diymy Chapter 846: Home Again
Chapter 846: Home Again
The pressure that built up in the chamber was more than Blaze had anticipated. The shard held and released power more easily than generators of the waking world, and as a result, the transfer of energy had gone much more smoothly than expected.
Too smooth.
The bulb pulsed so bright that it seemed like it would catch fire.
Instead, it burst.
Noble's warning came not a moment too soon. She did her best to contain the blast, but aerosolized pieces of glass still went in every direction.
The sudden release of pressure caused the structure to lurch to one side. It tipped, sending the last bit of water into the fissure with no bell to catch the steam on the way up.
Hot vapor ballooned up into the sky before cooling and falling in a lukewarm mist. Blaze opened his eyes to see the machine lying on its side, yet he hadn't heard a crash.
His mother had not let it plummet to the ground. Thanks to her, the machine was still in one piece—mostly.
That was not to say that it hadn't sustained some damage. Beyond the loss of the light bulb, the struts were bent from the jolt, and the cistern was dented in, with the valve dislodged.
Blaze ran toward his creation, only to be lifted in the air and floated over to it.
There was one thing that concerned him more than the rest of the structure. It was the part that he had built the entire project around.
"The shard!"
Noble floated her son to the casing, and he pulled open the hatch. He breathed a sigh of relief. Unlike the bulb, it hadn't burst.
Blaze pulled out the shard and held it up triumphantly.
"It's fine!"
As soon as the area was deemed safe, the rest of the group came to survey the scene.
Brock brought his younger brother the padded box. The shard was returned to it without the bulb to accompany it.
Blaze looked at the sheared-off glass. "That's going to be a pain to get out of the socket…hopefully that's the worst of it, though."
"You'll have to test the integrity of the whole thing, I'm afraid."
Fort pressed on one of the supports, and the nail gave way.
Thankfully, the structure was already on its side. The father held up the piece and winced.
"I promise that wasn't intentional!"
Blaze smiled inside his protective suit. "Wow, Dad, you don't know your own strength!" In a more subdued tone, he added. "In plugging the holes to build up pressure, I seem to have clogged the fail-safe."
"Is that what the nob on the back side was for? I did wonder." Teddy shrugged.
"Did you…?" Blaze decided he didn't want to know. "Thank you for helping get everything sealed. I could not have done it without you. Would you be able to come for the demonstration in a few days?"
Teddy smiled widely. "You want me to be there? I'm in!"
"Do you think you'll be ready in time?" Noble looked at all that needed to be done.
"I can file an official extension." Fort was already formulating the request in his mind.
"Can you get me a new bulb, Mom?" Blaze tapped his chin.
"Absolutely. I can have one tomorrow. Now that I know who to contact, it should go quickly." Noble had already navigated the channels once. "If I call in the right favors, I can probably get you a whole case."
Blaze nodded. "Then there is no need for a delay. I can get the rest of the work done, I'm sure of it!"
"I'll help you," Brock promised.
"Me too." Noble winked.
"Don't forget about me!" Teddy placed her hand in the center of the group. "I already said I was in."
"Teddy?" Fort pursed his lips. "Aren't you forgetting something? You have a job."
The assistant glanced at him, truly baffled. "What am I supposed to do with the other twenty-three hours of my day?"
Fort wasn't sure if he should laugh or cry that Teddy was able to legitimately cram an entire day of work into that short a time. Her results spoke for themselves, but still! He sighed.
"We will talk about how to better challenge you at work next week. For this week, consider yourself on construction duty."
"And by construction, you mean...." Teddy leaned forward.
"I mean, helping Blaze with what he needs." Fort nodded.
The assistant pumped her fist and put it back in the middle. "Team Blaze on three!"
The group hesitated.
"Teddy. There aren't any friendlies or unfriendlies on your hands right now, correct?" Noble rubbed the back of her neck.
"They just want to be part of the group!" Teddy blew out her cheeks. "Sorry, guys, humans only."
The family put their hands on top of Teddy's, and together they counted down. Team Blaze was official.
Unfortunately, the first official business was dismantling the contraption to be carted home. Noble could have floated the whole thing back to their house, but there was no great place to put it except in the street. Anyway, the prototype needed repairs, so it would have to be taken apart either way.
While the men began to remove the bolts and nails, Noble took Teddy for a final sweep of the volcano. Together, they floated around the edge. This close to the precipice, the noxious fumes made Noble want to gag, but she pushed aside the discomfort as she surveyed the scene.
"Are you sure there are no more Scorchlings down there?"
Teddy crinkled her nose, though whether it was from the question or the smell, Noble wasn't sure.
"There's nothing on the surface, but that's as far as I can go. The lava barrier would hide anything farther down." The assistant squinted as if that might give her a better view.
Noble had the same difficulty. The lava was made of molten stone and seemed like an even greater barrier than the few times she had looked for caves below the surface.
Noble sighed. "I wish we had a way to know for certain."
The assistant smiled. "Shall we take a swim and see if we can stir more up?"
"I… don't know if you are kidding or not." Noble blinked before shaking her head. "But I'm too fond of my armor to see how it will hold up against lava that is most likely enchanted."
Teddy shrugged lightly. "Ah, well, some other time, then."
The ladies returned from the edge, and the group took apart the device enough to transport it. Noble lifted the gear into the air with her telekinesis, and the team headed home for the day.
Teddy declined to join them for an afternoon meal. "I have a murder mystery party to attend later, and I have to get ready. Who knows? Maybe this time the murder will be pretend!"
"I…have fun, Teddy," Noble waved as the quirky young woman parted ways with them.
After setting the pieces of the device behind the house, Noble washed up before beginning her dinner preparation.
Soon the fire was stoked, and a simple bread that Sarai had taught her how to make was baking in their wood-fired oven.
The front door opened, and a familiar voice rang out.
"Mom! Dad! I'm home!"