shattered steel
Tonight I have broken my fifth blade while fencing, and the third of my personal weapons. This stunted collection of broken steel is why fencers wear some personal protection and face-masks while sparring. Not that the two thin layers of ballistic cloth my opponent wore would have actually stopped the jagged edge of my suddenly-sharpened tip, but I knew I held the moment and had already scored - and as such, I also held my point and was not preparing for another remise.
This latest casualty was an older épée of which I had become quite fond over the last year and a half, for while somewhat stiff and inflexible (indubitably what led to its demise), it was light and well-balanced. It certainly should have been well-balanced... I trimmed the tang down and fitted it to the hilt myself - the first for which I have done so. I am nostalgic, but there will be others... I suppose that I will be fencing sabre or on borrowed blades until I get it replaced...