She looks so serious as she carefully hands the vial back to me. “It is,” I reply, taking her hand in my own. “Powerful, that is.” I carefully place the glass container back in my pack. “There are a lot of things in the realm that looks like something that you would see in The Mortal Realm or even, maybe, in Faerie. They may look similar but they are far from it. See that berry bush over there, I point to the right. “They look like blueberries, but that’s blight. Just a taste can kill you.”
“That’s what my Da said. He and Pip told some tall tales about his time here but that one story stuck, but not all trees here are like the black elder tree. You have dragonfruit trees too, right?”
Laughing, I nod, “Yes, but we will probably not see any this close to the barren lands. There are other fruit trees here as well, but most of those are on the other side of the Great Divide.”
We continue walking in silence for a while and Lillie continues to take everything in. As we come upon a canopy-covered clearing, Lillie asks, “Daxell, what is that gods' awful stench?”
“Devil’s Bane,” I whisper. “I’ve heard tale of it but never thought to ever see it or smell it. I thought that it was all but eradicated. Lillie, we have to secure some of these flowers, but we cannot allow it to touch our skin and we absolutely must not breathe in any of its spores. The Fallen can be brought to their knees with this stuff, it’s very potent, but must be handled very carefully.”
39
Hellionite, AKA Devil’s Bane
(Lillie Joanna)
The foul-smelling flower looks as rotten as it smells. For the love of Lucifer, the putrid stench of death is suffocating. My eyes have begun to water and my stomach threatens to empty its contents as I clamp a hand over my nose. The flower in question is the deepest of purple, bordering on black, it reminds me of a cross between an orchid and a lily but with long whiskers that bow to the ground, like a cat. The whiskers look like they serve as the stamen with the anther hanging low to the ground below. This little patch of devil’s bane is thriving. Turning to Daxell, I ask, “What do we need to harvest?”
“See the cat-like whiskers that droop toward the undergrowth? We need what is at the end of them.”
“The anther, the pollen. How do we harvest it?”
“Very carefully. Here, wrap this scarf around your face. Do not breathe in the pollen. It could paralyze both of us in a matter of seconds. I’ll extract what we need. I don’t want you to inhale or come in contact with it. Stand back, LJ.”
I quickly step in front of him, blocking his way, and say, “No way, demon boy. I’ll extract and you can stand guard. That way, if I’m knocked on my ass, you can swoop in and be my dark knight, my guardian angel.” I smile sweetly up at my wickedly handsome demon.
He glares down at me before relenting, nodding, he acquiesces, “Your reasoning is sound, princess. You must carefully remove the anther, is that what you called it? The pollen.” His voice is all growly. He clearly is not okay with me doing this.
I gently touch his arm, gaining his attention, and say, “I’ll be careful. I promise.” He nods and I continue, “Okay then, what do you want me to put the pollen in? Do we have any gloves? How am I to do this without coming into contact with it?’
Growling, Daxell moves to my side and digs through one of our bags. He pulls out a drawstring bag made of linen that looks to have been soaked in wax and hands it to me. His demon is pushing to be released but Daxell remains firmly in control, neither are happy and he announces, “I don’t have any gloves.”
Grimacing, I look up at my kindred soul mate, “How much do we need?”
“Pollen from three or four of the flowers should be more than enough, but we should not tarry here. Get what you can, and don’t take any risks. I’m not kidding, LJ. This stuff is nothing to mess with.” He growls as I wrap the scarf around my mouth and nose and secure it into place.
Nodding, I take the small bag and say, “I’ve got this. While I’m doing this, why don’t you tell me more about this flower?” Walking over to the bed of flowers, I assess where I’m going to start. I choose a spot on the outer edge of the bed and go to work. My thought is that I’ll work my way inward so as not to accidentally come into contact with any of the stinky flower’s pollen.
Daxell’s voice is low and soothing when he begins. “It’s been widely believed that the plant was eliminated ages ago. The Fallen found out very early on that this flower has properties that affect them adversely. They can be completely incapacitated for a short period of time. Kind of like kryptonite.” He chuckles softly, “Instead of Devil’s Bane we could call it hellionite.”
I chuckle at his reference, and say, “I think I like that better. Go on,” I urge him to continue as I continue my tedious task.
“So Luc and the other princes set out to eradicate all of the offensive flowers. I only know about it because Devil’s Bane played a part in Asmodeus’s capture when his abilities were bound. My fathers showed me an ancient tome with an illustration and a general written outline of the plant's properties.”
By now, I’ve successfully harvested at least four flowers anther and pull the drawstring bag shut. Standing, I make my way back to him and drop it safely within our bags
