Beryl had come to him the day before and told him there was a new adventure he could be part of. It was something to do with the cat, Myn, in the Asylum, that he had thought was Beryl at first, and why he had been trying to get into the Asylum ever since. He couldn’t remember everything, it had been a long time ago, but he knew he wanted to help.
His friend had seemed to think it was going to be dangerous, but with him and Beryl on the case it was bound to be sorted out without trouble, or at least nothing they couldn’t handle.
However, it didn’t do to go unprepared. He had, of course, as any eight year old had, lots of experience seeing and doing things adults couldn’t see or do, and he knew when going into your imagination or dreams you had to follow the rules. In your own dreams, you could do what you wanted, but when they mixed with others it was different, so if he was to be prepared he had to do things right before setting off.
Down at the iron works the men had knocked off for lunch, allowing Tepic to slip in unnoticed. At the furnace he grabbed one of the opening hooks, slipped it into the door bolts and hauled until the door was fully open. Heat washed over him and he grinned, this is just what he needed!
Swiftly he took several small packages from his numerous pockets along with what appeared to be a strip of cloth with strings attached. Carefully feeling each, the boy tossed them into the furnace one by one, watching as they virtually vapourised in the intense heat.
Moving to the lead crucible the lad took out a dozen pellets, dropping them individually into the molten metal, muttering under his breath a prayer to the Builder, then he stepped over to one of the huge steam hammers. This was his last task, after which he would have to scarper quick as it would be a bit…. noisy.
There were several different types of pebble that he placed on the anvil of the hammer, some like striped river stones, some with a knobbled surface and a gleam to their surface, others of marbled glass. Once he was satisfied with the layout he stepped back, checked the nearest exit, and tripped the hammer trigger.
The sound of the steam hammer starting up roused the workers from their half finished butties and with waving arms and angry shouts they streamed back into the factory. The hammer had struck about half a dozen times before they could stop it and on inspection there appeared to be no damage to the machine, just a coarse powder on it’s surface that was quickly brushed away.
Tepic strolled towards the Asylum, happy in the knowledge that he was now prepared for whatever the night would bring.
*ponders*