by Eric Vall
“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Aurora said, and she flicked her gaze toward the house once more. “Like I said, no one’s returned after they left to meet with the heads of Houses.”
I furrowed my brow. “Do you think I should come up to the house and see what’s up?”
The half-elf shrugged. “I don’t know yet. I’ll send one of the girls if something comes up. Are you doing alright in here?”
I grinned. “Maybe.”
Aurora rolled her eyes, but then she quickly popped onto her toes to try and peek over my shoulder.
It was a wasted effort since she wasn’t nearly tall enough, and I smirked as I shoveled a piece of bread into my mouth. “You have no patience,” I mumbled through my bite.
“Of course I do,” she countered. “If I didn’t, those two idiot sons would have burned days ago.”
Aurora shrugged innocently and laid a kiss on my cheek before she turned around to head back toward House Aelin.
I knew what was coming, so I waited where I was for a moment, and after a few paces, Aurora gave her tiny skirt a little wiggle and sent me a coy smile over her shoulder.
I chuckled and nodded my approval before I closed the iron door and headed to the worktable to inhale the platter of food.
I probably tasted some of it, but I honestly didn’t register much once I started in on the meat. My stomach was nearly ready to start eating itself by that point, and within only a few minutes, I was sponging all of the drippings up with bread and fighting the urge to lick the plate clean like a dog.
The jug of wine helped wash it all down, and I settled my elbows on the table to let my body embrace the sustenance for a moment.
“Damn, that was good,” I told Stan. Then I added, “I think.”
Stan shook his head.
“What do you say we finish this baby up and get on the road?” I asked, and the metal man quickly jogged over to a lump of steel that waited at the end of the table. I nodded and headed over. “Yeah, that’ll do.”
I wanted to get the drive shafts installed before I began on the upper frame and secured the steering wheel, and this would be the most modified portion of the entire design.
The front and rear wheels on a car generally spun at different speeds unless it drove in a perfect straight line, so if I wanted to send power to all of the wheels, each differential would need separate drive shafts to allow them to have different rotational speeds.
Normally, I’d need a transfer case connected to the transmission to achieve this, but without a transmission, it would be useless. All I needed was a means of having the metal connect to the shaft of the steering column, and hopefully, the power of the gem would translate directly to each driving shaft through the metal.
The steering shaft needed support regardless, so I decided to use this point as a multi-functional assembly. A support bearing would fit around the steering shaft to allow free rotation while also keeping it rested at the right angle for the driver to steer comfortably. The plank of steel this bearing was welded to would secure to the frame of the dashboard, and I figured I’d attach both driveshafts at this point as well.
I used the chunk of steel Stan had selected to form the stout rods of the drive shafts at varying lengths that I could adjust further as I went.
The way I’d mounted the front differential had its pinion gear facing the rear, and I began here. First, I welded the base of a universal joint directly to the end of the pinion gear. Then I moved to the rear differential and did the same before I welded one of the longer drive shafts to the base of the second fork on the joint. I elongated the shaft a ways so it wouldn’t end up coming up through the floor of the car, and once it was long enough, I welded another base of a U-joint at this end as well. The second smaller shaft that met this long one at its joint would be connected to the support bearing on the steering column.
Once I’d welded the front differential’s shaft on as well, I stepped back and considered the size of the interior for a moment. I needed to know where the driver’s seat would be if I was going to mount the steering wheel at the proper height, so I picked up a lump of steel and began to mold it between my palms.
I added a few crossbeams to the base frame, and then I raised four mounds from two of them in order to secure the seat where I wanted it. Once I had the bottom of the seat formed, I welded it directly to the mounds and slowly pulled a backing up. I settled into the metal frame of the driver’s seat, and chuckled as I realized I was about seven inches too low in the car. It only took a small influx of magic to raise the cross beams a bit. Then I did the rest of the adjustments from the welds until I was in a more ideal position.
It was weird sitting in a car with no floor paneling, but I couldn’t even begin on this until the drive shafts were secured so I could create the right tunnel along the center of the car.
I didn’t want Stan to miss any of the action, and the sun had apparently almost set by now, so I got up to light the torches, and then I grabbed the jug, the metal man, and another chunk of steel before I returned to the frame of the seat. Stan dropped down on a cross member of the frame to swing his feet and watch the show, and I took a few swigs as I used my free hand to soften the steel.
“Let’s do this,” I said with a belch, and I set the jug on the shop floor to begin the upper frame.
I broke off a piece of steel and fused it with the side member just before the point where the wheelhouse would begin, and then I elongated the metal and flattened it into a sturdy enough plate to support the weight of the door.
I’d be able to make all of the final, more detailed adjustments to the shape of the frame as I attached the body later, but for now, I focused on the basics and spliced off another bit of steel to fuse at the front end of this plate. Then I carefully molded it into the wheelhouse shape and added more metal in order to wrap a steel bumper around the front of the base frame. I welded the inner edge to the side beams as I went, and then I nudged the last bit of steel over to complete the second wheelhouse.
Stan pointed to a rogue lump of metal near the iron door, and I nodded as I angled my palm to bring it over. Once I had a plate welded in place for mounting the passenger door, I only had to form a reinforcement beam from the top of this plate, across the top of the dashboard, and weld it to the corresponding point on my side.
Then I formed a second beam about a foot lower for extra structural support and decided this would be the mounting point for the support bearing of the steering shaft.
I split a small bit of steel off and settled the rest back to its solid state to place it aside on the floor. Instead of using the slim needles I’d used in bearings for other components, I made stouter cylindrical bearings and secured each one into a little slot around a thin ring. Then I formed a solid cylinder to encase the outer edge, and a second, smaller cylinder to secure in the center.
The bearings rolled smoothly between the two bracings of steel, so I lifted the upper shaft of the steering column and adjusted the angle to let it rest between the two beams I’d secured across the dashboard. Next, I focused on tweaking the bearings and their cylinders until the shaft fit through the center without disrupting the rotation, and then I cinched the metal to lock it around the shaft.
With the bearing in place, I created one last stout ring to encase the entire thing, and I flared a bit of metal at the base like two little arms. These arms welded directly to the bottom structural beam, and I gave the whole assembly a good shake to be sure it was completely secure. Nothing gave way by even a millimeter.
I quickly hopped up to grab the steering wheel from the worktable, and when I returned with it, Stan got to his feet and pointed for me to bring him closer.
I placed him on the beam beside the support bearing, and then I focused on guiding the shaft while I formed threads within the armature. Once the steering wheel was secured, I let the metal fuse together ever so slightly to avoid it coming loose if it was wrenched too quickly in the wrong direction.
Then I scooped Stan up. “Do me a favor,” I said, and I lowered him to the floor of the workshop. “I can’t see the wheels too well with the houses in place. I’m gonna turn the steering wheel, and I need you to check to be sure everything is working properly up there.”
Stan nodded and made his way to the studded wheels, and I took a deep breath as I slowly took a turn to the right. It wasn’t too easy to get things moving with manual steering, but I hoped the gem would help with this once it was embedded in the center of the armature.
Nothing seemed to be catching in the system at least, and I turned the wheel to the left next before I settled it back at dead center. Then I leaned out and looked to Stan beside the studded wheel.
“All good?” I asked.
Stan gave a hearty nod and a little hop as he skipped over, and I chuckled as I lowered my palm for him to jump on.
“Couldn’t have done it without you,” I told him, and the metal man raised his arm for a high five.
With the steering system fully assembled, I could finally mount the drive shafts, and as I stooped to lift the longer one that connected to the rear differential, I realized the weight might put too much pressure on the pinion gear it connected to.
I decided to create two more support bearings real quick, and once I had them fitted functionally at two points on the drive shaft, I laid the shaft back down and moved on to crafting the connector that would hold everything together.
I quickly realized that having to bring the rear drive shaft over to the left side of the car to meet the steering wheel would be too extreme of an angle for the universal joint to spin well. Now that everything was coming together, though, I figured I could just as easily secure the shaft to the center of the lower structural beam and still have the same direct connection I was looking for to transfer power.
This simplified a lot, and I quickly zeroed in on a design.
I had Stan keep track of all of the rollers I formed at an even faster pace by now, and I made the two bearings stouter than the steering shaft’s. The rotation of the drive shafts would be much faster and constant, and I didn’t want anything giving out. I created two outer housing cases with one end sealed, and Stan helped me arrange the stouter bearings within the outer ring I’d put inside. Once the inner rings held everything in place, I thickened the two cylindrical centers slightly and pulled the front driving shaft up.
It took more tweaking to get the mount right, because I needed to adjust the size of the cylinder a little to fit the shaft in again, while also making the right changes in the rollers to keep the bearing functionable. Once everything was in place, I carefully fused the steel of the drive shaft with the steel of the inner cylinder, and the last part was welding the sealed end of the bearing to the structural arm of the frame.
I repeated this process with the shaft that branched off the universal joint of the rear drive shaft, and where the two bearings mounted side by side, I decided to meld a solid lump of steel around the entire component. The last thing I did was give the shaft a solid kick to be sure it held, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“It’s done,” I sighed, and I took a long swig of wine as Stan did a little victory sprint along the beam to land on the steering wheel.
Then he pointed to the center of the armature, and my smile fell slightly.
“I don’t know, buddy,” I said uneasily. “I don’t think I’m ready for that to be honest.”
Stan stared, and then he pointed more insistently to the armature.
“I’m just not,” I told him after another gulp. “There’s a lot of reasons I’m not gonna get into with you right now. Let’s just … finish the assembly, alright? The gem is last.”
Stan threw up his arms and stalked off down the steering shaft, and I sighed.
“Don’t be like that,” I muttered. “Don’t you wanna see the rest of the frame and the interior in place?”
The little metal man flipped back around and nodded.
“Well, there we go,” I chuckled. “We’ll do that next.”
I shifted to get a look at the placement of the rear drive shaft and started with securing the two support bearings to the base of the frame. Then I climbed out to pull three chunks of steel from the shelf against the wall.
I wanted the driver’s seat to be adjustable so the women could drive comfortably if they wanted, but the sliding rail that made this possible would have to mount on top of the floor paneling, so I softened the welds I’d made to secure the driver’s seat frame and set it aside for later. Then I took two hefty chunks of steel and softened them out as I held them suspended above the base frame.
First, I filled in the two rear wheelhouses, and then I molded the steel to wrap around the back bumper. I added an extra cross beam between the side members at the back to support the weight of the trunk compartment I had tucked behind the water vat in the corner, and then I took a step back to get a feel for the center pillar for the back doors.
My adoptive father’s Mustang was a two-door, but even at the age of ten I was already too tall to put up with this design, so I wanted my own Mustang to have four doors. I’d taken this into account when I made the initial base frame, but I knew the rear doors weren’t going to be quite so long as the front, and I needed to find the right point of separation.
Once I had a good idea of the placement, I welded a bit of steel to the side member and raised the center pillar up before I folded over to form a roof rail, and let it run down the other side. I welded the other end to the opposite side member, and then I branched off from the point where the pillar bent to cross the roof. I pulled the steel out on either side, but I closed my eyes before I shaped the front and rear pillars of the top of the car.
They needed to have just the right shape to stand out as a classic Mustang, but this was tricky since I’d elongated the body to add an extra door on each side. In order to keep the elongated hood, I decided on two shorter suicide doors for the back, which made it easier to get as close as possible to the proper shape.
I closed my eyes and let the image I had in my mind control my magic as I molded the steel, and I blindly moved to the other side’s construction while I still had the dimensions fresh at hand.
When I opened my eyes, I needed to readjust the central pillar a bit, but aside from this, it already looked like my dad’s old Shelby. I grinned and ran another two beams along the front fenders, and with the rear fenders outlined as well, I took a step back to admire it all.
“There she is,” I told Stan, and he turned to look at me like he was a little less than impressed. “Don’t worry, it’s not done. That’s just the general frame.”
I pulled another hefty lump of metal up from the floor and as I approached the car, I fed it through the frame and softened it out completely. Then I let it expand and slowly lowered it to the base frame.
Crafting the floor plating in one solid piece was like painting and sculpting combined, and I moved in circles around the car as I caught angles that needed more of a dip and adjusted for the drive shaft and the rear seats. I closed off the back of the car with this solid layer, and I carefully eyed the metal as I formed a frame for the back seats. I let the steel curve gently at the top to create the rear deck that ended where the rear window glass would mount.
I climbed in with Stan to test the height of the back seats, and after shifting them a bit lower so my head wouldn’t smack against the ceiling, I lowered them another few inches to account for the cushions.
With a clear view of the front, I reached forward to extend the plating a bit and seal the interior off from the front assembly. Since the dashboard wouldn’t need any instrument panel, I lifted an extra chunk of steel to mold this out smoothly, and once I folded the metal under to leave room for our legs, I fused it directly to the floor plating. Then I closed off the front deck up to the point where the windshield would be installed.
I had a giant grin on my face by the time I finished, and Stan hopped down from the backseat frame to wander al
ong the empty interior. He nearly blended right in with the full metal design, and although it looked fantastic, I didn’t much like the super sleek sheen of everything. I decided to brush it all out to match the steering wheel instead, and I slouched back with my jug to finish off this final detail.
Brushing the metal with my eyes closed almost felt like scrubbing a really stubborn pan, but I moved in small circles all over the solid interior for several minutes until the entire place had the sheen I wanted.
Part of me could have just sat there all night and admired the sight, but a much more impatient part wanted to see it with the front seats and body completed. Stan was having too much fun using the gentle decline in the front floorboard like a slide, so I left him to enjoy himself while I climbed back out.
As my weight shifted, the entire car suddenly lurched, and I tripped out onto the workshop floor as the whole thing slipped sideways off the blocks I’d forgotten were underneath it.
My wine jug skidded across the shop, and I held my breath and hoped none of the gears or bearings were trashed. After a moment, nothing had shifted any further, and as I eyed the car now jacked sideways onto two wheels, it occurred to me that it was ridiculously heavy.
A lot of the frames I’d seen back on Earth were made of aluminum alloy for this exact reason, and considering none of the interior was made of plastic, the entire makeup was way too heavy. I didn’t know if the channeling gem would struggle with this, but I didn’t want to get stuck in the softer terrain down south either way.
So, I groaned, stood up, and lowered the car to the ground as I should have once the wheels were all mounted.
As I summoned my magic to lift the car, I had to laugh at the weight. It really was a beast, but I quickly shifted the steel blocks out and settled it down on its studded tires. Then I pulled the stool over from the worktable.
I sat down and closed my eyes, and as I sent my magic through the framing of the car, I felt for the strongest and weakest points. To my surprise, there wasn’t a single weak point.
