It was early in the morning under the mountain when Andrew sat at the large conference table of the great hall. The table in front of him was covered in thin stone plates, each of them containing reports of their ongoing efforts. Not much time had passed in the grand scheme of things since Ethan left them to look for promising allies and powerful magic. Since he was gone the dwarves never stopped to work on improving themselves and their crafts. The scout team’s effort was especially appreciated as they had found smaller groups of dwarves and even helped the weaponsmiths to replicate their system-given rifles. Which meant the dwarves actually reached the age of black powder and didn’t have to use ammunition so sparingly anymore.
On the other hand the miners had laid open rich deposits of iron, copper and even some gold. Due to that the crafters were able to produce more weapons and armor while having enough resources to test things out and improve their craft, which netted them a nice amount of levels in the process. The fact that even, while working with so many people on the equipment Ethan was wearing now was quite lucrative, showed how important it was to try new things in your field. Especially when it includes so many different things like leatherworking, sewing, gemcrafting, general armor making and enchanting them with the desired bonuses. Some disciplines of course overlapped there but otherwise it was a group project that combined the efforts of many dwarves.
While they were formally human each one of them could feel the curiosity and the fire in them to mine, craft and fight. Andrew too felt it as he sat on that desk, going from one report to the other, each one telling him a story of sweating in a forge, mining raw ore in the tunnels or fighting against enemies to protect others. That’s why after Ethan left he personally led a few expeditions into the depths of the mountain and to his surprise they actually found more dwarves on the first try, their homes were deep in the tunnels and caverns where they fed on mushrooms and gathered the water dripping from stalactites. These dwarves were offered a proper home at the fort, a place to work and time to engage in their passions instead of constantly surviving in the depths. In exchange they would stay loyal to their new leader. Which was of course Ethan. Andrew knew loyalty can’t be forced but he hoped that with time they would come around and actually value what they were doing for them.
Most of them actually joined after taking some time to discuss it, which brought the number of dwarves up quite a bit. Formerly with Andrew’s and Marshal’s groups combined they numbered a few hundred but now it was closer to a thousand dwarves. What Andrew didn’t know and Ethan already learned from Liam is that the system had thrown the people into a somewhat tight cluster so they would be able to form big and strong communities to survive this new world. So of course they found a lot more dwarves than expected as they all had to be under or around the mountain if this was the focal point of the cluster.
With their numbers now quite a bit higher the fort couldn’t fit them all anymore and so they had expanded it, especially around the gate temporary housing was built to accommodate the new members of their community while they worked on more permanent improvements.
Andrew took the next report which told him the fields they decided to plant outside the mountain were coming along well and while it would still take time for them to grow, having seeds in the earth was the first step. He raised his brow in surprise, they even managed to kill giant birds that tried to attack them, each one big enough to swallow a dwarf whole. He actually smiled at that, just imagining how he would fight such a thing. The line about no casualties was actually the one he checked on each report as there were some unfortunate accidents, usually you would be fine even when covered by a rockfall from a tunnel cave-in but there was the possibility of losing your life. The system wouldn’t save you no matter the circumstances. You had to hope for help from your comrades and a lot of luck.
After he went over the last report it was time to finally do something productive instead of sitting on his ass all day looking at those reports. He grabbed his equipment and checked it twice if everything was there before he set out. The moment he stepped through the double doors a group of soldiers formed up around him and followed their leader towards the gate.
They walked in silence for the entire way until they reached the main mineshaft, while before they had just dug a hole or followed an preexisting cave now they had made an actual defendable position out of it with barricades arranged in a half circle and shallow trenches filled with spikes in front of that. The mineshaft could also be closed now, a massive round stone door standing next to the entrance which could be rolled in front of it in case of an emergency like a mole attack. So far they didn’t have to use it but they still trained in case an emergency or attack did happen.
Andrew stopped in front of the gate and stared into the depths, on the right side of the gate more soldiers already waited for the shift change. It didn’t take long until a massive minecart was pushed from the depths of the mountain filled to the brim with ores and precious stones. He smiled and gestured for the soldiers to help the miners.
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After striking it especially rich the crafters suggested building rails and a minecart to make the transport easier and after some testing they found an acceptable size for it. While it was possible to load it with a lot of ore it was also heavy so it took time to bring it out again. As it stands they were far away from running trains through the mountain but a dwarf could dream.
The minecart was pushed out and shortly afterwards the soldiers attached to this group of miners came from the tunnel, a few of them were still keeping watch just to make sure nothing rushed out of the mineshaft. Once that situation was resolved Andrew gave the order to shut the doors for the day. As there wouldn’t be anymore mining for now.
While the other dwarves were slowly closing the gate Andrew, his personal guard and the detachment of around fifty soldiers walked into the tunnels. The last soldier that went through waited for the large door to be rolled in place and checked if the small door that was embedded inside of it was working properly and could be opened. Afterwards the group of around sixty dwarves set out down into the mines.
So far the mine network encompasses an area of around a hundred miles. While most of the network was naturally occurring tunnels and caverns it still made their work easier by a large margin because the dwarves had an area to mine in without wasting time on digging their own tunnels. During their exploration there were actually only a few noteworthy moments. Of course finding a large ore vein was always a reason to celebrate but there were also some fights against cave rats and on two occasions they had to fight off moles.
They managed to keep the number of casualties low across the board, with improved equipment and better training less dwarves found their death through monsters but Andrew wasn’t satisfied with that. Every time the casualty report had a number higher than zero listed he made a notch for the fallen in the conference table of the great hall. To him this became a silent funeral where he could honor those that gave their life in service for the people that lived on. That was the burden they carried, to live for the people they lost.
After around two hours the dwarves reached the tunnel the scout team had found just a few hours earlier. It was covered in blood and other biological substances when they inspected it. Especially the walls that looked like someone had painted them in a thick coat of blood. The soldiers formed a half circle in the front and slowly advanced down the tunnel. Their shields were raised and interlocked, with the weapons held tightly in their hands. Andrew was walking behind them with the remainder of the dwarves forming two lines behind him, except for another small group guarding their backs.
It took them quite some time at their slow pace to move forward but being cautious was the dwarven way and they wouldn’t compromise their lives for faster results. Their caution definitely paid off because after they rounded a sharp corner one of the soldiers stepped on some sort of tripwire and a few spikes made from bone launched from a mole corpse that laid further down in the darkness of the tunnel. But because their shields were raised and the men were ready they only got pushed back a bit, the spikes left some dents and even penetrated the shields but nothing managed to actually hurt them.
Andrew stepped forward and gestured for the dwarves to get ready. “I need torches, light more of them and swarm out in groups of three!” The soldiers quickly followed his orders and a minute later the light behind him got brighter as new torches were lit. The three man teams swarmed out and after just a few steps into the cavern they found a mass grave. The entire cavern was filled with dead moles, their bodies forming two steep hills that were piled up against the walls, leaving just a narrow path straight down the middle.
They checked the entire cavern and one after another the groups returned to Andrew who was still standing at the entrance, his arms crossed over the broad chest. It seems they were in big trouble because if something could kill so many moles they were indeed a dangerous foe. For now they had to be extra careful and increase not only the number of soldiers and guards but also improve their current defenses even more.
Slowly Andrew stroked his beard, deep in thought about what to do. He let his gaze sweep over the cavern before giving the signal to pack up and move out again. He really hoped that Ethan was doing well as they could use more people. Strength in numbers wasn’t that big of an advantage anymore in the system but it still helped to have more people around.
Andrew looked back one last time before he and his dwarves started their journey back. A thought occurred to him, he could ask Nora if she was able to reach Ethan somehow without calling for his immediate return. Andrew sighed, sometimes he wished he was still back in that mine working his everyday job but he was responsible now for all these people, there would be time to rest someday.
