A Change in Plans
Copyright© 2006 by Asa Strong
Chapter 12: The Hammer and the Anvil
Science Fantasy Story: Chapter 12: The Hammer and the Anvil - George Rice, a dying, emotionally detached scientist who plans to stage his own accidental death after losing his wife and receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis. At the brink of suicide, he is intercepted by a higher being named Alama, who offers him a chance to “right a terrible wrong.” George accepts and dies—only to be reborn into another world and another body.
Caution: This Science Fantasy Story contains strong sexual content, including Ma/Fa Ma/ft Consensual Romantic Science Fiction Isekai First
Donta wiped the sweat off his face and backed away from the anvil. For the past four days, he had been working with the forge and anvil, trying to produce the stove top and facing door for the stove. His first attempts had been a complete disaster.
Forming the metal strips into an even surface by heating them over the forge, then welding them together with the hammer had proved to be more difficult than he could imagine. Theoretically, he knew the way it should be done, but getting the metal strips to the correct temperature and then mastering the hammer was a task that eluded him. The actual “feel” of the hammer striking the hot metal correctly on the anvil was an art that was hard to acquire.
He had finally managed to make a reasonably even surface for the stove top yesterday. He then cut it to size, using a chisel to trim the edges off the hot metal. The two door frames, one for the stove chamber, the other for the oven, were fairly easy to produce, as it was basically a rectangle that would fit into the stone body of the stove. His current problem was making the doors. He had finally managed to get both doors sized to fit into the frames, but was having difficulty attaching the pins to make the hinge that would fasten the doors to the frame.
“I need to stop,” Donta thought to himself. “I’m tired and am likely to make a mistake that will only make things worse if I keep on going this way.”
He then removed the leather apron he wore to keep the heat and sparks from the hot metal from causing him harm, and walked out of the new workshop he had built for the forge last week.
“I need to cool down; this blacksmith business is a hell of a lot hotter than I would have thought!” Donta thought to himself, as he headed towards the stream.
After soaking his head, he drank several hands full of cold water from the stream and then sat down to cool off for a few minutes. As he sat there, Donta thought back over the past three weeks.
He had finally decided to integrate the stove and oven using a single chimney. The majority of the design would be accomplished using stone and mortar, both of which were available nearby. The first week was spent gathering stones and making the mortar. He then combined sand, burnt limestone, and clay that could be used in combination to produce a crude but effective mortar mix.
The oven/stove design was built on the use of a central firebox for generating heat. The firebox would be fed outside air from two clay pipes terminated in the rear.
Above the firebox was a second chamber about 18 inches in height, covered by the iron stove top. Heat was directed to this chamber by an iron damper gate between the firebox and heating chamber. To generate additional heat, a second set of clay pipes ran through the wall of the chimney and terminated in the right rear of the stove chamber. These pipes would bring oxygen to enter the stove and sustain a secondary combustion of gases that would raise the working temperature considerably.
Iron flue gates at the rear of the firebox would control heat flow directly into the chimney when the fire was started. Once the chimney flue was hot, this flue gate could be closed, and flow could then be directed to the stove chamber and/or under, around, and over the oven that was located above. The gases would then exit into the chimney flue after passing around the oven. This should allow heat to be directed to the stove, oven, or both.
A side product of this would be that the gases passing through the masonry would heat it up. This would make the stove and oven part of a central heating system for the house since the stone once heated would retain the heat for a long period of time. This stored heat would then reradiate into the house for a long time. The firebox was 36 inches in length and about 24 inches in width.
By the end of the second week, Donta had completed the stonework and even managed to find a deposit of good-quality clay for lining the oven. The problem now was one of mechanics. Knowing what to do and having the ability to do it were two different things. What should have been a two-day job turned out taking seven as he learned the process of laying stone and mortaring joints.
“Oh well,” Donta thought, “it’s almost time for lunch, and Rocha probably is working on something to eat.”
The thought had no sooner left his mind than he heard Rocha’s voice calling them for lunch.
“Donta, you are covered with soot; don’t you dare sit down at the table that way!” Rocha admonished me as I entered the door.
I walked over to her and kissed her soundly, being sure to keep my hands from soiling her shirt. “Yes, dear,” followed by a laugh.
Celle came into the house covered with dust. “I think most of the garden vegetables have been picked. I finished digging the last of the potatoes this morning,” she announced.
She then joined me at the washstand and worked to remove the dust from her hands and face.
“Where’s Kata?” I asked.
“She left to move the goats to the bottom pasture a while ago. She should be here shortly,” Rocha replied.
We sat around the table, waiting for Kata, talking about our day’s activities. Rocha, as had become the norm, kept house and did most of the cooking. Celle had taken on the garden, and due to her efforts, we had a good store of vegetables and wild fruit stored away for winter.
“Sorry, but the little kids drove me crazy. Getting those goats to go where you want them is a real chore!” Kata exclaimed as she burst through the door.
Well, all laughed at her antics; it was clearly evident that she had run for a good distance and was breathing hard.
“Well, get the goat smell off you, and we can eat,” Rocha said with a smile and then an outright laugh.
While Kata washed off, Rocha served us all a bowl of stew with deer meat, carrots, and peas, and rolls on the side. Talking was at a minimum as we consumed what was before us.
I pushed the bowl away from me and asked Kata, “How are the goats doing? I’m a bit concerned with having three kids this late in the year. Winter will be coming soon, and I’m afraid they might have a hard time with the cold.”
“They should be fine, Donta. When the snow comes, I will move them up to the fenced pasture. We have more than enough hay to feed the animals, even if it is a long winter. Besides, the stock shed will keep them out of the wind, which should keep them warmer.”
Celle then spoke up, “How are you doing with making what you need to finish the stove and oven?”
I shrugged my shoulders and then said, “It is slow going. I really don’t have the knowledge of blacksmithing. I guess I’m learning as I go. Hopefully, in a few more days, we will find out if this whole thing works.”
“Donta, I’m sure it will be fine. You always find some way to make things work.” Rocha chimed in.
“Well, it won’t get built with me sitting on my ass.” I said, standing up.
“Be careful, Donta.” Kata said as I went through the door.
When I got back to the forge, instead of starting right away, I decided to sit down and think this through a bit more. I realized, after thinking about it for a few minutes, I was making this too hard. I was trying to make the door swing on hinges, like you would find on a door. That is not what I really needed.
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.