Rylak
The rylak are a sentient, bipedal, wolf-like species native to the jungle planet of Eryn. Characterized by their immense strength and brutal, predatory nature, they are the dominant indigenous humanoid species of Eryn, frequently warring with dragons and enslaving the native elven populations (known as the ellr).
Biology and Appearance
Rylak are hulking and muscular, towering over humans and elves. They are covered in thick, matted brown fur and possess long, canine muzzles with razor-sharp fangs. Their limbs end in deadly fingerclaws and toeclaws, which make a distinctive rasping sound when unsheathed for combat. They emit a strong, musky odor that smells distinctly of sweat mixed with garlic, and occasionally blood.
Biologically, the rylak are hermaphroditic, meaning every individual possesses a full set of both male and female reproductive organs. When pregnant, a rylak will develop breasts to nurse their young. Despite this lack of binary sex, rylak society presents in a hyper-masculine, aggressive manner, and they are typically perceived as brutish "men" by outsiders. While many use feminine names and personas (and even feminine pronouns), the rylak don't particularly distinguish on gender the way other cultures do.
The rylak evolved from the four-legged welak wolves native to Eryn. According to the ancient records of Starmist Prime, rylak originally coexisted with humans, elves, and dragons on the homeworld, but due to their inherent viciousness and lack of advanced mitigation technology, the Creators chose to restrict them from most Seed Planets, isolating them on Eryn.
Culture and Society
Rylak society operates on a strict hierarchy defined by physical dominance and the law of the strongest. They speak a guttural language composed of barks, snarls, and growls. They hold deep superstitions about magic and greatly fear evil spirits.
Their entire social structure is governed by the unwritten Hunt Code, which dictates everything from the rights of elders in combat to the rules of challenging a packleader through hand-to-hand combat. At birth, every rylak is assigned one of four "namesake" roles that dictate their lifelong vocation:
- Huntsakes: The warriors and hunters, revered as the highest class. The absolute strongest among them form a small squad known as the "elite huntsakes".
- Leafsakes: Those tasked with gardening, exploration, and scouting.
- Moonsakes: The healers, seers, and storytellers.
- Firesakes: The lowest and most disrespected class, relegated to cooking, cleaning, and skimming bugs out of the fermented skondul liquor.
Magic
Historically, elves believed the rylak were incapable of magic. However, many rylak are naturally born with magical Talent. Furthermore, some rylak with unique genetics (such as the demisoul Jascyn) are capable of a gentle form of magic known as souljoining, allowing them to form empathetic, telepathic bonds with wild animals without breaking the creature's free will.
Key Events
The Enslavement of Cariel
Thousands of years ago, the Skallgr pack enslaved a young ellr girl named Cariel (later known as Calarel or Magona). Following a brutal assault that left her blinded, Cariel escaped into the Kalmansa Wilds, discovering her dark soulbinding magic. She used her power to soulbind a herd of massive cavek, a flock of lethal sakul birds, and jungle cats to entirely decimate Skallgr in a bloody act of revenge.
The Army of Souls
Cariel eventually utilized mindmaster magic to enslave thousands of rylak, using them as an army during the War of the Twins. Eons later, she stole millions of rylak souls from the dimension of Ambarhal, resurrecting them in physical bodies and breeding them on the Valaraldan island of Tanomar to serve as her new army. Under the leadership of the rylak Talon (Hloldr), this army eventually broke free of Cariel's mind control and fought alongside Quynn to survive an onslaught of ghostly souls in the Thesserin Desert.
The Alliance of Aldaron
During the modern era on Eryn, a half-ellr, half-rylak boy named Jascyn claimed the title of packleader of Felgr by using his souljoining magic to halt a cavek stampede. As packleader, Jascyn forged an unprecedented alliance with the hidden ellr city of Aldaron, convincing the rylak to free all their ellr slaves. Jascyn then led a united army of rylak, ellr, and thousands of souljoined jungle beasts to assault Calarel's stronghold in the Kryptan Mountains.
Notable Rylak
- Jascyn: The son of Calarel and Thrombir. Born a demisoul (half-rylak, half-ellr), he was relegated to a firesake before discovering his souljoining magic, eventually becoming the packleader of Felgr and uniting the species of Eryn.
- Talon (Hloldr): Calarel's former slavemaster in Skallgr, he was resurrected and served as the leader of the rylak army on Valaralda. He frequently used mistweaving to disguise himself as an elegant human gentleman in a suit.
- Skond: The fearsome packleader of Felgr who eventually surrenders his title to Jascyn.
- Skorn: The charismatic leader of Felgr's elite huntsakes. He mercilessly slaughtered dragon hatchlings and was ultimately killed by Jascyn to save the life of a dragon.
- Thrombir: Jascyn's father. He was seduced by Calarel years prior and frequently abused Jascyn for his perceived weakness.
- Hrildr: Lysa's cruel master in Felgr. He was shot in the head and killed by Lysa when he attempted to murder Jascyn.
- Svalya: The ancient packleader of Skallgr who killed Cariel (Calarel) and sent her soul to Ambarhal.