The Immortal Naturalist's Guide to Cryptic Creatures: The Gardener Beast

This post is part of the Immortal Naturalist's Guide series. The explanation for that series can be found in this post.

    One of the strangest creatures of the Flatwood is the Gardener Beast, an eight foot-tall creature that spends his days caring for the plants of the forest. The Gardener Beast tends to avoid people and other animals, preferring the company of plants in the densest parts of the forest. The only times that the Gardener Beast seeks out other animals is when he is hungry, as he only ever eats meat. Plants are apparently off-limits for food, and the Gardener Beast seems to even target creatures that it sees eating plants. Using his sharp, spade-like claws and pointy horns, the creature is a formidable foe to those it hunts. While local legends speak of him, very few people have ever actually seen him and lived to tell the tale. These legends also say that he is responsible for tending all of the plants of the Flatwood, and that he keeps no permanent lair or nest because his task keeps him moving all the time.

    I observed the Gardener Beast only a few times after a year of study, but it leaves a distinct trail if one knows what to look for. The Gardener Beast causes seeds to sprout and plants to grow larger just by being near them, so I was able to find him by following the trail of young plants and thick growth that he leaves. This ability, of course, also helps keep him hidden from anyone who wishes to hurt him. When he does go hunting, the Gardener Beast also uses this ability help trap his prey. Apparently as a consequence of his love for plants, the creature seems hesitant to attack anything that uses a living plant as a shield. The few times I gained his notice, I was able to use this to distract the Gardener Beast long enough to get away.

    Although he is generally hostile to other animals, I cannot help but feel like the Gardener Beast could be made useful to others. If he could be convinced to spend time in fields of crops, or if people could bring the seeds of difficult to grow plants to him, the Gardener Beast's magical effect could do a lot of good. The issue is that I have no idea how one would convince this creature to help out people, given its diet and attitudes towards plant consumption. If his prejudices could be overcome, the Gardener Beast could be an incredible ally.