Tother Hand, Chapter 5, part 5

2639 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 anvil 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. 9001 fumed.

Her father said, older brother, we have travelled a long way. Come, show us some hospitality and we will talk.

2639 nodded and pulled up his leather apron and tossed it onto a wooden stool. He said, yes, come, brother and niece. We will share butter tea.

They went out to a smaller wooden hut near the compound on the same side of the road they had travelled. 2639’s wife greeted them as they entered and immediately set to preparing tea and a meal. Arranged on a low table were fruits, nuts, and several spices for snacking. The visitors sat at the table and nibbled politely while 2639 moved about the hut, arranging things this way and that. 2711 and his brother exchanged pleasantries while he did this, saying, how is the weather; what is the work like; how is the family; and so forth.

Finally, 2639 sat down cross legged and 9001 realised how much of a hulk of a man her uncle was.

2639 clasped his beard and said, brother.

2711 nodded and raised his tea cup. He said, brother.

They all slurped the savoury drinks in silence for a while.

Finally, 2711 produced his rondel blade and presented it sideways to his brother across the table.

He said, I have brought the iron blade we made together when I was here last. You can see that it has several nicks and streaks of patina. It also has not retained its edge well. Please help me sharpen and restore the blade again.

His brother took the blade and peered at it closely. He said, I see. Yes, it has some patina, and the blade is not sharp. But I have something better for you. Even better than this one. I have been working on the formulary for this new material.

He waved his massive right arm in the direction of the bloomeries. He said, my men are the only ones in the whole of Bactria who are producing iron weapons. And we have the best quality blades and tools available.

2711 waved his hands in dissent. He said, no brother, with respect. This blade has been with me for a decade, and it has served me well. I would not like to change it when I am in the midst of a…

Here he glanced at his daughter quickly, then away. He continued, I am in the midst of a mission in the city and I would like to take the tools that have been proven.

2639 chuckled, then laughed. He handed back the blade, rondel first, as was the custom. He said with great mirth, brother, brother brother. I’m on a mission… Of great importance…

2711 objected, but 2639 cut him off. He continued, no don’t be upset. It is I who am offended. I am the best Miner in all of the land, and your bigger brother. I have been working on the design and formula for these blades for 600 weeks and you do not believe that I have a better tool for your precious mission than the one that we made as interns back then.

2711 nodded and said, I see. Older brother, forgive me then. I accept your _spenta_ offering.

2639 said, as you should. I see that your daughter – what’s her name? – has the bronze training blade you made yourself.

He motioned to see it, and 9001 produced it sideways, and flat on both hands. Her uncle peered at it even closer than the iron rondel. He nodded finally, and muttered something.

Then, 2639 said, as for your mission (he could barely contain his derision), you are still intent on finding _him_ after all your silly visions and misguided thoughts that got you excommunicated?

2711 nodded firmly. I will seek him out and I have been training with my daughter. We are ready to bring him the Healing that he deserves.

2639 asked, she does not know though?

2711 said, she will be by my side. That is good enough.

The smoke in the hut and the dust outside made 9001 sneeze loudly. Then she sneezed again.

2711 turned bright red and 2639 stared at her incredulously. 2639’s wife stopped what she was preparing and turned to stare in wonder.

Eventually, 2711 stammered and tried to recover, saying, but… the thing is… as you know… well, and yes… about the blade.

2639 focused back on his younger brother. He slapped his thigh and said, I have a new blade for your purpose. I already finished it but did not know when you would return. Or if you would return. I will change out both of your weapons and you will be able to serve Ahura.

9001 objected. She said, uncle, I do not need a new blade. I have trained with this one since I was a child. I do not know any other blades, so I cannot perform the rituals with anything else.

2711 smoothed over her impertinence. He said, what she means is that she does not feel worth of your gift and couldn’t accept it because it is too generous. As her father, I agree and feel that you should not waste your talent on us. We just wish for a quick sharpening and cleaning possibly so that we can move on without too much intrusion.

2639 waved over his wife, who prepared the meal. He said, let’s eat.

They ate in silence for a while. While they ate, 9001 noticed more than once that her uncle leered at her while he chewed. She avoided his gaze, but the pressure was intense. She glanced at her father who seemed not to notice. He was wrapped up in eating the food and looked neither right nor left.

Tother Hand, chapter 5 part 3

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.