strange language and he sighed.
He spoke again briefly to Dr. Walt and the doctor answered. Then, turning to Nalia and her father, he said in broken Kasmali: “Thank you.” With that, he turned and walked outside.
Nalia looked at her father and his intense eyes. Why did she feel bad? This oaf could not possibly have figured out what they were saying, that she did not trust him. He could not know that she suspected him, could he? How elaborate would a ruse have to be for him to learn Dr. Walt’s language fluently to pass himself off as a stranger?
All she knew was that she would have to deal with him. She would not make it easy for him to betray her and her father, though. She would not! He would find her a difficult teacher. By her mother, he would.
11
Sam’s face itched. In the two weeks since he had been stranded in Gythe, he had not shaved and his rapidly thickening beard was irritating him. He had gone a few days without shaving in the past, but in general, he was not a fan of facial hair. As he he started to try to shave using his knife, Dr. Walt chanced to be walking by and stopped to chat.
“Is that a steel knife, Sam?”
Focused on his face in the little signal mirror he carried in his backpack emergency kit, he jumped a little when Dr. Walt spoke, almost cutting himself. “Yes, it’s a survival knife I always bring when I go hiking. It’s sharp, but shaving with a blade rather than with a razor cartridge or electric razor is something new to me. I’m hoping I don’t cut my own throat.”
Dr. Walt laughed. “You know, steel is very rare on Gythe. That blade you hold in your hand could be sold for enough money to buy a large house and still have enough left over to live comfortably in a city for many years.”
“Really? Why? I mean, why is steel rare?”
Sitting on a rickety stool and carefully settling himself so as not to fall over, Dr. Walt answered, “I’m not sure exactly, but I believe that iron is…uh…different here. I think it’s because of the vibrational signature of this world. Whereas in Telani iron is rigid and, more importantly, easily alloyed with such things as carbon, the same is not true here. The unique energy of different types of atoms at times seems to react differently than expected here. By that, I mean different than expected on Telani. Of course, they act exactly as would be expected here because of the particular physical and chemical laws here. It would be very strange if they acted differently than normal here because that would indicate that the natural laws were somehow not working. On the other hand…” Dr. Walt trailed off when he saw Sam staring blankly at him.
“It can all get very technical, but what I am trying to say is that here, iron is softer. Not quite so soft as gold or lead, but softer than copper. Additionally, it does not alloy easily. Whereas on Telani heating iron with a fire of coal and coke suffuses it with carbon and makes it steel, the process is much more complex here. There is only one group, the Zyngim, who know the secret to making steel, thus it is very rare and very expensive.”
Sam could not hide his surprise. “Then, what are weapons here made from, if not steel?”
“Ah, that is another interesting subject. For the most part, weapons are made of bronze, since that is a strong metal and can be sharpened. Of course, there are wooden weapons as well, such as cudgels. Wood acts the same here as in Telani. There is another technology here, though, that is fascinating. It’s a type of ceramic glass and it is used widely. I would say that one of every three weapons is made of this material.”
“Ceramic glass? That sounds brittle. How can it be used as a weapon without shattering when someone blocks a strike?”
“Ah, that’s the interesting part,” Dr. Walt said, face intense. “Through a special process, known only to the crafter’s guild, called Gawzay, they create items that are sharper and more durable
He spoke again briefly to Dr. Walt and the doctor answered. Then, turning to Nalia and her father, he said in broken Kasmali: “Thank you.” With that, he turned and walked outside.
Nalia looked at her father and his intense eyes. Why did she feel bad? This oaf could not possibly have figured out what they were saying, that she did not trust him. He could not know that she suspected him, could he? How elaborate would a ruse have to be for him to learn Dr. Walt’s language fluently to pass himself off as a stranger?
All she knew was that she would have to deal with him. She would not make it easy for him to betray her and her father, though. She would not! He would find her a difficult teacher. By her mother, he would.
11
Sam’s face itched. In the two weeks since he had been stranded in Gythe, he had not shaved and his rapidly thickening beard was irritating him. He had gone a few days without shaving in the past, but in general, he was not a fan of facial hair. As he he started to try to shave using his knife, Dr. Walt chanced to be walking by and stopped to chat.
“Is that a steel knife, Sam?”
Focused on his face in the little signal mirror he carried in his backpack emergency kit, he jumped a little when Dr. Walt spoke, almost cutting himself. “Yes, it’s a survival knife I always bring when I go hiking. It’s sharp, but shaving with a blade rather than with a razor cartridge or electric razor is something new to me. I’m hoping I don’t cut my own throat.”
Dr. Walt laughed. “You know, steel is very rare on Gythe. That blade you hold in your hand could be sold for enough money to buy a large house and still have enough left over to live comfortably in a city for many years.”
“Really? Why? I mean, why is steel rare?”
Sitting on a rickety stool and carefully settling himself so as not to fall over, Dr. Walt answered, “I’m not sure exactly, but I believe that iron is…uh…different here. I think it’s because of the vibrational signature of this world. Whereas in Telani iron is rigid and, more importantly, easily alloyed with such things as carbon, the same is not true here. The unique energy of different types of atoms at times seems to react differently than expected here. By that, I mean different than expected on Telani. Of course, they act exactly as would be expected here because of the particular physical and chemical laws here. It would be very strange if they acted differently than normal here because that would indicate that the natural laws were somehow not working. On the other hand…” Dr. Walt trailed off when he saw Sam staring blankly at him.
“It can all get very technical, but what I am trying to say is that here, iron is softer. Not quite so soft as gold or lead, but softer than copper. Additionally, it does not alloy easily. Whereas on Telani heating iron with a fire of coal and coke suffuses it with carbon and makes it steel, the process is much more complex here. There is only one group, the Zyngim, who know the secret to making steel, thus it is very rare and very expensive.”
Sam could not hide his surprise. “Then, what are weapons here made from, if not steel?”
“Ah, that is another interesting subject. For the most part, weapons are made of bronze, since that is a strong metal and can be sharpened. Of course, there are wooden weapons as well, such as cudgels. Wood acts the same here as in Telani. There is another technology here, though, that is fascinating. It’s a type of ceramic glass and it is used widely. I would say that one of every three weapons is made of this material.”
“Ceramic glass? That sounds brittle. How can it be used as a weapon without shattering when someone blocks a strike?”
“Ah, that’s the interesting part,” Dr. Walt said, face intense. “Through a special process, known only to the crafter’s guild, called Gawzay, they create items that are sharper and more durable
Similar Books
