Their sneaky massacre of the goblin scouting troop was over, the four dwarves left the rotting corpses of the filth behind them and arrived back at their own camp, sat down, finally lit their fire and looked at each other.
They hadn't said a single word since the left camp to attack. Sighs and relieved laughter relaxed the four and they ate their rations in relative silence.
"I cant believe I just lived through that!" Said Umel. "I thought I'd get stormed head first!"
"It was good that you stayed by us when you did." said Endok to reassure her. "Don't throw yourself into the fray if you cannot anticipate what is to come. I was surprised by Asen’s vigour!”
The weathered woman chuckled and put on a proud smile. “I had to keep drunken miners in line, I can deal with goblins.” demonstratively shouldering her bloody mace, still dripping with pulped brain.
After they had their fill, the relieved dwarves fell asleep under their tarp by the embers.
The next morning brought a kind of freshness with it. They got up quickly and set to the road after a quick breakfast consisting of dried meats and soaked sevenbread.
At noon they took turns of two sitting on the wagon and eating their rations of, again, dried meats and soaked sevenbread. Bomrek spent some time trying to decipher the papers the goblins carried with them, but he had difficulties reading the script. He only had experience with spoken goblin, and even then, it was limited to commands, battle cries and pleas for mercy.
He tried the map instead. Endok took a few peeks at it too and recognized some landmarks as well. Together they could deduce that the goblins were indeed looking for the mine again. But also, that the goblin fort laid to the west, probably as far as the Mountainhome laid to the north, just with less sea in between.
In the end, they learned little new. They might have to get a translator, but finding one was certainly on the bottom of the list of priorities. Again, they went to bed with rations of dried meats and sevenbread.
It was at the morning of the fifth day that Bomrek decided to take a short hike up some hill ridges to see the fishing village ahead. Smoky pillars rose up where the piers lay about the shore like carelessly scattered boards. Bomrek guessed that they would reach the village by noon of the coming day. He had the feeling this route would become a regular trip for him, considering which expertise he was even hired for. He wanted to descend the hills again when he saw Umel heading up to him. He decided to wait for her to arrive.
She too enjoyed the view, then turning to Bomrek. "I never thanked you properly for taking such good care of us. Sometimes I think you should lead the expedition rather than Asen. She just bosses around and makes plans, plans, plans, without ever considering anyone else’s opinions."
It was true that Asen led the endeavours so far with a stern hand and solid plan of her own, which she not always revealed to those she was commanding. But Asen was also the most experienced in terms of management, finances and labour.
"I don't want to lead the mine. I was entrusted with your safety, not making sure the mines, forges and farms run well enough. Asen cares about us and as long as she has someone to help her that's all that matters."
Umel looked at him with a sceptic look. She may not be able to construct a stone arch or organize a forge, but she could tend to all sorts of animals, plan which crops to seed on the fields and when. For the long term, this might just be the better survival skill. Bomrek would soon be eclipsed by people more at home in commanding armed dwarves than him.
Bomrek took another view into the distance; here at the delta, the riverplains were almost too wide to see the highlands on the other side. Further south, the two walls narrowed closer so that the other side was maybe fifteen miles away. But here the area spanned more than double that, the trees gave way to disgusting swamps and heavily forested floodplains.
He decided it was time to get back to the campsite to get the trek back on the road.
The rest of the day was uneventful and it came as Bomrek had predicted to himself, they arrived at noon of the sixth day.
The village was still muddy and mostly silent. They had to take care to not get their wagon stuck in the mud on their way to the mayor’s office. They caught a few interested eyes from bystanders, but nothing significant. Asen decided to head directly to the trading post by the peers. Endok stayed with the wagon.
As they entered, the clerk at the front desk looked up. “Ah, the gentle sirs an ladies dwarves, do you want to talk to the mayor again?”
Asen took the lead on this again “Yes, and we have a new proposition to him!” she said enthusiastically and heaved the box of silver bars onto his desk. “We will need lodging at the inn, ideally. Do you think your office can give us an advancement so we can settle in while we wait?”
"Of course, that is nothing we will not extend to such business partners. It might take a while for the mayor to finish his current business, but he will be able to receive you before evening."
The group used the time to inquire for a room at the inn. They got one with four beds after assuring the innkeeper that the office of the mayor would cover the costs. They returned to the town hall later, Umel decided to wait outside this time. Although he never was involved with the trade, Endok hoped to be able to plead to former trade relations.
The office of the mayor was decorated with all sorts of mementos from faraway lands and exotic places, most likely acquired through the vast network of ships and routes that the human city states upheld. Endok saw a few dwarven-style stone statues, probably by the dwarves of the rocky plains in the southeast as well as elven bow and arrow. For someone in a far backwater place like this, the mayor seemed to have good and far-reaching connections.
The secretary welcomed them with a warm greeting. By his side was a thin looking man whom the mayor introduced as the secretary of trade, who would have a more accurate overview over their finances and needs.
After the four of them had taken place on chairs before the desk, Assn pulled a leather ledger out of her backpack onto her lap.
"Greetings, my friendly neighbours. I am glad to hear your settlement is still alive, but I believe we have not met before yet. My name is secretary of trade Borlean."
Asen introduced the other three. She explained the situation of the settlement. After she concluded her account of the events and status, Borlean put his fingers to his lips and sank into a short contemplation. Asen reached into her ledger and pulled out the list of required supplies and items as well as the list of what was loaded on the wagon and what they were able to produce and supply for the next six months. As she concluded her reading, she put forth the box of three silver bars.
Borlean raised an eyebrow and reached for one of them, carefully inspecting the markings and the surface of the bars with an eye clearly trained for appraisal. "Yes, this looks much more assuring than those crude coins. I believe these will do fine.”
Asen shot a confident smile back to Bomrek and Endok. “Now we would like to show you the other good we brought; our cut limestone blocks!”
Ohtside at the wagon, Asen pulled back the thick linen tarp that was fastened over the wagon and revealed dozens of perfectly cut limestone blocks, one by two by three feet each. Borlea ran his fingers over the shining white blocks, the front and back faces polished to an almost mirror sheen, while top, bottom and side faces were left somewhat rough but still straight and level, to ensure good hold even without mortar. “I will never understand how you dwarves get these so smooth and straight every time!”
Endok jokingly remarked “The secret's in the beard.” and stroked the kempt braid hanging from his chin. They all had a good chuckle at that, but the dwarves knew how close to the truth it actually was.
While human hair is fine and soft and elven hair is even silky, dwarven hair can be as coarse and rough as threads of metal, and they were blessed with minerals so hard that they could be used to polish and cut stone as well as metal. And so, dwarves would gather the hair that accumulated in their combs and the women would then weave them into cloths and strings, which would serve them better than any sand or metal tools that humans ever had. The key was in women diligent and careful enough to sort everyone’s hair according to coarseness and thickness, so that they may be used for the most fitting task, because not all dwarven hair was equal.
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Asen stepped closer to the human at the cart. “So, secretary of trade Borlean, how many do you think you’ll want to order? Any other special orders? Columns, slabs, keystones?” She knew the stones were a valuable resource in the village that consisted of mostly wooden shacks.
"I have to admit, after the steady supply of stone from the Gleaming Tunnels ceased, we couldn't finish some of our projects. This trading post was supposed to get a proper wall next after the light house. We can of course open the old agreements for food and essentials again, even import some iron and tin and other metals if you wish."
"We will gladly accept your offer. We will try to load as much as you can offer us for our bars onto the wagon and leave in the morning again! Let us go now to inspect and choose the wares!"
Both Borlean and the mayor nodded, then got up to lead the way.
Something Lushrir had said had stuck with Bomrek: drafting their own defensive troops before even hearing back from the Mountainhome was risky. It might come across as a coup or bid for independence. All he knew was that to defend the colony, more than just three dwarves with combat experience were required. They hoped the winter would defend them against attackers for now, but when spring came, so would ambitious thieves.
Asen pulled the list from her bag and went down the priorities. In the end they acquired all they had planned; the saw for Endok's sawmill, chisels for mine and quarry, rope and straps to repair the ox harness, iron ingots to make repairs or replacements for tools, fishing lines and hooks, new baskets, an entire barrel of salt, one of oil, three bars of tin – according to Stikus enough for sixty bars of bronze – nails, coal, more well-keeping food, and even some herbs and spices.
Asen was getting their luggage into their room at the inn while Bomrek and Umel were loading the last of their purchase onto the wagon, when Endok came from somewhere else in the village, a small cask under each arm, and moved close to Bomrek to speak in a whispering tone. "Do we have some more space for these on the wagon?"
"What's in there?" As if Bomrek had to ask, but he did anyway.
"Just something to ease the mood."
Bomrek merely rolled his eyes in silence.
"Well, you know, something so Lushrir can clean wounds and his tools, and MAYBE for raising spirits around the fire."
Bomrek wanted to protest but he remembered how important it was for doctors to keep their tools and wounds clean.
"Alright, put it next to the bigger ones over there." Bomrek pointed towards the barrels of salt and oil. Then he remembered something. "Did you steal coins from us?"
Endok seemed almost insulted. "I have my own coins, still from the first minting! Back then we all got our fair share of payment." he showed a silver coin, a bit smaller than his thumb nail, with the seal of the Gleaming Tunnels like the others, but more worn and not as shiny, as it had already gathered quite a few scratches.
A relaxed "ooh" made its way out of Bomreks mouth. It dawned on him that they might have to talk about payment soon to rather than keep pooling everyone’s labour. "What is it, now seriously?"
Endok smiled. "River spirits!"
River spirits were a by-product of the rope reed that lined the many river arms and oxbow lakes in many wetlands such as this river valley. After humans had harvested the dried plants in autumn for making cloth and rope, they would use the tough, coarse seeds to brew something barely palatable. Then, they stuffed all sorts of herbs, nuts and berries they find along the river during harvest and let it steep for a while, giving each river its own distinct taste.
Happily Endok loaded the two casks on the wagon and then helped with the rest.
After that they all met back at the inn, where Asen proclaimed that she had sent the letters on their way.
In those letters, the new and old inhabitants of the Gleaming Tunnels promised of riches, adventure, glory and of company, of new chances. The type of things a captain who was suspiciously short of crew promised the desperate and the gullible at the port.
They were still in high hopes as to the new arrivals. Roughly two dozen they already knew, the ones who had already signed on, just waiting in the homeland for this crucial “all clear” from Asen. But who else might make it their way? Trouble makers? Misfits? Lazy parasites? For now, they looked forward to the first proper meal in over a month.
As they settled into their first real beds in a long time, Endok promised them. "I will build us beds next, now that we finally have time and resources!" Bomrek looked over to him in his bed. The candle illuminated his smile. He had been through so much more than the seven newcomers.
A new day began and so did the return trip for the dwarves. The entire first day went by uneventful with favourable weather.
It was during their meal on the moving wagon that Bomrek asked Endok something that had been nagging his mind for a little while now.
"How did you do compensation back then?"
Endok thought for a short while. "Well we only started to pay everyone once the silver was found. Everyone got an equal payment. Those who worked in the quarry, lumber, mine or construction got a small danger-bonus. But food and other provisions were free, so we barely spent anything in the settlement. We used the coins to order stuff from the village, like spirits, pipeweed, candy or other luxury goods. Oh, and overall payout was dependent on the weekly production."
It sent Bomrek into a deep contemplation. He tried to leverage just when the settlers could expect being paid. He soon realized that it relied on yield, workforce, food supply, accidents and many other things he couldn't possibly know or even guess. It made him glad that people like Asen and Rigoth had the knowledge and the skills to organize something like this.
The evening of the fourth day came and they finally ran out of sevenbread. They opened one of the supply crates to reveal hardtack, the humans' version of sevenbread. It seemed the dwarves would not know respite from this food until they started baking their own bread.
"At least it wont turn bad!" said Umel, with little backing from the others.
As they marched on for the days, the Shinerock in the distance grew and so did its allure of safety. Shielded by the large body of rock protruding into the river plains, the settlement would not be visible until the almost cleared around the mountain itself, and so a bad gut feeling would not leave Bomrek, the fear that something might have happened during their time away.
After five days and a bit more, they arrived back at the settlement. The sight had changed quite a bit.
The badly piled up houses were gone. A shallow trench had been dug in front of the palisades, the beginnings of a new stone block wall. The garbage pile had grown even further. Something that looked like a primitive roof of branches and brushwood was set up, together with a primitive manger, obviously to house their trusty ox. Logs chopped into simple ladders or stairs had been set up on the quarry and from up there, a figure waved at them. A loud welcoming call was heard and the other five came rushing to greet the adventurous trek back home. The wagon was unloaded and there was a lot of hugging, handshaking and congratulating.
On the inside, the rooms were fully cleared. One room was already designated as a food storage, the other houses wood to dry. The floors and walls of the guardroom were a bit smoother and walking on it was more comfortable.
They all soon found themselves sitting around the fire in the guardroom and telling stories. Endok came in with the two casks under his arms and threw one to Lushrir with the words "here's yours!"
Lushrir got to removing the cork plug that was sealed in place with thick hard wax and poured himself a bit in his clay cup. Asen's eyes opened wide. "Did you buy Alcohol?" She tried to keep a bellowing tone in her voice but Bomrek noticed her effort. The room fell silent and looked to her.
Endok had an indifferent expression. "Ya. What of it?"
"We barely have enough silver, we can't waste anything!"
Endok plainly answered. "You didn't waste anything. It was our money."
"We need anything we can get. You should have put that money in with the rest!" By now she was almost furious, but Endok stayed calm. Bomrek was considering to get between them before someone said something they might regret later.
"We mined that silver. We minted those coins. You had no part in it."
No one was saying a word. A certain mood was easily read in the room; nobody wanted to take a side, not with the furious Asen, Not with the indifferent Lushrir. Asen stayed resolute. "How much bread, meat, salt or oil does that cask represent? How many chisels, picks, or axes?"
Bomrek finally stood up and walked over to the two. "We have bought enough hardtack and dried fruits to strike fear into the eyes of sailors! We'll be fine. These guys squatted in dirty huts and damp rooms for more than seven months. They saw their friends die. They threw their lives away for that silver. They deserve some spirits! And so do we, because we are a people now, in tough and in joyous times."
Asen noticed that everyone was staring at her. After days full of hard work and marching, nobody was in a mood to whip up any sort of trouble. Everybody just wanted to rest and relax.
She sat down, leaning back as if to hide from glances. A cup found its way to Bomrek, from it a herbal yet fruity aroma rose. More and more cups and horns were reached around the round, even Asen finally accepted her luxury. When everyone was served, Endok raised his cups and yelled “PRAISE THE MINERS!”
And the others answered. “PRAISE THE MINERS!”
They all took their first sip of the first strong alcohol they had tasted in weeks. For tonight, the world was good, for tonight, there existed only the dwarves and the momentous deeds they should perform in their futures. No pasts, no deaths, only bright, gleaming futures! That night, the guardroom was filled with stories and chatter well into the night.