Tarly vs Martell

"I invited a good friend of mine to demonstrate the sword to all the nobles present. He will showcase you why the sword is worth it's price and that nobody building a small batch of elite warriors will miss equipping them with low grade cloud steel swords. Please welcome Oberyn Martell."

Victor announced exciting news, and everybody was very curious when a servant handed Oberyn the sword and he walked in the middle of the hall. Of course, the Red Viper needed an opponent and Victor already had someone in mind long ago.

"Lord Tarly, I know you are a great warrior, and your honor and pride are famous even in Lys. Nobody would claim that I manipulated your opinion. How about giving me the honor and using your sword as a test object against my low-grade cloud steel?"

Randyll Tarly was quite surprised but still accepted the challenge. He wanted to feel firsthand just how good or bad this new weapon would be. Of course, he didn't carry the ancestral sword of his family with him to Lys and only equipped a relatively high-grade steel sword. But this sword was still made specially for him by the best blacksmith of his family.

During a war with tens of thousands of people this kind of sword would be one of the best on the whole battlefield. When stepping into the middle of the hall Randyll was eager to teach his frivolous opponent a lesson, but he knew this was only about testing their weapons and not to injure each other.

"Everyone please pays special attention to both of the weapons once they clash. You will all be surprised by the sharpness; this I can promise on the honor of House Di Natale. I would like to point out that this is purely a display of swords and not a duel. I will not accept any personal attacks from both sides." But while talking Victor only looked one person in his eyes, whose mouth was twitching a little and regret could be seen on his shameful face. Everybody around did shake their heads a little. This dornish bastard would never change, wouldn't he?

When the room turned quiet the eyes of nearly a hundred people were pulled by the sword in Oberyn's hand. When both warriors started to attack everybody held their breath for a short time. When the clashing sound of the two swords rang in the hall and both sides separated shortly after a loud whispering was heard, because after only one clash the sword in Randyll's hand showed a small but visible dent while the cloud steel sword was completely intact.

Even Randyll Tarly himself was very surprised as he knew about the quality of his own sword the best and they both didn't even use their whole strength yet, as this was only a showcase for two weapons. If they clashed in a life and death battle his sword might already be slightly damaged. After regaining his composure, he gestured for a second strike. After hearing a second-strike sound and seeing a visible gap in the ordinary steel sword everybody was getting slowly excited.

Cloud Steel seemed to be way more impressive than everybody thought. A third and last strike finally settled everybody's opinion as Randyll's sword was already seriously damaged while Oberyn's sword only showed a slight mark where the three hits landed. Every hit was at the exact same point, which not only showcased the quality of the sword itself but also the high quality of the two opponents who showed extreme precision with their weapons.

Victor stopped the show before Randyll's sword could break and anybody got injured in the heat of the moment.

"I think everybody could witness perfectly how high the quality, sharpness and endurance of the low-grade cloud steel sword truly is. I am deeply grateful for Lord Randyll Tarly for his participation and would like to thank him by replacing his damaged sword. But I will not use a low-grade sword, which would not be able to fit his honored status, but a high-grade cloud steel sword."

While the announcement finished two servants already lifted a red cloth of the glass box to the right of Victor. Everybody could see a beautiful, patterned sword. The veins were very clearly visible but crisscrossed all over the sword body. The pattern was visibly stronger and brighter in color.

The heir of House Di Natale personally walked towards the glass box and opened it. He carefully took the sword out of the box and caressed the sword body slowly. He took a piece of paper from one of the servants and used the sharp edge of the knife to cut through it. The piece of paper was cut in two without him using the slightest force, gentle like going through water.

While everybody's was still completely astonished by this display of sharpness Victor was already right next to Randyll Tarly and carefully wanted to hand the sword over to him. His counterpart was very conflicted, as on the one hand he didn't want to just receive a gift that was obviously extremely valuable and rare for free, but on the other hand his heart of a warrior and love for extraordinary weapons wanted to hold and try this sword very much.

In the end his love for very special weapons got the better of him and he decided to make this gift up in another way in the future and grabbed the sword handle presented to him. The sword felt very light, and he could literally feel the air waves and sounds he created when he swung it for the first time.

When he got slowly familiar with his new weapon, he slowly turned his focus to the person that just destroyed the sword very dear to him. When the Red Viper noticed his gaze and the sharpness of the sword, he was currently holding his palms were slowly getting a little wet. The excited crowd slowly noticed the shenanigans between the two and the loud noise and talking stopped slowly and the sharp atmosphere returned.