Once back into the workshop, Jörmun and Birger moved things around a bit and elevated, on some tables arranged in a row, the parts of the mast lingering around, awaiting restoration.
The man dusted off his hands, wiping them on his work apron. He glanced expectantly, yet without much hope, at Jörmun. “Well? Do you need any tools? I think I have some bolts that may help, but the very state of the wood is beyond usage.”
“Not for long,” Jörmun grinned and under the watch of the other two, he put out his hands above the aged mast. With his fingers stretched wide above the wooden piece, he began to silently chant a spell, slowly starting to envelop the content he wanted to mend into a green, pulsating aura.
Maddie, who was already accustomed to the way Jörmun’s magic looked like, glanced to the side at Birger. She saw the man being astounded by what he was given to see, his gaze shifting focus back and forth between the spellcaster to the ship part.
When the mast was left to lay back down on the improvised support, it was nowhere near the rotten state they found it to be. It kept indeed the feeling of an older crafted piece, but it was perfectly usable.
Jörmun smirked, looking as if he was radiating at the sight of his accomplishment. He met the man’s eyes and awaited a reaction.
“This is impossible,” Birger murmured more to self as he stretched out a hand to touch the freshly repaired wood. He had never seen such a restoration in his entire life, leave alone anyone that was capable of doing it with bare hands, while the object was levitating in mid air.
“I believe we can all agree that it’s not,” Jörmun chuckled and offered a quick look to Maddie who joined his side; she was not smiling, visibly still a bit cautious of Birger. She was unsure of what to pick yet in regards to his perception of the happening; nor was she convinced that he was ready to be informed of the Skuldelev. However, her plans did not align with Jörmun’s.
“How were you even able to do this?” Birger asked.
“Magic,” he stated plainly, while his partner’s mind imploded with anxiety and confusion at his answer.
“Nonsense. I understand if you don’t wish to trade any sort of technology, but you don’t need to lie to my face like that,” he frowned, displeased with the answer.
“Believe what you please, Birger. I will not speak any further of the means of my doings, but I must ask again- will you respect the end of your bargain and help us rebuild the vessel?”
“Seeing how you put this sorry sight back together, I fail to understand why you still require my help?”
“Because the boat is still missing a few bits and pieces, which I cannot conjure.”
“Conjure?” Birger repeated, bewildered.
“It’s rather complicated,” Maddie chimed in, trying to balance the conversation to something more down to Earth, understandable for the human mind. “Will you help us with your woodworking skills? I doubt we will ever have the chance to find someone like yourself.”
The man pondered. While he was unconvinced that what he was given to see was magic, as one would describe in a fictional book, he felt ready to give their proposal a try. After all, Jörmun did keep his promise to prove that he was able to restore the mast.
“All right. I will help you,” Birger nodded, as if trying to make the decision settle for himself as well. “May I see the rest of the ship and evaluate the materials I would need for it as well as the time?”
“Ah yes, the time!” Jörmun exclaimed, capturing the attention of the rest. “It’s mandatory that whatever you plan on doing, it must be done by the Midwinter Solstice.”
Birger frowned, confused by the unusual request. He counted in his mind the months left, then offered the pair a defeated look. “I will see what I can do, but that is nearly six months away. Can I ask why do you need it by then? Is it for a festival of some sort?”
“A big day, that much I can tell,” Jörmun said before Maddie had the chance to invent something else. While he appreciated her general support, he preferred if the reins were within his hold, especially when it came to talking his way through things.
“I understand,” the man sighed. “So, where do we have to go to see the boat?” he pressed on as he watched Jörmun pat his chest with a smile on his lips. Birger opened his mouth to ask for clarification, but the other spoke quicker than his thoughts could align.
“Do you mind if we relocate your wonderful work?” Jörmun put a hand on the longship that the man was crafting.
“It will take me a day or two to be able to mount it on wheels and-”
“Ah, don’t bother,” he chuckled. “Do you have an object you always keep with you?”
“What does that have to do with- Look, I am losing my patience with your questions that make no sense.”
Maddie who could see where the proposal was going, given their previously encapsulated objects in mind-boggling small sized items, decided to intervene. “I believe you can trust him on this. I promise it will be one of the last surprising things you will witness for today,” she smiled nervously, sensing the growing tension between the two.
“One of the last? You’re both making me regret my decision,” he muttered under his breath, while searching his pockets for something. He eventually took out a small carved boat tied to his house keys, somewhat resembling a viking longship alike the one he built; an infantile interpretation of it.
“Well, that’s a nice fit,” Jörmun smiled as he took the sculpture. With one hand still on the ship under construction, he whispered low the same spell he made while they were at the museum. With a ghostly green veil crossing it from one side to the other, the wooden construction disappeared without a trace.
“What have you done?!” Birger threw himself ahead, pacing desperately through the workshop where his creation stood moments before. He then glanced at Jörmun. He watched him offer back the small sculpture.
“Your beloved work is carefully stored here. Please don’t lose it,” he regarded Birger take the toy-like boat and stare at it in disbelief.
“You have no idea what meaning that has to me. It’s more than a mere replica.”
“I understand you have a sentimental connection to it, but I assure you it’s safe. I will prove this by undoing the process with the Skuldelev that we have brought along,” he gestured for the other to step aside, as he took out the etched rock from his inner pocket at his chest. He could feel both Birger and Maddie’s eyes on him as he broke the spell with a complicated gesture of his hand, having the stolen ship lay now before them.
“Remarkable,” Birger approached the Skuldelev, examining it closely.
“It’s the stolen ship from the museum,” Jörmun said bluntly, to the shock of the other two.
Birger stared at Maddie, who just shrugged, visibly shooting a panicked look to the fiery haired one, who seemed to be the lone pleased person in the room; there was no trace of guilt or concern on his face.
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