A Blade Of Passion And Deceit

Chase's gaze was fixated on the bright embers of the crucible. His expression remained somber as he pondered the question.

'Who am I?'

He thought to himself.

Chase looked at Gemini after a minute of silence and gave him a slight shrug.

"That, I don't have the answer to."

Gemini gave him a small nod and stood up.

"I'm going to gather some silver so we can make the alloy."

Chase once again rested his head against the warm bricks, letting his mind wander aimlessly.

As Gemini left, He reached up and began to gently rub the runic marking hidden underneath his leather tunic.

After a minute or two, he looked over to see that, far on the other side of the room, the half-dwarf had already begun grinding the silver ore.

Once Chase was sure no one could hear him, he began to whisper in a soft voice.

"Sparky, if you are still alive, could you please return soon? I have a feeling I'm going to need you in the coming months."

Of course, there was no response. The only sound that could be heard was the faint sizzling of the furnace he rested against.

However, after donning the Serpent's Veil (which just so happened to be what he had named his newly found lumen), he was sure that Sparky had somehow entered his body as some sort of spiritual presence.

The hellhound couldn't have just combusted on the spot and died.

That, he was positive of.

...

Once Gemini returned, the two loaded the crucible with the crushed silver ore.

As Gemini slowly poured it into the seared bucket, Chase mixed the molten cobalt and silver with a long metal rod.

For a while, no words were exchanged between the two; however, after about another fifteen minutes or so, it was time to pour the molten alloy into the ingot molds.

Gemini used the long steel tongs and transferred the crucible, filled to the brim with molten alloy, above a row of cast-iron ingot molds, their surfaces preheated to prevent thermal shock as the molten alloy began its descent.

Surrounding the mold was a row of intricate drainage channels, carved deep into the black-brick flooring of the academy's forge room.

As the alloy filled the molds, intense heat threatened to rob Chase of his breath. He covered his eyes and stood back to avoid staring directly at the bright liquid metal.

Very little alloy escaped from the molding, as Gemini steadily directed the flow into the ingot casts.

Once he was finished, he gently transferred the crucible back into the furnace and closed the hatch, trapping most of the incinerating heat with it.

After a minute or so, the molds finally began to grow easier to look at.

There were three different molds—one was that of a long rectangular ingot, the next held the shape of a small circle, and the third was a slimmer version of the original ingot but held much less alloy than the first.

The blade, the pommel, and the guard...

As the alloy cooled, it began to slowly change its color—turning to a beautiful silver with a bluish tint.

Chase was quite intrigued by the beautiful alloy. He wondered just how rare this cobalt ore really was.

So he decided to ask.

"What is cobalt?"

Gemini gave him a questioning look before sighing.

"It's a high-tier metal, nothing more though."

Chase nodded, letting the shorter boy continue.

"It can only be mined within the dwarven mines and has a lot of magic-based properties. It's pretty common there, so my father was able to send me a good amount of it. Enough to last me until the end of the first term."

Gemini looked down at the smoldering ingots and sighed again.

"It's not as strong as humans make it out to be, though. While it has great durability, the ore is only good for armor and shields."

Chase looked at the molding ingots once more.

"Then how come we are using it to forge a sword?"

Gemini shrugged.

"We're using silver in the alloy, so the blade will still be strong enough to kill most three-star monsters, and it can be imbued with mana, so it will most likely range from a four-star all the way up to a six-star blade."

Chase did not quite understand the idea of "stars," so he didn't press on more and decided to read up on the ranking system of monsters and weapons later.

"What star would a Naga be?"

He asked in a serious tone.

Gemini seemed to have a strange reaction to the question, as he looked at the ground, hiding his expression from Chase.

"Probably seven—maybe eight?"

Chase did not have to continue telling the boy these things, but he needed to ask someone about the mysterious reasons for his slaying of the Naga.

"How come I killed it with a makeshift stone blade then?"

Gemini's eyes widened in shock as a panicked chuckle escaped his lips.

"That's impossible..."

"It's not though. I did it."

Chase responded seriously.

"It would have had to have been some sort of Primis imbuement, maybe even an Axis imbuement, but the odds of a nameless child having access to energy stronger than most high-ranking soldiers- is just not possible."

Gemini said solemnly, after taking a deep breath.

Chase gave him a confused look and tilted his head slightly.

"Primis?"

Gemini looked as if he wanted to palm his own face.

"Sometimes I forget you're from the outskirts of the continent. You probably call it elemental energy there."

Chase nodded.

He pondered if he wanted to tell the boy about the strange black markings that covered his body but decided against it for now.

"I guess it was just luck then," Chase said, unconvinced by his own statement.

Gemini did not respond and instead picked up the large ingot with the steel tongs and began to transfer it to the western side of the room.

Chase followed the half-dwarf as he shook off the questions that remained within his own mind.

They arrived at a small stone basin filled with glowing lava.

The heat was much more bearable in this section of the forge.

Chase took a long swig from his canteen.

Gemini began to insert the ingot into the lava, letting the alloy bathe in it.

"I need you to forge the sword while I make a handle," he said, pointing to the rusty anvil that stood next to the stone basin.

On it lay a smithing hammer that was much smaller than other handles and could actually be swung efficiently by Chase.

He nodded, figuring that he could probably get the hang of it swiftly.

Gemini handed the smithing hammer to him as he set the molten ingot on top of the anvil.

"Just flatten it and shape it however you want. The look of the sword doesn't matter that much as long as it can be sharpened," he said, turning around.

Chase casually stepped in front of the smoldering alloy that stood atop the anvil.

He lifted the hammer slightly and began to let it drop onto the molten ingot.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Chase repeated hammering the alloy until it was about 40 inches long and about a quarter of an inch thick.

As he began to shape the blade, the mental image of an old bastard sword that was hung over the fireplace of his old house appeared in his head.

Chase never asked his father about the simple but elegant blade that he seemed so proud of, but now that he was forging a similar sword, he wished that he did.

It was frustrating to shape a blade, to say the least.

He found himself cursing and complaining as he hammered down the blade.

Eventually, though, he got the hang of it. It wasn't about hitting it hard and forcing the blade to submit—instead, the trick was to be precise and gently shape the blade as it cooled.

He set the hammer down. A satisfied grin took shape on his face.

The blade was three inches or so wide at the base, and gradually grew thinner toward the tip of the sword, it had dull edges since it needed to be sharpened, but the sword blade was still nearly perfect. 

'I'm not too bad at this.' 

He thought to himself wiping the grin off of his face. 

Gemini eventually made his way over, having already forged the pommel and guard, along with a simple ten-inch wooden handle wrapped in brown leather. He set the parts down on a nearby table and walked over to examine the blade.

"Don't you think it's kind of wide?"

Chase shook his head in response.

"A sword that can slash, parry, and pierce is the most useful of swords."

He said with a solemn expression, thinking of the jagged makeshift stone blade that had shattered upon making contact with the Naga's scales.

Gemini seemed lost in thought for a moment before eventually shrugging.

"I guess it's not about the sword mastering a style of combat, but the wielder itself. Flexibility would come in handy in most fights."

Chase nodded.

Gemini gently grabbed the blade with the tongs and brought it over to a different basin filled with clear water.

He swiftly dunked the blade in, causing a sizzle to reverberate through the silent air of the room.

After pulling the blade out, a beautiful navy-blue hue had replaced the vibrant molten orange of the blade's material.

"You can go rest now, if you want. I can handle what's left."

Gemini paused, giving him a small smile.

"Good job. You could probably take someone's job in the dwarven mines if you ever wanted to pursue blacksmithing."

He said, with no hints of sarcasm in his voice.

Chase tiredly walked away, and eventually took a seat on a small bench in the southern branch of the forge.

As he listened to the distant sounds of Gemini hammering the pieces of the sword together, his vision slowly faded.

Chase had fallen asleep, his head resting against the dark wall of the forge.

...

"Wake up."

Gemini softly kicked Chase in the shin.

His vision slowly returned as he rubbed his tired eyes. His body was sore, and he was officially burnt out for the day.

However, as he looked up at Gemini, his attention was immediately drawn to the bluish-silver sword resting in the half-dwarf's hands.

"It's done?"

He asked, now fully awake.

Gemini nodded and offered the blade to him, holding it from the flat of the edge with its handle extended toward Chase.

He hesitated before grasping the handle of the beautifully forged weapon.

Gemini shrugged.

"I don't know how to use a sword, so you have to test it."

Chase cautiously wrapped a hand around the soft leather handle and held the sword out in front of his body.

"It's light," he mumbled quietly.

Gemini stepped back, giving Chase a slight nod while motioning for him to swing the sword.

He swiftly swung the blade down, delivering a vertical slash that met nothing but air.

The sword was light but still felt slightly awkward in Chase's hands, as if it were meant for someone with a more "precise" combat style.

He didn't say anything about it, of course, because it had nothing to do with the quality of the blade. It was more his problem than anything else.

"It's a good sword—strong as well."

Gemini nodded.

"I agree."

He paused for a second.

"But there's something I want to test."

Gemini slowly moved closer and pointed at a small sigil on the flat guard of the sword.

"Try to siphon your primis into that, if you know how."

Chase hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded.

Gemini stepped back.

Holding the sword tightly, Chase closed his eyes and envisioned pouring his energy from his core into the blade's handle.

He pictured the energy flowing up and circulating within the well-balanced guard of the sword.

Opening his eyes, he saw a faint blue glow radiating from the sigil on the sword.

The blue slowly grew lighter, shifting into a beautiful emerald green as the rune took shape.

The sigil, which had started as a collection of random black markings forming a circle on the blade, shaped itself into the image of a mythical bird surrounded by an emblem of fire.

'A phoenix…'

Suddenly, Chase's eyes widened as a familiar sensation radiated from within his right wrist.

He quickly gave Gemini a look of confusion, but the boy seemed unfazed by the strange magic at play.

Chase swiftly lifted his sleeve, revealing a detailed rune—the same phoenix that had been engraved into the blade's guard.

"A lumen?"

Gemini nodded.

"I'm sorry, but I lied to you about my reasons for making that sword."

Chase's eyes widened, suddenly feeling a sense of confusion.

"Why?"

Gemini turned around and began casually walking toward the exit of the forge.

"Wait!" Chase called after him. "You forgot your sword!"

Gemini let out a soft chuckle, not even looking over his shoulder.

"It's not mine."

He paused, leaving Chase wide-eyed.

"It's yours. Don't worry—I got what I needed, and I got to learn a little about you as well."

He stopped in his tracks for a moment.

"Also, the library is in the east branch of the academy. I do hope we have some classes together this year. And don't worry—I won't tell anyone about the rune."

With that, Gemini walked away slowly, leaving Chase alone with the new sword in his hand.

Before his new friend could leave, though, Gemini called out...

"You have to give it a name, or it will eventually break! That's how lumens work."

Gemini waved as he turned the corner and disappeared from sight.

'A name?'

Chase looked down at the sword, which could be wielded with either one or two hands.

He set his left hand below his right, gripping the sword with both hands as a mysterious black line slowly crept up from the base of the blade.

The strange euphoric feeling returned, but this time, it was different—almost as if he could feel what the sword felt, both physically and mentally.

Somehow, he knew exactly what to do.

He recalled an odd name from an old fairy tale that his father had once told him when he was little.

The very memory seemed to resonate with the blade itself, as a soft hum resounded from the sword. 

As his energy flowed into the blade again—this time much slower and gentler—the pain in his core caused him immense strain.

However, Chase ignored it closing his eyes and letting out a faint whisper.

"Hero's Fang..."