A new adventure.

[Jolynn SilNumenn]

3rd day of Searing 4622
Genteven in Daravin

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Jolynn walked with a little bounce in her step. She had done it! She had escaped from her Grand Mother and Great Aunt and made it to the Capital. Her family's estate in the south had been like a prison to her for the last few years.
Now she had rooms of her own! Three rooms to be exact, in an old stone building on the edge of the slums of Genteven. It was deliciously scandalous.

Now to say three rooms was to give them more credit than they deserved. It was one large basement room with two walls. One wall made a pantry and closet. While the second made a privy. The privy was not much more than two buckets at this point. It was a start.

Being the fourth child being raising by her grandparents, Jolynn knew her place in the family. She would be traded in marriage to put the house, her older brother (Actually a cousin) into a better position. Grandfather helped to buy her some time, space, and money to study.

Looking down at a little girl that wore less clothes than was appropriate Jolynn spoke in a language the girl did not understand.

"First hinges, nails and hooks to hang thing on," the young mage said softly. Then added, "Then some clothing for you."

The young mage headed up the stairs to find a blacksmith.

[Vinsue]

As much as she loved to travel and learn there was nothing close to being home. A place where she wasn't considered a kid based on her height. A place where everything wasn't made for giant people. But this wasn't home. This was another land of giant people and hopefully the last one till she had a chance to go home. But she was here to deliver some new material to the local forge and she had every intention of doing so. Neo-Dunarium, or so the rock was called, was new but she would get her chance to investigate it later. If she could find this forge.

Though she still couldn't read the local language she was becoming very well versed in the word for tavern and the word for forge. Both were needed frequently by the young metalsmith. Speaking of the forge she saw the smoke long before she saw the signs for the smith shop. She entered and immediately went to find anyone who looked like they could be related to the master smith in Amoren. Finding him she went to him and gave him the package. Though her plan was to drop the package and head home. But that was before she found that they were short handed. After a short conversation she agreed to help forge nails but only for an hour or two. Something she had done a lot recently.

From inside the shop the steady beat of a hammer accompanied the sizzle of hot metal in water as well as the crackle of fire. It smelled of iron, smoke, and sweat, a mix she had come to love. A smell that could calm her mood no matter how mad she had been. Vinsue could easily be seen from the entrance as she hammered away at the metal making a nail every 3 minutes.

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[Jolynn SilNumenn]

It took Jolynn some time to figure out where the blacksmith shop was. She walked for almost half an hour to find one.

The trip was not quite that long, but Jolynn stopped to watch some children playing in a fountain. The laughter was infectious as the young children splashed and carried on. How many times she wished she could play in the water as a child only to be reminded of her duty to the family.

She sighed and blew out a breath. That was then and this was now. Still, she did not splash in the fountain.

Walking into the shop, She was quickly directed out of the way as a few men moved a large glowing piece of metal from the forge to an anvil where other men started to beat on it with large hammers. She watched as sparks flew as sweat ran down the workers faces, necks and backs,

The foreman, or who she thought was the foreman, pointed at a bench and told her to sit.

The smell of coal, sweat, the "burn off", and horses filled the space.
Jolynn watched the activity with a mix of fascination.

She felt sorry for a young man that was being yelled as he was trying to beat some metal into some shape. It was clear that he was new at this. "This will make him stronger," she thought to herself.

A red headed gnome was working making nails. She was attractive even with the dirt and heat of the forges. She looked like she was making nails. It impressed Jolynn to watch her work.

[Vinsue]

Nothing compared to the steady beat of a well-run forge. But her steady hammer could not fix the offbeat of the new kid. By sound alone she could tell he was using the wrong strike. That of a straight down very forceful strike. He should be using a draw out strike. One that kind of slides when it hits to control what direction the metal will expand. Though his superiors' harsh words made it obvious to everyone else. True the way of a Metal Smith was harsh, but it would make the lad stronger or break him before he got far enough to fail.

She took the last metal rod out of the fire and put it on the anvil. She made a steady draw strike as she turned the rod back and forth. After a few strikes she made the cut strike and put the rod back in the fire as she looked up. She noticed the person sitting near the entrance then looked over at the head smith who seemed to be too busy to notice her. She took the metal back out of the fire and threaded it into a nail header and snapped the rest of the rod off. She set it on the hole near the back of the anvil and struck the top to flatten its head then turned the header over to drop the red metal into the water. She then walked away from her station and took off the leather apron and walked towards the woman and what Vinsue assumed was her kid. She hung the apron up. Vinsue than walked over to the women. “Something I can help ya with ma’am?

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[Jolynn SilNumenn]

Jolynn was watching the events and thinking about easier ways of doing things or more correctly magically.
She was surprised to find that the woman had been working the forge was standing near her and speaking to her.

“ Something I can help ya with ma’am?” the gnome with pretty green eyes asked.
“I am looking for…” she said and stopped for a moment.
Then looking at the gnome she continued, “I am looking for two types of nails. Half a bag of finishing nails about the length from the tip of my finger to the second joint and a bag of framing nails. Maybe six mint leaf hinges too.”

Doubt started to enter her mind.
“Is that the right type of nails? Was that long enough? Was that too many or not enough? She is going to think I am an idiot….” All ran through her head.
She took a bit of a breath and folded her hands into her lap.
Wanting to have the focus elsewhere Jolynn said, “The young man is ruining that metal. “
She did not like the yelling nor did she wish to get yelled at. In this shop, the Master was the lord and law.
Then looking in the gnomes eyes she said, “I think we can save it if you would help me.”
“It would make such a pretty knife,” Jolynn said it was another item she needed.

Her magic would help harden the blade. A smith could make that process of drawing and shaping blade easier. She did not know how to put the hilt on or bind it. Given time, she could embed silver and gold designs in the blade.
“Roses or bathing nymphs. That would be beautifully ironic,” she thought and smiled.

“I think I could be of some help,” as she pulled a Sunder’s Kit from her bag.

Wearing a dress that almost touched the floor, with boots, and hair that was clean an tied back. Made it clear that she was not a smith, but her kit said she might be helpful.

[Vinsue]

Vinsue gave a nod as the woman made her request. It would seem the girl knew what she wanted. Two types of nails and some hinges should be something that the forge keeps extra of. “We should have those.” she said. She then started to turn but stopped as the woman pointed out the mess the kid was making. It seemed the kid was starting to get stubborn and that his teacher was getting frustrated. “”I'll half to see what the boss says. We usually don't let people back there.”

Vinsue turned and walked over to the kid. And looked at the teacher. "You started him out by having him try to make a knife?" She asked. She was about to overstep her place but she was okay with that. This was not her forge and being sent away was an excuse to go home sooner.

"Kid said he knew how to forge a knife." Boss said. Using a tone that suggested he did not believe the kid. "Well it's obvious he doesn't know what he's doing. I suggest having him make nails for a little bit to get used to the draw strike and so he doesn't make trash out of good metal."

Boss thought over it for a second. "Your customer says she can fix this and personally I'm curious." Vinsue said. He looked at the customer then back at Vinsue before finally giving a nod. "Just make sure she understands we are not responsible if she gets hurt." He would take the boy and leave the forge.

Vinsue would turn to the customer and give a hand wave to come over. Once the woman came Vinsue would speak. "Everything on this side is hot. So be careful also you may want to put on a leather apron. It will help keep your clothes from catching fire." She would say. Safety first. "Normally if the metal gets ruined we'll melt it."

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[Jolynn SilNumenn]

The Gnome waved for Jolynn to come over to the area.
When she got there the woman spoke to Jolynn, "Everything on this side is hot. So be careful also you may want to put on a leather apron. It will help keep your clothes from catching fire."
Then added, "Safety first. Normally if the metal gets ruined, we'll melt it."

Jolynn took an apron off the hook and put it on. She then took her hair and made a couple quick braids and tucked it in.
She pulled out her kit and readied her tools.

"Grab it with the tings and turn it when I nod," Jolynn said as if she had done this before.

She slowed her breathing and focused her thinking and her magic.

First the Anthesis.
"You have to take it apart a bit to see what it is really made of...,," She said imagining the atoms and elements in the metal as little balls against each other. Some balls were different sizes. In her mid she started pushing the balls to remove the big ones letting the smaller ones fill the space. Where the metal was still hot, the work was easy. Those balls wanted to move. It allowed her to start reshaping the blade.

"Then we start putting it back together," she said nodding to have the blade turned.

She gently started to sing her chants to the metals. Pushing the atoms around. She ignored the fact that people were watching the strange lady doing magic in a public forge.

As the metal started to cool, the process got harder. She had to work harder to move the atoms around. This slowed the process.

Sweat ran down her face and back. After about 10 minutes, the shape resembled a lady's dagger. She had drawn the blade out and thinned its body.
"If need you to take it from here," she said to the other woman.
"I need to sit down," she added.

She had pushed herself. Metals were earth with some differences. The balls wanted to lay differently. Quartz is easy, it wants to line up in long lines.

She smiled at Vinsue and wobbled a bit heading for the bench.

[Vinsue]

___________________________________________________________________________

Nothing like the most simple instructions given by someone who had the confidence to do what they needed to bring her back to when she was young. She took the tongs and grabbed the metal as instructed. Something she had not been instructed to do in years. She watched with fascination and curiosity as the woman changed the metal without touching it. It was simulator to the process described in her book on divide but she had not realized that divide could be used on metal.

When the woman nodded she turned the blade. She did notice that the color of the metal and the effort the woman put into molding it was directly tied. She took mental note of this. Hot metal was easier to mold than cold metal. This made sense as they heated metal to make the forging process easier. When the woman was done Vinsue looked at the blade. It was a nice blade. Vinsue would help the woman over to a seat before returning to the blade. It would however need a handle and eventually need sharpened. But first the tang (the piece of metal that runs through the handle,) would need to be adjusted ever so slightly.

Vinsue put the piece back in the fire and let it heat up. A few strikes and she put it in the water to cool and harden the metal before she put a guard on it and started working on the handle. There were a few different ways she could have gone with the handle but in the end, she chose a simple wooden style that would last but would not be too hard to trade out later on if the woman decided she did not like it. A bit of drilling, a bit of glue, a bit of sanding and then it was almost ready. She would sharpen the blade before she put on a coat of lacquer to seal the handle. It would take some time to dry but, in the meantime, Vinsue put up the leather apron and gloves before she went to get some water.

She would offer the woman some water. “I was unaware that Divide could be used on metal. That said, it's safer and just as easy to use a hammer.” Vinsue would say. “But I would like to learn what you did.”

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[Jolynn SilNumenn]

Vinsue offered Jolynn some water.
She said to her, “I was unaware that Divide could be used on metal. That said, it's safer and just as easy to use a hammer.”
Vinsue then continued with, “But I would like to learn what you did.”

Jolynn took the water and drunk it slowly. Her hands shook a little and that strain that she exerted on herself.
"I could teach you a bit. I am still learning myself," Jolynn said.

"Hammers do not make designs in the metal as they go. If you rub some coal dust on the blade you will see roses and thorns of it," She added a bit playfully.
"More importantly, I do not have the strength or the training to use the hammer like you do," she added.

Some of the people in the forge were giving the two women sideway looks. One because they were worried, she would take their job and the other because Mages do not come to blacksmith forges, they send others to do that.

Jolynn set the water down, then stood up and removed the apron. She smoothed her clothing making sure she was not covered in something.
She then let her hair fall back into its proper place.

Leaning down she whispered, "My name is Jolynn."
As she rose, she asked, "Now about those nails and hinges?"

[Vinsue]

Vinsue gave a smile. The lady was right, most people did not have the strength or skill needed to work metal but the lady had found a way to work around it. Not only had she made a functional blade but she had also made a very decorative one. And she did it in very little time. "I could feel the rose design. It is very nice. You could probably make the design pop by adding color to the indents," She said.

When the woman whispered her name Vinsue realized the others were watching. She immediately got up and made a sweeping hand jester at the men. They all had work to do and standing around was definitely not the way to keep their jobs. She on the other hand had no intention of staying at this forge long.

The one that didn't leave was immediately given the task of getting the equipment. He would return with half a bag of 2in finishing nails, a bag of framing nails, 6 mint leaf hinges and the dagger. The man gave a ridiculous price for the idioms.

"Those aren't for the mage. They are for me. Price at what they are worth and the discount for the ruined metal. Regular price for making a standard handle." She did quick math in her head. "After expenses you still owe me an hour's wages," She said. This led to confusion from the other but in the end she got the stuff and her pay. She turned to the woman and whispered "I'm Vinsue. And we should get you home to rest." Vinsue had helped a mage recover from mage blight not that long ago and thought Jolynn probably didn't have mage blight she should not walk home alone as shaky as she was.

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