Kyoudan Kenrei (Order of the Spirit Sword)
Quick rundown:
Strongly rooted in honor, formality, fate, and destiny that is not found anywhere else in the Organization, making this specialized branch highly exclusive regarding membership - one must truly earn their way in or they will never be accepted. It's a small group, but most of our officers have come through it and been transferred out due to distinguished service. Some individuals may develop superiority complexes to varying degrees regarding outsiders, however.
Every member is given a sword unique to them for the duration of their life whether they are active, retired, transferred, or cast from the Order. Some who have retired or transferred still carry it, some have it mounted on the wall to serve as a symbol of a distinguished career, some leave it in their closet and bring it out only for special occasions.
In this Order, orderliness and obedience are paramount. Each member is measured by weapon and honor rather than by tenure or talent. Sometimes someone who deserves a position will never receive it and sometimes someone who doesn't deserve a position will have it for the duration of his or her life. Victory through the use of deceit and treachery is not tolerated. Each of the members prefer open, one-on-one combat situations. They are not sent out on many missions in large groups together as their number is too few, but they may be in the lead of a team of normal or advent agents.
Item: Tattoo Brand
Range: NA
Number: 1
Description: The tattoo can be anything, but the one common feature is an exact copy of the sword Excalibur about one inch in length that is added via spiritual energy. The tattoo can be anywhere the member decides.
Individuals that are retired or were transferred have a second blade lain across the first to form a cross.
Those cast from the order that are not killed outright receive a long, crude slash across their tattoo through the sword.
Effects: Identifies a person as a member of the Order
New Item: Spirit Sword
Range: Close (0-5m)
Number: 1 per member. Not replaceable. You lose it, you're SOL
Decription:
Upon construction, they all look like Roman Shortswords and each has a specific frequency that matches or resembles a member of the Order's own energy frequency. The closer the match, the stronger the bond and more drastic the change of the sword. The weapon can also permanently change upon touching the individual. If the character is someone stout of heart and strong, they might get an axe or flamberge. A person whose soul is that of a marksman would get a form of gunblade. Whatever comes about, y'know.
No one else can use the sword other than the specific person when it is cast and made. Details listed below.
These blades are crafted by humans converted to spirit form in an impoverished, run-down, crowded, large district of Rukongai in an undergroun shop beneath a shabby building that used to be a smithy. The size of the district makes it difficult to find, and this difficulty is greatly augmented by how crowded and messy it is. The humans use their adaptation of Noah's Ark to travel between worlds.
Effects:
0) Bonded to the user. If a spirit being contacts the hilt while the owner is not holding it, they risk being overwhelmed by its ego and unavoidable damage by its frequency disrupting their own spiritual nature. Other humans are safe from this due to their physical bodies acting as a barrier, but the edge will dull and the blade will completely stop when it touches the owner's skin and cause no damage unless the owner is self-inflicting the damage. An attacker using the Spirit Blade can't even use the blade to hit the owner like one would hit a baseball with a baseball bat.
1) Absorbs spirit particles and retains 100% of them for an indefinite period of time. The particles can be the idle ones in the atmosphere and environment (i.e. buildings and walls in Seireitei, etc.) or residual particles from spells after they have done what they are supposed to do. Particles being actively utilized cannot be absorbed. Output of these particles can be released 100% without any repercussions on the weapon's integrity or the user's health, something that no other race can do. Whether at 0% or 100%, it can block a Zanpakutoh, but it cannot absorb spirit particles while engaging in active behavior. Both the owner and the blade must be at ease for this to happen.
2) When swung, it leaves a wave of spirit particles in its wake that catch up to it without fail for a fraction of a second. The result is the feeling of a much more powerful strike than might be anticipated when they rejoin the actual blade. This increased impact can help break through defenses, knock a larger or stronger opponent back or off balance, or cut through enemies or things.
3) An inidividual can fire blasts from the tip of the blade like bala or in slashing waves.
4) Building on #1, while it is difficult to break and its capacity for spirit particles is quite vast, the weapon's integrity and absorption capacity are strongly influenced by the density of spirit particles in the atmosphere while it is being made. When caste, it cannot be strengthened or weakened and its absorption capacity may not change. This is the reason the sword is normally constructed in Rukongai, then transported.
5) Weapon has an ego that communicates through empathy and absolute, raw emotion. The user must constantly suppress it or he/she will be overwhelmed. If overwhelmed, damage to psychological, mental, emotional, and spiritual health is suffered, but there is no damage to physical health.