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along the sweep of its length, which gleamed dully in the dim light. He
removed his left hand from the blade and swung the sword tentatively, testing
it gently and grimacing slightly with satisfaction before standing up from his
bench and stepping forward to give himself room to swing the sword in earnest,
stabbing it downward to touch the floor, point first, while his elbow was
still bent.
"I like this, Uncle!" He flipped it up into the air and caught it just below
the hilt, examining the hilt itself and the pommel counterweight. "How did you
make this? What is it? Lead?"
"For now, yes," I told him. "Lead over iron."
"How did you get the weight right?"
"Strung lead discs over the iron tang like beads and then heated them." This
was Equus who spoke.
"Will it remain solid?" Picus gripped the hilt purposefully, flexing his
fingers and splaying them to wrap tightly around the grip.
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"Aye, it'll stay solid," Equus continued. "It solid."
is
Picus returned now to his inspection of the blade, extending his left hand and
laying the pointed tip on the upturned palm.
"Why the flair above the point?" he asked next. "It looks familiar, but I know
I've never seen it before."
"Yes you have, Picus," I told him. "Africa, and Asia Minor. The desert peoples
there use similar blades, curved, with a slightly flared tip to add impetus to
the swing."
"Of course, that's it! But this is different again this blade is not so
deeply curved."
"No, nor so deeply flared, for that matter. Remember, Picus, our men are
mounted. We are attempting to create something here that will stab like a
spear yet chop like an axe, something that can be used effectively without
being swung too hard."
He nodded towards the sword I was holding. "That one is different. Why?"
I shrugged. "They are all different. The one Ullic has is much broader in the
blade close to the tip than yours is. That one we have already rejected as
being too heavy, too unwieldy. Try it."
Picus exchanged swords with Ullic and one swing of the new sword was enough to
show him that I was right.
"I agree. Too heavy. Clumsy. The first one's far superior."
"Yes, but also no. It's better, but it's far too light in construction. It
will bend in battle. It is the prettiest, the most aesthetically pleasing, but
it is the least practical of all the prototypes we have tested." I held up the
one I was holding. "This is the winner. The best we have come up with to
date." I threw it to him hilt first and he dropped the one he was holding to
catch the one in the air. He caught it, arm extended, and held it there at
arm's length, his eye sweeping from the boss out to its distant point. Long
seconds he held it there, unmoving, and then, as though its point were
anchored at the centre of a circle, he began to walk around it, watching the
light change on the blade as he made the turn. Then he flexed his elbow,
bringing the weapon close up to his face until the iron touched his cheek
before tilting his head back to look up at the point held vertically above
him. This done, he took a slow step forward on his left foot and swung the
sword, feeling its weight and balance at every point on its arc.
"There is nothing wrong with this one, Uncle. Much that is right, but nothing
wrong."
"Let me try it." Ullic's face was rapt, and Picus handed the weapon over to
him and then turned back to me.
"I think you have solved the problem, Uncle."
"So do we," I smiled at him. "Even Equus likes it."
"With the exception of one raw imperfection." Equus's voice was heavy with
irony, and I tried to quiet him before he said any more, waving a minatory
finger and frowning in reproof as I shook my head sharply, hoping Picus would
not see. Naturally, he picked up on it immediately.
"What's wrong? What imperfection?"
I grunted and accepted the inevitable. "A minor imperfection, Picus, far from
insoluble," I said. "The iron of the blades is difficult to control, because
of its temper and the length of the swords. They bounce off each other and are
dangerous to the unwary. But it is not a matter that is insoluble. We're
working on it now."
"Then why is Equus so disgusted?"
I smiled at him. "For the same reason as always. He is a perfectionist and
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