Journal of Shorast Strangerways the Craterous Comet of Fields
First day in Doomforests I managed to see the chaos and madness ruling this place. There are many factions fighting for power, and I'll have to choose one side. So far, the inquisition seems to be the only good choice.
Shorast continued with inquisitors to their headquarters. There was a big table in the middle of the room with map of Doomforests on it. Armor stands and weapon racks were placed in the back of the room, rock coffers were standing in between beds. Dwarves, except the chief inquisitor took a seat in their tiny rock thrones. Then he said:
- This is our tactical map. We use it to plan our actions, and mark secret ways the fortress. If you'll need equipment, ask Likot. He'll find something for you. Now, we need to plan our moves. The MechaTechno sect is powerful and they have highly fortified headquarters. Any ideas?
Shorast thinks for a while and says:
- Nobody knows me in the fortress. If I'll have a suitable costume, they won't know that your secret agent. Advancing in their hierarchy, I could learn their weaknesses and inform you about their plans.
The dwarf looks surprised by this idea, but after a while of consideration says:
- Great! I'm sure that Likot had a suit of captured cultist somewhere...
Then he screams to a dwarf sitting just to the right of him:
- LIKOT! BRING THE CULTIST SUIT!!!
The dwarf falls off the chair, and scrambles away. After a while he comes back with a soap helmet and an old, dusty robe. Shorast takes the equipment, and uses a secret way inside the caverns. As he wandered the caverns, a squad of cultists with spears approach Shorast. They say:
- What are you doing here!? There's a war going on, Master Engineer told us to make sure all low rank cultists stay inside the headquarters! Now, we'll get you back to the base!
Shorast guided by cultists entered the entrance cave. There was a main square, surrounded by a few buildings. The place was bustling with activity. Dwarves were moving machinery parts all around, patrol squads moved out and came back to the base. There were four caves more - main cave, dormitory cave, militia cave and engineers cave. Shorast as a low rank member could enter only entrance and dormitories, while rest was reserved for higher rank cultists.
As adventurer wandered the vast, cavernous streets, he looked at working dwarves. Some of them were taking parts to engineers cave, some of them were helping wounded squads, while the rest listened to the teachings of master engineer, or trained to join militia. Shorast came closer to crowd of dwarves, waiting for another session of teachings.
Master engineer himself appeared to teach new members of MechaTachno. He started with a story:
- A tumbleweed rolls past as the desert cricket chirp. Inquisitors and unbelievers fallen under the mighty strike of MechaTechno. A pack of vultures eats flesh off a dwarven corpse. There was still last group of enemies, preparing for their last stand. But the crundles stronger than unbelievers attacked them. And a pack of Crundles stands victorious, and so they begin to build new empire from ashes of all others!
Just as master engineer told last words, a pack of Alpha-crundles jumped from behind him, showing their might. After watching the show, Shorast went to observe dwarves training with magma blasters. He looked as one of them almost melted himself, and went to dormitories.