Swords of Sunrise

The Swords of Sunrise are a set of seven blades forged by Sovereign Alephus Ashiman circa 9700 CS for Vinhibrani, the Azukenda of the Nictipagua, who he had recently made as well.

The Set and the Nictipagua were designed for two purposes. The first was for serving justice to Monoliths, whose population was growing faster than the Vadakendanic Procession could manage with the current justice system. The second was for killing any future Sovereign who might refuse to pass the Sacred Seal of Sovereignty onto a successor, as Alephus' predecessor had.

The blades have the ability to redirect Spells, disrupt Feats of Grace, and pierce Divine Flesh.

Vinhibrani cut an imposing silhouette against the golden dawn reflected in the glow clouds sweeping in from the east. The hilts of the sunrise set rose over his shoulders and head, resembling the visual of their namesake.

Ribbons of crimson extended from the hilts of the blades and rippled in the breeze, trailing out for several feet. Upon them, the jurors caught glimmers of the tenants embroidered into the fabric in golden thread, a grim reminder of why they were gathered here, why the man with his head on the chopping block was here.

"Asulachai Lahuna, you have been brought to the Korei Court to answer for your crimes," Vinhibrani said, drawing the longest blade from the height of the Sunrise Set. The Execution Blade glowed orange with the light of the sky above, and the shimmer of its edge seemed as alive and as vibrant as an ember. "You have been found guilty of treason, and are sentenced to death. You shall be buried deep below the land, with no view of the sky."

Asulachai trembled. It wasn't from the cold, but from fear. Though a film of Divine Flesh encased him, he knew he was at his end.

The blade fell, and did not even lurch in its swing as it cleaved the God's head from his shoulders, and his soul from his body.

History

The Monolith Surge

9750

In the wake of Osahn Luchrei's sovereignty, the world was rife with political fractures. The Procession was threatening to fall apart. A combination of rife warfare and good education had triggered an increase in the Monolith population. Many had banded together and claimed Procession city-states, and were angling to topple the Procession and split the world into multiple countries—something which had not happened since before the Procession.

Alephus Ashiman, who had newly become Sovereign, tried to settle this first with diplomacy, then with war. It was a long and bloody battle of attrition for most, with no sign of victory in either direction until he used his station and power to create first the Nictipagua in 9731, then the Nictimannu—their armory, over the next couple decades. Among the Nictimannu was the Sunrise Set, made for Nictipagua Azukenda, Vinhibrani.

Alephus tasked the Nictipagua with three jobs: to serve the Sovereign, to execute a tyrant Sovereign such as Osahn had been, and to hunt and kill the Monoliths leading the factions opposing the Procession.

The deaths of many thousands of Monoliths followed.

The Death of Sovereign Fenumbral

15217

The other role of the Nictipagua was tested during the reign of Sovereign Fenumbral, whose already tyrannical mind was corrupted by Selschaeus. The event divided the Nictipagua, who began to fight amongst themselves over what to do.

Rather than wait for a resolution, Vinhibrani teamed up with Euphraesthi to stage a coup. Using his Executioner's Blade, Vinhibrani is able to behead the Sovereign.

Eupha stole the Circlet of Lun-Kheren and went into hiding to fuel the Sazashi Revolution which Vinhibrani had unwittingly helped trigger. He pursued her for the rest of the revolution, in and out of battlefields.

The Set Goes Missing

15250

Vinhibrani discovered the location of Eupha somewhere in the Marianiyan territories and persued her there. Neither ever returned from his journey, and the Set was lost for many years thereafter.

The Set is Rediscovered

19417

One of Togue Jadey's ruin-raiding expeditions discovered Vinhibrani's tomb, though was unaware it was his. His Divinorium was discovered, as was the Sunrise Set. The Circlet of Lun-Kheren remained locked in the lower levels, where the raiders could not survive to reach.

Changing Hands

Inert from disuse, the Set had little use for Togue. He sold it to Valuser'rh without realizing its importance. Later, in 19473, when Aempis became its own country, they took the Sunrise set. Akotan Khandea took the Executioner's Blade for himself, to make it difficult for anyone to acquire it to use against him.

The rest of the set was given to a rotation of Aempian officers through the years, including Sheen Mevedra, Jauk Shalades, and Cordelia Jadey.

Reunited

Vinhibrani was restored back to a constructed body in 19619 to fight for the Rilaem against Aempis. Through the course of the Rilaemshi War, he was able to get ahold of each of his old swords, putting his set back together. This resulted in the deaths of Jauk Shalades and Emporer Akotan Khandea, and the brutal maiming of Sheen Mevedra.

After Vinhibrani was defeated, the swords mostly ended up in Tor Jadey hands.

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Secrets

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Summary

Alternative Names

Sunrise Set
Koraemannu (Aeai)

Material

Nictishamei-Steel Alloy
Nictishamei-Aluminum Alloy

Item type

Weapon, Melee

Namesake

Alephus enchanted the blades to adopt the colors of whichever sunrise they were most recently exposed to. This is purely aesthetic.

Design

While the blades are meant to fit Verin and Nictipagua hands alike, they were all made with Vinhibrani in mind.

The shapes of the blades are drawn from the Aeolamen feathers on the Monolithic Crest, seen here:

The Blades

The Assassin's Bloodletters (2)

A pair of forked daggers meant for doing extreme internal damage and breaking swords during a parry.

Disrupts and stores up to second-tier spells. Spells cast through them arc between them like a garotte wire.

The Dancing Edges (2)

A pair of arming swords meant specifically for parrying and swordfights.

Disrupts and stores up to fourth-tier spells. Spells cast through them or stored in them become cast on next strike.

The Hunting Cleavers (2)

A pair of large, chopping falchions meant for highly offensive attacks.

Disrupts and stores up to sixth-tier spells. Spells cast through them or stored in them fan out from the blades during a swing.

The Executioner's Blade (1)

An 200cm cruciform blade with a flared tip. It requires all four hands to use fully.

Disrupts and stores up to sixth-tier spells. Spells cast through it instead become area-of-effect around the caster.