Sapphire
| Sapphire | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Materials | |
| Official Name | Sapphire |
| Common Nicknames | Nessallsonssossos |
| Origin | Hadaria |
| Uses | Decorative, Religious |
| Rarity | Rare |
| Accessibility | Upper Class |
Sapphires are rare, blue translucent gems found on the continent of Hadaria. Before the Chrysant War, the Essa Empire had a monopoly on the sapphire trade. The Slizzar saw them as holy objects, “Snake God Eyes” which all true believers of the faith should possess. After the war and the repair of many mines, Regalia now holds the monopoly on the trade of sapphires. The blue gem is used in the jewelry of the upper class, especially in Ithania and Regalia where they are commonly paired with silver due to its reflective properties. Today, sapphire exports are centered towards nobility and the upper class where they can be bought from higher end jewelry stores.
History
The Sapphire has an ancient history dating all the way back to the Meraic. A common mineral at the height of their Empire, they mined it extensively and adorned numerous objects and structures with the gem. After the Fourth Void Invasion, the next race to use Sapphires were the Slizzar, who viewed the gemstone as petrified “eyes” of their gods which could enhance their worship . The most influential and powerful Slizzar were soon to acquire jewelry featuring this stone. When the Elven Empire reached Hadar, they too grew infatuated with the gem, subsequently causing of the chief exports back to Daendroc to be raw Sapphires. To most Slizzar, this “theft” became a common reason in a laundry list of why the serpent race turned against the Empire. For the next 2000 years, sapphires became a common adornment among the Slizzar, and it seemed as though the mines would never run dry.
Unfortunately, the Cataclysm drastically changed this. Within the new island terrain of Hadar, sapphires were harder to acquire, and many Slizzar families passed down their blue stone set jewelry over the years. When the Allar arrived on Hadar, the Slizzar manipulated them into also liking the gemstones, and new mines were opened to locate the minerals. Until the Chrysant War, a steady stream of sapphires poured forth from these mines, reaching Regalia, where they soon became a highly desired item. Following the destruction caused by the war, one of the first tasks of the Regalian Military was to seize more of this luxury good, which they have steadily. Today, the stream of sapphires is small but plentiful enough to supply the wealthy of the world with this deep blue gemstone. In recent times, this stream will possibly grow larger as in the last ten years, the easternmost states of Hadaria have unveiled that their islands also hold the mineral. This has brought members of their society great wealth, and the gem remains a driving force of interest in the region.
Characteristics
Appearance
Sapphires are deep blue colored gemstones that have a similar structure to that of the Ruby, a much rarer gemstone. Unlike the Ruby, which is present in only red, sapphires have also been discovered in shades of yellow and purple, the final color the rarest on earth and incredibly valuable to any merchant, Nessrassian worshipper or Slizzar. Impurities within these gems are quite rare, which only increases their desirability among consumers. Sapphires are often cut into the shape of teardrops or rounded squares.
General Uses
Sapphire has few uses, but it serves a dual function of self-decoration and religious iconography. For the upper echelon of numerous societies, Sapphires are beautiful minerals used in jewelry, and is often paired with Silver to make such pieces. To those who follow Nessrassian beliefs, the gemstones are a deep symbolic tie back to their great gods. Often times the stone also exists in jewelry but are sometimes kept in small decorative wooden cases or inset onto the masks used to commit acts in worship to the Deep Sea Serpents.
Abilities
Sapphires have no abilities.
Trivia
- Ironically, no Nessrassian diety has blue eyes, and the color occurs in the eyes of the Deep Sea Serpents. This is why the other colors of Sapphires are so sought out by Slizzar, as yellow relates to the Serpent of Greed and the color purple to the Slizzar themselves.
- The Slizzar of today often manipulate noble patrons or wealthy friends into acquiring Sapphires since the race’s need to hide themselves has prompted great care when acquiring rare goods. Luckily because of how common it is for the upper class to get sapphires, few people ever notice.
- The Tohn Valeer (the network of tunnels that held the dormant Meraic that later became Circci) was once studded with various beautiful though small Sapphire flourishes. Unfortunately, the Circci have had to sell many of them off to help pay for past attempts to cure themselves.
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