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“They’re awful! I can’t wait to find out what she does to them! She’s incredible. Can you imagine the looks on those boys’ faces when she appears at their homes?”
“I don’t want to imagine being on the receiving end of her hostility.”
“Then we’d better not disappoint her,” Temra says. “What did she want from you? And how do you know her?”
“She introduced herself to me at the governor’s party. She wants me to make her a broadsword, and then she’s invited us to live with her.” I share all the details of Kymora’s offer.
“Wow,” Temra says. “That’s awfully convenient.”
“You think we should turn the offer down?”
“No. I’m honestly just a little awestruck by the woman. How does one become a warlord?”
“Are you considering it as a profession?”
“Maybe,” she says.
“Kymora was King Arund’s general over his armies. When he split Ghadra between his children, there was no longer a standing army. She employs her own private army now.” That’s all I know about her.
“For what purpose?”
“I don’t know. Because she can? To scare off any other kingdoms from thinking they can invade us now that we’re divided? I, for one, feel safer knowing Kymora is watching over Ghadra’s territories.”
Temra taps her fingers along the desk. “Can you do what she asked? Make an all-powerful weapon that can take out many opponents at once?”
“There’s only one way to find out.”
Another pause. Then Temra asks, “What do you think she will do to us if you fail?”
“I’d rather not think about it. I need to be alone for a bit. Today has been particularly rough.” I retreat back to the forge to get started on cleaning it.
“If it’s all the same to you,” Temra says to my back, “I think I’d prefer not to come in to work the day she returns. Not that I doubt your abilities or anything, but there’s no sense in both of us dying.”
“Very funny.”
Kymora did not kill Asel’s friends or maim them, but Temra says they won’t look in her direction.
“It’s not like before when they were shunning me,” she says. “Now, it’s as if they’re afraid. Like something really bad willhappen if they look at me. They keep their distance, even run away if I enter the same room.”
“The warlord threatened them?” I guess.
“She must have. Oh, I wish I knew what she said!”
“If everyone is leaving you alone, then maybe we don’t have to flee the city anymore.”
Temra’s eyes widen. “No! It’s not the same as it was before. I’ve still lost friends, and Asel still complicates everything every chance he gets. We may not be dealing with his friends breaking in anymore, but we are not safe in this town. Especially if Asel aspires to go into politics one day. He can still make our lives miserable. Besides, I want to live on Kymora’s estate. I need to learn from this woman!”
She’s right, of course.
I don’t like change. I don’t like doing new things. But leaving is our best option. In fact, it’s likely our only option.
And if I work for Kymora, I bet Temra and I could retire to the north even sooner!
With that thought lending my heart strength, I throw myself into my work, determined to construct my best weapon yet.
Lirasu, our city, is pressed up against the Southern Mountains, and I pay the miners for a steady stream of iron ore, which I then turn into steel using a crucible.
Swords are one of the simpler weapons to make. Any weapon is certainly a lot of work, but a sword’s overall shape is straight and uniform, unlike a mace, for example, which requires many pieces coming together.
