(This posting has been reworked to correct mistakes. If you are wondering why people below reacted the way they did, you can check out the archived version of this in the second posting)Hello fellow Dwarves o/
I'm a long time DF fan and spontaneously decided to write a book, inspired by the strange and fascinating things that came up when starting a new settlement in Fortress Mode. I've never published a novel so far, so this is like a test run for me, a self-imposed challenge. The goal is to have something presentable in the end. I want to see if I'm capable of actually producing something that people can consume and have good thoughts about.
My only work as an author that ever saw the public is a free book for teaching purposes that I wrote years ago, published by a community academy.(
"Tanker's Handbook", half about tanks and half about teamwork and human quirks)
Disclaimer: I made 0 $ with that book and I intend to keep it that way. If you find that donation button to be functioning, please report to me so I know I need to break it more. The academy closed its doors in 2017. I will keep this updated as I go, linking the raw text below whenever a chapter reaches a state that I'm satisfied with. Do with it whatever you want, it's a present to the world. If you feel the need to get filthy rich by publishing it under your own name, have fun.
Additionally, I will link some of the material that I use as a source for this project (detailed character info for example). You can use that to make your own art if you want, or just browse it out of curiosity.
In the long run I'm interested in experimenting with combining the written word with other media, such as image or sound. Preferably by working together with other people, because I can't do everything on my own. I believe that combining mediums creates something that is more than just the sum of its parts, an own unique medium.
Enjoy the work in progress below.
(English is a foreign language for me, so please report wrong usage of words if you see it.)Denolven
Source material:
Story of the Blueboats, Chapter 1: By the Fire
"Gramps! Hey Gramps!" The little girl walks to the old man who is sitting in his even older padded armchair. This ancient thing, made of heavy oaken wood and so massive that it could serve as a small throne, has been standing in this spot for as long as anybody in the orphanage could remember - right there, a couple steps away from the cozy fireside, illuminated by its warm glow.
"Gramps? Are you sleeping?" she asks. Still no reaction from the old man. She examines him for a short while. His face is as wrinkly as ever - at least the part that isn't hidden by his gigantic eyebrows and thick white beard, massive even by Dwarven standards. Closed eyes. She pats him on his hand, as if checking whether he's still alive. A smile flits across her face.
"Gramps is sleeping; we need to come back later!" she shouts to the others across the room.
"Hmmm, I'm not sleeping. I was just sunken in thought. Hello Jasmin." he answers in his deep vibrant but kind voice. With eyes just barely open, he smiles to greet her, as he always does. If you didn't know him, you could easily think that his body is old and weak. But the girl knows better. She had visited him for a few weeks now. He simply doesn't need to open them any further to see. Probably one of those Dwarven things, she concluded. People say that Dwarves can even see in the dark.
She turns back around, a big smile written allover her face, and eyes glowing with anticipation.
"Can you tell us a story?"
The old man slightly turns his head to the side, just a tiny bit. Not enough to actually face the other kids, just enough to ask without using words.
"Oh, I brought friends. Is it ok if they join?"
She already knows the answer. And he knows that she does, but says it anyway. She always liked it when he actually used words.
"Of course it is ok. Come! Grab some pillows and make yourself comfortable."
He knows they are not her friends. At least not yet. But he is glad that she finally mustered the courage to engage others. A new chapter begins for her. And, looking at the half circle of kids forming around him, maybe for him as well. A faint smile sneaks into his face. He always loved the small stories that life writes.
The kids shuffle their pillows around and quarrel about who gets to sit where. They invent silly arguments why the place near the fire is the best one - none of those arguments related to the fire being a magnet for curious kids, of course. The old man just sits there in his old armchair, unphased by the ruckus around him. Jasmin is sitting next to him and becomes a little nervous due to the unexpected chaos. She quickly realizes that the old man's peaceful calm doesn't always translate to everyone else becoming calm, as it did with her. Thinking that this whole thing might have been a mistake, she looks at the old man. He doesn't move at all. She anxiously looks back at the others, who are now arguing about switching pillows and why they should get the one with a panther on it.
This is not how it was supposed to be. Voices of doubt started spinning in her head, pushing tears into her eyes. Everything is breaking apart. Why are they ruining everything? Why did she bring them here to ruin everything?
Jasmin suddenly stands up, turns around with wet eyes and leaves without saying a word, just to find herself stopped by a big wrinkled hand on her chest, barricading her path. She looks to the side, and SWOOOOSH! Immediately the cloud around her head is gone. It is her old friend, looking at her with his eyes opened slightly more than the usual tiny slit, and his special smile. She never noticed before, but it's the same smile he had when things were falling apart the other day and he managed to somehow fix everything.
"Would be sad if you missed the beginning of the story." he says, radiating warmth and reassurance. And he's not talking about the one he is going to tell.
Relieved but slightly confused she sits down and slowly gathers herself.
"This is stupid!" a boy complains. "The old geezer isn't doing anything."
He stands up and turns to the old man, half-jokingly challenging him in front of the others. "Hey, did you fall asleep or what? We were promised a good story!"
Brawny, self-centered extrovert, arrogant, but actually quite smart, even if that intellect is mostly applied to divert attention from their pain. But Gramps knows their pain. He can see it.
"No point in telling if nobody is listening." he answers calmly.
Gramps sees the surprise in the boy's eyes. Both that his challenge was not answered with a fight for leadership, and that an adult actually took his complaint seriously. The boy musters him, unsure what to do with this non-fight. Gramps just sits there, in his usual manner, not a glimpse of contest in him whatsoever.
Curiosity wins over ego, and the boy sits down, fixating the old man, waiting for something to happen. Two of the kids chatter about him, mistaking his reaction for a loss of the fight. But he immediately confronts them.
"Shut up you idiots! Didn't you get it? He starts when we are quiet. So shut your foodholes!"
Jasmin is still pondering. How does he do that? Some kind of Dwarven face-magic maybe? Can Dwarves even do magic? Maybe he's a mutant! Is that why he came to the Human lands? Because the other Dwarves hated him?
Then, Jasmins thoughts are interrupted by silence. Only the crackling fire accompanied the deep breath of the old man, which he always took when a story was about to begin.
"Have you ever heard the story of the Blueboats?"
Story of the Blueboats, Chapter 2: Quarrel
"It all began with a dispute, far away in the east, in the Dwarven Kingdom of the Shields. A young woman, Etur was her name, was arguing with her parents.
'Maybe I don't WANT to be a mason!' she shouted, turning to leave the room. 'Why can't you understand that not everything is about stone?!'
BAANG!! She bashed the door surprisingly hard, considering her thin body.
You see, working with stone, creating all kinds of things from it, is seen as a very honorable work in the Dwarven lands. And Dwarves are all about tradition. Her parents owned one of the better mason workshops in the city, proudly run by the family in the seventh generation. And if you ever get lucky enough to see true Dwarven masonry work, you will know why this is such a big thing."
The old man pats on the armrest of his massive throne-like chair.
"This here is an oaken chair I brought from the Dwarven lands a long time ago. Dwarven masons can do much more impressive things with stone, but I grew to like this one. Do you see the ornaments on it?"
The kids come a bit closer.
"Wooow!" one of them says. "It's full of images; they are everywhere!". Small hands slide over the wooden surface.
"Yes, it's probably hard to see in this light if you don't have Dwarven eyes. You can take a closer look at it tomorrow, when the sun is out. But down there, on the rear leg - do you see it?"
They are all squirreling around the chair now. Doesn't take them long to find what he was referring to.
"It's a Dwarf in a boat!" one shouts excitedly.
"Nah that's bullshit! Everyone knows Dwarves hate boats." anwers the brawny one in disbelief.
Gramps smiles. "You are right! Dwarves like to stand on solid ground and don't like boats at all. But you see, Etur was not your common Dwarf. Etur dreamt of things other than stone, or even wood. It's not that she had a problem with stone. But she did have a problem with everyone telling her what to do. What about HER plans, HER dreams? She always hated when they told her what she can or cannot do."
"Yeah they always do that. They never ask us, stupid adults!" The brawny boy scoffs.
"'It has always been like that!' they said.
'We know you will honor the family and make us proud!' they said.
'You can't make a living from words anyway!' they brushed away Eturs stange ideas.
And Etur believed them for the longest time. So she had become a mason's apprentice, although not a very good one, and not a happy one either.
But this time, she had enough. You see, right after the dispute, Etur stormed away in anger and went to her friend Kulet. Now Kulet was not very popular, because she did something that nobody else did: she flouted tradition, even ridiculed it sometimes. People found her very strange, and nobody wanted anything to do with her. Some even deemed her dangerous. Because unlike Etur, Kulet was an avatar of a Dwarf, with both muscles and willpower stronger than the finest Dwarven steel, and a good two heads bigger than most of the other Dwarves. She could lift this throne here easily, with me on it. And that's why nobody messed with her too much - which Etur envied a bit. Kulet was alot older as well, and Etur often went to her for advice.
Kulet had never seen her young friend that furious. She was walking back and forth through the room, wildly swinging her arms around while holding a huge monologue about how everyone had been pushing her around for decades."
"Wait... are you saying that they will still push us around when we become adults?" The brawny one cleverly notices.
"Hmm..." Gramps returns "...if they think they can get away with it, they'll probably try. But you will remind them, won't you." The boy knows exactly what the old man is talking about. Gramps sees the fire in him, and the old man has a suspicion how the boy ended up in this orphanage.
"Gramps, what happened with raging Etur?" Jasmin pulls on his sleeve.
"Raging Etur..." he continues "...heard the most important sentence of her whole life." Gramps adds a dramatic pause.
"'You cannot possibly live a life that isn't yours!'
Kulet said to her."
Another dramatic pause.
"And on that day, Etur and Kulet made a pact. A pact that they would no longer be pushed around, and that they would no longer be treated like weird outsiders. They decided to take things into their own hands.
In the following days, Etur secretly talked to her other friends. They all had been outsiders, one way or another. Except for Led, who was just an all around pessimist, claiming that the whole world is just a big dung heap, raining down on anyone who happened to be born unlucky, like him.
When Etur met him the first time, she was really annoyed by his attitude. Because in her opinion, the world was as you made it. Led however claimed that you could never change something as big as the world, and that this is just another proof of how unfair life is.
'Just accept it! It's not going to change anytime soon.' he always said.
The two spent endless nights debating. And over the years, a strong friendship grew, even if they never agreed on this particular topic.
And then there were Uvash and Uzol, one of the weirdest couples you could find. They had been friends long before Etur met them and were well known in the city, although I'm not sure if 'friend' is the right word. They always quarreled, and it wasn't clear whether they love or hate each other. Even if they had the biggest fight one day, you could bet your pants that they would meet the next day as if nothing happened. And they would probably end up arguing about the same thing again.
You see, while Uvash had an immense patience, Uzol was quite the opposite. And it didn't help that Uvash had a little trouble with choosing words, either. Half the city wanted them to get married already. The other half wanted to see them in prison for causing unrest and breaking things all the time.
They all agreed to the plan. And a few days later, late in the night, they all met at the agreed place. Except for Etur, who wasn't there.
Not many words were exchanged.
"She is late." Kulet noted, starting to get nervous. "She is never late."
"My gut tells me she will come. Let's wait a bit longer." Uvash tried to calm her, although she knew Kulet was right.
Story of the Blueboats, Chapter 3: Change of Plans
"I can't believe we are actually doing this." Uzol mumbles, shaking his head.
Uvash turns to him. "Don't get cold feet now! You can't always run away!"
"This! This is exactly what I was talking about! You have the nerve to call me a coward? In this situation, no less?"
"Wh-What?" Uvash stutters, confused about Uzols sudden change of mood. "No...I mean.. fate!"
"This is ridiculous! Fine, go on then! Mock me in front of everyone. MAYBE A BIT LOUDER, YES? SO THE WHOLE DAMN CITY CAN HEAR YOUR ACCUSATIONS!" He goes on, throwing up his hands in the air. The huge wagon they are both sitting on waves a bit.
"SHUT UP!" a strong voice thunders through the street.
"What! You're on HER side now?" Uzol turns to Kulet, but quickly silences. Three figures are standing behind her.
"Sorry I'm late." The familiar voice takes a step forward. "I..."
She looks at the two Dwarves next to her, then back at Kulet. "...found them wandering around. They have no home anymore. Which means WE are their new family."
Kulet knew her long enough to know that this was not up for debate. Young age or not, Etur had always been reliable when things got serious. And judging by her tone, this was quite serious.
"Ooh, now that's a nice surprise! Hi, I'm Kuvash!" She swiftly greets them with a smile.
It's apparent that something happened. Both women are completely drenched, and Etur's clothes are wet from the hips down.
"I'm Degėl." Says the older one, while the younger one keeps staring down into nothing. "This is Solon."
"Well..." Led interrupts the awkward silence from the back of the wagon "...looks like life took a shit on you as well. Welcome to the losing team." He throws Etur two thick woolen blankets. She quickly forwards them and starts digging for spare pants in her bag.
"We need to make an extra stop at 'The Mighty Sow', get additional barrels. You two think you can get us there silently?" She looks at the driver's seat.
Uzol reacts slightly offended. "Can cavebats fly?!" He rolls his eyes.
"Silence, pfff, easy! Like a cat in the snow!" Uvash adds, causing the others a short moment of confusion.
"You mean like a cat in the night." Led corrects her.
"Cat in the night?" Uzol turns around. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nevermind, I probably got it wrong."
As fun as it would be, Led decides not to start another debate.
Arriving at the tavern, Etur takes a minute to get everyone's attention.
"Let me handle the tavern keeper, my family knows her. Uvash and Uzol, please stay on the driver's seat and just be your normal self. Kulet, I'll need your help with the barrels. The rest of you hide somewhere in the wagon."
Led mumbles something into his beard.
Etur sighs. "Just trust me a bit longer. This nonsense will be over soon."
Upon entering the tavern, Etur is greeted by the corpulent barkeeper, who skips eye contact with Kulet entirely.
"Wait here." Etur advises her friend, and walks to the bar.
"Is Tholtig around? I need to talk business with her."
"Yeah, she's in the back, preparing everything for the next shift. It's late and we're tired; better come back tomorrow."
"I'm sorry, it can't wait. Don't worry, I'll make it worth your time." She pats on the leather pouch that hangs from her belt, producing a noise that no Dwarf can resist for long.
"WIFE!" he shouts to the back floor behind the bar.
"Ya?" a far voice shouts back.
"AKRULOTHIL'S OLDEST IS HERE WITH URGENT BUSINESS. SHE BROUGHT COIN!"
"Send her!"
He points to the back floor with a thumb and opens the bar flap. She walks in.
After a couple closed doors on the sides, Etur finds herself in an open doorway, staring at the impressive back of Tholtig, who is lying on the ground to clean a hard to reach part of the kitchen. She owns this tavern and is even more corpulent than her husband. Despite her body dimensions, she seems to be quite agile.
"I'm sorry to bother you this late." Etur introduces herself.
Tholtig finishes the last few swipes and stands up, her face being red from the blood that had gathered in her head while lying down.
"Let's cut the formalities, girl. There's lots of work to do. What is so important that it can't wait until tomorrow?"
"Look." Etur waves her to the small floor window and points to the street. Tholtig emits an annoyed groan, but walks over and looks outside, where she sees two figures on a wagon, wildly gesturing and shouting.
"Those two!" She recognizes with an angry face. "What about them?"
"I managed to persuade them to go on a trip for a few days, so they won't be around for a while."
At the notion of Uvash and Uzol leaving the district, Tholtig's mood brightens immediately.
"Only problem is, we need some booze. Enough for a while, and before they change their mind. I know it's on short notice, but I brought coin. I'll pay double!"
"Hmm." Tholtig hesitates, staring Etur in the eye dead on.
A small eternity passes, until the huge woman finally slaps the rag over her shoulder.
"Don't buy it, girl!"
