Wood that I tried (Ilhor)

[Viq]

Summer 67, 505

The young Viq moved sluggishly and with ill-formed intent down the road from Skyglow Hold to the Aurora Showcase, annoyed that he didn't find his uncle at his arvinta, or maybe mad at himself for not realizing he would be at work at this hour. At least he could take solace in the fact that he was dressed relatively lightly under this mid-summer sun. The mind raced between the comfort of his bed, and the machine he read about the previous night under the diminished candelight.

A screwpump, keen reader, is a marvelous invention! Imagine having the power to move water anywhere you want to, even to the highest mountains, if you were so inclined (no pun intended, yes yes?).

A curious writing register, but one he's been accustomed to, after reading the first tome of that particular gadgeteering guide.

Well it's so easy, my beloved dumpling, that you'll kick yourself for not having thought of it yourself: all you need is to carve a helix on one cylinder, and empty another of its contents.

Though this description made it sound like childswork, it was nothing but. Thankfully, an embedded drawing was able to describe the layout in a much clearer way; and despite the fact that the operational principles of such a machine evaded him, his eagerness to learn easily overcame any apprehension of the unknown.

Lost in thought as he was, you would think he would surely bump into one of the seals that adorned the entrance to the Showcase, and you wouldn't be that far from the truth. Having narrowly avoided a collision with the fine sculpture, he entered the Showcase, in a manner than could be considered irreverent or unappreciative of art to the outsider; however, anyone who knew Viq knew also that running errands for a variety of artists was his dayjob, and visiting the Showcase part of his waking up ritual. This time he was carrying a parcel containing a sculptor's mallet and some other assorted micro-tools.

He quickly straightened his gait, in a display of common courtesy, and moved to the kind lady that always seemed to smile behind her desk. She knew him well, maybe forgotten his name by now, but he would visit a couple times a week, so there was no introduction needed. "I'm to deliver this package to Rholor Skyglow.", he said in his most formal tone. She nodded approvingly, promptly causing Viq's change of course toward his uncle's shop. Soon, he had reached his destination, and was about to be greeted by his young cousin.

[Ilhor Skyglow]

Ilhor looked at his older cousin coming in, something Viq did almost everyday, being an errand boy for various artists at the Showcase, a job he didn't seem to take great joy in. Nevertheless, today he entered with a thin smile on his face, his eyes glowing vividly, signaling that he had some kind of new idea. Well, truth be told, Viq always had some kind of new idea. His older cousin constantly tried new things, ever so excited for his new passion, sure it was what he really wanted to do for the rest of his life, only to abandon it some time later. And he never forgot to include Ilhor in his schemes, who always liked being part of his cousins little adventures, even though, or particularly because, they almost always ended in a funny mess. Truth be told, Viq was the only true friend Ilhor had, and they held each other at high regard. "Hi Viq!" said Ilhor, with a child's excitment in his voice. Then he paused, and waited for his father to speak the usual bussiness with Viq.

[Viq]

Viq gave a quick glance to his hopeful young cousin, a yellow hint of anticipation in his eyes, as if to impart his like-mindedness. He didn't stay to chat though, and moved on to his business, eager as he was to get it over with before actually beginning his day.

"One exquisite mallet for my favorite uncle.", he said, impressing himself with this display of showmanship, and presented the package toward his uncle. Rholor had no discernible reaction: He took the package, opened it to verify its contents, and gave Viq a few gold mizas, with the implied understanding that they would reach Kanus. He wasn't distrustful of Viq, as he has proven himself an honorable young boy. If anything, he thought it more likely that Viq would lose his clothes, girdle, pouch and shoes, along with the money, on his way home than waste the money on idle engagements.

After pocketing the compensation, Viq wasted no time. He reached into his left pocket, looking for the schematic of a screwpump he had hastily copied from his books the preceding night. "Wait just a moment!", he thought, "Did I lose it?". "Nope, wrong pocket.", he mumbled, to the puzzlement of everyone in the room. He has been meaning to ask his uncle to carve a wooden screw for his newest project, but his cousin's earlier greeting, and his uncle's grumpier-than-usual mood, swayed his intent.

"Bye bye!", he chirped to his uncle, content with bypassing any further interactions with him in favor of the kind son. With the piece of paper still in his hand, he turned to run to Ilhor and ask for his help. However, he thought twice, after seeing his uncle's piercing stare, and the mauve coloration of his eyes, which he knew signaled impeding anger. He opted to make another concession, and leave the shop at that time. He did, however, impulsively wave the paper in the air, hoping this way to coax his friend into a meeting in their usual place that afternoon.

[Ilhor Skyglow]

Ilhor didn't manage to make anything out of the paper, which only made his excitement even greater. He continued working with his sculpture diligently, his father would accept nothing else, but every now and then he let his mind wonder about what that paper might be, and what new adventures it contained. Finally, he finished his work, returned home, and soon it was time for his afternoon outing. Moving happily and eagerly, he quickly reached the entrance of the Windward Boardwalk, the place where Viq and him met almost every afternoon. Viq was already there, sitting on the ground, his whole body turned towards his mysterious paper. He was looking at it intensely, his finger moving across it with haste, though his eyes never lost their focus. "This is gonna be so much fun!", Ilhor thought, happy as only a child can ever be about anything. He moved near him cheerfully and said in a rather high-pitched voice "Hey Viq! What's that paper there? Are we going treasure hunting? Are we?"

[Viq]

Viq took his head off his notes, and raised it only to be greeted by the sight of a towering behemoth blocking his sun and inquiring in a childish manner about treasures. He was startled for a moment, and didn't manage to put on the mask of self-confidence he would adeptly wear around other people. "What do you see?", he mumbled under his breath, pausing for a bit before giving the piece of paper to his friend, relieved that he had managed to stir him up with his clumsy departure that morning.

[Ilhor Skyglow]

Ilhor opened his eyes and focused on the paper. He could make out some complicated schematics of something that looked like a weird pipe. For a moment, he felt dissapointed, since this couldn't be a treasure hunt anymore. But, anyway, he was sure it would be fun! "Well, this must be some kind of pipe, to store water or something", he said, trying to add some seriousness in his voice. But then his voice returned to a high-pitched, excited tone "Are you gonna make one? Do you need help? I can help!"

[Viq]

Viq was not surprised one bit at how readily Ilhor accepted his unspoken proposal, as he knew the sweet boy's lust for life had always been inexhaustible. He stood up, maybe to signify determination, maybe to close the height difference that bothered him oftentimes. Taken by Ilhor's excitement, his voice came out like a yelp: "Yes, you can help! You must help!".

Following a brief silence, Viq added: "But how will we do it? I don't have any tools!", a hint of feigned dishonesty in his tone, surely one that even the young sculptor would detect. "Or wood!", he added before pausing once again; just enough to interrupt his cousin's thoughts once more. "Or a carver's table!", he added, finishing that way his increasingly presumptuous barrage of demands.

[Ilhor Skyglow]

Ilhor was so excited he almost started off without saying anything. He turned to Viq and said in a hurry "I know! We can go to my father's room in the Aurora Showcase. I'm sure they'll let us pass, everyone knows I work with my father for years now, and sometimes I go there on my own in the afternoons to correct sculptures that I mess up with during the morning work. Let's go! And you can tell me what needs to be done on the road." Even before he finished his last sentence, Ilhor has already started moving fast to the Showcase, Viq coming close behind him and catching up.

[Viq]

Viq was no old man, but he certainly felt that way, seeing as he could barely keep up with Ilhor's pace. And on top of that, he owed the young boy an answer. "Well, you see, I read about it just yesterday. It's a screwpump: It sucks water from one place and moves it to another. I'm still not sure how it does that; that book was kind of screwy.", he said in one breath, internally amused by his own words. "Maybe the handle is magical.", he added, not realizing the trick is in the rotation of the helix.

After a little more walking, they had reached the Showcase, assuaged by the realization that they would have the whole shop by themselves this time. They had arranged to go in separately, as if they were the malicious spies in some bard's formulaic story of crime and punishment. Ilhor went on ahead, and Viq joined him a few minutes later, making the excuse of having to fetch tools for some artists to the assistant who received him by the entrance.

[Ilhor Skyglow]

Ilhor greeted the assistant at the door as usual, passed without any problems and soon entered his father's work room. The room was very clean and orderly, much unlike other similar rooms of the compound, since his father insisted on them cleaning up thoroughly every day before they left. Carefully, as not to leave any traces, he moved to the old wooden box where they kept their supplies and materials and took out a wooden block and some sculpting knives. He sat himself by the carving table and started fleshing out a nice, round, hollow pipe, sure that they would need something like that for the pump. Not long after he started working, Viq entered the room. "Look, I've already started making the pipe from the plans!"