Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Dwarven help

"It really is a fucking blockade. Can your girl make a way for us?" Trelka asked.

"There's no damn rock that my girl can't drill!" a rude dwarf assured.

With the help of the dwarf and a dwarf-vampiress residing in Gjaki's mansion, they placed the enormous girl in position. It was a robust metal structure, whose main function was to support the enormous metal cone. The tip was now stuck in the rock.

Trelka observed this work of dwarf technology with pride. Next to her, the dwarf-vampiress didn't want to miss any detail. It was the first time that she had seen one of those artifacts in action. Besides, Trelka had told her so much about it on her previous visit to Khaladok. Both dwarven woman had become quite good friends, and got drunk together.

Gjaki, Eldi and Goldmi also watched with admiration, as did many mole-beings, in whom anxiety could also be perceived. That was very important to them.

There were eleven more dwarfs. They were wearing their powerful armor, and ready to help take back the city. In fact, if it were up to the dwarfs, more than a hundred would have come. However, it took time to mobilize them, and also to get them there through the Gates. Nonetheless, they would come if their mole-siblings needed them.

In fact, they were preparing their forces to try to resume communication. Thanks to the visitors' virtual map and the old records of both towns, they had managed to identify the right tunnels.

Additionally, five mole-beings were on Khaladok to help at the dwarven end, where they felt more comfortable than in Gjaki's mansion. There, there was a stone ceiling above their heads, although it was unusually high. They would soon begin the expedition at that end of the tunnel. The other end was started at the Great Brotherhood, so they needed to recover it first.

Several dwarfs approached to imbue mana into the machine, then moved away to a safe distance. Everyone except the girl's father.

The dwarf placed his hand on one of the runes that Eldi had been observing with great interest. He added a bit of mana, which caused it to glow and release the restriction. The mana previously imbued into the machine circulated through the circuits, and the huge metallic cone began to rotate.

Without a doubt, the sound was strident, although luckily everyone was warned. The mole-beings felt extremely grateful for this. Even with the plugs, they found it extremely annoying. They didn't even want to imagine what it would be like without them.

Although, aside from being annoying, it was also impressive. The hard metal cone was perforating the stone with ease. Splinters were flying in all directions, which is why they were keeping their distance.

They couldn't help but admire how, little by little, that strange device was advancing, as it perforated the hard rocks. While the job couldn't be said to be fast, it was no comparison to what it would have cost them to do it manually. It was a matter of hours to get to the other side.

It was also laborious. He had to stop every hour to add mana, and more often to move aside the perforated stones, to remove the rubble and facilitate progress. For this, the visitors were especially efficient. Both mole-beings and dwarfs envied that inventory that allowed them to collect rocks with such ease.

Goldmi and Gjaki weren't there. They would return a few hours later, and bring back Tica, among others. There wasn't much to do, so they had returned to their families. Eldi had stayed with the dwarfs and mole-beings. He had helped them with several skills, while they corrected his mistakes with two others.

"Your ears are different, but the principle is the same. You must make them adhere to the ground, like a suction cup. Use mana to close the gaps," a mole-man explained.

Eldi was practicing Ear to the Ground, which was already at level 2. A couple of dwarfs had been curious, so they had joined the practices. Right now, they had a faint understanding of the skill, which was more than they had expected.

The reason for this was the simplicity of said skill, at least in the beginning. The truth was that it was difficult to master it, to clearly identify and separate the different acoustic signals.

A little further on, there were Javelin, Double Edge or Devastating Blow practices. Following Eldi's instructions, two underground races were learning to master these skills.

"Twenty-three are coming," a watchmole suddenly warned. He had detected them precisely with the skill they were practicing by sticking to the ground.

In fact, Eldi had also sensed something, but he hadn't quite made out what it was or the direction. Like everyone else, he stood up.

"They must be our siblings," Fita suggested.

They had notified the other mole-people they had contacted after the previous adventure in the Big Brotherhood. Entering the city again was everyone's business.

Just a few minutes later, the mole-beings appeared. They were surprised to see the dwarfs, although not the high human. In fact, they greeted him with the utmost respect, very different from their first meeting. Eldi had also taught them crafts, not to mention the lives he had helped save. They felt grateful and indebted to him.

One of them bowed deeply to him.

"Master, it's an honor for me that we meet again," he greeted him.

He was a young blacksmith who wasn't yet twenty years old. He had insisted on going with the expedition to meet his master, although his excuse was to check how his creations performed.

"Lofo, I'm glad to see you. How's your progress?" his teacher greeted him.

"I've raised two levels," he reported with pride in his voice. He had worked hard for the past few months.

"Not bad. If you dare to go to the surface, I can teach you some recipes," Eldi proposed.

"To... the... surface?" he hesitated, visibly scared.

"Ha, ha. Talk to those who have gone. Tica is there now, she'll be back in a while. Tell me later if you want to go for a walk," Eldi downplayed it.

He knew the terror that the word "surface" produced among them. Nonetheless, he also knew that, after Tica's experience, others had been encouraged by his mole-apprentice. He was almost sure that as soon as those who had gone told him about their experience, and provoked him a little, he would ask himself to go.

Eldi then looked at the rest of the group. To their meeting with the dwarfs. To their ritual greeting. It was similar to the one he had experienced in Khaladok a few days ago.

There was amazement in the newcomers, but not a trace of hostility. Unlike their reaction when they had encountered the high human, a being from the surface, the dwarfs were a sibling people.