Elevation of Mana Chapter 41 Tooling Up

The needles were in fact a huge hit.  They served as both a good tool and a display that you could afford the work, which wasn't unsubstantial.  I thanked my lucky starts that Isha had the good sense not to tell people what she'd had to pay for them, or I would be having to fend off far more unhappy women than I did anyway.  It wasn't that I minded making them, just that there was a finite amount of time I cared to work, and more things I wanted to make.

For example, I'd had to make knives to pay back our helpers on the copper run, as well as one for myself.  Father rsimilarly requested several small hammers to work stone and I had one more thing I wanted to make.

I was currently working on an auger.  The build was simple enough, a bar, twisted with a point on one end and a loop on the other.  This woul allow me to make replicable, simple holes, a nice addition if I wanted to make bigger and better things.

“My cousin wants you to make her some beads, if you're willing,” Isha said from where she sat nearby.  “I told her I would tell you.”

“I am not making beads out of copper right now, not for her, and not even for my mother, who I will point out is quite unhappy about that situation,” I responded without even looking up from my work.

“I figured something like that would be the answer, but like I said, I told her I would tell you.  What are you making now though?  That looks weird.”  She pointed to the tool as it finally started to take shape.

“It makes holes if it works right, but I'm not sure it will.  Might be other things we could do with the same shape.”  I really was unsure, as I'd never made one of these before.  “Father was messing around with those earlier for some pieces and I think this will help.”

“Okay, that's a good idea actually.  Could you make something to make those boxes you came up with a little better?” she asked innocently, excellent.

“Like what?” I responded, finally looking over to her.

“Well, one of the men in my hut was trying to make some, but getting the cuts clean enough is hard, maybe something for that?”  My my, what a wonderful idea.  Paying her had been well worth it if she could keep bringing me things to make that weren't my own ideas (partially).

“That's a great one Isha.  I don't suppose you might know how to do that?” I prodded hopefully.

“Hmm, no, maybe you should ask him,” she suggested, tapping her chin a bbit as she mulled it over.

“Oh, don't worry, I'll be sure to.”

As a point of fact, that evening several of the men of the village got together with myself and father, and we all began discussing ideas.

“I would like a spear,” said the massive hunter Larus.  “Just one, to see how it works.”

Father looked a bit  taken aback by that for only a moment before he began to smile.  “Not happy with stone anymore huh?”

“The knives are good Eduan, I want to see if a spear would work as well, though with how they bend a bit I'm not sure,” his friend answered with a grin.

“Someone told me that working wood might have some uses?  Something someone might need?” I asked, prodding them to look for more tool ideas.

“Ah, been talking to little Isha again?” one of the men said with a grin any boy would know.  “Yes, the stone chisels are good, but I'm having a hard time getting cuts as good as that first one you did.  How did you do it?  The copper or your light?”

“I used my light, but with tools we could get a really good fit.  Where are you having problems?” I asked.

“The cuts just aren't clean enough, the edges ragged,” he clarified.

“Alright, maybe a copper chisel will cut better, we can try that.  Other tools we haven't tried yet?”

“Something to cook with perhaps?  Like one of your auntie's pots or something, though I don't see much a point to it,” one of the other men answered.

Part of my problem was that a lot of people didn't see anything wrong with what we had.  They'd been using it for a long, long time at this point and didn't see any reason to change.  After all, if it had been working for uncounted centuries, why change it now?

“I'm concerned about bits of it coming off, but we'll try if mother agrees to look over anyone eating from that for signs of a problem.”  I could still remember that people had told me to be careful of copper cups, but never why, and it was driving me nuts.  I also remembered that copper pots were definitely a thing, at least for jams.

“String, you haven't made any string.  It's a weird one, but it is a tool.  Can you even make copper string?” one of the younger men asked.  I could have kissed him for inventing wire before I did.

“Huh, suppose we can try.  If it doesn't work out it doesn't work out.  I'll send some over to you if it does so you can try using it.”

After our meeting there were some complaints to me, but none of them really mattered.  Father was the one who did most of the stone knapping for the town, and like any good father supported me.  Others though were not so sure, and I got a feeling that the Luddite feeling was alive and well within the Elven population.

The biggest part of that though seemed to be that we got way older and stayed young throughout it.  One old man who was an expert with a tool could do wonders with it, because he was still in his prime and knew it like the back of his hand.  He would of course not want to change to something new, and newer workers learned from him, or her in the case of my biggest complainer.

“The new needles are too small, the holes too close together.  I don't like them,” the woman said, only having approached when it was clear our discussion was over.

“Then don't use them,” I said.

“The girls in my hut are already doing so, and making clothes with them, even if they might not last the same.  The seams could rip, and then the leather would be wasted.  I don't want to waste leather,” she continued on.

“Then don't use them,” I repeated, already done with this argument.

“I'm just trying to look after them,” she huffed.

“Then convince them, not me.”  I knew she had an almost zero chance at that, the needles were a hit.

“But...” she began, only to be cut off.

“Enough,” father said both calmly, and with finality.  “If you do not like them, don't use them.  If you don't want others to, then talk to them, not us.  My son is right, a tool is a tool, and if it doesn't work, nobody will use it, but if it does, they will.”

It was almost a week before I got a lot of time to sit and talk to Isha again.  Between making things and having to keep up hunting and fishing with the other boys I was pushed hard.  It wasn't bad, and I really did enjoy it, but it took a lot of my time.  She too was busy of course, with much the same kind of thing.

As soon as she came over I noticed the changes.  She'd made a new dress, long since she wasn't anywhere near fully grown, but the seams were so different.

“New clothes, and I see you changed how you did the sewing,” I observed with humor.

“I like the small stitches, and with the little holes from the small needles they look good,” she answered happily.

“One or two of the women complained about that,” I said, trying to guage her reaction.

“They complain about everything, and how we do everything.  The clothes, the hair, even what decorations we like.  I guess you did a lot of those too huh?  Maybe you should have been a girl,” she teased.

“No thanks, at any rate, the hair?”

“Oh yeah, the older a woman is, the more she likes the older hairstyles and braids.  Have you noticed how Elaya, and everyone in her hut, do their hair different?  It's because that's what she likes, and it's really, really old,” she explained.

“Okay... so you do your hair and stuff based on how old you are?” I asked while I tried to sort through the styles in town.

“Not really no, but based on what you like.  If you've liked one thing for a long time you don't want to change it right?  A lot of girls pick one style and keep with it, and it will be a lot like their friends or family.  Your mom and auntie have basically the same style, and if you think about it, most of the young girls now all have similar ones, or ones you taught us,” she explained, seemingly finding humor in my lack of understanding.

“Huh, I never noticed that,” I admitted.

“Nevermind, you definitely should have been a boy if you don't even see that kind of thing,” she teased.

“Good, mother would never have let me to to get copper if I'd been a girl,” I said, teasing her right back.

“Oh, good point.  Yeah, things are best this way.”

We both understood.  It waasn't that girls were really kept all that down, but they were decidedly not encouraged to go out on adventures like we boys were.  Evolution I supposed, lose a few boys, and maybe the ones you get are stronger each generation.  Lose a few girls each generation though, and it would be hard to replenish with our abyssmal birth rate.

“Yup, I really like going out like that.”

“You know, you're getting pretty strong, and I'm not bad myself,” she said slyly.  “Maybe one day we can go do something like that together.”

“Is that what you really want?” I asked, and at her nod made her an offer.  “Alright, one day when I'm strong enough I'll take you on an adventure.  If that's what you want.”

I could only chuckle as she made a little cheer.