This Fire Burns

A few days ago, Kaydon woke up before the sun, and disappeared into his forge near the New World HQ. Since then the fire of that forge has not gone out, and it's probably become a bit concerning for those who know Kaydon well enough.

Indeed, when someone comes into his forge, it is in what to anyone other than Kaydon would look like absolute disarray. One wall is covered in chalk marks that look vaguely like weapon outlines, though some are too strange looking to consider as anything possible.

Meanwhile there are blades, or at least chunks of metal that could be blades some day, scattered everywhere. Like he will start working on one, and then stop and work on something else entirely, several projects clearly in progress at the same time. Kaydon, at the moment, is hammering away at a hunk of metal, the tattoo on his arm burning brightly with each strike of his sledge hammer.

It's happened enough times to her friends that Shiruba has started to catch the signs of 'Strange Mood' better. That and having been through one herself finally giving her a better grasp on what goes through the mind, even if she didn't really comprehend that until after the fact. The point is when Kaydon shored up in his forge and hasn't bugged her about work to get his merc pay even with the War and the Demon Gnolls still being major issues, she had a good guess what was about to go down.

Which is why when the wolfgirl plods into the building it's with a full platter of food from the Green Dragon Inn. "Kaydon, I brought you some food to help keep your strength up." She doesn't even bother trying to candy coat it at this point, it's just 'here's food eat so you can keep working' instead of fighting against whatever obsession has overcome them. The chalk sketchings do get a raised brow though, in part because they remind her of the 'string theory board' she was doing. "And it looks like you've already been busy."

The gnoll were fang has one of his ears twitch when he hears the door open, and hits the metal a couple more times, before setting it back into the fire of the forge to heat back up. He turns around, face covered in soot and forge grime, and he looks at the platter. He glanced up a little, looking at his stats bar. He does need to eat, as much as he doesn't want to pause on it yet.

He moves over to the platter and takes a sandwich from it, "Thank you, Shiruba." He says, taking a big bite out of the sandwich, as he walks over to where she's looking at the drawings, "I've had so many thoughts and images that have been in my head about this. But I think I might have finally nailed down what I want to do."

She was totally right, it seems.

Shiruba moves aside some tools that don't look like they've been used much to make a clear spot to set the platter down. Picks up a sandwhich for herself, because hey it's Shiruba you know she's not going to let food just sit there. That and eating with someone seems to help encourage them to do so. "Do you want to tell me about it, Kaydon? Maybe voicing out the ideas will help you solidify the inspiration."

"So first, you know that pirate lair I uncovered recently, well after that whole thing I got a gift from Sumeragi Youta, and I got to thinking about how the Fourland Dukedom has been dealing with the full force of the Palace Lands."

He takes another bite of sandwich and then grabs a mug off the tray, washing it down with the drink, "So that got me thinking, you know. I don't really know much about any of the leaders. But I wanted to make sure each of them got something really, you know..Special. Totally unique."

He motions towards the chalk drawings, "One weapon for each of the leaders of the Dukedom, to be presented to them to celebrate the end of the war. As a show of good faith between Adventurers and the People of the Land."

"So they would be both reflect their stature as leaders and be practical in use should they need to defend themselves. Not that it SHOULD happen but seeing as even these 'Kunie' weren't safe from the invaders' machinations." Shiruba walks over to take a closer look at the sketchings. "I don't know the Dukedom as well as I do Ninetails or Alne, but I do know from collecting information for the museum that most of them would rather practical over ceremonial. Or a combination of the factors." She pauses as she leans a little closer and squints with a scrutinizing gaze. "... You're going to need wood as well as metal for some of these, aren't you? Most shafted weapons are made with wood, or at least a wood core, so they don't get too heavy and are easier to repair if broken." She may not be a weaponsmith but she learned a few things while studying the applications of woodworking.

"Ah you spotted the lance." Kaydon says as he follows what she's looking at, "Yeah I'm going to need a handle for it. Something that'd be just as high quality as the weapon itself." He hmms faintly, "I think I know where to find the wood too." It's one of those feelings again, but something that he'll have to follow up on.

"I'm going to need to get a lot of crystals for the enchantments I'm going to do on these weapons too.."

Shiruba holds up one finger visible over her shoulder. "If you can find the wood, I can help carve that component for you. My only advice would be to make sure you get pieces that are oversized for what you want. You can carve wood down, but you can't build it up afterwards." Then taps the finger against her chin. "I can start experimenting with normal wood to get a proper cut laid out. But yeah, that's a prime example of when you'd want a wooden core so it's not too heavy and awkward to weild, as lances were originally made for mounted combat, and held with one arm to keep the other hand on the reigns."

Then wanders back over and picks her sandwhich back up. "Enchantment crystals are usually found from elemental monsters or environments with strong elemental connections. That's basic reagen hunter knowledge. It's the level of quality you need that will make finding the right ones tougher."

"Exactly, yeah. This is going to require the most high-end materials I can get my hands on." Kaydon says, "Maybe another run through Karalun to get some of those elemental crystals.." He shakes his head a little bit, "I have this one idea, I don't even know if it's possible.."

Shiruba mmhmms as she chews on her sandwhich and nods. But polite enough to wait until she finishes and swallows before speaking again. "There's also that fire temple. We only got lumps of metal last time, but that's probably due to what that monster was doing, melting everything."

"Yeah you're right." Kaydon says, as he thinks about that fire temple, "Hmm." He knows there are several dungeons he could hit for the kinds of parts he'll need, "If you want to put some feelers out for me, to find high end parts. I know you know people."

"I'll keep my eyes and ears open." Shiruba nomfs down the end of the sandwhich. "I'll give our 'economic advisors' a head's up as well." She's likely talking about Haru and Yeowang. "In the end there's not much that can't be tracked down, it just takes time."

Kaydon finishes the last of his meal, and the drink as well, "Thank you for stopping by." He says, his mind already drifting back to the design of the weapons, more specifically the enchantment he's been pondering. He has an idea how to make it work, and Shiruba can see that bit of sparkle in his eyes as he quickly clears off a part of the desk and starts working on something immediately.

By some sheer force of will Shiruba manages to leave the rest of the food platter. Then he's got stuff to munch on as he works... she'll bug someone to drag him off for a cleaning later. "If you do need anything else Kaydon, all you have to do is call," she calls back before leaving.