[Mkguild] Late Night

[John Burman]

A fast short because I haven't writan anything in awhile and this seemed fu=
nny in my head.=A0 Please forgive any typos as I typed this stright into th=
e email and am a terrible speller.
John Burman aka Fox Marine
-------------------------------------

The Duke's wedding was nearly upon Metamor, and that meant business for a b=
lacksmith in abundance.=A0 Squeaky hinges that needed more than fresh oil n=
eeded to be replaced, old candelabras that had fallen one to many times nee=
ded mending, extra guards in the halls meant the armory's supply of halberd=
's was dwindling and new heads had to get to the carpenters and weapons smi=
ths as soon as possible, all of which meant that Gordon had a lot of work t=
o do and little time left in which to do it.=A0 Facing a tangle of said can=
delabras, he was glad the walls of the smithy were thick brick, and that th=
e cooper the next building over was nearly deaf.

Feeding a fresh shovel of coal into the forge, Gordon could feel the heat a=
lready rebuilding thanks to the magic worked into the very stonework of the=
 forge.=A0 Etched into the inside of the stone, it helped amplify the heat =
from the coal and keep it contained so that the only escape routs were stra=
ight up the flue or through the wide doors into the smithy itself.

Carefully arranging several of the bent arms from the fixtures into the for=
ge with just their attaching brackets sticking out, Gordon began to slowly =
work the bellows himself.=A0 Having long sent his apprentice to sleep, he h=
eard the crying of the midnight hour over the soft wheeze of the leather as=
 it fanned the fires.

Giving one last press to the pump handle and allowing the bellows to settle=
 of their own weight, the smith carefully trod to the fiery opening and wit=
hdrew a candle holder in the jaws of a long tongs.=A0 Feeling the grit of t=
he days work beneath his unshod toes, Gordon turned to the anvil and began =
to beat the warped metal into a fresh, smooth spiral to match it's brethren.

Bound tightly below his cap, and impeded by the steady clang of the hammer,=
 it was a miracle Gordon's rounded ears could hear anything, but somewhere =
between strokes it came to him.=A0 Sounding like something between the sigh=
 of the bellows and a fresh breeze in a wheat field, it was approaching, an=
d fast.=A0 Carefully setting aside the still hot metal and steping away fro=
m the fire and steel of the forge, Gordon still griped his hammer as the so=
und still grew.=A0 =


Suddenly, and without warning, a white wall, arranged like a web of glowing=
 silk, burst from the wall and sweapt across the room disappearing as fast =
as it had come.=A0 What it did do however, was cause every spell in the for=
ge to burst to full life.

Shielding his eyes, Gordon turned to see an instantanious, though short liv=
ed, gout of fire belch forth from the doors of the forge, flashing the tong=
s still gripping the candelabra arms to a cheary red and intsantly slaging =
the metal within.=A0 Gingerly padding back to the anvil, the smith took a f=
resh tongs and pulled back the glowing metal and near molten bracket they s=
till grasped.=A0 Seeing the ropy strings of steal still bleeding off the co=
oling jaws and into a puddle already forming in the forge, Gordon sighed an=
d looked over to the remainging candle holders.=A0 It was going to be a lon=
g night.



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