The Forge Golem

From The World of Layonara
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Deep beneath the Ire Mountains it is rumored that there once existed a dwarven smith, living in seclusion and working his trade undisturbed by the outside world. With only his golem as company, it is said Berhand Silverbeard turned out some of the most impressive weapons ever seen on Layonara. His monstrous forge, which supposedly was fueled by a chimney of lava that bubbled up from a deep pocket several statute miles below the forge, was kept so hot that only his golem could approach it.

Few of Berhand Silverhammer's weapons have ever been seen. Even those weapons that are said to have come from his hand cannot be proved to be his creations; so proud of his weapons was he that he refused to taint them with a trademark. One rumored weapon is the Coupe de Grace, a rapier so fine it can open plate armor with a single slice. This legend of the Coupe de Grace is so well known that this weapon has its own tales attached to it, and more than one adventurer has made a career of searching after the lost rapier.

The tale of Berhand Silverhammer's demise is handed down in dwarven lore and bard songs, varying in the details each time it is told, but the underlying story remain the same. As it is told, Berhand was nearing completion of his finest work, a mighty broadsword called Legacy. Said to have power unlike any other weapon on Mistone, his crowning work was to be his last before his return to the surface. Two-hundred-times-folded adamantium, the sword was a humbling example of the true dedication of a master to his craft. However, the light of day was never to grace Berhand's old eyes again; misfortune and a temper as hot as his forge saw fit to that.

In the final stages of his work, Legacy was to be tempered once more before its completion. The golem approached the forge, as it had done many a time before, and placed the blade into the flames. Unfortunately, the blade slid from the golem's hand and disappeared into the flames, perhaps even sliding all the way down to the chimney of lava.

Berhand ran forward, screaming as his most prized creation disappeared into the flames. He smashed his smith hammer into the golem's head, cursing it for its foolishness and demanding that it retrieve the lost blade. At its master's command, the golem strode into the flames, melting with each step it took. Some claim that the golem did indeed retrieve the blade, but only to bring the forge down around it. Whether or not the blade was lost, the forge erupted suddenly, and the resulting explosion killed Berhand as it brought his workshop down around him and buried the countless fruits of his life's work along with him.

Some bards end the tale there, but an alternative end is told by a few. There are rumors, they say--rumors that speak of how his golem, rather than being destroyed by the heat, became one with the lava and molten metal. In these tales it is said that the forge golem remains beneath the mountains to this day, striding the destroyed halls, Legacy in hand, still desperately searching for its lost master.