The Immortal Feyflower

When Father Berdea created the Fey creatures, his intent was for them to revel in the beauties of his works on Cartyrion forever. Thus, the Fey do not grow old and die as most other beings on Cartyrion do. But Berdea also knew that accidents could happen, and he knew that one day, other Astralar and powers of the Astral Realms would introduce treachery to the world. Berdea provided a way for his beloved Fey to transcend these circumstances. The form his solution takes is that of the feyflower.

Whenever the heart of a Fey ceases to beat, a feyflower will blossom to mark the spot and memorialize the joy and life of the creature that can no longer partake of the wonders of Berdea's creations.

Note the exquisite structure and balance of the flower. Each petal much like all the others, and all arranged in perfect symmetry. It is clear that Father Berdea intended this flower to be a testament to the beauty and order of his works, as well as to the place the fey hold in the maintenance of that order.

— Elven teacher addressing her students.

Gremlinweed

In the time since Berdea created the Fey, other deities have appeared and made their mark upon Cartyion. Some of these lacked the power to create life from the magical energies that permeate the world, but they had the skill and ability to warp and twist life that existed into shapes and demeanors more suited to them. One of these - Gremdial of the Mysticar - twisted and adulterated Berdea's Fey into the creatures called Gremlins . As there are many Fey species, so too are there many Gremlin species - each tracing its origins back to one of Berdea's creations. While Gremdial was able to twist and reshape his targets, he could not completely alter their base nature. Thus, the Gremlins, like the Fey, are immortal - though killable. And when they do die, an analog of the feyflower grows to mark the place where they fell. Some call these darkflowers, or black feyflowers, but the most common name for them is gremlinweed.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Feyflowers (and gremlinweeds) grow a single stem from which a few ligulate leaves emanate. The stem is crowned by a single flower blossom.

In the case of the feyflowers, this blossom is composed of hundreds of petals arranged in symmetric circles around a central core containing structures that resemble stamens and pistil. These are not functioning reproductive elements, though, for just like the Fey that spawned it, the feyflower is incapable of propagating itself.

The fully grown size of the plant, and the specific color and petal structure of each feyflower are both dependent on the subspecies of Fey from which the flowers sprout. Thus, one well trained in the lore of the feyflower can determine whether the unfortunate creature that fell was a Brownie or Sprite, a Pixie or Nixie, or any of the other types of Fey.

Regardless of variety, the plants produce a faint, but exceptionally pleasant aroma that some say is capable of inducing a sense of mild euphoria. This aroma is commonly referred to as Berdea's Breath.

The nectar of the plant, when collected and properly refined, has magical properties.

Now you all know of the relationship between Fey and Gremlin... the latter were formed out of the former by Gremdial who deigned to pollute Father Berdea's beautiful works. Because of their heritage, Gremlins, too, are immortal, though subject to death by violence. And when killed, their immortal nature is also manifest by the growth of a plant. But, just as the Gremlins are dark and twisted caricatures of the Fey from which they were spawned, so too are the plants that mark their passing. They are but dark and twisted reflections of the feyflower.

— Elven teacher addressing her students.

Gremlinweed, like the creature it springs from, is a misshapen shadow of the form that Berdea intended. Like the feyflower, a single blossom from a single stem is found. While the leaves are still ligulate, they have irregular edges: sometimes serrate, sometimes undulate, sometimes both. The leaves may have colorations ranging from dark greens to blood reds and near blacks. The flower itself is irregularly shaped; always dark in color.

The aroma emitted from the flower extends the theme of the plant - and the creature from which it spawned - a distorted shadow of what Berdea intended. The scent is best defined as putrid, reminiscent of rotting meat. Where bees and hummingbirds are attracted to the blossoms of the feyflower, it is only flies that seek out the gremlinweed blossom.

Genetics and Reproduction

Put simply, feyflowers or gremlinweeds cannot be propagated. They do not produce seeds, and cuttings taken fron a stem or leaf cannot produce a new plant. If the blossom is cut from the stem, it will immediately lose its aroma (and magical potential), and will rapidly wither. The plant will, however, grow a new blossom within twenty-four hours.

It is possible to dig up an entire plant specimen for transplantation elsewhere. Care must be taken, however, to ensure that enough soil is collected so that the remains of the Fey or Gremlin that spawned the plant are included. If insufficient soil is taken, the removed plant will immediately wither, and a new one will begin to grow in its place, taking about three days to mature.

Growth Rate & Stages

When a Fey creature dies, it decomposes into something resembling damp, fertile soil within a few minutes, and the feyflower stem will appear within the next hour or so. The plants grow to maturity rapidly, taking no more than three days to mature and produce its single blossom. Similarly, Gremlins also decompose almost immediately, but their remains are more reminiscent of manure than clean, fertile soil.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

The nectar of the Feyflower is a key component in the most powerful of alchemical healing elixirs, and is often used in the preparation of more powerful magical potions that render healing or restorative effects. Those who have achieved very high levels of expertise in these crafts will often seek out specimens of Feyflowers in the wild and carefully transport them to their own work places. It takes at least two weeks of collecting nectar from a single plant to brew but a single batch of these potions - hence the very high cost of the product. But this also means that a knowledgeable artisan would be willing to pay handsomely for a properly harvested specimen.

Gremlinweed also has its alchemical and potion-based uses, though these are not for healing or restoration. In fact, different varieties of Gremlinweed have varied uses, ranging from deadly poisons to mutagenic compounds that can be used to produce undesirable (for the recipient) effects. While the market for these concoctions - or for the plants required to make them - is not nearly as "open" as that for Feyflowers, the demand and associated costs are quite high.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Because the Fey are everywhere on Cartyrion, Feyflowers (and Gremlinweed) can also be found everywhere. But just as the different varieties of Fey prefer particular biomes, the specific varieties of Feyflowers will also tend to be clustered according to the surrounding environment. The flowers that emanate from the remains of naiads, for example, will almost always be found along river and lake banks.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Those with the magical ability to Speak With Plants have reported that both feyflowers and gremlinweeds appear to retain much of the memory and personality of the creatures that spawned them, though memories are cloudy and temperament is magnified. Neither type of plant is of much use when, for example, asking about other creatures that may have simply passed through an area. A feyflower's attention is on the natural world around it. It can report on disturbances to the natural essence of the immediate surroundings, but brief transitional events are often overlooked. Similarly, gremlinweeds will have taken notice of any serious, lasting mischief that may have been perpetrated within its sensory range, but transient events are often missed.

When communicating with a feyflower, the plant offers responses in a serene, peaceful manner. The gremlinweed, on the other hand, responds with sharp, terse, and often insulting replies.

It has been universally reported that neither feyflower nor gremlinweed are capable of describing the circumstances of the demise of the creature that spawned the flower itself.

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Credits

Feyflower -- Photo by Tavin Dotson on Unsplash
Gremlinweed -- Photo by Sam Skyer on Unsplash

Banner image by RPGDinosaurBob using Flowscape on Steam.
Side panel forest images by Free-Photos from Pixabay
Side panel Fey images by RPGDinosaurBob using Hero Forge