Quest for Gem Roses

Grim knew this was a bit of a gamble. A very involved one, at that – arguably far more risky than any nonsense one could pull off at the Wonderland Casino (barring invoking Angora's ire, though he was certain most bunfolk were sensible enough to not even consider that). While browsing seasonal starters at one of the shops he frequented, Grim ran into a fellow botany enthusiast who spoke about a rumor of some rare wild rose species. Supposedly they had magical properties and could only be found deep within a forest of iron, situated just along the border between Burrowgatory and Hell itself.

The location wasn't terribly enticing, but even while it was the tail end of Matentines, the idea of getting such unique flowers for his personal garden was difficult to pass up. Not to mention – Grim could possibly make a pretty carat or more off his findings – assuming the information was even real or that he could manage to obtain anything without getting horribly maimed or killed.

Again, such was the nature of these things: a gamble.

Briefly, Grim considered taking Paroli with him – but knowing the little snake, he'd probably end up putting the imp in far more danger than was necessary. Perhaps for another gentler flower seeking adventure, Grim would take Paroli along for some sight-seeing.

Speaking of, Grim hunted around his house for some time before finding the imp wedged into a bookshelf, coiled and fast asleep. Upon being pat on the head, Paroli gave a toothy yawn before going right back to sleep. Endeared by the sight of the imp being so comfortable, Grim nodded to himself and set off to gear up for an adventure.

- - -

The trek to the edge of Burrowgatory was fairly uneventful. Using several maps (this place was huge) – Grim could pretty easily find his way through the wilder parts of Burrowgatory. Thankfully for him, the biome he was looking for didn't seem to be blocked by any of the more lava-drenched parts of Burrowgatory – but the terrain here was sometimes rugged enough all the same. He crossed some ash-covered plains (dreadfully dull), one with some gooey-looking pits (probably best not to fall in), and a rocky forest of dimly-glowing, giant mushrooms (probably should not eat these...).

As Grim drew closer to his goal, the terrain grew rougher and more bare – the earth became jagged and the rocks became full of various raw metal ores. Upon closer inspection, Grim noted some rather beautiful hues in the stone: shiny blues and silvers. If he knew more about mining, he'd take samples back to get them examined, but it was best not to overburden himself with too many trinkets. The real challenge had yet to come after all and his real goal was finding the wild roses.

Eventually, the stony terrain simply became completely metallic in appearance – Grim had to take care not to move carelessly or risk becoming a bun-kabob on the terrifying-looking spikes that covered the ground. Checking the map again, he knew he was getting closer: the terrain becoming metal was a sure sign he was on the right track.

Some time later (and a very careful walk, sometimes on all fours for more stability), Grim found... a forest. He thinks it's a forest – the 'trees' here are really a mess of iron-smelling fractals that pierce the air, their ominous and jagged forms coming together to form an impenetrable tangle. Oddly enough, the trees (or whatever the hell they were) here had no visible rust but smelled quite strong.

Grim hadn't faced any terrifying beasts (yet) and while the trek had been hard work, he was having second thoughts. Why would flowers be growing in a place like this? Wouldn't the oversaturation of heavy metals kill off anything that tried to take root?

Shrugging, Grim decided to press on – he had come this far already, he might as well figure out what the fuss was about with regards to this iron forest. Strutting on into the forest (and taking care to not become impaled on any of the ground spikes), Grim pressed onward.

It was a good thing he had his smaller bun form – the crossing of the iron branches overhead left little room for one to crawl about on the ground – which was also sharp. After a considerable amount of effort and very careful shimmying, Grim had wormed his way deep into the forest. He checked his map again – he should be getting close...

Something shrieked overhead. Grim froze, fur poofing out somewhat. He froze in place and listened carefully, wondering what else could be there with him. With all this accursed metal around, Grim couldn't really smell much of anything asides from iron. Almost reluctantly, Grim cast his gaze upwards, through the mess of iron thorns above.

A creature – perhaps a demon?? – made of far too many spindly limbs was crawling very quickly across the tops of the iron forest. It seemed to be locked onto some flying thing – an imp? No, it was too big to be an imp – was that some poor succubun, flapping their way over the iron forest?

There was a terrified squeal – from whatever or whoever was being pursued – and spindly-limbs emit a piercing shriek, causing the metallic tines of the forest around it to vibrate profusely. Terrified, Grim waited some time for the creature and its prey to move far enough away that he could no longer hear either of them.

Well... that explains why this place isn't exactly crawling with tourists. Grim thought. Still... this could be my chance. Too bad for that other poor sod, whoever they may be.

Fueled by determination and adrenaline, Grim continued his painstaking crawl through the iron forest. After what felt like an eternity, Grim came across a small clearing that was both relatively spike-free and allowed him to stand. At the center of this clearing, the metallic ground became soft earth again and sprouting out of the earth was a patch of the most beautiful, glowing wild roses Grim had ever seen. Their petals were soft and laced with gem-like veins. Even the stems seemed to be part crystal – Grim had no way of verifying if they were magic per se, but the way these flowers blended both fragile living petals and inorganic beauty was already a lot on its own.

For a moment, Grim was worried the clippers he brought would simply shatter if he tried to take a rose – but he managed to cut down a few without too much issue (he'd probably need new clippers after this). Looking around, Grim could see the faint glow of what was likely more patches of these shiny roses in the distance, through the iron forest. There was no telling when the hell that monster would be coming back, so it'd be best if Grim called it good right here and left with his life intact.

I don't care how many carats I get offered on these things. Grim thought, as he made his way back out of the iron forest. Nobody's going to beat my garden once I add these beauties to the mix. Ha!

Mercifully, the spindly-limbed creature from before didn't show up again, and Grim was able to make his escape far, far from the iron forest. If he could figure out how to propagate these roses, maybe he'd consider selling a few – but for now, he'll simply enjoy these rare treasures for himself. What a perfect way to end this year's Matentine's.