ORIGIN - HALO

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Somehow, miraculously, Eythan had managed to get himself together and in good enough condition to actually go somewhere, if he so pleased. Oddly enough, that place was Monoceros, domain of vicious gale force winds and dangerous rocks to impale yourself on. He had enough faith in his own abilities, however. Drifting lazily atop the cavern’s thermals, he scanned the earth below.

At some point in his time spent in Polaris, he had heard of a blacksmith whose forge lay among the tumultuous tornadoes. Now, that was a rumor. Nothing had ever specified a name or a location, or even proved the actual existence. It wasn’t like the griffin had much else to do other than to wait on the life-blessed stone to hatch and for the new Bone King to emerge. He could use this time to establish precautions, prepare to lay down his life for the small, precious ward. His other father had been a craftsman, creating armor from gemstones and dragonscale. But, Eythan wasn’t the most creative one. He was smart, though—smart enough to realize that full-body armor would weigh him down and hinder his ability to move and fly.

Plus… he wanted to have a gift for his baby brother. For Giggle.

With a single cry through the cave, he called: ”blacksmith?”

@Glory

At the time that the hybrid had been flying above the Monoceros gales, Glory had been working at his forge. It was in a constant state of upgrade - as he grew more and more skilled and acquired or crafted higher quality tools, so his workstation was improved. His anvil was now a proper thing, completely made of iron he had painstakingly welded together and carved into an appropriate shape. His actual forge now dominated the center of his cave, a tall, closed in furnace that tunneled through the roof and out above the entrance. His trough remained mostly unchanged but he now had a vertical one, made of thin plates of metal, filled with oil. There were all kinds of tools scattered above, looking like a mess but to Glory, everything was exactly as it should be.

He had been working on his headpiece - the first part of his armor that he would be creating, when he heard the distant sound of someone calling out. He glanced up and out the tunnel. Someone had called for a blacksmith and a rush of excitement told him that they were calling for him. But...he was working on his headpiece! Should be just set it down and leave the hot metal? Or should he cool it down and risk damaging it?

He tapped on it a few more times with his small hammer to finish off the section he had been working on before setting it just at the edge of the fire so that it wouldn't cool very quickly. He quickly stripped off his gloves and goggles before fluttering out of the cave and onto the ledge. He took a second to send out his senses, closing his eyes as he searched for gems nearby. Specifically, gems that contained life. He could sense Dread nearby, a number of lesser gembounds, and...yes! There it was, a stranger, flying above the currents.

He opened his eyes and his wings and leaped off the ledge, climbing up until he was on the same level as the hybrid, following the spell until he came into sight. A strange creature, nothing like he had seen before, and hopefully the one that had called for him.

He turned so that he was in front and slightly above the stranger before pulling himself up and beating his wings to keep himself steady in the air. "You're looking for a blacksmith?"

@Eythan

Eythan circled some unidentified spot a few more times, wings coasting atop the swirling winds. There was a distant clatter and a minute buzz of magicka, and an eagle emerged from the belly of the cavern. As the fellow — less cat-like, it seemed — bird approached, the griffin managed to steady himself in the air, tucking his limbs closer to himself so a stray wind didn't abruptly catch his leg and throw him into the unknown. His broad wingspan tucked a little closer to him, minute and precise motions keeping him in relatively the same spot. Unlike those with a more carnivorous lineage, his wings weren't too well-equipped to hovering. Gliding and sustaining flight was his specialty. Spotted tail swinging this way and that, Eythan nodded, shouting above the wind, "Yes, I am!"

There was no currently worn work to speak of on the eagle, aside from the gemstone on his crown. Of course, he assumed that was attached to the supposed-blacksmith, judging from its effervescent and fiery glow. Regardless, he had faith. "Is it you? I was looking to— uh," he paused, trying to think of the name, "commission you for some things. I'm willing to offer anything you want." A strike of thought occurred to Eythan and he glanced back to where the eagle had emerged, "can you show me your forge? What you've made? I'm very interested." His stonebound father had been a craftsman. Perhaps his son could pick up the penchant and skill for it.

@Glory

Glory watched the creature come to a clumsy halt in the air puffed out his feathers with pride. <skp>"Well, then, you've found him! I'm Glory and I'm the blacksmith of this cave!" Of course, he had no idea that he might possibly be the only blacksmith in all of the caves, besides Gea, of course, but she was merely a student.

So his name was starting to spread throughout the caves, was it? How excellent! He had never once had a customer come to his place before. He had never made any works besides for himself and for Dread, but the dragon only hoarded things that glimmered and shone. The quality of his work never really seemed to matter to the dragon as long as it fit in with his hoard. Nobody had ever asked for his work specifically for a purpose.

And he almost forgot to breath when the creature spoke of commissioning him. His wings slowed for a second and he felt himself stagger, reality jerking him back just before he started to fall. "You want...to commission me? Really and truly?" He stared at him in silence for a moment before the excitement began to build in his chest and his eyes began to gleam with excitement. "Oh...oh yes of course! I would be more then happy to make you anything you want! Come, come, I'll show you where I work!" He pulled his wings in and angled down, diving straight into the winds before angling himself towards his cave. He opened his wings and glided easily, beating them every so often to counteract the ferocious winds.

It took a lot shorter to get to his cave, riding the winds and mainly dropping in altitude, then it had to get to the hybrid. He pulled himself up as he arrived and landed on the smooth stone ledge. Without hesitation, he led the way into the hole in the wall that led to his tunnel. He was so excited and so overjoyed that he barely stopped to talk or wait. It was finally time for all of his hardwork and practice to pay off!

The spacious cavern was decently well lit, thanks to the forge in the center and a couple of braziers that lined the walls. It, of course, was sweltering hot but Glory didn't seem to mind. He turned and opened his wings proudly. "This is it! Here is my forge!" He turned and gestured towards a pile of neatly presented pieces, ranging from clumsily made decorative pieces all the way to delicate, well-crafted tiaras, tools, and various weapons. His range of skill, from his humble beginnings to his current mastery was on display. "There are some things I have done in the past. I have been working relentlessly for cycles. Many of my things, however, were given to a friend of mine for his hoard. I've kept the best pieces for myself, however."

The rest of the cave was a lot messier then the presentation pile. A pile of what looked like junk collected from Orion and the tunnels nearby, from broken armor, to dull sword, and rocks that looked faintly interesting. There was a pile of different minerals nearby - chunks of iron, gold, and precious gems. There was only a small portion of the cave that even looked like a living space - a small dip in the floor lined with fur, ferns, and scraps of leather. Obviously Glory's nest.

@Eythan

"Nice to meet you, Glory. I'm Eythan---" he hesitated for a moment, "Waldvogel." He'd think more on reclaiming his old surname later. That was besides the point. Perhaps when my brother is born and I earn it, his mind suggested of its own volition, despite his clear decision not to think about it. Shaking his head at nothing in particular, the griffin quipped, "but just call me Eythan."

As the eagle --- Glory --- seemed to nearly burst with excitement and dive down into the bowels of the cave, the hybrid hung back a little to watch. He needed to give himself space to react, watching carefully where the blacksmith seemingly vanished from view. As he approached, wings spreading and beating to steady himself to alight, Eythan most certainty noted that it was hotter than hell within the forge. As soon as he saw its magma-born heart, however, his inner child slipped out. He gasped softly as he approached the burbling cauldron. Somehow, the existence of molten stone lit a little fire in his eyes.

Ear then head turning to face the blacksmith as he proudly displayed his work to him with the simple motion of a wing. Eythan paid absolutely no mind to the heaping pile of materials (which was, as far as he could tell, literally taller than him) as he marveled at the priceless pieces. His eye was particularly drawn to the multitude of tiaras and weaponry. "Your work truly shows. My father --- I didn't know him --- was a blacksmith, but his shit pales in comparison to yours. I could never pick up the craft," he said rather bluntly, casually ambivalent towards Carcino. Bah, he couldn't even pick up magic. His magic picked him up instead, but only when it was convenient to saving his own skin.

Puffing out his fur and feathers to stay cool, the hybrid fixed his gaze on the eagle, a slight smile turning up the corners of his beak. "I was thinking of a couple things? If that's okay with you. A little bit of weapons, maybe some decorations?"

@Glory

Glory nodded happily, the feathers on his chest puffing with pride. It felt better then good to have someone really appreciate his craft like this. The work and the detail and all the time he spent into every individual product was finally on display for someone who would appreciate them.

If he was being honest, Glory did not care about whoever Eythan's father was. He had never met another blacksmith before and if, as the hybrid said, his work paled in comparison, then there was nothing to worry about. There was no competition. He, Glory, was the greatest blacksmith in the entire caves!

"Yes, of course!" He hopped forward at Eythan's mention of what he wanted and suddenly remembered. He turned and sprinted towards his nest, carefully extracting a thin plate of a white mineral and laying it down between himself and Eythan. "This is what I use to draw up designs. So, what will I be making for you?"

He looked over the hybrid with narrowed eyes. "A helmet? A darker metal would be best and, perhaps, if you want it decorative, have it framed with gold? No, you said you want weapons. Well, I could attach some spikes so that bashing would hurt! Hm, I could also do a tail fixture - add some spikes on the end. Or perhaps claw extensions? Yes, that would look really cool! What do you think?"

@Eythan

Eythan couldn't help but smile at the blacksmith's enthusiasm, running as well as an eagle could, to his nest. He squinted for a moment at the white plate, before nodding in some strange sort of agreement at it. Ah, it was a writing utensil thing. His beak cracked open to answer the eagle's question, but he was cut off by Glory's rambling stream of ideas. The hybrid frowned at most of them. A helmet would weigh him down too much, despite the practicality of it. Plus, there was the issue of vision. A tail spike seemed interesting, but it'd impede his ability to turn and remain stable.

But claw extensions --- now that was something to think about. Eythan nodded eagerly, glancing down at his talons. "Claw extensions sound fuckin' rad. Maybe make them a little like gauntlets, too," he paused to gesture a little above his ankles, "for some protection. I'm thinking something light but sharp, y'know?" Agility was key, especially in battle.

As for the other things... "For the decorations, I have... a little brother on the way. I want to have a gift for him when he emerges, like maybe a bone-looking neck band or something? I don't know how big he'll be but we could probably use my neck for reference."

"And I want a gift for a..." Eythan shifted his weight foot-to-foot, "a friend. Would it be possible for you to carve into a bone --- I'll bring one for you --- and... fill it with gold, or something? Like... make little designs on it." It was a neat idea in his head, but it'd probably die as quickly as the sparks did from the forge.

@Glory

Glory listened and nodded enthusiastically at his customer's requests. Three things...three projects. One didn't seem too hard - make a carving in a bone and fill it with gold. Yes, that would be easy. He would do it very carefully and to the best of his ability. The bone necklace wouldn't be so bad. In fact, it would probably look excellent if he actually went and made it from bone! He had some stashed around from old prey, he could create something from those. As for the arm guards, they would be the most tricky.

Glory nodded again. "Yes, I can do these things! Claw extensions and an arm guard. A bone necklace. A decorative bone. I can make the necklace from real bone if you like, or it can be artificial, whichever you choose. If we use real bone, I can either take raw bones and string them into a necklace or burn and grind them to create an ash which I can then use to create, well, anything!" He started making some scratches on the stone block and came up with a curved shape, mostly flat and smooth, which would wrap around the neck and leave a gap at the front. Both ends were in bone shapes. "This is what I'm thinking if we go artificial or bone ash route. As for your arm guards..." he turned and hopped towards his pile, pulling out a thin strip of leather crossed will all sorts of marks.

He wrapped it once around one of Eythan's legs and, upon pulling it away, snipped the edge where the end had met. "Did you want it to be simple or, uh, decorative. I can draw up some designs of those as well."

Speech. Thought.

@Eythan

He thought quietly about the necklace as the eagle drew it into his little tablet. How should it be shaped? Simply and effectively, a single gold band with rounded ends? No, that didn't seem too... fitting for a (possible) Bone King. Eythan twisted his neck to see the rudimentary sketch from a better angle. "I like the smoothness. Maybe you could put sort of a ring of bones or teeth between the ends? Not actually connected but something to give it a little fuckin' cool touch?" Not particularly wishing to overstep and scratch right into the pale tablet, he vaguely scratched his idea into the dust on the floor.

Ah, fuck it was hot in here. His feathers puffed up further, trying to let out some heat.

As for the arm guards, Eythan watched as the blacksmith hopped toward the pile of miscellaneous materials. "I think the simpler, the better?" The gryphon wasn't looking for anything extreme, just to augment his claws and protect his arms should he get a little crazy with them. He stared down a little in confusion as Glory wrapped the strip of leather around his leg, but nodded quietly when he realized what the blacksmith was doing. "I don't want to put too much on your plate, y'know."

@Glory

Glory gave a small excited flutter, seemingly completely oblivious to Eythan's discomfort in the sweltering cave. "Ah, yes, I see! Good, I'll get to work immediately then! This will be a magnificent piece, I promise you that! I will do my best for my first customer!"

He turned and hoped towards his pile of junk, digging through with a purpose until he unearthed a number of small bones, most either broken or too small to have any real purpose. He paused, realizing that he had forgotten to measure Eythan's neck as reference, and abandoned his task to take out another strip of leather. He turned back to Eythan and stepped up close, holding the strip in his beak. "If you could extend your neck, please..."

If Eythan would do so, he would drape the piece over his neck and crouch and carefully pull the end over in the same way he had measured his arm. Once he had the measurement, he made an indent with his beak and pulled the leather away.

He set it down next to the arm measurement before returning to his bone collecting. Once he had enough, he moved them over to his forge which, thankfully, was already blazing. He moved the headpiece he had been working on to the corner of his forge as he tossed the small bones in their place to burn.

With the bones there to burn and sterilize, he glanced back towards Eythan as he turned towards the entrance of the cave. "I'll be back in a moment." He stepped up towards the edge of the cliff and leaped off, picking up a ceramic bowl as he went, and angling himself towards the cave with the pool only a few places below.

Speech. Thought.

@Eythan
If Eythan wishes to watch, he may stay, or he can leave the thread - from here on Glory will be forging. If he runs out of magicka or grows weary, I'll end the thread and start a new one.

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