5th of Sandstone
It's no use! It's not a small band of outlaws that rule Pleatedhorse, it's a massive group of dozens of criminals! My tiny band stands no chance against such numbers. Why should I bother to help The Nations of Honoring anyway? My people are at war with them after all... Maybe I should keep interacting with the dwarves? It has been a lucrative endeavor, and I'll need all the wealth I can muster if I'm going to help maintain the forests. We elves can stay sustained with the harvest and tend to the trees no problem, but history has not been kind to us in martial matters. Perhaps I should seek a mercenary warband in the south? It'll be a long journey, but it's sure to be worth the trouble.
6th of Sandstone
Nemo is dead. One of those mutant Hands of Planegifts ambushed him while he was relieving himself. I was always wary of them when they lived in the forest retreats among us, because of their tendancy to go feral like this one. They outnumber us four-to-one in the retreats, it'd be a disaster should they ever revolt. I wonder what I should do...
7th of Sandstone
Seeking to avoid further contact with the human nations in the north, I crossed the famous "Razorbridge." As I chatted with the locals, they mentioned recognizing one of the corpses I brought with me. Apparently a figure had been carved in their likeness and made its way into the sheriff's personal collection. The two people I found were adventurers headed to the Museum of Boltspumpkin! Apparently a special place was carved for those that fell either trying to serve or after having served the Museum called "Herograves." Now that I have slain their killer, I feel honorbound to inter them where they belong.
A Museum, huh? Maybe if I can find a great relic of my people, I can display it there for a century or two. Perhaps it'll bring some estranged elves back to the forests if they see that their homeland is in resurgence. I wouldn't be too adverse to accepting dwarven immigrants either, as long as they can live without lumber like civilized folk.
8th of Sandstone
I've lost the corpses, and I fear what might become of them! I saw smoke billowing from the shore so I went to investigate, and found a monstrous-looking human punching crabs to death and raising them again! A small, scuttling swarm I saw in the distance and the stench of death filled the air. Then he noticed me! I took off running, but one of the soldiers I hired on the way here challenged him. It didn't last long, but at least he afforded the rest of us time to escape.
(OOC: I lost the corpses of Laci and Vadane in Ghoulcreek while fleeing from Ketas. Oops.)
9th
I found a headless corpse wandering around the forest. I hit it with my spear, and it remembered that it should be dead. Butchered it for good measure. Could this have something to do with the warrior I fled from yesterday? I should revisit the camp later, preferrably with an army at my back.
10th of Sandstone
I wandered into the city of Incenseorder. It's comepletely abandoned. More than that, it looks like a massive battle took place here and within the castle lies the corpse of a great demon. Old blood stains the outside of the keep, but the inside is smothered by soot and ash. After what I saw on my journey here, I decided it prudent to butcher the beast and hopefully rendering it useless to those that can raise the dead. In the ashes, I find some armor that's surprisingly fitting to my form. I'm horribly slow and clumsy wearing it, but it should help stop the odd sword or two.
I met a group of human merchants picking through the ruins of the city and shared a meal with them. They mentioned that a dwarfen fortress far to the north had met a similar fate. Something by the name of "Relicwards." It's a long way there, so hopefully I can find some time to practice wearing this armor.
14th of Sandstone
I visted a nearby fortress that seemed abandoned. There was a single resident, a dwarf insane with sickness and covered in nasty blisters. He tried attacking me at the top of a large, spiral rampway. I dodged his whip, and Beakie drove him back with her spear. He backed off too far, however and plummeted a full 47 levels to the bottom. All I heard was a massive crash echoing through the tunnel. When I went down to check on him, I found that he exploded into many different pieces. He landed with enough force to greatly damage the armor he was wearing, too!
(Pictured: A blighted thrall in five separate pieces.
Every extremity came off.)
17th of Sandstone
I've finally made it to Relicwards, and I'm starting to have doubts. There are so many corpses strewn about, with enough steel arms and armor scattered to dress an army! The fortress itself is isolated, but with how much gold and steel there is on the outskirts, I can't help but wonder what has kept scavengers away all these years? Something is very wrong here, but I can't help but feel like I must continue deeper inside...
The inside of the fortress is quite different, however. While there's a giant mess outside, the inside is eerily clean. Deeper within, I found an armory which must have enough full steel suits of armor to outfit every last dwarf living in this world! I'll certainly have to return later with some dwarfen mercenaries, I'm sure they'll appreciate the plunder.
--
I knew it! My intuition was rewarded! I've found a pair of magnificent glass bracelets! On a pair of pedastals, they were named Whiskerweakens and Lashfleshes. I shall take them both, and figure out what to do with them later. They're too beautiful to leave down here, collecting dust. Deeper still is a small library with a decent selection of scientific manuals, and even a few guides to elven forest retreats. Said books were originally authored by a goblin named Olngo Hellcackled, who fled to the elven nation after being religiously persecuted, only to be caught up in The War of Fists, in which the dead nearly conquered the world. It's an interesting point of view, seeing how much has changed after nearly six hundred years!
--
Now I know why the fortress hasn't been picked clean. I'm the only one fool enough to step foot in here in the last few decades. I write this now, standing above seemingly endless pits staring into the eyes of a giant, golden statue of an ancient demon. The dwarves here did not arm themselves to renew past glories, they sought to out-do past evils. They've suffered for their hubris, but now I find myself in a precarious position. The smart thing to do would be to leave immediately with my newfound wealth. But something else is egging me on. It feels like my curiosity won't be sated until I see a real, living demon. So I must venture deeper.
(Pictured: I'm having some regrets.)
The bottom of these pits, I've finally found. Menacing glass spikes line the floors. It must've been a sacrificial chamber. I shudder to think what kind of ruthless dwarves lived here. They're bordered by a strangely shaped viewing area. The spikes all look clean, I can't help but wonder if they were ever used, or just meticulously cleansed of gore after use?
I finally find evidence for what transpired here. Proof to my theories. The remains of demons at the very depths of this fortress. But still, I must go deeper. Past the dead demons are forges powered by magma. Deeper still is an expansive cavern with a glittering blue pillar of stone jutting upwards from the floor, right near the stairs. It is like no metal I have ever seen before. At the bottom of the stairs, the pillar had a hole. Something drew me in, I found myself able to climb the rough stone walls as easily as I climbed the trees back home. But as I reached the bottom of this hollow tube, I saw nothing but certain doom awaiting me below. An endless pit glowing with an eerie purple light. I had already gone too far before, it was finally time to go back up.
While scavenging the surface for valuables, we found a large, ornate coffin. Perhaps this'll be a good donation to Herograves? Maybe a sort of "I'm sorry we lost the hero corpses you wanted to a deranged necromancer"