Tunnel Rat

Chapter 232: After the Dust Settles

Over a dozen curious members of the Shadowport Mining Guild were 'just hanging around' in the assay office to see what the new member had dug out of the rock. After his display of breaking stone, no one openly questioned his ability to mine. The next question was: "What does it have in its pockets?". Because other than a few pockets, the strange wizard had no way to carry ore. But wizards were tricky, resulting in a room full of curious dwarves and a couple of humans. They were all miners with a ten-year patch on their shoulders, and a few beardlings had been tossed out the door. Age and rank had their privileges.

Grundle had given the newest member of the Mining Guild his badge and taken his application. His status as apprentice, full miner, or veteran was the only thing left to determine. He could bring down a lot of rock, but that didn't mean he knew the rest of the trade.

"So, what do you have to show me, Miner Tallsqueak? Have a big payday in those pockets?" Grundle admitted to himself the possibility that Tallsqueak might have many things in those pockets. Wizards were tricky at times, producing wands and crystal orbs from small pouches.

"I have a small amount of ore from my travels in the deeper mines. My priority was exploration for my Hollow, but it is hard to bypass shiny bits of ore when I notice them." He held his hand over the counter, and Grundle noticed the ornate ring he was wearing—old work and well-made. Four full Ore Gathering Bags appeared, one by one, as Tallsqueak moved his hand over the table. Not just sacks, but actual Gathering Bags. The type that held far more ore than their size suggested. Grundle dumped out the first one, and 150 chunks of high-grade Deep Copper ore were scattered across the metal table.

Tallsqueak dumped the second bag. "This also has Deep Copper. It is a common metal in the area where I live, but I understand that the Engineering and Mining Guilds in Shadowport pay well for it. It is also of interest to the Deep Rock Engineers and Scavenger clans. Our Hollow sells most of its ore to the Engineers, but since I was coming to this city, I stopped off on my way home and filled my bags. I was told that you value it as well."

"You've been told correctly." The Guild Master took the not-subtle hint that the new miner was informed on ore values. That made things easier in some ways. Everyone had heard him, and no one would question giving him the top pay rate on the valuable ore. Some of the older guild members felt that the top pay rate should be reserved for senior members. It never was, but they never missed a chance to grumble about it. The chunks were quickly weighed on large scales and put into an ore cart to be taken away for processing. The third bag had chunks of Dark Iron, some of the pieces the almost pure metal that came from lower caverns. The fourth bag had an assortment of ores: auric, common gold, tin, silver, and a dense form of lead that the elves valued in their crystal-making called 'Glass Metal.'

"The guild will buy all of this and take more anytime you have it for sale. It looks like this came from many different rock strata; you do move around a lot."

The ratkin nodded. "It did. I move up and down through many tunnels and dark caverns. This is a particularly hard rock that I found deep down. I'm curious if you have seen it before. He placed a chunk of rock on the counter and stepped back for several miners to look at the Duramgneiss. Several of the miners turned it over in their hands and shrugged. Two older dwarves tasted the sample and smelled it. They nodded to each other, and one spoke. "Hard Rock, or the fancy name it's identified as, Duramgneiss. You can hit layers of it in some of the middle caverns. I've been in dwarven holds that were built at that level. Good foundation rock to build on. It takes a lot to tunnel through it, and there's no worry about getting critters coming up from below."

His partner scowled. "Except for the damnable Ghostlurkers. The things can move through Hard Rock the way a normal Lurker can walk through stone and a lot faster. A Ghostlurker infestation means either a long fight or a reason to move a hold."

"Yes. I ran into a nest of those. I don't like them, and they don't like me. They ran through the stone faster than I could run away."

Everyone became quiet, and Grundle voiced their thoughts. "How long was your walk back from the underworld? At least you were close to it."

Tallsqueak looked a little embarrassed. "My apologies for not being clear. I didn't die. They forced me to flee upward and kept pursuing, so I dropped a few hundred tons of rock on their heads from an altitude of 700 feet. Physics took care of the rest, killing the Queen and her Hive Guard."

Grundle was trying to do the math and gave up when he realized anything underneath that much rock was either dead or too scary to think about. A cave-in fifty feet above your head was deadly. 700 feet? Even Ghostlurkers could die. The two older dwarves grasped the hammer symbols around their necks and said a short prayer. "Truly, the Lord of Stone and Steel blessed you that day. You, uh, didn't find anything special in the rubble, did you?"

Minor Tallsqueak reached into a pocket and carefully took out a pair of gloves and a handkerchief tied around something small. They watched as he put on the gloves and rolled out wo nuggets of ore. "The first is called Silverite. Small threads of it are found in the DuramGneiss, and I have found nuggets in some of the strata above the Hard Rock. The second nugget is dangerous. Duram Argenti is normally found as an ore with Tier 5 hardness and softens as it absorbs mana. A small piece can drain you dry and leave you weak." One adventurous hand paused before picking up the nugget and hastily pulled back.

The Mining Guild's Master nodded. He'd heard of that ore. "That right there is worth a fortune, even in small amounts. I'm going to register that you found a source of the material. Always good to fill out the paperwork, even if you do the sensible thing and keep your claim secret. But that's something to take to the Enchanter's Guild or down to the Deep Rock guys."

One of the older dwarves was staring at the Duram Argenti. "And if you ever find a big chunk of it, you might think about heading to a large dwarven hold. The Kingsguard have armor, shields, and hammers enchanted with this stuff. Never a bad thing to gain some friends in low places."

Tallsqueak bowed, thanked them for the information, and then put the shiny nuggets away. They watched as his empty ore bags went back into his storage ring, along with a small bag of gold and silver coins handed to him by Grundle. "I thank you all for accepting me as a miner. I appreciate it, as does my Hollow. I think we will be doing much business together in the future. Now, you much excuse me. I have an appointment with a cheese shop above us and some friends to visit." He quickly left, ascending the stairs to Shadowport, his long tail bouncing on the stairs behind him.

Grundle yelled out at everyone around him. "What are you waiting for? Go break some rock or drink beer. I have to start up that ore crusher and process this load. And if anyone sees more ratkin coming up from the Hollow, you be polite and send them my way. You hear?"

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