There's Snow Place Like Home

[Strazio Rockwell]

The cold was no friend of Valerie's. He detested the snipping bite of the Frozen Fields. Every wisp of wind stole breath from his lungs and heat from his heart. Knives punctured the arches of his bare feet as they crunched into the fresh powder. The plant mage hadn't worn shoes in ages, he much preferred to feel the dirt and earth beneath his feet. Even still the chill creeping up his limbs reminded him that winter clothes would be needed. He lacked the ability to construct clothing from omnilium, but he had another trick up his sleeve. Small vines peeked out from beneath his robe and interlaced with themselves. Thin wires of a cotton-like substance followed suit, knitting itself into long braided patterns. In mere moments his feet were wrapped in a warm haven of plant matter, and the rest of his body was well-insulated with his organic winter outfit.

Still he had begun to doubt if he would ever feel truly warm again.

“Oh melancholy,” Valerie bemoaned, “must we travel so deep into this frost encrusted desert? I know a beautiful warm vista in the Vasty Deeps that we could explore.”

His complaints went unheard and unanswered and he was left to suffer in the frigid snow. There was a painful absence of life here, not but frozen water and dreary silence. The forest was alive with the sounds of nature, it pulsed with the breath of grand creation. This placed lacked that every present ebb and flow of life, it lacked variety . Still, in the Omniverse anything was possible and the thought of an iceborn plant was not too far-fetched. Even in the verdant mage's home universe several species of harsh plants made their lives buried beneath the northern tundra. The thought of discovering a new exotic species of snow-borne plant gave him the resolve to press on.

Before them stood Jade's magnificent tower, imperial in all of its glory. Truly a testament to the power of omnilium, able to create such a feat of engineering with nothing more than a thought. However, what impressed the verdant mage was the groves of trees scattered around the perimeter. Beautiful green bark with strikingly red leaves Drawn like a man possessed Valerie split from the group and wandered over to the strange new flora. The two complimentary colors mixed to create an alluring plant. Carefully and delicately he placed his hands upon the bark and closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the almost nonexistent pulse of the tree. Every cell and fiber silently being weighed and examined through the use of near-imperceptible magick. Val's heart fluttered and skipped a beat as he felt the chilled roots reach deep beneath the earth. Under his breath he whispered in astonishment and reached for one of the blood-red petals. With a quick motion he plucked the flower from its branch and inhaled its unique scent. Then, without warning, he swallowed the petal and his veins pulsed a bright almost-emerald green. From beneath the skin on his palm a fully formed blossom formed, identical to those born by the tree.

"Excellent," he whispered and plucked the flower from his hand. With an exuberant twirl he turned back to the group and followed in step.