The Sword of Arnolf

As one enters through the main entrance to the Officer's Academy in South Serpé they will see the faces of their factions most famous First General's looking down at them from their portraits on the walls. This is intended to show the young officers-to-be what could await them if they excel in their studies and on the battlefield. Also present in the entrance hall is a marble podium, on which lies a small display case containing a common quill. Set into the display case is a plaque that reads “The Sword of Arnolf”.
The quill has held its place of honour in the entrance hall for the past 200 years. It has been the duty of the old and infirm that serve the tutors and cadets at the academy throughout the centuries to maintain the quill. In this way, the message conveyed by this trophy can continue. The quill is maintained using a cream that is carefully rubbed into the metal of the quill to ensure that it doesn't rust. As for the feather, a spray is used to ensure that it does not lose its lustre and remains presentable.
The name of the quill was coined some 50 years after the death of its original owner, Arnolf Fuhrung. It was originally intended as an insult, intended to ridicule the man and his beliefs. While the name stuck and was officially assigned to the quill by the academy, there are still students today that use the name with pride, in quiet acts of rebellion.
This quill has been the source of much debate for young students. There is nothing remarkable in its appearance, with its simple white feather set into a plain metal pen ending in a common calligraphy nib. The quill was so unremarkable, in fact, that many of the students possessed identical quills that had been assigned to them upon their arrival at the academy. Why then was this particular quill so important, and what could its intended message be?
Some students believe that it is a lesson in staying true to their roots, even as they rise through the ranks or push through mud, gore and musket smoke on the battlefield. Others simply believe that it once belonged to one of the famous First Generals in the portraits around it. The older students who have studied their history, however, understand that the quill stands in the entrance hall as a warning.
Arnolf Fuhrung was a promising young cadet at the Officer's Academy of South Serpé. Smart, charismatic, witty, and not a bad shot either, it was believed by his tutors that he would easily go on to become a Senior Officer, if not becoming the next First General.
Arnolf had other ideas for his future, however. Always a dreamer, Arnolf would while away his free time writing in his notebook. He'd write songs, poems and stories about anything and everything that caught his fancy in the moment. Young Fuhrung was weary of the constant fighting and all of the death that came along with it. He believed in the old adage that “The Pen is Mightier than the Sword”. It was this belief that ultimately led Arnolf to make the decision to abandon his training and run away from the Academy.
Taking only some basic supplies, along with his notebook and quill, Arnolf would spend the next few years on the run from the Serpéan military police. In that time, Arnolf began to earn a name for himself as a popular seditionist. Young recruits and cadets would pass around his poems in secret, or put up posters of Arnolf holding his quill aloft on walls across the cities of South Serpé.
Arnolf would eventually start to host rallies, originally starting as small, secretive gatherings of 10-15 people, but eventually growing to loud assemblies of hundreds of young students in town squares. At these rallies, Arnolf would preach his teachings to the audience, encouraging them to put down their arms and pick up a quill, or a paintbrush or any other tool that might aid them in their creative pursuits. Each point that he made would be underlined with wild gestures with his quill. These gestures became famous among his followers, who would secretly practice them with their own quills, vowing to be like Arnolf.
It was at one of these rallies, while giving a live reading of his latest poem, that the military police finally caught up to and arrested Arnolf. It took them a day to take Arnolf's case to trial. By the afternoon of the same day, Arnolf had been sentenced to death via public execution.
People arrived at the gallows in their thousands. Veterans to witness the death of a dangerous coward, young recruits to stand in silent support of their hero. The First General himself would take to the platform to give a speech about unity, fighting the good fight and always remaining wary of those that wished to undermine their cause, all while gesturing with Arnolf's quill. Everyone in attendance, however begrudgingly, had to admit that the First General couldn't hold a candle to Arnolf.
Once all of the posturing was over, the First General finally gave the order. As Arnolf, ever dignified and determined to prove that he was not the coward that his critics viewed him to be, silently kneeled down, the executioner approached. For a moment everything was still as though time had frozen in place, until, with a mighty swing of his blade, the executioner removed Arnolf's head.
In the utter silence that followed, the First General would bend to the now unmoving body of Arnolf Fuhrung and uttered the words that would become the motto of not just the Officer's Academy but the entire South Serpéan Army. A warning to any that might dare to follow in Arnolf's footsteps.
“It would seem the pen is not, in fact, mightier than the sword.”

Item type

Tool

Weight

30g

Dimensions

Approximately 32cm long

Raw materials & Components

The feather is taken from a common goose. This often leads to some quills being somewhat darker and greyer than others, however, Arnolf's quill was notable in that it was crafted using a pure white feather. While white feathers are not unheard of in standard academy quills, they are used less often as they are slightly more expensive than the greyer variants. 
There are some amongst Arnolf's more vocal followers who have always tried to argue that the white of the feather in The Sword of Arnolf is unique and gives off a slight glow. All studies suggest, however, that this claim is false and that, beyond the legend attached to it, it is a normal quill.
The metal used to cover the shaft of the feather is of a simple iron, buffed smooth and to a mirror sheen. On closer inspection, the letters A.F. can be seen chiselled into Arnolf's quill. An act of vandalism that he performed while still in the Academy.