Temple Hill - Drew Karpyshyn [16]
Scattered about every room they passed through was an amazing collection of machines, gadgets, and inventions. The church was more a museum of technological innovation than a place of worship. Many of the larger rooms Lhasha led him through contained catapults, battering rams, or other machines of war, each uniquely- and often strangely-modified from the standard design. Other rooms had farming equipment and tools, each scythe or hoe improved upon in some way. Even the halls were lined with smaller devices and contraptions. Corin couldn't even begin to guess the purpose of most of them.
"It's all a little… overwhelming, isn't it?" Lhasha commented at one point. "Believe it or not, most of these things actually work."
They passed through the main building, and into the courtyard at the back. Half constructed frames of metal and wood littered the yard. The sounds of building-the pounding, sawing, grinding noises Corin could hear even in the main entrance of the temple-were much louder here, emanating from several large edifices haphazardly strewn about the grounds.
The communal workshops," Lhasha explained, shouting to be heard above the din. "Ever since Fendel nearly blew up one of the kilns they've let him work in his own private building, out at the back. He hardly ever comes out. Built himself a little bedroom off the back, though half the time he falls asleep at his workbench."
Lhasha led the way to a small cottage nearly hidden behind the other buildings and knocked on the door.
From within the workshop an anxious voice called out, "I'm busy!"
"Fendel," Lhasha shouted, "it's me! Can I come in?"
Several seconds later the door swung open to reveal a grubby gnome. Like the priest at the entrance, he wore a leather smock bearing Gond's holy symbol. His clothes were stained with soot, and his face and balding crown were smudged with dark black stains Corin guessed to be grease. The tip of his rather large nose was similarly blackened, and the gray whiskers on his chin appeared singed. He smelled of forges and sawdust. Without a word, the gnome seized Lhasha's wrist in one hand and Corin's belt in the other, yanked them inside, and slammed the door behind them.
It took several seconds for Corin's eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room and reveal the carnage within. A table lay overturned in each corner of the room, all of them missing legs; one was even chopped right in two. Strewn about the floor were several chairs; dozens of hammers; and countless nails, knives, rulers, levels, writing quills, inkpots, sketches, drawings, and blueprints that had presumably been on the now upended tables. Corin's first thought was that a mage had conjured a minor demon and let it run rampage about the room. Then he noticed a strange looking contraption on wheels in the center of the workshop. It looked like a cylinder, six feet high, with dozens of farm implements- a scythe, a thresher, a hoe, a sickle-extending out from the center at various heights and angles.
"Fendel," Lhasha asked in amazement, "what happened?"
"Nothing to worry about, Lhasha-love. Just testing out a new invention… an automatic farmer. No more toiling away in the fields, no more spending sun up to sun down during the harvest season hurrying to bring the crop in. My little device does it all for you-and at the speed of twenty ordinary workers!"
Noticing their skeptical expressions Fendel added, "Of course, its not perfected yet. Still a few minor technical difficulties to work out. The thing tends to be a little… overzealous. Got away from me, you know."
As he spoke the gnome made a half-hearted attempt to gather up the papers scattered on the floor. He righted one of the tables, only to watch it immediately topple over again because of its two missing legs. With a sigh he righted a chair and set his hastily collected notes on the seat.
Lhasha started to help the clean up process,