The Depths of Need

A cascade of black dust blasted outward from the collapsing wall. The loud boom of its demise breaking the silence that pervaded deep within the Dinwald mines. Dark clouds billowed down the tunnels at speed, rushing to fill every gap where once there had been only stale air. It coated Lex in a single blast, filling his nostrils and assailing his pinched eyelids with tiny debris. He held his breath, waiting patiently in darkness, until the roar of the collapsing shale silenced. He had felt the soft barrage of broken material sweep against his ankles, building alarmingly high on his calves until it blessedly slowed to a stop at a safe level. When all was finally still, he blew what breath remained in his lungs out through his nose, clearing the invading powder and gently peeked out through the slit of one open eyelid. The once solid wall of black coal now littered the ground in chunks for as far as his single lantern could reach. Lex shook his head to clear any remaining dust from his hair and face, only then feeling brave enough to open both eyes fully. He pulled his boots free from the shallow ocean of filthy, clumped rock, dropped his enormous hammer and lifted his oil lamp to examine the destruction he had wrought. Sparkles glinted back at him from three separate locations amongst the rubble and when met with the sight, Lex grinned in satisfaction.

Having secured the first two treasures, Lex took a moment to hold the third and final chunk of ore in his palm. It filled his hand, the largest of the day's efforts, and under the lantern light it glinted its sparkling surface proudly before him. Black, but for the myriad of golden pinpricks that permeated its smooth surface, the obsidian held his gaze in rapture. It was so beautiful. Regardless of its value, which was considerable, the stone was stunning in its own right. Each time he found one, it felt like he could stare into the shining depths forever, getting lost in the night sky of golden stars that seemed to reach into infinity within the stone. The pouch at his waist held five smaller examples. All of which had been collected that day, ready to be locked away in a hidden chest on the surface once he emerged from the mine. Perhaps, after a few more days of hard work, he would finally have enough. The coolness of the glassy shard soothed his aching hand, relieving the pain of the blisters that coated it. It was a unique cold that he had only ever felt emanate from something that had been buried beneath the earth for eon’s. A sharp chill that subdued the heat generated from his abused body. Only when he heard a voice did he realise he was still lost in the stones grip. How long had he been musing over its properties? He quickly tucked it away with the others in his pouch and turned to investigate the source of the sound, before the intruder could spy his haul. 

“Woah! Lex, this is insanely dangerous! You brought all this down in one go by yourself!? You could have buried yourself alive!” Maladrin said, walking into the chamber uninvited.

Lex relaxed his grip on the hammer he had instinctively raised, Maladrin was a friend and unlikely to make any claim to his finds. Still, he did not put down the tool and kept it embraced within his hand. Just in case.

“It’s worth the risk,” Lex replied, “I need to speed things up. It’s taking far too long to gather what I need.”

“I thought you were close?” His friend asked.

“Not close enough.”

Lex thought it better not let on how lucrative his current vein had been. Better to keep things vague. He wanted no one to know about the score of obsidian he had gathered. Not even a friend. That way, there was no risk of anyone taking it from him. He had done all the work after all. Why should he share even one piece?

 “Well, you should be more careful. The black stuff ain’t worth your life. Survival is as much a part of this game as collecting the rewards.”

“Yeah. Of course.”

“You know, you could sell all this coal too? Its hardly worthless, the amount you carve through could bring in plenty of coin on its own”

“Yeah, I know, Maladrin. You’ve told me all this many times. But coal is not what I’m here for. I’m not going to waste my time with it.”

“Well. Regardless. Don’t think I have noticed you’ve been grinding in here non-stop recently. I get that your putting in the hours, but why don’t you come over this weekend? The missus is cooking and we’d love to have you. Might be good to take a break? Get out in the world, just for one night?”

“I’ll see, Maladrin. I just need to hit my target for the week first. Thanks though.”

“Alright. Well let me know then yeah?” He said, before retreating back into the darkness of the mine. Hopefully headed for the surface. It felt about the time most prospectors would give up for the day. Which meant there would be no more interruptions. Lex sighed, rolled his neck and grabbed a shovel. Clearing the coal into carts to be shifted out of the way was tedious. The reward of the next haul and the satisfaction of releasing those sparkling stones from their tombs though, would be worth powering through every scoop. So, he put his back into it, already anticipating his next find.

Two more sheets of dull, dusty coal fell to Lex’s hammer and twice more he cleared the junk out of the way. Not a single shard of obsidian had been added to his pouch. Lex knew he should leave and get some rest with the others, but he felt like there had to be more waiting for him within the wall. After the taste of victory from his earlier hammer fall, the seed had been planted, and he just knew there was more to be gained. The vein could not have expired already. Could it? Perhaps one more round would end the day on a high. His arms and back screamed as he lifted his two-handed hammer, its head slightly pointed to slice into the soft stone. The weight was necessary but it wore on his body, limiting him more than his lust would concede. One more. He could handle the strain, if he could just get one more stone. He took a deep breath, held his arms high and swung with every ounce of the might he had held in reserve. As soon as he felt the layer of coal give way, he clamped his eyes closed and allowed the dust and wave of falling material to wash past him. Then nothing. No glint of golden specks. No sparkle under his lantern light. He swept across the sea of detritus three times to be sure, before roaring in frustration and throwing his hammer to the ground.

“DAMMIT! COME ON! I’M SO CLOSE!” He yelled, “Just one more haul before I have to climb out again. One more to make it worth the day. Please!”

He needed the obsidian. It wasn’t a case of greed or profiteering for him. Not like all the other charlatans polluting the mines. He had to have it. Without it, he could not supply the blacksmith with the material required. Without the ore, it was impossible for the smithy to forge a sword of night and without the sword…all was lost. Nothing else could defend his home against the danger that came with winter. Settling on the northern border…it had been a risk. One he was trying to negate. But time was running out.

Panting with the effort, sweat washing dirt into his eyes, Lex swept his shovel through the endless loose coals of his latest mess. As he dropped the last load into a cart and pushed it on down the tracks to be dealt with later, he sat on the ground and leaned his back against the wall that hid his treasure. Taking deep breaths and allowing his body to cool off the exertion, he rested. With no sunlight to judge by, he realised he had no idea what time it was or how long he had been toiling away. If the damn vein could just give him one more reward, he could stop and rest happily. But if he left now, as he knew he should, the night would be tainted by his wasted efforts. One more. He could force his body into one more excavation. This would be the one. The mine would grant him his desire and he could leave, knowing he had succeeded for another day. He would ride that high into tomorrow's efforts and soon enough be done with his task. Grunting loudly to overcome his sore limbs, he stood, grasped the handle of his hammer and swung.

By the time Lex realised that the sound of falling sediment was not slowing, it was too late. Before he could react, the chamber had filled to his knees, preventing him from pulling his legs free. With his eyes clamped closed against the dust, he could only feel the weight increasing, the level rose as if liquid. He must have hit a soft spot or swung too hard in his lust for more obsidian. When it reached his waist, he knew there would be no escape. All he could do was wait and pray that the avalanche of broken shale would stop, so that he could eventually be rescued from its encasement. It occurred to him that such a salvation would depend entirely on Maladrin. No one else would come looking for him. He really should have spoken more kindly to his friend. As if reacting to his thoughts, the wall that had promised so much, instead, completely gave way, smacking into his body with a force akin to which he had been using against it. His final thought was relief that the end had been quick, and a wish that he could have bared opening his eyes to see how much obsidian had fallen with the enormous mass of coal.

Mark Lexington ripped the headset from his eyes and tossed it away. He did so with a force that he regretted, wondering if he had damaged the console, but quickly decided he was far too irritated to care. If it was broken, he could just order another. He unclasped himself from the framework that simulated exertion and sensation in his muscles and stepped out of the rig into the comfort of his bedroom. Rubbing at his eyes with force, he growled in frustration and kicked a wayward cushion across the room. The pouch of obsidian he had collected would be gone. It only persisted through gaming sessions if he deposited it in the locked chest on the surface. Surpassing all his earlier fears, the day had now been a complete waste. He would have to return tomorrow and try to dig out the entire chamber to retrieve his haul. The only consolation was that amongst the rubble he might find a veritable horde of obsidian. As his annoyance levelled, he began to feel the excitement at what could be buried in the avalanche. Mark almost licked his lips in anticipation. He would have to get up early to make sure no one laid claim to the chamber in his absence. Sighing, he realised he should probably use the bathroom and quickly eat something. Instant noodles would do. But before addressing any of those inconvenient real life concerns, he made sure to set an alarm for six A.M. He’d get back to it as soon as possible after some quick sleep. He needed that sword.