Icon of Illyria

The Icon of Illyria is a weapon wielded by an ancient goddess, and formerly the most powerful object in Bete Noire.

The Goddess
Illyria is from Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel television canon. She was a demon goddess who ruled over her own dimension, in an ancient time. During Angel the television series, Illyria took possession of the body of a woman named Winifred Burkle, and subsequently used her as a host. That is the appearance she takes today.

Appearance in Fallen Angel
Illyria appeared in the current final issue of Fallen Angel, titled Fallen Angel: Reborn. She came to Bete Noire seeking one of the three pieces of her Icon, in an attempt to recover her power. The recovery of her power was catastrophic in result, and by virtue of a time loop, Liandra, the Fallen Angel, was able to stop it from taking place.

The mission
Chloe Armstrong convinced the Hierarchy that it would be prudent to seek out the Icon, and use it in their quest to take over Bete Noire. The Hierarchy agreed, and Chloe broadcast the message all across the city, promising great rewards for anyone who brought it to her. (Chloe's real motive remains unknown, though there is speculation that she began this specifically to speed the city towards conflict with Yellow Springs.)

The discovery
The Icon was discovered by the Nuns of the Sisters of the Resurrection in the graveyard. They attempted to recover it for themselves, but, in the process, triggered an ancient curse on the Icon. It detonated, causing a minor earthquake, and soon after, strange bladed weapons started turning up all over the city, particularly attached to their new owners.

These weapons were fragments of the Icon, and were in themselves objects of power.

The curse
Noah felt the discovery of the Icon of Illyria, from Yellow Springs (the City of Death), and he hatched a plan. He believed strongly that the Hierarchy was going to invade him, so he decided to work on them first -- every time someone used the Icon, a little bit of the energy of the City of Death would leak over.

Using the knives on another person, even a small cut, caused immediate death and revival not as a living being but as an undead zombie, stuck in a state between death and life.

The cure
The Hierarchy finally discovered a cure, involving using the power of the Magistrate to bring the zombies back to life. They declared the danger over.

Weeks later, Yellow Springs broke through the city's magical barrier and invaded for real, bringing a zombie army with them this time.