Moon Linen

Once I acted as the bodyguard of a very wealthy merchant and his young wife as they attended a ball in the garden of a nobles mansion. When we first arrived there I thought it strange that all these wealthy people, including my employers, were wearing such drab and colorless clothes. Then the clouds parted and the Eye's light shone down on the garden. Suddenly you could see through the clothes of every guest there, leaving very little to the imagination in some cases. I kept a very close eye on the merchant's wife for the rest of the night.

— from "Memories of a Caravan Guard" by Clais Hiltprandt

Properties

Material Characteristics

Moon linen looks like normal linen except it is typically a drab grey color. Even when dyed the resulting cloth has a subdued color. The cloth is strong and durable but still light and pleasant to wear in warm weather.

Origin & Source

Moon linen is created from the Ghost Flax plant. Normal cloth created from Ghost Flax is called grey linen has a dull grey color even in the brightest light and very difficult to dye. If treated in a special process involving rare ingredients the cloth takes on some of the properties of the plant from which it is named; in the light from The Father's Eye the cloth will become almost transparent. If the cloth is dyed everything seen through it will take on the hue of the cloth, while undyed moon linen imparts no color.

History & Usage

Discovery

The process of creating moon linen from regular grey linen was known only to the minotaur and centaur tribes living on the Sunblessed Plains. When the Graslendi Empire moved in to occupy the plains in 54 GE several groups of scholars made contact with the 'taur tribes. Many of the important 'taurs they met had clothes where parts became transparent in moonlight and after lengthy negotiations they were taught the secret of moon linen. From there the secret spread to many areas of the Empire and today it is possible to find at least one tailor in any larger city who knows how to make it.

Cultural Significance and Usage

The minotaur and centaur people regard moon linen as important and reserve it for use by their leaders, both spiritual and worldly. They craft ceremonial outfit that incorporate the cloth in ways that expose certain features of the wearer, such as a tattoo or a scar, when viewed in moonlight. The uses the other cultures of the imperial continent have found for it mostly just baffles them.

Moon Parties

When the secret to crafting moon linen was first acquired the cloth quickly became fashionable among nobles in the capital and other large cities. Both men and women had clothing made partly or wholly from it, in various colors, and delighted in the near scandalous episodes that arose when they stood in moonlight appeared all but naked. This craze gave rise to moon parties that were held whenever The Father's Eye was full. Most took place on lavish outdoor garden terraces, but some noble went as far as having large mirrors installed around their ball rooms that could direct the moonlight inside and create spotlights were guests could show off. Rumors even told that a noble had devised a way to generate artificial moonlight. The trend lasted several years before the nobles became bored with it. Moon linen is still used in nobles clothing from time to time and every once in a while a noble or wealthy merchant will decide to hold a moon party.

Variants

Recent rumors state that a variation of moon linen has been discovered that has been named gem linen. Using different materials, that include crushed gemstones, grey linen can be treated so that it instead reacts to the light from the Sister. When exposed to this light the cloth will also become transparent, although less than moon linen. In addition, the cloth will gain a slight glow and sparkle reminiscent of light through a gemstone. Many nobles are scrambling to find out if this rumor is true and, if so, where they can buy this new cloth.

Type

Textile

Rarity

Uncommon in large cities, very rare outside them.

Related plant

Ghost Flax