Friends For Dinner

-Dalen Capital. Late Afternoon, 2 DSTR-

The heat from the forge caused the air within the shop to shimmer slightly, but Gularzob paid it absolutely no mind as he looked at a mannequin with the beginnings of a suit of armor upon it. It was the armor he had designed for Kalena, but currently he only had enough to cover her torso and thighs. Shaking his head, he looked off to the side and chewed on his bottom lip as he counted up the remaining ingots of steel he had set aside for this project. He was running low for this stage, so he would have to decide where to skimp out. Stepping forward, he ran is fingers over the armor of the torso, his hand moving towards the arm hole. Taking the Praitine steel between his fingers, a steel found only within the heart of the Timber Crag Kingdom, he decided that arm protection would be much more important than shin. His customer's fighting style kept her legs well out of harm's way, but he would still be crafting greaves for her made from the same material.

Stepping back from the mannequin, he moved to the forge and picked up one of his smaller hammers and a fresh ingot of Praitine steel when suddenly he heard the front door of the shop open. Shaking his head, he cursed under his breath before calling out, "The shop's closed. Come back tomorrow an hour after sunrise and I'll be more than happy to take your request." Waiting a second for a reply of some sort or at least a huff and the slam of the door, he felt his lip come up in a snarl as he heard neither. He was generally a kind man, but when someone interrupted his clearly marked forging hours, he was less than cordial. Turning around quickly, he narrowed his eyes as he saw the face of one of Kalena's messengers. Trying to calm his angry expression, he set the hammer and ingot down on his anvil before facing the messenger completely.

"Sir, Mistress Valade has invited you to a dinner tonight. Will you be able to attend?" The messenger asked this with his eyes pointed well above the orc's head. The slight fear in the man's voice was apparent as it caused his words to waver, but it did not interrupt his cadence. Smirking at the man, Gularzob nodded before speaking, "Run back and tell her I will be there." Watching the man nod before tuning to leave, Gularzob turned back to the forge with a growl. Set within the stone wall of the forge was a handle which he pulled gently. Attached to the handle was a tray that held burning logs and coal that was used to feed the flames of the coal on top that he actually worked the metal within.

The tray was much larger than the base of coals and logs, nearly four times its size in total. Walking over to the wall behind the forge, he grabbed an iron rake head and brought it back over to the flames. Spreading the coals out across the tray and rolling the wood over to put the burning part up in the air, he set the rake on the stone wall before going to fetch one of the buckets of water he kept in the forge area. Using a small ladle within the bucket, he drizzled the water over the flaming portions, just enough to extinguish the flame but not enough to drown the log and make it useless for burning. Pulling back to stay out of the boiling steam, he took the bucket over to the forge and set it down on the wall. Reaching up, he pulled down on a pan shaped piece of steel that was attached to several pipes that ranged out over the forge. Pouring the bucket of water into the pan, he pushed it back up into place before reaching up and pulling on a small chain. The chain released a small dam within the pipes which let the water trickle from the pan and into the pipes. The pipes each had holes drilled into them, and so the trickled water onto the burning coal within the forge itself. Stepping back to escape the incredible volumes of steam, he looked through the white steam as the deep glowing orange within turned to a subdued red. Reaching up to shut the dam back, he squinted through the last of the steam to see the final trickles of water fall to cool the last few coals.

Satisfied that his fuel was not wasted but would not burn down his shop, he turned from the forge and went over to the mannequin. Picking up a 4" x 4" section of the steel, he took it with him upstairs where he would change into more appropriate clothing. Stripping off the leather apron, he looked over his flesh for any obvious smoke marks. Seeing none, he performed a slight sniff test and was satisfied to see that the only scent was that of a wood fire. Smirking as he walked over to his wardrobe, he recalled mention from many of his friends that there was very little that made people more comfortable than a hardy looking man who smelled of the forest or a wood fire. Chuckling softly, he pulled on a black and red flannel shirt that fit his frame nicely. It was a new style of men's shirt that Lars was creating and trying to sell throughout the queendom, and Gularzob could not tell his friend no when he asked him to try it. It was soft like cotton, but provided extra warmth and a degree of waterproofing depending on how heavy the rain was falling.

Hearing a distant roll of thunder, Gularzob chuckled as he realized the importance of the waterproofing. Accompanying the shirt with a pair of black cotton trousers, he pulled on a pair of dark brown leather boots before moving to the downstairs again. looking over at a locked cabinet behind the counter, he wanted longingly for the zweihander and suit of plate armor within, but he instead grabbed the steel and a small bag with a variety of small hammers and clippers. It was not very often that he was called to the Valade Chateau, but nearly every time it was for his farrier services. It was always better to be safe than sorry. Moving out of the store, he locked the door behind him and started towards the interior of the city towards the estate.

-Tag Kalena, Kline, Isai(lol), Lars(haha), Lafayette, Kline's guys, Eliza, and Chiren...good Lord that was long :P-