Dreadthorn

History and Origin

The Dreadthorn is a rarely seen, but highly impactful plant within the world of Hesper. Not natively from the Amber planet, the predecessor to the Dreadthorn, the Wreckwood, was used by Atlanteans as a means of construction. Clearing land was a time and effort consuming process, so instead they would plant a Wreckwood tree, or several of the area was large enough. In a matter of hours, the tree would have begun to grow and would reach maturity in a matter of a couple days. When at full maturity, the Wreckwood would stand at over 1,500 ft tall and nearly as wide. Then, after another couple of days, the trees would wither and die, not leaving behind a sign of it besides a crater the size of its base. Using the Wreckwoods, Atlanteans could easily clear land in matters of weeks instead of years, leaving the debris left behind for their more subservient species. Sometime after arriving on Venus, Ra modified the destructive, but useful Wreckwood into something more threatening, the Dreadthorn. Gone were the warning periods for those who would be in the area. The germination and growth rates pushed even further. Perhaps worst, gone was the swift decay and ambivalent disappearance of the tree with something more cruel. The tree had gone from tool to weapon.

Lifecycle

Nowadays the Dreadthorn is deployed without warning. Whether priests plant a seed in secret, the seeds are dropped from a floating disk, or if they’ve already been planted there and lie dormant is unknown. One the seed (or seeds) begins to grow, it will be a full grown tree within a day, destroying whatever above ground surroundings there were in the process. A fully grown Dreadthorn stands even taller and wider than its benign cousin with massive thorns jutting out in every direction. The tree stands for a handful of days before dying. During that time, those who remained will rapidly find more reasons to leave. While it stands, anyone nearby will be able to hear the tree growing due to its rapid growth. A sound that lies somewhere between human screams and a plague of insects can be heard all around. When the leaves begin to fall, they turn to a thick liquid before they hit the ground. This heavy, red rain will land at the base of the tree and all surrounding areas, assuming the wind carries. Upon hitting the ground, the leaf liquid begins to stink sickly sweet, attracting unfortunate creatures. The leaf fall is not dangerous on its own, but it is highly adhesive, trapping most creatures in it. Perhaps as an oversight or maybe a lure to the daring, the leaves are actually capable of making powerful medicines and antidotes in their solid form for those who dare. Instead of withering and dying without a trace like the Wreckwood, the Dreadthorn meets another need. From when the first leaf falls to when the last leaf pool congeals, the whole tree pulses. Every pulse a deep thump, like the beating of a heart. Getting faster and faster until the end. Then, there is no way of knowing what happens. Many things can happen during a Dreadbloom, the final stage of a Dreadthorn’s short life . In the past the whole tree has melted and flowed like lava over the trapped below. The trunk can explode, firing shards of massive wooden shrapnel for miles around. It can morph and bend instead into a building, a new fortress for Ra’s forces. There is even at least one unsubstantiated account of the bloom causing the Dreadthorn to come alive and stalk the landscape.

Use

In the event of a Dreadthorn growth, there is nothing that can be done except to run as fast as possible, but even that’s not a guarantee of safety. Dreadthorn are often used as an element to a grander plan and by running you could be falling write into Ra’s hands. Due to their severe effect to the surrounding area, Dreadthorns are not used on landscapes that Ra intends to keep. However, he may use them as a part of a plan to capture something, such as when he used many of the spiteful trees to trap Maksur Das to its fate. If you can’t run, there’s not much hope for you, but a sliver exists. Cha’ari escapees have reported that Dreadthorns appear to have a hollow center accessible only from the top. The hope being you could enter the tree and stop whatever causes the beat before the Deathbloom. Whether or not this is true remains to be seen, but for the truly desperate there may be no other choice.