The Smithy

[Cachet]

1st Fall 511AV From behind the counter came a Konti woman. If he stole a look he would see a large area about as big as the storefront that had all kinds of equipment in it. He could see the glow of a furnace and the large smithy anvil mounted in the stone floor. The woman wore a bandanna around her forehead to help keep her hair back and out of the flames. Beads of sweat clung to her brow and face which she wiped away with another bandanna that she kept tucked in her pocket when she greeted customers. She came to the storefront when she heard the little bell attached to the door ring and finished up her current project. She stood behind the counter and closed the iron door behind her leading to the workroom. An Isur in her shop? It has been a long time since she had a man of any kind walk into her store at all. She smiled and nodded. “I could always use a useful hand around here. If you can smith and if you can keep up with me I will take you on. All the weapons you see on the storefront I make myself. If you wish to start immediately and show me what you have then I would be glad to oblige you.” She said with a smile challenging the man before her.

[Xavier Goban Terras]

"I shall take you up on that offer..." Xavier said with a flash of a smile as he moved past her into her forge getting to work. It was time to show her that he was not just some idiot farm boy who knew nothing of the smithing world but a Isur who knew what he was doing. He did not have any thoughts on her forge for his mind was set for one task only now. Making a weapon to offer as a gift to her. It had to be well thought out and he could not be lazy about it, even if that term never was in his life or race. He found the tools he needed for the task from hammers, thongs and fire tools to help keep the fire in the forges alive. Before he did start any task or even thinking of what design to go with he made sure his hair was tied before his head and he put on a forgers apon as his wool cape was tossed by the door out of his way. Last thing he needed was his hair or clothing to catch on fire, he even half debated just to remove his shirt but it was just a basic cotton tunic which he had no fear of getting damaged or caught on fire due to it clung to his body as it was. The design he had in mind was just going to be a basic short sword. They were bit longer then basic daggers and did not take a lot of time or a lot of resources to craft. So with a nod and a pokor face Xavier started to get to work as he picked out a bar of iron and started stir the fire inside the forge. The color of the fire was imporatant as it told him what temperature it was at roughly. Colors were, Red, Oranage, Yellow then white. Past white then well anything inside would just melt but the heat he was looking for was a bright yellow tint to orange shade which was known as the forging heat. It was the best heat to put the metal in to heat up. Since the forge was already in use and alive it did not take long for it to go back into the stage Xaiver needed it to be at. The dance between Orange and Yellow came to life as he stired it with a poker. Unlike a Konti or any other race Xavier just picked the iron bar up with his left hand and placed it in the fire without the use of tongs. His left arm which was the deep purple shaded was the arm of the Isur race. He could handle anything with his arm and with it helped him forge or fight due to it was so dense he did not really feel any pain from the fires. Just a warm feeling as it licked along his flesh. This arm was a gift from his god Izurdin. He brought the metal out and as he placed it on the anvil he used his right hand to bring down the hammer filling his ears with the ringing sound of metal hitting metal. Bang. Bang. Bang. After three strikes from the hammer he placed it back into the fires to reheat once more for he would dare not risk working with it once it cooled down. That would ruin it and break it if not ruin the tools he was using. He had his own forgers toolkit inside his pack which was by the door with his cloak but he did not even think of bringing them out as he was just as fine using the Master of the forges tools in place. Once again the metal came out and the ringing once again came to life as the hammer came down meeting it. This was the life of a forger. Heating something then beating it into some form of shape giving it life of its own. He recalled his first time learning how to deal with the forge at a early age and really it was one of the only things he knew but then again he did not mind. He loved the forge and forming works of art in his way. The iron bar went back into the forge as he kept a close eye on both the flames and the metal and taking it out once again doing the same work over and over. Yet to a untrained eye they would see he was just bashing it but to a smith by trade they would see he was slowly shaping it to fit his design of a short sword but it was still in the crude stages. As he moved it back in the forge he thought of his time when he debated to go between a weaponsmith and a armorer. He was much younger, drinking something and talking with two isur females over it. They were in the same clan each having a different field. They were talking about how they worked on different projects and what it meant to go with one or the other. Both made good points but in the end he picked weapons as he felt they would make better works of art. Bang. Bang. Bang. Sweat was dripping off his face and arms as he kept working. He would not take any shortcuts in working. He never did think shortcuts were done until he left his home and went on his own. He found a weaponsmith awhile ago who took many shortcuts as they just cared of the profit and not the weapon itself. He could not understand that nature as the only thing he could care about was the art and life of the weapon he was making. Bang. Bang. Bang. His creation was at last coming to life as the lump of iron became something else at last. It was not a instant thing but it took time and hard work. He made so many weapons to get his skills to where they were at and he knew he would make so many more in order to master the craft. His first weapon he made was a longsword as a gift to one of the female Isurs. That weapon took seven tries as each one before it just had to many mistakes. The weight was off, cracks in the blade for when he did hit it when the metal was cool and so on. Even his weapons afterwards he would redo if he found mistakes but by doing the mistakes he learned from them. He was still learning pretty much but he was at least working to get better and not just working to get by. Bang. Bang. Bang. He was almost done. The blade itself was done at last, he was not just working on making the hilt area more round for a hand to grab on it. With that task he was using his left arm to mold it without having to use the tools around him. It gave him more control and also worked faster yet he still had to reheat it a few times. He could use other things for the hilt part but one could also use metal itself. Most tend to use wax, wood or some form of cloth. At last he was done. At least with forming the blade as he placed it inside a cool barrier of water. He just had to do one last touch on the sword before giving it as a gift which would not take a long time. Or at least in his mind it would not take that long as he left it inside the water as he moved about the shop placing the items he used back to where he found them. Afterwards he got the blade once more in his hand from the barrel and went near the sharpening wheel, a foot paddle moved the wheel in which he placed the edge of the blade along to make the dull blade sharp. It was part of the work but the last stage. He had to wonder how long he had been working as his stomach made sounds of protest from lack of food. Yet he did not think it was that long as his eyes looked at the short sword he had made. It was not the best in the world but it was one of his best works yet. Yet would it be good enough in her eyes? He had to wonder as he stood up at last looking around for her. With a smile again on his face he bowed before her offering his work of art up to her. "A gift, if you shall take it then I will be glad and hope that means I can work under you and for you. If you find it pleasing enough then may I ask I take it over night and give it to you once I add one last touch upon it?" It was up to her if she found it pleasing enough and good enough. It made the Isur worried but in the end he could not back down. He did put his work into it and still would stand by it as a Terras member.

[Cachet]

She watched the Isur work. They were renowned for their intricate metalwork in both weapons and armor. But she wanted to see just how much experience he had in the field. She watched intently as he worked. No single moment went unnoticed by her watching eyes. She knew he understood the basics. But past that? She couldn’t be sure. Any fool could put metal into the fire and hammer it into a shape of some kind. But it took a real artisan of the forge to make these shapes into something or anything useful. She was looking for little signals that he really understood what he was doing. That he understood all the subtle intricacies of what he was undertaking. She watched him throughout the entire process. She kept getting hints that he understood quite well what he was doing. She was pleased with his show of skill. Everything from how he tended to the furnace to how he held the blade when he sharpened it on the wheel showed her she was dealing with someone with a great deal of skill and potential. She had someone that was indeed going to work hard with her. She could see him working alongside her all night in the furnace just like she did. She smiled, this could be a very good thing for her. And maybe she could learn a few things from him as well. Isurians were known for their blacksmithing. And she wondered just what all he knew in that mind of his. He was indeed good for an associate of hers. She could indeed see herself keeping him around for as long as he was here. His skills were amiable; and he was definitely a hard worker. That was what she was interested in more than anything. She needed someone who would work hard. The fact that he worked even though he was hungry showed her that he was indeed everything she though he was. He offered her the sword and she nodded. “Indeed its quality is good. You can stay here and finish it if you want. I will be working a good deal of the night.” She said as she examined it closely. He had indeed done a good job at it. There were no flaws in it that she could see. But some of the flaws wouldn’t be fully known until it was used in battle…a sorry truth of the circumstances. “The day starts whenever you arrive, and it ends whenever I release you. Base pay is 8 mizas a day. Do any extraordinary work and we can discuss pay for those items as well.” She said extending a hand to shake on the deal.

[Xavier Goban Terras]

The isur just had to nod at the offer. He wanted to haggle to try to get 10 mizas a day but he would just have to prove his worth first. He took her hand in his shaking on the deal. He did not plan to leave the city any time soon but had to find more of a means of a place to stay yet first he wanted to warp up this task of working on the last part of his gift towards her. Xaiver found himself sitting in a cornor of the forge, some cold bread in his hands that he took from his pack slowly eatting it as he kept the blade in his lap. He had some food in his pack that he would use for a bit. He had not left yet and was not planning to until he was done but what he did not tell her was what he really was planning. It was not going to fill his stomach but it would get him by as he moved his hands over his tunic lifting it off his body before placing it near him. Silver like viens stood out the most along his pale skin which still showed along his chest. Yet one thing that his tunic did hide was what looked like the start of elaborate tattoo of vines crawling around his skin yet that was not just a tattoo but his Izentor mark. The gift that were on every member of his race from birth. It was this mark that made people want to seek out his races items that they crafted. This mark could change a simple item into something far different. This sword that he made from his own bare hands would prove this basic fact when he was done. It would tax him but that was just the price he would pay. His eyes were closed as he kept on the ground. The short sword in his lap as his hands were over it laying on the cold metal. Very few people outside of his race would see this ritual being done. It was not something they did in front of others for what came after the ritual. Yet he had to show trust in his new boss as he had no large fear of the female attacking him at his weakest. He spent his life in the forge so he was at ease with the sounds from working on items. The banging sounds were almost peaceful to him as it brought him back to a more simple life where he was not on his own. Where he was around friends and family and enjoying the simple joys of life. The imparting would require a large deal of focus and patience but this was not the first time he had used this power from his god. Growing up he learned how to focus and keep on task not just for the sheer fact of working but also to use this mark. This Isur power that were sought out due to the priceless items. If a person watched with a naked eye they would just see him sitting with his eyes closed, his breathing was going in and out at a steady rate and overall they would just get the idea he was sleeping. However if a person was skilled in Auristices they would understand so much more. They would see the mark along his right shoulder glowing almost as the djed pathways changed along the sword which were being molded every so slowly by his will. One bell passed. He was still sitting yet beads of sweat had already formed along his skin. His face which was once at ease and peaceful held a more stressed tone with his eyes still shut. His hands shaking ever so slightly along the blade. With the power of Auristices they would see the task was draining upon him yet the pathways were shifting more and more upon the blade as if properties were being moved about and changed. Two bells has passed and the stress was building up along his body as his breathing became more faster. His only thought that he kept in his head was to be unbreakable. His will bringing forth the power of Izentor to life as he willed it to change the sword into something different. A total of six bells hass passed before Xavier had opened his eyes at last. Yet the only thing he did was nod before his body fell to the side hitting the ground. The blade still in his lap as his hands gripped around it before he had passed out from the taxing task. The strain of the process had touched Xaiver thoughtout the imparting which his body showed yet at the end it all came at once. He was at his weakest point now due to he could not even fend off a child and would be at the mercy of any being. He was not sure where his new boss was for he lost track of the flow of time around him. For all he knew she left long ago but he could not even form the thoughts to wonder who would find him laying in the back room almost dead like. He would not be able to move for the next entire day. He would stay in the same postion he was in. On the ground, his hands holding the sword but anything could take it without any problem. Yet it was more then worth it as the task was done. The blade was something far different now then what it use to be. Now anyone that could see the aura would tell it had the touch of the divine, a part of Xavier almost and if tested it would see that the blade would almost never break now. A simple ten gold miza item now became so so much more. This was the reason Isur crafted items were sought out so badly from Sultros. If the sword was still in his hands when he was able to recover then he would offer it once more to her but if not then he would have to look for it. At least he was safe and the final task was done. A good sword just became so much more as darkness had overtaken the male isur.

[Cachet]

She was somewhat aware of Isur rituals involving their gnosis and imparting gifts to the items they made. Although she had never witnessed it before first hand. She knew it has to be tolling on him, but as to the extent she wasn’t sure. But it was interesting to see between the items she was crafting. She made all kinds of things while she watched him. Sometimes she was just simply engraving and decorating daggers, other times she was perfecting some of the blades she had already made. She was meticulous about crafting all of her things; her attention to detail was what earned her the prestige that she held. She crafted all kinds of wonderful items herself but now that she had an Isur, she was sure they could together craft all kinds of wondrous things. She stayed with him and when he finally passed out she nodded. So the process was extremely tolling on his body. She picked him up and burdened him over to a small couch. She laid him on it and figured she would set the weapon on a table next to him. She didn’t know how long it would take him to recuperate, but she wouldn’t hold it against him. She instead just went about her work. She sometimes slept on that couch as well. That was why it was there. She couldn’t even remember how many times she had felt the need to just stay here in the forge than try and travel home. She sent about making items again and would wait for him to wake.