BLACKFIRE STEAM AND GLASS

Two weeks had passed since Damon sent the letter to the Duke to tell him about his accomplishments and in response Bruno von Wolfsburg was sent to go confirm if it.

At Damons manor , Bruno could see a black banner with a sigil of a three headed dragon on it and the name Blackfire written on it.

" Ah Bruno , brother please come in. I know the journey was stressful." Damon said beaming with smiles that greatly confused Bruno after all he had been bullying Damon constantly with the other sons.

" Yes it has been quite the ordeal." Bruno replied before pointing at the elderly looking man who accompanied him.

" This is Elias Kemp, one of fathers trusted aides. He was sent to accompany me on the journey and he also oversees the business part of the duchy."

" Good....good , so where do we start,shall I leave you to eat and rest or shall we go inspect the goods." Damon asked.

" I don't think your meals would be up to my standard so I will rather get the inspection over with." Bruno replied.

" Fair enough, let us move." Damon said and led them to the exhibition site.

When they arrived at the site,they were dumbfounded by the sets of clear crystal like glasses that were placed carefully on a table covered with white linen.

" How is this possible , it is so beautiful and transparent. I can't believe glass can be as beautiful as this, you must sell it to me." Bruno said , struggling hard to contain his excitement.

" Lord Kemp, how much do you think this pieces of glass would go for in the market." Damon asked.

" I....don't know about glass of this quality but normal glass go as high as thirty gold coins but for this , it could reach almost one hundred gold." Elias replied clearly flustered.

" My price for the glass is two to ten gold coins depending on the size." Damon said prompting Bruno to shout out in anger.

" Have you gone mad Damon you...." But he was cut off by Elias.

" Lord Bruno , don't you understand what your brother is trying to do, he is going to flood the market with this high quality cheap glass and before long, he will take over the glass trade."

" So Bruno , did father authorize you to make any deals with me ?" Damon asked.

" No he did not , he only asked me to inspect if there was any truth to what you wrote." Bruno replied.

Damon just nodded and led them to where the steam engine was and explained it's uses.

" This is Blackfires first generation steam engine, this engine was made to reduce labor costs. It can pump water , mill corn or grain, it can be used in blacksmith workshops replacing the hammer and anvil, it can even replace sails or oars on ships and boats."

" How is that possible, it is but one machine." Bruno asked.

" It is better that I show you." Damon said and gave the signal for his employees to start up the engine.

The men handling the machine move like clockwork applying lubricant to the specific parts , adding water to the tanks and adding wood that was to be used as fuel.

After making sure that everything was set , they fired up the engine. After some minutes, the engine which was set to pump water out of a well started and soon water started pumping out from the water started pumping out of the pipes that were connected , stunning both Bruno and Elias.

" I think we should head back and informed the Duke of our findings." Elias suggested in a low voice, " If someone gets to this before us , I am not sure your father would even forgive us."

So Elias and Bruno without even resting took the glass samples and left. Clearly they were in a hurry to inform the Duke of their findings.

When they got back to the Wolfsburg castle, they practically ran to the Duke's office to inform him on the matter.

" Your grace, it is important that we gather as much glass as possible from Damon before other parties get knowledge of it." Bruno said to the surprised Duke who was still inspecting the glass as if it was the most amazing thing on earth. He was wondering how on earth Damon got the knowledge to make this and whether or not it coincided with his request to leave.

Just then a knock sounded on the office door and then it opened. Duchess Angelica von Wolfsburg entered the office and was immediately stunned by the glass cup laying on the table.

" Husband is this what I think it is ?" She asked.

The Duke nodded and replied,

" It is from Damon, he plans to sell them."

" Then we must buy up all he has, I suppose you know the amount of revenue the trade would generate." Angelica said.

" Yes I know. " The Duke replied and then the duchess took he leave.

When she got to he chambers, she immediately wrote a letter to her family in the southern region , the Kalispell family telling them of her discovery and urging them to hurry so that they would be able to tap into the new wealth stream.

The Duke on the other hand , even though he was interested in the glass and the revenue it was going to generate, he was much more interested in the steam engine. If what he heard was true , it was going to be the key to revolutionize labour. If one of those machines could do the work of ten people, apart from the operator he would now be able to save money that came from feeding and paying the workers. After placing an order for the glass ware , he also ordered three steam engines.

If the steam engine could work half as well as it was promoted , then it would be worth every penny spent on it .

This was the type of thinking that Damon appreciated, people who knew how to accept progress.