Just one bite

His obsidian and sapphire furred pup's enthusiasm brought a paternal warmth to Artorias' heart, seeing so much of himself in his young son. Nobody had fed his excitement this way when he was young; he had discovered and fostered it all his own. His mothers had shown their own support by giving him his sword, and Sirius could be credited for planting the seed of his interest when he'd shown a puppy Artorias his wrist blade, but for the most part everything that existed in this room was because of Artorias. The lighthearted giggles Kea made when the steel sang its song for them brought a few loving chuckles from the Aegis as well, rapping his claws against the blade a few more times to create a metallic melody in the otherwise quiet armory that seemed to bounce off of the walls at all times, ringing pleasantly in his ears.

Astute as ever, Ciaran asked why this sword was special. "It's the steel, my little knight, though why that is I could not tell you," he explained, tracing some of the flowing patterns forged into the blade with careful paw pads and ginger claws. "When my mother—your grandmother—brought the pack to this place, we discovered an arsenal of these special weapons in the armory. They were the only ones to survive untarnished, preserved carefully by their original makers. This steel is harder, stronger, yet lighter than the other weapons in here. It remains wickedly sharp far longer than expected and is stunningly beautiful to boot. I've taken to calling it Carpathian steel, but if it has a true name I do not know it." Of course, he couldn't take credit for forging them. Sure, he had restored all of the weapons and maintained them meticulously, but he was no blacksmith like Ruga was. "My sword, Embershard, is made of this same steel also."

"Artorias Carpathius"