Chapter 11: From the journal of Goden Ducimtathtak
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18th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
Stinthad has temporarily handed over all the responsibilities and powers of the expedition leader to me. She appears to be deeply traumatized by the death of Dishmab, blaming herself for her demise. As much as I'd like to say that this was a result of her gross incompetence, in truth she couldn't have done much to prevent this. No one anticipated such a violent and sudden attack from the deep, as normally cave krakens aren't particularly aggressive. And if Dishmab hadn't fallen into a state of isolation, the militia would have known of her plight before it was to later. Even if I had been in the position of expedition leader I doubt I could have prevented that cave kraken from snapping Dishmab's neck.
Of course there's no need to tell Stinthad this. Figure I'll let her wallow in her own guilt for as long as possible so I can get some real work done.
19th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
A horrible scratching sound has been echoing up from the caverns, accompanied by labored breathing and the smell of rotting flesh. It is only safe to assume that some form of the undead is attempting to attack Reveredtour.
Kraken's Notes: The idea of a giant mole sounds intimidating, though they are actually only slightly larger than a deer. So they probably shouldn't pose a significant threat to your dwarves, and any military will wipe the floor with them. The bigger danger they pose is raiding your food stockpiles. They will attempt to steal any food they can reach and then flee before being caught. So it's important to dispose of them when they come in close proximity to your fortress.
I am not concerned, as the Immortal Rags are quite capable of defeating the average zombie. The corrupting essence that holds them together is weak in this area, so they tend to dissipate after suffering only minor injuries. Stinthad foolishly believes this to be a result of divine intervention. How childish. The gods do not care about the survival of Reveredtour. They would never help us, beyond giving me advice. Though lately I am not sure if their words hold any truth.
20th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
The zombie was defeated with ease. It appears it was an undead giant mole, attempting to steal food from Reveredtour. This would have been disastrous, as we are running low on all forms of food. The death of Dishmab certainly hasn't helped in this regard. I may have to divert focus away from construction and towards food production, assuming the caravans do not show up soon. Regardless, we can't focus on the caverns for the time being, and as such it is important to destroy any creatures that may be lurking in close proximity to Reveredtour. I shall send the Immortal Rags to cleanse the caverns.
On the subject of food, we have finally managed to build an area that could serve as a suitable dining hall.
I loathe having to build according to this idiotic idea of Stinthad's, but it's too late to switch over to something more sensible. We'll move some furniture onto this platform in order to complete the dining hall. Monom should be capable of doing so, assuming she doesn't forget her job again.
26th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
Construction of the bridge is nearly complete. Now we need only build a couple floor tiles and we will have full access to our territory. A more sensible leader would have done this early in the fort's life, but of course Stinthad didn't listen to me until a few weeks ago. The only perk to working as her advisor is that she allows me to enter any area of the fort as I please. No longer do I have to sneak into the deep mines at night while the miners are off duty just to speak to the gods. Such a hassle, and it always resulted in our conversations being incredibly brief.
The last of Dishmab's plump helmets matured a few days ago. I've ordered any dwarf with time to spare to harvest these crops, otherwise they will simply wither away or be stolen by filthy cavern dwellers. Stinthad was worried about exposing more dwarves to dangerous creatures. I reminded her that the Immortal Rags expedition in the caverns was still ongoing, and that so long as they patrol no beast will enter Reveredtour from below. This only caused her to worry more, as it has been 6 days since their expedition began. Normally she has faith in the militia, though it seems the loss of Dishmab has caused her to fixate on even the slightest possibility of death.
1st Timber, 1051, Late Autumn
The Immortal Rags came back today. They were tired, beaten, hungry, and exhausted. They attempted to slink by me but I stopped them before they could reach the food stockpile. Kosoth was missing, and I inquired as to why she had yet to show up.
I am horribly disappointed.
I can understand a civilian being bested by a cave kraken in combat, but a trained soldier? Absurd. Momuz claims that they got separated in the caverns, and that by the time they had found Kosoth she had already had her head crushed. I am not sure who is at fault here. The commander who could not even keep an eye on 2 soldiers, or the idiot that ran off on her own to wrestle giant squids in the deep. The later paid for her idiocy with her life, so I suppose I should punish Momuz. However, Stinthad did not allow me to do so. Despite having almost nothing to do with Kososth's demise, she still blames herself. Works for me.
4th Timber, 1051, Late Autumn
I noticed that Alath has a rather nasty gash running across his arm. Apparently one of the cave kraken had attempted to tear his arm off before Momuz's Earth Golem crushed its head.
He says it's nothing, but I think otherwise. A wound like that could cause him to receive an infection, which could then lead to death. However, there isn't really anything we can do about this as no one in Reveredtour possesses any medical skills. Best we can do is wait and hope for the best. The last thing I need is an incapacitated soldier.
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18th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
Stinthad has temporarily handed over all the responsibilities and powers of the expedition leader to me. She appears to be deeply traumatized by the death of Dishmab, blaming herself for her demise. As much as I'd like to say that this was a result of her gross incompetence, in truth she couldn't have done much to prevent this. No one anticipated such a violent and sudden attack from the deep, as normally cave krakens aren't particularly aggressive. And if Dishmab hadn't fallen into a state of isolation, the militia would have known of her plight before it was to later. Even if I had been in the position of expedition leader I doubt I could have prevented that cave kraken from snapping Dishmab's neck.
Of course there's no need to tell Stinthad this. Figure I'll let her wallow in her own guilt for as long as possible so I can get some real work done.
19th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
A horrible scratching sound has been echoing up from the caverns, accompanied by labored breathing and the smell of rotting flesh. It is only safe to assume that some form of the undead is attempting to attack Reveredtour.
Kraken's Notes: The idea of a giant mole sounds intimidating, though they are actually only slightly larger than a deer. So they probably shouldn't pose a significant threat to your dwarves, and any military will wipe the floor with them. The bigger danger they pose is raiding your food stockpiles. They will attempt to steal any food they can reach and then flee before being caught. So it's important to dispose of them when they come in close proximity to your fortress.
I am not concerned, as the Immortal Rags are quite capable of defeating the average zombie. The corrupting essence that holds them together is weak in this area, so they tend to dissipate after suffering only minor injuries. Stinthad foolishly believes this to be a result of divine intervention. How childish. The gods do not care about the survival of Reveredtour. They would never help us, beyond giving me advice. Though lately I am not sure if their words hold any truth.
20th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
The zombie was defeated with ease. It appears it was an undead giant mole, attempting to steal food from Reveredtour. This would have been disastrous, as we are running low on all forms of food. The death of Dishmab certainly hasn't helped in this regard. I may have to divert focus away from construction and towards food production, assuming the caravans do not show up soon. Regardless, we can't focus on the caverns for the time being, and as such it is important to destroy any creatures that may be lurking in close proximity to Reveredtour. I shall send the Immortal Rags to cleanse the caverns.
On the subject of food, we have finally managed to build an area that could serve as a suitable dining hall.
I loathe having to build according to this idiotic idea of Stinthad's, but it's too late to switch over to something more sensible. We'll move some furniture onto this platform in order to complete the dining hall. Monom should be capable of doing so, assuming she doesn't forget her job again.
26th Sandstone, 1051, Mid-Autumn
Construction of the bridge is nearly complete. Now we need only build a couple floor tiles and we will have full access to our territory. A more sensible leader would have done this early in the fort's life, but of course Stinthad didn't listen to me until a few weeks ago. The only perk to working as her advisor is that she allows me to enter any area of the fort as I please. No longer do I have to sneak into the deep mines at night while the miners are off duty just to speak to the gods. Such a hassle, and it always resulted in our conversations being incredibly brief.
The last of Dishmab's plump helmets matured a few days ago. I've ordered any dwarf with time to spare to harvest these crops, otherwise they will simply wither away or be stolen by filthy cavern dwellers. Stinthad was worried about exposing more dwarves to dangerous creatures. I reminded her that the Immortal Rags expedition in the caverns was still ongoing, and that so long as they patrol no beast will enter Reveredtour from below. This only caused her to worry more, as it has been 6 days since their expedition began. Normally she has faith in the militia, though it seems the loss of Dishmab has caused her to fixate on even the slightest possibility of death.
1st Timber, 1051, Late Autumn
The Immortal Rags came back today. They were tired, beaten, hungry, and exhausted. They attempted to slink by me but I stopped them before they could reach the food stockpile. Kosoth was missing, and I inquired as to why she had yet to show up.
I am horribly disappointed.
I can understand a civilian being bested by a cave kraken in combat, but a trained soldier? Absurd. Momuz claims that they got separated in the caverns, and that by the time they had found Kosoth she had already had her head crushed. I am not sure who is at fault here. The commander who could not even keep an eye on 2 soldiers, or the idiot that ran off on her own to wrestle giant squids in the deep. The later paid for her idiocy with her life, so I suppose I should punish Momuz. However, Stinthad did not allow me to do so. Despite having almost nothing to do with Kososth's demise, she still blames herself. Works for me.
4th Timber, 1051, Late Autumn
I noticed that Alath has a rather nasty gash running across his arm. Apparently one of the cave kraken had attempted to tear his arm off before Momuz's Earth Golem crushed its head.
He says it's nothing, but I think otherwise. A wound like that could cause him to receive an infection, which could then lead to death. However, there isn't really anything we can do about this as no one in Reveredtour possesses any medical skills. Best we can do is wait and hope for the best. The last thing I need is an incapacitated soldier.
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