Selfish Money-Making

The dwarves had stayed in their holes for as long as anyone could remember. As the technology of the outside world progressed, so did the mining capabilities of those who dwelled within the mountains. They felt no need to do anything but dig, their only experiences with the cold light of the sun was on the rare occasion that they crossed the large stone bridge that connected the two separate dwarven keeps on either side of Grey Valley in the South-East. They only stopped work to eat, sleep, drink and for other unmentionable activities that a species needs to survive. But for such a small, insignificant race of creatures, they possessed mighty power.
Grey Bridge, as it was officially known, passed over the only landward trade route out of the continent of Patience. It was a strategic masterpiece, any caravans that wished to pass under the structure were forced to state what they carried to the guards, and anything that the on-duty general deemed was necessary to the betterment of the small kingdom would be placed upon a pulley system and sent to the above platform before the massive metal gates were lifted and the caravan was free to pass.

In the 2000 years of contact with the dwarves, never had any Human, Elf, Kaan or any other intelligent species come face to face with a dwarf. The only contact made was through words shouted down from a ledge, or a quick flash of a face from a spy-hole in the bridge. Not one door or opening led from the keeps or the bridge to the outside world, and neither did any lead in. The dwarven kingdom was a social recluse, people had started suspecting trickery by bandits until the corpses started showing up. Small humanoids, much thicker set than humans with pale skin and covered in boils. Any who touched the remains would soon develop the same boils and die soon after, blood seeping from every pore. Rumour spread that the god of Chaos had been given free reign over their society, as the other gods who kept him in line had seen their selfish ways. The dwarves had taken what they liked and now had to face the consequences. Slowly the corpses started disappearing, it was theorised that too few were left to throw the bodies over the side for the humans to burn, and then the gates stopped opening to anyone. No way in, no way out of Patience by land. And that’s the way it is now.

“Or at least that’s the way I heard it” Edwin finished, allowing the Inn to have a moment of quiet contemplation. A Kaan at a table at the back of the dingy room raised his whiskered hand slowly, a smile warping his snout. Edwin had always hated Kaan’s, trouble-makers in his opinion, often found to be no better than the common dogs they resembled. Nevertheless, he acted politely, it was imperative that he kept up his image as a gentleman while all eyes were on him. No sense in losing his audience now.
“Yes, sir? The Kaan fellow at the back?” The Kaan’s ear twitched slightly, something that often happened when they were being spoken to directly. He was finely dressed for a Kaan, a top hat covered his left ear completely and a fancy brown coat hung over his shoulders, just about covering the checkered waistcoat, shirt and tie underneath. The hand retreated back into the creatures lap before it spoke.
“Thank ye’ friend. I was simply wondering how it came to be that the gates are open now?” it calmly spoke, a troublesome glint deep in its piercing blue eye all the while. It knew something that Edwin didn’t, and that made him nervous.
“I’m sorry?” he asked, in a nervous flutter. “I’m afraid that I’m not aware what you’re talking about…”
“The gates are open, and ‘ave been for a while now at least. Ah, thought ye’ were aware” the Kaan smirked. Edwin opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by a woman sat on the bar who had been listening intently since he’d began. She was wearing a dirty green sweater, working jeans and brown boots. She was a ship’s engineer, he could tell by the black tips on her otherwise auburn hair, a common problem among people in that line of work. Engine oil stains after a while and her welding goggles that dangled around her neck were the second giveaway.
“Yessir, I heard it too, in fact, my cousin passed through there just a few weeks back, not one dwarf bothered him but he was allowed free passage anyway. Any explanations?”
“I’m afraid not Miss” Edwin replied. “Maybe too many of them died out after all?”
“In that case, who opened the gate, Mr Glinnen?” the girl asked. Her eyes were buried under a thick layer of mascara, but they still managed to pierce into his soul. Like she knew something that Edwin didn’t, and that made him nervous. “Maybe the gods took mercy on us after all and spared us from a similar fate. And maybe we should be careful what steps we take from now on, and not try to make our money from the misery of others.” She hopped down from the bar, yet maintained that piercing stare. Edwin glanced down at the cup in front of him, a few golden cogs shining in the bottom of it. The noise of the Inn had picked up once again, even the Kaan had gone back to his own table’s conversation, but he still heard the young lady’s last words as she walked towards the exit. “You have a good day Mr Glinnen. I have a flight to catch.”