But at my back in a cold blast I hear
The rattle of the bones, and chuckle spread from ear to ear. 22nd Malachite, 520"I tried a number of... different things," Andreus confessed as I opened my eyes in a new body. "Forbidden things. But each time the threads of fate converged, and you died again. As did the others."
What would it be like to die and live and die and live and die and live again? Could even the necromancer grow tired of it?
"What about the others?" I asked Andreus. "Did you bring them back?"
Andreus frowned. "I can't. Your niece -- Frosty -- is interfering somehow. She is standing in the gap."
I posed the obvious question, "And yet you brought me back."
Andreus glowered, scrunching up his little face. "I know. It seems to be your turn."
When she was two, Frosty had dimples.
23rd Malachite, 520Three more undead horses joined the herd shortly after our forces engaged the first half-dozen. Individually, the horses had been easy prey previously, but this time, it was different. First, and not for the first time in recent dwarven history, our marksdwarves decided to hit the horses with their crossbows, rather than shoot bolts at them. Second, I underestimated the ability of the skeletal horses to knock dwarves down.
Particularly me.
It felt like days of the same thing: knocked down, I would be driven backwards, and though I would block with Lithrushlolum, my groundhog bone shield, I would neither have a chance to stand or counterattack before a skeletal horse would knock me down or drive me back again. In that body, I became a pretty good shield dwarf before I finally met my end.
I made a token effort to rebuild the military, but there are very few dwarves I can spare. The wall is not yet complete, and below, there are several breaches into the caverns that need to be sealed. Felcis, having missed the entire engagement while looking for socks, is now in charge of the military.
24th Malachite, 520I've ordered work started on a magma forge complex. It will take some time to complete with the labor available, but we will need it to arm our next military, whomever they might be.
7th Galena, 520
This one is a flier. Also, a fly.
It's time to see how thoroughly I've had the caverns sealed.
10th Galena, 520Well enough, it seems. Oce Omsosuja has taken to wandering the caverns purposelessly instead of coming to bring Failcannon to an end.
17th Galena, 520A human caravan has--
Andreus rails, "Again! Again! Kobolds above, great flies beneath! A curse upon fate, that repeats the same story! Let there at least be a new doom, gods!"
I am too busy grabbing whatever weapons are at hand. The kobolds are inside the fortress.
18th Galena, 520Nat, our mayor, has finally moved from the depot corner where he has lain, gravely injured, since LordSlowpoke stabbed him when Frosty was still alive. Rest in peace, Nat -- you were the most undemanding mayor I've ever known.
Dariush, congratulations on becoming mayor! The kobolds fulfilled your first (unofficial) mandate for a whole bunch of arrows, largely in your spleen.
In addition to Nat, the kobolds brought down a recruit.
21st Galena, 520The kobolds drove off the humans, naturally. Annoyingly, they did so without bringing down a single pack animal.
It's time to seal the gates and lick our wounds. 25 dwarves remain; we cannot afford to lose any more dwarves working on the wall.
23rd Galena, 520The kobolds injured a half-dozen dwarves. I have created a team of dwarf therapists focused on medical work, only to discover that all my therapists were among the wounded. Fine: everyone's on hospital duty.
Flagro was possessed just before the battle. He produced a dull reward.
2nd Timber, 520Massive medical efforts are paying off. Dariush is out of the hospital and repairing her dehydrated state.
5th Timber, 520And Oglokoog is out of the hospital. That leaves one therapist in the hospital, needing 4 splints.
In other news...
For the love of Lur, future overseers, don't open the lower caverns! 8th Timber, 520For the first time in my reign, I have an empty hospital.
Flagro and Felcis constitute the fortress military. I've sent them up onto the partial walls a few times now to take pot shots at roaming undead horses. Until more immigrants come, the surface beyond our walled beach is out of our reach.
14th Timber, 520Oglokoog has died from infection, after leaving the hospital in apparent good health. I've ordered the old hospital torn down and replaced.
Outside, I've heard there is a goblin ambush party. It's not my problem: I'm not letting anyone in or out, so they'll have to occupy themselves with skeletal groundhogs.
19th Timber, 520The dwarven caravan has arrived!
They are right on top of the ambushers.
The outpost liaison chose a wiser route; I let him in. I'm not bothering to open the door again. We'll have no more caravans this year.
1st Moonstone, 520
I shouldn't be talking about brew/fight club, but Tyler, the head since Frosty died, decided to organize a party to celebrate everyone not being dead. She even invited those of us who
have been dead. You should've seen Andreus and cappstv knock back the dwarven ale.
I'm glad we have farms again.
17th Moonstone, 520There are no more goblins above: a skeleton horse herd trampled the three remaining ambushers.
19th Opal, 520dragonshardz gave birth to a boy. I think she's my wife.
Hooray, I'm a father. Didn't I start out a woman?
Andreus tells me I'll get over the confusion.
14th Obsidian, 520
Andreus, upon seeing the face veil, grew ecstatic. "This is it!" he yelled. "This is what I need!"
I pointed out that he wouldn't be able to wear it until he was a grown-up, and he headbutted me in the nuts. Ow.
I think he's working out the advantages of being sixteen inches tall.
28th Obsidian, 520Inevitably, a new goblin ambush emerged on the last day before I hand over leadership of the fort. There is a bow squad parked in the northwest corner of our territory. I don't see that there's much to be done, other than to hope the skeletal horses get them.
My time commanding Failcannon is at an end, and I leave the fort stable, but underpopulated. The hospital is empty, and there are no dwarves throwing tantrums. There are drinks and food; there are walls, doors, and bridges linked to levers.
This crude drawing shows the unfinished wall, the locked doors on the west side of the walled beach, protected by cage traps, and the three colored bridges (down) on the east side, along with the unfinished wall. The ramps in the northeast anchor the jet bridge, which is currently raised, sealing access to the fortress. I recommend building many more traps in the corridor between the three-color bridge and the jet bridge.
The magma forges are operational, but there are not enough dwarves to run them efficiently.
One area I'm concerned about is the cavern breach I refer to as "F8". I noticed this late in my reign, and have partially replaced the up/down stairs with up stairs, preventing fliers from coming up them. The project is not complete, though. As one of their first orders, I strongly recommend the next overseer finish it, before one of the flying forgotten beasts comes in.
Finally, on the beach level, I have built a tree farm and begun work on a device I refer to as "Failcannon II".
Fear death by waterI believe any overseer worth his pick will know what needs done there.
I sat upon the shore
Fishing, with the arid plain behind me
Shall I at least set my lands in order?
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Topic: FailCannon: No Rest for the Wicked (or anyone else) (Succession: Battlefailed 2) (Read 896356 times)