Reliquary
If your entire existence were to be encapsulated by one object, what would it be? I like to think mine would be a quill.
The reliquary is a secure, hidden vault vital to the death rites of Argentii. It is located in the intricate catacombs beneath Crossroads Island. It's not really a place, but rather a collection and cataloging process. Where it is the catacombs that store the bones waiting to be processed, the Reliquary safely guards the processes for cataloguing the dead and securely stores any strange or unusual items which result from this processing.
Mechanics & Inner Workings
When a person dies and their body is prepared for cremation, a sample of bone is taken. This is usually the smallest bone at the tip of the left pinkie, though some cultures take the tailbone and others the small anvil-shaped bone from the inner ear. This is then sent to Library Inn where sages extract the person's living memories from the bone and write them down for addition to the library's catalog of memory.
This is a critical step for assisting the spirits of those who wish to finally depart Argentii.
Then, the bone is exposed to immense heat and pressure that transform the remnants into a crystal. This crystal is then exposed to a secret process involving direct energy transfer from an iwhute. This process is a dangerous and closely kept secret known only to a select handfull of the most dedicated Grand Master Sages within the United Guild of Scribes, Calligraphers, Illuminators, and Engravers.
The resulting item is known as a Relic. Upon processing, a relic is cataloged and then subjected to a litany of tests to determine whether it possesses any unusual, dangerous, or extreme characteristics. Any relics that do are sequestered inside the Reliquary's closely guarded vault.
Overall, this is a slow process and thus, bones and bodies waiting to be processed are stored and carefully cataloged in the catacombs while they wait.
Manufacturing process
Lacking any better evidence, Shiv believes that they were carved out by an ancient dragon's magic or might. While it is a curious mystery, in the end, it doesn't matter one way or another.
Provided they don't disturb it. If 'it' even exists.
History
Dating back at least to the construction of Library Palace, some estimates date the original tunnels to be even older and suggest that the presence of the most ancient parts of the catacombs might have inspired Tige the Uniter to select the island as the capital for his new nation of united peoples.
Significance
Protection and Security
Secrecy is the reliquary's first defense. Everyone knows it exists, but no one knows how to find the entrance to the catacombs. The entrance is well-hidden and well protected from those who are unwelcome.
Should its hidden nature fail to save it from intrusion, then the sages who work within the catacombs are both equipped and trained to deal with such circumstances. From vermin to an invading army to a sudden infusion of the river's rushing water or an uncontrolled burst of flame.
Finally, should all else fail and fall before a threat, there is always the iwhute itself and its inherent magical defenses; properties that are not fully understood even by the Guardians.
Item type
Storage
Current Location
Current Holder
Rarity
While most islands have their own catacombs and some even have their own collections of important relics, only Library Inn has the knowledge, personnel, and technomancy necessary to convert a person's remains into a true relic of their life.
Dimensions
At least 500 miles of tunnels
Raw materials & Components
Crossroads island sits on a foundation of granite bedrock. Throughout this bedrock are hundreds of miles of tunnels. Their floors have been ground flat, and the walls contain alcoves of varying sizes. Some are only only the size of a thimble, others the size of a grown adult body.
Tools
It is as though some great living serpent of molten lava had burrowed its way through the rock, eating it away like a worm in an apple, and left behind smooth, vitrified walls as strong as quartz and so perfectly arched as to be nearly indestructable under a load.
This is inspiring. Great article!