On the outskirts of
the town, 2711 stopped outside one of the larger permanent structures on the
side of the road. The air was heavy with the smell of smoke and another bitter,
acrid smell that 9001 could not place. They could hear the ping-ping-ping of a
hammer inside the compound.
2711 muttered, I have
not seen my brother in a long time.
They secured the
camels along the side of one mud wall and walked around to the side entrance.
The walls were only covered in a wooden roof on one quarter of the area
enclosed. The rest was a large dirt work area where four or five men with heavy
leather clothes walked about. Each of them were quite young and used their huge
arm muscles to carry heavy stone hammers and pieces of metal. A huge stack of
chopped wooden logs lined one complete side of the inner wall. The working men
did not seem to mind the two visitors.
Intense heat poured
from several clay bloomeries of various sizes. Inside the largest one, the fire
was so intense that 9001 had to shield her eyes from the white brightness, even
in the light of the full day. When she averted her eyes, she saw a large white
spot imprinted in the middle of her vision that took a long time to dissipate.
2711 strode up to the oldest man in one corner who was intently pounding on a dull
orange piece of metal.
He said, older brother.
Ahura Mazda guide you.
Then he said his name
and greeted his brother: 2639, it is me, 2711.
9001 started at the
significance of the name. It meant, a whole week of imbalanced pain. _Asarbyo
nava_ was a phrase that meant loosely, pain somewhere in the body, distracting
and causing strife.
2639 turned and
nodded. He turned back to his work. He pounded the metal multiple times on a huge
granite slab. The hammer was a crude stick attached to a purple stone. As the
man worked, 9001 asked about the purple stone.
Her father said, the
rock is porphyry. It is the hardest stone on this earth. That large piece of
granite has been hit and pounded by metals for perhaps four generations. It
does not even have a single scratch on it. Purple porphyry has been found by
the Greeks and is usually reserved for royalty or leaders, like the Masked
Ones. We have tried to use bronze anvils and hammers, but they are not nearly
as good as the ancient stones that have been brought to this site long ago.
9001 asked, how much
does this granite weigh?
The old man guffawed
loudly and stopped hammering. He chuckled and set down his hammer. He carried
the metal piece he had been working on to the clay bloomery and came back.
He looked at 2711 and
said, little brother.
He stretched out his
massive right hand and arm. It was clearly larger and bulkier than his left
from wielding the hammer for decades.
2711 offered his left
hand and they shook hands awkwardly, palms facing each other and thumbs
pointing away from each other.
2711 said, brother, do
you remember my daughter? She was only a small child when you saw her.
2739 peered at her
closely but no spark of recognition showed in his eyes.
He addressed 2711,
little brother, your daughter asked how much this granite slab weighs. It was
brought here by our great, great grandfather and a hundred men. Nobody knows
how much it weighs.
He laughed loudly and
the other men in the compound paused and laughed with him.
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