[Mkguild] Repost of Third Story

[Mark Ewing]

I've edited my third story following the comments of  John Burman. I was
hoping that all of you could have on last look at it before I send it off to
the archives.

Hot under the Collar


Oberon Snowcat


When I got back to the Keep with my escort, a ferret morph who's name was
Finbar, the first thing that I did was head for the baths. There I could
take care of the dirt that was still in my fur from when I coated myself to
avoid detection while I infiltrated a lutin encampment a couple of nights
ago. My clothing was also in need  of cleaning since they were also dirty.
Partially because of my dirt trick, and partially because of the time that I
had spend on the trail. As soon as I lowered myself into the water it turned
black as the loose dirt began to be wash out of my thick fur. I used my
hands to softly massage the fur to try and get the rest of the dirt out. It
was at that point that Drift, the white Samoyed morph who I had met on my
first full day of being conscious came into the room and took off his
clothes before he slipped into the water. He looked over at me and then his
ears went back before he said,

"You know Oberon you are crazy. To go offending Misha like you just did is
probably one of the stupidest things that you could've done on only your
second day here."

"I think that I understand that now and I will have to do something to to
assuage his temper."

"My first piece of advice to you is not to go out there and do something
foolish again. That's something that is bound to get Misha's tail in a knot
but, what you can do is simply respect the rules around here and operate to
the best of your abilities." I nodded somewhat distractedly as I tried to
get some of the dirt out of the fur on my neck ruff. He noticed the dirt and
then asked me "Why is your fur so dirty?" I grinned at him, confident that
he knew what I meant in the gesture before I replied,

"While I was out there I had to infiltrate a lutin encampment and I needed
some way to avoid detection. In the winter that wouldn't be a problem but
since it's spring and the all of the snow is already melted I kind of stand
out in the bush." Drift nodded in seeming understanding while I struggled to
get the dirt out of my thick fur When I was human I had used this trick many
times in the past to conceal myself but now it seemed that using that trick
was something that I should only do under the most dire of circumstances
since it was such a pain in the tail to remove the dirt when the time came.
Drift looked at me as I struggled with the dirt before he asked me if I had
any brushes and the sort for grooming my fur. "No I have yet to get any of
them but I can assure you that now I will make a point of it."

"Well there are some brushes here at the bath that you can use for the time
being but I would advise you to get your own as soon as you can."

"Thank you for the information" I told him before he left and I continued to
clean out my fur. It took me another hour and a half to get all of the dirt
out of my fur and restore it to its pristine black and white striped
appearance. Once I was satisfied with my appearance I made my way back to my
apartment to get dressed. I also spent some time exploring a door that I
hadn't seen the the first time that I had been here, though I may have just
missed it. Behind the door was a fully equipped forge with all of the
implements that I would need to make any kind of weapon that I could
imagine. In one corner there was the fire box itself with the bellows and
the flue leading up and out of the room. In the middle of the room were two
troughs, one contained water and the other contained oil, they were both
used for tempering swords and other bladed weapons. There was also a box of
clay in the corner and all of the various tools that I would need to do the
job correctly. In a bin beside the fire-box was an assortment of ten iron
rods that I would use to make anything that I wanted to. As a Blademaster of
the Gold I was highly skilled in the creation of Kelmar weapons. Being both
a Blademaster of the Gold and a Swordmaster of the Black I was, in
fact  considered a Bladelord of the Bronze. Bladelords were the rarest type
of Kelmar Warrior with their numbers naturally limited to less than one
hundred per generation. Most Kelmar Warriors excelled in only one
discipline, either the creation of Kelmar weapons or the use of them;
however bladelords were skilled in both the creation and utilization of
weapons. It had been roughly thirty years since I had had any chance to
practice my skills as a Blademaster of the Gold. I would take this
opportunity while it was here. However, right now I had something else to
do, I needed to get some food, and I needed to purchase a grooming kit so
that I could keep myself looking presentable. I put on a lighter belt that I
had been storing for a long time and attached my single-handed sword and
heavy dagger to it before I grabbed my favorite black cloak before I headed
out to take care of my errands.

I actually had to go into the town of Euper to find a kit that would fit my
needs and it cost me a fairly large amount of money considering that it was
just a collection of brushes. The total that the merchant forced me to pay
was a moon and five crescents. His reason being was because the set was
particularly complete and he complained about my coins because they were
from the Midlands and not the same weight or purity as the coins that were
from the Keep itself. I grumbled about the charge all the way back to my
room, but as soon as I began using my own tools I appreciated the cost, even
though it had been high. Once I was completed a proper grooming of my fur I
went down to my usual mess facility for lunch before I went back to my
room.

Now that I had eaten I was ready to begin work in the forge. I took one of
the bars of iron and placed it on the anvil and began to beat on it with on
of the larger hammers that was available. The first step in making a Kelmar
Sword was to cold fold the metal one time before even starting to use heat
to fold it a further nine times. The folding increased the blade's strength
though it did have a tendency to make the metal more brittle. However that
problem would also be solved by giving the weapon a core that was made out
of more flexible steel that had only been folded the first time without
heat. The final, and key step, in forging a Kelmar sword was the tempering
process which utilized metal straps, clay, water, and oil to make the edge
as hard as possible. I was starting from scratch and so had a lot of work to
do in the next couple of weeks




As Misha reached the Keep he thought about the mission against the lutin
raiders that he had just led. It had gone well and the two remaining forces
had been exterminated though it had taken them nearly a week and a half to
bring the last of the lutin parties to bay and destroy it. Though he didn't
like to have to chase the lutins around the Giantdowns north of Glen Avery
he didn't like the idea that there were some lutin raiders still around
ready to try and attack the town though it was well guarded, especially
considering the fact that Misha's Friend Charles Matthias was living there
at the current time. The rat was probably one of the Misha's greatest
friends and one of the most fearsome fighters in the Long Scouts. He
currently lived in Glen Avery after being sent there in the wake of the
Winter Assault that had happened in December during the yuletide. Now though
Misha was glad to be back at the Keep where Caroline and Madog and his other
friends lived. Here he didn't have to worry about lutins coming out to
ambush him in the halls. However his peace of mind was soon disturbed again
when he asked about the crazy Kelmar Warrior that had caused all of the fuss
in the first place. Just about no one had seen him since he had gotten back.
That was just what he needed now, more trouble with that blasted warrior
cat, this guy was turning into a major pain in the tail. Misha scoured the
place from the baths to the bar before he finally got a hint from on of the
other people in the keep. The man was an older guard that had worked in the
keep almost all of his life.

"Well Misha sir, I've seen this guy you bin a lookin' fer off in da baths
ever day but that not all. He also come by da main mess to eat his grub but
he stay all by himself not talkin' to nobody."

"Thank you old timer I much appreciate the information." Misha was
understating the facts quite a bit, he really wasn't in the mood to chase
down that blasted cat in the Giantdowns north of the Keep. The fact that
Oberon was still in the Keep was pleasing but there was still one thing that
bothered Misha and that was where Oberon spent his time if he wasn't down in
the practice fields sparring with other soldiers. In the end he simply
thought about where Oberon was and let Kyia carry him to where the Kelmar
Warrior was currently spending his time. After a few minutes he stepped
around the corner in the hall and found himself standing in front of a door
that was marked with oddly shaped runes that he had never seen the like of
before. He slowly raised a hand-paw and knocked on the worn looking oak
door.




I had just finished polishing and sharpening the last of my completed new
set of weapons which included a new hand and a half long-sword which was as
long as my current two handed great sword, a single handed broad-sword, and
a new dagger. They were all marked with Kelmar God Runes that helped make
them a little better than normal swords made of steel. These blades when
properly forged wouldn't rust, dull, or chip making them almost incalculably
valuable. I had also created a new sword belt to carry this set of weapons.
As I ran the soft cloth over the gleaming metal of the blade and marveling
at the Hatkarat Watermark on both edges of the blade a loud knocking sounded
from the other room. I quickly stood up and placed the new sword in its
scabbard and then took it in my left hand as I went to the door. When I
opened it I was surprised to see Misha Brightleaf, the fox scout, standing
in my doorway with axe in his right hand. I bowed my head and then said
something which I had been planning to say ever since I had gotten back to
the Keep

"Misha I apologize for my actions up in the Giantdowns and I hope that you
can see it in your heart to forgive a foolish old warrior's harebrained
escapade." The fox looked surprised before I stepped back and put the sword
that I had just made on the sideboard by the door and picked up another
sword, this one I had never used nor was ever going to use. It had been one
of the last weapons that I had created before I left my home just over
thirty years ago. I took the polished leather scabbard, sheathed dagger, and
supple dark brown swordbelt wrapped around both weapons into my hands and
turned to him holding the weapons out to him before I continued.

"Sir I have been in the service of many different people and organizations
over the past thirty years and I have almost forgot some of the lessons that
I was taught by my teachers in my homeland all those long years ago. As a
token of my respect and as a form of apology I would like to give these
weapons to you. They are blessed by my gods never to lose their edge or
luster so they will always serve you well in battle. You are probably the
first non-Kelmar ever to receive weapons like these and so please carry them
with the dignity and respect that they deserve." He looked stunned for a
moment, I could've hit him with one of the two remaining iron bars in my
forge an not gotten a more stunned expression out of him then I was getting
now. Finally he managed to put enough of his head back together to respond,
although his response was still a little wooden. He took the weapons from my
hands and then pulled the blade of the sword out of its scabbard to expose
the runes and the hatkarat to the light of the sun that was streaming in
through on of the windows in my apartment. After a few more minutes of
regarding the weapon and gathering his thoughts together he finally managed
to say

"I am a little surprised that you've decided to give this to me considering
what I said out there in the Giantdowns."

"No even though I am shamed by what you said all of those things were true,
I didn't know the terrain, I didn't know my enemies, and I didn't know the
risks. In truth if I was still under the command of a Kelmar Warlord I
would've been in all likelihood been ordered to go remove myself from his
sight, permanently."

"That is a little harsh isn't it?"

"Harsh but necessary, otherwise you would have Warriors who aren't trained
as scouts running around in the deep woods trying to find the enemy with no
concept for the common good of the Clan Army."

"Are you a trained scout?"

"Not really I was trained as a Kaharatak, a Heavy Combat Specialist, though
since I left my homeland roughly thirty years ago I have served as just
about everything from a scout, and assassin to a flag level officer in an
army."

"If you aren't a trained scout then why did you go out there without anyone
else knowing about it?"

"I went out there for reasons that I've already explained. I don't take to
well to not having a purpose in any place. Most of the time when I left
someone's service I would do so because I perceived that they no longer
really had a need for my services and that they were keeping me around
simply because they enjoyed having a man of my skills around in case they
needed me. Now here I am in a place that I can never really leave because of
how I look and they view me in the same way as they did in some of my other
assignments."

"Oberon we don't view you that way its just that you have to follow the
rules here. You need to prove your skills, your loyalty, and your ability to
obey orders before I can even think of sending you out there. Even then it
will not be my decision as to where you go it will be up to the Patrol
Master George to decide."

"Haven't I already proven my abilities?"

"Yes you have proven your abilities to me but I am not the one that you need
to be concerned about. The person that you need to impress is George." I
nodded slowly before I asked him how I should go about doing that.

"Well for one you can follow all of the rules of the Keep. Though with your
experience I believe that there are many jobs that would suit you. For
instance if you could teach others how to make swords like this one you
could probably be the most sought after smith in the Midlands."

"You don't understand I am first and foremost a Kelmar Warrior and that
means that I have been bred and trained for combat. My clan, the Sundering
Stone Clan was an important clan in the Kelmar Clanlands for the past four
and a half thousand years, every single member of the clan for that entire
time has been a warrior. I was on the practice field when I was five and a
fully fledged warrior by the time I was sixteen."

"That sounds like you didn't have much of a childhood."

"I enjoyed what I had and I made the most of it." Misha looked at me for a
second and then shook his head before he commented

"That still isn't much of a childhood." I didn't say anything more I just
nodded my head and thought back to all of those hard years while I was
growing up learning from the masters of their crafts. The hundreds of hours
learning discipline and swordsmanship, the times that I would spend outside
in the grip of the cold north wind meditating on the meaning of the life of
a warrior of the clan. "Oberon are you ok?" Misha's voice brought me out of
my memories and back to the present.

"Yes I was just going over some of my memories. Trust me when I tell you
that I have a lot of memories." He looked into my eyes and before he nodded
and turned away.

"If you don't mind we could go spar again for a while. It would help take
your mind off of the past." I nodded and told him that I would be a while. I
had to put on my full body armour, though the leg pieces, and helmet didn't
really fit anymore. Once that was done I grabbed my new belt with the broad
dagger and looped it around my waist and attached the sword to the loop on
the my left hand side before I reached into the chest at the foot of the bed
and grabbed one of my Gatraibvan practice swords and headed out the door
towards the inner ward where there was some room for sparring. In the middle
of the practice field there was a large group of young keepers swinging at
targets. On the edge of the field watching the youngsters was a grizzled old
jackal morph who looked like he had seen a lot of action in his career.
Misha stepped out of the other door and then asked George if he wanted to
spar with me. The old jackal looked over at me where I was slowly taking
practice swings with my weapon and then nodded before he went on to go get
some armour on. I wouldn't usually end up wearing full armour but under the
circumstances I had decided that it might be a good idea.

"Oberon why don't you have a helmet?" Misha asked me.

"I don't have one because my old one no longer fits and neither do my
greaves."

"Well the Arsenal Tower has something that will fit you."

"How can you be sure about that?"

"The tower is part of Metamor Keep and hence is provided with any kind of
weapon or armour that you could imagine. Though it doesn't do all that well
when it comes to weapons like your swords since there are enchanted to some
extent." I nodded before Misha shouted to one of the young keepers to go get
an assortment of helmets and greaves to fit me. Five minutes later George
and then the young soldier came out of the tower, George wearing a
brigantine with a shield on his left arm and a training broadsword. I looked
over the assortment of helmets and greaves that the young Pine Marten and
selected a helmet and a pair of greaves that fit me perfectly. The nice
thing about these new parts to my armour was that they matched perfectly the
style of my existing equipment. Once I was comfortable I picked up my
training sword and held it over my head in the style that was known as
Btrena-Kel-Yukate. Kelmar training swords were actually heavier then combat
swords so that if a warrior got used to his training sword then he would
find the real thing to be easier to use than the training sword. George made
the first move, a sudden lunge at my exposed midsection but I brought down
my own weapon and parried the blow before counter-attacking with a blow of
my own to his left side. George's moves showed both an immense amount of
experience and his growing age so I took it easy on him. I didn't go too
easy though because I still had to prove to the old warrior that I was at
least reasonably talented with my weapon. However, what I wasn't expecting
was his devious maneuvers. He seemed to know any number of moves that were
underhanded and just plain nasty. After only ten minutes I was panting and
feeling hot, blasted fur it wasn't really meant for constant heavy activity
in the later end of spring. When I lowered my weapon in a silent request for
a break the jackal lowered his weapon before he asked me in a gruff tone of
voice.

"Are you all right?" I waved him off before I replied

"It's ok I'm just a little warm right now." I went over to where a jug of
water sat on a cobblestone and took a heavy drink lapping at the cold watter
with a will. The cold water felt so good that I was surprised when I noticed
that the jug was empty. I looked around for another jug of water and I found
one nearby and began to drink it as well.

"Oberon are you sure that you're ok?" I heard Misha ask me. I raised my head
from my drink and looked at him before I replied

"It's nothing I'm just a little hot that's all."

"Get out of that armour now."

"No I'll be fine just give me a moment."

"Get out of that damn armour you furry fool and into some cool water before
you get heat stroke!" I put the Gatraibvan on the ground and then reached up
to undo the clasps on my cloak but my vision was starting to swim. I looked
over at the fox and the jackal only to see more than one of them.

"Wwwwwwwwwhhhhhhhhhooooooooooo arrrrrreeee
yyyyyyyyyoooooooooooouuuuuuuuuuuuu" I slurred before I hit the ground with
my hands. My vision was now seriously degrading as I tasted the warm stones
of the practice grounds. In the distance I heard a voice shout

"Get that armour off of him and get us some water, he's going into heat
shock." At some point someone rolled me onto my back and undid the clasps to
my armour and my cloak. An instant later I was hit by a deluge of pure bliss
as someone dumped a bucket of cold water on me. After that everything black
as I went to sleep.

I don't know how long it was but when I awoke I was looking up at a very
familiar ceiling. I was in the infirmary again though I couldn't remember
why I was here this time. Maybe I got hit on the head because my head was
pounding like a Hjaktan War Drum.

"You're covered in fur now Oberon. You need to always worry about the heat.
You might want to consider clipping off all that thick winter fur in the
summer." I heard a voice say and I managed to look over to and see the
visage of Misha, the one eared fox, standing there looking down at me with
an expression that I can only describe as a sort of frustrated concern. For
some reason this fox always seemed to be saving my hide. Finally I mustered
up a response

"Are you out of your mind, I do have my dignity, what's left of it at least,
and I will not go around naked" Misha laughed before he replied.

"Its either your dignity or heat prostration. You HAVE to deal with the heat
one way or another."

"Is there any way that I can maintain my dignity without burning up?"

"Perhaps. but it will mean some magic. I made a magic a ring for Drift to
protect him from the heat of his tinsmithy. I could do the same for you."

"What would I owe you for that Sir?" He shrugged his shoulders

"A hundred suns perhaps for the metals I'll need. The spell needed is simple
enough."

"That sounds simple enough I can give you the money as soon as I get out of
this infirmary."

"Good! What do you want? A ring? I'm not a jeweler so it won't look fancy
but it will work!"

"Ok but I think that a collar would probably suit me a little better, I
could loose a ring in the middle of a battle and then where would I be?"

"All right. it'll be a big collar to fit that big neck of yours. I should
have the collar roughed out in a day or two."

"I'll take it easy for now until I get it because I don't want to go through
this again."

"You have to think furry now my friend. And remember that long tail of
yours. The first time you get it caught in a door you WILL feel it."

"I've been very careful about it and I've managed to keep it out of the way
most of the time. I think that my experiences with my Soul Guide have helped
me adjust to it though I have put in my own door once and I can tell you
that I won't ever forget that feeling, no matter how long I live." He
laughed before he shook his head probably at a memory before he told me that
I should try and be more careful for the next little while, at least until I
got my collar from him. Shortly after that he left me in the room to my own
thoughts, well not precisely because shortly afterwards Brian came up to me
and asked me

"Do you know how hard I had to work to save you life Adòn Naharél?" I shook
my head carefully to ensure that I didn't get a headache before I replied

"Not really sir but I will try and make sure that it doesn't happen again."

"You had better because I'm starting to get tired of seeing your tail in
here every day."

"You think I always like being here Brian? I have a life to lead and I would
rather I didn't spend too much time in the infirmary though my profession
does dictate that I will be here from time to time to get patched up."

"Certainly hope not."

"Same here I would rather not have to spend any time here but it seems that
I have still have to adjust to this body." Every person in the Keep has had
to adjust to whatever the curse did to them but all the same none of them
have come in here so quickly after. I nodded at the raccoon before I let my
head fall back to the pillow to get some more sleep. I knew that when I
awoke again I would end up going back to my appartment, without the
headache, hopefully the three runes on my back and my inherent Kelmar
ability to heal could take care of any issues that arose from my abuse of my
body today. However, I was going to have to be more careful about what I was
doing in the near future.
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