#seothes

So Olennya is Luyvonei (Loo-ee-von-yay) or Vonei (Von-yay). They’re a species that live in vast mines and build and invent. For a few ages, they very rarely leave the mines and are often never seen by other species except for on rare occasions. They’re basically cryptids for a long, long time.

They’re known for tinkering and being very hardy (in a later age they’re responsible for inventing plumbing and sell installations.) Since they also mine very successfully, they’re monetarily the richest species by far (though gold is useless to them and they view gems as tools rather than pretty things).

They’re feral and rough. They’re natural fighters and while they’s not quick to anger and violence (unlike other species) they’re not easy fights despite their small stature. Even their courting habits can be construed as a bit ‘barbaric’ and brutal (wrestling and biting and general ‘foreplay’ with competitions and viscous verbal barbs). Because of this ferality, they sometimes put off the other species, but overall they’re harmless and polite.

Olennya specifically struggles with this culture because she doesn’t feel right. It’s too harsh for her and she feels like a fish out of water. She’s put off by everyone’s aggression and often misinterprets people’s intentions because of it. She doesn’t navigate the difficult social cues of what threats to make to be polite and when to show obedience and submission. It’s too complicated.

Creed can shapeshift but rarely shows off the skill to avoid pissing off his ‘rival’ Sladir. (Polymorph is a very difficcult and dangerous skill in his homeworld and takes decades of studying biology of a single animal and continued studies in order to maintain the spell consistency. Creed can just Do it.) Their rivalry goes back a couple centuries and Creed has never taken it seriously, but tries to at least kind of keep the peace.

He was abandoned as a child and brought into slavery because of it. He fought his way into higher and higher positions until he earned himself freedom of his bonds and became a warrior. He proved himself time and again until he became decorated in battle, undefeated, which is almost unheard of in Volsk culture.

His ruthlessness in battle became legendary and there’s quite a few stories about him, none of which he cares to elaborate on.

He’d rather drink ale and mead and fall asleep in his drunken stupor after a long day’s work than spin a tale for random people he doesn’t care anything for. He’s a man of few words and fewer boasts. Everything he says is presented as plainly as possible and it’s earned him even a few more legends about thrashing random passerbys for seeimingly little slights.

Since Volsk is a misandrist country, he’s one of the few men who’s earned enough respect to be considered equal to his female peers. He stays quiet in meetings, seemingly respectful of his betters, and offers advice only when asked or when absolutely necessary. That being said, it doesn’t mean that the nobles particularly like sharing a table head with a slave man turned war hero.

His hands are rated E for everyone and he’s not afraid to stand up to his female peers and cow them and they don’t like him because he stands down to no one.