Atrium stared at the flame burning in the forge. The orange glow flickered back and forth. Â Her body was rigid and there was a twinge of a sensation she was unfamiliar with.
It was a twinge of fear.
A shape moved between her and the glow and the hold the flickering flame over Atrium was broken as she looked up at blacksmith, a tan faced hyur. The hyur slowly spun her axe in his hands, iinspecting his work on the blade.
"Anything else today?" the blacksmith asked as he handed the weapon over to Atrium. The Crow reached out and took her weapon back, her eyes noting the new polish on the metal and how the weapon's cutting edge was now knick free.
"This one is satisfied with the work on my weapon."Atrium answered. Â The smith was about to turn, when Atrium spoke up, remembering what her new teacher of the axe had told her the night before.
"This one wonders if you ever teach how to improve ore into weapons as you do."
The blacksmith raised his eyebrow as he looked over at her.
"You mean smith?" the man asked. Â Atrium nodded. Â The hyur was thoughtful for a moment.
"No offense little lady," the smith said slowly, "But the way you looked at my forge makes me think you aren't up to it. You looked as if that flame was the fire of Ifrit itself."
Atrium pressed her lips into a thin line, recalling how the tongues of flames had devoured her first body so easily, and how if they did so again, there was no coming back, no Voice to revive her.
"Perhaps this one could help with things that did not involve flame, such as the anvil?"
The hyur considered that and then shrugged.Â
"Won't make you a very good smith but help is help. I could use someone to help shape hot metal and sharpening weapons. Â Won't pay you much though, especially if you can't be around fire much."
Atrium was silent. She should have walked away. But Ragnar had wanted her to do this if he was going to teach her how to use her axe in a more dangerous mamnner and she did want to kill more effectivly with it. Â Also, all her dears ones kept saying Atrium needed to be doing something other than just killing people all the time. Â So why not make things that let other people kill each other and make Nald'thal richer?
"This one is okay with little Gil. Â Am curious and have promise to keep. And you have not burned yet."
The smith chuckled and patted his leather gear.
"That's what this is for. If you are serious about helping me, take off that ridiculous wolf fur coat and put on one of the aprons and those extra gloves. Â And stand by the anvil. Â We have a large shipment to make."
"What are we making?" Atrium asked as she removed her coat, revealing chainmail underneath. Â Atrium watched the flames danced as she stood by the anvil, trying to keep the the fear under control as she reminded herself that it was controlled fire and this hyur was around it every day and had not burned to death.
"Nails. Lots and lots and lots of big nails" the hyur laighed. Â "The exciting life of a blacksmith, eh?"
The hyur began pumping the bellows with his foot, the fire grew larger as heplaced a long bit of metal into smoldering embers and Atrium gazed at the dancing flames, wondering if this was a very bad idea.
It was a twinge of fear.
A shape moved between her and the glow and the hold the flickering flame over Atrium was broken as she looked up at blacksmith, a tan faced hyur. The hyur slowly spun her axe in his hands, iinspecting his work on the blade.
"Anything else today?" the blacksmith asked as he handed the weapon over to Atrium. The Crow reached out and took her weapon back, her eyes noting the new polish on the metal and how the weapon's cutting edge was now knick free.
"This one is satisfied with the work on my weapon."Atrium answered. Â The smith was about to turn, when Atrium spoke up, remembering what her new teacher of the axe had told her the night before.
"This one wonders if you ever teach how to improve ore into weapons as you do."
The blacksmith raised his eyebrow as he looked over at her.
"You mean smith?" the man asked. Â Atrium nodded. Â The hyur was thoughtful for a moment.
"No offense little lady," the smith said slowly, "But the way you looked at my forge makes me think you aren't up to it. You looked as if that flame was the fire of Ifrit itself."
Atrium pressed her lips into a thin line, recalling how the tongues of flames had devoured her first body so easily, and how if they did so again, there was no coming back, no Voice to revive her.
"Perhaps this one could help with things that did not involve flame, such as the anvil?"
The hyur considered that and then shrugged.Â
"Won't make you a very good smith but help is help. I could use someone to help shape hot metal and sharpening weapons. Â Won't pay you much though, especially if you can't be around fire much."
Atrium was silent. She should have walked away. But Ragnar had wanted her to do this if he was going to teach her how to use her axe in a more dangerous mamnner and she did want to kill more effectivly with it. Â Also, all her dears ones kept saying Atrium needed to be doing something other than just killing people all the time. Â So why not make things that let other people kill each other and make Nald'thal richer?
"This one is okay with little Gil. Â Am curious and have promise to keep. And you have not burned yet."
The smith chuckled and patted his leather gear.
"That's what this is for. If you are serious about helping me, take off that ridiculous wolf fur coat and put on one of the aprons and those extra gloves. Â And stand by the anvil. Â We have a large shipment to make."
"What are we making?" Atrium asked as she removed her coat, revealing chainmail underneath. Â Atrium watched the flames danced as she stood by the anvil, trying to keep the the fear under control as she reminded herself that it was controlled fire and this hyur was around it every day and had not burned to death.
"Nails. Lots and lots and lots of big nails" the hyur laighed. Â "The exciting life of a blacksmith, eh?"
The hyur began pumping the bellows with his foot, the fire grew larger as heplaced a long bit of metal into smoldering embers and Atrium gazed at the dancing flames, wondering if this was a very bad idea.
