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[Paulus Fahlstrom]

20th of Galena

One of our stonecrafters abandoned his work today helping the clean-up crew outside to go and claim a craftdwarf workshop. It seems he made a very nice pair of obsidian earrings, though the name does leave something to be desired. I considered asking him in to see whether it was because he'd spent the last month cleaning up goblin corpses from the siege or whether it was because the Queen and entourage had arrived. I decided not to. It was better not knowing some things.



I've also learned some interesting tidbits from the military that have been sparring around here. Apparently Aardvark, Kuli and Zuglar have been named the heroes (heroine in Zuglar's case) of the siege of 1060. Aardvark has received the title of Gegetegom, making him now Aardvark Tallpaint the Violet Natures. I believe that may be due to the coloration of his armor after the siege, the normal slightly bluish tint had taken on a violet lustre with the addition of fresh goblin blood. Apparently he personally obtained sixteen kills in the last siege, bringing his total up to twenty one goblins. Zuglar on the other hand had a slightly more unusual title, Lecadgan Ezar, or Zuglar Gemclasps the Clean Dish of Soldiers. Kuli performed admirably I've heard despite being unarmed for part of it and earned the title Vudnisstakud Giken, making his full name now Kuli Dancetreaties the Tenacious Machine of Lightning. A much fiercer sounding name than Dancetreaties, one I am aware that he dislikes due to it's elven-sounding nature. Apparently they were able to take a few prisoners as well, so maybe I can persuade Aardvark and Ragnar to leave me some so that when I am healed I can get back into fighting form should it be necessary. We'll see when the time comes. I am anxious to be out of this bed!

[Flintus10]

name: Kolok
Proffesion:Full time Axedwarf
Gender: male

gj keep it up

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

1st of Limestone

It's remarkable how the first breezes of autumn make me feel so much better. My arm and hand is now fully recovered and my left leg as well. My right leg has been improving also and though it is still tender and unable to bear my weight it no longer wakes me in the night throbbing if I've moved it funny. A warmish breeze even managed to make itself felt when someone left the outer doors open.

There were other issues that have arisen as well that ordinarily would demand my attention. Bembul has been overseeing matters well enough in my absence, but this was something that gave me pause when I heard about it. Apparently Melonius has been absent for some time, but with so many dwarves about wasn't really missed. Someone heard his weak cries during an uncommon quiet period in our statuary and he was spotted below on the frozen river hunting for vermin to eat. I don't know how long he'd been there. Long enough to be starving and dehydrated in any case. One of the miners was assigned to tunnel down to him to retrieve him. Needless to say as soon as he was rescued he headed straight for the food and drink. He was emaciated and looked near death. Bembul met with him later and Melonius claims that he was pushed off the edge of our statuary as he was admiring the waterfall. But he would say no more.

I wonder if with the arrival of the Queen some past grudges may have surfaced and someone tried to have him disposed of. I suppose it is possible. I've heard that Melonius had has pretentions of being noble but no verification of said birthright. I've conjectured that it may be possible he is even related, illegitimately, to the Queen herself, though I've no concrete proof of that. It might explain the recent events though.

[Kuli]

Kuli performed admirably I've heard despite being unarmed for part of it and earned the title Vudnisstakud Giken, making his full name now Kuli Dancetreaties the Tenacious Machine of Lightning. A much fiercer sounding name than Dancetreaties, one I am aware that he dislikes due to it's elven-sounding nature.

Awesome.  That's a pretty cool title.  By the way, is Kuli in white because he's a wrestler, or a champion?

Still following this story and enjoying it.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

14th of Limestone

I heard the shouts of alarm from the upper slopes but they were rapidly called off. Apparently two thieves had been spotted up there by the clean-up crew but they ran off before they could be caught and killed. Unfortunately not long after a third was spotted just outside the doors to my building by Sodel, one of our butchers. He managed to catch the creature and throttle it, but not before the kobold had plunged it's weapon into Sodel's head, putting out an eye. For butchers depth perception can be pretty important, or so I would imagine, so I fear we'll be calling Sodel, three-fingered Sodel before too long. I can only hope any missing digits are not found in the stew later.

On the bright side, hours after the kobold incident, the dwarven caravan showed up. Maybe the little buggers were wanting to get a jump on the goods.

((Kuli's in white because he's a wrestler. Actually his wrestling and spearwork are about at the same level, but because you lost your weapon during the siege and wrestled three or four goblins to death you achieved your next rank of wrestling first. I wish you were a champion, but because you and Ragnar both have nervous system wounds, albeit light ones, you do not engage in sparring. Ever. Which makes it very difficult to achieve the rank of Champion. Don't worry. You'll get there eventually... or die in glorious combat trying. ))

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

16th of Sandstone

Nish, our prolific guard gave birth to a girl today. For the life of me I don't know what she was thinking, sparring in the room next door in her condition.

Bembul also came to visit me today to inform me that the merchants had brought what we requested. We'd asked for a large stock of gemstones and they certainly brought one. The King consort himself was in the trade depot admiring the selection. In fact, according to Bembul, half the fort volunteered to help take them to the proper storage bins in the special workshop area. I'm not sure they'll all fit from what Bembul mentioned. He even brought me a black diamond to show me. It truly was a thing of beauty. Now we'll have to find suitable  things to do with them. Perhaps I'll let Melonius get some practice at his other skill now.

In any case, things are going well. My leg still won't support my weight fully, though it's better than last time and I have my other leg I can use.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

28th of Timber

Bembul came in to visit me again today, wringing his hands as he came. He's anxious to make sure that the Queen and King Consort are situated well in their rooms, and he's the one now that has to listen to them when they complain that it's not up to snuff yet. The Queen insisted on five cabinets in their rooms, and as we had none of any quality, Bembul had put five in there as a temporary measure while he had others made that were better. Only one of the obsidian cabinets was truly masterful, and though the silver ones were not as good, they were prettier and would likely please the royalty more. Of course, they were still in the special crafts shop having the final touches and decorations added to them.

Bembul told me that the pair of platinum statues of the Queen and King were finally finished, that they looked magnificent. Our gemsetters had done a good job covering up minor flaws in the metalwork itself and the result was two very aestetically pleasing statues. Worth nearly ten thousand ingot each. Lord Rovod had done all the metalsmithing and done a fine job of it, but Bembul was still concerned that they wouldn't be liked, or up to snuff. I assured him they'd be fine. And if more was needed for the Queen's chambers then it could be taken care of later. The cabinets for example would still take some time, but since every other piece of furniture in there, with the exception of the silver statues of our champions which were fitted with steel armor to resemble actual guards at attention, was liberally bedecked with jewels there was little else that could be done.

I particularly appreciated those silver statues. They'd been originally commissioned for the statuary near the waterfall, but had been removed the the royal chambers out of necessity. New ones would be made eventually for the statuary and Lord Rovod would, I'm sure, be happy to make them. He was legendary at the smelter, knowing the temperature and readiness of the metal just from the color it had, but his metalwork wasn't quite as good and he relished every opportunity to practice more.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

The more I talk with Led about things the more I'm convinced he's destined for a very interesting future, should he recover fully and should he not get himself killed in the process that is. Looking back through my journal I realised that he is the creator of Desistirdug Virnanges the turtle shell mini-forge. Over time that single artifact has had more influence and mention in our engravings and other artifacts than any other. In part I suspect because he devoted it to Avuz, the proclaimed godess of our clan and patron of Dorenemal. I feel that it should receive one of the high places of honor in the new temple dedicated to her, once it is finished that is.

Led on the other hand seems to have become strangely attached to bonecarving now, having made a good portion of the bolts used for practice as well as a goodly number of other goods, such as totems. I thought it funny at first that the totems simply used the skull of a creature, but the kobold and goblin totems were very popular with traders, as well as the wolf totems. Though Led was originally a hunter by trade he now calls himself the 'Hunter of bones', as if it were an official title. He's got some interesting ideas, to be certain, and he's very talented in addition to being fanatically loyal to the clan, so I'm willing to indulge some new ideas on his behalf. I only hope he hasn't lost the use of his arms due to the hammering. I suppose the fact that he survived five hammer-strikes at all is a good sign that he'll eventually recover.

The construction projects go well by all accounts, though, in all honesty, I long to be up and walking again. I've lain too long in bed and fear I'll go crazy if I am not able to do something soon. It's been over a year since I was hammered, though admittedly I feel much better than a year ago. Still, I suppose I must be patient with these things as well. Mountains did not form in a day.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

22nd of Moonstone

Apparently Urvad herself has found a solution for my boredom. She visited me today to make a request. Apparently her youngest, little Paulus, has finally grown up to be a child and rather than letting him run around completely scott-free and pick his own work she asked me to 'tutor' him as it were. She'd discussed it with a few of the other mothers around here who had children that wanted to learn and so now I periodically hold meetings with just over half a dozen kids. It should certainly be interesting.

Right off the bat one of them asked me if I would be teaching them anything about fighting goblins. I suspected that that was one of Nish's children, they bear a strong resemblance to their father. Since I didn't have a well thought out lesson plan yet I simply told them what I expected of them, which involved them thinking about the questions I asked and being observant of things around them. Their first assignment was to see thing from someone or something else's perspective. We'll see what happens when I meet with them next. I should be ready for them by then. May Kashez the Velvety incence have mercy on me.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

6th of Opal

Lokum, one of our woodburners gave birth to a boy today.

The anklebiters have also returned as requested. It was certainly an interesting discussion.

"All right, I hope you've all thought about the choice of perspective."

One of them raised a hand, a somewhat burly lad in the back.

"What good is this? I mean, honestly, it's not like this stuff is that useful. Teach us about warfare or tactics or engineering stuff. Teach us how to fight goblins!"

"Let me put it this way then, this is the first lesson because it's the most important. This will help you fight goblins and whatever else you may encounter." Several of them perked up at this mention. "I'll tell you why. Better yet, I'll show you. You asked the question. I want you to stand directly in front of me. You there, lass, stand to my side."

I held up a hand with three fingers in front of me, and my other hand with four fingers behind me. Turning to the lad who'd asked the question and now stood at the foot of my bed I asked:

"So, how many fingers and I holding up."

He looked at me like it was a trick question. "Three of course."

I asked the same question to the lass to my side to which she responded, "Seven."

"Now, this lesson is all about perspective. You could only see three fingers from where you stood, while she could see seven. What if that had been a goblin ambush? What if you only saw three from where you were approaching but in reality there were seven? Would that change any decisions you made?"

Several murmurs of agreement.

"But there is more to it than that. It's not necessarily what direction you look at problems but how you look at them. Seeing things from different perspectives is very useful, but keep in mind that more often than not we're not seeing the whole picture. There are details that we cannot see because they're hidden from us. But a lot of the times we can infer, or guess, things based on observations.

In addition, there are lessons that can be learned from all around us. You can learn a lot of things by paying attention. For example, look at the floor here in this room and compare it to the floor in the hallway. Go on, take a look and tell me what you see."

Some dropped to the floor to examine it, while a few went directly to the hallway.

"It's obsidian in both places." one called out.

"And it's been smoothed." mentioned another.

I smiled. "True, but try to notice the differences instead of the similarities now."

The young Paulus, who had been relatively quiet up till now, commented: "There seems to be a difference in the slight marks made when it was smoothed though. The room has smaller marks than the hallway."

"Good observation. Why might that be the case?"

He paused for a moment to consider. "Because the tools used were different sizes. These are tooling marks from stone chisels, the chisels used in the halls were broader than those used in this room."

"Precisely. You there... what's your name?"

"Cog, sir."

"I've seen you with some of the stoneworkers up on the wall before have I not?"

"Yes, sir."

"Tell me then, is there variation in the size of the tools that the stoneworkers use?"

He thought about it for a second but then shook his head, hesitantly. "Not that I know of."

"Right, our tools are made essentially to a standard size across our kingdom. This ensures similarities in measurements and such. The reason that this room has different size tooling marks is that it was not made by dwarves. It was smoothed by goblins."

Many of them looked uneasy at the mention of this being a goblin-made room.

"Now, I want you to do the assignment over again. Try looking at things from a different perspective. Specifically I want you to pick a farmer, any farmer, and try to see fortress life from their perspective. Then I want you to try to see things from our Mayor's perspective. Thirdly, pick anything you want and look at it from that person or thing's perspective and be prepared to tell me what you've observed when we meet next."

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

The kids were chatting animatedly about things they had seen when they entered my room and I let them, listening to what they were saying with their lips as well as with their features. I wasn't the only silent one. Young Paulus and one of Nish's children was also silent, taking the time to observe rather than talk. I made a note of that before we began.

The children had many observations. A farmer was much more concerned with the seasons and weather outside, about the quality of soil, about the potential for diseases entering his crop. A few of the children noted that farmers felt that their professions was different than almost all others in the fortress. Perhaps because of it they tended to be a tight-knit group, supporting each other and knowing about each others lives.

Bembul was almost another extreme. He had been so busy that few of the children had been able to meet with him and talk, and he'd shooed them off several times in order to have meetings.

When I asked the children which of the two professions was more important most of the children blurted out their answers almost immeadiately.

"Bembul."
"Farming."
"Farming."
"Mayor."

I chuckled, despite it all. Turning to Nish's child, the one that had observed before the lesson began, I asked what she thought of it, considering the class couldn't come to a consensus.

She thought a bit before answering but was very correct in her assessment.

"Neither is more important. Both are very important though. Being Mayor is perhaps more stressful as he has to make decisions that affect many, but without the farmers the fortress could not thrive as it does either."

"Well said. All of you look at your hands. Good, now look at your feet. If you were to choose which of them were more important could you? If you were to lose either your hands or your feet could you decide? The answer isn't so simple since for you to be a productive member of the clan you need both reasonably intact.

Now, on to the last bit. I heard you all discussing what else you chose to observe and there were some interesting choices. I hope you've learned from them things that will be useful to you. I'm curious to hear what you chose, Paulus."

He hesitated a little before speaking out.

"I went up the tower and observed a sparrow flying to try and see things from it's point of view."

Several of the children snickered. Birds were generally considered somewhat undwarven and typically seen as more of an annoyance of being aboveground.

"Now be quiet. Let's hear him out. What was interesting about them?"

He started again, somewhat abashed.

"Well, they know the weather and wind currents that drift about the cliffs better than anything I've seen. They know what the weather is going to be like, since before a storm they tend to head for cover. They have complete freedom of motion and can go where they please."

One of the bigger children was still chuckling and making fun to another child.

"What's so funny?" I demanded of him.

He looked a little guilty but spoke out irregardless.

"Well, sir. I don't know how much good that would be. We don't have anything to do with the birds, and little more with where they tend to be."

"You then are fool to thing the observations are useless." I was beginning to get annoyed. "Because we live in a relatively peaceful area of the mountains and have for some time you think you know what the rest of the world is like. We have high walls that protect us from our foes now, and steel to keep our soldiers safe, and you think that enough. Imagine if you would then what life would be like if things were different. Imagine what it would be like if kobolds had wings and could fly."

Several of the children smiled at this but as they thought about it they smiled less. Some of them ventured ideas.

"We'd have a lot more stuff knicked that's for sure."

That sentence of a child's seemed to receive general acceptance.

I agreed. "Aye, and what then? Our walls would do no good. They could steal with near impunity since, though we have one entrance through our front gates, we have at least a dozen other ways in to those that could fly. We'd have to post guards at all those locations, and keep them rotated and fresh. I guarantee you that the kobolds wouldn't be happy to steal from us for long. They'd send archers after that. What would we do then? Creatures that could fly over our walls and rain down arrows upon us from above, that could shoot down from higher than our own crossbows could reach?

Kobolds are just an example. None of use here has ever seen a dragon either, but they exist. What if a dragon came? What good would our walls do then, when a dragon landed on our roof and came down the central stair? Paulus makes a good observation. It isn't necessarily enough to be well defended from the ground if a bird can come and go as they please. Still, I hope that you learn from this and consider all knowledge as being beneficial. The key is knowing how to use it."

The children were silent as they left. I'd given them much to think about.

[Frelock]

Glad to see you back and posting.  Still enjoying the story.  Keep it up!

[Aardvark]

It was great to come back after a busy summer and read about Dorenemal. The story seems to be going great, and it is even more interesting for each new post that comes. Your writing skills have increased and the storyline with our queen has me asking questions about what the Dwarven royalty has planned for us.

I would like to see Aardvarks profile and inventory. I also want to know what quality rating his armour has, and if there isn't dug out a great mausoleum for the champions of our hold it should be created. A mausoleum garden with silver (he likes silver) statues for every champion in front of their coffin, the statues are moddeled after them. Remember that I do not know if there already are something like it.

[Paulus Fahlstrom]

I was speaking with Bembul when another dwarf interrupted us. It didn't bother me much, it was always nice to have visitors, though he seemed a little hesitant at first he quickly confided the reason for his visit. Giving me a deep nod he began:

"Hoy, Paulus, Bembul. My apologies fer interruptin'. Just to let you know sir, " addressing Bembul, " the south upper slopes have been cleared of decent trees and we're most of the way through the north one as well."

Turning to me he also had a question. "I've been wonderin', see, when I came here I was a nobody. I spent my time like many helpin' ta build our walls and now with an axe providing us lumber. I find I likes the axe and since it'll be a number of years before the trees are regrown I'd like to join the military and practice my axework a bit more. I promise I'll be an able defender."

I looked at him, he had seen his fair share of weathering, that was to be sure, the tanned skin and lined face betraying the time spent in the sun and storm. I looked to Bembul who gave a non-committal shrug, indicating that he had no preference. Nodding I replied:

"Well, it looks like you've drafted yourself then. Go see Aardvark for your gear and tell him I sent you to join his forces."

It was then that we noticed the heavy clank of tread coming down the hall.

"Tell me what?"

Aardvark himself walked in, nodding at Bembul and myself before sizing the new recruit up.

"Nice to see you Aardvark. Kolok here wanted to join the military as an axedwarf. Ye got armor for him?"

"Aye, we should. You, Kolok, head over to the barracks and see what we've got in stock. Mind you double up with chainmail too."

Kolok bowed deeply to all of us and headed over, a small grin spread across his face as he left.

"And what can I do for you Aardvark?"

"Get better so we can get this place in proper shape again if you don't mind. No offence Bembul. I've been thinking though and it's high time we arranged for a proper location for our dead. Specifically our military heroes."

"Sounds reasonable. What do you have in mind?"

"I'd like to see a grand mausoleum. Obsidian coffins inlaid with silver or something and a silver statue in the likeness of any who pass on."

I grinned. I was aware that he was fond of silver. He certainly would have no shortage of it here. Despite the road being made of silver we still had a large amount of it.

"I'm sure we can manage that. I think the lowest floor or two would be a suitable location for it. I'll put it on the list of projects right away."

"Good. See you two around."

As he walked out I noticed that rather than carrying a steel shield he was using a beat up and rather dented goblin one made of iron. I'd have to ask him about that some other time. Perhaps he didn't want to ding up his good steel ones in practice.

Bembul and I added that to the list of projects he was working on. There certainly were enough of them.

((My apologies for not posting much lately. I was distracted by the Ender challenge and experimenting with version 40d. Now that I've got slaughtering Ender's by the dozens out of my system I'll be back to writing. Oh, and here's some of the requested images. Currently there are no dead champions actually Aardvark, so it simply hasn't been a pressing issue. The few outstanding dwarves we've had that have passed away have received their own mausoleums as needed. But I'll take care of it and post a pic. Oh, and Aardvark, most of your gear is either superior or exceptional steel of your make, except the iron goblin shield which you're using for some reason. Heh. Oh, and apparently all you're wearing is your armor and a tattered rope reed shirt dyed red, to apparently help with the chafing.))

[Cepheid]

Man, the length of this story is heavily misleading.  I have my settings set up for 50 posts per page, so it came to 5 pages total.  When compared to some of the other interesting stories out there, it seemed relatively.. short in terms of page count.

Truth is, the amount of writing on each page is extensive, making it feel closer to 10 or 11 pages worth of short posts, if not more.

I love the story thus far!  Must...keep...reading!

If it is not too much of a burden, can I have a dwarf, please?  If so, the details are as follows:

Name:  Cepheid
Gender:  Male
Profession:  Mason/Military

Personality:  The silent type, always deep in thought or working at making blocks, tables, and whatever else is needed around the fortress.  In his off hours, he prefers to train with various weapons for self-defense.

Edit:  Forgot weapon preference.  To tell you the truth, just give him whatever you think the fortress needs.  If you want specifics, go with a sword.