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Zak wandered down the main stairwell, looking over the diagrams Shoruke had thrust into his hands excitedly. The young engineer had practically begged him to bring up the plans with the General, who had thoroughly intimidated most of the new migrants in their first minutes at HeroicStand. Most had done whatever they could to avoid the General's gaze, and most feared and respected her for good reason.
As he was about to head down to the bedroom level, he heard something coming from the unfinished corridor ahead. He didn't see anyone, and the only building down there was Malaki's tomb, which Zak hadn't visited since the last engravings were finished in it. He cautiously approached, and quietly opened the door to the tomb. Standing over the coffin, speaking in a soft voice was the General. Zak cleared his throat to announce his presence.
The General turned with a start, hand flying to the warhammer on her belt. When she saw it was him, she relaxed slightly. "Yes, Zak, what is it?"
"Nothing important, General, I just heard a noise, and I investigated it." He said quickly. "Is everything alright?"
"Why wouldn't it be?" She said.
"You just seem preoccupied, General." Zak said. "I wanted to make sure that everything is alright. If anything is wrong you can trust in me to help you sort things out."
"If I need any help I will certainly ask, Zak. Is there anything else?"
"No, ma'am," Zak turned and started to leave. As he reached the door, he turned to speak with the General about Shoruke's plans, when she suddenly said.
"I have led countless dwarves into battle and seen many die, Zak." Her voice was calm, but her body quivered as she leaned over Malaki's tomb. "But nothing makes this any easier. Sometimes it would have been better for him to die in a real battle than to be ripped apart by wolves. At least there his brothers and sisters in blood could fight alongside him and win glory for our mountain home."
"What happened to him is not your fault, General," Zak said, walking over to her. "He followed your orders, yes, but you had no idea the wolves would be out for blood, nor that Malaki and his dogs would be killed. He was an experienced warrior, there's no reason he should have died, but he did."
"I can't shake the feeling that there's something I could have done, Zak," she said. As Zak stood beside her, he could see the glimmer of tears in her eyes and the redness that showed she had been crying. "Another damned soldier dead because I am incompetant enough to let it keep happening.
"General, do you know how I came to be part of this expedition?" He asked. She shook her head. "A month before I was assigned to you,I was part of a six-dwarf mining operation. I was the safety officer for the group, it was my responsibility for all of us to dig safely and ensure there were no problems. One day we were mining part of a new water reservoir when one of our newer miners chipped off a support piece of stone. Within seconds the entire cavern had collapsed on us. Two of the team died, One survived with an uncurable amount of head injuries, and the leader of our team lost an arm when a boulder fell on his shoulder. He will never mine again."
"So you left the mountian homes to escape the guilt of thinking you caused that cave-in?"
"No. I left because I talked to my team leader. He said the new miner made the mistake, and I had done everything I could to make things safe. I still wanted to die, but I volunteered for this position so that I could help prevent such mishaps in the future. Thankfully we haven't had any."
"What you're saying is I have to do what is best for me and not assume I am guilty just because something bad has happened." Zak nodded.
"I am here because this is where I can keep the most dwarves around me alive. I can provide something here. Even if it's one life, I've done everything I can to protect it."
The General nodded, and patted Zak on the shoulder. "Thank you, Zak." She walked out of the tomb, and down the stairway.
Zak looked down at the stack of papers in his hands, and remembered what he needed to talk to her about. Running after her, he shouted "General! General, I needed to talk to you about something!"
Note: I was able to SS Malaki's profile, sorry He died so fast. If you want another dorf you can have one. Family members are a good start.
A real update coming tomorrow later today.
Author
Topic: The General Reborn {Community Fort} (Read 10536 times)