Zelen

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The Zelen are an unfriendly, primitive race from The Visionscape.

## Origin

Hailing from the only fertile planet in The Visionscape, the Zelen are the only intelligent race that survived when The Visionscape shifted from a pocket universe into the one it currently occupies. It is unknown why their planet was the only one not rendered barren and lifeless by the transition, and they don't care to allow others in to study it. Frank and Caeli are the only welcomed interlopers on the planet, so long as they do not stay long.

# Physical

Small and quick, the Zelen are flexible and thin, but brittle boned. Lean, bony features are common, and their bodies run cold enough that frost will form on anything they are in prolonged contact with. Their size and skinny frames make it easy for them to navigate the thick underbrush of the forests they live in, and their skin bears a silvery cast which lets them blend with the light of the twin moons. Large eyes and needle-like teeth are the two things that carry over into the alternate form they can take, which is a medium sized jackal like creature with silvery fur. They will take their canine form to hunt the large, fanged deer that are their main food source, since their bones are too brittle to safely hunt in their humanoid form.

# Culture

A cold, uncaring, and primitive race, the Zelen want nothing more than to eat and live without being bothered, and band together more out of convenience than anything else. With a taste for fanged deer, they hunt in groups, and will take the kill to a clearing where it is shared with others. Freeloading is frowned upon, and thus any Zelen who does not go on the hunt, but partakes in the kill must bring berries, roots, or small game to compensate. Children are turned out of their birth givers home as soon as they show signs of being able to fend for themselves, and old often will leave the group once they can no longer bring compensation for what they consume. Privacy is highly valued, and they sleep in individual dens and it is atypical for two Zelen to share a den. It is not unheard of however, as there is a social component to them despite their inherent coldness. With every group of Zelen (they are to disorganized to be called tribes) there is a large, cleared space on the forest floor where the catch of the day is taken and shared. They gather to socialize as well as eat, and come and go for as long as the moons shine. Scrimshaw is the only art form they have, and it also fills the place of a written language since the carvings often tell stories. Zelen gathering spaces are filled with bits of bone and fang, and the only weapon they carry is a small knife and whetstone for the purpose of scrimshaw. Otherwise with sharp jackal teeth and sure feet they need no weapons, but are adept at making snares and traps.

# The Visionscape

Being the only race to survive the transition of The Visionscape from one universe to another, they are often questioned by Caeli about the inhabitance of the other, now barren planets in the system. It is unknown why their planet alone survived, and with their lack of formal records and dislike of interlopers, they do not hold the answer. The Zelen did not like their neighbors, and since the feeling was apparently mutual there are few accounts left of who else occupied The Visionscape with them.