Entity TH-12 - "Leafless Ice"

Entity Number: TH-12	Danger: 0
Habitat: Hot environments	Intelligence: E-

General Appearance

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Two Leafless Ice photographed by a B.C.G. Agent.

Entity TH-12 is called "Leafless Ice." It is a type of entity classified under flora. They have an appearance resembling an inverted icicle, and they are usually found clustered together.

Although they cannot be fully called plants¹ due to the simple structure of Entity TH-12, which has no leaves, branches, or roots. They are composed of a substance with aqueous molecules that spiral upward from the base in a helix shape before solidifying into ice. At the tip, one or two sharp spines protrude. The surface of Leafless Ice is so transparent that it can be seen through, with condensation droplets forming due to the cold surrounding temperature, clinging to its stalks.

Biology

The stem has an outer layer made of a spiral shell of ice, and inside is a semi-solid core² made of the same substance before it solidifies. A portion of the stem extends beneath the surface where it grows, expanding downward at the same rate as it grows upward. Through this method, Leafless Ice are capable of growing on nearly any material, such as rock, soil, sand, and even artificial substances like concrete.

Leafless Ice has the property of absorbing heat and releasing cold temperatures ranging from 0 to -5°C in return. They often grow in environments with high heat, leading to the assumption that they absorb nutrients through this process. This discovery was initially overlooked until an uncontrolled cultivation outbreak occurred, turning Entity TH-12 into a growing threat.³

The water-like substance that makes up Entity TH-12 has a faintly sweet taste. While this substance is not harmful for consumption, it contains little nutritional value.⁴ In contrast, its produce is quite different. Entity TH-12 has the ability to bear fruit, known as "Frozen Fruits", which possesses a more intense sweetness than the stem and offers significantly greater nutritional value. As a result, Leafless Ice are cultivated for their fruit by various groups. For further details, refer to the Control Method.

Reproduction

Leafless Ice relies on other living beings to spread the seeds of their Frozen Fruits, whether through humans or via certain phenomena in the Backrooms that cause their seeds to spread in some form. As for the seeding method, once the fruit is thrown to the ground or left to melt somewhere,⁵ the seed will slowly begin to grow on its own. This entity's growth rate is considered rapid; the seed takes only two weeks to fully develop into a complete Entity TH-12.

As for fruiting, it takes only one month. Around 10–15 fruits gradually appear along the stem of Entity TH-12. It’s assumed that the Leafless Ice channels sweetness into its fruiting areas while concentrating cold in those regions. Apart from humans, most entities show little interest in the fruits.

Behaviour

Leafless Ice remains still and passive, doing nothing except growing and bearing fruit periodically. They are virtually harmless to anything around them; more often, they are acted upon by other lifeforms. Entity TH-12 shows no particular traits that would classify it as dangerous—except when planted densely in crowded clusters.

Update 01/04/2017: Interestingly, when Signalweed is in close proximity to a Leafless Ice, Signalweed will shift its roots toward the entity, though without displaying any aggressive behavior. Further study has shown that Signalweed absorbs nutrients from the Leafless Ice, while also assisting its propagation, by shaking and knocking Frozen Fruits away from the stem using controlled root movement. It is unclear when this interaction between the two entities began, but it is considered a significant discovery regarding the ecosystem of Cluster TH of the Backrooms.

Control Method

Originally, Entity TH-12 did not require control. However, Leafless Ice was secretly cultivated within habitable levels, and their strain was modified to the point of uncontrolled propagation. As a result, levels once suitable for habitation have since undergone environmental changes:

"Erosion" Incident

Level TH-38 was once among the most ecologically advanced and densely colonized levels. That changed when Frozen Fruits was introduced by travelers and local groups, including the Association of Conspiring Traders, for the purpose of cultivating Leafless Ice farms, driven by increasing demand for Frozen Fruits and growing transport difficulties at the time.

There had been repeated criticism and even public votes to ban the practice by local residents, but these warnings were ignored. Unregulated cultivation and uncontrolled genetic modification of Leafless Ice across various areas of the level caused temperatures to fall below freezing. Gradually, Level TH-38 became frozen over and was environmentally transformed.

Further information and detailed records can be found on the Level TH-38 page.

Following this incident, raids were conducted to halt the cultivation of Leafless Ice across multiple levels, some of which were already nearing the same frozen state as Level TH-38. The Backrooms Conservation Group, which had previously managed the situation, established the following joint measures with the Association of Conspiring Traders to regulate all Leafless Ice farming operations:

Must submit a formal request for entity cultivation approval.

Planting Leafless Ice without authorization is strictly forbidden

Don't throw or scatter Frozen Fruit found within Level TH-38.

Report to major groups immediately upon sighting large numbers of Leafless Ice.

Discovery

Entity TH-12 was discovered during the early years of exploration in Cluster TH. At first, it was mistaken for a strange structure that produced snowballs⁶. It wasn’t until the formation of the Backrooms Conservation Group and the renewed study of the Cluster TH that Leafless Ice was properly identified and researched.