DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND,
here is the first segment in Paper Dragon's short story Copper.
Sora pushed back his goggles and wiped his forehead with the back of his glove. “Uncle, we can stop here,” he said.
“Nonsense, Sora! We’re nearly done with it!” Kunio Nakahara pounded the sheet of metal with a hammer again, so orange sparks flew off into the furnace below.
“You said that a month ago,” Sora said bluntly. “Face it, this project is never going to be finished.”
Kunio ignored Sora and stuck out a hand. “Show me the plans for the torso piece again,” he said. Sora sighed, rummaged around a pile of papers, and finally pulled out a large blueprint to give to his uncle. Kunio examined it, then checked the metal plate he had been shaping for the past hour. “Damn, it’s too heavy.” He crossed something out on the paper and put the metal away. “Sora, just because we haven’t quite figured it out now, doesn’t mean we won’t be able to build it in the end.”
“Building a robot of that caliber is practically impossible!” Sora protested. “A walking, TALKING robot? I’ve gone along with your schemes for this long, but I’ve got half a mind to find work somewhere else.”
“That’s a laugh! Who would take you on?”
“Thank you, for your support, uncle,” Sora said, rolling his eyes and taking his gloves off. “I advise you stick to clockmaking.” Kunio shook his head and patted Sora on the shoulder before starting to take off his apron and goggles.
Kunio Nakahara was Sora’s only living relative. Sora’s parents were both killed in a freak accident when he was two, and the job of babysitter was passed to Kunio. People said he was a brilliant clockmaker, one of the best who really understood each cog and gear. Sora had been Kunio’s apprentice ever since he could remember, helping his uncle particularly in metalworking. When he was eight, Kunio found a new project to work on; an iron man. This robot, he said, could move like a normal human, but would be indestructible in war. Ever since then, Kunio had been obsessed with the robot and Sora had gotten swept along in his schemes, and they had been working on the robot almost every minute after the clock store was closed.
Someone knocked on the door unexpectedly. “Hello? Is anyone there?”
“Akane,” Sora said immediately. He checked his reflection in the mirror, and, suddenly realizing his face was smeared with soot, started trying to clean himself before she came in.
“Come in, Akane!” Kunio called. Sora tried to shush him, but it was too late. She walked in and smiled at them. “Hi.”
“Sorry about the mess,” Sora said apologetically. Akane laughed.
“That’s okay. Have you been working on that robot?”
Before Kunio could say anything, Sora said, “trying and failing. We aren’t getting very far. Steam technology is a bit new for us.”
“I could ask my father to help you,” Akane offered. Her father, the esteemed M. Kato, owned a train company.
“No, we prefer to do our own work,” Kunio said, a bit snappishly.
“Akane, I’ll be right out. I just have to get a bit cleaned up, then we can go out for something to eat,” Sora told her. “Wait outside in the shop.”
She nodded and left. “What is wrong with you, uncle?” Sora suddenly burst out as soon as she had closed the door of the workshop. “You don’t have to be rude to her, she was just trying to help! I know your work is important to you, but some advice and tools from someone like Iwao Kato could really help you.”
“I don’t have anything against her, or her father. I want to achieve this by myself”
“Then you ought to be a bit politer,” Sora grumbled, turning back to the mirror to scrub the dirt off his face. “And I look like a bloody coal-shoveler,” he said irritably. Kunio pulled some of the plans for the robot closer and began pouring over them.
A few minutes later, when Sora had sufficiently gotten most of the soot dust from the furnace off his face, he met Akane outside. They got tea from a street vendor and talked as they strolled down the street. Sora and Akane had known each other for two years now, both were at the marrying age, and both liked each other very much. Akane’s parents were pressuring her to get married soon, her being a lady of stature, but not to the clockmaker’s nephew. And Kunio was no help in giving Sora advice on wether or not he should propose soon, since he was so bent on his work and that robot.
“So, your uncle is still working on that robot, right?” Akane inquired, almost reading his mind.
“Yes, but I’ve told him to stop. He can be pretty stubborn.”
“It sounds like fun though.” Sora raised his eyebrows at her, and she said, “really! What if you actually built it? Wouldn’t it be a revolutionary invention?”
“That’s a nice dream, Akane, but I can guarantee that will never happen.”
Just then, he heard someone running behind him. He turned to look, and suddenly came face to face with his uncle. “Sora! Come quick!”
“What happened?” Sora asked in bewilderment. “Did something happen at the workshop?”
“No. Well, kind of.”
“An accident?”
“Of sorts…”
“Did you break something?”
“Far from it! Sora, you need to come back with me!”
“But- but what about Akane?” Sora stuttered.
“The girl can do whatever the hell she wants! Just get back to the workshop!” Kunio started sprinting back in the opposite direction, to the shop.
Sora and Akane watched him run for a few seconds. “I’m sorry,” Sora said, “I’ll come to your house later.” He sprinted down the cobblestone street after his uncle.
here is the first segment in Paper Dragon's short story Copper.
Sora pushed back his goggles and wiped his forehead with the back of his glove. “Uncle, we can stop here,” he said.
“Nonsense, Sora! We’re nearly done with it!” Kunio Nakahara pounded the sheet of metal with a hammer again, so orange sparks flew off into the furnace below.
“You said that a month ago,” Sora said bluntly. “Face it, this project is never going to be finished.”
Kunio ignored Sora and stuck out a hand. “Show me the plans for the torso piece again,” he said. Sora sighed, rummaged around a pile of papers, and finally pulled out a large blueprint to give to his uncle. Kunio examined it, then checked the metal plate he had been shaping for the past hour. “Damn, it’s too heavy.” He crossed something out on the paper and put the metal away. “Sora, just because we haven’t quite figured it out now, doesn’t mean we won’t be able to build it in the end.”
“Building a robot of that caliber is practically impossible!” Sora protested. “A walking, TALKING robot? I’ve gone along with your schemes for this long, but I’ve got half a mind to find work somewhere else.”
“That’s a laugh! Who would take you on?”
“Thank you, for your support, uncle,” Sora said, rolling his eyes and taking his gloves off. “I advise you stick to clockmaking.” Kunio shook his head and patted Sora on the shoulder before starting to take off his apron and goggles.
Kunio Nakahara was Sora’s only living relative. Sora’s parents were both killed in a freak accident when he was two, and the job of babysitter was passed to Kunio. People said he was a brilliant clockmaker, one of the best who really understood each cog and gear. Sora had been Kunio’s apprentice ever since he could remember, helping his uncle particularly in metalworking. When he was eight, Kunio found a new project to work on; an iron man. This robot, he said, could move like a normal human, but would be indestructible in war. Ever since then, Kunio had been obsessed with the robot and Sora had gotten swept along in his schemes, and they had been working on the robot almost every minute after the clock store was closed.
Someone knocked on the door unexpectedly. “Hello? Is anyone there?”
“Akane,” Sora said immediately. He checked his reflection in the mirror, and, suddenly realizing his face was smeared with soot, started trying to clean himself before she came in.
“Come in, Akane!” Kunio called. Sora tried to shush him, but it was too late. She walked in and smiled at them. “Hi.”
“Sorry about the mess,” Sora said apologetically. Akane laughed.
“That’s okay. Have you been working on that robot?”
Before Kunio could say anything, Sora said, “trying and failing. We aren’t getting very far. Steam technology is a bit new for us.”
“I could ask my father to help you,” Akane offered. Her father, the esteemed M. Kato, owned a train company.
“No, we prefer to do our own work,” Kunio said, a bit snappishly.
“Akane, I’ll be right out. I just have to get a bit cleaned up, then we can go out for something to eat,” Sora told her. “Wait outside in the shop.”
She nodded and left. “What is wrong with you, uncle?” Sora suddenly burst out as soon as she had closed the door of the workshop. “You don’t have to be rude to her, she was just trying to help! I know your work is important to you, but some advice and tools from someone like Iwao Kato could really help you.”
“I don’t have anything against her, or her father. I want to achieve this by myself”
“Then you ought to be a bit politer,” Sora grumbled, turning back to the mirror to scrub the dirt off his face. “And I look like a bloody coal-shoveler,” he said irritably. Kunio pulled some of the plans for the robot closer and began pouring over them.
A few minutes later, when Sora had sufficiently gotten most of the soot dust from the furnace off his face, he met Akane outside. They got tea from a street vendor and talked as they strolled down the street. Sora and Akane had known each other for two years now, both were at the marrying age, and both liked each other very much. Akane’s parents were pressuring her to get married soon, her being a lady of stature, but not to the clockmaker’s nephew. And Kunio was no help in giving Sora advice on wether or not he should propose soon, since he was so bent on his work and that robot.
“So, your uncle is still working on that robot, right?” Akane inquired, almost reading his mind.
“Yes, but I’ve told him to stop. He can be pretty stubborn.”
“It sounds like fun though.” Sora raised his eyebrows at her, and she said, “really! What if you actually built it? Wouldn’t it be a revolutionary invention?”
“That’s a nice dream, Akane, but I can guarantee that will never happen.”
Just then, he heard someone running behind him. He turned to look, and suddenly came face to face with his uncle. “Sora! Come quick!”
“What happened?” Sora asked in bewilderment. “Did something happen at the workshop?”
“No. Well, kind of.”
“An accident?”
“Of sorts…”
“Did you break something?”
“Far from it! Sora, you need to come back with me!”
“But- but what about Akane?” Sora stuttered.
“The girl can do whatever the hell she wants! Just get back to the workshop!” Kunio started sprinting back in the opposite direction, to the shop.
Sora and Akane watched him run for a few seconds. “I’m sorry,” Sora said, “I’ll come to your house later.” He sprinted down the cobblestone street after his uncle.