{Continued from ‘Security’ in ‘The Sewers’}

Deciding to circumvent the Hovel for the time being, so that no one gets hurt while he is still calming down from the mislaid trap, Hyde instead heads out to Goblin Town to do some work. The forge always calms him, maybe it is the rhythm and the sound that lull him so, more likely, it is just the act of beating the shit out of something with a hammer.

As he enters, he removes his hat and places it on the clothes-valet that he made from the Shug-Monkey’s skull and bones, muttering a cheerful greeting to the remains of his former Broodmate before heading over to the work-table to fasten his newly-made handles to their waiting counterparts.

The ancient handle to his beloved cane screws onto the threads easily enough. He gives it a showy twirl and slams it into the floor to test its durability before setting it near his hat

He cannot resist the urge to test the hammer immediately, he has been tenderly pinging things with it for decades, trying not to break it and he just has to know if this one can take a full swing. He grabs a block of steel from the corner nearby and holds it over the anvil, slamming his new toy into it with every ounce of strength he can muster, flattening the corner of the quarter-inch thick bar to tin-foil. The hammer does not break, nor even vibrate and Hyde is thrilled, almost giddy.

He eyes the gargantuan maul that he pieced together, and then looks to the tunnel he had started with it so many times before. Snatching it up, he positions himself, kicks a couple of the other broken hafts out of the way and steadies for a swing. The fifty pound steel head slams into the granite, blasting a hunk of stone the size of a man free from the lapidarious wall in splinters of showering rocks and spark. He throws his head back in laughter, clearly enjoying himself. “At’ll do. At’ll do nicely.” he adds, hefting the digging tool up and down in his hands.

He has been delayed for far too long in digging his Brood a back door out of town, in case things get out of hand. He is about to take another swing when Mister Grey crackles into his ear informing him of the trespasser he nabbed…

{Continued in ‘Sinking ships and slow steps…’ in ‘The Hovel’}