Limestone 1052
So, a year and a half now, since we came here, and I'm still leader. I'm happy about that, I was worried that when the new dwarves arrived they'd demand a new leader, but it's all been okay.
I did a sculpture of Ludwig. I'm not sure he appreciated it, but it was just a joke, I mean, we all know him and Jan are petrified of giant roaches, so obviously a statue of him about to get eaten by a swarm of them is funny, no?
Also, our metalsmith was taken by a strange mood! He retired with steel to the smithy, and shouted strange words at anyone who came near. When he emerged he had created a sarcophagus. I think I will take it for when I am laid to rest. I examined it, and it made my head hurt - he had forged an image into it, and looking closely it was an image of itself. It went on forever! Anyway, it's like he KNOWS steel now. Amazing.
Also, I decided that if Lud, or anyone else, decided to come after me because they don't have a sense of humour about my statues, I'd need more guards. So now there are 12 dwarves training - 3 with swords, and 9 practicing wresting so they get tough before I give them anything sharp. They're going to be axedwarves, speardwarves, and marksdwarves. I pity the speardwarves - their job is to poke something vital inside anything huge that attacks us, before it crushes them, so that it dies before it gets to the rest of us. Maybe I should make a statue about that? It might cheer them up.
Anyway, Big News. We broke into a cavern just this last hour. Here - I have the first reports. It's a very small scale, so we could fit it all in, and it goes up and down more than the miners could show on this sketch. There is even a deep pit - that seems to go down forever - you can vaguely see phosphorescent fungi light at the bottom.
As any dwarf knows, caverns mean danger. But also cave spider silk. We need to be careful how we exploit this cavern. I'm planning to set up the main fortress there, deep in the rock, and just leave some soldiers up top in this place. Before then though, I've stationed our sworddwarves at the entrance, and told Anita to go build some scary traps with the obsidian and wood swords Jan has assembled.
I'll get masons down there to build some walls, section off part of the cavern, and use the rest when we're ready. Yes, that's a good plan. I hope everyone else likes it. I also hope nothing comes from the depths of the world to consume us, but that's not likely. I mean, 30% chance tops.
Ah yes! To the workshop! "All my family and friends consumed by cave dwelling monsters!" In obsidian, I think. If they don't like it I can always sell it to the elves.
