"By the closing of Sahar's Gate, our blood, we offer to thee. Seal the pact, remember our acts, for our descendants, will face our history."
During the first Sahar War, the great leaders of the Alliance offered their blood and weapons to the Tree of Life. The weapons were sealed within its fruits, and a pact was formed to ensure that the weapons would only be released and gifted to the right hands when time was right.
The blood of the leaders held within the weapons resulted in these ancient artifacts being named 'Bloodletter'.
Some say that the spirits of their original owners still live on within it, tainted by Sahar's corruption.
Known as Blade and Shield of the Dying Light, Misteltainn was once guarded by House Castell during the ancient times. There are several legends surrounding its creation. Following Winmer du Castell's death, the weapons were recovered from Altus Lake and used for the Bloodletter Pact. They were soon lost to history, coming into the possession of countless people.
Eventually Misteltainn came into the hands of a knight named Cairec, also called the Sword of Justice, who was the guild leader of Celestial Fate. He recognized the danger stemming from the weapons, and vowed never to use it. However, on the night he saw his guild members being cut down ruthlessly before him, Cairec's determination wavered and he moved to summon Misteltainn, intent on violence. Unfortunately, he himself was fatally wounded before he could swing the dark blade and dropped it from his grasp. His last words was a warning to the young knight who, in a fit of desperation and anger, had grabbed it from the ground in an effort to make a final stand. That knight was Silveren Fenner.
Misteltainn's 'spirit' is more of an amalgamation of the 'memories' gathered from its wielders throughout the ages. The weapons do contain an actual soul, that of a nameless human who was Misteltainn's first wielder. Its sense of self broken during the process that bonded his soul to the blade and shield, Misteltainn has an unconscious resolve to 'complete' itself by using the memories of its wielders. In a way, Misteltainn's spirit is the collection of all its different wielders and caretakers, centered around the nameless first spirit. The spirit can even mold itself to impersonate one of its former wielders or, in the case of Silveren Fenner and his previous incarnations who were once the sword's owners, seemingly bring them back to life. When made to manifest its 'default' appearance, the spirit uses the visage of the core soul -- a man with long black hair pulled back in a messy ponytail, the fringes obscuring one or both eyes, which are dark red.
While capable of sentient thought and perhaps even of emotion, Misteltainn also has an overriding desire to be 'wielded'. Motives mean little to it as long as it is used for a purpose. The presence of Sahar in particular makes Misteltainn extremely eager to be wielded in battle due to the Bloodletter Oath. It is not necessarily evil, but with its aspect of destruction, it ends up amplifying the more volatile emotions of its wielder. Additionally, despite its collection of memories from various mortals, Misteltainn remains alien to human context and morality.
The sword and shield can be summoned and dismissed at will, coalescing from swirling dark mist-like mana. They can also be summoned separately. Misteltainn's appearance is usually accompanied by the sound of disembodied chains clinking together.
The Misteltainn blade actually has a sheath, which used to seal most of its energy. Its existence is more symbolic than anything -- if the wielder can manifest the sheath, it means they have good control and understanding of the weapons' abilities. Otherwise, they are in danger of being goaded into violence, or prone to be controlled by the weapon's soul.
With the sword exceptionally sharp and the shield uncommonly tough, Misteltainn is already a formidable set of weapons. When the wielder falls prey to Misteltainn's temptation of power or willingly activates it, the blade becomes capable of harming not only physical objects, but also their 'essence'. Inanimate objects become brittle, outright disintegrating upon striking. Living and sentient beings may have their very souls harmed. Even constructs of mana such as magical formations can be disintegrated. Particularly savage attacks can mutilate or even destroy a living soul.
The shield is the only known object immune to the sword's attacks. It is also capable of projecting a protective barrier around its bearer, which can repel most attacks. Those who are within the barrier, however, feel distinctively uneasy in it.
Originally, Ur seemed to just be able to summon her Guardians out of no where. Further into the series, it is revealed that the flower she wears on her hair is a Bloodletter Weapon, the spirits of the Atlantean guardians sleeping within the six white beads that hang down from it.
The spirits of the Atlanteans still exist within the flower, but do not seem to be corrupted in any way.
The spirits of the Bloodletter's past wielders are said to still reside within them. Originally weapons made for defending Arcana, the spirits soon fell into the madness and corruption of Sahar.
This resulted in the weapons taking over their hosts every now and then. Once in control of their wielders, they release their powers, destroying all that surrounds them without hesitation.
The Bloodletter weapons, in order, are made up of 8 elements: Earth, Fire, Water, Light, Shadow and Blood; the remaining 2 are still undiscovered.
So far, Ur seems to be the only one that has complete control of her Bloodletter.
Arthan's Staff is the only weapon among all eight that belonged to an Ancient Warrior.