James travelled yet again from the Mines through the canyon. As they passed other people walking or riding towards the dwarven city, they were met by many curious onlookers. To anyone who asked, James freely told their purpose and where they were going, since he figured it would soon be public knowledge anyway. Most looked at him like he was crazy, but there were also a few dwarves who almost attacked him, both for being a human and for thinking that his purpose was to steal business and revenue from the dwarves.

At last they came to the valley's entrance. James knew that he was making a big gamble and hoped that his money would last until his enterprise began to turn a profit. Turning to his people, James stood up on his cart and made sure to look at each and every one of them.

"Alright everyone! During our trip, I have talked with Damian and Hrauss about wages. I want you to want to be here. That said, I don't agree with their estimation of a fair wage for all of you."

Everyone's heart sank, and Damian and Hrauss looked at James with expressions of betrayal. Many even wondered why they had come, secretly thinking that they should have known better than to trust a human. The next moment though James' face broke into a wide grin.

"So I am going ten percent above their recommendations."

They all blinked. Had he just said he was going to...give them more money than he had been advised to?

"Also, there is something very important I have to tell you all.

"I have one rule: work safely. So if we need to waste a day or a week to ensure that you all have a safe workplace, we're doing it! Anyone who knowingly works in an unsafe workplace will be reprimanded the first time, and the second time anything up to and including reassignment or firing will take place."

The former city residents began to smile. They liked what they heard. Who didn't know the dangers of mining through pockets of gas, loose rock, and collapsing mineshafts? More than one of them had lost a friend or relative to injury or even death from working underground.

"Now...let's get to work!"

The new residents cheered, infected by his charisma. But one thing bothered Damian.

"So James...what will this new fortress of yours be called?"

James grinned. There was only one name he could think of.

"Gibraltar."

They began immediately, with James going over and fine-tuning the design with the dwarven craftsmen. He made sure to talk with them about leaving enough support structure in place to hold the weight of the mountain, and thus it was quite some time before they even began tunnelling. The dwarves were surprised by what he wanted, especially when James told them he wanted a steep incline going up into the mountain, with curved edges on the side much like a halfpipe. When asked why he wanted this, James just smiled and said they would understand later. Shrugging the dwarves began to work, only to be told that they had to take frequent breaks, wear metal helmets and strange strips of cloth over their mouths and noses to avoid breathing in too much dust, and to carry both lanterns instead of torches along with a small bird. This annoyed them, after all how was a human supposed to teach them how to do their jobs? They, many of whom had been mining all their lives?

The grumbling stopped though when James reminded them that they had agreed to work safely, so they could also always quit if they wanted to. They were slightly mollified however when the human wore the same gear as he told them to and began asking them were to hit with his pickaxe. Those that were not assigned to dig were made to do other tasks. Damian's wife Bertha made a hot lunch for them, blacksmiths began drawing blueprints for the ideal forges, and the guards maintained constant watch.

James felt embarrassed when the dwarves laughed at him and told him to put away his pickaxe, choosing instead to use hammers and chisels to form the entranceway into the mountain. The more James thought about it, the more it made sense to him. Hadn't he been the one to first mention safety? What would happen if a shard of rock went flying into someone's eye? Without hard plastic or unbreakable glass it was impossible to make safety glasses, so he supposed hammering down and away from himself was the safest alternative. He soon found that his greater height, while an asset, was not the best for him as the dwarves used scaffolding that their carpenters provided. Seeing them at work, James had a few thoughts on how to improve safety, but he waited to see if these expert craftsmen knew better than him. He soon learned that this was not the case, as Bertha to his shock actually brought out mugs of beer, causing a cheer from the dwarves and a groan from James as he realized basic rules like not drinking on a construction site was not Safety 101 in Morganthal.

They made good progress despite James' concerns though, and by the end of the day there were rainclouds overhead, prompting James to invite the women and children under the outcropping they had managed to dig so far. Though it was still very rough, the entranceway was beginning to take shape with what appeared to be two impressive warhammers holding up the rock, though they were only cut far enough to give the appearance of them and not fully chiseled out. Above the wide archway of the entrance, the words 'Friends welcome, Enemies Beware' were written in impressive, cursive script. Perhaps most impressive though was that along the warhammer columns were images cut as finely as Egyptian hieroglyphics. There were dwarves, centaurs, gorgons, dragons and snakes and lizardmen and things of all kinds from races to beast to images of nature. Looking at the work that had already been done, James could not help but be impressed.

That night thunder rumbled in the distance, and before long everyone who was not in the cave was pelted with water as the sky opened up with rain. Some of them had proper tents, but most didn't so they were forced to spend a cold sleepless night huddled together or along the edge of the mountains as the workers kept tunnelling. James made sure though to tough it out with everyone else and refuse a spot in the cave. Either he led by example or not at all.

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The next morning the work continued, with a new shift of miners taking over. And though the work seemed at times agonizingly slow they made steady progress. James made sure to pay everyone daily, as he didn't want anyone to think he was asking them to work for free. And when they collected their pay, the miners eagerly talked about what they would do once they returned to Gothcraks, which sharply brought into perspective a large problem James had. As things were, he was paying his workers, but they had no place to use that money. And if he wanted his fortress to eventually be self-sustaining, how could he have that?

He spoke with Damian about this problem. And they eventually agreed that he would have to make a trip back to the Mine in order to procure goods. For although he could commission items and goods from the other people that had followed him to their worksite, why would they sell their works to him for him to resell instead of selling directly, cutting out him as the middleman and giving their customers a better price?

He also wanted to procure a few other items, so he made a return trip with Damian. They drew a few jeers from the dwarven guards, who loudly speculated why he was back so soon from his "failed venture." Funnily enough, though they mocked they were more than happy to accept his money and the two of them quickly returned to the jobsite with several things he thought he could sell for a small profit. Tobacco for those who smoked, sausages for the cooks, raw goods that could be turned into finished products. And materials for a potentially deadly creation.

They soon returned to where the tunnel was being dug. And after a fitful sleep where thankfully everyone was able to find space inside the tunnel to at least have shelter, James quickly pulled Damian and Hrauss aside with him, leading them a good ways away from everyone else. Then he turned to face the two dwarves.

"Damian, Hrauss. What I am about to share with you, cannot be told to anyone else. Not even the dwarf king. Is that clear?"

The pair looked at each other, struck by James' seriousness.

"What could be so important? What's stopping us from telling the king?" Hrauss asked, turning back to him.

"I would never ask you to, nor try to dissuade you from, your loyalty to your fellow dwarves and your king. The problem is, what I am about to share with you is too powerful. If anyone else learns about it, it could potentially mean the end of the dwarf kingdom itself."

Both were startled.

"How?! How can this be?"

"I have a creation in mind. It is powerful, and potentially very useful. But from where I'm from, the person who invented it, or so the story goes, watched his creation-which had been meant for mining-transform the very nature of warfare. I don't want that to happen here. So if this is too much for you, please just tell me to not share it, and the information will remain locked in my mind forever. I don't want to be responsible for anyone getting killed by this."

"You're mad. You think you alone can defeat Gothcraks?"

James looked evenly at Hrauss.

"With this invention...one man could potentially bring down the walls of the Mine of the Gothcraks, and seal every mine in the city. Or, it can be used to safely mine faster. That is what I want it for. I tell you this as a measure of trust, but I also don't want either of you to use it as a measure of vengeance for every evil humans have ever done."

Seeing how serious James was, the two were shaken.

"And what happens if we take this weapon with us?"

"Then you would have to watch as everyone tries to get their hands on it. Civil war among the dwarves could even break out. For now, just think about it."

"I want to learn about this weapon."

"Me too" Hrauss agreed, meeting James' eyes with one brimming with conviction. "I may be a dwarf, but I want to learn of this weapon in case the humans attack Gothcraks."

"You're both sure of this?"

They nodded.

"Very well. But this is not strictly a weapon. It is more accurate to say that it is a tool, one with many uses. It is called gunpowder."

He pulled out some prepared powder and dug a small hole. Once it was buried, he stuck the dynamite into a small clay pot and set it within the earth, laying a fuse made of rope laced with more gunpowder back behind a rock for cover.

"Now, please stay behind this rock. Wait here a second; I'll be right back."

He quickly ran back to the mine and grabbed a lantern. Rushing back he still restrained himself and slowed down, still returned to his two workers within minutes. Under their curious looks he opened the glass case of the lantern and set the flame against the wick, igniting it in a shower of small sparkling embers like a sparkler. As the flame raced away both dwarves got up to look but James pulled them back down.

"Stay behind cover."

They saw his seriousness and nodded, ducking back down behind the rock. A few moments later a small POW sounded, but James still didn't emerge from their cover for at least twenty seconds. Only then did he get up and return to where he had set the explosive.

"This is it? This isn't much. Two strikes with a chisel could do this" Hrauss complained, looking at the half a foot crater and the blackened earth around it.

James shook his head hopelessly. With the dust from the first test still settling, he went and brought his cart over, asking the dwarves to help him set a keg of the stuff in the same spot. Getting bored by now they did as he asked, and the process repeated itself. Only this time, when the dynamite blew up all three of them felt the tremor in the earth beneath them, and the sound was so loud they were all covering their ears. This time when they emerged from their rocky shield Damian and Hrauss were wide-eyed, completely at a loss for words by what they saw. It looked like a meteorite had struck the earth, with large pieces of earth and rock strewn about like a huge missile from a catapult. Both of them felt fearful seeing this new weapon, realizing that if it were placed against the walls of Gothcraks it would shower the city with a similar scene.

"This...this is gunpowder. Used wisely, it can tunnel through rock easily. Too much...and well, this happens."

Both dwarves felt their hands go clammy and the hair on the back of their necks stand up. This...this was gamechanging.