An Ancient Artifact

The Sword of Promised Victory

Yes, it’s a Fate/Stay Night reference. Anyways, I was thinking about artifacts one might find laying around the ruins of Felarya, and I came up with this. Hope you guys enjoy the twist.

The Legend

Although this ancient weapon has been given countless names throughout history, it is usually referred to in legends as “The Sword of Promised Victory”. It is said that when wielded, this sword confers a blessing of absolute victory, and that it has the power to defeat even the most powerful demons and gods. These legends… are true.

… Sort of.

The sword was one of the first magical artifacts crafted on Felarya, and is imbued with the power of fortune, making it capable of changing the destiny of the wielder and those connected to him.

Ages ago, a Nameless King ruled one of the first human settlements on Felarya, and desired to expand his fledgling empire. He ordered his soldiers to force a nearby group of demi-chimeras to abandon their homes so that the humans could expand their territory, and was incensed when the soldiers refused him; they feared being cursed by the demi-chimeras more than they feared the King.

Determined not to let mere superstition stand in the way of his destiny, the King went forth himself to deal with the “problem”. The peaceful chimeras were slaughtered down to the last, falling under the King’s own sword, and he returned with the head of their leader, to prove to the rabble that a true warrior forges his own destiny.

It occurred to him to have a new sword forged as a symbol of his triumph over the “Cursed Ones”, and he ordered the best smith in his kingdom (under pain of death) to make him a glorious weapon… using the horn of the Demi-Chimera leader as material to use in the hilt.

The smith outdid himself; the sword he forged was a gleaming weapon fit for the highest of kings; with an unbreakable blade, polished horn grip inlaid with precious metals, and superbly balanced. The Nameless King was pleased, and claimed the weapon as his own. Legend says that he would go on to conquer several villages, and defeat many enemies while holding that sword; when the invincible King did fail, it was always the fault of a subordinate that he placed too much trust in… a situation that happened more and more frequently despite his growing success and fame.

He began to correct the situation by executing those who failed him, and distancing himself from his false friends- those who obviously envied him in secret and found ways to sabotage him. Soon enough, the King found himself with no friends or allies, surrounded by enemies and hated by his subjects. Which suited him just fine; all he needed was his own strength and his magnificent weapon, and he would crush all those who opposed him!

It is said that the Nameless King met an end so horrible, to even speak his name aloud is to openly invite disaster. After his death and the utter destruction of his kingdom, his sword would be lost and found repeatedly throughout the ages, periodically changing hands and resurfacing. Scholars say that its appearances coincide with the rise and fall of tragic heroes, would-be conquerors, and ill-fated empires.

The Truth

The Sword of Promised Victory actually does have a powerful “blessing” of absolute victory on it, and is one of the most powerful artifacts one will find in the known universe. Wars have been fought over the blade, and it has lead to the fall of kingdoms and entire pantheons of gods.

Unfortunately, as with so many cases, the “blessing” is actually a curse. Literally. A curse spawned by the combined power of all the Demi-Chimeras slain before the sword was forged, creating a magical effect so powerful that it can actually alter the very destiny of those who come into contact with the sword.

The blade is capable of inflicting harm on any creature, including those normally resistant or immune to weapons- even the most powerful of Silver Succubi can be cut by this sword, despite it being forged from metal!

However, the sword promises victory to its wielder, and delivers it to his enemies. Once someone claims possession of the weapon, the first stage of the curse provides small turns of fortune in the owner’s favor. When he’s fighting a strong opponent, perhaps the opponent trips on an upturned root, or has his weapon slip out of his grip. These occurrences will become more and more frequent, and also more drastic, until it seems as though the owner of the sword can attain miraculous victories under the most impossible conditions.

That is when stage two of the curse takes effect; although the owner will continue to be victorious, he will start to suffer indirect losses- small at first, but increasingly more important. In situations where he is personally involved, the effect will easily be written off as the other person getting lucky- an enemy tripping over a root and just barely managing to not get his head cut off, for instance. It will never be his fault directly, of course; there will always be a convenient scapegoat, which will tend to lead to paranoia and alienation. The owner of the sword just can’t trust anyone any more; if he wants something done right, he really does have to do it himself.

Once the curse reaches stage three, the owner of the sword has pretty much already earned himself a place in history. Unfortunately, most legends end with the hero suffering torments that are the stuff of nightmares, and the owner’s tale is no exception. At stage three, the entire universe is pretty much out to get the bearer of the sword. All of his plans will fail spectacularly at the most crucial moment, while the plans of his enemies succeed beyond their wildest hopes. Nothing immediately fatal will happen to the bearer (well, nothing caused directly by the sword), and at this point, he may still be convinced that he can somehow still turn things around. However, every time something does seem to go right for him, it only winds up landing him in an even worse situation.

At stage four, the curse has reached its most powerful point. Not even a divine being is going to survive this, if he was the poor fool who took possession of the sword. Even if the bearer can only be killed under impossibly rare circumstances (stars being in a perfect “occurs only once every ten million years” alignment), it will happen, and someone or something will take advantage of it. At stage four of the curse, the sword will be absolutely useless in battle; it will refuse to cut anything except the owner, will do its best to ‘slip’ out of the wielder’s hand, will suddenly become heavy and unbalanced, and generally do its best to hasten along the epic demise of its former owner.

The Cure

Prior to and during stage one, someone can escape the curse simply by giving up possession of the sword, or having it taken from them. The person can then go about their business without having to worry about a terrible fate or further misfortune.

Once the curse enters stage two, the person is going to suffer small bits of misfortune for the rest of his life, in anything he does… but he can still escape doom by having the sword leave his possession, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

Past stage two, the person is pretty much doomed no matter what; if there is a spell anywhere in the universe powerful enough to counteract the curse, only the Demi-Chimeras know what it is. Even giving up possession of the sword will not free someone from the effects of the curse this late in; the only way it will end is if the afflicted person dies.

Which will probably happen sooner than it was originally going to.

interesting take on this. it certainly lends itself to a momentary use by a hero with no lasting ill effects. while punishing those who would covet it.

Quite a terrible item here ! And you described it really nicely ^_^
I loved the rise and fall idea

Cypress wrote:

interesting take on this. it certainly lends itself to a momentary use by a hero with no lasting ill effects. while punishing those who would covet it.

Karbo wrote:

Quite a terrible item here ! And you described it really nicely ^_^
I loved the rise and fall idea

Thanks, both of you. That pretty much describes what I was going for; some hapless hero or average person who stumbles across it can use it briefly, but the people who decide to keep it are destined for epic success... followed by epic fail.

But hey, at least you get to become a legend, right?