Art by the always amazing and gifted @nikoschrissis.
Today, I would like to bring you some Aphelion creature lore! In particular, I'd like to introduce the Ein and their Einlings, a Reaper sub-species that inhabits Aphelion's verse.
Check them out here or have a look over on Campfire Explore.
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Reaper Lore: Ein and their Einlings
Ein are creatures the size of a donkey.
They are slow and sluggish and will mind their own business as they wander, almost as if the world around them isn’t of any consequence, to the point where there’s a good chance you’ll see one walking into a wall – only to do it again, hoping the wall had moved.
And that is how they spend their lives. Passive. Quiet. Noses to the ground, grazing.
And a back full of Einlings.
They host up to twenty of those small, exceptionally active and playful creatures and carry them to wherever they need to be. Which, usually, means buildings. The small Einlings fit perfectly into the inner workings of structures both old and new alike, where they repair anything from wiring to more complex machinery. To achieve that task they often hoard wire and scrap to bring back to their Ein for keeping and to reuse later. Which often ends with their Ein covered in wires and electric scrap braided into its fur like makeshift armour.
Incidentally, Einlings are also known as mischievous thieves, picking up anything small that isn’t nailed down and even remotely useful (or just shiny enough).
Einlings do not fare well without their Ein and their flock. While it is possible to keep them separate, an Einling without its group is always at risk of falling into inertia.
Ein and Einglings are relatively common in the settled systems, even beyond Trero's reach. A hatchery exists somewhere within reach and dragons will deliver new flocks on occasion.
