Glaives (宝剣 (ほうけん), Hōken; Hōken meaning "Treasured Sword") are Sumeragi-issued contraptions that can contain an adept's septimal power—the septimosome. The Glaives were created from historically magical artifacts native to Japan. Once released, the septimosome will fuse with its respective owner to grant septimal abilities. The fusion induces a noticeable body change in the adept user which is known as weaponization, alsoreferred to as Armed Phenomenon (変身(アームド フェノメノン), Āmudo Fenomenon lit. Metamorphosis), indicating that the use of glaives artificially augments septimal abilities beyond their normal capacities. One of the first glaives was created by Dr. Kamizono. Sumeragi uses glaives as a method to control adepts, as they cannot access the power of a glaive without permission from Sumeragi. In exchange, such adepts are made into commanders of Sumeragi's forces, and enjoy a life of general luxury.
When a glaive is activated, the user is surrounded by a black aura highlighted with the glaive's own color. As the aura dissipates, the adept's weaponized form is revealed. The glaive itself temporarily disappears as it fuses with the user, seemingly transforming into a specialized set of armour that varies from wielder to wielder which is designed to make the best of the user's Septima, such as Elise's weaponized form possessing a serpentine tail which would enable her and her doubles to move around on cables faster and on a more comical note, Merak's weaponized form manifests a chair for him to sit upon and strike his enemy from afar, playing into his dislike of strenuous activity. When the user is defeated, they explode into sparkles which gather into the glaive. The glaive then cracks, and is either teleported away or falls to the ground. In the event that it falls, it breaks into tiny pieces, and cannot be salvaged.
Although it is stated that an adept with a glaive cannot use their septimal powers without activating said glaive, it is revealed that adepts still can use their abilities to a degree without using their glaive, though doing so places stress on the body. The only adept known to do this without negative side effects is Nova Tsukuyomi, who seems to actively try to keep this trait of his (and others) hidden from all but his most trusted officers. It is also noted by Nova that the psychological side-effects of Glaives tend to warp an Adept's personality and ego, best displayed by Nova in his final battle with Gunvolt, where the man's calm personality completely fades, giving rise to a prideful Adept whom outright declares himself omnipotent.
During the events of Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, Eden manages to combine stolen Glaive data with the power of The Muse, leading to the creation of Grimoires.
English Website Description
These glaives are storage devices created by the Sumeragi Group which control the flow of a user’s septimal energy. Normally, an adept has what is called a “septimosome” inside their bodies which allow them to use their septimal powers at will. The adepts under Sumeragi’s command, however, have had their septimosome extracted and stored inside sword-shaped devices known as Glaives that can be remotely controlled. This allows Sumeragi to prevent any unwanted outbursts of septimal energy from those under their control. When the adept is in danger, Sumeragi’s adept monitoring facility can give a go-ahead order for the adept to unleash the septimosome inside the Glaive. The septimosome then fuses with the adept and triggers a complete body transformation. Currently, these Glaives are the only means for an adept to repress their powers and live a normal life. However, there is much that is still unknown about adepts, so it is still too early to tell if these Glaives will become a boon for adepts, or a disaster waiting to happen…[1]
Sumeragi Adept's Glaives
The Sumeragi adepts are known to possess glaives which are one-of-a-kind, designed specifically for their usage as to assist in containing their Septima power. Each of the Swordsmen (plus Nova) have glaives which are named after famous artifacts in Japanese folklore with a naming scheme similar to how samurai would christen their personal swords. Coincidentally, the Swordsmen of Sumeragi can be seen as a villainous counterpart to the dime-a-dozen concept of the Seven Samurai, being seven powerful adepts with tangibly-related abilities that the hero does battle against.
- Carrera: Rockslicer (岩融) - Magnet power, Carrera is able to walk with magnetism through the walls and create scrap hands to attack.
- Elise: Elise's glaive is known as the Living Blade (布都御魂（フツノミタマ）, Futsunomitama lit. Edict Municipal August Spirit), which grants her an enhanced version of her Septima's resurrective properties, thus enabling her to bring people back to life without any adverse side-effects, with the glaive negating the zombification that usually occurs during the process.
- Jota: Shadow Dragon (小龍景光) - Jota can use his Glaive to create very strong blades to pierce his opponents. He can also create Lasers using his Blades as conductors;
- Merak: Unwavering Spirit (不動国行) - Ability to create something similar to wormholes using his Glaive. His limits are still unknown.
- Stratos: Lizardslayer (蜥蜴丸) - Stratos gains 2 poweful hands to crush his enemies and can summon flies.
- Viper: Lord of Fire (火之迦具土) - Using this Glaive, Viper can perform even more powerful movements to destroy his opponent with fire techniques.
- Zonda: Crow Child (小烏丸) - Zonda can change the fields appearance by using items that resembles pink mirrors.
- Nova Tsukuyomi uses three Glaives to contain his septimal power; Ame no Mura Kumo (「天叢雲（アメノムラクモ)」) is his primary Glaive, Yatagarasu (「八咫烏（ヤタガラス）」) and Kurohyou (「黒豹（クロヒョウ）」) are his secondary Glaives.[2]
Trivia
- In the first trailer for the Azure Striker Gunvolt: Striker Pack, Nova's adepts are referred to as "The Glaives".
- Tenjian originally used a counterfeit Glaive given to him by Zonda. This fake Glaive served to boast his powers, though only marginally compared to Sumeragi's true Glaives.
- It's unknown if the rest of The Seven used fake Glaives.
- The Japanese name of the process the Swordsmen use to transform into their combat form, "Armed Phenomenon", is a reference to the ability of the same name used by the Four Guardians of Mega Man Zero series, another series developed mainly by Inti Creates. Interestingly, the name itself comes from the 80's comic Baoh, the Visitor, which was created by the same man whom pens JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, a highly influential comic within Japanese culture.