Tëjk ës Fjafü (teˈjɪk es fjaˈfu)

Tëjk ës Fjafü (Thünard for Flame of the East), also called Dyrnwyn (Welsh for White Hilt) and Vredens Sverd (Danish for Sword of Wrath), is the magical sword wielded by the keeper of the Gate of Eden. Reminiscent of the two-handed claymore of Earth’s Highland Scots, the weapon blazes with fire whenever it is drawn. Whether or not the flames burn the swordsman comes down to intent. If the one who wields the sword is deemed worthy, the fire will serve them until their quest is done. But if the person who draws the sword is deemed unworthy, then the conflagration will devour them.

Description

Tëjk ës Fjafü is a large two-handed sword with a curved crossguard, the quillons of which end in rolled tips. The grip of its hilt is wrapped in durable but luminous white fabric and the pommel is shaped like a ball of flame.

As for the blade itself, it is long, broad, and sharp as all get-out. A fuller runs down most of the length to lighten the weapon without reducing its strength or integrity.

Supernatural Abilities

Beyond its use as a pointy thing useful in the acts of murder and manslaughter, Tëjk ës Fjafü draws upon the elemental energies of the fire goddess herself. This supernatural power emerges whenever the weapon is drawn, engulfing both blade and hilt at first and only obeying the whims of the wielder if they and their purpose are deemed worthy.

The goddess Phina herself is the arbiter of worthiness here, and is connected body and soul to Tëjk ës Fjafü.

If the one who wields the sword is worthy, then they may choose to keep the flames alight at all times or to extinguish them on a temporary, as-needed basis.

History

The sword was given to the living filter known as Todd just after the end of The First Age, when reality beyond the land of Eden was rebooted into its next iteration. Todd was commanded to walk the water of the strait known as the Gate of Eden and to intercept any and all who attempted to enter or exit this purgatorial paradise without the express permission of the sister goddesses. And so, that’s what he did—and what he’s done ever since. Big dumb brute that he is, he patrols the strait and does big, dumb, and brutish things.

It sucks, but it works. No one has ever slipped by the tremendously tedious Todd.

From time to time, however, Todd has been commanded to hand over the sword to others and to guard the gate with naught but his bare fists. During the Second Age, for example, he handed the sword over to Queen Frieda Jacobs for a time—the story of which will eventually be chronicled in the second volume of the graphic novel series The Blood of Seven Queens.

Once per iteration of reality, the sword is given to Rhydderch Hael so he can do his legendary British thing and inspire Welsh mythology.

And lastly, during the universe-ending phenomena known as Calamities, the sword is handed over to the jötunn Surtur so that he might have a little bit of Ragnarökian fun.