Here comes chapters 2 and 3!
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CH. 2, wolf hunt
Mid-summer was marked by tragedy. It seemed the king had sent them a metalsmith so they could get ready for
ore processing, but just when she was within hailing distance, some other newcomers revealed themselves.
Wolves. Kol Vabôkrazot was outnumbered and overpowered. The dwarves of Tekkudurvad would not forget this.
The leader of the wolf pack, and the female dwarf's killer, was given a fearsome name; Zirilâtrid.
The appearance of the wolves was also troubling for other reasons. Losing one of their own was bad enough,
but what of the trading caravan which would show up before winter? Not to mention the dead dwarf's body and
posessions, left on the other side of the river to be defaced by nature.
But dwarves know how to handle things like this. It was time to do some hunting. Mistêm Ularmafol,
marksdwarf, was selected as well as Erib Koldetes, woodcutter and carpenter, appointed as axedwarf. The party
of two crossed the river and began their hunt. After steadying his hand with some practice on a fox, Mistêm
sighted his first wolf. He fired and missed once or twice before finding his mark, but managed to injure it,
hitting it in the chest and head. Neither shot was fatal however, and the wolf escaped. Erib took after it
and Mistêm turned to the next wolf, a gleam in his eye as he noted it's markings; it was indeed Zirilâtrid,
the same wolf whom they had seen leading the pack away from the dead metalsmith, blood covering its jaws. It
bolted when it saw him drawing near, having already been separated from the pack. Mistêm fired a few times,
but missed completely. He paused, thought of the metalsmith who never got to set foot in her new home,
steadied his aim, fired thrice and slew the wolf, two bolts remaining lodged in its hide. Another wolf tried
to escape, but he shot it down without trouble. The woodcutter wasn't so lucky though.
As Erib had been chasing the injured wolf another had begun to trail him. Erib eventually fell back to take
care of the wolf chasing him, and a rather short battle ensued. The scene told the story perfectly; The wolf
lay in two pieces, and Erib was not too many paces away, collapsed on the ground. His lower left leg was in
terrible shape and kept him from moving.
Mistêm finished off the wounded wolf, as it was roaming dangerously close to the downed dwarf, preventing
anyone from taking him back to the cave. Now that it was safe, the trapper Rakkust "Bouldercrafts" took the
injured Erib to his bed. The dwarves then worked together to stockpile the fallen matalsmith's posessions;
even though they had been hers, the dwarves needed all the equipment they could get if they wanted their
humble cave to become a great fortress. After all of this excitement, the dwarves were able to sleep for the
time being...
CH. 3, disorder and trade
Uncertainty came with the beginning of autumn, the carpenter's injuries having thrown an axe into the works.
Meat was running low, and farming wasn't possible unless they found an underground water source. Mistêm was
ordered to replace the carpenter, but for some reason he refused to use the workshop, instead choosing to
haul stones, bring water to Erib, or just sit around in his room. In hopes of getting back on track, Tobul
Esebmafol began cutting a shaft into the moutain, hoping to find a water source for farming. Also, a tomb was
constucted for Kol Vabôkrazot's remains.
His work was interrupted, though, when a dwarven trading caravan showed up. They had very little to trade at
this point, especially with their new carpenter's refusal to work. The mason set to, hoping to get out some
quick staues for trade. In the meantime, the other dwarves set to gathering some of the extra goods they had
and moving them to the depot. Perhaps they would at least be able to purchase food.
Alas, stonecrafts were too heavy to trade. Instead the mountain's residents were forced to trade away some of
the lost metalsmith's clothing. They grimly hoped that Kol, wherever her spirit rested, would not think ill
of this. The clothing was enough to buy out the caravan's food goods; the only items of interest at the
moment since they had brought no ale.
With food, perhaps things were looking up. The caravan departed with thanks for the trade. Also, new life had
made the caves a bit more active; three kittens and a foal had been born into the world. Even so, a
mid-autumn snowstorm reminded them that winter was creeping upon them.
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I actually have chapter 4 ready, but it's so short I may as well post it when I post chapter 5. And to reiterate my last post, is the current point of view fine or would you like me to try a different angle?
