Trident of the Bloodied Tide

Ferryman's Fork
Devil's Spear
Heartseeker

"The triton ambassador was a massive, brutish fish-man, nigh on eight feet tall and as broad as two men, who carried on his back what seemed an extremely long spear. The spear was wrapped in woven sea-weed. Though the long journey up to the capital in the Great Conveyor must have taken its toll on the creature so used to aquatic environs, the stoic triton showed no discomfort or weariness. In a loud voice, with an alien accent, he announced that he bore a gift for the Emperor, on behalf of the triton king, and must deliver it in person.
In order that the tenuous treaty with the triton not be jeopardized, for the first time since the Ascension, the Quorum granted a mortal being access to the mausoleum, where the Emperor slumbered in his sacred stasis. And as was predicted by every doomsayer and self-respecting guardsman in Enochian history, the decision had disastrous consequences.
As the giant fish-man knelt in front of the Emperor's crystal casket, declaring his liege's gratitude to the Empire for their part in making peace, he took the shrouded spear from its place on his back and slowly unraveled its sea-weed sheath. Those who bore witness claimed it was the most beautiful and terrible weapon ever seen by the eyes of land-walkers. For it was not merely a spear but a mer-steel trident, each of its deadly prongs tapered a needle-point so fine as to disappear entirely. And then, faster than he should have been able to move, the triton struck.
The trident pierced the sacred crystal, and stuck up to the depth of its head into the crystal's heart. Large cracks rent the crystal's surface and shot throughout its mass. Those watching cried out, many already in tears, believing the Emperor slain and the city doomed. But the trident's baleful tip had stopped just short of the helpless Emperor's heart, and the cracks did not spread. The triton ambassador turned to those collected and roared, "Slay me now if you wish, little apes, but know this: the Ferryman will claim his due from your precious Emperor should you venture too deep or take too greedily from the bounty of the oceans! He will drag you down from your haven in the clouds, and drown your people in a crimson sea of their own blood!"
(Record of triton ambassador's fate redacted by Imperial decree)
Attempts to remove the trident from the crystal were unsuccessful. No amount of force could cause the weapon to give even a millimeter, and so, by all reports, it remains to this day where it was implanted, an ever-present reminder of the implacable might of the triton. As no further violations of the Emperor's privacy have been allowed since that day, the people of Enoch have only their hope to assure them that the Heartseeker is not inching closer to their protector's vulnerable form.

Significance

Symbolizes the threat made by the triton king Volturnus, should the Empire breach the terms of the Triton Truce.

Item type

Weapon, Melee

Related Technologies

• Living Glass

Rarity

Unique

Weight

1.35 kg

Dimensions

• 10 feet long, 5 cm shaft diameter at the base end, tapering to 2 cm below the head

• Prongs are each 1 foot long

Raw materials & Components

Mer-steel