Chapter 5, The Forge

The next day was a cold shower in the literal sense: they were awakened by Lucie armed with a tank of cold water.

"- Bwaharg are you ill in your head ?!

- We told you at dawn and it was ten minutes ago so I do not have to spare you. Get up. They rose, soaked.

- Can you go out so that can change our clothes ?"

She blushed and turned their heels out.

- Nero you can do something about the water?

- I'm going to try ". He concentrated and imagine the water covering them focusing in a single point, hands outstretched toward his cousin he poured his energy towards him and pulled to him the fine droplets. Sig then saw the water covering him converge to the open palms of his younger cousin and form a sphere like the previous day.

"- Nice thank you, I will finish it".

And his words fell he closed his eyes and thought back to the sensations of the previous day and quickly he began to emit heat that eventually dried him up. I won't try it on you I do not control myself enough to risk boilling you.

"- I appreciate yes " smiled Nero who put away his night clothes to conjures workout clothes. This was the moment chosen by Lucie to burst in shouting :

"- But what are you do..ing".

The sight of the mestizo naked torso interrupted her and she did not move.

- Nero puts something, Lucie appears to be frozen... ah no she's too red to be frozen actually ouch ouch stop hitting me!

- Mo..mo..mov...v..ve.. now ! " Does she hardly uttered, red from ear to ear.

They left together in silence, Lucie still red and the cousins had a smile plastered on their face, after all what's funnier after all than see her lost her composure.

"- Quicly sleepy head !" Krista yelled seeing them.

"- The lake still bears traces of your confrontation so we're going do thing separately. But what were you doing all three ? Lucie you went to look after them a while ago ".

The latter was about to respond but the memory of the incident blocked her words and she took a crimson color without being able to say anything. The other two accomplices start giggling before the incredulous eyes of Krista.

"- But what happens between you there ? " Said Krista annoyed.

"- Nothing at all ! replied Lucie.

"- They must train, go ! Sig with me, we will work your magic !" She said to cut short the discussion.

"- Neeeeeroooo ... tell me now ..."

Krista appeared in his back, her hand resting on his shoulder, full of threats for refusal. Lucie suddenly turned and shouted:

"- Nero if you tell him you won't eat for 3 days !

- Old pal I would not like to be in your shoes !

- It's the same for you Sig ...

- Huuuuuh ?

- If you do not improve you won't eat you. " Sig stayed behind disappointed.

The training was severe for both of them, Lucie forced her student to repeat the same movement of energy malaxation while Krista wanted to print directly in Nero's body a sword move until "he could make it while sleeping". Around lunch time they collapsed, begging them to stop. Despite their power and energy the two young women managed to push them into a corner.

"- I prefer the alpha of the last time, blew Sig on his knees.

- Stop complaining, I'll cook dinner, go clean yourself in the meantime.

- I do not know if I can get up there, said Nero.

- I won't serve you if you are in this state, there is a hotspring behind the rocks upstream.

- You can bath in it ? said Sig, his eyes full of hope.

"- I feel better already! Nero get up I want a bath !

- Damn when you want something you're oddly motivated " sighed the mestizo that Sig helped getting up. They set off together towards the place indicated by Lucie.

"- How's going out for you ? Krista did not abuse?

- She made me redo over every move until I could make them eyes closed, the bath will do good thing to my muscles. What about you ?

- Didn't use my muscles so I have nothing but mentally I'm dead, I had to concentrate on one exercise until it was almost physically painful. That's why as soon as she spoke of the hotspring of course it motivated me, and we did not really washed since we're here.

- Ah, the rocks are there "

They climbed the rocks and saw steam, finally the source appeared. The water was clear despite steam, Nero plunged his hand in and immediately withdrew.

"- Ouah it's hot!

- We must gradually come in " he said while making his clothes disappear completely shameless. They bathed, hidden among the rocks and steam, finally relaxing in the fresh burn bath.

Sig finally opened his eyes, looking serious.

"- Have you noticed ?

- The fact that we restrained ourself and yet we're so exhausted ? Obviously, Krista techniques are tough but my body seems to ask for more.

- Like yesterday. When we jump at each other or even against the carnivores...

- It worries me you know. I feel that part of me really wants to fight ... ".

They looked again into each other eyes without saying anything, understanding the other without words. Suddenly they heard the coaches see their call to eat.

"- Gotta go, I'm hungry now anyway. We're going to tell them about the blacksmith after the meal, that way they won't starve us.

- Agreed "

They joined young women in front of a fire over which grilling a nice piece of juicy meat.

"- It smells awfully good, said the two men, salivating.

- It's Sylvan's pig, Krista hunted it and I prepared it with the herbs and mushrooms growing on their backs.

- It grows on their backs ?

- Yes the meat is flavorful with that and it is excellent for muscle, while when prepared herbs and mushrooms in addition to brings many good nutrients for energy.

- Wow thanks girls ! You spoil us after making us sweat!

- Shut up or you not eat. " And the meal began in a good mood, without the side solanel previous fair or dinner the night before.

Once the meal ended Nero spoke:

"- Girls, we would like to go back to the forge to convince your blacksmith of our usefulness".

Krista was sipping tea that Lucie had prepared, while this one was already beginning to install training dummies but both stopped hearing the almost suicidal idea of the two accomplices.

"- He will never let you, that old grumpy Gravic doesn't even get along with the people village, there is only grandfather he discusses with. People treat with his granddaughter when they need blacksmithing.

- We would still like to try, insisted Sig.

- As you wish, said Krista finishing his tea, once you'll be driven away with a hammer we'll resume our training. "

They left towards the rocky peak which was inlaid in the forge, they heard the hammer hitting the anvil well before entering, but covering it was the voice of the old Gravic cursing against his tools, the forge or in the void.

"- He seems to be in a good mood today" , said Lucie without emotion.

"- Careful, do not rush it " , advised their friend that already ticked into the door while confidence cousins decreased with each step.

"- What ?! Who's the good for nothing who's bothering me goddammit !" They heard from the bottom of the forge.

"- Maria go see !

- Y.. Yes Grandfather ! Kyaa !"

The sound of metal objects falling accompanied the frail voice who replied...

"- Who is this ?

- It's me Maria, Lucie is here too.

- Krista ! " Answered the voice with enthusiasm.

The woman who opened had black hair that hid one of her eyes, the one visible was green, she had a frail and timid appearance as the small Lyra, but she was covered in dust and seemed to sweat big, probably because of the forge. She greeted her friends and let out a little cry of surprise on seeing that they were not alone.

"- Uh uh who are you ? " She said, hiding behind the reassuring Krista.

Nero and Sig did not answer, just thinking "she's too cute all shy like that" Lucie saw that they did not answered, roll her eyes and presented them:

"They are the ones who eliminated the raptors, the military one who look silly is Sig ...

- Hey !

-... And this one is the Nero exhibitionist.

- It was you who came in at the wrong time !"

Sig wanted to reach out to Maria to greet her but this one hid again behind the beautiful Krista.

- She is very shy, excuse her, says the latter.

- Oh no no don't worry I find it very cute " Sig said, smiling.

This remark made Maria turn bright red, Nero could almost see steam escaping from her, and Lucy struck Sig.

"- Don't you dare approach her ! "

Krista start stroking the head of her friend looked Sig but with a slightly disappointed look.

"- Hum... ple...pleased to meet you..." she whispered.

"- They want to see your grandfather" , explained Lucie while watching them with contempt.

Maria suddenly raised his head surprise.

"- But grandfather ..." she locked eyes Sig and turned red again, looking down.

"- Grandfather does not like visitors ... "

The end of her sentence was drowned by a flood of insults from her grandfather, he seemed to come see what was holding his granddaughter.

"- But what do you want? Huh? You again ?! I thought I was Clear ! I do not want strangers around my forge !

- Sir ! We would really like to help you! We have muscles to spare and we do not complain no matter the job!

- Ask Krista and Lucie who coach us !

- You think it's enough , you idiots! I don't want incompetent in my legs, you never forged anything and it takes years before getting a useful level to me !

- They learn surprisingly fast Gravic and they do not necessarily have to touch your forge, they can do heavy work like and you can focus on forging and not wait for people from the village to come to disturb you to recover their orders.

- Well yes but if possible we would like to learn to forge ", Sig said with a little voice that didn't looks like him.

"- Hmmph you think it's simple right? That you just have to heat things and hit the metal hmm? You'll see, Maria comes to help me! You guys follow me pretentious fool who know nothing ... "

He continued to grumble until they all arrive at the bottom of the building. Directly carved in stone the forge gave off intense heat despite the high ceiling of the cave. All around were workbench and tables, grinding wheels and tools. Chains hung over the room and various pieces of metal hanging around in middle of all kind of plans.

"- Look at me, you'll see what forging is like ! Maria two corundum bars, an iron one and a malachite one ! "

Thz young lady jumps without discussing, taking the materials in barrels containing three bars of refined ores.

"- Well now heated the forge, I'll grab my tools"

Maria stood beside a large blower and start making long blow, the forge then freed a powerful wave of scorching heat.

"- It should be okay now " smiled the old man with gnarled arm, he then plunged a corundum bar and the iron one entirely in the fire and then he only heat a part of the malachite and of the second corundum. He waited a bit and then using pliers he grabbed the glowing bars embedded in the embers to move to the hottest fireplace, near the mouth of the large blower.

"- C'mon Maria" he barked.

The latter blow again, heating the forge even more, making her sweat more but still very focused on his task. The cousins were protecting their eyes facing such strong heat, but the gestures of the old man were precise and without hesitation despite the furnace. Gravic then grabbed the two bars with clamps, the bars were soft and he had to be careful not to break them down. He placed the two pieces against each other and caught one of their end to put it on a workbench with a big clip, clasping the other end with a kind of corkscrew. Then he began to turn the bars on themself while Maria struck the hammer. Their game lasted a few minutes and the two bars finally became one when cooled. They put the bar in the furnace and use the blower again and to heat it until it became white.

"- stretche the other two ! "

They took the two remaining bars and put them one over the other on the anvil, hitting where two different materials were in contact. The bars were stretched progressively under the blows.

"- Fold it ! "

On the orders of her grandfather, Maria withdrew her bar and Gravic folded his own on top. They continued until the hot parts could no longer bend and they put them back in the stove and return to the firts large mixed bar. They inflicted the same treatment to the single bar, lengthening and then folding on itself.

"- A laminated blade ... whispered Sig.

- You know that ? " wondered his cousin.

"- Yes it is a technique used in Japan for swords, you heat the steel and fold it on itself many times to increase its strength and remove impurities, but right now his using it on... a greatsword.

- Ooooh you freaking surprise me kid !" Gravic shouted over the sound of the forge and hammers.

"- You've never been in a forge , I can tell, but you know such a technique, amazing ! " he smiled.

Once the bar at the right size they began to give it the shape of a long blade.

"- Maria I'll leave you the blade, I'll take care of the handle" said Gravic by taking two bars and interlacing them together while warming. He used several tools on a set to form a handle of a single block.

"- Maria, blade!

- Yes grandfather ! " she replied, giving the blade on which he put on the handle still barely formed, they then resumed the work by inlaiding the two parties together.

"- We polish and sharpen ! " He finally said.

Once these steps completed the old man showed them his weapon, large broadsword with a straight double-edged, clear brown and green leaf with the iron mixture of corundum and malachite.

"- And here is a blade worthy of a saint knight in record time ! Mmh... Ok I decided ! I let you try one time so now make a blade that satisfies me and then you can work with me. The fact that you know the technique of laminated metal made me want to see if you could do something besides knowing lil' pretentious ! You have five hours !" he said, turning an hourglass.

The girls had their mouth wide open in surprise but Gravic made them leave.

"- Hey good old grouch !" The chef came to see his friend.

"- where are our new youngsters?

- At the blacksmith grandfather.

- What? Gravic you let someone else in your forge ?!" choked the old chief.

- TCHH these two mutts have an interesting look and they were analyzing my actions perfectly ... fool silly bugger old looks like you dug up two interesting phenomena mwahahaha ".

"- Well, say Nero watching his friend, we never touched a forge and must make a blade that can satisfy this gruff old grouch in less than 5 hours just after observing him make one in less than an hour .

- Yep.

-... Bah let's do this. " The cousins then tried to reproduce what they had seen but their first attempt ended in failure: the rods were too hot and eventually melt. They then pay attention to apply less heat but longer in time, finally they took out the two glowing bars but when they tried to turn them on themselves to mix the two materials they broke. For 3 hours they tried to reproduce the steps that the old blacksmith had done before them. But there was always a problem.

"- Ok that's enough !

- You want to abandon Sig ?

- Not just changing method, he replied with a smile, I will directly heat the metal and twist myself using my hand and fire magic, with your water you'll cool the metal slowly over my hands so that it won't melted. Go try it.

- Uh ... well we have nothing to lose anymore. "

Then followed tries to succeed with the help of their powers, the first attempts were unsuccessful but they were improving their techniques until they managed to mix the materials.

"- Ok let's do the laminate now! I heat and bend, you hammered and cools gently to avoid damage. "

Using his hands inflamed Sig could have direct contact with the metal and he could feel the material and defects with his fingers, he was able to tell his cousin when and where to strike and when cooling with a thin spring of water to avoid thermal shock. Their new method allowed them to reach in an hour what they had done in three and get a straight blade and smooth even before sharpening.

"- We go to the pommel and handel, same technique!

- Dude Your hands are burned!

- We'll see later, we didn't go this far for nothing! "

They repeated the gestures of Maria and Gravic, adapting their methods to merge the two pieces of the weapon.

"- Well it's time ! Said suddenly Gravic while entering.

"- Hmm it is not polished or honed but the main work is there ... I leave you 15 minutes more, now move idiotic buffons !

- Thanks boss " they replied together. Gradually, as they honed and polish the blade and its handle, the sword took a much darker hue than the old man.

"- Oooh interesting ... you did a good job for beginners. Gimme !"

He took the job done by the cousins in his rough hands, hefted the sword, watched from every angle and finally said:

"- This weapon ... you wrought ... strangely. We can see that it is amateur work but it gives off a strange feeling".

He approached the anvil and suddenly made the sword fell over it. In a horrible screeching noise of metal, the sword bounces on the anvil, intact.

"- Hmm ... I definitely was expecting your sword that break easily, but look ..."

He returned their sword and took what he had wrought. He raised it and brought it down on the anvil, but this time the weapon sank into the big metal block instead of bouncing it.

"- That's the kind of weapon that I forge you amateurs ! Mwahahaha!

- Too bad it looks like you missed, you'll have to train hard with Krista and I, quipped Lucie.

- I did not say that bloody goddammit cheeky kids !

- Huh ? " said Lucie, surprise.

"- Their sword is certainly not as sharp and they forged it I do not know how but it has resisted my anvil. I take you with me apprentices and Maria hahaha. I let the girls have you in the morning but in the afternoon you are mine! Maria ! You'll also teach them.

- But ... but ... grandfather, she said timidly.

- No but, you're good enough to teach them the basics now.

- No ... no it's not the problem ... " she articulated with difficulty.

"- it's just that ..." she looked to Sig and turned red.

- What's wrong? You stayed too close to the forge to be so red.

- N..n..n..no it's ... raaahaaa " whined Maria, hiding her face in her hands and slipping behind Krista.

"- But what you strange little bugger ? Good god, all of you get out of my house now ! You two ! Be there tomorrow after lunch and prepare to sweat mwahahah ".

And he slammed their back loudly, causing them to lose balance. Nero caught himself to Lucy and his cousin fell on Krista Maria behind her.

"- What what what what are you doiiiiiing !" Lucy screamed, hitting Nero uninterrupted.

"- Wait wait wait wait I swear ouch ouch that is not my fault !

- Sig, up now ... " said krista with a blank expression, void of any emotion while Maria she repeated :

" - uwawawawa ".

"- I can not use my hands, they are burned ", he articulated in the hair of two girls who were pinned under him by his two powerful arms. Nero finally got up after a good flurry of shots and helped his broken cousin.

"- At least get on your legs pal...

- Sorry I do not dare do anything with my arms in this state.

- Sig ? " Krista told while dusting herself.

- Hmm ?

- Be quiet and grit your teeth ...

- Wait wait wai..." The shot made him fly out the window.

- Come back here I have not finished.

- Blease I swear I'm reawy bwooken there !" But the blank stare void of emotions that Krista showed him that it was useless to argue. "Oh I'm dead" he thought when he saw her arm her fist.

- Wait Krista!

- Huh I have a higher voice than I remembered " but when he opened his eyes he saw that it was not his voice but that of Maria. She stood before him, making a bulwark against a Krista wanting his death.

- He really needs to heal his arms! He has very serious burns ... I often burn myself but this is much worse, I have to put balm on his arms and fast"

Finally came a gleam in the eyes of Krista.

- What ? Oh my god Sig your arms ! " Indeed the members of the young man was a horrible sight: the skin was gone and his muscles were naked and terribly burned, you could even see the bone in some places on the hands. Maria came back with Nero, making him bring a tank of water, bandages and a pot containing a balm.

"- I'll have to wash your arms " , she said with sorry for him in the eye.

"- Krista and Nero hold him good because it will be very painful, Lucie help me please, when we finished cleaning I will put the cream and bandages after that.

- For now I am fine quite strangely but hurry before the feeling comes back ...

- And I don't know if we will be able to hold him ... sighed the mestizo.

Against all expectations it was quick but it was only so because Sig fainted during treatment. The other brought him home and kept watch because he had a burning fever, literally because Nero was burned by touching his forehead.

Author's note : freaking missclick that made me loose all my work when it was almost complete -_-' ...