Created by Evening Winterrose, Elf-shot is a weapon used by the Fae to send each other into a hundred-year sleep. It is fatal to changelings and mortals.
Effects[]
In its purest form elf-shot only causes sleep. However, it can be modified to cause a number of side effects. These include unsatisfying dreams, nightmares or even the slow poisoning and death of the sleeper. It can also conceal other potions[1], keeping them from being detected or taking effect until after the elf-shot has run its course. Under the influence of elf-shot, sleepers don't need food or water and don't move.
Changelings on the other hand die from elf-shot. Elf-shot is programmed to preserve anything fae within the victim's blood, if it however finds any trace of humanity, it will rip through the body, causing an excruciatingly painful experience for the changeling, merlin or human in question. Toby was able to survive both times she was shot because of Amandine's interference, and her magic unconsciously trying to shift the elf-shot out of her system long enough for Walther to cure her, although now she has become Fae enough to survive even elf-shot strengthened by Evening's blood.
The only known fae immune to elf-shot are night-haunts. However, they lose that immunity once - and if - they become Fetches.
History[]
At Oberon's request, elf-shot was created by Evening from an enchanted rose whose components mirrored her magical signature very closely. Ceres highlighted that the rose was sturdy enough to survive despite it's near-dead state, alluding to Evening's parlour trick of "playing Snow White".[2]
Although it wasn't meant to be fatal towards changelings and humans, Evening deliberately concocted elf-shot to be. The reason for this is because Evening saw changelings as worthless and decided to make elf-shot fatal because of her hatred of them, angered at how humanity had tainted Faerie through their bloodlines and even made the death from elf-shot slow and painful. The Luidaeg confirmed this. However, Evening had a tiny bit of empathy and understood that a changeling no one means to kill would wind up in the crossfire, and made elf-shot's deadly effects slow until either a hope chest or Amandine can be accessed.
Countercharm[]
Using the same rose that Evening used to formulate elf-shot, a cure for elf-shot was reverse-engineered by Walther Davies, and approved for distribution by High King Aethlin Sollys after convening a conclave of local monarchs to discuss its fate. The application process is simple, the sleeper would have to ingest the cure orally, and the magic of the cure would automatically repress the gag reflex, allowing the sleeper to swallow the cure reflexively. Once the cure was ingested, any traces of elf-shot would be immediately eradicated from the body.
The cure in it's initial forms was unstable - even witchlight was able to interfere with the alchemical process of formulating the doses.[3] Subjecting it to cold temperatures, such as the Shadow Roads, was able to stabilise the cure.[4] By the time Rayseline was awakened, the current iteration of the cure had been refined enough to remain stable in room temperatures.[5]
The cure is unable to treat humans however at its present state.
Consequences of the Countercharm[]
While the cure is approved, as the monarchy of Golden Shore have highlighted, elf-shot is more lethal as purebloods during war will be more prone to using the weapon with disregard to the changelings in the crossfire, a reality that both Toby and Maida are afraid of.
Walther is unsure of how many times the elf-shot cure can be safely given to those who have been given the cure in semi-regular doses.[6]
Elf-shot can also be strengthened by the magic in Evening's blood, making it much more potent by prolonging the length of time for sleep and in instances, interrupting the breathing of its victim as seen in May and potentially causing brain damage. The blood of a Firstborn has to burn out the magic before the cure can be applied.[7]
Pixie magic can interfere with the elf-shot cure if it is still in the system of the Fae who consumed it, so the magic will put the body into sleep to protect the Fae from any internal damage until it is purged out. The Luidaeg is unsure whether or not the former protections of elf-shot would remain however, leaving the sleeper at risk.[8]
Although the cure can eradicate elf-shot, any potion laced within the dose will be left untouched, such as the secret sleeping potion that lied dormant within Nolan Windermere.[9]