Volatile Pine

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Heaven Above. Haven Below.

This content takes place in the Haven setting of Imagindarium's Creation.

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Index / Lexica / Timeline

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"Believe me, we’re well aware of the risk in harvesting this stuff. However, unlike most folks, we don’t shy away from a little danger."

—Erik Mercer, sap collector

Template:!CreatureInfobox The Volatile Pine, also known as the Firecracker Pine, is a species of pine tree found uncommonly throughout forests all across Haven. Known for their dangerous sap and the explosive properties of the pinecones that they produce, the Volatile Pine is one of Haven’s most dangerous plants. Their cones and sap have been collected and used by Haven’s people for many years.

Characteristics

Appearance

The Volatile Pine stands around twenty-five meters tall, reaching the mid-size level of pine trees. Its bark is dark gray and is nearly three inches thick, protecting and containing the tree’s unstable core. Bright orange lines can be seen running along the tree’s trunk, peeking out in between gaps in the bark and giving the Volatile Pine a distinct glow. The tree’s needles are considerably thicker than the needles present in other species of pine trees, appearing more like miniature spear tips.

The cones produced by the Volatile pine also share the same glowing appearance. Male cones give off pollen that resembles smoldering embers, while female cones tend to collect the tree’s sap and store it in their centers. The female cone’s seeds are also notably more pointed than the seeds of other pinecones. It is theorized by botanists across Haven that this is so the seeds can better embed themselves in the ground.

Biology

The Volatile Pine’s sap is extremely unstable, far more than the sap of most other trees. While this sap is typically contained within the tree’s core, any outside interference, such as a woodcutter’s axe or a woodpecker, might end up setting off a chain reaction that causes the entire tree to explode. This explosion is large enough to be seen for miles around, often being the cause of many large forest fires in Haven’s history.

When the tree’s female cones collect the sap, they store it at their cores so that if the sap is triggered, the cone will explode and scatter the cone’s seeds across a wide area. Due to the dangerous nature of these cones, it is highly advisable to only get near a female cone if one is wearing heavy protective gear. The cone’s seeds, while incapable of penetrating most forms of armor, can easily pierce and embed themselves deep into soft flesh.

While Volatile Pines are capable of living for hundreds, if not thousands of years, they rarely reach this age as the tree’s explosive nature means that many of them unfortunately die a few decades after they are able to produce sap. A few of them have grown so large that they can produce gallons of sap per day given the right conditions. These trees are highly valued and are usually quickly seized by nations all over Haven.

Uses

Due to the explosive nature of the tree’s sap, the Volatile Pine has been farmed by the nations of Haven for years for its use in explosives. Once the sap is collected, it is refined into a more stable, yet still highly explosive, form before being placed into bombs and other implements. Guerrilla fighters have even been known to use the female cones themselves as makeshift grenades, filling them with more sap than normal and tossing them into enemy formations.

However, the dangerous nature of the tree means that farming the Volatile Pine requires the utmost care and precision. Trees must be planted far enough apart to prevent a chain reaction from occurring in case one of them explodes. If one isn’t careful enough, they could potentially cause an explosion large enough to create a massive crater where their farm once stood. More than one enterprising pine farmer has met their end this way.

The Volatile Pine’s sap is also edible, though it must be slowly boiled over the course of a few days in order to burn out much of the compounds that make it so explosive. The sap is commonly used as an energy booster, especially by those with busy work schedules. Militaries all over Haven also use the sap as a key ingredient in many combat stimulants, keeping soldiers in the zone for hours at a time. However, overusing these stimulants has led to more than one soldier turning into an endlessly raging berserker.

In Culture

The Volatile Pine is often seen as a symbol of restrained rage, alluding to the bark that keeps the unstable sap contained. Warmongering politicians and leaders have been given the name “pinemonger” as a nod to their famously short tempers. Some of these individuals see it as a point of pride, adopting the Volatile Pine as a part of their coat of arms. They might even keep a vial of refined sap with them at all times, comparing the explosive substance to the burning lust for battle in their veins.

The tree is also seen as a symbol of violent rebirth. While the tree might go up in flames, the cones survive and spread their seeds over a wide range. Poets have often compared the Volatile Pine to nations that have suffered mass uprising and have had to undergo mass reconstruction, the tree’s sap symbolizing a beaten down populace who have exploded with anger.

Notable Examples

TBA