Joyous Vines
Domains: Weaving, Connection, Endurance, Elysium
Of all those daemons summoned by the cult of the Virulent Maiden, few are more insidious or horrific than the Devouring Vines. Though harmless in appearance and lacking any ability to fight for themselves, these monstrosities offer those of the Maiden a bargain: to bond with the Vine for the rest of their mortal life, and in exchange the daemon shall devour their immortal soul upon their death. Needless to say, far too many are willing to submit themselves to this deal, for the cursed boons the Vine bestows upon its host are great and many-fold. Those who have damned themselves thusly....
-Ordo Malleus Report
The Joyous Vines are an extremely unusual species of daemon, in that they lack any true offensive or defensive capabilities of their own. In fact, by themselves they are barely even capable of movement, their thin and flexible root-legs only just able to support the weight of their two-foot tall body. This is because, unlike most daemons, the Joyous Vine is a symbiote that requires a human host to unlock its potential.
When one of the faithful of the Verdant Maiden approaches a Joyous Vine, the Vine will straighten as best it can and begin waving its leaf-limbs to attract attention. Once the cultist notices the Vine, it transmits them an offer: become their friend and carry them, and Vine will protect them and grant them health. This deal and all its implications are instinctively understood by the faithful, for the Maiden will brook no miscommunication, and the cultist is free to accept or decline without penalty.
Should the cultist decline, the Vine will collapse in on itself and begin sobbing until another of the Maiden's faithful catches its attention. Should the cultist accept, however, then the Vine will climb onto their back and merge its body with them. This leaves what appears to be a tattoo of the Vine's body stretching up the cultist's upper spine, with its leaf-arms covering their shoulder blades and root-legs spreading across their lower ribs. The head of the Vine, meanwhile, does not merge with cultist's body and will instead typically rest upon their shoulders, humming to itself in quiet contentment.
Upon bonding with a Joyous Vine, the cultist immediately feels a surge of energy as the Vine begins feeding them its own power. This allows the cultist to become almost tireless, while also boosting their strength, speed, and general physical toughness. This rush also frequently has the side effect of inducing irrepressible good cheer and enthusiasm in the Vine's host. The Vine also provides the cultist with a minor connection to the Verdant Maiden- not one strong enough to accomplish anything practical, but enough that they will instinctively know if the Maiden would approve or disapprove of their intentions and actions. Lastly, as the final immediate benefit, if their host is threatened the Vine will panic and temporarily coat both their skins with a flexible bark-like substance that greatly resists physical impacts without impacting flexibility.
In the longer term, more benefits also begin to emerge; as it adapts to its host, the Vine learns their biology and begins to tend to their health. This results in a slowly but steadily increasing improvement to how rapidly their wounds heal, which at its peak allows all but the most grievous of injuries to be recovered from in moments, and their ageing slowing until it finally stops altogether. During this process, the Vine also gradually resculpts their host's body based on their desires. This cannot cause major biological shifts, but adjustments to height, muscle mass and distribution, facial features, loss or addition of fat, hair and eye colour shifts, and similar are well within its power.
The final gift of the Joyous Vine, however, only manifests once their host dies. When this happens, be it through natural causes or misadventure, the Vine will emit a cry of pure anguish before vanishing from the material world to safeguard its former host's soul. Though weak in the physical world, in the realm of souls Vines are no less potent than any other daemon- and they defend their charge's soul against all that would seek to steal or devour it with a ferocity and desperation that defies all reason. Only once their host's soul has been delivered safely to the Joyous Maiden will they relax- but even then, they will not abandon their charge, and will remain with them in the Maiden eternally as a companion and final guardian.
Once a Joyous Vine has bonded with a cultist, it will only leave them if they renounce the Verdant Maiden or they perform a deed that the Maiden would be truly horrified by. If this happens the Vine will immediately begin sobbing, detach from their host, and flee in fear. During this time the cultist will feel the Joyous Vine's heartbreak at being rejected, which is intense enough to leave all but the most hardened individuals an emotional wreck.
Should the head of the Joyous Vine be destroyed while it is bonded to a host, it will not kill the Vine. Instead, the cultist will lose all the benefits the Vine normally provides (save for the protection of their soul) for several minutes while it regenerates.
In terms of personality, Joyous Vines are perhaps best compared to a friendly dog. They are simplistic in thought, communicating with their host only in basic images and feelings, and are completely unconcerned with the outside world save for where it will impact their host's happiness.
