Taking a seat in the colosseum of steel, Ryn’s body was enveloped in the moonlight’s glow, Lunar Whisper leaning against the seat besides him. His eyes raked over the center of the arena, the two figures facing one another, both with their own manifested swords in hand.

Aspirant Claudia’s sword was a beautiful silver rapier with blue gemstones embedded in the guard. It was thin and delicate yet its silent lethality was far from delicate. Ryn turned his head towards Dahlia of the Eternal Sword and therefore Song of Stars; the blade made him feel a hint of… annoyance? After awakening his Sword Heart and manifesting Lunar Whisper he was elated, confident that he was somewhat special. But for a carbon copy of his sword, the only difference with it being white, to exist made him question the capability of his own Sword and thus himself.

‘Is the Heart of Sword just handing out the same sword to anyone? Those engravings I thought played a part in it but there’s no hint of an Earth anywhere. I can’t see any of the other ones besides some stupid faceless man and when I ask about them apparently I’m the only one who can see them.’

Ryn gritted his teeth in bitterness before calming himself down to watch the two before him.

Dahlia moved first, with unprecedented speed and an elegant form, her sword poised for a vertical slash against her mother. If Ryn didn’t have his night vision or hadn’t been giving his all to watch he wouldn’t have noticed Aspirant Claudia’s arm cut swiftly through the air, to block Dahlia’s slash.

‘They’re not using their powers? Are they just trying to focus solely on their swordsmanship?’

Dahlia took a few steps back, it seemed as if it were Aspirant Claudia’s turn to be on the offensive. Walking slowly towards her daughter, Ryn watched Aspirant Claudia lunge towards Dahlia, her sword aiming straight at her shoulder, had it connected her arm would probably be rendered useless unless given an extremely potent healing relic. But… it did not, Dahlia quickly side stepped out of the way, dropping to her knees trying to sneakily sweep at her mother’s legs to catch her off balance. It’d take more than that however to catch an Aspirant who’d braved two of Anvil’s forges to make such a careless mistake.

Easily stepping out of the way Aspirant Claudia swung her rapier downwards to which Dahlia quickly rolled out of the from.

‘They’re not using powers but their physical difference more than makes up for it… Dahlia is only a Steeled, her Sword Heart not having reached a higher rank her body naturally wouldn’t hold as much strength. The gap between a Steeled and a Fledgling is wide but the gap between an Aspirant and a Fledgling is even wider, so she’s at a clear physical disadvantage…’

Aspirant Claudia retreated a few steps, almost as if giving Dahlia a moment to rest. Her daughter gently climbed back up onto her feet, tucking a few loose strands of her white hair behind her ear. To Ryn, Dahlia’s swordsmanship was nothing short of dazzling, just like a star. It looked as if she and her blade moved as two separate entities perfectly understanding one another’s intentions. But… Ryn also felt that given enough time… he too could replicate such technique, after all, the Moon reflected the Sun’s light, not its own.

From just this small exchange, Ryn felt he’d already understood much more than he did before, obviously not to the extent where he could suddenly wield a sword like Dahlia, but enough to elevate the simple training routine he already had. There was a gleam in Ryn’s eye, a gleam which watched every one of her movements. Perhaps he focused on Dahlia rather than Aspirant Claudia solely due to the fact that they were both Steeled, or maybe because they both wielded swords of the same kind. Each step she took Ryn memorized, the way she shifted her weight with each strike.

After a few more minutes of sparring, the two came to a standstill having seemingly reached the end of their practice.

“So Ryn, did you learn anything from watching?”

Aspirant Claudia’s head turned towards Ryn as she gently smiled at him. He remembered her early accusatory tone and all his other negative encounters with her. She seemed rather bipolar, not that Ryn had any right in telling an Aspirant how they should be.

“I learnt lots, thanks, both of you.”

Gently standing and lowering his head slightly, Ryn dismissed Lunar Whisper ready to leave, he had nothing more he needed to say and quite frankly wanted to go tweak his own training regime as soon as possible, however that was cut short as a mesmerizing bell-like voice sounded behind him.

“Your Sword… Lunar Whisper was it?”

Ryn stopped dead in his tracks. It was just a girl’s voice but for some reason Ryn felt the voice resonate with something within him, as if his very being yearned for it. Turning around to face Dahlia of The Eternal Sword, Ryn responded confidently, not wanting to let his flustered mind show.

“Yeah, it is. Quite similar to your Song of Stars don’t you think?”

Dahlia’s expression remained deadpan, her beautiful grey eyes looking at Lunar Whisper.

“Its guard… can you read it?”

Ryn hadn’t expected that question, did Dahlia’s guard also have a set of runes on it? But they couldn’t possible be the same… Lunar Whisper’s guard’s runes were based around the moon. It wouldn’t make sense for Song of Stars to also have the same set of runes.

“Yes I can… what of them?”

“What do they say?”

“….Why do I need to tell you?”

Ryn made it clear that he wasn’t just going to tell her the runes on Lunar Whisper without getting something in return, he wasn’t some pushover.

Dahlia’s brows ever so slightly furrowed before returning to normal. Climbing up onto the stands she swiftly approached him, her right hand extended, grasping Song of Stars.

“You may read mine as well… if you let me read yours.”

‘So she does have her own set… I mean I could just read them whilst it’s still in her hand but… this damn girl… she’s holding it at an angle I deliberately can’t make it out.’

“Fine.”

Summoning Lunar Whisper, Ryn took Song of Stars from Dahlia whilst also giving Lunar Whisper away. However holding Song of Stars… Ryn felt, the same. If anything he felt like he still held Lunar Whisper, just, another version. Almost as if he’d been given two swords in the first place and Song of Stars was merely his second.

‘Huh, pretty neat…. Though it adds to my suspicions.’

Ryn took a glance at Dahlia, he wanted to know if it felt the same way to her but the girl’s expression revealed nothing. Sighing internally he watched her fingers slide across Lunar Whisper’s blade before stopping at its hilt.      The darkness of the sword made her alabaster skin stand out even more, where Ryn’s was a deathly pale hers had a healthy glow. Before reading the runes on Song of Stars, Ryn had to get one question off of his chest.

“I know you have one so I’ll just come out and ask… What is your class?....”

Dahlia’s grey eyes instantly locked with Ryn’s black pupils, a flicker of suspicion, recognition and familiarity all passing through her eyes in the span of the moment.

“….What’s yours?”

“I asked first.”

Ryn wasn’t just going to let her dictate the conversation, she’d already bribed him into exchanging swords, he wasn’t just going to tell her his class as well.

“Leave it. It’s not important… for now.”

Turning her gaze back towards Lunar Whisper, Dahlia swiftly read through the runes, a small frown appearing on her face.

Ryn decided he’d best read hers as well, looking down at Song of Stars, Ryn lifted the hilt higher so he had a clear view of the guard. On which read…

‘Dazzling in the bright sky, it betrayed one and gifted itself to the other. Both yearned for the celestial body's aid, but only one received. The other slowly extended itself towards the heavens, bearing fruit for all those who remembered him. A deep scar from a branch, etched on the heart of the Sun and Moon. One from which they would never truly recover.’

Ryn repeated it in his head a few more times…. It was the same… the exact same besides the opening sentence. Where his was ‘answered’ hers was ‘betrayed’. Just who was it that was mentioned as being remembered in both sets of runes? Ryn looked at Dahlia who was already outstretching her hand, giving Lunar Whisper back to him. Quickly taking it and returning Song of Stars to its owner, Ryn asked,

“Any ideas? I’ve been pondering over it for a while but… I have no clue.”

Dahlia merely shook her head a few times before turning around to return to Aspirant Claudia. A final sentence escaping her lips,

“Mother lied, you do have a Sword Heart… I wish you the best of luck in Anvil.”

Just like that, Ryn’s first encounter with Dahlia of the Eternal Sword came to a close, left with more questions than answers.