Orffaristo Lily (ōrf-fär-ēēstō)

The Orffaristo Lily, or "Orphan Maker Lily " as it is known to the native Thora, is a carnivorous plant that is both dangerous and valuable to the people of Hesper. It is found on the Sky-Side of the planet, and is most prevalent within the Syllva Cirros.

Appearance

The most immediately visible portion of an Orffaristo Lily is the massive blue and golden yellow flower at its center. Sometimes reaching as much as 10 feet tall, these flowers are hard to miss, but are usually smelled before they are seen. The flower emits a powerful stench of rotting meat to attract lone scavenger animals into it's deadly trap. The stalk and outer shell of the flower are the typical deep violet color of most plants on Hesper, the single petal that stretches around the center of the flower is a deep lapis lazuli blue, which washes into the golden yellow of the central spadix. Parts of the single petal contain a bio-luminescent compound that glows faintly in the dark of the jungle when the plant is ready to "eat". Just underground below the flower is a large nutty corm, about two feet in diameter, which is the heart of the Orffaristo Lily. Growing out of this central corm is a web-like network of rhizomes that extend out in all directions for around 10 feet. These rhizomes are particularly aggressive, and will often choke out other plants in the area. At regular intervals, the underground rhizomes will sprout a thin and wispy vertical structure that stretches up out of the ground for 1-2 feet. They are a pale and translucent white in color, and are exceptionally hard to see in the dark jungle. The stalk of this structures is covered in tiny stinging nematocysts which immobilize prey animals that wander too closely to the plant, and at the tip is an anther containing a fine pollen-like powder that is released into a cloud when disturbed.

Hazards

Someone hoping to harvest the petals from an Orffaristo Lily needs to be extremely careful while approaching. The first danger to be avoided is the Stamen like structures that tip the thin and translucent tendrils growing from the spread out rhizomes. If a stamen or tendril structure is damaged or disturbed enough, the pollen may be released, forming a thick cloud of powder in the area. This cloud of fine particulate pollen that poses a severe respiratory hazard to nearby lunged animals when released. This pollen quickly coats the lungs, causing rapid asphyxiation in affected creatures. In addition, damage to the central spadix may also trigger a defensive release of pollen from all stamens of the Orffaristo Lily.

Being careful to not disturb the pollen or damage the spadix at the center is not the only hazard. The tendrils surrounding the plant are covered in nematocysts which activated by very light touch. The needle-like stingers are expelled with a good deal of force when activated and are able to pierce through heavy clothing to deliver their potent venom. The venom delivered by these stingers is a necrotoxin, causing affected cells to quickly die off.

Prey animals, attracted by the smell of rotting meat will wander into the radius of the flower and quickly become immobilized from a combination of wounds to their legs and asphyxiation. The wispy tendrils will gather around the downed animal and begin secreting the necrotizing toxin onto the victim, which dies and is rapidly reduced to a nutrient sludge that seeps into the soil, providing much needed nutrients to the mother plant.

Uses & Products

The petals of the foul smelling flower at the center of the plants structure are highly sought after for their uses in medicine. When properly prepared, they can act as a very powerful clotting agent, able to seal hemorrhaging wounds in seconds. Byproducts of Orffaristo typically come as a set of small vials containing a dried powder that is poured into an open wound, or as a powder infused gauze bandages. Orffaristo Infused bandages are much less potent than the raw powder form but are much more readily available due to using less of the powder, and shelf stable.