Chapter 1 Part 2

The next day Ultrecht made his way to the library. He’d dreamt of a musical passage that was somehow connected with the tome. He began his search.
Two days later he made a wondrous discovery. There existed a set of magical chimes that would, if played in the correct order, aid one in achieving the correct state of mind to appreciate the wonders of the Creator. There were two problems. One of the chimes had been destroyed hundreds of years ago when a mighty red dragon raided a large monastery, and then the treasures of the monastery, including the remaining chimes, had been carried off to the west by the dragon’s minions and never seen again.
Over the course of the next week, the determined mage gathered as much information about the chimes and the dragon as he could. Finally he decided on a course of action.
The dragon was rumored to be still alive and active in the west, and presumably still in possession of the remaining chimes. He would try to bargain with the dragon for them, but that could wait. He still had to try to recreate the missing chime, or the others would be useless. He was very excited, for floating in his memory was the musical passage that would determine the correct order for the chimes.
A month of very determined research and music study later, found Ultrecht entering the smithy of one Master Bindar–Dwarven Mastersmith.
A very gnarled and heavily muscled dwarf greeted him. “Good morning, how may I be of service?”
“I’m interested in learning how to smelt ore and create alloys.”
The dwarf raised one eyebrow. “What, as in me teach you how or let you watch?”
Ultrecht smiled. “Teach me.”
“No,” said Bindar flatly. He turned and went back to his worktable. His two apprentices made themselves conspicuously busy.
Ultrecht blinked. He stood for a moment non-plussed then followed. “I can pay quite handsomely,” he promised.
The dwarf gestured with a hammer. “Why don’t you just use magic,” he growled.
“Because the project I’m working on requires the metals to be free from magical contamination during the smelting process.”
“Ok, so I smelt them for you and you pay me for the work.”
This was getting more difficult. “No," the mage explained, "I must smelt them myself for the enchantment to take. It's a personal enchantment."”
“Well then go somewhere else,” Master Bindar snapped. “I have enough trouble teaching these lame-brained kids, let alone some uppity damned mage.”
“I can assure you, I won’t be a prob…”
“You’ll be runnin’ around here like you owned the place. ” Bindar butted in, waving his arms about. “Expectin’ to be in charge ‘cause you can throw spells around!”
Ultrecht was taken slightly aback. “I don’t know what problems you’ve had in the past…”
Bindar turned abruptly and drove a powerful fist into Ultrecht’s stomach. The mage dropped like a wet sack. “So, can ye still cast spells if ya can’t breathe?” he roared at the prone mage.
Ultrecht lay on the ground gasping painfully for breath. The two apprentices stood rooted in place, not knowing what to do. Suddenly Bindar’s arms snapped to his sides and he shot up into the air to hang upside down over the coal pile. The shocked dwarf spluttered for a moment, then started to swear sulfurously, as the blood rushed to his head.
Crawling to his feet using the wall for support, Ultrecht struggled for a few minutes to regain his breath. Finally one of the stricken apprentices moved to aid him, but the mage waved him off. Ultrecht crooked a finger and made a ‘come hither’ motion towards the dwarf. As Bindar helplessly floated toward the mage, uncertainty showed on his face. No fear, just uncertainty.
“In answer to your question,” Ultrecht wheezed, “yes. I can still cast a few spells when I can’t breathe.”
Master Bindar looked incredulous for a moment then burst into deep belly shaking laughter.
Master Ultrecht gestured and the dwarf mysteriously righted and floated to the ground.
“Now there’s a first,” Bindar said with a chuckle, “a mage with some balls. Tell ya what, we’ll start again. You tell me what you want, and I’ll say 'no' more politely.” To the apprentices he hollered, “Two chairs and two mugs.”
Gratefully Ultrecht accepted the chair and the mug of ale from one of the apprentices. “What I want is to learn to smelt and mix ores myself, so that I may pursue a project. ”
Bindar rubbed his forehead. “And you can’t just hire it done. ”
“No. The nature of the enchantment requires that I create the chime myself. ”
“A chime?”
“Yes, a chime.” Ultrecht said expecting another outburst.
The dwarf took a long thoughtful pull on his ale. “Do you have any experience with music instruments?”
With mild surprise, Ultrecht said, “Yes, as a matter of fact I do. I’m no master harper or bard, but I have some experience.”
“Well a chime is a piece of art as well as music and metal. My grandfather made some of the best. They typically took longer to make than a fine blade. ”
“I would greatly appreciate any teachings you could provide in that area as well.”
The dwarf sat for a long moment staring into his ale. Ultrecht sensed he was struggling with an inner debate of some kind and waited quietly. Finally he stood, said “Wait here a moment.” Then he left the room.
The dwarf came back in carrying a small chest. It looked as if it were heavy. He set it down, took out a key, and opened it. “This is my legacy.”
Utrecht looked into the chest. Inside was a piece of ore the size of a horse’s head. It was misshapen and lumpy, but plainly a metal.
As he took his seat again the dwarf spoke. “About four hundred years ago my grandfather saw a star fall to the ground. When he found it, inside a great crater, he noted it oddly heavy. He kept it, and tested it further. He couldn’t melt it in his best forge no matter how much coal he used, so he put it away.
"Years later a marauding dragon raided our caves. The struggle was a thing to be told in tales, and after a mighty battle the beast was finally slain, but at great cost. We lost many warriors and a king that day.
"The hammer of the king was also lost, destroyed by the dragon’s foul breath.” Bindar took another long pull from his mug and continued. “My grandfather was the clan’s Mastersmith and he was struck with the idea of creating a new hammer from the star metal. By then my father was also a smith. They worked for decades on the haft, all the while trying to figure a way to forge the star. One day when I was but an apprentice, the two of them devised a plan. Father built a new forge, and they spent everything they could on coal and magnesium to try for a hot enough flame. ”
Ultrecht gave a low whistle.
Bindar nodded. “Aye, it was dangerous, but they were determined. They started the forge and fed it fuel. Father sent me from the room for some extra tools. I’d no more than left when the forge exploded.” He pointed to a scar on his forearm. "I still carry that memory with me; a piece of shrapnel almost took me along with it."
He was quiet for a moment. “When I came a-runnin’, Grandfather was dead and Father’d been speared by a metal strut. He grabbed my arm and said I was the only one left to carry on our family’s honor. He told me to guard the star metal and someday finish the hammer then he died.”
The dwarf looked Ultrecht in the eye and said gruffly, “I’ve been workin’ all my life to complete that legacy. In four hundred years my family's found only one trustworthy mage. I came to this human infested city to find another.” The dwarf’s voice became even more intense. “Are you that mage?”
Ultrecht studied the dwarf intently for a moment. “Master Bindar I will make you a deal. I would ask two things of you. Teach me what I need to know and build me a striker for my chime. I will do all within my power to help you create your hammer.”
The dwarf blinked. “A deal?" he asked. "Well, before ye go tryin’ strike any deals let me tell ya what ya’d be getting into. You will be an apprentice while in my shop. I’ll be the only master here, and no castin’ spells without my leave. ”
Ultrecht smiled and extended his hand. “Done Master Bindar. ”
Bindar grinned and shook hands. “We start tomorrow. Be here at sunrise.” He turned to the apprentices and bellowed, “Get yer lazy arses back to work!”
Ultrecht left to prepare for his new apprenticeship.