Chapter 19: A Weapon Worthy of Weiss
Ruby's fingers twitched over her screwdriver, waiting along with everyone else in the plaza for the bell to ring. Her head was on a swivel, trying to keep all her thoughts in order. And more importantly, keep her from forgetting where she put her hammer and metal sander. She could feel her heart pounding deep in her chest. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.
Shutting her eyes, she forced herself to take a big breath in. She held it, speaking with her inner conscious. Her thoughts became that of her big sister's. The kind of words that only Yang could give her at a time like this. "Don't screw up! I would hate to see you waste this sword-ed event of yours."
Of course, she would be using the word 'sordid' improperly, but when did Yang care about the true meaning of words, as long as she could get a pun out of them?
And then there was Blake, who's quiet demeanour hid someone great. They hadn't spoken that much, but Ruby liked her. When she got back, Ruby would have to tell Yang that her girlfriend passed the baby sister test with flying colours.
And then there was Weiss, whom after two bad starts, had finally become… Ruby wouldn't quite say 'friends' yet. But she was sure that they were getting there. At least they weren't yelling at each other anymore. And Weiss wished her luck! Well, no not really. Weiss said she didn't need luck, but that's almost the same thing.
Really, she didn't care about winning the competition. It had never been about winning or anything like that. Just a chance to do what she loved to do, without any restrictions on it. Just her and her hands. And brain, she couldn't forget about that. But it was just her, surrounded by people who loved the craft as much as she did.
With a loud ring, they were off. Ruby felt the rush of wind as expert and amateur smiths ran past her to collect their chosen metals. Some moving straight to the lathes to start carving out pieces. Others to the forge, set to an optimal temperature for the kind of metal provided. Ruby stayed at her desk, her hand flying to her screwdriver and her music toy. With careful and surgical precision she dismantled each layer of it, placing them in order along her desk. First the wooden shell, along with the three screws which held them together. Then the gears. She would be making stronger versions of those later. And lastly, the rotating metal center, where those delightful clicks originated.
The pieces in front of her, it was now time to start her real work. There was still plenty of metal to spare, so she grabbed three chunks, throwing two straight into the blazing furnace and bringing the last to her table. Checking the time, she sighed. Ahead of schedule by two minutes. That was a good sign. Back to the furnace, she pulled out a hot piece of metal and began the process of hammering into shape. By shape, she meant turning it from a short block of metal, into a long block of metal. About halfway through the process, she stopped and tossed it back in.
Then it was onto the second piece. This one she did very much the same thing. Then, with her metal tongs, she brought it over to a metal cutter, splitting the piece into six equal parts. Ruby wiped the sweat from her brow. It was a time-consuming process. The heat of the forge, the running and constant hammering. The sounds of more than a dozen others all doing the same as she was.
It was incredible. It brought a delightful little smile to her lips, and the thought that this was what university would be like if she could get into her chosen program. With a full scholarship, if she was lucky. Ruby shook her head. Thoughts of that all-important meeting that was to happen later tonight were tossed aside in favour of the smell of cut-metal and machining oil.
Finally she took her turn on the lath, rounding out her block of metal to start the work on the fitted cylindrical chamber. Then it was to the metal bender to… bend metal. And then cut it, then file it down. And a hundred other steps that she had memorized in her preparation for this day. At each step of the way, she compared what she had crafted to the metal components she had disassembled from her music toy.
She looked at the time. She was behind. It was well passed noon and she still didn't have a completed blade. Not to mention her grip was only about half done and she hadn't even started on the decorations yet. Slapping her cheeks to keep her focus, she buckled down and pressed forward. Nothing was going to stop the mighty Ruby Rose! Not if she had anything to say about it.
Ruby thought about home. She thought about her future. About becoming a world-famous weapons smith with her own forge to her name. About the house she and Yang had lived in since she was born and how they would finally be able to repair everything about it. Maybe by then, Blake would move in with them. They wouldn't need a guest room, so of course she could turn it into a workshop. No, Ruby already had her workshop outside, and she wasn't prepared to give that one up.
Maybe a cookie room? Because everyone needed a room to store all their cookies. Ruby bet Weiss had a cookie room somewhere in her house. It was just so big with so many rooms there just had to be one. Or maybe several.
She doused the metal in oil, feeling a tingle down her spine at the quenching sound and seeing the steam rise up. The blade was done for now. Placing it on her desk, she got back to work, linking gears together and attaching the assembly to the shaft.
Her time was running out. Her hands flew faster than ever before. Sanding down bits of metal to leave behind a smooth finish. Then polishing everything to bring about a beautiful shine. She grabbed a strip of white leather and wrapped it around the hilt, pressing inwards to give it a perfect grip. Holding the forged blade in her hands, she tested the balance. A little off, it didn't roll how she wanted it to.
Back to sanding.
Ruby looked at the hilt, trying to figure out why the grip didn't look quite right. It was the colour. Grabbing some silver coloured thread, she sewed it carefully up and into the leather. Then a string of red. Hiding most of it under the silver and white, it gave the grip a little gleam of colour that could really only be noticed up close or to the trained eye. There, it was perfect.
Now for the final test. Head back up to check the time, three minutes remaining. Holding the cylinder up to her ear, she gave it a small turn. Eyes shut, waiting for it. It could all be for naught if this failed. A full day to build an entire weapon design that would sound ugly if this didn't work as she had hoped it would.
She grimaced, scrunching her eyes and holding her breath.
Click-clack.
A massive sigh of relief poured out.
It was done. It was perfect.
With her screwdriver, on the blade, but near the hilt, she etched out in careful cursive the blade's name.
Blowing off the metal bits, then wiping it all down with her cloth, she breathed a happy breath.
The bell rang, signalling the end of the competition. There was clapping from around the plaza as those watching cheered for all the competitors and the skill displayed. Ruby could only hope that they were including her in their cheers.
She placed the blade carefully down on the desk, walking to the edge of the plaza to line up with the other contestants. They all looked sweaty. Some looked happy, others sad. She could tell just from their expressions if they had finished or not, to their own levels of satisfaction. There was one boy that didn't even look like he broke a sweat. His smirk showed everyone just what he thought of this competition and his chances of winning. He lounged back against the wall, without a care in the world. He was probably super confident in his weapon winning.
All attention was focused on a tall white-haired man with a thick moustache and white suit. Ruby smiled when she noticed Weiss walking behind him. She almost waved to her, but the thought better of it, seeing the man who was most definitely her father.
"Thank you all for your work building my daughter her weapon. My servants will now take them all to the judges to begin the selection process." Weiss's father said.
"Yes, thank you all," Weiss repeated, bowing her head in a short moment of respect. "You all worked very hard today, and even though there can only be a single winner, you all proved that you have chosen your craft and profession well. I hope to speak with all of you either at the ball or before you depart."
Ruby caught Weiss's eye for a moment, giving her a super tiny wave. Weiss and her father left, leaving Ruby unsure if the girl saw it or not. But that was alright. She was done. The hard part was over for her. Now to wait and find out the winner.
KillamriX88 - Thank you so much! This story is a ton of fun to write so I'm very grateful you're enjoying it.
iamking - Thanks a lot. We're slowly making our way to the good part.
