‘NO! I don’t want to mine anymore! Just leave me alone!’ Miner barricaded herself in the craftsdwarf workshop.
‘Don’t be silly, it was just a shadow from the torchlight, I am sure.’ Flame personally set out to calm poor lass down. KB and his lot could not be trusted and Gar is still supposedly looking for clues about the gate.
‘NO IT WASN’T! WHY ISN’T ANYONE LISTENING!? I WANT OUT! AWAY FROM THIS PLACE!’ Miner was behaving in a way Flame saw couple people behave before, and it never meant anything good.
‘Just calm down and walk out, everything is going to be fine...’ Flame continued.
‘Mommy? Is that you?’ A child wondered into the scene, clearly confused about the whole situation. Flame knew what will happen, split-seconds before it did.
‘MONSTER! DEMON! BE GONE BEAST!’ Miner shouted and broke out of her own hiding place and swung wildly at the child. Kid did not stand the chance, before Flame even unsheathed his hammer its fate was clear.
This was the most difficult and challenging thing Flame ever had to do. Griffin was a warrior and had a weapon, the same hammer he was holding now. But his current opponent was just a scared and confused woman. He tried to incapacitate her with a strike to the stomach but he clearly underestimated the threat posed by her. With two swift strikes she broke down his defenses and delivered a serious hit to Flame’s arm, causing immeasurable pain as a nerve was severed. Unable to use his hammer hand Flame opted to use his shield to the best of his abilities, quickly ending the struggle. If before the fight Flame had any doubts, he was remorseless after it. He promised himself it would be last time he underestimated his opponent, it may have been lethal this time.
~~
Next morning Flame woke up in the hospital. After quickly making his excuses and assurances that his hand is fully functional, even though it seemed to him like his grasping ability severely diminished, he managed to convince the doctors to allow for his leave.
~~
Meanwhile KB was reading intently. Report given to him by Gar did not make sense, mostly “perpetrator most likely left premises of the castle and is unlike to return” part. How can he know? He claims he does not know who did it and yet is sure they will not return? Something smelled fishy. Luckily Gar, like Flame, seems to be a novice at intelligence gathering and counter-intelligence methods. He set some of his guards as sentries outside quarters of one particular family. It will be easy to figure out why...
~~
‘YES! I GOT IT!’ PBP was finally done with repairing the gate. The problem was one of the gears was covered in a thick layer of rust, which could not be seen due to an angle the gear was placed on. It was nothing unusual in itself, only weird thing was that the corrosion, instead of being its usual color, was black with accents of yellow. In any rate PBP did not feel obliged to mention it to anyone, minerals in the volcanic sites could leave weird sediment on the iron.
~~
A child... a child was responsible for all the havoc recently... good soldiers died because a child decided to play around with levers... KB was not sure what to do with this fact, the girl refused to tell him what happened exactly, and for all intents and purposes she should be put under hammer for treason... Gar... Yes, Gar! He tried to conceal important facts from RIN! He will be justly punished, not with death, beating or prison however... There are better ways... KB was not cruel enough to take Sheriffs weapon of choice however and settled on forcing him to wear Artifact Chain Leggings made of lead... Yes, that should be shameful enough...
~~
‘I will not allow you to decide anything about that girl!’ Flame yelled right into KB’s face.
‘And what makes you think I will listen to you?’ KB kept his calm. The news about the girl spread quickly, most of the fortress being under impression that this in itself was enough to punish the girl.
‘I... I.... I challenge your rule on this matter!’ Flame exclaimed. Sudden silence passed through the corridors. This was an ancient right of any dwarf, however there were consequences to this. Firstly, each dwarf could do this only once in their life. Second, winner decides both, the course of the matter disputed AND fate of the looser.
‘Huh, that's new...’ Kolkeskal raised an eyebrow. Nobody was mad enough to challenge a professional spy, much less one who worked directly for the king... but Flame defied any labels. In a strange way KB started to respect that crazy soburd*.
‘Yeah! I challenge you! I will beat you in your own game! M.A.D.N.E.S.S was it? That is an awful name for a sport!’ Flame seemed to just realize what he got himself into. He hated RIN but he was not stupid to go against kings own men... However he did his best to hide his nervousness. If he succeeds he may be able to get rid of the agents altogether...
‘And how would that work? The Stadium will not be finished before next few years...’ KB tried to figure out what the Commander was planning.
‘We can use the Depot! The elves are bound to be here soon! We can use that!’ Flame tried to look triumphant.
‘Very well... I assume that the game is till last opponent is downed, right? The Depot is a bit small for Goal based competition.’ KB was genuinely happy to have an excuse to swing his sword a little bit.
‘Great! I will see you there!’ Flame walked off, trying not to show any fear for what may happen if he loses.
~~
In the meanwhile Sunshine was contemplating on his buckler... It was a nice buckler...
~~
17th of Hematite 19 seemed like a very nice day to be a merchant. Elven trader and his son entered the depot, to find two dwarves standing guard in opposite corners of the room. He took his son on this journey to celebrate lads coming of age, after all he should see the world and meet other races! Gleefully the two started unpacking their yak, along the other traders that came along, and waited for the broker to arrive. This was sure to be the nicest holiday he could give to his son. His wife and daughter waited back in their forest retreat, awaiting the toys and crafts from the dwarves, as he always brought some extra just for them. Yes, this Murderwheel place definitely seemed like a nice trade outpost...
~~
On the sign from the inside of the fortress, a loud knock on the inner doors of the Depot, both Flame and KB charged at the closest elves. Cries of anguish burst out from the traders as their blood spilled on the ground. Flame killed two traders and their pack animals and looked up to check up on the status of the battle. To his terror he noted that most potential enemies were down, dead or dying, and KB was chasing the last one round, still limping comically from his injury. Flame did not know if to burst out laughing or cry out in terror as he was about to lose.
Finally KB caught up with the animal.
‘Give the winner a kiss, you filthy animal!’ He shouted, before kissing the yak and shoving it into a stonefall trap, ending its misery. As both he and Flame caught their breath some morbidly curious dwarves entered the room.
‘The girl lives, she is to make bone crafts to repay the damages. No harm will come to her or her family on this occasion... Flame, I want you fed and rested, Tallow Stew informed me you will have a new batch of trainees to educate.’ KB said, to surprise of all present...
~~
Since that point many years have passed, but what happened next, you ask? You will know, surely but not know, I need a short break from telling this story, my throat is getting dry. Fetch me some mead, kid, and I will continue...
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Topic: Murderwheel: Rabbits, Kittens and Sunshine[Community Fortress] (Read 46953 times)