Amara and Lunella stand at the door of a large circular building. The building is made of brick, and the roof spirals to the point where a large chimney rises high into the sky. The sun is almost directly overhead, and smoke billows out of the building's chimney. Clanging echos through the air; it seems the resident of the building is already hard at work.

Three loud knocks resound into the door as Amara attempts to get the attention of the building's owner. The clanging sound continues without ceasing, so Amara walks around the building finding a small casement window with an obscured view of the blacksmith's workspace. Amara taps and screams out, trying to get the blacksmith to abandon his work and tend to the shop.

"Come on, uncle! Shouldn't you be more prepared for guests? What about customers!" Amara is pounding and screaming at the window, and the clanging sound finally stops. Amara quickly rejoins Lunella at the door, waiting for someone to answer.

The door flies open as a muscular man stands in the doorway. On his face is a long white beard, a staple of blacksmiths everywhere, but the thing that caught Lunella's attention was the man's arm — instead of flesh, a mechanical device replaces what should have been his arm. At the tip, instead of a hand, was a hammer built right in.

"Didn't ye read the sign? The shop's only open on Tuesdays, and every other day is for the craft." The man snarls with a squint in his eyes. Amara waves gently with a smile, prompting the man to soften his expression. "Oh, I'm sorry about that, Ama. I thought ya were another one of them annoying customers."

"I don't think you should be talking about the people who pay you like that."

"Eh, who cares? The craft comes first. After all, I don't do it for money. Anyway, come on in."

"Sure, I hope you don't mind. I brought a friend."

Domak looks toward Lunella, and his eyes instantly shoot open; he reaches up and strokes his beard before returning to a more relaxed expression. He then invites the pair into the shop.

The group finds seats in a small shop surrounded by all makes of weapons — Hammers, claymores, rapiers, daggers, and all kinds of strange, unique variations of weapons like none saw before. Lunella's eyes dart around as she's unsure where to focus with all of the visual clutter. Finally, Domak decides to speak.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure, Ama? It's not often anymore that ya come around here. Is it about yer friend? I didn't know ya even had any."

"That's rude! I have friends."

"Like who?"

"Like… Cyrill"

"That guard boy? Ya know his family just wanted him to marry you for the inn."

"Errgh, can we just change the subject" Amara stammers as her face blushes. She ducks her head down, trying to hide her embarrassment, causing Lunella to giggle. Soon Domak follows suit, and Amara is being attacked from all sides. Finally, she shouts out. "Enough! Anyway, this is Lunella; she's staying at the inn for now."

"Hi, I'm Lunella. It's nice to meet you. I was hoping you could make me a sword; mine ended up breaking." Lunella speaks with a smile, holding out her hand.

Domak scans her up and down before deciding to return her greeting. "Names Domak." He reaches out and grips her hand into a tight handshake. "I might be able to make ya a sword. First, I wanna know what ya said to Amara to get her to come with ya."

"I don't think I said anything; she's the one who recommended we come."

"Hoh…"

Amara finally stands up and clears her throat. "I have some questions for you. I want to know more about my mom. Lunella and I were making lunch today when it occurred to us that the devices in the inn's kitchen were a little odd. Did mom make them herself?"

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Domak strokes his beard as he decides how to answer. Finally, he opens his mouth to speak. "When ya ask something so specific, it's hard for me to lie. Ya know she wouldn't want me talking about her, but I don't think it's fair the way she hides everything from her own daughter. Yes, she made them; she's a brilliant magic engineer, after all. In the past, she used to make a whole lot more, but then you were born."

"Why! That sounds like something amazing; why would she give that up to become a mere innkeeper?"

"Might seem like something crazy to you as it's all ya've ever known but living that kinda life gets old after some time. Eventually, ya wanna just settle down and live an easier life."

"So that's it, the big secret kept from me my whole life was that she made magic devices? Why would she hide that from me, and why am I only now finding out about it?"

"Look, I really can't say any more, but she wasn't just a magic engineer. Ya mom lived a full life, and it's not my place to say anymore. You'll have to ask her yaself, though ya know what the answer will be." Domak says while crossing his arms, prompting Amara to sit down with a deep sigh. Domak then looks at Lunella and speaks. "Swords was it? I take it you want to make use of those tusks?"

"If that's possible."

"Alright, Luna, follow me. Ama, please wait here like a good niece."

"Don't you patronize me! Fine, I don't want to hang out in your stupid forge anyway." Amara sticks out a tongue at the bulky blacksmith, inspiring a hearty chuckle from the man.

Domak leads Lunella through the back door into the main forge area, supplies and tools are scattered everywhere, and an intense heat gnaws at the flesh. The lighting is harsh, with only the light of the fire illuminating the room. Domak stops and looks around before finally standing at a table. He turns to Lunella and speaks. "Seems Ama's quite fond of ya. I could hardly believe my eyes when you two showed up here. She seems a bit more genuine; that's cause of you, ain't it?"

"As I said before, I don't think I did anything special."

"Well, sometimes it's not the special things we remember, but rather normal things. Ama's a very lonely girl at heart, ya know. Sure she always acts kind and happy, but she hasn't seemed genuine about it for a few years. It's a subtle change, but I think it's good. Let me ask ya, what do ya think of her?"

"Hmm, well, I guess I like her? She's been nice to me, and I'm really grateful for it. More than that, though, I think we're similar. It's hard to describe, but I think we both might have a piece missing. Still, I've only known her for a day or so. I think you're giving me far too much credit."

"Hahaha, well said. Now Luna, do ye know what kind of metal this is by any chance?" Domak grabs a knife and holds it towards her. Lunella looks at the knife; it's a bright silver color that seems to twinkle. She shakes her head.

"I don't know anything about metal. What is it?"

Domak closes in a little bit on her before giving her an answer, his voice taking on a serious tone. "It's a little metal called angelite, very rare and rather special."

"Are you going to make me a sword out of it?" Lunella answers nervously, stepping back into a wall.

"I don't think that would be appropriate; after all, it has a special property in that it disrupts the flow of mana in demons" Domak steps forward and presses the knife up against Lunella's throat. With his hammer hand, he carefully pulls down Lunella's hood revealing her two horns. Lunella's heart jumps out of her chest when Domak speaks again. "What do you think would happen if it were to disrupt the mana in your core?"

Suddenly, Lunella makes the connection. Demons are monsters, and monsters have mana cores. If the core is disrupted — Death. She starts speaking frantically. "Wait, let's talk this out; you don't have to do this."

"That depends on you. Ya might be able to fool everyone else with just a cloak, but that's only because they don't truly believe in demons. They've never seen one, so even if you're suspicious, they wouldn't be able to place it. They assume the best. I know better, though."

"Look, I'm not a bad demon; at the very least, I don't deserve death."

"And how can I trust you?" Domak presses the knife up and raises his voice into an accusing tone. "What are your intentions with Amara? Do you mean her harm?"

"Harm her? I don't want to harm her! I meant every word I said. You know, I'm sick of every human instantly attacking without even listening to what I'm saying! Why is it so hard to believe that I might be telling the truth!" Once Lunella begins speaking her mind, she finds it harder and harder to stop entirely ignoring the knife against her throat. Tears flow as her objection turns to a fierce roar. "I didn't ask for this! I've tried so hard to do the right thing, to be a good person. But fine! if all you can see is a monster, then that's what you'll get."

Lunella's hand erupts into flames. Her heart roars with anger, and nothing matters anymore. Deep inside, numbness begins to well up, she begins to let go of the thing she calls humanity — Domak takes a step back and puts the knife away, lowering his head in a bow.

He speaks in a much softer voice than before. "Wait, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pushed you like that. I know for sure now, I can trust you."

Lunella, finally realizing what just happened, falls to the ground as tears pour out uncontrollably. Utterly unaware of her surroundings, she just cries and cries, terrified that she almost went somewhere she'd never return from. Domak carefully comforts her as though she were a small child.