We Start Early

Writers: Estelle, Miriah
Date Posted: 5th November 2019

Characters: Dunrik, Lorican
Description: Dunrik meets the new journeyman smith
Location: Barrier Lake Weyr
Date: month 11, day 27 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: Urlene, Lusilk, Jayzine, Brennault, D'hol, K'ran

Lorican stayed in the crafter's hut that the Headwoman had assigned him
only long enough to sort through the contents of his tool bag. He left
the clothes and personal items in a stack on his bunk, and tucked the
little sketch of Urlene into the gap between the mattress and the wooden
frame, where he'd be able to see it when he was lying there. Then, he
picked up the bag, now containing only the few tools that had survived
the fire and some drawing materials, and headed out to look for the smithy.

He'd remembered Garnet Valley territory from his childhood as arid, but
this was green and verdant, scattered with trees in colorful leaf, the
morning sunlight glittering on clear blue water. Though he missed
Dolphin Cove already, he felt his heart lift at being in such a lovely
place.

He had a little time, he thought, and found a rock near the base of the
cliff to sit. Taking out pencil and notebook, he began to sketch the
bay, with the docks and the rocky cliffs encircling it.

Upon receiving notice that his new senior journeyman had arrived, Dunrik
had immediately set out in search for him. Lusilk, ever helpful, but
looking a bit strained this morning, had immediately set him on the
right path. He would have to speak to Jayzine about the young woman.
She seemed to be working far too hard lately. He shook his head at the
thought. He found the missing journeyman where he'd been directed, then
paused, studying the younger man. He watched the art emerge, impressed
by the flow of line, but spoke up before details could emerge. "Nicely
done, but we start in the forge early here."

Lorican looked up, startled, then snapped the notebook shut and hastily
rose to his feet, his cheeks coloring. Had he lingered longer than he'd
meant to? "I'm sorry, Master. I was coming to find the smithy and..." He
cut himself off. What a way to start his time at the Weyrhold, idling by
the water. Excuses wouldn't help. "It won't happen again."

Dunrik waved a hand. "Oh, it's alright. Things here are a bit different
from the Weyr. We don't have the smiths that they do here, and we're
more pressed for time. You'll adapt. I'm glad to have you here." He
offered his hand. "Just call me Dunrik. If you'll come with me, I'll
show you to your forge. We've five apprentices, including my son, but
he's the only one with any real experience. You'll need to teach and
work all at the same time. We've got hides filled with orders and the
most I've been able to do is teach them how to make nails." He nodded to
Lorican's arm. "Heard your arm was tender. How much hammering can you do
right now?"

"The healers told me to start slow, and to stop if it hurts. It's
improving daily," Lorican said, feeling a touch of guilt at not being at
full capacity when the master had so much work on his hands. He was
intrigued at the prospect of teaching, though. At the sea hold, the
elderly Master had done most of the work of training up the apprentices.
"Nails and other small items should be fine."

"They can do nails, but not intricate parts that the technicians are
asking for." He waved at Lorican to follow him and began walking towards
the craft area. "I'll assign Droblek and Yannel to you. They've shown
an eye for detail and can work the bellows well enough. Droblek is
twelve and Yannel is thirteen. They're brothers and came from the little
hold that's across from the craft village. They're eager to learn so you
shouldn't have too much trouble with them." Dunrik glanced over at
Lorican. "You bunking with the other Journeymen?"

"Yes, one of the huts over there." He gestured back the way he'd come at
the cluster of crafters' dwellings. "I'm told they're temporary, while
the masons are busy carving out weyrs for the dragonriders, but they
seem comfortable to me. I journeyed a lot in my last post, so it's
enough to have some place warm to sleep where the roof doesn't leak."

"Aye, I could see that it could be, but Rikol and I have an extra room
and you're the only journeyman we've got. It's right off of the forge,
so it'll stay warmer on cooler nights. You're welcome to it, if you
like. It'll offer you more privacy and you're high enough in rank that
if you were in the hall, you'd have a room of your own."

"Oh - thank you," Lorican said, surprised. "If it won't be any
trouble. I should go and tell the Headwoman...later," he added,
hastily. Of course, he thought with a brief wry smile, there would be
no excuse for being late to the forge in the mornings if he lived in
the mastersmith's cot. But it was what he needed. He'd grown too used
to being at leisure at Dolphin Cove, and he had a purpose to pursue
here.

"My old Master at the Smith Hall wrote that you specialize in
reclaiming old metal - is that right?" he asked.

"Just speak to her assistant and she can help you arrange the move;
it's a minor thing." Dunrik wound his way through the different craft
areas, the scent of the forge drawing him forward. "Aye, I am. The
miners who were here left quite a bit of metalwork that can be
re-purposed. I aim to use as much as I can before requesting more
ingots from the mines. If it's here, it should be used. I understand
that your specialty is metal work and that's exactly what I requested.
We've been getting requests for decorative items, but those are always
placed at the very end of our order list. What's needed right now is
the small parts for the generators that the technicians have been
working on for the dam."

"Well, I worked at a sea hold before," Lorican said cautiously. He tried
to recall the last time he'd worked on pieces for the technician's
craft. At the Hall, certainly, after he'd been made senior journeyman.
Then, he'd overhauled the flamethrower at Rocky Bay, but he'd not had
the chance to work on new parts before that woman had near killed him.

**You can follow a design,** he told himself. And he'd made intricate
items before: needles, hinges, decorative scrolls, the delicate hooks
and blades for the fisher craft. The firelizard motif on Brennault's
knife. Locks, he thought, with a frisson of guilt.

"I'll do the best I can. If there's any time for it, I'd like to learn
from you," he said, diffidently. "We sometimes salvaged metal from old
boats that were being broken up, or broken items from the hold, but it
wasn't my old Master's specialty."

"You'll be learning as we go. Some of the metal isn't worth reheating,
but it can be cold forged into small items. It does mo harm to add to
any existing skill. " They reached the forge, and a young teen boy
emerged, grime covering his hands with a smear on his nose. "Lorican,
this is my son, Rikol. He's an apprentice and a good one. "

Lorican raised a hand in greeting. "Pleased to meet you, Rikol." He
gazed with interest at the forge. It wasn't as extensive as the one at
Dolphin Cove, closer to the sea hold's in size, but there was room
around to expand. He began to feel the familiar itch to work on his
craft, which he'd had to suppress since the fire. "Well...where should I
start?"

"Pleased, Journeyman." Rikol made a quick nod. "Father, they
delivered another load. I picked through it. Most looks workable. And
Bilpen stopped by. Wants to know when we'll have that new hood for the
kitchens. They've installed another stove. "

Dunrik nodded. "Aye, it should be done by evening. Be a good lad and
fetch that list of small orders for Lorican would you?" Rikol nodded,
darted back to the door in the rear and emerged carrying a sheaf of
hides. He handed it to Lorican. "You can start at the top and work your
way down until night fall."

The journeyman eyed the thick stack of hides in his hands. The
Mastersmith back at Dolphin Cove clearly hadn't been joking when he'd
said they'd work him hard at the Weyrhold. Still, the more he worked,
the more he'd learn and the sooner he'd be ready for promotion. "Yes,
Master Dunrik. I'll get started." Shifting the tool bag on his shoulder,
he took a step towards the forge, then hesitated. "Oh, I have one
question. Is there anyone here who has a firelizard, who can take
messages to Dolphin Cove? I - well, when there's time, I should send
them word that I arrived safely."

"I'm sure there is, but you'll have to ask around. Might ask D'hol or
K'ran if they know of anyone from Dolphin Cove who has one. There might
be someone with a clutch, seems the more people we get, the more
firelizards there are. " He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't deal with
them much myself, though Rikol seems to like them. We eat lunch at the
new dining hall. Might be able to find someone then." He flashed a
smile at the younger man. "Guess you made a few friends there. "

A flush rose to Lorican's cheeks, and his gaze softened for a moment as
he thought of the intended recipient of his message. He wondered what
she was doing now... "Ah, yes. Yes, I did." He shook himself. "Well.
Better get to work."

Seeing the blush and change in expression, Dunrik clapped Lorican gently
on the shoulder. "We'll get your message sent." He gestured to the
smaller forge. "Aye. I look forward to seeing what you can do."

Last updated on the December 18th 2019

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We Start Early