Veln, Spear of the Mad Paladin

"...In the year 851 Re, a new paladin was ordained: A woman by the name of Lyri of Grestvyt, who had distinguished herself in battle by slaying multiple Leskeln by her own hands. In line with tradition, her appointment saw her bestowed with a weapon created by one of the Fyrstbairn. The weapon she received was of the type which she favoured most; a spear. Forged by the famed smith Seventine, who ruled over the province of Catun, it was given a name in the Ormr tongue..."

— Unknown

"...The Butcher of God, which the Mad Paladin, Lyri of Grestvyt, used to strike down Forfir in his tent..."

— Unknown

"...The accursed spear, endowed with dark magic, which took the life of the Wyrm Lord..."

— Unknown

"...Said to have been cursed by the Leskeln, for how else could it have killed one who was beyond death?..."

— Unknown

"...The Betrayer's greatspear, with which she brought to an end the greatest empire the world had ever known..."

— Unknown

"...The weapon of Lyri of Grestvyt, which she wielded in the Battle of Pasdjit to slay three of the members of the Band of the Phoenix..."

— Unknown

"...Her endless bloodlust unable to be sated merely by slaying the Wyrm Lord, she would later turn her spear on the first saint of the Rukhmarite faith and two of his companions..."

— Unknown

"...The unholy weapon wielded by the Great Enemy, the Demon Lyri, to bring an end to Lihwen the Noble's life..."

— Unknown

"...A weapon that, no matter whose hands it fell into, could never be wielded for good."

— Unknown

"To speak its name aloud is to bring ruin upon not only oneself, but all that which they hold dear."

— Unknown

"The weapon's name was:"

— Unknown

Veln

The Butcherer of God

Veln was a spear that belonged to and was wielded by Lyri of Grestvyt. It was awarded to her at the time of her promotion to the rank of Paladin as part of the role's tradition. The spear itself was forged by the legendary blacksmith Seventine of Catun, and was wielded by Lyri from 851 Re to her death in 863 Re.
It is infamous for having been used to kill multiple well-known figures from Pretheyan history. In the hands of Lyri of Grestvyt, it was used to slay Forfir, Lihwen the Hero, Vardaran the Esoterikos, and Isalendar the Huntress. As a result of this infamy, it has become the subject of numerous legends and folk beliefs over the centuries. The weapon is commonly known by a number of euphemisms, and is rarely - if ever - referred to by its actual name; owing to superstitions that speaking its name aloud has the potential to invoke misfortune. Commonly used alternate names for the weapon include Lihwen's Bane, the Red Spear, the Lance of Betrayal, Iscar, and Ormrslayer.

Veln

Type: Weapon
Manufactured: Yes
Created For: Lyri of Grestvyt
Date Created: 851 Re
Age: 1009 years old
Current Status: Unknown

Physical Characteristics

Appearance: An iron spear covered in red rust, with a blade edged with diamond
Materials: Iron, gold, silver, diamond
Length: 175cm
Weight: 2kg

Appearance

The spear's appearance was unusual in many ways. Instead of a traditional wooden shaft, the length of the weapon was constructed from a rare metal that supposedly bore the weight and flexibility of wood, but held the strength of iron. The metal around the base is said to have been twisted into a braid, and the spear's pommel was capped with four small rubies.

"Ah, there you are. I've been waiting for you to arrive." The behemoth grinned. "I spent quite a while on this one; by human standards at least. One of the difficulties in making items designed for mortals is that you can only spend at most a hundred years working on them before the person you want to give it to dies of old age. In your case, I worked on this spear for two-and-a-half years; almost twice as long as most of the other Paladins' weapons."
A lanky, four-jointed arm carefully lowered itself down to the Wyrm's front, spear firmly clasped in its ten fingers. Then, Seventine extended the arm, and opened her hand.
"I hope you like it."
A gauntleted hand reached out, and with the faint chink of ringmail, took hold of the spear. The woman in front of Seventine held the weapon in the air, carefully testing its balance. Two golden eyes scanned up and down its length, taking in every minute detail. After a moment, they let it fall to their side, before turning their gaze to Seventine.
"It's wonderful," Lyri spoke, smiling up at her. "Thank you."

Creation

When the decision was made to elevate Lyri to the position of Paladin, Forfir ordered Seventine of Catun to produce the weapon that she would use from then onwards. Seventine was known among the governors of the Grannr for her eccentricity, being famous for modifying her body to possess arms similar to those of humans; which she used to aid her in her crafting work. All of the weapons used by the empire's Twelve Paladins were produced by her, and she had achieved a level of expertise that no mortal could hope to match.

The blade of the weapon was most unusual: It was far longer than a normal spearpoint and more resembled the blade of a sword, which allowed it to cut as well as to thrust. It was made of hardened steel that had been reinforced so as not to flex at all, and the edges were formed from diamond that had been seamlessly merged with the metallic core. This unusual design made the weapon incredibly adept at piercing armour, but rendered it almost entirely incapable of blocking attacks without suffering damage to the blade. These tradeoffs made the weapon ill-suited for combat against other humans, but perfect for slicing through the thick wooden hides of the Leskeln.

History

After the weapon's creation in 853 Re, it saw use for multiple years in Lyri's hands against the Leskeln; during which time it is said to have killed nearly a dozen of them. Presumably, Lyri also made use of it during her time away from the Grannr army while she was captive in Ethlarnashem. Upon returning, she was successfully able to use the weapon to behead Forfir; who had previously been thought immortal. It is said that the blood shed through this act tainted Veln, and is why the weapon began to develop the characteristic red rust on its blade and haft.
After Lyri was slain during the Battle of Pasdjit, the weapon's fate becomes uncertain, with no clear historical account of what became of it. Various stories exist which describe what happened to it: Some say that it was picked up by a Pasdjitan soldier, who was later killed when the blade turned on him, after which the weapon became lost. In another, the same soldier went on to sell the weapon, and it changed hands between collectors for the next several centuries; with each of its buyers inevitably suffering grizzly demises, supposedly caused by the weapon. The most popular story speaks of it being broken in half by Rukhmar; who destroyed it in retaliation for its being used to kill Lihwen. She is said to have then thrown the two halves of the weapon to different ends of the earth, so that they could never be reunited.

Cultural Conceptions

Popular folklore and certain religious beliefs attribute a number of unusual qualities to the weapon. The fact that Veln was able to be used to kill Forfir was the subject of much shock in the 9th and 10th centuries, owing to the commonly held belief that Forfir was immortal. As a result, many people came to believe that the Leskeln - who Lyri had defected to fight for - had used their magic to place some sort of a curse on the weapon which had rendered it capable of striking down the Wyrm Lord. This interpretation continued to grow in popularity over the following centuries, until it was more or less canonized within the Rukhmarite holy book the Tome of Flames.

Present Day

In the present day, the legend of Lyri the Mad's spear continues to endure as one of the most harrowing tales in all of Pretheya. Although much of the fear once associated with the name Veln has now passed out of memory, the name itself continues to be treated as a forbidden word that must not be uttered. As for the spear itself, many continue to wonder about its whereabouts. With the advent of Shahru, the myth about Rukhmar's shattering of the spear has grown more popular, and lead to the creation of a new myth. Now, some believe that if the two halves of the weapon are ever reunited, then Lyri herself will return from the grave to wield it once more.