Testing the Level

I laid both clawed hands upon the pocket aluminum spirit level resting on the worktable. A cylindrical vial of pale green fluid sat sealed within the machined frame. Inside, a solitary air bubble drifted under hydraulic tension. I did not shift the tool hastily. Planting my feet wide on the timber, I applied measured, steady leverage, nudging the aluminum bar across the pine grain. The bubble reacted. It drifted against the glass curve, hesitated, then settled dead center between the twin black calibration marks. Zero inclination. The workbench holds true. I held my post beside the level, studying the steady equilibrium.