AJ_Impy :-
Necrologue of AJ_Impy Idashushrir, Militia Captain, 'Firesnake'.
Little is known of this dwarf in the official record. Before delving into supposition and wild theories, let us deal at first only with what is carved in stone: There is no indication in the official record of her life prior to Gemclod, and speculations that she was kidnapped by elves have no verifiable basis. Whilst there are some legitimate records of Dwarven children being abducted, there has never been a recorded instance of one being returned.
It appears she was part of the Fifteenth migration to Gemclod, arriving during the reign of Mr. Vile, the year 270. Records indicate she was assigned to the duty of hauling items by that overseer, as he notes:
Journal of “Mr. Vile” Organboots, Fortress Appraiser posted:
Gah, newbies! I have no idea what to do with them, so I've just got them all hauling shit around except Factory Factory, the poor bastard.
On this basis, it is fair to assume she was an ordinary hauling dwarf, and was likely completely unconnected to any strange happenings at the time, such as Trolls suddenly appearing in the Great Hall.
Subesquent updates by Overseer Mr. Vile make no further mention of AJ_Impy Idashushrir. Unusual occurrences such as Gemclod's best warriors getting ambushed by creatures as diverse as eagles, unicorns and even elephants, and the subsequent feats of martial prowess ascribed to those warriors, are his main focus, and these events have no obvious connection to a mere hauler.
It is possible that Mr. Vile's record-keeping was marred by his apparent descent into madness: Caging an elf in his room, putting a massive tank of water filled with crocodiles over the entrance, and apparently flooding the fortress. However, despite the unreliable record, it is more reasonable to assume that AJ_Impy Idasushrir remained a simple hauler during this time than to postulate any undocumented heroics.
The next overseer's records are also somewhat patchy, due to the flood caused by Mr. Vile and subesequent disasters. Still, the surviving entries are precisely dated, accurately documenting the unmitigated disasters of the era. After the flood came the death of Minty, one of the finest fighters in the fortress. It is likely that AJ_Impy Idashushrir would have mourned this along with everyone else, but such things were unrecorded in this era. This did, however, lead up to one of the more surprising documented incidents, namely the promotion of a simple hauler, in the fortress for less than a year, with no military experience, into a position of authority.
On the 26th day of the third month of 271, Overseer Charlie72 appointed AJ_Impy Idashushrir as a militia captain.
A surprising promotion, especially considering that her peers were notable dwarves with well-documented service: the other militia captain Pozzo was one of the more popular overseers and custodian of the throne rooms, with the heroes Commatoes and Nimby in the respective positions of Militia Commander and Captain of the Guard set over her. She must have been delighted with this new position of privelege and service.
Unfortunately, this was to be tragically cut short. On the 12th day of the 6th month of 271, Gemclod was invaded, and Militia Captain AJ_Impy Idashushrir was at the forefront of the defences. Unlike her life, her death is surprisingly well documented, even down to her strange, unexplained battle cry:
Annals of Charlie72 posted:
Despite being ordered to stay near the bridge, AJ_Impy charges the line yelling "No! Wait! I'm Firesnake! Firesnake!". semper wifi the Knight of Mars and Tias the disgruntled join the charge, echoing her war-cry.
Engravings indicate that AJ_Impy Idashushrir acquitted herself in battle, shattering the bones of a War Giant Tiger with her bare hands.
These engravings also enable us to pinpoint exactly where she fought on Gemclod's behalf, beside the great corpse road. A later engraving purports to show her 'badly wounded', but does not state the nature of those injuries. This is moot, however, as the next time her name shows up in the record...
Shot in the head with a steel-helm-piercing iron arrow, another dead warrior of Gemclod. There is no record of her being buried or memorialized, but neither is there a record of her angry shade terrorising Gemclod, so we may assume she was laid to rest one way or the other.
The enduring mystery is in that frankly strange warcry of hers, significant enough that even Overseer Charlie72 saw fit to make a note of it in his sparse documentation. It is known that Boing, a previous overseer who died in an earlier battle detested firesnakes and occasionally murdered dwarves on suspicion of being them, but this seems unconnected. As with many of Gemclod's fallen, we will never know the whole story.