12519/Evening shift at The Forge

Evening shift at The Forge
Date of Scene:	20 August 2022
Location:	The Forge
Synopsis:	No description
Cast of Characters:	Kora Ikassis, Colborn

---

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    The subway rattles on between stations, showing its age when it screeches around corners. Kora has become accustomed to how people avoid each other's eyes and steadfastly ignore each other. She had been warned and told why. It all has begun to make a sad strange sense to her. Head down, she rereads the last paragraph on hhammer techniques on an anvil.

    At the Queens station, she disembarks eager to be out of the crowds going home and runs up the stairs.

    The bell tinkles announcing her entrance. She can tell from the way the shop smells that Colborn is already hard at work. Grabbing a forge apron from a peg, she heads straight back to the forging area.

    "Hello, Colborn! You are well?"

Colborn has posed:
    Weeks of work. Months actually. Colborn has been putting so much into his personal project... and it's easier now that his commissioned works have been finished. Those jobs made him enough money that he doesn't really need to sell tons of mundane items. There are a few curious people now and then, but mostly the forge is a quiet place.

    That is perfect for someone who needs to get into the mundane modern world a little bit at a time, sticking her toe in the pool so to speak. Colborn has taken to having her help him when he is working on his own project. It is becoming obvious that the project is going to be a sword somewhere just a bit more than four feet in length. A classic 'Longsword'... in a historical sense. Made to use with two hands, not one.. but balanced well in case one hand is all that's able to be used.

    But today, as Kora enters the place, he puts his hammer down and steps to the door between front and back rooms. With a quirky smile lifting one side of his mouth (almost a Han Solo smirk), he lifts a hand in salute. "So, do you feel up to working metal yourself today with me as your assistant?"

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Kora solemnly returns the salute without the irony that would mark her as a millennial Her sea green eyes widen at the offer, then dart to the forge behind him, her hands flattening against the apron's ample pockets. "I, ah. Am I ready?"

The young Amazon is well aware of the importance of the project to him. She can hear it when he talks about it. It is the sort of piece that will one day reside in a museum or be the prize of his personal collection or the collection of someone worthy of it.

Colborn has posed:
    Smirking, Colborn shakes his head, "Oh, you are going to be starting on a project of your own. It is not a matter of trust... my own weapon is... well it is something that I have to do with my own hands."

    "So, the question is, what would -you- like to make? A shield? A blade? A helm?" He pauses and adds, "I think that a blade might be easier than something that requires a lot of shaping and sculpting."

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Kora's gaze grows distant, vaguely fixed on the forge, then darts back to his face with growing excitement showing as she considers an answer. Speaking slowly as her idea forms, "I should like to make a xiphos, I think. Something to be carried into battle for close up fighting when spears are spent and lines collide. Or," her face lights enthusiastically, "a kopis, if you think the shape is not too advanced for me."

Colborn has posed:
    His smirk turning into more of an earnest grin, Colborn gestures to the forge, "Well, only you can decide whether it is too advanced or not. The beauty of it is... if you do make a mistake, we can always start over. It is not like there is a time limit to your work."

    That said, he turns to regard a shelf of various forms of metal, steel, iron.. bronze.. you name it. IT's all represented there. "The first step however, is for you to select the material that you will be working."

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Eyes narrowed in thought, biting one edge of a lip at the breadth of choices given her, Kora nods and walks over to the shelf. She touches each shelf containing different sorts of metal in turn, "You do not have the material that would be used on Themyscira, no one does, I think. And, even though I can rework material I dislike the idea of wasting materials. Her eyes wander the shelves, returning again and again to the different types of steel.

    "Xiphos," she says abruptly. "Best to begin with something that is more or less straight forward, even if it is double-edged." Her hand comes to stop on 1095 carbon steel. "I think this, if you approve."

Colborn has posed:
    "High carbon steel -is- a good choice, yes." offers Colborn as he steps forward. He picks up the piece selected, and tilts it left, then right. "This will do quite well. Also, I have a gift for you." he says with a smile as he steps over and sets it down on the anvil.

    Then he gestures and a cabinet opens. From within, a smith hammer floats out and ends up in his hand, "I crafted this last week for your first project. I made it durable enough that your strength will not harm it. It can handle the force you generate when swinging it." A pause, "It might work well as a backup weapon too." he adds with a shrug before flipping it about and holding it out, grip first.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Surprised, Kora's mouth opens in an exclamation that goes unvoiced. Presents in her culture are not things to be lightly given, especially weapons or tools. Extending a hand reverently to take the hammer, she holds it two-handed, turning it over with a wide-pleased smile.

    More solemnly, "This is an honor, Colborn. I hope that I do it justice. Thank you," she lifts it horizontally, shoulder height in homage to the giver and then flashes him a no-holds-barred grin.

Colborn has posed:
    Nodding his head, Colborn says, "Every smith finds a hammer that they favor. But I figured that with the strength of an Amazon, most of the ones on the market would not survive your use. So... I made it the way I made my own. But I left it fairly plain, as I figured that you might add decoration to it when you reach the skill level of doing so. Personalize it. Consider it an investment in the future of my student."

    And that said, he steps over and begins to turn on the heat to the forge. "Now, shall we get your steel ready to work?"

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    After a deep breath and a tug on her stiff apron, Kora goes to the shelf and picks up the bar of carbon steel to place next to the forge which is heating up. She assures herself that the tongs and gloves are at the ready.

"Design and hilt," she says, listing her next steps aloud. "I think a wooden handle would be the best to begin with though I have seen bone and wood composite handles made on the Island that are so beautiful," she adds wistfully. "Best to begin simple!" she concludes and walks over to the area where Colborn keeps his hilt materials.

Colborn has posed:
    "Well, I have found that -many- times, working the blade will inspire me for the rest of the weapon. Sometimes, deisning the whole thing upfront works.. other times, the Smith's intuition is used. I think that you should focus on the steel, and shape it. Let your imagination -see- the handle, grip and guard as you shape the blade and then we can find the material that fits that vision." A pause, and Colborn smiles, "While yes, you are making something... it is also a form of artistic expression, which is far more than simply turning the steel into something off of a written plan."

    And then he smiles and turns the heat up within the forge, "So, let your mind wander, and let your inner vision tell you what to make."

Kora Ikassis has posed:
Somewhat dazed at the prospect of forging her own blade, Kora nods with a faint smile. Forging is the province of the very gifted on the Island because of the importance given to the weapons they produce, the artistry of their work and the nobility of the materials used - metal blessed by Athena herself.

Experimentally, she lifts the bar of steel in the tongs while she waits for the forge to come to temperature. She holds it up, examining the steel as though it holds the form of the xiphos and it is up to her to reveal it. "I will try," she answers with a nod and squares her shoulders.

Colborn has posed:
    The process of heating and such generally takes time. So while the steel heats up, Colborn asks little smalltalk questions about the university and the other Amazons. Basically, trying to fill the void. He's not really good at minimalist socializations. But he -is- thinking of her well being and her adaptation to the modern and mundane world.

    It's almost like he is feeling an odd sense of paternal concern where Kora is concerned. But after a bit, he just nods his head. It's like he can -sense- that the steel is the right temperature. But he actually -can- sense that. Weird, but useful skill.

    "Okay. Pull the steel out of the forge and lets move to the anvil. Remember what I said about hammer strokes. There is no need to move fast. Better to take your time and line up your strike to make sure you do it right."

Kora Ikassis has posed:
How he knows that the steel is the right temperature is mystifying. Kora uses both gloved hands to remove the steel which glows yellow. She takes it over to the anvil awestruck at the heat it radiates and that it is hers to shape. The thick glowing oblong will become a sword under her hands. Hopefully. She lays it on the anvil and hefts the hammer, sliding her hand up the handle till she finds the sweet spot that will allow her to use its weight favorably.

After a glance at Colborn, she takes her first strike and steps back. The sound is surprising loud, louder than when being a bystander. It will take more than one blow to accustom herself to the force she needs to wield, and how hard to grip the handle. Even gloved, the vibration tingles in the palm of her hand.

She steps back to the anvil and begins the task of widening the bar and lengthening it.