RP:Cave In at the Bank

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Part of the Arctic Construction Arc



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Chapter Twelve of Arctic Construction

Start of the Vaults


The tunnel from above descends into an expansive cavern carved straight into the permafrost of Frostmaw's foundation. The air is chill and moist with a stale flavor to it, but the workers don't seem to object, too focused on their given tasks. This cavern, destined to be home to the bank's vaults, is in a constant state of expansion, with smaller 'caves' being hewn out of its sides to begin the formation of the collection of security cells. Craftsman gather at a central worktable--laden with blueprints, a lantern, and a variety of measuring and writing instruments, and hold discussion over the exact details of every step of the construction. Further into the cavern, the metallic clicks of shovels and picks upon stone can be heard, and the stale odor seems thickest from that direction. What could be over there?




Diggson knew it was coming, he could just feel the subtle rumbling in the earth that foretold the unfortunate event that was about to occur. His mind panicked but his body said otherwise, remaining calm as he stood in front of the smaller caves that was being excavated. He did not care what its purpose was to be because it would not be serving that purpose for very much longer and now all he wanted was for these damn giants to listen to him just once. But the problem with giants working with humans is that giants often show little respect for squishy pink things so his objections to their continued digging fell on enormous deaf ears. And then the first rock tumbled loose from the ceiling, followed by that telltale shower of dust that promised more to come. "You over-sized imbeciles!" Diggson found himself yelling though he had only intended to think it as he came rushing in just as cracks gave way in that little cavern's ceiling, showering everyone with dust. In a fluid motion, the digger drew forth his shovel from where he had kept it holstered at his back and slammed the nose into the softer earth at his feet. His hands did not leave the shovel though but rather used it as most mages would use a staff, channeling magic from his hands to the digging tool and into the ground. He felt his lungs burn and knew that he would pay for this later, he was using way too much mana for his Manablight ridden body to manage all at once. Just as the first chunks of rock and dirt began to descend, Diggson thrusted a single hand into the air in an effort to impose his magical will upon it. And it had worked but even as that success brought a slight arrogant smile to his face, Diggson knew well that it was only for a short period of time.


Diggson roared with a mix of fury and strain, his eyes burnoing with an intense anger as he looked up at the somewhat stunned workers in here. In the back of his head, there was some dissapointment in his head when he noticed that not all the workers were giant and that he had singled out their race unfairly. Hating himself would have to wait until later though. "Get. Out. Now!" He growled though by the time he had managed to speak, the echoing rumble of this room's collapse was drowning out most of his straining voice. Some took heed of the situation and rushed passed him, a few even running to get help despite it probably already being far too late to make this situation any less bad than it was. These were the smart ones though and others, much to Diggson's dismay, stared stupidly at the ceiling. Earth mages probably were not the most common in these parts and so seeing this unfold was probably at least partially baffling to a ditch digger's mind. Diggson wanted to save them, he truly did, but they were beyond saving as he could no longer maintain the magical link to the copious amounts of stone that hung above him. His lungs burned and his muscles ached and he could do nothing else but release the magic and just drop to his knees. He had no idea how much stone and dirt he had just kept suspended above him but he had no doubt that it was much more than even the strongest of these giants could lift all once. Without the aid of magic, it would crush him and it would crush them as well. Worst of it all, was that there was nothing he could do about it but try to save himself. 'Damn it! No man left behind! That's the rule!' Diggson thought angrily, chastizing himself within his own mind as he prepared to let others die while he survived.


Diggson had, during his studying of the cavern, found and kept a bit of fluorspar for himself as a safety measure. underground work was dangerous work and Diggson had always known that since he first became a digger. No amount of precaution can account for every possible accident that could occur, one would always manage to happen and when it did, the outcome was always tragic. It is why he had kept the fluorite rather than give it over to Satoshi, so that he could store in it a single spell to be used in case he needed a hasty defense against disaster. This was just such an event and so as Diggson fell to his knees, he procurred the magic gem from his pouch and willed into it only the tiniest amount of mana so that it would free the spell kept within. Dirt was drawn to him, surrounding and burying him alive even as rock was drawn to that to create a hard shell. It would serve to keep him safe from major injury as he used what little of his mana he still had available to him. It was not much, a lot had been wasted trying to hold the ceiling up while people fled. All he could do with it was will that mana into the ground around him and hope his gambit worked. He felt the ground give and start to sink even as the dirt around him compacted and hardened. Again his body felt as if someone had just lit his organs on fire and were the not so little air in this protective tomb, he would have so happily cried out in anguish. Finally, the ground beneath him gave way fully and he sunk down passed his head as a hole formed that was just wide enough for him to stand in and be able to shift his weight around occasionally. It would be uncomfortable standing here but that was the least of his worries. Oxygen was now in short supply and Diggson had no way of knowing how long or if at all rescue would come.


Diggson could see absolutely nothing in the small space around him. The debris above him had cut off all visible light and any chance for air to seep in and feed his longs. Soon he would be dead, he was sure of it and this was definentally not number one on his list of ways to die. He could not shout out that he was still alive as it would use up too much of the little air he had to do so and he could not be sure that it would even be heard from beneath the rubble that no doubt lay piled above him. Diggson could only take solice in that he had not been standing too far away from the entrance to this small cave and that he might be found soon if rescuers were even trying to find survivors at all. It was subtle at first, the vibrations that he felt not from below him but rather from above him. So subtle were they that at first he had assumed they were just the boulders above him shifting and settling. And then light shone, a thin ray that did so very little to peirce the darkness that surrounded him. It was hope though, hope and a small trickle of air less stale than the air around him. Slowly, more thin lines of light began to show themselves as boulders were pushed, rolled, and if light enough, even tossed aside. It took only a few minutes to uncover the hole that Diggson was in and get him pulled out from within but the whole ordeal felt as if it had taken a day. "Don't bother wasting energy digging out the rest." He groaned as he was hefted up onto solid ground and began to walk towards the surface. "I assure you I am the only one that managed to survive that." And with that he stumbled out of the cavern to find a tavern. He needed a drink and a report needed to be written.