Bad Day at the Office

Khale finished his morning bread and washed it down with a quick drink. Several of his mine commissioners had entered the shack filing the past nights production reports and occasionally wishing him a good morning. Khale had taken over as mine warden for the Ten Thousand Trade Kings a few months ago increasing production by operating teams in each mine and generally improving efficiency. The religious zealots that previously worked the mine revered the metal to such an extent that they rotated mines, never harvesting from more than two in five year stretches. Khale suspected they had believed that their now dead god Talos, Bhaelros were Khale hailed from, would replenish their blessed earth, restoring the rare ore. Khale had no faith and years of experience taught him that this was a rich vein that would produce metal for years. As Khale remembered his childhood lessons Bhaleros was a destroyer, the idea of him replenishing the earth was laughable.

The mine warden started from behind his desk preparing to head outside and begin his first shift inspections. His few steps towards the door were interrupted by a chagrined, dust covered gnome entering that Khale recognized as one of their shaft box operators. “Good morning to you sir, sorry to be bothering you with this but my brother insists he is sure that he saw fliers in the night.” The rest of the gnome’s comments were lost to loud concussive sound that broke and clamored from behind their small office on the Mirabar Mountain. Every emergency bell in the small shack that served the officers of the mine began ringing, a magical distress signal from all of the active shafts at once.

Khale vision and movements slowed as the entire shack began to slide and move, the scene inside took on a surreal state. Among the strangest phenomena was that everyone’s hair stood on end and small shocking slivers of lightning pulsed around the now moving structure. Fear and realization stirred through the mine warden as he went to his death. As he was swallowed by the mountain he screamed, “Bhaelros has come!”