[center][h1][color=808080][b]7[/b][/color][/h1][/center]




	Torn did not lead Jack through the house to the basement. Instead, there was a hatch outside on the ground built into the large stone tiles near the rear wall of the house. The hatch was of double doors that were sealed shut by a large iron bar laid over them. One end of the bar was fixed to the ground tiles by a hinge fixture which was bolted to the stone tiles, the other end was held in place by an iron latch - also bolted to the ground tiles - with a heavy mechanism that Torn unlocked using a large key to release that end of the bar. 

There was nothing wrong with keeping ones goods locked up, Jack thought, but this seemed a tad excessive for such a seemingly peaceful little town. 

The bulky Blacksmith lifted the iron bar aside as if it were nothing, he opened the double doors, then clambered down into the darkness of his basement. Jack hesitated, but followed cautiously. The daylight from the above opening was ample to guide his way down the crooked staircase to the floor, where he stood patiently until Torn lit a fire inside a meter-wide iron ring cupola in the center of the room. 

The large stone basement, covering the area of a small house, had a strong wet-sock odour of mould with a hint of what was possibly urine. The display, however, was impressive: Three walls covered from ceiling to floor in shelves and racks and cabinets displaying the many item Torn had for sale. Hundreds of item were here: Weapons, tools, utensils, all manner of metal-based household items and other things that Jack couldn’t explain off hand. The fourth wall held a wooden arched door, closed, next to which was a dark wood tabletop the size of a dining table, one length of the tabletop was bolted to the wall, the other was supported by logs under both corners. On the table, against the wall, was a bookshelf, and on the opposite side of the table to the door were several timber and iron braced barrels stacked to the ceiling. 

Jack stood at first bewildered by what he was looking at. He marvelled at the work it would have taken, not only to dig out a subterranean room like this with nothing but primitive equipment and elbow grease, but how many hours must have gone into the manufacturing of all the crafted metal items on display. Torn had been busy. Sure, Jack knew next to nothing about the world he was in, or the land he was on, or even the surrounding towns or cities, but he still couldn’t help question just what a place like this had any business doing in a town like Greenfalls. 

[i]Hell[/i], Jack remembered the words Torn had spoken outside, [i]even the King knows that.[/i]