Ele Masks

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Ele masks are a piece of clothing central to the culture of the Ele Metanation. Every member of the Metanation wears a mask, and no Ele has been seen unmasked outside the Ele Dominion. 'Visitors' to the Dominion are expected to wear a mask from the moment they set foot on Ele soil. Abstract thinking is encouraged in the selection of an appropriate mask.

It is widely understood that the Ele species were originally responsible for developing the practice of crafting and wearing these masks. It is nowadays considered rude to ask an Ele about their true identity under their mask, as all wearers are "of the Ele". This naturally makes polling the demographics of the Metanation very difficult.

Ele masks are made from a seamless, opaque and polished material resembling black glass. Each one is created using a tool known as a glass shaper. Ele masks are often decorated with motifs depicting the branches, leaves and flowers of the nere tree, however these decorations don't appear to carry any symbolic meaning beyond just beauty.

There are five different forms of Ele mask, each symbolising a being's talents or societal role, and each of the five types has a different shape:

* The **Artisan** mask is abstract and asymmetrical in shape. Those who wear this mask create art and shape culture in all its forms.
* The **Builder** mask has a square jaw and brow. Those who wear this mask carry out the production of everything from starships to food.
* The **Conductor** mask is streamlined and has few features. Those who wear this mask are responsible for administration and governance processes.
* The **Speaker** mask most closely resembles a human face, uncannily so. Those who wear this mask represent the Ele in diplomacy.
* The **Warrior** mask resembles a skull, intentionally designed to look intimidating. Those who wear this mask defend the territory of the Ele Dominion from any threat.

Each one of these masks is represented by a member of the Ele Congregate, the nominal government of the Dominion in large-scale and interstellar matters. Each individual in the Congregate is expected to bring to deliberations the perspective dictated by the mask they wear.

As the Ele ambassador to the Trifold Union, El-Deen wore a mask at every event held at the Threshold of the Ninth Plane on Andar Prime, along with his violet ambassadorial robes. He also wore his mask when meeting with Endelle Stroth, the fugitive ex-Curator of the Aglostarros University Museum, and the bounty hunter Tren Krellos aboard the 'Arrowhead' starship. However, El-Deen removed his mask during their first meeting as a sign that he meant them no harm, revealing himself to be human.

Upon setting foot on El-Kera, El-Deen instructed Stroth to choose her own mask, explaining that it would feel more natural to wear over time. Stroth believed that everyone she had known before would characterise her as a Conductor, because of her past as the AUM Curator. However, she instinctively chose the Warrior mask instead, a move which appeared to please El-Deen.

Meanwhile, Tren Krellos - taking the name El-Krellos - took up the Builder mask. He struggled to adjust to wearing the boxy mask, and when he attempted to remove it while tending to nere trees, he experienced a strange 'creeping' sensation at the edges of his vision which caused him distress. El-Krellos' discomfort was alleviated by replacing the mask. It is unknown whether this sensation is common to every Ele who removes their mask, or specific to El-Krellos.