Tales From Wires and Winds

"The Gift of Eurus"

Stele found in Vagor Islands, made in the Pre-Pact era, depicting the Rite of Binding between an unknown Traveler and the divinity Eurus.

Like any depiction of a Traveler, the stele has been defaced, and part of it destroyed to remove the face and name of the incarnation.

Ruin Firefly - The lost traveler guide

Ruin fireflies are quite mysterious creatures. Mostly heard of in legends and tales, few people get to see one for themselves. Even among veteran explorers, their sight is rare, and seen as an omen of good luck, as they are mostly found around old Travelers ruins, giving them their name.

Even as they are rare on land, they can also be found in the ocean and sea, where they follow the few leviathans that make it through the wall of winds. Sailors see them as warning or bad omen in consequences.

Those small critters are found now mostly in secluded place, even if tales of their population being much larger in the past. Their number has dwindled with time, a large number being captured for study or zoos, and eventually lost because of accident, experimentation, or accidental predation (they seem to have no natural predator, but may be mistaken by some animals for insects and hunted as such, but never consumed ). Yet, both in captivity and in the wild, no reproduction has been observed.

They seem to possess an unlimited lifespan, and requires little to no energy input. They are extremophiles, being found across the Broken Sea regardless of temperature or toxicity.

Extensive study of their bodies revealed some small metallic structure in their main body. It is theorized they could be a form of artificial organism, created by the Travelers. If that's the case, it would mean that all specimens still living pre-date the disappearance of the Travelers, and may no longer be recreated. Their purpose is unknown, but they seem to possess a form of stylet, not used for predation, but have been theorized to be used for a form of transmission, or sampling.

Mosskat

Mosskats are tiny feline that live in symbiotic relationship with plants. They form communal nest in a tree, up to 15 individuals, protecting it from insects and parasites , and getting protection and shelter in exchange from it.

They get energy entirely from the photosynthesis of their fur, that grow all their lives. The composition of their fur changes depending of which region they are born in. They gain spore at birth from their mother, who provide a part of her own energy to nurture them while their own fur grows. Because of this, mosskats without fur cannot survive.

Their face is composed of a hard keratin mask. They have no external mouth, but small holes provides smells, and the structure of the mask let them produce resonating sounds, like purring.

Mosskats don't have many predators, being hard to kill and digest, and often forming bonds with toxic plants. Because of this, they are quite curious by nature, and many population take their presence as a blessing, as they protect crops, and are pretty charming companions. They make a good indication of the health of a forest.

There are been many attempts from people to keep mosskats as pets, but they are difficult to satisfy outside of forest, and need to live in groups of at the very least 5.

The particular nature of mosskat symbiosis also creates unique variety of plants, that can be used for rare dye, poison, or medicine, making them more prey to poachers in the recent years. Their small mask are also popular objects of curiosity, especially in the far region of Nukira, where they are unable to survive the cold.

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Canopy Talrashan

Talrashan are medium-sized ambush predator, native to the jungle of Daavos Ravan.

They hunt by waiting in high branches, and dropping on prey from above, dealing a killing blow to the spine. This way, they can hunt much bigger prey than them.

Their modified ankles can lock in a flexed position, letting them hang upside down for hours. They have heat pits along their jaws to detect the heat of prey underneath.

Talrashan are social animals living in small groups, from 5 to 10 members, composed of one leading female, her mates and close relatives, and her pups. They make nest in hard to reach places, sometimes taking over abandonned nest of bigger predators.

Talrashan exist in two main locality.

Canopy Talrashan are smaller, and lives in upper grounds of the jungle.

Veiled Talrashan are bigger, and more aggressive, lives closer to the ground.

Both can mate with each others, but it is much more common for Veiled Talrashan to kill their smaller counterpart instead.

Canopy Talrashan, with their social nature and smaller size, have been used as hunting companions by Aslaveni since the dawn of time. If it was , and still is, a feat for someone to tame a wild talrashan, thei domestication created breeds more suited for nomadic lifestyle with humanoids.

They make loyal companion, very attached to their handlers, but it is recommended to wear leather shoulder pads if you have one, as they tend to jump on their handlers from high grounds, as a form of play.

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