Chapter 8: The Forges
"Whoa!" Jeff stared at his surroundings in wonder. He was three stories below the earth in a huge cavern. The majority of the cave was lit by magma streams running all around the room. There were hundreds of forges lined up in rows between each flow.
Dwarves, elves, and a few Catlings stood at the forges. They were each forging all sorts of objects, from swords to armor, horseshoes to jewelry, and saddles to shields. "This place is sick!" Jeff exclaimed, as he watched a Dwarf craftily bang on a piece of metal. Within minutes, a breastplate began taking shape.
"I'm guessing that's Earth-speak for 'I like this place, I think it's awesome,'" Gideon said.
"Heck yeah! This place rocks!" Jeff ran over to a forge with a Catling working at it. "Will I be able to do stuff like that?" he asked the Cat.
The Cat replied, "Of course. You are the son of the Dwarf Lord, smithing is in your blood."
"Cool," Jeff said, trying not to drool. He fingered the hilt of his hammer. Can you smith? He asked it.
Well, maybe. I've never tried, the hammer replied. Your father only used me in war-like situations.
"Gideon, can you teach me how to smith?" Jeff asked, before remembering Gideon was a Cat. "Was that a stupid question?" he asked.
Gideon's hearty laugh rang throughout the cavern, causing some to stop and stare. "No, no it's not. But, you may not even need me to teach you," he said. Jeff gave the Cat a bewildered look.
"Your grandfather was the greatest smith that has ever lived. He forged the five Weapons of Legend. He had an amazing gift; all he had to do was sit at a forge, grab a piece of metal, and imagine what he wanted to make. Then, his fingers would do the rest.
"One day he tried training an apprentice, but when he went to explain how he did things, the only words he could say were 'instincts'. Other smiths would ask about different techniques he used to create certain designs, and he wouldn't know what to say. Well, at first anyway; but after a thousand years of forging, he learned the lingo.
"It is very well possible that you have his gift," the Cat concluded. "Of course, the only way we can find out, is if you try."
"So, I just go over to an empty station and pick up a piece of metal?" Jeff asked.
"And imagine something you want to make," Gideon added, nodding his head.
Jeff took his place behind a forging station. He reached for some gold out of a scrap pile. An image of Rosa appeared in his mind; and suddenly, he knew what he wanted to make.
Instinctively, his hands flew around his station, heating metal up, pounding it, and cooling it down. Before he knew it, Jeff had a thin, gold chain. And then, he grabbed a piece of silver from the scrap heap.
He heated the little chunk of silver; and once it was bendable, he began forming something. Petals began to form, beautiful and quaint. He began etching in details to the flower, as if he had been creating things for years.
He let it cool, and then began painting the tips of the petals red. He let the paint dry, and then slipped it onto the chain. Jeff held it up for Gideon to see. The beautiful flower, which was now obviously a rose, glinted in the light of the magma.
"Wow," the Cat said, taking the necklace into one of his paws. "Well, the mystery is solved. You are not only the Heir to your father, but to your grandfather as well." He handed the necklace back. "She'll love it," he added.
"What?" Jeff said in surprised.
"Rosa," Gideon replied. Jeff scoffed.
"Who said I made it for her? I just wanted to start with something simple," Jeff said, trying to hide the truth.
"Nice try kid, but you're a terrible liar," the Cat said.
"That's not what my elementary school teachers said," he replied. He sighed. "Those were the days."
"Whatcha gonna make next?" Gideon asked.
"What do you want?" Jeff asked.
"Well, a helmet would be nice," the Cat said. Suddenly, Jeff got an idea, and he grinned greatly. He reached into the scrap heap by him and he grabbed a discarded helmet. Then, he quickly measured Gideon's skull.
He began pounding and shaping the black iron. He inlaid it with gold and mithril, and he skillfully began etching designs into the helmet. Finally, Jeff cut two holes on the helmet's sides, for the Cat's eyes. He held it up for the Cat to see.
"Now that is sick!" Gideon said. The helmet sported a fearsome design, with the gold and mithril highlighting the details around where Gideon's eyes, ears, and mouth were to go.
"Here, let's try it on," Jeff said. He shoved the helmet on the Cat's head. He quickly adjusted the leather chin strap, then stood back to admire his work. "Dang, that looks good," he said.
"You did a good job," Gideon replied. Suddenly, the cavern began to quake. Jeff quickly jumped over the forging station, to avoid being splashed by lava; and he rushed over to Gideon.
"Does Narabithia normally have earthquakes?" he shouted over the rumbling.
"No! Only one kind of creature I know makes this kind of tremor," Gideon shouted back.
All of a sudden, two large, metal mounds came out of the ground. Soon after, larger metal mounds followed, they were attached to the smaller mounds like shoulders. Then two pairs of arms and torsos came climbing out of the hole in the earth. The smaller mounds turned a whole 360 °, and two eyes made of rubies stared into Jeff, making his knees feel like Jell-O.
"That is the gnarliest set of Tin Man twins I have ever seen, and I don't mean that in a good way," Jeff yelled, doing his best not to scream.
"They're Iron Golems, not Tin Men. These are what the Minecraft creatures are based off of," Gideon said.
"What the heck is Minecraft?" Jeff inquired.
"You mean to tell me Earth doesn't have Minecraft yet?" The Cat said in astonishment.
"No."
"Tell me you at least have the Xbox 360."
"Wait, there's an Xbox 360?" Jeff asked.
"Yeah. What do you play on, then?" Gideon replied.
"The Xbox doesn't come out till November," Jeff replied. "Man, I want it so bad." Gideon smacked his forehead with his paw.
"Earth is so behind the times," he muttered. Jeff rolled his eyes and brought his attention back to the Golems. They had completely emerged from the cavern floor.
"Hey, Gideon?" Jeff asked.
"Yeah?"
"Are Iron Golems friendly?" He asked.
"No."
"Then shouldn't we go kick their butts or something?"
"We can't."
"Then why are we still standing here?" Gideon blinked several times, before snapping to attention.
"Good question. I suggest, we courageously and tactically retreat, and go get some back up," The Cat said.
"What kind of back up?" Jeff asked.
"Dragon-fire."
Jen sat upon a stack of hay. She watched as Black Fyre torched a deer he had just caught. "Want some?" He asked, tearing into the blackened meat.
"No thanks, I prefer my meat not to be burned to a crisp," she replied.
"Suit yourself," the dragon said. He turned and continued devouring his kill. Jen winced as she heard the bones cracking under the dragon's huge molars.
"That's disturbing," she said. "I think I might go vegan."
"You shouldn't, it's bad for your health," Black Fyre said with a mouth full of food. He swallowed the rest of the deer in one gulp. He belched loudly, his hot air singeing the hairs on Jen's arms. His breath made her gag.
"Have you ever heard of a breath mint?" She asked.
"Mint gives me indigestion," the dragon said bluntly.
Suddenly, Jeff came bursting onto the roof, riding on Gideon's bare back. "Guys," the Cat said, wheezing. He paused to catch his breath.
"Iron Golems are in the Forges!" Jeff said, finishing the Cat's thought.
"Iron Golems?" Black Fyre said, concern dawning on his face. "But, no one's seen Iron Golems since the days of the Kindler."
"I know," Gideon said. "This is a very bad omen."
"What's the Kindler?" Jen asked. Gideon and Black Fyre both shivered in fear.
"A demon tyrant who tried to conquer Eden, starting with Narabithia first. He wanted to rule the whole world, and he would do anything to get to that point," Gideon said. "King Gunther and the other rulers defeated him, but only barely. We haven't heard from him in two hundred years, so we assumed he was sent back to Sheol. But if he somehow survived..."
Gideon didn't need to finish his sentence. Silence hung over them like a wet blanket. Finally, Gideon spoke, breaking the gloomy silence. "Only a fire torrent can kill the Golems. We need you to go torch them while we go get back up," he said.
"Jen and I are on it," Black Fyre said, saluting with his tail. He lowered himself so Jen could hop on his back. She mounted and stuck her helmet on.
"Jeff, through me that shield," She said. He threw it up to her like a Frisbee; a giant metal Frisbee that almost took her head off. "Watch it," She yelled. Jeff murmured something that Jen took as an apology.
Then, Black Fyre lifted into the air, and zoomed off toward the Forges.
The Forges were totaled by the time Jen and Black Fyre got there. The Iron Golems were wreaking havoc. Black Fyre swerved quickly to avoid getting smashed by a smelter. When the Golems saw the dragon, they screeched in fury. Jen covered her ears to keep from going deaf.
"So, how do we kill them?" She asked the dragon.
"Ask Rikem, she might know," he said.
"Meaning, you have no clue," Jen said. The dragon said nothing. He streamed fire at a station that was being thrown at them. The fire melted the station on impact. Still, the dragon was silent. "That's what I thought," she said.
Hey, Rikem, do you know how to defeat Iron Golems? Jen asked her spear.
No, but I'm looking it up right now, the spear replied.
What do you mean? Jen asked.
All of the Weapons have internal databases that have files on every creature in existence. It is continuously updated, so the Iron Golem should be in there, Rikem hummed.
Suddenly, something that Gideon had said occurred to her. "What's a fire torrent?" she asked Black Fyre.
"It's a tornado made of fire. Why?" he asked, rolling to avoid being body slammed by a Golem.
"I think that's how we kill them," she yelled.
You would not be wrong, the speared hummed. Jen winced, she hated double negatives.
"But we have to have at least two dragons to create a vortex strong enough to kill them," Black Fyre said.
"Do you know anyone willing to help?" She screamed, throwing her spear to deflect a boulder. The spear hit the rock with such force, it shattered the boulder.
"No," the dragon said, spraying one of the Golems in the face with fire. "Most dragons live on the Upper Isles, we would be dead before the message could get to them."
"How 'bout a couple of fire horses?" Exlore's voice called out over the din. Jen turned and saw Tabitha and Exlore riding Mustard and Blaze. They were flying towards her.
"I think that might work," Black Fyre said. "Riders, you need to get off," he said.
"Why?" Jen asked.
"Do you want to be barbequed?" he replied.
"Getting off," she said, quickly. "Hey, let's do that move we were practicing."
"You mean the dismount that we haven't even tried yet? The one that is dangerous in the most peaceful of situations?" Black Fyre said.
"Relax, it'll be fine," Jen said, standing up on the dragon's neck. "Ready?" She shouted over the sound of his beating wings.
Black Fyre sighed. "Just be careful," he said.
"Please, when am I not careful?" Jen replied. She flipped to the base of the dragon's tail. She set down her shield, and began surfing down the dragon's tail. As soon as she reached the edge, Black Fyre flicked his tail, sending her flying towards a ledge in the rock wall. She flipped several times in the air, before landing, upright, on the ledge.
She skidded a few feet, before coming to a complete stop. She hopped of her shield and stepped on its edge, much like what a skateboarder would do with his skateboard. Her fingers grabbed the cool mithril, and she slipped the shield back on her arm. Then, she summoned her spear.
Blaze and Mustard zoomed over and deposited their Riders, before rushing back in the battle. "Nice maneuver," Exlore said. "How long have you guys been practicing it?"
"That was our first try," Jen said.
"And it worked," the Catling muttered in amazement. She smiled proudly. "You two work really well together," he said. He looked at her hand. "Where'd you get the ring?" he asked.
"Rosa's magic class," Jen said. An explosion roared behind her, drawing her attention back to the fight. She watched the horses and dragon circle around one of the Golems. They blew, or snorted (as in the horses' case), fire as they circled, slowly creating a vortex of swirling flames.
"Iron Golems," Tabitha said quietly. "Very bad omens."
"So I've heard," Jen said. She watched as the Golems threw boulders and forges at the three airborne Steeds. The dragon and pegahorns drew closer and closer to one of the Golems. It screeched loudly as the flames encompassed it.
Soon, the vortex was so thick with flames; Jen couldn't see anything of the Golem trapped inside, except two piercing ruby eyes. The Steeds turned their attention, and their flames, to the other Golem.
It roared in outrage and began swatting at the airborne creatures. They encircled it and continued blowing fire, dodging all its attacks. Jen looked at where the other Golem had been. All that was left was a mound of metal, and two glinting rubies.
The Steeds flew back towards them. Jen looked to see where the second Golem was, but it was nowhere to be found. "Where's the other one?" she asked the dragon.
"It retreated," he replied. He trumpeted victoriously.
"That was awesome," Blaze said, landing on the ledge.
"Yeah, that was," Exlore said, fist bumping the horse's hoof. Tabitha smiled, but her eyes were filled with sorrow and fear.
The three of them hopped onto their respective Steeds. "Come on, let's head home," Jen said. She looked around the demolished cavern. "Our work here is done."
"Where are we going?" Jake asked. He sprinted to keep up with Max's pace.
"To the borders," the Cat replied.
"So Narabithia is just a country, while Eden is the world, right?" Jake said.
"Yes, didn't Tabitha explain this to you?" Max asked.
"Vaguely, whenever a question like that popped up, she nervously said, 'it's complicated'. She never really went into detail," Jake said.
"Well, she's right, it is complicated. I'm afraid, you are not yet ready to know why," the Cat said.
They walked in silence for a few minutes; then Jake asked a question that had bugging him for quite some time, "Why did you say that there were 'four other' weapons made?"
Max turned and faced him. "Because, there are five Weapons of Legend," he said. They had stopped in front of a closed door.
"But where's the fifth?" Jake asked.
"Think really hard, young one. What has Tabitha been telling you in school?" the Cat asked.
"The heroic tales of our predecessors," Jake said.
"Who would that be?"
"Well, there's King Gunther, Queen Martha, Dwarf Lord Boden, and Dyani, Lady of the Elves," Jake said. "And then there was Naomi, who was always with them..." Understanding dawned on his face. "Tabitha."
"Aye, young king, Tabitha wields the other Weapon," the Cat replied. Then, he turned and opened the door.
"But how come I've never seen it before?" Jake asked.
"Think young prince," Max said. He flipped on a light switch, while Jake racked his brains.
"Well, it's not her sword, they wouldn't do that twice; not her staff, she never fights with it. What else could it be?" He asked. He followed Max into the room.
"Young king, you are still thinking in Earth terms; this is a realm where the impossible happens on a daily basis. Think outside the proverbial box," the Cat said.
Jake looked around the room. On the walls were murals of the Royals fighting a massive army. The army's leader was clothed in shadows, you couldn't see anything of him but a dark silhouette. He whipped his army like dogs, and their eyes shone with fear.
"Who's that?" Jake asked, placing his hand on the silhouette.
"The Kindler, a rebellious demon who wished to claim Eden as his own. Your parents nearly died defeating him. Some fear he is the 'demon' of the Prophecy; others know he is." The Cat sighed. "We continuously pray we are wrong."
Nomark shivered with fear in his scabbard. Was he that scary? Jake asked. The sword continued to shiver.
He is an angel from hell, what do you think? The sword said coldly.
Jake turned to look at Max, but something caught his eye. Naomi was holding a sword in the picture. When Jake turned to the right, the sword became a spear. "What the heck?" he said. He turned farther to the right, and the spear became a staff.
"The Weapon's special power; it can take the form of any weapon," Max said, his voice muffled. Jake turned and saw the Cat dragging bags out of a closet.
"So her Weapon is the sword and the staff," Jake said.
"And her pen," the Cat said.
"Her pen?" Jake asked.
"'The pen is mightier than the sword'," Max quoted. "Now, help me put these saddle bags on."
Jake picked the bags up, grunting as he did so. "What the heck? Why are these so heavy?"
"We need a week's worth of supplies to get to the coast and back," Max said. They strapped the bags to his back, and left the room. They walked down the hallway.
"So, it'll be just us two?" Jake asked. The Cat nodded.
"We need some time to bond, before the bonding ceremony," the Cat replied. They pressed the button on the elevator, and waited for the familiar ding and swish of the elevator's doors. When they opened, they revealed Tabitha and Jen standing there, sipping hot cocoa.
"Hey guys, what's up?" Jake asked.
Tabitha sipped at her cocoa, as Jen said, "We just came back from the Forges. They were having an issue with thirty feet tall Iron Golems."
"Iron Golems?" Max said. "This is very bad."
"Indeed," Tabitha said. "I guess you're gonna change your mind about going to the boarders." She took a swig of her drink.
"No," the Cat said. Tabitha did a spit take, spraying Jake with the hot liquid.
"Ow, ow, ow," he said, gritting his teeth so he wouldn't scream.
"Sorry," Tabitha said. She turned to the Cat. "You're kidding me, right? You can't seriously still be considering going to the borders now."
"The to-be king must see the extent of his rule. He needs to see more of Narabithia than just Chrystal City," the Cat replied. "I'm sorry Princa, but we're going. We'll be fine."
"Famous last words," Tabitha muttered. She sighed. "You may go, and may the Maker bless your journey." The four of them exchanged hugs. Then Max and Jake marched out the front doors, to begin a journey none of them would ever forget.