“Now, the real trick to transubstantiation, the conversion of a living soul into an inanimate object, is that the quality of the source affects the quality of the object. You’ll practice on base creatures, of course, but you’ll soon find that they produde mundane items of little worth and marginal utility.”

“It takes a sentient being to produce a truly effective item, and it goes without saying that those are harder to come by. While there are a few in their declining days or the grips of despondency that volunteer, and a few more at death’s door that are signed over by kin for the bounty, the majority are criminals and prisoners.”

“Even then, you’ll find that the more exceptional the person, the more exceptional the item. That’s why enemy officers are prized so much – they tend to be a cut above the rest in terms of intelligence and ability. It’ll be some time before you are even allowed to observe such a transubstantiation, let alone perform one, but that is the way of it.”

“And, of course, the end goal—one that few will reach, admittedly—is to take a truly exceptional being and craft it into a once-in-a-lifetime item. If you’re ever privileged enough to see General Niot in person—and smart enough to keep your mouth shut and your eyes open—you’ll see he carries a truly remarkable saber. It was made from his opposite number, the enemy in command at the Battle of Ediug, and can cleave a man in twain with the flick of the wrist.”

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