Blood Ruby

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A small, deep-red gemstone sent by the Night Court as an irrevocable death warrant, marking its recipient for execution across all territories under the High Lord's shadow.

Also known as: Death Ruby, Night's Mark, Ruby of the Hewn City, Blood Token

What They Know

• A Blood Ruby can only be sent by the High Lord of Night or a commander expressly granted his authority; forging one is a death sentence in itself.
• Once delivered, the ruby cannot be returned or refused—it bonds to the recipient's scent, and any attempt to destroy it triggers a burst of darkfire that consumes the bearer.
• The ruby is traditionally delivered by a shadow-wraith or a trusted messenger of the Night Court, often left on a pillow, slipped into a pocket, or presented during a feast, so that the target knows the moment of their condemnation.
• In the war-camps of Illyria, a Blood Ruby is considered an honorable death sentence—reserved for those who have betrayed a blood oath—while in the Court of Nightmares, it is a tool of terror, used to cull rivals without trial.
• The gem is said to be cut from a single vein of stone deep beneath the Hewn City, where the mountain's pressure and the ambient malice of the court infuse it with a hunger for the life it is meant to end.

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