It was December 24th 2023 As I stood in front of the blazing fire my spacious, stone walled forge. I moved the tongs in my hands, which held a large bar of obsidian iron alloy, a new material I had started testing with, which was now glowing white hot in the boiling heat of the coal and wood fire beneath it. As the alloy began to slowly droop down, now flexible I drew it out from the flames and placed it on my black iron anvil, picked up my steel hammer and began to beat the malleable alloy into shape. The ring of metal against metal sang out through my forge and I began to hum out a tune in step with the hammer falls. The blade quickly came to form as it slowly cooled in the hot air that filled the room. When I inspected the blades form I knew my work on the shape was now complete and so I reached to my workbench and picked up my engraving tools and began to chisel words into the end of the blade before it cooled completely.
I then, with my tongs, picked the now finished blade and dipped it into a tall bucket of water which stood full beside me. Great billows of white steam rose gracefully from the bucket of water as the still slightly glowing blade changed to a deep black colour. I took the blade from the bucket and replaced it onto the anvil and walked over to my work bench where the hilt for the sword, which I had created earlier in the day, lay quietly. I returned to the anvil with the hilt and slotted it onto the black blade. I quickly leaned over to my closed furnace and took out a small stone container of melted gold which I swiftly poured into the crack where the blade and hilt weren't truly connected yet, let it cool down for a few seconds and then placed the completed sword into the bucket of water once more to solidify the gold to the sword and hilt.
I retracted it from the water and placed it upon my workbench for inspection. The pommel of sword was encrusted with a flawless meadow green emerald. The grip was made from 3 layers of hide leather topped with a red silken band. The cross guard of the sword was made of burnished silver resembled the wings of a dragon along with the head of the dragon with a clear sapphire eye along the bottom part of the blade with glittering gold between it and the actually blade. The blade itself was a simple, long and straight obsidian blade. But it was sharp enough to slice through wood without any problem, the tip strong enough to pierce through flesh and bone without a qualm. The blade also held a small engraving which was hard to see on the black blade which read "Amicis sunt protector eorum".
"And you shall be called Shadow Beam." I say, content with my new and more powerful blade which had gone surprisingly well.
"What is it with you and the colour black." I hear a humoured voice from the door of the forge. Shocked I spin around with my blade at the ready until I see Andrew leaning against the wall next to the closed dark wood door, smiling smugly.
"How the hell did you get in? I thought I locked the door." I say in complete surprise at the unannounced appearance of my friend and that he was able to get through the locked door to my forge without me even noticing.
"Doesn't matter how I got in." He says cockily knowing that I'm going to be madly confused at how he got in. "But anyway, lets see the new sword then." He continues as he gets off the wall and walks towards me. When he reaches me I carefully hand over my sword for him to look at it. As soon as my hands leave the blade the weight of it weighs down on Andrew and his arms drop slightly due to the unexpected weight of the large sword. He goes to hold it by the hilt and inspects the sword by lowering it into a general ready position to test it's balance and sharpness. He then looks closely at the hilt in astonishment at the workmanship of the metal.
He gives me back my sword, looks back up at me and says sarcastically and with a laugh. "Are you sure you're not a Dwarf Steven, as that is the best forged sword Iv'e seen in this game and in the real world. And what does the inscription actually say?"
"Roughly it says, "One's friends are their shield." it's Latin. So what did you actually want from me, as I assume you didn't come here just to see a sword?" I reply and ask curiously now wondering about the real reason behind his unexpected visit.
"Way to change the subject. But okay, Aurora wants to have a big Christmas all together, that being me, you, Andrew, and Oliver. As last year she was completely alone and we both think it will be a good thing to have considering we are now a guild. That and have you heard about the event boss tonight?" He says revealing his meaning for visiting and ending with a questioning tone.
"Yer, Nicholas the Renegade is the boss, he's supposedly got a pretty rare drop. But I'm not gonna bother with it considering the I know the Dragons are all ready preparing for the battle and I know Kirito seems determined on getting that item, whatever it may be. But for the Christmas thing tomorrow is it going to be at your's." I say as I start to clean my workspace of all the random shards of excess metal.
"Yer, at my house tomorrow at 6pm. And for a change try not to look a complete mess or have smoke and metal clinging to you." He says with a smile before quickly looking round the room and then walking back towards the door. "So, I'll see you there then." He ends as I nod my head in acknowledgement before opening the thick wooden door to the sunny outside world and walking out.
I shake my head slightly as the door slams shut behind him. I look down at the sword in my hand and gently place it upon my wooden weapons rack by its dragon wing cross guard. I then hang up my leather blacksmiths apron, took off my cured leather gloves and placed them onto my anvil, pulled up a small stall and sat in front of the blazing fire and stared into the ever shifting and glowing flames which flared from the glowing white coals which fuelled the forgery's flames day and night giving a constant calming and trusting heat to the building.