Civ cannot believe what Horm is saying. Looks like Horm was absent-minded earlier while talking with the Tribe leader.
'Alright take a deep breath Civ. He is your friend, so there is no need to hurt him.' Civ is really at his tipping point right now and is on the verge of scolding Horm.
"To make it simple, let's talk about it from the beginning."
Civ patiently tells Horm about what happened just an hour ago. Then reminded Horm about what the Tribe leader commanded them.
"Ahhhh I get it now." Horm looks enlightened, but there is still a shadow of doubt in his eyes.
Horm picks two stones and smashes both like a machete falling down to cut a bamboo.
BANG
The stone was cut in half.
Civ's mouth hung wide open, and unable to blink his eyes for a moment. He feels like a demigod descended and possessed Horm at that moment.
He asks, "Horm, can you do that again with another stone?"
Horm nodded. He picked up another stone and did the same thing.
BANG
The same result but with a louder sound.
'Horm's strength is no joke.'
While being distracted by the strength of his friend. He gathered his thoughts and reminded Horm.
"Horm, can you look for this kind of stone? If you find one, put it here at the top of the tree stump. But next time, try to use a smaller stone to break the bigger stones."
Civ gave Horm the axe-like stone. Horm nodded and started checking the big stones.
"While you are doing that, I'll try to gather some berries for us since we will be doing this all day."
"Alright Civ, just don't go too far from the camp."
Civ nodded and left Horm. He did his morning exercise while looking for some berries.
Finishing his daily routine, he went home first. Then gathered the tools he needed for flint knapping and went back to the back of the cave.
When he arrived, Horm was still breaking stones.
"Hey Horm, how are we doing?"
He looked at the tree stump. He saw three broken stones that had the same characteristics as the original axe stone they had.
"We have some of the stones that have the same look."
"Great! Now stop what you are doing and let's eat these berries."
They start eating, and while Horm is taking a break, Civ starts inspecting the stones Horm breaks.
It has the same characteristics. Shiny, glassy, and waxy. He gently smashed the stone at a specific angle and -
Clink
A chip of stone was removed.
Horm's eyes widened "How did you do that?"
Civ smiled and looked at Horm. "You can smash the stone, but with less force."
During their deep discussion, "Hey guys, what is going on?"
Both of them looked, and Arsh had just arrived.
"Sorry guys, I was tasked yesterday to gather food. Hey Civ, I heard your hand was wounded."
Civ nodded and instructed Horm to continue breaking rock. Then, he started explaining to Arsh what had happened yesterday and today.
Arsh's worries disappeared after hearing that his friend was not badly injured again.
"Seems bad luck follows you," Arsh said jokingly.
"Heh! I'm still lucky though, see? I'm still alive, and also, we discovered this."
Civ showed her the original stone that made him bleed.
"If we can understand how this can make me bleed, I think we can use it in a different way."
"Like?"
"I don't know for now. But hopefully killing a boar?"
Arsh rolled her eyes and sighed, "Urgh! Why are you obsessed with that boar? We barely escaped death with that monster, but right now you are still thinking about it."
Hearing the nagging from Arsh, he can't help but smile.
"You might not understand my desires yet. But when that time comes, you will come and beg for me to find more boars".
"Yeah! Beg for more boars to stomp you!".
Civ laughs out loud - "Since you are here, help us with this one."
"Okay, where should I start?"
"You see this one Arsh? Try like this."
Civ shows Arsh how to remove some of its parts by hammering it in a certain position with the right force.
CLINK
A flake was removed.
Civ continued to remove some and showed it to Arsh.
"See? Were you able to do it?"
Full of anticipation, Civ reached out his hands, giving the reduced stone to her.
Arsh furrowed her brows while squinting her eyes.
"Uhm I guess so?"
Arsh accepted the stones and followed the sequence of how Civ did it, and -
CLINK
Another flake was removed.
"Great! You follow right away!". Civ exclaimed. His eyes were sparkling like twilight.
"Since you can follow my lead, you can continue working on that stone and I'll let you know when to stop."
A deep sense of fulfillment settled within Arsh.
"Alright tell me when I can stop."
During Arsh's mentoring, Horm was able to get two more stones from the pile.
"This is enough. Horm, you can stop for now and let me teach you also."
Civ explained to Horm again what they had left off earlier.
But after following what Civ instructed.
BANG
The stone shattered into pieces.
"That is fine Horm. It is part of the learning. Let's try again but be more gentle,"
They tried three times, but the result is still the same.
Civ sighed heavily. Knowing how heavy Horm's hands are, maybe this is not a task he can do.
"We can stop now Horm. Since this is the last stone we have. Please get some more from the river and bring it here."
"Okay. I'll get more " Horm leaves with a shoulder slumped.
After Horm leaves, he focuses his attention on Arsh. She painstakingly reduced the stone she was holding to almost the size of a palm.
"That's good Arsh, you can stop for now. Let me see that stone."
Asrh gives the stone to Civ, and he notices that her hand has some cuts.
"You are bleeding also Arsh. It is better if you go to the Shaman to let her tend to your wounds."
"Do not worry too much, I don't feel any pain yet.".
Civ looked at Arsh. He felt that in her silence, it was an unyielding resolve to help him finish this task.
Knowing that he cannot persuade her friend, Civ focuses on the task in front of him.
Seeing that the stone was already in the shape of completion, he did not hesitate to finish this.
Using the tools that he had made from antlers, he started the finishing touches and added a handle to it. Using some animal skin that was around 3 inches wide, he warped the handle.
Civ showed it to Arsh with a proud smile appearing on his face.
"Look, this is what I imagined."
Arsh grabs it and inspects the stone knife.
"Here, try sliding it to this." He handed her an animal skin.
She placed it on the tree stump and ran the knife to the edge of the animal's skin.
It cut through the animal's skin and separated a small part of the edge.
"Amazing!" Arsh brightened as she was mesmerized by what she experienced.
"What do you think?"
"This stone is incredible."
"Alright once Horm returns, we will go to my father to show this.".
"Can you make one for me too? I really liked it!" Arsh looked at Civ with puppy eyes.
"Heh! Do it yourself. I'll teach you and you can make it." A mischievous smile appeared on Civ's face.
"Tch! Even if I'm your friend, can you not give me something? I helped you create this." Arsh reminded Civ.
"Don't be mad, I'll help you with another one later. For now, let's clean this up. There are so many pieces of stone on the ground. We need to clean this, or else this might harm our tribesmen. But be careful not to cut your fingers."
Arsh agrees and starts carefully cleaning the area. They put it into the very edge of the back of the cave.
A couple of minutes pass, Horm arrives.
"Hey guys, I got the stones."
"Thanks Horm, leave it here for now. Let's take a rest and eat these berries."
Time just passes by. Civ cannot believe they are able to create the knife in just half a day. The plan is going smoothly, but there is a sense of uneasiness that he cannot describe.
He set it aside for now, and they went to his father.
When they arrived, they found his father helping to rebuild the huts.
"Father, we have already discovered something about the stones."
"Really? Let's go now to the Shaman's hut and talk about it there."
They silently agreed. The three of them followed the Tribe leader to the middle of the camp where the Shama stays. Kivrah notices the wounds on Arsh's hands. But since it's not bleeding, he does not say anything and continues to their destination.
"Shaman, Civ and his friends said they have discovered something about the stones. But first, please tend to the wounds of Arsh."
The Shaman looked at the cuts on Arsh's hands and did not say anything. Based on the cuts, she is guessing it was because of the stones. She tends the wounds while they are discussing.
"Civ, tell me. What did you discover?"
Civ rolled the animal skin, and in the middle, the black knife appeared.
"Father, this is what we discovered".
He picked up the knife and did the same thing Arsh did earlier. Then he cut the edge of the animal skin.
Except for Civ and Arsh, everyone inside the hut has their eyes widened. Something new and incomprehensible filled the area.
"My son, please let me look at that." Civ immediately hands the knife to his Father, presenting the handle first.
Upon further inspection, Kivrah notices the teeth-like edges on the stone. The surface is smooth, and it has a good grip.
An Item that can separate animal skin and make us bleed? Everyone is in awe of this marvel.
"Son, since you are the one who discovered and made it possible. What should we name this item?"
Civ is acting like he is silently contemplating what they should name the item. But in reality, his heart is beating faster. He wants to tell the world what he has contributed to humanity at this moment.
"Tribe leader, let's call it a Stone Knife". Civ gracefully bows slightly as an act of asking permission to name it.
"Stone knife." Tribe Leader Kivrah blurted out the name multiple times while staring at it and smiled.
"Alright, by the blessing of the Sun Goddess. Let's name it Stone Knife."
Kivrah raised it to the sky and let the sunlight pass it. Civ noticed everyone except his Father kneeled. Then started prostrating, so he followed suit. He heard their Shaman saying an unfamiliar language and looking like she was praying. While the prayer was going on, Civ got a light sensation, something ethereal, something - divine. He just closed his eyes. After a moment, the Shaman finished her prayer, and the sensation slowly disappeared.
"Since the three of you made this, can you make more of the stone knife?"
The trio looked at each other, smiled, and immediately bowed. "Yes Trible leader, just give us more time".
"Good! I'll be trusting you all for this task. I'll let you all be exempted from tribal duties for collecting berries. You all can focus on making stone knives."
Hearing this, Horm and Arsh felt relieved. They would not be endangering themselves by collecting food.
However, their good friend interrupted the good atmosphere.
"Tribe Leader, can I ask you something?"
Confused, Kivrah wants to hear what his son wants to say.
"Go ahead, son."
"Since you need us to focus on this task, I want something in return. "
"What, is it?"
"Can you let me leave the camp again?"