Expansion - Introduction and Chapter 1

 

Introduction

My Dear Reader, welcome to this story. Before you begin, I’d like to give you a few things that will help you in this world.

I: This is not an allegory. At the time this was written, yes, there were events in various parts of the world that were similar to what takes place in this story, but what I wrote was based off of historical trends, not specific acts at the time of writing. Whether you choose to believe this is up to you, but I am a student of history, languages, and culture, all of which influence my writing.

 II: In this world, dwarves and goblins evolved from a common ancestor and can intermarry and have children. Before you cry “Blasphemy!” because this differs from the versions you know, remember that many cultures across our own world have stories of “little people of the mountains.” They go by many names. For this story, I chose Dwarf and Goblin. That is all.

 III: The languages are fictional but inspired by real ones. Durask, the dwarven tongue, draws from Icelandic, Norse, and English. Mishikwe is shaped by Algonquian languages. The cultures in this world grew from the logic and rhythm of these languages.

 IV: Everything is translated into English for the reader, except for certain names, items, and terms that lose their texture when translated. You will also encounter people using formally structured phrases at times. This reflects characters operating in official spaces or showing honor and respect through formal speech. If you find yourself thinking, “They’d be more casual than that,” remember: that is your expectation. In this world, the speaker at that moment would choose formality.

Welcome, and I hope you fully enjoy this story that takes place in a mountain range shared between the Children of Durn and the Children of Bruna.

1 – Brikel – Mapping the Tunnel

Brikel taps the stone and listens to the echoes. The tunnel around him is rough‑cut, its walls jagged, but the floor has been worn smooth by time and traffic. His oil lamp burns bright compared to the faint glow of fungi and lichen clinging to the stone. He marks the distance on his slate, scratches a matching mark on the wall, and measures out another length of rope.

Brikel Ore‑sight is a surveyor and an engineer. As he sketches the tunnel’s shape, he wonders—not for the first time—if he is truly safe. The legionnaires swore this section was checked and cleared, and now it falls to him to measure it for the miners. Aside from his lamp, rope, and rock hammer, he carries a long metal rod. Every stalagmite and stalactite gets the same treatment: a gentle tap first, then a firmer one. A Guild Engineer from the Iron Legion once showed him how to trigger a trap safely. Better to make a section fall in front of you than on you—or worse, behind you, where the zhul‑durak, the “silent hunters,” wait for the trapped.

He wipes sweat from his brow, then lifts the rod and taps a stalactite. Solid. He sets the rod down, raises the lamp, and checks for spider‑silk trip threads. Nothing this time. He notes it on his slate and measures out more rope.

“I wish these were engineered tunnels,” he mutters. “Not just shaped stone.”

But if he does his job well, the miners will fix that—carving, leveling, fortifying, bracing. Turning wild stone into proper halls. Coppervein Reach spoiled him; the Ore‑Sights have been surveyors and engineers since before the ‘Days of Peace’.

“Hopefully I can finish this tunnel and head back to Root‑Stone Hearth,” he says quietly. He wishes he could have seen the Grand Market before it closed a year ago. “Grand Market…” He whispers the name and makes the sign of Durn. “Great Tomb now. May the souls of the Legionnaires be in Durn’s keeping.”

He reaches the end of the tunnel and lifts his lamp toward the cavern beyond. The darkness breathes cold air back at him.

“No,” he murmurs. “Not by myself. Not for all the gobblers’ gold in the mountain.”

He checks the time on his timelamp, makes his final notes, and gathers his equipment to head back.