1st Limestone 676 - EveningDerm had won the vote, by passing the Reg and Brosso ticket by several votes. With this victory, he became Nomekast's first Sheriff.
Spartan and Delta were digging him out some offices where he could work, rationalizing that it would prove difficult trying to keep the peace without somewhere to keep the paperwork, or at least, to think. For the first time, Nomekast had something resembling a leader, a centralized authority. Even if Derm had no real powers, his word had weight, and he was trusted enough that he would be able to prevent any particular excesses that the temple had taken, or any brawls in the community.
1st Sandstone 676Work had begun on Brosso's circus, that is to say, Brosso had begun work on his circus, despite having tried to pressure anyone he saw into doing it for him. Reg gave him a hand when he could, but his medical duties kept him busy. Clearly a grand circus in a community of 45 - of which more than a fifth were not even Dwarves (and so could not hope to understand the glory of his ideas) was not the easiest of things to do, but Brosso was not called 'The Magnificent' for nothing, and by pick or by shovel this circus would be finished.
At first he had hoped to build it up on the home level, but space was already too limited, and he was forced to relocate his magnus opus down to the Fiery Cistern. Here he was to build his grand vision. He could see it in his mind's eye already, a grand pillared entrance, alcoves bearing great statues of Dwarven heroes, the walls engraved with scenes of the many champions of Dwarven tradition. Then it would lead down into the circus proper, filled with many a quaint and curious creature, ranging from horses to the misshapen monsters of the lower levels. It would be a great affair, a circus worthy of a Dwarf like him, and the pride of the entire Dwarven race.
Down on the Fiery Cistern, a magma forge had been toppled by a voracious cave crawler.
By chance, Hammer of the Gods had been passing, and barely without stopping, she batted the creature into the magma with her hammer, and continued on to evening prayers.
It became clear that the cave crawler had come over the drawbridge linking the colonized part of the Fiery Cistern out to the wildlands. At first it was proposed to simply raise it - it had been left down since
Osman's a forgotten beast's attack and not since raised, since Loral, Hammer, and Ukrzum had taken to hunting, to increase the fort's food supply. It was Brosso who argued against, instead, he suggested putting cave traps. Ostensibly this was more 'humane' and 'simple', but truthfully, it was a way to capture beasts for his circus.
7th Timber 676 - AfternoonTragedy struck once more as Johann was found unconscious on the Fiery Cistern, pale as a corpse. He was rushed to hospital, but there was little Reg or Steve could do. It seemed that he had lost a lot of blood from his wounds he had received against the Nothing reopening, coupled with severe infection. With no soap, Reg was unable to clean the wound. Again, like Rion, his friends and fellow-militiadwarves stood by his bedside, trying to comfort him, to no avail.
By morning he was gone, another victim of
Osman a forgotten beast and his Nothing's attack, another veteran and soldier gone, another tomb for Nomekast, another soul for Id the Stonefather.
Life seemed intent on ensuring that the residents of Nomekast had no rest however, as soon infection claimed another victim - Kol Akmamdomas, a militiadwarf. She had killed a troll and several Nothing, and was found down by the animal pastures, where she had ostensibly collapsed from exhaustion and infection, and eventually died.
However, though life seemed intent on tragedy, a single event of some happiness - or maybe just more sadness if you saw it as another soul damned for the world - the birth of a baby boy. Ushrir, born the son of Kogsak Uzkilrud and of Reg Medtobiger, one of Meinhard's Jagers, was the first Dwarf - or otherwise - to be born in Nomekast, the first child who would grow up never knowing the world before the Nothing.
In the midst of his birth, two funerals took place. The slow, deep rough chants of the Dwarvish religious rites of the dead filled the night air, and Johann and Kol were put to rest in the earth they had come from and that had bore them through life, to be reunited with lost friends, loves, family and ancestors. Straight after the ceremonies, Ibruk vanished, retreating away to think, meditate, whatever, it was perhaps the only thing that saved him from another shouting match with Reg over another death his gods couldn't prevent.
16th Moonstone 676The day greeted Nomekast much like any other, they had struggled through the past few months, but once again life came back down to a simple routine. That routine was broken though, when a sudden event happened;
A ghostly baby sidled through the community, coming down from above. He said nothing, but clearly was looking for something. It was Bounce who saw the ghostly Astesh first. She gave a half-yelp-half-scream, dropping her records, and leaping back in surprise. This alerted the others, and soon others came to see.
"Bobrur..." the ghost said, his voice echoed, and had an otherwordly reverberation to it. He turned this way and that, looking for something,
"Bobrur..."All of a sudden, Fori gave a cry, her eyes beginning to shine with tears, she had understand the word, she had understand what Astesh wanted,
"Its mother," she wept, "he's looking for his mother." Derm took her by the shoulders, reaching up, trying to comfort her.
"This is-" Tarran began, frowning sadly, "this is..." he struggled to find the right word.
"Necromancy?" Volrath growled, coming up behind him. His hands were still in their slings, it seemed for now he had escaped the infection that had killed Johann and Kol.
"No." came a voice, it was Ibruk, back from his meditations, "This-" he said, looking sadly at the baby who was still looking for a mother who was gone and dead, "this is the Fall of Life, prophesied by Blind Prophet of the Broken Rock."
"This is a travesty of life," Fori said, anger edging into her voice through her tears, "will even the dead have no peace?"
"The barriers between this world and that of the dead are weakening. The living had made a pact with the gods to keep the dead dead. But now the Pact is finished, the unburied dead can no longer cross the barrier. The gods are destroying the world to remake it, the Pact is void." Ibruk said sadly, leaning on his cane.
"Well what can we do?" Tarran asked, frowning.
"The only thing we can do is bury him, with the proper rites, the soul will be able to cross." Kadzar explained.
"But we don't have this...this poor boy's body. How can we bury the bodiless?" Muenster said.
"'As long the rites be given, thy dead shall be at peace; for the dead must be remembered.'" Ibruk, said, quoting the Dwarven scriptures. There was a long silence. It was Xenos who thought of the idea,
"Rites." the Kobold said, in his broken Dwarvish, "rites not say put body in ground?"
"Not specifically." Ibruk admitted.
"Must remember dead, so make tomb without body?"
"Os' beard, he's right." Muenster exclaimed, "The rites for the dead never mention burial, we can simply memorialize this poor boy, and his soul might then be at peace!"
"What do you mean? Make a tomb, but put no body in?" Hammer of the Gods asked, perplexed.
"How? We don't even know his name." Steve said, waving a hand towards the ghostly baby.
"Astesh." came a voice. It was Nish, wife of the farmer Sibrek who had been killed by the giant cavespider Mysterdrip. She had joined the temple and become one of Ibruk's most loyal followers. Presently, she stood with tears in his eyes, "Astesh Letkadmuthkat. I remember him, he was the baby of Ilral, one of the refugees travelling with me and Sibrek. A Nothing got him and his mother."
"This is sickening." Steve said, and he left, going to clear his head. Several people agreed, unable to watch the ghostly child look for its mother any longer, and they left, followed by more, until only Astesh was left, calling for his mother.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A memorial slab was soon carved to Astesh, and purified with the proper rites. It was placed down in the cemetery under the temple, not with the buried, but in a new chamber, for those without bodies.
It seemed Xenos had guessed correctly, as, no sooner than the slab placed, and the rites finished, the ghost of Astesh vanished like a cloud of mist.
But before he had vanished, he had traced something in the dirt, defying his age and knowledge, as if something had possessed him,
Yes,
another forgotten beast
I swear this fort is in the center of a forgotten beast meeting ground or something.
Author
Topic: [Community] Nomekast - At War with Nothing (Read 180273 times)