it didn’t stand much of a chance, and before long, the fight was over.
8th Granite
While passing through a seemingly abandoned hamlet along the banks of the Purged Loot, we were attacked by bandits. Even before the Great Plague, the north of the Realm of Silver has been infested by bandit groups. With the depopulation of towns following the plagues of the last two decades, the bandits seem to be the only ones left.
Despite outnumbering us, we were able to take them out with relative ease, although Ishes is certainly worse for the wear.
The leader of the bandits had a steel helm sized for humans, a rare prize indeed. I left my damaged copper helm lying in the field with the bodies of the bandits, and we continued on our way.
9th Granite
We stopped briefly in the great trading city of Scarletbronze, itself an interesting enigma. Its position near the edge of the tundra makes it one of the first stops for anyone entering or leaving the Realm of Silver. However, it is dominated criminal organizations, all trying to get a piece of the trade that flows through here.
To the east of Scarletbronze is another great city of the Realm of Silver, Streammartyred. Streammartyred is dominated by the leather industry, but in recent years the explosion of the cat population has created a lot of issues, especially for the local birds. However, as we approached, we noticed that the city was surrounded by tents. At first, I thought Streammartyred to be under siege by some unknown army. However, once entering one of the camps, we found that they were in fact refugee encampments, filled to the brim with outcasts from all walks of life.
(OOC note: To anyone wanting to check out these camps in a future game, be warned that trying to (d) stop at or near some of them, or walk into them from the local map would immediately crash my game. Upon looking at legends viewer, and taking a walk through the town, I think that the entire population of this [very large] city might be camping outside of it for some reason.)
The refugees seemed friendly enough, but none of them would tell us where they came from and why. Due to the relative peace of the Realm of Silver, I believe that many of them may have fled from the north, where massive goblin armies are a constant threat to any settlement. Regardless, we continued onwards, following the course of the Purged Loot. Along our way, we encountered two more shadow creatures, which we were able to beat with little trouble, although one did get a good cut in on my hand, leaving me with a nasty scar. Perhaps I should invest in gauntlets one of these days.
10th Granite
Approaching the tundra, we passed the town of Swordgleamed. Little more than a castle with a market, Swordgleamed is ruled by a large group of bandits. Merchants coming to the Realm of Silver know to stick to the west bank of the Purged Loot, as the east bank is dominated by bandits, especially in the area around Swordgleamed. Indeed, even passing through the outskirts of Swordgleamed brought us into contact with a large bandit group.
They didn’t seem to be immediately hostile, which allowed us to get out of there, but I would not recommend any future travelers pass through Swordgleamed. (OOC note: Not least because the FPS on the local map is unplayable)
19th Granite
After passing by Swordgleamed, we followed the Purged Loot north into the tundra. Like the tundra in the north of the Cosmos of Shows river basin, the tundra along the path of the Purged Loot was covered in a thick blanket of fog. It has been a month since I was cursed in the halls of Keyconjure, and yet, since I left the Point of Heroes, time has seemed to fly by. The weight on my shoulders has been lifted, and I even find myself joking and laughing with Ishes as we pass through the tundra, despite the bleak weather. For now, things are looking up.
(OOC: I'll post the save later tonight, and probably post part 4 tomorrow. I obviously don't have time for a fortress, but I did have time to put something together with my adventurer, which you'll see in part 4)
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Topic: Museum III, adventure succession game (DF 0.47.05) (Read 476109 times)