They are immobile mobs Provenance Watcher summons after casting a spell.
The element of the spawned Crystal Fetter is denoted by its color and the same as the element of the spell that Provenance Watcher casts prior to its spawn.
Each Crystal Fetter has an aura of two debuffs associated with its element:
Damage taken by Provenance Watcher is drastically cut until these are defeated. (Damage reduced by ~99% with three present, ~80% with two present, and ~50% with one present.)
Each Crystal Fetter can only be damaged by either physical or magical damage:
Ice, Earth, Water, and Darkness Crystal Fetters can only be affected by physical damage.
Light, Fire, Wind, and Thunder Crystal Fetters can only be affected by magical damage.