Along the rim of the pit sat half a dozen stone nests formed from boulders as big as Damien was tall. Three of the nests held mature female fire drakes, their dull red scales, small head crests, and forty-foot length separating them from their brighter, smaller mates. Damien wrapped himself in invisibility. If the females were sitting on their nests they must have eggs and he certainly didn’t want to anger a nesting drake.
He flew over the pit. Down in the bubbling magma, bobbing like a cork on a pond, floated the meteorite. It was twice as big as his head and glowed cherry red. Damien conjured a thin disk of energy, set it to spinning, and launched it toward the chunk of iron.
It hit with a wicked shriek and started cutting into the metal. On their nests the drakes screamed and arched their necks toward the sky. Guess they don’t like the noise. He didn’t blame them, the blade squeaked worse than nails on slate.
A bright red shape hurtled down out of the sky, missing Damien by a couple feet. The male drake rushed toward the cutting blade, intent on killing whatever was bothering his mate. Its wings snapped open a five feet from the magma and it lashed out with a talon.
The black claw hit Damien’s disk and got sliced off. The drake shrieked and swooped around for another pass.
Stupid beast, it couldn’t hurt his blade. It could only cut up its talons. Damien poured more power into the blade, hoping to get the metal he needed before the drake finished wheeling around for another pass.
The increased speed of the blade’s rotation made the screeching even louder, prompting the drakes to scream at greater volume. Damien conjured ear covers before he went deaf. The male finished its turn and once again dove at the blade, this time with its fanged mouth leading.
Not good.
The beast was about to lose its bottom jaw. He didn’t want to hurt the drake; he just wanted to get the iron.
Damien wrapped the drake in soul force and sent it plunging into the magma. It flopped around, annoyed but unharmed by the intense heat.
His blade finished cutting and the small chunk of iron slipped into the magma. Silence fell in the caldera, much to his relief. He formed a bubble of soul force around the small chunk and lifted it out of the magma. On a whim he grabbed the sliced-off talon as well. It might make a nice pommel for the sword.
Damien flew off with his prize and when he was a safe distance away released the male drake. The creature roared, trumpeting its victory over the now-vanished blade.
Chapter 25
Damien focused on the lump of iron sitting on the heavy table he’d dragged up to his room. He’d already removed all the impurities, leaving behind nothing but clean metal. Now he had to shape it.
He inserted his power into the ore and felt the molecules of iron. They seemed jumbled up, going every which way. Before he aligned them he needed to mold the lump into a blade. Pushing, pulling and stretching, Damien slowly coaxed the metal into a rough bar.
He gasped and let his focus lapse. He’d used three quarters of his power and all he had to show for it was a bar of metal. Better than a lump, but he still had a long way to go.
Damien leaned back in his chair and wiped the sweat from his brow. He hadn’t even moved and look at him: sweat drenched his body and his limbs were trembling. It might have been less work to beat the metal into shape at a forge. Of course, that wouldn’t help him improve his shaping technique.
For the next two weeks Damien labored on the blade from the time he got up in the morning until he went to bed at night. He’d gotten it shaped into a proper blade, albeit a blunt, unbalanced one. He was about to dive back into his work when he heard steps outside in the hall. Who could be visiting him up here? Ann was the only one he knew that might, and she should be training her new student.
Curious, Damien went to the door and poked his head out into the hall. A woman he didn’t recognize stood two doors up from him, a glowing key in the air in front of her. She must be one of his floormates back from assignment.
Maybe she hadn’t heard about his adventure with the demon. If he got her to commit to taking him as an apprentice before she found out he could finally start his fieldwork.
He darted out the door and strode toward her. “Excuse me. I’m—”
“The demon slayer, I heard.” She turned to face him. Her hair was going gray and fine wrinkles lined her face. Despite her apparent age her gaze was firm and she stood straight and tall.
On the inside he winced, but he let nothing show on his face. “That’s been completely blown out of proportion.”
She laughed at that. “Kid, there’s no way the statement ‘he killed a demon all by himself’ can be blown out of proportion. If you did it, you did it. There’s no other way to say it. Did you do it?”
He hung his head. “Yes, ma’am. I didn’t set out to, it just sort of happened. I don’t suppose you’re looking for an apprentice?”
“No, and even if I was, there’d be no point in me choosing you. On my best day I wouldn’t last ten seconds against a demon, even a weak one. If you killed one at your age, with such limited experience, you’re at a different level than me. I wouldn’t know where to begin teaching you. I’m sorry.”
He sighed. “Thanks anyway. At least it’ll be nice to have some company up here.”
“I doubt I’ll be good company. After three months in the
