1002U - AUTUMN
EmperorJon and Doctor Valrandir sat in the dining room across the table from one another. Surrounding them was the bustle and commotion of a fort at its beginnings, but they sat silent trying to avoid eye contact. Valrandir was sketching up another copy of an aquifer plan while EmperorJon chewed on a plump helmet.
"So," EmperorJon said staring off into space, "Why don't we have stone yet?"
Valrandir's pencil stopped its scribbling. He sat there frozen for a moment before pinching the bridge of his nose right between both squinting eyes and said, "I'm trying to concentrate."
"No no, explain it to me if you can. I'm no engineer. I'm a smith. I work with metals. Metals, stuff that you find in stone. So I'm interested in finding out why there's nothing for me to do right now."
With the air of a man on the edge of his patience Valrandir sighed and pushed himself back from his work to stare at the smith in silence. Babalos had enough time to walk in and collect the stray plump helmet spawn before the doc spoke.
"It's not a magic spell you cast. We're almost there."
"There was some confusion about whether or not it would actually pierce the aquifer, but I cleared that up with the miners. Everything will work as long as we drop the rings in the proper order."
Several puppies ran yipping and yapping at each other through the tables and the doctor's legs, causing him to instinctively raise them up.
"These dogs are a sanitation nightmare. Someone should . . . do something about them."
"So what do we do in the meantime, doc?" asked Greymist, entering from the direction of the dormitories, "I can't get much sleep with all the work that's being done around here. New bed is nice, but there's noise 24 hours a day."
"I don't know. Make yourself useful. We've got to prepare ourselves for the caravan incoming at the end of the season."
Outside, Crazyteddles slammed down another haul of lumber next to Spera who had just erected a bowyer's shop.
"You say you need how much lumber again?"
"As much as you can spare."
As she sat carving out the stock she saw Cap'n Blunderbooze dragging a yak in towards the entrance.
"Pasture's that way," she pointed.
"Oh believe you me, I know. I've stepped in enough yak to know what's the pasture and what's not. The doctor told me to cut these up, though."
"Cut it up?"
"Yeah, I'll uh . . . learn as I go I guess. I've seen it done before, can't be too difficult."
The newly-established trash zone outside quickly filled with rat corpses and the various inedible parts of yak.
"Cap'n," Spera said, seeing the bones of the yak pile up just meters away, "Cancel some of that lumber. I think I'll be set."
"Sure thing. It's not like we're short on it."
Midsummer, three more guild members appeared over the lip of the hill. They were pointed in the direction of the aquifer zone and told to erect the supports.
Babalos spent some time out in the fields making sure that Sodel was well fed.
And not scaring the bull that the newcomers had brought.
The breaching zone quickly evolved after the hillside had been cleared. Even with just Mipe and Stiric working the rings were carved out in short order.
EmperorJon grumbled over the fact that the palisade had been put on hold for the creation of the wooden ring supports.
Progress halted with the sudden arrival of something everyone expected but nobody was prepared for.
Cap'n Blunderbooze ordered some of the random idlers to go crank out as much dwarven syrup as they could in as little time as possible.
An effort impossible in the absence of Sweet Pods.
Spera's bolt-making efforts were put on hold for the production of wooden crafts, a request that went unanswered for days while the merchants milled about in the depot. Doctor Val tried to stall them for as long as he could while barrels were hauled in.
Ultimately, a tiny pile of scraps was all that could be brought together for the caravan. Some of the pieces of trade were as-of-yet unused military equipment of shoddy workdwarfship in copper. The Doctor, desperate for even a small amount of trade, did his best to convince them that it was worth their drink and cloth.
They'd need to think quickly in order to make out with any sort of goods from the caravan. Winter was upon them and they were still trying to crack the earth.
OVERVIEW: 
STOCKS: 
THE FORT AS IT STANDS
We're still in the middle of trade, but we've got almost nothing to trade. I'll try to produce some wooden crafts before they leave. Valrandir says that the breaching will work anyway, so we'll have stone soon.
Some have already given me their orders. Others have a little bit of time to do so. I'll play the next season ASAP and we'll have stone come second year.
Dorna's control room and PBD's four-posts will commence as soon as I can.
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Topic: The Hill of Deceivers .25 - A Community Fort of Treachery and Treason (Read 77827 times)