Ryn awoke to the sound of birds chirping outside, a small family of them having built their nest on his roof. When one chirped, it'd set off a chain reaction of about a hundred others in response. The sound was rather soothing, compared to last night's experience anyways. In his agony yesterday, he'd left his windows wide open, leaving a cold chill in his room. The Sun's rays shone down into his room through the open window, falling everywhere besides a single spot…

Ryn's eyes widened as he stared dumbfoundedly at the sword resting on his wood paneled floor. He couldn't quite comprehend what it was doing there, why it had decided to manifest itself now of all times? He hadn't done anything of note, neither had he made some mind-blowing breakthrough, causing his sword to actually manifest. His initial shock soon turned to wonder and awe as his eyes stared the sword up and down, admiring it in all of its magnificence.

The blade's grip was wrapped in a cloth as dark as the night, with some of it dangling off of the hilt ever so slightly, giving it a slightly rough and wild finish. Ryn took ahold of his sword, his hand resting comfortably on the sword's hilt, separated from the blade by a guard which looked as if formed by something resembling obsidian. It was nothing special, yet it held a deep sense of power within it, a circular guard, a few centimeters thick. If one looked at it close enough, they'd be able to see small runes carved along the circumference of it, not that Ryn could understand any of the runic language brought by the Heart of Sword. His eyes soon turned to the actual blade, a deep black which if one stared at for too long, would feel themselves slowly being sucked into it, almost like a never ending void. Its tip was sharp and vicious, yet when Ryn looked at the blade as a whole, he felt a sense of solidarity with it… Well that was to be expected, the sword was quite literally a manifestation of his heart… though he didn't expect it to look like this.

Ryn slashed at the air, immediately caught off balance by the weight of his own strike; he hadn't poised himself at all. The sword tumbled to the ground with a thud and landed in the sunlight.

"Shit." Ryn quickly checked the floor to make sure his blade hadn't made any scratches or caused any significant damage. He heaved out a sigh of relief as the floor remained intact, without any scratches or nicks. He cast his gaze back towards the sword, however this time it was different… it was was glowing under the rays of the sun, an ethereal and chilly blue.

Ryn involuntarily took a step back, his mind unable to grasp what was happening before him. Ghostly wisps of an icy blue flowed off of the black obsidian, which now donned an exquisite glow, slowly dissipating into the surroundings. Ryn wanted to reach out and take hold of his sword, his heart, but was afraid to do so, as if the power before him would change everything he's ever known. He slowly swallowed the saliva building up in his mouth before taking a step towards it, each step filling him with a sense of anticipation, his fear simultaneously lessening. As his eyes gazed at the blade, he noticed the runes on the guard, they too were glowing in the same colour. Ryn still couldn't discern them but he knew whatever they said had to hold some sort of significance. He'd read enough stories in his sixteen years to know not to ignore something so obvious.

As he got closer to the sword, Ryn began noticing something odd, he saw the blade trembling slightly as if it were trying to move in his direction. He came to a halt to make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. It was natural that the sword would be attracted to him, it was an extension of himself of course, but to see it happening live in the flesh filled Ryn with a feeling he couldn't explain.

He crouched and took ahold of the hilt, expecting it to feel different due to its change in appearance, however he was greeted with the same feeling as earlier, the black cloth snug against his hand.

As he admired the blade again he couldn't help but ponder upon the opportunities now laid bare before him. His chance at surviving in Anvil had just drastically increased solely because of his sword's manifestation. Though he'd still need practice to completely understand it, he knew he had an advantage. The first step he needed to take was learn how to will his sword in and out of existence. Carefully, he moved towards his bed blade in hand not wanting to drop it again. The moment the blade left the sunlight the ethereal glow dissipated, gradually returning to its original black.

"Huh-" Ryn audibly let out a sound of confusion, it was glowing a moment ago yet the as soon as it left the sun's light it lost it. He turned around, extending the blade towards the rays of light where as expected, the blade began glowing again… To say Ryn was confused in regards to what the blade's functionality and power stemmed from was an understatement. The only thing he was certain of was the sun played some sort of role in his blade's appearance. The only way he'd truly understand was by sending his sword back inside, by willing it out of existence, he'd be able to dive into his Sword Heart where he'd truly be able to grasp what the sword was capable of at this stage.

Ryn took a couple steps to his bed and sat on it, trying to recollect as much as he could from those few lessons regarding the Heart of Sword in school.

'I really should've paid more attention to class. If I remember correctly I just have to… feel it? I guess? Though that doesn't really give me much to go off of.'

Ryn stood up and paced around his room deep in thought regarding how to deal with the task at hand.

'Maybe some form of meditation? I don't know I could try holding it again and see if I feel anything. Damn those Aspirants online make it look so easy.'

 As he did a few laps around his room, which didn't take long given its size, he began noticing something strange. Every time he walked through the sunlight, he felt a raw, primal energy building up inside him. At first he wrote it off as merely his mind playing tricks on him but Ryn wasn't stupid enough to dismiss something once it happened that many times. He thought of his own sword, how it glowed in the sunlight, as if the sun acted as a battery for it.

'Well… There's no harm in trying.'

Ryn on the hard wooden floor basking in the rays of light from the Sun. He crossed his legs and gently closed his eyes focusing on the sensation building up inside him. It felt like a bunch of fireworks slowly coalescing into a ball within his chest, specifically above his heart. Ryn tried to focus in on the sensation, even trying to guide it through himself. He imagined his body's anatomy with all its blood vessels and organs. Ryn was no doctor and couldn't envision it perfectly but he had a good enough mental image. He pictured blood running through the vessels, veins carrying it back to his heart and arteries away from it. He saw the blood entering the lungs before returning to the heart to be pumped around his body. Then… he tried to change it. Instead of just blood, he imagined himself pushing that feeling of fireworks around his body alongside the blood. Envisioning chemical reactions taking place within his blood resulting in more fireworks; fireworks the colour of which his mind naturally gravitated towards making the same as the glow from his sword.

After what felt like a short while, Ryn had successfully managed to envision that feeling all throughout himself whilst being able to hone in on the source of it, his heart.

'Sword Essence.' Ryn thought to himself. That was the only explanation for what he was feeling. He'd been taught about it, that those who wielded their swords must be capable of controlling their essence. But, he hadn't expected it to be so… so easy? He slowly opened his eyes and to his amazement, everything seemed much more vivid and meaningful. When his onyx eyes looked at the mahogany ceiling he could see the colours as usual but this time they were much deeper and bold. He then cast his gaze towards his sword, which still lay on his bed, however he could see something new… A tether connecting him and his sword, created from those same wisps his sword had exuded earlier.

'Is this….?' Ryn had an idea of what he needed to do, what his sword wanted, what his heart wanted. He tugged on the tether only visible to his eyes and instantly his sword flew at him with incredible pace. He reflexively flinched, scrunching his eyes and trying to use his hands as some sort of shield but he didn't feel anything strike him. Rather where once his sword lay, was now just an empty bed. He looked around him to make sure the sword wasn't anywhere else in the room before he decided to check his heart… his Sword Heart.

Ryn dived into the depths of his conscience, until he could see where once scraps lay, a newly created door, a door made of the same obsidian his sword was cut from. The same runes which ran along the guard of his sword were etched onto the doorframe's black arch. Ryn looked at it for a moment before hurriedly stretching out an envisioned hand and opening the door. The door to his fully awakened Sword Heart.