Shine bright, Arelians!
Nelaai is a living world - strange, quiet, and changed by the Shroud. Long ago, the planet was full of green forests and bright skies, but every two thousand years, the Shroud returns and covers the land for a hundred years. Life has learned to survive in this darkness, and it looks very different now.
The forests glow red and brown instead of green. These colors help the plants absorb what little light remains. The animals, too, have adapted. Only species that can survive the thick air and low light have survived the cycle of changes.
Among these new forms of life are the luminescent bacteria, that feed on the energy of the Shroud itself. They glow with a pale, cold light. Sometimes, when joined with fungi and spores, these bacteria can live on animals, turning fur, shells, or scales into faintly glowing patterns that drift through the fog like living constellations.
Almost all of the planet’s original species are gone, replaced by new forms adapted to live in the fog. But one kind of life still shines bright - the Trees of Light, called Ardentis. They reach hundreds of meters high and collect light inside themselves, pushing the shroud away. Their luminous sap, known as Solar, holds the power of light within it. And when the trees bloom, sometimes only once in several centuries, they bring forth a single Sunseed.
The people of Nelaai build their homes high in these trees, using their light to stay safe. Around the Ardentis, life continues.
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