Chapter 1According to the legends, 305 years ago Armok struck the sky with his fist, cracking it and allowing the cold from without to seep in. This would have frozen the entire world but for Armok's mercy, and as such a good quarter of it has been encased in ice. This ice is where I now must go, along with six other dwarves, to earn my rite-of-passage as a miner as they earn theirs in their chosen professions.
As we near the chosen site, though, I am getting suspicious that this is no rite-of-passage, but a culling. It is bitterly cold, and many of the dwarves that are with me will be completely unable to practice their trade in such an area. Why send a woodcutter where there are no trees, and a fisher and fish cleaner where there is no liquid water to fish in? My one consolation is that the prospectors have told us that there is a magma pipe in the area. If we can find it, its heat will be invaluable not only as a working tool but also as simply a comfort to our freezing bones.
***1st Granite***
We have finally arrived. There is nothing here. I am forced to assume that the magma pipe is either underground, or the prospectors were lying.
When I said nothing, I meant nothing good. Taking a look around, I can see some hostile-looking ice wolves and this humanoid made out of ice. I believe we should stay far away from all of these.
One of the first things I did was order the woodworkers to disassemble the wagon and make a few workshops out of the ice around in order to make the few beds that we can. The carpenter gave me a blank stare when I indicated the block of ice I had just carved out of the glacier, though. "Uh, that's water, sir. You want me to make a workshop out of water?" Apparently no one ever bothered to give any of these dwarves even a rudimentary education on the basics of chemistry. Eventually he assented and fashioned his workshop out of the "water" lying around.
***11th Granite***
Solid ice is a lot harder to mine than one would think. Today I gave up going at it alone and told the stoneworker to pick up a pick and help me. It's going a lot faster now, even though he's never swung a pick before.
***18th Granite***
Today the fish cleaner came running and screaming into the fortress. "Wolves! They killed one of our dogs!" I rushed to the entrance of our fortress, and indeed I could see three ice wolves brutally tearing apart one of the dogs we had brought along. It was a nauseating sight, but unfortunately we cannot do anything about it. Fortunately this was happening some distance from our fortress proper -- that dog had foolishly wandered into the wolves' territory. I think it's necessary to have a table made so that we can designate a proper meeting hall.
***24th Granite***
The other dog met a similar end today, only this time the ice man joined in the slaughter. The table plan has been postponed -- apparently my fellows will only go so far as making workshops out of ice, and think ice tables are taking it too far. I admit I've been approaching this settlement with a spartan attitude -- only three of us have bed, and even those three are sleeping in rooms carved out of ice. We live on ice, sleep on ice, work in workshops made of ice, and, probably before long, will be eating ice.
***9th Slate***
Today, there was an odd occurrance -- as the stoneworker and I were carving a large staircase down to find rock under all of this ice, the stairs we were carving suddenly crumbled beneath us. We were able to keep our footing on the staircase above, but we are unable to reach the next level down, which now reveals a tantalyzing layer of rhyolite. I dug a tunnel around from the outside, and got everyone in the fortress to pitch in rebuilding the staircase.
***11th Slate***
We've struck alunite! Finally, we have some stone to our name! In celebration, I've had the jeweler begin making mugs.
***14th Slate***
As we found the stone, I also told the stoneworker to finally make us a table for the dining room. I discovered today, to my great chagrin, that she had delegated the task to the woodcutter, of all people! I furiously forbade anyone but the stoneworker from working stone (with an exception, of course, to the jeweler who could make mugs but certainly not tables).
***15th Slate***
We've struck copper! This would be great if we had anything to burn. I'm now convinced that we need to find the magma pipe.
***24th Slate***
Marble! This is wonderful! We can use this to carve out a splendid fortress, and, if we find some iron and the magma pipe as well, we can make steel!
***3rd Felsite***
There can be no doubt anymore. This stone that I have found that is warm to the touch can only mean that I have found the magma pipe! I must dig up, around, learn the shape of the pipe and how to best breach it... Or maybe I should just breach it now. Bask in the wonderful magma.
***4th Felsite***
I must have magma. I've waited too long already. I must have it! I must find the top of the pipe. Surely if I dig up next to it, I shall find the top... Magma is nearly within my grasp! I can feel it! ...Odd. This ceiling feels weaker than the stone around it. No matter, I- OH GOD! I'M BURNING!
***5th Felsite***
Journal of Lòr Vabôkvod, Stoneworker
I awoke to sounds of screaming today. I quickly ran down to the most recent excavation to find our fearless leader, 'Snuffs' as she calls herself, frantically clawing her way towards me amidst a wave of lava that was all too quickly consuming her. That it was too late for her I already knew, so instead of trying to save her I grabbed as many nearby boulders as I could and sealed the tunnel to prevent the lava from flooding into the rest of our mining operation.
I have to say, even though I hated her guts, nobody deserves that kind of death.
At the very least we can use the magma pipe to our advantage so that it won't be in vain.
With Snuffs' death, I've had to redistribute labor around here. I'm taking over the mining duties, as well as charge of this fortress, and given my stoneworking responsibilities to the woodcutter, who seems to have a knack for that sort of thing.
***18th Felsite***
I just finished setting up our smelter over the magma pipe. I suppose I'll have the jeweller start melting down copper as soon as I mine out an appreciable amount.
Damn that Snuffs! I'm not very skilled with a pick, and so I keep ruining all of the copper nuggets in the vein that we found. I think I'll just mine out a huge swath of the mountain until I am skilled enough to extract the metal intact.
***1st Hematite***
The arrival of summer coincides with tragedy:
Zasit âbirrimtar, our 'fish cleaner,' was one of the few things that could brighten my day on this accursed block of ice. I loved him.
Today, he looked like he wanted to do something to help. Noting our low food stocks, I suggested he take one of the axes that our woodcutter brought and hunt some of the ice wolves that were constantly harrassing us. He did, and soon after was torn apart without even having touched any of the wolves. I hate this place.
***18th Hematite***
I had a coffin made for poor Zasit. The woodcutter, though, refused to bury him in it. "This one's for Snuffs. She died first, so she gets the first coffin." It was ridiculous! We don't even have anything left of Snuffs to bury! I let the woodcutter know my sentiments, and he simply responded with, "It's the principle of the thing." Frustrated, I gave up and told him to make another coffin.
Moments later, the rest of the dwarves appeared, informing us that they had elected the woodcutter as the new expedition leader. I was ready to relinquish my duties as overseer of all the operations here, but they told me that expedition leader is really a nominal position -- all they really do is talk to the liaison. So, I'm stuck with the responsibility of making sure we don't all die here. Great.
***28th Hematite***
In a coincidence that is a bit too symbolic for my tastes, Zasit was finally entombed on the same day that all of our food was moved indoors.
***4th Galena***
As I was mastering the ways of mining, I discovered a small patch of aluminum. I doubt there will be enough to be useful.
***20th Galena***
Noting that we are almost out of drinks, I have dug out a small room and channelled under it to the magma pipe, then had the woodcutter tile over the magma. This room is now hot enough to melt the ice, so I'm having everyone who doesn't have a job haul blocks of ice to the melting room. Hopefully we can get enough in there to form a sort of cistern of drinkable water.
***3rd Limestone***
Our cats finally had their first litter of kittens. This is a joyous occasion which I'm celebrating by having our fisherman butcher both kittens. We shall have food!
***12th Limestone***
The caravan has arrived from the mountainhomes! Finally, we may have the necessities that we've been lacking.
***19th Limestone***
Somewhere along the line, our jeweller decided that she'd rather be called a stonecrafter. Fine with me, since crafting with stone is really all she's done so far with the dearth of gems in the area. Today, I told her to pack up all her mugs and bring them to the depot, and see what kind of deal she could get for them.
At the end of it, she managed to trade all of her mugs for a load of wood, a rope, and nearly all of the food that the caravan brought. I was appalled to learn from her that the caravan had neglected to bring any booze at all. That settles it. They really are trying to kill us.
***22nd Limestone***
I had our expedition leader ask for wood, meat, booze, and dogs from the liaison. They asked for outrageous prices. We'll have to get the stonecrafter working double time for next Autumn.
What they want from us is as follows:
***17th Sandstone***
I finally got some booze brewed from the plump helmets we traded for -- The ice room turned out to be a bust, since the water from the ice rolls through the cracks in the floor. We're going to be in trouble come Winter.
***19th Sandstone***
What the hell? I Glanced towards the still today and it had been destroyed! I don't know who did it, but we must have it rebuilt. To my great frustration, our brewer refused to reconstruct it until each and every seed on the ground had been moved to the stockpile.
***26th Sandstone***
Damn. Just when I had thought we could feed everyone...
Here's who all came to this hell hole, Limul knows why...
Gem setter
Gem Cutter
Bowyer x2
Weaponsmith
Fishery Worker
Peasant x4
Mule x4
Puppy x2
Calf
Donkey
We now have 15 dwarves here in total. We will never be able to feed and booze all of them... The mules and puppies are encouraging, though. If we survive long enough they may start producing offspring -- which we can slaughter.
***26th Timber***
Too many of the immigrants are sitting idle. I've set the four peasants to work learning from our former jeweller how to make stone crafts; hopefully we can amass enough instruments by next year to accomodate the inflated prices we'll have to pay.
Also, in an effort to make our hunger and thirst easier to bear, I've had the gem setter start smoothing the ice in the dining room. There are no gems for him to set here, anyway.
***1st Moonstone***
Winter is upon us. We have nowhere near enough food or drink, but possibly if we start slaughtering the animals we can outlast it.
***7th Obsidian***
Our fortress has its first recruit! I've had an archery target set up, and I'll see if I can get that lazy gem cutter to pull her weight against the local wildlife.
...No. all she does is stand in the dining room waving her crossbow around and trying to impress the men. I'm too tired of running this place to smack her into line, though.
***11th Obsidian***
Today, the last drop of drink was drunk. We have no booze. Truly we are doomed. Unless...
I've converted my plans for the exploratory mining into a magma tunnel. As long as I leave the roof intact, I can channel the magma under a large block of glacial ice and melt it into drinkable water.
***1st Granite***
Spring has finally arrived. I feel accomplished in getting us through the Winter, so I am retiring. Someone else can take my place.
A note to whoever takes over: magma is flowing towards a large block of ice in order to produce water for our thirsty dwarves. The woodcutter missed the corner, though, so make sure to patch it up first thing.
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Topic: Parallel Universes. (Read 8680 times)