THE INTERNET OF FLOWERS

Many years ago, dustrider oracles began receiving messages from flowers deep within the Earth. They bloomed in places much deeper than sunlight or rainwater could reach, where their fronds and perfumes would never be experienced by living things. Their roots grew in all directions, as did their petals, forming explosions of color unseen. Because of their peculiar habitat, their pollen had no air through which to propagate; as such, they evolved a method of broadcasting it as a form of organic radiation.

Their signals were full of allure, and entangled with the minds of those who received them as provocative dreams. Oracles spoke of being submerged in liquid orchid, feeling the release of blossoming new limbs, and the sensation of a moth’s tongue unfurling into the crevasses of their brains. They learned the flavor of nitrogen and how to taste it with their veins, as well as how to whisper in pheromones. 

These dreams brought with them ecstasy, but of an intense variety that was alien to their warm bodies. Those who learned how to interpret their language of pleasure understood. The reproductive process of these deep flowers relied on the imaginations of other creatures to cross their channels and produce new seeds. Each bloomed in total isolation, conjured ex nihilo, craving something that only existed in another world.

VANISHING POINT

DOUBLE JEOPARDY