36-40 Meloragift 4520: The Forging of Corellon's Whisper

Arkomir writes...

36 Meloragift 4520

In the morning, we head downstairs for breakfast and meet up with Dharra's relatives again and continue our catch ups. We leave an open invitation for any help they need getting things ready for tonight as well. After that we head over to the blacksmiths to start the reforging process.
At the forge we are greeted by Etgan & Sam who are gettings things set up. Sam has to run some errands this morning, and Celaknurt will be along shortly. We set out the swords we have, Brak's tools and the Dweomatite that we are going to use to reforge a singular sword. Celaknurt arrives at the forge and we start the process. There is an older gnome with him as well, walking with a cane. His name is Timmeg, Celaknurt's husband. I start the process with a prayer to Corellon. As I speak my prayer, I feel quite good - like I have done that right. Celaknurt is keen for me to do most of the reforging - under his guidance of course. We start by melting down the three greatswords and end up with quite a large piece of steel of quite good quality. At the end of this first day, we end up with the pieces of steel we need to start the next phase - with the dweomatite laid in. We will use my Wildwood blade to embelish the sword at the end. As we lay the dweomatite in, I open my mind to Corellon and imbue a divine sense into the blade. Dharra also casts protection from evil and good at the same time.
We end up with the raw materials for the shaping and assembling process. We finish up for the day and head back to the Tavern. I have a soak in a tub for a bit - and whilst I do I will read my Corellon primer again. I get dressed again and then head back to the tavern for dinner. Dharra spends some time with her family whilst I do that.
I meet the blacksmith gang and Dharra in the Tavern and we have a drink to a good days work. I sit with Celaknurt and Timmeg and talk about all things forging. I mention the forge on Verdant Isle as well and hope to one day show them. Dharra gets up and starts to play a number of songs about The Cleansing Wave. I move my seat around to sit with Sam and we have a chat. She thinks Dharra and I should have a name - so she can tell stories about us in her dotage.
After some playing, Dharra spends some time with her family. She presents them with the Dwarven dagger we bought in Belhaim. Dharra also starts the discussion of opening trade routes back to Belhaim. Theric seems very keen on that. She also shows them her dragonscale. Theric suggest talking to Dharra's parents about this when we get back to Riverfall. I head upstairs, say a prayer to Corellon and then head to bed.

37 Meloragift 4520

Today we spend another full day in the forge. We start shaping the final form of the blade and hardening the steel. Sam is here and helps out quite a bit as well. She and Etgan also spend some time helping out other folk that come by the forge. At lunchtime we spend a little while having a look around Whisperfield for any evidence of the Cleansing Wave. There are a couple of signs of Pelor or Avandra on the outskirts of town, and the occassional shrine, but nothing of note.
As we wander about at lunchtime, there are lots of people around the fields. We chat to a local pig-farmer named Tober and we detect something magical in his roofspace. We attempt to gain access to loock at it, but he is not forthcoming. We will endeavour to keep trying though. We head back to the forge and finish the day there. We continue shaping and re-milling the wildwood sword.
Back in the tavern, Dharra plays again, and after a while I head back to Sam's for the night. Dharra has a chat with the Road Wardens and asks her family about Tober. Again, I pray to Corellon before sleep and I have no vivid dreams to speak of...

38 Meloragift 4520

Rested and recovered after two good nights sleep we breakfast in the tavern vefore heading back to the forge. Dharra asks me about my dreams and i fill her in on what has (or has not) been happening. On arrival back at the forge, Etgan is stoking the fire and Celaknurt is getting things ready for the day.
During the morning we ask them about Tober. The know of him but don’t know him to comment about him per se. He doesn’t seem to have close friends in town. Sam doesn’t have much to add to the discussion. Timmeg says he doesn’t know him much but he did know his father, who was not a good guy at all.
Today is mostly about shaping the blade of the new sword. The shape of the blade is definitely coming together though. We break for lunch and Dharra and I head off to investigate Tober some more. We gear up and take a small peace offering and head down to Tober's farm. We have a chat with and manage to convince him to at least go and have a look at the object. However, as we move to go inside, Tober pushes me inside, leaving Dharra outside and we are into a fight. We manage to get through this and dispatch a number of half-orcs and other folks. We loot the bodies and the question Tober further.
It turns out he was being used as a hideout for the folks we just dispatched. They were going to attack the taxman for this area. They work for The Quiet Hand who are based out of Confluence. After making a deal to let him go he tells us some more information. The guy in charge The Quiet Hand is @ked but Tober's contact was with Aldrich Blackjack. Aldrich wants to take over from Knees. He also has the Red Laquered chest which wqs taken from Belhaim. Tober has also been branded with the K sigil. Aldrich branded him and at least one of the guys we just killed. The Pepperjack in Confluence could be the best place to find more information. Tober took over these deals from his dad.

We march him back to the gates of Whisperfierld before letting him go, making a note of which way he went as I stand at the gates. Dharra makes her way to the tavern and alerts the Road Wardens. They follow her back to where I am at the gates and we direct them to where we saw Tober heading. After all of that we head back to the forge and get ourselves cleaned up and rested. We continue working on the sword for the afternoon. When we get back to the tavern that evening we tell our tale to Dharra’s family. After a while we see an official looking dude with four road wardens walk in. His name is Gerard Festler and he is the taxman for this area. He would like to know what we learned today. We sit down and tell him our story. He writes us a letter of introduction for Confluence that may give us access to some libraries (the Electors Library, the Academy Library) and he tells us about some excellent bookstores. We also have a chat about the Cleansing Wave and he fills in some gaps for us as well. He tells us about Bruno Khurabil, who became the first prince of the region and the principality is named for him. He talks a little about Bruno and the Vanguard, they may have helped the Wave or followed or rose in their wake. He pays us for our help today and wishes us well in Confluence. The rest of our night continues as it has done previously. I head back to Sam's, I do not pray to Corellon tonight before I head off to sleep, but no untoward dreams are had.

39 Meloragift 4520

The next day I work on the hilt for the sword. We sleep at the tavern that night and have a restful night.

40 Meloragift 4520

Today we finish the inlay and the etching for the sword. Celaknurt suggests we need a focal point and suggests a gem. We have some emeralds we will use for this. Amdrom cuts the gem for us, we fit it to the hilt and then make sure the grip is right, wrapping and shaping the leather.
I pick up Corellon's Whisper and it feels like an extension of me. The rest of the village noise drops away and as I turn it in my hand the emeralds appear to glint or flash. I hear a voice in my head say my name and then it whispers to me

Arkomir... Your Blade, My Blade...

I whisper back - I hear you, I serve you and I feel myself become attuned to this weapon. I feel quite proud of what we have achieved. This sword is just starting its journey, but it comes with a promise or a potential. It feels extraordinary but it can be so much more.
A Last Night in Whisperfield.
We notice that the Taxman and the road wardens hang around for a few more days. They go around the town and the village and collect the taxes for the area. They have arranged for someone to take over the pig farm now that Tober is 'absent'. On the afternoon of the day that we finish the sword - I practice with it for a while. Sam comes out of the forge and we come to an agreement about payment for the sword. We agree to meet up at the Tavern for a last night of drink and good cheer.
Over the course of that evening, Dharra plays for the crowd in the tavern and we have a long chat with the Forge team as we yoast our hard work. Celaknurt and Timmeg have been together for over 100 years, Sam has been engaged twice but never married and she inherited the forge from her father. We also talk about setting up a regular stipend to the forge for the traing of an apprentice. Our hope would be to develop a network and community of forges that work and grow together. The night continues and people gather at our table a bit longer than they normally would. Sam and I take our leave and head back to hers. We all get a long rest.