Rise of the Living Forge

Chapter 49: Verdant

Arwin was delighted. Almost as if in spite of the crystal’s stubbornness, the metal that Reya had brought him was perfect. Every blow of his hammer landed exactly the way he wanted it to, and the handle of his hammer was taking shape perfectly. Small flakes of metal fell away with every strike he made, falling around his anvil.

The Brightsteel didn’t just speak to him. It sang, and all he had to do was listen. His hammer rang again and again against the metal, coaxing it into position with every blow. Arwin almost felt as if the metal were forging itself, and he was just the tool with which it used to become more.

Either way, he certainly wasn’t going to complain. The hard part of this piece – both figuratively and literally – was going to be adding the crystals into the head of the hammer. But that would come when it came.

For now, the only thing Arwin was concerned with was listening to the Brightsteel. Time passed, and the night slowly started to fade as dawn approached outside. Faint slivers of light broke into the forge, but Arwin barely noticed them.

He’d finished forming the handle of the hammer and went on to combining the ingots to form the head. He hammered the metal out, folding it over itself to combine the ingots together into one large piece. A mold probably would have been a better way to form it, but he unfortunately didn’t have anything like that to work with yet, so he resorted to what techniques he did have.

Arwin hadn’t exactly determined how large he wanted the head of the hammer to be yet. A larger one would be better for crushing things with, but he wasn’t going to be able to use it to forge if it was too big. He couldn’t deny that the idea of having a weapon that he could both craft and fight with was quite tantalizing.

It seemed like the metal agreed. As Arwin rained down blows on the glowing portions of the Brightsteel, a shape started to take form. The head of a hammer, large on one end and focused on the other.

And yet, as it took form, Arwin could immediately tell that it was incomplete. The Brightsteel knew his thoughts just as well as he knew its, and the hammer was meant to be built around the glowing crystals, not just pure metal.

A flicker of concern gripped Arwin as he let his hammer lower and grabbed a handful of crystals. If he made a mistake here, something told him that he wasn’t going to be able to recover. The hammer would be ruined, and he’d have to try to rip it apart and salvage what materials he could.

That degree of loss will delay for me days, if not more. It’ll probably ruin the crystals as well.

This wasn’t the time for concern, though. Concern meant he was leaving the possibility of failure on the table, and that wasn’t how things worked. There could be no doubt. No room to even consider anything but his goals would be accomplished.

If he allowed such thoughts to creep into his head, then it would have been no different from insulting the materials he was working with. They held all the potential he needed to make the perfect weapon, so it was unfair to disparage them.

Arwin laid the hammer to the side, leaving its head buried deeply within the heat of his [Soul Flame] within the forge. He needed to pick out the right crystals to use, and they all had to be inserted in conjunction. If he did them one at a time, they’d lock up and stop absorbing magic before the item was complete.

It took Arwin about ten minutes to select all the crystals. He wasn’t exactly sure which metric he judged them by beyond his gut, but he eventually found himself staring at a small pile of glistening green stone.

He still couldn’t quite understand what they wanted, but there was desire within them. Just like the Brightsteel, the crystals desired to be used.

“You and I,” Arwin informed the crystals, cupping them in his hands. “I may not be able to hear your voice in the same way as that of the metal, but perhaps it can translate for me, eh?”

Arwin pulled he hammer from the flames. Its head glowed red hot, barely still holding its shape from the heat that had been beating down on it. Wasting no time, Arwin picked up the first of the crystals and pressed it into the head, using [Scourge] to make himself strong enough to drive it through the metal.

It wasn’t the most elegant forging method, but it worked. The crystal sank deep. And, to Arwin’s delight, he felt a flicker of acknowledgement from within the weapon. It wasn’t quite a song, much less a word or any form of guidance, but it was something.

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That was all he needed. Arwin grabbed the other crystals and got to work, driving them into the head of the hammer. He felt the Brightsteel shifting as he worked, trying to accommodate the new material entering it. Arwin hammered the material as he worked, working the crystals in as if he were folding dough together.

It was a strange way to look at it, but the Brightsteel was so easy to work with that he couldn’t think of another analogy. More flakes of black rained down as he hammered away, pushing the metal together and hardening it.

Arwin worked as fast as he dared without risking a mistake, piling the crystals into the hammer before embedding one right below where the head connected with the shaft. As an afterthought, Arwin also added a crystal to the bottom of the shaft.

It’s practical, but that doesn’t mean it can’t look pretty.

Arwin set the hammer down on the anvil, grabbing his old smithing hammer and setting back to work as parts of his new weapon called to him, asking for help. The ring of metal rang out through the dilapidated smithy once more.

The sun continued to rise outside, the rays of light squeezing through the cracks in the walls growing stronger as they lit up the smithy. They passed over the hammer, causing metal and crystal to glimmer in unison.

He returned the hammer to his hearth, letting the flame scorch the crystal and meld it together with the Brightsteel.

He pulled it free and nearly strode outside before he remembered he had a new barrel of oil to work with. The head of the hammer plunged down. Flames erupted from the oil’s surface as it hissed, cooling the hammer.

As he turned it to get even cooling, the side of the hammer got a little closer to the walls of the barrel than he’d planned. There was a hiss and the barrel cracked. Arwin let out a curse as oil poured out and ran across the floor. Luckily, the hammer was just about quenched and most of the flame had already petered out. He looked out at the mess, then sighed. Finishing the hammer was more important now. At least the barrel had been small.

Arwin got to cleaning the hammer up. It was a lengthy process that took longer than he’d expected, but he eventually got the last of the weapon freed from the confines of blackened metal.

The Mesh tingled at his fingertips, racing down his arm and into his heart. Power gathered around the newly forged weapon. The prickling turned into a pulse, and Arwin’s hair stood on end as the air became charged.

Ozone filled the air as a pop rang out and a delighted laugh escaped Arwin’s lips. Golden writing erupted before him and the Mesh finally acknowledged his creation in true. He felt a faint question tickle at the back of his mind as the achievement he’d earned for scaring off the Wyrm felt an opportunity to take hold.

Arwin sent a thought of approval without a second of hesitation.

[Verdant Blaze: Unique Quality] has been forged. Forging a magical item has granted you energy.

[Shieldbreaker]has been consumed.

Title: [Stonesinger] has been earned.

[Stonesinger] – You crafted an Awoken item with a magical component that was beyond your comprehension, and your efforts have attuned you to the whispers of the world. If you listen close enough, you can speak with magical materials – though they may not wish to reply.

“I’ll be damned,” Arwin breathed, not even daring to look away from the Mesh’s words in case it decided to take his title away from him. It was vague, but everything he knew about crafting had already come from just barely being able to pick up on the desires of the material he worked with.

I always assumed that it was just the Mesh guiding me, or that the materials kind of had some vague sense of desire. I didn’t realize that magical components could literally speak with me. They could tell me exactly what I need to do to make the perfect item with them! This is incredible.

That wasn’t it, though. Arwin’s eyes caught on the Mesh once more. It hadn’t said he’d crafted just a Unique item. He’d made an Awoken one. A delighted grin stretched across his lips and he nearly pumped a hand in the air with delight.

Arwin waved the window away, then quickly summoned his status to make sure the title remained. After confirming that it had, he turned his gaze to the newly forged hammer in his hands.

It felt right. The hammer had a weight to it, but not so much that it would be unwieldy to use. The large, fighting head had crystals jutting out of it, their points blackened and dancing with faint flame.

Its other side had a single crystal, turned flat side out so he could use it to strike metal without putting holes in it. The perfect blend of combat and crafting capabilities, condensed into a single weapon.

The Mesh bloomed as Arwin inspected the hammer.

Verdant Blaze: Unique Quality

[Awoken]: This item has taken on life of its own. With every death it causes and every magical item it is used to craft, it will grow slightly more powerful. Upon reaching [Unknown] threshold, it will be able to bond with its wielder.

[Shieldbreaker]: This weapon hungers to destroy. Every consecutive blow against the same target will deal increased damage. Changing targets or blocking an attack with this weapon will reset any power that Shieldbreaker has generated.

[Firestarter]: This weapon is one with the fire used to forge it. It will drink in [Soul Flame], imbuing its blows with it at the cost of magical energy.

[Unique]: This item was created for Arwin Tyrr, and it will never know another owner. This item will attempt to burn anyone who attempts to wield it other than its owner. Information about this item may be hidden from others.

“Now that,” Arwin breathed, letting the Mesh fade as he held the hammer before him, delight in his eyes, “is one hell of a hammer.”