The next morning, before dawn.

“ Too fucking bloody.”

Silve did not even flinch at David’s comment. Marqe however winced.

“ This is a complete clusterfuck. Big pit of monstrous horny stone gazing vipers and you just barged in half-cocked kind of a clusterfuck.”

David put his left hand over his face and leans back before releasing a deep sigh.

“ Did the doctor manage to at least save the child?”

“ Aye, she performed that c-section thing. We had a different name planned for her, but she is now Colden.”

David nods to the female dwarf as he looked at the heads of dozens of dwarves. Combine with those already dead and likely to be executed once the sun rises, David could not deny it was one hell of a bloody day so far.

“ That is good Lady Marqe. One less life lost at least. But, fuck how am I going to explain this.”

“ Simple, rebellion. It is no secret you are a bit controlling, and I do not blame ye for it. If we held tighter reigns...”

David shook his head.

“ All I want to do is build a nice city, a nice home for my people. Fuck, they do not understand how much I am fucking giving up. In five years, if things worked out, all I would have to do is read reports, decide what snacks to bring my kids on the way home, and decide what to cook for dinner before helping them with their schooling.”

Marqe eyes David with a raised brow.

“ Is that all?”

“ Sure, I have money, I have my dream, I have kids on the way and I got a fucking dragon as a wife. You know she started growing wings on her back last week? For her people, it is a sign my divinity has accepted her as a fellow elder.”

After a moment of silence, David looked down at Silve.

“ Damn it, Silve. Cry, yell, bitch, moan, complain. Be the ornery pain in my ass I know you can be. If you want a few more dead, I’ll even lend you this for a bit...”

Silve did not even blink as Stargazer entered his vision as an offering. Silve spoke for the first time since their meeting as he let go of his wife’s hand to push the weapon away.

“ No, laddy, enough blood has been spilled. Save for those that killed your Wardens or their kin...”

Silve paused as popping sounds came from David’s hand. Then the snapping from the vein-covered arm. Then grinding of his teeth. Finally, a deep orange glow appeared on the right side of his face.

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“ And I am not sure if the timing could be either better or worse. I am pretty sure I caught all the secret organized crime elements that snuck in. Leaving the honest and hardworking... or at least working people we recruited.

And don’t try to give me some bullshit about this being a dwarf thing. I made it a point from the very beginning that once it crosses racial borders, it’s all our problem. That is why I have been working so closely with Gark and Loa on this.”

Silve took a deep breath and looked at David glowing eye.

“ I think me and me clan should have joined you on that day. Seeing is not like being there. I seen... I felt berserker rage before... But that Jake fellow... and the other Wardens he brought with him....”

“ The four Jake brought with him lost their entire families tonight. James Warner, the father of two, lost his wife during the Change. Throats cut in the night. Peter Samwell, wife and pregnent. She was stabbed in the gut. Lost the child... then lost the will to continue. Lindsey Fritters, father, sister, two nieces, and her own son. They went for the young first. Parker Pwuter, grandfather, two children with spouses seven grandchildren...

Too many dead Silve, too many innocents. And I will not have that kind of blood on my people. But I can not have the families of the dead attackers stay. I will not allow this hate to fester to the next generation.”

“ Aye, I understand. But they ain’t got no choice.”

The light in David’s eye dims and he holsters Stargazer.

“ There usually never is a good choice. They stand no chance in exile... And even if they survive, will they come back one day centuries down the road? No, there is really only one choice. They are to go into the shuffle.”

Silve nods and grabs his wife’s hand again. Her calloused hand of years of weapon training provided a small comfort to him.

“ I let the council have many privileges I should have not allowed. The clan heads... heads will all roll, those not already. I doubt any that refused to participate in this do not at least know about it. No warning and no aid were given. This is not our old world where we have enemies on the outside of our mountain. I guess we must make our own enemies.”

David took a deep breath and slowly released it. The cold spring air showed as steam as he did as the sun started to peak.

“ You going to take the easy way out?”

Silve glared at David at those words.

“ Nothing easy about it laddy.”

“ Your clan should change their name to Coldforge then. For when the sun sets they will all have to have hearts of cold iron.”

Silve chuckled at that before he started laughing hard then suddenly went quiet.

“ You did well with your Wardens. Gark does well with civil matters outside the mountain. But here where dwarves run the forge. I failed ye. I managed to gather five thousand brethren here. But today we lose a tenth of that, at least.”

“ Including the best one of the lot.”

“ Na, lad I ain’t the best.”

“ I was talking about your wife. Wasn’t she the one that brew the ale?”

Silve smirked at that.

“ Aye, you're right about that. Still does not excuse you from being a right arse.”

David moves to take a step but pauses.

“ I will do all I can for her. Marqe will sit as temporary leader till a new dwarven councilor is chosen. But know this, what you do today is the dwarven way of your old world. After today... after today we do this as fellow countrymen.”