I got the disc into place and then used my rod and a hammer to form the disc into a cup shape with a single strike. Then I pulled magic into my hands to weld the rod to my hand and pushed it into the rings until it reached the bottom.
This was not something that Gwenth could do herself, but the key to all this would be making a press that could. There were already three presses in the room that could be cannibalized to make one, so I was sure Gwenth would be able to figure it out.
Once that was done, I flipped the rings over and pushed in till the round end poked out. I reached over and grabbed a hammer and smacked it flat with a beveled edge for the…
Primer.
Without the solution that would ignite the powder, this would all be for nothing.
Flipped it over and pushed the casing out, picked it up, and turned to Gwenth, handing her the small metal bullet jacket.
"Hey, you don't happen to have some sea salt or water and some lead?" I asked.
For this, a corrosive primer would be fine, and everything that I needed could come from seawater. There was not likely to be a scientist that could make me some potassium chlorate or lead thiocyanate; I knew alchemy.
"What do you think so far?" I asked, and Gwenth looked at the small cylinder in her hand.
"If you are hoping that I will be impressed, I am not, but I am sure I just don't understand it," Gwenth sighed, and I nodded.
"This is just the first of many other steps we are going to have to take, but I promise you that it will be worth it. Do you think that you can make more of those?" I asked, and Gwenth nodded.
"Now that I have seen you make it, I am sure that I can make a press to do what you did in motion," Gwenth explained, and I nodded.
"Perfect. I will have to get back to you tomorrow because I am going to have to make a primer solution so the bullets can fire. Once I have that, then we need a centrifuge to spin the primer into the bottom cavity I left. Then we fill them with black powder and cap them with a lead bullet or tin works. Hopefully, we don't blow up from the primer, but when we have a bullet made, we will work on the barrel," I explained, and Gwenth shrugged.
"I am used to having the black powder explode in my face," Gwenth said casually, but I gave her a severe look.
"This stuff, primer, is not black powder and is extremely dangerous. It is not something to joke around about, or you will lose a finger, hand, or even your life. Primers are made from extremely reactive chemicals that ignite when hit. You don't need a spark to light it; the primer makes the spark, so to speak. If I am going to show you this stuff, you are going to have to keep your shop clean and things put away. I will also help you make a safe area to make the bullets. There are better ways to do this, but we don't have tools to create center fire primer yet," I explained in a serious tone that made Gwyneth's eyes go big.
"You can make it explode from dropping it?" Gwenth asked, and I lifted my eyebrows to give her a look that said exactly.
"The thing is, I don't really know enough to tell you exactly how much force it would take, but I assume dropping a jar of the stuff would make a hell of a pop. Nitro-based compounds are hazardous to work with," I explained, and Gwenth nodded.
"I can see why you were so upset about my shop. Well, if this is the first step, then I will work on making the casing and leave the dangerous stuff to you for now. You seem like you know what you are talking about but still need to work something out first," Gwenth said, and I nodded.
"That is the case. There are just many different ways that it has been done, but not all of them are good, and some are just too advanced for what we have right now. In the future, I hope to be able to do this a different way, but we will work with what we have. Now, I have another Dwarf to deal with, but before I go, is there anything you would like to tell me about Wispy besides being a spy?" I asked.
"Well, not really much to say about her. We were really good friends, then I found out she was a spy for my family's competitors. I found out because she had stolen one of my designs and gave it to them. She had talked about wanting to become one, but I had told her that no one would ever trust her again. Turns out she didn't like the job and wants to come to stay with me, the one she stole from! You think that I still believe that she isn't still a spy?!"
Gwenth had started calm, but by the time she was done, she was almost yelling. I could understand why she was mad, and I had no real pity for Wispy.
"Well, I think that I will be using her as a spy, and she will be linked to me. After that is done, you can trust her again, if you want. There will be no way for her to steal from you because I won't allow it. I kind of hope that she is still a spy because I was pretty convinced by her story," I chuckled, and Gwenth frowned at me.
"What do you want a spy for?"
"What do you use a spy for?"
"Spying?"
"That is the one! I want to use her to spy on people. Some people act one way around some people and then show their true personality when no one is watching. I am sure you know what I mean," I said, and Gwenth nodded.
"That does make sense, but it is none of my concern. Do you think you will be by tomorrow?" Gwenth asked, and I shrugged.
"Not sure yet, but likely the day after. I still have to collect what I need to make the primer and then attempt to make it. This will take a bit of time, so bear with me and keep up the production of the casing for now. This type isn't reusable, so we will need a lot of them," I said and left the shop.
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