Wolf took a step inside the entrance of Dragon Mountain and instantly felt the cold air from the depths of the immense cave rush up to meet him. As he stumbled down the layers of rocks and into the opening of the cave, his hand unconsciously reached out for the wall for leverage.
When he felt a smooth and rounded stone-like object sticking out of the side of the cave in his hand, he turned and noticed that his hand was in contact with a thick white bone. He pulled his hand away and followed the bone up until it came in contact with the spine it was attached to. Wolf shuttered away and continued his decline down the rocks.
The last time he had been down the tunnel, he had paid no attention to anything surrounding him or details about the cave itself. All that had mattered was hanging onto Virginia's scent and staying clear of the Dwarves for fear of punishment for entering their caves. He knew that they killed anyone for entering their mines, so worried about their secrets being stolen when the truth was, no one really wanted to.
When the sloping rocks finally ceased and he was standing on flat dirt ground, he came up to the sign that read; "9th Kingdom Royal Dwarf Mines" in yellow print hanging from the ceiling. The Dragon bones had finally stopped lining the walls of the cave and now all that remained were the slick limestones that glittered from the reflection of the torches lit in the tunnel.
Wolf continued on and came across the first tunnel slide. As he peered down, he noted how dark and endless it seemed. There was no glimmer of light coming from the end, nor did there ever appear to be any safe way to go down besides closing your eyes and hoping for the best.
"Oh stop it Wolf!" He scolded himself quietly. "Huff puff, you've been down this before, nothing's changed since then!" Or had it? He shook his head and grabbed a burlap sack out of the pile sitting next to the slide. He got on the slide and pushed himself forward.
A small yelp of surprise escaped his throat as he reached the bottom and nearly missed the sign that was hung over head. "Slide No. 46" With the momentum from the slide, he easily hopped off the sack and continued down the new tunnel and followed the sounds of clanking and numerous conversations.
As he quietly followed the torches down the tunnel, he weaved around several empty crates and boxes that were scattered over the floor. He rubbed his hands together for warmth and noticed how cold and damp it was in the mountain. As Wolf suppressed a sneeze, he stopped a moment and then let it out, not wanting to attract attention to himself yet. He scratched his temple and walked to the end of the corridor.
Wolf gasped as he saw below him the Dwarve's manufacturing room. There were ramps leading all over the cave, small carts on rails, a pile of discarded rocks and a huge kettle in the middle lit by a massive fire. Then he saw all the dwarves, parading up and down, back and fourth through the room.
Many were carrying small wheelbarrows and others pushed and pulled the carts along the tracks. Everything was so tiny, fit perfectly for their size. The cave itself, Wolf noticed, was low and for the first time he recognized that he was bending over, so as not to hit his head on the ceiling above.
As the opening he came from dumped out into the large room, the ceiling overhead seemed that it would increase higher. The stalactites that hung from the roof dripped water onto the dwarves below, but none of them paid any attention to the constant dripping. The huge rock icicles seemed deadly and dangerous to Wolf, as if at any moment they could come crashing down and easily take a life.
Wolf tore his thoughts away from the dangers and focused again on the Dwarves. They seemed so busy, so wrapped in their own little work that he thought it'd be difficult to get any of them to notice his presence. He was wrong.
"You up there!" A Dwarf shouted. Wolf searched around for whom the voice belonged to, but it was hard now that all the faces were directed at him. Everything had been stopped and it was completely silent. "Comrade, name yourself!" A Dwarf shouted as he climbed a ramp to get a higher view of him.
"I uh....." Wolf rubbed his hands down his jacket to get rid of the sweat that perspired there. It was amazing how his hands were sweating and he was so cold. He cleared his throat after a moment and spoke. "My .... my name is Wolf."
A group gasp echoed through the cave as each dwarf looked at each other and then back up to him. "Is it really you?" The leader said. "The famous Wolf who saved the Nine Kingdoms?"
Wolf nodded, not sure whether or not to be pleased that they knew about that. He let out a weak smile. Would they punish him for being in contact and knowing Tony? Certainly they wouldn't be mad for mentioning Virginia if he had to prove it; she had nothing to do with what Tony did. Wolf swallowed.
"Well, come down here, Comrade." The leader said, waving him down. "The rest of you, get back to work. We still have mirrors to replace!" The others grumbled as their reply and the noise level shot back up as the hammers started to bang and the carts resumed to being filled.
Wolf carefully made his way down the side of the cave on a tiny path that was created. As he approached the leader dwarf, he realized just how much shorter he was to him. His hair was a dingy brown and rested on his shoulders and he wore a red shirt with a dark red vest, both covered in a heavy layer of dirt and grime.
His face was paled from the lack of sun he received from being in the mountain, probably all his life, and it was covered with sweat and streaks of mud. He led Wolf over to his desk where he sat down behind it. The chair was elevated highly, giving him a chance to be eye level with Wolf.
"So, why have you entered our Kingdom, Noble Wolf?" He said as he cleared a few papers off of his desk. Wolf noticed that the dwarves that were working near the desk had stopped their jobs and leaned forward to hear him while the others across the room were talking to each other about him, telling tales that they had heard about what he had done to save the Kingdoms.
"Well, I.."
"You don't have that idiot Antony with you, I hope." He quickly said, leaning closer to him. Wolf felt sudden rushes of claustrophobia sink in; it was so strange that a small person like that was making him feel so uncomfortable.
"Well, no."
"Good," He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "That oaf has cost us years of remaking mirrors. He may have helped in saving the Nine Kingdoms, but he sure didn't help us." He glanced past Wolf and his face became furious. "I told you comrades, get back to work!" He shouted and then turned back to Wolf. "They're always so curious when an outsider comes in." He paused and then regained his previous thought. "So, why Ihave/I you come down here?"
"Well, I need to speak with your mirror, Gustav." Wolf said briefly, hoping that the dwarf would oblige and take him to a different room where he could breathe easily. All the noise and the stench of unwashed dwarves were making him dizzy.
"Well, of course." He jumped down from his chair and over to Wolf. "As long as you're not suffering from any bad luck."
"Oh no!" Wolf shook his head. Sure, he lost the mirror, got his arm battered up by an ax, nearly lost Tony due to drowning, but that wasn't the type of bad luck they meant. Still, he thought it best to keep that to himself.
The leader of the dwarves led Wolf into another room that was set aside from the main room. They were greeted by another dwarf; this one was wearing glasses and seemed to be much older than the other. "This is out librarian, he can help you. I better be getting back to my work before my comrades sneak in here to pester you." And with that, he left. Wolf and the librarian exchanged quick greetings and then Wolf got straight to the point.
"I need to speak with your mirror immediately, it's very important." He said. The librarian nodded his head and led Wolf across the room. He noticed that there were several empty racks spread across the place, and small pieces of mirror were scattered all over the floor. A few dwarves were walking around, keeping themselves busy, but when they thought Wolf wasn't looking, they stole a quick glance at the new outsider.
The librarian led Wolf over to a wall that was covered by a heavy curtain. When he pulled it down, Wolf quickly realized that it wasn't a wall, but it was the mirror. It was dirty and covered in patches of filth and had been worn away from time.
"How does it work?" Wolf asked as he stepped closer to the mirror and saw his reflection, which was mangled from the blocking layers of dust.
"Well, he's a bit deaf so you have to speak up and he talks in verse. Which means, you have to ask him your questions in rhyme." Wolf nodded and gazed over the mirror. "I have to get back to my work as well, we're a bit behind. I'll be over there if you need help." He said and then headed off. Wolf sighed. Finally, this was it. He finally had the key to finding where Virginia was and all he had to do was put it in the lock and turn it.
When he felt a smooth and rounded stone-like object sticking out of the side of the cave in his hand, he turned and noticed that his hand was in contact with a thick white bone. He pulled his hand away and followed the bone up until it came in contact with the spine it was attached to. Wolf shuttered away and continued his decline down the rocks.
The last time he had been down the tunnel, he had paid no attention to anything surrounding him or details about the cave itself. All that had mattered was hanging onto Virginia's scent and staying clear of the Dwarves for fear of punishment for entering their caves. He knew that they killed anyone for entering their mines, so worried about their secrets being stolen when the truth was, no one really wanted to.
When the sloping rocks finally ceased and he was standing on flat dirt ground, he came up to the sign that read; "9th Kingdom Royal Dwarf Mines" in yellow print hanging from the ceiling. The Dragon bones had finally stopped lining the walls of the cave and now all that remained were the slick limestones that glittered from the reflection of the torches lit in the tunnel.
Wolf continued on and came across the first tunnel slide. As he peered down, he noted how dark and endless it seemed. There was no glimmer of light coming from the end, nor did there ever appear to be any safe way to go down besides closing your eyes and hoping for the best.
"Oh stop it Wolf!" He scolded himself quietly. "Huff puff, you've been down this before, nothing's changed since then!" Or had it? He shook his head and grabbed a burlap sack out of the pile sitting next to the slide. He got on the slide and pushed himself forward.
A small yelp of surprise escaped his throat as he reached the bottom and nearly missed the sign that was hung over head. "Slide No. 46" With the momentum from the slide, he easily hopped off the sack and continued down the new tunnel and followed the sounds of clanking and numerous conversations.
As he quietly followed the torches down the tunnel, he weaved around several empty crates and boxes that were scattered over the floor. He rubbed his hands together for warmth and noticed how cold and damp it was in the mountain. As Wolf suppressed a sneeze, he stopped a moment and then let it out, not wanting to attract attention to himself yet. He scratched his temple and walked to the end of the corridor.
Wolf gasped as he saw below him the Dwarve's manufacturing room. There were ramps leading all over the cave, small carts on rails, a pile of discarded rocks and a huge kettle in the middle lit by a massive fire. Then he saw all the dwarves, parading up and down, back and fourth through the room.
Many were carrying small wheelbarrows and others pushed and pulled the carts along the tracks. Everything was so tiny, fit perfectly for their size. The cave itself, Wolf noticed, was low and for the first time he recognized that he was bending over, so as not to hit his head on the ceiling above.
As the opening he came from dumped out into the large room, the ceiling overhead seemed that it would increase higher. The stalactites that hung from the roof dripped water onto the dwarves below, but none of them paid any attention to the constant dripping. The huge rock icicles seemed deadly and dangerous to Wolf, as if at any moment they could come crashing down and easily take a life.
Wolf tore his thoughts away from the dangers and focused again on the Dwarves. They seemed so busy, so wrapped in their own little work that he thought it'd be difficult to get any of them to notice his presence. He was wrong.
"You up there!" A Dwarf shouted. Wolf searched around for whom the voice belonged to, but it was hard now that all the faces were directed at him. Everything had been stopped and it was completely silent. "Comrade, name yourself!" A Dwarf shouted as he climbed a ramp to get a higher view of him.
"I uh....." Wolf rubbed his hands down his jacket to get rid of the sweat that perspired there. It was amazing how his hands were sweating and he was so cold. He cleared his throat after a moment and spoke. "My .... my name is Wolf."
A group gasp echoed through the cave as each dwarf looked at each other and then back up to him. "Is it really you?" The leader said. "The famous Wolf who saved the Nine Kingdoms?"
Wolf nodded, not sure whether or not to be pleased that they knew about that. He let out a weak smile. Would they punish him for being in contact and knowing Tony? Certainly they wouldn't be mad for mentioning Virginia if he had to prove it; she had nothing to do with what Tony did. Wolf swallowed.
"Well, come down here, Comrade." The leader said, waving him down. "The rest of you, get back to work. We still have mirrors to replace!" The others grumbled as their reply and the noise level shot back up as the hammers started to bang and the carts resumed to being filled.
Wolf carefully made his way down the side of the cave on a tiny path that was created. As he approached the leader dwarf, he realized just how much shorter he was to him. His hair was a dingy brown and rested on his shoulders and he wore a red shirt with a dark red vest, both covered in a heavy layer of dirt and grime.
His face was paled from the lack of sun he received from being in the mountain, probably all his life, and it was covered with sweat and streaks of mud. He led Wolf over to his desk where he sat down behind it. The chair was elevated highly, giving him a chance to be eye level with Wolf.
"So, why have you entered our Kingdom, Noble Wolf?" He said as he cleared a few papers off of his desk. Wolf noticed that the dwarves that were working near the desk had stopped their jobs and leaned forward to hear him while the others across the room were talking to each other about him, telling tales that they had heard about what he had done to save the Kingdoms.
"Well, I.."
"You don't have that idiot Antony with you, I hope." He quickly said, leaning closer to him. Wolf felt sudden rushes of claustrophobia sink in; it was so strange that a small person like that was making him feel so uncomfortable.
"Well, no."
"Good," He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "That oaf has cost us years of remaking mirrors. He may have helped in saving the Nine Kingdoms, but he sure didn't help us." He glanced past Wolf and his face became furious. "I told you comrades, get back to work!" He shouted and then turned back to Wolf. "They're always so curious when an outsider comes in." He paused and then regained his previous thought. "So, why Ihave/I you come down here?"
"Well, I need to speak with your mirror, Gustav." Wolf said briefly, hoping that the dwarf would oblige and take him to a different room where he could breathe easily. All the noise and the stench of unwashed dwarves were making him dizzy.
"Well, of course." He jumped down from his chair and over to Wolf. "As long as you're not suffering from any bad luck."
"Oh no!" Wolf shook his head. Sure, he lost the mirror, got his arm battered up by an ax, nearly lost Tony due to drowning, but that wasn't the type of bad luck they meant. Still, he thought it best to keep that to himself.
The leader of the dwarves led Wolf into another room that was set aside from the main room. They were greeted by another dwarf; this one was wearing glasses and seemed to be much older than the other. "This is out librarian, he can help you. I better be getting back to my work before my comrades sneak in here to pester you." And with that, he left. Wolf and the librarian exchanged quick greetings and then Wolf got straight to the point.
"I need to speak with your mirror immediately, it's very important." He said. The librarian nodded his head and led Wolf across the room. He noticed that there were several empty racks spread across the place, and small pieces of mirror were scattered all over the floor. A few dwarves were walking around, keeping themselves busy, but when they thought Wolf wasn't looking, they stole a quick glance at the new outsider.
The librarian led Wolf over to a wall that was covered by a heavy curtain. When he pulled it down, Wolf quickly realized that it wasn't a wall, but it was the mirror. It was dirty and covered in patches of filth and had been worn away from time.
"How does it work?" Wolf asked as he stepped closer to the mirror and saw his reflection, which was mangled from the blocking layers of dust.
"Well, he's a bit deaf so you have to speak up and he talks in verse. Which means, you have to ask him your questions in rhyme." Wolf nodded and gazed over the mirror. "I have to get back to my work as well, we're a bit behind. I'll be over there if you need help." He said and then headed off. Wolf sighed. Finally, this was it. He finally had the key to finding where Virginia was and all he had to do was put it in the lock and turn it.