Skychildren

Depiction of a Skychild

## Subspecies

* *Unclassified*
* *Unclassified*

Inhabited area (green)

The Skychildren are a race of crystalline golems whose colors naturally range from blue to green tints, that live in the central mountains of the island of Laeth. Their skin is often partially made of earth or rock parts, but in all cases, these are superficial; researchers aren't sure if these are actually part of the being or rather parts that they add onto themselves.

## Origins

The Skychildren are a relatively new species in the island of Laeth; although stories of them are frequent, none of them can be traced back further than the VIIth century, becoming actually popular only around the XIIth century. The popular Laethian folklore says that they were originally fallen fragments of the Comet of Llemyr (which is where they take their name from), but their actual origin is probably the failed experiment of the Deimus Aelle in the year 559AS: what is considered the first Skychild in history was artificially created and animated by the arcane sages, who immediately lost its control and were unable to stop it from escaping into the forest. Although the specifics are unknown, if this theory about their origin is correct, it's clear that the original Skychild was somehow able to reproduce despite its creators making no attempts at giving it that ability.

## Biology & Ecology

### Physical Characteristics

The physical characteristics of the Skychildren have not been studied deeper than at surface level, since no individual has been able to be captured, despite a few unsuccessful attempts lead by the Deimus Aelle. The only known information on them is that they seem to feed on magical energies, or at least passively absorb it, since elven magical users in multiple independent situations have reported that their spells were either significantly less powerful in their presence or simply didn't work at all.

Even though Skychildren are easily recognizable as members of the same species due to the uniqueness of their physical characteristics, they are all quite different from one another: they all share the same general humanoid structure, but the crystalline patterns of their build and their superficial appearance are considered as unique in each individual.

### Behavior

They are not known to interact much with other living beings, spending most of their time wandering aimlessly in the Laethian forests neither disturbing nor being disturbed. Other animals seem to ignore them instinctually, as if they knew naturally that they pose no threat to them; particularly big Skychildren have even been reported to host small nests on their heads, although this could very well be the product of folk tales and myths.

### Reproduction & Life Cycle

It is currently unknown how the Skychildren reproduce or how long they live for; their appearances are rare, and while attempts to track a few individuals have been made by trying to record their crystalline patterns, they have all been unsuccessful due to their unexpected skill at camouflaging in their native forests. No corpse or physical remains have been found either, which ponders the question if they are taken by other Skychildren at death or if they even die at all.

### Habitat

The Skychildren are known to mainly inhabit the western slopes of the central mountains, although they have also been sighted all around the mountain chain. They always limit their presence to the forests, rarely leaving the protection of the trees, where they easily disappear between the vegetation despite their huge size.

### Predation & Competition

There are no known prey or hunter of the Skychildren, as they act more as features of the landscape than as actual animals.