Nero's Boot/AshoftheCrimsonKeep
Of all the drugs that the Guild produces, the ash of the Crimson Keep is their most deadly. Sold to assassins, Dynasts, and cultists of dark gods alike, the Crimson ash is distilled through powerful necromantic thaumaturgy at the only shadowland under Guild control, in the icy wastes of the frozen North.
Many hundreds of miles north of Gethemane lies the Shadowland of the Crimson Keep, a small shadowland and adjacent castle ruled by the Guild, after it performed a valued service for the Lover Clad in the Raiment of Tears. A nemissary named Bright Corpse rules it when the Guild is absent, though the beautiful ghost is slavishly loyal to her Deathlord above all else. The castle is so named for its blood-stained walls, drenched in the blood of a thousand men. Not even the most powerful mortal magicks can erase these stains, though the Guild has often tried. It stands at the southern borders of the shadowland, and is protected by hardened Guild mercenaries, along with the walking dead. At the center of the main tower of the castle lurks the Frozen Giant, a massive humanoid corpse that belches forth prophecies when hot irons are applied to it's eyes. Bright Corpse claims the Frozen Giant was once her lover, though none at the Keep believe her.
The Crimson ash is a unique drug that can paralyze even an Exalt, and is ingested via inhalation. The secrets of the ash's production is kept deadly quiet, for the Realm and any Northern kingdom would unite to crush its production forever should the truth be known.
In order for Crimson ash to be manufactured, seventeen virgins (8 male, 8 female, and one male who is castrated) must be brought to the citadel, and therein tortured for 18 months. At the moment the 19th month commences, they must be slain by the hands of Bright Corpse, and their blood fed to the Frozen Giant, who excretes roughly one pound of the substance. It is a high price to pay for such a substance, but the ash's lethality more than makes up for it.
