As I feel the heft of the Armament in my hands, my thoughts go past all the envious gazes around me to the day I first received it. It was a month ago, about two weeks after I met the Grandsmith for the consultation. I say consultation, it was more like he extracted the best design from my incoherent explanations. It was beneficial to me too, as I had hardly had an abstract fighting session like that, it was usually just practising specific moves or sparring with others. Till then, despite my ambitions, I had neither thought of nor spent any time fighting (imaginary) enemies of the war-waging variety. All I could hope for then was that the Grandsmith would deliver a weapon to meet my ambitions. I had even resolved to change my path to fit the weapon if necessary, both trusting of the Grandsmith’s ability and the unimaginable strength that was an Armament.

The day I was to receive the Armament, I woke up early to the fussing over of maidservants. I was dressed in a sombre hued black suit hemmed with gold, perfectly suiting my military ambitions, yet opulent enough to subtly display the wealth of the royal family. The invite had come a few days ago, and it was to be a private affair, with only me and my parents as the invited. Once I was dressed up, I was passed from my maidservants to my mother, who fussed over me, straightening my shirt, smoothing out invisible wrinkles and almost ruffling my hair before the thought of the royal meeting stopped her, and she settled with fussing over my shirt again. She and my father were both dressed in their court finery, clothes of black and gold with shimmering stretches of red weaved in between, a display of both wealth and royal lineage. Both were visibly beside themselves in joy and pride, with smiles of such genuine joy on their face that I could not help but break into one myself.

When the time came, we rode our carriage from our estate all the way to the royal housing, where we alighted and entered an antechamber of the main palace, much like the room I had first met the King in. His attire was similar to my parents, less opulent yet much more regal. The gold and red had been minimally but masterfully embroidered into the cloth, painting a rich visage of flying serpent-dragons soaring amidst clouds. The room around was tastefully decorated, with nothing popping out, but every element is tastefully chosen and flawlessly clean. I noticed all this as I walked before the king, before bowing.

“Greetings King Drubal. Words cannot express how appreciative I am of the Armament you have bestowed me. I swear to use it in defence of this kingdom and in pursuits of its enemies.”

“It’s good to see you again little cub. I am greatly pleased that you attuned to the bloodflame. We are always in need of great warriors and greater leaders. Take this Armament as in investment, and prove to me that it was worth it. Step forward now and receive your Armament.”

I eagerly stepped forward, and all thought faded from my mind as I beheld the weapon the king held horizontally in his arm. He held a pole-axe, about a head longer than I stood tall, with a wickedly huge axe head on one side and a flat bludgeoning surface on the other. The spike in between the two tapered to a wicked sharp point, and it was abundantly clear that the weapon was designed to kill. It had a magnificent red-gold colour, and it pulled me towards it like nothing had ever before. It was all I could do to restrain myself and receive the weapon with two hands while thanking the king once again.

Once I stepped back and properly held the weapon, I almost feel the weapon sing to me, telling me of its might and its eagerness to be put to use. Had I been any less aware of where I was, I might very well have started swinging it around and testing combat moves with it. With the simple but meaningful ceremony concluded, the King took his leave, leaving me and my parents alone with the Gransmith, who had been standing in the King’s shadow until now.

My parents and the Grandsmith exchange pleasantries before the Grandsmith asks if they would mind letting me stay with him for a few more hours to go over the weapon. Pleased to have me spend even more time with the elusive Grandsmith, my parents eagerly agree. They leave after a quick hug, leaving only the two of us in the room.

“Look at you, grinning like your mouth might split open. Hard to blame you though, it's an exceedingly rare sight to see one as young as you with an Armament, even among the upper 5 kingdoms. To be given a reward like this for just a tournament win, the ability to control bloodlust and a rare attunement is frankly unusual. It usually has a very large prerequisite in military merits or achievements in other fields. Among those at your age, only scions of military and economic powerhouse families would barely qualify to receive an Armament, and even then they would have to belong to an Upper 10 kingdom to afford it. A kingdom like ours…. Sigh, let's just say that you are blessed with an opportunity that people would kill and be killed for. A Lower 50 Kingdom would wage a war for it, but then again we don't bother with kingdoms ranked that low. Anywho, I hope you understand the magnitude of this reward, and that this is a huge investment, not just in you as an individual, but in a future leader of the kingdom. Let's get you accustomed to the weapon, follow me.”

I follow behind the Grandsmith silently, my mind filled with the implications of what he just said. Given that the plan was largely cooked up by my parents, I had assumed it to be a better than average reward, not something so precious to the kingdom as a whole. My parents likely knew the shortage of talent the kingdom was facing and used that to secure this tremendous advantage for me. The trust both the king and my family have in me is something I swear to never let down. I feel myself standing taller having made that resolution, having found a guiding principle for my life.

Through a few twisting turns we pass, crossing a meandering stone path to reach the Grandsmith’s house. A rather humble affair, now that I get a second look at it. Given the Grandsmith’s prestige and wealth he most likely could have a manor second only to the palace in sheer opulence. But it would make sense that only one with smithing and enchanting so close to his heart would be able to make it as far as he had, becoming a Grandsmith, and this house absolutely embodied his love for his craft. The Grandsmith leads me inside, back to the same drawing-room in which he displayed the weapon blueprints before.

He turns to face me, lips pursed with an unreadable expression on his face.

“Sorry to go off on you like that, boy, but I had to make sure you understood the magnitude of what the king had done for you. Seeing that pensive look you had makes me think you understood, so I’d like to move onto helping you understand the weapon.”

“Yes sir. I am deeply grateful for what you and the king have done for me and swear to show you that it was worth it. The weapon looks divine and it balances like a dream. When I first held it I could feel it sing to me. It’s unlike any weapon that I have ever held before! Really Sir, the moment the King -”

“Hold it right there boy, there’s that face splitting smile of yours again. Take it slowly, we are in no rush. Let me first explain to you what an Armament entails first. An Armament, as you likely know, is any kind of equipment crafted with special materials and enchanted with unique runes as it is created. Every Armament is unique and is usually crafted to suit a single user. What many don’t know, is that these are not just stronger than average equipment, but they have unique properties. One, common across all Armaments, is a blood bond. That is what you are going to do now. Cut your palms on the blade, and hold the Armament like you would any polearm.”

I do as he says, barely wincing as I cut both my palms on the blade. As no stranger to pain, a simple cut would not have elicited any reaction from me, however, the axe head was far sharper than any weapon I held before and it had cut me deeper than expected. The mishap only got me even more fired up, because I knew that the otherworldly sharpness the Armament held would only serve me better in the battlefield. I hold a standard pose, with the legs squared and Armament firmly gripped with both hands in front of me. Just as I think to look at the Gransmith to ask what the next step would be, I feel the Armament drawing blood from the palms, and I brace to avoid dropping the weapon.

As the Armament keeps drawing blood, I feel my arms quivering and legs shake. I ignore my body’s advice and keep holding the weapon, confident in my intuition that this process would benefit me in the future. After what feels like hours, the Armament stops draining my blood, and I attempt to stand straight but I get dizzy and fall flat on the ground, weapon still in the grip of my right hand. I see the Grandsmith’s face loom over me, shadowed by the sun as I see his mouth move.

“An excellent showing for the blood tempering. With a tempering like that, you are already halfway to your first skill. Good job holding out for the full process. Now what comes next is Sensing. You have given to the weapon. Now it is time for it to give back. First, you -”

I don’t hear anything beyond that as a wave of exhaustion crashes over me and all goes black. I open my eyes, not to the sky I expected, but a world of darkness. I was in mid-air, with no ground before me, but I felt no sensation of falling. I might have looked around more, to figure out what sorcery enthralled me, but my attention was taken by something before me. It was the Armament I had tempered with my blood, now before me in all its magnificence. With it being the only source of light, I was hard-pressed to take my eyes off of it. Not that I would ever want to. It radiated a red gold aura, which shone with a quiet determination and was accompanied with a lively blood-red streak that darted to and fro on the weapon as if it were alive.

I willed myself forward and held the weapon. Not in the way a warrior held a weapon in a battle, but in the way one holds a bosom friend. As I held, it shared with me its own memories. Nascent as it was, it had experiences no human would ever feel. Of years spent biding its time under blood-soaked earth, of time spent absorbing the heat from volcanic vents, of being forged into something greater than the sum of its parts. I decided to name my Armament the Herald of Blood, because of how it was quenched in blood and how I will rely on it in battles in the future, spilling the blood of my enemies to protect that which is dear to me.

As time passes, I get a deeper sense of the Herald, beyond its affinities of blood and fire, I was able to get impressions of patience coupled with explosive strength. Perhaps that might be related to the ability the Grandsmith mentioned. I decided to not focus on the ability, given that it would come in time. Instead a particular aspect of my Armament resonated with me, that of the heated feeling one gets in battle. It reminded me of when I would be surrounded by wild beasts, fighting for my life. In the nothingness, I cross my legs, close my eyes and meditate. Only me and Herald and nothing else.

I wake up after an untold amount of time, probably over 5 hours seeing how the night approaches. I look up to find the Gransmith standing before me. Before I could ask anything, he answers the question I had.

“I didn’t wait here for you all this while. After all, who knew when you’d be done. I only came out after sensing you beginning to awaken. So? How did it go? Do you know what ability it will have in the future? Have you thought of a name for your Armament yet?”

I think for a second, before answering “The Herald of Blood. I believe its ability is related to explosive strengths and blood but beyond that, I am not sure. “

“The Herald of Blood huh? That’s a cool name for a cool weapon. HoB? Heh. Don’t worry about now knowing the full extent of the ability, it will reveal itself as the bond between you and your Armament matures. The main purpose of trying to divine the ability is to see if it gives you ideas in how you can use your attunement. Mull on it in the days to come, and try things out. A blood bonded Armament is a veritable font of inspiration, so make full use of it. There’s a surprise in the Armament for you, take a look at it another day. Go along now, it's getting late and you are likely going to pass out once the exhaustion catches up. Don’t forget what I said about your responsibility.”

My brief moment of annoyance at Herald being shortened to Hob evaporates as I am once again reminded of what I owe to the Kingdom and my family. I bow and thank the Grandsmith for his time, effort and guidance before walking back home. As I walk, I think back to what he said about the surprise, and how the Herald would be a constant source of inspiration in the future. In particular, I already have two paths to research, one of my inspiration, one of nascent ability. I continued onwards my path, filled with a conviction and strength I had lacked only hours before.